205 Live – December 13, 2016: You Can Feel the Vince
205 Live Date: December 14, 2016
Location: Wells Fargo Center, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Commentators: Mauro Ranallo, Corey Graves, Austin Aries
This is turning into a more traditional WWE show week by week. Tonight’s main event is focusing on setting up Sunday’s triple threat match for the Cruiserweight Title instead of tonight’s match standing on its own. The main event here is Rich Swann vs. TJ Perkins in a non-title match so let’s get to it.
We open with a recap of last week’s main event where Swann defeated Brian Kendrick to retain the title. Perkins was on commentary during the match and got into it with Swann to end the show.
The announcers preview tonight’s main event and Sunday’s title match.
Jack Gallagher vs. Drew Gulak
Gulak accepts the handshake and they hit the mat to start, meaning Gallagher can do his handstand to escape a headlock. After rolling around for some near falls, Gulak gets tied up in the Windsor Knot for the running kick to the back of the trunks. Drew’s answer is to kick Jack in the jaw and then start in on the bad knee. Jack will have none of that though and blasts Gulak with that headbutt. The running dropkick in the corner puts Gulak away at 5:52.
Rating: C. I know Gallagher does the same stuff almost every match but he’s just so darn likeable. How can you not smile when you see someone this into his gimmick? Pushing him towards the title and putting him in a feud with someone whose personality he can bounce off of will be a great springboard for his character. Good enough here though and that’s all it needs to be.
Perkins tells Swann that the luck is about to run out.
Tajiri is coming.
Gallagher is talking about his victory when Ariya Daivari comes up. Jack is willing to call it even but Daivari says no way and starts speaking his native language before leaving.
Mustafa Ali vs. Lince Dorado
Ali says he won’t be defined by our ignorance. A great looking springboard hurricanrana takes Ali down to start but a hard kick to the head puts Dorado down. We’re already in a chinlock before a dropkick sends Ali into the corner. They’re certainly moving out there. A Tajiri handspring into a Stunner…uh, stuns Ali and Dorado sends him outside. An Asai moonsault crushes Ali again and both guys are down long enough for the double countout at 3:35.
Rating: C+. Now that was more like it with a standard cruiserweight style. It’s cool to have Gallagher and Gulak doing their mat work but sometimes you need two guys to fly around and look impressive. I liked this more than I was expecting to and it’s a good idea to establish as much talent as they can.
Ali goes for a post match cheap shot but gets kicked out to the floor.
Noam Dar hits on Alicia Fox but she isn’t interested.
Long video on TJ Perkins.
Rich Swann vs. TJ Perkins
Non-title and as you might expect, Kendrick comes out to join commentary. They trade wristlocks to start with both guys flipping out of the others offense. A double dropkick means a double miss into a double nip up and a standoff. Swann finally kicks him in the jaw to take over but Perkins tosses the champ outside for a slingshot dropkick.
Back in and Swann scores with Rolling Thunder for two but another trip to the floor sees Swann tweak his knee. Perkins is no fool and dropkicks the knee out for a near fall of his own. A kick to the head puts TJ down but the knee is too banged up for Swann to capitalize. Perkins’ Detonation Kick is countered into a tiger bomb for two, only to have the knee give out again. The kneebar makes Swann tap at 10:01.
Rating: B-. It’s a good sign that these guys are showing themselves capable of wrestling a match instead of just doing a few minutes of high spots. Perkins needed a big win heading into the pay per view but I can’t imagine they would actually change the title. Swann was fine here and while I’m rarely a fan of champions losing, the knee injury gives him an out.
Kendrick comes to the ring but eats a superkick.
Overall Rating: C+. This was better and having something to build towards is a really positive step. However, the same problem as last week persists: I don’t know how long they can keep this show going with just one set of talent. It works in NXT with a revolving door but this is a bit more limited and it’s going to start showing in a hurry. Still though, they’re in the very early days and this was an entertaining way to spend about forty minutes.
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205 Live – December 6, 2016: How Appropriate That I Forgot to Post This
205 Live Date: December 6, 2016
Location: Toyota Center, Houston, Texas
Commentators: Mauro Ranallo, Corey Graves, Austin Aries
It’s the second week of the show after a pretty strong debut episode. The main event is the same as it was last week with Rich Swann facing Brian Kendrick for the Cruiserweight Title, though time it’s Swann putting the title on the line. Other than that it’s hard to say what we’ll be getting but some more debuts are likely. Let’s get to it.
Rich Swann talks about his family passing away, leaving him with only wrestling. It took him a long time to get here but now he’s crusierweight champion. That’s a simple story but it works no matter how many times it’s done.
Opening sequence.
Noam Dar vs. Cedric Alexander
Before the match, Alexander gets a kiss on the cheek from Alicia Fox. They get technical to start with Dar working on an armbar until a dropkick puts him on the floor. Back in and Dar stays on the arm while driving his knuckles into Cedric’s shoulder. They’re sticking with a basic story so far and that’s a good idea.
