Deadline
Date: December 10, 2022
Location: Capitol Wrestling Center, Orlando, Florida
Commentators: Booker T., Vic Joseph

What we have here is something of a concept show, as two of the five announced matches are Iron Survivor Challenges. Those are going to take up the better part of an hour between the two of them, even though they’re just #1 contenders matches. We also have a pair of title matches and a grudge match to give it that NXT feel though, so let’s get to it.

The opening video is about the value of time, including in the Iron Survivor Challenges.

Women’s Iron Survivor Challenge

So we have five entrants and a twenty five minute time limit. Two people start things off and another enters every five minutes. You get a point for a fall (nothing to suggest you can lose points) and whomever you beat goes to a penalty box for a minute and a half. The most points in twenty five minutes wins and is the new #1 contender.

Roxanne Perez is in at #1 and Zoey Stark is in at #2 and we have a nifty scoreboard at the bottom of the screen. They take their time to start until Perez grabs a bridging rollup for two but has to fight out of an attempted backslide. Stark takes her into the corner with the power but can’t get very far as they seem to be taking their time to start. Perez working on the arm doesn’t get her very far and a rollup only gets two as Kiana James is in at #3.

James kicks Stark down for two with Perez making the save. With James knocked down, Perez drops Stark with a shot to the face in the corner but gets caught with an enziguri. James is left alone in the ring but Stark trips her down, only to get sent hard into the post. Back inside and James cranks on both of Perez’s arms but Stark makes the save. Perez is back up, only to get caught with Starks’ spinning knee to the face to give Stark the first fall at 9:33.

Stark – 1
Hartwell – 0
Jade – 0
James – 0
Perez – 0

With Perez in the penalty box, James and Stark clothesline each other down and Cora Jade (in red for a change) comes in at #4 to steal some near falls. Perez is out and hammers on James, setting up a rollup for two. A suplex gives Perez two on Stark but Jade breaks up Pop Rox and steals the pin on James at 12:39.

Jade – 1
Stark – 1
Hartwell – 0
James – 0
Perez – 0

Perez nearly gets her showdown with Jade but Stark breaks it up and beats on both of them. James is back in and drives some shoulders into Starks’ ribs in the corner before suplexing Jade. Perez and Stark break it up as Indi Hartwell completes the field. Hartwell, with the fans behind her, goes after Stark and kicks Perez down for a fall at 16:00.

Hartwell – 1
Jade – 1
Stark – 1
James – 0
Perez – 0

Stark, Jade and Hartwell slug it out until James and Stark fight to the floor. James moonsaults off the barricade onto Stark as Perez is out of the box. A high crossbody gives Perez two on Hartwell with Jade making the save. Jade misses a running elbow against the ropes but Starks is back in to deck Perez. That’s fine with Perez, who rolls Stark up for the pin at 18:39.

Hartwell – 1
Jade – 1
Perez – 1
Stark – 1
James – 0

Things slow down a bit as Hartwell and Perez slug it out, only to have Stark run back in to break it up. Everyone gets knocked down as the referee keeps talking to Perez. A dive takes Hartwell down but Stark and the brawling continues. Back in and Perez hits Pop Rox to pin Jade at 23:02.

Perez – 2
Hartwell – 1
Jade – 1
Stark – 1
James – 0

Everyone starts going for falls but no one can get anything thanks to all of the saves. James takes Stark up top for a super Spanish Fly but Jade is back in to steal the near fall. With that not working, Jade DDTs Perez and covers, only to have time expire at 25:00 with Perez winning with two points.

Rating: B-. Well it was certainly an energized match and there can be some nice storytelling involved with everyone trying to steal a fall here and there. I think I like the concept, but at the same time it makes it more a case of running out the clock at the end. Perez winning is the right call and it’s a good introduction to the concept, but I’m not sure I’d call it a classic.

Booker T., Perez’s mentor, is very emotional about the win and it’s kind of great.

Post a few videos, Booker is actually in tears and has to look away from the camera. Well that’s awesome.

Ivy Nile, with Tatum Paxley, knows the Creed Brothers aren’t happy with her over the way she revealed Julius’ injured ribs but she wants the best for them. Katana Chance and Kayden Carter interrupt and a title match seems imminent.

Video on Alba Fyre vs. Isla Dawn. Fyre had the Women’s Title won but the debuting Dawn cost her the match. Now it’s time for revenge.

Alba Fyre vs. Isla Dawn

Fyre starts fast and hammers Dawn out to the floor to start with stomping ensuing. Back inside and Dawn gets in a few shots of her own to take over, allowing the removal of a turnbuckle pad. A running knee gives Dawn two and she cranks on the armbar for a bit. Dawn hits a top rope Meteora for two but Fyre sends her outside for a dive.

Fyre fights up again and hits the Gory Bomb on the floor but Dawn stares at her back inside. That earns Dawn a hard planting and a Swanton…as the referee is convulsing and spitting up black good. Fyre drops dawn again for two from another referee but Dawn sends Fyre into the buckle. Dawn’s reverse DDT finishes at 9:52.

Rating: C. That was about as deflating of a twist as I could have imagined, as this supernatural stuff is one of the most annoying tropes that WWE will just not drop. At this point, I’m hoping Fyre gets to go up to the main roster, as she isn’t looking likely to get a serious push around here. I get the idea of having Dawn win her first big match, but they had to go that way?

New Day is impressed by Pretty Deadly coming over here and dominating, but it’s time for New Day to become Triple Crown champions. Now hit the theme music.

Tag Team Titles: New Day vs. Pretty Deadly

Pretty Deadly is defending and the fans are WAY into New Day here. Woods and Prince start things off as the fans want new side plates on the title belts. Woods hit a heck of a chop in the corner before trying some leapfrogs. A legsweep drops Prince and a backsplash gets two on Prince so it’s off to Kofi vs. Wilson. Kofi sticks the landing on a monkey flip and it’s time for a reverse hip thrusting dance off, with Kofi seemingly winning the fan vote.

It’s back to Prince, who gets dropkicked out of the air by Woods as this is one sided so far. New Day take turns hitting shots in the corner, setting up the Honor Roll for two. The dives on the floor have the champs down again but a cheap shot gives them a breather back inside. A running elbow sends Kofi to the floor where a posting ensues. Kofi can’t get over for the tag but a double knockdown is enough for the dive off to Woods as Wilson comes in to get beaten up.

Everything breaks down and Woods hits a running crotch attack to Wilson, with a dropkick to Prince at the same time. Back in and Woods and Wilson slug it out as everything breaks down again. We get a title brought in and….all four try the Eddie Guerrero throw the belt to someone else for the knockdown treatment (that was great), leaving the referee not buying any of this. A real belt shot gets two on Woods and the champs are frustrated. Trouble In Paradise drops Wilson on the floor though and it’s the Midnight Hour to give New Day the pin and the titles at 14:04.

Rating: B. This was a BLAST as they didn’t even bother trying to do anything seriously whatsoever. Instead they had New Day go out there and have a good match against the young team. Pretty Deadly has already established themselves as something special and it’s not like losing to New Day is some devastating loss. This was all kinds of fun and I had a great time with everything they were doing here, including the title change.

Coming January 10: Countdown To The New Year.

Kayden Carter and Katana Chance run into Malik Blade/Edris Enofe/Odyssey Jones. They seem to get alone but once the guys leave, Toxic Attraction come in to mock the champs for offering Ivy Nile and Tatum Paxley. Cue Paxley and Nile for the brawl, with the guys coming back in to break it up.

Men’s Iron Survivor Challenge

Same rules as the women’s version with JD McDonagh in at #1 and Axiom is in at #2. McDonagh goes after Axiom’s recently injured leg to start but Axiom is right back to send him to the floor for the big dive. Back in and Axiom blasts him with a clothesline to the back of the head for two. A running basement dropkick in the corner rocks McDonagh again but he’s back with a discus lariat. McDonagh hits a sitout powerbomb for two and it’s Carmelo Hayes in at #3 to go after McDonagh before kicking Axiom in the head. Hayes is right back up and suplex cutters McDonagh onto Axiom for the pin on Axiom at 7:12.

Hayes – 1
Axiom – 0
Gacy – 0
McDonagh – 0
Waller – 0

McDonagh and Hayes slug it out with neither being able to get very far. A double knockdown gives us a breather as Axiom is back in. Axiom hits a double high crossbody and kicks away at both of them. The other two get back up though and they’re all knocked down until Grayson Waller is in at #4. Waller hits the rolling Stunner on Axiom and McDonagh for the pin on Axiom at 10:13.

Hayes – 1
Waller – 1
Axiom – 0
Gacy – 0
McDonagh – 0

Then Waller pins McDonagh at 10:16.

Waller – 2
Hayes – 1
Axiom – 0
Gacy – 0
McDonagh – 0

Hayes and Waller slug it out with neither being able to take over. Another double knockdown gives us a breather until Axiom is out….but he goes back into the penalty box to beat up McDonagh. One heck of a beating ensues, with Axiom slamming the door on McDonagh to leave him in the box (where he’s down but free to go). Hayes superkicks Waller and rolls Axiom up for two but Waller is back in to drop both of them. Waller goes outside to yell at Booker but Axiom rolls him up for the pin at 14:16.

Waller – 2
Hayes – 1
Axiom – 1
Gacy – 0
McDonagh – 0

Axiom hits the Golden Ratio to pin McDonagh at 14:22.

Axiom – 2
Waller – 2
Hayes – 1
Gacy – 0
McDonagh – 0

Joe Gacy is in at #5 to complete the field and stops to mock Waller in the penalty box. That means a Rings of Saturn to Axiom for the fall at 16:15.

Axiom – 2
Waller – 2
Gacy – 1
Hayes – 1
McDonagh – 0

Gacy hits the Upside Down to pin Gacy at 17:13.

Axiom – 2
Gacy – 2
Waller – 2
Hayes – 1
McDonagh – 0

Gacy drops McDonagh and Waller at the same time, setting up the running flip dive to the floor. Axiom is out of the box so he goes on top of it for a moonsault onto everyone not named Hayes. Now it’s Hayes back in for a Crossface on Waller, who has to tap at 19:25.

Axiom – 2
Gacy – 2
Hayes – 2
Waller – 2
McDonagh – 0

Back in and Axiom rolls Gacy into a triangle choke but Hayes makes the save with an ax kick. Hayes points to Booker off the kick but McDonagh cuts him off. The Devlin Side drops Axiom on the floor but McDonagh headbutts Hayes out of the air. Another Devlin Side hits Hayes and there’s a third to Gacy.

McDonagh can’t cover anyone but can Devlin Side the returning Waller, with everyone else making the save to leave all five down. McDonagh is in the middle of the ring so everyone kicks him in the face. Gacy takes Waller outside and Rock Bottoms him onto the steps. Back in and Gacy hits a Bubba Bomb onto Hayes, setting up the Rings of Saturn.

That’s broken up by McDonagh so Gacy gets the Rings on Axiom again as we hear that it’s sudden death on a tie. Hayes hits a Codebreaker on Gacy but McDonagh sends Hayes into the corner with 1:00 left. Axiom’s springboard flipping DDT hits McDonagh and Hayes adds the top rope ax kick, with Waller making the save. Waller steals the pin on Axiom at 24:33.

Waller – 3
Axiom – 2
Gacy – 2
Hayes – 2
McDonagh – 0

The chase is on and Waller escapes at 25:00. Vic Joseph: “We are never going to hear the end of this.”

Rating: B. This was the energized race against the clock that I was hoping for and a very different presentation than the first match (which was also good). Waller stealing the pin in the end and running away was a great visual and made sense as everyone else was either ineligible to be pinned or running around. I had a lot of fun with this and they cranked it up about five notches, so well done on making this a very entertaining and at times dramatic match.

Drew Gulak is here to live up to his potential and if he sees someone who catches his eye, there is something to strength in numbers. Damon Kemp comes up to talk about facing Duke Hudson on Tuesday. Gulak doesn’t seem impressed and politely excuses himself.

We recap Apollo Crews challenging Bron Breakker for the NXT Title. Crews has wanted to win the title to prove himself, while Breakker sees the similarities between the two. They seem to respect each other but both want the title.

NXT Title: Apollo Crews vs. Bron Breakker

Breakker is defending. Feeling out process to start with not much happening in the first minute. They fight over a test of strength and that’s good for a standoff as neither seems to know what to do here. They go to the mat with both of them headscissoring their way out of a headlock takeover, meaning another standoff. A fight over a standing switch turns into a fight over a hiptoss which sends them both into the ropes.

Crews shoves him to take this up a notch, followed by the AJ Styles drop down into a dropkick. The standing moonsault gives Crews two and a slingshot hilo is good for the same. Breakker is back up with a suplex into a standing moonsault for two of his own. Crews is knocked outside and that means a big no hands flip dive because Breakker can do that. Back in and Crews hits a jumping knee to knock Breakker out of the air, leaving Crews looking mad.

Crews’ eyes bug out (with a closeup) and he hammers away, setting up the rolling German suplexes. Multiple powerbombs give Crews two more and a frog splash gets the same. Breakker fights back up to drop Crews, setting up the Steiner Bulldog for two of his own. The straps come down but Crews slips out of the gorilla press powerslam and hits his own for another near fall. They slug it out with Crews getting the better of things and firing off some kicks. Breakker slips out of a slam though and hits the spear for the retaining pin at 14:21.

Rating: B-. They had an idea here with the mirroring each other, but then that just stopped cold and they went to the finish. It was good while it lasted and Breakker is coming along, but this really didn’t feel like a big victory for him. Crews is a good choice for a challenger, though that flat of a finish wasn’t going to help anyone.

The posing is on but Grayson Waller rolls in with the Stunner.

Overall Rating: B+. It’s definitely not a Takeover, but for the new generation of NXT, this worked out very well. There wasn’t a bad match on the show (the ending to Dawn vs. Fyre was bad but that’s a one off moment) and the rest of the show was good to very good. I liked almost everything on here and they got the new concept match right. Awesome night here and being out in two and a half hours made it better still. Not a classic, but it’s an easy watch with good stuff throughout and that’s a nice way to go.

Results
Roxanne Perez won the Women’s Iron Survivor Challenge
Isla Dawn b. Alba Fyre – Reversed DDT
New Day b. Pretty Deadly – Midnight Hour to Prince
Grayson Waller won the Men’s Iron Survivor Challenge
Bron Breakker b. Apollo Crews – Spear

 

 

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Smackdown
Date: September 2, 2022
Location: Little Caesars Arena, Detroit, Michigan
Commentators: Pat McAfee, Michael Cole

We’re on a rare taped show this week as the roster has already head over to Wales for tomorrow’s Clash At The Castle. This week is focused on Roman Reigns reaching two years as Universal Champion and that means we are likely to see Drew McIntyre pop up too. Other than that, there is a chance we could see something else added to the card, as there are only six matches so far. Let’s get to it.

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

Opening sequence.

New Day vs. Viking Raiders

This is a Viking Rules match, meaning falls count anywhere and there is a bunch of viking themed stuff around the ring, including a big wooden mast of a ship extending from the ring into the aisle. New Day starts fast and stomps away in the corner, with some of the shields (yes shields) being knocked off the apron. The Vikings are sent to the floor so the big running flip dives take them down again. A running dropkick sends a shield into Erik’s face and Kofi adds a splash off the barricade for two.

We take a break and come back with Ivar hitting a running crossbody into the barricade for two on Woods. Back in and Kofi kendo sticks Erik, who hits a kind of Boss Man Slam for two of his own. Kofi knocks Erik to the floor and grabs a New Day themed mallet, which cracks Erik in the head for another two, because a mallet to the head is the same as a cover off a clothesline. Back up and the Vikings remember that it’s time to use the ship, with Kofi being slammed down hard onto the deck. A super World’s Strongest Slam gets two on Woods with Kofi making the save and we take another break.

