Smackdown
Date: May 21, 2019
Location: Dunkin’ Donuts Center, Providence, Rhode Island
Commentators: Tom Phillips, Corey Graves, Byron Saxton

It’s a big night as we have the 24/7 Title making its Smackdown debut. I don’t know what else we could have that lives up to that level. The Roman Reigns vs. Elias rematch and the return of Big E. just don’t feel anywhere near as important as the comedy stuff we might be seeing. Let’s get to it.

Here are last week’s results if you need a recap.

Shane McMahon (they’re not waiting tonight) is in his office when a nervous Elias comes in. Elias didn’t like what some of the fans have been saying about him and he lost focus at Money in the Bank. He’s ready for Reigns tonight and he’ll be in Shane’s corner at Super ShowDown. Shane says he doesn’t need it, but he’ll be in Elias’ corner tonight. Well of course he will be.

Here’s an excited New Day to announce that Big E. is back. Someone is brought out under a sheet and it’s….not E. Whoever it is is smaller that Xavier Woods and he is promptly thrown out. The real Big E. comes out and there’s a party ready for him in the ring, complete with blocks and a WELCOME BACK sign. Oh and lots of pancakes of course.

Big E. asks if he can smell the other two, with Woods saying that Big E. is medically cleared to sniff. Big E. brings up Becky Lynch’s mother but Woods cuts him off, though he does agree that she’s rather attractive. Kofi gets them back on track and talks about Brock Lesnar winning Money in the Bank and Kevin Owens losing on Sunday, which brings out Owens and Sami Zayn.

Sami talks about Big E. being gone for six weeks when he was gone for nine months. Big E. thinks they should get Sami something, with the team deciding on getting him nothing. Owens leaves and Sami rants about the fans being toxic, only to be cut off by the trombone. Sami promises to beat Kofi tonight, which Kofi says he’ll take seriously.

Carmella is walking through the back and looking for R-Truth, along with a bunch of other people (Drake Maverick even has wanted posters). She finds Truth in a wig (Truth: “The title gave me away didn’t it?”) and explains the rules to him again because Truth thinks he gets to keep it if he survives seven days. He can’t do this by himself and wants her to help him get through things. Carmella, possibly due to a head injury, agrees.

Ali vs. Andrade

Ali is taped up and Andrade doesn’t get an entrance. He and Zelina do get in an early tranquilo pose so Ali kicks him out to the floor. Back in and Vega offers a distraction so Andrade can take over as we take a break. We come back with Ali hitting a tornado DDT to send Andrade outside, meaning it’s a suicide dive.

The running flip dive puts them both down and Ali’s back is banged up. They head back in with Andrade kicking him in the back and hitting Two Amigos, followed by a slam into the corner. Andrade isn’t done as he slams Ali into the timekeeper’s area and we get the dive back in at nine. Running knees to the back give Andrade two so Ali small packages him for the pin at 11:00.

Rating: C. Ali getting a fluke win is more than he usually gets so I’ll take what I can get. That being said, Andrade’s push stalls again as WWE doesn’t get how to protect someone while putting someone else over. They couldn’t do this with someone other than Andrade? Of course not….I guess.

Carmella fixes Truth’s wig and hands him a bra. Truth: “I’ve always had trouble getting these on.”

Video on Lars Sullivan.

Mandy Rose vs. Carmella

Sonya Deville and Truth are here as well. Carmella hammers away to start as we enter the filler before someone comes after Truth portion. Sonya pulls Mandy to the floor and gets in, allowing Mandy to grab a rollup for two. A superkick drops Mandy and here comes the mob to chase Truth for the no contest at 1:34.

Post match Truth runs off, with Carmella on his back, and the mob follows.

Bayley says she created her own opportunity at Money in the Bank. She’s passed the hugs and now she’s doing her best.

Carmella and Truth run into the women’s locker room and then come back out as the mob chases again.

Elias plays guitar to get ready for Reigns. I’m not sure I get the connection.

Kofi Kingston vs. Sami Zayn

Non-title. Hang on though as Big E. has been attacked and says it was Owens. Kofi is aggressive to start and runs Sami over on the floor. Back in and Sami sends him over the top and then into the steps before giving himself some jumping applause. Kofi hits a dropkick for a breather and we take a break. We come back with Sami hitting a top rope superplex for two as we hear about Woods going with Big E. to a hospital. Sami misses a kick to the face but Trouble in Paradise misses as well. The second Trouble in Paradise connects for the pin at 8:14 to finish Zayn.

Rating: C. This had some big spots but they were packed into a short match. It’s still annoying to have Sami losing after cutting such great promos but I’ll take what I can get in a pretty action packed match. If nothing else, how bad of a sign is it that the former World Champion not losing is that big of a relief?

Post match here’s Paul Heyman with the briefcase to tease Kofi, saying it’s the perfect time. Cue DOLPH ZIGGLER from behind to attack Kofi, including wrapping a chair around his neck and sending him into the announcers’ table. Ziggler even Pillmanizes the neck and Kofi does a stretcher job….before getting up on the stage and limping off. So, again, how many people can’t get to TV or can’t get off the upper midcard treadmill as they bring in ZIGGLER for a likely World Title match?

Roman Reigns arrives (with forty five minutes left in the show he’s main eventing) but Elias is on top of one of the production trucks to serenade him with a song about how jealous Reigns is.

Becky Lynch/Bayley vs. Lacey Evans/Charlotte

Before the match, Bayley and Becky threaten to come after the others’ titles. Joined in progress with Charlotte chopping Bayley in the corner and shouting about the title. Bayley gets dragged into the other corner so Lacey can grab a chinlock. Charlotte pulls Becky off the apron to avoid a cheap shot in true heel fashion.

Bayley gets up again and knocks Charlotte to the floor which is enough to bring Becky in for the house cleaning. The Bexploder has Charlotte in trouble but she Downward Spirals Becky into the corner. A rollup with a grab of the ropes and the trunks gives Charlotte two but Lacey decks Becky with the Woman’s Right. Bayley chases Lacey off and small packages Charlotte for the pin at 5:19.

Rating: D+. Now clearly this is a great way to set Charlotte up as the next challenger because that’s the right way to go. We haven’t seen Charlotte holding the title for all of two days so it’s time for something new for her. Bayley vs. Becky is intriguing, though I could go for keeping the titles apart for the time being.

Carmella and Truth keep running with Jinder Mahal catching up for a near fall. The B Team catches Truth next but get in a fight over who can pin him, allowing Truth to run off.

Dolph takes the microphone into the arena and says he gets why fans are booing him. This goes way back to when Ali got hurt and Kofi took his place. That should have been Ziggler getting to run the gauntlet and then winning the title from Daniel Bryan at Wrestlemania. Every day since Wrestlemania he’s thought that it should be him and at Super ShowDown, it will be him. Yeah I still don’t care about Dolph Ziggler saying the same things he’s said for years.

Video on the history of Randy Orton vs. HHH to set up their match at Super ShowDown.

Roman Reigns vs. Elias

Shane is in Elias’ corner and handles his introduction. Reigns starts fast with the apron dropkick to rock Elias. Hang on though as he has to glare at Shane, allowing Elias to kick the rope for a low blow. A DDT gives Elias two and he sends Reigns shoulder first into the post. Back from a break with Reigns hitting the corner clotheslines but Shane breaks up the Superman Punch, allowing Elias to hit the jumping knee in the corner. An electric chair is broken up and Reigns hits a good right hand.

Another keeps Elias in trouble but he elbows out of a super Samoan drop. Now the electric chair into a powerbomb gives Elias two and it’s time for the slugout. The Superman Punch gets two with Shane putting Elias’ foot on the ropes. That earns Shane an apron dropkick but Elias sends Reigns into the post and then the steps. Back in and Elias drops a top rope elbow for two so Shane tells him to take off a buckle pad. The distraction lets Shane put the guitar in the corner but Reigns spears Elias for the pin at 9:30.

Rating: C. This feels like an old NWA style angle where if Reigns wins he gets five minutes with the annoying manager, but the manager happens to be the final boss and the biggest threat to actually beat him. Shane was portrayed as the evil mastermind here but he’s the kind of evil mastermind who can win a big match as well. That’s quite the heel power for someone who can’t get through a five minute match without needing oxygen.

Post match Shane grabs the guitar but Reigns takes it away. Cue Drew McIntyre to Claymore Reigns to end the show.

Overall Rating: B-. This was the streamlined version of the show and that makes it much better. It still has some big problems (Ziggler is back, Shane is the king of WWE, the long opening segment) but the comedy was in short enough spurts that it wasn’t as big of a problem and Truth did make it funny. I’d still like to actually see some of the people they already have on the roster getting a bigger push, but that’s the kind of thing that has just gone by the wayside for the sake of Shane. Good show here, though it feels like a mistake more than a successful game plan.

Results

Ali b. Andrade – Small package

Carmella vs. Mandy Rose went to a no contest when several wrestlers interfered

Kofi Kingston b. Sami Zayn – Trouble in Paradise

Becky Lynch/Bayley b. Charlotte/Lacey Evans – Small package to Charlotte

Roman Reigns b. Elias – Spear

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and pick up the paperback edition of KB’s Complete 2000 Monday Nitro and Thunder Reviews Part 1 (also available as an e-book) from Amazon. Check out the information here:

http://kbwrestlingreviews.com/2019/02/22/new-book-kbs-monday-nitro-thunder-reviews-volume-vii-january-june-2000/

And check out my Amazon author page with cheap wrestling books at:

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

IMG Credit: WWE

Elimination Chamber 2019
Date: February 17, 2019
Location: Toyota Center, Houston, Texas
Commentators: Michael Cole, Corey Graves, Renee Young, Tom Phillips, Percy Watson

It’s the first of two stops on the Road to Wrestlemania and that means we’ll be seeing a big steel structure. In this case it’s for the WWE Championship and the inaugural WWE Women’s Tag Team Titles. The structure alone makes this a little more interesting and hopefully it’s good on top of that. Let’s get to it.

