IMG Credit: WWE

Smackdown
Date: September 30, 2004
Location: Kansas Coliseum, Wichita, Kansas
Commentators: Michael Cole, Tazz

It’s the go home show for No Mercy and the big story coming out of last week’s show was the return of Mark Jindrak of all people, who seems to have joined forces with Kurt Angle and Luther Reigns to form a rather odd trio. They got together and shaved Big Show’s head, which can’t possibly go well. Other than that we’re in for more JBL vs. Undertaker, which isn’t the most thrilling stuff in the world. Let’s get to it.

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

In Memory of Big Boss Man.

Opening sequence.

Here’s Angle to get things going. Back in 1996, he promised to win a Gold Medal with a broken neck. In 2000, he promised to win the WWE Championship in his rookie year. Then last week he promised to deliver a Smackdown moment like there never has been before. He delivered on that as well and of course we get the highlight package, including Jindrak making the save.

Today, Angle would have taken the pin and then done the haircut, so there were a few things they did better back in 2004. Back in the arena, Angle talks about Show injuring him in April and now last week it was time for retribution. Angle brags about humiliating Show last week but knows the people here won’t appreciate his greatness.

There are two people that will though, so here are Jindrak and Luther Reigns, who have bags of Show’s hair. Before anything can be said, here’s Theodore Long, who thinks the score between Show and Angle is even. Therefore, Jindrak and Reigns are barred from ringside at No Mercy and if anyone interferes, they’re fired. It’s going to be the Gold Medal Tyrant vs. the Big Bald Giant.

Dudley Boyz vs. Rico/Charlie Haas

Dawn Marie is on commentary and drops a mini bombshell: Charlie and Jackie Gayda are engaged…but Charlie has been all over her lately. With Dawn drooling over Charlie, Bubba slams him down as we talk about Charlie’s trunks, which is about as interesting as you might guess. Rico comes in and it’s time for the comedy portion. After Bubba is allowed to readjust his pants, it’s off to D-Von as Dawn talks about playing games with Charlie last night.

Rico tries running the ropes, stops and realizes that he’s not running to the right one, and then goes to the right one so Bubba can pull him down by the hair. Charlie gets knocked to the floor and the girls get in an argument over who gets to check on him, leaving Bubba to stomp on Rico. A chinlock is broken up and it’s back to Charlie for the right hands and suplexes. Charlie goes up for a spinning high crossbody, even though D-Von isn’t really and Charlie lands on a kneeling D-Von’s back. After some obvious apologizing on Charlie’s part, the girls get in a fight on the floor, leaving the 3D to finish Charlie.

Rating: D. They certainly started that angle up fast and while it’s the kind of soap opera stuff that WWE loves to run, Dawn isn’t the most interesting person in the world to listen to. I’ll give them credit for trying to do something with the people they have though, which is often a problem for all the people on the roster. Not a good match, but the wrestling wasn’t the point here.

Josh Matthews is very excited for John Cena’s rap about Booker T. but Cena shoves him away in a Rock/Coach impression. Cena says Booker is the five time but he’s the one time, which Booker stole and put around his own waist. At No Mercy, Cena is taking it back. This was the serious style promo with no rapping or rhyming, which was a nice change of pace from Cena and a flash of what he had in him.

A freaked out Paul Heyman is in the aisle, screaming for Heidenreich to get off the Smackdown fist. Are we about to see a suicide? Well let’s come back from a break first. Back with Heidenreich reading a poem about how he wants people to listen to him. He’s upset so he’ll destroy the world soon.

Undertaker is standing next to a hearse and promises to make No Mercy his last ride.

JBL lists off a bunch of people Undertaker has beaten over the years but Undertaker has never beaten him. In three days, JBL ends the reign of terror because he has a plan. That plan begins tonight when he beats up Hardcore Holly…who jumps him from behind. Any plan that involves Hardcore Holly is not a good idea.

