Monday was another special edition of Raw that really didn’t feel all that special. We had the annual Slammy Awards and they really didn’t feel like they meant anything this time around. Other than that it was the go home show for TLC, meaning it’s time for Big Show vs. Cena. Again. Let’s get to it.

I already wrote a full column on the awards themselves so I’ll skip over talking about them here.

Seth Green was the guest host and was fine in the role. Well as fine as a totally unnecessary guest host can be on this show.

The Stooges helped Rollins beat Ziggler. This was one of those little things that help me get through a match, as Ziggler didn’t do a clean job. You know, meaning he’s not Rollins or Harper against Ryback but that’s another story for later in the week. The match was nothing special due to time constraints.

Kofi beat Stardust in another nothing match. New Day is growing on me and a win over the Dusts on Sunday’s pre-show should help things out a good bit.

We got an interesting exchange between Heyman and Rollins with Paul trying to fire Seth up before his tables match on Sunday. I like that little hint that Heyman and Lesnar are scared of Cena as it plays up the continuity of Cena having Lesnar beaten in their last match. Actually this is the kind of thing that makes the rest of the show so frustrating: they’re clearly capable of having a well thought out story like this but it gets weighed down by so many other things that it’s almost impossible to get through the rest of the show.

Charlotte debuted and got pinned by Natalya in two and a half minutes. My guess is WWE thinks the fans aren’t going to remember this in a few months when Charlotte shows up again. This would be the opposite of what I saw in the previous segment: instead of thinking their way through a well done story with good continuity, they’re basically saying “eh screw it. No one is going to care.” It’s a problem that could be solved so easily: either don’t have Charlotte appear here, have her appear with some other NXT girl, or have her win. Seriously you couldn’t put her out there against Rosa?

Bray came out and explained that the rocking chair used to belong to Abigail and that he first saw her sitting in it. I love the little bits we get of Bray’s backstory but most of it is left to our own imaginations, which is how something like that should be. Dean returned (did he ever actually leave?) and had another great moment by returning in an ambulance, complete with smoke coming out of the back. They had a big brawl and Bray ran off with Dean laying on the table, begging him to come back. It’s an awesome visual, but it makes me wonder what the point was in having Dean do a stretcher job when they’re just going to ignore it like three days later. Again with the continuity issues.

Cena promised to put Rollins through a table in serious mode.

Harper and Rowan had a very quick brawl ending in a DQ. Again, save that big match for a PPV showdown like you should. Doing something like this was fine though because it didn’t matter and didn’t end in a fall. Then again this was Harper vs. Rowan so WWE actually cares about them, unlike Charlotte.

Naomi is going to Hollywood for an audition but Jimmy is worried about Miz. This makes Naomi think he doesn’t trust her as this story continues to be one of the best done things they have going on right now.

The Russians admitted they hurt Zeb, drawing out Swagger to try and break Rusev’s ankle. This ends how you would expect it to.

Ryback/the Usos beat Miz/Mizdow/Kane with Ryback pinning Miz, BECAUSE WE CAN’T FREAKING PIN KANE AND A CHAMPION HAS TO DO A FREAKING JOB! More on this on Smackdown.

AJ made Summer tap to the Black Widow in yet another nothing match.

The Stooges still won’t let Big Show do a job as they ran in to give Cena the DQ win. Again, we can job a champion on Raw (and another on Smackdown) but Big Show has to be protected. This is the most perplexing thing going on in WWE at the moment and I really do not understand it.

The show ended with the Survivor Series teams brawling and Cena going through a table. I couldn’t remember this ending earlier today when I was watching Smackdown because it’s so similar to the endings we’ve seen in the last few weeks. That’s a really bad sign.

Overall Raw was the exact same thing we’ve seen for weeks but with an awards ceremony going on in the background. WWE is really needing something to freshen things up at the moment and it’s getting harder and harder to sit through these shows. You’ll occasionally get a flash of good but it gets dragged right back down into the same drek that we’ve been sitting through for months with one idea being repeated for months and long promos that set up another Cena vs. Lesnar match that people don’t care to see.

Between that and Kane/Big Show not being allowed to job but champions or young stars losing almost every week, it’s really hard to get behind something in WWE. That’s what NXT is for I guess, which continues to be by far and away more entertaining because they don’t try to do so many other things besides just have a wrestling show.

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and pick up my new book on the History of the Royal Rumble at Amazon for just $3.99 at:

http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00PZ1GR7E

And check out my Amazon author page with wrestling books for under $4 at:

http://www.amazon.com/Thomas-Hall/e/B00E6282W6

Finally, I’m holding a Holiday Special for my e-books: any two of them for just $5.  Check out the details here.

http://kbwrestlingreviews.com/2014/11/28/holiday-sale/

Monday Night Raw
Date: December 8, 2014
Location: Bon Secours Wellness Arena, Greenville, South Carolina
Commentators: Michael Cole, John Bradshaw Layfield, Jerry Lawler

It’s the Slammys! These shows used to be a highlight of the year but now they’re just there as a background for a usually boring show. However, there’s usually a good ending to these shows but with tonight being the go home show for Sunday’s TLC show, it’s hard to say how big of a surprise we’re going to get. Let’s get to it.

We start with a Tonight On Raw preview, focusing on Cena vs. Big Show in the main event.

Jerry Lawler brings out Seth Green to host the show. Seth says this is our awards show and you can vote for the winners of the awards on the WWE App. Miz and Mizdow cut him off though (minus the belts). The amusing thing here is that Green is 5’4 so they TOWER over him. Miz gives a pitch about being the A-lister Seth needs, but Green says Mizdow is the real A-lister. Mizdow smiles but Miz cuts him off, only to have Damien do a “call me” sign behind Miz’s back. Anyway they’re here for the THIS IS AWESOME Award. The nominees:

Occupy Raw

Stephanie McMahon getting arrested for slapping Brie

The Authority being eliminated/Sting debuting

Steve Austin, The Rock and Hulk Hogan opening Wrestlemania

We’ll get the winner after the first match.

Dolph Ziggler vs. Seth Rollins

Ziggler backdrops him to the floor and we take a break thirty seconds in. Back with Rollins in control and driving a knee into Dolph’s ribs. We hit the chinlock for a bit before Dolph sends him face first into the buckle to get a breather. The Stinger Splash and elbow drop get two but Seth blocks the running DDT. Ziggler counters the buckle bomb into a sunset flip and now the running DDT is good for two. Back up and they head to the corner with Ziggler shrugging Dolph down, only to have the Stooges shove him off, setting up the Curb Stomp for the pin at 7:20.

Rating: C. They didn’t have time to do anything but at least Ziggler didn’t lose clean. I can live with a heel cheating to win and beating a hot star, evne though he’s going into an Intercontinental Title shot this coming Sunday. Why would we need to keep Ziggler strong for something like that?

Sting debuting wins the THIS IS AWESOME Award. Of course Sting isn’t here so Seth is going to accept on his behalf, but Seth comes up and takes the trophy because Sting is responsible for the Authority being gone and Seth deserves it.

Here are some Slammys awarded on the pre-show:

Insult of the Year – Rock insulting Lana and Rusev

Tag Team of the Year – Usos

Breakout Star of the Year – Dean Ambrose

Hashtag of the Year – RKOOUTTANOWHERE

Fan Participation – YOU SOLD OUT to Seth Rollins

Kofi Kingston vs. Stardust

Stardust takes Kofi down to start and steps on his chest before the referee breaks it up in the ropes. A chinlock goes as far as you would expect it to and Kofi fights up with a hurricanrana. Some dropkicks put Starudust down and the NEW DAY Drop (no more Boom) sets up a running knee in the corner. A high cross body is enough to pin Stardust at 2:58.

Johnny Ace is presenting Surprise Return of the Year. After suggesting the People Power replace the Authority, here are the nominees:

Hulk Hogan

Batista

The Rock

Ultimate Warrior

Winner announced after How To Download The App and a break. After we’re back, Ultimate Warrior wins.

Rollins is in the back with the Stooges when the run into Paul Heyman. Seth sends the Stooges away so he can talk to Heyman about the tables match. He thinks he might be next in line to face the Beast after he beats Cena, but promises that his cash-in will come when Lesnar and Heyman least expect it. Heyman is fine with that, but his client might as well be champion for life. However, that doesn’t stop Rollins from being the future. John Cena is standing in his way, so if Rollins wants to be the future, he needs to make sure that Cena is stuck in the past. Rollins seems to like the idea.

Video on NXT Women’s Champion Charlotte.

Charlotte vs. Natalya

Non-title of course. We get a WOO to start and Charlotte drives knees into the ribs to start. She stomps Natalya down against the ropes but gets caught in a quick choke to slow her down. That’s fine with Charlotte who just pounds away at her face. A slap makes Charlotte even madder but Natalya takes out the legs as they hit the mat. Charlotte drops her again with a wicked chop and drops a hard knee for two. Natalya tries the Sharpshooter but gets countered into the Figure Four, which is countered into a small package to give Natalya the pin at 2:30.

Tyson Kidd takes the spotlight like he did at Survivor Series.

Santino presents the OMG Shocking Moment of the Year. He says he was shocked just now by seeing Luke Harper take a shower. Usually he’s watching the Divas take showers….but he’s not a creep. The nominees are:

Seth Sells Out

Nikki Turns On Brie

Bray Wyatt’s Children’s Choir

The Streak Is Conquered

The winner is of course the Streak being conquered. Lesnar’s music plays but we get Heyman instead for a very brief acceptance speech without saying anything of note.

Here’s Bray Wyatt to talk about seeing her for the first time in that rocking chair beneath the Cypress tree. We see Dean destroying the chair last week and Bray says Dean destroyed something that can’t be replaced. That leads us to Dean having his throat crushed on Smackdown in retaliation. Bray asks if that shocks or frightens us. No one here knows what they’re dealing with and he despises all of us.

If you get too close to him, you will get burned by his fire as he stands on top of that ladder. Bray won’t allow us to cry for him though as Dean deserves what’s coming. He repeats Tables Ladders and Chairs over and over again until an ambulance drives into the arena. Dean pops out in a neck brace and pulls a table out of the ambulance. He throws it on the ramp before pulling out a ladder and chair to go with it.

There goes the neck brace and Dean drags the ladder and chair to the ring. He throws the chair in and nails Bray in the ribs with the ladder. Dean throws in a chair and hits Bray square in the head with it. A table comes in as well but Wyatt rolls to the floor. Dean lays on the table with the chair over him. Bray comes back down and gets another chair thrown at him. This Sunday, Dean is going to become the monster and eat Bray alive.

Seth Green brings out Jerry Lawler to present Diva of the Year. The nominees are:

Brie Bella

Nikki Bella

AJ Lee

Paige

The girls are shown in the back when Titus O’Neil shows up in a tuxedo for some reason. AJ wins and nothing seems to come of the cameo. She says that she promised to redefine the term Diva three years ago. Next year she hopes that next year, it’s Bayley, Sasha Banks, Charlotte, Emma or Paige is up here on the throne. She’s not done being queen though and will get her title back this week.

Cena talks about Vince telling Austin that the locker room needs to step up. That might fire up Seth Rollins, so maybe Rollins wants Big Show to wear him out tonight. This Sunday, Rollins has to put him through a table, which is good for Seth because he can’t pin Cena or make him tap out. If Cena can’t win this Sunday, maybe it’s time for him to step down so Seth can step up. Tonight he’s going to slam a giant and shake South Carolina because his time isn’t up yet. This Sunday, Rollins goes through a table.

Erick Rowan vs. Luke Harper

Non-title and Harper brings a ladder with him. It’s a slugout to start with Rowan getting the better of it and nailing a running splash in the corner. That’s fine with Harper who nails a dropkick for one before kicking Erick in the head. The Gator Roll doesn’t get Luke anywhere as Rowan pops back up and nails some clotheslines. A full nelson slam gets two on Harper and they head outside with Luke hitting Rowan with the ladder for the DQ at 2:05.

Post match Rowan fights back and starts throwing the stairs into the ring. Harper takes a big shot to the head and bails.

The Usos come up to Naomi to celebrate their Slammys. Jimmy says it’s the second best thing to happen to him all year after marrying her. Naomi has been talking to Miz’s agent and apparently it went well. Uso isn’t sure but Naomi has a screen test later this week. That’s fine with Jimmy but he’s going to Hollywood with her because Miz is involved in this somehow. Naomi interprets this as Jimmy not trusting her.

Adam Rose comes out to present LOL Moment of the Year. The Bunny won Animal of the Year earlier. Rose thinks he should be hosting and says the fans know nothing when they disagree. The nominees are:

Mr. T.’s Mother’s Day message at the Hall of Fame ceremony

WeeLC

Mizdow the Stunt Double

Vickie Guerrero knocking Stephanie into pudding

The Bunny tries to open the envelope but Rose gives us Mizdow for the win. Here he is along with Miz (and the belts this time), who actually lets Mizdow have some spotlight for a bit. It’s only for a bit though as Miz takes the trophy and says he can make us go through all these emotions because he’s an actor. Miz: “I hear you. You want MIZ NOW and you’re getting MIZ NOW!” Miz thanks the only one that has been there for him since day one: the moneymaker. Mizdow doesn’t seem that offended.

Here are some other winners.

Faction of the Year – Shield

Rivalry of the Year – Bryan vs. Authority

Raw Guest Star of the Year – Jackman

Twitter Handle of the Year – @HeelZiggler

Couple of the Year – Bryan/Brie Bella

Here are Lana and Rusev for a chat. Lana runs down the American economy and President Obama before moving on to the Real Americans. Lana: “That is an LOL moment!” Cue Swagger, who will be challenging Rusev for the title on Sunday, to say that Rusev broke Colter’s leg, so he’s going to snap Rusev’s ankle. Jack charges and ducks the running superkick before dropping the ankle on the barricade. There’s the Patriot Lock on the floor and Rusev kind of taps until referees make the save.

New Day vs. Goldust/Stardust on Sunday’s pre-show.

Usos/Ryback vs. Kane/Miz/Damien Mizdow

Seth Green is on commentary. Kane slams Ryback to start as Seth talks about Battlestar Galactica. The Usos come in to start in on the arm but the announcers are too busy taking pictures. Off to Miz to stomp away on Jey before a headlock takes the actor down. Lawler has to get the announcers back on the match as Cole does his traditional driving off a cliff of a tangent. Jey hammers away on Miz and grabs a suplex, so Mizdow comes in and mimes getting hit in the face before raising his arm like he’s about to be suplexed. He flips over then dives over the top after Miz is sent flying.

