Takeover: Vengeance Day
Date: February 14, 2021
Location: Capitol Wrestling Center, Winter Park, Florida
Commentators: Beth Phoenix, Wade Barrett, Vic Joseph

It’s time for the next big one and this time around, it means a rather strange name as St. Valentine’s Day something isn’t allowed anymore. Fair enough, but it’s not like it matters if the show winds up being great and the potential is there this time around. The card is stacked and hopefully it lives up to the hype. Let’s get to it.

The opening video is a Valentine’s Day rap about how much this place is loved, including a rundown of the card.

There’s a ramp instead of an aisle for a change.

Women’s Dusty Rhodes Tag Team Classic Finals: Ember Moon/Shotzi Blackheart vs. Dakota Kai/Raquel Gonzalez

Gonzalez powers Blackheart around with ease to start and does the same to Moon. It’s already back to Blackheart, who is driven into the corner for a hard ram into the buckle. Kai comes in and gets two off Gonzalez’s knockdown. The running kick in the corner misses though and Blackheart gets in a kick to the leg. The Texas Cloverleaf goes on but Kai is all of eight inches from the rope for the easy break.

Blackheart hits the reverse Cannonball against the ropes and it’s Moon coming in with the slingshot splash for two. A double takedown slams Kai down and Moon cranks on the leg for a bonus. Moon pulls her back in to stay on the leg so Kai uses the free leg to kick her way to….well nothing actually as Moon drags her away again. Gonzalez comes in to yell so Blackheart switches without a tag.

Moon is smart enough to knock Gonzalez off the apron to break up the tag though and the ankle lock goes on. Kai finally sends Moon into the corner and the (Hot?) tag brings in Gonzalez to clean house. Some rams in the corner set up a fall away slam to drop Moon and Gonzalez drags Blackheart in for the same. Gonzalez is knocked outside so Blackheart tries a hurricanrana, only to get swung into the barricade.

Back in and Moon dropkicks Gonzalez off the apron but gets taken into the corner again. Kai hits the running kick to the face for two but Moon manages a leg lariat to Kai, causing her to DDT Gonzalez. Moon goes for Kai, only to get picked up by Gonzalez. That’s broken up by Blackheart’s missile dropkick to give Moon two and it’s Blackheart coming back in to clean house. Sliced Bread gets two on Gonzalez with Kai making another save. Blackheart hits a suicide dive to take Kai down again and then puts Kai up in an electric chair.

Moon dives off the top with a crossbody for a modified Doomsday Device and then kicks Gonzalez in the face. Back in and the STF has Gonzalez in trouble so Kai makes another save. Blackheart gets the tag so Kai takes her down with the Kairopractor for two. The assisted GTK gets two on Blackheart with Moon making another save. Gonzalez LAUNCHES Moon onto the ramp but Blackheart dropkicks her down. Kai is tossed onto Gonzalez, who is up to shove Blackheart off the top. A very high powerbomb finally puts Blackheart away to give Gonzalez the pin at 15:45.

Rating: B+. This was a lot better than I would have bet on here with straight action throughout. I’m rather happy to see the established team beat the thrown together team for a change, even though I can’t really imagine Kai and Gonzalez against Nia Jax and Shayna Baszler. What matters here though is the match itself, as these four beat the fire out of each other with some great saves and near falls.

William Regal comes out for the trophy presentation.

We recap Kushida vs. Johnny Gargano for the North American Title. Gargano won the title back a few months ago and Kushida has given him trouble since. Title match set.

Johnny Gargano and the Way do their pre-match dance and cheer for Gargano to retain the title.

North American Title: Johnny Gargano vs. Kushida

Gargano is defending and sends the rest of the Way to the back. Kushida goes straight for the Hoverboard Lock to start but Gargano is out in a hurry. They head to the mat with an exchange of armbars, followed by an exchange of front facelocks. Gargano tries the Gargano Escape but Kushida gets it on him instead, with Gargano escaping in a hurry. They head outside with Gargano sending him into the steps but getting caught in the cross armbreaker.

Instead it’s a German suplex into a kick to the back of the head for two on Gargano. A chickenwing northern lights suplex gets two on Gargano so he heads to the apron. That’s fine with Kushida, who breaks up a springboard and sends him shoulder first into the post. Kushida puts him on top but Gargano hits a swinging superplex, followed by a tornado DDT for two of his own. Back up and Gargano can’t get the Escape but neither can Kushida.

Instead Kushida goes for the arm again, only to get stacked up for two. Another double shot to the face gives us a double knockdown and the NXT chants strike up again. They slug it out from their knees with Kushida getting the better of it. The handspring elbow is countered into the Gargano Escape but Kushida goes for the bad arm and gets the Hoverboard Lock.

That’s escaped as well and a bridging rollup gives Gargano two. A superkick into the lawn dart knocks Kushida silly though and they’re both down again. Kushida manages a chickenwing suplex into the corner and they go up top, with Kushida flipping him down into the cross armbreaker. Gargano is about to tap but rolls over and gets the feet in the ropes. They head outside with Gargano sending him into the barricade for a breather but Kushida slips around to the stage.

That means a running kick to the arm and the Hoverboard Lock goes on, with commentary taking away the drama by declaring it over. Gargano drives him neck first into the rope for the break and One Final Beat onto the ramp knocks Kushida silly. Another One Final Beat back inside retains the title at 24:47.

Rating: A-. This got some serious time and the action worked well as both guys beat the heck out of each other. I’m not sure how many people were expecting a title change here but it’s by far Kushida’s best match in NXT. The biggest problem here was a lack of drama near the end, as Gargano getting out of the cross armbreaker cut off any real drama about a title change, but it takes something pretty great to make about 25 minutes fly by this fast. Awesome stuff here in a Takeover worthy match.

We recap the Men’s Dusty Rhodes Tag Team Classic with MSK and the Grizzled Young Veterans meeting in the finals.

Men’s Dusty Rhodes Tag Team Classic Finals: MSK vs. Grizzled Young Veterans

That would be Nash Carter/Wes Lee vs. Zack Gibson/James Drake. The Veterans do their usual intro and it’s Gibson cranking on Carter’s arm to start so it’s off to Drake for a headlock on the mat. Carter fights up and brings Lee in though and the pace picks up. The Veterans are sent outside with Lee hitting a cartwheel into a dive to take them out, followed by Carter’s dive to hit Drake.

Gibson gets away though and blasts Carter with a clothesline to take over again. Back in and Drake gets a series of near falls before slapping on a chinlock. That doesn’t last long either so Drake runs Carter over with an elbow for two more. It’s back to Gibson to work on the arm before switching to a front facelock. Drake comes back in but Carter manages a suplex for a breather.

Gibson breaks up the tag by pulling Lee to the floor though and it’s a Downward Spiral/missile dropkick combination (or “Maximum Skullduggery” according to Barrett) for two on Carter. The chinlock goes on for a bit but Carter ducks a spinwheel kick and brings in Lee to clean house. A big dive to the floor takes out the Veterans and then faceplants Gibson back inside.

Carter comes in for a running dropkick to Drake and some rather questionable language to Gibson. A bunch of right hands and a cutter out of the corner gets two on Gibson and they’re both down. Lee’s backflip kick to the head is cut off with a knee though and Helter Skelter into Drake’s 450 gets two with Gibson not believing the kickout. Lee rolls Gibson up for two and sends the Veterans into each other. The push moonsault his Gibson and a poisonrana hits Drake, setting up the Spinal Tap (Lee called it the Final Flash in Impact) gets a very close two.

Lee is sent outside where Drake puts him in an electric chair for the suicide Doomsday Device and a nasty landing. That leaves Carter to fight them both off but it’s a powerbomb/Backstabber combination for a rather close two. Lee is back in though and it’s a spinebuster/middle rope spinning neckbreaker for the pin and the tournament at 18:45.

Rating: B+. And that’s how you pull the trigger on someone, which Impact Wrestling didn’t do for the Rascalz in the two or so years they were in the company. They had one crazy spot after another here and that’s all it needed to be. There’s something awesome about seeing a new team come in and tear the house down like this and it worked to near perfection. Great match and there is going to be a heck of a moment when the Veterans finally win something. The Tag Team Title match should be great too so everything works out.

William Regal comes out for the trophy presentation.

Video on Cameron Grimes being rich, complete with him rolling around in cash in his underwear. This might be the best thing in NXT today.

We recap the triple threat match for the Women’s Title. Io Shirai has been champion since June and Mercedes Martinez attacked her. Then Toni Storm decided she wanted the title too. The triple threat was on.

Women’s Title: Mercedes Martinez vs. Toni Storm vs. Io Shirai

Shirai is defending. Martinez isn’t waiting around to start and jumps Shirai during the Big Match Intros to get things going fast. Shirai is right back in to put Martinez down but Storm shoulders her over. Another shot knocks Martinez off the apron and Shirai plants Storm. A slingshot dropkick hits Storm in the corner but she’s back up with a basement clothesline to knock Shirai against the ropes.

The holds are both broken up and Martinez hits a reverse suplex on Shirai. That’s fine with the champ, who is back up with a 619 and missile dropkick to put Martinez down again. Storm and Shirai go up but Martinez German superplexes Storm off. The Alberto double stomp hits Martinez, leaving Storm to get back up. They head outside with Storm clearing off the announcers’ table….which breaks after she just touches it a bit.

Storm Zero onto the wreckage is countered into a DDT from Martinez but Shirai climbs onto the lighting structure to dive onto both of them. Shirai is done so Martinez takes Storm back inside for some knees to the face. A fisherman’s buster gets two on Storm and Storm Zero gets two on Martinez with a pair of shocked faces in between. Storm adds a top rope headbutt to Martinez but it’s Shirai moonsaulting in for the pin to retain at 12:42.

Rating: B. This was another match that was almost all action and it worked out well, though I’m not sure who is going to take the title from Shirai. She is coming up on nine months as champion and could hold onto the thing for a lot longer to come. Maybe she drops it to Storm in a singles match, or maybe it is someone else coming up to go after her. Either way, good match here and Shirai’s reign is starting to get kind of historic.

We look at LA Knight (Eli Drake) signing with NXT earlier tonight and then interrupting the Kickoff Show.

We recap Finn Balor vs. Pete Dunne for the NXT Title. Balor has been champion for a few months now and bumped into Dunne in the back one night on TV. Dunne seemed interested in the title and they have brawled a few times, setting up a UK dream match for the title.

NXT Title: Finn Balor vs. Pete Dunne

Balor is defending and they take their time on the entrances. Dunne takes him down by the arm to start but Balor reverses into an armbar of his own. A monkey flip can’t get Dunne out of trouble so Balor works on a headlock on the mat. The grinding continues until Dunne finally counters with a headscissors to work on the neck. That’s broken up as well and we’re at a standoff as second gear continues.

Dunne starts in on the arm so Balor tries to flip out, only to get pulled into a triangle choke. That’s escaped as well and Balor cranks on the arm to keep Dunne in trouble. Dunne reverses as well and starts cranking on the arm to put the champ in more trouble. This time Balor reverses into a leglock so Dunne tries for the arm again, only to have his leg kicked out again. Another leglock goes on but this time Dunne reverses into a front facelock to work on the neck a bit.

The X Plex gets two on Balor and it’s time to slug it out. Balor blasts him with a clothesline for two and it’s back to the leg. An STF has Dunne in more trouble but he sends Balor’s fingers into the mat for the break. Back up and Balor goes for the knee again but 1916 is broken up. Dunne stomps at the face and plants him with a sitout powerbomb for two more. The big stomp on the arm has Balor in more trouble and there’s a German suplex, only to have Balor kick the knee out again.

Another powerbomb attempt is countered into a DDT from Balor but Dunne is back with an enziguri. The Bitter End is countered into the reverse 1916 for another near fall and they’re both down one more time. Dunne grabs the hand and bends the fingers back so Balor double stomps him in the back. Balor ribs Dunne’s mouthpiece out and nails a basement dropkick. The Coup de Grace connects but Balor can’t immediately cover. 1916 retains the title at 25:17.

Rating: A-. This took its time to get going but then they beat the heck out of each other, which has been a theme tonight. Dunne losing still feels weird but it also comes off as a huge deal because he barely ever gets beaten. Balor is a full on legend in NXT and whoever takes the title from him is going to be an instant star no matter who it is. They could have gone either way here as the winner is going to be facing Karrion Kross for the title anyway.

Post match Balor poses but here are Oney Lorcan and Danny Burch to jump him from behind. The three on one beatdown is on but the Undisputed Era runs in for the save. Balor isn’t sure what to do and is scared to accept Kyle O’Reilly’s help up. Eventually he does though and they respect each other….and then Adam Cole superkicks Balor. The rest of the team asks what he’s doing so Cole lays out O’Reilly as well. Roderick Strong isn’t sure what to do and looks back and forth from O’Reilly and Balor on the mat to Cole to end the show. It might not be popular, but was there anything else for the Era to do?

Overall Rating: A. The worst match on the show would have been the match of the week 90% of the year so I’m not sure what there is to complain about here. This was five straight awesome matches because that’s what Takeover does. The ending was a surprise but a necessary one to give it a big moment that carries things into the next cycle. As usual, the action was great and they gave you a reason to come back, which are two of the most important things a show can do. Outstanding stuff here, in case there was any doubt there would be for some odd reason.

Results

Dakota Kai/Raquel Gonzalez b. Ember Moon/Shotzi Blackheart – Powerbomb to Blackheart

Johnny Gargano b. Kushida – One Final Beat

MSK b. Grizzled Young Veterans – Spinebuster/Spinning middle rope neckbreaker to Drake

Io Shirai b. Mercedes Martinez and Toni Storm – Moonsault to Martinez

Finn Balor b. Pete Dunne – 1916

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We’re back to the good ones here as NXT returns with another Takeover event. This time around we have Vengeance Day, which isn’t the best name but maybe the obvious St. Valentine’s Day Massacre is a little too violent for them. Believe it or not, the card is stacked as we have three title matches plus the two Dusty Rhodes Tag Team Classic finals. Let’s get to it.

Men’s Dusty Rhodes Tag Team Classic Finals: MSK vs. Grizzled Young Veterans

We’ll start with a good one here as I’m actually not sure who is going to win this thing. MSK debuted in the start of the tournament and have made it all the way to the finals. This certainly works for me as I’ve been a fan of the team since they debuted in Impact Wrestling and now they might actually win something. At the same time, the Veterans lost in last year’s finals and it seems that they are due.

I’ll go with MSK to win in an upset though, as they would make for a more interesting matchup against Oney Lorcan and Danny Burch. This is one of those matches that could get some time with some awesome near falls at the end and that’s where NXT’s tag team division shines. The good thing is that they are building up some new teams (like these two) and the future might be a bit brighter. See how nice it is when there is a problem and the promotion actually addresses it?

Women’s Title: Io Shirai(c) vs. Toni Storm vs. Mercedes Martinez

Did you realize that Shirai has been champion for over eight months? It always seems like she is ready to lose the thing at any given time but here she is again, getting rather close to the elite level of Women’s Champions. This is quite the task though as you could see either one of these two taking the title. That’s exactly the point of something like this though and NXT has set things up well.

I’m tempted to pick Martinez here as she has gotten the least hype out of the three but I’ll take Storm to win here. This is more along the lines of a gut feeling as they have been building towards Storm taking the title. They could go multiple ways here, but I’ll go with Storm winning. It gets the title off of Shirai, though I’m not sure what is next for her either. But yeah, Storm wins here.

North American Title: Johnny Gargano(c) vs. Kushida

This has been built up for a long time now and I wasn’t sure if they were ever actually going to do it. Kushida is my favorite guy out of New Japan and while he isn’t the same as he was there, I still like seeing him out there and getting a bit of a push like this. Above all else, it’s nice to see someone new getting a shot at the title.

As nice as it is to see Kushida getting a chance like this, Gargano keeps the title. We’ve done the thing with him losing the title in a hurry far too often already so they need to have him retain here. Gargano needs the win more than Kushida here as it’s not like Kushida is going to lose anything by taking the loss here. He’s been playing with the house’s money for this entire feud so Gargano going over here is fine.

Women’s Dusty Rhodes Tag Team Classic Finals: Dakota Kai/Raquel Gonzalez vs. Ember Moon/Shotzi Blackheart

Yes, believe it or not a team with no history together has made the finals of a Dusty Classic. That is as much of a tradition as the tournament itself because WWE really, really likes that idea. This time around we do at least have a regular team included, though I have a bad feeling that it isn’t going to matter, which tends to be the case throughout the history of the tournament.

In other words, yeah Blackheart and Moon win here because they’re a more logical team to lose to Nia Jax and Shayna Baszler. I’m rather sick of seeing the thrown together teams winning here but I guess it makes for a better story or something. Granted that might not be the case when you see the same thing taking place so often but it’s likely taking place here so I’ll go with Blackheart and Moon.

NXT Title: Finn Balor(c) vs. Pete Dunne

And then we cap it off with a dream match as these two seem like they could have an absolute classic. The cool thing about NXT: it is more likely than not that they will. This is going to be a hard hitting fight and they are going to get the time that they need to make it work out as well as they could. It’s a match I would have preferred to see a year or two ago, but I’ll certainly take what I can get.

As for a winner……dang it where’s a quarter I can flip? I’ll take Balor here, but my goodness this one could go either way. I’m not sure how this one is going to end but they are going to beat the living fire out of each other and it’s going to be absolutely awesome. This feels like a Takeover main event and that’s about as good of an accolade as you can give to a match these days.

Overall Thoughts

This is as stacked of a card as there has been in a long time and that’s a great thing to see. I want to see how almost everything goes and it’s nice to have the hype back for these shows. It has all of the potential in the world and it’s even better to have Takeover’s reputation behind the whole thing. Just go with what works here, and that means following Takeover’s tried and true formula.

 

 

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NXT
Date: January 27, 2021
Location: Capitol Wrestling Center, Winter Park, Florida
Commentators: Wade Barrett, Vic Joseph, Beth Phoenix

It’s still tournament time around here as the women’s Dusty Classic continues the first round but the men’s version heads on to the quarterfinals. I’m still not sure if this is the best idea in the world as these tournaments are dominating the show, but maybe the action is going to be enough to carry the show. Let’s get to it.

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

Opening recap.

Men’s Dusty Rhodes Tag Team Classic Quarterfinals: MSK vs. Killian Dain/Drake Maverick

Maverick and Lee start things off and go to the mat in a hurry. Maverick’s headlock is driven against the ropes so Lee says bring it. Dain wants in but Maverick isn’t ready yet, instead taking Lee to the mat with a front facelock. That’s broken up as well as Maverick is taken into the corner for a running Bronco Buster from Carter. Maverick slips away and brings in Dain to clean house, including throwing Maverick at Nash for a knockdown (always effective).

The running big boot in the corner rocks Carter but a shot to the knee put Dain down for a second. Lee comes back in and is tossed outside with ease to send us to a break. Back with Dain hitting Lee in the face again and crushing him with a backsplash. That’s enough to give Maverick two but the chinlock is countered for the hot tag to Carter. A penalty kick rocks Maverick and a dropkick puts Dain on the floor. The push moonsault connects for two with Dain making a save. Dain is sent outside again though and it’s a Hart Attack with a Blockbuster instead of a clothesline to finish Maverick at 11:06.

Rating: C+. This was more like it for both teams, as Dain and Maverick are the kind of a team with just enough credibility to mean something and MSK feel primed for a serious run in the tournament. They made enough sense here too, with Dain being the wrecking ball that had to be dealt with and then Maverick being a much easier target. Good enough match and MSK continues to make me smile.

Danny Burch and Oney Lorcan are fired up for tonight. Pete Dunne looks like he’s ordering dinner.

Raquel Gonzalez/Dakota Kai and Jessi Kamea/Aliyah are ready to win the Dusty Classic.

Curt Stallion looks out the window and sees shooting stars. One day he followed it and knew what he was ready to do. Now he wants to have a rocket strapped to his back in the form of the Cruiserweight Title.

Women’s Dusty Rhodes Tag Team Classic First Round: Jessi Kamea/Aliyah vs. Dakota Kai/Raquel Gonzalez

Kamea and Aliyah have Robert Stone in their corner. Gonzalez and Aliyah start things off with Aliyah not being able to shove her around. Instead Gonzales swings her around in a lockup so it’s off to Kamea, who has to avoid an elbow. A dropkick sends Gonzalez into the corner for a running forearm but she sends Kamea into Kai’s elbow. Aliyah comes in for some double teaming and a running flipping hair faceplant puts Kai down.

Kai is sent outside but manages to pump kick Aliyah down hard and gets two back inside. Back in and Gonzalez hits a swinging powerslam on Aliyah, setting up Kai’s running kick to the face in the corner. Kai gets two off a double stomp but Aliyah manages a clothesline to bring in Kamea. That’s fine with Gonzalez, who plants her with the chokeslam for the pin at 5:58.

Rating: C-. This wasn’t quite as interesting as the ending wasn’t in doubt and the match felt a good bit longer than just under six minutes. That being said, the women’s tournament is only three rounds long so it is a good thing to see the winners look dominant. Not the worst match, but it needed more wacky Robert Stone shenanigans to really push it over the edge.

The Way is sure they’ll win the Women’s Dusty Classic but Johnny Gargano isn’t going to answer anything about Kushida. Austin Theory says it’s kind of like the curse but Gargano orders him to say no more words. Kushida does not get a title shot.

Scarlett uses Tarot cards to display that destruction is coming.

Tegan Nox has been training with Brie Larson. Video tomorrow.

Tyler Rust vs. Dante Rios

Malcolm Bivens is at ringside and he has an inset promo, promising that Rust will win. Rust takes him down with ease to start and then nails a hard right hand. A stomp onto the head keeps Rios down and it’s time to crank on the arm. Some chops rock Rust and a backside gives Rios two. What looks to be a tornado DDT winds up as a guillotine choke but Rust powers out. A big boot into a flipping neckbreaker sets up a modified Rings of Saturn (When did that become the most popular move in the world?) to make Rios tap at 3:23.

Rating: D+. Rust still looks good but they are playing into the idea that he might not be as polished as Bivens thinks he is. At least he won here, but it took a little longer than expected. It’s something different though, and that’s often a nice thing to see, especially when so many newcomers have the dominant run before their first story.

Bivens and Rust get a post match photo.

The Grizzled Young Veterans and Kushida/Leon Ruff are ready to win the Dusty Classic.

Finn Balor and Kyle O’Reilly are ready, don’t trust each other, and will see each other out there.

Men’s Dusty Rhodes Tag Team Classic Quarterfinals: Leon Ruff/Kushida vs. Grizzled Young Veterans

Before the match, Zack Gibson promises to win because Ruff and Kushida have been a team for about five minutes. Kushida takes Gibson to the mat without much trouble but Drake comes in for a spinning kick to the face. It’s off to Ruff for a dropkick but Kushida is already back in for stereo basement dropkicks and two on Drake. We hit the quickly broken armbar and Ruff snaps off a top rope hurricanrana to put Drake down again. Drake forearms his way to freedom but Kushida saves Ruff from a double suplex. A middle rope cutter gets two on Gibson and we take a break.

Back with Ruff grabbing a sunset flip for two on Drake, who pops back up with a heck of a clothesline. Ruff is sent outside for a slingshot forearm/backbreaker combination to put him in even more trouble. A neckbreaker gets Ruff out of trouble back inside and the hot tag brings in Kushida to start cleaning house. The cartwheel into the basement dropkick rocks Drake again and there’s a running dropkick in the corner. Gibson comes back in and escapes an Octopus, setting up a Doomsday Device of all things for two on Kushida.

The double handspring elbow drops the Veterans though and the hot tag brings in Ruff for the second house cleaning. A suicide dive hits Drake and a top rope flip dive hits Gibson. Back in and a running clothesline puts Gibson down again but Ruff misses the Swanton. Drake gets caught not paying attention on the apron and it’s the Ticket to Mayhem to finish Ruff at 13:15.

Rating: B-. I could watch the Veterans at least three days a week and the two of them could be favorites in the tournament. Granted that could be the case for most of the remaining teams and that’s a good sign for the whole thing. This worked out about as expected and Kushida getting the North American Title shot at Takeover (as he is almost a lock to do) is a lot more important than this team.

Post match here’s the Way to beat down Kushida and Ruff. Johnny Gargano insists that Kushida will never get a shot but here’s Dexter Lumis to scare them off. Sweet goodness why can’t this guy just fall in a hole somewhere?

Curt Stallion has been attacked by Legado del Fantasma.

Post break, the Cruiserweight Title match is officially canceled for tonight. If this was supposed to be a surprise, maybe they shouldn’t have pulled the match from the show’s official preview.

