(I’m sorry about the delay.  I came home from Philadelphia with a bad sinus infection and I more or less slipped into a coma after last night’s show and forgot to put it up.)

Dynamite
Date: April 10, 2024
Location: Charleston Coliseum, Charleston, West Virginia
Commentators: Tony Schiavone, Excalibur, Taz

And now, we jump back to August of last year, because we are going to be seeing footage of the backstage incident between CM Punk and Jack Perry at All Out. This comes after Punk gave an interview that wasn’t so nice about AEW and now all of a sudden we just need to see the footage. Let’s get to it.

Here is Collision if you need a recap.

Opening sequence.

Samoa Joe vs. Dustin Rhodes

Non-title…and non-match as Swerve Strickland jumps Joe before the bell and spears him through a table. Referees break it up. Dustin never appeared.

We look at Trent Beretta turning on Orange Cassidy last week.

Cassidy will have a match on Rampage and will comment on what happened.

TNT Title: Penta El Zero Miedo vs. Adam Copeland

Copeland is defending. They shove each other around to start with Penta knocking him down and hitting a top rope double stomp for two. Copeland is knocked to the floor and gets chopped back inside as we take a break. Back with….what looks to be some production graphic on the screen before we see Copeland grabbing a headscissors. Penta isn’t having that and hits a basement superkick for two.

Copeland leapfrogs him three times in a row before they trade headscissors. Stereo big boots leave them both down and we actually get a countdown clock until the Young Bucks segment. Penta sends him outside for a dive and gets in some stomping as we take another break. Back again with Copeland knocking him off the top, giving them another double breather.

Penta goes for the arm but gets pulled into the Grindhouse, with Penta having to reach the rope. They go to the apron with Penta charging into a powerslam to put them both on the floor. Copeland loads up a spear but hits Alex Abrahantes and the fans are not pleased. Back in and Copeland takes him up top, only to get caught with a super Canadian Destroyer. Then Copeland hits the spear to retain at 20:42.

Rating: B. This was a longer match than I was expecting and it did fairly well. Copeland can have a good enough match with anyone and while Penta isn’t what he once was, he has that odd charisma that makes it work. For a match with no build due to it being another open challenge, this was good enough.

Post match the lights go out and Julia Hart pops in. Brody King appears to choke out Copeland but here is Willow Nightingale for a distracting save.

Chris Jericho, Hook and Katsuyori Shibata are ready for Shane Taylor Promotions. Jericho is ready for both of them to sit underneath his learning tree, with both of them agreeing. With Jericho gone, Shibata, through his translating machine, isn’t sure what’s going on, but he does like Renee Paquette’s necklace.

We look back at FTR vs. the Young Bucks over the years.

Mark Briscoe and Eddie Kingston are ready to team together at Dynasty despite being beaten up. Adam Copeland comes in and makes sure they’re good for next week. Stokely Hathaway and Willow Nightingale come in….with Stokely wanting Nightingale to get a TNT Title shot next week. Copeland thinks a mixed tag against the House of Black sounds better and Willow is in.

We go to the Young Bucks for footage from All In in London last year. Before we get there though, we talk about their history with FTR. With that out of the way, we hear about Jack Perry, the scapegoat, in the whole thing, being involved in a backstage altercation at All In. Perry is a friend of theirs, and the other, unnamed person is friends with FTR.

Maybe FTR was behind the whole thing to mess with them. They had no time to hydrate or even pray! There should be an asterisk next to FTR’s victory, but that’s not even the worst part. The incident is short and resembles a high school scrap but it threatened to take down their biggest show ever.

We see the (silent) footage of CM Punk coming up to Perry, who doesn’t look interested in talking to him. They do talk for a few seconds, Punk turns and says something to some other people (one of whom appears to be Tony Khan), then Punk shoves Perry, grabs him in a front facelock, and has it broken up. Punk does lunch in the direction of Khan, albeit with a desk and a person between them. The whole clip runs about 1:15 the time between Punk initially shoving him and the two being separated is about 8 seconds.

Back to the Bucks, who say that wasn’t even the worst part of the whole thing. The worst thing was creating a wrestling show and filling a building with that many people, only to lose because they were distracted by something so stupid. They aren’t shaking FTR’s hands at Dynasty.

Ok so regarding the footage:

If anyone, and I mean ANYONE, in AEW management, told Tony Khan that airing that on national television, or any kind of television for that matter, was a good idea, they should be tried on crimes against wrestling.

That was the most nothing, completely unmemorable moment that I’ve seen in wrestling in a long, long time. The time from Punk initially shoving him to them being separated was about eight seconds. We just waited eight months for a clip that lasted as long as Diesel beating Bob Backlund for the WWF Title in 1994.

I’m sure this will be part of some big return for Perry, but my goodness, an old, broken down Punk just grabbed him in a front facelock (which is as basic of a wrestling hold as there is so screw off with the “he’s a trained fighter” stuff) and held him for a few seconds. If that is some big, game changing and possibly show ruining moment, there are WAY more problems with your show and company than an army of Punk’s on their best behavior could ever fix.

Lanny Poffo told a story about a wrestler I can’t remember giving him crap in the locker room. They were in a match together and Poffo grabbed a sugar hold (a legitimate grappling move) and gave it the tiniest bit of pressure while asking if they were going to have any more problems. They were fine after that. But yeah, this was some game changer that had to be addressed EIGHT MONTHS LATER because Punk said something mean about AEW. Cry me a river.

We cut back to the desk and Tony Schiavone looks like he would rather having his teeth ripped out than be here right now.

Cue FTR, unscheduled, for a chat. Cash Wheeler wants to know why we’re doing this and what that was supposed to accomplish (preach it brother). We are doing some great things but why are we looking at stuff from eight months ago (PREACH IT BROTHER!)? Harwood thinks the Young Bucks might be on to something about how important they are because without them, Harwood might still be shaving Wheeler’s back.

The Bucks used to be about AEW but now they’re about the letters EVP. Harwood says on the backs of everyone who helps to work and build this place, they will keep this place going for the future of professional wrestlers. This place is for the people who go to work for one ticket to get lost in their drama and action. But this isn’t about All In, because it’s about Dynasty and proving who the best team really is.

Video on Bryan Danielson vs. Will Ospreay.

Here is Will Ospreay for a chat. First up, there is this rumor going around that Ospreay is afraid of the grind of wrestling (meaning he’s afraid of the WWE schedule). Normally he would rise to this type of bate, but the person who said it is only in the position he’s in because he was grinding on the boss’ wife. With that flashback to 2004 out of the way, Ospreay talks about how Bryan Danielson is ready to try his hand at beating the unbeatable Ospreay. A lot of people have tried to do it and now he’s ready to show why he’s the best. On April 21, Danielson will find out why Ospreay was on another level.

Julia Hart is ready for Willow Nightingale at Dynasty.

Shane Taylor Promotions vs. Chris Jericho/Hook/Katsuyori Shibata

Jericho and Anthony Ogogo (who returned and joined the team over the weekend) start things off and it’s Moriarty coming in less than ten seconds later. Jericho takes over on Moriarty in the corner and hands it off to Shibata to strike away. Hook comes in to strike away at Taylor, who knocks him into the corner. We take a break and come back with Shibata coming in to clean house. Moriarty gets knocked into the corner but Shibata runs into Jericho by mistake. Hook and Jericho argue on the floor, leaving Taylor to knock Shibata silly with a right hand. Moriarty’s Fang finishes Shibata at 8:16.

Rating: C. If there is an interesting point coming up with this Hook/Jericho stuff, it would be nice if they got to it sooner rather than later. Hook and Jericho have teamed together twice or so and now they’re already having issues. I’m sure we’ll be seeing something between them in some form at Dynasty and my goodness it’s really hard to get interested at Jericho doing something like this again.

Post match Hook helps Shibata up and Jericho leaves by himself.

Samoa Joe is cleared for the main event and Dustin Rhodes is ready for him because he has nothing left.

Kazuchika Okada vs. Cristiano Argento

Non-title and Okada takes him down without much trouble. The dropkick and Rainmaker finish for Okada at 1:22.

Post match Okada accepts Pac’s challenge for Dynasty. Pac comes out for the staredown but the Young Bucks jump him from behind for the beating. FTR makes the save as the fans chant for CM PUNK. Okada grabs a chair and the good guys are beaten down.

We look at Bullet Club Gold beating down Billy Gunn and the Acclaimed at Supercard Of Honor.

The Club liked that beating and want to do it again on Rampage. Jay White says find him an opponent.

Here are Thunder Rosa and Toni Storm for a champagne toast. Storm immediately hits her with the glass and the beatdown is on, with Rosa’s paint being rubbed off. Deonna Purrazzo makes the save and Mariah May comes in…and she has a match right now. Storm even throws in a good luck kiss on the cheek.

Anna Jay vs. Mariah May

They slap and strike it out to start until Jay hits a running Blockbuster. May powers her straight into the corner and grabs a Stratusphere. Jay is back with a hanging neckbreaker over the apron (throwing in a kiss to the cheek) as we take a break. We come back with May hitting a running dropkick, followed by a running spinwheel kick in the corner. An Iconoclasm gives Jay two but she runs into a boot in the corner. A missile dropkick sets up May’s hip attack for two but Jay kicks her down for the same. May comes right back with a sunset flip for the pin at 8:32.

Rating: C. Well at least it feels like they’re getting ready for the May/Storm…whatever it is that they’re doing. May needs some more wins and Jay has enough credibility for it to matter. Other than that, it was a good enough match, though Jay still feels like she is in the same place in the ring as she has been for the last year plus.

Post match Jay grabs the Queenslayer until Stardom’s Mina Shirakawa (who had a reunion with former stablemate May at a Stardom event over the weekend, with Storm interrupting and teasing a Forbidden Door match with Shirakawa) makes the save. Then Shirakawa gives May champagne and kisses her.

Mercedes Mone is ready to debut at Double Or Nothing. She talks about her ankle injury but has a plan and a mission…and then someone turns the lights out and attacks her.

Dustin Rhodes vs. Samoa Joe

Non-title and Dustin jumps the banged up Joe in the corner. Joe fights back and hits a hard headbutt to knock Rhodes outside. Rhodes is busted open so Joe hammers on the cut as we take a break. Back with the rather bloody Dustin snapping off a powerslam for a breather. Dustin hammers away and grabs a Code Red for two but the bulldog is broken up.

They go outside with Joe getting posted, allowing Dustin to grab the title. With that taken away, Dustin grabs the Cross Rhodes for two but Joe release Rock Bottoms him out of the corner. Joe grabs the chain and loads up a swing but the referee takes it away. That leaves Joe to hit him with the belt for the pin at 9:34.

Rating: C+. Good enough here, though it’s another match with the break taking up a good chunk of the time. It’s very much going with the idea of a Rhodes vs. a Samoan, but at least it’s a good ways off from a bearded guy like Eric Young winning the TNA World Title a week after Daniel Bryan’s Wrestlemania XXX moment. Perfectly fine match, with Joe getting to be all violent, which tends to be his best stuff.

Post match Joe grabs the Koquina Clutch but Swerve Strickland runs in to knock Joe out. Swerve holds up the title to end the show.

Overall Rating: C+. I don’t have the first clue what to think of this show. The wrestling ranged from fine to good with the opener being fun and the main event being a Samoa Joe special. Throw in Okada wrecking someone and whatever the women are doing (and I’m not entirely sure but it feels Forbidden Doorish) and that stuff was good enough.

And unfortunately, a grand total of none of that is going to be remembered by the masses, as this was ALL about the special footage thing. While they tied it into the FTR vs. Bucks match, it’s pretty clear there is at least one ulterior motive here and that isn’t going to make for the best reception. At worst, it feels petty on AEW’s part and at best, it’s another situation where whatever bump they might get is going to be buried underneath the various negative perceptions. I have no idea how that was the best possible outcome but it’s already out there, and hopefully that’s the last of it.

Results
Adam Copeland b. Penta El Zero Miedo – Spear
Shane Taylor Promotions b. Chris Jericho/Hook/Katsuyori Shibata – Fang to Shibata
Kazuchika Okada b. Cristiano Argento – Rainmaker
Mariah May b. Anna Jay – Sunset flip
Samoa Joe b. Dustin Rhodes – Belt shot

 

 

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and head over to my Amazon author page with 30 different cheap wrestling books at:

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

AND

Remember to check out Wrestlingrumors.net for all of your wrestling headline needs.

 

Collision
Date: April 6, 2024
Location: DCU Center, Worcester, Massachusetts
Commentators: Tony Schiavone, Nigel McGuinness

We are on a delay this week with the show airing at 11:30pm due to the NCAA Final Four and (unofficially) Wrestlemania. That is a good move from AEW as there is little reason to run the show at the normal time against that kind of competition. The big feature this week is FTR vs. Top Flight for the shot against the Young Bucks for the Tag Team Titles at Dynasty. Let’s get to it.

Here is Dynamite if you need a recap.

Opening sequence.

Tag Team Title Tournament Semifinals: FTR vs. Top Flight

Wheeler and Darius trade arm control to start until Wheeler grabs a backslide for two. Dante comes in for a kick to the back and FTR needs a breather on the floor. Back in and FTR take over on Darius, with Wheeler chopping him into the corner. Dante comes back in for a rollup into a middle rope crossbody for two before taking Harwood into the wrong corner.

Something close to Poetry In Motion knocks Harwood outside as commentary talks about Trent Beretta turning on Orange Cassidy. Harwood gets smart by tricking Wheeler outside for a cheap shot from Wheeler as we take a break. Dante reversing a superplex into a crossbody for two and handing it back to Darius.

A crucifix gets two on Harwood and everything breaks down with a dive taking Wheeler out on the floor. Darius’ springboard cutter gets two on Harwood but raised knees cut off a frog splash attempt. Darius is back up with a high crossbody for two so Wheeler sends Dante outside. That leaves Darius to go up and dive into a Shatter Machine for the pin at 15:40.

Rating: B. Good match as FTR continues to be the team that lures their opponents in to catch them in the end. That’s exactly what happened here, with Darius going for one too many high risks moves and got caught in the Shatter Machine. Now it’s on to Dynasty, where the Bucks will likely get their win back so they can get the titles again as more fans change the channel.

Video on Kazuchika Okada.

Pac vs. Encore Moore

Pac starts fast and whips him hard into the corner so the stomping can ensue. Some rolling suplexes have Moore down again and the Brutalizer finishes at 2:24.

Post match Pac challenges Kazuchika Okada.

Bryan Danielson talks about wanting to be the best version of himself and that needs to be the case against Will Ospreay. He is excited to test himself because someone was with Danielson and said Ospreay might be the best wrestler ever. The build makes sense but it’s not quite hooking me in.

Hook/Chris Jericho vs. Shane Taylor Promotions

Jericho and Taylor start things off with Taylor easily punching him into the corner. Jericho as to cover up but manages a shot to the face, followed by a double suplex to put Taylor down. Hook stays in and gets taken into the wrong corner, only to fight right back out. It’s back to Jericho who tries the Walls on Moriarty but has to dropkick Taylor down instead.

We take a break and come back with Jericho knocking Moriarty down for the Lionsault. The tag brings Hook back in to clean house but he can’t suplex Taylor. Moriarty pulls Jericho into the Border City Stretch, which is reversed into the Walls. Hook manages the t-bone on Taylor, leaving Moriarty to tap at 8:55.

Rating: C+. The match wasn’t bad and Jericho/Hook worked well enough together but it’s really not that interesting to see them together. It feels like Jericho’s latest project and those have been hit and miss at best. Maybe it will work out, but I could go for a long break from Jericho and now it seems we’ll be seeing him doing this for awhile.

Post match Anthony Ogogo of all people comes in to lay out Jericho and Hook before joining Shane Taylor Promotions. For those of you wondering, the answer to “how long has he been gone” is “his last (non-dark) match for AEW was in August 2022.”

Dustin Rhodes wants to show he can still do it so he wants Samoa Joe for the World Title on Dynamite.

Will Ospreay is ready to face Bryan Danielson at Dynamite. No word on why Renee Paquette changed her clothes since she talked to Danielson.

House Of Black vs. Christopher Daniels/Matt Sydal/Bryan Keith

Black headlocks Keith to start before firing off the kicks. King comes in so Sydal wants Keith’s help against him. That’s fine with King, who wrecks them both and knocks Daniels down as we take a break. Back with Sydal coming in to clean house, including a very spinning headscissors to Matthews.

A jumping knee to the face gets two on Matthews but he’s back up with a knee of his own. Dante’s Inferno hits Sydal and Keith gets run over as well. A triple kick to the head in the corner hits Keith but Daniels makes the save. The End drops Daniels and Matthews’ swinging pumphandle slam finishes at 9:26.

Rating: C. Good enough here but it was a long match before the only realistic result. The House is setting up for a big match and needed a warmup like this one, which went well enough. At the end of the day, Daniels being on a team more or less guarantees he’s going to lose, which makes a nearly ten minute match feel that much longer.

Post match here is Adam Copeland from behind to go after the House but he has a staredown with Black. That lets the House beat him down but Mark Briscoe and FTR run in for the save. Cue the Young Bucks to brawl with FTR, leaving the good guys to stand tall.

Rocky Romero wants an eliminator match against Roderick Strong. Cue the Undisputed Kingdom with Strong granting the match.

The Young Bucks are going to present backstage footage from All In on Dynamite. In theory that would be the CM Punk/Jack Perry footage and if so…why?

Chris Jericho wants to fight Shane Taylor Promotions and Hook presents Katsuyori Shibata to even things up. Shibata continues his translator program for promos.

Yuka Sakazaki vs. Trish Adora

This is Adora’s reward for losing to Serena Deeb. Adora grabs a headlock to start and takes Sakazaki down, with Sakazaki nipping right back up. A Boss Man Slam onto the knee puts Sakazaki down again and we take a break. Back with Adora grabbing a not great looking Crossface but Sakazaki is right next to the ropes.

Sakazaki pounds on Adora’s back but can’t manages a suplex. Some forearms put Adora down again and Sakazaki drops her with a suplex. That takes enough out of Sakazaki that Adora is back up with a suplex of her own for two. A spinning hammerlock slam drops Adora again and a top rope splash finishes for Sakazaki at 8:34.

Rating: C. Sakazaki has been gone from AEW for over a year and this didn’t exactly have me wanting to see her around more frequently. It was just a match for the most part with neither showing off anything special. Odds are Sakazaki is just here for a quick appearance and hopefully she picks it up a bit as this didn’t exactly blow any doors off.

Post match Serena Deeb comes out to stare down Sakazaki.

Matt Menard praises Daniel Garcia but says he wants more. Garcia wants to move up the ladder.

Claudio Castagnoli vs. The Butcher

They fight over the power lockup to start before an exchange of shoulders doesn’t go anywhere. A flying shoulder works a bit better for Castagnoli but Butcher is back with a backbreaker. The chinlock doesn’t last long for Butcher as Castagnoli fights up, setting off an exchange of forearms. Castagnoli muscles him up for a Death Valley Driver and fires off the uppercuts in the corner. The Swing sets up the Neutralizer to finish Butcher off at 5:04.

Rating: C+. Rather basic power match here but it’s always fun to see Castagnoli throwing someone around like that. This should set up whatever is next for the Club, as they need a big feud again. If nothing else, maybe Castagnoli gets to do something on his own for a change, as it tends to go fairly well.

Julia Hart is ready for Willow Nightingale and Mercedes Mone later.

Samoa Joe is down to face Dustin Rhodes, but we’ll make it non-title.

Komander vs. Penta El Zero Miedo

Penta kicks away to start but gets rolled up for an early two. Stereo nip ups give us a staredown before Komander snaps off a hurricanrana. Back up and Penta kicks him in the ribs but another hurricanrana sends him outside. Komander’s dive is countered with a gorilla press (not bad) and it’s time to strut as we take a break.