Speaking of telling a story, it’s really kind of amazing how different the commentary here is. You have the announcers talking about how Alexander has good genetics and Dar is more about strategy with Aries getting himself over as a huge heel who could take this show by storm once he’s healthy. In other words: it sounds like wrestling commentary instead of the usual WWE nonsense.
The arm work continues with Aries talking about how hard it is to wrestle without one limb, “unless you’re Zack Gowen of course.” Alexander fights back with the good arm and a springboard crossbody gets two. Dar kicks him square in the arm and grabs a Fujiwara armbar. The rope is grabbed of course so Dar kicks him in the face for the pin at 10:29.
Rating: C. The arm work here was fine for a story and the match was perfectly watchable. I’m not sure about having Alexander lose here but Dar could be a valuable asset for the division going forward. Cedric is already over with the audience but the Fox thing feels a little forced. Maybe it’ll be ok going forward though.
Post match Dar dedicates the win to Fox, meaning we have a heel turn and a likely rematch.
Mustafa Ali video.
TJ Perkins wishes Swann luck but suggests that it was the same luck that gave Swann the win last night.
Ariya Daivari vs. Jack Gallagher
Rematch from last night with Jack coming in with a limp due to Daivari’s post match attack. They shake hands to start though Jack isn’t convinced. So he’s smart and gallant. Daivari works on a leglock to start so Jack does some rapid fire kicks to the leg (from his back of course) and grabs one of his own.
It’s right back to Gallagher’s knee with the leg going into the LED board (because that’s what wrestling rings are made of these days) and then the LED post (because….well you get the idea). A leglock keeps Jack in trouble until he remembers that he’s Jack Gallagher and spins out. The big headbutt to the chest gets two but another kick to the knee drops Jack again. A frog splash puts Gallagher away at 6:30.
Rating: C+. This was only a little better than the opener but it didn’t have the same spirit to the previous Gallagher matches. It’s almost like taking away his speed and athleticism via a knee injury is a really bad idea. On top of that, Daivari might as well be wearing a VILLAIN shirt so he’s only going to get so far.
Lince Dorado video.
TJ Perkins comes out for commentary on the main event.
Brian Kendrick says he’s ready this week because a lot of the stress is gone. He’s dedicating his win to himself.
Cruiserweight Title: Rich Swann vs. Brian Kendrick
Swann is defending. Perkins and Aries bicker to start as Kendrick works on the arm. A loud dropkick gives the champ two as it seems they have a lot of time to work with here. Brian bails to the floor but catches Rich with Sliced Bread on the outside. That means a banged up knee though as we combine the first two matches’ stories into one main event.
Back in and a dragon suplex sets up the Captain’s Hook. Swann isn’t about to tap to a chinlock though so he grabs the rope and completely misses the spinning kick in the corner. Thankfully Kendrick falls outside from the collision instead of the kick, allowing Swann to hit a corkscrew dive.
Not that it matters as the fans are cheering for Aries. Swann’s standing 450 (Why does that have to be in the corner?) is countered into a rollup for two and they both go down from kicks to the head. The Captain’s Hook is countered again as Ranallo tries to figure out how to counter the hold. Dude it’s a chinlock. Stop acting like it’s an Inverted Chikara Special.
A long Captain’s Hook stays on the neck until Swann makes the ropes again (of course). Kendrick knocks him off the apron and out to the floor, only to have Swann send Brian into Perkins. The distraction is enough for Swann to nail the spinning kick to the head for the pin at 12:37.
Rating: B-. Good but nowhere near as good as what they did last week. That being said this was more about setting up something with Perkins involved, which is a better idea from a storytelling perspective. Swann winning clean via pin is a good idea too as you don’t want him winning off a countout or something like that, especially this early in his reign.
Post match, Kendrick goes after Perkins and Swann inadvertently collides with TJ to end the show.
Overall Rating: C+. And that might be about it for my interest in 205 Live. The wrestling was fine, the storytelling was fine and that’s the only word to describe the whole thing: fine. There’s nothing on here that makes me feel like I need to see this again and that’s not good for a recurring series. It’s fine at the start but this feels like a show that doesn’t have the longest lifespan and that’s a problem two weeks in.
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Monday Night Raw – December 5, 2016: It’s All About The WOO’s
Monday Night Raw Date: December 5, 2016
Location: Frank Erwin Center, Austin, Texas
Commentators: Michael Cole, Byron Saxton, Corey Graves
We’ve less than two weeks away from Roadblock and the top of the card seems to be set. The big story continues to be Roman Reigns vs. Kevin Owens but the big question is how to keep Sasha Banks vs. Charlotte going even longer. They’ve only had five title changes in about four months and that’s just not enough. Let’s get to it.
We open with a long recap of Seth Rollins/Roman Reigns vs. Kevin Owens/Chris Jericho, including everything last week that set up the Roadblock main event.