Legado del Fantasma doesn’t know what’s going on but ANGRY William Regal comes in and says the title match is on for next week, with promises of consequences if anything else happens to Stallion. Regal leaves and the trio is freaked out by a playing card, though they insist there is nothing to worry about. I wonder if that’s an ace. Like, say, an Irish ace.

Here’s Toni Storm to say she wins whatever she wants. She wanted to be the first ever person to win the Women’s Dusty Cup but Io Shirai took that away from her. Now she wants to hurt and ruin Shirai, but more than anything else, she wants to be the NXT Women’s Champion.

Cue Io Shirai to say she’ll fight Toni anytime because she doesn’t like her. The fight is on with Storm being sent outside but here’s Mercedes Martinez to jump Shirai from behind. Martinez holds up the title but Storm says it’s hers. Shirai is back in to jump them both but Storm pulls her off the top. A pair of hip attacks in the corner leave Shirai laying and Storm rubs the title.

Isaiah Scott doesn’t like being accused of messing with Bronson Reed and suggests you could the fingers pointing at you when you point your finger at someone.

Imperium video, which heavily suggests the return of Walter. It’s about time.

The Undisputed Era aren’t worried about facing Tommaso Ciampa and Timothy Thatcher because they’re tougher, more experienced and better. Well that was to the point.

Bronson Reed vs. Isaiah Scott

Reed throws him outside to start but Scott sticks the landing, only to get sent face first into the apron. A crossbody on the floor crushes Scott and we take a break. Back with Scott working on an armbar and then raking Reed’s face a bit. Reed isn’t having that and runs him over again, setting up a backsplash for two.

Scott gets in another shot to the shoulder but Reed goes to the middle rope anyway. An enziguri connects though and Scott hits a 450 for two. Scott tells him not to get in his business and hits Reed in the face, which seems to be a rather bad move. Reed headbutts him and adds a hard clothesline, setting up the Tsunami for the pin at 9:21.

Rating: C+. This is the kind of thing that I can go for: taking two young (or at least new) stars and giving them a story. Reed is looking more and more like a breakout star every week and Scott….well at least he can still talk rather effectively. Pushing one of them is a good idea though and if Reed is their guy, so be it.

Scott really does not look pleased.

Tommaso Ciampa talks about how some fights change people and respect can grow. Timothy Thatcher joins him to say pretty much the same thing. Ciampa promises a war with Undisputed Era next week.

Kyle O’Reilly/Finn Balor vs. Oney Lorcan/Danny Burke

Non-title, which I didn’t know until this show started. Balor armdrags Lorcan into an armbar to start and it’s quickly off to O’Reilly vs. Burch. O’Reilly grabs an armbar of his own but Burch goes to the recently injured jaw to break up a tag attempt. Lorcan and Burch get to work on the arm for a change, followed by Burch’s headlock on the mat. That’s reversed into a wristlock, which is enough for O’Reilly to get back over to Balor.

O’Reilly is back in less than five seconds later as Balor and O’Reilly start the rapid fire tags and arm cranking. They stop to glare at each other though and we take a break. Back with Balor getting a tag to clean house in a hurry, including a bunch of stomping on Lorcan. A trip takes Balor down though and Lorcan gets in some stomping of his own.

The chinlock goes on to keep Balor down and a double atomic drop into a Russian legsweep gets two. Lorcan starts yelling at Balor, which rarely seems like a good idea, and is quickly followed by Balor nailing a Pele kick. The Sling Blade is enough for the hot tag to O’Reilly as house is cleaned in a hurry. Burch gets a boot up in the corner and tries a middle rope but dives into a kneebar to give O’Reilly and Balor the win at 11:56.

Rating: B-. They were telling a nice story here, though I’m hoping we get at least a token Tag Team Title match out of this. I’m not sure we will, but it would serve well as a TV main event. At least they had a good match in the non-title version, but I would hope that NXT isn’t he kind of place that just lets the champs lose.

Post match O’Reilly and Balor seem cool but Pete Dunne pops up. Burch and Lorcan send O’Reilly into the barricade and Dunne breaks Balor’s fingers as the Undisputed Era come to the ring for the save, albeit rather slowly. The big staredown ends the show, though Balor drops to the floor with the Era standing in the ring. We could use a fourth for the villains here as that’s a heck of an eight man tag.

Overall Rating: B-. The tournament matches are good but I’m rather relieved that they are wrapping things up sooner rather than later. There are too many tournament things going on at once here and it’s kind of dragging things down. It’s the majority of things going with the show and while the wrestling is good, I could go for something else. This was another good week, but I’m losing patience with all of the tournament stuff.

Results

MSK b. Killian Dain/Drake Maverick – Blockbuster/spinebuster combination to Maverick

Dakota Kai/Raquel Gonzalez b. Jessi Kamea/Aliyah – Chokeslam to Kamea

Tyler Rust b. Dante Rios – Rings of Saturn

Grizzled Young Veterans b. Leon Ruff/Kushida – Ticket to Mayhem to Ruff

Bronson Reed b. Isaiah Scott – Tsunami

Kyle O’Reilly/Finn Balor b. Oney Lorcan/Danny Burch – Kneebar to Burch

 

 

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Takeover: WarGames 2020
Date: December 6, 2020
Location: Capitol Wrestling Center, Winter Park, Florida
Commentators: Beth Phoenix, Vic Joseph, Wade Barrett

It’s time for what has become something close to NXT’s signature match and that year has one of the better looking matches in the show’s history. Just like last year, we have the men’s and women’s edition of the show’s namesake match, with a good enough looking undercard. Let’s get to it.

The opening video is a general look at WarGames, including the cage being lowered. With that out of the way, we switch into a look at the two WarGames matches.

Team Blackheart vs. Team LeRae

Shotzi Blackheart, Rhea Ripley, Ember Moon, Io Shirai

Candice LeRae, Raquel Gonzalez, Dakota Kai, Toni Storm

We start with the Women’s WarGames match, including a rundown of the rules. After the time is up, the team who won the advantage coming in (Blackheart in this case) sends someone in for a 2-1 advantage for three minutes. Once that time is up, Team LeRae will even things up for three minutes. They alternate until all four each are in and then it’s first pinfall or submission wins. And yes Shotzi has a new and bigger tank, which even shoots something at the side of the cage.

Dakota Kai and Moon start things off and go straight to the mat for the brawl. Moon flips off a sleeper attempt and hits a flipping clothesline in the corner. Dakota sends her into the ropes but Moon is right back with a crossbody against the cage. A charge is cut off by Kai’s raised boots and the Kairopractor connects. Kai chokes away and it’s Shotzi coming in for the advantage. Blackheart whips out a toolbox as she comes in to clean house on Kai. The reverse Cannonball connects against the ropes but Shotzi rams her into the cage.

Kai goes after Moon but Shotzi is back up with a doomsday missile dropkick to put Kai down. Gonzalez comes in to tie it up but Shotzi and Moon are right there to jump her at the door. It doesn’t seem to matter though as Gonzalez wrecks both of them, including powerbombing Shotzi against the cage. Kai is back in to clean house and a kick to the face rocks Shotzi in the corner. A springboard from one ring to another takes out Blackheart and Moon again but it’s Ripley coming in, giving Gonzalez a VERY interested face.

The showdown is on (they’ve got something with these two) until Ripley is cut off by Kai. Moon and Shotzi take care of Gonzalez, leaving Ripley to destroy Kai on her own. It’s time for the toolbox and Ripley busts out a hammer, only to drop it to send Kai into the cage. Gonzalez has dropped Moon and Shotzi though, meaning NOW we get the real showdown. They meet between the rings and slug it out with Ripley getting the better of things until Storm, with kendo sticks, comes in to take over.

Everyone else gets back in but Team LeRae takes over without much trouble. The stick beating is on but all six go to the corner, with Moon hitting a Steiner Bulldog on Kai and Blackheart/Ripley being slammed down as well, leaving all six down. Shirai is in for the final advantage and slides in a ladder, only to be kicked out by Gonzalez. Things get creative as Gonzalez keeps knocking Shirai off, either out of the door or off the side. The time expires and it’s LeRae coming in, only to have Shirai waiting on her outside.

Cue Indi Hartwell to jump Shirai and throw in some more weapons. The big beatdown is on, with the referee even telling LeRae and company to stop and give Shotzi a breather. Moon is back up but it’s Shirai on top of the cage, putting a trashcan over herself and diving onto EVERYBODY for the huge spot. Shirai gets the hammer and cleans house with it (meaning she hits people either with the bottom or flat across the back) and the recorded NXT chants start up again.

There’s the moonsault to Gonzalez but everyone makes the save. LeRae gets the Gargano Escape on Moon (with a wrench) at the same time Shotzi puts Storm in Cattle Mutilation. Shotzi uses a chair to knock a kendo stick out of Storm’s hands before picking up the stick (uh…) to clean house again. Shirai’s charge is sent into the corner and Kai hits the running boot to the face. Kai puts Shirai in the trashcan again for a top rope double stomp but Moon makes the save.

Two chairs are set up and Moon hits the Eclipse to drive Kai into said chairs. Storm makes the save and hits Storm Zero to drive Moon into the trashcan for two. Ripley is back up with the Prism Trap to Storm, with Shirai adding a running dropkick for a bonus. That gives Ripley two and the ladder is bridged between the rings. LeRae superkicks a trashcan lid into Ripley’s face as another ladder is set up in the corner. Shotzi and LeRae climb at the same time, with LeRae being knocked off and onto some chairs.

LeRae puts the chair onto herself, flips it over, and points at it before Shotzi drops a backsplash for the (very well choreographed) crushing. Shirai’s Over The Moonsault hits Ripley but Storm drives Ripley into the cover for the save. Shirai gets caught on top and Gonzalez superbombs her through the bridged ladder for the pin (and likely the next title shot) at 35:34.

Rating: B. This was a long and brutal fight, though it didn’t feel quite like your traditional WarGames. That’s because this isn’t your traditional WarGames, and for the NXT version, it worked out well. There were some great spots in here (that Eclipse onto the chairs looked awesome) but it did feel like they were stretching things out for the sake of stretching things out at times. What we got was a heck of a fight though and that’s what it needed to be, with the right team winning.

Finn Balor says after the team sports end, it’s time for all eyes to go back on the Prince.

Tommaso Ciampa vs. Timothy Thatcher

Ciampa said he wanted to fight and Thatcher was game. Thatcher takes him to the mat and starts working on the arm before switching over to the leg for a change. Ciampa is right back by working on the leg, including stomping on the leg. Thatcher sends him outside though and catches him with an uppercut on the way back in. Hold on though as Ciampa gets knocked into the ropes, meaning the referee needs to check on him. Thatcher is fine enough to uppercut away and sends Ciampa outside for a second.

Back in and another uppercut means another check from the referee so Thatcher grabs a neck crank. Thatcher pulls on the arm as the slugout begins, only to have to send Ciampa into the corner. They bang heads for a double knockdown but it’s Ciampa coming up with the clothesline comeback. A superplex gets two on Thatcher, who is right back with the guillotine. Ciampa drives him through the ropes for the break and they’re both down on the floor.

Back in and Ciampa runs him over, setting up a bulldog choke. Thatcher’s ear is busted open as he makes the rope and manages a German suplex to drop Ciampa again. Ciampa can’t hit Willow’s Bell as he is pulled throat first into the top rope instead. That’s fine with Ciampa, who ties him in the ropes and chops away, setting up Willow’s Bell for the pin at 16:55.

Rating: B. They built this up as two people wanting to beat the heck out of each other and that’s what we got. There was no reason to try for anything more than Thatcher using his technical stuff against Ciampa’s brawling and the formula worked out rather well. Good, hard hitting match here and while I might have gone with Thatcher winning, Ciampa being rebuilt is a good thing for NXT.

They stare at each other after the match so this might not be over.

We recap Cameron Grimes vs. Dexter Lumis. Grimes is cocky and loud so Lumis has been stalking him, including inside a haunted house at Halloween Havoc. As a result, Grimes has been running away over and over so let’s have a strap match.

Cameron Grimes vs. Dexter Lumis

The referee is ready to put the strap on but Grimes wants to use his own. That’s not cool but Grimes jumps Lumis before the bell. They head outside with Grimes sending him into various things and choking with the strap. Back in and Lumis hits a Thesz press to hammer away and now the strap goes on, meaning the bell can ring (so we can get some bonus Lumis you see). Grimes heads outside and tries to escape over the barricade, only to get pulled back for an uppercut.

A hard whip sends Grimes into the barricade but Lumis gets sent over for a change. That lets Lumis do his big scary pull up (he’s no Keith Lee) but Grimes pulls him back to ringside in a crash. A shot to the face drops Lumis again and Grimes wraps the strap around his eyes. With that not being enough, Grimes puts a hood over Lumis’ head and takes him back inside for a whipping. Lumis whips out a spinebuster and, after taking off the hood, heads outside to wrap the strap around the structure around the post.

That goes nowhere as Grimes escapes and kicks Lumis in the chest, only to be pulled off the apron. Back in again and Lumis whips away, only to get German suplexed into the corner. Grimes unloads with a chair before having a seat in it for a change. Lumis catches a charge and hits a fall away slam, only to get pulled off the top. Grimes’ flipping powerslam gets two but both the Cave In and Silence are countered. Lumis ties the legs up with the strap and Grimes goes face first into the open chair. Silence goes on and Grimes taps at 12:55.

Rating: B-. They had a good match here and Grimes is still a natural treasure but….WHAT IS SO SPECIAL ABOUT LUMIS??? I’ve yet to miss an episode of NXT and for the life of me I do not understand what is so special about this guy. I don’t get what NXT sees in him and yet it just keeps going for months on end. Anyway, pretty good match with some creative spots, but in the end, it’s still Lumis and that cuts off a lot of my interest.

The lights flicker and a vulture flies around. Karrion Kross’ voice is heard saying Tick Tock. Since Kross’ theme is a clock and he said tick tock over and over, commentary has no idea who this is.

We recap the triple threat match for the North American Title. Johnny Gargano won the title from Damian Priest thanks to some outside interference at Halloween Havoc. That made him cocky so he rigged a wheel to choose Leon Ruff as his first challenger. Priest interfered to cost Gargano the title, making Ruff the fluke champion. Ruff did not like being called a joke and agreed to defend against both at once.

North American Title: Leon Ruff vs. Johnny Gargano vs. Damian Priest

Ruff is defending and gets sent into the corner early on, leaving Gargano to hit a superkick. Gargano takes Ruff into the corner but Priest is back in to throw Ruff out of the way for a second time. Back in and Ruff hits a double missile dropkick before stepping up to Priest. That isn’t the best idea as Priest grabs him by the throat until Gargano makes the save. Priest gets double teamed down but Gargano turns on Ruff with the slingshot spear. Priest is back up as they head outside, with Ruff insisting that he is not a joke.

That earns him a shot to the face and a Razor’s Edge through the barricade as the crowd noise doesn’t seem pleased with Priest. Referees check on Ruff as Priest apologizes for hurting him like that. Gargano is back up but One Final Beat is blocked so Gargano goes with a standing Sliced Bread for two instead. Priest blasts him with a clothesline and they’re both down. With Priest down on the ramp, Ruff comes back and uses him as a launchpad for a clothesline.

A rope walk flip dive off the top takes both challengers down on the floor. Back in and a twisting rope rope cutter (The heck was that?) drops Gargano again, but it only seems to get on his nerves. Ruff clotheslines Gargano for two but Priest is back in, saying Ruff is out of chances. Priest kicks him in the head and lifts them both up in a double Downward Spiral. The double teaming takes Priest down again though, this time with his arms getting tied in the ropes.

Ruff gets quite the two count off a crucifix but Gargano pulls him into the Gargano Escape, right in front of Priest. That’s as bad of an idea as it sounds as Priest gets out and makes the save. The spinwheel kick drops Gargano and Ruff is sent outside, leaving Gargano to take the South of Heaven chokeslam. Cue three Ghostfaces to jump Priest, who shrugs all of them off. Three more show up so Priest hits a big step up flip dive to the floor. Another dive takes out the original trio.

Priest is all fired up (great visual) and chokeslams Gargano onto the apron. Back in and Ruff hits the frog splash for two on Gargano with Priest making the save. The Reckoning is broken up and they trade kicks to the face, with Priest knocking Gargano silly. Cue another Ghostface with a lead pipe to Priest’s back though, allowing Gargano to hit One Final Beat on Ruff for the pin and the title at 17:31.

Rating: B. This was an interesting match as you had Gargano winning the title, but Priest and Ruff got to showcase themselves very well. Priest looks like the monster of monsters right now and that fired up look on his face after the dives was great. At the same time you have Ruff, who probably just moved past the peak of his career, getting a chance to show you what he can do. I can always go for someone making the most of their chances and that is exactly what he did here. Nice job all around with probably the right result.

Post match the main Ghostface is…..Austin Theory.

New Year’s Evil is a special episode of NXT on January 6.

We recap the men’s WarGames match. Pat McAfee and Company got together and ran over NXT, including taking out the Undisputed Era. They set their sights on Finn Balor, but the Era is back for a big fight. That means a William Regal WARGAMES announcement and here we are.

Undisputed Era vs. Team McAfee

Adam Cole, Kyle O’Reilly, Bobby Fish, Roderick Strong

Pat McAfee, Oney Lorcan, Danny Burch, Pete Dunne

O’Reilly and Dunne start things off and Team McAfee has the advantage. The take their time to start with neither being able to get very far early on. O’Reilly takes him down by the arm to start but can’t get the triangle. He can’t get the cross armbreaker either so Dunne pulls him into a triangle choke in the ropes for a change. With that not going very far, Dunne cranks on the fingers, only to have go after the fingers in the corner. A stomp to the fingers misses so O’Reilly goes with a choke.

O’Reilly knees him in the chest, only to get pulled into a cross armbreaker. That’s broken and it’s Oney Lorcan coming in to kick away at O’Reilly. The double teaming is on with O’Reilly going down but fighting back in a hurry. Lorcan gets caught in the ropes for a guillotine legdrop but Dunne dropkicks the leg out. It’s Bobby Fish coming in to start throwing the knees and there’s a spinebuster to Lorcan. Dunne is back up with a Kimura on O’Reilly but Fish makes the save with a choke.

They go into the cage until time runs out, with Danny Burch telling Pat McAfee that he has this. Burch grabs a bag to pull out a cricket bat to clean house. Like any villain though, Burch takes too long talking trash and gets pulled into a kneebar. Dunne breaks it up with a stomp to the arm and it’s Lorcan with his own cricket bat. The group stomping is on but here’s Roderick Strong running in….and getting stomped down immediately.

Strong fights up to clean house with a dropkick to Lorcan and a backbreaker to Dunne. He heads to the middle of the rings and hits the running forearms to all three at once in a nice little sequence. Lorcan manages to send Strong face first into the cage though and McAfee and Company take over again. With the Era in trouble, it’s McAfee coming in to complete the team, though he needs to grab a table. Make that four tables, each with a member of the Era’s name included.

With all four in, McAfee finally gets in as the team is dismantling the Era. Strong is driven through his table and it’s Cole coming in to finally complete the field. Since McAfee and Company are waiting on him, Cole whips out a fire extinguisher to clear the ring and it’s time to get going. All of the usual takes care of everyone but McAfee and the showdown is on. Dunne steps in Cole’s way though and we hit the slugout, with Dunne taking him down and stomping away at the head.

The Bitter End is countered with a quick DDT but McAfee grabs Cole’s arms so Dunne can kick him in the head. O’Reilly takes Dunne down with a chair and tells McAfee to come fight him if he wants to be a wrestler. Kyle goes on the best rant I’ve ever heard from him, telling McAfee that he’s nothing and to come get some. Everyone is back up and the big fight is on with Lorcan hitting a Blockbuster. O’Reilly and Strong knee Dunne down with Lorcan making the save.

Cole starts kicking people in the face until McAfee chop blocks him down. With the required WOO’s, McAfee puts on a pretty good Figure Four while the other six are brawling at the ropes. Cole turns it over with Dunne having to make his own save. The Era is in trouble with the Cole table being set up but Strong and Fish kick Lorcan and Burch down. Cole hits Dunne with the brainbuster onto the knee for two and sets up a table in the middle of the ring.

Dunne gets powerbombed onto Burch onto a table, which doesn’t break (Barrett: “Where are we getting these tables from?”). Strong splashes both of them through the table and Cole shoves McAfee off the top and through another table in a massive crash. And Company is caught up against the cage so the rest of the Era charges into them with a long series of strikes. Cole gets in on it as well and the Era stands tall. McAfee is all alone and despite claims of a bad back, he tries to scale the cage, which goes about as well as expected.

The group beatdown is on and McAfee is sent hard into the cage. With McAfee mostly done, the rest of the team gets back up and we’re right back at it. A Doomsday European uppercut drops Strong but Dunne is taken off the top with a super neckbreaker. There’s a superplex to McAfee and they’re all down again. Everyone gets together for the big staredown but it’s McAfee going to the top of the cage for the HUGE flip dive onto everyone else for the huge crash.

O’Reilly and Dunne slug it out in the other ring with O’Reilly kicking away, only to get his fingers snapped. A suplex drops Dunne between the rings for two. McAfee grabs a chair and Cole tells him to do his best. Cole knocks it down and takes it away, only to get kicked low. Fish drives Burch through another table and Cole superkicks McAfee out of the air.

The Panama Sunrise plants McAfee for two in a heck of a false finish. The Last Shot misses McAfee but hits Lorcan instead. Dunne is back up with the Bitter End onto an open chair (geez) but O’Reilly kicks him down. A top rope knee onto a chair onto Lorcan’s head gives the Era the pin at 45:06.

Rating: A-. It says a lot when a 45 minute match doesn’t feel long and makes you feel every bit of the pain. I’m surprised at the Era winning but if McAfee isn’t going to be around regularly (fair enough), there was little reason to have his team win. McAfee can come back when he wants and be the best heel in the company, which is probably going to keep him a lot more fresh. I’m not sure what is next for the Era now as there is nothing left for them to do, but dang they had a great one here. Awesome match and crazy brutal throughout, with the Era getting the win in the definitive NXT team battle.

A lot of posing takes us out.

Overall Rating: A-. Yeah it was great and I’m not sure what else there is to say about something like this. All five matches were good to great and I had an awesome time throughout. It’s a heck of a show and worth seeing, though it didn’t have that big show stealing match. Still though, this felt like a Takeover and that’s as strong of an endorsement as you’re going to get.

Results

Team LeRae b. Team Blackheart – Superbomb to Shirai through a ladder

Tommaso Ciampa b. Timothy Thatcher – Willow’s Bell

Dexter Lumis b. Cameron Grimes – Silence

Johnny Gargano b. Leon Ruff and Damian Priest – One Final beat to Ruff

Undisputed Era b. Team McAfee – Top rope knee to a chair to Lorcan

 

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Survivor Series 2019
Date: November 24, 2019
Location: Allstate Arena, Chicago, Illinois
Attendance: 13,271
Commentators: Michael Cole, Corey Graves, Vic Joseph, Jerry Lawler, Nigel McGuinness, Beth Phoenix

This year’s show is all about the Battle For Brand Supremacy, but NXT is involved as well and the invasions have been red hot for a change. They have set up a pretty awesome looking show, even with the amount of triple threat matches, including triple threat elimination matches. Let’s get to it.

I was in the arena for this show, sitting in the end zone straight across from the Titantron in the upper deck.

Kickoff Show: Tag Team Battle Royal

Raw: OC, Street Profits, Curt Hawkins/Zack Ryder

Smackdown: Revival, Robert Roode/Dolph Ziggler, Lucha House Party, Heavy Machinery

NXT: Forgotten Sons, Breezango, Imperium

When one member is out, the team is out. Where to begin? First of all, there are no graphics to tell you which brand the teams are on. I get expecting people to know that at the time, but WWE knows that they have the Draft every year and that the Network is a thing here. Throw up a show graphic.

Second, a year later and five of these teams are gone, with four of them out of the company. Third, Hawkins and Ryder are “glad to still be here.” These people were the Tag Team Champions at Wrestlemania seven months and a half months earlier. That’s a heck of a fall. Oh and I had forgotten about that Tag Team World Cup deal the OC had from Crown Jewel. I’ve heard worse ideas.

It’s a brawl to start (shocking I know) with Jaxson Ryker saving Gran Metalik for no reason. General stupidity maybe? The Sons are out in a hurry as I try to get over Dolph Ziggler wearing a Smackdown hat in the match. Yeah they need graphics on their name but it’s Ziggler so by definition it’s a stupid thing to do. Angelo Dawkins throws out Gran Metalik to get rid of the Lucha House Party as Ziggler (now minus the hat) is thrown to the apron for his traditional save fest.