Back again with two tables stacked up at ringside and Woods hitting a dropkick through the ropes. A discus forearm drops Erik and it’s a double stroke to send him through a chair. Ivar makes the save with a splash to the back (further crushing Erik in the process). Another super World’s Strongest Slam is broken up and Ivar misses a moonsault. Kofi’s top rope splash to the back sets up Woods’ rope walk elbow for two. They slug it out on the floor and Kofi is sent into the ship. The Vikings start swinging the shield to take over and Woods gets powerbombed through the two tables for the pin at 22:12.

Rating: B+. These guys beat the fire out of each other and while there were goofy themed weapons included, they were having a serious fight. That makes almost anything like this work and it was a rather good match as a result, The other good thing is that the Vikings get the big win, which more or less leaves nothing for them to do but face the Usos. Unfortunately that doesn’t seem likely, but maybe they have something else in there.

We take our first look back at Roman Reigns’ time as Universal Champion, starting with the title win and alliance with Paul Heyman.

We look back at Sami Zayn trying to endear himself to Roman Reigns over the last few weeks.

Sami Zayn is ready to be the emcee for Roman Reigns’ two year celebration as Universal Champion. Jimmy Uso approves of the efforts but Jey doesn’t like that Zayn couldn’t help him against Kevin Owens.

Shayna Baszler promises to win the Women’s Title by making Liv Morgan suffer. Morgan comes in to say not only will she not tap out, but Baszler is going to tap. Baszler is amused.

Killer Kross is ready to hurt Drew Gulak, just like he hurts everyone else. Tick tock.

More on Reigns’ reign, including his sixteen pay per view main events.

Karrion Kross vs. Drew Gulak

Kross powers him into the corner, kicks him in the face, hits the Doomsday Saito and finishes with the KrossJacket at 1:15. Total dominance.

Then Roman Reigns smashed more people.

Here is Ronda Rousey with a piece of paper. The paper is an official statement from WWE and she wants Adam Pearce out here to hear it. Pearce comes out and says the suspension was never personal. The letter reads that Rousey has gone too far but nothing she did was criminal. She has paid the fines so while she is on probation, she is no longer suspended. Pearce is ticked off and says he would have fired Rousey, who laughs at the idea of the Board taking his side over her.

Rousey goes to leave but Pearce goes on a rant about how no one cares what happens to him while he runs two shows a week 52 weeks a year. He has to take care of two shows and a bunch of whiny stars like Rousey. Pearce has no problem with the Board but he has a big problem with her.

Heaven forbid everything doesn’t go her way so she isn’t the Baddest Woman On The Planet. No, she’s the single biggest b**** that Pearce has ever met. Rousey loads up the death stare and Pearce begs off, only to get armbarred in short order. The fans were way behind Rousey here, which WWE seemed to understand with Pearce not exactly endearing himself to the crowd.

Sami Zayn gets a delivery for Roman Reigns: a bouquet of black roses with a note saying TICK TOCK.

Hit Row vs. Maximum Male Models

B Fab and the Dupris are here. The Models are cleaned out to start but here are Los Lotharios for a distraction. B Fab kicks them both in the face, leaving the Models to take Adonis down. Mace walks over Adonis’ back and drops an elbow for two. Adonis is back up and gets over to Dolla for the hot tag. House is cleaned, including a running splash in the corner to Mansoor. The Heavy Hitter finishes for Adonis at 2:59.

Post match Hit Row gets beaten down but the Street Profits come in for the save.

Happy Corbin is tired of losing so it’s open challenge time.

Roman Reigns has beaten a lot of people in different kinds of matches.

Happy Corbin vs. Shinsuke Nakamura

In case McAfee couldn’t get any more excited. Nakamura starts fast and kicks him into the corner, setting up the choking. Another kick to the face looks to set up Kinshasa but Corbin reverses into Deep Six for two. End of Days is countered so Corbin tries the slide under the ropes, only to charge into Kinshasa for the pin at 2:18.

We look at Raquel Rodriguez winning the Women’s Tag Team Title tournament on Raw.

Connor’s Cure video.

Happy Corbin is in the back when a limo, with horns, comes up. A voice that sounds a lot like JBL asks what happened to Corbin and tells him to get in. They ride away together as commentary confirms that was JBL’s voice.

Butch vs. Ludvig Kaiser

The rest of the Brawling Brutes and Gunther are here too though Butch is in his Pete Dunne gear for a bit of an upgrade. Butch hammers him into the corner to start but Kaiser fights his way out and steps on Butch’s hair. Back up and Butch hits a clothesline before starting in on the arm. Butch cranks on the arm but gets taken into the corner for a slap to the face. Kaiser’s middle rope European uppercut is forearmed out of the air and falls outside, where he uppercuts Butch down hard as we take a break.

Back with Butch stomping on the fingers and kicking him in the head for two. Some forearms to the head keep Kaiser down but he catches Butch with a kick to the head in the corner. A reverse t-bone suplex gets two but Butch slams him down and hits a big kick to the head. There’s the finger snap and the Bitter End finishes Kaiser at 9:01.

Rating: B-. Sometimes you need two people put in the ring to beat on each other really hard. That is what you got here, as Butch and Kaiser can both hit hard and have a good match at the same time. It also lets them build up Sheamus vs. Gunther by proxy and I’ll absolutely take that over either of them losing.

Post match Sheamus is ready to fight Gunther but we’ll save that for later.

We look at Roman Reigns having the sixth longest World Title reign in company history.

Sami Zayn is ready for the big moment but Jimmy Uso has to keep Jey Uso and Sami from having more problems.

Here are Sami Zayn and the Usos for the big celebration, complete with blown up pictures of some great Reigns moments. Zayn starts his speech but Jey takes over and says how much Reigns has dominated over the last two years. After telling the people to be ready, we cut to the back where Reigns arrives….and is promptly Claymored by Drew McIntyre.

Now it’s McIntyre in the arena and cleaning house, setting up the big running flip dive over the top onto all three. Zayn gets a chair Claymored into his face and the Usos are put through the announcers’ table/the barricade. McIntyre says he isn’t going to stop and promises to kick Reigns’ head off of his body, leaving McIntyre looking up at the new Undisputed Champion.

Overall Rating: B. The energy continues around here as they did a heck of a job building to Clash At The Castle on a taped show. The opener was very good and McIntyre looks like a killer on the way to Cardiff. Throw in the JBL/Corbin stuff which has me a bit interested and I liked a good bit of this show. Rather strong go home show, and if they can stick the landing tomorrow on the big stage, WWE is doing a lot better than they have been in a good while.

Results
Viking Raiders b. New Day – Double powerbomb through two tables
Karrion Kross b. Drew Gulak – KrossJacket
Hit Row b. Maximum Male Models – Heavy Hitter to Mansoor
Shinsuke Nakamura b. Happy Corbin – Kinshasa
Butch b. Ludvig Kaiser – Bitter End

 

 

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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Summerslam 2019
Date: August 11, 2019
Location: Scotiabank Arena, Toronto, Ontario, Canada
Attendance: 16,904
Commentators: Michael Cole, Corey Graves, Renee Young, Byron Saxton, Tom Phillips

I know I say something like this every year but it never ceases to amaze me how little I can remember about a show from the previous year. I can remember midcard matches from thirty years ago but the main event of this show? It took me a little while to come up with it and that’s not good. How can these things be that unmemorable? Let’s get to it.

Kickoff Show: Cruiserweight Title: Oney Lorcan vs. Drew Gulak

Gulak is defending and thank goodness there are fans in the building for the Kickoff Show. Drew hits a shotgun dropkick to start but Lorcan shoves him away. We hit the lockup and then go to the mat with Gulak gaining mat control. Back up and Gulak slams him hard into the corner and we take a break. We come back with Gulak riding him into a chinlock until Lorcan fights up again. Some uppercuts set up the running Blockbuster for two on Gulak.

They head outside with Gulak being sent into various things, only to come back with the Gulock back inside. Lorcan makes the rope so it’s a double clothesline to put them both down again. Back up and Gulak actually wins a slugout, setting up the Gulock. That’s flipped over into a cradle for two but the half and half is broken up. Lorcan does the Ultimate Warrior pose and pulls Gulak back in, which brings the ring skirt in with him. The distraction lets Gulak hit him in the throat, setting up the Cyclone Crash to retain the title at 8:49.

Rating: C. They beat the heck out of each other in some short bursts here and that is one of the better ways to open things up. Lorcan is always good for a spot like this and I dug Gulak’s singles run. It wasn’t an epic showdown or anything but it got the show off on a nice enough foot, which is the point of this division.

Kickoff Show: Buddy Murphy vs. Apollo Crews

This is during the time when Murphy could barely get on television and was still the Best Kept Secret. A quick knee gets two on Crews and Murphy stomps away in the corner. The chinlock doesn’t last long and they get up for an exchange of crossbodies. It’s Crews up first with a kick to the head and a jumping clothesline. The Angle Slam is escaped but Crews hits a Samoan drop into a standing moonsault for two.

Crews gets caught in the corner though and a running powerbomb gives Murphy his own two. Murphy hits another knee but Crews reverses Murphy’s Law into a cradle for another near fall. A backdrop sends Murphy to the floor, where he sends Crews into the steps. The big no hands flip dive drops Crews again….and here’s Erick Rowan to jump Murphy for the DQ (part of the Who Attacked Roman Reigns story) at 4:39.

Rating: C. It was an action packed match but they didn’t have much time before they got to the storyline ending. This is another case where it’s amazing how fast this stuff goes in one side of my head and out the other as I barely remember any of this aside from Murphy being taken out of the story so fast. I could have gone with more from these two, but it wasn’t going to matter with the big story going on.

Post match Rowan destroys Murphy even more, including a powerbomb against the post.

Here’s Elias for a song about Toronto. They think they are the center of the universe but they can’t win the Stanley Cup and no one goes to the Blue Jays game. Oh and the Toronto Raptors’ best player left town….and here’s Edge to interrupt. Edge gets the big hometown pop and then hits a very surprising spear, marking Edge’s first physical contact in over eight years. Then he never did anything physical again ever. Apparently he was medically cleared here but WWE was waiting on the big moment at the Rumble. Fair enough.

Kickoff Show: Women’s Tag Team Titles: Alexa Bliss/Nikki Cross vs. IIconics

Bliss and Cross are defending after winning the titles earlier in the week on Raw. Bliss has the Buzz Lightyear gear on and that’s a rather good choice. Kay on the other hand is Maleficent, sending Graves into a rant about how this isn’t Disney. Graves talks about the IIconics being locked in a hotel and laying in bed together for 24 hours to meld their energies but since Jerry Lawler isn’t on commentary, no one bites. Kay and Bliss trade headlocks to start until Bliss threatens her with the laser on her arm. That sends Graves through the roof again, to the point where he threatens to turn in his Bliss fan card.

It’s off to Cross as the Toy Story references come in fast. Peyton rolls Cross up for two but a blind tag lets Kay come back in to get in a cheap shot. A double kick to the back keeps Cross down and we hit the chinlock. Kay gets two off a gutwrench suplex but Cross faceplants Peyton and the hot tag brings in Bliss to clean house. Corey: “I was expecting Moana to come save the day.” Everything breaks down and Peyton hits something like a Widow’s Peak for two on Bliss. The kickout sends her into hysterics so Bliss punches Peyton down and nails Twisted Bliss to retain at 6:11.

Rating: D+. These titles continue to mean a grand total of nothing and are little more than a way to get the IIconics out there to annoy the fans while Bliss works on her cosplay skills. There isn’t enough of a division to hold them up at the moment and it becomes more and more obvious every time they’re defended. As in probably every month and a half or so.

The opening video talks about how we have arrived. You don’t get chances like these very often, so when you do, seize the moment. Tonight, we are Summerslam.

We recap Becky Lynch vs. Natalya in a submission match for the Raw Women’s Title. Natalya won a four way to get the title shot in her home country, because WWE still thinks that Natalya makes for an interesting challenger.

Raw Women’s Title: Becky Lynch vs. Natalya

Natalya is challenging in a submission match. The fans certainly seem to like both of them, though that might be due to Natalya coming out carrying a Canadian flag. They stare each other down and trade slaps to start so Becky drives her into the corner. That earns her a discus lariat but Becky is right back up to slug away again. The Bexploder sends Natalya down but the cross armbreaker is blocked. Becky grabs a triangle instead so Natalya tries a powerbomb.

That doesn’t break it up so Natalya lifts her up, only to get hurricanranaed down. Becky cranks on the legs near the apron and they fall to the floor with Natalya sending her into the barricade. Back in and Natalya suplexes her into the ropes to bang up the knee. The fans are behind Becky as she fires off knees but Natalya wraps the knee across the rope. The Sharpshooter goes on in the corner, which doesn’t seem like it would be as effective since there is almost no torque on Becky’s back and therefore the knees.

That’s broken up in a hurry and they fall outside with Natalya being sent into the announcers’ table. Now it’s a LET’S GO BECKY/NATTIE SUCKS chant as Natalya hits a superplex back inside for a double knockdown. It’s Natalya up first but the basement dropkick is countered into Becky’s version of the Sharpshooter. Natalya crawls over to the corner and rolls Becky into it for the escape and they’re both down.

Becky misses a kick out of the corner though and Natalya grabs the Disarm-Her for a change. That’s reverses and Becky tries the Sharpshooter but Natalya reverses into one of her own in the middle of the ring. Becky crawls to the rope for the break and this time pulls Natalya into the Disarm-Her to retain at 12:24.

Rating: B-. It was a good back and forth match but more importantly, now we can stop acting like Natalya is anything more than a good hand who gets the occasional title shot. Even her home country fans weren’t caring about her because they see what she is: talented in the ring but boring everywhere else. She’s been around forever and seeing her in these spots over and over again just makes me groan most of the time. I can’t believe I’m alone in that sentiment either. Also, like Becky was losing to anyone just four months after Wrestlemania. Well except to Charlotte of course.

Trish Stratus is ready to show Charlotte that legends are better than modern wrestlers because Charlotte couldn’t walk a mile in her boots.

We recap Goldberg vs. Dolph Ziggler. Dolph had been set up for a match against Miz but insulted Shawn Michaels and Goldberg on the way there. This set up a match against a legend instead, with Ziggler expecting Michaels but getting Goldberg. Just keep it short.

Goldberg vs. Dolph Ziggler

Before the match, Ziggler says he’s the best thing that could happen to this show because he gets rid of legends. Goldberg might not even be here tonight….and there’s the music. We get the full entrance and the pyro is rather strong as usual. The bell rings and they stare each other down, with Ziggler hitting a superkick for an early one. Another superkick gets another one but Goldberg hits a heck of a spear. The Jackhammer finishes Ziggler at 1:46. That’s how it should have been and Ziggler sold that spear as well as anyone in a good while.

We recap AJ Styles vs. Ricochet for the US Title. Ricochet didn’t think much of AJ treating him like an afterthought and then beat AJ to retain the title. Then Styles beat him up and took the title in their second title match with some help from Karl Anderson and Luke Gallows. Now it’s the trilogy match.

US Title: AJ Styles vs. Ricochet

Styles is defending and has Gallows and Anderson in his corner. Ricochet is in the full body suit here, which is always a weird visual. AJ goes right for him to start but gets knocked outside, with Ricochet using Anderson and Gallows as stepping stones to grab a hurricanrana on Styles. Back in and AJ stomps him down in the corner before switching to the leg in a smart move. Some elbows to the knee have Ricochet down and the knee is bent around the middle rope.

Ricochet manages to get in a kick to the face and another one to the head out of the corner. A one legged springboard clothesline (nice touch) gets two on AJ and a jumping neckbreaker into the running shooting star is good for the same. AJ is smart enough to kick the knee out again and Ricochet is sent outside. The fans are split but the dueling chants are cut off by AJ hitting a baseball slide.

Back in and AJ’s fireman’s carry backbreaker gets two more but Ricochet hits another kick to the head for another two. They’re both down with Ricochet slapping the leg, which would seem to hurt it even more but it’s wrestling logic. Since AJ knows his logic as well, we hit the Calf Crusher but Ricochet slams AJ’s head into the mat and slaps on an Anaconda Vice of all things.