Here’s Seth to get things going and he gets right to the point: he wants HHH. Life is about choices and one of the choices he made cost him a lot of his career. That was trusting HHH, but now he wants to get his hands on Chris Jericho. This brings out Owens, who doesn’t want to talk about his best friend’s health. Owens and Rollins don’t like each other very much but Kevin wants to talk about his Christmas presents. First up is a US Title match when Jericho will challenge Reigns for the title. Other than that we have Jericho vs. Rollins at Roadblock and a third match taking place right now.
So wait. NOW we’re going back to the HHH feud? I’m glad we’re getting somewhere with it but this feels like your standard Raw storytelling: we don’t have any reason to do it now but it has to be done so let’s just do it now and hope for the best because the details will work themselves out. Is it that hard to do ANYTHING to make this feel a little more natural?
Big Show vs. Seth Rollins
Show has REALLY slimmed down and is billed at 395lbs. Show tosses him around to start but Seth dropkicks the knee. More kicks to the legs set up the springboard knee to the head but Show doesn’t go down. A top rope version works a bit better but Show just shrugs it off again. Owens tries to yell at Show and gets chokeslammed for his efforts, leaving Show to walk out in what seems to be a mid-match face turn. Rollins wins by countout at 5:15.
Rating: C-. This was fine and another good use of Big Show. He and Kane both have been around for a LONG time but they’re still good for something like this. The match was more over an angle (though I’m not entirely sure what that angle is) and that’s fine for a five minute match.
Rollins superkicks and Pedigrees Owens.
Video on Jack Gallagher. He debuts tonight and we’re all better because of it.
Jack Gallagher vs. Ariya Daivari
Gallagher does the spinning wristlock to start and makes sure to smooth out his hair for good measure. The handstand walk gets him out of a headlock as we hear about Gallagher’s influences: Mankind, X-Pac and Steve Austin. Well he has good taste. The headbutt to the chest sets up the running corner dropkick and Daivari is done at 2:43. Gallagher is going to be a STAR if they give him the chance.
Daivari shakes his hand but takes out Jack’s knee like a villain should.
Owens yells at Mick Foley and says this wouldn’t happen if Stephanie was here. Foley really doesn’t care and walks away. Owens goes up to see Jericho, who just got here. He runs the matches by Jericho but Chris says the two of them aren’t good.
Enzo and Big Cass are in the back when Rusev and Lana are arguing a full fifteen feet away. Enzo goes over to defend Lana’s honor so she takes her ring off and throws it away. The certified G looks stunned and sends Cass away so he can pick up the ring. He asks Lana how she is doing and Lana looks sad. I’m enjoying this idea WAY too much.
Post break Enzo and Lana are still talking and she doesn’t think her husband understands her. She thinks Rusev needs to be taught a lesson. Maybe he wouldn’t take her for granted if another man appreciated her. This leads to an invitation to Lana’s hotel room. Wouldn’t that be Rusev’s room too? Lana leaves and Enzo dances.
Sami Zayn vs. Kevin Owens
Non-title as this feud just won’t go away. They slug it out to start with Owens bailing to the floor. Sami follows and gets sent into the barricade, followed by a big flip dive to the outside. That’s fine with Zayn as he hits one of his own, sending us to a break. Back with Sami fighting out of a chinlock and grabbing a tornado DDT onto the apron.
The dive into another DDT knocks Owens silly but he’s fine enough to hit his swinging superplex for two. Back to back Cannonballs have Sami reeling so he does a third tornado DDT. The half and half suplex sends Owens flying, followed by the Blue Thunder Bomb for two. A quick Pop Up Powerbomb finishes Sami in a hurry at 10:30.
Rating: C+. That’s the standard rating for these two and the question is how much higher can they take it. However, three tornado DDTs in a ten minute match isn’t a good sign. You don’t expect these two to seem like they’re phoning it in but this was nothing out of the ordinary. Not bad of course but I wasn’t feeling it.
Reigns comes in to see Jericho and the words STUPID IDIOT are uttered. Basically Reigns says don’t get cocky.
Video on Sasha Banks vs. Charlotte from last week.
Sasha challenges Charlotte to an Iron Man match for Roadblock. As for Ric Flair, Charlotte doesn’t deserve to live in his legacy.
We look at Charlotte yelling at her dad back in May.
Rich Swann vs. TJ Perkins
Non-title. They shake hands to start and Swann gets taken down off a shoulder. Back up and Swann scores with a dropkick and does a little dabbing. We hit a waistlock on Perkins for a bit until he dropkicks Swann’s knee out. There’s a running dropkick to knock Swann out of the Tree of Woe for two. Perkins goes to the top and dives almost into the spinning kick to the face to give Swann the pin at 5:51.
Rating: C-. I don’t know how to get into Perkins no matter how many times I try. He really comes off more as a heel than anything else but for some reason they’re pushing him as the gamer geek. Then again I never was a fan of him all the way back in the Cruiserweight Classic but he’s still one of the top stars in the division due to a lack of star power in the first place.
Bayley vs. Alicia Fox
This is over Bayley giving Cedric Alexander a Bayley Bear (yes that’s a real thing) even though Fox has a thing for Alexander. Fox gets knocked into the corner to start but grabs the northern lights suplex for two. We’re already in the chinlock but Bayley pops up with the Bayley to Belly for the pin at 2:20.