We come back with Komander headscissoring him to the floor, setting up a more successful dive. Penta is right back with with a Canadian Destroyer for two, only to have Komander pull him into something like a half crab. With that broken up, Komander plants him with a Spanish Fly but Penta plants him right back with a springboard Canadian Destroyer onto the apron.

Back in and they slug it out from their knees until Penta grabs Made In Japan for two. Komander blocks a superplex and runs the corner for a twisting top rope splash. Cielito Lindo is loaded up but Penta reverses into a Codebreaker, setting up the Fear Factor for the win at 14:12.

Rating: B-. At the end of the day, you just have to accept that they are just not going to sell that much. It’s about hitting one big, flashy move after another until someone hits their finisher and win. That makes for a fun, junk food kind of match but there is only so much for it otherwise. For now though, Penta gets a nice boost on the way towards his title match on Dynamite and that’s all it needed to be.

Adam Copeland comes out for the staredown with Penta before their TNT Title match on Dynamite.

Overall Rating: B-. This show was in a really rough spot as there is only so much you can do with a show airing around midnight on Wrestlemania Saturday (with the two shows overlapping for a bit). The other problem is that after the opener and maybe the Hook/Jericho match, a grand total of nothing here felt like it mattered in the slightest. That being said, the wrestling was either good or perfectly acceptable, assuming you ignore how unimportant a lot of it felt. That was all they should have done with this show though, as the time slot is making this little more than a punt.

Results

FTR b. Top Flight – Shatter Machine to Darius

Hook/Chris Jericho b. Shane Taylor Promotions – Walls Of Jericho to Moriarty

House Of Black b. Christopher Daniels/Matt Sydal/Bryan Keith – Swinging pumphandle slam to Daniels

Yuka Sakazaki b. Trish Adora – Top rope splash

Claudio Castagnoli b. The Butcher – Neutralizer

Penta El Zero Miedo b. Komander – Fear Factor

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and head over to my Amazon author page with 30 different cheap wrestling books at:

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AND

Remember to check out Wrestlingrumors.net for all of your wrestling headline needs.

Dynamite
Date: April 3, 2024
Location: DCU Center, Worcester, Massachusetts
Commentators: Excalibur, Tony Schiavone, Taz

We are less than a month away from Dynasty and that means it is time to start hammering home the card. First up we are likely set for Swerve Strickland challenging Samoa Joe for the AEW World Title. In addition, Will Ospreay will face Bryan Danielson in a dream match, but first Ospreay has to face Will. Hobbs that is. Let’s get to it.

Here is Collision if you need a recap.

Here is Adam Copeland to get things going. He’s here to have some fun and, after some microphone feedback (Copeland: “Live TV baby!”), he talks about all of the run he has had over the years. Copeland watched all kinds of wrestling in his life, including the WWF, the NWA, places in Canada and everywhere else and now he’s here where he sees the best roster he can imagine.

There are all kinds of wrestlers he can face for the first time ever and he has never had more fun in his career. AEW has pushed this industry into a better place and it gives more people a chance to do what they have never done before. This is where the best wrestle and now he’s calming down after getting fired up. Now it is time to move forward and there is a reason so many stars came here. For now, Copeland introduces Will Ospreay and some respect is shown. This was a rather nice rah-rah speech and Copeland knows how to give them as well as anyone.

Will Ospreay vs. Powerhouse Hobbs

Don Callis is on commentary as Hobbs knocks Hobbs out of the air to start. Ospreay gets smart by going after the knee and knocks him to the floor before hitting a dive. Hobbs is sent into the steps but he catches Ospreay on the barricade and plants him onto the steps. There’s the toss over the announcers’ table to drop Ospreay again and we take a break.

Back with Ospreay dropping Hobbs off a handspring kick to the face before going up. Hobbs pulls him down by the throat but a Stundog Millionaire gets Ospreay out of trouble again. Hobbs gets in another knockdown but misses a splash off the top of all things. The Hidden Blade is countered into a World’s Strongest Slam, which is countered into a small package to give Ospreay two.

Hobbs blasts him with a clothesline to take over, setting up a middle rope swinging powerslam (that was cool) for two more. Another powerslam attempt is countered into a DDT and a sky twister press puts Hobbs down again. The Hidden Blade finishes for Ospreay at 14:15.

Rating: B. Ospreay’s run continues and I liked this one more than some of the other things he’s done so far. It felt more like Ospreay was fighting up against the monster Hobbs before slaying the beast in the end. At the same time, it should be about it for his stuff with the Callis Family, which has been done pretty much to death so far. Good stuff here, and the shorter time helped it a bit.

Post match Callis has to break up Ospreay and Hobbs before Ospreay goes to leave. Cue Bryan Danielson for a staredown as we take a break.

Bryan Danielson vs. Lance Archer

Archer starts fast and takes over by knocking Danielson down. Danielson gets sent into the corner but avoids a charge, setting up a dragon screw legwhip. Cranking on and kicking at the leg have Archer in more trouble, followed by a running dropkick to the leg in the corner. They go outside, with Archer running Danielson over and slamming a production worker onto him for an impressive spot.

We take a break and come back with Danielson moonsaulting over him but getting run over with a crossbody. Danielson fights out of the corner and scores with some running dropkicks. Archer slips out of the LeBell Lock and bails outside, where Danielson hits a running knee off the apron.

Back in and Danielson hits a missile dropkick, followed by the YES Kicks. Archer doesn’t care for that and hits a hard chokeslam, only to have the Blackout broken up with elbows to the face. Danielson’s sleeper is broken up so Danielson kicks him in the head three straight times. The running knee finishes Archer at 15:38.

Rating: B-. This was the latest instance of Danielson having a good match around to keep up with Ospreay. If nothing else I do like the idea of having Danielson face someone different than Ospreay as it adds a fresh direction. It’s always fun watching Danielson strike down a monster and Archer has enough credibility to make Danielson seem like a big deal here so well done.

Here is Chris Jericho on the stage to call out Hook so hit that signal. Cue Hook, with Jericho praising him and asking Hook to believe in him. Hook does, to the point where they can team together this week on Collision. Works for Jericho.

Shane Taylor Promotions are ready to face Hook and Jericho on Collision.

Jay White vs. Billy Gunn

Gunn jumps White on the stage during his entrance and the beating begins around ringside. They get inside, the bell rings, and White punches him out to the floor. The fight heads into the crowd as White can’t get anything going to start. White gets knocked back to ringside but avoids a superkick, which hits the steps instead. A clothesline puts White on the floor again though and we take a break.

Back with White unloading in the corner but Gunn runs him over again. We see the Acclaimed down in the back, with the distraction letting White set up the Blade Runner. The One And Only connects instead and Gunn grabs a chair. Cue the Gunns to beg for mercy though, allowing White to hit a low blow for the DQ at 11:39.

Rating: D+. I’m not sure what this was but I think we can safely call it a bad miss. This was barely a match until the last minute and a half and then they went to a DQ (which is becoming more common around here). I’m liking the idea of the titles being unified, but this was really not a good way to help get us there. The fact that I had to pause this a few times out of pure boredom isn’t a good sign and it just got less interesting as it kept going.

Post match the beatdown is on until the Acclaimed make the save. The Gunns save White from going through the announcers’ table.

Willow Nightingale, with Stokely Hathaway and Kris Statlander, is feeling mother fluffin great about getting a TBS Title shot and talks about how she worked hard in this town for years. This is a home away from home for her and if she can be convinced she belongs here, anyone can do it. Now she’s ready to win the TBS Title and she thanks the fans for their love and support. Hathaway is proud of Willow’s win but here is Mercedes Mone to interrupt. She wants the winner of Willow and Hart, because money changes everything. Then Mone dances.

Tag Team Title Tournament Semifinals: Orange Cassidy/Trent Beretta vs. Young Bucks

Chuck Taylor and Sue are here with Cassidy and Beretta. Matt gets suplexed down to start but he’s back with the rolling northern lights suplex for two. The Bucks are sent to the floor where they trip Beretta down to take over. Matt even jumps on commentary to send us to a break. Back with Cassidy hitting a high crossbody but his double hurricanrana is blocked. Matt’s ram into an exposed turnbuckle is blocked but Cassidy gets knocked down anyway.

The EVP Trigger misses though and Cassidy’s top rope DDT gets two on Matt. Cassidy and Beretta hit their own TK river and it’s Soul Food into the half and half suplex to send Matt flying. Back up and Matt fires off some superkicks but stops to threaten Sue, who slaps him instead. The spike Strong Zero gets two on Matt with Nick making the save. Sue gives Trent the reviving kiss on the cheek….but Matt sends him into the exposed buckle. A rollup with tights pins Beretta at 12:28.

Rating: C+ This got some time but it never quite moved up to the higher level I was expecting. Cassidy and Beretta were a thrown together team but they did well in their limited time in the role. The Bucks have been all but penciled in for the finals since the tournament started so this was almost a formality, Not a bad match, but it seemed more built around Sue near the end and that’s not quite how a chance for a title shot should feel.

Post match the Bucks mock Sue before leaving. Beretta loads up the Big Hug but gives Cassidy a running knee instead. Chuck Taylor isn’t sure what to think as Beretta leaves. I haven’t been a big fan of the Best Friends stuff but this will be a big deal to a large portion of the AEW audience. Also more Beretta is a good thing.

Mariah May vs. Thunder Rosa

Toni Storm is on commentary and the winner gets the Dynasty title shot. Rosa chops away in the corner to start but May takes over and hits the running hip attack. Back up and Rosa hits a spinning faceplant before knocking May hard to the floor. May wins a strike out on the apron but gets hurricanranaed onto the floor. We take a break and come back with May striking away, followed by a Saito suplex. A Stratusphere is blocked so May hits a running knee for two instead. May Day is loaded up but Rosa reverses into a Backstabber, setting up the Tijuana Bomb for the pin at 7:48.

Rating: C+. They didn’t give Rosa much until she won in the end, though that’s what matters more than anything else. Rosa does need her title shot after never being defeated for the title and the ending should have May in some hot water with Storm. They might not have taken the most interesting route to get there but they got the title shot right, which is all that matters.

Penta El Zero Miedo wants a TNT Title shot against Adam Copeland next week on Dynamite.

Penta El Zero Miedo receives a TNT Title shot against Adam Copeland next week on Dynamite.

Here are Swerve Strickland and Samoa Joe for the contract signing for Dynasty. Joe signs without saying anything but then warns Swerve before he can sign as well. He has been watching Swerve’s rise to the top but Swerve has received some bad information, saying that he’s going to win the World Title. Joe threatens violence and gives Swerve a chance to walk, but instead Swerve says he has wanted this moment his entire life.

Swerve has worked to get here and he’ll do anything to win the title. At Dynasty, he’s going to show that he’s every bit of the man Joe is. The fight is on but Joe breaks up a chain shot and chases Swerve off. The beatdown leaves Swerve down in the corner. Joe leaves but a bloody Swerve laughs and crawls over to sign the contract in his own blood. That’s fine with Joe, who comes back in to put Swerve through the table to end the show. Joe being freaked out by Swerve crawling to the contract was good, and it was entirely logical for Joe to come back and beat him up again.

Overall Rating: B-. This show had a bit of a different feel to it as it came off more focused on a few things than on several things at once. At the same time, they helped set things up for the next few weeks, including Dynasty. The action (save for Gunn vs. White) was good and it made for a pretty solid show all around. Nice show, and points for making it feel a bit different.

Results
Will Ospreay b. Powerhouse Hobbs – Hidden Blade
Bryan Danielson b. Lance Archer – Running knee
Billy Gunn b. Jay White via DQ when White hit Gunn low
Young Bucks b. Trent Beretta/Orange Cassidy – Rollup with tights to Beretta,
Thunder Rosa b. Mariah May – Tijuana Bomb

 

 

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Dynamite
Date: March 27, 2024
Location: Centre Videotron, Quebec City, Quebec, Canada
Commentators: Excalibur, Tony Schiavone, Taz

We are less than a month away from Dynasty and the card is starting to come together. With Bryan Danielson vs. Will Ospreay as the likely co-main event, we need someone to challenge Samoa Joe for the World Title. Odds are we’ll be finding that out tonight as Swerve Strickland faces Konosuke Takeshita. Let’s get to it.

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

Opening sequence.

Will Ospreay vs. Katsuyori Shibata

The fans are behind Ospreay as Shibata takes him to the mat and an armbar sends Ospreay over to the ropes. Ospreay takes him down into a headscissors but Shibata slips out, only to miss a kick to the chest. Back up and Ospreay sends him to the floor and hits a dive, followed by the strikes to Shibata’s face. As usual, these have no effect and he suplexes Ospreay in the aisle. Back in and Shibata shrugs off some chops and hits another suplex as we take a break.

We come back with Ospreay being sent into the barricade but Ospreay scores with a Phenomenal Forearm for two back inside. Shibata is fine enough to hit a running boot in the corner and forearms him down. Ospreay fights up but gets chopped down and put into a quickly broken ankle lock.

Shibata’s kick is cut off and they trade forearms until Ospreay manages an enziguri for a double knockdown. Back up and Shibata grabs the sleeper for two arm drops, only for Ospreay to drape him in the ropes. A top rope kick to the head sets up the Oscutter for one and the running elbow gets two. Ospreay plants him with a tiger driver so Shibata sits up, meaning the Hidden Blade can finish him at 18:58.

Rating: B-. Yeah I’m going to get yelled at for this one but I cannot see the good in having Shibata no sell a bunch of stuff and then trade forearms for the better part of ever. Ospreay’s thing seems to be having one long match after another and while that can be entertaining, there’s something a bit off putting about Shibata just sitting there and waiting for the finisher. Ospreay looked good for the most part here, but these Shibata matches are not doing it for me and mostly never have.

Video on Bryan Danielson’s career, including his time before AEW.

The Young Bucks are proud of doing what they want, including retiring Sting. Now it’s time to get rid of their loss to Private Party. Oh and Renee Paquette needs to smile some more.

Kazuchika Okada arrives.

Tag Team Title Tournament First Round: Young Bucks vs. Private Party

The Bucks pitch to Excalibur for an announcement of Double Or Nothing being in Las Vegas during their entrance for a very on point move. Matt takes Say down to start and everything breaks down, with Private Party hitting the superkicks. The Bucks head outside and there are the stereo dives. Silly String off the barricade drops Matt, leaving Nick and Quen to slug it out on said barricade. A Falcon Arrow off the barricade drops Quen on the floor and the Bucks try for the countout. With that not working, they drop Quen again inside and we take a break.

Back with Say getting the hot tag to clean house, including a kick to the head and an Asai moonsault to take out Nick on the floor. A springboard high crossbody gets two on Matt but he’s back up with a German suplex onto the apron to Quen. Say is back up with the save and it’s Gin and Juice to send Nick outside. More Bang For Your Buck hits Matt for two with Nick having to make the save. Quen tries a 630 but only hits mat (as opposed to Matt), setting up a totally botched EVP Trigger (Nick didn’t make contact) for the pin at 13:27.

Rating: B-. That ending took a lot of the air out of the place and that’s a shame as they were starting to cook until the last few minutes. The problem here is the story of the match was that Private Party scored a fluke upset on the Bucks about four and a half years ago. Things have changed quite a bit since then and it was a bit much to buy that happening again with a match that went fairly long. The Bucks winning is the only move to make here, but they could have done it a good bit faster.

Video on Konosuke Takeshita.

Darby Allin is with Tony Hawk and promotes Hawk’s skate park charity. His now canceled Mount Everest climb was going to benefit said charity, which is always nice to hear.

Chris Jericho praises Hook and offers to mentor him, with Hook accepting despite knowing what Jericho is all about.

Willow Nightingale vs. Anna Jay vs. Kris Statlander vs. Skye Blue

For a TBS Title shot and Mercedes Mone is on commentary. Statlander and Blue fight to the floor to start, leaving Nightingale to crush Jay in the corner. A basement crossbody gives Nightingale two but Blue is back in to kick Nightingale away. Blue DDTs Nightingale for two but Jay is back up. Nightingale heads outside to Pounce Blue and glares at Mone as we take a break.

Back with Jay and Blue kicking Nightingale to the floor but Statlander plants Blue for two. Jay superplexes Statlander but Nightingale makes the save with a backsplash to crush both of them. The Babe With The Powerbomb is countered with Blue’s hurricanrana, followed by Code Blue for two. Nightingale is back up to plant Blue on the apron with a Death Valley Driver, leaving Blue to roll Statlander up for two. Back in and the Babe With The Powerbomb gives Nightingale the pin on Jay at 9:49.

Rating: C. This was another match where there was too much going on at once and it hurt things a bit. It didn’t feel like there was anything in the way of a story to the match and instead it was four people doing a bunch of moves to each other until someone got the pin. At the same time, Mone was VERY subdued on commentary here and sounded somewhere between bored and tired, which is quite the change after her first appearances. Nightingale getting the title shot is good, but egads it would be nice for her to actually win a championship that mattered.

Post match Julia Hart jumps Nightingale from behind and glares down at Mone.

Dustin Rhodes talks about the talent level in AEW and how great all of his matches have been. Butcher comes in and the match is set up for Rampage. Dustin says he’s a natural born legend and Butcher will find out why everyone loves him.

Toni Storm is in the TCM studios with Ben Mankiewicz, who congratulates her for her accomplishments. Storm congratulates him for….whatever he does around here. She tries to get him to say her catchphrase and then drops a shoe.

Swerve Strickland is ready for Konosuke Takeshita.

Tag Team Title Tournament First Round: Orange Cassidy/Trent Beretta vs. Kingdom

Non-title and Chuck Taylor/Roderick Strong are here as well. Cassidy starts fast and they head to the floor, with Bennett hitting a big flip dive. That’s fine with Cassidy, who dives onto everyone for a crash. Back in and Beretta German suplexes Taven until Bennett makes the save. A piledriver on the apron knocks Beretta silly and we take a break.

Back with Cassidy coming in to clean house, including a high crossbody to Taven. The Stundog Millionaire takes Bennett down and Taven is sent outside, leaving Bennett to get hit with a spike Strong Zero for two. We pause for a hug but Strong offers a distraction, only to be pulled down by Taylor. Cassidy cuts Strong off, leaving Beretta to escape Hail Mary and roll Bennett up for the pin at 9:33.

Rating: B-. Now why do I have a feeling that Cassidy and Beretta, who were teaming in ROH earlier this month, are not going to be in line for an ROH Tag Team Title shot after beating the champions here? Other than that, this was a fast enough paced match, though I still could go for more of the Kingdom as a dangerous team. Cassidy and Beretta still feel like the Cinderella team in the whole thing though and that is a great spot for them.

Post match the Young Bucks come out for the staredown.

Kyle O’Reilly is still sure he’s doing this on his own.

Video on Adam Copeland winning the TNT Title back last week. The Cope Open is coming back.

Here’s what’s coming on various shows.

Konosuke Takeshita vs. Swerve Strickland

Don Callis is on commentary and Prince Nana is ringside. Takeshita takes over on the arm to start but Swerve flips away and grabs a rollup for two. A hard clothesline drops Strickland as we see Samoa Joe watching in the back. Swerve fights up and takes over, only to have Takeshita come back for the exchange of forearms. A backbreaker gives Swerve two but Takeshita grabs a heck of a brainbuster.

Swerve tries to get back up but is rocked with some forearms against the ropes. Takeshita misses a charge and gets German suplexed, only to forearm Swerve out to the floor as we take a break. Back with Swerve fighting out of a chinlock and sending Takeshita out to the floor. A running hurricanrana takes Takeshita down and a high crossbody connects for two back inside.