With that broken up, Ricochet muscles him up with a suplex for two more and can’t believe AJ kicks out. How deadly does he think his suplex is? Ricochet takes out a distracting Gallows but the delay lets AJ crotch him on top. AJ gets knocked back though and Ricochet tries something like a Whisper in the Wind, only to have AJ pull him out of the air and into the Styles Clash to retain at 12:54. That looked awesome.

Rating: B. These two work well together and that’s all you need in this situation. Let them go out there and do their thing, with Ricochet looking great and AJ getting to show why he’s as great as everyone thinks he is. This was pretty much it for Ricochet as a singles challenger though, which has been the case ever since. I’m not sure what more you could want from Ricochet (just don’t let him talk) but hey, it’s not like WWE needs new stars with insane athletic ability, experience and charisma right?

Post match Anderson and Gallows give Ricochet the Magic Killer.

Smackdown Women’s Title: Bayley vs. Ember Moon

Moon is challenging and it’s almost weird to see old school Bayley these days. Bayley armdrags her down to start so an annoyed Moon sweeps the leg. A headlock doesn’t work for Bayley as Ember sends her into the corner for the front flip clothesline. Moon splashes her for two and it’s off to a bow and arrow. Back up and Moon misses a crossbody, allowing Bayley to hit the sliding lariat.

Bayley hangs her over the top and grabs a suplex for two more, setting up the stomping in the corner. The fans sing to Bayley, who pulls her shoulder first into the rope. Moon gets tied in the Tree of Woe for the springboard elbow and we hit the inverted Boston crab. That’s broken up and Moon nips up for a headscissors (nice) to send Bayley outside.

Back in and a super hurricanrana sets up a twisting Dominator into some knees to the face (nice as well) for the next near fall. Bayley gets in a kick to the face and goes up, but Moon pulls her into a spinning powerbomb (Moon has a lot of nice stuff). Moon goes up top but Bayley is right there to pull her down with a super Bayley to Belly for the pin at 10:03.

Rating: B-. This is a weird one as Moon had some sweet stuff in there but just got pinned almost out of nowhere in the end. I know a lot of people don’t like the new Bayley and I get that, but watching her back, you can see how much she has grown with the heel turn and the new character. At this point, she was just kind of a person with a reputation and not much else. Good enough match, but Moon wouldn’t be around much longer due to her ankle injury and Bayley would turn heel in less than a month so none of this meant anything long term.

We recap Shane McMahon vs. Kevin Owens. Shane went on a power/ego trip that the Attitude Era would think was a bit much and Owens was sick of him. This somehow meant EVEN MORE SHANE, who probably should have been #1 contender to the Smackdown World Title at this point. Anyway, Owens is gone if Shane wins and that is a rather popular idea.

Shane McMahon vs. Kevin Owens

The fans chant for Owens, but hang on though as Shane heads outside and says he has a guest outside referee: his personal goon Elias. Shane drops to the floor to start and Owens yells at Elias, with Shane sliding back in to try for the countout. That doesn’t work so the chase is on until Elias trips Owens. Back in and Owens hammers away in the corner, setting up the Cannonball.

A clothesline sends Shane outside for the third time but another Elias distraction lets Shane send Owens into the barricade. Back in and the Russian legsweep gets two on Owens and we hit the YOU CAN’T WRESTLE chants. A DDT gets two more and let’s hit that Hart reference with the Sharpshooter attempt. That’s broken up and Owens hit the Pop Up sitout powerbomb but Elias grabs the referee.

Owens picks up a chair and Shane offers a free shot but Owens goes with a superkick instead. There’s the Swanton into a frog splash for two, with Elias pulling the referee out again. The Owens cannonball hits both referees and that means he can grab the chair. Elias breaks that up so Owens chairs him over and over, leaving Owens to go after Shane again. The referee gets up and takes the chair away, so it’s a low blow into the Stunner to finish Shane at 9:19.

Rating: D+. Yeah what else were you expecting here? That being said, it was probably an easier sit this time around without having to watch all of the build to get to this match. Shane was a nightmare around this time and thankfully would be gone on the first Smackdown on Fox. At least Owens won here as someone had to finally beat Shane, who was completely ridiculous for the better part of a year at this point.

We recap Roman Reigns being attacked by a mystery man. Samoa Joe was accused of being the attacker but Buddy Murphy said it was Erick Rowan. Therefore, we flash back to the Kickoff Show with Rowan attacking Murphy.

Charlotte vs. Trish Stratus

Charlotte is the best of today and Trish may be the best ever, dream match ensues. They stare each other down (or up in Trish’s case) before going to the lockup against the ropes. The fans sing O Canada as it’s a standoff until Trish hits a quick Thesz non-press. Charlotte is right back with a Figure Four attempt but Trish flips her away with the headscissors. That lets Trish pose and soak in the YOU STILL GOT IT chants, followed by more circling.

This time it’s Charlotte being sent outside and Trish hits a Thesz press into the right hands off the apron. The posing is on but Charlotte isn’t ready to head back inside just yet. Instead she sends Trish hard into the barricade as they’re setting things up well so far. Back in and Trish is slammed face first into the mat a few times, setting up the double arm crank with a knee between the shoulders.

Charlotte nips up and mocks Trish’s point before bending the neck around the middle rope. Trish reverses a belly to back suplex into a crossbody for two, earning herself a knee to the neck. Some trash talk in the corner bring Trish back up so she double legs Charlotte for some right hands. That just earns her a big boot to the floor as Trish can’t get anything going here. Back in and Charlotte stomps her down but, say it with me, the moonsault misses.

Trish gets in a slap and starts the chops, including a WOO for a bonus. The Stratusphere is blocked but Trish pulls herself up and starts slapping away, setting up a super hurricanrana for two with the fans getting right back into things. The Chick Kick misses as well and Charlotte boots her in the face for her own two. It’s back to the leg but the Figure Four is countered into a small package to give Trish two more.

Trish gets her own Figure Four into the Figure Eight (Corey: “THIS IS NOT FAIR TO FLAIR!” You knew he was getting that in somewhere) but Charlotte escapes again. Charlotte’s spear only hits buckle and the Stratusfaction connects for two more. They go head to head from their knees and slug it out until the Chick Kick gives Trish the next near fall. Another Chick Kick is countered with the big boot and the Figure Eight makes Trish tap at 16:37.

Rating: B+. Match of the night by a long stretch and the storytelling was working hard here. Charlotte being overconfident made sense as she never believes anyone is in her league and it’s not like Trish surviving here and getting back into things is a stretch. I had more fun with this the second time around and it’s a heck of a match with Trish showing she could easily hang at this level. Her generation gets a lot of (often deserved) flack but she was that good and deserves all kinds of praise for being an actual trailblazer.

Post match Charlotte leaves and Trish gets the big hero’s moment with the posing.

Bret Hart wishes Seth Rollins luck.

We recap Kofi Kingston vs. Randy Orton. They brought up the infamous Madison Square Garden moment, which Orton claims for driving Kofi to where he is now. However, that wasn’t enough to make him better than Orton and now Orton wants the title. He even takes credit for the Wrestlemania moment and now Kofi is ready to prove that he got himself here.

Smackdown World Title: Kofi Kingston vs. Randy Orton

Kofi is defending on his own and his kids are in the front row (cue your Scooby Roo ruh roh sound effect). Orton taunts him with a pancake to start so a fired up Kofi drives him into the corner to start. That gives us dueling KOFI’S STUPID/RANDY SUCKS chants and Kofi runs the corner for a spinning shot to the head to….oddly quiet the fans down. Weird Canadians. Kofi hammers away in the corner until a poke to the eye cuts him off again. A big shove sends Kofi off the top and down into the barricade for your first big crash.

Orton drops him onto the announcers’ table and the dueling chants are back. Back in and Orton bends Kofi’s back around the middle rope, followed by an uppercut to the floor. Kofi jumps over the steps though and hits a shot to the head. The crossbody off the apron misses though and Orton drops him onto the announcers’ table again. Back in again and Orton seems to approve of the dueling chants. The superplex is broken up though and Kofi hits a top rope DDT for two.

The chops have Orton rocked but he comes back with the backbreaker for two more. Kofi backdrops his way out of the hanging DDT though and mostly nails the Trust Fall. Back in and Orton catches him on the apron with the hanging DDT. The RKO is countered though and Kofi goes up, only to dive right into the RKO. For some reason Orton doesn’t cover though and Kofi rolls outside. Orton follows and yells at Kofi’s kids, which sends Kofi into a frenzy for….I guess a very fast double countout at 16:28.

Rating: C+. They were working well together and Kofi was starting to make Orton sweat at the end, but then they did the ending that was designed to do nothing more than set up a rematch at Clash Of Champions. That’s such a big problem with WWE today. Outside of Wrestlemania, everything is built around the idea of setting up a match at whatever show, leaving this show to feel unimportant. You’re already at Summerslam. How much of a bigger stage can you have for the rematch?

Post match the fans call BULLS*** and don’t seem interested as Kofi unloads with a kendo stick. Trouble In Paradise gets even less of a reaction.

We recap the Fiend vs. Finn Balor. Bray Wyatt had returned just after Wrestlemania with the Firefly Fun House, where he eventually started hinting at some kind of monster called the Fiend. Finn Balor became his first target and Balor said bring it on. The Fiend has attacked a few times before but this is his in-ring debut.

Finn Balor vs. The Fiend

Balor is all in white for the hero’s entrance but Fiend blows him away, with the debut of the severed head lantern and the upgraded theme music. Balor looks rightfully terrified and we’re ready to go. They even have the full lights on instead of going red for a nice relief. Fiend headbutts him down to start and wildly stomps away as the YOWIE WOWIE chants start up.

Balor manages a whip into the corner but Fiend leans back to scare him off. A clothesline to the back of the head sets up a release Rock Bottom and Fiend glares at him a lot. Sister Abigail is countered and Balor hits a Sling Blade into the jumping double stomp to the chest. The shotgun dropkick sets up the Coup de Grace but Fiend moves and grabs the mandible claw for the pin at 3:30.

Rating: C-. This is a hard one to grade as the match itself was far from the point. They were going with the idea of introducing the Fiend and making him out to be the new scary monster. That was accomplished in spades as Balor was completely destroyed and wound up heading back to NXT. Good stuff here, even if the match was barely anything to see.

Post match the lights go out again and Fiend appears on the stage. Balor’s eyes bug out as he isn’t sure what happened to him.

We recap Seth Rollins vs. Brock Lesnar. Seth beat him for the Universal Title at Wrestlemania but Brock cashed in Money in the Bank at Extreme Rules. Therefore, a now injured Seth, has to do it all over again. So yes, that’s really their best idea for the main event of Summerslam: just do Wrestlemania again.

Raw World Title: Brock Lesnar vs. Seth Rollins

Rollins is challenging and has injured ribs. After the Big Match Intros, Brock hits him in the ribs and drives shoulders in the corner. More shoulders have Paul Heyman rather pleased but Rollins flips out of a German suplex and hits a quick Stomp for two. The fans are properly woken up now and Brock bails to the floor, with Rollins hitting a running knee off the apron.

Back in and a pair of superkicks look to set up the Stomp but Rollins counters into the F5. Lesnar can’t follow up so he throws Rollins around by the rib tape. It’s time for the German suplexes to send Rollins outside, with Lesnar adding another suplex on the floor. Rollins slips out of an F5 though and posts Lesnar a few times, setting up the springboard knee to the head.

Lesnar is right back up with another German suplex though and they’re both down again. The dueling chants start again and Brock takes off the gloves. We hit the waistlock to stay on the ribs for a bit until Brock’s charge hits the post. Seth hits two suicide dives but the third one is countered with a hard ram into the post for another double knockdown.

The announcers’ table is loaded up but Seth superkicks Brock onto it instead, setting up the super frog splash from the top of the post. Another frog splash connects back inside and the Stomp gets two. The next Stomp is countered into a failed F5 attempt so Rollins superkicks him into another Stomp for the pin and the title at 13:21.

Rating: B. And then Lesnar went away forever, never to go after the World Title again. Or he won it again in about two and a half months because that’s what always happens. Anyway, this was another solid match between the two of them and it was a lot more engaging because it actually got some time. Lesnar’s spamming finishers matches get old in a hurry because he does them so often. Mix it up a bit with something like this between some talented people and it makes that big of a difference. It doesn’t have the impact because we saw it four months earlier, but at least it was good.

The celebration ends the show.

Overall Rating: B. This is a pretty strong show with nothing terribly bad (Shane’s match is the weakest and even that involves seeing him get beaten up) and some solid performances in the big matches. It’s also a pretty short show with the main card clocking in at less than three and a half hours. They didn’t stretch this out further than they needed to and it felt like a big show. Good stuff here and worth a look if you have the time.

Ratings Comparison

Drew Gulak vs. Oney Lorcan

Original: C+

Redo: C

Apollo Crews vs. Buddy Murphy

Original: C-

Redo: C

IIconics vs. Alexa Bliss/Nikki Cross

Original: D+

Redo: D+

Becky Lynch vs. Natalya

Original: B

Redo: B-

Goldberg vs. Dolph Ziggler

Original: N/A

Redo: N/A

AJ Styles vs. Ricochet

Original: B

Redo: B

Ember Moon vs. Bayley

Original: D+

Redo: B-

Kevin Owens vs. Shane McMahon

Original: D+

Redo: D+

Trish Stratus vs. Charlotte

Original: B

Redo: B+

Randy Orton vs. Kofi Kingston

Original: B-

Redo: C+

The Fiend vs. Finn Balor

Original: C+

Redo: C-

Seth Rollins vs. Brock Lesnar

Original: B-

Redo: B

Overall Rating

Original: C-

Redo: B

Oh come on it was better than that.

Here is the original review if you’re interested:

https://kbwrestlingreviews.com/2019/08/11/summerslam-2019-the-summertime-purples/

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.

Summerslam 2018
Date: August 19, 2018
Location: Barclays Center, New York City, New York
Attendance: 16,169
Commentators: Michael Cole, Corey Graves, Byron Saxton, Tom Phillips, Jonathan Coachman

This time for sure, Summerslam edition! Yes believe it or not the main event is once again Roman Reigns challenging Brock Lesnar for the Universal Title because that hasn’t gotten old this year. Other than that….as usual I can barely remember anything on these shows as they run together so much. Let’s get to it.

Oh and due to the recent WWE Network update, I get to watch the Kickoff Show on YouTube. Well done with that one people.

Kickoff Show: Andrade Cien Almas/Zelina Vega vs. Lana/Rusev

Rusev is on fire at this point and it’s a battle of the wrestling pairs. Andrade gets Rusev to chase him and it’s right into the double Tranquilo pose. Rusev and Lana shout at them but Andrade gets in a cheap shot to break up the chase. That’s fine with Rusev, who stomps him down in the corner until Zelina offers a distraction. Andrade posts him like a good rudo, setting up the armbreaker over the ropes. An armbar takes us to a break and we come back with Vega pulling Lana off the apron to prevent the tag.

The reverse tornado DDT gives Andrade two and the armbar goes on again. Another reverse tornado DDT is countered with a forearm (keeping it simple can work) though and it’s the hot tag to Lana. A bulldog lets Lana dance up and the neckbreaker gets two. Vega sends her face first into the buckle but Lana breaks up the running knees with a kick to the head. Andrade makes sure the Accolade doesn’t go on with a well timed distraction though and Vega grabs a rollup with her feet…..as close to the ropes as she can get them for the pin at 7:02. That was pretty adorable with Vega trying to get there and not reaching.

Rating: D+. What happened with Rusev and Lana? I know I ask that a lot but egads man. They’re married in real life, Rusev has more charisma than he knows what to do with and Lana is the walking definition of a blonde bombshell who can talk. A year later they’ve basically disappeared and I would love to know why. At least Andrade is getting a push, and with as much talent as he has, there is no reason for him not to. The fans are properly fired up now so well done on the job, even if the match wasn’t great.