Kickoff Show: Cruiserweight Title: Buddy Murphy vs. Akira Tozawa

Murphy is defending and they start fast with a battle over the wristlock. The fight heads outside with Tozawa ducking a chop to send Murphy’s hand into the post. Murphy is fine enough to drop him on the floor for an eight count and let’s go to the back for an interview with Kofi Kingston. Well actually with Xavier Woods and Big E. as Kofi is undergoing a maple syrup massage.

Tozawa gets caught in a backbreaker and a chinlock as Xavier talks about Kofi being a legend before the three of them ever got together. Dancing ensues and we go back to a full screen with Tozawa hiptossing his way out of an abdominal stretch. A running boot in the corner hits the champ, followed by a Shining Wizard for two. Murphy gets caught on top and what looks like a super gorilla press is countered into a super hurricanrana for the second near fall.

Tozawa gets pulled into a fireman’s carry facebuster, followed by a hard knee to the face to give Murphy two of his own. They chop it out until Tozawa’s bridging German suplex gets two more. A kick to the face sets up a middle rope inverted hurricanrana to send Murphy outside. That means a pair of suicide headbutts, followed by Murphy getting caught in the rope for the top rope backsplash to the back. Tozawa’s Iron Octopus has Murphy in trouble so he muscles it up into Murphy’s Law to retain at 13:21.

Rating: B-. The extra time helped this one a lot and that’s a good sign for the division. Tozawa was little more than the challenger of the month but he made the most of it and that’s the best thing possible. Murphy is almost destined for a major title match at Wrestlemania, though I’m not sure who could serve in that role.

The opening video mainly focuses on the Elimination Chamber, which is a major stop on the Road to Wrestlemania. The other matches get some attention too, which is fine.

Women’s Tag Team Titles: Naomi/Carmella vs. Samoan Slaughterhouse vs. Boss N Hug Connection vs. IIconics vs. Fire and Desire vs. Riott Squad

For the inaugural titles in the Elimination Chamber, meaning two teams start and it’s another team coming in every five minutes. The last team standing wins the titles. Fire and Desire (Mandy Rose/Sonya Deville) and the Boss N Hug Connection (Bayley/Sasha Banks) start things off after losing triple threat matches earlier in the week. Banks is ready to go to start and hits a crossbody on both of them to start. A hard spinebuster out of the corner plants Banks and Mandy’s backbreaker gets two.

Bayley and Banks get slammed onto the steel outside of the ring but Mandy’s running big boot gets caught in the Chamber wall. That lets Bayley hit a somewhat dangerous neckbreaker as the Riott Squad is in third. Bayley and Banks are ready for them but get taken down, allowing Logan to slam Banks into the pod with a huge thud. Mandy and Sonya get back up for the former lackey showdown and Liv drops Sonya with one shot. Sonya does the same to her for two though and everyone is staggered.

Bayley gets back up and heads to the top, setting up a Tower of Doom to put all six down. The IIconics are in fourth to cover everyone for some one counts. A double gordbuster hits Sonya and Liv gets dropped as well. Double knees to the face have Bayley in trouble with Sasha making the save, earning the two of them a face crushing against the Chamber. Bayley gets kicked in the face for two and it’s Naomi/Carmella (possibly Fabulous Glow, because putting nicknames together is how you make a name anymore).

Graves makes a comments about Carmella so Renee cuts him down with “I don’t think so World Champion Of Love.” Naomi’s split legged moonsault gets two on Morgan but the Squad gets back up and everyone is knocked down all at once. Carmella grabs the Code of Silence on Mandy but Sonya makes the save, leaving us with the Naomi vs. Mandy showdown. Before that can go very far, the IIconics hit a sunset flip/jackknife rollup combination to get rid of Naomi at 17:08.

Everyone else surrounds the IIconics but the countdown goes on, meaning everyone switches over to the Samoan pod. The Samoans clean house so the IIconics hide in a pod like an idiot. The doors are pried open and it’s a double ram into the Chamber as the dominance begins. A double Samoan drop gets rid of the IIconics at 20:10. Everyone gets together again with an assisted Diamond Dust getting two on Tamina. Mandy and Sonya kick the heck out of her for two more but Banks and Bayley knock them down for some reason.

A hot shot into the buckle has Mandy in trouble and Sonya gets sent into the same corner, only to miss Mandy which seemed to be the intended target. Sonya crashes and then turns her head to glare at Mandy in a funny spot. Fire and Desire hits the BIG dives off the top of the pod but the Squad is right there to take them down. The Samoans get back up and it’s the super Samoan drop into the double Superfly Splash to get rid of the Squad at 24:19.

Nia misses the running charge through the pod to knock herself cold, leaving everyone to get together on Tamina, with the Meteora setting up the Bayley top rope elbow. A big pile on gets rid of Tamina at 27:04. We’re down to Bayley/Sasha vs. Mandy/Sonya for the titles and Banks knees Mandy down. The Backstabber into the Bayley to Belly gets two on Sonya as Mandy dives in for the save.

With nothing else working, everyone but Sonya wind up on top of a pod. Mandy’s head goes into the steel and Bayley kicks Sonya down. Bayley gets knocked down as well and it’s Banks getting sent down, setting up the lifting sitout Pedigree for a great near fall. Sonya spears Mandy by mistake and Sasha grabs the Bank Statement. Her bad shoulder won’t let her get the full thing though so she uses her foot (cool) to get the hold on for the tap and the titles at 32:47.

Rating: A-. This was WAY better than I had any hope for and it was an actually dramatic and downright great match with Sasha making up for not being able to help Banks over the last few weeks. Bayley and Banks winning is fine, though you can probably pencil in the Samoans to take the titles pretty soon down the line. Anyway, this was a heck of a match and they beat the heck out of each other with some of the best near falls I can remember seeing in women’s wrestling. Mandy and Sonya took it to a level I didn’t know they had in them and this was outstanding.

Post match Bayley and Banks get a YOU DESERVE IT chant. Banks says they’ve worked hard to get here and more changes are still to come.

We recap the Smackdown Tag Team Title match. Miz and Shane McMahon won the Tag Team Titles as a “dream” team and the Usos won a match to earn the shot.

Smackdown Tag Team Titles: Usos vs. Miz/Shane McMahon

Miz and Shane are defending but before we get going, Miz congratulates Bayley and Banks for winning the titles. He brings out Maryse for a big announcement: she’s pregnant again. After the sweet announcement, Shane comes out and Maryse joins him in his dance. Jimmy knocks Miz down to start but Shane tags himself in and tries a very early Coast to Coast.

That’s broken up so Shane elbows Jimmy in the face and brings Miz back in for the YES Kicks. Miz gets taken into the corner though and it’s time for the double teaming to begin. Jimmy takes the baseball jersey off of Miz and throws it at Shane, allowing Miz to make the comeback. Shane comes in off the hot tag and hits a very fast Coast to Coast, only to eat the superkick for two.

Miz comes back in as the pace picks up with a dropkick through the ropes to Jey. It’s time for the announcers’ table (Corey: “It’s too early in the night! I need work space!”) with Shane hitting the big elbow to drive Jey through. Back in and Jimmy superkicks Miz but the Superfly splash hits knees. The Skull Crushing Finale gets two but Jimmy rolls over into a crucifix for the pin and the titles at 13:49.

Rating: C. Well that’s….surprising. I’m certainly not complaining but you don’t quite expect a guy to get arrested for disorderly conduct and then pin Miz to win some titles. The Usos are a far better choice for champions and it does help a lot that Miz and Shane lost the belts in their first defense. Still not a good idea in the first place, but at least it didn’t last long.

Miz and Shane leave together without fighting.

Lio Rush says he’s not the weak link and isn’t letting Bobby Lashley lose the Intercontinental Title.

Intercontinental Title: Finn Balor vs. Bobby Lashley/Lio Rush

Balor is challenging and can win the title by pinning or submitting either Lashley or Rush. Lashley runs Balor over to start and goes after the bad ribs. A few shots send Lashley outside though and it’s an early breather. That just means Lashley stomps on the ribs again back inside to take over again and it’s Rush coming in to work on the ribs as well.

That includes an abdominal stretch until Balor hiptosses him into the corner. Since control is slipping away, it’s off to Lashley for a heck of a spinebuster but Rush tags himself in, saying he’ll retain the title. The Final Hour (Low Down) misses and Balor starts the comeback, including a big flip dive to take both of them out. Back in and the Coup de Grace finishes Rush to make Balor champion at 9:28.

Rating: D+. This could have been on Raw, but I’ll take what I can get. Lashley felt like little more than a dragon to slay and you could have him get his rematch down the line. The wrestling wasn’t great here, but it was more about the story than anything else with Rush costing Lashley the title because he’s not as good as his hype.

Post match Lashley allows Rush to live before destroying him for costing the title.

We look at the end of Raw with Vince McMahon suspending Becky Lynch and replacing her with Charlotte.

Last night, Becky invaded a Smackdown house show and attacked Charlotte but her knee got hurt again. You have to do something to fill in these seven weeks so this works as well as anything else.

Here’s Charlotte for a chat. She is sick of Becky coming in here and taking these spots that don’t belong to her. Charlotte can look in the mirror and get all the affirmation she needs because she knows she’s good enough. Now she’s taking her spot in the main event of Wrestlemania.

Raw Women’s Title: Ronda Rousey vs. Ruby Riott

Rousey (dressed as Sonya Blade, who she is voicing in the new Mortal Kombat game) is defending and Charlotte is at ringside. Riott gets sent outside in a hurry as the fans want Becky. Back in and a quick Piper’s Pit, with a Wrestlemania sign point, sets up the armbar to make Riott tap at 1:41. Well ok then.

Post match the fans want Becky and here she is, coming through the crowd on crutches. Becky can barely stand as we get a SHE’S THE MAN chant. She’s fine enough to swing the crutch at Charlotte and beat her down, leaving Rousey to watch the whole thing. Rousey grabs the other crutch but makes the mistake of turning her back, allowing Becky to destroy Ronda with the crutch as well. Security FINALLY comes out to break it up as Rousey is bleeding a bit. Commentary of course treats Becky like a heel because WWE still doesn’t get it.