Back from a break with Kane holding Jey in a chinlock before it’s off to Miz for a Reality Check. Jey finally breaks free and tags in Ryback to clean house. Everything breaks down and the Usos escape a double chokeslam and nail Kane with a double superkick. Jey dives onto Kane but Jimmy gets low bridged to the floor when charging at Miz. The Meathook and Shell Shock end Miz at 9:52.

Rating: C. This was a quick match that combined the two feuds into one and there’s nothing wrong with that. Jimmy vs. Miz is at least a fresh story and something that fits the characters instead of being shoehorned in. Ryback continues to get a push, even though he’s lost some momentum after that performance at Survivor Series.

Green celebrates with the winners.

We look back at the first Slammys in 1986.

Here’s Ricky Steamboat to present Match of the Year. He gives a very nice speech about what it means to have a classic match to introduce the nominees.

Daniel Bryan vs. Randy Orton vs. Batista – Wrestlemania XXX

John Cena vs. Bray Wyatt – Payback

Shield vs. Evolution – Extreme Rules

Team Cena vs. Team Authority – Survivor Series

Team Cena vs. Team Authority wins with Ziggler coming out to accept. Ziggler sounds very touched by this and says they’re going to build off of it because this belongs to all of the fans.

AJ Lee vs. Summer Rae

Summer mocks AJ for winning the award earlier and AJ goes right at her, only to eat a wheelbarrow slam for two. A spinwheel kick that misses by six inches gets two on AJ before we hit a quickly broken chinlock. AJ pops up and Black Widows Summer for the submission at 2:18.

Rob Van Dam is here to present the Extreme Moment of the Year. The nominees are:

Brock Lesnar’s 16 suplexes to John Cena

Kane tombstoning Bryan on the steps and the announcers’ table

Chris Jericho diving off the cage and onto Bray Wyatt

Seth Rollins Curb Stomps Dean Ambrose onto cinder blocks

Jericho wins and Fandango comes out to accept on his behalf. You’ll never forget his name you see.

Saint Mick does his merchandise shilling.

Big Show says no one is going to forgive him for what he does so he’s going to destroy Cena tonight.

Booker T. is presenting Superstar of the Year.

Dean Ambrose

Bray Wyatt

Roman Reigns

Brock Lesnar

Bray Wyatt

John Cena

Seth Rollins

After a break, the winner is Roman Reigns. He’s actually in the building tonight to accept the award and says this may not be the brass ring but it’s a step in the right direction. It doesn’t matter if you’re at the top of the stairs, he’s stepping up and you can believe that.

Chris Jericho is Guest GM next week.

John Cena vs. Big Show

Big Show’s music comes on at 11:00pm EST so this is going to be quick. Cena charges right at him and gets headbutted down. A shoulder bounces off Show and he chokes Cena on the ropes. Cena avoids a charge in the corner and grabs a DDT, only to walk into a side slam to put him right back down. Off to a bearhug for a bit before Cena jumps onto the giant’s back for a sleeper. Show flips him forward but misses the KO Punch, allowing Cena to hit a belly to back. The Shuffle is countered by a chokeslam but Cena slips out and AA’s Show for two as Rollins and the Stooges come in for the DQ at 5:43.

Rating: D. This was every Cena vs. Big Show match you’ve ever seen and with the ending that everyone and their mother (even Mr. T.’s) knew was coming. It’s not the worst match in the world, but what could they possibly do in less than six minutes with a completely telegraphed ending?

Rollins loads up a ladder for a super Curb Stomp but Ziggler makes the save. Cena and Ziggler beat up the Stooges but Big Show knocks them both out. Cue Rowan but Harper jumps him from behind. Show chokeslams him onto the steps so here’s Ryback for the late save. He posts Show and Meathooks Harper before setting up a table. The Shell Shock is broken up by Kane with a chair but Ziggler takes out Kane. Some superkicks drop Big Show, only to have Harper put Dolph through a table. Cena AA’s Harper, only to eat a Curb Stomp. Rollins loads up the announcers’ table and TripleBombs Cena through to end the show.

Overall Rating: D+. Well that happened. This was one of those shows where there just wasn’t anything to talk about. The Ambrose vs. Wyatt segment was good but it’s not enough to carry a three hour show. This was much more a go home show with a few other things going on in the background. Sunday should be fun but we really need to get to Wrestlemania season to breathe some life into this company again. The show wasn’t even horrible but there’s just nothing here worth seeing.

Results

Seth Rollins b. Dolph Ziggler – Curb Stomp

Kofi Kingston b. Stardust – High cross body

Natalya b. Charlotte – Small package

Erick Rowan b. Luke Harper via DQ when Harper hit Rowan with a ladder

Usos/Ryback b. Miz/Damien Mizdow/Kane – Shell Shock to Miz

AJ Lee b. Summer Rae – Black Widow

John Cena b. Big Show via DQ when Seth Rollins interfered

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and pick up my new book on the History of the Royal Rumble at Amazon for just $3.99 at:

http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00PZ1GR7E

And check out my Amazon author page with wrestling books for under $4 at:

http://www.amazon.com/Thomas-Hall/e/B00E6282W6

Finally, I’m holding a Holiday Special for my e-books: any two of them for just $5.  Check out the details here.

http://kbwrestlingreviews.com/2014/11/28/holiday-sale/

Monday Night Raw
Date: December 1, 2014
Location: BOK Center, Tulsa, Oklahoma
Commentators: Michael Cole, Jerry Lawler, John Bradshaw Layfield

The theme for tonight’s show is Cyber Monday with guest host the Anonymous Raw GM as represented by the computer. The question now is whether this is permanent or if there’s going to be a guest GM every week. Hopefully it’s the latter, though I could see the Authority eventually being revealed as the new computer GM. Let’s get to it.

We open with….the Authority! Well it’s a recap about last week but it’s still the first thing we see.

Cole opens us up with the computer but here’s Cena to interrupt things. He starts running down the computer, saying he’s just like Brock Lesnar who shows up once a year. Lesnar isn’t here tonight but neither is the Authority because Team Cena won. He’s about to tell us why his team fought harder when we have another e-mail. Cena stares Cole down and goes to the podium himself. He isn’t going to let this happen and closes the computer, but here are Rollins and the Stooges to interrupt.

The two of them share some banter until Rollins says Cena is taking undue credit for the win at Survivor Series. Rollins remembers eliminating Cena at Survivor Series and only losing due to Sting. On the other hand, Cena remembers one man left on Team Cena eliminating three members of Team Authority, including Rollins himself. Seth: “You say Dolph, I say Sting. Whatever.”

Seth wants to know who’s next to take over Raw. Is it going to be JBL? Cena hands JBL his hat but Rollins thinks it might be Batista, drawing more heat than Rollins has drawn all night. Maybe they could give Eric Bischoff a call? The point is there’s going to be a different GM every week and the show is going to fall into chaos until Cena brings back the Authority.

Cena gets in the ring and rips on Rollins for being a normal guy in a lot of latex with two wannabe mall cops in his corner. He tells Seth to ask him to bring the Authority back nicely, including making Rollins get down on a knee. The e-mail goes off and we have a tables match set up between these two for TLC with Cena’s #1 contendership at stake. Not that Rollins can win it mind you.

The brawl is on, including with Kane coming in for a chokeslam to Cena. Seth loads up a table but Ryback comes in for the save. Kane beats him down with a chair so Rowan comes in and kicks Kane down, only to have Big Show come in with a splash. Show loads up the steps so Ziggler comes out to post him and get a ladder, but Harper runs out and drives the ladder into Dolph. Cena loads Rollins up for an AA through the table but eats the KO Punch, setting up a TripleBomb through the table with Rollins playing Reigns.

Back with Cena and company slowly being helped out. A six man tag is announced for later.

Tag Team Turmoil

Winners get a Tag Team Title match at TLC. We start with Kofi/Big E. vs. Goldust/Stardust as Kofi throws Stardust around with ease. Big E. runs Stardust down and the Big Ending/Top rope DDT (the Midnight Hour) ends Stardust at 1:36. Tyson Kidd and Cesaro are the next team as we take a break. Back with Cesaro throwing Kofi around before bringing in Kidd for some choking on the ropes.

Off to a chinlock on Kofi for a bit before he elbows up, only to be slammed back down. Kingston rolls away and tags Big E. back in to clean house, only to have Cesaro break up the Big Ending. Kidd joins him and Big E. clotheslines both guys to the floor. Kofi gets launched over the topr for a big dive, setting up a springboard shot to the face. The Dusts come out for a distraction though, allowing Kidd to roll Kofi up for the pin at 8:11 total.

The Usos are in third (of five teams) but Jimmy walks into a suplex from Cesaro. There’s almost no effect though as Jimmy comes back with the Umaga Attack in the corner before it’s off to Jey to work on the arm. Kidd comes back in for a kick to the face but Cesaro makes a blind tag, setting up a release German suplex to drop Jey as we take another break.

Back with Jimmy fighting out of another chinlock. Jimmy fights up but has to suplex Kidd down. Tyson jumps into a superkick, setting up the tag to Jey for the Superfly Splash to get us down to one on one at 16:00. Finally we have Adam Rose/the Bunny vs. the Usos for the title shot. Rose starts fast with a pair of rollups on Jimmy but the Bunny tags himself in. Adam starts arguing as the Bunny goes up. Jimmy tries a superplex but gets caught in a sunset bomb for two. More arguing allows Jey to superkick Rose, setting up the Superfly Splash for the title shot at 19:10.

Rating: C. These matches always have the same complaint; why do they never win matches as fast as they do here? At least the middle part was long to prevent this from falling into the same pattern, but it says a lot that we only have five teams and two of them were thrown together.

Naomi is watching her husband (one of the Usos) in the back when Miz/Mizdow come in to say they’ll keep the titles. Miz actually offers her a spot in a movie and gives her a card. Mizdow gives her an invisible card as Naomi rolls her eyes.

A long black limo brings Vince to the arena.

Seth Green is hosting next week.

Rowan fixes his Rubik’s Cube and reiterates that Show is a bully.

Erick Rowan vs. Big Show

Show says he doesn’t like being called a bully. Cole says Rowan has a genius IQ. Erick quickly knocks him to the floor but Show comes back in and drops Rowan with ease. He rips at Rowan’s face and puts on a chinlock to kill some time. Rowan fights up and heads outside, only to have Show nail him with the steps for the DQ at 4:22.

Rating: D+. Nothing to see here though the idea of Rowan being a genius is kind of interesting. There’s some potential for some interesting bits there, though I’m not sure I have any confidence in WWE to pull it off. This is likely setting up a big match between the two at TLC, which should be interesting.

Vince is excited to be on Austin’s podcast. He won’t bring back the Authority though.

We recap the Bellas cheating to beat AJ last week. You can pick AJ’s partner for a tag match later.

Fandango vs. Jack Swagger

And there’s no Swagger. We cut to the back where Colter is down with a leg injury. Fandango wins via forfeit.

Here are Rusev and Lana to complain about the Pledge of Allegiance last week and brag about Rusev winning the battle royal on Friday. Rusev implies that he hurt Colter as the Russian flag comes down for Lana’s pledge. Swagger charges out for the brawl but referees hold him back.

Damien Mizdow vs. Fernando

This is due to Torito stealing one of Mizdow’s fake Tag Team Title belts. Feeling out process to start with Fernando easily taking him down and grabbing an armbar. Back up and Mizdow grabs a quick backdrop and hooks the Figure Four for the submission at 2:25.

Jimmy Uso, Naomi’s real life husband, comes out and slaps Miz in the face, saying stay away from her.

Bray Wyatt vs. R-Truth

Bray throws him around with ease to start and shouts for Ambrose. Truth fights out of a cravate and avoids the running backsplash. That just makes Bray mad but he takes a running kick to the face. The Lie Detector puts Bray down but he avoids the ax kick and plants Truth with the release Rock Bottom. A modified DDT onto the apron knocks Truth silly and it’s the Spider Walk into Sister Abigail for the pin at 4:22.

Rating: D+. Total squash here with Bray looking great most of the time. He’s getting better at making his offense look more devastating, which is the kind of thing you need from a monster like him. I’m not sure where he goes at TLC, but that match could be one heck of a war.

Post match Bray starts throwing in chairs, still shouting for Dean. He wants the truth but pulls out a ladder as we take a break. We come back with Bray sitting in his rocking chair under a ladder with a table in the corner. Bray tells us the story of Jacob and his great ladder that the angels climbed up to Heaven and back. Wyatt dreams of a ladder where he ascends the ladder to praise no one. He looks down at his world and laughs at all the creatures that God has created and thinks they look like insects. In his dreams, he sees tables, ladders and chairs.

Cue Dean for a brawl and to put Bray on the table, only to have Wyatt escape as Dean climbs the ladder. Bray runs away as referees stop dean. Ambrose goes back inside where there are about ten chairs, two tables and a ladder. He shoves the ladder over and looks at Bray’s rocking chair, eventually tossing it down and destroying it, infuriating Wyatt.

We recap the end of the opening segment with Cena going through the table after everyone came out.

Bella Twins vs. AJ Lee/???

Here are the poll results for AJ’s partner:

Natalya – 32%

Naomi – 48%

Alicia Fox – 20%

Bella Twins vs. AJ Lee/Naomi

Brie jumps Naomi before the bell, allowing Nikki to get two off a suplex. The Bellas take turns nailing Naomi in the face before Nikki hooks a chinlock. Naomi fights up and tags in AJ to clean house, including a tornado DDT to Nikki. Everything breaks down and it’s AJ vs. Nikki with a Shining Wizard staggering the champ. The Black Widow makes Nikki tap at 3:25.

Rating: D+. Well that happened. As is the usual case with most Divas matches, there’s almost nothing to see here and it sets up AJ vs. Nikki again. I’m sure Brie will get involved and AJ will need to find a friend to help her. Perhaps say, Paige? Either that or Charlotte comes in and takes the title. Neither does much for me but that’s likely due to the Bellas trying to be all serious and important.

Mick Foley, in one of the best Santa Claus outfits I’ve ever seen, hypes up the big sale on WWEshop.com. I really wouldn’t have recognized him if not for his voice and the cheap pop.

Paul Heyman is here via satellite to address the stipulation for Cena vs. Rollins. First up though, he wants to address what Cena said about Lesnar being here once a year. Would you have Christmas once a year? Of course not, because it would ruin the moment. Why not just have Wrestlemania every Monday night? Now if Cena comes out of TLC still #1 contender, he has to face a fresh Brock Lesnar.