Kickoff Show: Cruiserweight Title: Drew Gulak vs. Cedric Alexander

Cedric is defending in the first of NINE title matches because WWE has too many times and doesn’t get why that is such a problem. Gulak’s friends Brian Kendrick and Jack Gallagher are barred from ringside. Feeling out process to start with Cedric taking him into the corner but having his headscissors blocked. The Gulock is broken up in a hurry and Cedric hits a dropkick to take things outside.

Gulak gets in a big boot on the way back inside and Cedric has banged up his neck. The neck crank goes on and we take a break. Back with Gulak’s continued logical offense, including some clotheslines and a chinlock. Gulak throws him over his back and pulls on the neck some more (close to a Gory Special) but since that can’t last long, Cedric is right back with a springboard Downward Spiral. With the wrestling not working, it’s time to hammer away at the head before sending him outside.

The big running flip dive hits Gulak again but he’s fine enough to break up a springboard. The Gulak over the ropes is half and half on the logical offense theme but the regular version can’t go on. A hard elbow to the head rocks Gulak, who comes right back with the biggest right hand I’ve ever seen him throw. The Neuralizer is countered into the ankle lock but Cedric rolls into a cradle for two. Cedric’s Spanish Fly is countered into a rollup for two, which is reversed into a stacked up rollup to give Cedric the pin at 10:43.

Rating: B-. This was the well done match that I was expecting, with Gulak going after the obvious target but not being able to finish off the more well rounded Alexander. Cedric was kind of a dull character but he is more than good enough to have a fast paced match like this. Gulak winning the title here would have been a good moment, but Cedric was hardly a bad choice for champion.

Kickoff Show: Raw Tag Team Titles: B-Team vs. Revival

The B-Team is defending because WWE would rather laugh than go with a team they have invested so much in already. At least we get the B-TEAM B-TEAM GO GO GO entrance. Dallas headlocks Dawson down over but everything breaks down in a hurry with a shot to Dallas’ leg. The Shatter Machine hits the illegal Axel and a missile dropkick/spinebuster (Hart Attack variation) gets three straight twos on Dallas. More leg cranking takes us to a break and we come back with more leg cranking.

Dawson puts on a spinning toehold but gets kicked shoulder first into the post. Since Axel is still down (well done on making the Shatter Machine look awesome) though, it’s a backbreaker/middle rope knee for two more. Dallas grabs a hanging swinging neckbreaker on Wilder and now it’s back to Axel off the hot tag. Everything breaks down with the PerfectPlex being countered into a small package. Dallas shoves Wilder into the pile though and Axel winds up on top to retain at 6:12.

Rating: D+. This was the “let’s add a Raw match to the Kickoff Show because it’s for a title and people will care” theme and, as usual, it didn’t work very well. We’re three matches in and now the four hour Summerslam gets to start. It’s just one more thing added to the card that was completely forgettable and took a little bit more out of the fans. How does this make the night better?

Terry Crews is outside the Barclays Center and talks about the measure of success. You can feel the heartbeat in your chest to drive you and then you grind to find the moments that define success for you. Tonight, this is where dreams come true because all the world’s a stage. So what defines success and greatness and how bad do you want it? Go ahead and take a bow because we’ll let you take a bow because you’re about to bear witness to another great Summerslam. The things he was saying only kind of made sense, but sweet goodness that man can get you fired up for a show.

The CGI Empire State Building is over the ring again. You can’t see it live in the arena of course and that will mess you up when you see it on a monitor and not before your eyes.

Intercontinental Title: Seth Rollins vs. Dolph Ziggler

Rollins is challenging with the freshly returned Dean Ambrose in his corner (because having him show up on Raw was far smarter than having him show up at Summerslam) to counter Drew McIntyre (because DOLPH ZIGGLER was the bigger prospect in 2018…..and kind of was in 2019 as well). As a bonus, Rollins is in Thanos inspired gear while Ziggler has a picture of the title over the front of his tights.

They go with the grappling to start with Rollins being backed up to the ropes, meaning it’s time for Ambrose to stare at McIntyre. The early superkick misses Rollins and Ziggler bails to the floor. That means a double staredown until Rollins throws him back in for some chops. Ziggler kicks at the leg to take over and we get a Flair Flip of all things. The chinlock goes on with Ziggler kicking the knee to keep Rollins down in a smart move.

Rollins’ comeback doesn’t last long as Ziggler backdrops him to the floor. Back in and Ziggler’s high crossbody is pulled out of the air but they crash to the floor again off of a suplex attempt (that’s always a scary looking spot). Back in again and Rollins gets two off a middle rope Blockbuster but Ziggler crotches him on top. Another superplex attempt is broken up and Rollins sends him outside for a suicide dive.

Rollins’ windup knee gets two but the buckle bomb is countered into a quickly broken sleeper. They fight to the apron with Ziggler kicking him into the post and nailing the DDT onto the apron for what should be a huge knockout. Since it’s this kind of a match though, it’s only good for two. Rollins hits him in the face again and gets his own two off the great looking frog splash.

Ziggler goes up top but Ziggler catches him with a reverse superplex into a reverse Falcon Arrow for a nice twist on the usual sequence. The fans give it a standing ovation so they seem to have some good taste. Hold on though as McIntyre sends Ambrose into the steps with the distraction letting Ziggler hit the Zig Zag for two. I blame the kickout on Cole declaring it over, which is the magical cure for a finisher. Rollins is busted open as he reverses a rollup into the buckle bomb. Dean gets back up and takes care of an interfering McIntyre, leaving Rollins to him the Stomp to get the title back at 22:02.

Rating: B. You don’t expect the opener to get this kind of time. The match was entertaining though it wasn’t quite the instant classic they were going for. It felt like the match was more of a collection of spots than a match that built on itself to get somewhere. That’s a great way to get an entertaining match and for what they were going for, I can certainly live with something like this. Maybe not the highest quality but very entertaining, which more or less defines Rollins.

Rollins and Ambrose celebrate a lot.

The Bellas are here to support their bestest friend ever Ronda Rousey, and to plug all their stuff of course. They might even get back in the ring at Evolution.

Smackdown Tag Team Titles: New Day vs. Bludgeon Brothers

Big E. and Xavier Woods are challenging and it’s almost weird to see Kofi around a Tag Team Title match these days. Rowan wastes no time by spin kicking Woods in the face to start. Harper hits a big boot of his own and it’s off to the Gator Roll into the chinlock. A running splash from Rowan sets up the head vice as it’s total dominance to start. Big E. gets knocked off the apron and Woods is sent outside to join him, but Rowan can’t powerbomb Woods onto the steps.

A hurricanrana sends Harper into the steps and the hot tag brings in Big E. Belly to belly suplexes on the floor abound (with Harper landing on his head and thankfully not breaking something), followed by the Warrior Splash to Harper inside. Harper is right back with a Michinoku Driver but Big E. sends Rowan into the post. Woods hits a dive onto Rowan and Big E. spears Harper through the ropes.

Rowan is back up with his own dive off the apron to Big E. and things finally settle down a notch. Woods can’t complete a springboard tornado DDT as Harper reverses into a powerbomb for two, meaning it’s time for Kofi to play cheerleader. Apparently not a fan of cheerleading, Rowan plants Kofi but walks into the Big Ending.

Big E. Rock Bottoms Harper off the apron into what was supposed to be a backstabber from Woods, though it was more like Harper just landed on Woods’ legs. Eh can’t hit them all. Woods makes up for it by dropping the big elbow off the top to the floor and Harper is actually in trouble. UpUpDownDown is loaded up but Rowan hits Woods with the hammer for the DQ at 9:27.

Rating: B-. They didn’t play around here and went with the all action match, which was the right call here. Let them do whatever they wanted and have an entertaining match as a result. New Day was throwing everything they could against the unstoppable monsters and came close to getting a win. That’s the kind of hope spot you need over a team like the Brothers as you have to have a reason to believe something could happen in the future. That being said, it didn’t mean anything in the end as Rowan tore his bicep and New Day would win the titles in two days.

Post match the Brothers destroy New Day with the hammer.

Jon Stewart is here.

We recap Kevin Owens vs. Braun Strowman. Owens said he was on a role and tried to get Strowman’s help to win Money in the Bank. Strowman didn’t like it when Owens inevitably turned on him and threw him through a bunch of tables before winning the briefcase. The Strowman destroyed Owens’ car and put him in a portable toilet, which he knocked off the stage. Owens “beat” Strowman in a cage match when Strowman threw him off a cage so now it’s a rematch for the Money in the Bank briefcase.

Money In The Bank Briefcase: Braun Strowman vs. Kevin Owens

Strowman is defending and can lose the briefcase by losing in any way. An early pair of running splashes in the corner sends Owens outside and Strowman runs him over again. Owens’ superkick just makes Strowman angrier and it’s a chokeslam onto the ramp. The running powerslam finishes Owens at 1:55. Well that worked and makes Strowman look like the monster, but HAHA if you actually thought they would put the title on him.

Clip of a Be A Star rally.

We recap the Smackdown Women’s Title match. Carmella cashed in Money in the Bank at the Smackdown after Wrestlemania and has been put over one name after another, though she is still seen as in over her head. Becky Lynch has been trying to get back to the top and is getting the shot here. Then Charlotte saved Becky from a beatdown and got a match where she could be added to the match if she won. Since it’s Charlotte, OF COURSE she was added in, which Becky saw as someone else trying to steal her chance. Charlotte did get in a good line with Carmella “is a Diva living in a woman’s world.”

Smackdown Women’s Title: Becky Lynch vs. Charlotte vs. Carmella

Carmella is defending and we get the Big Match Intros, with the hometown champ not being well received. As I continue to not understand why the title belt is shown inside what looks like the Elimination Chamber during the graphic, the bell rings and Carmella starts running her mouth. Charlotte gets sent outside so Becky can hit a running legdrop but the second misses.

Carmella isn’t happy with Charlotte breaking up the cover but it’s time to get crafty. She slaps Becky in the head and blames Charlotte, who says she’s innocent as they knock Carmella to the floor. Becky and Charlotte trade rollups and it’s a standoff for some applause. An armbar puts Charlotte down for all of two seconds but Carmella is back in because she can’t just go away.

Becky gets sent into the steps so Carmella can shout and dance a lot. Charlotte is whipped down as well and Carmella takes Becky inside for, you know it, more shouting. She does even things out a bit with a chinlock until Charlotte comes back in, only to be taken down by the hair. Now it’s Charlotte getting chinlocked as we see the wide range of Carmella’s offense. Becky makes her own save, gets dropkicked down, and Carmella shouts about being champion again. How can she be repeating stuff that many times less than six minutes into a match?

Carmella mocks Becky’s pose and ducks a shot from Charlotte, which hits Becky instead. Some fall away slams drop Carmella and Charlotte nips up but Becky knees her in the face. A double missile dropkick puts Carmella and Charlotte down again with Charlotte being sent outside. Becky gets caught on top for a hurricanrana to give Carmella two, leaving herself open to Charlotte’s spear.

Since we can’t go that long with Carmella being on defense, she knocks Charlotte into the corner and shouts that no one cares about her anymore. Another hurricanrana out of the corner is countered into a Boston crab (with Charlotte driving her down from the corner almost like a Styles Clash) before switching to the Figure Four. That’s broken up with Becky’s top rope legdrop and they’re all down.

Becky gets up first and hammers on Carmella, who of course knocks her outside because SHE IS THE CHAMP. A rather hard suicide dive hits Becky but it’s Charlotte coming off the top with the moonsault, which goes right between them and barely makes contact, as usual. Back in and Carmella breaks up the Disarm-Her so Becky gets two off a Rock Bottom, with Carmella making ANOTHER save.

Carmella gets two off a superkick with Charlotte making the very last second save. Charlotte gets sent outside so it’s another superkick to Becky, who shrugs it off without much trouble. The Disarm-Her goes on but Charlotte dives in with Natural Selection for the pin on Becky at 14:42.

Rating: C+. The action was good but the important thing here is that Carmella can go off to do ANYTHING but be in the title picture. Her reign showed the entire problem with using Money in the Bank as a quick rise to the top: Carmella was never viewed as a serious wrestler but she won a ladder match and stole the title so now she can hang with Charlotte and Becky? It never worked and this match exposed how limited she was in the ring, with all the shouting and superkicks getting old in a hurry. She is perfectly fine as the cheerleader type character and it fits her SO much better, as time has proven.

The match itself was pretty good with a lot of saves and back and forth action, but I kept wanting Carmella to fall in a hole somewhere so the other two could have a better match. The fans wanted to see Becky and having Charlotte get the title back wasn’t the most thrilling result. Becky’s frustrations are proven right again and things could get interesting as a result.

Post match Becky hugs Charlotte but completely snaps, beating the fire out of her and throwing Charlotte over the announcers’ table to one of the biggest face reactions in forever. WWE actually tried to treat this as a heel turn for a bit before realizing that it just wasn’t working and strapped a rocket to Becky’s back, leading all the way to the main event of Wrestlemania and the biggest push in women’s history.

We recap AJ Styles vs. Samoa Joe. AJ has been champion for about nine months and has beaten a bunch of challengers so he issued an open challenge for Summerslam. Joe choked AJ out and signed the contract before starting his real attack. He called out AJ for neglecting his family but promised to send AJ home by ending the title reign. Then he read a letter from AJ’s wife, saying that everything Joe said was true and how much she wanted Joe to win.

Smackdown World Title: AJ Styles vs. Samoa Joe

Joe is challenging and the fans certainly seem to like him, though AJ isn’t exactly being booed. AJ’s wife and daughter are in the crowd so Joe breaks up the Big Match Intros and says hi to both of them, promising to send daddy home tonight. An early Koquina Clutch attempt doesn’t work and it’s a TNA chant for a little flashback. Joe gets in a cheap shot in the corner and then bails to the ropes as the mind games continue.

AJ takes him down with a headlock as they’re starting slowly (which is ok). Back up and a big shoulder sends AJ into the ropes as Graves explains the psychology in a rare bit of usefulness. They trade kicks to the leg so things can start picking up a bit. In what shouldn’t be a surprise, Joe wins the battle of the strikes at first but AJ keeps going with chops against the ropes.

The drop down into the dropkick has Joe in trouble and AJ knocks him outside. Since AJ isn’t that bright, he gets his leg kicked out to send him face first into the apron. Joe hits the big suicide elbow to send AJ into the announcers’ table, with Graves saying it’s like a flying school bus. Can someone explain to Graves that the Magic School Bus is fiction? Back in and a clothesline gives Joe two and the chinlock goes on.

That goes nowhere so AJ fights up and sends Joe outside for the slingshot forearm. Back in and the middle rope moonsault into the reverse DDT gets two but Joe is right back up with a middle rope leg lariat. A big boot into the backsplash is good for two more as Joe keeps using the power advantage. AJ’s fireman’s carry gutbuster hurts his own knee so Joe is right back with the snap powerslam (great one too).

AJ is right back up and manages the Styles Clash for two and the fans bought the near fall. The Rock Bottom out of the corner gives Joe a breather but AJ is right back with the Calf Crusher (remember the leg kicks earlier). You don’t put holds on Joe though and he slams AJ’s head into the mat for the break, quickly followed by the Koquina Clutch. A foot on the rope breaks things up so Joe takes it outside….and talks to AJ’s wife, saying AJ won’t be coming home but he’ll be her new daddy. You know it’s on now as AJ tackles Joe over the barricade and hits him with a chair for the DQ at 22:45.

Rating: B. This is one where the DQ finish makes sense to keep the story going, though I’m not sure why Joe, who has been very calculating this whole time, would do something like that when he was in control. It came off more like he was admitting he couldn’t beat AJ tonight and that’s not Joe’s style. What we did get was a solid back and forth match with AJ fighting his heart out and Joe using the power and size advantage to dominate the emotional champ. I’m certainly down for a rematch and that’s where this is obviously going.

Post match AJ beats the fire out of Joe with the chair, drawing a WHO’S YOUR DADDY chant. With Joe gone, AJ checks on his wife and daughter, the latter of whom says he’s bleeding. AJ: “I’m sorry.”