Baron Corbin vs. Braun Strowman

No DQ. Corbin throws a vest at him to start and swings away with an early kendo stick Strowman takes it away though and breaks the stick over his knee, meaning the real beating can begin. The running shoulder on the floor sends Corbin into the barricade but he avoids a second attempt to send Strowman into the steps. The steps to the head have Strowman in trouble, allowing Corbin to mock the Strowman pose.

That’s it for Corbin, as Strowman runs him over inside, much to Renee’s delight. It’s table time with Corbin getting powerslammed through, but here are Drew McIntyre and Bobby Lashley to chair Strowman down. Corbin gets in another chair shot to keep Strowman in trouble and we’ve got two more tables. They stack the tables up and climb onto the steps for a TripleBomb through the tables, giving Corbin the pin 10:51.

Rating: D-. You know, when I was predicting these things I went with Corbin because I thought it was the least logical thing they could do, which made it the likely result. It’s likely a way to set something up for Fastlane, because Strowman needs to be further destroyed for the problem of getting over when he was pushed.

Video on the Special Olympics.

Shane is getting treatment but Miz comes in and freaks out over the loss. Shane gets up, calls him Mike, and tells him to cool off.

Here’s Lacey Evans and, after we see a Wrestlemania package, an ad for WWEshop.com and a Fastlane vignette…..she’s gone. Literally she did her entrance and then wasn’t shown again.

WWE Championship: Daniel Bryan vs. Randy Orton vs. Jeff Hardy vs. Kofi Kingston vs. AJ Styles vs. Samoa Joe

Bryan is defending inside the Chamber. On his way to the ring, Bryan says that it’s not fair that he’s starting the match, just like he started the gauntlet match on Tuesday. It’s because people are FICKLE! Rowan isn’t allowed at ringside either, which likely means we’ll be seeing his new follower. Bryan and Joe start things off, which is more interesting than you would think. Some early kicks to the leg earn Bryan a nearly creepy smile from Joe, followed by a kneebar for good measure.

For some reason Bryan decides to slap him in the face, meaning it’s the STF into the Crossface into something like a Rings of Saturn. Bryan fights up and kicks the knee, earning himself some even harder kicks. With Bryan down, Kofi is in third to a strong reaction from the crowd. The top rope splash to Joe’s standing back (Graves: “Kofi feeling delirious right out of the gates here!”) has Joe down so Bryan climbs up to the top of the pod. Kofi follows him up so Bryan climbs around to another but gets taken down without much effort.

Joe takes over with the running backsplash to Bryan and here’s AJ in fourth. He goes right after Bryan with the moonsault into a reverse DDT, though he adds a regular one to Kofi for good measure. Bryan goes up again so AJ springboards into a forearm to the back of the head for a unique spot. Joe is right there with a ram into the Chamber and a backdrop to the ring though, followed by the Koquina Clutch to Kofi. The rope walk doesn’t work so it’s a jawbreaker into the Phenomenal Forearm to get rid of Joe at 16:24.

Jeff Hardy is in fifth and starts the jumping until AJ nails him with a Pele. Hardy and AJ go to the corner and….I think slips with a big crash to drop AJ onto the top turnbuckle. With AJ still laying there, Jeff hits a Swanton to his back, only to walk into the running knee to get rid of Hardy at 19:51. Bryan isn’t done and puts AJ in the Tree of Woe while loading up Kofi for a superplex. AJ sits up though and German superplexes Bryan, sending Kofi flying even further.

Randy Orton is in sixth (due to winning the gauntlet match on Smackdown) to complete the field. Orton gets in a few shots here and there until Kofi kicks him in the head, drawing the fans right back to his side. AJ STO’s him into a backbreaker though (that looked painful) but the Phenomenal Forearm is countered into an RKO to get us down to three at 24:15. Kofi rolls Orton up for two but gets caught in the hanging DDT off the top to knock him silly. The RKO is countered and Trouble in Paradise out of gets rid of Orton at 26:00.

We’re down to Bryan vs. Kofi and the place is actually going NUTS for Kofi to win the title. They slug it out and kick away with Kofi saying bring it. Trouble in Paradise misses and Bryan kicks the knee out. The YES Kicks (earning NO from the crowd) have Kofi in more trouble but the big one misses. The SOS gets one of the best near falls in years and Bryan sends him into the corner.

Bryan says that Kofi doesn’t deserve to be here and the running dropkicks in the corner have Kofi in even more trouble. He gets back up after four and hits the running double stomp (ok it’s more like a kick to the chest instead) for two more. Trouble in Paradise is loaded up again but Bryan rolls outside for a smart move. Kofi follows him and loads up a bulldog but Bryan shoves him HARD into the pod for a nasty crash. The running knee turns Kofi inside out….for two and the fans are right back into this.

Bryan has had it though and grabs the arms for a series of stomps to the head. That’s only good for two again but another running knee is countered with Trouble in Paradise for two….as the camera cuts to FANS as Bryan reverses into a small package for two more. The kickout actually happened while the camera was on the fans. My goodness man. Bryan grabs something like the LeBell Lock with a pull of Kofi’s face but Kofi makes a rope anyway.

Kofi catches him with another kick on top so Bryan climbs another pod. Kofi climbs up with him and they fight over a superplex on top but since that would kill them, Kofi fights back and Bryan gets knocked down onto the top rope. More kicks put him in the ring but Kofi misses the huge splash. The running knee retains the title at 38:28.

Rating: A. That last twelve minutes are some of the best drama I’ve seen from WWE in the better part of ever. I was dying to see Kofi win here but Bryan retaining is hardly the worst result in the world. Kofi is going to get another chance after a performance like that and a one on one title match with Bryan at Fastlane wouldn’t shock me. The rest of the match was just an afterthought but that last third is incredible stuff that sucked me in like nothing has since…..dang Rock vs. Cena maybe? Just a great emotional moment here and Kofi better get the Fastlane title shot.

Bryan and Rowan leave and Kofi gets the big moment of respect with Big E. and Xavier Woods coming out to console him. Kofi gets to pose on the stage to end the show.

Overall Rating: B. This really is a show where you only need to see the two major matches because nothing else matters in the slightest. The good thing though is those two matches (and the Becky segment) were awesome, with the big emotional feel to both of them. I got sucked into the main event like few other matches I can remember in years and I was wanting to see Kofi pull off the miracle. The two Chamber matches are more than worth seeing, but skip the rest of the show as it felt like stuff you could have seen on regular TV.

Results

Boss N Hug Connection won the Elimination Chamber last eliminating Fire and Desire

Usos b. Shane McMahon/The Miz – Crucifix to Miz

Finn Balor b. Bobby Lashley/Lio Rush – Coup de Grace to Rush

Ronda Rousey b. Ruby Riott – Armbar

Baron Corbin b. Braun Strowman – TripleBomb through two tables

Daniel Bryan won the Elimination Chamber last eliminating Kofi Kingston

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and pick up the paperback edition of KB’s Complete 1997 Monday Night Raw Reviews (also available as an e-book) from Amazon. Check out the information here:

http://kbwrestlingreviews.com/2018/11/20/new-paperback-complete-1997-monday-night-raw-reviews/

And check out my Amazon author page with cheap wrestling books at:

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

IMG Credit: WWE

It’s time for the first of two stops on the way towards WrestleMania 35, because for some reason there are two pay per views between the Royal Rumble and the biggest show of the year. First up we have Elimination Chamber, though I’m not sure you would know that after this week’s Monday Night Raw, which mainly focused on WrestleMania. There is however a pay per view card to look at, with a pair of major matches. Let’s get to it.

Kickoff Show: Cruiserweight Title: Buddy Murphy(c) vs. Akira Tozawa

Was anyone realistically expecting this to be on the main show? The Cruiserweight Title is all but guaranteed to be on the Kickoff Show anymore, though I can go for the idea of having them get a little extra time so things can be fleshed out. Tozawa won a four way match on 205 Live to earn the shot against Murphy, who is becoming quite the top level Cruiserweight Champion.

I’m thinking that’s enough to keep the title on Murphy, who seems almost guaranteed to have a major title match at WrestleMania (on the Kickoff Show match of course). Tozawa is a very fun talent to watch, but I don’t think he’s the kind of guy who is taking the title from a monster like Murphy. This should be a hard hitting match, but it’s the kind of match that can only end in one way, which is Murphy retaining.

SmackDown Tag Team Titles: Shane McMahon/The Miz(c) vs. Usos

Well this is suddenly a lot more interesting. As you probably heard, Jimmy Uso got arrested earlier this month for disorderly conduct, which means things are probably going to be shaken up a little bit. At the same time though, the Usos might be trying to leave WWE and if they are, a Tag Team Title reign might slow them down a bit. Also at the same time (it’s a busy time), McMahon and Miz aren’t exactly subject to the same rules that govern most wrestlers.

That being said, I’ll take the champs to retain, as this seems to be something that we need to get to heading into WrestleMania. I don’t know if they lose the titles there or face each other there, but neither is exactly a thrilling outcome. The Usos deserve better, but after what happened last week, that needs to be put on hold, at least for the time being. For now, more McMizAmania.

Raw Women’s Title: Ronda Rousey(c) vs. Ruby Riott

This company loves some alliteration. This one is about as easy of a winner as you can get and there’s nothing wrong with that. As Rousey may be leaving the company in about two months, it’s cool to see them getting in as many matches as she can have against a variety of opponents. Riott and the Squad haven’t gotten to do very much with Rousey, but the match itself should be fun.

Of course Rousey retains here, because what else is going to happen? Rousey is already slotted in for a title match at WrestleMania, but at the same time there’s a spot for Riott. If you let her get close here and almost have Rousey beat, there’s a way to set her up to face Asuka in April for the SmackDown Women’s Title. Riott loses here, but she could be up for something else in the future.

Braun Strowman vs. Baron Corbin

This is No DQ and….I have no idea why I would want to see this match. It’s a feud that has been going on for months now and I’m really not sure why I’d want to see it happen again, especially on a pay per view. The story has lost its way a long time ago and it’s much more “they were fighting a few months ago and they’re still fighting now”. There’s a good chance that Drew McIntyre and Kurt Angle get involved here, because we didn’t get enough of that match on Monday Night Raw.