However, what if he doesn’t? Who becomes #1 contender? Would it be Rollins, who Curb Stomped Brock Lesnar but now can’t hide behind the Authority? Maybe the Undertaker? That could be interesting, if you could find him. What about Sting? You wouldn’t even have to advertise it as a retirement match, because Sting would retire after Lesnar got his hands on him. Let’s just throw the entire WWE roster against Lesnar like throwing humans to the lions in the Roman Coliseum. Heyman says Brock Lesnar is the new authority in WWE because he’s the can’t miss, must see, undisputed WWE World Heavyweight Champion.

Ryback/John Cena/Dolph Ziggler vs. Luke Harper/Seth Rollins/Kane

They have a lot of time for this. Cena wants Rollins to start with him but gets Harper instead. That’s fine with John who knocks Harper down and pulls in Rollins for the STF. Luke makes an early save, only to walk into a belly to belly for two. Off to Ziggler for a double dropkick for two before it’s off to Ryback vs. Kane for the big power showdown. Ryback takes over with the Thesz press and Warrior Splash.

Back to Harper to hammer away in the corner until Ryback scores with the Meat Hook. Rolins comes in and gets in some shots of his own before handing it back to Luke. Ryback fights him over a suplex before picking Luke up for a very delayed suplex as we go to a break. Back with Ryback dropping Harper with the suplex. If that was continuous (it wasn’t), give Ryback the title like, now.

Off to Ziggler vs. Kane with Dolph grabbing a sleeper until Kane drives him into the corner. Kane knocks him out of the air for two and the heels take over again. Luke Gator Rolls him and we’re in the chinlock. Kane comes in for a chinlock of his own before Rollins whips Ziggler hard into the corner. Back up and Seth misses a charge in the corner, setting up the hot tag to Cena. House is quickly cleaned with Lawler suddenly being a huge Cena cheerleader. Cena cleans house and double suplexes Kane with some help from Ryback. Mercury and Noble knock knock Cena silly as we take a break.

Back again with Cena fighting out of a Harper chinlock but eating a superkick from Harper for two. Rollins comes back in for a chinlock of his own but Cena suplexes him down to escape. The hot tag brings in Ziggler to face Harper with a neckbreaker and Fameasser getting two. Everything breaks down with Cena diving onto all five guys at once. Kane escapes the AA and kicks Cena down, only to take a powerslam from Ryback. Everyone hits their secondary finishers until Ziggler counters a Harper powerbomb into a sunset flip for the pin at 25:17.

Rating: C+. This was much more of a long match than a good one with FAR too many chinlocks than were necessary. Ziggler continuing to get a push is a good thing but there needed to be more stuff here than what we were given. Ryback continues to just kind of be there, which isn’t what you want him to be doing at this point.

Post match Big Show comes in to clean house but Rowan comes out with the steps to destroy everyone. Cole seems to have officially dubbed Rowan Big Red. Show grabs Ryback and Rowan for a double chokeslam but is nice enough to stick his chin out for a superkick from Ziggler. Cena AA’s Show for Survivor Series, allowing Rowan to crush him with the steps to end the show.

Overall Rating: C-. This was a bit more entertaining than last week but it still didn’t do much for me. They’ve got most of the card set for TLC and hopefully it’s Ambrose vs. Wyatt again in the main event. If nothing else it fits the name of the show and gives you a potential huge crash for the ending. This wasn’t a great show or even very good, but it advanced some stories and got me more interested in the PPV, which is somehow less than two weeks away.

Results

Usos won tag team turmoil last eliminating Adam Rose/the Bunny – Superfly Splash to Rose

Erick Rowan b. Big Show via DQ when Show used the steps

Fandango b. Jack Swagger via forfeit

Damien Mizdow b. Fernando – Figure Four

Bray Wyatt b. R-Truth – Sister Abigail

AJ Lee/Naomi b. Bella Twins – Black Widow to Nikki

Dolph Ziggler/John Cena/Ryback b. Kane/Luke Harper/Seth Rollins – Sunset flip to Harper

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and pick up my new book on the History of the Royal Rumble at Amazon for just $3.99 at:

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Finally, I’m holding a Holiday Special for my e-books: any two of them for just $5.  Check out the details here.

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Sting! The Stinger! The Man Called Sting! These are just a few of the nicknames of someone you won’t be seeing on Raw this week. He debuted at Survivor Series to help end the Authority as he pulled Ziggler’s body onto Rollins, who hadn’t moved in about eight minutes and clearly needed to be resuscitated. Other than that….yeah there isn’t much as Survivor Series was a one note show. Let’s get to it.

We opened with the Authority because WWE likes to troll us. They were all sad about being thrown out of course but said we’d miss them later on. HHH babbled about business and how WWE will need them back in the future. For some reason he went into a nearly word for word speech from the end of A Few Good Men about how WWE needed them. If nothing else that’s an awesome movie so I can’t complain much there.

Daniel Bryan of all people cut them off to do the YES post in front of them. After a break, Bryan announced that he was in charge for the night. First up he brought out all five members of Team Authority from the night before to give them their assignments for the night. These segments took nearly half an hour in total, but Bryan’s energy made them easier to sit through. I’ll cover each member as their antics come up, starting with Henry getting beaten by Ryback in about a minute.

The Authority left with Vince while Stephanie begged Vince’s forgiveness. The boss didn’t seem to care and said the only thing he’s sorry for is having to sit through Thanksgiving with these losers.

Next up was Luke Harper beating Ambrose via DQ when Harper shoved Dean into the referee. This wasn’t a great match as you knew the ending was going to be screwy, but at least they didn’t go with the obvious Bray interference. That would come after, as Bray jumped Dean on the floor and buried him under a bunch of chairs next to the announcers’ table.

Santino Marella and Larry the Cable Guy showed up and weren’t funny.

Miz/Mizdow beat Goldust/Stardust to retain the titles. The idea here was Miz stayed on the floor with an alleged injury for most of the match before coming in to hit a quick Skull Crushing Finale and steal the glory.

Kane is in charge of concessions tonight. This led to some unfunny bits of pouring mustard on Santino and getting in a fight with Ryback, likely setting up a match at TLC.

Lane and Rusev had to either say the Pledge of Allegiance to the American flag or have Rusev defend the title in a battle royal. Lana started to but Rusev stopped her, drawing out Sgt. Slaughter for a showdown. Naturally this went nowhere and Jack Swagger came out for the save. I really hope they’re not going back to this feud because it’s been done to death already.

Fandango beat Justin Gabriel in a copy of the Survivor Series pre-show match. Nothing to see here.

Big Show came out for his big speech and admits that it might have been a mistake, but thinks he’s earned the benefit of the doubt after all his years in the company. We got the usual “I have bills to pay” speech, which I’d have more sympathy for if he hadn’t used his one wish on a title shot last year. Eventually Rowan came down and called Show a bully before knocking him out of the ring with ease.

Brie Bella beat AJ via rollup when Nikki interfered. No sign of the Bellas splitting when the servant period was over.

Adam Rose and the Bunny lost to Kidd and Natalya in the same match they’ve been having for weeks.

Ziggler and Cena beat Rollins and the Stooges in the exact match you would expect them to have. The big deals here were that the Stooges could be selected by the fans via the App and the Anonymous Raw GM returned to end the show. In theory this is going to be a weekly deal.

Overall this show was about setting up the new world of Monday Night Raw after the Authority is gone. The show really wasn’t all that good, but at least they set up something for the future. They only have a few weeks until TLC, but they already have the fallout from Survivor Series as a foundation for the matches there. It’s not a good show but they had to take a breather after all the stuff they did last night.

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and pick up my new book on the History of the Royal Rumble at Amazon for just $3.99 at:

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Finally, I’m holding a Holiday Special for my e-books: any two of them for just $5.  Check out the details here.

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This was a show where I’ve needed some time to digest everything that I saw. Now everyone knew that this was a one match show coming in, but I don’t think people were expecting to see something like this. Obviously the big moment is coming at the end but there was some other interesting stuff before then. Let’s get to it.

I’m going to gloss over the pre-show matches as there’s just nothing to talk about. Fandango is somehow even less interesting than he was before and Swagger vs. Cesaro has been done to death. Neither match was any good, but they REALLY don’t need to have an hour long pre-show. That makes a show four hours, meaning the three hour Raw is now the short show. Let that sink in for a minute.

The show itself opened with the first of our filler segments. Vince, Cena and the Authority came out to reiterate the stipulations of the main event, with the added caveat that only Cena could bring the Authority back in the future. Not only did this not segment need to happen to start a pay per view, but it didn’t need to happen at all. This could have been announced later and another match could have been added in to fill some of the time. But instead we needed a fifteen minute speech because we hadn’t heard HHH and Stephanie talk enough.

The opening match was the four way tag for the titles, with the Dusts dropping the belts down to Miz/Mizdow. This whole thing was a way to get somewhere with Mizdow’s popularity, which is the only way they can go. It was a watchable match but at the same time there was too much going on to have it be anything good.

Los Matadores and the Usos were just kind of there to fill in spots and make sure we didn’t have heel vs. heel. Again the match felt like they were filling time at points, because there are only five matches on the card and what else are they supposed to do? Miz celebrating with both belts was a nice touch as you would expect.

Adam Rose and the Bunny played with toys when Slater Gator came in to set up a match later. This would be more filler.

One group of bad Divas plus Natalya beat another group of bad Divas plus Paige. This match was an absolute disaster with the moves being botches, almost no flow to the match, and everyone being all over the place. The idea was supposed to be Paige vs. the World, but she would have been better off without her partners anyway.

Ambrose and Wyatt had a good but not great brawl to set up the next match at TLC. Thankfully they announced that in advance as it would have felt like a waste of time given how obvious they were with where it’s going. The match itself wasn’t great but it was a nice shot in the arm after an hour of uninteresting stuff. The worst part of this whole thing though: Ambrose doing the Wyatt spider pose and Cole shouting “THAT’S WHAT BRAY WYATT DOES!”

I can’t stand this talking down to the audience and acting like they can’t remember anything longer than eight seconds ago. Yeah some of the fans are watching for the first time, but just let them think that Dean is being insane instead of treating the fans who have watched for more than a day like imbeciles. In other words, makes Michael Cole SHUT UP FOR ONCE!

The comedy tag match was nothing you wouldn’t see on Smackdown. The Bunny continues to get on Rose’s nerves but they need to get somewhere with it already as this isn’t getting anyone anywhere.

Roman Reigns did a nice satellite interview, saying everything he’s said in the previous ones. Apparently he’s been taking acting lessons recently and they actually seem to be paying off. He felt a lot more natural here instead of reading off a script (which he likely was).

Nikki Bella won the Divas Title from AJ in a match designed off Sheamus vs. Bryan at Wrestlemania XXVIII, complete with the kiss to AJ. In theory the Bellas are back together, making the last few months of driving me crazy TOTALLY POINTLESS. Nikki did look good though.

The main event was a nice long match which lived up to expectations, complete with a bunch of surprises. Big Show knocked Henry out in about fifteen seconds and we had the best part of the match: HHH’s emotional roller coaster. Yeah I get annoyed when he takes the better part of forever to get anywhere with his promos, but when he calms down and lets his body language do the talking, he’s incredible effective.

The match slowed down for a bit until everything broke down and a Curb Stomp into a spinwheel kick from Rusev was enough to pin Ryback. Yeah after the last few weeks of it being all about Ryback, he was out via pin in about eight minutes. That more or less ends the return push that he had going on as Ryback continues to lose the big matches. It crippled Lex Luger’s career and it’s gotten Ryback as well. Granted not being very good in the ring has hurt him too.

It slowed again with Big Show taking a long beating from everyone. Then for a change of pace, Ziggler took a long beating from everyone. It all broke down again with Rusev throwing Ziggler around on the floor, only to miss a splash through the table, resulting in a countout. They had to get rid of him somehow so it was this or a DQ. Twelve minutes passed between Ryback and Rusev’s eliminations to give you an idea of how much things slowed down. The next one was a bit faster as Rollins Curb Stomped Rowan, setting up the discus lariat from Harper for a pin just a few minutes later.

Then things got interesting as Big Show knocked Cena out, turning heel for probably the fifteenth time in his WWE career. Rollins got an easy pin and Big Show walked out, making it 3-1 with Ziggler facing Kane, Harper and Rollins. This was VERY interesting as it put the focus on Dolph instead of Cena, which is exactly what this match should have been about: making someone else into a star. Cena doesn’t need a win like this, so let someone else get a big rub.

Ziggler was basically dead at this point but kept fighting, which was exactly the story they had been setting up for the last several weeks. He took out Kane with a superkick and Zig Zag before taking one heck of a beating from Harper. Luke got frustrated when he couldn’t pin him though and Ziggler grabbed a rollup and some jeans for the pin.

This sequence was right out of the Shawn Michaels playbook and that’s as good as you can get. The key thing to Ziggler’s offense is that it can come from out of nowhere and it’s not a huge stretch for him to do this. The superkick, Zig Zag and rollup are things that you can do out of nowhere and again it played to the Ziggler Will Not Quit idea. That was just a warmup for the good stuff though.

Rollins and Ziggler had an awesome six or seven minute sequence of near falls and missed finishers, including Rollins nearly hitting a top rope Curb Stomp. Ziggler finally took over and hit a Zig Zag but the Stooges came in for the save. HHH made another save after another Zig Zag and laid out Dolph with a Pedigree. All hope was lost (including Cena, who you would think might have come out for the save, despite him seemingly being the worst teammate EVER in the buildup to this match) but instead STING debuted, laid out HHH and put Ziggler on top of Rollins (who hadn’t moved for about eight minutes) for the final pin.

So yeah, STING debuted. That was up there with Cena turning heel and the Streak being broken on the list of things that I won’t believe until I see for myself. He laid out HHH with a Death Drop (incredible selling by the Game) and gave Ziggler the pin because Sting fights against corrupt authority. This was the big moment that people are going to remember and likely sets up the big match at Wrestlemania.

The match itself was all about the drama and it knocked that out of the park. I could feel my heart beating out of my chest on those near falls and the and I had to see who was going to win in the end. They did a great job of making me guess and that’s all you’re supposed to do in something like this. Sting coming out was a great shock and the whole thing worked like a charm.

Overall, no one is going to remember anything but the main event and Sting debuting. It’s not a great or even really good show, but the main event was all it was supposed to be and a lot more. Sting debuting is one of the moments that you’re going to remember for years to come, even if it doesn’t go anywhere long term. The main event rocked the house and made you forget how horrible the rest of the show, save for Ambrose vs. Wyatt, really was. Good stuff for the most part but just fast forward past most of it.