Hawkins is sent through the middle rope but Ryder is thrown over the top and onto him for the elimination. Barthel catapults Ziggler over the top for the skinning of the cat and Roode gets rid of Aichner to eliminate Imperium and save Ziggler (again). Otis falls trying the Caterpillar and gets dumped by OC/Revival. Breezango is out thanks to Revival and that’s it for NXT.

We’re down to Revival, OC, Roode/Ziggler and the Profits, with the Profits dropkicking Revival out in a hurry. Ziggler saves Roode from the Magic Killer and superkicks Gallows out to get us down to two. The brawl is on with Roode busting Dawkins’ spine but Ziggler superkicks Roode through the ropes by mistake. The Sky High looks to set up the frog splash but Roode saves Ziggler (that man needs a lot of saving). Ford hits the frog splash on Ziggler instead, only to be thrown out by Roode for the win at 8:19.

Rating: D+. It’s a battle royal and a tag team one at that, with the teams barely being identifiable outside of commentary throwing out a brand here and there. It will get better later on and since this was a bonus match, it’s hard to get that upset. What impresses me the most is how much the tag team division changes so quickly, as this feels like it could have been four or five years ago. That probably shouldn’t be happening and yet it doesn’t seem out of place.

Smackdown – 1

Raw – 0

NXT – 0

Kickoff Show: Cruiserweight Title: Akira Tozawa (Raw) vs. Kalisto (Smackdown) vs. Lio Rush (NXT)

Rush is defending and gets double teamed to start but Tozawa and Kalisto waste no time in turning on each other. That means it’s time for Rush to start his bobbing and weaving, which always looked awesome. Kalisto pulls Rush to the floor and cuts off Tozawa’s dive before walking the rope to kick Rush in the face.

A spinning wristdrag takes Tozawa down but Tozawa shoves Kalisto into Rush’s raised boot. Rush hits a double handspring elbow to take both of them down but Tozawa punches him in the face. Kalisto gets kicked to the floor and Tozawa’s sliding boot gets two on Rush. Tozawa and Kalisto take Rush to the top but he double armdrags both of them down for a huge crash.

A circle chop off is capped off by Tozawa German suplexing Rush but Kalisto dives in to roll Rush up for two. Tozawa is back up with a Shining Wizard to send Kalisto outside and the top rope backsplash hits Rush. Kalisto dives in for the save and the slugout is on, with Kalisto hitting the Salida del Sol on Tozawa. That’s fine with Rush, who comes in with the Final Hour to pin Tozawa and retain at 8:20.

Rating: C. It’s a match that has been done before but what we got worked out just fine with the three of them flying around and doing their high flying stuff. That’s something that is always going to work because it is a style that never gets old and Rush retaining is a fine way to get NXT on the board. I know he might have some issues, but dang Rush can do the flying thing.

Smackdown – 1

NXT – 1

Raw – 0

Kickoff Show: New Day (Smackdown) vs. Undisputed Era (NXT) vs. Viking Raiders (Raw)

Non-title (with all three as respective champions) and it’s Bobby Fish and Kyle O’Reilly, fresh off WarGames the previous night, for the Era. Big E., Ivar and O’Reilly start things off, which may be a little harder to keep track of but it makes a lot more sense than having two people in there at once instead. O’Reilly is taken down in a hurry so it’s Fish coming in, earning himself a beating of his own from Ivar. Both parts of the Era come in and get dropped by Ivar and Big E. before they turn on each over.

They take turns flipping away from each other until Big E. runs Ivar over in the power display. O’Reilly comes back in for the rapid fire knees to Big E. but the Raiders knee O’Reilly down without much effort. It’s back to Fish, who gets Ivar slammed onto him to make it even worse. Kingston comes in to slug away on Erik and it’s New Day double teaming O’Reilly down for two.

The Era is sent outside and it’s the New Day/Raiders showdown. The slugout goes on until Kofi is left alone, meaning it’s time for the Era to come back in and take over on Kingston’s leg in the corner. Ivar dives in with a splash to break up a kneebar so O’Reilly and Kingston slug it out on the apron instead. Big E. misses his spear through the ropes so Kofi and the Era join him, meaning Erik can slam Ivar onto the other four.

Back in and Fish starts taking over on Erik’s knee before handing it off to O’Reilly for the same. Erik manages to suplex O’Reilly into the corner to take Fish down, allowing the hot tag to Ivar. House is cleaned and O’Reilly kicks Fish in the corner by mistake. Big E. gets kicked in the face as well and Erik hits the shotgun dropkick on Fish. Ivar’s Bronco Buster misses though, meaning Kofi can come in with a standing double stomp to Erik.

Big E. suplexes the Era and it’s a powerbomb/top rope double stomp to crush Erik. Kofi’s big dive over the top takes out Ivar and the Era, with Big E. hitting the spear to take Erik down as well. Everyone gets back up and Erik knees Big E. in the face, setting up the springboard clothesline/German suplex combination (always cool), sending Big E. outside again.

Rating: B. This was the kind of all action match that they should have been having and it got enough time to make it work really well. New Day is a team who can be put in there at any time to make other teams look good and the Era can work with anyone. The Raiders needed the win most and it worked out well all around. Good stuff here and a nice way to wrap up the Kickoff Show.

Raw – 1

Smackdown – 1

NXT – 1

The opening video looks at how this is usually Raw vs. Smackdown but then NXT jumped in to make it a lot more interesting in a hurry. There are some other matches thrown in but this is ALL about the three way brand fight, which did have a heck of a build.

Raw Women vs. Smackdown Women vs. NXT Women

Raw – Charlotte, Asuka, Kairi Sane, Natalya, Sarah Logan

Smackdown – Sasha Banks, Dana Brooke, Carmella, Nikki Cross, Lacey Evans

NXT – Rhea Ripley, Bianca Belair, Candice LeRae, Io Shirai, Toni Storm

The NXT team was announced after last night’s Takeover and some of them are coming off of WarGames so they’re a little banged up. Storm, Evans and Logan start things off with Lacey taking over early on. That earns her a double flip out to the floor and it’s Cross tagging herself in to take her place. Logan hits a cartwheel knee to Storm’s back for….well nothing actually as she talks trash until Cross jumps on her back for the choking.

They’re both a bit odd so that fits well. Back up and Storm German suplexes both of them at once so it’s off to Sane, Carmella and Shirai. The fans get rather excited about two of these people and I’ll let you guess who they are. Carmella hands it off to Brooke, who is fine with just standing in the corner while the other two trade headscissors and clotheslines. Shirai hits a running basement dropkick to Sane’s face but Brooke sends them both into the corner for a double handspring elbow.

The Swanton hits both of them for two on Shirai so Evans comes in for a double hiptoss instead. Candice gets the tag and strikes away at Evans as Asuka comes in as well. A quick snapmare drops Asuka so Candice can hit a step up backsplash and there’s a middle rope faceplant for two on Evans. It’s off to Ripley, who gets caught in Asuka’s armbreaker so Belair makes the save, triggering the parade of secondary finishers. Banks is left alone in the ring with everyone else down…including Shirai and LeRae need medical attention.

Everything pauses as Raw and Smackdown wave goodbye to them instead of, I don’t know, trying to eliminate each other. We settle down to Banks vs. Ripley vs. Charlotte, which does sound like a heck of a match. Ripley doesn’t seem to be very impressed and since this feels big, it’s off to Belair, Logan and Cross instead. Cross hits a neckbreaker on Logan but gets sent to the apron for her efforts. A dive to the floor takes Ripley down and Cross hammers away on Storm against the apron.

Ripley picks Cross up though and puts her on the apron, allowing Belair to grab a rollup (with Ripley holding the feet) for the elimination at 9:39. Carmella comes in with a big headscissors to Belair and a superkick to Logan, only to walk into Belair’s KOD. That sends her into the ropes but Logan sends both of them out to the floor. Running knees takes Carmella and Belair down again with Natalya having to make a save back inside. Belair punches Logan down though and hits the 450 to get rid of her at 12:10.

That puts us at Raw and Smackdown with four each and NXT with three as Charlotte comes in to face Belair and doesn’t seem impressed. Belair gets clotheslined but Carmella comes back in to kick Charlotte down. The big boot drops Belair again but Carmella breaks up the moonsault that will never hit no matter what anyway. Charlotte pulls Carmella up for a powerbomb, which is countered into a hurricanrana onto Belair to give Carmella a pair of two’s each on both.

Carmella grabs Belair by the ponytail but takes too long, allowing Charlotte to hit Natural Selection on Carmella for the elimination at 15:38. Sane, Storm and Banks come in with Storm kicking Banks in the face. Storm Zero to Shirai is broken up though and the Insane Elbow connects, with Sasha breaking up the pin and….then pinning Sane herself at 16:48. Asuka gets so frustrated that she comes in and wrecks the place, including kicking the now legal Brooke in the face to get rid of her at 17:25.

We’re down to Ripley/Belair/LeRae/Shirai (with the latter two backstage) for NXT vs. Evans/Banks for Smackdown vs. Charlotte/Asuka/Natalya for Raw. Charlotte tags herself in and gets into a shoving match with Asuka as a result, eventually slamming Asuka down by the hair. Lacey tries to jump Charlotte but Asuka is back with the green mist (BIG pop for that) to blind Charlotte before walking out. The Woman’s Right gets rid of Charlotte at 19:09 and Raw is down to just Natalya. I’ll take that over Asuka taking another loss and Charlotte is going to be the focal point of everything she does so a tainted loss doesn’t mean a thing.

Since Natalya is the only one left for Raw, she comes in with the discus lariat to Storm and then rolls Evans up for a fast elimination at 19:51. That leaves us with Storm/Belair/Ripley for NXT, Banks for Smackdown and Natalya for Raw and Ripley is rather pleased. Banks and Natalya get smart and take Storm down for a Sharpshooter/Banks Statement combination for the tap at 20:47.

Belair comes in and Natalya tries to talk trash before going with the smarter move of playing Jim to Banks’ Bret on the Hart Attack for the pin at 21:16. So it’s down to Banks vs. Natalya vs. Ripley….or at least it is until Banks decks Natalya for the pin at 21:57, eliminating Raw completely.

The fans REALLY like the idea of Banks vs. Ripley though and it’s Ripley hammering away and getting two off a dropkick. Back up and Banks can’t hit a tornado DDT so it’s a sleeper to limited avail instead. Banks hits the running knees in the corner and the middle rope Meteora gets two. More knees to the back of the head send Ripley into the corner again but this time she superkicks the Meteora out of the air.

The Prism Trap (dang that looks awesome) is on but Banks rolls into the Bank Statement instead. Ripley is in trouble so here are LeRae and Shirai, who were never officially eliminated, to pull Ripley to safety. That earns them a dropkick through the ropes each and they head back in, where Banks has to slip out of Riptide. Shirai hits her with a springboard missile dropkick though and now Riptide can give Ripley the final pin at 27:53.

Rating: B-. They got some time here and the important thing is NXT wins a major match. That’s an awesome thing to see and it’s really cool that it actually happened on a big stage. You want to set things up well for the rest of the night and having an NXT all star team lose to teams involving Logan, Brooke and Carmella wasn’t going to work. Above all else, Ripley looked like a total star here, eclipsing almost everyone else in the match and the fans treated her like one. I wouldn’t have had Shirai and LeRae save her at the end, but Ripley pinning Banks for the win is all that matters.

NXT – 2

Raw – 1

Smackdown – 1

We look at the closing moments of WarGames last night when Kevin Owens became the final member of Team Ciampa and helped them win.

Seth Rollins, Raw Team Captain, comes up to Owens to ask where his loyalties lie. Owens says last night was just to get back at the Undisputed Era so tonight, he’s Team Raw. He also finds it funny that SETH ROLLINS is questioning loyalty. A mock Shield pose takes us out.

Shinsuke Nakamura (Smackdown) vs. Roderick Strong (NXT) vs. AJ Styles (Raw)

Battle of the midcard champions and Sami Zayn is in Nakamura’s corner. Nakamura strikes away at both of them to start but AJ gets them into the corners for some running elbows. Strong’s backbreaker gets him out of trouble but AJ knocks him to the floor and hits a shot to the face. Back in and Nakamura breaks up AJ’s springboard and kicks Strong to the floor for a bonus. A knee gets two on Styles and there’s the running knee in the corner.

The gutbuster fireman’s carry gives Strong two on Nakamura but AJ comes back in with a sleeper to give Nakamura a breather. Strong fights back up and runs them both over a few times, including the alternating running forearms to AJ in the ropes. AJ fights up and gets in a few shots, only to be monkey flipped into a shot to the face from Nakamura. A slugout puts Strong down in a hurry and Nakamura hits the sliding knee for two.

The Styles Clash to Nakamura is broken up and Sami pulls Nakamura outside for a break. Strong unloads on Styles in the corner but gets caught in an Electric Chair, with Nakamura coming in off the top with a kick to the chest. AJ breaks that up as well but Sami pulls him outside, leaving Strong to hit a jumping knee for two on Nakamura. Back in and AJ cuts off Kinshasa, setting up the circle of strikes to the face.

Nakamura drops AJ and hits a reverse exploder on Strong (whose knee got very close to AJ’s face), setting up Kinshasa….for two as AJ makes another save. AJ and Nakamura slug it out so Nigel can talk about their Japanese rivalry. The Landslide gets two on AJ but Kinshasa is countered with a shot to the face. AJ hits the Phenomenal Forearm but Strong comes in to get rid of AJ and steal the pin at 16:43.

Rating: B. This was the action packed match that you would have expected and the cool thing is that it made Strong look like he was on their level. Strong isn’t someone who has been proven on the big stage before and seeing him win here, especially by outsmarting the other two, is great to see. Again: it’s not like Nakamura or Styles are going to be hurt by the loss, especially to another champion. Throw in the fast paced action and having commentary boosting it that much more than this was a great time.

NXT – 3

Raw – 1

Smackdown – 1

Miz comes up to Daniel Bryan in the back and says they’re both family men. That’s why Miz wants Bryan to stop the Fiend once and for all, because he is an evil that must be stopped. Bryan doesn’t want to hear it from Miz.

NXT Title: Adam Cole vs. Pete Dunne

Cole is defending, but the interesting thing here is the lack of Mauro Ranallo, who apparently blew his voice out last night at Takeover. This would be code for “did not like Corey Graves calling him out for making too many Chicago rap music references and not letting Phoenix and McGuinness talk enough. He would be gone for a little while before returning, but it was clear that something wasn’t quite right. Cole has bad ribs and Dunne has a bad knee coming in.

The wristlocking doesn’t work well on Cole as Dunne flips out before going straight after the bad ribs. Dunne starts in on the hand before taking it outside to stomp the elbow in the steps. Back in and Cole kicks him down to stomp away before a dropkick cuts off Dunne’s knee. Dunne grabs the X Plex for a breather and Cole lands hard on the ribs again. There’s an enziguri into the corner to set up a release German suplex.

A sitout powerbomb gets two on Cole and he heads outside, with Dunne hitting a middle rope moonsault to the floor. Back in and Dunne’s moonsault hits knees, setting up the Last Shot to give Cole two. The Panama Sunrise misses so they take turns hitting each other in the face. The brainbuster onto the knee gives Cole two but another Last Shot misses and Dunne grabs the Bitter End for a close two. They slug it out again and Dunne unloads with chops but Cole superkicks his moonsault out of the air.

That’s good for two as well, as is Dunne’s sitout X Plex. They fight to the apron (because of course they do) and Cole busts out the Panama Sunrise to put them both down on the floor. Back in and Cole kicks him in the head and the kickout has Cole panicking. Dunne talks trash as they get up and snaps the finger but the Bitter End is countered into a Panama Sunrise (that looked great). The Last Shot retains the title at 14:09.

Rating: B+. Now that’s what you were hoping to see from these two and it was an awesome match throughout. Dunne is an absolute star and Cole looks like someone who should be the future whenever he is in the ring. This is one of those matches that makes you drool when you hear it announced and then they delivered on top of it. Great stuff here and worth seeing for that NXT style that works so well.

Team Smackdown argues over who should be the captain.

We recap the Fiend taking the Smackdown World Title from Seth Rollins at Crown Jewel. Then Miz questioned if Daniel Bryan was the same person he used to be, which got the Fiend involved as well. Bryan finally said YES again and that’s just what Fiend wanted as Bryan brought back the YES Movement.

Smackdown World Title: The Fiend vs. Daniel Bryan

Fiend is defending and there is something so creepy about watching him in person. The red lights are on and Bryan hits the running dropkick into the corner. A running clothesline cuts him off though and they head outside with Bryan being sent into the post. Back in and Fiend hits the release Rock Bottom and there’s the toss suplex to drop Bryan again. We hit the neck crank as Fiend laughs a lot.

They head outside again with Bryan hitting a running knee from the apron. A top rope dive takes Fiend down again and there’s a missile dropkick back inside. Bryan nips up and the YES chants set up the YES Kicks. The big kick to the head just makes Fiend laugh but another one keeps him down for a change. The running knee connects for two but Fiend grabs the Mandible Claw. Bryan manages to reverse into an armbar but another Mandible Claw finishes Bryan at 10:01.

Rating: C+. The point here was to have Fiend get over as a monster in his first title defense and that’s what he did. They made Fiend feel like a movie monster and that’s the kind of thing you want to do in this situation. Bryan not being able to win, even with the most successful stuff he has, is a good way to go and it told they story they wanted. Fiend is an unstoppable monster and that’s how it should be.

Rey Mysterio says it has been fifteen years since he first faced Brock Lesnar. A few months ago, he was ready to hang up his mask but his son Dominik made him keep going. Tonight, Rey is swinging his lead pipe for Lesnar’s knees and hopes his son is watching when he becomes WWE Champion.

Raw Men vs. Smackdown Men vs. NXT Men

Raw: Seth Rollins, Drew McIntyre, Ricochet, Kevin Owens, Randy Orton

Smackdown: Roman Reigns, King Corbin, Mustafa Ali, Shorty G., Braun Strowman

NXT: Tommaso Ciampa, Walter, Keith Lee, Damian Priest, Matt Riddle

The NXT team was announced on the Kickoff Show again. The fans are way into Walter, more or less sealing his fate. Strowman, Ciampa and Rollins start things off and Strowman dropkicks both of them down. Walter and McIntyre come in and Walter is all over a three way battle of the big men. The double teaming works on Strowman this time before slugging it out themselves. A big boot into the running seated senton hits McIntyre and there’s a German suplex to drop him again.

Walter chops Strowman to make him mad, tells him to bring it, and hits a dropkick into the corner. McIntyre hits the Claymore to finish Walter at 2:59 and the fans are MAD, as they should be in that spot. Priest comes in to strike away at McIntyre and Strowman. Shorty comes in to moonsault Priest and it’s Ricochet coming in as well. That earns him a Chaos Theory from Shorty and it’s off to Riddle for the grapple off. Both ankle locks miss and neither can hit a spinning kick so we’ll go with the standoff. Ciampa comes in so Ricochet kicks both he and Shorty down at once. Owens frog splashes Shorty for the pin at 6:27.

Reigns and Corbin both come in with Corbin hitting him in the face like the horrible teammate that he is. Owens heads outside to superkick Corbin and hit the Cannonball on Reigns against the barricade. Back in and….Ciampa grabs Willow’s Bell to get rid of Owens at 7:42. Orton slides in behind Ciampa and the fans really like this one. The RKO is blocked and Ciampa clotheslines him outside but Willow’s Bell is blocked as well. Orton drops him onto the apron and it’s time for the circle stomp back inside. Priest gets a blind tag as Orton RKOs Ciampa, so it’s an RKO to get rid of Priest at 10:16.

Riddle comes in and rolls Orton up for the fast pin at 10:30. Riddle is SHOCKED at the win….until Orton hits him with an RKO so Corbin can steal the pin at 10:56. We’re down to Rollins/McIntyre/Ricochet for Raw, Reigns/Corbin/Ali/Strowman for Smackdown and Ciampa/Lee for NXT. Lee comes in to face Corbin but Strowman tags himself in as the fans are recommending that we BASK IN HIS GLORY.

Strowman runs Lee over and starts cleaning house, including the freight train around the ring. He does it again but this time Lee Pounces him, followed by a Claymore from McIntyre for the countout at 13:14. Ricochet comes in to kick Corbin down and the big flip dive drops Reigns on the floor. That just earns him the End of Days from Corbin for the pin at 14:30. Ali, the hometown boy, comes in to clean house and soak in some cheers. The wicked tornado DDT plants Rollins and Ali hits a suicide dive…but Corbin yells at him, allowing Rollins to hit the Stomp on Ali for the elimination at 16:10.

Reigns and Corbin get into it on the floor as a quick CM PUNK chant starts and stops just as fast. Back in and McIntyre hits the reverse Alabama Slam on Ciampa. Reigns spears McIntyre down for the pin at 17:39 though, leaving us with Rollins vs. Reigns/Corbin vs. Ciampa/Lee. Rollins rolls Reigns up for two but gets kicked in the face. Willow’s Bell drops Reigns but the Fairy Tale Ending is blocked. Corbin cuts off Lee and drags Reigns over for the tag, only to have Reigns spear Corbin. Ciampa will take that pin at 19:54 and Smackdown is down to Reigns.

Rollins and Reigns go after Ciampa, who is fine with these odds. Rollins throws Ciampa outside though…and it’s time to load up the announcers’ table. Lee breaks up the DoubleBomb though and Ciampa hits Project Ciampa for a close two on Rollins back inside. The Fairy Tale Ending is countered so Ciampa hits a running knee, only to eat the Superman Punch from Reigns. The Stomp gets rid of Ciampa at 24:01 and we’re down to one man each.

Lee comes back in to throw Rollins around and he crossbodies both of them at the same time. Rollins is back with an enziguri into a low superkick and the frog splash gets two, with Lee LAUNCHING him off the kickout. Rollins is all fired up but walks into the Big Bang Catastrophe to give Lee the pin and get rid of Raw at 26:36. Lee smiles down at Reigns, who hits back to back Superman Punches for a VERY close two. The spear is countered into the Spirit Bomb for a nearer fall but the moonsault misses. Reigns hits the spear for the final pin at 29:18.

Rating: A-. I came to Survivor Series wanting to see one of the classic elimination matches and that’s what I got here, with one elimination after another and some crazy drama near the end. Lee looked like a STAR here and pinning Rollins clean is as big of a moment as he was going to get. There is no shame in being pinned by Reigns and what we got here was great stuff. I loved this match, save for the way Walter was put out, and it’s all I could have asked for.

NXT – 3

Smackdown – 2

NXT – 1

Becky Lynch is ready for Shayna Baszler and there is no one who can keep her down tonight. She has been traveling the world and every day out means one day out of the gym. Becky sees something of herself in Bayley, so tonight she is going to show both of them what she is.

We recap Brock Lesnar vs. Rey Mysterio for Brock’s Raw World Title. Brock came after Rey and his family so Rey brought in Cain Velasquez. That didn’t go so well as Brock destroyed him, leaving no one to protect Rey. That’s why Rey grabbed a lead pipe and started swinging, setting up this No Holds Barred title match.

Raw World Title: Brock Lesnar vs. Rey Mysterio

Lesnar, with Paul Heyman, is defending and it’s No Holds Barred. Rey is the Joker here for no apparent reason. Heyman says Lesnar weighs about two and a half Rey Mysterios. Rey grabs a pipe to start so Lesnar drops to the floor. He comes right back in though and blasts Rey with a clothesline. Rey is thrown over the announcers’ table and an overhead belly to belly sends him into the announcers’ table covering.

Brock posts him but Rey does the same to him, meaning it’s pipe time. Back in and Brock suplexes him onto the pipe and then adds another suplex. Cue Dominik to try to throw in the towel but Rey uses the distraction to hit a low blow. Some pipe shots from Rey and a chair shot from Dominik set up stereo 619s. Back to back frog splashes into a double cover gets two on Lesnar, who is back up with a suplex on Dominik. The F5 retains the title at 6:53.

Rating: C+. The whole point here was that one moment of drama and it worked a lot better than I was expecting. I don’t think anyone was realistically expecting Rey to win here but they managed to get in that little bit of drama and that was a great surprise. Lesnar was running out of opponents so having him wreck Mysterio was as good of a move as they had here, with Rey knowing how to sell this perfectly.

We recap the Women’s Champions triple threat. Becky Lynch said being the champ was all that mattered but Shayna Baszler just wanted to snap a limb. Bayley wanted to know why she was an afterthought and now it’s match time.