For some reason I think Corbin wins here, because it’s been too long since he’s won a match of note and gotten more of a push that defies any and all logic. McIntyre and Angle will probably run in to make it a bigger mess than it’s already going to be and we move towards the big showdown between Angle and Corbin at WrestleMania. How that can be Angle’s last match is beyond me, but WWE loves Corbin for reasons I don’t want to comprehend.

Intercontinental Title: Bobby Lashley(c)/Lio Rush vs. Finn Balor

Now this one scares me. All signs point to Balor winning the title, but I don’t think they’re going that way just yet. For some reason I think we’re likely to see it at WrestleMania, which normally would be fine but I don’t think there’s anywhere near enough steam in this feud to get them that far. Hence the inclusion of Rush here, though again I’m not sure how interesting that can get.

I’ll go with Rush and Lashley retaining here, though I’m almost terrified to see how they get to that conclusion. There’s a good chance it’s some kind of a screwy finish to keep the title on Lashley, like Rush helping with a double pin or something, but having Balor lose is a rather bad idea. Then again it’s not the brightest idea to stretch this out, but for now it’s as good as we can get. Lashley retains, eventually losing the title to Balor down the line.

Women’s Tag Team Titles: Elimination Chamber

For the inaugural titles and really, there are only a few teams with a real shot. You can eliminate Naomi/Carmella, the IIconics and Fire and Desire. You know, the SmackDown teams. That leaves you with the three Monday Night Raw teams, who have been the favorites all along. You could go multiple ways with the three remaining teams, but one stands out.

I’m going with the Riott Squad winning the titles here. I just can’t imagine having the Samoans win the titles, leaving you with two real options. Bayley and Sasha Banks have been treated as the main stars, but with Banks still being banged up and the possibility of this feud actually going on until the two of them are piles of dust, I can’t picture them winning the first titles. Maybe they win them at WrestleMania, but for now it’s the Riott Squad getting the titles.

WWE Championship: Elimination Chamber

This felt like the biggest layup in the world until Tuesday when Kofi Kingston had one of the best performances of his career. I’m not sure I can imagine Kingston getting the title this soon, but he certainly has momentum right now and with the C level pay per view Fastlane not very far away, there’s a chance that he’ll get a one on one title shot there. But against who?

That would be Daniel Bryan, who I think retains the title with the help of either Rowan or someone else, possibly even a returning Luke Harper. Bryan isn’t likely to lose the title here as his new heel character is hot enough to keep around, but he’s going to need some help to survive and advance down the road. A few things could come out of the match, but I can’t imagine one of them is a new champion.

Overall Thoughts

I’ve made no secret of the fact that I don’t see the need to have two pay per views between the Royal Rumble and WrestleMania, but Elimination Chamber sounds far more interesting than Fastlane. This show at least has two big matches and those two should be enough to make things work a little better. If things go well, we could have a rather entertaining night, just with the level of action alone.

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and pick up the paperback edition of KB’s Complete 1997 Monday Night Raw Reviews (also available as an e-book) from Amazon. Check out the information here:

http://kbwrestlingreviews.com/2018/11/20/new-paperback-complete-1997-monday-night-raw-reviews/

And check out my Amazon author page with cheap wrestling books at:

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

IMG Credit: WWE

Smackdown
Date: February 12, 2019
Location: Huntington Center, Toledo, Ohio
Commentators: Tom Phillips, Byron Saxton, Corey Graves

It’s the go home show for Elimination Chamber and we have some big matches to get through. As was the case last night on Raw, we’ll have some kind of a match to determine the other team starting the women’s tag team Elimination Chamber match. On the opposite end, there is also a gauntlet match to determine who will enter the men’s Elimination Chamber match last. Let’s get to it.

Here are last week’s results if you need a recap.

In Memory of Pedro Morales. I’m sure we’ll get the full video tribute on Raw.

We see the end of last night’s Raw with Charlotte replacing Becky Lynch in the Raw Women’s Title match at Wrestlemania. Still works for me.

A member of New Day will replace the injured Mustafa Ali in the Elimination Chamber. It was going to be one of them or Rey/Andrade so that’s fine.

Here’s Charlotte to open things up. After mocking the BECKY chants, Charlotte talks about how Becky screwed up last night, just like she always has. It was Becky who got hurt in November and gave Charlotte the spot instead, all so the myth of the Man could continue while Charlotte went to battle. She’s the background of the women’s division so Vince McMahon made a business decision so everything could work.

Becky isn’t coming out here right now because she’s a flash in the pan and not the kind of person Vince is taking a chance on. You can boo her now because she’s dedicating her win to Becky Lynch. Charlotte will be her in the front row at Elimination Chamber because we might have a new champion and she might have a new Wrestlemania opponent. Great heel promo here, as Charlotte plays that character to near perfection.

Carmella/Naomi vs. IIconics vs. Fire and Desire

The losers start the Elimination Chamber with Bayley/Sasha Banks. Before the match, all three teams talk about how they should be champions and how they have an advantage. Mandy and Carmella trade waistlocks to start as Graves praises the IIconics for being smart enough not to start since losing is all that matters here. Sonya comes in and gets kicked in the ribs a few times, allowing Naomi to grab a quickly broken armbar. Naomi’s splits splash gets two and it’s back to Carmella, who gets taken down without much effort. Of course her response is to dance because it’s all about showing off rather than hurting someone.

Mandy tags herself in but has to run from Naomi, who catches up to her on the floor as we take a break. Back with Carmella caught in a waistlock because Carmella seems to exist to dance and be in trouble. They both hit crossbodies at the same time (well Carmella just stood up straight instead of jumping or turning for a double knockdown). Mandy and Naomi come in off the hot tags to clean house, including the spinning jawbreaker from Naomi. The split legged moonsault finishes Mandy at 8:58.

Rating: D+. When did I start not liking Carmella that much? She’s just kind of there as a person to fill in a spot but she’s still the woman that was beating Charlotte and Asuka last year despite there being no reason for that to have happened. It’s hard to let go of that, though it’s not like she and Naomi have any real chance of winning the titles.

We get a graphic showing which two teams will be starting the match, which looks like it was made in 2004.

Bayley says Sasha will be in the Chamber on Sunday.

Tamina and Nia Jax say no one is walking out of the Chamber once they get done with them.

Liv Morgan will walk through fire for Sarah Logan and it’s going to be a new side of the Riott Squad on Sunday.

Mustafa Ali talks about the big hits he’s been taking and he’s upset about not having an opportunity at the WWE Championship. This is not the end and he’ll be back because he writes his story.

Here are Miz and Shane McMahon for McMizTV (take me now). Last week Miz was doing a photo shoot for his reality show and Shane was filming a guest spot for NCIS: Los Angeles. With that out of the way, here are this week’s guests: the Usos. They’re going to stand instead of having a seat and talk about how Miz and Shane may be champions but they don’t know each other. We get the Tag Team Test, which is listing off various facts about your partner, though Miz whispers the answers in Shane’s ear. Miz: “WHAT’S MY FAVORITE FOOD? Quiche.” Shane: “QUICHE! Quiche?”

They bring up the Mandy Rose issue before Shane threatens to hit Jimmy so hard that Jey will feel it. The Usos hit their catchphrase and drop the mic but Shane says the titles are the only things that are real. Shane: “You dig?” Double superkicks leave the champs laying, as it somehow becomes more obvious that they’re retaining the titles on Sunday. You know, because Shane McMahon as a champion is just something that happens in 2019.

Video on the Million Man March.

Here are Daniel Bryan and Rowan, with the former calling the fans fickle. He doesn’t need to be in the Elimination Chamber because it’s far more important that he keep the WWE Championship and help the world. He’s cut off though and we have a lot of time for the main event.

Gauntlet Match

Non-title but the winner gets to enter the Chamber last. Bryan and….Kofi Kingston start things off. I do love how they tease that it’s going to be anyone other than the singles member of the team. Bryan takes him down with a headlock to start and flips backwards into a leglock. Kofi sends Bryan outside, only to have Bryan come back in with a wristlock. Some knees to the ribs keep Kofi in trouble and it’s the surfboard double stomp to the knees.

Kofi fights up and kicks Bryan to the floor, setting up a big dive as we take a break. Back with Kofi in trouble again as Bryan hits a running dropkick to the back, sending Kofi to the apron. A middle rope knee to the back looks to set up the Swan Dive but Bryan only hits mat. Kofi is right back with a Boom Drop and a flipping splash for two.

Kofi’s springboard spinning crossbody gets two but Bryan ties him in the Tree of Woe for a sliding dropkick. A belly to back superplex is countered with Kofi landing on Bryan’s face as we take a break. Back with Bryan winning a strike off and hitting the YES Kicks, including the big one for two. They hit the pinfall reversal sequence but you don’t grapple with Bryan, who reverses into the LeBell Lock. Kofi manages a rope though and Bryan goes up, only to dive into a dropkick (despite landing on his feet before Kofi hit him).

Rowan trips Kofi so Big E. and Xavier go after him, earning a triple elimination. Bryan kicks away but misses the running corner dropkick, allowing Rowan, who I guess just stayed, to pull Kofi outside and send him into the timekeeper’s area. That means another ejection (or maybe a first) and it’s Bryan charging straight into Trouble in Paradise for the big upset at 24:30.

Jeff Hardy is in third and we come back with Kofi missing a dive into the barricade. Hardy jumps off the steps to take him out but the Swanton misses. Kofi can’t follow up though, allowing Jeff to hit the basement dropkick, which is countered into a rollup for two. The slingshot dropkick in the corner misses but Jeff catches him on top. That means a high crossbody for two, followed by the SOS to get rid of Hardy at 33:18.

Samoa Joe is in fourth and we come back with Joe hitting his corner enziguri for a close two. The abdominal stretch goes on, followed by a chinlock but Kofi sends him outside and hits a dive for a double eight count. Back in and Joe blasts him with a clothesline, followed by an atomic drop to put Kofi down again. The running backsplash gets two and Joe is incredibly frustrated.

Kofi gets to the apron for a springboard but Joe shoves him down, allowing him to stand next to the ropes and calmly count with the referee. It’s only an eight count again though and the neck crank is on. Kofi fights up and tries some clotheslines but gets caught in the Koquina Clutch. That means a climb up the corner though and Kofi flips back to pin Joe at 46:22.