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and pick up my new book on the History of the Royal Rumble at Amazon for just $3.99 at:

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Survivor Series 2014
Date: November 23, 2014
Location: Scottrade Center, St. Louis, Missouri
Commentators: Michael Cole, John Bradshaw Layfield, Jerry Lawler

We’re finally to one of the biggest one match shows I can ever remember.  THey aren’t even trying to hide the fact that this is all about the main event this year and it’s taken a lot to get through the rest of the card as a result.  Obviously this is about Team Cena vs. the Authority with the future of both groups on the line.  Let’s get to it.

Pre-Show: Fandango vs. Justin Gabriel

Fandango is new and improved, meaning he now has Rosa in his corner, comes out to what sounds like Spanish music and wrestles in an open chest sweater. Gabriel gets knocked out to the floor as the announcers talk about his skeleton themed pants. Justin comes back with a kick to the face for two but Fandango takes his head off with a clothesline. A release suplex sets up Fandango’s top rope legdrop for the pin at 3:26.

Rating: D. As usual, Rosa was the most entertaining thing out there. This was the same Fandango we’ve seen for nearly two years now and he’s somehow less interesting than he was before. The sweater doesn’t make me care about him any more and he’s just as generic in the ring as he was before he left. Not much to see here.

Bad News Barrett comes out for the first time in months. His topic of course is the main event and he has some bad news for Cena: if the Authority wins, Cena’s life is going to be a nightmare. On the other hand, if the Authority loses, the WWE will never be lost in the era of Bad News Barrett. This was actually something close to a face promo.

Pre-Show: Jack Swagger vs. Cesaro

This is an added match. Cesaro comes out to talk about being neutral like Switzerland when Zeb and Swagger come out to say if Cesaro is on Team Authority, he and Jack are on Team Cena. Swagger grabs him by the ribs to start but Cesaro grabs a suplex to take over. A double stomp is countered into the Patriot Lock though and Cesaro is in early trouble. He kicks Swagger out to the floor though before Swagger charges back in and goes shoulder first into the post.

A German suplex puts Swagger down again and another suplex gets two. Cesaro drops a middle rope elbow for the same and we hit the chinlock. Swagger quickly fights up and loads the Vader Bomb but has to stop and grab the Patriot Lock instead. They’re too close to the ropes though and Cesaro starts rolling Germans. Swagger rolls through again and puts on the third Patriot Lock for the submission at 5:23.

Rating: C-. The match was better than Fandango’s as I have a reason to care about these guys but it was still nothing great. We’ve seen these guys fight so many times now that it’s hard to get interested in yet another match. It’s nice to see Swagger win, but this is another match that could have been on the main show to flesh out the card a bit.

The opening video was all about the main event which I’m sure you’ve heard by now. Literally, nothing else was even mentioned. There’s usually some history if nothing else.

Here’s Vince to open the show. He does his usual enthusiastic welcome and brings out the Authority for a chat. HHH talks about how Vince is the reason we’re here and the Authority starts a Vince chant. The boss cuts them off and asks Vince to come out here. Vince says that tonight, Cena is in charge of four men’s lives. HHH takes over and says that when Team Cena loses tonight, four men are going to be out of work and quickly forgotten.

Stephanie says that if their team loses, they’ll still be running the show, just not from Raw. “Right Dad?” Vince: “Not exactly.” Apparently if HHH and Stephanie lose tonight, they have no authority over any WWE Superstar. Actually, there’s only one man that could ever bring them back to power.

Stephanie immediately starts sucking up to her dad but Vince says the decision will lie with Cena. Stephanie goes into her I’M A MCMAHON speech but Cena cuts her off and says she’s gone tonight. Cena grabs the mic and says that after they’re gone, just like the song says, there is NO CHANCE that he’ll bring them back.

Tag Team Titles: Los Matadores vs. Goldust/Stardust vs. Usos vs. Miz/Damien Mizdow

The opening bell is over 22 minutes into the show. Goldust and Stardust are defending with one fall to a finish. Diego cranks on Stardust’s arm to start before it’s quickly off to Miz vs. Fernando. Mizdow is doing the exact same things on the floor as he’s known to do. Miz gets slammed off the top, so Mizdow goes up top and flips himself off for good measure. The fans want Mizdow to come in but Miz isn’t quite ready for the tag yet.

Instead it’s off to Jimmy for some armdrags on Fernando before it’s quickly off to Jey for some chops. Stardust low bridges Jey to the floor and the champs take over in the corner. The fans still want Mizdow but get the drop down uppercut from Stardust instead. Jey tries a sunset flip but Miz tags himself in to take over. Jey falls into the corner for a tag to Diego as this is almost impossible to keep up with. The Backstabber gets two on Miz but he comes right back with a clothesline to Diego.

Miz takes him into the corner and still won’t tag Damien. The running clothesline in the corner is finally enough to make him tag Mizdow but Goldust tags himself in before Damien can do anything. Diego and Goldust trade rollups until Diego is sent into the corner for some double teaming by the champions. Stardust comes in to crank on the arms before scoring with a clothesline. He tells the fans they want him instead of Mizdow before he sends Diego out to the floor.

Goldust scores with a clothesline on the floor before throwing him back inside for a chinlock. Stardust goes up for a sunset flip on Goldust who is holding Diego in a German suplex for a big catapult spot. Diego sends him to the apron but Stardust shoves Fernando into the post. Back in and Diego counters what looked to be a tombstone attempt into a spinning DDT to drop Stardust.

It’s off to Jimmy vs. Goldust with the Samoan taking over before tagging in Jey for the running Umaga attack in the corner. A bunch of superkicks drop Stardust but Diego breaks up the double dive. Goldust powerslam Jimmy for two but Jey nails him with an enziguri. Now the Usos hit the double dive but Stardust hits the Falling Star onto both of them.

Fernando launches Torito onto everyone before Diego dives onto everyone plus the bull. Goldust breaks up Fernando’s dive as Diego gets back in. All four go up for a big Tower of Doom with Fernando taking the worst of it. Jimmy comes in with the Superfly Splash but Miz sends Jimmy into the post. Mizdow tags himself in and pins Fernando for the pin and the titles at 15:25.

Rating: C+. The match was entertaining and the absolutely right call, but they needed to cut some time out of this. This was the kind of match where it was clear that they were just trying to fill in time and those things get old in a hurry. It took awhile to get going but it was solid once it sped up. Mizdow getting the pin is the perfect ending too.

Miz celebrates with both belts.

Vince McMahon and Steve Austin will be doing a live Steve Austin Show next Monday after Raw.

Adam Rose and the Bunny are in the back with the Exotic Express. They’re going to settle their differences by playing with the latest WWE toys. Rose reminds the Bunny where he was before Rose found him. The Bunny wins in about five seconds so Titus O’Neil and Heath Slater come in to laugh at Rose. Adam says the Bunny worships him and a tag match is made for later. Fans: “NO! NO! NO!”

Paige/Cameron/Summer Rae/Layla vs. Emma/Natalya/Alicia Fox/Naomi

Elimination tag. Natalya and Paige get things going and we already have a Nattie’s Husband chant. Paige is quickly sent to the floor as we get the required Cheesy/Sleazy/Queasy reference. Lawler even gets the year wrong. Paige sends Natalya into the corner so it’s off to Layla vs. Emma. They trade rollups with Emma being rather clumsy, allowing Layla to roll her up for two.

Emma gets caught in the heel corner and stomped by Paige a bit. Paige spends a lot of time trash talking though and takes a HARD forearm to the head. They head to the top with Emma hitting a nice superplex but Paige is right next to the corner for a tag to Cameron. The screeching begins and Cameron can barely slap Emma right. The fans want Mizdow again as Emma gets two off a backslide.

Naomi tags herself in and kicks Cameron across the ring. A cross body gets no cover but a Stunner of all things gets two on Cameron. Everything breaks down and everyone nails everyone else until Cameron hits a horrible bulldog on Natalya, only to have Naomi hook a nice bridging rollup to eliminate Cameron. Summer comes in but runs from a kick to the face. Naomi kicks her anyway but gets pulled down by the hair. Back up and Summer knocks all of her opponents off the apron, only to have Fox come in and run her over a few times.

Fox cross bodies Paige and loads up a dive to the floor but all of her opponents back up. Summer gets in, gets screamed at, and tags out to Layla. The Brit (Layla) laughs at Fox for climbing down a second ago and gets smacked in the face. A northern lights suplex gets two on Layla but she comes back with her bouncing cross body.

Fox nails a quick backbreaker and it’s 4-2. Paige comes in for some cheap shots but it’s quickly off to Natalya vs. Summer. Natalya runs her over with a discus lariat and a low dropkick but Paige trips her up from the floor. Summer gets in some cheap shots on the apron but stops to mock Paige, only to have Paige knock her off the apron.

It’s off to Emma vs. Summer with Emma hooking the Dilemma (Tarantula) for a few seconds. The Emma Sandwich (cross body in the corner) sets up the Emma Lock (bridging Indian Deathlock) to make Summer tap. It’s Paige vs. all four opponents and the fans are completely in her corner. Paige tries to leave but Emma catches her like she stole something. That’s not cool with Paige who runs Emma over but it’s quickly off to Natalya, who promptly eats a boot to the face. Naomi comes in with the Rear View and a headscissors faceplant to FINALLY end this at 14:16.

Rating: D-. This was terrible as they were clearly just filling time and had almost no business being on a show this big. The girls were mostly sloppy with Cameron being as close to a disaster as you can get. They would have been much better off just having Naomi vs. Paige but why do that when you can get eight Divas out there to ruin a match?

We recap Fandango’s return and Bad News Barrett’s speech from the pre-show.

The expert panel of Booker T., Paul Heyman and Alex Riley talk about the new stipulations for the main event.

We recap Ambrose vs. Wyatt. Bray Wyatt cost Ambrose his match inside the Cell and started talking about Dean’s childhood where he was abandoned by his father and forced to live a hard life. Dean basically said he wanted to hurt Wyatt and that’s about it.

Dean Ambrose vs. Bray Wyatt

Dean drives him into the corner to start and hammers away with right hands and kicks to the gut. Wyatt comes back with a right hand of his own and they head outside with Dean hitting a nice running forearm off the apron. Back in and Bray takes him down with the running cross body for two as things slow down a bit. They head outside again with Dean going up, only to dive into a right hand to put him down again. Bray stomps Dean’s hands on the steps before taking him back inside for two.

We hit a full nelson on the mat but Dean bites the fingers to escape. That’s fine with Bray who just runs Ambrose over again. They head outside yet again for a double clothesline before slowly crawling back inside. Dean hammers away with forearms to the head and some running elbows before doing Bray’s upside down pose in the corner. Dirty Deeds is broken up but Dean has to counter Sister Abigail into a rollup for two.

With Bray’s feet on the ropes, Dean ties the arms into the ropes for a running dropkick, followed by a legdrop to the back of the head for two. Back up and a big slam gets two for Bray but he misses a middle rope backsplash. Ambrose goes up top and connects with a top rope elbow, even though Bray was standing up. That’s a new one.

Bray gets up and knocks Dean’s head off with a clothesline, sending Ambrose out to the floor. The release Rock Bottom puts Dean onto the steps but Ambrose somehow kicks out. Bray heads back outside and grabs the mic. He asks Dean why he’s doing this and shouts that it didn’t have to be like this.

They could have ruled the world together and there’s nothing anyone back there could do to touch them. Ambrose has chosen his path and there’s a microphone shot to the head. Bray finds some chairs under the ring but Dean takes one away. Wyatt drops to his knees like he did to Cena at Wrestlemania and Dean nails him in the ribs for the DQ at 14:00.

Rating: B-. This took its time to get going but turned into a violent brawl after awhile. They’re clearly setting up something else for this feud and I’m glad they didn’t give it a clean ending here. Ambrose is much more of a monster than Cena was going to be so the ending makes sense here. These two in a wild brawl could work really well.

Ambrose hits Dirty Deeds onto the chair and loads Bray on a table. A top rope elbow puts both guys through the wood but Dean isn’t done. He puts another table on top of Bray and covers it up with chairs. With Wyatt not moving, Ambrose pulls out a ladder. He climbs on top of it….and stands there as his music plays. Dean climbs down and teases shoving the ladder onto Bray but referees stop him.

HHH and Stephanie give Team Authority a long pep talk. The gist of it is if they lose, the team’s lives will be destroyed.

Slater Gator vs. Adam Rose/The Bunny

The Bunny starts but Rose tags in before anything happens. Slater kicks Adam’s head off to start before it’s off to Titus for some throws into the corner. Adam dives over for the tag to the Bunny as the announcers make rabbit jokes. With Adam demanding a tag, the Bunny hits a middle rope dropkick for the pin on Slater at 2:25.

Roman Reigns is here via satellite and says he’s getting better every single day. He’d rather be here with us and asks the fans if they want to know what he’d do if here were there. Reigns would cock back his fist and make it reign in the arena. JBL says Reigns isn’t here but Seth Rollins is here in the main event. How would Reigns feel if Team Authority won. Reigns calls that a stupid question as he threw a cinder block at Seth’s head. It doesn’t matter what happens tonight because in a month, either team might be out, but he’ll be back at that time.

Team Cena is in the back and they all know what they signed up for. Well we’re assuming Rowan does as he’s playing with a Rubik’s Cube. Cena says there’s one thing left to do when Rowan stands up and says win.

Divas Title: AJ Lee vs. Nikki Bella

AJ is defending and Nikki has her sister Brie as an assistant. We get big match intros and Brie gets up on the apron with with title in her hand. She kisses AJ, allowing Nikki to get in a cheap shot and the Rack Attack gives us a new champ at 38 seconds in the Sheamus vs. Daniel Bryan ending from Wrestlemania XXVIII.

Indeed, the Bellas are back together.

We recap Ambrose vs. Wyatt, who will be in a TLC match three weeks from tonight.

Long recap of the main event. I’m assuming you get the idea by this point.

Team Cena vs. Team Authority

John Cena, Ryback, Erick Rowan, Big Show, Dolph Ziggler

Seth Rollins, Kane, Luke Harper, Rusev, Mark Henry

Rusev is US Champion and Harper is Intercontinental Champion. The Authority and Stooges are at ringside of course. Henry and Big Show get things going with Mark shouting that he’s going to hurt everyone. HHH and Stephanie stay on the apron for support but Henry charges right into the KO Punch to make it 5-4 in less than a minute. Harper drops to the floor and tries to sneak up on Show but it’s a decoy for Rollins to come in from behind. HHH is dejected and sitting in a chair with his tie off.