Swerve tries to strike away but his neck/shoulder gives out (thanks to the brainbuster earlier), leaving him to shoulder Takeshita in the ribs. Takeshita counters a rolling neckbreaker into a sitout F5 to send Swerve outside. The big flip dive takes Swerve down again but he’s able to break up a brainbuster onto the turnbuckle. A DDT out of the corner plants Takeshita but he’s right back with a Blue Thunder Bomb for two.

Swerve is back up with a rolling Downward Spiral for two, only to miss the Swerve Stomp. Takeshita wheelbarrow suplexes him into the running knee for another near fall and they’re both down. Another Swerve Stomp misses so Swerve settles for an anklescissors into the corner. The House Call sets up the Swerve Stomp for two and Swerve is stunned. A standing stomp sets up the JML Driver to give Swerve the pin at 19:41.

Rating: A-. This is the kind of match I was hoping for when AEW started: two incredibly talented people getting the chance to showcase themselves on a big stage for the first time. The match told a story of Takeshita hurting Swerve early and Swerve having to fight around the injury and win in the end. Throw in some high impact offense and some hot near falls and this is one of the best matches I’ve ever seen on Dynamite. Loved this.

Overall Rating: B-. The show wasn’t their best effort for the most part but my goodness that main event was great. In other words, it felt like an In Your House and that is not the worst way to present television. The focus here was on setting up some things for Dynasty, with the TBS Title match officially being set and the Tag Team Title tournament getting rid of some teams. Not an excellent show, but dang check out that main event (and the opener, depending on your taste in Shibata).

Results
Will Ospreay b. Katsuyori Shibata – Hidden Blade
Young Bucks b. Private Party – EVP Trigger to Quen
Willow Nightingale b. Skye Blue, Kris Statlander and Anna Jay – Babe With The Powerbomb to Jay
Orange Cassidy/Trent Beretta b. Kingdom – Rollup to Bennett
Swerve Strickland b. Konosuke Takeshita – JML Driver

 

 

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and head over to my Amazon author page with 30 different cheap wrestling books at:

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Wrestlemania XXVIII
Date: April 1, 2012
Location: Sun Life Stadium, Miami, Florida
Attendance: 78,363
Commentators: Michael Cole, Jerry Lawler

Pre-Show: Tag Team Titles: Usos vs. Primo/Epico vs. Tyson Kidd/Justin Gabriel

Jimmy and Epico get hot tags and everything breaks down. Jey throws Gabriel up for a Samoan drop but Justin kicks out. Epico gets backdropped over the top and out onto Primo, setting up a dive from Jey. Gabriel moonsaults out onto all three of them, leaving only Jimmy on his feet. Jimmy throws Gabriel back in for a cover, only to have Epico come in for a Backstabber to Jimmy for the pin at 5:11.

Lillian Garcia sings America the Beautiful. The show is outside again and the stadium looks amazing.

World Heavyweight Championship: Daniel Bryan vs. Sheamus

Kane vs. Randy Orton

Santino Marella talks to a cast member from Deadliest Catch and Mick Foley is there eating crabs while talking like a pirate. Mr. Socko and the Cobra make cameo appearances and destroy the crabs until Ron Simmons comes in for his catchphrase.

Intercontinental Title: Cody Rhodes vs. Big Show

Video on what it means to be a WWE Diva, which seems to translate to wearing very little clothing and dancing a lot.

Maria Menunos/Kelly Kelly vs. Beth Phoenix/Eve Torres

The attendance record is announced.

Jim Ross, now with a goatee, comes out to do commentary.

Undertaker vs. HHH

We get the Hall of Fame video from last night with the Four Horsemen being inducted as a team so Flair could be put in twice. This wound up biting them though as Flair was officially still under contract to TNA so WWE had to send Christian to Slammiversary 2012 as compensation (while Christian was still Intercontinental Champion).

Team Teddy vs. Team Johnny

Teddy: Santino Marella, R-Truth, Kofi Kingston, Zack Ryder, Great Khali, Booker T.

Johnny: David Otunga, Mark Henry, Dolph Ziggler, Drew McIntyre, Jack Swagger, The Miz

Alex Rodriguez and Torrie Wilson are here.

Wrestlemania week video.

CM Punk is ready to defend his WWE World Title but Johnny comes up to say the title can change hands on a DQ.

WWE World Title: CM Punk vs. Chris Jericho

Wrestlemania XXIX is in New Jersey.

After all that, we recap John Cena vs. the Rock. This has been built up for over a year now and both guys have spent so much time heavily insulting each other that it actually is epic, as described by a bunch of legends in the video. Several years back, Cena had been on a radio show where he talked about Rock saying he loved WWE and then leaving. Cena on the other hand was here every single day because this is what he loved more than anything.

John Cena vs. The Rock

Rock sends him hard into the steps to keep Cena in trouble but he grabs the STF (with almost no torque). The hold stays on WAY too long and Rock starts to fade, even drawing an arm check. Rock finally makes the ropes after about two minutes and grabs a Samoan drop to get a breather.

Now for the second iconic image of the show: Rock poses on the ropes and Cena sits on the ramp, totally lost.

Ratings Comparison

Daniel Bryan vs. Sheamus

Original: N/A

2013 Redo: N/A

2015 Redo: N/A

Kane vs. Randy Orton

Original: B-

2013 Redo: B-

2015 Redo: C-

Cody Rhodes vs. Big Show

Original: D+

2013 Redo: D+

2015 Redo: D

Kelly Kelly/Maria Menunos vs. Beth Phoenix/Eve Torres

Original: C+

2013 Redo: D+

2015 Redo: D+

HHH vs. Undertaker

Original: A+

2013 Redo: A+

2015 Redo: A+

Team Johnny vs. Team Teddy

Original: C

2013 Redo: D+

2015 Redo: D+

Chris Jericho vs. CM Punk

Original: A

2013 Redo: A

2015 Redo: B+

The Rock vs. John Cena

Original: B+

2013 Redo: A+

2015 Redo: A

Overall Rating

Original: A+

2013 Redo: A

2015 Redo: B+

The top matches on this card are as good as WWE has done in a long time.

http://kbwrestlingreviews.com/2012/04/01/wrestlemania-xxviii-one-of-the-best-shows-of-all-time/

And the 2013 Redo:

http://kbwrestlingreviews.com/2013/04/06/wrestlemania-count-up-wrestlemania-xxviii-this-show-got-me-excited-all-over-again/

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and pick up the paperback edition of the WWE Grab Bag (also available as an e-book) from Amazon. Check out the information here:

http://kbwrestlingreviews.com/2018/03/23/new-paperback-kbs-grab-bag/

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

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

Wrestlemania XXVI
Date: March 28, 2010
Location: University of Phoenix Stadium, Glendale, Arizona
Attendance: 72,219
Commentators: Michael Cole, Jerry Lawler, Matt Striker
America The Beautiful: Fantasia

So last year at Wrestlemania XXV, Shawn Michaels and the Undertaker had one of the best matches ever. That means it’s time for a rematch, with Michaels career on the line. That is more than big enough for a special match, to the point where it makes John Cena vs. Batista for the WWE Title feel that less important. Let’s get to it.

Pre-Show: Battle Royal

Mark Henry, Shad Gaspard, JTG, Goldust, Yoshi Tatsu, Santino Marella, Primo, Kung Fu Naki, Slam Master J., Jimmy Wang Yang, Chris Masters, Vladimir Kozlov, Great Khali, Finlay, William Regal, Luke Gallows, Carlito, Tyler Reks, Zack Ryder, Lance Archer, Mike Knox, Caylen Croft, Trent Beretta, Tyson Kidd, David Hart-Smith, Chavo Guerrero

Prime is out within seconds, followed by Beretta and Croft at the same time. Henry launches Chavo out but then gets tossed by Khali. A bunch of people get together to toss Khali before Cryme Tyme gets rid of Gallows. Then Shad tosses JTG because that’s how battle royals work. Regal and Finlay slug it out for old times’ sake before everyone breaks off for fights of their own.

Masters keeps putting people in the Masterlock and is eliminated for not being that bright. Kozlov eliminates Kidd and Hart-Smith before being tossed out as well. Funaki, Goldust, Regal and Shad are out in a row, with Reks following them. Santino starts using the Cobra and thankfully is tossed out by Finlay.

Archer gets rid of Yang and is quickly dropkicked out by Tatsu (Striker continues to try and get “The Poison Fist Of The Pacific Rim” over as a nickname for Tatsu. This is because Striker is really annoying.). Knox gets to clean house for a bit but cue Hornswoggle for a distraction, allowing Finlay to get in a shillelagh shot. The Tadpole Splash hits Knox and Finlay tosses Carlito. Ryder eliminates Finlay and Knox at the same time, leaving Tatsu to kick Ryder out at 8:43.

Rating: C. It’s a battle royal to get a bunch of people on the show. They didn’t waste time here and it gave the fans something to see during the pre-show, which is about all you can ask for here. Tatsu was someone who seemed like he was ready to move forward more than once but it just never came together. It’s not like this was some big win but he was as good of a winner as you could have had.

Fantasia sings America The Beautiful. Not well but she does sing it.

The opening video talks about what it means to be at Wrestlemania and how important it is to be here. This is the big chance and the stars will seize it.

The set has something of an ancient pyramid theme with another over the ring, both of which look cool. If nothing else, I’ve always liked I Made It.

Tag Team Titles: ShoMiz vs. R-Truth/John Morrison

ShoMiz is defending and there isn’t much of a story here, save for Truth and Morrison winning a triple threat match to get the title shot. Miz and Morrison start things off with Morrison getting the better of things. Truth comes in with a top rope legdrop for two into a WHAT’S UP. It’s off to Show, who sends Truth flying with a fall away slam. What looks to be a Vader Bomb is broken up via a Morrison kick to the head, followed by Morrison’s knee to Miz’s head. Show breaks up Starship Pain though, leaving Truth’s dive to Show to fail miserably. Back in and Show KO Punches Morrison for the pin to retain at 3:25.

Rating: C-. Not much to this one and it really would have been better off as a pre-show match. They didn’t even get four minutes and there is only so much you can do with the amount of time you might get on a regular TV show. ShoMiz was a fairly forgettable team and while it was nice to have the titles on the card, it’s not like this was anything remotely memorable.

Video on Wrestlemania Week, which always looks cool.

Randy Orton vs. Ted DiBiase vs. Cody Rhodes

Legacy implodes as Orton has had it with the two of them screwing up and turned on them, setting up this for some revenge. DiBiase and Rhodes go after him to start and it doesn’t go well early on. Orton gets smart by dividing and conquering but walks into a dropkick from DiBiase. The double teaming is on with both of them taking turns to punch Orton while the other holds him back. There’s a double suplex to put Orton down but he fights out of the corner (the fans approve).

The comeback doesn’t last long though as DiBiase hits a clothesline, setting up a High/Low to put Orton down again. Rhodes snaps off an Alabama Slam for two and the save from DiBiase means it’s time for the young hooligans to fight. Orton fights up and sends DiBiase to the floor, followed by a snap powerslam back inside. There’s the backbreaker to Rhodes but DiBiase pulls Orton outside. Rhodes’ dive only hits DiBiase so Orton hits the double hanging DDT. With DiBiase down on the floor, Orton Punts Rhodes and then RKO’s an invading DiBiase for the pin at 9:02.

Rating: C+. There wasn’t much in the way of drama here once DiBiase and Rhodes got in their offense. Orton looked like he was toying with them at the end, which was part of the reason why he was turning into a popular star all over again. This was about Orton smashing through his former lackeys and showing them who the real star was, which he did in quite the destruction by the end.

Vickie Guerrero and company are ready for their ten woman tag. Jillian Hall comes in for a song and whole thing turns into a Slim Jim commercial, with Santino Marella having a bite to change Jillian. First she’s Mae Young, then Gene Okerlund (yes in the same dress) and finally Melina. Wacky….I guess you could call it fun? This isn’t on the Network due to the music.

Money In The Bank

Christian, Dolph Ziggler, Drew McIntyre, Jack Swagger, Evan Bourne, Kane, Kofi Kingston, Matt Hardy, MVP, Shelton Benjamin

This is the last Wrestlemania MITB match before it would go on to get its own show this same year. It’s the usual melee to start with almost everyone going outside. The first ladder is sent inside about thirty seconds in but a bunch of people stop to go after McIntyre rather than climbing. Almost everyone tries to go up but gets stopped, with Kane chokeslamming Bourne over the top for a crash onto more people.

Swagger and Hardy get trapped behind a ladder in the corner and Christian monkey flips Kingston into the ladder onto them. Ziggler breaks it up and makes the climb but MVP pulls him right back down. Kingston hammers on Kane in the corner, earning himself a powerbomb onto a ladder. Benjamin goes up this time so it’s Swagger spearing him with another ladder to break it up.

Swagger gets caught under a ladder so Hardy and Christian hit him with a ladder each. One of the ladders is bridged into another, with Bourne kicking Christian off the bridged version. Air Bourne hits Christian and Bourne goes up, only to be cut off by Hardy. Swagger cuts Hardy off though and shoves him onto the bridged ladder for the huge crash. Shelton and MVP go up but come crashing down, leaving everyone on the floor for a bit.

Kane goes up but has to cut off Ziggler, including a chokeslam onto the ladder. With Kane distracted, Kofi comes back in to kick him in the head but the only ladder available is broken. Kofi gets crazy creative by using the pieces like stilts and jumping up the rungs, only to have McIntyre make the save.

McIntyre goes up but Hardy shoves the ladder over for the big crotching on top. It’s Matt going up this time until Christian is there as well but they both have to knock Kane down. That’s not enough for Christian, who hits the reverse DDT off the ladder to plant Matt again. Christian goes up again, only to have Swagger make the save and pull the case down for the win at 13:29.

Rating: B-. It was a wild match as usual but there is only so much you can do with ten people in a match trying to get in as much time as possible. The stilts spot was very unique and stood out more than anything else, though the rest was little more than the usual big spots and crashes. Swagger winning is a surprise, but WWE was trying something new and that’s often a good idea.

We look back at last night’s Hall Of Fame ceremony.

The Class of 2010 is introduced:

Stu Hart (represented by eight relatives)
Wendi Richter (seems very happy to be there)
Mad Dog Vachon (sadly in a wheelchair)
Antonio Inoki (not the strongest reaction)
Bob Uecker (nice reception)
Gorgeous George (represented by his former wife)
Ted DiBiase (by far the strongest reaction)

Sweet goodness that Hall of Fame theme is always awesome.

We recap HHH vs. Sheamus. After debuting on Raw and winning the WWE Title within a few weeks, Sheamus was knocked out of the Elimination Chamber by HHH, costing him the title. Sheamus then went on to talk about how much he loved watching HHH while growing up. Then Sheamus laid him out, which HHH liked because it’s what he did when he went after the Ultimate Warrior in 1996 (and yes they explained how badly it went). That plus a need for revenge makes for a Wrestlemania match.

HHH vs. Sheamus

HHH’s entrance goes on for a good while, as you might have expected. Sheamus drives him into the corner to start but HHH hits him in the face. It’s way too early for the Pedigree though as Sheamus bails out to the floor. Back in and a suplex drops Sheamus again, setting up the knee drop for one.

HHH goes old school (shocking I know) as we hit the Figure Four, with Sheamus going straight to the ropes. The fight goes outside with HHH being whipped into the steps, followed by the (yet to be named) Irish Curse back inside. An ax handle to the head cuts HHH off again and Sheamus grabs the armbar.

We’ll make that a chinlock but HHH suplexes his way to freedom, sending Striker into a FAR too long….whatever you call what he does. HHH grabs a DDT and they’re both down, followed by the expected slugout. There’s the running knee into the facebuster for two and a neckbreaker drops Sheamus for the same.

The yet to be named Brogue Kick misses so HHH tries the Pedigree, only to be reversed into the Brogue Kick for two. The fans are rather behind HHH, who fights out of the High Cross (Razor’s Edge) and gets two more off a spinebuster. Sheamus rolls out to the apron and manages another Brogue Kick…but takes too long and gets Pedigreed out of nowhere for the pin at 11:47.

Rating: B-. This is the type of match that will work almost every single time as you had two big strong guys beating the fire out of each other until the ending. That’s the kind of brawl that both of them know how to do (though Sheamus would get WAY better later on) and it worked here. That being said, Sheamus is the up and comer and loses to HHH, which seems to be a bit counterproductive, but this would hardly be the first time that happened.

We recap CM Punk vs. Rey Mysterio. After Mysterio cost Punk a spot in Money In The Bank, Punk scared the heck out of Mysterio’s daughter Aliyah. They then traded various attacks before Punk creepily sang Happy Birthday to Aliyah, which was too far. Now it’s time for their fight, with Mysterio having to join the Straight Edge Society if he loses.

CM Punk vs. Rey Mysterio

Punk has the Straight Edge Society (Luke Gallows and Serena) with him and talks about how these 70,000 people here are going to drink or try pills to make their problems go away. He can be their savior and lead them to a better place because he chooses to be drug free and better than everyone here. Mysterio is one of the Na’vi from Avatar, which isn’t quite the same as the superhero gear he tends to use.

Gallows offers an early distraction and Punk gets to stomp away in the corner before tying Mysterio in the Tree of Woe. A missed charge results in a crotching against the post though and they head to the floor…where Punk drops him face first onto the steps. Back in and Punk hammers away for two and we’re already in the chinlock. Mysterio fights out like he’s a top star who was in a chinlock and hits the springboard seated senton.

Punk snaps off a powerslam for two before hitting one heck of a kick to the head for the same. Four more near falls have Punk rather frustrated until Mysterio is up with a springboard moonsault DDT for two of his own. Mysterio’s frog splash misses to give Punk two more, meaning it’s time for even more frustration. Back up and Mysterio loads him up for the 619 but has to take out the Society. Not that it matters as the 619 into the springboard splash finishes Punk at 6:30.

Rating: C+. Another match that was good but they didn’t have the time to do very much. It had the stakes and they work well together, but there is only so much they can do when they have less than seven minutes. It makes perfect sense to have the loudmouth holier than thou heel get what’s coming to him and who better to do that than one of the resident superheroes?

We recap Bret Hart vs. Vince McMahon. Hart returned after thirteen years of bitterness after the Montreal Screwjob and of course Vince McMahon couldn’t let it to. Hart wanted to fight Vince at Wrestlemania but got turned down, only to have his leg broken in a car wreck in the parking lot. Then Vince agreed to fight him….and then Hart revealed he was gold bricking, because that’s just what Hart does.

Vince McMahon vs. Bret Hart

No Holds Barred. Hold on though as Vince grabs a mic and says he’s hired a bunch of lumberjacks, in the form of various members of the Hart Family. As a bonus, Bret’s brother Bruce can be guest referee! Bret isn’t overly shocked and says what’s done is done. If there is one thing about the Harts though, it’s that they got paid up front and the money is already in the bank.

If there is one thing he’s learned from the Montreal Screwjob, it’s there’s nothing better than a good double cross. The Harts, including Bret, are united, and tonight is the night that Bret screws Vince. The bell rings and Bret punches him down and chokes in the corner, with Vince bailing to the floor. That means the Harts can make it even worse, including a slap from Natalya (Striker: “Best luck in your future endeavors Natalya.”).

The Hart Dynasty hits a top rope Hart Attack to the floor and it’s time to throw Vince back inside. Bret works on the leg, which sends Vince outside again. This time he comes back in with tire iron but Bret knocks it away again and takes it away. Bret hammers away with the tire iron…and then does it some more…and more, to the point where unless Bret has the strength of a two year old, Vince should be in a coma.

The Sharpshooter is teased but Bret lets it go so he can use the tire iron again. Some low blows have Vince down again and let’s get a chair in there too. Bret sits down and then hits some hard chair shots to Vince’s back. The chair is bent up so Bret finally (and I do mean finally) grabs the Sharpshooter for the win at 11:08.