Enzo: “My mind is telling me no but my body is telling me bada boom go to the hotel room.” Cass isn’t sure but Lana texts Enzo with a picture included. Cass seems to change his mind as Enzo runs off. Rusev comes up to ask Cass where Lana is. A match is made for later.
Emmalina is here next week.
Mark Henry vs. Titus O’Neil
Titus is marketing this as the Tussle in Texas. World’s Strongest Slam ends Titus in 25 seconds.
Enzo is waiting on his Uber but gets a limo containing Ric Flair instead. Ric gives him the limo upon hearing about the foreign blonde.
Jericho wants Owens to stay in the back.
US Title: Chris Jericho vs. Roman Reigns
Roman is defending and is actually driven into the corner to start. The Superman Punch is countered with a dropkick and a clothesline puts the champ on the floor. A big dive to the floor takes Reigns out again and we take a break. Back with Reigns caught in a chinlock for a bit before being tossed out to the floor.
The Lionsault only gets two and the fans are getting WAY into Jericho all over again. A Samoan drop and Superman Punch get two on Jericho and the Codebreaker is countered into a sitout powerbomb. Roman goes shoulder first into the post though and we hit the Walls. As Reigns grabs the rope, cue Owens for a superkick. The Codebreaker gets two on Reigns but the Canadian argument sets up the spear to retain the title at 13:43.
Rating: B. Is there a reason why Reigns needs the US Title? Someone answer that for me. His feud is over the World Title and he doesn’t have a long term challenger but he’s still US Champion with no real prospects for a title feud anytime soon. Jericho vs. Rollins over the US Title could elevate the belt but Reigns is keeping it anyway. I don’t think I need to explain this one being good as Jericho is still on fire.
We look at Flair and Charlotte’s split again.
Rusev vs. Big Cass
And there’s no Rusev because, as anyone paying attention could tell you, it was a trap. Cass mouths the word “oh crap” and commandeers someone’s phone.
We IMMEDIATELY cut to Enzo at the hotel but he won’t answer the phone because it’s listed as unknown. Enzo knocks on the door and Lana opens up in a very short robe. Legs are shown and Enzo takes off the jacket despite being nervous. They both down some champagne and Lana rips off his shirt. Enzo eventually agrees to take off his pants and of course Lana reveals that Rusev is here. The beatdown is quickly on and Enzo is massacred. A vase to the head knocks him out and Rusev throws him out in the hall.
Anderson and Gallows vs. Cesaro/Sheamus
The winners get New Day, at ringside here, next week for the titles. Anderson and Gallows go outside and get in New Day’s face to start but the Europeans run them over, sending the cereal flying. Back from a break with Cesaro fighting out of Anderson’s chinlock and escaping the Magic Killer with some help from Sheamus. The hot tag brings Sheamus in for the ten forearms to the chest but everyone winds up on the floor for the brawl with New Day and that’s a no contest at 9:58.
Rating: C. This was fine though the triple threat for next week was obvious. I’m really not sure who wins the thing but it’s a cool feeling to have a match where I don’t know the ending. The match should be fun and I really could see it going either way. This match was just a means to an end and that’s fine.
It’s time for the big ending with Charlotte (who has accepted the Iron Man challenge) apologizing to her dad. We see her yelling at Flair (that makes three times tonight) but it was even harder to see Flair raise Sasha’s hand last week. Charlotte says no one can imagine how hard it is to be Ric’s daughter because of how big his legacy really is.
Then last week she saw her dad raise Sasha’s hand and she knew she had failed as his daughter. Flair comes out and hugs her but, of course (that’s a trend tonight) she slaps him in the face. Cue Sasha but Charlotte Alley Oops her face first into the post. Charlotte mocks Flair crying and walks away to end the show.
Overall Rating: B-. Raw is on something resembling a roll lately and a lot of that is due to them changing the way they’re doing some stories. Consider Enzo vs. Rusev. It’s a stupid story but it’s not something we’ve seen done in awhile. In other words, it’s something fresh, which doesn’t happen nearly enough. I liked the show and I’m wanting to see the triple threat, which is more than I can say about the main event scene.
Results
Seth Rollins b. Big Show via countout
Jack Gallagher b. Ariya Daivari – Running corner dropkick
Kevin Owens b. Sami Zayn – Pop Up Powerbomb
Rich Swann b. TJ Perkins – Spinning kick to the head
Bayley b. Alicia Fox – Bayley to Belly
Mark Henry b. Titus O’Neil – World’s Strongest Slam
Roman Reigns b. Chris Jericho – Spear
Anderson and Gallows vs. Cesaro/Sheamus went to a no contest when all four brawled with New Day
Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and pick up my new book, KB’s Complete Monday Nitro and Thunder Reviews Volume V at Amazon for just $3.99 at:
205 Live – November 29, 2016 (Debut Episode): It’s All About the Presentation
205 Live Date: November 29, 2016
Location: Colonial Life Arena, Columbia, South Carolina
Commentators: Mauro Ranallo, Austin Aries, Corey Graves
Remember the Cruiserweight Classic being all awesome? Now do you remember the cruiserweights being equally awesome on Monday Night Raw? Odds are you don’t, because the division has floundered on Monday nights and it’s already time for the show to have its own show on the WWE Network. This debut episode could range from good to a mess so let’s get to it.