Rollins has exactly as much luck against Show as you would expect and it’s off to Kane. Show sends him into the corner and it’s Cena in to hammer away. A dropkick puts Kane down so he tags in Harper, who gets to face Rowan. The fans are behind Erick but we’re not quite ready yet as Seth tags himself in. That’s fine with Rowan who hammers away in the corner and crushes him with a splash. A slam plants Rollins and it’s off to Ryback for a back drop.

Harper comes in and takes a delayed vertical suplex so it’s quickly off to Kane. Ryback Thesz presses him down and gets two off a splash. We get a showdown between Ryback and Rusev with the champ quickly getting slammed down. There’s the Meat Hook but Rusev escapes the Shell Shock and sends Ryback into a boot from Kane. Everything breaks down and it’s a huge brawl with Rollins hitting the Curb Stomp on Ryback. The running superkick from Rusev is enough to eliminate Ryback and tie things up.

Things settle down and it’s Rusev vs. Big Show, because this has gone so well for the giant recently. It’s quickly off to Harper who gets thrown around the corner, only to come back with a dropkick to put Show down. Rollins comes in for some cheap shots before it’s off to Kane for a bunch of stomps. Back to Harper for the Gator Roll before we hit the chinlock. Show fights up and makes the tag to Ziggler as things speed up. Dolph nails Rollins off the apron but charges into the sitout Boss Man Slam for two.

The Authority takes over on Ziggler with Rusev throwing him down for two. Off to Kane for the side slam and big boot for two each. Rusev comes in again to talk Russian trash but Dolph comes back with right hands to the head. Rollins takes him back down again and the slow destruction continues. A release Downward Spiral into the corner gets two on Dolph and we hit the chinlock.

Back to Rusev who runs into the DDT for two but Harper makes the save. Cena comes in with an AA to Harper but Kane chokeslams him. Show chokeslams Kane but Rollins takes him down with the springboard knee. Rowan backdrops Seth onto everyone else but Rusev nails him with a spinwheel kick. Ziggler’s Fameasser to Rusev is countered and Rusev throws him onto about six people at ringside. Rusev loads up the announcers’ table and sets Ziggler for a splash but Dolph moves, sending Rusev crashing through the wood. Only Ziggler beats the count and we’re down to 4-3. That’s one of the only ways to get rid of Rusev.

Back in and Cena gets the hot tag to go after Kane with the usual. The AA connects but Rollins nails a quick Curb Stomp. The referee is totally fine with all of this as Cole is losing his mind. The double tag brings in Harper and Rowan for the showdown we’ve been waiting to see for DAYS. Rowan cleans house and nails a spin kick on Harper but everything breaks down again. Rollins comes in for another Curb Stomp to Rowan, setting up the discus lariat from Harper to tie things up.

We’re down to Show/Cena/Ziggler vs. Kane/Rollins/Harper. We get the showdown and Show turns heel by knocking out Cena….FOR A PIN??? Cena is out and we’re down to 3-2. Show shakes HHH’s hand and walks out, effectively making it 3-1. The fans want Orton as Cena wakes up and realizes what’s going on. Stephanie shouts “OH YEAH OH YEAH OH YEAH” and fails at having any sort of rhythm.

Ziggler gets thrown into the barricade by Kane for two back inside. Off to Harper as Cena has left like he’s supposed to. Rollins comes in a few seconds later and takes Ziggler to the corner, telling him to tag his partners. Back to Kane as the domination continues. Kane loads up a superplex but gets shoved down and cross bodied for two. The superkick and Zig Zag take out Kane and it’s 2-1.

Harper comes in and kicks Dolph’s head off, knocking him out to the floor. A big suicide dive takes Dolph out again as Cole is cheering for Ziggler more than he ever did for Miz. Harper brings Dolph back inside for a superkick but Dolph kicks out again. A Batista Bomb gets the same and Harper is getting frustrated. Dolph grabs a rollup out of nowhere (and a handful of jeans) to tie things up. That probably gets him a rematch for the title at TLC as well.

It’s Rollins vs. Ziggler and Seth comes in to stomp away. He throws Dolph to the floor and into the barricade as Ziggler is on fumes. Back in and Ziggler grabs a small package for two and a quick DDT gets the same. The fans are WAY into these near falls. HHH is losing his mind at ringside as Rollins just lays in right hands to the head. Seth goes up but Ziggler runs the corner, only to get shoved down. A super Curb Stomp misses and the Fameasser gets an even closer two.

The Zig Zag is countered but the Stooges offer a distraction. The second attempt connects on Rollins but HHH takes the referee out. Now the Stooges come in for the beatdown but they screw up as only Stooges can. Ziggler throws Mercury into Stephanie, knocking her into her husband. The Buckle Bomb is countered and the Zig Zag connects. A second referee comes in for the count but HHH breaks it up AGAIN.

He hammers on Dolph and nails a huge clothesline before planing Ziggler with a Pedigree. Rollins is laid on top as referee #3 (crooked Scott Armstrong) comes out……BUT WE HAVE STING! He slowly walks out and nails Armstrong before staring down HHH. The fans find this awesome as they circle each other very slowly. HHH swings but Sting lays him out with the Death Drop. Ziggler and Rollins (who hasn’t moved an inch for about eight minutes after a single Zig Zag) are still down but Sting throws Ziggler on top of him for the pin at 42:08.

Rating: B+. Sting just debuted. You think ANY of the rest of this matters?

Ok for the sake of covering it: the match wasn’t great but they had me freaking out at the end with those near falls and then the crow sounding to have Sting come out. Above all but one thing (which should be obvious), this was about Ziggler instead of Cena, who wasn’t out there for the last fifteen minutes or so. This is the biggest rub Ziggler has ever had and the question now is where he goes with it. That’s a great way to end a show and one heck of a rub.

Cena comes out to hug Ziggler and help him to the back. The fans sing the Goodbye Song to the Authority as Stephanie shouts that THIS IS NOT OVER as the show ends.

Overall Rating: C. That main event and the surprise bring this WAY up as this was looking to be one of the worst shows in a long time until the main event. It’s the definition of a one match show (mostly at least) but just like many a Royal Rumble before it, that one match dragged the show up. It’s a rare thing that I can feel my heart beating at the end of a match but that’s exactly what happened during that last sequence. Awesome ending to a bad show.

Results

Miz/Damien Mizdow b. Usos, Los Matadores and Goldust/Stardust – Mizdow pinned Fernando after a Superfly Splash from Jimmy

Naomi/Natalya/Alicia Fox/Emma b. Cameron/Layla/Summer Rae/Paige – Headscissors faceplant to Paige

Bray Wyatt b. Dean Ambrose via DQ when Ambrose used a chair

Adam Rose/The Bunny b. Slater Gator – Middle rope dropkick to Slater

Nikki Bella b. AJ Lee – Rack Attack

Team Cena b. Team Authority – Zig Zag to Rollins

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Smackdown
Date: November 14, 2014
Location: Echo Arena, Liverpool, England
Attendance: 2,500
Commentators: Michael Cole, Tom Phillips, John Bradshaw Layfield

We’re wrapping up the European shows here with the blue show over in Liverpool. By now most of the Survivor Series main event is set as I believe we have five guys apiece. It should be interesting to see if any of them are swapped out again. They’ve done a nice job so far of building up the people in the match other than Cena, which should be the point of something like this. Let’s get to it.

We open with a long recap of Raw’s events and all the changes to the teams.

Here’s the returning Chris Jericho for a British Highlight Reel. Jericho has one burning question: Who is Adam Rose’s Bunny, because he’s AWESOME. He thinks it’s Funaki, drawing the first Funaki chant in WWE history. That’s enough hijinks though so let’s get our guests out here. This brings out HHH and Stephanie, with Steph doing Jericho’s pose in a cute bit.

Jericho would like to know why the Authority wanted to be on the show. Stephanie says it was because it’s been too long since Smackdown had the Highlight Reel and they like to have fun. She sucks up to the fans and calls them the most important part of the show. We get a YES chant, which shows how important the fans are because they keep him that popular. However, he wouldn’t be there without the Authority. Who could run the WWE without the Authority? Jericho: “I could.”

Actually he has a better idea: the fans run WWE. He lists off some humiliating ideas for HHH, such as cleaning Jericho’s boots, before showing us a clip of Vickie Guerrero shoving Stephanie into the mud in her retirement match. That’s enough for HHH who says the wolf doesn’t ask to be embraced by sheep. The Authority is going to be laughing when they win at Survivor Series. Jericho should learn that when he calls again to come back and get his WWE fix, because he might be erased from the WWE history books by then. Chris thinks this is an arena full of Jericholics and starts singing the Goodbye song.

Video on Wyatt costing Ambrose the Cell match.

Bray Wyatt vs. Sin Cara

Bray nails him a few times to start but misses a charge. Cara goes up for the Swanton but only hits mat. Back up and the charge hits this time, setting up the suplex slam. The Spider Walk sets up Sister Abigail for the pin at 2:16. Total squash.

Post match Bray says he can feel Ambrose screaming for help in his heart. Dean used to feel unloved and woke up every Christmas morning, hoping that daddy would come back. But when he came downstairs, only darkness was waiting for him. That’s what life has become for Dean, but Bray is the light he’s been searching for his entire life.

Salvation is at hand so let Bray fix him. Cue Ambrose but Bray bails and calls Dean predictable. All he has to do is push the right buttons and Dean will be there right on time. Ambrose wants to punish him, just like he wants to punish his daddy. Bray gets in but gets knocked out by a single right hand. As he walks away, Bray says Dean is crying out for help and that he is the key.

Xavier Woods’ new day is coming.

Goldust/Stardust vs. Adam Rose/The Bunny

Non-title. Rose is a bit less energetic on the way to the ring this week. We get a clip from Main Event where the Bunny took out Goldust, allowing Rose to roll up Stardust for a surprise pin to get back in Adam’s good graces. Adam runs over Goldust to start but gets thrown into the corner for a tag off to Stardust. The Express tries to fire up Rose as he fights out of a chinlock. Goldust and Rose bang heads and the hot tag brings in the Bunny. Stardust gets taken down and won’t tag out, allowing Stardust to block a splash with knees. Dark Matter ends the Bunny at 2:03.

Rose Party Fouls the Bunny post match.

WWE2K15 stuff.

Dolph Ziggler looks at what the Authority has put him through in recent weeks and isn’t worried about his triple threat elimination title defense tonight. He says he’s survived everything they’ve thrown at him and if this is the night he loses, he’s going down with a fight and staying on Team Cena. All he has to do is survive until Survivor Series and then the Authority is gone.

Video on Ryback.

Ryback says he’s on his own team and the only person who needs to worry about survving is Kane, who he faces tonight. What you saw on Monday was just an appetizer and unfortunately for Kane, it’s almost feeding time.

Intercontinental Title: Tyson Kidd vs. Cesaro vs. Dolph Ziggler

Ziggler is defending under elimination rules. Kidd gets shoved away to start and Cesaro kicks Dolph in the face. The smaller guys dropkick Cesaro down but Dolph has to kick out of a rollup from Tyson. They trade rapid fire rollups for two each until Dolph dropkicks Cesaro down again. We take a break and come back with Cesaro suplexing both guys at the same time in a nice power display. A powerbomb plants Dolph and Kidd comes back in with a springboard elbow drop.

Cesaro throws Tyson down to cover Ziggler for two and the fans think this is awesome. Dolph gets two off a Fameasser to Kidd but gets caught in the Tree of Woe. Now it’s Kidd with some delayed dropkicks to Dolph’s face but Cesaro nails a clothesline for two on the Canadian. The champ comes back in with a high cross body to Cesaro as JBL rips on Ziggler for complaining too much. Ziggler neckbreakers Kidd and DDTs Cesaro at the same time for two each. Kidd pops back up with a neckbreaker of his own to the champ but gets caught with an uppercut on the top.

They all head to the corner and grapple up top until Cesaro superplexes Ziggler while Kidd powerbombs Cesaro for the Tower of Doom. Cesaro covers Ziggler but Kidd slaps on the Sharpshooter to the European at the same time. Pure leg strength breaks the hold though and Cesaro counters the running DDT with Swiss Death. We take another break and come back with Kidd hitting a Blockbuster on Cesaro, driving him into Ziggler’s raised knees at the same time.

For once that hurts the knees so Kidd puts on the Sharpshooter with Cesaro adding a Crossface at the same time. In what JBL calls a very stupid move, Kidd lets go of his half and stomps on Cesaro, earning him a Cesaro Swing. Ziggler comes back with the running DDT for two on Cesaro but Kidd kicks the champ in the face, right into a German suplex from Cesaro. Back up and a Zig Zag nails Cesaro but Kidd dropkicks the champ down and steals a pin to eliminate Cesaro at 18:17.

So it’s Ziggler vs. Kidd for the title now with the champ on the floor. Tyson headscissors him down into the steps before running the barricade for a kick to the face. Back in and Kidd chokes on the ropes but gets rolled up for two. A Moss Covered Three Handled Family Credenza gets two for the challenger so Kidd springboards with a dive only designed to get superkicked down for two. Tyson pops back up and grabs the Sharpshooter, only to have Dolph roll through into the Zig Zag for the pin at 21:43.

Rating: B+. This had the time to get going and worked out quite well by the end. I like that Kidd is getting a solid push and getting to show off his skills instead of just being an accessory to Natalya. This feud is doing a great job to build up Ziggler, and more importantly the Intercontinental Title, which have been needed for a long time now. Really good, long match here.

Natalya vs. Layla

Layla steals the shirt Natalya is about to throw into the crowd. Natalya rolls out of a wristlock ala Owen Hart but Layla rolls out of an early Sharpshooter attempt. They trade some hard forearms until Layla just kicks her in the head. Some choking on the ropes gets two for Layla and we hit a figure four neck lock. Off to a body vice instead as we keep cutting to Summer Rae on the floor, even though she hasn’t done anything. Layla poses a lot but gets dropkicked down for two. Natalya gets thrown out to the floor but slaps Summer hard in the face. Back in and a quick Sharpshooter makes Layla tap at 3:55.

Rating: D+. Eh Summer looked good in a short black dress and Layla is always good looking. I’m not sure why I’m supposed to care about this though but I’m assuming it’s something related to a show that doesn’t air with the rest of WWE’s shows and is about four months removed from current events.

Recap of the opening segment.

Kofi Kingston’s new day is coming as well.

We recap Bray’s promo on Dean earlier.