Here’s Elias for a song. Believe it or not, he was a child once but then he grew up and wrote a great album. That album included a song called Elias’ Words and knowing that the entire world loves you is an incredible feeling. Tonight we’re getting a new song and it might be his greatest yet. This song is dedicated to all of the New Yorkers out there tonight, because all of the dirt in their ears and mind and the harsh reality of living in this city is all about to be washed away. And then his guitar breaks. Well so much for that.

Miz runs into the B-Team backstage (why they’re still in their gear two hours after their match isn’t clear) but he doesn’t need their luck. Tonight he’s proving that he’s better than Daniel Bryan, but if they want to fetch the limo for the post match celebration, he’s good with that. They’re leaving actually because they have their own celebrating to do. They’re not the Miztourage anymore because they’re the B-Team. The B stands for Daniel Bryan and offer him a spot on their new reality show: “Total Fellas, but with a B, so Total Bellas!” Miz looks confused.

We recap the Miz vs. Daniel Bryan, which is eight years in the making. Miz was Bryan’s NXT Pro back in the day despite Bryan being much more experienced. Bryan broke away from Miz and turned into a star but never could shake the Miz, who thought Bryan was a huge fluke. Then Bryan got hurt and had to leave for years, with Miz taunting him after he walked away and retired. Miz called him out for being a coward and started using Bryan’s offense for years.

This included Miz’s incredible Talking Smack promo where Bryan called Miz a coward, sending Miz into an all time rant about how Bryan was the coward for not getting back in the ring while Miz was here every day. Then one day Bryan was medically cleared and everyone saw this match coming. Now it’s on the big stage as everyone is ready to see Bryan kick Miz’s head off. The theme is passion vs. fame and completely different ideologies about wrestling. It’s a natural rivalry and this match has more than earned a spot on this kind of a major show.

Daniel Bryan vs. The Miz

Miz’s wife and daughter are in the front row (who knew AJ was so influential). Bryan has talked for months about wanting to punch Miz in the face so he immediately balls up his fist, sending Miz into the ropes. Miz gets in the first few shots and fires off the kicks in the corner but the running dropkick is caught by the throat. Bryan gets to punch him in the face to a BIG reaction and now it’s Miz getting kicked in the corner for his efforts.

Another kick to the chest gets two but Miz takes him down for a surfboard. It turns out that Bryan knows how to escape that pretty easily and puts Miz in it to even things up. More YES Kicks (Graves: “Paying homage to the Miz.” Tom: “I swear to God.”) connect but Miz is right back with a hard clothesline to drop Bryan again. A cravate lets Miz hit some knees to the head and Bryan is back down.

The Reality Check gets two but Miz takes too long loading up the kicks, allowing Bryan to hit the moonsault out of the corner into the running clothesline. A hurricanrana out of the corner gets two and Miz is sent outside, meaning it’s the running dropkick through the ropes. The big dive to the floor drops Miz again and Bryan gets smart by tying him in the Tree of Woe for the kicks to the chest. The belly to back superplex gets two as it keeps getting worse for Miz.

Bryan misses the big YES Kick though and Miz hits a DDT for a breather. Miz’s YES Kicks just wake Bryan up so he catches a kick and hits Miz in the face (as promised). It’s too early for the running knee as Miz counters into a failed Figure Four attempt. The Skull Crushing Finale doesn’t fail though and gives Miz his next close two. With his chest looking very banged up, Miz’s running knee is countered with another kick to the head for two and they’re both dazed.

As tends to be the case at this point in a match, they had to the apron, where Bryan’s kick hits the post to give Miz a big target. He’s smart enough to go straight to the Figure Four but Bryan eventually turns it over to reverse the pressure. Miz isn’t smart enough to just unhook his leg so it’s a long crawl to the rope for the break. Bryan is right back on him by tying up Miz’s arm for the elbows to the face and then the YES Lock.

With Miz getting close to the rope, Bryan punches him in the back of the head for some good measure. Miz gets a boot on the rope and rolls to the floor, where Bryan hits the running knee from the apron. As luck would have it though, he winds up next to Maryse, who slips him something made of metal. Bryan tries a suicide dive but gets knocked cold with a shot to the head, allowing Miz to get the pin at 23:45.

Rating: B. It wasn’t the big, epic match they were shooting for but what we got was something that got pretty close to living up to the hype. The problem is it’s nearly impossible to live up to a reality that fans had in their heads after so long, but they did very well anyway. Miz being cocky the whole time but not being able to survive against the more naturally talented Bryan made perfect sense. The cheating leaves them wide open for a rematch and since Miz’s wife got involved, Bryan’s should as well, right?

Super ShowDown is coming, including HHH vs. Undertaker for the last time ever.

Video on Undertaker vs. HHH, which is quite the story.

Baron Corbin vs. Finn Balor

Corbin has been a jerk to Balor so it’s Demon time, thankfully in a complete surprise so we didn’t have to hear THE DEMON IS FINN BALOR’S ALTER EGO for a month. The entrance shakes Corbin, possible because he’s realized that he’s Baron Corbin. Balor dropkicks him to the floor at the bell and hits the Sling Blade. The running flip dive hits Corbin and Balor sends him into the barricade. As Coach tries to figure out why Balor doesn’t use the Demon more often, it’s a top rope double stomp to Corbin’s back and the Coup de Grace finishes at 1:22. Exactly what it should have been, assuming you absolutely have to have Corbin employed.

Brie Bella checks on Bryan and they’re not happy with Miz and Maryse. Bryan says his comeback has been a bust but Brie calms him down.

United States Title: Jeff Hardy vs. Shinsuke Nakamura

Nakamura is defending and this is your “it just sounds cool” match of the show, as well as a rematch after Nakamura won the title in six seconds after a low blow last month. Jeff has been dealing with Randy Orton as of late as well so you can probably pencil in the interference. There’s no major contact for the first minute or so, meaning we need a COME ON from Nakamura. Hardy charges into a knee but stops to dance like Nakamura, which doesn’t sit well with the champ. Neither does Hardy doing COME ON as things actually get going.

Nakamura knees him in the face and grabs an arm trap chinlock, which is broken with a rather quick jawbreaker. Some more kicks have Hardy right back in trouble and we hit another chinlock. Jeff fights up again and hits something close to a Sling Blade to put them both down again. Another kick drops Hardy again though as he can’t seem to figure out that he needs to avoid the feet. He finally gets the idea as a running knee hits the buckle, allowing Hardy to nail the Whisper in the Wind for two.

Since that isn’t the most high impact move, Nakamura is right back with the hard knees but the low blow misses. Jeff dropkicks him down to set up the Swanton for a delayed two. With Nakamura rolling to the apron, Hardy tries another Swanton but crashes back first onto the apron for his efforts. Kinshasa retains the title at 10:57.

Rating: D+. The chinlocks hurt this one a lot and you could feel the energy going out of the crowd. This was around the time that Nakamura was putting it in coast mode and there wasn’t much that could draw him out. His charisma is more than enough to carry him, but it would be nice to see some effort into his matches. Jeff continues to drift around, which is pretty much all he does as a singles guy these days.

Post match Orton comes out but instead of going after Jeff, he just hits himself in the head and leaves without doing anything else. He can be an odd guy.

We recap Ronda Rousey vs. Alexa Bliss. Rousey had the Raw Women’s Title won at Money in the Bank but Bliss cashed in her briefcase to steal the title from Nia Jax. Bliss has been WAY too confident coming into this so Rousey has been suspended several times, yet still getting her title match here. Tonight Rousey is going to destroy Bliss and get the title for the first time.

Raw Women’s Title: Ronda Rousey vs. Alexa Bliss

Ronda is challenging and has Natalya, whose dad Jim Neidhart died a few weeks back (meaning she has her dad’s Summerslam 1990 jacket on for a great touch). Oh and the Bellas are here too because they’re stars. Bliss hides in the ropes a few times to start as she is trying to delay the inevitable for as long as she can. A cheap shot is blocked by a single right hand to send Bliss outside.

Back in and Bliss bails a second time so Rousey turns her back and sits down to let Bliss get in safely. Bliss comes in and tries a chinlock, not realizing that it leaves her arm exposed. Rousey picks her up for the yet to be named Piper’s Pit and Bliss is on the floor again. The chase lets Bliss get in a few shots….and there’s the stare. Rousey unloads in the corner and hits the judo throws (while talking trash), setting up the armbar (with Bliss popping the arm out of joint as only she can) for the easy tap and the title at 4:38.

Rating: C+. This is one where the presentation was all that mattered. Rousey was never in any danger and the match was a complete squash, which was the right call. There was no reason to pretend that Bliss could be a threat to her and they didn’t waste their time on anything stupid. Rousey is the biggest star in the division and one of the biggest in the company, so making her champion was the obvious move, especially since she’s here full time.

Post match Rousey hugs Natalya and the Bellas. Guess which two are booed. Her husband gets a big kiss as well. Rousey’s husband that is, in case it’s not clear.

We recap the Raw World Title match. Roman Reigns has been chasing the title and the win against Brock Lesnar for the better part of forever, having lost at Wrestlemania XXXI, Wrestlemania XXXIV and Greatest Royal Rumble. Now we’re doing it again because these two are joined at the hip in an eternal chase. This time around they’re presenting it as Reigns is here and Lesnar isn’t, even though the fans don’t seem to think much of Reigns so his attendance doesn’t make much difference. They teased Heyman jumping to Reigns but it was dropped in all of ten seconds so Lesnar could beat Reigns up again.

Raw World Title: Roman Reigns vs. Brock Lesnar

Reigns’ CGI entrance is a big dog head over the Shield logo, which is rather terrifying when you don’t know it’s coming. Lesnar is defending and Paul Heyman handles his Big Match Intro. Hold on though as Strowman comes out to say he’s going to be cashing in on whomever wins. Reigns hits three Superman Punches and two spears in the first thirty seconds but the third is countered into a guillotine choke.

That’s broken up with a spinebuster and we’re just over a minute in. Brock grabs it again so Reigns uses the same counter. For once it makes sense to have them laying down this early as they’ve beaten each other up quite a bit so far. Brock takes the gloves off and counters another Superman Punch into the rolling German suplexes. The fans say the two of them suck and Reigns escapes the F5.

A missed charge sends Reigns through the ropes and into Strowman, who Lesnar plants with an F5 on the floor. Reigns is thrown back in and Strowman grabs Lesnar’s leg. That earns him a beating with the briefcase, which Lesnar throws up to the stage (egads that’s not normal). Lesnar unloads with a chair, walks back inside and gets speared to give Reigns the title at 6:09.

Rating: D. NOW NEVER FIGHT AGAIN! This feud went on forever and their matches were the same finisher fests over and over again. Strowman could have been anything from the Monster to a stray puppy as he only served as a distraction to cost Lesnar the title. Reigns winning here doesn’t feel like some major moment, though it’s nice to have Lesnar FINALLY lose the title. They should have done this at Wrestlemania at the latest though and by the time they got here, no one cared and there was no reason for them to. At least it was shorter this time around so there is one minor positive. Just get on to any other feud, please.

Reigns poses as Strowman is still down to end the show.

Overall Rating: A-. I had forgotten how good this show was as WWE managed to cut out a bunch of the nonsense and just roll with the awesome matches that have been well built up. It’s so frustrating to see what they’re capable of doing when they actually try because they don’t put in the effort so much of the time. This was an awesome show with nothing very bad (Reigns vs. Lesnar is more the result of everything that came before it between the two of them) and three or four matches that got time and lived up to it. Check this one out if you have the time, but completely skip the Kickoff Show.

Ratings Comparison

Zelina Vega/Andrade Cien Almas vs. Rusev/Lana

Original: D

2019 Redo: D+

Cedric Alexander vs. Drew Gulak

Original: C+

2019 Redo: B-

Revival vs. B-Team

Original: D+

2019 Redo: D+

Dolph Ziggler vs. Seth Rollins

Original: B

2019 Redo: B

Bludgeon Brothers vs. New Day

Original: C+

2019 Redo: B-

Kevin Owens vs. Braun Strowman

Original: N/A

2019 Redo: N/A

Charlotte vs. Becky Lynch vs. Carmella

Original: C+

2019 Redo: C+

AJ Styles vs. Samoa Joe

Original: A-

2019 Redo: B

The Miz vs. Daniel Bryan

Original: B+

2019 Redo: B

Finn Balor vs. Baron Corbin

Original: N/A

2019 Redo: N/A

Shinsuke Nakamura vs. Jeff Hardy

Original: C

2019 Redo: D+

Ronda Rousey vs. Alexa Bliss

Original: C+

2019 Redo: C+

Roman Reigns vs. Brock Lesnar

Original: C+

2019 Redo: D

Overall Rating

Original: A-

2019 Redo: A-

Most of them are in the same ballpark, but AJ vs. Joe and Reigns vs. Lesnar must have canceled each other out. Still a great show though and one of the better ones WWE has done in recent(ish) memory.

Here’s the original review if you’re interested:

http://kbwrestlingreviews.com/2018/08/19/summerslam-2018-they-can-still-do-a-thing-or-two/

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.

Smackdown
Date: May 27, 2022
Location: Simmons Bank Arena, Little Rock, Arkansas
Commentators: Michael Cole, Pat McAfee

We’re almost up to Hell In A Cell and that means it might be time to actually add some things to the card. I’m not sure what the main event is supposed to be but maybe we get something else this week. If nothing else, New Day has a mystery partner to FINALLY wrap up their feud with the Brawling Brutes. I’m sure. Let’s get to it.

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

We open with a recap of the Usos taking out RKBro last week to unify the Tag Team Titles. Randy Orton was injured pretty badly last week to put him on the shelf for the time being.

Here are the Usos for a chat. After thanking Roman Reigns for making this possible, we hear about how the Usos recently celebrated twelve years in this company and they couldn’t have done it without the fans. The fans have cheered and booed them while seeing their up and definitely (Jey’s word) seeing their downs. After all their time together and all the plane rides and all the time away from their families, the fans were always there.

Jey always loves being here in front of these people and entertaining them, so from the bottom of their hearts, thank you. After all though though, Jimmy has learned that they need…..NO ONE! They have each other and now they have taken out RKBro, leaving Riddle crying like they had the little kids crying last week. Cue Shinsuke Nakamura with a challenge for a title match and he has a partner. This brings out Riddle and house is cleared, with the Usos being sent running.

We look at Ronda Rousey having some trouble beating Raquel Rodriguez a few weeks ago.

Riddle and Shinsuke Nakamura know they can work together, even without their regular partners.

Shotzi and most of the women’s division is in the locker room with Shotzi complaining about Rodriguez getting another match with Rousey. No one wants to listen to her until Natalya and Shayna Baszler seem intrigued.

Ronda Rousey vs. Raquel Rodriguez

Champions Contender match. Hold on though as we cut to the back where Natalya and Shayna Baszler come to the ring but Shotzi gets locked in the locker room thanks to Aliyah. I’m not sure how bright an idea it is to run a story about not being able to get through a locked door after someone else went through it this week, but we’ll go to the ring anyway. Rousey goes for the arm to start but gets powered up. The hurricanrana gets two on Rodriguez but Baszler and Natalya run in for the DQ at 42 seconds.

Natalya/Shayna Baszler vs. Ronda Rousey/Raquel Rodriguez

Joined in progress with Baszler working on Rodriguez’s knee. That’s broken up with a kick to the floor so Rousey comes in to clean house. Natalya takes her down in short order for the Sharpshooter but Rousey crawls over for the tag to escape (that’s a new one). Rodriguez gets taken down again but it’s right back to Rousey for the showdown with Baszler. Natalya breaks that up but the Tejada Bomb (Chingona) finishes Baszler at 3:24.

Rating: C-. And that’s how you use two women who will probably be headliners in the Women’s Tag Team Title tournament. Baszler and Natalya have never been portrayed as anything more than cranky losers and that was the case again here. Natalya even got Rousey in the Sharpshooter without much trouble but the match was over shortly thereafter. Another match that shows how unimportant the tag division is, in case that wasn’t clear enough.

New Day likes having the element of surprise because their partner tonight could be anyone from Max Moon to Reed Richards to the interviewer.