Also, these are probably not going to be done on Tuesday nights. I’ll have them up as soon as possible every week though.
The opening sequence says tonight it’s time to defy expectations. There are very few clips from Raw here with almost everything coming from the tournament. I’m as shocked as you are.
Opening sequence.
It should be interesting to see how the crowd looks as this was taped after Smackdown went off the air.
Austin Aries, currently out with an eye injury, is a surprise commentator. He teases winning the title once he’s healthy.
The roster (or at least tonight’s roster) is on stage for introductions. We have Rich Swann, TJ Perkins, Jack Gallagher (SWEET), Hoho Lun, the Bollywood Boyz, Noam Dar, Tony Nese, Drew Gulak, Ariya Daivari, Cedric Alexander, Lince Dorado, Akira Tozawa, Mustafa Ali, Gran Metalik and Brian Kendrick. This minute long series of introductions is already more than we got on Monday Night Raw and gives me some hope.
Video on the Bollywood Boyz, Harv and Gurv Sirah. They grew up watching Bret Hart and want to bring the Indian culture to America. Again, HUGE improvement over what we got on Mondays.
Bollywood Boyz vs. Drew Gulak/Tony Nese
The Boyz do a lot of dancing and are clearly the faces here. The fact that they’re fighting heels was your second clue. Aries doesn’t get the point of the handshakes and I still can’t disagree. Gurv (who is in trunks instead of tights like his brother) works on Drew’s arm to start before it’s off to Harv for more of the same.
Drew takes Harv’s head off with a running dropkick as Ranallo is, say it with me, a big improvement over what we’ve had in recent weeks. Harv gets taken down into the corner with Gulak working over his leg like a technical mat wrestler should do. Nese’s chinlock doesn’t last long and a neckbreaker gets Harv over to the corner for the hot tag to his brother.
Everything breaks down and we get the eternally stupid spot with Gulak being thrown into Nese, who DDT’s his partner because he’s incapable of letting go of his partner’s head. Harv springboards into a crossbody to take Gulak down outside but Nese slams Gurv to take over again. Back in and a DDT sends Nese outside, setting up a double superkick to pin Gulak at 7:04.
Rating: C+. Let’s see: characters, good action, defined faces and heels and a better reaction from the crowd. This is how you start a show and introduce some new talent, which seems to be more over with the crowd than almost anyone else has accomplished in the last few months.
Gulak and Nese say the Dancing with the Stars rejects won because of greasy ropes. That sounds like the start of a story, which again puts this one up on Raw.
Video on Noam Dar.
Kendrick says you should gamble on him tonight because he’s going to capitalize on Swann’s mistakes. Perkins comes in and wants his rematch so he wishes Kendrick luck.
Video on Gran Metalik. These are a bit long but you only have to air them once and people will catch on in a hurry.
Ariya Daivari vs. Jack Gallagher
Gallagher is a wrestling gentleman and got a very strong reaction in his Cruiserweight Classic run. Jack does his fancy spin to counter a wristlock before bending both arms around in ways other than nature intended. Even Graves has to appreciate how awesome Gallagher really is.
Gallagher handstands his way out of a headlock by walking on his hands. Another headstand in the corner has Aries freaked out and it’s time to tie Daviari’s limbs up in so much of a knot that Gallagher stands off to the side and smiles at him. A running kick to the back of the trunks annoys Aries because it wasn’t great.
Daivari comes back with some basic wrestling, including a neckbreaker and chinlock, which finally slows Jack down. Some dropkicks have Daivari in trouble again and a headbutt knocks him into the corner. One of the hardest running dropkicks I’ve ever seen puts Daivari away at 5:28. Even Aries calls it impressive, partially because that’s one of his signature moves.
Rating: B-. Here’s the simple point: Gallagher works because he’s unlike anyone else on the roster. As I’ve said for a long time: if you do the same thing over and over again with the only difference being the name attached, no one is going to notice. If you do something completely different, people are going to notice. That’s what Gallagher did here and that’s why people will be talking about him.
Ranallo: “Austin, what do you think of 205 Live so far?” Aries: “Well I’m here so it’s great.”
Lince Dorado video. He’s your standard masked luchador.
Video on Rich Swann, who lost his parents young and has traveled the world wrestling anyone he can.
Cruiserweight Title: Rich Swann vs. Brian Kendrick
Swann, billed as outlandish for some reason, is challenging and they’re absolutely insane if they don’t change the title here. We’re ready to go after the Big Match Intros and the standard handshake. They trade wristlocks to start before it’s time to speed things up, including a hard dropkick for two on the champ. A tiger bomb drops Kendrick again and he bails to the floor for a breather.