Ambrose shouts about being sick of Bray Wyatt. Bray jumps him from behind and lays Ambrose out. He says this world isn’t made for people like them and labels are the way the world puts them in a box.

Ryback vs. Kane

HHH and Stephanie are at ringside. Kane grabs a headlock to start as we’re already in the slow power counters stage. Ryback runs him over with a shoulder but eats an uppercut for his efforts. Cole wants to know what HHH and Stephanie could possibly do if they lose at Survivor Series because it’s all the know. A suplex puts Kane down and we take a break. Back with Ryback hitting his Thesz Press and slamming Kane’s head into the mat.

The Meat Hook is stopped by a big boot and an elbow drop gets two for Kane. Ryback fights back with chops but gets whipped hard into the corner. We hit the chinlock for a bit but Ryback powers up and breaks a chokeslam attempt. Now the Meat Hook connects but Kane escapes the Shell Shock and takes it to the floor where a chair to Ryback’s ribs draws a DQ at 11:45.

Rating: C-. Watchable power match here with neither guy doing anything of note but enough big crashes to make it work. Ryback continues to look good in the ring and capable of doing more than big spots, though I’m not sure why they couldn’t have Kane take a pin here. I don’t know why they keep letting him lose by DQ but it’s not going to kill him to lose to a fairly big name.

Ryback shrugs off the chair shots and nails Kane with the chair. He stares HHH down to end the show.

Overall Rating: B-. Smackdown and WWE continue to pick up steam as they let the wrestlers do their thing tonight. It’s almost like interesting stuff happens here, including Ambrose vs. Wyatt which has mainly been built up on Fridays. This wasn’t a must see show or anything but it had a great TV match that got a lot of time. What more can you ask for from Smackdown anymore?

Results

Bray Wyatt b. Sin Cara – Sister Abigail

Stardust/Goldust b. Adam Rose/The Bunny – Dark Matter to the Bunny

Dolph Ziggler b. Cesaro and Tyson Kidd – Zig Zag to Kidd

Natalya b. Layla – Sharpshooter

Ryback b. Kane via DQ when Kane used a chair

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Smackdown
Date: November 7, 2014
Location: Times Union Center, Albany, New York
Commentators: Michael Cole, John Bradshaw Layfield, Tom Phillips

As we switch from red to blue this week, the big story has Randy Orton being thrown out of the Authority and laid out with a pair of Curb Stomps. Other than that we have Cena and the Authority trying to firm up their teams for Survivor Series. So far both teams have only a few people but we have a few weeks to get ready. Let’s get to it.

Tag Team Titles: Stardust/Goldust vs. Usos

The Dusts are defending and this is inside a cage with pins, submissions or escape to win. Stardust tries to escape early but Jey makes a save. All four come in and we have an early standoff. We settle down to Goldust getting double teamed in the corner until Jimmy gets two off a standing flip splash. Jimmy sends him into the cage for the same result but his cross body only hits steel.

We take a break and come back with Goldust rubbing Jimmy’s face against the cage. A chinlock doesn’t get Goldust anywhere as Jimmy fights up and climbs the cage, only to be taken down with an electric chair. The second chinlock has Jimmy in more trouble but he fights up and climbs again. Goldust makes another stop but gets nailed by Whisper in the Wind.

Jey comes in off a hot tag to clean house and sends Stardust into the cage, setting up a superkick for two. Everything breaks down and Cross Rhodes gets two on Jey. Stardust goes up but Jey makes a save. All four guys get on turnbuckles, allowing Jimmy to superplex Goldust, setting up a Superfly Splash from Jey. Goldust is done but the legal Stardust grabs a rollup out of nowhere to retain at 12:15.

Rating: B-. That kickout of the Cross Rhodes helped this a good deal but I’m tired of seeing these guys fight so many times. Hopefully this wraps things up and we can get onto some new challengers. That brings us to the big problem though: who else can fight them? Los Matadores? Or are we stuck waiting on another thrown together team?

Network hype time.

We recap the Authority’s issues from Monday, culminating in Orton being knocked out so badly that he thinks he’s an actor.

Kane is in the ring to talk about handling Orton before Survivor Series. Randy should serve as an example of what’s coming to anyone else stands up to the Authority. Dolph Ziggler thinks he can survive Team Cena, but tonight he has to survive against Kane inside that steel cage. Back to Survivor Series, Team Authority has an open spot.

Kane wants to bring out a man that has everything they’re looking for but Cesaro cuts him off. Cesaro says he can survive everything WWE has thrown at him and would love to be on Team Authority. Kane says he wasn’t thinking about Cesaro, but if he can beat the guy Kane was thinking of, he can be on Team Authority.

Cesaro vs. Ryback

This is joined in progress after a break with Cesaro driving him into the corner and putting on a chinlock. A low dropkick to the face gets two on Ryback and a suplex gets the same. Back to the chinlock but Ryback fights up and flips Cesaro down. A big spinebuster puts Cesaro down and there’s the Meat Hook, only to have Cesaro escape Shell Shock.

Ryback is sent shoulder first into the post and a top rope elbow gives Cesaro two more. Cesaro loads up a suplex but Ryback counters into one of his own, only to have Cesaro drive upside down knees to Ryback’s head. Ryback grabs Cesaro’s leg as it comes down though and Shell Shocks him for the pin at 3:53.

Rating: C. Nice power match here with a good ending. I like stuff like that instead of just picking someone up and hitting your finisher as it looks like the guys are thinking instead of just following a script to a match. Ryback is starting to get momentum again and that’s a good thing for the weak face side of the roster.

Kane applauds Ryback but Ryback walks away without acknowledging him.

R-Truth vs. Adam Rose

This is a result of Truth saying the Bunny was the real star of the team. Truth nails a shoulder to start and does a quick Bunny hop. Rose puts his hand up and jumps into Truth’s arms, only to be thrown down. The Bunny jumps up on the apron, allowing Truth to roll up Rose for the pin at 1:24.

Rose lays out the Bunny post match and dances with the Rosebuds. The Bunny looks stunned. Well, as stunned as a Bunny can look.

Here’s the returning Christian for one more…..episode of the Peep Show. He asks the fans who they think is winning at Survivor Series and of course the people are behind Team Cena. Guest Dean Ambrose cuts him off though as he doesn’t like being patience. Christian asks what it’s like to be Dean now, because the last thing Christian remembers is Dean ticking off the entire roster as a member of the Shield.

Dean says he has no friends and is always looking over his shoulder but he wouldn’t have it any other way. As for Bray Wyatt, Dean doesn’t really know why he’s coming after him. Dean doesn’t have a title that Bray wants or anything like that, so maybe Bray is just preying on people like he always does. Bray likes to manipulate people’s minds, but Dean is just crazy enough that it doesn’t work. It’s a thrill to live the way he does, riding the edge of a lightning bolt. He loves living this way…and here’s Wyatt to cut him off.

Bray says Dean has nothing to fear because he has nothing to lose. There was a time when Dean had the security of the Shield around him but that was taken away, leaving Dean like a fish on land, gasping for air. Bray however, is a healer. He healed Harper and Rowan and now he can heal Ambrose. Wyatt can take Dean’s hand and heal all his pain, but not everyone can be saved.

Daniel Bryan once defied him and now Bryan is nowhere to be seen. What does Dean have to lose? His own father turned his back on him. Does he still send Ambrose postcards from prison? Bray invites Dean to prove him wrong, so Dean goes up the ramp as the lights cut off again. Ambrose gets to the stage and there’s no one in sight.

Video on preacher Xavier Woods.

We look at Rusev beating Sheamus on Monday’s post show. Since it’s an “exclusive”, we only see the last three minutes or so. After the match, Lana said they were taking the title back to Russia for Putin.

AJ says Brie slapped her on Monday but it was the evil twin that made her do so. Brie comes in to apologize, but it’s a ruse so Nikki can get in a cheap shot.

Summer Rae vs. Natalya

This is due to Summer spending too much time around Tyson Kidd earlier today. Considering how much Tyson and Natalya hate each other on Total Divas, it’s odd that Natalya would be annoyed at all. Kidd is on commentary and takes credit for weakening Sheamus for Rusev. Summer takes Natalya down with a bodyscissors until Nattie comes back with a slam. Cole suggests Kidd support his wife, so he gets up and tells her to put on the Sharpshooter. The distraction lets Summer grab a rollup for the pin at 1:34.

2K15 hype.

Cena vs. Ryback on Raw in England.

Dolph says he’ll do whatever it takes to get rid of the Authority. Cue HHH, who is surprised Ziggler is here after the beating Rollins gave him on Monday. Orton isn’t here tonight though, so who is going to save him tonight? Maybe he should save himself by joining the Authority.

Cole brings out the founder of an organization called Soldier Socks and a wounded soldier named Dan Rose. The founder talks about the organization as Rose is put into a different wheelchair. We get a news clip about some new technology that allows wounded soldiers to walk again. Back in the arena, Rose talks about losing the use of his legs due to a roadside bomb in Afghanistan. Using the new equipment, Rose is able to stand up and walk across the stage using two walking sticks. Rose gets a well deserved standing ovation. That’s a very cool moment to see and one of those things that is almost hard to believe.

Dolph Ziggler vs. Kane

Inside a cage and non-title. Before the match, we get the eyes vignette from Raw. Ziggler looks at the screen and isn’t sure what to make of it. Kane slugs away to start but gets caught in a faceplant for two. Dolph tries to climb out a few times but gets sent into the cage for his efforts. We take a break and come back with Dolph getting kicked in the face for two.

Kane takes off a turnbuckle pad but misses a charge into another corner, setting up Ziggler’s running DDT. Both guys climb to the top rope and both quickly get crotched for their efforts. Ziggler dives into an uppercut but escapes the chokeslam. He tries to escape and gets slammed down, setting up the chokeslam to knock him silly. Kane calls for a tombstone but takes WAY too long, allowing Ziggler to hit the Zig Zag for two.

Dolph takes too long going for the door, setting up a collision to put both guys down again. Back up and Kane misses a charge into the exposed buckle. Dolph climbs his back and over the cage but Kane kicks the door open to break Ziggler’s balance and leave him hanging on the door. Kane goes to escape but Dolph kicks the door onto his head and drops down to win at 11:36.

Rating: B. I liked this far better than I was expecting to as Ziggler got to look like a big deal in a showdown instead of having to have a bunch of run-ins to water the match down. Kane is a good guy for something like this as he looks intimidating and is a good monster to conquer. One thing I don’t get though: why not make this a title match? Kane is more than worthy of a midcard title shot and you can give Ziggler a win in a fairly big match. That could happen far more often than it does but you rarely see it. Good match though with a solid ending.

Overall Rating: B. This was the best Smackdown in probably months with two good matches that felt big and some promos that made the show feel like it mattered. It didn’t feel like it was a boring show that just there to fill in a few hours and then mean nothing. We even got something resembling an explanation from Wyatt for why he interrupted the Cell match. While most of the stuff isn’t going to go anywhere, it’s nice to treat this show like it matters for a change. Fun stuff tonight and the kind of show Smackdown needs to be more often.

Results

Stardust/Goldust b. Usos – Rollup to Jey

Ryback b. Cesaro – Shell Shock

R-Truth b. Adam Rose – Rollup

Summer Rae b. Natalya – Rollup

Dolph Ziggler b. Kane – Ziggler escaped the cage

 

 

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and pick up my new book of 1997 WCW Monday Nitro Reviews at Amazon for just $3.99 at:

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Monday Night Raw
Date: November 3, 2014
Location: First Niagara Center, Buffalo, New York
Commentators: Jerry Lawler, Michael Cole, John Bradshaw Layfield

Survivor Series is still a few weeks away but we have a main event set and a story to get us there. I’m not sure on having the match set up and then building the story behind it, but the idea worked in 1992 for Flair vs. Savage. Anyway, now we need to find out who else is going to join Cena before Orton comes in for the save. Let’s get to it.

We open with a recap of Orton laying out Rollins last week and the setup for Cena vs. the Authority at Survivor Series with the big brawl to end the show.

In the arena we have the Authority and…..the Boss himself, Vince McMahon. Vince praises the Authority and acknowledges the fans’ displeasure of them. The fans know what a great experience the WWE Network is (unless you’re in the UK of course) and if you don’t, you can find out in November for free. This includes the Survivor Series being free, meaning you can see Team Cena vs. the Authority for absolutely free.

However, let’s raise the stakes a bit. There’s something great about having power you’ve earned, such as when Vince defeated the US government, Ted Turner, and the match with God (where Vince was God’s partner but whatever). Therefore, let’s put the Authority’s power on the line in the match. The fans love that idea and we get an awkward ending where Vince’s music comes on before he seems ready to leave. Vince was just a spokesman here and didn’t mention the mess in the UK at all.

As they leave, here’s Dean Ambrose for his match. He shakes Vince’s hand and that’s it for the Authority right now.

After a break, Vince says he loved being back out there and hopes the Authority liked his surprise. He knows he can count on HHH and Stephanie but doesn’t like HHH’s tie. Vince leaves for the night and that’s it.

Dean Ambrose vs. Cesaro

Before the match we get a recap of how Ambrose lost in the Cell. They hit the mat to start with Dean working on the arm before hammering away in the corner. A headlock takes Cesaro right back to the mat but he shoves Ambrose out to the floor to get a breather. Dean hammers away and nails an ax handle off the apron. Back in Cesaro powerbombs Dean out of the corner but Dean just charges at him with right hands to put Cesaro outside again. Cesaro is busted open BAD but the lights go out and we take a break.

Back with Wyatt sitting on the stage and watching Cesaro DDTing Dean off the top. The doctors have closed up the gash on Cesaro’s head so he doesn’t bleed on Dean while holding a chinlock. Dean fights up and nails a running forearm in the corner followed by a bulldog for two.

A big boot sets up the Rebound Clothesline to give Ambrose another two count. Dean loads up a tornado DDT but gets countered into Swiss Death to give Cesaro his own two. That doesn’t last long though as Dean knocks him to the floor for a suicide dive. Back in and Ambrose gets crotched on the top for two, only to grab Dirty Deeds for the pin at 13:23.

Rating: B-. These two have chemistry and thankfully they didn’t just do another street fight to make the one on Friday pointless. Dean getting a clean pin is a good thing for him, even though Cesaro’s stock continues to plummet. Ambrose vs. Wyatt should be good when it happens as both guys are capable of putting on a great match when they need to.

Dean stares at Wyatt on the stage but the lights go out again. They come back up and show an empty rocking chair.