Bayley (Smackdown) vs. Becky Lynch (Raw) vs. Shayna Baszler (NXT)

Non-title again. They stare each other down to start and Bayley shoves Baszler into Becky. The brawling continues to the floor so Becky dives onto both of them. Back in and Bayley avoids the running spinning legdrop but Becky kicks her in the head. Baszler is back in as well and starts cleaning house until Bayley knocks her outside. Bayley stomps on Becky but charges into an elbow in the corner. With Baszler being dropped to the floor again, Bayley drops onto Becky’s back for two.

All three are back in with Becky kicking Baszler down and starting the Bexploders. A DDT gets two on Bayley and the top rope legdrop is good for the same with Baszler making the save. Becky gets sent outside so Bayley can hit a running knee for two on Baszler. Back up and Baszler sends Bayley outside, meaning it’s time for the big showdown with Becky. Bayley crossbodies both of them at once though and Becky is back outside. Bayley has to elbow her way out of a gutwrench superkicks but Becky breaks up the Kirifuda Clutch.

A powerbomb out of the corner gives Becky two on Baszler, who knocks Bayley off the apron. That means the Disarm-Her on Baszler but Bayley makes a save. They all head outside again with Becky tweaking her knee, allowing Baszler to drop her onto the announcers’ table. Becky gets dropped onto the table again but Bayley runs Baszler over. Back in and Bayley hits the top rope elbow, only to get pulled into the Kirifuda Clutch for the tap at 18:05.

Rating: C. Another viewing helped this a lot but it was longer than it needed to be and the action was only so good. Bayley was obviously there to take the fall and there is nothing wrong with that. If nothing else this should set up Becky vs. Baszler in a mega showdown later as Becky is unstoppable and Becky looks that way. Not overly great, but it did its job, albeit in the very long form.

Final Standings:

NXT – 4

Smackdown – 2

Raw – 1

Overall Rating: B+. The two last matches drag this down a bit but otherwise it’s a heck of a show with nothing bad and some good drama/shock as NXT runs away with things. What matters most here is they took some chances (some good some bad) and gave us a special moment with NXT. The wrestling was good throughout and it felt like the Survivor Series I had wanted to see for such a long time. Awesome show here and proof of what NXT can offer when they get the chance (and win the trophy).

Ratings Comparison

Tag Team Battle Royal:

Original: D

Redo: D+

Lio Rush vs. Akira Tozawa vs. Kalisto

Original: C+

Redo: C

New Day vs. Viking Raiders vs. Undisputed Era

Original: B

Redo: B

Raw Women vs. Smackdown Women vs. NXT Women

Original: B-

Redo: B-

Shinsuke Nakamura vs. Roderick Strong vs. AJ Styles

Original: B

Redo: B

Pete Dunne vs. Adam Cole

Original: A-

Redo: B+

The Fiend vs. Daniel Bryan

Original: B

Redo: C+

Raw Men vs. Smackdown Men vs. NXT Men

Original: B+

Redo: A-

Rey Mysterio vs. Brock Lesnar

Original: C+

Redo: C+

Bayley vs. Shayna Baszler vs. Becky Lynch

Original: D+

Redo: C

Overall Rating:

Original: B+

Redo: B+

Other than the main event, the memories seem strong with this one.

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

https://kbwrestlingreviews.com/2019/12/01/survivor-series-2019-they-really-did-that/

 

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and pick up the paperback edition of KB’s Complete 2004 Monday Night Raw Reviews (also available as an e-book) from Amazon. Check out the information here:

http://kbwrestlingreviews.com/2019/08/26/new-book-and-e-book-kbs-complete-2004-monday-night-raw-reviews/

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

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

Survivor Series 2019
Date: November 24, 2019
Location: Allstate Arena, Chicago, Illinois
Commentators: Michael Cole, Corey Graves, Vic Joseph, Jerry Lawler, Nigel McGuinness, Beth Phoenix

We have finally arrived. After several weeks of Raw, Smackdown and NXT invading each others’ shows, it is time to see which show is best and that could be interesting. Raw has won the competition three years in a row, though this is NXT’s first time being included. The card looks good, albeit huge. Let’s get to it.

I was in the arena for this show, sitting in the upper deck end zone, looking straight at the Titantron.

Kickoff Show: Tag Team Battle Royal

Raw: OC, Street Profits, Zack Ryder/Curt Hawkins

Smackdown: Revival, Dolph Ziggler/Robert Roode, Lucha House Party, Heavy Machinery

NXT: Forgotten Sons, Breezango, Imperium

When one member is out, both of them are out and that’s quite the advantage for Smackdown. Vic on Hawkins and Ryder: “Here are two guys who are just happy they’re still here.” Lince Dorado/Gran Metalik for the House Party and Fabian Aichner/Marcel Barthel for Imperium, with Walter on the outside. It’s a big brawl to start with Ziggler wearing a Smackdown hat (he finds new ways to look stupid every day) and it’s the Sons being out in a hurry.

The House Party quickly follow them with Hawkins and Ryder going as well to really start clearing the ring out. We get the standard Ziggler save because he does these things in every battle royal but never wins the things. Aichner and Ziggler slug it out on the apron with Roode knocking Aichner out for the elimination. Otis gives Ziggler the spinning slam and takes off the shirt to set up the Caterpillar, only to get tossed by the OC and the Revival.

Fandango gets sent through the ropes so he’s able to catch Breeze as he’s thrown out, only to have the Revival get rid of them anyway. That’s it for NXT and the Profits dropkick Revival out to get us down to the OC, the Profits and Ziggler/Roode. Ziggler breaks up the Magic Killer to Roode and superkicks Gallows out and we’re down to two. Roode gets knocked through the ropes and it’s the spinebuster to Ziggler but Roode knocks Ford off the top. Ford is right back up with a frog splash to Ziggler, only to have Roode throw him out for the win at 8:21.

Rating: D. What a great way to start the show: eliminate all of the popular teams and go with the least interesting team from Smackdown instead of the popular Heavy Machinery. It’s not like it matters one way or another in the grand scheme of things, but that’s what we get anyway because WWE loves itself some Roode and Ziggler. The match was your usual battle royal and that’s not exactly interesting.

Smackdown – 1

Raw – 0

NXT – 0

Kickoff Show: Cruiserweight Title: Kalisto (Smackdown) vs. Akira Tozawa (Raw) vs. Lio Rush (NXT)

Rush is defending and we’ve got armbands for the brands. It really is amazing how much effort they put into trying to get this Brand Supremacy thing over but it’s better than the stupid shirts. Tozawa and Kalisto knock him to the floor to start so Tozawa can roll Kalisto up for two, setting off the issues in a hurry. Rush comes back in and starts the dodging but gets pulled to the floor. Kalisto’s kick to the head cuts off Tozawa’s dive and everyone gets back in.

It’s Rush dodging Kalisto’s shots to the head and hitting a double handspring elbow to put both of them down. A left hand to the face puts Rush down and Tozawa plants him with a fireman’s carry faceplant. Everyone heads to the same corner and it’s Rush with a super double armdrag so all three can be down at once again. The three way slugout goes to Rush until Tozawa snaps off a German suplex for two.

Kalisto dives in to roll Rush up for two more and they’re down for the fourth time. There’s the Salida Del Sol to Rush with Tozawa breaking it up with a Shining Wizard. The top rope backsplash gets the same as Kalisto gets to make a save this time. Kalisto and Tozawa slug it out for a bit until it’s another Salida Del Sol to plant Tozawa. Rush dives in with the Final Hour to Kalisto to retain at 8:28.

Rating: C+. This was exactly what it needed to be: three talented guys going out there and doing a bunch of fast paced offense for a few minutes. The crowd was into it too, which makes me feel a little bit better for these guys. The cruiserweights have been treated terribly on 205 Live and it’s nice to see them getting a chance to actually shine on the big stage for once.

Smackdown – 1

NXT – 1

Raw – 0

Kickoff Show: Viking Raiders (Raw) vs. New Day (Smackdown) vs. Undisputed Era (NXT)

Non-title Battle of the Tag Team Champions. Big E., Ivar and O’Reilly start things off and the early beating sends O’Reilly over for the tag to Fish. The fans are behind the Era to start so Big E. and Ivar run both of them over, leaving us with the big power showdown. Big E. can’t slam him but he can shoulder the heck out of him instead, only to have O’Reilly come back in for some knees to Big E.’s ribs.

Everything breaks down for a bit and it’s Ivar slamming Erik onto Fish. Kofi comes in to hammer on Erik before jumping over Big E. for a backsplash to O’Reilly. The Era is sent to the floor so it’s New Day slugging it out with the Vikings. That doesn’t last long as Erik and Big E. head to the floor, allowing the Era to come back in and double team Kofi. The knee gets taken out with O’Reilly hitting the top rope knee to said knee, setting up a kneebar.

Ivar comes back in to break that up with a splash as everything breaks down again. The knee is fine enough to kick away at O’Reilly on the apron as Big E. misses the spear to the floor. With everyone else on the floor, Erik slams Ivar from the apron onto the pile for the big crash. Back in and Fish kicks Erik in the face before O’Reilly starts in on the knee at the slower pace.

That’s broken up and it’s back to Ivar to clean house. O’Reilly kicks Fish in the face by mistake and it’s Jeff Cobb’s Tour of the Islands to Kyle. It’s back Erik, who gets caught by Kofi’s double stomp out of the corner. That’s not it though as it’s a powerbomb/top rope double stomp for two with Ivar making the save. Big E. hits the spear on Erik this time and everyone is down on the floor at once.

Back in and the knee to Big E.’s face sets up the springboard clothesline/German suplex combination. Kofi misses Trouble in Paradise on the floor and takes the High/Low, leaving the Era vs. the Vikings. Ivar shrugs off the kicks and cartwheels away from High/Low to take both of them down. The Viking Experience sends O’Reilly into Fish for the pin at 14:42.

Rating: B. This took some time to get going but once they hit their stride, this was a pretty crazy set of spots with a bunch of different styles on display. It was a lot of fun and Raw gets on the board, which wasn’t exactly a surprise. However, they did enough of a job of making you believe that any team could win to get around thing. None of the teams looked bad here either so they even protected the champions. Really fun match that had just the right amount of time too.

Raw – 1

Smackdown – 1

NXT – 1

The opening video is your big recap of the NXT Invasion, which goes exactly as you would have guessed. They’re doing a good job of making NXT look like an equal here and that is what matters most out of the whole thing. All of the individual matches get some attention as well.

Raw Women vs. Smackdown Women vs. NXT Women

Raw: Charlotte, Natalya, Asuka, Kairi Sane, Sarah Logan

Smackdown: Sasha Banks, Carmella, Dana Brooke, Lacey Evans, Nikki Cross

NXT: Rhea Ripley, Toni Storm, Candice LeRae, Io Shirai, Bianca Belair

For the sake of sanity, they do team entrances instead of having fifteen individual entrances. Everyone but Toni on Team NXT was in WarGames last night so they’re a bit banged up. There will be three in at once but you can only tag your own partners so it won’t be completely insane. Lacey, Logan and Toni start things off with Logan getting knocked down early on.

Cross comes in to clean house until Toni takes her down as well, leaving Logan to hit some cartwheel knees to the back. Logan drops Cross onto Toni for two on each but Storm is up with a double German suplex. It’s off to Shirai vs. Sane vs. Carmella with Carmella just kind of being annoying as they have their staredown. Brooke comes in and lets them fight in the smarter move. Sane rolls her up for two so Brooke steals her own rollup to Sane for two more.

Brooke’s Swanton gets two on Sane and it’s off to Lacey for a kick to the face and her own two. Lacey talks trash to Candice and gets beaten up in the corner with Asuka getting dropped as well. A middle rope Downward Spiral gets two on Lacey and it’s Rhea coming in to dropkick Lacey to the floor. Everyone starts coming in for the parade of secondary finishers until Sasha is left alone in the ring. Hold on though as Candice and Shirai are both down on the floor and the match just kind of stops. They’re taken out and we’ll call that a double elimination at about 7:30.

We settle down to Ripley vs. Banks vs. Charlotte in the battle of the captains….but it’s Belair, Logan and Cross coming in before anything happens. Cross dives onto Ripley and then hammers on Storm for a bonus but Belair rolls Cross up for the pin at 9:39. Belair hits the KOD on Carmella, who rolls straight over to the ropes to save herself. Logan jumps Belair to the floor and dives onto Ripley and Storm on the floor. Back in and Belair punches Logan down, setting up a gorgeous 450 for the pin at 12:12.

Charlotte comes in and clotheslines Belair down but Carmella comes back in to kick Charlotte in the ribs. Carmella’s super hurricanrana sends Charlotte into Belair for a pair of twos each, plus a lot of Carmella’s screaming. Some low superkicks give Carmella two more on Belair but it’s Charlotte hitting Natural Selection on Carmella for the elimination at 15:38.

That leaves us with Charlotte/Asuka/Sane/Natalya vs. Ripley/Storm/Belair vs. Banks/Brooke/Lacey. Storm comes in and beats up Shirai and Banks until Shirai’s spinning backfist takes her down. The Insane Elbow gets two on Storm but Banks breaks it up with a Meteora to Sane for the elimination at 16:48. It’s three apiece now with Asuka coming in and kicking away to take over, including a big spinning kick to the head to get rid of Brooke at 17:22.

Charlotte and Asuka get in a fight though with Charlotte pulling her down by the hair. Lacey comes in and gets suplexed into the corner, only to take Asuka’s mist to the face. That’s it for Asuka, who walks out at about 19:00. The Woman’s Right finishes Charlotte at 19:08 and Natalya is the only one left for Raw. Natalya’s discus lariat drops Storm and a rollup gets rid of Lacey at 19:52.

NXT has a pretty commanding leave now so Natalya puts Toni in the Sharpshooter. Banks adds the Bank Statement and Storm is done at 20:42. Banks and Natalya get together for a Hart Attack and the pin on Belair at 21:17, leaving us with Ripley vs. Banks vs. Natalya. Banks and Natalya smirk at Ripley but Banks punches Natalya out for the win at 22:01.

Ripley slams Banks down for an early two and blocks a tornado DDT attempt. Banks sends her into the corner for a crash and there are the running knees in the corner. The Meteora gets two on Ripley but she’s back up in time to kick Banks out of the air for trying it again. The standing Cloverleaf comes on but Banks reverses into the Bank Statement. Cue LeRae and Shirai (never officially eliminated) to pulls Ripley to the floor so Banks takes both of them down. LeRae offers a distraction though and it’s Shirai hitting a springboard missile dropkick. Riptide finishes Banks at 27:53.

Rating: B-. Well there’s your star making performance. It might have been a little bit of a dirty finish but Ripley looked like a star of the highest order out there, which is exactly what they were going for here. The match worked rather well, but there were a few too many people in there and it got messy at times. Still though, seeing NXT pull off the huge upset and actually getting somewhere in this whole thing more than made up for it.

We look at Kevin Owens joining Team Ciampa to help defeat the Undisputed Era at WarGames.

Seth Rollins comes in to see Owens and accuses him of wanting to turn on Raw tonight. Owens says last night was about getting even with the Undisputed Era and yes he loves NXT, but he’s Raw. Rollins doesn’t seem convinced.

Shinsuke Nakamura (Smackdown) vs. AJ Styles (Raw) vs. Roderick Strong (NXT)

Non-title Battle of the midcard champions and Sami Zayn (an awesome hype man) is here with Nakamura. They go straight into the exchange of strikes to start and it’s Strong getting the better of it off the backbreakers. Nakamura gets dropped on the apron but AJ knees Strong in the face. Back in and Nakamura starts striking away, including the running knee to the ribs to knock Styles right back to the floor.

Strong’s fireman’s carry into the double knees to the chest get two on Nakamura and Strong bends him over his back. AJ is back in with a sleeper on Strong before throwing him into Nakamura for the break. He can’t follow up though and Strong hits AJ with a clothesline, followed by the running forearms to make it even worse. The belly to back faceplant gets two and Strong monkey flips AJ into a running knee from Nakamura.

Strong gets knocked down and Nakamura’s sliding knee to the head gets two more. AJ’s reverse DDT is good for another two and some frustration is setting in. The fireman’s carry backbreaker gives AJ two more with Strong not being able to make the save. Strong can break up the Styles Clash, but the crash means Nakamura lands on his face anyway. The Angle Slam gives Strong two on AJ as Sami is helping Nakamura with his breathing on the floor.

The coaching works though as Nakamura goes up and hits a doomsday kick to the chest for two on Strong, who grabs his knee and screams. Cole: “You’ve got to wonder if Strong is hurt.” Does Vince go out of his way to make Cole say these stupid things? Sami posts AJ as Strong hits a jumping knee for two on Nakamura. Just to egg the crowd on a bit, Nakamura hits a Go To Sleep on Strong but AJ breaks up Kinshasa. A spinning backfist staggers Strong and Nakamura suplexes him onto AJ.

There’s Kinshasa to Strong and AJ dives in for a save. That puts Strong on the floor so Nakamura tells AJ to COME ON. The striking exchange is on with Nakamura hitting a middle rope knee to the face. Nakamura’s Landslide gets two but AJ hits a forearm out of the corner. The Phenomenal Forearm connects but Strong comes in and steals the pin at 16:44.

Rating: B. Much like the previous one, this was all about action with all three guys looking like they could pull it off. Strong stealing the pin is fine enough and again, the bigger name taking the fall is protected. They were beating the fire out of each other here and we have our second good match in a row, though a little better than the first due to less chaos.

NXT – 3

Raw – 1

Smackdown – 1

Therefore, NXT can only be tied and can’t lose.

The Miz tries to give Daniel Bryan a pep talk but get glared away.

Cole explains the Mauro Ranallo is missing due to blowing his voice out. Right.

NXT Title: Pete Dunne vs. Adam Cole

Dunne is challenging after winning a triple threat match last night. They’re both very banged up after Takeover but Cole should be in far worse shape of the two. Dunne spins out of a wristlock to start and Cole’s headlock works just as badly. A shot to the ribs puts the injured Cole down but Dunne’s knee is bothering him as well. Cole’s arm gets twisted around and Dunne takes him to the floor to stomp on it again.

Back in and Cole gets smart by going after the bad knee with some cranking and a dropkick to the leg to make it worse. Dunne’s leg is good enough for the X Plex and you can see the shock of pain going through Cole as his ribs hit the mat. An enziguri in the corner lets Dunne stomp on Cole’s fingers and a sitout powerbomb gets two. Cole tries to bail to the floor so Dunne takes him out with a moonsault.

Back in and Dunne kicks him in the head but a moonsault hits raised knees. The Shining Wizard gets two as Cole was too banged up to hit it at full strength. Dunne shrugs off a pump kick to the face but can’t shrug off the brainbuster onto the knee. Back up and Dunne grabs a quick Bitter End before going for a moonsault out of the corner. Cole is right there with a superkick to the upside down Dunne (still awesome and incredible timing) for two more.

A big forearm puts Cole on the floor but he gets in a kick to the knee. They fight on the apron and Dunne’s knee gives out, allowing Dunne to hit a crazy looking Panama Sunrise onto the apron. They barely beat the count back in and Cole superkicks his head off for two more. Dunne tells him to come on and snaps the fingers but the Bitter End is countered into another Panama Sunrise. The Last Shot retains the title at 14:04.

Rating: A-. This is a case where the televised version worked a lot better than the live version as commentary and the better camera angles focused on Dunne’s knee injury that much better. You couldn’t get much out of that in the arena (or at least from the upper deck) and commentary sold the story very well. This was a heck of a back and forth match with both guys working very hard and selling their damage from the previous night.

Some wrestlers visited an elementary school.

We recap Daniel Bryan vs. the Fiend. Bray Wyatt won the title earlier in the month at Crown Jewel and started taunting Bryan to make him his first victim. Bryan has teased bringing back the YES Movement to fight Wyatt but won’t go all the way with it. Therefore, he might not be ready to face the Fiend.

Smackdown World Title: The Fiend vs. Daniel Bryan

Bryan is challenging and we get the full Fiend entrance, complete with severed head lantern. The crowd goes almost silent as the red lights come on and that’s an impressive reaction. Bryan hits a running dropkick into the corner to start but tries another and gets blasted by a clothesline. An uppercut puts Bryan on the floor and Bray plants him in the ring for a bonus.

There’s the toss suplex and Bray starts writhing around before grabbing the neck crank. With that broken up, they head outside where Bray misses a charge into the steps. He’s right back up though and Bryan has to break up Sister Abigail, meaning it’s a posting to stagger Bray again. A big dive off the top drops Fiend and he’s taking a little more time to get up.

Back in and Daniel hits the missile dropkick, followed by the YES Kicks to….just bring Bray back up. Fiend laughs at him and seems to say bring it on so Bryan hits the big kick to the head. More stomps have Fiend in trouble and the running knee (with YES chants from Bryan) gets two. Bray charges into a boot in the corner but grabs the Mandible Claw anyway. That’s reversed into an armbar over the top rope but dives into a right hand. Bryan tries the running knee again and charges straight into the Mandible Claw for the pin at 10:01.

Rating: B. They were getting somewhere with this one but it never hit that next level. It’s like Bryan needs one more gear, like the YES Movement, to get all the way over the hump. The Fiend comes off like a movie monster and it is going to take someone special to beat him. Having Bray beat a star like Bryan is a good move for him, but it’s hard not to imagine Roman Reigns getting the nod at this point. Anyway, this was a good match but it needed one more level to make it great.

Rey Mysterio says he first faced Brock Lesnar almost fifteen years ago. He’s a new man now and pulls out the pipe to prove it. Normally Rey would want his son Dominick to turn away but tonight he wants his son to watch and see what happens when Rey takes out Brock’s legs.

Raw Men vs. Smackdown Men vs. NXT Men

Raw: Seth Rollins, Randy Orton, Ricochet, Drew McIntyre, Kevin Owens

Smackdown: Roman Reigns, Shorty G., Mustafa Ali, King Corbin, Braun Strowman

NXT: Tommaso Ciampa, Keith Lee, Walter, Matt Riddle, Damian Priest

Same rules as the women’s match: triple threat and you can only tag your team members. Ali is rather happy to be in his hometown, as he should be. The fans are behind Walter, which shouldn’t be much of a surprise. Rollins and Ciampa slug away at Strowman to start so he dropkicks both of them down at the same time. McIntyre and Walter come in for the big three way hoss showdown and it’s Strowman being hammered down in the corner. Walter and McIntyre chop it out with Walter kicking him down but getting run over by Strowman.

A heck of a Rolling Chaos Theory hits Ricochet and it’s Riddle coming in to a big reaction. Gable gets the ankle lock on Riddle but it’s broken up in a hurry for the staredown. Another Chaos Theory doesn’t work on Riddle as Ciampa tags himself in, only to get kicked in the head by Gable. Ricochet kicks both of them down and it’s Owens going up top. He thinks about splashing Gable or Ciampa before going with the frog splash to get rid of Gable at 6:29.

Corbin comes in and bails from the threat of a Stunner so Owens follows him with the Cannonball. The Stunner connects on the floor but Ciampa catches Owens with Willow’s Bell for the pin at 7:41. Orton is behind Ciampa but Ciampa is smart enough to turn around without walking into the RKO. Ciampa hammers away and tries another Willow’s Bell but gets dropped onto the apron instead. Back in and it’s the Garvin Stomp but Ciampa gets over for the tag to Priest, only to walk into the RKO. Another RKO gets rid of Priest at 10:16 but Riddle rolls Orton up for the pin at 10:26.

Orton RKOs Riddle as well and it’s stealing the pin at 10:54 to some great heel heat. That’s how you use Corbin and it worked great here. Lee and Strowman come in so the fans are already singing. McIntyre breaks up the staredown with a forearm to Lee but gets run over by Strowman. That means the big running train around the ring, which works so well that Strowman does it again. This time though, Lee runs him over for a change and McIntyre adds a Claymore to count Strowman out at 13:17.

We’re down to Lee/Ciampa vs. Ricochet/McIntyre/Rollins vs. Ali/Corbin/Reigns. Ricochet springboards in with a clothesline to Corbin and there’s the big running flip dive to Reigns. The 450 misses Lee though and Corbin hits the End of Days to finish Ricochet at 14:31. Ali tags himself in and starts cleaning house with some kicks to the face.

Rollins counters the rolling X Factor by launching Ali over his head, only to have Ali X Factor Ciampa instead. The tornado DDT hits Rollins and it’s Ali hitting a suicide dive onto a bunch of people. Corbin won’t let Ali get a cover though and the distraction lets Rollins hit the Stomp to get rid of Ali at 16:10.