Booker T. vs. Paul London

Non-title and London comes in with a broken nose. Booker elbows him down to start so London is right back up with a dropkick for a quick near fall. Billy Kidman comes out to watch as Booker stomps in the corner. Another kick to the face gets London out of trouble but a look at Kidman delays the 450 long enough for Booker to roll away. The ax kick finishes London in a hurry.

Post match Booker grabs a chair but Kidman takes it away. I think you know what’s coming next and it leaves London laying so Kidman can shout that London doesn’t understand.

Carlito is here next week.

John Bradshaw Layfield vs. Hardcore Holly

Non-title and there’s no Orlando Jordan to be seen. Holly shoulders him into the corner for some chops to start but a thumb to the eye gets the champ out of trouble. A running clothesline puts him back in it though, as well as out on the floor. JBL whips him into the steps but takes too long coming back in, allowing Holly to powerslam him out of the air for two.

The big boot gives JBL two of his own and he takes Holly up top. A superplex attempt is countered and Holly hits a top rope clothesline for two more. JBL kicks him down and tries a powerbomb, which is countered into an Alabama Slam as we take an abrupt break. Back with Holly busted open (steps to the head during the break) and the referee telling JBL to back off. A boot to the face against the ropes is enough to get JBL disqualified.

Rating: C. I think we can safely call this one a minor miracle as they were having a pretty rocking little match before the abrupt ending and the lame ending. I like the ending showing JBL’s aggressive side, but if I’m supposed to buy him as being serious enough to hang with Undertaker, he shouldn’t be going toe to toe with Hardcore Holly.

Post match JBL chairs Holly in the head (loud shot) and hits the Clothesline From JBL. After mocking and calling Undertaker out for a bit, the gong strikes and Undertaker appears on screen. He says it started with four and then he got rid of Mideon and Viscera. Then it was three because he got Orlando, who is tied to an Undertaker symbol in the rafters. On Sunday, JBL takes his last ride. That is the most glossed over crucifixion in WWE history.

Nunzio vs. Spike Dudley

Non-title and we have Johnny Stamboli and the Dudleys at ringside. Spike climbs over the rope to escape a headlock so Nunzio lets go, dropping Spike down on his face. That’s a more clever move than I was expecting here. An anklescissors into a rollup gives Nunzio two and Bubba is nervous enough to be on the apron.

The distraction lets Spike take him down and grab a neckbreaker for two. The chinlock goes on as Tazz and Cole exchange fat jokes. Nunzio fights up and gets a belly to back suplex for the break. The Sicilian Slice connects but the referee has to deal with D-Von and Johnny fighting on the floor. Bubba trips Nunzio so Spike can cover, only to be reversed into a rollup for the upset pin.

Rating: D+. The chinlock took away a lot of the life this had, though I’m more curious about why the Italians are being pushed as faces. They’re not great heels or anything but it doesn’t exactly feel right. Then again, it helps to have someone fresh go after Spike, whose time as champion is long past ready to end.

Raw Rebound.

Big Show, in the shadows, talks about being helpless for the first time in his life. He’s keep his head bald to remind himself of those feelings before he gets his hands on Angle. The lights come on over Show’s eyes as he promises no mercy on Sunday.

Here’s a look at some of the contestants for Tough Enough, including Daniel Rodmier, Drew Henkinson (Luke Gallows) and Bryan Kelly (Byron Saxton).

Eddie Guerrero/Rob Van Dam vs. Luther Reigns/Mark Jindrak

Van Dam is a surprise mystery partner. The fight is on in a hurry and Rob dives over the top onto Jindrak. We officially start with Van Dam kicking Reigns in the face and hitting a very early Five Star for two with Jindrak having to make a save. Back from a break with Van Dam crossbodying Jindrak for two and bringing in Eddie off a clothesline. Rolling Thunder connects to give Eddie two and a backdrop from Jindrak doesn’t have much effect.

Eddie knocks him down again and does the spinning boot over the eyes to keep Jindrak in trouble. A Reigns distraction lets Jindrak put on a chinlock but Eddie dances his way up. It’s back to Van Dam, who gets low bridged to the floor to put the good guys in trouble for the first time. The bearhug goes on back inside for a few seconds, followed by a heck of a whipping spinebuster for two. With the power having run its course, Reigns punches away and even draws Eddie in with an elbow to the jaw.