The Authority is in the back, talking about how make the best Survivor Series team. HHH suggests Orton but Stephanie isn’t convinced. Neither was HHH, but now Vince has forced them into a position they don’t want.

Jimmy Uso vs. Miz

Miz grabs a headlock to start as Jey stares at Mizdow’s imitations. Back up and Jimmy nails a superkick to the ribs and gets two off a clothesline. We hit the armbar as Jey starts copying his brother. Cole: “THIS IS HILARIOUS!” A Samoan drop puts Miz down again but he avoids the running Umaga attack. Back in and Miz avoids a low clothesline before kicking Jimmy’s head off. We hit the chinlock for a bit before Miz gets sent to the floor, setting up a huge dive. Mizdow tries to interfere and eats a superkick from Jey, drawing a huge boo from the crowd. The distraction lets Miz hit the Finale on Jimmy for the pin at 4:40.

Rating: D+. This was a fairly slow paced match but it was so much better than seeing the same tag matches over and over again. It’s also nice to see them having different teams than just the champions and whomever they’re feuding with at the time fighting. Just keep things from being the same over and over again and it’s far easier to sit through.

We recap Mark Henry turning on Big Show last week.

Sheamus is defending the US Title on Raw Backstage Pass against Rusev tonight.

Sheamus vs. Tyson Kidd

Non-title and Kidd has his big headphones on again. Feeling out process to start with Kidd kicking away at the leg but getting dropped with a European uppercut. A tilt-a-whirl backbreaker (not the Irish Curse Cole) puts Kidd down again as we see Rusev and Lana watching from the back. Kidd sends him throat first into the middle rope as Natalya looks very nervous on the floor. A hard kick to the head staggers Sheamus as Cole makes a Sarah Palin reference. Leave it to WWE to be on the cutting edge of the news.

We hit a chinlock on Sheamus until he fights back with a running knee and Alabama Slam. There’s the Cloverleaf but Tyson crawls over to the ropes. A springboard missile dropkick puts Sheamus on the floor as Kidd is doing far better than you would expect here. Sheamus pulls him off the apron for the rolling fireman’s carry but Tyson throws Natalya at Sheamus to beat the count back in at 5:17.

Rating: C-. I liked this way more than I was expecting to as Kidd got to show off a bit instead of looking like a cruiserweight jobber in way over his head. Sheamus losing by countout is far better than having him get rolled up or something because he got caught by a cheating coward. Little things like that make the show so much easier to sit through.

Sheamus kicks Kidd’s head off post match.

Here’s Dolph Ziggler for his match but instead he gets the entire Authority. We see Vince’s announcement again and Stephanie says the Authority is excited. See they’re winners, unlike John Cena and everyone else. They’ll put together the greatest Survivor Series team in history, led by Seth Rollins and Kane. HHH whispers in her ear and Stephanie announces Orton as the third member.

The Game talks about how people think the Authority is punishing people who side with Cena, but that’s not the case at all. If Ziggler sides with Cena and wins, who is going to get the credit? If they lose, who is going to get all the blame? Ziggler seems ready to rise up to the top but there’s always someone in his way. He works harder than anyone else in the back but Ziggler doesn’t get the credit for it. Instead, Cena is called the hardest working man in the company while no one remembers Dolph. Stephanie asks Ziggler where Cena is tonight if he cares about Ziggler so much.

Maybe this will all work out for Ziggler though. Maybe Dolph gets all the titles, the girls and the fame. Maybe….that’s an awful lot of maybes. Or maybe, Ziggler can call up Cena and tell him the answer is no. Dolph can have anything he wants for one phone call. If Ziggler asks, the Authority will give.

Ziggler thinks about it and confirms that he can have ANYTHING he wants. HHH: “Anything.” Ziggler wants HHH and the Authority out of power for good. That’s too bad because the Authority wanted to give Dolph whatever he wanted. Now, when the twelve year olds are complaining about the Authority on Twitter, they can blame Ziggler. Sometimes in life you can end up empty handed, like right now because Ziggler is defending his Intercontinental Title.

Intercontinental Title: Dolph Ziggler vs. Seth Rollins

Rollins is challenging. They hit the mat to start with Rollins grabbing a headlock as the fans tell him that he sold out. The announcers plug the Network as Ziggler hiptosses Rollins out to the floor. Seth comes back with right hands in the corner and a clothesline gets two. Dolph backdrops him down but gets caught in a suplex. A dropkick staggers Rollins but he comes back with a Downward Spiral into the buckle for two. We hit the chinlock on the champion but he fights up and sends both guys outside.

Back from a break with Ziggler in another chinlock. He fights up but both guys try cross bodies to give us a breather. Some clotheslines drop Rollins and the neckbreaker puts him down again. The Fameasser is countered into a rollup for two but a catapult sends Rollins into the corner. Dolph hammers away in the corner, only to have Seth nail the Buckle Bomb for two.

Seth misses the top rope knee to the head and the Fameasser connects for another near fall. The running DDT and superkick are blocked and Rollins gets two off an enziguri. Ziggler avoids the Curb Stomp but has to deal with the Stooges. Seth sends him shoulder first into the post and now the Curb Stomp connects….but Orton comes in with an RKO to Rollins for the DQ at 15:30.

Rating: B-. The DQ ending makes sense here as Orton’s face turn (or at least tweener turn) continues to grow. Rollins vs. Orton is going to be a great match and the build is getting better and better with the one upping. They made sure to protect Ziggler for a change here as he was fighting three guys at once and didn’t actually get pinned. Again, the little things are all you need to make this stuff work.

Orton comes in to see the Authority and is told he and Rollins will be co-captains at Survivor Series. Randy thinks he should go fight on Team Cena instead but HHH gets in his face. HHH wants Orton to face Rollins tonight to get this out of his system because everything is on the line at Survivor Series. They slowly shake hands and Orton says deal.

We get a vignette of eyes with a voice saying he sees you. It sounded like Rowan but it wasn’t clear.

We see Show and Henry fighting on MizTV from Smackdown.

Titus O’Neil is in the ring and says you spell winning T-I-T-U-S-. He’s open to offers for Survivor Series but gets cut off by some music.

Ryback vs. Titus O’Neil

The fans get behind Ryback to start but O’Neil actually takes him down with a clothesline. Some kicks to the back have Ryback in more trouble but he spinebusts Titus with ease. The Authority is watching in the back as the Meathook and Shell Shock are enough for the pin at 2:26.

Big Show is in the back and says he’d love to be on Team Cena at Survivor Series because Cena could count on him. Speaking of people you can count on, Show thought he could count on Mark Henry. But then Henry turned on him in a big way and beat Big Show up. They have forty years between them in WWE (not quite) and Big Show misses his friend. However, there’s a part of him that just wants to knock Henry out.

Some Buffalo Bills are here.

Big Show vs. Mark Henry

Henry gets tossed into the corner to start but Show charges into an elbow. The fans chant for Sexual Chocolate as Show superkicks Henry down. An elbow gets two and they head outside where Henry sends him into the post. Show nails something like a spear to put both guys down on the floor.

Back in and Show drops some elbows before putting on that modified Haas of Pain. Henry makes the ropes so Show stands on his chest. The Authority is watching from the back again as Big Show goes up top. Mark slams him down and RUNS over for a two count. The World’s Strongest Slam gets the same with a very weak reaction. They head outside with Henry sending him into the steps before nailing him with the steps for a DQ at 6:28.

Rating: D+. This was your standard slow paced match between two big guys and nowhere near as good of a match as either guy had with Rusev. The fact that it seems to set up another match between them doesn’t help matters as they can only throw each other around so many times before the interest wears down.

Henry Slams him on the steps post match.

Stephanie wants Henry on the team so HHH sends Kane to find out. We get some of Stephanie’s classic acting as she says they only need one more. HHH says let the guys get it out of their system tonight so they can focus.

Network hype.

AJ is on commentary as Brie is in the back for a chat with Renee. She’s on day 8 of her sentence and knows it’s tough when Nikki comes in to cut it off. Brie isn’t allowed to do anything without Nikki’s permission so get out of here. Renee says that’s a wrap when Erick Rowan pops up next to her and starts playing with her hair. He takes off the mask and says pretty. Renee leaves because she’s smarter than Michael Cole.

Nikki Bella vs. Emma

The CM Punk chants begin as Cole explains the servant story. An early slam gets two for Nikki and she cranks on Emma’s arms. Back up and Emma avoids a charge in the corner before putting on the Dilemma. The Emma Sandwich is broken up by a dropkick, followed by the Rack Attack for the pin at 2:24.

Post match Nikki tells Brie to go slap AJ. Brie follows orders and Nikki runs off from the champ.

Xavier Woods is now an over the top preacher who talks about it being a new day.

Rusev vs. Zack Ryder

Ryder has sent Cena a tweet saying that he’d be on Team Cena. It’s almost sad at this point. Rusev quickly takes him into the corner and hammers away. Ryder scores with some dropkicks but charges into a foot and gets Accoladed at 1:18.

Post match Lana says their new orders from Putin are to bring him the United States Title. Rusev says Sheamus is no different from any other and he’ll beg for mercy like everyone else. This brings out Sheamus who says he values the title more than anything and that Rusev is in for the fight of his life tonight.

After a break, Stephanie comes up to the Russians in the back and offers Lana a spot on the team. They’ll have to talk to Putin first and then get back to her. As you would expect, this took far longer than it should have.

Fernando vs. Stardust

Miz and Mizdow are on commentary. Stardust takes him down to start and hammers away as Miz talks about teaching Mizdow to act. Fernando fights out of an armbar but gets sent out to the floor. Stardust throws him back in but knocks JBL’s hat off the table for some reason. Goldust, Torito and the actors get in a brawl, allowing Fernando to hit the Backstabber on Stardust for the pin at 2:32.

We recap all the Authority stuff tonight.

Randy Orton vs. Seth Rollins

The Authority is at ringside. Orton knocks him into the corner to start and sends Seth outside. Back in and they slug it out with Orton sending him outside again for a clothesline to the back of the head. We take a break and come back with Orton having some issues getting back inside. Rollins misses a dive though and we head back inside for a chinlock. That goes nowhere either as Rollins fights out and kicks Orton in the chest a few times.

A knee drop gets two for Seth but they head outside with Orton sending him onto the announcers’ table. Seth drives him head first onto the table as well and heads back inside. Orton crotches him on top though and scores with a superplex for two. They head back outside again so Rollins can hit a suicide dive. HHH looks worried as Seth goes back inside for a springboard knee to the head. An enziguri looks to set up the Curb Stomp but Orton counters with a powerslam for two. The Elevated DDT looks to set up the RKO but Rollins counters into a backslide for the surprise pin at 14:40.

Rating: B. Good match here with a surprise finish. If Orton is indeed taking time off to film a movie, there’s nothing wrong with him putting Rollins over on the way out. At the end of the day, Orton has been bulletproof for years so a loss like this isn’t going to mean anything, especially if he comes back to a huge face pop.

Most of the Authority gets in the ring and Orton is livid. Randy shakes the Stooges’ and Kane’s hands, leaving only Rollins in front of him. Orton isn’t sure this time as Rollins extends his hand and says he’s sorry. They shake hands and Orton lays him out with an RKO. What a sore loser.

The rest of the Authority gets taken out but HHH comes in to break up the Punt. He tries to calm Orton down but Randy lays him out as well. The Stooges come back in and triple team Orton but he fights all of them off and goes after Rollins outside. The Authority gets on Orton, allowing Seth to Curb Stomp him onto the table. Orton is slightly busted open. HHH says finish this and walks off with Stephanie, leaving Rollins to Curb Stomp Orton onto the steps to end the show.

Here’s a rare bonus match from the post show.

US Title: Sheamus vs. Rusev

Sheamus is defending of course and we get Big Match Intros. Rusev takes him up against the ropes to start before they trade some big clubbing shots. Sheamus knocks the Russian out to the apron for the forearms but Rusev breaks it up at about four. They head outside with Sheamus diving into a powerslam off the apron. Back in for a side choke from Rusev followed by a spinwheel kick for no cover.

We hit a front facelock on the champion but he quickly fights up for a powerslam to get a breather. Sheamus wins a slugout with some running ax handles but gets backdropped to the apron, only to grab Rusev for the ten forearms. The slingshot shoulder gets two but Sheamus takes too long going up, allowing Rusev to slam him down. A fall away slam gets two more for Rusev and frustration is starting to set in.

The Accolade goes on but Sheamus gets an arm free to fight it. He gets to his knees and headbutts his way to freedom, setting up White Noise for two. Sheamus staggers to his feet but misses the Brogue Kick, allowing Rusev to hit two straight running superkicks. The Accolade makes Sheamus black out to give Rusev the title at 12:02.

Rating: C+. This was a nice power match as you have Sheamus make Rusev look good in the process. Sheamus is another guy that can easily bounce back from a loss like this so there’s no damage done. It’s not like Sheamus was doing anything with the title anyway so let Rusev use it as a prop to keep up the RUSSIA IS AWESOME story. It makes perfect sense and there’s nothing wrong with this. The match wasn’t bad either.

Overall Rating: C+. I liked this show far better than most of the recent ones as you had pieces set up for the main event at the PPV and a reason to stick around for the post show match. It’s nothing great, but after all of the disasters we’ve sat through recently, this was a nice breath of air. Cena not being there likely had something to do with that as he’s been stuck doing the same stuff for so long lately that it’s nice to have someone else get a chance every now and then.

Results

Dean Ambrose b. Cesaro – Dirty Deeds

Miz b. Jimmy Uso – Skull Crushing Finale

Tyson Kidd b. Sheamus via countout

Seth Rollins b. Dolph Ziggler via DQ when Randy Orton interfered

Ryback b. Titus O’Neil – Shell Shock

Big Show b. Mark Henry via DQ when Henry hit him with the steps

Nikki Bella b. Emma – Rack Attack

Rusev b. Zack Ryder – Accolade

Fernando b. Stardust – Backstabber

Seth Rollins b. Randy Orton – Backslide

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and pick up my new book of 1997 WCW Monday Nitro Reviews at Amazon for just $3.99 at:

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And check out my Amazon author page with wrestling books for under $4 at:

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Hell in a Cell 2014
Date: October 26, 2014
Location: American Airlines Center, Dallas, Texas
Commentators: Michael Cole, Jerry Lawler, John Bradshaw Layfield

It’s a double main event this year as we have two matches inside the Cell for the sake of having two matches inside the Cell. First up, in what should be the main event, we have Seth Rollins vs. Dean Ambrose in a well built feud that belongs in the Cell. On the other hand, we have Cena vs. Orton in a match that is in the Cell to fill in a spot on the card. Let’s get to it.