Rating: C. Ok so I’ve called this an A+ before because I love what they did with Vince being absolutely destroyed and not getting in a single bit of offense. This was never supposed to be anything but a massacre until the Sharpshooter…but my goodness how long did they go with the tire iron/chair shots? The thing here is that this is really only a match in name only so I’m not going to call it bad, but Bret couldn’t have mixed it up with some different stuff other than hitting him over and over with the same stuff?

A big Hart celebration ensues.

Wrestlemania XXVII is coming to Atlanta, Georgia.

Official attendance: 72,219.

We recap Chris Jericho vs. Edge for the Smackdown World Title. They were partners last year but Edge tore his Achilles. Edge came back at the Royal Rumble (at #29 in a great surprise) and won, setting up his title shot here. For some reason the build for this match involved Edge saying “spear” over and over until it lost all meaning.

Smackdown World Title: Edge vs. Chris Jericho

Jericho is defending. They start slowly with Jericho grabbing a headlock (Jericho: “Ask him!”) but Edge is right back with some running shoulders. Jericho is back with some stompings in the corner before sending Edge outside. That’s good for a long count before Edge comes back in and gets chinlocked. Jericho slowly stomps and slaps away, which takes long enough that Edge manages to send him shoulder first into the post.

A running shoulder sends Jericho into the announcers’ table and there’s a clothesline off the apron. They head back inside and hopefully pick up the energy a bit here. Back in and Edge gets two off a super gordbuster, followed by a middle rope sunset flip for the same. Jericho goes simple by kicking him in the head but the Codebreaker is blocked. The spear is countered into a quick Walls but Edge slips out.

The Lionsault misses and Edge is right back up with the Edge O Matic for two. Jericho’s enziguri gets two more but so does the Impaler as things slow back down a bit. Jericho mixes things up a bit with a middle rope forearm to the back of the head (Edge was nice enough to look over his shoulder before Jericho jumped), only to have his own spear cut off by a big boot.

The real spear is countered into a Codebreaker for a rather delayed two. Jericho starts going after the ankle before switching to the Walls. We’ll make that a half Walls to stay on the bad ankle but the rope is grabbed. Edge’s rollup for two is also grabbed and they crash out to the floor for a breather. The frustrated Jericho grabs the belt and the referee gets distracted, allowing Jericho’s belt shot to get two. The Codebreaker to a limping Edge retains the title at 15:47.

Rating: B. This was good but it never hit that next level and it made things kind of disappointing. Edge only teased the spear once and never got a big near fall. I was expecting something a lot more epic than we got here and that just didn’t happen. There were some shenanigans due to the belt shot but this needed to be more intense and violent given what Edge was saying coming in.

Post match Jericho goes after Edge again but Edge hits a spear off the announcers’ table and through the barricade as the feud must continue.

We look at the pre-show battle royal.

Alicia Fox/Laycool/Maryse/Vickie Guerrero vs. Beth Phoenix/Eve Torres/Gail Kim/Kelly Kelly/Mickie James

Get the women on the show special. Vickie bumps Gail to start and turns around to pose, only to run into Phoenix. The non-Vickie team takes turns beating on Vickie in the corner, who asks if Kelly knows who she is. That earns Vickie a kick to the ribs with McCool making the save. Everything breaks down and we hit the parade of finishers, leaving Vickie crying in the corner as Beth comes up behind her. McCool makes another save and the Hog Splash (Cole’s name) finishes Kelly at 3:29.

Rating: D. Oh what else were you expecting here? A bunch of the people barely did anything, there were a bunch of Vickie fat jokes, Lawler drooled over most of them and Striker continues to try to make everything sound like the most important moment ever because it gets people paying attention to him. Terrible match and little more than a way for Vickie to keep her heat.

We recap John Cena challenging Batista for the Raw World Title. Cena got the title back in the Elimination Chamber but Vince McMahon allowed Batista an immediate title shot. Now it’s time for the fair rematch, with Batista talking about being tired of Cena being the star when they got big at the same time. You can pretty much ignore all of those details though and just go with “It’s John Cena vs. Batista for the WWE Title at Wrestlemania.”

Raw World Title: Batista vs. John Cena

Batista is defending and Cena’s big entrance is from the United States Air Force Honor Guard Drill Team. We get the Big Match Intros before they fight over a lockup. Batista grabs a headlock before running Cena over, only to have Cena come back with a headlock of his own. That’s broken up and Batista sends him hard into the corner for the running clothesline to the back of the head.

Some cranking on the neck has Cena down but he manages a release suplex (that didn’t look great) and the bulldog connects for two. It’s way too early for the AA though as Batista reverses into a DDT for two of his own. A chinlock with a bodyscissors keeps Cena down for a bit, only to have him power up and start slugging away. Batista sticks with what has been working by grabbing a neckbreaker for two more.

The front chancery keeps Cena in trouble until he powers up again. The STF goes on out of nowhere but Batista grabs the rope like a bad villain should. Batista is fine enough to hit a spear for two before loading Cena up top. The superplex attempt is blocked and Cena hits a super Five Knuckle Shuffle of all things.

Batista gets back up and hits his namesake Bomb for two, giving us a great shocked face. Back up Cena counters another Batista Bomb into the AA (toss variation) for two, leaving them both down. Cena goes up but dives into a spinebuster (how Batista injured Cena’s neck a few years ago), only to have the Batista Bomb reversed into the STF (with Cena giving him a LONG talk) for the tap at 13:29.

Rating: B. It’s good and they were getting to the big stuff but I was expecting longer than just shy of fourteen minutes. Cena getting the title back is the right way to go for him though as he can put someone else over rather soon. Batista was not quite what he used to be but these two instantly make for an epic feel. Not a classic match, though they didn’t do anything wrong with the setup and finish going rather well.

Cena poses with a guy in a WE HATE CENA shirt for a funny moment.

We recap Shawn Michaels vs. Undertaker. Shawn lost to him the previous year before, leaving Shawn obsessed with having to get the win. It is so big that Shawn is willing to put his career on the line against the Streak, saying he doesn’t have a career if he can’t beat the Undertaker. Not that it matters as this feels absolutely huge and you know it’s going to go well.

Undertaker vs. Shawn Michaels

No DQ. The entrances are absolutely epic and you know that you’re about to see something special. They also take their sweet time getting to the ring and it builds up even more, with Shawn staring at Undertaker the entire way to the ring. Undertaker charges at him to start but Shawn is right there with the chops. Shawn gets flipped into the corner, setting up Snake Eyes into the big boot.

Old School connects but Undertaker comes up limping a bit. The chokeslam is loaded up but the knee gives out, with Shawn wisely kicking away at the leg. The Tombstone is broken up as well so Shawn starts in on the shoulder, which is a bit of an odd choice given UNDERTAKER IS LIMPING.

Undertaker slips out but has to block a quick superkick attempt as things reset a bit. The logic kicks in as Shawn starts going after the knee in the corner but Undertaker clotheslines him to the floor. The Taker Dive is loaded up but Shawn comes back in to take out the knee in a rather smart move. It’s too early for the Figure Four and they head outside, where Shawn is rammed back first into the post. The apron legdrop connects but Shawn goes after the leg again to take over.

Now the Figure Four goes on until Undertaker sits up. Shawn: “No.” And Undertaker goes back down. Well that was polite of him. Undertaker turns it over so Shawn wisely lets go and they take a breather. Back up and they strike it out until Undertaker grabs a quick chokeslam for two. The Tombstone is escaped again though and Shawn grabs the ankle lock, complete with a grapevine.

Undertaker finally uses the good leg to kick his way to freedom so Shawn sends him outside. A springboard spinning crossbody is pulled out of the air so Undertaker hit the Tombstone on the floor to knock Shawn silly. Medics come out to check on Shawn but Undertaker isn’t having that and throws him back inside for two, meaning frustration is setting in. This might have more of an impact if MATT STRIKER WOULD SHUT UP for once, but instead he needs to keep shouting what he thinks sound like highlight reel worthy lines.

The Last Ride is loaded up but Undertaker’s knee gives out and they crash down, with Shawn getting two off a faceplant. Shawn’s top rope elbow only hits raised knees, which have Undertaker in even more pain. Hell’s Gate goes on but Shawn flips over into a rollup for two. Shawn hits a quick Sweet Chin Music out of nowhere for two but another attempt is countered into a heck of a Last Ride for two more.

They go outside and it’s time to load up the announcers’ table. That takes too long though and it’s a superkick to knock Undertaker onto the table instead. In something that couldn’t possibly go wrong, Shawn goes up and moonsaults down onto Undertaker, mostly hitting his feet/lower legs, which does tie into everything so far. Shawn realizes he has a chance and throws Undertaker inside and hits a clean Sweet Chin Music (that has to be the fourth or fifth) for two, with Cole telegraphing the kickout by screaming that Streak was over.

Another superkick is countered into a chokeslam but Undertaker can barely move, let alone cover. Instead it’s a Tombstone (with tongue) for two and we get another stunned face. Shawn can’t get up so Undertaker loads up the throat slit….but stops. Undertaker tells him to stay down as Shawn pulls himself up and then slaps Undertaker in the face, admitting that he can’t do it and basically telling Undertaker to finish him off. The jumping Tombstone does just that at 24:00.

Rating: A+. What do you want me to say here? This is an absolute masterpiece and one of the best matches either of them have ever had if not their best ever. The leg stuff played a role throughout until Shawn gave it everything he had but just couldn’t do it in the end. It told an amazing story with some great action, including multiple near falls where you could buy it being over. It’s better than I remember it being and one of the best main events in Wrestlemania history.

Undertaker needs the ropes to get to his feet and Shawn finally gets up. Undertaker says something to him we can’t see and they hug before Undertaker leaves him alone in the ring. Shawn gets to soak in the THANK YOU SHAWN chants before doing the long walk up the ramp. Shawn: “I’m gonna drive my kids crazy in three weeks!” He looks back again and walks off to end the show.

Overall Rating: B-. This is a weird show as there isn’t much that is Wrestlemania worthy. Edge vs. Jericho is just good, Money in the Bank is its usual ok self, HHH vs. Sheamus is a slightly above average power brawl and Batista vs. Cena wasn’t even fifteen minutes long. Those are the high points though, as the rest of the show is pretty much mediocre/forgettable to bad. That doesn’t make for a great Wrestlemania, but this show is usually pretty well remembered.

That’s because of the main event and my goodness does it deserve the praise it receives. I’ve seen it a few times now and it pulled me in again with how epic of a showdown they were having here. It felt like a Wrestlemania main event match and you do not get those very often. That match alone makes this Wrestlemania worth seeing, though I would definitely recommend fast forwarding a good bit of the midcard, as it was quite the miss in multiple places.

Ratings Comparison

Battle Royal

Original: N/A
2013 Redo: N/A
2015 Redo: D+
2024 Redo: C

Awesome Truth vs. ShoMiz

Original: D
2013 Redo: D+
2015 Redo: D
2024 Redo: C-

Randy Orton vs. Ted DiBiase vs. Cody Rhodes

Original: D+
2013 Redo: C
2015 Redo: C
2024 Redo: C+

Christian vs. Matt Hardy vs. Kane vs. Jack Swagger vs. Kofi Kingston vs. Drew McIntyre vs. Dolph Ziggler vs. Shelton Benjamin vs. MVP vs. Evan Bourne

Original: B
2013 Redo: C+
2015 Redo: C+
2024 Redo: B-

HHH vs. Sheamus

Original: B-
2013 Redo: C+
2015 Redo: C+
2024 Redo: B-

CM Punk vs. Rey Mysterio

Original: B-
2013 Redo: C
2015 Redo: C
2024 Redo: C+

Mr. McMahon vs. Bret Hart

Original: A+
2013 Redo: A+
2015 Redo: A
2024 Redo: C

Edge vs. Chris Jericho

Original: A-
2013 Redo: B
2015 Redo: B-
2024 Redo: B

Beth Phoenix/Kevin Kelly/Mickie James/Gail Kim/Eve Torres vs. Vickie Guerrero/Alicia Fox/Laycool/Maryse

Original: F
2013 Redo: D
2015 Redo: D
2024 Redo: D

John Cena vs. Batista

Original: A
2013 Redo: B+
2015 Redo: B+
2024 Redo: B

Undertaker vs. Shawn Michaels

Original: A+
2013 Redo: A+
2015 Redo: A
2024 Redo: A+

Overall Rating

Original: A
2013 Redo: B+
2015 Redo: A-
2024 Redo: B-

That’s quite a drop for the overall rating but some of the lower matches just don’t hold up as well.

 

 

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Wrestlemania XXIV
Date: March 30, 2008
Location: Citrus Bowl, Orlando, Florida
Attendance: 74,365
Commentators: Jim Ross, Jerry Lawler, Michael Cole, Jonathan Coachman, Joey Styles, Tazz

This show has had a pretty strong build as the card has been all but set for a few weeks now. The bigger matches include Big Show vs. Floyd Mayweather Jr. and Edge defending the Smackdown World Title against the Undertaker, plus the Raw World Title triple threat match as Randy Orton defends against John Cena and HHH. Throw in Shawn Michaels trying to end Ric Flair’s career and that’s a heck of a card. Let’s get to it.

Pre-Show: Battle Royal

Elijah Burke, The Miz, Chuck Palumbo, Snitsky, Deuce, Tommy Dreamer, Shannon Moore, Jamie Noble, Kofi Kingston, Festus, Cody Rhodes, Lance Cade, Hardcore Holly, Jesse, Stevie Richards, Trevor Murdoch, The Brian Kendrick, The Great Khali, Jimmy Wang Yang, Domino, Mark Henry, Val Venis, Kane, Jim Duggan

The winner gets an ECW Title match later in the show. The bell rings so Festus snaps, allowing him to toss out Deuce and Domino rather quickly. Khali tosses Duggan and Burke gets rid of Richards, only to get eliminated by Kane. Miz, Yang, Moore and Jesse go out in a hurry, with Venis going out somewhere in there.

Murdoch, Festus, Kendrick and Cage go as well as the ring clears out VERY fast. Henry throws Kingston on top of the pile, followed by Noble (who tries to walk on the eliminated bodies but gets knocked down), Rhodes and Palumbo. A bunch of people get rid of Khali, Dreamer and Holly, leaving us with Henry, Kane and Snitsky. Kane gets rid of Snitsky, slips away from Henry and kicks him out for the win/title shot.

Rating: D. This is one of those “let’s get everyone on the DVD” matches and they didn’t bother wasting time with anything else. Kane winning is a fine way to go as he is pretty easily the biggest name in the match. There is almost no reason to not put the title on him later in the night and at least they didn’t waste time announcing the title match in advance, as Chavo Guerrero vs. Kane is hardly some huge showdown.

John Legend sings the America the Beautiful.

The opening video talks about how important it is to be here, as well how much has changed in a year. It’s not do much a sequel to last year, as much as it is the grand culmination of a rather eventful year. Cool video, as WWE nails these most of the time.

John Bradshaw Layfield vs. Finlay

Belfast Brawl (street fight) and kind of a weird choice for an opener. JBL gets the limo entrance and we look at a quick recap of JBL attacking Hornswoggle (Finlay’s son) as Vince McMahon’s mercenary. As you might expect, Hornswoggle is back as well. They start the fight on the floor with JBL getting the better of things before the bell. Finlay reverses a whip into the steps and they’re back inside for the bell.

That means it’s time to go outside for some weapons, with JBL grabbing a trashcan for a heck of a shot to Finlay’s head. The steps are brought in but JBL gets backdropped off of them for a crash. JBL hammers him back down and grabs the shillelagh but Hornswoggle gets in a kendo stick shot for the save. Finlay shillelaghs JBL down and the fans are rather pleased, with Finlay pulling out a table to make them even happier.

With the table up in the corner, a heck of a clothesline drops JBL again but he goes outside and slaps Hornswoggle. Finlay goes nuts and unloads on JBL, who manages to grab a trashcan lid. The suicide dive (oh dear) is lidded out of the air and JBL even kicks Hornswoggle down. Back in and a trashcan shot to the head puts JBL down for a change, setting up the spear through the table. Finlay grabs the steps but JBL knocks out his knee, sending Finlay face first into them. The Clothesline From JBL finishes Finlay off.

Rating: B-. It wasn’t a classic but they beat each other up rather well and started the show off pretty well. It’s a bit weird to see JBL win as the villain comes out on top, but at the same time he’s a much bigger star than Finlay. Even from fighting underneath, Finlay beating JBL would have been a big upset. It might have been the better result though, but at least it was a solid opener.

Kim Kardashian is the guest host and talks about the Money In The Bank ladder match. Mr. Kennedy interrupts to say he’ll win again this year to become the first ever back to back winner. Kardashian laughs at him repeating his name.

John Morrison vs. Carlito vs. Shelton Benjamin vs. CM Punk vs. Mr. Kennedy vs. Chris Jericho vs. MVP

Money In The Bank. Everyone but MVP bails to the floor to go for a ladder to start, leaving MVP to steal one of the ladder that slides in. Some shots to the face put various other people down but here is Jericho with the big ladder. That means a ladder off (?) with MVP being knocked outside, leaving Morrison to pick up a ladder and moonsault down with it onto the pile (there’s a highlight reel moment).

Back in and Jericho cuts off Kennedy’s climb but catapults him into the ladder in a bit of a mistake. Kennedy can’t get the briefcase so Morrison jumps onto the ladder for the slugout. Benjamin sets up his own ladder and joins the two of them, setting up a sunset bomb into a Tower Of Doom (geez) off the ladders. Carlito breaks up Benjamin’s climb and hits him with the GTS. MVP comes in to knock some people down but misses a running boot in the corner.

It’s Carlito getting pulled down this time so Benjamin Dragon Whips him down. Benjamin goes up until Carlito and Kennedy shove his ladder over…sending him through a bridged ladder at ringside. Kennedy, Carlito and Jericho go up but MVP shoves the ladder over, only to be taken out by Morrison as the carnage continues. Jericho gets the Walls on Morrison on top of the ladder (geez that looks painful/scary) until he has to stop Kennedy.

Hold on though as Carlito and Punk springboard onto the ladders, setting up the big crashes, including Carlito’s super Backstabber to Jericho. That leaves MVP all alone so he goes up but Matt Hardy (in gear) runs in to make the save and reignite their feud. A super Twist of Fate brings MVP off the ladder and Matt runs off through the crowd, leaving Jericho to wedge two ladders together, making kind of a big V (Daddy not included).

Morrison goes up and gets knocked down just as fast, including a crotching on top. Jericho’s climb is cut off by an apple to the face but Kennedy shoves Carlito into a ladder in the corner. Punk makes the save but gets Codebreakered into a ladder to leave everyone down. That lets Jericho go up until Punk starts the slugout. Punk gets smart by tying Jericho’s leg in the ladder and gets the briefcase for the win.

Rating: B. Yeah these matches can be interchangeable but dang they are a lot of fun. This was another spotfest and Punk winning the briefcase is about as big of an endorsement as he could have gotten here. I’d still like to see one or two fewer people in there but Benjamin getting taken out softened things a bit. Heck of a fun match and that’s all it needed to be.

We see the video from last night’s Hall Of Fame induction ceremony.

Here is the Class Of 2008 (dang that music is still great):

Brisco Brothers (how Jack wasn’t in already is beyond me)
Gordon Solie (you can’t forget that voice)
Rocky Johnson (complete with a shuffle)
Peter Maivia (I hear he’s a family man)
Eddie Graham (had to be inducted in Florida)
Mae Young (again, how was she not in before)
Ric Flair (who thankfully isn’t here to tell us about how great he is)

Snoop Dogg is having a great time here so far and he has found someone he sees eye to eye with, from movies to food to cars to everything. That would be Festus but Santino Marella comes in to threaten Snoop….who whips out a bell to send Festus after Santino. Todd Grisham asks where the bell came from so here is Mick Foley, complete with Mr….would it be Snoopo?