Back in and the champ snaps off a hard belly to back suplex but it’s too early for the Captain’s Hook to really work. A similar suplex does the same to Kendrick but Swann takes too long going up and gets caught in a neckbreaker onto the buckle. Kendrick has a target now and a bridging dragon suplex makes things even worse. It’s off to a straitjacket hold for a bit, only to have Swann grab something like a Michinoku Driver.
Brian’s eyes are bugging out (great visual) but he gets the knees up to block the standing 450. The long form Captain’s Hook gives us the dramatic crawl to the ropes and Kendrick’s frustration continues. It only gets worse when Sliced Bread #2 gets two, allowing Swann to hit three straight spinning kicks to the head for the pin and the title at 13:31.
Rating: B. This felt like a big title change and that’s exactly what it needed to be. There’s no other way to put it: Brian Kendrick is one of the least interesting heels in a very long time. He was on a great nostalgia run in the tournament and the big idea was to turn him heel because…..well I have no idea actually. Swann as the new face champion has potential and whoever beats him can actually be the big bad that this division needs. Good match here, which is what they needed.
Swann dedicates the win to his mother and Kendrick says you shouldn’t get used to this.
A replay of the title change ends the show.
Overall Rating: B. As Paul Heyman said, it’s all about the presentation. On Raw, the cruiserweights are wedged in on a show where they don’t fit in the slightest. It’s basically the new Divas match so people can go get nachos (Hopefully with barbecue sauce. Try it.) and that’s not worth keeping around.
This show actually felt like it mattered and even if it’s just a low level show for the sake of validating the talent being signed, it’s WAY better than giving them ten minutes in front of a crowd that doesn’t want to see them. On top of that, the talent was actually introduced to the fans so we can get to know them a bit.
Look at what we had here: two guys from India who like movies, a British wrestling gentleman and a fun guy who loves to dance winning the title. In other words, something other than a bunch of guys doing a similar style with no charisma (Perkins and Kendrick for example, meaning the top two names in the division.
I don’t think this show is going to blow the doors off of anything but giving them their own show is the only possible option if they want the division to be a success. It’s not a great show or anything but it’s different enough to be entertaining and that’s the important thing. I liked what I saw here as it felt like a weekly episode of the Cruiserweight Classic. If they just have to keep the division on Raw for awhile so be it, but their best bet is right here.
Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and pick up my new book, KB’s Complete Monday Nitro and Thunder Reviews Volume V at Amazon for just $3.99 at:
Cruiserweight Classic – August 17, 2016: Where My Eyebrows Go Up
Cruiserweight Classic Date: August 17, 2016
Location: Full Sail University, Winter Park, Florida
Commentators: Mauro Ranallo, Daniel Bryan
If last week is any indication, this should be one of the most entertaining shows all week. We’re into the second round now and already know two of the names in the final eight. Tonight that more than doubles with three matches advertised at the end of last week’s show. Let’s get to it.
We open with a recap of last week’s great show and a preview of tonight’s matches.
Opening sequence.
Jack Gallagher is still very British.
Akira Tozawa will never give up or back down. I believe these are the same vignettes from the first round with clips of their first round matches added in.
Second Round: Jack Gallagher vs. Akira Tozawa
England vs. Japan. They trade wristlocks to start until Tozawa takes him to the mat and works on the leg. Gallagher reverses into an Indian Deathlock (with wrestling expert Daniel Bryan telling us that it’s also called a British Figure Four) so Tozawa puts him on the mat with a headlock. That’s fine with Jack as he gets up into a headstand and walks backwards to escape. Fans: “HE’S SO DAPPER!”
Somehow Gallagher ties Tozawa’s limbs together into a ball. I’m not sure if Tozawa can’t get out or doesn’t realize Gallagher isn’t there but he realizes it when Jack gives him a running kick. A frustrated Tozawa takes him to the mat in a chinlock and drops a backsplash to slow Jack down a bit. Gallagher gets the closest thing he can be to ticked off and ties the leg up on the mat. Tozawa finally gets smart and kicks him in the face but that just earns him another leg lock.
Back up and Tozawa hits a running boot to the chest but the leg means he can’t cover quickly enough. Tozawa tries a suplex but is smoothly taken down into a heel hook. Gallagher immediately lets go when Tozawa gets the rope, only to have Tozawa fall down on an Irish whip attempt. Tozawa seems to be goldbricking though and starts firing off kicks until Gallagher headbutts him in the chest. A deadlift German suplex sends Gallagher crashing into the mat though and that’s enough for the pin at 11:38.
Rating: B+. As good as the wrestling was here, the commentary deserves so much praise in this match. Bryan and Ranallo did a perfect job of pointing out the differences in styles and treated it as a showdown of two very different wrestlers. The people in the ring then played their roles perfectly and I had a great time watching this match. Just a lot of fun in a wrestling match here and that’s what I love about this show.
Hoho Lun has known what he wanted to do since he was eight years old.