Joe isn’t done though and suplexes the heck out of Kofi, followed by a Koquina Clutch on the floor. Shouldn’t that be a DQ since the next fall begins immediately? AJ Styles runs out fifth for the save and punches Joe to the back. We come back with Kofi barely able to get in the ring and AJ saying he doesn’t have to do this. Kofi says he can do this and shoves AJ, who slugs him down to start the next fall. A backbreaker gives AJ two and he starts in on the knee, followed by a snap suplex for two.

They hit a quick pinfall reversal sequence until AJ gets an STO backbreaker to really put Kofi down. Kofi fights back again and they head to the apron with Kofi missing a hard charge to slam knee first into the post. Somehow Kofi dives back in at nine and blocks a super hurricanrana to send AJ crashing to the mat. A top rope splash to AJ’s standing back (kind of like Shadows Over H***) gets two but AJ pulls him into the Calf Crusher. Kofi finally taps at 59:57 so here are Big E. and Xavier to carry him out. RKO outta nowhere finishes AJ at 1:00:58.

Rating: B-. You knew this was going to be long but the important thing is that it didn’t feel long. Kofi’s performance was great and you could make a case for him getting the Fastlane title shot assuming Bryan retains on Sunday. A nice celebration of his career is a fine idea and something that would work fine on a nothing pay per view like Fastlane. The ending was pretty clear, but there’s nothing wrong with something like that in this case. Good match, with Kofi getting a very nice rub.

Overall Rating: C+. This was a really different kind of show with only two matches, though both of them mattered for Sunday. That made this show feel WAY more like a go home show because it wasn’t spending time on stuff for Wrestlemania. Aside from the opening promo, this was all about Elimination Chamber and that’s what Monday should have felt like. There’s time to set up Wrestlemania later and putting some material in here is fine, but treat Sunday like it matters, even if it really doesn’t all that much.

Results

Carmella/Naomi b. IIconics and Fire and Desire – Split legged moonsault to Rose

Randy Orton won a gauntlet match last eliminating AJ Styles – RKO

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and pick up the paperback edition of KB’s Complete 1997 Monday Night Raw Reviews (also available as an e-book) from Amazon. Check out the information here:

http://kbwrestlingreviews.com/2018/11/20/new-paperback-complete-1997-monday-night-raw-reviews/

And check out my Amazon author page with cheap wrestling books at:

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

I took in the Smackdown house show on Sunday night at Rupp Arena in Lexington, Kentucky. As tends to be the case, a lot of the arena was empty but given the six of the place (with a seating capacity of 23,500), even an only somewhat full arena is a rather nice turnout. A few more fans came in after the show started so it could have been worse.  Let’s get to it.

The fans chose to see the 1992 Royal Rumble before the shot got going. At least they have taste.

The show started a few minutes after its 7pm start time but it was nothing too bad.

Byron Saxton was the host for the evening and is really good in the role. He has a good speaking voice and a lot of energy, which is exactly what you want in a spot like this.

1. Tag Team Titles: The Bar b. New Day and the Usos – Rollup to Kofi. 12:00. C.

The Bar was defending of course and New Day got a nice reaction, mainly due to the pancakes and their pre-match dancing. The Usos got a bit of a stronger one though, mainly due to them being the Usos, which is quite the status. This was a fun opener with everyone working hard and the Bar beating on Woods for a long time. As usual Big E. was a ball of energy on the floor as a cheerleader. Jimmy tagged himself in to start the big brawl at the end with New Day starting the dives, only to have Cesaro dive in and roll Kofi up for the pin. Fun choice to start things off with the challengers both being very over.

2. Naomi/Lana b. Mandy Rose/Sonya Deville – Split legged moonsault to Deville. 5:40. D.

Before the match, Mandy came out in her towel and said no one here had ever seen a woman like her so they could go back to fantasizing about her, just like Jimmy Uso. Lana took the heat for most of the match and got beaten down for what passed for a long time here. The hot tag brings in Naomi to clean house, get in a few shots on Mandy and pin Deville with the split legged moonsault. There was nothing here, though the fans were into Naomi and Lana.

3. US Title: Rusev b. Shinsuke Nakamura and Jeff Hardy – Jumping superkick to Nakamura. 9:21. C-.

This was a big messy, though the fans were very happy to see all three of them. Hardy did some DELETE chants and Nakamura followed later on for a bit of a funny moment. They picked things up later in the match and Hardy loaded up the Swanton on Rusev but Samoa Joe came out for a distraction. With Hardy not paying attention, Nakamura shoved him off the top but walked into the superkick to retain Rusev’s title. Not too bad and the star power helped.

4. WWE Championship: Daniel Bryan b. AJ Styles – Small package. 21:00. B+.

It seemed rather early for this one but it was worth the surprise. This was a rather excellent match and one of the better house show matches I can remember seeing. Before the match, Bryan posed on the top rope for well over a minute, with his song finishing and then starting up again. Bryan got frustrated for most of the early part of the match as he bragged about being the best wrestler in the world (especially the best one that these Kentucky losers had ever seen) but not being able to do much with Styles.

Eventually it was off to Styles’ arm with the LeBell Lock having him in trouble more than once. They traded a few near falls with Styles never being able to hit the Styles Clash. Near the end, AJ tried it again but got reversed into the best small package in the business to retain Bryan’s title. Post match Bryan called AJ a dog walking away with his tail between his legs, drawing Styles back in for the beatdown.

Intermission.

5. Good Brothers/Shelton Benjamin b. Colons/Aiden English – Paydirt to English. 8:41. D+.

Well this is the biggest bag of random ever. The match wasn’t terrible by any stretch but it was just there, which isn’t the most interesting thing in the world. I had almost forgotten that Benjamin and English even worked here. Sidebar: remember when the Good Brothers and Sanity looked to be getting into the Tag Team Title scene a few weeks back? Did anything ever come of that, or can we just add it to the list of things that never went anywhere?

Post match English said he didn’t come to this half horse town to lose like that so he wanted fresh competition.

6. Rey Mysterio b. Aiden English – Frog splash. 5:19.

This was exactly what you would have expected it to be, though the majority was spent on English offering a handshake and Rey threatening to give him a Kentucky whipping, hence the lack of a rating. English got in a few shots but took the 619 into the frog splash (Low Down variety) for the pin. The fans loved Rey.

Next up was MizTV with Mustafa Ali as the guest. Miz got to the point and asked Ali if he believed he could pin Miz like he did Daniel Bryan. After listing off his resume, Miz wanted the bell rung.

7. Mustafa Ali b. The Miz – Rollup. 8:20. C-.

There wasn’t much high flying to this one as you would have expected. What there was though was Miz doing a Rick Rude inspired promo, calling us Lexington sweathogs and telling us to keep the noise down while he took his robe off and showed us what a real man looked like. Ali kept the pace up as well as he could have here and got some good near falls. Eventually he went up top and tweaked his knee, only to reverse the Skull Crushing Finale into a rollup for the pin. Ali has a bright future ahead of him as he’s easy to get behind and can make fans care about him in a Sami Zayn style.

8. Women’s Title: Asuka b. Becky Lynch and Carmella – Asuka Lock to Carmella. 13:42. B-.

It was a very Becky crowd, which shouldn’t be very surprising. This was a lot better than I was expecting with a few comedy spots thrown in. Becky and Carmella had a very long rolling small package duel as they went around the ring about ten times for about half a dozen one counts. Later, Asuka missile dropkicked Becky to put them both down. Carmella covered them both several times each, screaming in frustration louder and louder each time. Of course Carmella was just there to take the submission but she was trying, which is all you can ask her to do.

Overall it was a very nice show with some good matches to go with the usual house show fare. It was far better than the previous house show in the same arena, which was a complete wreck with one of the worst cards I’ve ever seen. The Bryan vs. Styles match was very good and there was enough to keep the crowd going all night. As a bonus, I liked the wrestlers signing autographs on the way up the ramp all night long as it doesn’t take long and is a nice touch. That’s the kind of thing that makes these shows feel more fun and that’s very cool. Fun night overall, with good action and energy.  C+.

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and pick up the paperback edition of KB’s Complete 1997 Monday Night Raw Reviews (also available as an e-book) from Amazon. Check out the information here:

http://kbwrestlingreviews.com/2018/11/20/new-paperback-complete-1997-monday-night-raw-reviews/

And check out my Amazon author page with cheap wrestling books at:

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

IMG Credit: WWE

Main Event
Date: January 10, 2019
Location: Amway Center, Orlando, Florida
Commentators: Vic Joseph, Nigel McGuinness, Percy Watson

Now this one should be interesting. Earlier this week it wasn’t clear if this show was going to feature the debut of some of the NXT callups. Their matches took place with Main Event graphics up but it wasn’t clear if the matches were taped for the show or not. If nothing else, another studio show wouldn’t be that bad. Let’s get to it.

Here are last week’s results if you need a recap.

Yep it’s a studio show.

From Raw.

Bobby Lashley/Drew McIntyre/Dean Ambrose vs. Seth Rollins/John Cena/Finn Balor

We start fast with Balor working on Lashley’s arm but getting knocked into the corner. Ambrose comes in and gets caught with a basement dropkick, only to drag Balor into the corner for a hard chop from McIntyre. The beatdown continues with Lashley hitting a chinlock but not being able to hit the spinning Dominator. Balor gets up some boots in the corner (it’s always the boots) but Lashley drives him straight back into the corner again.

One more chance gets Balor over to the corner so Cena can clean some house but the Glasgow Kiss cuts him off as we take a break. Back with Cena dropkicking Ambrose, drawing Lashley right back in to break up the tag. Lashley stops to pose and the delay lets Cena hit the AA to put both guys down. Ambrose cuts off the hot tag bid though and we hit the chinlock. They head outside with Ambrose sending him into the steps as we take a second break.

Back again with Balor getting the hot tag to clean house, including a double stomp and shotgun dropkick to Ambrose. The Coup de Grace connects but McIntyre is right there with the Claymore to cut him down. It’s too early to finish things up though as Balor gets over for the tag to Rollins. That means a springboard clothesline to McIntyre and a moonsault to Lashley and Ambrose.