Los Lotharios vs. Jinder Mahal/Shanky

Hold on though as we cut to the back where Mahal can’t find Shanky. Mahal finds him in the locker room, dancing to their own theme music. They get to the ring and it’s Shanky big booting Humberto so Mahal can come in. Everything breaks down and Angel TAKES OFF HIS PANTS for the ring announcer Samantha Irvin (who looks terrified). The distraction lets Shanky kick Angel in the head but it’s Humberto hitting a springboard kick to the face to pin Mahal at 2:14.

Post match Mahal yells at Shanky and leaves so Shanky dances in front of Samantha, who seems a bit more enthusiastic.

Max Dupri comes in to see Adam Pearce and asks about his contract, which Pearce says is all legal. That works for Dupri, who can now find his first client.

Here is Kevin Owen for the KO Show, with his guest being a member of the Bloodline: SAMI ZAYN! After an exchange of pleasantries and a burial of whatever they were fighting about last time (Sami doesn’t remember either), Sami says he knows Ezekiel is Elias too. That has Owens crying on Zayn’s shoulder because someone finally believes him. Owens needs him to come to Raw and help him deal with Ezekiel but Zayn has his hands full. Zayn calls him Uce, but Owens isn’t sure he likes that.

Owens calls him a moron, so Zayn says that Ezekiel and Elias are CLEARLY different people. This turns into a LIAR/MORON exchange until Owens asks why the Bloodline left Zayn high and dry on Raw. Owens introduces the Bloodline twice but no one comes, because the Bloodline doesn’t care about him. Sami says Owens doesn’t know what he’s talking about and goes to leave but Owens stops him in the aisle, earning a shove into the barricade. Owens goes back into the ring and beats up the people taking down the set to blow off some steam.

Ricochet/Drew Gulak vs. Gunther/Ludvig Kaiser

Gunther wastes no time in shoving Gulak off the top for a crash as we take an early break. Back with Gulak getting over for the tag to Ricochet who hits a springboard crossbody on Kaiser. A fireman’s carry is broken up by a rake to the eyes though and it’s back to Gulak. That’s fine with Kaiser, who kicks him in the face for the pin at 6:24. Not enough shown to rate but it was just a step above a squash.

Post match Gunther kicks Ricochet in the face.

Sami Zayn asks the Usos where they were and thinks he isn’t being respected. What if he just joined with them? That’s cool with the Usos, who make him an honorary Uce. Zayn is very pleased, but I don’t know how much the Usos buy this.

Memorial Day video, three days before Memorial Day.

Brawling Brutes vs. New Day/???

Before the match, Sheamus brags about how it doesn’t matter who the mystery partner is because New Day Sucks, New Day Sucks, New Day Sucks. Cue New Day, who thinks the Brawling Brutes sound like off brand Wrestling Buddies. After more jokes (including McAfee having way too much fun with Sheamus saying it doesn’t matter if it’s Moby Dick), it’s Drew McIntyre and we’re ready to go.

The bell rings (nineteen minutes after the Brutes came to the ring) and it’s Butch going after Woods to start. Woods gets taken into the corner for the forearms to the chest from Sheamus, with Butch adding a bunch of his own. Woods fights up gets over to McIntyre for the tag, meaning Holland comes in for a change. Sheamus’ distraction lets Butch get in a cheap shot and we take a break.

Back with Sheamus hitting a top rope knee on Kofi for two in a big crash. Kofi manages to knock him down but the other Brutes pull Woods and McIntyre off the apron like good villains. The hot tag attempt works a bit better on the second attempt though as McIntyre comes in to clean house.

Butch jumps on McIntyre’s back but gets sent outside, leaving Woods to hit a running dropkick through the ropes. Sheamus hits Woods with something (off camera) so Kofi dives onto Sheamus for the knockdown. The Glasgow Kiss and the Claymore set up the Limit Breaker to give Woods the pin at 11:31.

Rating: C+. Perfectly good house show main event here as McIntyre was one of the most logical choices New Day had. Hopefully this wraps up a feud that has gone on for far too long now as WWE continues to not quite get how to put a bow on things. McIntyre continues to look like a monster and that is what he got to do here, as he does better than anyone on Smackdown at the moment.

Dancing, including McIntyre, ensues to end the show.

Overall Rating: C-. While it wasn’t the worst show, this was a pretty dry effort as there was barely anything noteworthy. I don’t get much out of McIntyre being gone for two weeks on a promotional tour and coming back to beat up Ridge Holland or Owens vs. Zayn again but your mileage may vary. It’s another slow show on the way to their latest uninspired pay per view, which takes place in nine days and has four matches on the card, all from Raw. WWE might want to work on that, but they didn’t do anything about it here.

Results
Raquel Rodriguez b. Ronda Rousey via DQ when Natalya and Shayna Baszler interfered
Ronda Rousey/Raquel Rodriguez b. Natalya/Shayna Baszler – Tejada Bomb to Baszler
Los Lotharios b. Jinder Mahal/Shanky – Springboard kick to the face to Mahal
Gunther/Ludvig Kaiser b. Ricochet/Drew Gulak – Running kick to Gulak
New Day/Drew McIntyre b. Brawling Brutes – Limit Breaker to Holland

 

 

 

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Smackdown
Date: May 20, 2022
Location: Van Andel Arena, Grand Rapids, Michigan
Commentators: Pat McAfee, Michael Cole

We are about two weeks away from Hell In A Cell and I think that means you know what you’re getting. The big story tonight is the Tag Team Title unification match between RKBro and the Usos, which will probably get quite a bit of hype. Other than that, we have a lot more to cover before the pay per view so let’s get to it.

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

Opening sequence.

Here is the Bloodline to get things going, with Michael Cole saying that if the Usos unify the titles, it will establish the Bloodline as the greatest faction in WWE history. This has been the latest “NO ONE TALKS LIKE THIS” moment. Roman Reigns tells the fans to acknowledge him and then has Paul Heyman tell the people why this night is so important.

Heyman talks about how the Bloodline is amazing, including Roman Reigns, who is better than Hogan, Austin, Sammartino and Cena. Tonight though, the Usos are unifying the Tag Team Titles and beating the best team on Raw to become the greatest tag team of all time (with all due respect to the Wild Samoans). And that is a SPOILER! Roman tells the Usos to deliver what he wants.

Sami Zayn vs. Shinsuke Nakamura

Feeling out process to start with Zayn getting the better of things and punching away in the corner. A clothesline lets Zayn choke away on the ropes but Nakamura knocks him off the top. Kinshasa misses though and Sami shoves him off the top and out to the floor as we take a break.

Back with Nakamura fighting out of a chinlock and hitting a kick to the head. Zayn sends him outside though and it’s a Falcon Arrow onto the floor. Nakamura beats the count back in, pulls Zayn outside and posts him, but Zayn beats the count. Back in and Kinshasa finishes Zayn at 10:34.

Rating: C. It’s kind of a far cry from the Dallas masterpiece, but at least these two are getting on television with something to do. Nakamura is being built up again in the singles ranks after the Rick Boogs team was derailed so he very well could be set up for some kind of bigger role. Whatever that might actually be.

Video on the Usos.

It’s time for Happy Talk, with Happy Corbin standing next to the Andre the Giant Memorial Battle Royal trophy. Corbin has never been happier and we see a clip of him using the trophy to Pillmanize Madcap Moss’ neck. Corbin talks about being sick of Moss and asks who is laughing now. Then Corbin smashes the trophy.

We look at Gunther chopping the heck out of Drew Gulak last week.

Gunther vs. Drew Gulak

We’re joined in progress with Gulak hitting his own chop, earning himself a kick to the face. A series of chops takes Gulak down and the powerbomb finishes at 1:04.

Post match Gunther puts on the Boston crab but Ricochet runs in for the save. Now this has me interested.

Max Dupri, the head of the hottest male modeling agency, introduces himself to Adam Pearce. Adam had no idea Dupri was coming, but apparently he was signed by Sonya Deville. This is awkward, but Pearce can’t quite pronounce Max Du-PRE! That would be LA Knight, because WWE needed to change THE NAME THAT THEY INVENTED LAST YEAR!

RKBro is ready to beat the Usos.

Shotzi and Aliyah argue about not being able to make it out to the ring to face Ronda Rousey last week. Raquel Rodriguez comes in so Shotzi yells at her, even calling Gonzalez an absurd Amazon.

Shotzi vs. Raquel Rodriguez

Rodriguez powers her into the corner to start and then does it again for a bonus. Shotzi tries a choke on Rodriguez’s back but gets thrown down again. A fall away slam sets up the twisting Vader Bomb and the Chingona Bomb gives Rodriguez the pin at 2:55. Mostly a squash.

Xavier Woods isn’t happy with Butch beating Kofi Kingston last week. Kofi is on New Day business this week, so Butch can come see him alone.

Sheamus tells Butch to go take care of Xavier Woods.

Butch vs. Xavier Woods

Butch and company (with the company not here tonight) are now dubbed the Brawling Brutes. They start fast with Woods sending him outside but bringing it back inside, where Butch takes him down by the arm. Woods is right back with the Honor Roll for two but Butch kicks him in the head. That’s broken up and Woods grabs Backwoods for the pin at 3:41.

Rating: C. I’m not sure what WWE’s deal is with Butch not being able to beat Woods, but this is the third time that Butch has lost to him via the same move in less than two months. In theory the feud is going to be wrapped up sooner than later, because both teams need to move way on. This is especially true of Butch and Woods, as I don’t know if I get the thinking here.

Post match the Brutes beat Woods down.

Video on RKBro.

Xavier Woods says this ends next week, because he has a partner to face the Brutes.

And now, the big story, as Michael Cole talks about Sasha Banks and Naomi “letting us all down”. Cole explains the walk out and now the titles are vacant, with a tournament coming soon. Banks and Naomi are suspended indefinitely. So yeah, you know those titles that were barely defendable because there were no teams? Well now it’s TOURNAMENT TIME! Also, WWE acting like changing the card at the last minute is the ultimate sin is pretty freaking funny. WWE would NEVER do something like that.

Oh look: the Tag Team Title unification match is next. Sure how WWE doesn’t advertise that and then turn it into a six man tag.

Raw Tag Team Titles/Smackdown Tag Team Titles: RKBro vs. Usos

Winner takes all and Paul Heyman is on commentary. Orton takes Jimmy down to start but Riddle gets taken down into a chinlock. This lets Cole say the Usos are trying to do what the Wild Samoans never did: unify the Tag Team Titles. That would be really impressive for the Samoans to do as THERE WAS ONLY ONE SET OF TITLES TO WIN BACK THEN! Riddle is whipped HARD into the buckle and we take a break.

Back with Riddle having suffered a bruised hip off that whip but he’s fine enough to keep going. A hard belly to back suplex cuts off the hot tag attempt but Riddle strikes his way over to the ropes for the tag. Orton comes in and starts cleaning house, with the RKO hitting Jimmy. Jey makes the save and pulls Jimmy over for the tag. Orton gets kicked into the corner for the tag back to Riddle, who suplexes various Usos. The super RKO is loaded up but Roman Reigns comes out to grab Riddle. Jey shoves him off the top and it’s a Superfly Splash for the pin and the titles at 11:35.

Rating: B-. RKBro is the only team that could hang with the Usos at this point but there was little reason to believe that the Usos weren’t going to have both sets of titles sooner or later. WWE doesn’t need to have two sets of titles so the Usos having the one remaining set is the right choice. Now just find some teams who could give them a run for their money, which is easier said than done.

Post match the big beatdown is on, with Riddle being choked out. The Superfly Splash through the announcers’ table crushes Riddle and we cut to a fan crying in a great visual. Reigns chokes Orton out too. The Bloodline poses with all six belts to end the show. Cool shot, but three people having six titles doesn’t make me impressed. It makes me think there are too many belts. Also, Riddle vs. Reigns at the pay per view should be good.

Overall Rating: C+. Not too bad of a show here with the Tag Team Title match being the biggest deal. I fully expect a rematch to take place at the pay per view but for now, the Usos having the titles is the way to go. Other than that, I want to see Gunther vs. Ricochet, which is someone stepping up to a bigger level. That’s not a bad show, with some other good things sprinkled in.

Then you have the Banks/Naomi reaction and…that is up there on the all time list of hypocritical WWE responses. Banks and Naomi did indeed walk out, but WWE acting like making some last minute change to an advertised match is this unpardonable offense had me laughing quite hard. It’s weird for WWE to actually do what they say they are going to do from one week to the next, but now it’s horrible for Banks and Naomi to do the same thing? That’s a very WWE reaction and I don’t mean that in a good way.

Results
Shinsuke Nakamura b. Sami Zayn – Kinshasa
Gunther b. Drew Gulak – Powerbomb
Raquel Rodriguez b. Shotzi – Chingona Bomb
Xavier Woods b. Butch – Backwoods
Usos b. RKBro – Superfly Splash to Riddle

 

 

 

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Smackdown
Date: May 13, 2022
Location: Mohegan Sun Arena, Wilkes-Barre, Pennsylvania
Commentators: Michael Cole, Pat McAfee

We’re fresh off of Wrestlemania Backlash and the biggest story coming out of the show is Ronda Rousey breaking Charlotte’s arm to become the new Smackdown Women’s Champion. Other than that, Roman Reigns continued to dominate and has pretty much no one left in front of him. That isn’t good with the Cell in less than a month. Let’s get to it.

Here is Wrestlemania Backlash if you need a recap.

We open with a recap of the six man main event at Wrestlemania Backlash, with Roman Reigns spearing Riddle for the pin.

Here is RKBro to get things going. Riddle takes the blame for the loss on Sunday but they want Roman Reigns out here right now to let the Usos make the Tag Team Title unification match. Instead, here is Sami Zayn, in a Bloodline shirt, to answer. As the locker room fleader and representing the Bloodline, no one wants this unification match.

Zayn thinks the Raw Tag Team Champions need to go back to Raw, but Riddle dubs Sami as Rusty, because his hair is the color of rust. That’s not his name, but Orton says Sami is calling shots for the Bloodline. That gives Randy an idea: Riddle vs. Sami, and if Riddle wins, RKBro gets their unification match. Orton: “RUSTY! RUSTY!” Sami isn’t sure, but Adam Pearce shows up and he sure is…but it won’t be for the title match, because Zayn doesn’t have that authority.

Sami Zayn vs. Riddle

Riddle goes for a quickly broken triangle choke and Sami gets in a few shots. The chinlock is broken up so Riddle kicks him in the head for a knockdown. A suplex gets Sami out of trouble but Riddle blocks the Helluva Kick. Riddle goes up and gets shoved down onto the barricade (ala Rob Van Dam) as we take a break.

Back with Riddle kneeing Sami out of the air for two but Sami knocks him to the apron. Sami’s hanging DDT is broken up and Riddle sends him outside for a Floating Bro. Back in and the snap powerslam but Sami bails to the floor before the RKO can launch. With Riddle going after him, Sami gets in a ram into the timekeeper’s area, only to have riddle dive back in at nine. The Bro Derek gives Riddle the pin at 10:17.

Rating: C+. This is one of those matches where they were allowed to do their thing and they made it work. Riddle and Zayn could have a decent match in their sleep and they had ten minutes to make that happen here. Riddle bringing back the Bro Derek was nice, especially after Orton mentioned him using the RKO a bit too much this week on Raw Talk.

In the back, Roman Reigns isn’t happy about RKBro being here. The Usos have this though and they’re going to do something about it.

Post break, Sami Zayn runs into Shinsuke Nakamura and calls him the table’s a** (I think). Laughter ensues and Sami looks crushed.

Here is Ronda Rousey to brag about her title win. See, Charlotte was a 13 time Women’s Champ (uh, she still is Ronda) but look who has the title now. Rousey says Charlotte was tough but she would die before quitting. She’s going to be a fighting champion though so it’s open challenge time.