Pre-Show: Bo Dallas vs. Mark Henry

This is a bonus match and seems to have replaced MizdowTV. Bo declares himself the new World’s Strongest Man after beating Henry four times in a row. He’s immune to Ebola (not said by name here) and is ashamed that this city shares his name. Therefore his last name is Bo Washington (the Washington Redskins are playing the Dallas Cowboys on Monday Night Football tomorrow night). Henry hammers away to start and almost throws Dallas out of his shirt. World’s Strongest Slam ends Bo in 34 seconds.

Bo says he wasn’t ready and that Henry cheated. Cheaters never win, so Bo is the winner in the record book of life and is 5-0 against Henry. Mark throws him into the barricade for good measure.

The opening video focuses on how violent the Cell can be. Most of the focus is on Orton vs. Cena, which hopefully doesn’t mean that’s the main event. Ambrose vs. Rollins gets its share of time too though.

Intercontinental Title: Dolph Ziggler vs. Cesaro

This is 2/3 falls with Ziggler defending after they traded wins in the last week. Ziggler comes out first for some reason and Cole actually brings up the title being won for the first time in Rio de Janiero. Cesaro looks to have shaved the rest of his hair. We get some grappling to start with Cesaro taking him down to the mat and cranking on a chinlock. Off to a chinlock as Cesaro does some of the most obvious spot calling I’ve seen in years.

Back up and they trade rollups for two each until Ziggler gets caught in the Swing for two. Dolph kicks out but hangs on to Cesaro for a rollup and the pin at 3:43. Cesaro is furious and hammers away but misses a middle rope elbow. A STIFF right hand puts Ziggler down and we hit a kneeling reverse chinlock on the champion. Cesaro goes after the arm but still can’t tie things up. He sends Dolph to the apron for the superplex but Dolph his arm across the top rope to take over.

Dolph actually stays on the arm with a cobra clutch but Cesaro spins him around into a suplex attempt. Ziggler turns that into something like a Kimura until Cesaro drives him into the corner. The hold stays on as Cesaro climbs the ropes and throws Ziggler up for a superplex. That looked great but Cesaro can’t cover due to the arm. Ziggler is up at two and avoids a charge to send him arm first into the post, setting up the Fameasser for two. The running DDT is countered into Swiss Death for two but the Neutralizer is countered into a Stunner on the arm and the Zig Zag to retain the title at 12:24.

Rating: B-. Good match here, even though it makes me wonder why they bothered having Ziggler lose clean on Monday. Cesaro did his usual here: blow the fans’ minds with big moves and then lose anyway because I guess his victory was popping the crowd. I’m not sure where Ziggler goes after this but at least he had a good match here.

We recap the end of Raw where Rollins attacked Orton in a big surprise.

The Authority is in the back and Orton is looking for Rollins. Stephanie tells him to use his anger on Cena tonight but Orton wants to get his hands on Seth. HHH tries to calm things down again by saying Orton and Rollins are a lot alike. Randy leaves, but says if HHH doesn’t deal with Rollins, he will.

Brie Bella vs. Nikki Bella

Loser is the winner’s servant for 30 days. They lock up to start with Brie sending Nikki into the corner but missing a charge. Nikki runs her over for two and a facebuster gets the same. The fans start chanting JBL because NO ONE CARES ABOUT THIS STORY. Brie plants her face first for two before hitting a few dropkicks. A running knee to the face has Nikki in trouble but she misses a charge and falls out to the floor.

She comes up clutching her knee and heads back inside to take a missile dropkick for two. Nikki pops back up and hooks the Rack for two. Brie slaps on the YES Lock but Nikki gets her feet on the ropes. Nikki comes back with a hard forearm to the face and a second Rack for the pin at 6:21.

Rating: D+. The worst part: the wrestling wasn’t all that bad. The problem with this is it’s one of the least interesting stories in years as I don’t even remember why they’re fighting. I get that it’s about Brie quitting but are we really supposed to care that a woman is dating John Cena (wait, does that relationship exist in WWE?) and had to wrestle some handicap matches against some heels. Also, if Nikki hates her sister so much, why would she want her around for thirty more days?

WWE2K15 ad.

The expert panel of Renee, Booker T., Heyman and Alex Riley talk about what we’ve seen so far.

Tag Team Titles: Usos vs. Goldust/Stardust

The Dusts are defending. Stardust and Jimmy get things going with the twin getting slammed down. Jimmy comes back by missing a kick but gets two off a flip splash. Off to Goldust vs. Jey as the challengers take over, only to have Jimmy get sent knee first into the post. Goldust slaps on a chinlock and gets two off a powerslam. The release gordbuster drops Jimmy and we hit the chinlock again. Back up and Stardust’s bulldog is countered before Goldust is backdropped to the floor.

The hot tag brings in Jey to clean house as the Usos hit their big dives. Goldust takes the running Umaga Attack in the corner for two but Jey has to go after Stardust, allowing Goldust to get two of his own off a spinebuster. Jey superkicks him down for two more before the Usos hit stereo superplexes. There’s a Superfly Splash to Goldust but Stardust makes a save at two. A quick kick to the back of the knee sets up the Final Cut from Goldust to retain the titles at 10:25.

Rating: B-. Another good match but another case where I do not care about the story because we’ve seen these teams fight half a dozen times in six man tags over the last few weeks. The division is back to having two teams again and that makes some very dull periods. At least the wrestling is good but it’s only going to last so long.

Some singer cares about breast cancer. November can’t get here soon enough.

We recap Orton vs. Cena with a nice package on rivalries. They’re playing this up to be amongst the greatest rivalries ever but the amount of times they’ve fought hurts it a lot.

Randy Orton vs. John Cena

In the Cell and the winner gets a match with Lesnar at some point in the future. Before the match the camera picks up on a Cena vs. Orton sign then zooms out when we see that it’s complaining about how many times they’ve fought. Orton takes over to start and hammers away to send Cena out to the floor. John goes face first into the steel before they head back inside. Orton brings in a chair but Cena kicks it away for a breather.

That’s fine with Randy as he headbutts Cena down and gets in a few chair shots for two. Orton drives the chair into the ribs a few times before taking Cena outside to rub his face against the Cell again. A few more rams are good for two and we hit the chinlock. Cena fights up for his comeback but walks into a kick to the head and the powerslam. The Elevated DDT is countered with a backdrop and now it’s Cena ramming him back first into the Cell.

John tries one too many times though and gets crotched against the post to change advantage again. They stay on the floor with Cena sending him back into the cage and pulling out a table. It’s set up in the corner but Orton gets in the first few blows to take over again. The RKO gets two and Cena being thrown through the table gets the same. Randy’s next weapon of choice is the stairs but Cena slams him onto the steel for two more. The AA is countered though and a low blow gets two for Randy.

The STF goes on but Orton makes the ropes. This is the Cell though so it means nothing, meaning Orton has to crawl under the ropes to escape. John picks up the steps and throws them as hard as he can through the ropes, only to hit the Cell by mistake. Back in and they trade finishers for two each, including the AA countered into the RKO. Even the fans knew to expect that spot. Another AA gets two but both guys are down. Randy brings in another table and crotches him on the top but a middle rope RKO is countered into a middle rope AA through the table for the pin at 25:50.

Rating: B. They went with the regular big match showdown here and that’s the best thing they could have done. These two are almost out of ideas and thankfully they had a good one here. It wasn’t a masterpiece or anything but they know how to work the big match formula. Also thank goodness this was the first half main event instead of having it close the show.

Cena stares Heyman down.

Big Show and Henry are getting ready in the back.

US Title: Miz vs. Sheamus

Sheamus is defending. Apparently the MizdowTV did happen as the pre-shows are now all an hour long. There doesn’t seem to be much to it as Miz praised Mizdow and Sheamus might have Brogue Kicked a cameraman. Sheamus starts the match with a Brogue Kick attempt but Miz bails to the ropes. That’s fine with Sheamus as he grabs the ten forearms, complete with Mizdow grabbing the bottom rope and selling them as well.

They head outside with Miz taking out Mizdow by mistake but actually using the distraction to nail Sheamus and take over. Sheamus quickly fights back and hits the rolling fireman’s carry on the floor for two. He motions that it’s time for the face but Miz takes him down and gets two of his own off the low DDT. The fans chant for Mizdow as Miz counters White Noise into a failed Figure Four attempt. Sheamus scores with a powerslam and calls for the Brogue, only to have to go after Mizdow. Miz’s rollup doesn’t work but the Skull Crushing Finale gets two. Not that it matters as the Brogue Kick retains the title at 8:25.

Rating: C. Mizdow was the star of this match and I’m hoping they get to his face turn soon enough. Maybe they can have him get the title off Sheamus soon enough and make Miz jealous or something like that but it would be better than Sheamus beating them up every week. Match was nothing you wouldn’t see on Raw.

Post match Mizdow lays next to Miz so Sheamus has some fun with them by making Miz, and Sandow as a result, do the YMCA dance.

Brie has to load up Nikki’s bags in the car and is all evil about a smoothie. You can guess where the smoothie winds up.

We recap Rusev vs. Big Show. In short: America good, Russia bad, repeat for six to eight weeks and throw in Rusev kicking a US soldier.

Rusev vs. Big Show

Lana is in pink tonight. They slug it out to start with Rusev getting the better of it by going after the leg to put Show down. Rusev stays on the leg with the wide variety of leg stuff that you often see used on giants as this isn’t off to the hottest start in the world. A nice suplex drops Show again for two. The Accolade is countered into something like Charlie Haas’ Haas of Pain but Rusev is right next to the ropes.

Back up and Show hits a spear as Henry comes out. There’s the chokeslam to Rusev and he rolls outside, only to have Show call Henry off and throw Rusev back in. There’s the jumping superkick to Show and Henry, followed by two more to Show. The Accolade goes on and Show gives up at 8:04.

Rating: D. This was every big Rusev match we’ve seen so far but there’s only so much you can do with osmeone like Big Show. There’s no doubt in who is going to win these things and that’s the problem with someone like Rusev. He really needs to move up to someone more mobile now and Sheamus might be just the right option.

You know breast cancer? It’s still bad.

Ambrose goes on a rant about Seth Rollins as a Halloween costume resembling roadkill and oatmeal on a pogo stick. It didn’t make any more sense when he said it.

Divas Title: AJ Lee vs. Paige

AJ is defending and Alicia Fox is in Paige’s corner. They trade knockdowns to start until Paige kicks her in the ribs to take over. AJ comes back with a rolling cradle for two and they head outside with AJ having to nail Fox. Back in and Paige takes over with some shots to the back and a double arm crank to kill some time. They get back up and Paige stays on her, including a fall away slam (complete with skipping) for two. Back outside with AJ sending her head first into the barricade, setting up the Black Widow to retain at 6:55.

Rating: D+. Not terrible here but again, I’m sick of seeing these two fight. They’ve had like five or six matches on PPV already and there’s just no need to have them go at it anymore. Much like the tag division, there’s such a lack of depth to this title and it’s really starting to show again.

The Cell is lowered and we recap Ambrose vs. Rollins. Seth turned on the Shield and joined the Authority, sending Dean on a quest for revenge. The Authority kept interfering so let’s lock them in a big box.

Dean Ambrose vs. Seth Rollins

Dean is out first and throws a bunch of chairs and some bags in the ring before climbing the Cell. Rollins comes out but doesn’t want to go up so he sends the Stooges up instead. They go up and get the beating you would expect, only to have Rollins sneak up and destroy Ambrose with the Stooges’ help. There hasn’t been a bell yet. They slowly climb halfway down the side of the cage and we get the first major spot of the match as they ram each other into the Cell and fly through the announcers’ tables.

Both guys are put on stretchers as the match stops. Dean realizes what’s going on though and gets off his stretcher. He goes after Rollins and drags him into the Cell to officially start things off. Dean busts out some duct tape but blasts Seth over and over again with a chair instead of using it. He tries the screwdriver to Seth’s face but Rollins snaps his throat across the top to escape. Dean pops back up and dropkicks Rollins into the Cell to take over again. They get back inside so Dean can clothesline Seth out to the floor.

The suicide dive sends Seth into the Cell wall and Rollins is almost dead. Back in again and Dean piles up chairs but gets suplexed onto them instead. Dean gets right back up and puts Seth across a table at ringside for a middle rope elbow ala Cactus Jack. He rubs Seth’s face into the steel but Kane pops up with a fire extinguisher to blind Ambrose. Seth powerbombs Dean through a standing table against the Cell and they go back inside again.

The Curb Stomp gets two and Seth is frustrated. He goes outside for the briefcase but instead just destroys Dean with chair shots. Rollins puts him head first on the briefcase but Dean counters with Dirty Deeds, only to have Seth escape with a kick to the head. Dean comes back with a Rebound clothesline and a briefcase shot to the face for an even closer two.

Now it’s cinder block time with Dean loading up a Curb Stomp of his own but we’ve got Wyatts. Well at least Bray speaking in tongues and now a lantern in the ring. Smoke fills the ring and we have what looks like a ghost in the middle of it. Bray pops up and nails Ambrose as the lights go out again. Back up with Bray spider walking over to Ambrose and laying him out with a release Rock Bottom to give a shocked Rollins the pin at 13:48.

Rating: B+. It’s a good fight but the ending hurts it a bit. This is probably the best option they could have gone with as you don’t want Rollins losing but you also don’t want Dean to lose all of his heat. Ambrose vs. Wyatt should be good but I would have liked this feud to have a more definitive ending. Unfortunately that wasn’t really possible and this puts Bray back in the spotlight with a feud he could actually win.

Dean takes Sister Abigail to end the show.

Overall Rating: C+. The big matches delivered but man alive does the midcard need to be replenished. Most of the stuff in there just feels like we’ve seen it a million times before and it’s really hard to care again. They desperately need to figure out something other than “put the wrestlers in tag matches” or “just have them fight a few times before they fight again on PPV” because it’s killing the PPV matches. Still though, it’s an entertaining show and that’s all you can hope for with gimmick shows.

Results

Dolph Ziggler b. Cesaro – Zig Zag

Nikki Bella b. Brie Bella – Rack

Goldust/Stardust b. Usos – Final Cut to Jimmy Uso

John Cena b. Randy Orton – Middle rope Attitude Adjustment

Sheamus b. Miz – Brogue Kick

Rusev b. Big Show – Accolade
AJ Lee b. Paige – Black Widow

Seth Rollins b. Dean Ambrose – Pin after a Rock Bottom from Bray Wyatt

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