The Falcon Arrow gets two on McIntyre but the Stomp doesn’t connect. The reverse Alabama Slam is broken up by an AA but Lashley spears Cena down. That means a superkick to Lashley and another one to McIntyre. The frog splash (with some crazy height) misses McIntyre though and Ambrose tags himself in. Rollins blocks Dirty Deeds though and hits the Stomp for the pin at 21:15.

Rating: B. Good, hot match to open the show as they try as hard as they can (in vein that is) to fight off the National Championship game. Rollins pinning Ambrose to continue their feud is fine, especially if Rollins vs. Lashley is going to continue. Having Cena in there is a good idea as you might not want to have him in a long singles match when he hasn’t been in the ring much lately. Solid match and a very good start to the show.

We get the Gene Okerlund tribute video. No Hulk Hogan part, though he’s mentioned.

From Raw again.

Here’s Alexa Bliss for the debut of her talk show, A Moment Of Bliss. After demanding and receiving a cup of coffee, we see a video on Ronda Rousey’s rookie year. Rousey is of course the first guest and wants to talk about the future instead of the past. She talks about someone who is more athletic than Charlotte and had a tougher road here than Becky Lynch. Rousey means Sasha Banks, so here’s Nia Jax (Me out loud: “GOOD GRIEF!”) to say that sounds like someone has a girl crush on Sasha.

Nia wants to know when she’s getting her rematch from TLC but here’s Sasha, who says she’s honored by the words. She’d love to face Ronda for the title and teach her how to lose with grace. Nia says the line starts behind her before she’s a 300.5 ounce (not pounds, but ounce) Samoan. Sasha: “B**** what line?” Sasha challenges her to a #1 contenders match right now but Nia has a seat and we take a break.

Sasha Banks vs. Nia Jax

The winner gets Rousey, presumably at the Rumble. Nia does indeed get in the ring during the break as Bayley and Tamina are watching at ringside. Sasha kicks her in the face and tries a guillotine but gets thrown into the corner. A kick to the head rocks Nia until she runs Banks over with a knee. Nia drops her face first onto the barricade for a nine count as Bayley and Tamina get in a fight.

Back in and a Batista Bomb gives Nia two as we take a break. We come back with Nia holding her in a torture rack until Sasha slips out and starts in with the knees. The running knees in the corner set up the top rope Meteora for two but Banks can’t hold the Bank Statement. Nia misses the face breaker and it’s a Samoan drop to crush Banks again. There’s a corner splash and Nia loads her up in a fireman’s carry on the middle rope.

Instead of falling back though, Nia jumps down, dropping Sasha onto the corner in a nasty crash. That’s only good for two and Bayley dropkicks Tamina for a bonus. Banks comes back with a dropkick in the corner and tries a hurricanrana off the apron but Banks just falls off to the side in what looked like a botch. Back in and the Bank Statement finishes Nia at 13:23.

Rating: C.- Nia and Corbin are the kind of people who need to just go away for awhile. They just got done with some terrible stories and feuds but they’re still trotted out there every week with the fans getting more and more sick of them every time. Eventually they kill the show whenever they appear because the fans don’t want to boo them but rather just not see them at all. WWE keeps at it anyway, because even though they have the huge roster, they don’t want to start anything new but rather keep doing the same stuff over and over again, to worse and worse returns.

From Raw, again.

Intercontinental Title: Seth Rollins vs. Dean Ambrose

Ambrose is defending and it’s Falls Count Anywhere. Seth jumps him from behind to start and we’re off in a hurry. The fight heads outside immediately with Rollins clotheslining him over the barricade. They go backstage with Rollins throwing Dean into a ladder but missing a shovel shot. Ambrose sends him head first into a metal case for two and then gets in a ladder shot for the same.

Back from a break with the fight in the crowd and Rollins diving off a barricade with a crossbody for two. Rollins punches him straight in the nose and they head to ringside with Dean being tossed into the barricade. Ambrose is right back with a drop onto the barricade for two and it’s time to peel back the ring mats. After a kiss on the head, Dean’s Dirty Deeds attempt is countered with a backdrop onto the concrete.

They head inside with a superplex into the buckle bomb into a superkick keeping Dean in big trouble. The Stomp connects but here’s Bobby Lashley to pull Rollins out of the ring. Lashley beats the heck out of him on the floor, including an overhead belly to belly. Back in and the beating continues, including the spinning Dominator and a spear. Dean covers the finished Rollins to retain at 15:22.

Rating: B-. It was a good brawl but they telegraphed the ending by about nine miles. There was no hiding Lashley interfering to cost Rollins the match and that brings up the bigger problem: they set Rollins up as being back last week, have him in a great performance earlier tonight, and then oh dang he lost. Well thanks for letting us get reinvested in him for….oh a week or so. I’m sure Lashley vs. Rollins will be fine and Ambrose can find something else to do, but it didn’t make for a strong main event to end a bad show.

Post match Lashley puts Rollins through a table to end the show.

And again from Raw.

Here’s Braun Strowman for the showdown with Brock Lesnar. Paul Heyman and Lesnar show up on the screen with Heyman talking about how Strowman is looking for a confrontation. The words that Strowman needs to understand are Card Subject To Change, because if Lesnar came out there right now, there would be no Royal Rumble title match.

Strowman stays in the ring, saying he’s waiting for Beastie Boy. Heyman tells Brock not to

worry about it and they stay in the back, with Strowman saying Lesnar must be scared. Lesnar finally comes out, walks near the ring, and starts heading to the back. Strowman says Lesnar needs to get back here….because he’s winning the title at the Royal Rumble.

This was AWFUL as they clearly have no way around the fact that Strowman is the challenger of the month and has no chance of winning. That’s what happens when you do this match twice with Lesnar winning both times, the most recent being without breaking a sweat. Side note: the last time Lesnar defended the title (not counting house shows) in a match that didn’t involve Strowman or Roman Reigns was in July 2017. And they wonder why his matches stopped meaning anything years ago?

And from Smackdown because we have some time to fill.

Charlotte vs. Becky Lynch vs. Carmella

The winner gets Asuka at the Rumble. The fans are behind Becky, which isn’t the biggest surprise in the world. Charlotte decks Becky to start and a shoulder to the ribs puts her on the floor. That doesn’t last long and it’s Becky coming back in for kicks to both sets of ribs. A clothesline has Charlotte in trouble on the floor and we take a break.

Back with Becky kicking Carmella again but getting her throat snapped across the top rope. Becky is fine enough to slam Charlotte onto Carmella for two but Charlotte is back up to slug it out. Carmella breaks that up and hits a Flatliner on Becky, followed by the Code of Silence to Charlotte. That’s broken up without much effort and Becky missile dropkicks Carmella down. Becky gets suplexed into the corner though and a big boot drops Carmella again.

Charlotte moonsaults onto both of them for a pair of twos and we go to another breaker. Back again with Carmella getting two off a hurricanrana out of the corner and frustration setting in. A suicide dive takes out Becky and Charlotte’s moonsault misses. Becky is back up to suplex Carmella on the floor and they’re all down.

Back in and Charlotte hits a top rope Natural Selection on Becky but has to break up Carmella’s attempt at stealing the pin. The Figure Eight goes on until Becky breaks it up with the top rope legdrop. Carmella has to break up the Disarm-Her to Charlotte and it’s a spear to Becky. A superkick drops Charlotte but Carmella gets pulled into the Disarm-Her for the tap at 19:23.

Rating: B. Carmella was holding up her end well enough here and the ending is the right call. Even if Becky doesn’t win at the Rumble, there’s a very real chance of her jumping into the Rumble itself or winning the title shot at Elimination Chamber. This was what the fans wanted to see and that made for a rather entertaining match, along with good action from all three.

Asuka comes out for the staredown to end the show.

Overall Rating: D. Well let’s see. It was mainly about Raw and Raw was terrible, so how do you think this went? I’m not sure why they felt the need to cram in so much from Raw when a good amount of stuff happened on Smackdown. We couldn’t have seen Daniel Bryan’s great promo or the very good tag match? No the solution must be more Lesnar vs. Strowman, which certainly wasn’t one of the worst segments of the year or anything like that. Bad show here, due to an overload of Raw.

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and pick up the paperback edition of KB’s Complete 1997 Monday Night Raw Reviews (also available as an e-book) from Amazon. Check out the information here:

http://kbwrestlingreviews.com/2018/11/20/new-paperback-complete-1997-monday-night-raw-reviews/

And check out my Amazon author page with cheap wrestling books at:

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

IMG Credit: WWE

Smackdown
Date: January 8, 2019
Location: Jacksonville Veterans Memorial Auditorium, Jacksonville, Florida
Commentators: Corey Graves, Byron Saxton, Tom Phillips

We’re getting closer to the Royal Rumble and that means a few more matches need to be announced. One of those is the Smackdown Women’s Title match, which will be set tonight. This week will see Charlotte, Carmella and Becky Lynch facing off in a triple threat match with the winner getting the shot at Asuka later this month. Let’s get to it.

Here are last week’s results if you need a recap.

We open in the concourse with Daniel Bryan taking us on an educational journey. He’s not happy about the food and drinks being served at the concession stand because the only concessions are to your health. You eat this garbage because you’re filling a void and your lives are so empty.

Bryan takes a hot dog and a soda from fans and throws them on said fans after ranting about how much they’re hurting the environment. Next up is the merchandise stand, where there are no YES Movement shirts because the YES Movement is dead. There are however all kinds of AJ Styles stuff because the fans are still trying to fill that void.

Bryan comes into the arena and says he needs the people here to change. AJ fills the void for about thirty seconds, but Bryan can fill the void with something meaningful and valuable. As he gets to ringside, R-Truth dives off the steps to take Bryan down and their scheduled match is starting now. See, this worked better due to a combination of the delivery (for me, Bryan is a better talker as a heel than as a face, which is saying a lot) and the format, as it actually felt different for a change. It was more unique and stood out from all the other stand and talk interviews. Do that more often and see how much better things get.

Daniel Bryan vs. R-Truth

Non-title and joined in progress with Truth kicking him in the face for two. Bryan is right back up with the kicks in the corner and a bit of yelling. Truth starts his comeback and tries to speed things up, only to get caught with the running knee for the pin at 2:45. Now can we please stop trying to make Truth someone serious just because he’s #30 in the Rumble?