Batista vs. Umaga

Smackdown vs. Raw so Theodore Long and William Regal are here. Batista powers him into the corner to start and a shoulder sends Umaga outside for a breather. Back in and a spinwheel kick drops Batista for a change, followed by a splash to the back for two. The nerve hold goes on, which seems a bit early for this one. With that broken up, a powerslam from Umaga sets up…another nerve hold. The Samoan drop gives Umaga two but the Samoan Spike is blocked. Umaga misses a charge into the post, gets spinebustered, and the Batista Bomb (with Batista falling backwards) finishes him off.

Rating: D. Oh this was bad, as it was Batista laying around a lot and then doing his two big finishers. They had built this up as a big match and Batista barely did anything for most of the match. While Umaga had fallen a long way, he was able to do more than this. Normally I would complain about their lack of time, but I don’t want to imagine how much worse this would have been if it had gone longer. Pretty awful match.

We look at the tale of the tape for Big Show vs. Floyd Mayweather Jr.

We look at Kane becoming the new #1 contender to the ECW World Title on the pre-show.

ECW World Title: Chavo Guerrero vs. Kane

Chavo is defending and loses the title to a chokeslam in a record eleven seconds. That’s how it should have gone as there was no reason to believe Chavo would be a threat to Kane.

Here’s the Carlito/Maria ad for the show you’re already watching. Weird.

Raven Symmone is very loud and introduces a bunch of Make-A-Wish kids. That’s always cool. The kids, not Symmone.

We recap Ric Flair vs. Shawn Michaels. Flair is still on his winning streak, as he has to retire whenever he loses his next match, so now he wants to face one of the best ever in Shawn, or he doesn’t want to be here anymore. Shawn thinks he has to put Flair down, but Flair isn’t about to go down without a fight. This include an AMAZING tribute video to Flair, set to Leave The Memories Alone. I’m not a Flair fan but dang this worked well.

Flair says his game plan is to be the man. WOO!

Ric Flair vs. Shawn Michaels

Flair retires if he loses. Shawn takes him down to start and teases a strut but Flair is back up with a hammerlock. That’s reversed into one from Shawn and they get up for a standoff, complete with WOO. Flair takes him into the corner and brings up the Old Yeller line, earning a shot to the face from Shawn (busting a lip in the process).

A quick slugout goes to Shawn so he goes up top, only to get slammed off. Flair goes up and hits the high crossbody for two in a Starrcade 83 callback. Back up and Shawn sends him outside again, only to have an Asai moonsault hit the edge of the announcers’ table (as in not Flair) to do some serious damage to his ribs. The count is beaten so Flair goes right after the ribs, including a suplex for two.

Shawn knocks him outside again though and hits the moonsault off the top for another knockdown. Back in and they chop it out again until Michaels hits the flying forearm into the nipup. The top rope elbow hits Flair but Shawn can’t bring himself to fire the superkick. You don’t do that to Flair, who grabs the Figure Four, which is turned over without much trouble. Shawn sunset flips him for two more but Flair is right back to the leg, as is his bread and butter.

There’s the Figure Four again and this time it stays on a lot longer. The rope is grabbed to get Shawn out of trouble and he nails Sweet Chin Music out of nowhere. A very delayed cover gets two so Shawn loads it up again, only to have Flair fall down. Shawn’s attempt at picking him up earns himself the required low blow for two but Flair can’t follow up either.

Instead, Shawn pulls him into that inverted Figure Four of his, sending Flair to the rope for a change. They chop it out from their knees until Shawn hits another Sweet Chin Music. Shawn won’t cover so he goes to the corner, with Flair getting back up. Flair says bring it, so Shawn says “I’m Sorry, I Love You” and superkicks him for the pin.

Rating: B. This is a weird one to rate as it is a farewell for Flair, but not exactly a classic. At the end of the day, Flair has been able to wrestle a completely acceptable match for a long time now but there is a big gap between that and hanging in there on this level. It didn’t exactly feel like a classic and the drama was limited, but what we got was certainly good. The problem is that when you think of Flair vs. Michaels on the stage of Wrestlemania, you expect a bit more than “good”. That being said, Flair gets to out with a solid match on the grand stage against a legend. What more could you reasonably ask for?

Shawn immediately leaves so Flair can have the big moment. Flair kisses and hugs his family and makes the long walk up the aisle before blowing one last kiss to the crowd. Yeah it’s an emotional moment, as like him or not, Flair is still a legend and one of the last links to the glory days of the 70s/80s.

Edge talks about being at Wrestlemania VI and seeing Hulk Hogan lose in the main event. It was ok though, because it has come full circle and now he is here again. See, everyone can count on the Undertaker at Wrestlemania but tonight, he takes everything away from them, just like Hogan losing took it away from him. That makes sense.

Fireworks go off.

Maria/Ashley vs. Beth Phoenix/Melina

This is the Playboy Bunnymania match, meaning a lumberjill match with Snoop Dogg as the Master of Ceremonies. Naturally Snoop comes to the ring in what looks like a Mercedes golf cart, with most of the women following him. Santino Marella is here with the villains. Ashley drives Beth into the corner to start so Maria can come in. Melina gets sent to the floor for a quick beating from the lumberjills, setting up Maria’s Bronco Buster back inside.

Ashley comes back in and gets caught in the wrong corner. A trip to the floor goes badly for Ashley as well and Beth grabs the bearhug. With that broken up, Beth electric chairs Melina into a moonsault onto Ashley (not bad) for a near fall….and the lights go out. As in an actual lights issue, not an Undertaker cameo.

We get a spotlight as Maria (now legal) hits a crossbody for two on Beth. The Glam Slam is countered into a bulldog for two and Beth’s spear hits Melina by mistake. Ashley dives off the apron onto a bunch of lumberjills, leaving Maria to hit a top rope bulldog for two on Beth, with Santino making the save. Jerry Lawler gets up and decks Santino but Beth hits the fisherman’s buster to pin Maria.

Rating: D. Well ok then. This is one of those matches that was never going to be very good in the first place, but then it got a bit more time than I was expecting (even at five minutes) and the villains win. The match was supposed to be little more than goofy fun and you can’t have Maria get in a rollup for the pin? Just a rather weird choice and I’m not sure why they went this way.

Post match Snoop Dogg drops Santino and kisses Maria.

We recap the Raw World Title match, with Randy Orton defending against John Cena and HHH. Cena and HHH are both coming back from major injuries, with Orton having risen to the top during their absences. Now both of them are back to win the title at Wrestlemania, but Orton doesn’t quite see it that way.

Raw World Title: Randy Orton vs. John Cena vs. HHH

Orton is defending and Cena’s big entrance this year is a marching band playing him to the ring (that’s rather cool). The bell rings and Orton hits HHH with the bell before brawling with Cena. HHH gets back up and takes Orton outside to beat him over the announcers’ table, followed by the sleeper back inside. Cena picks both of them up but HHH slips out and kicks him low. Orton is back up as well and knocks HHH down to stomp away at both of them.

Cena catches Orton up top but a HHH distraction lets Orton reverse into a sunset flip for two. Another hard shot puts HHH down and Orton hits a double hanging DDT. The RKO to Cena is countered with a shove, leaving Orton to land on HHH. The Throwback hits Orton and the top rope Fameasser takes him down again. Back up and HHH goes after Orton’s knee and slowly stomps away. Cena’s distraction lets the RKO drop HHH but Cena pulls Orton into the STFU.

Orton is about to tap so HHH grabs his hand and pulls it to the rope in a smart move. A whip into the steps takes Cena down and HHH grabs the Indian Deathlock on Orton, because of course he has to do that. Cena sends HHH over the ropes and grabs the STFU on Orton again, only to have HHH make another save. HHH grabs a crossface on Cena but gets broken up, meaning it’s time for the slugout. The FU and Pedigree are both broken up so HHH hits a face/spinebuster. Another shot to the knee takes Orton down and there’s the Pedigree to Cena….but Orton Punts HHH and pins Cena to retain the title.

Rating: B-. It’s an interesting way to go to have Orton retain, but if you want him to have him feel like a bigger main event, giving him the win at Wrestlemania makes as much sense as anything else. Orton can drop the title to one of them alter if he has to but for now, he gets the win that he needs. The match wasn’t exactly great though and felt like almost any other big time triple threat, with one person being out for most of it so the others could fight. Then Orton stole the pin, which is far too common of a finishing sequence in something like this. Not awful, but I’d call it pretty disappointing.

We recap Big Show vs. Floyd Mayweather Jr., in a package that is cut from Peacock, likely for music. Mayweather broke Show’s jaw with a punch at No Way Out so Show is trying to take him out. This is billed as the Best Fighter In The World vs. the Largest Athlete In The World and is as McMahon Freak Show style as you can get.

Big Show vs. Floyd Mayweather Jr.

Pinfall, submission or knockout only. Mayweather comes out with his entourage and makes money rain from the sky for a festive entrance. The bell rings and Mayweather, in boxing gloves runs away to start before hitting a few shots to the ribs. Hold on though as Mayweather needs water (from a chalice, because of course) so Show beats up part of the entourage.

Back in and Mayweather goes for the right hand to the face but Show pulls it out of the air. The big stomp on the hand misses so Show grabs him by the throat on the corner. A few right hands don’t do much to Show so Mayweather grabs the required sleeper. That’s broken up so Show goes after the hand again and stands on Mayweather, which has the entourage shouting that how THAT IS AGAINST THE RULES!

The big chop in the corner drops Mayweather again and there’s a side slam to crush him. Show gets creative by dropping a leg on the arm and that’s enough for the entourage to pull Mayweather out. That goes as well as you might expect and they go back to the ring, with Mayweather being mostly done.

The entourage tries to come in and gets dropped, with a chair shot having no effect on Show. Mayweather gets the chair and drops Show (after a guy twice his size couldn’t even stagger him), setting up a low blow. Some chair shots to the head stagger Show again so Mayweather grabs brass knuckles from the entourage to knock Show silly for the knockout win.

Rating: C+. This was a total mess and incredibly entertaining throughout. There is something fun about seeing Mayweather get beaten up, even if he won in the end. It made sense to not bother trying to do anything else here than having a goofy match and that is what they pulled off. Good enough stuff here, even if it was mainly Show doing slow motion stuff and Mayweather’s entourage getting beaten up. Still though, they knew what they had here and it worked.

The attendance, as announced by Kim Kardashian: 74,635.

We recap Edge vs. Undertaker for Edge’s Smackdown World Title. The focus is on both of them being undefeated at Wrestlemania, with Edge seemingly being more obsessed with giving Undertaker his first loss rather than retaining the title. Undertaker just wants to hut Edge, as tends to be the case to anyone who has hurt him before. Like Edge, who cost him the World Title and then stole it for himself.

Smackdown World Title: Edge vs. Undertaker

Edge is defending and gets his neck snapped across the top rope to start. Undertaker hammers away back inside and starts cranking on the arm, as is his custom. Old School is broken up and Edge sends him to the apron for a shoulder into the barricade. A running neckbreaker snaps Undertaker’s neck across the top to even things up a bit, meaning Edge gets in some Wrestlemania worthy posing.

Undertaker finally gets back in, where he is caught with a missile dropkick. Edge takes too long to go up again and gets shoved to the floor, setting up the required Taker Dive. Back in and Undertaker’s banged up back means the Last Ride doesn’t work so Edge takes him back outside. There’s a drop onto the barricade, followed by the half crab to keep Undertaker in trouble back inside.

Make that a double leg crank until Undertaker kicks him away for a needed breather. Undertaker wins the slugout and Snake Eyes connects, only to have Edge hit a dropkick to block the big boot (that’s smart). The chokeslam is countered into the Edgecution for two and frustration is setting in. Back up and the chokeslam gives Undertaker two but Old School is countered again (as the theme of Edge knowing everything that is coming continues).

A superplex brings Undertaker back down but for some reason, Edge decides to punch away in the corner. The pose lets Undertaker try the Last Ride, which is countered into a neckbreaker to give Edge two. Another Last Ride attempt connects for two but the Tombstone is countered into the Edge-O-Matic. Undertaker is up again and Old School connects, only to have a big boot hit the referee (you knew that was coming).

Edge goes low and grabs a camera, which knocks Undertaker silly for….well nothing actually as the referee falls to the floor. For reasons of delusions of grandeur, Edge tries his own Tombstone, which is reversed into the real thing, with another referee running down to count the near fall. Cue the Edgeheads to get beaten up, allowing Edge to hit a spear for two. Another spear is pulled into Undertaker’s choke and Edge has to tap away the title.

Rating: A-. That felt like a Wrestlemania main event as you had Edge countering every single time but ultimately not being good enough to beat Undertaker, even with the interference. Edge had his game plan but got a bit too cocky a few times, allowing Undertaker to catch up fast. Undertaker getting his title back and vanquishing Edge in the process is a great way to close the show, and the fact that it came in an excellent match makes it even better.

Undertaker celebrates and pyro rains.

The big highlight video wraps us up.

Overall Rating: B-. This was a show where there is a lot of good stuff but the bad drags it down, with only the main event really standing out as great. Other than that you have Money In The Bank doing its usual stuff, Flair’s farewell as a special moment, a freak show match with Show vs. Mayweather and a just pretty good Raw World Title match. That really isn’t enough to carry a nearly four hour Wrestlemania, leaving it as a good enough show, but far from a classic or all time show.

 

 

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Dynamite
Date: March 20, 2024
Location: Coca Cola Coliseum, Toronto, Ontario, Canada
Commentators: Excalibur, Taz, Tony Schiavone

We’re north of the border this week and that means a big title match featuring some Canadians. In this case we have Adam Copeland challenging Christian Cage for the TNT Title in an I Quit match. Other than that, Kazuchika Okada is challenging for the Continental Crown, as the titles unified in the Continental Classic are already coming undone.

Here is Collision if you need a recap.

Opening sequence.

Here is Mercedes Mone for a chat. She is so glad to be here and last week was so amazing. This is what she wants to do, but her dream was almost taken away from her ten months ago. We see a highlight reel of things she has done in and out of the ring before Mone talks about how she isn’t here to lea a revolution, because she has done that before. Instead, she is here to lead a GLOBAL revolution (that might not have been the best wording).

She wants to face some people and hits the catchphrase to wrap it up, but here are Julia Hart and Skye Blue. Mone fights them off but Willow Nightingale and Kris Statlander run in with chairs for the save. The villains leave via blackout but Nightingale is still holding up the chair behind Mone. That gives us a standoff and egads standing in the ring talking is not Mone’s strong suit.

The Young Bucks mock Alex Marvez for not speaking Japanese to Kazuchika Okada. They won’t be ringside for the Continental Title match tonight but they will be on the headsets producing.

Continental Title: Kazuchika Okada vs. Eddie Kingston

Kingston is defending and only one of the three titles are on the line. They start slowly and take their time to lock up until Kingston hits a hard chop. Kingston knocks him out to the floor and the chase is on, with Okada jumping him on the way back in. Okada starts working on the arm and Kingston is down as we see the Bucks sitting next to Tony Khan producing the show. That great dropkick puts Kingston down again and we take a break.

Back with Kingston hitting a suplex and grabbing an STO for a needed breather. Kingston strikes away and hits another suplex but gets caught with the dropkick to put him back down. The elbow misses for Okada though and Kingston hits the spinning backfist for two. Back up and Kingston has to block the discus lariat before knocking Okada down again. A running clothesline scores for Kingston, whose half and half suplex is broken up with a rake to the eyes. An enziguri takes Okada down but another spinning backfist misses. Okada hits a powerslam, followed by the Rainmaker for the pin and the title at 15:50.

Rating: B-. That was a pretty definitive win for Okada and so much for Kingston’s big run. There’s no shame in losing to a star like Okada, but egads they’re really splitting up the titles they unified less than three months ago. Odds are the NJPW Strong Title goes away, leaving the Continental Title and the ROH Title, which makes the unified deal feel all the more worthless in the first place. Also: we are 16 days away from ROH’s Supercard Of Honor and the TV, Tag Team and World Champions have all lost on AEW TV this month alone.

Post match Pac comes out for the staredown and we likely have a Dynasty match.

Swerve Strickland suggests Samoa Joe is scared of him because of the chain. We’re in Toronto tonight and he wants to fight so the open challenge is on.

Willow Nightingale/Kris Statlander are ready for their street fight with Julia Hart and Skye Blue tonight. Mercedes Mone interrupts and says she has Statlander’s back tonight. Willow looks to say something but Mone says she’s done enough. Stokely Hathaway brings up Nightingale breaking Mone’s leg and Statlander isn’t pleased. I would sincerely hope they aren’t trying to turn Willow heel out of all this. Statlander sure, but Willow feels like the definition of someone born to be good.

Chris Jericho vs. Hook

Non-title and Hook suplexes him down at the bell. We pause for the referee to check on Jericho before he fires off some chops. A reverse t-bone suplex drops Jericho for two as it’s pretty much one sided to start. Jericho cuts him off with a shot to the head but a string of German suplexes drop Jericho again.

We take a break and come back with Jericho still being suplexed and Hook strolling around the ring. Jericho finally reverses a suplex and hits some shoulders but Hook suplexes him again. A big boot “hits” for Jericho and he scores with the Lionsault for a delayed two. Back up and Jericho tries a suplex but instead kind of drops Hook on his face. They go up top but Hook grabs Redrum, which has Jericho down in the middle. Jericho slips out and throws some VERY slow punches until Hook reverses into a cradle for the pin at 10:51.

Rating: C-. Well that didn’t go well for Jericho, and I’m not sure where this is leading. Given what happened with Jericho when Powerhouse Hobbs squashed him, I can’t imagine it’s going to go well for Hook, but he was basically Brock Lesnar to Jericho’s John Cena out there. The Redrum should have been the finish, but odds are we’re going to be seeing these two together for a lot longer.

Adam Cole is furious about Wardlow losing last week and says it is Wardlow’s job to keep the gold in the Undisputed Kingdom. Don’t screw it up.

Post break Chris Jericho says he wanted to face Hook, who showed him a lot tonight. Hook is as much of a bad man as people say he is and next week, Jericho will have a proposition for him.

Here is Will Ospreay for a chat. He was a little bit of a naughty boy the last time he was here and now he is here for the betterment of AEW. Ospreay apologizes for what he did to Kenny Omega in Toronto, but in return for his elite wrestling he needs….some of that maple syrup! As for Bryan Danielson, he hopes that you saw him face Katsuyori Shibata on Collision. When Ospreay went over to Japan (“Where you wanted to be a big star.”), he saw Danielson’s shoes, but they weren’t big enough for Ospreay.

What Danielson did in Japan was great, but Ospreay elevated wrestling over there. Ospreay lists off his accomplishments in Japan and now he’s ready to prove he can walk in his shoes. He met Shibata before but now he has cats, dogs and a mortgage to pay. The challenge is mad for next week and since Tony Khan is apparently watching the show from Shibata’s house, the match is made official about ten seconds later.

Video on Adam Copeland vs. Christian Cage.

Mariah May/Toni Storm vs. Deonna Purrazzo/Thunder Rosa

It’s a brawl to start with May taking Purrazzo down so it’s off to Storm. Rosa comes in to strike away in the corner and a sliding clothesline gets two on Storm. A Luther distraction lets Storm knock Rosa outside though and we take a break. Back with Purrazzo striking away at May but not being able to get the Fujiwara armbar. Instead Purrazzo boots her in the ace but Rosa tags herself in, which Purrazzo doesn’t like. Rosa comes in to plant May but gets German suplexed by Storm. The hip attack connects, only to have Rosa roll Storm up for the pin at 7:10.

Rating: C. Again, a seven minute match does not need to have a commercial in the middle. The ending came out of nowhere but Rosa vs. Storm is a fresh match as we shift away from Purrazzo challenging. May seems to be the long term goal, but Rosa, who never lost the title in the first place, will do just fine for now.