Van Dam gets caught in the chinlock for all of a few seconds before he gets up and goes to the middle rope. That means the springboard kick to the face but Van Dam slips and even a camera cut can’t hide the fact that his kick missed by about a foot. Reigns sells it anyway of course and Rob hits a very fast spinning legdrop to at least keep him down.

It’s back to Eddie for a headscissors on Jindrak and a springboard wristdrag to Reigns with another headscissors to Jindrak at the same time. Eddie isn’t done with Jindrak as he hits Three Amigos to set up the frog splash. Reigns makes a save and Rolls the Dice (much closer to a reverse DDT with Eddie almost landing on the side of his head) to give Jindrak the pin.

Rating: D-. This was really sloppy at times and there were points where it felt like they were in different books. It takes a lot to make Eddie look lost out there but they were getting close out there at a few different times. Reigns isn’t very good at the actual wrestling stuff and messing up his already bad finisher while also selling a kick that didn’t hit him made it even worse. Really bad match here, though they were at least trying.

A No Mercy music video, including what appears to be Rey Mysterio/Van Dam vs. Rene Dupree/Kenzo Suzuki for the Tag Team Titles being announced.

Overall Rating: D+. The wrestling here didn’t work all that well (Hardcore Holly and JBL having the match of the night?) but I’m somewhat more interested in seeing the pay per view than I was before. The music video at the end worked for a change of pace and I like it better than having Cole and Tazz sit there and talk about things. Some of the stuff really didn’t work here (the main event and Heidenreich spring to mind) but Sunday is looking better, even if it’s not something I want to see.

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

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

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

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

IMG Credit: WWE

Smackdown
Date: September 23, 2004
Location: America West Arena, Phoenix, Arizona
Commentators: Michael Cole, Tazz

We’re coming up on No Mercy and that means it’s time to really get things going. Well as much as things can get going around here. The big story coming out of last week was Big Show deciding to face Kurt Angle at the pay per view, again because WWE doesn’t know how contracts actually work. The card isn’t looking thrilling but maybe they’ll get better tonight. Oh and it’s the fifth anniversary of the show so things might be a little different tonight. Let’s get to it.

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

Vince McMahon welcomes us to the show and thanks us for five years. More great memories will be made tonight. Nothing wrong with that.

Opening sequence, and a new one at that. No words to the theme song, but an update was needed.

New graphics too, now with a white background.

Billy Kidman vs. Paul London

Kidman’s head doesn’t seem to be in the game…and he walks out for the countout after about a minute without making a single bit of contact.

Hang on though as we have a replacement.

Booker T. vs. Paul London

Non-title. Booker jumps him fast to start and elbows London in the face for two. London has a busted nose but he comes back with a middle rope kick to the jaw to take over more than you might have expected. A hot shot gets Booker out of trouble though and we hit the double arm crank. London makes the comeback with a variety of kicks to the head for two but Booker rolls through a crossbody and puts his feet on the ropes for the pin. Ignore London’s shoulder being about eight inches off the mat.

Rating: C-. It was energetic while it lasted and that’s all I can ask for in something like this. I’m not sure why Booker came out for a match like this as he tends to be a somewhat cowardly champion but London got in some offense and Booker had to cheat to win. Not too bad here and when you consider how short it was, the match looks a little better.

Post match Booker says he’ll treat John Cena even worse but London jumps him from behind and leaves.

Cole won’t talk about Heidenreich but he’ll throw us to a Mick Foley video, talking about his favorite Smackdown moment. It’s from after a show went off the air when Rock was doing his shtick but dropped his sunglasses. They both stood there until Foley picked them up and got a “The Rock thanks you for that.” The transformation from Mankind into Cactus Jack gets a quick mention.

Kidman is about to leave when Theodore Long comes in to say he made a match and wanted to see it. Just like everyone wants to see Kidman doing the shooting star press. The match is going to happen and if it doesn’t, Kidman is fired.