Bryan goes to leave but AJ runs out and jumps him, knocking Bryan into the set.

Rey Mysterio/Mustafa Ali vs. Samoa Joe/Andrade Cien Almas

Ali goes right after Joe to start and hits a running forearm to the head, earning himself a hard glare. Joe misses a charge in the corner though and gets dropkicked a few times. Ali still can’t take him down but a double dropkick with Rey’s assistance gets it done. Almas comes in and gets snapmared down, followed by a spinning headscissors to keep Almas in trouble. Almas’ head fake into a spinning back elbow gets two but it’s already back to Ali for a running hurricanrana.

Ali gets sent outside though and Joe tosses him over the announcers’ table as we take a break. Back with Ali sitting up in the corner to avoid an Alberto double stomp from Almas. Mysterio comes in and hits a Canadian Destroyer of all things on Almas, setting up the 619 on Joe. Ali adds a 450 and Ali hits a big running flip dive to take Joe out. Almas blocks another 619 and it’s a gutbuster into the hammerlock DDT to finish Mysterio at 11:57.

Rating: C+. That ending is the right choice as you can only have Almas lose time and time again before it stops meaning anything. He’s the kind of guy who could be a major star and having him get a clean pin over Mysterio is a good idea. Almas isn’t going to win the Royal Rumble but there’s more to the wrestling year than just that. See where he can go and give him some momentum to get there.

Carmella is serious tonight and says it’s time to prove that she’s more than just the fun one. She was Smackdown Women’s Champion for a long time and that can happen again. This would be the same Carmella who has done nothing over the last few months other than dance breaks, so getting me to take her seriously in one promo isn’t going to happen.

The Usos are ready to beat the Bar and get a title shot.

Miz comes in to see Shane McMahon and wants him to give them a Tag Team Title shot. Shane isn’t up for that though, because they have to earn it. They don’t agree on their outfits either. I could agree with this storyline going anywhere, like into the abyss, anytime soon.

Here’s a somber Rusev with something to say. Last week week Lana was injured by Shinsuke Nakamura. Lana is home tonight, but Rusev is here as a husband and a man. He wants Nakamura out here right now so he can break every bone in Nakamura’s body. Nakamura pops up on screen from the control truck and promises to prove that last week was Rusev’s fault. We see Rusev kicking Nakamura down, knocking Lana a full three feet down with no one landing on her. Rusev storms to the back to go after Nakamura but gets attacked by an anvil case on the way. A bonus Kinshasa knocks Rusev cold.

Becky Lynch is ready for the Rumble, where Asuka is going to have to do a lot more than climb a ladder.

We see the Gene Okerlund tribute video from last night.

The Bar vs. Usos

Non-title. Jimmy goes after Sheamus’ arm to start but gets punched in the face. A clothesline puts Sheamus on the floor so it’s off to Cesaro for a running shoulder to Jimmy. That just earns him a running hurricanrana but the running Umaga attack launches a bit too early. Back in and Sheamus unloads on Jey in the corner before Sheamus hits some hard clotheslines to take over as we go to a break.

We come back with Jey not being able to get to Jimmy and Cesaro slamming him down for two instead. Sheamus’ ten forearms to the chest have Jey in even more trouble but he scores with an enziguri to get a much needed breather. That’s enough for the hot tag to Jimmy with a Samoan drop on Sheamus. The running Umaga attack gets two on Cesaro as everything breaks down. Jimmy hits a high crossbody for two more and a superkick to Sheamus gets the same.

We actually take a second break and come back with Cesaro swinging Jey into the Sharpshooter. That’s broken up so Sheamus knees Jey in the back to give Cesaro two of his own. Cesaro dives into a superkick though and….here’s Mandy Rose in a towel. She asks if Jimmy can help her because she might have left her gold shorts and gold top in her hotel room. That’s enough of a distraction for Cesaro to Neutralize Jey for the pin at 18:07.

Rating: B+. These guys were rocking, as is almost always the case. I know I complain about these two teams and the New Day being on top for way too long (and they are) but dang these matches are awesome. Maybe it’s because of how often they’ve worked together, but my goodness they know how to put together an awesome match and get the fans into things. The ending hurts it, but otherwise this was awesome.

Post match here’s the Miz to congratulate the Bar on their victory. Miz wants a title shot for himself and Shane. Cesaro isn’t wild on it and says he’ll talk to Sheamus. That means a Brogue Kick to Miz and Cesaro says they accept.

In the back, Mandy drops her towel to reveal the shorts and shirt in question. Naomi jumps her but can’t fight off both Mandy and Sonya Deville. Jimmy runs in for the save.

Charlotte says Becky is the hottest thing right now and Carmella was the hottest thing last year. She’s the hottest thing for the last four years though and now she’s here for herself.

Bryan says AJ is freaking out because he’s not WWE Champion anymore. He starts shouting about how he’ll show AJ what vicious really is at the Royal Rumble because Styles won’t take the title.

Upcoming NXT talents video.

Shane isn’t happy with Miz for going after the Bar like that but Miz says it’s what Shane would do. It’s still not how Shane wanted it to happen but he’s up for the match.

Charlotte vs. Becky Lynch vs. Carmella

The winner gets Asuka at the Rumble. The fans are behind Becky, which isn’t the biggest surprise in the world. Charlotte decks Becky to start and a shoulder to the ribs puts her on the floor. That doesn’t last long and it’s Becky coming back in for kicks to both sets of ribs. A clothesline has Charlotte in trouble on the floor and we take a break.

Back with Becky kicking Carmella again but getting her throat snapped across the top rope. Becky is fine enough to slam Charlotte onto Carmella for two but Charlotte is back up to slug it out. Carmella breaks that up and hits a Flatliner on Becky, followed by the Code of Silence to Charlotte. That’s broken up without much effort and Becky missile dropkicks Carmella down. Becky gets suplexed into the corner though and a big boot drops Carmella again.

Charlotte moonsaults onto both of them for a pair of twos and we go to another breaker. Back again with Carmella getting two off a hurricanrana out of the corner and frustration setting in. A suicide dive takes out Becky and Charlotte’s moonsault misses. Becky is back up to suplex Carmella on the floor and they’re all down.

Back in and Charlotte hits a top rope Natural Selection on Becky but has to break up Carmella’s attempt at stealing the pin. The Figure Eight goes on until Becky breaks it up with the top rope legdrop. Carmella has to break up the Disarm-Her to Charlotte and it’s a spear to Becky. A superkick drops Charlotte but Carmella gets pulled into the Disarm-Her for the tap at 19:23.

Rating: B. Carmella was holding up her end well enough here and the ending is the right call. Even if Becky doesn’t win at the Rumble, there’s a very real chance of her jumping into the Rumble itself or winning the title shot at Elimination Chamber. This was what the fans wanted to see and that made for a rather entertaining match, along with good action from all three.

Asuka comes out for the staredown to end the show.

Overall Rating: A-. Well let’s see. Three matches with all but the short one being very good to excellent, storyline advancement, nothing that felt like filler, and title matches being set for the pay per view. This show was everything that Raw wasn’t last night and that makes it one of the best main roster shows in a LONG time. I had a great time with this one and it made me want to see some stuff at the pay per view. Not so much Shane somehow getting a title shot on pay per view, but some of the other stuff is looking great. Awesome show here and worth checking out if you want to see WWE knowing how to do it.

Results

Daniel Bryan b. R-Truth – Running knee

Andrade Cien Almas/Samoa Joe b. Rey Mysterio/Mustafa Ali – Hammerlock DDT to Mysterio

The Bar b. Usos – Neutralizer to Jey

Becky Lynch b. Charlotte and Carmella – Disarm-Her to Carmella

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and pick up the paperback edition of KB’s Complete 1997 Monday Night Raw Reviews (also available as an e-book) from Amazon. Check out the information here:

http://kbwrestlingreviews.com/2018/11/20/new-paperback-complete-1997-monday-night-raw-reviews/

And check out my Amazon author page with cheap wrestling books at:

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

IMG Credit: WWE

Mixed Match Challenge
Date: December 11, 2018
Location: T-Mobile Arena, Las Vegas, Nevada
Commentators: Renee Young, Vic Joseph, Michael Cole

We’re finally at the finals as the winners of tonight’s two matches are heading to TLC this Sunday. Unfortunately you can pretty clearly see who is winning based on what is already booked for the pay per view so there isn’t much mystery, but at least we’re finally done with this thing. Let’s get to it.

Here are last week’s results if you need a recap.

Raw Division Finals: Bayley/Apollo Crews vs. Jinder Mahal/Alicia Fox

Crews is the replacement for the ill Finn Balor, because we can’t go a week on this show without a replacement. Mahal headlocks Crews to start until Crews comes out of it with a backslide for two. It’s off to the women with Bayley rolling her up a few times for two each, sending Fox outside for some quality shouting. Back in and Fox’s suplex is countered into a small package for two more and it’s already back to the men. Well to be fair it’s not like Bayley was pinning her. Crews jumps over Mahal in the corner and flips forward a bit until Mahal knees him in the face.

More knees keep Crews down and we hit the required chinlock. Apollo comes up with the jumping enziguri and it’s back to the women to pick up the pace again. Everything breaks down and Bayley hits the Stunner over the middle rope for two with the Singh Brothers making the save. Fox and the Brothers take Bayley to Bellies but Mahal superkicks Crews. After the melee, Bayley goes outside to get Fox but walks into a big boot to give Fox the unlikely pin at 9:35.

Rating: D+. Well you knew that was coming and there was no way around it. As soon as Bayley and Balor made the Raw finals, there was no way Mahal and Fox were losing. It’s the usual WWE idea: have a team that only they want to go on to win something win it, just because….whatever they see in Mahal. Anyway at least it’s not exactly in an important match.

Mahal and Fox take credit for the win in their own unique ways. Asuka comes in and laughs at them a lot.