Women’s Title: Ronda Rousey vs. Raquel Rodriguez

Rousey is defending and gets powered into the corner to start. An early Piper’s Pit attempt is countered with a knee, setting up a clothesline for two. Back to back fall away slams send Rousey flying and an over the shoulder backbreaker makes it even worse. A side slam cuts Rousey off again but Rodriguez misses something off the middle rope.

Rousey strikes away and tries a tornado DDT, only to switch it into a guillotine. That’s powered into a suplex for two on Rousey and a swinging torture rack slam gets the same. The Chingona Bomb is countered though and Rousey gets the ankle lock. Rodriguez breaks that up though and a big boot gets two. A powerbomb is loaded up but Rousey reverses into a hurricanrana to retain at 5:54.

Rating: B. Where the heck did that come? This was a star making performance from Rodriguez, who beat Rousey up for the better part of five minutes and got caught instead of getting beat. I liked this a lot more than I would have expected and Rousey was in all kinds of trouble before escaping with the win. Good stuff here and quite the surprise.

Respect is shown post match.

In the back, Aliyah and Shotzi argue over how that should have been their title shot but Adam Pearce doesn’t really know what to say. End of segment.

Here is Madcap Moss for a chat. He is proud of his win over Happy Corbin, even if Corbin could have won by making him tap out with one more story about his watch. Now Moss wants to do everything, from forming a team with Sasha Banks called Madcap Boss, win Money in the Bank, replace title belts with title suspenders….and here is Happy Corbin to chair him down, because this feud must continue. Then Corbin slides in the Andre the Giant trophy and uses it to Pillmanize a chair around Moss’ neck.

Post break, Moss is being loaded into the ambulance and here is Corbin to say it’s off to the Mosspital.

Women’s Tag Team Titles: Natalya/Shayna Baszler vs. Sasha Banks/Naomi

Naomi and Banks are defending and it’s Naomi ducking under Baszler’s shot to start. Banks comes in and takes Natalya down, setting up an exchange of rollups for two each. Baszler saves Natalya from the Bank Statement and we take a break. Back with Banks getting caught in a Hart Attack with Naomi having to make the save.

Naomi avoids the stomp to the arm on the apron and gets the tag, allowing her to clean house. The springboard spinning kick to the face gets two on Natalya but Natalya takes Banks down. The Sharpshooter attempt on Naomi is countered into a small package to retain the titles at 8:33.

Rating: C. This match was the culmination of a feud that started and then came to an end. I’m really not sure what else to say about it, as they had singles matches after the tag match was all but set, then they had the title match where the champions retained. These titles continue to be the opposite of interesting, which I believe is called the Natalya.

Ricochet comes up to Drew Gulak, who asks for advice. Ricochet says if he had quit, he wouldn’t have the Intercontinental Title. He tells Gulak to be his best self, so Gulak is ready for Gunther. Then Gulak runs into Gunther, who slams him into a door and breaks his chest with a chop.

Kofi Kingston vs. Butch

Xavier Woods, Ridge Holland and Sheamus are at ringside. Butch jumps him to start and hammers on the mat but Kofi sends him to the floor, allowing Woods to play some trombone. Butch gets dropped again and Kofi winds up on Woods’ shoulders (more tromboning ensues) as we take a break.

Back with Kofi fighting out of a neck crank and hammering away. The SOS gets two on Butch but he’s back with an enziguri for a breather. Kofi gets in a kick of his own and the standing double stomp gets two more. Trouble in Paradise is loaded up but everyone gets in a fight on the floor, allowing Butch to grab the Bitter End for the pin at 8:33.

Rating: C+. If WWE just has to have Dunne as….whatever Butch is supposed to be, at least they have gotten past the point of having him lose to small packages over and over. The match wasn’t a classic but it was god enough to fill in some TV time, while also letting Butch have a win for a change.

Post match Butch runs through the crowd but comes back to join his friends on the stage.

Sami Zayn wants Paul Heyman to tell Roman Reigns what he did earlier to stand up for the Bloodline. He and Reigns need to be on the same page so Heyman assures him that Reigns is appreciative. Sami is pleased.

Here is the Bloodline to address RKBro. Reigns tells Pennsylvania to acknowledge him and they’ve been doing this for a little while. They smash them on Sunday and then tell you what’s next on Friday. Well they beat Drew McIntyre and RKBro on Sunday, but what is RKBro going to do about it?

Cue RKBro, with Randy Orton saying John Cena is ten times the star that Reigns will ever be. Riddle talks about how he likes to set the mood with his laptop at night and reaches to his nightstand…..Orton: “Let me stop you right there.” Riddle: “I meant I reached for headphones.” Orton: “To be fair, I didn’t know where you were going with that.”

Riddle was watching their Wrestlemania Backlash match and now he wants the Usos even more. Orton talks about how they are going to unify the titles…and he just realized he’s a lot taller than Reigns. The Usos accept the challenge but Reigns isn’t sure about this. We’ll do it next Friday instead, with the Usos bragging about how they’re going to win. Riddle knees Reigns in the face and RKBro bails to end the show. They set up the match, but RKBro’s comedy continues to be great as it feels like they’re coming up with this stuff off of the top of their heads, which you don’t get elsewhere in WWE.

Overall Rating: B-. For a show without much to build from after the pay per view, this show was a pretty good use of two hours. RKBro vs. the Usos is finally set (though I can’t imagine a clean winner) and Rousey vs. Rodriguez was a heck of a nice surprise. I had a good time with this show and it flew by, which is always a nice feeling. They still need to come up with something for the Cell, but at least we have some time before we get that far.

Results
Riddle b. Sami Zayn – Bro Derek
Ronda Rousey b. Raquel Rodriguez – Hurricanrana
Sasha Banks/Naomi b. Natalya/Shayna Baszler – Small package to Natalya
Butch b. Kofi Kingston – Bitter End

 

 

 

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Smackdown
Date: May 6, 2022
Location: Nassau Veterans Memorial Coliseum, Uniondale, New York
Commentators: Pat McAfee, Michael Cole

It’s the go home show for Wrestlemania Backlash and that means we need to hype up the six man tag which totally serves some kind of a purpose. I’m not quite sure what that purpose is but I’m sure it’s there. Other than that, it might be time to add one or two more matches to the card. Let’s get to it.

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

The opening recap looks at Ronda Rousey winning last week’s Beat The Clock challenge.

Charlotte vs. Aliyah

Before the match, Charlotte says Aliyah quit last week and now it is time for her to get rid of Ronda Rousey for good on Sunday. Charlotte wouldn’t be surprised if Rousey left WWE for good after she gives up. As for Aliyah, a single shot takes her down but here is Rousey for the save. The brawl is on with referees and agents (including Jamie Noble, who has McAfee VERY excited) eventually….not actually being able to keep them apart as Rousey charges at her again. They’re finally separated with no match of course.

Sasha Banks vs. Shayna Baszler

Naomi (injured) and Natalya are here too. Banks (in a hairband) starts fast and goes right after the arm but can’t hit the stomp. Baszler gets in a shot of her own though and hits the gutwrench suplex. The stomping is on in the corner to keep Banks in trouble and a side slam takes her down again as we go to a break.

Back with Banks fighting out of an armbar and sending Baszler outside for a ram into the announcers’ table. Back in and Banks gets two off the Meteora as Natalya is losing it on the floor. Banks tries a small package but Baszler reverses into one of her own and grabs the rope (with Natalya helping) for the pin at 8:15.

Rating: C. Remember when Baszler was awesome and looked destined to become the new monster of the women’s division? Well now she needs help winning a match via small package to set up what is probably going to be a loss in a Tag Team Title match. The match was fine enough, but it’s sad to see what has happened to Baszler.

Post match Natalya goes after Naomi as Baszler loads up the Future Endeavored Stomp (McAfee’s words) but Banks fights up and makes the save.

Video on the Bloodline vs. Drew McIntyre/RKBro.

The Usos want RKBro.

RKBro isn’t that impressed with the Usos and are coming for them on Sunday.

It’s time for Happy Talk and we get a recap of Happy Corbin vs. Madcap Moss. Corbin doesn’t think much of Moss, who pops up on screen and mocks Corbin for being a charity case, as he lets tattoo artists try out their bad ideas on him. Corbin tells him to come say this to his face so here is Moss to interrupt. Moss talks about the various versions we have seen of Corbin over the years, but we haven’t seen him ever be entertaining. Remember the Lone Wolf? Well wolves have hair, so maybe Corbin can be the BIG BALD WOLF! That’s enough to make Corbin….walk off without doing anything.

Video on Drew Gulak’s recent attempts at getting various jobs in WWE.

Drew Gulak vs. ???

Gulak is back in the ring against a mystery opponent and it’s…..Gunther. An early armbar has Gulak in trouble and a chop makes it worse. The big boot sets up another chop and there’s the chop in the corner. Gunther grabs the sleeper and it’s a powerbomb for the pin on Gulak at 1:59. Moving Gunther up to slightly better competition is a good move.

We look back at Rick Boogs getting injured at Wrestlemania, plus Roman Reigns taking out Shinsuke Nakamura. I thought I dreamed that.

Nakamura doesn’t like the Bloodline and promises to get a piece of Roman Reigns. Sami Zayn is watching from behind a truck.

Drew McIntyre is ready for Sunday but thinks Roman Reigns needs to get his head kicked off tonight.

Sheamus/Ridge Holland vs. New Day

Tables match. It’s a brawl to start, as you might have guessed, with Woods diving onto Holland on the floor. New Day grabs a table to hit Sheamus in the ribs but setting the table up takes too long. Holland is back up for the save but Woods breaks up a powerbomb through the table. That lets Kofi go onto the post for the HUGE dive off the top to send Sheamus through the barricade as we take a break.

Back with Sheamus and Holland both hitting their ten forearms to the chest. Kofi manages an SOS but gets dropped on the apron to cut him off. Woods strikes away at Holland back inside but has to knock Sheamus off the apron. Sheamus pulls Woods off the top to save Holland so Kofi takes Sheamus down with a hue dive. The announcers’ table is loaded up but Kofi has to slip out of an Alabama Slam attempt. With Sheamus on the table, Woods goes up but Butch comes out from under the ring for the save. Woods is put through the table for the win at 12:31.

Rating: C. The best thing here is that I was wondering if they would use the WHERE IS BUTCH thing as a way to release him so this could be worse. The table stuff here felt like such a tacked on stipulation as this feud keeps going for reasons I don’t quite understand. Sheamus and Holland have destroyed New Day over and over but the feud keeps going for some reason.

Post match Butch has to be pulled off of Woods.

Paul Heyman thinks Kayla Braxton is flirting with him and wants to be taken out for pizza in New York. Sami Zayn comes up and asks Braxton to leave so he can talk to Heyman (Heyman: “DON’T LEAVE ME ALONE WITH HIM!”). Sami talks about how Shinsuke Nakamura hasn’t forgotten anything and as a locker room leader, felt Roman Reigns should know. Heyman agrees to tell Reigns, but this might not be trustworthy.

Post break, Zayn asks Adam Pearce for a match with Nakamura next week. Pearce says they can just do it now instead.

It’s time for Chapter 5 of the Lacey Evans Story, as she talks about her father and some family members overdosing before she became a wrestler. Then she decided that she needed to do something with her life. She had her first match in front of her daughter and now she wants to know who can stop her. Soon, she is going to be the Smackdown Women’s Champion.

In the arena, the announcer tells us that Lacey Evans is about to come out here, but wants the proper respect with some applause. Cue Lacey, who celebrates with some fans and then leaves. End of segment.

Video on Raquel Rodriguez.

Shinsuke Nakamura vs. Sami Zayn

Feeling out process to start until Zayn knocks him into the ropes. A running kick to the chest cuts that off and Nakamura adds a standing version to stagger him. The Kinshasa is countered into a Michinoku Driver to give Zayn two and we take a break. Back with Sami hammering on Nakamura for two and yelling at the official over the count.

Nakamura gets two of his own off a running knee and the cross armbreaker goes on. Zayn is able to stack him up for two so Nakamura hits a kick to the head. They head outside where Zayn tries to run again but Nakamura isn’t letting that happen. Instead Zayn hits a quick Helluva Kick to beats the count back in at 9:12.

Rating: C. This wasn’t quite their Takeover: Dallas classic. I’m not entirely sure why they brought Nakamura back here just to have him lose, though it is nice to FINALLY follow up on that angle from a few weeks ago that went nowhere. Sure it’s a different direction, but I’ll take it over absolutely nothing.

Here are Drew McIntyre and RKBro (who might be combined to become, I kid you not, RK McBro) for a chat. Before they call out the Bloodline, Riddle asks what the other two acknowledge. This includes McIntyre and Orton’s history against each other, and that Orton has muscular legs. Orton says he acknowledges that the sky is blue and the grass is green, with McIntyre saying it’s a joint decision. They call out the Bloodline and get what they want, with the brawl being on. The Bloodline is cleared out to end the show.

Overall Rating: C-. They do want us to watch the pay per view right? As in that was the point of this show. I’m not sure how that is what they were going for here, as this didn’t make me want to watch a six man tag and it certainly didn’t make me want to see Charlotte vs. Ronda Rousey again. Maybe it’s because Wrestlemania Backlash feels like one of the most unimportant pay per views in a very long time, but I have no desire to watch the show and this didn’t do it any favors.

Results
Shayna Baszler b. Sasha Banks – Small package
Gunther b. Drew Gulak – Powerbomb
Sheamus/Ridge Holland b. New Day – Woods was put through a table
Sami Zayn b. Shinsuke Nakamura via countout

 

 

 

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

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Smackdown
Date: April 15, 2022
Location: DCU Center, Worcester, Massachusetts
Commentators: Pat McAfee, Michael Cole

We’re back to the blue guys and now the build seems to be on for Wrestlemania Backlash. Last week saw Shinsuke Nakamura come after Roman Reigns to suggest that he is the next challenger while Charlotte vs. Ronda Rousey in an I Quit match is officially set. Hopefully we get some built towards those matches this week so let’s get to it.

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

We open with a long recap of Roman Reigns sending the Usos after the Raw Tag Team Titles, setting up a pair of matches on Raw.

Here are Raw Tag Team Champions Rated RKBro for a chat. We get a lot of posing before Riddle talks about how stoked he is to be back on Smackdown, especially with his best friend Randy. After going on about Worcester being the name for Worcestershire sauce, but it’s named after the one in England, not this one. He learned that off of a Snapple lid, but Orton cuts him off to get serious. Orton wants the Usos out here right now so here they are for the showdown.

The Usos go on a rant about how this is their place and they’re ready for RKBro because they’re twin brothers who are ready to face anyone. Orton says he loves the family but the two of them are a******. Orton says the Big Dog left the b****** off the leash and “frick that” (his words). We hear about Orton’s career in a more fired up way than usual and the challenge is accepted. The Usos go to leave but come back in to pull Riddle off the ropes for a cheap shot, which Cole calls a hit and run.

Sasha Banks/Naomi talk trash to Rhea Ripley/Liv Morgan about Naomi vs. Ripley tonight.

RKBro asks Adam Pearce about the Tag Team Title match but they can only get Riddle vs. Jey tonight, because THAT’S ALL THEY DO FOR TAG TEAM FEUDS.

Naomi vs. Rhea Ripley

Sasha Banks and Liv Morgan are here too because we can’t just have the freaking Tag Team Title match already and have to do a bunch of singles matches first. Ripley powers her into the corner to start and then runs Naomi down with a shoulder for a bonus. A knee sends Ripley to the apron and a big boot knocks her down. Naomi follows her out but gets blasted with a clothesline as we take a break.

Back with Naomi fighting up and hitting an ax kick, followed by a bulldog into the corner. A high crossbody gives Naomi two and she faceplants Rhea for two more. Naomi grabs a full nelson of all things but gets powered into a northern lights suplex. The missile dropkick sends Naomi flying for two but she’s back with a Bubba Bomb (that explains the full nelson) into a cradle for two of her own. Ripley isn’t having that though and grabs the Riptide for the pin at 8:44. Banks looking stunned that a monster like Ripley won a match is kind of funny.