Reigns and Corbin get into it on the floor until McIntyre and Rollins break it up. Back in and McIntyre’s reverse Alabama slam gets two on Ciampa but the spear cuts McIntyre down for the pin at 17:39. Rollins, the only member left of Team Raw, kicks Reigns to the floor but the suicide dive is blocked with a right hand. Willow’s Bell cuts Reigns off but he reverses the Fairy Tale Ending into the Superman Punch.

Corbin pulls Reigns over to the corner for the tag, only to yell at Reigns instead of going after Ciampa. Eventually Ciampa escapes the chokeslam, leaving Reigns to spear and Superman Punch Corbin to give Ciampa the pin at 19:57. It’s Reigns for Smackdown, Rollins for Raw and Ciampa/Lee for NXT. Reigns, Rollins and Ciampa slug it out with Lee coming in for a failed save attempt.

That leaves Reigns vs. Rollins because we need to get the Shield stuff in. They decide to work together again but can’t hit a DoubleBomb. Instead Ciampa catches Rollins with Project Ciampa for a VERY close two but it’s a Superman Punch to Ciampa. The Stomp gets rid of Ciampa at 24:02 and we’re down to one apiece.

Lee is ready to go and slingshots in with a double crossbody to put them both down. The Limit Breaker is countered by Rollins and a superkick sets up the frog splash for two as the fans are behind Lee. Rollins goes after Lee again but walks into the Limit Breaker for the completely clean pin at 26:32 to get rid of Raw. The roof goes off the place as Lee is instantly a legit contender to pull off the major upset.

Reigns starts fast with a Superman Punch for a very quick two and Graves is DEMANDING a replay. The spear is loaded up but Lee cuts it off with a Spirit Bomb for a very, very close two. Lee misses the moonsault though and gets speared down for the pin at 29:18 as the air doesn’t go all the way out of the place.

Rating: B+. The ending sequence was the reason I’ve always wanted to see one of these shows in person: they hit the drama out of the park and had you believing that Lee could pull off the impossible. Lee got the big pin on Rollins so he’s a made man as a result, along with Ciampa for pinning Owens and Corbin. Just like in the women’s match, the NXT men felt like they belonged here and that was the point of the whole thing. Very fun match here with a lot of people (including Gable) getting to show off for a long time. Lee got the big rub here though, and they nailed every bit of what they wanted to do with him.

NXT – 3

Smackdown – 2

Raw – 1

Post match Reigns and Lee show respect.

Becky Lynch talks about being the man seven days a week while Shayna Baszler has been training every day. Shayna is going to have to destroy her completely and no one can do that to her. Then there’s Bayley, who thinks Becky has been ducking her. Becky even broke her own rule and came looking for Bayley. Tonight, Becky is taking them out and showing that she is the Man.

We recap Rey Mysterio vs. Brock Lesnar. Brock attacked Rey and his son so Rey brought in Cain Velasquez to help him fight. Once Lesnar got rid of Cain in less than three minutes, Rey fought for himself and took out Lesnar’s knee with a steel pipe. Tonight it’s No DQ so Rey can have a chance.

Raw World Title: Rey Mysterio vs. Brock Lesnar

Lesnar is defending and anything goes. Rey is dressed as the Joker (again) and that might not be the best visual for a match that is supposed to be rather serious. Paul Heyman introduces Brock as weighing about two and a half Rey Mysterios for his funny line of the night. Rey goes straight to the floor and pulls out the pipe so Lesnar bails to the floor in a smart move.

Brock gets Rey to chase him and the big clothesline makes him drop the pipe. The beating begins as Rey is sent outside and over the announcers’ table in a crash. The announcers’ table is loaded up and Brock throws him into the cover. Rey is beaten down so badly that Brock can even stop to tie his boot. It takes so long that Rey can get in a posting but Brock won’t let him grab the pipe. A release German suplex drops Rey onto the pipe (geez) and another (no pipe) makes it even worse.

There’s a third suplex so here’s Dominick with a towel. Brock takes that away and throws it out (maybe in a shot at the ending to Cody vs. Chris Jericho at Full Gear). Brock grabs Dominick so Rey hits him low and even Dominick gets in his own shot. Some pipe shots set up a double 619 (sweet) and Dominick adds a frog splash (in a nice tribute to his dad). Rey adds his own frog splash for two and the fans know it isn’t happening. Dominick gets suplexed down and the F5 retains the title at 6:54.

We recap the women’s triple threat match. Becky Lynch knows she is the best but Shayna Baszler came in and said she’d beat Becky just like the rest. Bayley has been fighting to make people think she matters in this whole thing other than to take the fall.

Bayley (Smackdown) vs. Becky Lynch (Raw) vs. Shayna Baszler (NXT)

Non-title Battle of the Women’s Champions. Ignore how Bayley’s shirt with BAY over LEY with the belt around her waist spells AEW of course. The announcers mention Ronda Rousey quite a few times during the entrances and I can’t imagine that’s a coincidence. Bayley knocks Baszler into Becky to start and the fans aren’t exactly interested early on. Baszler and Bayley hammer away at each other on the mat and fight to the floor.

Becky takes both of them down before throwing Bayley back inside. The spinning legdrop misses but Becky is right back up with a slingshot dropkick through the ropes to keep Baszler down. Bayley hits (or close to it) a sunset bomb into the corner as the silence is notable here. With Becky down, Baszler starts working on the arm but Becky cuts off a charge into the corner. Bayley stomps Becky down and slams her face into the mat a few times as the fans try to get a weak Becky chant going.

Baszler is back in to break it up but Bayley knocks her down as well. Becky gets back up this time with a DDT to Baszler and a reverse DDT to Bayley at the same time, though it isn’t enough to get the crowd going. The guillotine legdrop gets two on Bayley and Baszler has to break up the Disarm-Her. The Bayley to Belly gets two on Baszler but she’s back up with a suplex of her own. Becky comes back in with a missile dropkick to make Baszler drop Bayley.

We get the CM PUNK chants as Baszler and Becky slug it out until Bayley sends Becky outside. The charge on the apron is cut off with a Kirifuda Clutch but Becky comes back in with a sitout powerbomb for two on Baszler. Now it’s Becky getting Clutched inside until Bayley makes the save, only to get sent outside again. They all wind up on the floor with Becky being sent into various steel objects. Bayley takes Baszler back inside and has to suplex her way out of a quick Clutch attempt. The top rope elbow is countered into the Clutch though and Bayley taps at 18:05.

Rating: D+. They were trying here but the match didn’t have much of a flow and wasn’t the most thrilling. You can also see the amount of influence that the crowd can have as they weren’t interested here. However, there were some rather negative chants in the arena and they didn’t get picked up by audio here, which is a rather good thing. The match wasn’t good but it also wasn’t a nightmare and the heavily negative chants weren’t deserved. It didn’t help when the best Bayley could have done was tie the score and Becky had no chance to win anything for Raw, but there were other issues going on.

NXT – 4

Smackdown – 2

Raw – 1

Post match Shayna celebrates on the announcers’ table but Becky jumps her from behind. A legdrop off the apron lets Becky pose to end the show. That doesn’t get the best reaction either.

Overall Rating: B+. Aside from a not great main event, this was a heck of a show with one good to great match after another. They would have been better off having a tie coming into the main event but WWE hasn’t seemed interested in drama around here for the last few shows. NXT got the rub it was looking for though and that is the best thing that could happen. I’m sure it’ll be enough to fight off AEW, which is one of the major points of this whole thing so well done? In theory? Anyway what we got was borderline great though and I got what I was wanting out of the show so I’ll call it a major positive.

Results

Team NXT b. Team Raw and Team Smackdown last eliminating Sasha Banks

Roderick Strong b. AJ Styles and Shinsuke Nakamura – Phenomenal Forearm to Nakamura