Spike Dudley and Rey Mysterio have a staredown but Spike doesn’t want this set up as him stabbing Rey in the back. Rey thinks he’s loco and speaks some Spanish but here’s Kenzo Suzuki to tell Rey that he’ll be sorry. That means a shot to Suzuki’s face and Rey running.

Smackdown Throwback: Rock makes Coach do the Charleston. That was always a great pairing.

Some Phoenix Suns are here and don’t seem to want to look at the camera.

Cruiserweight Title: Rey Mysterio vs. Spike Dudley

Spike is defending and has Bubba and D-Von in his corner. Rey starts fast by sending Spike face first into the corner and then he does it again for good measure. Bubba comes in for a cheap shot but gets caught, meaning it’s a double ejection. With Spike panicking, Rey hits a baseball slide but the referee won’t let him hit a dive. Instead Rey dives over the referee, in a spot straight out of ECW.

Back in and they bump heads for a break so abrupt that Cole has to apologize for it after the commercial. Rey goes shoulder first into the post but crotches the champ on top for the super hurricanrana. They’re certainly going back and forth here. The springboard spinning crossbody hits the referee, leaving Rey to load up the 619. Cue Suzuki and Rene Dupree to lay Mysterio out though and Spike retains.

Rating: C. I really don’t know what they see in Spike getting this kind of a push, though he’s certainly not the worst. It’s more along the lines of he’s not interesting and I don’t buy Bubba and D-Von as being intimidated or scared of him. They telegraphed the interference ending too and it didn’t help things. What we got was watchable, though this title reign has run its course.

Post match the beatdown is on until Rob Van Dam makes the save.

Video on the Wrestlemania XXI press conference. HHH gets in a good line by saying Hollywood is going Wrestlemania.

Stephanie McMahon’s favorite Smackdown moment was slapping her mom because it was hard for her to do. Or the mixed tag match where she was knocked off the apron and got knocked out on the steps because HHH came out and carried her to the back. Later that night, Kurt Angle kissed her, but he’s the worst kisser in the world.

Long makes Mysterio/Van Dam vs. Dupree/Suzuki for the titles at No Mercy. Long: “Fo shizzle fizzle.” Dupree: “FO SHIZZLE FIZZLE???”

Cole still doesn’t want to talk about Heidenreich but Tazz makes us watch a clip anyway. They try to say it was because Heidenreich was pulling on Cole’s arm but…what else is there to say about something like this? I can’t believe they actually showed it again.

Heidenreich is on his way to the ring but stops in Vince’s office instead, allowing Cole to calm down a bit.

Smackdown Throwback: Big Show and Brock Lesnar break the ring. That’s still a great visual.

Gangrel/Viscera vs. Undertaker

Fallout from last week with JBL hiring the former Ministry goons. Speaking of JBL, here he is in the limo, driving through Undertaker’s smoke for a somewhat cool visual. Viscera misses a charge in the corner (he never was that bright) and Undertaker punches Mideon without much trouble. Big boots abound but Viscera grabs a chokebomb to cut him off. The big splash gives Viscera two but a second attempt misses, allowing Undertaker to clothesline Gangrel. Undertaker cleans house with ease and the Tombstone finishes Gangrel. This was exactly what it should have been.

Post match Undertaker chokeslams (eh close enough) Viscera and crushes his throat with a chair while looking at JBL. A lot of pointing and posing ensues.

Heidenreich tells Vince that they’re similar but Vince doesn’t get where this is going. It’s a poem actually about how no one knows him, and that is a poem by Heidenreich.

Dawn Marie vs. Torrie Wilson

They’re both schoolgirls….but here’s Long to interrupt before anything can start. Actually hang on a second (playa) because he has a better idea.