Smackdown Division: R-Truth/Carmella vs. The Miz/Asuka

Miz and Asuka argue over who should start until Asuka finally gets the nod. Now why couldn’t Carmella or Truth start and make the decision for them? Miz demands to be tagged in so Asuka chops him for the tag. Truth shoulders him down and hops around in a circle, followed by the hip thrusting. With Miz on the floor, DANCE BREAK! Asuka even joins in on a second edition and since Miz is annoyed, Truth hammers away in the corner. That’s finally enough for Miz, who kicks Truth down and slaps on a chinlock.

The announcers are so bored that they talk about Mike Chioda refereeing. Miz’s short DDT gets two and a heck of a clothesline takes Truth down again. Truth gets in a shot of his own though and the hot tag brings in Carmella. That means a lot of screaming as Asuka loads up a German suplex.

Some knees to the chest have Carmella in trouble but Truth comes in with a Lie Detector to Miz. Carmella loads up the superkick on Miz but he pulls Asuka in the way like a true jerk. The Little Jimmy gets two on Miz, who pops up and throws the good ones to the floor. Asuka isn’t happy though and FINALLY snaps on the cheating Miz, kicking him in the head and walking away. An Unprettier gives Truth the pin at 11:38.

Rating: D+. Yeah this was obvious last week and there wasn’t much doubt a few weeks back either. As soon as Asuka was announced for the TLC match, there was no way she was making it to the finals. I’m not a fan of the things but points to Truth and Carmella for getting some crazy mileage out of the dance breaks. It’s gotten them a pay per view match, which is about 10,000x more than it should have done.

Overall Rating: D. And thank goodness it’s over. The Mixed Match Challenge is something that can work, but PLEASE take it back to the format from the first season. This was a nightmare with a bunch of matches that didn’t go anywhere because they had nothing to fight over and the two teams who only got into the playoffs on the last week making the finals. Just have things go the way that actually worked and things can be better, unlike this season.

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and pick up the paperback edition of KB’s Complete 1997 Monday Night Raw Reviews (also available as an e-book) from Amazon. Check out the information here:

http://kbwrestlingreviews.com/2018/11/20/new-paperback-complete-1997-monday-night-raw-reviews/

And check out my Amazon author page with cheap wrestling books at:

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

IMG Credit: WWE

Mixed Match Challenge
Date: December 4, 2018
Location: Frank Erwin Center, Austin, Texas
Commentators: Michael Cole, Renee Young, Vic Joseph

We have two shows left around here and that’s best for everyone involved. Tonight we have the Smackdown semifinals with the one loser team against the three good teams, meaning we might be in for another lame show but maybe one of the matches can be pretty good. That was the case last week and hopefully the blue people can do it just as well. Let’s get to it.

Here are last week’s results if you need a recap.

AJ Styles is carried out.

Smackdown Division Semifinals: R-Truth/Carmella vs. Charlotte/Jeff Hardy

The men start things off and, after some headlocks, a quick dance off breaks out. This is completely different than the dance break that is coming in the next few moments of course. The women come in and Carmella’s kick to the ribs is blocked, meaning it’s time for the hard chops. Carmella dances away and thankfully gets taken down by the leg. Everything breaks down and Charlotte/Hardy are sent outside, meaning DANCE BREAK.

It’s a short form one and as they’re annoyed at the lack of dancing, Hardy and Charlotte come back in to jump them both. Charlotte’s Figure Four neck rolls look to set up the moonsault but Carmella pulls her off the top. It’s back to the men with a double tag, even though that’s twice as much as necessary. The women fight to the floor, leaving Jeff to set up the Swanton. Carmella dives back in to protect Truth until Charlotte pulls her outside. That’s enough for Jeff to miss the Swanton and Truth gets the rollup pin at 6:41.

Rating: D. This was a nothing match with the big story being WHEN WILL THEY DANCE. I get why they put Carmella and Truth through here as Charlotte is already booked for TLC and Hardy will likely have a match with Joe so there’s no reason to pretend that they’re going to win in next week’s finals. Truth and Carmella are popular enough at the moment, but…..wait…..dang it. We’ll come back to this in a minute.

Alicia Fox and Jinder Mahal promise to win next week.

Finn Balor and Bayley promise to win next week.

R-Truth and Carmella are proud of their win and Truth wants to go to Memphis, Egypt on their vacation.

Smackdown Division Semifinals: Jimmy Uso/Naomi vs. The Miz/Asuka

The women start things off and a hip thrust knocks Asuka away for a bit. Naomi’s kick to the head is countered into a quickly broken ankle lock so it’s off to Miz vs. Jimmy. Some armdrags have Miz in trouble but he’s right back with a running dropkick in the corner. Jimmy doesn’t seem to mind and dances a bit before hitting an uppercut. The Samoan drop has Miz in trouble and the running hip attack makes things even worse.

Miz crotches him on top though and we hit the chinlock. The short DDT gives Miz two and it’s off to a front facelock but Miz yells at Asuka for costing them the last match. Well that’s rather mean. Jimmy shoves him away and makes the hot tag to Naomi so the pace can pick up. A springboard kick to the face gives Naomi two and the guys fight to the floor. Naomi hits the Rear view for two but gets pulled into the Asuka Lock for the tap at 8:52.

Rating: C-. This was one of the better matches of the season, but it also gives away the ending of next week’s Smackdown match, which was what I was dreading earlier. We’re going to get Truth and Carmella knocking off Miz and Asuka because Asuka is busy in what should be the main event of TLC. But hey, at least we get a pay per view dance break now.

Overall Rating: D+. I can’t wait for next week’s final because even at half an hour a week, this show has become a complete chore. I’m not completely sure how the ending goes at TLC, but given who is likely to be in the match I can’t imagine it’s going to be interesting in the first place. The idea of having the finals at TLC in the first place was good, but potentially having the lamest teams involved is defeating the purpose. Another bad show this week, but at least it’s almost done.

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and pick up the paperback edition of KB’s Complete 1997 Monday Night Raw Reviews (also available as an e-book) from Amazon. Check out the information here:

http://kbwrestlingreviews.com/2018/11/20/new-paperback-complete-1997-monday-night-raw-reviews/

And check out my Amazon author page with cheap wrestling books at:

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

IMG Credit: WWE

Mixed Match Challenge
Date: November 20, 2018
Location: Staples Center, Los Angeles, California
Commentators: Michael Cole, Renee Young, Vic Joseph

We’ve actually arrived at a turning point here with the last night of the regular season. After tonight we move into the playoffs, which should make things a little bit better. Unfortunately we’re getting the four winless teams battling it out for a spot in the final four, because going 1-3 is good enough to get a spot in the playoffs. Let’s get to it.

Here are last week’s results if you need a recap.

The announcers talk about the prizes. That’s a big deal, and a smart move.

Raw Division: Alicia Fox/Jinder Mahal vs. Bobby Roode/Natalya

The losers are out and the Singh Brothers are all banged up from Brock Lesnar destroying them last week. The guys start things off and the fans are behind Bobby in what feels like a rare occurrence. Roode shakes off a wristlock and starts chopping away but can’t hit the Glorious DDT. It’s off to the women with Fox getting caught in a slingshot atomic drop, minus Natalya sticking her knee out. A basement dropkick gives Natalya two but Fox blocks the Sharpshooter and kicks her in the face.

The chinlock goes on (well duh) so let’s look at R-Truth trying to leave because he thinks it’s Thanksgiving. The northern lights suplex gives Fox two and it’s off to a front facelock. Natalya can’t quite get out but Alicia stops for her Mahal inspired breathing, allowing the hot tag to Roode. Everything breaks down and Fox slaps Roode, who is fine enough to hit a spinebuster on one of the Singh Brothers. The distraction is enough for Mahal to hit the Khallas for the pin on Roode at 8:08.

Rating: D. So you know how these teams kept losing every single match all tournament long? Well now one pair of losers beat another set of losers and gets to go face a team that has beaten them already once this season. That’s about all they have for us to look forward to and I could go for something more than that, though that hasn’t stopped this season yet.

Braun Strowman is out of the second round and will have a replacement announced next week. AJ Styles is officially out as well, so Jeff Hardy will be Charlotte’s permanent partner.

Fox and Mahal argue about who is the captain. They also argue over where they would go on their vacation, with Fox wanting to go to Kentucky to taste some real country chicken.

Smackdown Division: R-Truth/Carmella (0-3) vs. Rusev/Lana (0-3)

They take turns shouting catchphrases to start with no contact in the first two minutes. With that out of the way, Rusev and Lana hit the floor so we can have a dance break. A break from what isn’t clear, but neither is why a team who is going to be 1-3 is in the playoffs. Thankfully Rusev and Lana jump them from behind with Lana covering for one to actually start the match.

Some running knees to the back give Lana two more and we hit the chinlock. In a smart move, Rusev pulls Truth off the apron and then gets the tag, meaning he gets to come in and beat up a downed Truth. Lana goes outside and sends a downed Carmella into various things before stopping to pose. Truth jumps Rusev on the floor, leaving Carmella to superkick Lana for the pin at 6:50.

Rating: F. That’s this season of the show in a nutshell: shenanigans to waste time early on and then a quick match with neither of them doing anything that seemed impressive. Rusev and Lana going out doesn’t shock me as the dance break thing is lukewarm right now and that’s enough to get one more match out of Truth and Carmella. It’s not like either team had a chance against Carmella/Hardy in the next round anyway, but a little more effort here would have been nice.

Here are the brackets for the next round:

Raw

Ember Moon/???

Jinder Mahal/Alicia Fox

Finn Balor/Bayley

Bobby Lashley/Mickie James

Smackdown

Jeff Hardy/Charlotte

R-Truth/Carmella

Miz/Asuka

Jimmy Uso/Naomi

Bayley and Finn Balor are ready for next week.

Overall Rating: F. The only positive to come out of this show is the fact that we’re three weeks away from the end of this mess. There’s nothing going on here and watching the four winless teams in two short matches wasn’t the solution to make things better. Things will improve a bit when we get to the bigger matches down the line, but that’s not making things better here.

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and pick up the paperback edition of KB’s Complete 1997 Monday Night Raw Reviews (also available as an e-book) from Amazon. Check out the information here:

http://kbwrestlingreviews.com/2018/11/20/new-paperback-complete-1997-monday-night-raw-reviews/

And check out my Amazon author page with cheap wrestling books at:

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