Noam Dar is ready to go despite being the youngest man in this tournament and can submit anyone. “Everyone’s leg bends the same.”
Second Round: Noam Dar vs. Hoho Lun
Scotland vs. Hong Kong. They trade wristlocks to start with Dar getting the better of it before starting in on the leg with a dragon screw leg whip. A belly to back gets two for Dar so Lun kicks him in the head for the same. The fans’ chant here: saying DAR over and over again to the tune of Darth Vader’s theme song. Dar kicks him down again and we hit something like a half crab. Lun gets up and hits a missile dropkick with the knee giving out in a hurry. A Michinoku Driver gets two on Dar but he pulls Lun down into the kneebar (with kicks to the back) for the submission at 7:02.
Rating: C. Still good here but the time hurt them. That being said, there’s only so much you can do with a story of taking apart someone’s leg and then using submissions to make them give up. It’s a simple idea and not something you can really stretch out that far. Dar has had a nice run but odds are he gets Zack Sabre Jr. in the next round so this is probably it for him.
Tony Nese is very athletic and should have been here a long time ago.
Brian Kendrick is a veteran looking for one more shot.
Second Round: Tony Nese vs. The Brian Kendrick
USA vs. USA. Nese doesn’t play around and just blasts Kendrick in the face with a kick in the first fifteen seconds. Kendrick is knocked outside but Nese is right there to chop him some more. Back in and Nese somehow gets his hand caught in the turnbuckle pad, allowing Kendrick to get in his first offense. Nese ducks under a clothesline and comes back with some legdrops for two.
Kendrick realizes he has to get crafty by tying Nese’s arm around the ropes and cranking away on a seated armbar. A cross armbreaker makes things worse for Nese and a Fujiwara Armbar makes Nese scream. Bryan gives a very impassioned speech about how he and Kendrick lived together and trained together which helped make Bryan the wrestler he was. Nese gets back up and sends Kendrick outside for a running dive over the top.
Back in and Nese easily wins a slugout before a Falcon Arrow gets two. Nese gets pulled off the top for two off a nasty crash but he comes right back with a buckle bomb for two. Brian isn’t done yet either as he grabs that Bully Choke until Nese pumphandles him into a sitout powerslam for two more. Now Nese is getting frustrated so Kendrick just unloads with headbutts and a leg lariat. Kendrick gets kicked off the top but is still able to avoid a 450 and grab the Bully Choke for the tap out at 14:38.
Rating: B. That ending made my eyebrows go up as I was actually surprised by the finish. They told a really good story here with Kendrick being overmatched by the more athletic and younger Nese but hanging in there just long enough to catch Nese in a mistake. Good stuff here and that’s all you can ask for with a match like this.
Overall Rating: B+. It’s not as good as last week but that’s not a fair comparison to make. The opener was really good and the other two matches ranged from just fine to a surprise, giving us three more strong matches to go with last week’s two great ones. The final three rounds could produce some classics if these matches are any indication and I’m really excited to see where they go from here.
Results
Akira Tozawa b. Jack Gallagher – German suplex
Noam Dar b. Hoho Lun – Kneebar
Brian Kendrick b. Tony Nese – Bully Choke
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Cruiserweight Classic – August 3, 2016: Daniel Bryan’s Man Crush
Cruiserweight Classic Date: August 3, 2016
Location: Full Sail University, Winter Park, Florida
Commentators: Daniel Bryan, Mauro Ranallo
It’s the final night of the first round as this tournament has been as well structured as anything WWE has produced in a long time. Tonight we’ll have another four matches to complete the field of sixteen for the second round. It should be interesting to see which people get the star treatment this week as you can almost always see who WWE wants to push, meaning they might be a big deal in the upcoming Cruiserweight division. Let’s get to it.
We open with a recap of last week’s show.
Preview of tonight’s matches.
Opening sequence.
Corey Graves looks at the updated brackets.
Rich Swann says he won’t take anyone lightly because people have spent years telling him he’ll never make it.
Jason Lee of Hong Kong has been wrestling for eight years and wrestles with a kung fu style.
First Round: Rich Swann vs. Jason Lee
America vs. Hong Kong and dancing vs. nunchucks. They run the ropes to start with Swann diving over Lee and catching him with a dropkick for two. The fans are WAY behind Swann and chant ALL NIGHT LONG as he holds an armbar. I hope he does more than that tonight. Lee comes back with some very fast strikes and an enziguri for two. Swann knees him in the head and jumps to the top for a hurricanrana but Lee comes back with a DDT. La Majistral gets two for Jason as Bryan is amazed by Lee’s speed. Swann comes right back with a kick to the head and a standing 450 gives him the pin at 3:49.
Rating: C+. Both guys looked good here but you knew they weren’t going to give Jason the pin over an NXT guy. Swann is really over with the crowd already and that standing 450 looked cool. I know Lee isn’t likely to go anywhere in WWE but it’s cool to see people like him get a shot, even if it’s a one off like this.