Rating: C+. It’s always nice to see Ripley getting a win like this, even if it keeps Naomi looking as middle of the road as possible. That is about all she does most of the time and the Women’s Tag Team Titles isn’t exactly some huge upgrade for her. Odds are the titles are retained on Raw though, allowing us to have Ripley and Morgan split after….a whole six weeks or so as a team?

The Usos don’t answer any questions and head into Roman Reigns’ locker room.

We look back at Happy Corbin turning on Madcap Moss.

Corbin doesn’t like Moss being called his former associate because Moss was more of a hanger on or a gopher. He blames Moss for losing his undefeated streak and now the loss of dead weight is increasing his happiness levels. Just wait until Moss becomes the laughingstock of Smackdown.

Drew Gulak, auditioning to become part of the broadcast team, asks Moss about what Corbin says. Moss says Corbin bought him his suspenders and taught him how to tell his jokes. That’s why the jokes were bad, because having an audience of bald men with a bad sense of humor will kill anyone. He isn’t worried about facing Humberto either and tells them where the Kiss Cam can go. McAfee explains the joke in case the visual didn’t explain it.

Madcap Moss vs. Humberto

Humberto knocks him into the corner so Angel can get in a cheap shot, allowing Humberto to mock the kissing deal. The chinlock doesn’t last long as Moss fights up and hits an elbow to the face. Moss pulls him out of the air for a fall away slam but the running shoulder in the corner hits Angel. Humberto takes one of his own and the Punch Line finishes for Moss at 2:28. Smart to give him a pretty decisive win, but a grudge match against Corbin isn’t exactly enthralling stuff.

Angel yells at Humberto for losing to a joke.

Charlotte comes in to see Adam Pearce but Drew Gulak interrupts to ask about how he did. Charlotte says Gulak can interview her in the middle of the ring and don’t be nervous.

Usos vs. RKBro is set for Wrestlemania Backlash.

Drew Gulak is in the ring to interview Charlotte. Gulak asks if she is ready for a hard hitting interview but is told to just hold the mic. Charlotte talks about how she turned down the I Quit match with Ronda Rousey because she wanted to keep Rousey safe. Gulak mentions that Charlotte tapped at Wrestlemania but Charlotte INSISTS that she was fixing her bra. That’s not good enough for Gulak, who thinks that had the referee been in place, Rousey would be champion.

Charlotte thinks that is out of line and asks if Drew stopped wrestling so he could hold a microphone and ask stupid questions. She thinks everyone here has quit something, but that is nothing she would ever do. Charlotte tells Gulak to get out of her ring but attacks him before he can. The Figure Eight makes Gulak tap (McAfee: “Charlotte Flair even taps out interviewers!”) and shout that he quits until referees break it up.

We recap Sami Zayn running from Drew McIntyre last week.

Ludwig Kaiser narrates a video about the awesomeness of Gunther.

Drew McIntyre vs. Sami Zayn

Sami says he’s going to prove himself here and then runs to the floor to start. McIntyre follows him out and hits Sami in the face (after avoiding punching McAfee by mistake) before taking him back inside. The Glasgow Kiss looks to set up the Claymore but Zayn runs again, this time taking the countout at 2:29.

Drew isn’t happy post match.

Ricochet is ready to defend his Intercontinental Title.

Sami Zayn runs into Adam Pearce, who makes Sami vs. McIntyre III in a lumberjack match next week.

Intercontinental Title: Ricochet vs. Jinder Mahal

Ricochet is defending and Shanky is here with Mahal. They start fast with Mahal pulling Ricochet away from the ropes for a crash to the mat. Ricochet fights back up and counters the Khallas into a rollup for two. The Recoil sets up the 630 but Shanky pulls Mahal to the floor. That’s fine with Ricochet who dives onto both of them for the big crash. Back in and the shooting star press retains the title at 2:59. Not quite a squash, but Ricochet needed any kind of a win to get him back on track after the Los Lotharios stuff.

Sheamus isn’t happy with Butch losing last week but the solution is that Butch needs to channel his aggression. They try to convince him that New Day is the enemy…but Butch slips away, because he’s treated like a child for whatever reason.

Post break, Butch, Sheamus and Ridge Holland attack New Day, making me wonder why they bothered with the “lost” deal for all of four minutes.

It’s time for part two of the Lacey Evans story. She talks about how her father caught up with her and her mother and had all kinds of anger and mental health issues. He would yell a lot and throw a bunch of things until he was eventually on the run from an assault charge. That helped her learn how to fight from a young age and she knows how to be at rock bottom. No one can phase her because she has been through worse. This continues to be a good bit too serious for a wrestling angle.

Natalya and Shayna Baszler don’t like Lacey Evans treating them like this because Lacey doesn’t respect legends. Lacey is trying to take over the locker room but here is Raquel Rodriguez to say how happy she is to meet Natalya.

Jimmy Uso vs. Riddle

Jey Uso and Randy Orton are here too. An early RKO attempt is blocked and Riddle gets sent hard into the corner. The early chinlock goes on but Riddle fights up and they go to the floor. A superkick rocks Riddle again and we take a break. Back with Riddle firing off a kick and a knee to stagger Jimmy. The Bro To Sleep into a German suplex gets two but Jimmy is back with a pop up Samoan drop. Randy and Jey get into it on the floor to distract Riddle, allowing Jimmy to kick him down. The Superfly Splash misses though and a pop up RKO finishes Jimmy at 9:02.

Rating: C+. Here we have another example of a pretty good match that meant absolutely nothing. Odds are we get every combination of these four until we get to the pay per view and while the big match will be good, it is going to have been so watered down by all of these singles matches that it will lose a bunch of impact. I would love to see WWE change up their formula a bit, but that just isn’t going to happen.

Overall Rating: D+. This was as ho hum of a regular Smackdown as I can remember in a long time. The wrestling was adequate enough but it felt like a night where they just said “oh throw whatever out there”. Mahal gets a title shot, two tag matches are built up with singles matches, Sheamus N Pals vs. New Day continues, Charlotte beats up an interviewer and a Madcap Moss feature match. No Reigns, no Rousey, no Nakamura after the end of last week’s show. It felt like they took a week off here (and they may have due to the holiday), but you can’t get a pre-taped promo in from someone that matters?

Results
Rhea Ripley b. Naomi – Riptide
Madcap Moss b. Humberto – Punch Line
Drew McIntyre b. Sami Zayn via countout
Ricochet b. Jinder Mahal – Shooting star press
Riddle b. Jimmy Uso – RKO

 

 

 

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Smackdown
Date: December 24, 2021
Location: Allstate Arena, Rosemont, Illinois
Commentators: Michael Cole, Pat McAfee

It’s Christmas Eve and thankfully we are taped instead of running a live show. We have a stacked card this week too, with a 12 man gauntlet match for to crown a new #1 contender to the Intercontinental Title, along with a showdown for the SmackDown Women’s Title as Charlotte defends against Toni Storm. Let’s get to it.

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

We open with a recap of the end of last year’s show, with Roman Reigns hugging Paul Heyman, then firing him and laying him out with the Superman Punch. Then it was Brock Lesnar coming out and attacking Reigns to wrap things up.

Earlier today, Kayla Braxton sat down with a disheveled Paul Heyman (he needs to shave) so he can tell his side of the story. What happened was he was publicly fired, publicly attacked and publicly shamed. He told Roman Reigns the truth and he paid the price for it, publicly. Heyman doesn’t regret telling the truth because he was doing his job as special counsel.

Last week, his things had been thrown out of the locker room, but he had done his job. Reigns is the greatest Universal Champion of all time, but he needs to be protected from Brock Lesnar. Maybe now he needs to go to NXT and cherry pick a top talent and start over. But no, not at this stage. He put everything into Roman Reigns, but without him, maybe it’s time to acknowledge that his career is most likely over. Sweet goodness this man is talented.

Women’s Title: Charlotte vs. Toni Storm

Charlotte is defending. They fight over a lockup to start with Storm not being able to get very far. Charlotte kicks her in the ribs but gets crossbodied down for an early one. The champ needs a breather on the floor before coming back in to stomp/chop away in the corner. We hit the figure four necklock for a bit until Charlotte flips her over, setting up the nipup. Back up and Storm scores with a headbutt, only to get kicked out to the floor as we take a break.

We come back with Charlotte slapping her in the face and shouting about how much better she is than Storm. That’s enough to get Storm back up, so Charlotte blasts her with a clothesline. Storm finally hits a snap suplex but Charlotte forearms her in the corner. The Downward Spiral into the middle buckle cuts Storm off yet again, setting up the double moonsault for a double two.

Natural Selection is blocked though and Storm hits a quick German suplex. Not that it matters as Charlotte pulls her into the Figure Four (it takes a bit but she gets there), forcing Toni to roll into the ropes for the break. Back up and a big boot sends Storm out to the floor to keep up the near dominance. Some rollups give Storm two but Charlotte reverses into a small package of her own to retain at 14:35.

Rating: B-. Charlotte dominated the majority of the match until it felt like she caught Storm in the end. This was a feud that saw Charlotte get the better of things far more often than not and then beat Storm up in the title match. I’m not sure how this helped Storm in almost any way, but it wasn’t exactly a great look for her. I’m almost scared to see what is next for Charlotte, as she is running out of people to beat.

We look back at Drew McIntyre pulling Angela out of the desk after Happy Corbin and Madcap Moss couldn’t make it work.

Drew McIntyre and New Day are ready for the Usos and Madcap Moss tonight. It might even be time for some SEASONS BEATINGS!

Xia Li doesn’t like women like Natalya, who crush other women’s spirits. Violence/vengeance is promised.

Gauntlet Match

It’s a 12 Days Of Christmas Gauntlet Match with the winner getting an Intercontinental Title shot against Shinsuke Nakamura (ringside with Rick Boogs). Angel is in at #1 and Mansoor is in at #2 with the latter being pulled off the top for an early and nasty crash. An enziguri doesn’t get Mansoor very far as Angel hits the Wing Clipper for the pin at 1:36.

Erik is in at #3 and gets kicked off the apron before the bell. Angel tries a moonsault to the floor but gets pulled out of the air. Erik slams him hard on the floor and we take a break. Back with Erik kneeing him in the face for two but missing the running knees in the corner. Another Wing Clipper ends Erik at 6:59 and it’s Shanky in at #4.

A dropkick has no effect on Shanky, who knocks Angel hard into the corner. Wade Barrett’s old Wasteland ends Angel at 8:31 and it’s Ivar in at #5. A big boot drops Ivar but he’s right back up with some corner clotheslines to put Shanky down for a change. The Viking Splash ends Shanky at 9:51 so here is Sheamus in at #6. Sheamus hammers away but gets punched out to the floor as we take another break. Back again with Sheamus grabbing the chinlock to keep Ivar in trouble. That’s broken up with viking power but Sheamus Brogue Kicks him for the pin at 15:50.

Drew Gulak is in at #7 and gets Brogue Kicked for the pin at 16:31. Cesaro is in at #8 with bad ribs but hits a high crossbody for two anyway. That’s a Regal roll onto the ribs and we hit an armbar of all things to keep Cesaro down. Cesaro fights up but it’s a Ridge Holland distraction so Sheamus can hit another Brogue Kick for the pin at 21:18. Ricochet is in at #9 and kicks Sheamus outside for a heck of a top rope Asai moonsault to send us to another break.

Back again with Sheamus hitting the Irish Curse and grabbing a chinlock. Sheamus powerslams him to cut off a comeback attempt, setting up the ten forearms to the chest. A top rope clothesline misses though and Ricochet grabs a tornado DDT for two more. Ricochet’s Lionsault hits knees so Sheamus grabs a small package for a very near fall. Sheamus gets knocked off the top to set up a standing moonsault for two more. Holland offers another distraction though, allowing Sheamus to knee Ricochet off the apron. Cue Cesaro to take out Holland to distract Sheamus, with Ricochet getting the rollup pin at 30:52.

Humberto is in at #10 but first, Sheamus gets to knock Ricochet silly again. Humberto’s moonsault hits raised knees though and it’s the Recoil for the pin at 32.21. Jinder Mahal is in at #11 and drops Ricochet onto the apron toput him in trouble. The Khallas is countered into a cradle to give rid of Mahal at 33:01 though and it’s Sami Zayn in at #12. We take another break and come back with Sami pounding him in the corner and hitting a clothesline for two.

Sami goes up and talks trash, with the delay being enough for Ricochet to snap off a super hurricanrana for two of his own. Ricochet blocks the Blue Thunder Bomb and hits a crossbody for two more. The Blue Thunder Bomb gives Sami a rather near fall but he can’t hit an exploder into the corner. Another attempt does connect but the Helluva Kick is cut off with a superkick. The Benedriller gives Ricochet a very close two so Ricochet heads up top. The shooting star press only hits knees though and it’s a second exploder into the corner. Now Sami can hit the Helluva Kick for the pin and the win at 42:16.

Rating: B-. This was rather long and that’s a good idea on a show like this one. Sami winning wasn’t quite a huge surprise, as he has been quite the focal point of Smackdown for the last few weeks. It wouldn’t surprise me to see him getting the title in the end. Nakamura has done well as champion, but Sami has more of a story going and it would make sense to see him win. The rest of the match had its moments, especially from Ricochet and Sheamus, but a lot of people were in and out without much going on. You have to do something like that in this kind of a match, though it does mean things go rather fast.

We look back at Roman Reigns firing Paul Heyman again.

We get a long, detailed look at Paul Heyman’s career, including a good bit of WCW and ECW footage. After a look at everything that happened to him with Brock Lesnar and Roman Reigns, we wrap it up with the ending of the show’s opening segment, with Heyman saying his career is probably over. This was pretty cool and showed you just how far Heyman has come in his career.

Madcap Moss/Usos vs. Drew McIntyre/New Day

Miracle on 34th Street Fight with Happy Corbin in Moss/Usos’ corner. Woods headlocks Jey to start and then decks him with a forearm. It’s off to Kofi for the slingshot Vader Bomb but he gets taken into the wrong corner. That doesn’t last long though as McIntyre gets the tag so he can hammer on Moss for a bit. Everything breaks down and it’s Corbin coming in with a candy cane kendo stick to drop McIntyre. The other four fight on the stage, with New Day being thrown through boxes and trees.

We take a break and come back with everyone at ringside, including the Usos still using the boxes on New Day. Kofi gets crushed between two trees (Cole: “The old Christmas tree sandwich!”) as Moss stops McIntyre with some raised boots in the corner. McIntyre is back with a suplex as Woods finds a chair in one of the boxes. We go ECW with a Van Daminator to Jimmy but some egg nog seems to slow him down.

That leaves Kofi to Boom Drop Jimmy, followed by a top rope spinning hurricanrana (cool). It’s time to bring in the cookies, which Kofi slams onto the Usos’ heads, because it’s a theme thing. Moss yells at McIntyre so it’s some snap belly to belly suplexes into a neckbreaker for Moss’ troubles. Corbin breaks up the Claymore though so Kofi egg nogs him. McIntyre does the same to Corbin and Moss at the same time, leaving Woods to kick Corbin into the announcers’ table. The Claymore finishes Moss at 12:30.

Rating: C. This is a match where your tolerance for goofy themed comedy will decide everything. Ignoring all that though, this was mainly a not that great six man, with the good guys fighting from underneath to win in the end. That’s not the most thrilling way to wrap it up, but at least McIntyre got to kick Moss in the face. For a fun main event on a less than serious show, not too shabby though.

Post match McIntyre and New Day throw presents into the crowd (McIntyre seems rather proud of one of his throws) to end the show.

Overall Rating: B-. The Heyman stuff was excellent and makes me wonder where the story is going. Throw in a good and rather long gauntlet match, a somewhat depressing Women’s Title match and a fun enough main event and we’ll call this a goodish show. It’s definitely a week that seems like they were taking the night off, but at least they did enough good things to carry us to the last week of the year.

Results
Charlotte b. Toni Storm- Small package
Sami Zayn won a gauntlet match last eliminating Ricochet
New Day/Drew McIntyre b. Madcap Moss/Usos – Claymore to Moss

 

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

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