Swerve Strickland vs. The Butcher

Swerve starts fast by knocking him into the corner, setting up the middle rope elbow to the back. A half nelson backbreaker puts Swerve down though and Butcher hits him in the face a few times. Back up and Swerve kicks him down, setting up the House Call. Butcher sits down for a good while, allowing Swerve to hit the Swerve Stomp into something like a short armscissors for the tap at 3:22.

Rating: C. This was perfectly acceptable booking as Butcher is just established enough to make Swerve work but not enough to be a threat to him. Swerve took a few shots but fought back and won clean. It’s exactly what it needed to be and I can always go for something logical and efficient.

Post match Swerve grabs his chain and says he keeps thinking about using it to choke Samoa Joe out. Every week, Joe can send security after him and Swerve will keep beating them up until Joe gives him what he wants. Cue Joe to interrupt, saying contrary to what Swerve believes, Joe beat him at Revolution. Joe says he has learned what to do with someone like Swerve: give him exactly what he wants.

Cue Don Callis of all people to interrupt, saying Konosuke Takeshita and Swerve Strickland have the same amount of wins. Takeshita is undefeated outside of the Don Callis Family so maybe he needs to show Swerve whose house this is. Swerve is in to face Takeshita, and then he’s coming for Joe. Yay more Callis N Pals.

TNT Title: Adam Copeland vs. Christian Cage

Cage is defending in an I Quit match. Copeland starts fast and they go out to the floor with the brawl heading into the crowd. Copeland grabs a Boston Bruins jersey to put over Cage before grabbing a Toronto Maple Leafs jersey for himself (the fans approve). Cage is knocked around even more as we take a break. Back with Copeland bridging a ladder between the announcers’ table and the barricade. An Edge O Matic onto the ladder has Cage in more trouble and we get a breather.

The ladder is turned upside down inside, where Cage is dropped ribs first onto said ladder. A table is set up against the barricade but Cage breaks up the spear attempt. The busted open Copeland is staggered and Cage hits a dive off the top to send him through the table. Back in and Copeland is catapulted into a ladder but still won’t quit. A quick Grindhouse is broken up and they both try spears at the same time for a double knockdown.

We take a break and come back with Cage being launched off the stage but cue Mother Wayne with a hockey stick to hit Copeland low. Cage sticks away inside and it’s time for a barbed wire chair. The Conchairto is loaded up but Copeland moves just in time. Neither can hit a Killswitch onto the ladder so Copeland hits him with the hockey stick. The Grindhouse, with the stick in Cage’s mouth, gets an incoherent answer so Copeland uses the draw string from his tights.

Cue the Patriarchy for the save but cue Matt Menard and Daniel Garcia for the save. Copeland sets up a ladder and dives onto the Patriarchy before handcuffing them in the corner. Mother Wayne runs away and cage gets speared down, meaning he can be cuffed as well. A low blow isn’t enough for Cage to quit so Copeland kicks him several more times. Spike (the 2×4 with nails) is pulled out for a major low blow….and the video goes off for a second (presumably the end of Dynamite/the start of Rampage), only to come back with Copeland loading up a shot to the head. That’s enough for Cage to quit at 25:43.

Rating: B. There was quite a bit here (to say the least) but it feels like a nice cap on the whole feud. Copeland getting the win in what very well may be the final match between the two in his hometown is a good way to go, with the rapid fire low blows in the corner feeling like the kind of humor these two would love. At the same time, I can’t help but think the lure of a ladder/TLC match will be too much for the two of them/AEW to resist.

Overall Rating: B-. This was a show where the opener and main event bookended the show well, but the wrestling in the middle left a good bit to be desired. Mone was still a focal point here and does come off as a star but we still need to see what they have planned for her first feud. Other than that, you had some things teased for the coming weeks plus Dynasty, but this was all about the main event and it worked well enough.

Results
Kazuchika Okada b. Eddie Kingston – Rainmaker
Hook b. Chris Jericho – Rollup
Deonna Purrazzo/Thunder Rosa b. Mariah May/Toni Storm – Rollup to Storm
Swerve Strickland b. The Butcher – Short armscissors
Adam Copeland b. Christian Cage when Cage quit

 

 

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Wrestlemania XX
Date: March 14, 2004
Location: Madison Square Garden, New York City, New York
Attendance: 18,500
Commentators: Jim Ross, Jerry Lawler, Tazz, Michael Cole

It’s the second of three redos this year and it is a show that I have seen quite a few times over the years. WWE knows how to bust out the big anniversary shows and that is what we will be seeing here. The fact that the show is in Madison Square Garden makes it even better. The main event is HHH defending the Raw World Title against Chris Benoit and Shawn Michaels in a match that I think might work. Let’s get to it.

The Harlem Boys Choir sing America the Beautiful with a VERY patriotic montage.

The opening video features Vince McMahon walking out of the shadows and talking about how he had a vision twenty years ago which shaped everything today. This gives us the always awesome montage of Wrestlemania clips, which really is their strong suit. They know how to make things feel special and that is what they did here. Speaking of special, the video ends with Shane McMahon now next to Vince and presenting his son, Vince’s first grandchild, as the narrator talks about where it all begins again. That has always stuck with me since I saw this show for the first time and it is great.

In a change from the usual MSG setup, the entrance is on the left instead of opposite the hard camera, though there is a large screen showing the current match.

We get the traditional welcome from the multiple commentary teams.

US Title: John Cena vs. Big Show

Cena is challenging and is on fire here, while Big Show has defended the title less than three times since winning it back in October. Cena’s rap mocks Show’s anatomy in various ways and promises that he’ll win the title tonight. Show shoves him away to start but Cena is back with the right hands. Cena’s shots are shrugged off though and he gets sent outside, setting up a powerslam for two back inside.

The fans think Show sucks as he slowly hammers Cena down, including a slam. We get the required standing on Cena’s chest/throat and a suplex drops Cena again. More standing, this time on Cena’s back, seems to wake him up a bit but Show kicks him in the face. Show’s standing legdrop gets two and the frustration starts setting in fast. Powered by the fans (his kind always is), Cena slips out of a slam and grabs a choke, which earns him a hard clotheslines.

Show is back with the cobra clutch but Cena powers out again and avoids a charge in the corner. The FU barely gets two though and now it’s Cena being stunned. With nothing else working, Cena grabs his chain, which is taken away by the competent referee. Instead it’s the brass knuckles off Show’s head, setting up the FU to give the filthy cheater the pin and the title at 9:20.

Rating: C. This was more of a coronation than anything else and it came at the end of a not very interesting match. The problem with someone like Show is there are only so many things that you can do with him. Cena has the power to make it work a little better, but this isn’t the best time in Show’s history and it was obvious here. That being said, this was ALL about Cena and as long as he left with the title, nothing else mattered.

Coach is walking through the back and after meeting various people like Tom Prichard and Teddy Long, he goes in to see Raw General Manager Eric Bischoff (with assistant Johnny Nitro), who wants to make sure that Undertaker is here. Bischoff sends Coach to find him but Coach isn’t exactly comfortable with that. He goes anyway, as Bischoff doesn’t really care.

Evolution, minus HHH, is in a stairwell, with Randy Orton talking about how it’s ironic that we are back here in MSG where he became the new Hardcore Legend. We see a clip of Orton kicking Mick Foley down these steps, which made Foley walk away back in December. Then Foley came back, when Orton spat in his face. Foley can’t accept that life has passed him by, just like evolution.

We see clips of Foley being beaten up over and over, including a segment where Foley told Orton to really hit him in the face. Evolution has gotten bored with it, just like Foley, so he called Hollywood to get the Rock. Then Evolution beat him down too and they’ll do it again tonight. It all started here in MSG, and tonight it all ends here as well. This one always stuck out for me too, just because of the different location.

Raw Tag Team Titles: Rob Van Dam/Booker T. vs. Dudley Boyz vs. La Resistance vs. Mark Jindrak/Garrison Cade

Van Dam and Booker are defending (with their pretty terrible mashup theme) and this is one fall to a finish. Dupree and Van Dam start things off with a monkey flip sending Dupree flying. Booker beats up La Resistance but it’s off to Bubba for the hard lockup. A neckbreaker drops Booker for two and the snap jabs put him down again. D-Von comes in so Van Dam takes him down with a top rope kick to the face, showing that he too is a filthy cheater by coming in without a tag.

Jindrak tags himself in to stomp away on Booker and it’s Dupree coming back in to drive Booker into the corner. Conway cranks on both arms with a knee in Booker’s back for far too long until a spinebuster breaks things up. The hot tag brings in Van Dam to clean house but D-Von shoves him off the top to break up the Five Star. Everything breaks down and Cade saves Booker from the 3D. Booker kicks Conway down and the Five Star retains the titles at 7:54.

Rating: C-. This is one of the most “yeah whatever” matches I can remember in a long time. There were too many people involved and it was only so good because of all of the people running around. Also, why are you using a minute of an eight minute match on a rest hold? You have eight people involved but we spent that long on Conway pulling Booker’s arms? Really?

Coach goes to find Undertaker and is told there are some “freakish noises” coming from a door. He heads to the door, which is being knocked back and forth. Gene Okerlund, pulling his clothes come back on, comes out, followed by Bobby Heenan, whose shirt is undone. Coach wonders what is going on, but Heenan says they were playing poker. Heenan: “He was dealing.” Coach wants to know what was going on in there, so here are Fabulous Moolah and Mae Young, who grab Gene and Heenan and drag them back in. Heenan: “No I don’t want to go back! I haven’t been well!” This still gets me every time.

We recap Christian vs. Chris Jericho. They used to be best friends and made a bet about who could be more, ahem, successful with Lita and Trish Stratus respectively. Lita kind of went away, but Jericho started to fall for Trish. She found out about the bet and yelled at Jericho, who then tried to win her back. Christian turned on Jericho to get him to be the old Jericho again, setting up the match. This was a really detailed story and I’ve always liked it for telling a coherent story throughout. You don’t get that often and it was one of the best of the era.

Chris Jericho vs. Christian

They fight over a lockup to start and go into the corner, with Christian shoving him instead of giving a clean break. Jericho punches him in the face and starts throwing knees to take over, setting up the running elbow. A kick to the face and a backdrop to the floor keep Christian in trouble and Jericho hits a bit dive to take him down again. Back in and Christian manages to belly to back suplex him to the floor to take over for the first time.

The neck crank goes on back inside, followed by a chinlock with a knee in Jericho’s back. A spinwheel kick gives Christian two and it’s time to slap Jericho in the face a few times. That earns him a head to head collision though and they’re both down. The slugout goes to Jericho and he hits the running crotch attack to the back in the ropes. The step up enziguri gives Jericho two but Christian reverses a rollup into one of his own, with a grab of the rope getting two.

Jericho’s bulldog sets up the Lionsault to Christian’s raised knees and a reverse tornado DDT gives Christian two of his own. Jericho is right back up with his swinging sleeper drop but he gets tossed off the top, banging up his knee in the process. Christian’s high crossbody is rolled through so he kicks Jericho in the knee. The Texas Cloverleaf goes on for a bit until Jericho reverses into the Walls.

Christian is in the ropes almost immediately and he rolls outside….with Jericho holding on and keeping the Walls on outside. Back in and a butterfly superplex gives Jericho two and here is Trish Stratus to slap the apron. An implant DDT gives Christian two, which draws Trish up to the apron. Christian shoves her down so Jericho sends him outside. Trish elbows Jericho in the face (it’s unclear if she could see who it was) and Christian’s rollup with tights is enough for the pin at 14:44.

Rating: B. This got going once it became a regular match and these two have more than enough talent to make a longer match work. Christian certainly needed the win more than Jericho here, as it was a big boost in probably his biggest singles win ever. Jericho winning here ends the feud so having Christian move up is the right way to go. Good match too, and that really shouldn’t be surprising.

Post match Trish is upset and apologizes to Jericho. Christian comes back but Trish turns on Jericho and slaps him on the face, setting up the Unprettier. Evil Trish leaves with Christian and we get the semi-famous kiss on the stage in the next big step for both of them.

Mick Foley is fired up to be back in Madison Square Garden and needs to get in that mindset to put all of this anger and emotion on Evolution. The Rock interrupts and is VERY fired up, saying he has finally come back…..home. After telling Lilian Garcia not to look at the People’s package (which she does), Rock steals the cameraman to come with him and sees Hurricane and Rosey, Jimmy Snuka and Don Muraco and then goes all the way into the arena for a shot of the crowd. They’re ready for Evolution and it’s weird seeing Rock and Foley as these two big serious guys going up against evil.

Evolution vs. The Rock/Mick Foley

No recap video here, but it’s basically Foley fighting Randy Orton and the two of them both have major backup. Rock and Foley clear the ring to start before Rock and Flair settle things down, giving the New York fans a crazy dream match. A shoulder puts Flair down and Rock busts out a strut, with Flair coming back up for a WOO. The chops don’t do Flair any good and Rock hits a backdrop to send him rolling outside.

Foley follows him out and drops Flair with a clothesline before coming in himself. That sends Orton bailing to the floor so Foley is right there to send him into the announcers’ table. Back in and Rock takes over on Orton (there’s a dream match we never got), but has to punch Flair and Batista off the apron. The distraction is enough for Batista to come in and take over, allowing Flair to hit some more effective chops. We get the big strut and Flair goes up top and….oh you know the deal.

Batista comes back in before Rock can bring in Foley but the tag brings in Foley a few seconds later anyway. Foley fights out of the corner and hammers Batista down but that huge Batista clothesline cuts his down. Some double teaming on the floor has Foley in more trouble and there’s the big whip to send him knees first into the steps (taking that bump so many times explains so much about why Foley walks that way).

Back in and Foley and Flair slug it out until Orton can come in and pull at Foley’s hair for a reverse chinlock. Batista adds some clotheslines but Foley slips in a quick Mandible Claw. In a smarter move than you would expect from a musclehead like this version of Batista, he waves Orton in for the save instead of getting in more trouble. Flair comes back in and gets forearmed in the face, allowing the really easy tag back to Rock. House is cleaned but Batista cuts him off with a spinebuster.

That lets Flair….load up the People’s Elbow (complete with throwing an invisible elbow pad), but again he takes too long, allowing Rock to nip up and really clean house. The spinebuster plants Flair, setting up a People’s Elbow, complete with strut, for a delayed two. There’s the Rock Bottom to Orton with Flair making the save.

Flair grabs a chair but the distraction lets the Batista Bomb hit Rock to give Orton two (in the same way Batista helped Orton beat Shawn Michaels at Survivor Series 2003). The real hot tag brings in Foley to clean house but the Mandible Claw takes too long (theme of the match) and Orton grabs an RKO for the pin at 17:55.

Rating: B+. The more I see this match, the more I like it, as you have Rock and Flair doing everything they could to steal the show and Foley going after Orton every chance he could. Batista was in there with the muscle and it made for a great showcase. It was every bit the big moment that they were shooting for and it made me want to see a bunch of these combinations again. That wouldn’t happen for the most part, but dang they made this one work really well, as the match itself was a backdrop to just doing entertaining stuff, leaving the crowd completely in their hands.

Hall of Fame video recap, featuring Heenan’s “I wish Monsoon was here”, which will get me every single time.

The Hall of Fame class is introduced by Gene Okerlund:

Bobby Heenan (still playing to the crowd as only he can)
Tito Santana (about as perfect of a midcarder as you could have)
Big John Studd (represented by his son)
Harley Race (yep, though billing him as The King is a bit odd)
Pete Rose (booed, but apparently very grateful for the honor so points for that)
Don Muraco (I could go for more of him, as you don’t see him brought up very often)
Greg Valentine (who looks like he is ready for Wrestlemania IV)
Junkyard Dog (represented by his daughter)
Billy Graham (there’s an influential one)
Sgt. Slaughter (with the salutes)
Jesse Ventura (I could listen to that voice talk about anything, as long as he jabs McMahon)

This was the first class in almost ten years and it is a heck of a group, though no one really stands out as a headliner.

Sable/Torrie Wilson vs. Miss Jackie/Stacy Keibler

Playboy Evening Gown match, as Jackie and Stacy are jealous of the other two for being in the magazine. Hold on though as Sable wants to start minus the evening gowns. That’s exactly what we do, with commentary reacting exactly as you would expect them to. Jackie won’t drop her gown so it gets ripped off of her to start fast. Sable kicks at Jackie’s ribs in the corner and Torrie comes in with a high crossbody.

Stacy comes in (taking her time to come over the ropes) and throws in a cartwheel. The Kevin Nash choke in the corner doesn’t do Stacy much good so they go to the pinfall reversal sequence for various camera shots. Stacy’s kick to the face gets two on Torrie before it’s back to Jackie. The referee gets rolled over and it’s Torrie reversing a rollup for the pin on Jackie at 2:32. This is exactly what you would have expected it to be.

Fans have come from various states and countries for the show.

WWE Champion Eddie Guerrero says he has Chris Benoit’s back win or lose, but Benoit doesn’t like the word lose. Eddie says no one believes in him but Benoit says he believes in himself and tonight is his night. That’s what Eddie wanted to hear.

Cruiserweight Title: Cruiserweight Open

Chavo Guerrero Jr. (with his dad) is defending and will enter last in the ten person gauntlet. Everyone gets their entrance (with Ultimo Dragon’s two slips edited out, thankfully) and it’s Shannon Moore in at #1 and Ultimo Dragon in at #2. Dragon works on the arm to start but Moore shoulders him down for….well not much really. Back up and Moore misses a Whisper in the Wind, allowing Dragon to hit his standing Sliced Bread for the elimination at 1:19.

Jamie Noble is in at #3 to jump Dragon from behind with a clothesline for two. Dragon is right back with his alternating kicks for two but he has to bail out of a moonsault. A neckbreaker drops Dragon and a guillotine choke finishes him off at 2:17 (total). Funaki is in at #4 and hits a high crossbody but Noble rolls through for the pin at 2:27.

Nunzio is in at #5 as commentary brings up SD Jones getting pinned in nine seconds at Wrestlemania. Some quick rollups give Nunzio two but Noble sends him outside for the HUGE flip dive off the top. They take turns pulling each other off the apron until Noble gets the countout elimination at 4:20.

Billy Kidman is in at #6 to jump Noble from behind (again with the filthy cheaters) and Nunzio pulls Noble to the floor. Instead of standing around, Kidman hits a crazy top rope shooting star onto the two of them for the almost terrifying landing. Thankfully Kidman is able to throw Noble back inside for two but has to fight out of the guillotine. An enziguri sets up the shooting star press, but Kidman has to fight Noble off. That’s fine enough, as the super BK Bomb gets rid of Noble at 6:12.

Rey Mysterio (as the Flash) is in at #7 and the top rope seated senton connects, only to have Kidman blast him with a dropkick. Mysterio hits his own dropkick to send Kidman outside but Akio snaps Rey’s throat across the top. Kidman’s spinebuster gets two so he puts Rey on top, only to get pulled down with a sunset bomb for the elimination at 7:30.

It’s Tajiri in at #8 to kick away at Mysterio and the Tarantula makes it worse. That doesn’t last long (just shy of five seconds oddly enough) and it’s the 619 to rock Tajiri. The springboard….something misses though and Tajiri loads up the mist, which hits an interfering Akio by mistake.

Rey grabs a rollup to get rid of Tajiri at 8:39 and apparently the mist means Akio can’t go, so Chavo is in at #10 to complete the field. Tajiri cheap shots Rey so Chavo gets two but Rey fights up and takes Chavo Sr. down. The running flip dive takes out Sr. again (well that seemed excessive) so Jr. grabs a rollup, with Sr. grabbing his hands to retain the title at 10:31.