Gurv Sihra, brother of Harv from last week, grew up watching cruiserweight wrestling and he can’t wait to represent India.
Noam Dar wants to represent Scotland.
First Round: Noam Dar vs. Gurv Sihra
Scotland vs. India. Dar starts fast with a dropkick to the knee but gets caught in a headlock. Sihra can’t get in a backbreaker so Noam starts back in on the knee and dropkicks him in the side of the head as a bonus. Another dropkick in the corner gets two but Gurv comes back with a spinwheel kick for two, only to miss a top rope elbow due to wasting time on a handheld Bollywood camera (as in the old Hollywood Blonds taunt). Noam uses the crash to grab a kneebar for the tap at 5:23.
Rating: C. I wasn’t as interested here but I can always go for something as simple as working on the knee from the start to set up a leg submission at the end. Noam looked a lot better here and Gurv really did look young out there. This wasn’t much of a match but again it didn’t overstay its welcome, which has been a great thing about this whole tournament.
Fabian Aichner wants to see what it’s like to wrestle outside of Italy where there isn’t much of a wrestling scene.
Jack Gallagher, in a suit, is a British gentleman.
First Round: Fabian Aichner vs. Jack Gallagher
Italy vs. England. Jack already has more of a character than almost anyone else in this tournament. Gallagher spins out of a wristlock to start and does it again nearly in slow motion, much to Daniel’s delight. A very British toehold keeps Aichner in trouble but the much bigger Italian runs him over with a shoulder. Some loud chops set up a slightly botched springboard kick to the chest and we hit a chinlock.
A pinfall reversal sequence results in Gallagher charging into a tilt-a-whirl backbreaker for two. Aichner surprises everyone with a double springboard moonsault for two, only to have Jack come back with a guillotine choke. Gallagher gets lifted into a suplex but powerbombed down and the fans boo the heck out of Aichner for beating on Bryan’s new man crush. A great looking running dropkick knocks Fabian silly enough for the pin at 6:47.
Rating: B. Oh yeah this was a lot of fun. Gallagher is like the stereotypical British wrestler you would see in a video game but he’s turned up to twelve or so. Bryan was gushing over him and I can’t say I really blame him. Aichner was no slouch either and I really hope he gets another shot somewhere else.
The guys get a THANK YOU BOTH chant. Daniel: “I’m in love.”
Video on Johnny Gargano vs. Tommaso Ciampa, who are best friends outside the ring but will fight as hard as they can to advance here.
Gargano and Ciampa both say they’ll win.
First Round: Johnny Gargano vs. Tommaso Ciampa
America vs. America here. They take a few seconds before shaking hands and it’s Gargano with an armbar to start. A very loud elbow to the jaw knocks Johnny’s head around and Tommaso mocks the “Johnny Wrestling” chants. Another hard elbow has Johnny in trouble and we get a C DUB C chant. Tommaso grabs what looks like White Noise but climbs the ropes instead of crashing down, allowing Johnny to slip out and superkick him through the legs.
A powerbomb brings Ciampa down and a suicide dive makes things even worse. Back in and they just kick each other in the head over and over, leaving Gargano looking rather shaken up. They chop it out on the apron and White Noise only gives Tommaso two. Johnny looks completely out of it and Ciampa can’t bring himself to knee Gargano in the face.
The distraction lets Johnny get in a superkick but he walks into Project Ciampa (powerbomb into a Backstabber) for two. The stunned look on Ciampa’s face is excellent. Some chops rock Johnny and a right hand just makes Ciampa angry. Ciampa loads up his armbar but Johnny counters into a crucifix for the surprise pin at 10:49.
Rating: B+. This was awesome stuff with some excellent selling from Gargano. They did a great job of making the evil Ciampa a little more human as he was afraid to hurt his friend and tag partner, only to get caught in a rollup at the end. These two are going to get a Tag Team Title shot at Takeover: Brooklyn and with a match like this it’s easy to see why. Really good stuff here and probably the match of the tournament so far.
Ciampa can’t shake hands post match but comes back to hug Johnny.
Here are the updated brackets:
Akira Tozawa
Jack Gallagher
Tajiri
Gran Metalik
Drew Gulak
Zack Sabre Jr.
Noam Dar
Hoho Lun
Brian Kendrick
Tony Nese
Kota Ibushi
Cedric Alexander
TJ Perkins
Johnny Gargano
Lince Dorado
Rich Swann
Overall Rating: A-. I’m digging this show more and more every week and it’s cool to see so many different styles involved. Somehow they keep things fresh every week and go through things fast enough that it doesn’t get dull. This really does feel like something different and that makes for interesting shows every week. Things are going to get even better now that we have the first round out of the way and that’s just cool.
Results
Rich Swann b. Jason Lee – Standing 450
Noam Dar b. Gurv Sihra – Kneebar
Jack Gallagher b. Fabian Aichner – Running corner dropkick
Johnny Gargano b. Tommaso Ciampa – Crucifix
Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and pick up my new book, KB’s WWE Grab Bag at Amazon for just $3.99 at:
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