Fabulous Moolah/Mae Young vs. Dawn Marie/Torrie Wilson

And yes they’re all schoolgirls. We go to the “comedy” with Mae and Dawn taking turns grabbing the referee’s pants. Torrie comes in and tries a sunset flip, with Mae sitting down on it for more laughter. There’s the required Bronco Buster and it’s off to Dawn vs. Moolah. Dawn loses her top to the first real pop of the match and a schoolgirl finishes Marie, thank goodness.

Rating: F. If there’s one thing I’ve learned from the Diva Search, it’s that WWE can indeed manage to screw up good looking women in nice outfits. I get the idea here but egads it’s just not funny. At least they beat up the models instead of the wrestlers and that’s about all the positives you can say about this one.

Steve Austin’s favorite Smackdown moment: the first Tribute to the Troops. Oh and singing to Vince McMahon, which really was a funny bit. So none of these people advertised last week are actually going to be here in person are they?

Billy Graham is here again, just like he was on Monday.

John Cena, on top of the production truck, talks about how great Smackdown has been over the years, even quoting the Rock’s greatest hits. Well that would be different today. He gets in a few Austin lines for a bonus before promising to win the Best of Five Series.

No Mercy rundown.

Kurt Angle demands our attention and lists off some great names he’s beaten on this show. Yet he wasn’t asked about his favorite Smackdown moment. That’s a disgrace, but not as much of a disgrace as Big Show. Last week Show signed up to face him at No Mercy, so tonight he’ll create his own Smackdown moment.

Hulk Hogan’s favorite Smackdown moment is winning the Tag Team Titles with Edge on the 4^th of July.

Kurt Angle/Luther Reigns vs. Big Show/Eddie Guerrero

Eddie and Angle start things off but it’s off to the power guys before any contact is made. Show shoves Reigns down but an Angle distraction lets Luther hammer away to very limited success. It’s back to Eddie to chop Reigns in the corner, followed by Three Amigos and a quick taunt to Angle. That’s enough to bring Angle in for a cheap shot and the villains take over for the first time.

Of course Angle is fine with going after Eddie on the mat but the threat of a Show right hand from the apron lets Eddie hit a quick hilo. Angle gets in his own suplex for two and the beating continues. The Angle Slam is countered with an armdrag though and Eddie nails a dropkick. Show comes back in for a chokeslam on Reigns but Angle breaks up a super frog splash.

Back from a break with Angle working on Eddie’s ankle off a variety of holds. Well at least he mixes it up a bit. Reigns comes in for hold that doesn’t seem like it would actually hurt but a suplex works a bit better. Thankfully Angle comes back in and grabs a better looking ankle hold, which Eddie reverses with an ankle lock of his own. With Angle and Reigns down, the hot tag brings in Show so house can be cleaned. A splash crushes both of them and it’s a side slam into the super frog splash (from Show’s shoulders) for…not the pin on Angle as Mark Jindrak runs in for the DQ.

Rating: C. It was your standard main event tag match until the pretty weak ending, though I can understand not jobbing Angle. What we got wasn’t bad though as Eddie is still one of the most popular faces on the show. Speaking of the show, the Big one is doing well enough as a face and is in the best shape I’ve seen him in in years, though the interest is probably limited.

Post match Jindrak takes out Eddie but Show gets his hands on him….so Angle whips out a tranquilizer dart gun and shoots Show in the back to make him wobble. Show tries to fight anyway but the dart sticking out of his back finally takes him down. With Show out, Jindrak runs to the back and comes back with scissors and hair clippers to leave Show bald, a look that he would have for the rest of his career. The haircut takes a long time to end the show.

Overall Rating: C-. Aside from the complete disaster that was Torrie and Dawn as schoolgirls (just go with it), this was a completely mediocre show with very little standing out and almost nothing I can remember by the ending. The show was completely watchable, but No Mercy is looking weaker and weaker by the show.

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

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

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

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

IMG Credit: WWE

Smackdown
Date: September 9, 2004
Location: Tulsa Convention Center, Tulsa, Oklahoma
Commentators: Michael Cole, Tazz

We’re coming off last week’s huge pay per view style main event when Kurt Angle won the third match in the series against Eddie Guerrero, which will end their rivalry completely forever. The next pay per view will likely start its build tonight, which should make for some more important shows. Let’s get to it.