Rating: C. This was the next match in the “well, here are a bunch of people” series of matches on the show. I’ve never gotten the logic of these matches as you have people getting falls in a minute when usual matches take five times as long as one elimination here. At the same time, Chavo just keeps the title, making this quite the uninteresting showcase, save for Kidman’s big spots.

We recap Goldberg vs. Brock Lesnar. They talked trash to each other at the Royal Rumble and then Lesnar interfered in said Rumble to help eliminate Goldberg. Then Goldberg cost Lesnar the WWE Title so we have this match, with Steve Austin as guest referee. As a result, the feud wound up being Lesnar vs. Austin, as Austin gave Goldberg the idea to help cost Lesnar the title. Then Lesnar stole Austin’s ATV and Goldberg was just kind of there too. Oh and both Goldberg and Lesnar are leaving after the show and everyone knows about it.

Goldberg vs. Brock Lesnar

Steve Austin is guest referee. Lesnar and Goldberg do their big entrances and we immediately hit the YOU SOLD OUT chants (pick your target). They stare at each other for almost a minute and Austin tells them to go at it. Now it’s the Goodbye Song as I try to get my mind around the idea of Lesnar having a tiny goatee coming in. They stare at each other some more as commentary talks about Lesnar going to the NFL.

There’s no contact for the first two minutes so Austin stares at both of them as he figures out that this is going to be a long night. They finally lock up after about 2:50 and that stays on for nearly 40 seconds with both of them letting go. They fight over another lockup, and by fight I mean they’re standing there with their arms around each other’s heads. Fans: “THIS MATCH SUCKS!”

Lesnar grabs a headlock for the first offensive move about five minutes in. They trade shoulders with neither going anywhere so they go nose to nose to yell at each other. The double shoulder puts them both down and then stare at each other a bit. Goldberg FINALLY picks him up in a gorilla press for a spinebuster but the spear only hits buckle. After a GOLDBERG SUCKS chant, Lesnar throws him back inside for some suplexes and a standing choke as Lawler desperately tries to turn this into a Raw vs. Smackdown thing.

That goes on for a long time as well until Goldberg fights out and they collide again, earning some straight booing. Goldberg fights up again and hits some clotheslines into a swinging neckbreaker. The spear gets two so Goldberg yells at Austin, allowing Lesnar to come back with the F5 for two. Now it’s Lesnar yelling at Austin, meaning he misses a spear of his own. Goldberg hits the spear and the Jackhammer gets rid of Lesnar for about eight years.

Rating: D-. Of course the match is terrible and a form of torture in 14 states, but there is some kind of perverse entertainment out of the whole thing. This wasn’t designed to be an entertaining match but rather two guys just messing around until they did a few things and called it a match. It’s an all time mess, but it’s a bit different than a match being a wreck just because it isn’t any good. This one is so bad that it’s fun in a way, which is a very different thing.

Post match we get beer and Stunners as the fans are pleased with Austin for knocking out those two after that match.

Wrestlemania XXI is in Los Angeles.

In a very nice moment, Vince McMahon comes out to thank the fans for being there for twenty years of Wrestlemania. This is the kind of genuine feeling moment that you do not get in modern WWE and it was kind of sweet.

Smackdown Tag Team Titles: World’s Greatest Tag Team vs. Basham Brothers vs. APA vs. Too Cool

Too Cool (Scotty 2 Hotty/Rikishi) are defending and again it’s one fall to a finish. Benjamin jumps Bradshaw to start and gets kicked in the face for his efforts. Doug Basham tags himself in and suplexes Benjamin down for two, with Haas having to make the save. Back up and Benjamin slams Doug onto Haas’ knee and it’s off to Scotty to run Haas over.

That lets Scotty stop to dance but he gets thrown over the top. Scotty is fine enough to skin the cat but Haas catches him on his shoulders, allowing Benjamin to hit the running jump onto his back. The Bashams come in and hit a double suplex on Scotty to take over as the heat segment in the second four way Tag Team Title match on a four and a half hour show continues.

Scotty finally flips out of a belly to back suplex and the hot tag brings in Rikishi to clean house. Haas takes the Stinkface and Bradshaw fall away slams Doug over the top and onto a pile on the floor. The Clothesline From Bradshaw hits Danny but Rikishi takes Bradshaw out and sits on Danny to retain at 6:03.

Rating: D+. It was about the same as the first four way, but this would probably be the first match that needed to be cut to trim some of the time off this very long show. Rikishi and Scotty are another on the long list of forgotten teams to hold the titles and it isn’t like this was anything memorable either.

Dancing ensues post match.

Edge is coming back after over a year away with a neck injury.

Here is Jesse Ventura to interview someone so he picks…..Donald Trump, who happens to be in the front row. Jesse plugs the Apprentice and suggests that he is going to run for President, even asking for Trump’s financial and moral support. Sure, and we’ll move on as fast as we can.

Women’s Title: Victoria vs. Molly Holly

Victoria is defending and this is title vs. hair, which was the only way they could get this match on the show so the two of them immediately agreed. Molly forearms her down to start and hits a running hip attack in the corner. Back up and Victoria spins out of a wristlock and Molly needs an early breather. She gets back in and grabs a snap suplex for two on Victoria, setting up a basement dropkick for two more.

The neck crank is on as Lawler goes into a discussion of Molly’s underwear. JR: “What does that have to do with this wrestling match?” Victoria fights up and hits a powerslam for two as JR wants some hot tea. Molly is sat on top and comes back with a sunset bomb for two of her own. For some reason Molly tries the Widow’s Peak (Victoria’s finisher) but Victoria reverses into a rollup to retain at 4:54.

Rating: C. They were victims of the time problems again here as there is only so much you can do in less than five minutes. The good thing is that the two of them are talented enough to make something out of nothing so the match was certainly watchable, even if it was more about setting up the post match stuff. It’s literally a case of this being the best WWE could give them though and that is better than just cutting the match.

Post match Molly tries to run away but gets sleepered out and tied in the chair for the big hair cut.

We recap Kurt Angle vs. Eddie Guerrero for the WWE Title. Angle attacked Eddie because he didn’t want a former drug addict as the WWE Champion (the future would not be kind to this story for Angle). Therefore, it is time for a real hero to take the title but Eddie isn’t standing for this. Smackdown General Manager Paul Heyman has gotten in on Angle’s side and has helped him destroy Eddie more than once, including once when Eddie’s hands were handcuffed behind his back. Now it’s time for revenge.

Smackdown World Title: Eddie Guerrero vs. Kurt Angle

Eddie is defending and the haircut is continuing as Angle makes his entrance. They start slowly with Eddie actually taking him down but making the mistake of trying to go amateur with him. Angle’s headlock takeover works rather well but Eddie as we get the LET’S GO ANGLE/ANGLE SUCKS chants. Eddie gets a fireman’s carry takeover but Angle flips over into a front facelock without much trouble.

A backdrop gets Eddie out of trouble and he armdrags Angle over into an armbar, setting in the frustration. Angle fights up and gets an abdominal stretch to stretch Eddie’s abdominals before hitting a German suplex. The second is escaped and Eddie winds up on the apron, where he has to block the German suplex to the floor. A dropkick puts Angle down but Eddie’s big dive only hits the barricade to bang up his ribs even more.

Some shoulders to the ribs set up a bodyscissors but Eddie jawbreaks his way to freedom. That lasts for all of two seconds as Angle drops the ribs across the top rope and snaps off an overhead belly to belly. Now it’s a waistlock to stay on the ribs and another belly to belly gives Angle another two. Eddie manages a quick knockdown though and goes up for the frog splash, which only hits mat.

The frustrated Angle starts throwing right hands, which just fire Eddie up enough to start his comeback. The rolling German suplexes cut that off in a hurry but the Angle Slam is countered into an armdrag. Two Amigos connect until Angle picks the ankle but Eddie kicks him off immediately. Eddie goes up but Angle is right there with the run up the ropes belly to belly superplex for the big crash back down.

Angle runs him over again though and the straps come down, setting up the Angle Slam. Eddie breaks that up as well and it’s a DDT to set up the frog splash for a rather close two. The ankle lock goes on again so Eddie rolls him outside and starts untying his boot to loosen the pressure. Back in and the angry Angle grabs the ankle lock, only to have Eddie kick him away and lose his boot. Angle is so stunned that he gets small packaged to retain Eddie’s title at 21:33.

Rating: A-. This was more about the psychology as Angle was hyper focused and Eddie eventually suckered him in with the boot. It made for a great finish, but it also came after an awesome match with Angle taking Eddie apart as only he could and Eddie having to survive. The ending was a very Eddie way to retain the title and that grin is hard to turn down. Absolutely a Wrestlemania match and an instant classic that doesn’t get the credit it deserves.

We recap Undertaker vs. Kane in the return of the Dead Man. Kane had turned on Undertaker and buried him alive (again) because he thought Undertaker was going soft. Then the gong went off at the Royal Rumble and Kane realized he was in trouble. Now Undertaker is back and it’s time for some revenge.

Kane vs. Undertaker

It’s the first time the Dead Man has been back since 1999 and Paul Bearer is right there with him. We also have torch bearing druids, because you always need torch bearing druids. Kane is already panicked and shouts that Undertaker isn’t real, because somehow Kane still doesn’t get how Undertaker works. Undertaker finally starts punching away against the ropes and they head to the floor for a slugout. That goes to Undertaker, who hits the apron legdrop to stun Kane again.

Back in and Kane kicks him in the face and it turns into a slugout on the mat for a change. The side slam plants Undertaker again, setting up the top rope clothesline for two. Undertaker fights right back with more right hands and tries Old School, which is pulled out of the air by the throat. The chokeslam plants Undertaker but Kane poses instead of covering. Undertaker sits up and stares at Kane mid pose, meaning it’s time for the real beating. Right hands, the chokeslam and the Tombstone finish Kane to make it 12-0 at 6:55.

Rating: D+. This wasn’t about the match but rather Undertaker being back, so there was no reason to believe that Kane was any serious threat. What mattered here was having Undertaker get back in the ring and destroy Kane because he is back in a big way. Kane was the designated victim here, which has been the case for him so many times now that he should be used to it.

We recap HHH defending the Raw World Title against Shawn Michaels and Chris Benoit. Michaels and HHH went to a draw at the Royal Rumble so HHH retained the title. Then Benoit jumped to Raw and said he wanted the Raw World Title. The contract signing was set but Shawn ran in to interrupt, saying he needed that one more shot. He took out Benoit and signed the contract, because WWE continues to not get how contracts work. Steve Austin then made the match a triple threat, with Shawn being the most wedged in challenger of all time.

Raw World Title: HHH vs. Shawn Michaels vs. Chris Benoit

HHH is defending in his weird white boots look. We go old school with the weapons check before Benoit sends HHH outside to start. That leaves Benoit to miss a backslide and Crossface on Shawn, who grabs a rollup for two. A northern lights suplex gives Benoit two but HHH is back in. Shawn has to skin the cat to get back inside, where he tosses Benoit out instead.

HHH is set outside as well, where he and Benoit are taken down by a baseball slide. Shawn’s big moonsault to the floor puts everyone down for a change until Benoit is left alone on the outside. The Pedigree is broken up by a returning Benoit, who fires off knees to Shawn’s ribs and sends him into the post. Shawn is fine enough to come back and tie Benoit in the Tree of Woe but HHH cuts Shawn off again.

The flying forearms drops HHH and Shawn nips up, only to have Benoit toss him outside. Benoit loads up the Swan Dive but gets crotched by Shawn, who misses Sweet Chin Music to HHH. A DDT sends Shawn outside and a superplex gets six (which is somehow not three) on Benoit. The Crossface goes on out of nowhere so Shawn has to dive in for the save. That earns Shawn some rolling German suplexes into a Swan Dive for a rather close two as HHH is still down.

Now it’s Shawn making the comeback and hammering on Benoit, who gets sent outside. HHH gets superkicked for two with Benoit making the save so everyone goes outside. Shawn gets posted and busted open so Benoit puts on the Crossface, with HHH having to grab the hand to block the tap. HHH sends Benoit into the steps and loads up the announcers’ table (it wouldn’t be Wrestlemania without it), with Shawn helping on a double suplex to put Benoit through said table.

NOW we get the big HHH vs. Shawn slugout, because that’s what the two of them probably wanted this to be the whole time. Shawn whips HHH over the corner for the crash to the floor, with HHH coming up bleeding. Back in and Shawn slowly gets the better of things but a quick Pedigree takes him down.

Benoit has to come back in for the save before sending Shawn outside. The Sharpshooter has HHH in trouble so Shawn breaks it up with the superkick for a delayed two. Benoit sends him outside and reverses the Pedigree into the Crossface. HHH can’t get the rope and Benoit rolls into the middle of the ring for the tap and the title at 24:08.

Rating: A+. Yes it’s still a masterpiece with nothing close to a misstep or weak part and that is not something you get to see very often. All three worked hard and at the end of the day, Benoit won clean over HHH via submission in the middle of the ring. This felt like the main event of a milestone show and it was an incredible match which has not gotten old every time I have seen it. That is hard to do and it certainly deserves the honor.

Benoit gets the HUGE celebration with the confetti falling. Eddie Guerrero comes in for the shot that is now iconic for all the wrong reasons and JR’s voice gives out with the shouting to end the show.

Well almost, as we get the highlight reel to really wrap it up.

Overall Rating: B. In case it wasn’t clear throughout, there are more than a few matches on this show that feel like they are there for the sake of getting people on the card. If you get rid of those matches, this is an all time classic, as well as having the show be under four hours. The rest of the show is pretty much an all timer (Goldberg vs. Lesnar aside) with the matches either feeling important or being great. Just trim it down and stop cramming things in and it’s that much better. It’s absolutely worth a look if you have seen it before or not, but have the fast forward button ready.

Ratings Comparison

John Cena vs. Big Show

Original: C-
2013 Redo: C
2015 Redo: C-
2018 Redo: D+
2022 Redo: C

Booker T/Rob Van Dam vs. Garrison Cade/Mark Jindrak vs. Dudley Boys vs. La Resistance

Original: D
2013 Redo: D
2015 Redo: D
2018 Redo: D
2022 Redo: C-

Christian vs. Chris Jericho

Original: B
2013 Redo: B
2015 Redo: B-
2018 Redo: B
2022 Redo: B

Evolution vs. The Rock/Mick Foley

Original: A
2013 Redo: B
2015 Redo: B
2018 Redo: B+
2022 Redo: B+

Torrie Wilson/Sable vs. Stacy Keibler/Miss Jackie

Original: F
2013 Redo: N/A
2015 Redo: N/A
2018 Redo: N/A
2022 Redo: N/A

Cruiserweight Open

Original: D+
2013 Redo: D
2015 Redo: D
2018 Redo: D
2022 Redo: C

Goldberg vs. Brock Lesnar

Original: F
2013 Redo: E
2015 Redo: F
2018 Redo: F
2022 Redo: D-

Too Cool vs. World’s Greatest Tag Team vs. Basham Brothers vs. APA

Original: D
2013 Redo: D
2015 Redo: D
2018 Redo: D-
2022 Redo: D+

Victoria vs. Molly Holly

Original: D+
2013 Redo: D+
2015 Redo: C-
2018 Redo: D+
2022 Redo: C

Eddie Guerrero vs. Kurt Angle

Original: A
2013 Redo: A
2015 Redo: A
2018 Redo: A
2022 Redo: A-

Undertaker vs. Kane

Original: D
2013 Redo: D+
2015 Redo: D+
2018 Redo: D
2022 Redo: D+

Chris Benoit vs. HHH vs. Shawn Michaels

Original: A+
2013 Redo: A+
2015 Redo: A+
2018 Redo: A+
2022 Redo: A+

Overall Rating

Original: B
2013 Redo: B
2015 Redo: A-
2018 Redo: B+
2022 Redo: B

I think we’ve found about the definitive ratings for this one, or at least as close as you’re going to get after five looks at it.

 

 

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Wrestlemania XIX
Date: March 30, 2003
Location: Safeco Field, Seattle, Washington
Attendance: 54,097
Commentators: Jim Ross, Jerry Lawler, Michael Cole, Tazz

This one is very interesting as the TV leading up to the show has been a cross between boring and really bad, yet the show has one of the best reputations of all time. I’m really curious to see how it goes from such a bad build to such a great show, especially with so much emphasis on Hulk Hogan vs. Vince McMahon. Let’s get to it.

Sunday Night Heat: Raw Tag Team Titles: Rob Van Dam/Kane vs. Lance Storm/Chief Morely

Morely and Storm are defending with Morely acting as the new champion due to William Regal being injured. The Dudleys are on the floor in forced servitude to Morely and Eric Bischoff. Van Dam kicks Morely out to the floor to start and it’s Kane diving onto the champs for a cool visual as we take a break. Back with the champs in control and Morely grabbing a chinlock. The Blue Thunder Bomb gets two as the announcers rip on Morely. The Money Shot misses and it’s off to Kane for the house cleaning.

Storm breaks out of a chokeslam and gets caught in a tilt-a-whirl slam for two. There’s the top rope clothesline for two with Morely making the save, only to eat a jumping kick to the face. The chokeslam looks to set up the Five Star but Rob comes inside before jumping to the top. Morely shoves him off, which makes me think there was some mistiming there. The distraction lets the Dudleys hit a 3D on Storm….and an elbow on Van Dam so the champs can retain the titles.

Rating: D+. That’s certainly how you warm a crowd up. If ever there was a time for an easy title change to give the fans something to cheer for, it should have been this right here. When you consider how soon Kane and Van Dam would get the titles anyway, this really seems like a big head scratcher.

The opening video shows wrestlers getting ready with a collection of voiceovers talking about how important this one night really is. This treats the event with a lot more respect and it’s quite the effective idea. It shows that everyone is in awe of the event itself and makes it feel even bigger.

And now, the theme song Crack Addict. So much for the respect part.

Cruiserweight Title: Rey Mysterio vs. Matt Hardy

Matt, defending here and accompanied by Shannon Moore, is appearing in his fourth Wrestlemania and often wonders how they did Wrestlemania without him. Mysterio is dressed like Daredevil, starting the awesome tradition of dressing like a superhero (most of the time) at Wrestlemania.

Matt is sent outside early on and Rey busts out a corkscrew dive to take both of them down. Rey can’t hit a sunset bomb to the floor so Matt drops him onto the barricade to take over. The Ricochet gets two as Tazz talks about Matt being off the banana juice and moving to tea. The Twist of Fate is countered into a rollup but Matt grabs the Side Effect for two. As Cole talks about loving latex and teabagging (seriously), Matt misses a charge into the post and Rey gets two off a crossbody.

Shannon breaks up the 619 though and now the Twist of Fate gets two. Splash Mountain is loaded up but Rey reverses with a hurricanrana for two more. Shannon makes the save so Rey takes him down before hitting the 619 on Matt. The West Coast Pop is broken up though and Matt grabs a rollup and the rope to retain.

Rating: C+. This was a good choice for an opener as you want something fast paced but don’t want to overstay your welcome. They were in and out in less than six minutes, which is pretty close to the sweet spot for an opener. Mysterio winning probably would have been the better option but at least he didn’t get the title a week later or something like that.

The Miller Lite Catfight Girls are here. I’m with Lance Storm: it’s nonsense that these two got time and the seven minute Tag Team Title match got stuck on Heat.

Nathan Jones was laid out earlier tonight.

Limp Bizkit plays Undertaker to the ring. Again, Tag Team Titles on Heat in a short match but time for this.

Undertaker vs. A-Train/Big Show

A-Train messes with Undertaker’s bike on the way to the ring. If I had a dollar for every time a hairy chested man with nipple piercings adjusted the mirror on my motorcycle….well I’d be poor as I don’t have a motorcycle but the rest happens more often than you would think. Show tries a sneak attack but gets sent to the floor so Undertaker can chokeslam A-Train for two.