Adam Cole b. Pete Dunne – Last Shot

The Fiend b. Daniel Bryan – Mandible Claw

Team Smackdown b. Team Raw and Team NXT – Spear to Lee

Brock Lesnar b. Rey Mysterio – F5

Shayna Baszler b. Bayley and Becky Lynch – Kirifuda Clutch to Bayley

<img class=”size-medium wp-image-40776″ src=”https://kbwrestlingreviews.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/12/Survivor-Series-2019-400×204.jpg” alt=”” width=”400″ height=”204″ /> IMG Credit: WWE
<p align=”left”><span style=”color: #000000;”><span style=””><span style=”font-size: small;”><u><b>Survivor Series 2019
</b></u></span></span></span><span style=”color: #000000;”><span style=””><span style=”font-size: small;”>Date: November 24, 2019
</span></span></span><span style=”color: #000000;”><span style=””><span style=”font-size: small;”>Location: Allstate Arena, Chicago, Illinois
</span></span></span><span style=”color: #000000;”><span style=””><span style=”font-size: small;”>Commentators: Michael Cole, Corey Graves, Vic Joseph, Jerry Lawler, Nigel McGuinness, Beth Phoenix</span></span></span></p>
<p align=”left”><span style=”color: #000000;”><span style=””><span style=”font-size: small;”>We have finally arrived. After several weeks of Raw, Smackdown and NXT invading each others’ shows, it is time to see which show is best and that could be interesting. Raw has won the competition three years in a row, though this is NXT’s first time being included. The card looks good, albeit huge. Let’s get to it.</span></span></span><!–more–></p>
<p align=”left”><span style=”color: #000000;”><span style=””><span style=”font-size: small;”>I was in the arena for this show, sitting in the upper deck end zone, looking straight at the Titantron.</span></span></span></p>
<p align=”left”><span style=”color: #000000;”><span style=””><span style=”font-size: small;”><u>Kickoff Show: Tag Team Battle Royal</u></span></span></span></p>
<p align=”left”><span style=”color: #000000;”><span style=””><span style=”font-size: small;”>Raw: OC, Street Profits, Zack Ryder/Curt Hawkins</span></span></span></p>
<p align=”left”><span style=”color: #000000;”><span style=””><span style=”font-size: small;”>Smackdown: Revival, Dolph Ziggler/Robert Roode, Lucha House Party, Heavy Machinery</span></span></span></p>
<p align=”left”><span style=”color: #000000;”><span style=””><span style=”font-size: small;”>NXT: Forgotten Sons, Breezango, Imperium</span></span></span></p>
<p align=”left”><span style=”color: #000000;”><span style=””><span style=”font-size: small;”>When one member is out, both of them are out and that’s quite the advantage for Smackdown. Vic on Hawkins and Ryder: “Here are two guys who are just happy they’re still here.” Lince Dorado/Gran Metalik for the House Party and Fabian Aichner/Marcel Barthel for Imperium, with Walter on the outside. It’s a big brawl to start with Ziggler wearing a Smackdown hat (he finds new ways to look stupid every day) and it’s the Sons being out in a hurry.</span></span></span></p>
<p align=”left”><span style=”color: #000000;”><span style=””><span style=”font-size: small;”>The House Party quickly follow them with Hawkins and Ryder going as well to really start clearing the ring out. We get the standard Ziggler save because he does these things in every battle royal but never wins the things. Aichner and Ziggler slug it out on the apron with Roode knocking Aichner out for the elimination. Otis gives Ziggler the spinning slam and takes off the shirt to set up the Caterpillar, only to get tossed by the OC and the Revival.</span></span></span></p>
<p align=”left”><span style=”color: #000000;”><span style=””><span style=”font-size: small;”>Fandango gets sent through the ropes so he’s able to catch Breeze as he’s thrown out, only to have the Revival get rid of them anyway. That’s it for NXT and the Profits dropkick Revival out to get us down to the OC, the Profits and Ziggler/Roode. Ziggler breaks up the Magic Killer to Roode and superkicks Gallows out and we’re down to two. Roode gets knocked through the ropes and it’s the spinebuster to Ziggler but Roode knocks Ford off the top. Ford is right back up with a frog splash to Ziggler, only to have Roode throw him out for the win at 8:21.</span></span></span></p>
<p align=”left”><span style=”color: #000000;”><span style=””><span style=”font-size: small;”><b>Rating: </b>D. What a great way to start the show: eliminate all of the popular teams and go with the least interesting team from Smackdown instead of the popular Heavy Machinery. It’s not like it matters one way or another in the grand scheme of things, but that’s what we get anyway because WWE loves itself some Roode and Ziggler. The match was your usual battle royal and that’s not exactly interesting.</span></span></span></p>
<p align=”left”><span style=”color: #000000;”><span style=””><span style=”font-size: small;”>Smackdown – 1</span></span></span></p>
<p align=”left”><span style=”color: #000000;”><span style=””><span style=”font-size: small;”>Raw – 0</span></span></span></p>
<p align=”left”><span style=”color: #000000;”><span style=””><span style=”font-size: small;”>NXT – 0</span></span></span></p>
<p align=”left”><span style=”color: #000000;”><span style=””><span style=”font-size: small;”><u>Kickoff Show: Cruiserweight Title: Kalisto (Smackdown) vs. Akira Tozawa (Raw) vs. Lio Rush (NXT)</u></span></span></span></p>
<p align=”left”><span style=”color: #000000;”><span style=””><span style=”font-size: small;”>Rush is defending and we’ve got armbands for the brands. It really is amazing how much effort they put into trying to get this Brand Supremacy thing over but it’s better than the stupid shirts. Tozawa and Kalisto knock him to the floor to start so Tozawa can roll Kalisto up for two, setting off the issues in a hurry. Rush comes back in and starts the dodging but gets pulled to the floor. Kalisto’s kick to the head cuts off Tozawa’s dive and everyone gets back in.</span></span></span></p>
<p align=”left”><span style=”color: #000000;”><span style=””><span style=”font-size: small;”>It’s Rush dodging Kalisto’s shots to the head and hitting a double handspring elbow to put both of them down. A left hand to the face puts Rush down and Tozawa plants him with a fireman’s carry faceplant. Everyone heads to the same corner and it’s Rush with a super double armdrag so all three can be down at once again. The three way slugout goes to Rush until Tozawa snaps off a German suplex for two.</span></span></span></p>
<p align=”left”><span style=”color: #000000;”><span style=””><span style=”font-size: small;”>Kalisto dives in to roll Rush up for two more and they’re down for the fourth time. There’s the Salida Del Sol to Rush with Tozawa breaking it up with a Shining Wizard. The top rope backsplash gets the same as Kalisto gets to make a save this time. Kalisto and Tozawa slug it out for a bit until it’s another Salida Del Sol to plant Tozawa. Rush dives in with the Final Hour to Kalisto to retain at 8:28.</span></span></span></p>
<p align=”left”><span style=”color: #000000;”><span style=””><span style=”font-size: small;”><b>Rating: </b>C+. This was exactly what it needed to be: three talented guys going out there and doing a bunch of fast paced offense for a few minutes. The crowd was into it too, which makes me feel a little bit better for these guys. The cruiserweights have been treated terribly on 205 Live and it’s nice to see them getting a chance to actually shine on the big stage for once.</span></span></span></p>
<p align=”left”><span style=”color: #000000;”><span style=””><span style=”font-size: small;”>Smackdown – 1</span></span></span></p>
<p align=”left”><span style=”color: #000000;”><span style=””><span style=”font-size: small;”>NXT – 1</span></span></span></p>
<p align=”left”><span style=”color: #000000;”><span style=””><span style=”font-size: small;”>Raw – 0</span></span></span></p>
<p align=”left”><span style=”color: #000000;”><span style=””><span style=”font-size: small;”><u>Kickoff Show: Viking Raiders (Raw) vs. New Day (Smackdown) vs. Undisputed Era (NXT)</u></span></span></span></p>
<p align=”left”><span style=”color: #000000;”><span style=””><span style=”font-size: small;”>Non-title Battle of the Tag Team Champions. Big E., Ivar and O’Reilly start things off and the early beating sends O’Reilly over for the tag to Fish. The fans are behind the Era to start so Big E. and Ivar run both of them over, leaving us with the big power showdown. Big E. can’t slam him but he can shoulder the heck out of him instead, only to have O’Reilly come back in for some knees to Big E.’s ribs.</span></span></span></p>
<p align=”left”><span style=”color: #000000;”><span style=””><span style=”font-size: small;”>Everything breaks down for a bit and it’s Ivar slamming Erik onto Fish. Kofi comes in to hammer on Erik before jumping over Big E. for a backsplash to O’Reilly. The Era is sent to the floor so it’s New Day slugging it out with the Vikings. That doesn’t last long as Erik and Big E. head to the floor, allowing the Era to come back in and double team Kofi. The knee gets taken out with O’Reilly hitting the top rope knee to said knee, setting up a kneebar.</span></span></span></p>
<p align=”left”><span style=”color: #000000;”><span style=””><span style=”font-size: small;”>Ivar comes back in to break that up with a splash as everything breaks down again. The knee is fine enough to kick away at O’Reilly on the apron as Big E. misses the spear to the floor. With everyone else on the floor, Erik slams Ivar from the apron onto the pile for the big crash. Back in and Fish kicks Erik in the face before O’Reilly starts in on the knee at the slower pace.</span></span></span></p>
<p align=”left”><span style=”color: #000000;”><span style=””><span style=”font-size: small;”>That’s broken up and it’s back to Ivar to clean house. O’Reilly kicks Fish in the face by mistake and it’s Jeff Cobb’s Tour of the Islands to Kyle. It’s back Erik, who gets caught by Kofi’s double stomp out of the corner. That’s not it though as it’s a powerbomb/top rope double stomp for two with Ivar making the save. Big E. hits the spear on Erik this time and everyone is down on the floor at once.</span></span></span></p>
<p align=”left”><span style=”color: #000000;”><span style=””><span style=”font-size: small;”>Back in and the knee to Big E.’s face sets up the springboard clothesline/German suplex combination. Kofi misses Trouble in Paradise on the floor and takes the High/Low, leaving the Era vs. the Vikings. Ivar shrugs off the kicks and cartwheels away from High/Low to take both of them down. The Viking Experience sends O’Reilly into Fish for the pin at 14:42.</span></span></span></p>
<p align=”left”><span style=”color: #000000;”><span style=””><span style=”font-size: small;”><b>Rating: </b>B. This took some time to get going but once they hit their stride, this was a pretty crazy set of spots with a bunch of different styles on display. It was a lot of fun and Raw gets on the board, which wasn’t exactly a surprise. However, they did enough of a job of making you believe that any team could win to get around thing. None of the teams looked bad here either so they even protected the champions. Really fun match that had just the right amount of time too.</span></span></span></p>
<p align=”left”><span style=”color: #000000;”><span style=””><span style=”font-size: small;”>Raw – 1</span></span></span></p>
<p align=”left”><span style=”color: #000000;”><span style=””><span style=”font-size: small;”>Smackdown – 1</span></span></span></p>
<p align=”left”><span style=”color: #000000;”><span style=””><span style=”font-size: small;”>NXT – 1</span></span></span></p>
<p align=”left”><span style=”color: #000000;”><span style=””><span style=”font-size: small;”>The opening video is your big recap of the NXT Invasion, which goes exactly as you would have guessed. They’re doing a good job of making NXT look like an equal here and that is what matters most out of the whole thing. All of the individual matches get some attention as well.</span></span></span></p>
<p align=”left”><span style=”color: #000000;”><span style=””><span style=”font-size: small;”><u>Raw Women vs. Smackdown Women vs. NXT Women</u></span></span></span></p>
<p align=”left”><span style=”color: #000000;”><span style=””><span style=”font-size: small;”>Raw: Charlotte, Natalya, Asuka, Kairi Sane, Sarah Logan</span></span></span></p>
<p align=”left”><span style=”color: #000000;”><span style=””><span style=”font-size: small;”>Smackdown: Sasha Banks, Carmella, Dana Brooke, Lacey Evans, Nikki Cross</span></span></span></p>
<p align=”left”><span style=”color: #000000;”><span style=””><span style=”font-size: small;”>NXT: Rhea Ripley, Toni Storm, Candice LeRae, Io Shirai, Bianca Belair</span></span></span></p>
<p align=”left”><span style=”color: #000000;”><span style=””><span style=”font-size: small;”>For the sake of sanity, they do team entrances instead of having fifteen individual entrances. Everyone but Toni on Team NXT was in WarGames last night so they’re a bit banged up. There will be three in at once but you can only tag your own partners so it won’t be completely insane. Lacey, Logan and Toni start things off with Logan getting knocked down early on.</span></span></span></p>
<p align=”left”><span style=”color: #000000;”><span style=””><span style=”font-size: small;”>Cross comes in to clean house until Toni takes her down as well, leaving Logan to hit some cartwheel knees to the back. Logan drops Cross onto Toni for two on each but Storm is up with a double German suplex. It’s off to Shirai vs. Sane vs. Carmella with Carmella just kind of being annoying as they have their staredown. Brooke comes in and lets them fight in the smarter move. Sane rolls her up for two so Brooke steals her own rollup to Sane for two more.</span></span></span></p>
<p align=”left”><span style=”color: #000000;”><span style=””><span style=”font-size: small;”>Brooke’s Swanton gets two on Sane and it’s off to Lacey for a kick to the face and her own two. Lacey talks trash to Candice and gets beaten up in the corner with Asuka getting dropped as well. A middle rope Downward Spiral gets two on Lacey and it’s Rhea coming in to dropkick Lacey to the floor. Everyone starts coming in for the parade of secondary finishers until Sasha is left alone in the ring. Hold on though as Candice and Shirai are both down on the floor and the match just kind of stops. They’re taken out and we’ll call that a double elimination at about 7:30.</span></span></span></p>
<p align=”left”><span style=”color: #000000;”><span style=””><span style=”font-size: small;”>We settle down to Ripley vs. Banks vs. Charlotte in the battle of the captains….but it’s Belair, Logan and Cross coming in before anything happens. Cross dives onto Ripley and then hammers on Storm for a bonus but Belair rolls Cross up for the pin at 9:39. Belair hits the KOD on Carmella, who rolls straight over to the ropes to save herself. Logan jumps Belair to the floor and dives onto Ripley and Storm on the floor. Back in and Belair punches Logan down, setting up a gorgeous 450 for the pin at 12:12.</span></span></span></p>
<p align=”left”><span style=”color: #000000;”><span style=””><span style=”font-size: small;”>Charlotte comes in and clotheslines Belair down but Carmella comes back in to kick Charlotte in the ribs. Carmella’s super hurricanrana sends Charlotte into Belair for a pair of twos each, plus a lot of Carmella’s screaming. Some low superkicks give Carmella two more on Belair but it’s Charlotte hitting Natural Selection on Carmella for the elimination at 15:38.</span></span></span></p>
<p align=”left”><span style=”color: #000000;”><span style=””><span style=”font-size: small;”>That leaves us with Charlotte/Asuka/Sane/Natalya vs. Ripley/Storm/Belair vs. Banks/Brooke/Lacey. Storm comes in and beats up Shirai and Banks until Shirai’s spinning backfist takes her down. The Insane Elbow gets two on Storm but Banks breaks it up with a Meteora to Sane for the elimination at 16:48. It’s three apiece now with Asuka coming in and kicking away to take over, including a big spinning kick to the head to get rid of Brooke at 17:22.</span></span></span></p>
<p align=”left”><span style=”color: #000000;”><span style=””><span style=”font-size: small;”>Charlotte and Asuka get in a fight though with Charlotte pulling her down by the hair. Lacey comes in and gets suplexed into the corner, only to take Asuka’s mist to the face. That’s it for Asuka, who walks out at about 19:00. The Woman’s Right finishes Charlotte at 19:08 and Natalya is the only one left for Raw. Natalya’s discus lariat drops Storm and a rollup gets rid of Lacey at 19:52.</span></span></span></p>
<p align=”left”><span style=”color: #000000;”><span style=””><span style=”font-size: small;”>NXT has a pretty commanding leave now so Natalya puts Toni in the Sharpshooter. Banks adds the Bank Statement and Storm is done at 20:42. Banks and Natalya get together for a Hart Attack and the pin on Belair at 21:17, leaving us with Ripley vs. Banks vs. Natalya. Banks and Natalya smirk at Ripley but Banks punches Natalya out for the win at 22:01.</span></span></span></p>
<p align=”left”><span style=”color: #000000;”><span style=””><span style=”font-size: small;”>Ripley slams Banks down for an early two and blocks a tornado DDT attempt. Banks sends her into the corner for a crash and there are the running knees in the corner. The Meteora gets two on Ripley but she’s back up in time to kick Banks out of the air for trying it again. The standing Cloverleaf comes on but Banks reverses into the Bank Statement. Cue LeRae and Shirai (never officially eliminated) to pulls Ripley to the floor so Banks takes both of them down. LeRae offers a distraction though and it’s Shirai hitting a springboard missile dropkick. Riptide finishes Banks at 27:53.</span></span></span></p>
<p align=”left”><span style=”color: #000000;”><span style=””><span style=”font-size: small;”><b>Rating: </b>B-. Well there’s your star making performance. It might have been a little bit of a dirty finish but Ripley looked like a star of the highest order out there, which is exactly what they were going for here. The match worked rather well, but there were a few too many people in there and it got messy at times. Still though, seeing NXT pull off the huge upset and actually getting somewhere in this whole thing more than made up for it.</span></span></span></p>
<p align=”left”><span style=”color: #000000;”><span style=””><span style=”font-size: small;”>We look at Kevin Owens joining Team Ciampa to help defeat the Undisputed Era at WarGames.</span></span></span></p>
<p align=”left”><span style=”color: #000000;”><span style=””><span style=”font-size: small;”>Seth Rollins comes in to see Owens and accuses him of wanting to turn on Raw tonight. Owens says last night was about getting even with the Undisputed Era and yes he loves NXT, but he’s Raw. Rollins doesn’t seem convinced.</span></span></span></p>
<p align=”left”><span style=”color: #000000;”><span style=””><span style=”font-size: small;”><u>Shinsuke Nakamura (Smackdown) vs. AJ Styles (Raw) vs. Roderick Strong (NXT)</u></span></span></span></p>
<p align=”left”><span style=”color: #000000;”><span style=””><span style=”font-size: small;”>Non-title Battle of the midcard champions and Sami Zayn (an awesome hype man) is here with Nakamura. They go straight into the exchange of strikes to start and it’s Strong getting the better of it off the backbreakers. Nakamura gets dropped on the apron but AJ knees Strong in the face. Back in and Nakamura starts striking away, including the running knee to the ribs to knock Styles right back to the floor.</span></span></span></p>
<p align=”left”><span style=”color: #000000;”><span style=””><span style=”font-size: small;”>Strong’s fireman’s carry into the double knees to the chest get two on Nakamura and Strong bends him over his back. AJ is back in with a sleeper on Strong before throwing him into Nakamura for the break. He can’t follow up though and Strong hits AJ with a clothesline, followed by the running forearms to make it even worse. The belly to back faceplant gets two and Strong monkey flips AJ into a running knee from Nakamura.</span></span></span></p>
<p align=”left”><span style=”color: #000000;”><span style=””><span style=”font-size: small;”>Strong gets knocked down and Nakamura’s sliding knee to the head gets two more. AJ’s reverse DDT is good for another two and some frustration is setting in. The fireman’s carry backbreaker gives AJ two more with Strong not being able to make the save. Strong can break up the Styles Clash, but the crash means Nakamura lands on his face anyway. The Angle Slam gives Strong two on AJ as Sami is helping Nakamura with his breathing on the floor.</span></span></span></p>
<p align=”left”><span style=”color: #000000;”><span style=””><span style=”font-size: small;”>The coaching works though as Nakamura goes up and hits a doomsday kick to the chest for two on Strong, who grabs his knee and screams. Cole: “You’ve got to wonder if Strong is hurt.” Does Vince go out of his way to make Cole say these stupid things? Sami posts AJ as Strong hits a jumping knee for two on Nakamura. Just to egg the crowd on a bit, Nakamura hits a Go To Sleep on Strong but AJ breaks up Kinshasa. A spinning backfist staggers Strong and Nakamura suplexes him onto AJ.</span></span></span></p>
<p align=”left”><span style=”color: #000000;”><span style=””><span style=”font-size: small;”>There’s Kinshasa to Strong and AJ dives in for a save. That puts Strong on the floor so Nakamura tells AJ to COME ON. The striking exchange is on with Nakamura hitting a middle rope knee to the face. Nakamura’s Landslide gets two but AJ hits a forearm out of the corner. The Phenomenal Forearm connects but Strong comes in and steals the pin at 16:44.</span></span></span></p>
<p align=”left”><span style=”color: #000000;”><span style=””><span style=”font-size: small;”><b>Rating: </b>B. Much like the previous one, this was all about action with all three guys looking like they could pull it off. Strong stealing the pin is fine enough and again, the bigger name taking the fall is protected. They were beating the fire out of each other here and we have our second good match in a row, though a little better than the first due to less chaos.</span></span></span></p>
<p align=”left”><span style=”color: #000000;”><span style=””><span style=”font-size: small;”>NXT – 3</span></span></span></p>
<p align=”left”><span style=”color: #000000;”><span style=””><span style=”font-size: small;”>Raw – 1</span></span></span></p>
<p align=”left”><span style=”color: #000000;”><span style=””><span style=”font-size: small;”>Smackdown – 1</span></span></span></p>
<p align=”left”><span style=”color: #000000;”><span style=””><span style=”font-size: small;”>Therefore, NXT can only be tied and can’t lose.</span></span></span></p>
<p align=”left”><span style=”color: #000000;”><span style=””><span style=”font-size: small;”>The Miz tries to give Daniel Bryan a pep talk but get glared away.</span></span></span></p>
<p align=”left”><span style=”color: #000000;”><span style=””><span style=”font-size: small;”>Cole explains the Mauro Ranallo is missing due to blowing his voice out. Right.</span></span></span></p>
<p align=”left”><span style=”color: #000000;”><span style=””><span style=”font-size: small;”><u>NXT Title: Pete Dunne vs. Adam Cole</u></span></span></span></p>
<p align=”left”><span style=”color: #000000;”><span style=””><span style=”font-size: small;”>Dunne is challenging after winning a triple threat match last night. They’re both very banged up after Takeover but Cole should be in far worse shape of the two. Dunne spins out of a wristlock to start and Cole’s headlock works just as badly. A shot to the ribs puts the injured Cole down but Dunne’s knee is bothering him as well. Cole’s arm gets twisted around and Dunne takes him to the floor to stomp on it again.</span></span></span></p>
<p align=”left”><span style=”color: #000000;”><span style=””><span style=”font-size: small;”>Back in and Cole gets smart by going after the bad knee with some cranking and a dropkick to the leg to make it worse. Dunne’s leg is good enough for the X Plex and you can see the shock of pain going through Cole as his ribs hit the mat. An enziguri in the corner lets Dunne stomp on Cole’s fingers and a sitout powerbomb gets two. Cole tries to bail to the floor so Dunne takes him out with a moonsault.</span></span></span></p>
<p align=”left”><span style=”color: #000000;”><span style=””><span style=”font-size: small;”>Back in and Dunne kicks him in the head but a moonsault hits raised knees. The Shining Wizard gets two as Cole was too banged up to hit it at full strength. Dunne shrugs off a pump kick to the face but can’t shrug off the brainbuster onto the knee. Back up and Dunne grabs a quick Bitter End before going for a moonsault out of the corner. Cole is right there with a superkick to the upside down Dunne (still awesome and incredible timing) for two more.</span></span></span></p>
<p align=”left”><span style=”color: #000000;”><span style=””><span style=”font-size: small;”>A big forearm puts Cole on the floor but he gets in a kick to the knee. They fight on the apron and Dunne’s knee gives out, allowing Dunne to hit a crazy looking Panama Sunrise onto the apron. They barely beat the count back in and Cole superkicks his head off for two more. Dunne tells him to come on and snaps the fingers but the Bitter End is countered into another Panama Sunrise. The Last Shot retains the title at 14:04.</span></span></span></p>
<p align=”left”><span style=”color: #000000;”><span style=””><span style=”font-size: small;”><b>Rating: </b>A-. This is a case where the televised version worked a lot better than the live version as commentary and the better camera angles focused on Dunne’s knee injury that much better. You couldn’t get much out of that in the arena (or at least from the upper deck) and commentary sold the story very well. This was a heck of a back and forth match with both guys working very hard and selling their damage from the previous night.</span></span></span></p>
<p align=”left”><span style=”color: #000000;”><span style=””><span style=”font-size: small;”>Some wrestlers visited an elementary school.</span></span></span></p>
<p align=”left”><span style=”color: #000000;”><span style=””><span style=”font-size: small;”>We recap Daniel Bryan vs. the Fiend. Bray Wyatt won the title earlier in the month at Crown Jewel and started taunting Bryan to make him his first victim. Bryan has teased bringing back the YES Movement to fight Wyatt but won’t go all the way with it. Therefore, he might not be ready to face the Fiend.</span></span></span></p>
<p align=”left”><span style=”color: #000000;”><span style=””><span style=”font-size: small;”><u>Smackdown World Title: The Fiend vs. Daniel Bryan</u></span></span></span></p>
<p align=”left”><span style=”color: #000000;”><span style=””><span style=”font-size: small;”>Bryan is challenging and we get the full Fiend entrance, complete with severed head lantern. The crowd goes almost silent as the red lights come on and that’s an impressive reaction. Bryan hits a running dropkick into the corner to start but tries another and gets blasted by a clothesline. An uppercut puts Bryan on the floor and Bray plants him in the ring for a bonus.</span></span></span></p>
<p align=”left”><span style=”color: #000000;”><span style=””><span style=”font-size: small;”>There’s the toss suplex and Bray starts writhing around before grabbing the neck crank. With that broken up, they head outside where Bray misses a charge into the steps. He’s right back up though and Bryan has to break up Sister Abigail, meaning it’s a posting to stagger Bray again. A big dive off the top drops Fiend and he’s taking a little more time to get up.</span></span></span></p>
<p align=”left”><span style=”color: #000000;”><span style=””><span style=”font-size: small;”>Back in and Daniel hits the missile dropkick, followed by the YES Kicks to….just bring Bray back up. Fiend laughs at him and seems to say bring it on so Bryan hits the big kick to the head. More stomps have Fiend in trouble and the running knee (with YES chants from Bryan) gets two. Bray charges into a boot in the corner but grabs the Mandible Claw anyway. That’s reversed into an armbar over the top rope but dives into a right hand. Bryan tries the running knee again and charges straight into the Mandible Claw for the pin at 10:01.</span></span></span></p>
<p align=”left”><span style=”color: #000000;”><span style=””><span style=”font-size: small;”><b>Rating: </b>B. They were getting somewhere with this one but it never hit that next level. It’s like Bryan needs one more gear, like the YES Movement, to get all the way over the hump. The Fiend comes off like a movie monster and it is going to take someone special to beat him. Having Bray beat a star like Bryan is a good move for him, but it’s hard not to imagine Roman Reigns getting the nod at this point. Anyway, this was a good match but it needed one more level to make it great.</span></span></span></p>
<p align=”left”><span style=”color: #000000;”><span style=””><span style=”font-size: small;”>Rey Mysterio says he first faced Brock Lesnar almost fifteen years ago. He’s a new man now and pulls out the pipe to prove it. Normally Rey would want his son Dominick to turn away but tonight he wants his son to watch and see what happens when Rey takes out Brock’s legs.</span></span></span></p>
<p align=”left”><span style=”color: #000000;”><span style=””><span style=”font-size: small;”><u>Raw Men vs. Smackdown Men vs. NXT Men</u></span></span></span></p>
<p align=”left”><span style=”color: #000000;”><span style=””><span style=”font-size: small;”>Raw: Seth Rollins, Randy Orton, Ricochet, Drew McIntyre, Kevin Owens</span></span></span></p>
<p align=”left”><span style=”color: #000000;”><span style=””><span style=”font-size: small;”>Smackdown: Roman Reigns, Shorty G., Mustafa Ali, King Corbin, Braun Strowman</span></span></span></p>
<p align=”left”><span style=”color: #000000;”><span style=””><span style=”font-size: small;”>NXT: Tommaso Ciampa, Keith Lee, Walter, Matt Riddle, Damian Priest</span></span></span></p>
<p align=”left”><span style=”color: #000000;”><span style=””><span style=”font-size: small;”>Same rules as the women’s match: triple threat and you can only tag your team members. Ali is rather happy to be in his hometown, as he should be. The fans are behind Walter, which shouldn’t be much of a surprise. Rollins and Ciampa slug away at Strowman to start so he dropkicks both of them down at the same time. McIntyre and Walter come in for the big three way hoss showdown and it’s Strowman being hammered down in the corner. Walter and McIntyre chop it out with Walter kicking him down but getting run over by Strowman.</span></span></span></p>
<p align=”left”><span style=”color: #000000;”><span style=””><span style=”font-size: small;”>The chop to Strowman doesn’t work so Walter dropkicks him into the corner…but walks into the Claymore to get rid of Walter at 2:58. The fans are MAD over that and I can’t say I blame them a bit as you don’t bring in a champion for a show like this and have him get pinned clean in less than three minutes. Priest comes in to kick away at McIntyre and Strowman, who misses a charge into the post. Gable comes in with a moonsault to Priest but Ricochet comes in to pick the pace way up.</span></span></span></p>
<p align=”left”><span style=”color: #000000;”><span style=””><span style=”font-size: small;”>A heck of a Rolling Chaos Theory hits Ricochet and it’s Riddle coming in to a big reaction. Gable gets the ankle lock on Riddle but it’s broken up in a hurry for the staredown. Another Chaos Theory doesn’t work on Riddle as Ciampa tags himself in, only to get kicked in the head by Gable. Ricochet kicks both of them down and it’s Owens going up top. He thinks about splashing Gable or Ciampa before going with the frog splash to get rid of Gable at 6:29.</span></span></span></p>
<p align=”left”><span style=”color: #000000;”><span style=””><span style=”font-size: small;”>Corbin comes in and bails from the threat of a Stunner so Owens follows him with the Cannonball. The Stunner connects on the floor but Ciampa catches Owens with Willow’s Bell for the pin at 7:41. Orton is behind Ciampa but Ciampa is smart enough to turn around without walking into the RKO. Ciampa hammers away and tries another Willow’s Bell but gets dropped onto the apron instead. Back in and it’s the Garvin Stomp but Ciampa gets over for the tag to Priest, only to walk into the RKO. Another RKO gets rid of Priest at 10:16 but Riddle rolls Orton up for the pin at 10:26.</span></span></span></p>
<p align=”left”><span style=”color: #000000;”><span style=””><span style=”font-size: small;”>Orton RKOs Riddle as well and it’s stealing the pin at 10:54 to some great heel heat. That’s how you use Corbin and it worked great here. Lee and Strowman come in so the fans are already singing. McIntyre breaks up the staredown with a forearm to Lee but gets run over by Strowman. That means the big running train around the ring, which works so well that Strowman does it again. This time though, Lee runs him over for a change and McIntyre adds a Claymore to count Strowman out at 13:17.</span></span></span></p>
<p align=”left”><span style=”color: #000000;”><span style=””><span style=”font-size: small;”>We’re down to Lee/Ciampa vs. Ricochet/McIntyre/Rollins vs. Ali/Corbin/Reigns. Ricochet springboards in with a clothesline to Corbin and there’s the big running flip dive to Reigns. The 450 misses Lee though and Corbin hits the End of Days to finish Ricochet at 14:31. Ali tags himself in and starts cleaning house with some kicks to the face.</span></span></span></p>
<p align=”left”><span style=”color: #000000;”><span style=””><span style=”font-size: small;”>Rollins counters the rolling X Factor by launching Ali over his head, only to have Ali X Factor Ciampa instead. The tornado DDT hits Rollins and it’s Ali hitting a suicide dive onto a bunch of people. Corbin won’t let Ali get a cover though and the distraction lets Rollins hit the Stomp to get rid of Ali at 16:10.</span></span></span></p>
<p align=”left”><span style=”color: #000000;”><span style=””><span style=”font-size: small;”>Reigns and Corbin get into it on the floor until McIntyre and Rollins break it up. Back in and McIntyre’s reverse Alabama slam gets two on Ciampa but the spear cuts McIntyre down for the pin at 17:39. Rollins, the only member left of Team Raw, kicks Reigns to the floor but the suicide dive is blocked with a right hand. Willow’s Bell cuts Reigns off but he reverses the Fairy Tale Ending into the Superman Punch.</span></span></span></p>
<p align=”left”><span style=”color: #000000;”><span style=””><span style=”font-size: small;”>Corbin pulls Reigns over to the corner for the tag, only to yell at Reigns instead of going after Ciampa. Eventually Ciampa escapes the chokeslam, leaving Reigns to spear and Superman Punch Corbin to give Ciampa the pin at 19:57. It’s Reigns for Smackdown, Rollins for Raw and Ciampa/Lee for NXT. Reigns, Rollins and Ciampa slug it out with Lee coming in for a failed save attempt.</span></span></span></p>
<p align=”left”><span style=”color: #000000;”><span style=””><span style=”font-size: small;”>That leaves Reigns vs. Rollins because we need to get the Shield stuff in. They decide to work together again but can’t hit a DoubleBomb. Instead Ciampa catches Rollins with Project Ciampa for a VERY close two but it’s a Superman Punch to Ciampa. The Stomp gets rid of Ciampa at 24:02 and we’re down to one apiece.</span></span></span></p>
<p align=”left”><span style=”color: #000000;”><span style=””><span style=”font-size: small;”>Lee is ready to go and slingshots in with a double crossbody to put them both down. The Limit Breaker is countered by Rollins and a superkick sets up the frog splash for two as the fans are behind Lee. Rollins goes after Lee again but walks into the Limit Breaker for the completely clean pin at 26:32 to get rid of Raw. The roof goes off the place as Lee is instantly a legit contender to pull off the major upset.</span></span></span></p>
<p align=”left”><span style=”color: #000000;”><span style=””><span style=”font-size: small;”>Reigns starts fast with a Superman Punch for a very quick two and Graves is DEMANDING a replay. The spear is loaded up but Lee cuts it off with a Spirit Bomb for a very, very close two. Lee misses the moonsault though and gets speared down for the pin at 29:18 as the air doesn’t go all the way out of the place.</span></span></span></p>
<p align=”left”><span style=”color: #000000;”><span style=””><span style=”font-size: small;”><b>Rating: </b>B+. The ending sequence was the reason I’ve always wanted to see one of these shows in person: they hit the drama out of the park and had you believing that Lee could pull off the impossible. Lee got the big pin on Rollins so he’s a made man as a result, along with Ciampa for pinning Owens and Corbin. Just like in the women’s match, the NXT men felt like they belonged here and that was the point of the whole thing. Very fun match here with a lot of people (including Gable) getting to show off for a long time. Lee got the big rub here though, and they nailed every bit of what they wanted to do with him.</span></span></span></p>
<p align=”left”><span style=”color: #000000;”><span style=””><span style=”font-size: small;”>NXT – 3</span></span></span></p>
<p align=”left”><span style=”color: #000000;”><span style=””><span style=”font-size: small;”>Smackdown – 2</span></span></span></p>
<p align=”left”><span style=”color: #000000;”><span style=””><span style=”font-size: small;”>Raw – 1</span></span></span></p>
<p align=”left”><span style=”color: #000000;”><span style=””><span style=”font-size: small;”>Post match Reigns and Lee show respect.</span></span></span></p>
<p align=”left”><span style=”color: #000000;”><span style=””><span style=”font-size: small;”>Becky Lynch talks about being the man seven days a week while Shayna Baszler has been training every day. Shayna is going to have to destroy her completely and no one can do that to her. Then there’s Bayley, who thinks Becky has been ducking her. Becky even broke her own rule and came looking for Bayley. Tonight, Becky is taking them out and showing that she is the Man.</span></span></span></p>
<p align=”left”><span style=”color: #000000;”><span style=””><span style=”font-size: small;”>We recap Rey Mysterio vs. Brock Lesnar. Brock attacked Rey and his son so Rey brought in Cain Velasquez to help him fight. Once Lesnar got rid of Cain in less than three minutes, Rey fought for himself and took out Lesnar’s knee with a steel pipe. Tonight it’s No DQ so Rey can have a chance.</span></span></span></p>
<p align=”left”><span style=”color: #000000;”><span style=””><span style=”font-size: small;”><u>Raw World Title: Rey Mysterio vs. Brock Lesnar</u></span></span></span></p>
<p align=”left”><span style=”color: #000000;”><span style=””><span style=”font-size: small;”>Lesnar is defending and anything goes. Rey is dressed as the Joker (again) and that might not be the best visual for a match that is supposed to be rather serious. Paul Heyman introduces Brock as weighing about two and a half Rey Mysterios for his funny line of the night. Rey goes straight to the floor and pulls out the pipe so Lesnar bails to the floor in a smart move.</span></span></span></p>
<p align=”left”><span style=”color: #000000;”><span style=””><span style=”font-size: small;”>Brock gets Rey to chase him and the big clothesline makes him drop the pipe. The beating begins as Rey is sent outside and over the announcers’ table in a crash. The announcers’ table is loaded up and Brock throws him into the cover. Rey is beaten down so badly that Brock can even stop to tie his boot. It takes so long that Rey can get in a posting but Brock won’t let him grab the pipe. A release German suplex drops Rey onto the pipe (geez) and another (no pipe) makes it even worse.</span></span></span></p>
<p align=”left”><span style=”color: #000000;”><span style=””><span style=”font-size: small;”>There’s a third suplex so here’s Dominick with a towel. Brock takes that away and throws it out (maybe in a shot at the ending to Cody vs. Chris Jericho at Full Gear). Brock grabs Dominick so Rey hits him low and even Dominick gets in his own shot. Some pipe shots set up a double 619 (sweet) and Dominick adds a frog splash (in a nice tribute to his dad). Rey adds his own frog splash for two and the fans know it isn’t happening. Dominick gets suplexed down and the F5 retains the title at 6:54.</span></span></span></p>
<p align=”left”><span style=”color: #000000;”><span style=””><span style=”font-size: small;”><b>Rating: </b>C+. This was all about that one short stretch and man alive did they make it work for about a minute. There’s more to it than that though and the rest of it was Brock’s standard operating procedure. Brock can do good things when he’s motivated and that…wasn’t exactly happening here but the comeback and near fall were great so it’s more good than bad.</span></span></span></p>
<p align=”left”><span style=”color: #000000;”><span style=””><span style=”font-size: small;”>We recap the women’s triple threat match. Becky Lynch knows she is the best but Shayna Baszler came in and said she’d beat Becky just like the rest. Bayley has been fighting to make people think she matters in this whole thing other than to take the fall.</span></span></span></p>
<p align=”left”><span style=”color: #000000;”><span style=””><span style=”font-size: small;”><u>Bayley (Smackdown) vs. Becky Lynch (Raw) vs. Shayna Baszler (NXT)</u></span></span></span></p>
<p align=”left”><span style=”color: #000000;”><span style=””><span style=”font-size: small;”>Non-title Battle of the Women’s Champions. Ignore how Bayley’s shirt with BAY over LEY with the belt around her waist spells AEW of course. The announcers mention Ronda Rousey quite a few times during the entrances and I can’t imagine that’s a coincidence. Bayley knocks Baszler into Becky to start and the fans aren’t exactly interested early on. Baszler and Bayley hammer away at each other on the mat and fight to the floor.</span></span></span></p>
<p align=”left”><span style=”color: #000000;”><span style=””><span style=”font-size: small;”>Becky takes both of them down before throwing Bayley back inside. The spinning legdrop misses but Becky is right back up with a slingshot dropkick through the ropes to keep Baszler down. Bayley hits (or close to it) a sunset bomb into the corner as the silence is notable here. With Becky down, Baszler starts working on the arm but Becky cuts off a charge into the corner. Bayley stomps Becky down and slams her face into the mat a few times as the fans try to get a weak Becky chant going.</span></span></span></p>
<p align=”left”><span style=”color: #000000;”><span style=””><span style=”font-size: small;”>Baszler is back in to break it up but Bayley knocks her down as well. Becky gets back up this time with a DDT to Baszler and a reverse DDT to Bayley at the same time, though it isn’t enough to get the crowd going. The guillotine legdrop gets two on Bayley and Baszler has to break up the Disarm-Her. The Bayley to Belly gets two on Baszler but she’s back up with a suplex of her own. Becky comes back in with a missile dropkick to make Baszler drop Bayley.</span></span></span></p>
<p align=”left”><span style=”color: #000000;”><span style=””><span style=”font-size: small;”>We get the CM PUNK chants as Baszler and Becky slug it out until Bayley sends Becky outside. The charge on the apron is cut off with a Kirifuda Clutch but Becky comes back in with a sitout powerbomb for two on Baszler. Now it’s Becky getting Clutched inside until Bayley makes the save, only to get sent outside again. They all wind up on the floor with Becky being sent into various steel objects. Bayley takes Baszler back inside and has to suplex her way out of a quick Clutch attempt. The top rope elbow is countered into the Clutch though and Bayley taps at 18:05.</span></span></span></p>
<p align=”left”><span style=”color: #000000;”><span style=””><span style=”font-size: small;”><b>Rating: </b>D+. They were trying here but the match didn’t have much of a flow and wasn’t the most thrilling. You can also see the amount of influence that the crowd can have as they weren’t interested here. However, there were some rather negative chants in the arena and they didn’t get picked up by audio here, which is a rather good thing. The match wasn’t good but it also wasn’t a nightmare and the heavily negative chants weren’t deserved. It didn’t help when the best Bayley could have done was tie the score and Becky had no chance to win anything for Raw, but there were other issues going on.</span></span></span></p>
<p align=”left”><span style=”color: #000000;”><span style=””><span style=”font-size: small;”>NXT – 4</span></span></span></p>
<p align=”left”><span style=”color: #000000;”><span style=””><span style=”font-size: small;”>Smackdown – 2</span></span></span></p>
<p align=”left”><span style=”color: #000000;”><span style=””><span style=”font-size: small;”>Raw – 1</span></span></span></p>
<p align=”left”><span style=”color: #000000;”><span style=””><span style=”font-size: small;”>Post match Shayna celebrates on the announcers’ table but Becky jumps her from behind. A legdrop off the apron lets Becky pose to end the show. That doesn’t get the best reaction either.</span></span></span></p>
<p align=”left”><span style=”color: #000000;”><span style=””><span style=”font-size: small;”><b>Overall Rating: </b>B+. Aside from a not great main event, this was a heck of a show with one good to great match after another. They would have been better off having a tie coming into the main event but WWE hasn’t seemed interested in drama around here for the last few shows. NXT got the rub it was looking for though and that is the best thing that could happen. I’m sure it’ll be enough to fight off AEW, which is one of the major points of this whole thing so well done? In theory? Anyway what we got was borderline great though and I got what I was wanting out of the show so I’ll call it a major positive.</span></span></span></p>
<p align=”left”><span style=”color: #000000;”><span style=””><span style=”font-size: small;”><u>Results</u></span></span></span></p>
<p align=”left”><span style=”color: #000000;”><span style=””><span style=”font-size: small;”>Team NXT b. Team Raw and Team Smackdown last eliminating Sasha Banks</span></span></span></p>
<p align=”left”><span style=”color: #000000;”><span style=””><span style=”font-size: small;”>Roderick Strong b. AJ Styles and Shinsuke Nakamura – Phenomenal Forearm to Nakamura</span></span></span></p>
<p align=”left”><span style=”color: #000000;”><span style=””><span style=”font-size: small;”>Adam Cole b. Pete Dunne – Last Shot</span></span></span></p>
<p align=”left”><span style=”color: #000000;”><span style=””><span style=”font-size: small;”>The Fiend b. Daniel Bryan – Mandible Claw</span></span></span></p>
<p align=”left”><span style=”color: #000000;”><span style=””><span style=”font-size: small;”>Team Smackdown b. Team Raw and Team NXT – Spear to Lee</span></span></span></p>
<p align=”left”><span style=”color: #000000;”><span style=””><span style=”font-size: small;”>Brock Lesnar b. Rey Mysterio – F5</span></span></span></p>
<p align=”left”><span style=”color: #000000;”><span style=””><span style=”font-size: small;”>Shayna Baszler b. Bayley and Becky Lynch – Kirifuda Clutch to Bayley</span></span></span></p>
<p class=”western” align=”left”><span style=””><span style=”font-size: medium;”>Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and pick up the paperback edition of KB’s Complete 2004 Monday Night Raw Reviews (also available as an e-book) from Amazon. Check out the information here:</span></span></p>
<p class=”western” align=”left”><span style=”color: #000080;”><span lang=”zxx”><u><span style=””><span style=”font-size: medium;”><span lang=”en-US”>http://kbwrestlingreviews.com/2019/08/26/new-book-and-e-book-kbs-complete-2004-monday-night-raw-reviews/</span></span></span></u></span></span></p>
<p class=”western” align=”left”><span style=””><span style=”font-size: medium;”>And check out my Amazon author page with cheap wrestling books at:</span></span></p>
<p class=”western” align=”left”><span style=”color: #000080;”><span lang=”zxx”><u><a href=”http://www.amazon.com/Thomas-Hall/e/B00E6282W6″><span style=””><span style=”font-size: medium;”><span lang=”en-US”>http://www.amazon.com/Thomas-Hall/e/B00E6282W6</span></span></span></a></u></span></span></p>

NXT
Date: November 18, 2020
Location: Capitol Wrestling Center, Winter Park, Florida
Commentators: Beth Phoenix, Vic Joseph, Wade Barrett

We’re coming off a huge upset last week as Leon Ruff won the North American Title from Johnny Gargano, albeit with a big assist from Damian Priest. Tonight it’s time for a rematch so Gargano can set the world right, but we also have Women’s Champion Io Shirai defending against Rhea Ripley in a showdown. Let’s get to it.

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

We open with a look back at Ruff winning the North American Title, including Gargano trying to rig the whole thing. Priest laughing in shock at the win was a great touch.

North American Title: Leon Ruff vs. Johnny Gargano

Gargano is challenging but before the match he says he wants everyone to stop talking about last week. The fans chant JOHNNY FAILURE but he says that the real failure is holding his title. Gargano knocks Ruff down and we’re ready to go in a hurry. The shoulders in the corner have Ruff in early trouble and there’s a hard whip to make it worse. Gargano hammers away in the corner, even hurting his own hand in the process.

Ruff is back with a quick enziguri but the crucifix bomb is countered. Gargano hits a pair of Lawn Darts but as he loads up a superkick, here’s Damian Priest for a distraction. That lets Ruff grab a rollup for two but the Swanton misses. A superkick drops Ruff and there’s One Final Beat for two as Priest pulls Ruff to the floor. Priest apologizes in advance and hits Ruff in the face for the DQ to keep the title at 4:50.

Rating: C-. The wrestling wasn’t the point here and there’s nothing wrong with stretching this out for another week. It’s still not like Ruff is being presented as anything better than Gargano as this is little more than a prop in the Priest vs. Gargano feud. The match was a squash until the ending and Priest’s “I’m sorry” before knocking him out was a good idea. Fine little storyline advancing match here.

Post match Gargano grabs the title but Priest takes it away and hands it to the champ.

Cameron Grimes says that he showed that Dexter Lumis is just a man. Tonight, Grimes is going to prove that he’s a rocket ship.

Cameron Grimes vs. Dexter Lumis

Blindfold match. Grimes puts his hood on and misses an early dropkick before barely being able to stand up. The referee has to duck a wild swing from Grimes, as Lumis has been standing in the middle of the ring the entire time. Grimes knocks the referee down in the corner and stomps away, allowing him to take his mask off for some reason.

Lumis is still standing in the middle of the ring without moving, but he’s still able to avoid the Cave In. Now Lumis takes his own mask off and hammers away but Grimes elbows his way out of the Silence. They head outside with Grimes being sent into various things before he finally just jumps the barricade and runs off at about 4:15.

Rating: D. This was barely a match and the ending was just there to set up something else, likely at the next Takeover. As usual, Grimes came off like the star here as he’s a ball of energy and charisma, while Lumis literally just stood there for a few minutes. I’m not sure how that makes him worthy of this much screen time, but if it means more Grimes, I’m all for it.

William Regal asks Damian Priest what was up with that and Priest says Ruff is just a joke. Ruff comes up and sounds crushed, saying that if he’s a joke he shouldn’t be defending the title. He even tries to hand Priest the belt but Regal says no. Ruff says he’s sorry to Priest, just like Priest did to him, and then hits his own slap. He says he’s no one’s joke and Regal says it serves Priest right.

Takeover: WarGames is on December 6, with Shotzi Blackheart telling Candice LeRae to find an army because they’re going to war. So what is her new tank going to look like?

Candice LeRae/Indi Hartwell vs. Kayden Carder/Kacy Catanzaro

Carter goes for Hartwell’s leg to start and finally manages to take her down, even sitting on Hartwell’s back. It’s off to Catanzaro for a kick to the face and a slingshot hilo gets two. LeRae comes in and counters a backflip into a gutbuster to put Catanzaro down. Hartwell’s spinning side slam gets two but LeRae misses the step up backsplash. The hot tag brings in Carter to clean house as Catanzaro dives onto Hartwell. Back in and LeRae hits a neckbreaker into the Wicked Stepsister for the pin on Carter at 4:33.

Rating: C-. They didn’t have a ton of time here but is anyone going to want to see these four having a longer match? It’s the best thing that they can do for a tag match like this as we start getting ready for Takeover. Above all else, it’s nice to have the women’s division getting some matches to build things up like this, because some of them just need to be in the ring and establish themselves a bit more.

Video on Arturo Ruas.

Arturo Ruas vs. Kushida

Ruas takes him to the mat and goes for the neck before slipping out of Kushida’s attempt at the same. Back up and Kushida kicks out of an armbar attempt, only to have Ruas snap him down by the arm. The armbar has Kushida in trouble as we get a voice over saying that Finn Balor isn’t here yet but once he is, he’ll have all the time he needs. At least they didn’t put a camera on the announcement.

Ruas keeps cranking on the arm before taking him down into a Kimura. That doesn’t last long either as Kushida fights up for some kicks, including the basement dropkick for two. An elbow to the face gets Ruas out of a German suplex attempt. Ruas goes for the leg but Kushida ties him up in a leglock and bridges backwards for the pin at 4:24.

Rating: C. I liked this one rather well as it was cool to see Kushida having someone who either matched or even surpassed his submission skills so he had to switch things up a bit. I could see Kushida going towards the North American Title, or I could also see myself saying that for even longer than I have been, which is getting a little frustrating already.

Ember Moon and Toni Storm are ready to take out Dakota Kai and Raquel Gonzalez tonight because they’re tired of being shoved around. Storm wants the Women’s Title though and there can only be one. Moon says we can worry about that later.

Various wrestlers make their picks for Rhea Ripley vs. Io Shirai.

Dakota Kai/Raquel Gonzalez vs. Ember Moon/Toni Storm

Gonzalez throws Storm around to start and sends her into the corner for a running boot from Kai. It’s off to another corner for a facewash but Storm is right back with a basement dropkick. A snap suplex gets two and it’ Moon coming in for a double clothesline to put Gonzalez on the floor.

Back from a break with Storm snapping off a headscissors to put Gonzalez in the corner and Moon coming back in to clean house again. The middle rope Codebreaker gives Moon two with Kai having to make a save. Moon is pulled outside for a boot to the face and a drop onto the apron gives Gonzalez two. It’s off to a Gory Stretch to put Moon in more trouble and something like a Pounce cuts off the tag attempt.

Moon is right back up with a headscissors to Kai though and now the hot tag brings in Storm for some release German suplexes to Kai. Everything breaks down and Moon hits a tornado DDT on Gonzalez, only to walk into a superkick from Kai. Storm and Kai forearm it out until a double clothesline puts both of them down as well. They get back up for another slugout until Gonzalez sends Storm into the post. Moon suicide dives onto Gonzalez but Storm small packages Kai for the pin at 12:07.

Rating: B-. They went with the formula here but the people involved had the skills to make the whole thing work out well. You can see some of the setup for Takeover coming from here and that makes these matches a little more interesting than usual. Good stuff, and it’s nice to see Storm getting a win.

Post match Candice LeRae and Indi Hartwell run in to attack Moon and Storm, allowing Gonzalez and Kai to leave them laying. Sounds like a WarGames team.

Pat McAfee and company are here. McAfee has heard Finn Balor is back and there are four guys interested in what he has to say.

Timothy Thatcher vs. August Grey

They go right to the slugout to start with Grey managing to pull him down for two off a backslide. That’s just dumb to do against Thatcher, who snaps off a belly to belly into a chinlock. A front facelock suplex drops Grey again and it’s time to crank on the arm for a bit. The comeback is cut off with a single uppercut and it’s time for another armbar on Grey. A leglock is broken up with some kicks to the leg and Grey hammers away before being sent to the apron. Grey hits a superkick from the apron but dives into an uppercut. Thatcher hits a butterfly suplex and guillotines him for the win at 4:26.

Rating: C-. Just a quick squash for Thatcher here and that’s the kind of match that he needed. Grey got destroyed in short order here and that makes him look like a monster all over again. Thatcher beat up someone he shouldn’t have had trouble with and now he’s ready for someone else, which is the right idea.

Post match Thatcher says there is one more lesson so he slaps on the guillotine again, drawing out Tommaso Ciampa for a pretty interesting staredown. Thatcher says he has no problem here and backs off.

Post break, Ciampa says he came out there because he wants to fight Thatcher. Well that’s to the point.

Damian Priest comes out for a match but Johnny Gargano jumps him during the entrance. The brawl is on with Priest hitting a big forearm to put Gargano outside. Priest follows him outside and throws Gargano onto the announcers’ table for the forearms to the head. Gargano kicks him away though and hits an elbow off of said table. It’s time for a chair but here’s Leon Ruff to go after both of them. Ruff avoids a big boot to put Priest into the ropes and then sends Gargano into him, sending both guys outside in a heap. The two of them get inside and scare Ruff off, leaving Priest to stare down at Gargano. Cool segment and fight.

Next week, Wade Barrett is going to be out for some reason but Kevin Owens is going to be replacing him.

We look at the older man giving Boa a message last week.

Earlier today, William Regal came to Boa’s home, saying he has missed a week of training. Boa says she is coming so he isn’t leaving. It’s not Xia (who Regal says hasn’t been at training in two weeks), because she’s in hiding too.

Regal caught Ruff leaving and asked what he was doing. Ruff said he’ll fight both of them at once. That takes Regal a bit off guard.

Women’s Title: Rhea Ripley vs. Io Shirai

Shirai is defending and gets shoved down with raw power to start. Back up and Shirai says bring it before snapping off a headscissors. That just earns her a shot to the face but Shirai is back with a dropkick to put Ripley on the floor. The big dive is cut off with a forearm though and Shirai is dropped face first onto the apron. We take a break and come back with Shirai missing some double knees in the corner and being dropped face first onto the mat.

Shirai’s small package is blocked with more muscle and a suplex gives Ripley two. The seated abdominal stretch is broken up so Ripley takes her up top, only to have Shirai slip out of a suplex. Ripley punches the buckle by mistake and gets German superplexed down in a big crash. A basement dropkick gives Shirai two as Ripley’s ear is bleeding. Shirai’s Crossface doesn’t last long so Ripley is back up with a big boot to kick her head off. Shirai grabs the arm for a flying armbar though and there’s a dropkick to the arm to make Ripley scream some more.

The arm is snapped across the top rope and Shirai slams the arm into the apron. Ripley gets sent into the steps and we take a break. Back with both of them down as the fans declare this awesome. Ripley knocks her down again and grabs the Prism Trap. It’s spun around and they go to the mat with Ripley cranking on the leg even more. The rope is grabbed so Shirai is right back with a Cross armbreaker, which Ripley can’t muscle her way out of.

She can however rope grab her way out of it and avoid a pair of 619s from the champ. Instead Shirai knocks her into the ropes and hits the third attempt, followed by the missile dropkick for two. Shirai nails the running knees in the corner and steps over Ripley to set up the moonsault. Well in theory at least as Ripley is up in time and nails a running clothesline for two.

Riptide is countered into a snappy DDT and there’s the NXT chant (haven’t heard that in a bit). Ripley goes to the apron so Shirai hits a running sunset bomb through the announcers’ table for the massive crash. Ripley staggers back in so Shirai immediately moonsaults her (legs) for the pin to retain at 22:04.

Rating: A-. The chants were right as these two destroyed each other and had an awesome match doing so. This had the big fight atmosphere and Shirai popping up for the moonsault because she knew it was the only chance she had was a brilliant finish. Beating Ripley clean is the crowning jewel of her reign, which has gone on for quite a long time now. The good thing is the division is deep enough for Shirai to have a bunch of challengers, but she needed the classic to really solidify an already good reign. Ripley was awesome too and she’s going to be awesome for a long time to come. Check this out if you get the chance.

Post match hugs abound and here’s Finn Balor (not through the entrance because he doesn’t steal the spotlight) to praise Shirai for the win. After talking about how he defended his title with a broken jaw in two places, here are Pat McAfee and company to interrupt. McAfee calls Balor the Princess of NXT and talks about how he must have seen what the four of them were doing while Balor has been gone.

They got rid of Killian Dain, took the Tag Team Titles, and then killed all four members of the Undisputed Era. Now they want to know what Balor is going to do and get on the apron to find out all the faster. Balor needs to hand over the title before it gets even worse for him. That’s not happening because it’s easy for the mice to play while the cat’s away….and look what the cat dragged in.

Cue the Undisputed Era and the big fight is on, with Cole kicking McAfee’s head off on the floor. Chaos reigns to end the show (notice that the brawling wasn’t finished, which you don’t see at the end of the night too often). This is the first time in a VERY long time that something felt hot around here and it was a heck of a way to finish the show.

Overall Rating: B. That last half hour was excellent stuff and felt like the NXT of old, which is a great feeling to have again. It felt like they were building stories up and now we are getting ready for the payoffs. That is the kind of thing that you get around here and it feels so nice. There were some outstanding parts to this show and while not everything is perfect, it’s the first time that I’ve been actually excited about what they’re doing in far too long. Do this more often and be NXT again.

Results

Leon Ruff b. Johnny Gargano via DQ when Damian Priest interfered

Dexter Lumis vs. Cameron Grimes went to a no contest

Candice LeRae/Indi Hartwell b. Kayden Carter/Kacy Catanzaro – Wicked Stepsister to Carter

Kushida b. Arturo Ruas – Bridging rollup

Toni Storm/Ember Moon b. Raquel Gonzalez/Dakota Kai – Small package to Kai

Io Shirai b. Rhea Ripley – Moonsault

 

 

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and pick up the paperback edition of KB’s Complete 2004 Monday Night Raw Reviews (also available as an e-book) from Amazon. Check out the information here:

http://kbwrestlingreviews.com/2019/08/26/new-book-and-e-book-kbs-complete-2004-monday-night-raw-reviews/

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

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

NXT
Date: October 28, 2020
Location: Capitol Wrestling Center, Orlando, Florida
Commentators: Vic Joseph, Wade Barrett, Beth Phoenix

It’s time to rekindle an awesome tradition (assuming that still counts twenty years later) with Halloween Havoc. For the life of me I don’t know why it took WWE this long to bring the idea back but here we are, with a pair of Spin The Wheel Make The Deal matches for a title each. Let’s get to it.

The opening video looks at tonight’s card, while also showing the awesome WCW Halloween Havoc pumpkin set. Cool intro at least.

There’s also a themed set, with a big (inflated and smiling) pumpkin and various leaves and branches everywhere. It looks rather good actually.

Here’s Shotzi Blackheart, with…..something shooting pyro and howling a lot to….well just kind of exist.

North American Title: Damian Priest vs. Johnny Gargano

Priest is defending and gets a live musical entrance. This is the first Spin The Wheel, Make The Deal match and for some reason, Gargano HATES wheels. He also hates pumpkins, as he stabs the inflatable pumpkin on the way to the ring. With that evil out of the way, Shotzi spins the wheel (which thankfully isn’t digital like it was a few weeks ago) for a…..Devil’s Playground match.

We don’t actually get any rules for the match but Priest starts hammering away in the corner. A toss around the ring has Gargano in more trouble and it’s a Stinger Splash into a spinwheel kick for two. Gargano gets to the apron and tries the slingshot spear but Priest catches him in a front facelock. Instead, Gargano hammers away at the ribs as the announcers seem to say this is hardcore. Gargano whips out a kendo stick and we take a break.

Back with Gargano sticking away at Priest, who pulls out a nightstick to block a kick to the head. South of Heaven gets two and Priest sends him outside for a suicide dive. The chokeslam onto the barricade is countered and Gargano hits a Sliced Bread onto the steps. That’s good for two and Priest is right back up with a Broken Arrow onto the announcers’ table (showing that Vic is dressed as Where’s Waldo).

They fight over to part of the set, with Gargano knocking a skeleton into a standing coffin. That earns him a bunch of strikes from Priest but Gargano whips out a fire extinguisher to blast Priest again. Gargano pours trashcan onto Priest, which just does not seem like a good idea.

We take another break and come back with the fight up by the Wheel but Priest can’t powerbomb him to the wheel. Instead Gargano is back up with a superkick but Priest hits a spinning kick of his own. Priest is back up…and here’s a guy in a Ghostface killer mask (from Scream) to deck Priest, allowing Gargano to hit a tornado DDT off the wheel. Ghostface hands a smiling Gargano a tombstone to knock Priest off the platform and Gargano gets the title back at 20:55.

Rating: B-. I’m not sure what to say about this one as the Ghostface deal was a little bit weird. The rest of the match was a good enough hardcore brawl with both guys using various things fairly well. The set is a nice touch and makes things look that much better, though they only used it in the second half of the match. Gargano almost had to win here, though I’m curious to see who is under that mask for Priest to face next.

Gargano poses near the Wheel as Ghostface is gone.

We go to the commentators, with Joseph as Waldo and Barrett as his favorite wrestler: BAD NEWS BARRETT, complete with gavel.

We look back at the end of last week’s show with Oney Lorcan and Danny Burch winning the Tag Team Titles, thanks to help from Pat McAfee.

Cameron Grimes is panicking about his match with Dexter Lumis but here’s William Regal to say there’s a van waiting to pick Grimes up. Grimes would rather go to the ring but Regal says it’s time to go to the parking lot. Grimes: “That’s the most dangerous place! That’s more dangerous than the Bah Mitzvah Triangle!” Regal: “After you.”

Here are McAfee, Lorcan and Burch for a chat. McAfee talks about how they don’t get along on much but they all know that some fans of the Internet Wrestling Community (many of which are here tonight) are stupid. After McAfee had his first match and stole the show, Adam Cole didn’t congratulate him but rather posed over him. McAfee made some mistakes that night and when he was on his way back to Indianapolis, all he could think about was Cole. He was too busy to come back and deal with Cole himself though, so it was time to make some phone calls.

First up was Ridge Holland, who just wanted a Mercedes to do what McAfee wanted. Then after Holland attacked Cole at Takeover, Holland broke his leg in 700 pieces. With that out of the way, it was time to call Lorcan and Burch, but they couldn’t be bought. They lost to the Undisputed Era and then it was time to talk about making a deal.

Cue Kyle O’Reilly….and here’s Pete Dunne after him, carrying a pair of chairs. Dunne hands O’Reilly one of the chairs….and then blasts him with the other, because Dunne is with McAfee and company. The beatdown is on, with Dunne using the chair to snap O’Reilly’s arm, followed by the elevated DDT onto the chair (or close to it at least) from the champs. This could make for a rather entertaining WarGames. Also, well done on tying in the Holland deal and explaining it while Holland is gone. What mattered here though was McAfee, who was fantastic and is already one of the best celebrity heels ever.

Grimes is still trying to talk his way out of the match with Lumis but Regal lets him go outside on his own. After going outside, it’s off to a rather creepy van, with an even creepier person in the passenger’s seat. The back door opens though and it’s MICHAEL HAYES, with BADSTREET playing, saying it’s time to go. They get in the van and drive off, which is never a good sign.

Santos Escobar vs. Jake Atlas

Non-title and the rest of Legado del Fantasma are here too. Escobar (with half of his face painted and some Rey Mysterio Halloween Havoc 1997 tribute tights) starts fast by whipping Atlas into the corner but Atlas gets in a shot. Some trash talk from Escobar earns himself a shot to the face and right hands in the corner. There’s a backdrop and a discus forearm gets two on Escobar. The Cartwheel DDT connects but Legado puts Escobar’s foot on the rope. Atlas dives onto both of them but Escobar gets in a headbutt. The double underhook facebuster finishes Atlas at 3:29.

Rating: C-. It was fun while it lasted but it didn’t last long. I do like the idea of having Atlas take it to Escobar while he could before ultimately falling to the numbers. What we got here did work well enough though and I could go for more of Atlas. He has come a long way in a short amount of time and it wouldn’t shock me if he got a title shot sooner or later.

Ember Moon doesn’t like Dakota Kai getting involved in her match. Kai has grown up a lot while Moon was gone but the kicks won’t be enough.

Shotzi tells us to stick around and howls some more.

Back with Shotzi sending us to the Haunted House Of Terror.

Dexter Lumis vs. Cameron Grimes

Cinematic time with Grimes looking rather nervous to go near a house. He says that he’s coming for Lumis and is NOT scared. Grimes keeps watching and Lumis is shown watching from a tree. It’s time to go inside where Grimes finds….a mounted deer and a tricycle riding itself. Grimes: “YOU GOT KIDS???” Now it’s a scary referee terrifying Grimes but here’s Lumis to grab him by the throat for some choking. A window is broken as Grimes gets away to hide in a bathroom. There’s a woman in the shower, which certainly gets Grimes’ attention (Grimes: “I didn’t realize that Lumis had a sister.”)