Undertaker actually leapfrogs A-Train and drops him with Old School as they’re certainly moving in the early going. A Derailer cuts Undertaker off and Show posts him for good measure. It’s off to Show whose chokeslam is countered into a Fujiwara armbar. A-Train’s save is countered into a cross armbreaker so Show gets to make a save of his own. We hit an abdominal stretch as Cole wants to know if Undertaker’s stamina is going to hold up after such a long layoff due to injury. We’re four minutes into the match and Undertaker has been back from injury for almost TWO AND A HALF MONTHS Cole, you pathetic nitwit.

A-Train puts on an abdominal stretch of his own and Tazz shows how to do his job by suggesting things Undertaker should do to escape/relieve the pressure. I get that they have different jobs but at least Tazz is saying stuff that makes sense and doesn’t sound stupid. A-Train talks trash and throws some punches until Undertaker mostly misses the running DDT (he was barely touching A-Train).

Running corner clotheslines have the monsters in trouble until A-Train gets in the bicycle kick. Show hits his chokeslam but here’s Nathan Jones in the aisle to kick Show’s head off. A-Train takes a big boot from Jones (because the referee doesn’t understand disqualifications) and the Tombstone is enough for the pin.

Rating: C-. Actually not a bad power match here as I can buy the idea of Undertaker holding his own against these two for eight minutes, especially after he’s shown he can beat them both on his own. The fact that Jones couldn’t even be trusted to wait for people to run into his kicks is incredibly telling and pretty much spells the end of his career.

The Catfight Girls meet Stacy Keibler and Torrie Wilson, who are standing around looking at Torrie’s Playboy. As various gorgeous women just do. Stacy has a new marketing campaign idea for them and they all leave together.

We take a quick look at the Tag Team Title match from Heat. Add this to the stuff that could have been cut in exchange of just airing the match.

Women’s Title: Trish Stratus vs. Victoria vs. Jazz

Victoria is defending and it’s one fall to a finish. Jazz jumps the champ from behind to start fast and it’s already time for a modified Muta Lock on Trish. Trish gets knocked outside as Lawler thinks this should turn into a love triangle. Back in and Victoria hits her slingshot legdrop for two on Trish but has to powerslam Jazz for two.

It’s back to Trish as JR tries to figure out why King called her a quarter among pennies. A sitout powerslam gives Jazz two on Trish but it’s time for a fight with her fellow villain. Jazz kicks Victoria down but gets rolled up for two, followed by the Chick Kick for the same. Victoria gets sent outside, leaving Trish to get caught in the STF.

With Victoria distracting the referee, Richards breaks up the hold so Victoria and Trish can trade rollups (with Victoria’s tights being pulled rather low) for two each. Jazz gets knocked outside, leaving Richards to swing a chair but hit the top rope and knock it back into his own head. The Chick Kick to Victoria gives Trish the title back at 7:18.

Rating: C. Not bad at all here as they kept things tight and had everyone moving the entire time, including Richards with the chair to his own head. It made Trish look like the one who survived until the end, though at some point she’s going to have to beat Jazz. You can do that later though as this was all about getting her the title and I’d prefer her to pin the champ than the other challenger.

Rock doesn’t want to hear about the people because they’ve been booing him and calling him a sellout. It’s true that he’s a sellout because he sells out every Wrestlemania he’s in. Rock has lost to Austin twice at Wrestlemania but Hollywood has taught him that the third act is all that matters.

Smackdown Tag Team Titles: Los Guerreros vs. Chris Benoit/Rhyno vs. Team Angle

Team Angle is defending and it’s one fall to a finish. The challenging team both beat on a champ until it settles down to Chavo vs. Haas. A dropkick puts Charlie down and it’s off to Benoit, who runs into an armdrag from Guerrero. Eddie comes in with the slingshot hilo but they ram heads for a double knockdown.

Benoit brings Rhyno in to powerslam Eddie and it’s already off to Benjamin as they’re keeping the pace fast here. A double dropkick gets two on Rhyno but Haas gets taken into the Rhyno corner for a double stomping. Eddie stomps on Rhyno and gets taken into the same corner that Haas got caught in. Benoit catches Eddie on the top with a superplex for two as Benjamin makes the save.

That’s fine with Chris who throws Eddie into the air and pulls him down into the Crossface for a sweet move but Haas makes a save this time. Chavo and Haas come in and everything breaks down. The rolling German suplexes have Chavo in trouble but Benoit walks into a superkick from Benjamin. A legdrop gets two with Eddie dropping a frog splash for the save. Haas suplexes Chavo but turns into the Gore. Chavo eats one as well, only to have Benjamin steal the pin to retain the titles at 8:46.

Rating: B-. I don’t remember liking this one this much but they didn’t stop for the entire match. Benoit and Rhyno are still an odd choice for a tag team but it wouldn’t surprise me if they were setting up for Benoit and Edge in this spot before he got hurt. Team Angle needed this win and that’s the right call out of the three options.

Torrie and Stacy get in a fight over whether Vince or Hulk created Wrestlemania. The Catfight Girls do the same (though one of them keeps calling him Holgan) and agree to settle this in bed.

King is mesmerized.

We recap Shawn Michaels vs. Chris Jericho. Chris seems jealous that Shawn is back and getting attention. He’s wanted to be the next Shawn Michaels but now he wants to be the first Chris Jericho by defeating Shawn at Wrestlemania. This has been a long build but they’ve been smart to wait until here for the match. Shawn accepted the challenge with a superkick and telling Jericho that he would see him at Wrestlemania in a moment I always liked.

Chris Jericho vs. Shawn Michaels

Shawn tries to fire some confetti cannons on the way to the ring but some of them fail to go off, prompting an “eh what are you going to do” look. Jericho on the other hand just looks down at him in disdain in the perfect response. Some early armdrags frustrate Jericho so Shawn lounges on the top rope.

Back up and Shawn kicks him away without too much effort as they’re still firmly in first gear. Jericho is ready for a leapfrog and slaps Shawn in the face, earning himself a right hand to the jaw and a trip to the floor. Back in and Jericho scores with a spinwheel kick but a bulldog is countered with a good crotching. We hit a random Figure Four but Jericho reverses pretty quickly.

They head outside again with Shawn hitting a nice plancha, only to get caught in the Walls in the aisle. The bad back is sent into the post as Jericho has a big target to work with now. Back in and Jericho yells about how he’s better than Shawn as he stays on the back in a variety of ways. We hit the chinlock with a knee in the back before Shawn grabs a DDT to get him out of trouble.

Jericho nips up and hits the forearm into Shawn’s pose, which you just don’t do at Wrestlemania. Shawn makes his comeback (with two nipups of his own) and we hit the pinfall reversal sequence (as required by a classic like this) for a couple of twos each. Jericho is Lionsault for two more before countering a hurricanrana into the Walls. Shawn grabs the rope so Jericho elbows him in the jaw and tunes up the band.

Sweet Chin Music puts Shawn down for two and the fans seemed to buy that as the finish. Shawn teases the Walls but goes with a catapult into the post for two instead. It’s Jericho up first with a belly to back superplex but Shawn reverses into a crossbody in mid-air for yet another near fall.

The top rope elbow gets the same but the real Sweet Chin Music is countered into the Walls again. Just like last time, Shawn grabs the ropes though this time he follows up with more Chin Music for a very delayed two. Both guys are spent so Jericho grabs a belly to back suplex, only to have Shawn flip over and grab a rollup with his legs for the pin at 22:31.

Rating: A. Oh come on like this one needs an explanation. These two were both on fire here and just had an awesome match. It’s the match that made it clear Shawn had more than just a few performances in him as he felt a lot more like the older version here, which is exactly what the match needed to be. Jericho being able to do every athletic thing Shawn could do but not be able to outsmart him is a perfect story in a similar vein to Shawn vs. Shelton Benjamin a few years later. Great match here and one of the best Shawn had in his comeback.

They hug post match but Jericho kicks him low like the heel he is.

The evil referee from Montreal goes to see Vince.

The new attendance record is announced.

Limp Bizkit takes their sweet time performing Crack Addict.

Here are the Catfight Girls to fight on a bed set up on stage. Cue Stacy and Torrie to join in. Girls are stripped, pillows are swung and Coach is pantsed and pinned. Again, World Tag Team Titles not on the show but these girls get like four segments.

We recap HHH vs. Booker T. which focuses on Booker’s criminal past. That’s firmly established before the “someone like you doesn’t deserve to be World Champion” line is made. It’s a better way to go about it but there’s no good way to spin that statement. Basically Booker is fighting for his one big moment and HHH is defending because….well because it’s Wrestlemania and what else is he supposed to do?

Raw World Title: HHH vs. Booker T.

HHH is defending and comes out first for some reason. JR talks about Booker becoming a five time WCW Champion so King says that place was a joke. JR: “How long did you work there?” King: “Never.” JR: “Well I did.” King: “Was it a joke?” JR: “D*** right.” A hard lockup takes them into the corner where they trade chops and some right hands. Booker charges into a boot to the face and HHH goes up top, only to get armdragged down. You would think Flair would have taught him better but if Ric never learned, HHH didn’t need to either.

The announcers bicker over whether or not Booker was born on a pool table which turns into a discussion of Fink being drunk last night. Booker gets sent outside and goes into the steps as the pace slows a lot (yes, in a HHH match). A neckbreaker gets two on Booker and a spinebuster gets the same.

Booker slips out of a suplex and grabs a DDT for his first offense in a long time. The jumping knee and a facebuster cut Booker off but he comes back with a spinebuster. HHH goes up again for some reason and dives into a boot to the face. Seriously they never learn. The scissors kick only hits ropes and Booker falls out to the floor as he was getting dangerously close to beating up HHH and that must be stopped.

Flair sends Booker’s knee into the steps and it’s time for an Indian Deathlock back inside as we flash back to 1974. Back up and the knee is done but Booker grabs a sunset flip for a fast two. A jumping elbow to the jaw puts HHH down again and there’s the ax kick for no cover.

Flair’s distraction has no effect as Booker hits the Houston Hangover, which thankfully isn’t followed up on because the knee gives out again. They stagger to their feet with Booker’s knee preventing him from trying another ax kick. Instead it’s the Pedigree, the completely ridiculous 24 second wait, and then the pin with one hand over Booker’s chest to retain the title at 18:44.

Rating: C+. And there goes Booker’s main event career for the next few years. Aside from being a somewhat boring match, that ending is unforgivable. There’s no reason to not give Booker the title here, even if it’s just until Backlash. The leg stuff at the end was better but this was WAY too much HHH with Booker only having a few hope spots here and there. He didn’t even get the big two count at any point. This was all about HHH establishing that he is the one and only star on Raw no matter what and that’s a major problem. Booker needed this win, or at least anything other than a clean loss.

Long recap of Hulk Hogan vs. Vince McMahon for the show’s real main event. Basically Vince suddenly decided that he hated Hogan for leaving the company ten years ago and testifying against him in the steroids trial so they had to have a fight. This was suddenly elevated to the biggest match of all time despite there not really being a clear reason why Vince started hating Hogan in the first place. If it was mentioned at the start, it was completely bogged down in all the mess that followed. This is at worst the second biggest match on the show and while not surprising, that’s probably not the best idea in the world.

Hulk Hogan vs. Vince McMahon

Street fight and if Hogan loses, he has to retire. Hogan “spears” Vince down because that’s the kind of thing Hogan is known to do. Some slow motion (expect to hear that a lot in this one) right hands have Vince in trouble and Hulk stomps him in the corner. A clothesline gives Vince a breather and he throws those awkward punches. Now it’s off to an armbar because that’s what you want to see from these two in a street fight.

Hogan fights out of the test of strength but Vince is smart enough to kick him in the gut. That’s so effective that they do it three straight times before Vince sends him outside. Hogan gets posted but still manages to avoid a chair shot. Instead it’s Hulk chairing Vince in the head and of course we’ve got some blood (you knew that was coming and you know it’s coming from Hulk too).

More chair shots have Vince reeling, though not enough to knock him out, because Vince is more manly than your average wrestler. Another chair shot hits the Spanish announcer in the head because this match needed additional casualties. Vince low blows him and gets in his own chair shot to draw Hogan’s blood as this is already dragging. And now…..it’s ladder time, which certainly picks things up a bit.

A monitor shot to the head puts Hogan on the table and Vince climbs up, puts his hand to his ear, and drops a leg (which doesn’t hit Hogan but it’s a great visual nonetheless) to destroy the table and freak the crowd out all over again. Vince throws Hogan inside and grabs a pipe from underneath the ring. In the visual of the match, Vince very slowly raises his bloody head over the apron and gives the kind of evil smile that only he can pull off. It’s a great shot too and makes up for a lot of this match.

Hogan hits him low to put both guys down….and here’s Roddy Piper, looking so out of shape that he makes Hogan look great. Piper teases hitting both of them before knocking Hogan out with the pipe (Why this is considered a surprise is beyond me. They’re mortal enemies whose feud was the reason for the first Wrestlemania main event. Why was him attacking Hogan ever in doubt?).

That’s only good for two so Vince beats up the referee, drawing out the evil referee from earlier in the night, along with a regular referee. Vince pipes Hogan again, giving us that flopping around like a fish selling. It’s Hulk Up time with Hulk beating up both Vince and the evil referee. The big boot and three legdrops finish Vince at 20:48.

Rating: C-. I’ve seen this match several times and it’s actually grown on me a lot. The expectations were through the floor coming in and it’s a pretty fun old people brawl. It’s dumb, goofy fun and while it’s WAY too long (you could easily cut eight minutes if not more), it’s one of those matches where you knew what you were getting and that’s exactly what was delivered. Vince’s complete over the top visuals made it even better. It’s not good of course but it’s fun, which is a lot more important for something like this.

Hogan poses as Shane comes out to check on his father. We get a staredown but Hogan seems to understand that he doesn’t have any issues with Shane.

You can already hear Cole’s voice giving out.

We recap Steve Austin vs. The Rock. This is ALL about Rock as Austin is on fumes and it’s not exactly a secret. Basically Rock is ticked off about being booed last year in Toronto and turned into the most amazing heel in the world as a result. The only thing he has left to do in his career is beat Austin at Wrestlemania and this is probably his last chance. This gets the music video treatment but it can only get so far when one person is doing 90% of the work in the feud (not really a criticism of Austin but Rock was just on another planet at this point).

Steve Austin vs. The Rock

Writing that one never gets old. The camera follows Austin from behind in a pretty unique shot which works quite well. They stare each other down to start with Austin hitting the first right hands. The threat of a Stunner sends Rock bailing to the floor so Austin beats him over the announcers’ table and whips him into the steps.

Back in and Austin chokes a bit (that’s somewhat out of character) and gets two off a suplex. Rock gets in a chop block to get a breather with Austin bailing out to the floor. The kicks to the leg have Austin staggering around and Rock wraps the leg around the post. We hit the Sharpshooter with Austin fighting to the ropes as you can really feel the lack of fire in this one.

It’s intense but it’s clear that Austin doesn’t have that high gear anymore. The leg is wrapped around the post again and Rock grabs Austin’s vest. That’s too much for Austin so it’s some bad punches and a double clothesline for another breather. The Thesz press and middle finger elbow get two as Austin is getting some fire going.

A Rock Bottom gives Austin two but Rock comes back with a Stunner. Austin grabs the real thing for two more but Rock cuts him off with a low blow. The vest comes off and the People’s Elbow gets two. The Rock Bottom gets the same, followed by two more to FINALLY put Austin away at 17:55.

Rating: B+. I know there were outside circumstances (Austin spent the previous night in the hospital due to drinking too much alcohol and caffeine) but this would have felt so much bigger as the main event. It’s a very good match and feels big at times but when you have the history that these two have, nothing is going to live up to that standard.

Austin not being able to keep up with Rock was a great way to show that Rock was the better man that night and even with the fire not as hot as before, Austin is still worth seeing at any point. This is another one that’s grown on me and while it might not be as great, it felt important, which is what matters most here.

After thanking Austin for what happened (not audibly but he’s since said that’s what was he was doing), Rock leaves Austin for the big hero’s sendoff. This wasn’t billed as Austin’s farewell but it turned out to be his retirement match. It would have been a great way to close the show, but I get the idea of not wanting that to be the case if Austin couldn’t go. It’s a bit of a disappointment but at least he got the big moment.

We recap Brock Lesnar vs. Kurt Angle. Brock got cheated out of the title at Survivor Series and has gone on a path of destruction to get it back, including winning the Royal Rumble. Angle has used every possible way out of facing him but tonight he’s out of escapes and has nothing left to do but fight. The fact that his neck is being held together by paperclips and duct tape is just a detail because Angle has a low level of sanity. This feels like a major showdown, which is all you can ask for out of the main event of Wrestlemania.

Smackdown World Title: Kurt Angle vs. Brock Lesnar

Lesnar, with bad ribs, is challenging and can win the title via DQ or countout. Angle grabs a front facelock but Brock throws him off and we’re back to a standoff. Kurt’s headlock has about the same effect but he breaks up Brock’s armbar. Lesnar grabs a powerslam, only to get caught in the first German suplex. Brock pops right to his feet though, sending Angle bailing to the floor as they’re not laying into each other just yet.

Back in and a gorilla press (Tazz: “The vanilla gorilla!”) plants Angle, who cuts off a charge with a boot. A German suplex into the corner messes with the ribs again and it’s off to something like an STF from the side. Angle lets go of the legs and switches to something closer to a Bank Statement. Brock won’t tap so Angle suplexes him with ease. That earns him a spinebuster though, which Angle is crazy to take with such a bad neck.

Brock hits his own suplexes but Angle pops up and rolls some German suplexes of his own. Neither finisher can hit so Angle trips him into the ankle lock. Brock grabs the rope….which doesn’t count for no apparent reason. Instead Angle switches to a half crab, followed by a running knee to the back. Brock backdrops him to the floor, again because Angle is freaking nuts.

Back in and the Angle Slam gets two, which Cole says has never happened before. I find that very hard to believe. The F5 gets two more but Kurt gets the ankle lock with a grapevine. Brock manages to drag him over to the ropes for the break, followed by another F5. Instead of covering though, Brock heads up top.

In one of the scariest moments in wrestling history, Brock tries a shooting star press (apparently suggested by Johnny Ace) but leaves it short, landing square on his head and knocking himself completely silly. With his eyes glazed over, Brock hits a third F5 for the pin and the title at 21:09.

Rating: A-. This started off rather slowly but then picked up the pace to become one heck of a hard hitting fight. Angle did everything he could with all the suplexes and left it all in the ring in what might have been his last match. Lesnar did everything he needed to do (save for hitting that shooting star) and if he had nailed the finish, this would go up several notches. It’s a great finish and the kind of main event that Smackdown should have put on at this point. Excellent match.

Lesnar is GONE as he tries to pull himself up.

A long highlight package ends the show.

Overall Rating: A. The more I watch this show, the more I appreciate it. There’s nothing bad on the card with the worst match being either Undertaker vs. Big Show/A-Train or the street fight and even those are watchable. There’s also a great selection of top matches, though HHH vs. Booker leaves a lot to be desired. That being said, Jericho vs. Shawn, Rock vs. Austin and the main event are more than enough to make this a classic.

My main issue is still the same: the show could use a breather between all of the top matches. I could have gone for swapping in say the women’s triple threat or the Smackdown Tag Team Title match in between the street fight and Rock vs. Austin, just for the sake of a little breathing room. The way it’s done is more than fine though and it would only have been improved with a few tweaks.

Overall, it’s one of the best Wrestlemanias ever but I can’t put it above or really near the level of X7. There’s some great stuff here but it’s not enough to top everything that show has to offer. I could easily see this being the second best Wrestlemania of all time (it’s in the top three or four at the absolute worst) and that’s some pretty high levels of quality.

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