Grimes goes to join her and it’s a demon woman who might be from the Ring. Grimes staggers out and Lumis reaches through a window with the Silencer. That’s broken up as well so Grimes grabs a stick of some kind but the demon woman scares him. Another woman jumps onto his back so Grimes runs outside and throws her off a bridge. The referee, a woman and someone else show up to chase him off to the van….with Lumis driving him away. To be continued.

Rhea Ripley vs. Raquel Gonzalez

They are ready to tear into each other before the bell and the slugout is on with Rhea throwing hands in a hurry. Gonzalez takes her into the corner but Rhea blocks a right hand and hits a headbutt. They go nose to nose to shout at each other and then shove each other a bit. The slap off sets up another slugout until Rhea slips out of a suplex. Neither can get a fireman’s carry so Rhea goes with a running dropkick to the floor. A dropkick through the ropes puts Gonzalez down again, but she catches a dive and hits a powerbomb against the barricade.

Back from a break with Gonzalez working on something like a Gory Stretch until Rhea counters into a sunset flip. A clothesline gives Gonzalez two but Rhea is back up with some knees to the face. Rhea scores with a basement dropkick to the back of the head for two and stomps her down to set up the Prism Trap. That’s broken up though and Gonzalez grabs a spinning powerslam for two.

Gonzalez takes it up top but has to knee her way out of the super Riptide. They slap it out again until Gonzalez hits a running choke throw off the top for two more (with Rhea’s face looking completely stunned on the landing). The powerbomb is countered into a headscissors into the middle buckle though and now it’s Riptide for the pin at 12:52.

Rating: B. It wasn’t their cage match but again it felt like a fight and that’s what they were going for here. These two beat the heck out of each other and it’s nice to see someone who isn’t physically dominated by Ripley for a change. I’m not sure what is left for Ripley but other than the title, what else could she really want in NXT?

Cameron Grimes is running back to the arena. How did he know the way back?

Drake Maverick is Hollywood Hogan, complete with 2.4 inch pythons. He and Killian Dain have tag team gold on their mind, though he thinks that McKenzie Mitchell is Mean Gene. Maverick: “Come on McKenzie. It’s Halloween.” The Giant and the Yeti show up to repeat the big double hug (albeit from the wrong sides) but Dain as the Shockmaster (egads) walks in for the save. Drake isn’t happy with some of Dain’s issues with the team and puts on the helmet, only to fall over. Dain: “He fell on his a***!” Ok that was good.

Grimes is back at the arena, suggesting that they could have gotten to the house with a brisk walk rather than using the van.

After a quick chat with the announcers, Grimes is back in the arena and in the graveyard, where the demon woman is back as well. The other demon woman joins her and Grimes shouts that they better stop because he’s Cameron Grimes. Lumis pops up behind him in the ring and Lumis throws him into the corner. A spinebuster plants Grimes as commentary wants to know where the smoke is coming from. The demons get in the ring and grab Lumis’ legs but more of them are coming in as well. Grimes hits a Cave In on one of the demons but Lumis throws another one at him. The Silencer finishes Grimes at 36:55.

Rating: D. The house stuff was good but it was dragged down by the fact that it was Dexter Lumis. I know I say this every week but egads he’s one of the least interesting people I’ve seen NXT push since Kona Reeves. Grimes was the star of this though as he has more charisma and energy than he knows what to do with and thankfully NXT is featuring him a lot more. If nothing else just have him do the Cave In a lot because that’s awesome.

Video on Candice LeRae vs. Io Shirai and all of the matches they could have.

Tommaso Ciampa does not recognize this NXT because it has been out with the old and in with the new. This isn’t Monopoly and we aren’t taking turns. If you’re hungry, come to the top. Everyone wants to blame someone else for what they don’t have and it’s all the same message. It’s the brass ring and the glass ceiling and Ciampa has heard it all before. He was never handed anything and this all begins with Velveteen Dream. The 25 year old prodigy is oozing the it factor. If you hit Ciampa with a cast once, shame on him, but if you hit Ciampa with a cast twice, you’re a dead man. Ciampa’s star power is awesome.

Women’s Title: Candice LeRae vs. Io Shirai

Shirai is defending and Poppy plays her to the ring. Shotzi spins the wheel and it’s…Tables, Ladders and Scares. Shirai starts fast and hits a suicide dive to the floor as the title is raised up. Candice comes back with a table….and finds a bunch of severed body parts. Shirai hits her with a bloody arm but gets sent into a ladder (with orange rungs of course). They fight over to the announcers’ table with Candice hitting her in the face (or arm as the replay shows) with a laptop.

Candice bridges a ladder between the ring and the announcers’ table but Shirai throws a chair into the general area of her head. Some running knees against the steps have Candice in more trouble so Shirai grabs more chairs. A chair shot takes LeRae down and we take a break. Back with two tables (with chalk outlines) having been set up (over the severed body parts) and both women throwing in a ladder. Shirai gets knocked down and Candice’s ladder is set up in the corner but Shirai grabs a butterfly backbreaker.

Candice rolls away from the moonsault though and Shirai crashes onto the chairs. A chair is set up and Candice asks if she remembers this, but Shirai suplexes her onto the open chair. Shirai is back up with the running knees in the corner but they only hit ladder, which then falls onto her for a negative bonus. Candice gets caught on top though and Shirai loads up a pair of chairs. The big crash is broken up but Shirai wraps a chair around Candice’s leg and twists it around in a creative spot.

The 619 misses though and Candice hits her in the back with a chair. Mrs. LeRae’s Wild Ride through the tables leaves them both laying….and here’s the Ghostface again. Whoever is it (is looks to be a woman) helps Candice to the top of the ladder but Shotzi runs in to give Ghostface an electric chair off the ladder and onto the chairs. Shirai grabs her own ladder and goes up as well but Candice shoves her down. The ladder is turned over to send Candice through the bridged ladder at ringside and Shirai retains at 16:29.

Rating: B. Your tastes may vary here but they beat the absolute fire out of each other for a long time here. I was actually surprised when Shirai retained but it was a great way to get there. Shirai winning here makes her seem like a bigger star as champion and that’s a lot better than having her be the person who gives the title to Candice so Rhea can chase it. This was one of the most violent women’s matches I’ve seen in a very long time and it was a rather good one at that.

Post match Shirai poses and here’s Gargano to check on Candice.

Overall Rating: A-. Now that felt like a special show and the atmosphere did all kinds of great things. They had the cool set, the creepy (at times) atmosphere and two bookend matches to make it that much better. Throw in the Ghostface deal (which is likely Indi Hartwell) and you had a heck of a night. If you get rid of the Dexter Lumis push, this is one of the best shows in a very long time but otherwise, it’s just a long time. Check out that main event, but McAfee’s promo should come first. This was the NXT that I’ve liked for a long time and hopefully it leads to more, as it hasn’t been this sharp for a good while.

Results

Johnny Gargano b. Damian Priest – Tombstone to the head

Santos Escobar b. Jake Atlas – Double underhook facebuster

Rhea Ripley b. Raquel Gonzalez – Riptide

Dexter Lumis b. Cameron Grimes – Silencer

Io Shirai b. Candice LeRae – Shirai pulled down the title

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and pick up the paperback edition of KB’s Complete 2004 Monday Night Raw Reviews (also available as an e-book) from Amazon. Check out the information here:

http://kbwrestlingreviews.com/2019/08/26/new-book-and-e-book-kbs-complete-2004-monday-night-raw-reviews/

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

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

Takeover: 31
Date: October 4, 2020
Location: Capitol Wrestling Center, Winter Park, Florida
Commentators: Wade Barrett, Beth Phoenix, Vic Joseph

It’s already time for another Takeover after less than two months away. I’m not sure what that is going to mean but they haven’t exactly had a ton of time to set things up. That being said, this is Takeover and if anyone can make something like this work, they are absolutely the best option. Hopefully they can live up to the hype, which isn’t that strong this time. Let’s get to it.

The opening video looks at the Capitol Wrestling Corporation, complete with some clips of the old Washington DC show from the 50s/60s. That switches into the Capitol Wrestling center….which is basically Full Sail with cages instead of Plexiglas and the Thunderdome virtual fans. I’d rather just watch more of the old footage.

North American Title: Johnny Gargano vs. Damian Priest

Priest is defending and the threat of the kick to the face sends Gargano bailing. Back in and another big boot misses so Priest goes for the spinwheel kick to take Gargano down. It’s too early for the Reckoning so Priest kicks Gargano in the chest to send him into the corner. Priest tries an Old School rope walk but gets knocked down and kicked in the knee. Gargano flips him from the apron to the floor and there’s a suicide dive into the fence. A ram into the steps makes it worse.

Back in and Gargano kicks away at the legs but has to slip out of a Razor’s Edge attempt. More kicks at the legs have Gargano down but Priest is back up for the slugout. An exchange of kicks to the head sets up a springboard punch to Gargano’s face to stagger him again. Gargano sends him shoulder first into the post and it’s time to head outside. Priest counters the suicide dive but Gargano slips out of South of Heaven.

The toss Razor’s Edge onto the apron gives Priest two and frustration is setting in. They slug it out until Gargano heads to the apron. One Final Beat is countered into South of Heaven for two so Priest heads up top. Gargano rolls to the floor so Priest loads up the running flip dive, with Gargano pulling security in the way to take them out instead. The referee calls out help and Gargano gets in a low blow.

The low superkick gives Gargano two and it’s time for the Gargano Escape. That’s broken up so Gargano puts it on again with the legs tied for a bonus but Priest makes the rope again. Priest heads to the apron and Gargano tries to knock him onto the steps at ringside. That’s broken up but Gargano superkicks him out of the air. One Final Beat onto the steps is countered into a hanging Reckoning to retain the title at 16:42.

Rating: B. They had me wondering who was going to win here and they went with the right choice as Priest needs this win way more than Gargano. This was a good back and forth match as Gargano was trying to pick him apart but there was too much size and power from Priest to make the plan work. Really good stuff here though and Priest got the big win that he has been needing.

We recap Kushida vs. Velveteen Dream. Kushida was brought in as the big signing and then he beat Velveteen Dream in a North American Title qualifying match. Dream attacked Kushida, so Kushida went full angry mode and went after Dream’s arm. It’s time for a showdown.

Kushida vs. Velveteen Dream

Kushida jumps him during the long form entrance so Dream, still favoring the arm and looking like he is covered in dust, grabs a chair to wreck some stuff. The referee says ring the bell anyway and Kushida goes straight for the armbar. A hard slap to the face connects and a kick to the ribs staggers Dream again. The running Tajiri handspring kick to the face puts Dream on the floor again, followed by a nasty arm wrench back inside.

Dream manages to knock him outside for a change and a top rope shot to the face drops Kushida again. Dream tells him to COME ON MARTY before bringing it back inside for an uppercut for two. The sleeper of all things goes on and Kushida is in more trouble. That’s broken up so Kushida spears him down and hammers away. A cartwheel into a basement dropkick (with Dream not quite in place) keeps Dream down and Kushida stomps at the back and chest.

Dream’s shoulder is sent into the post and he screams that he’s sorry. Kushida sends it in again but walks into a superkick to put both of them down. The Purple Rainmaker is countered into the cross armbreaker but Dream grabs a powerbomb. Kushida puts on another armbar so Dream escapes again counters with the Dream Valley Driver…but Kushida hangs on for the Hoverboard Lock and the tap at 13:10.

Rating: C+. They got the ending right again, but this time it didn’t hit that next level. Kushida as the aggressive guy attacking Dream for the sake of injuring him was a little weird, but given how nothing he has been so far in NXT, this is an upgrade. Hopefully we get more of him, and I can go for seeing Dream getting hurt anytime now. What we got was good, but they didn’t quite convey their hatred of each other very well.

Post match Kushida isn’t done and grabs another armbar until referees have to come out for the save. Kushida goes after the arm AGAIN and tears at it some more to really make Dream scream. That might be a way to get rid of him for a bit.

HALLOWEEN HAVOC is back on October 28. It only took twenty years.

We recap Santos Escobar vs. Isaiah Scott for the Cruiserweight Title. Escobar won the tournament to crown the new champion but Scott beat him during the tournament. Scott got a shot at the title but lost to a loaded headbutt, setting up the rematch.

Cruiserweight Title: Isaiah Scott vs. Santos Escobar

Escobar is defending and gets taken down by an early anklescissors. A standoff doesn’t last long as Scott sends him outside for a moonsault, followed by a middle rope corkscrew dive to take the champ down again. Scott isn’t done as he hits a big Fosbury Flop to take him down again. Escpbar’s arm is bent around the post on the floor for two back inside but Escobar snaps the neck across the top rope to get his first breather.

The suicide dive drives Scott into the barricade and it’s time to slowly stomp away back inside. That includes some SPANISH TRASH TALKING (so you know he’s serious) until Scott pops him in the jaw. Scott sends him outside for a bit, followed by the rolling Downward Spiral for two back inside. A DDT out of the corner gives Scott two more but here’s Legado del Fantasma for the distraction. Escobar grabs a shoulderbreaker (might have been a botched something else) for two and they head to the apron.

A springboard hurricanrana sends Escobar into the other two and here’s Ashante Adonis to take care of Legado. Back in and Escobar hits a jumping superkick into the Phantom Driver for a rather close two. Escobar hits Three Amigos but the frog splash is blocked. Scott snaps the arm and the House Call connects, setting up a 450 for two more. They go to the apron with Escobar knocking him head first into the post to knock Scott silly, setting up a double underhook facebuster to retain at 14:22.

Rating: B. They had me believing that the title would change here (and I wanted it to as I like Scott a good deal) but Escobar winning is the right call after he only won the title a few months ago. I’m not sure who is going to take the title from him, but they had a very solid back and forth match here. Having Adonis get rid of Legado make it more interesting so well done on a nice swerve before the ending.

We recap Candice LeRae vs. Io Shirai for the Women’s Title. Shirai won the title earlier in the year and LeRae got sick of losing all the time. That means a heel turn to follow the Gargano Way and now it’s time for her to go evil and try for the title again.

Women’s Title: Io Shirai vs. Candice LeRae

Candice is challenging and gets dropkicked outside early on. Back in and Shirai sticks the landing on a monkey flip attempt before the threat of a shot to the face sends LeRae outside again. The Asai moonsault takes LeRae down for two more LeRae catches her with a Backstabber out of the corner for the same. A clothesline gives LeRae two more and there’s Hennig necksnap to make it worse.

The armbar goes on, followed by a backbreaker for two more on the champ. A suplex gives LeRae some more near falls but the senton misses, allowing Shirai to double stomp the ribs for her own two. Shirai hits a good looking springboard missile dropkick for two more and the Meteora keeps LeRae in trouble. They trade German suplexes with LeRae following up with a Backstabber into a Lionsault for another near fall. Shirai snaps on a Crossface, which is reversed into the Gargano Escape to crank on the champ’s shoulder.

The rope is grabbed but LeRae hits the referee by mistake. Shirai’s Air Raid Crash connects but the moonsault hits knees, bumping the referee again. LeRae’s Wicked Stepsister gets no count so here’s Johnny Gargano, in a referee shirt, to count two. Gargano grabs the title and drops it to LeRae as the referee gets up. The distraction lets LeRae hit a belt shot for two so she takes Shirai up top. That earns her a super Spanish Fly from Shirai, setting up the moonsault (which connects almost perfectly for a change) for the pin to retain at 16:40.

Rating: B-. Again I like the result, though the Gargano referee deal was a little weird. LeRae looks more comfortable as a heel though and Shirai can be awesome when she gets rolling. She needs some fresh challengers though and that could be an issue as there aren’t a ton of top level people to challenge for the title (or at least ones they would put against her at the moment).

Post match Toni Storm pops up on screen to say she’s back in NXT and coming for the title.

With Shirai still in the ring, the mystery person arrives. The helmet comes off and it’s….Ember Moon. Two new challengers in a row is something different, but I’m glad Moon is back as her career was looking like it was in danger for awhile there.

We recap the main event. Finn Balor won the vacant NXT Title by defeating Adam Cole and then Kyle O’Reilly won the first ever Gauntlet Eliminator to become the new #1 contender. This has been built up as a near dream match for the title, with Balor getting in the line of “if this was against anyone else, you would leave with the title”.

The Undisputed Era wishes O’Reilly luck.

NXT Title: Finn Balor vs. Kyle O’Reilly

Balor is defending and we get the always cool long walk from the back. They fight over arm control to start before rolling to a standoff. A headlock takeover puts O’Reilly down but he pulls Balor into a cross armbreaker to send Balor over to the ropes. O’Reilly grabs a DDT onto the arm to drive Balor down and it’s time for some shots to the ribs. The armbar keeps Balor in trouble until he slips out for a basement dropkick to the face.

Balor gets in his own armbar and throws in some air guitar on the arm for the salt rubbing. O’Reilly fights out of the hammerlock and hits a running knee to the ribs. The rush of strikes put Balor down as things are starting to pick up. O’Reilly rolls some butterfly suplexes into a double arm DDT for two more but Balor kicks him square in the ribs for a knockdown. Balor gets in a hard whip into the corner and it’s time to kick O’Reilly down again.

A Reverse chinlock goes on but O’Reilly fights up to hit a running knee. The Regal Plex gives O’Reilly two and they’re both down. Balor loads up the running dropkick but gets his own leg dropkicked out. It’s Balor up first with an abdominal stretch to say on O’Reilly’s midsection but the 1916 is countered into a kneebar. Balor reverses that into a Sharpshooter, sending O’Reilly to the ropes.

O’Reilly fights up and they trade big shots for the double knockdown. 1916 is countered again and O’Reilly hits a brainbuster, followed by a cross armbreaker. That’s reversed as well and Balor pulls him up into 1916 for a rather near fall. O’Reilly bends the knee around the rope and a top rope kick to the chest has the champ down again. A top rope knee to Balor’s knee sets up the heel hook and Balor is in big trouble.

The very long crawl is on though and Balor finally makes the rope. Balor’s knee is good enough to hit the double stomp to the chest but O’Reilly hits a German suplex…right into another stomp from Balor, who can’t follow up. O’Reilly is mostly done though and the Coup de Grace connects to give Balor the pin to retain at 28:32.

Rating: A-. Match of the night here and it felt rather different than your usual NXT main event. These guys beat each other up and tried to pick the other apart until one of them just couldn’t get up again. They had you believing that O’Reilly could pull off the big upset and that’s a tough move to pull off. O’Reilly looked like a star, but Balor feels like the ace around here, and he likely will be for a long time. Very good match here, though it never quite hit that top gear.

Post match respect is shown…but here’s Ridge Holland, carrying an unconscious Adam Cole and dropping him at ringside. The Undisputed Era runs out to chase him off and check on Cole to end the show.

Overall Rating: B+. And that puts it in the lower tier of Takeovers, because that’s how high the bar has been set with this series. This was another awesome show but it wasn’t really even close to what they’ve done before. I’d put that on the lack of time to really set things up, which is where NXT tends to make things shine. Very good show though, with nothing close to bad and an excellent main event, but give them more time for the next one.

Results

Damian Priest b. Johnny Gargano – Hanging Reckoning

Kushida b. Velveteen Dream – Hoverboard Lock

Santos Escobar b. Isaiah Scott – Double underhook facebuster

Io Shirai b. Candice LeRae – Moonsault

Finn Balor b. Kyle O’Reilly – Coup de Grace

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and pick up the paperback edition of KB’s Complete 2004 Monday Night Raw Reviews (also available as an e-book) from Amazon. Check out the information here:

http://kbwrestlingreviews.com/2019/08/26/new-book-and-e-book-kbs-complete-2004-monday-night-raw-reviews/

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

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

So just over six weeks after the previous Takeover, we’re up to the next edition and now they’re just counting the shows instead of coming up with a unique name. As has been the case more than once lately, this show felt like something that has the potential to be the first bad one in history, but then they announced the main event and I was left saying ooo. Hopefully that’s enough this time around so let’s get to it.

Kushida vs. Velveteen Dream

Indeed, it does seem like Dream is just back with little reason to suggest that he’s ever going to be punished for what he allegedly did. It’s a risky play as he was accused of some serious stuff, but that’s where we are at the moment. Kushida has looked a lot more aggressive as of late and as my favorite New Japan guy, I’m certainly not complaining about what we’re getting out of him.

I’ll take Dream here, though I can’t shake the feeling that they might pull the trigger on Kushida. NXT has shown that they want to push the heck out of Dream though and that means giving him chance after chance. He has lost more momentum than almost anyone else over the course of the summer, so a win here would help get it back. I would prefer Kushida winning and he might, but this seems to be Dream’s to win.

Women’s Title: Io Shirai(c) vs. Candice LeRae

Now we get to one of the bigger ideas on this show as LeRae and her husband Johnny Gargano are trying to become the first husband and wife to be stereo champions. The result of this match is going to tie into the result of the other match and I’m not sure how well that is going to go. I could see this going either way and that’s a nice feeling to have.

I think I’m going to take Shirai to retain here on a pure hunch. LeRae is someone who will likely be champion one day until the next big thing is ready to take the title, but I just don’t know if I can picture Shirai being the person to drop it to her just yet. The Gargano Way will likely be used, but I’m thinking this might set up a rematch on NXT where LeRae wins the title. Odds are I’m wrong as I tend to be when I play a hunch, but I don’t think LeRae gets the title just yet.

Cruiserweight Title: Santos Escobar(c) vs. Isaiah Scott

For once 205 Live actually served a really good purpose as this week’s show was all about this match, including a history between the two and the sitdown interview between them from this week’s NXT. I’m not sure what that is going to mean as far as a title match goes, but they have had good matches before so hopefully they can continue the trend here. The title has turned into rather nice supplemental feature in NXT so it might as well be on here as well.

It’s another one where I’m not sure what to expect but I’ll go with Scott winning the title here. The sitdown interview made it feel like a big moment, but at the same time Escobar has spent his entire reign feuding with Scott so far. The title is kind of an afterthought, though I like Scott a lot so may be me just hoping for something I want to see. Escobar winning wouldn’t shock me, but I’ll take Scott in a surprise.

North American Title: Damian Priest(c) vs. Johnny Gargano

I like Priest. I like him a lot, as he feels completely different than so many people on NXT. He’s a big guy with some great athleticism (though I’d still switch his finisher) and his promos feel different than most. The face turn has been a major upgrade for him and I could see him going this way for a very long time. That being said, there’s something about Gargano that is hard to turn down in a match like this.

Again I’m going to go with the hope but I’ll take Priest to retain. He feels like he could be something special and there might not be anyone in NXT as established as Gargano. A win over him would be a big deal for Priest, who only won the title a few weeks ago. I know there’s a good chance that Gargano and LeRae walk out with both titles, but it really isn’t something I need to see. Priest needs this more than Gargano and I’ll go with the hope spot of NXT doing what they should do rather than what traditional booking would have them do.

NXT Title: Finn Balor(c) vs. Kyle O’Reilly

And here’s where they have me. I’m really not sure what to expect in this one but dang I want to see it. O’Reilly is someone who seems to always be in a group or on a team but when he gets a chance to shine on his own, he can pull it off like few others. Keep in mind that he is a former Ring of Honor World Champion so he has had a successful singles run before. That being said, it’s Balor, and as he said on Wednesday, if this was anyone else, O’Reilly would be a near lock to win the title.

I’m going to take….Balor here, which is the answer I came up with after having to stop and think for a few minutes. They have done a great job here of making this into a match which could go either way and that’s an impressive thing given the amount of time that they have. O’Reilly winning the title in an upset is absolutely a possibility, but I think it’s more the “he would win on any other day” and Balor escapes as champion than anything else.

Overall Thoughts

This is a weird one as there not a single match on the show that I’m sure about, but at the same time, I’m not entirely locked into wanting to see all of them either. That’s a really strange feeling to have and the mystery man (I’m going with Bo Dallas or a surprise Karrion Kross) isn’t exactly enough to have me drooling over the show like I usually am. They haven’t have the time to set things up and then the outbreak made it even worse. I’m sure it’s going to be a good show (it’s Takeover) but the fire isn’t there, and a lot of that is due to how fast they put this together. Takeover is a special, and that’s not how this feels for a change.

 

 

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and pick up the paperback edition of KB’s Complete 2004 Monday Night Raw Reviews (also available as an e-book) from Amazon. Check out the information here:

http://kbwrestlingreviews.com/2019/08/26/new-book-and-e-book-kbs-complete-2004-monday-night-raw-reviews/

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

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