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

Theodore Long says last week didn’t answer anything because Luther Reigns got involved. Therefore tonight we’ll be seeing Angle vs. Eddie one more time in a lumberjack match.

Opening sequence.

John Bradshaw Layfield vs. Charlie Haas

Non-title, Haas is the Oklahoma boy, and Orlando Jordan and Jackie Gayda are at ringside. Charlie takes him down with a drop toehold into a headlock and it’s time to work on the leg. JBL grabs a rope and since his leg wasn’t pulled that much, it’s a big boot to drop Haas in a hurry. Some forearms cut Haas down again but the Clothesline From JBL is cut off with a dropkick. A spinning ax handle gets two and you can feel the air going out of the arena on the kickout. Haas hits a t-bone but Orlando Jordan goes after Jackie, distracting Haas enough for the Clothesline to connect for the pin.

Rating: D+. That’s all it needed to be as Haas isn’t on JBL’s level and losing to him isn’t going to hurt him. Haas’ comeback had some energy to it and he has just enough credibility to make something like this work. Not a terrible match here either and acceptable for a quick opener.

Post match JBL, after being reminded where we are, gives us a stock tip: invest in him, because the country is a better place with him as champion. Crime is down, the economy is up, and the USA’s Olympic teams have been very successful. That brings him back to Eddie, but first we need to get one of those JBL chants going. He’s beaten everyone put in front of him to retain the title (all two of them), with the Undertaker being his greatest accomplishment.

Since Undertaker failed, there will be no more title shots. What he’ll do though is give Undertaker a funeral in two weeks. A hearse comes out and JBL says Rest In Peace….but here’s Long to interrupt. He doesn’t like what JBL has said, so we’ll deal with that at No Mercy in a Last Ride (casket but with a hearse) Match. JBL’s panicked response is funny.

Carlito Caribbean Cool is coming.

Tag Team Titles: Paul London/Billy Kidman vs. Kenzo Suzuki/Rene Dupree

Suzuki and Dupree are challenging and London has a banged up shoulder after Heidenreich’s attack last week. Hiroko is out with the challengers and you can almost guarantee the interference from here. London slides between Dupree’s legs to start and snaps off a hurricanrana to take over. It’s off to Kidman, who walks into an assisted hot shot to put the champs in trouble. Kenzo comes in and gets to show off with an armbar but Kidman fights up and dives over for the tag….which the referee doesn’t see.

The champs come in instead and start cleaning house with an enziguri dropping Kenzo. Kidman still can’t do the shooting star though, instead dropping down and tagging London. That seems to be enough for Kidman, as he walks out on the match. Back from a break with Dupree working on the bad arm (the right one for an odd visual) as the fans chant USA. London manages to kick Suzuki to the floor, where he low bridges him outside as well (in a heck of a bump). The bad arm is sent into the post, setting up a Michinoku Driver from Dupree. Kenzo’s claw legsweep gives us new champions.

Rating: D. This was much more of an angle than a match but it gives us Dupree and Suzuki as champions. Kidman and London were running uphill the entire time they held the titles and this didn’t exactly help things. There’s barely a division at this point and two midcard heels have been thrown together to win the titles from a thrown together cruiserweight team. Not a very good match, but it wasn’t exactly supposed to be.

Big Show is coming back.

London is having his shoulder checked but goes over to Kidman, who doesn’t seem to care about the title loss. Kidman stares at him but has nothing to say before leaving.

Booker T. is leaving but runs into Long, saying he has to go train for his match with John Cena next week. Actually not so fast because he’ll be a lumberjack tonight.

Spike Dudley vs. Rey Mysterio

Non-title with Bubba and D-Von in Spike’s corner. Spike jumps him from behind to start but Rey fires off some right hands and forearms. Rey’s spinning springboard crossbody connects (with Spike having to run over to get into position) and it’s 619 time but the Dudleys come in. Before it gets bad, Hardcore Holly runs in for the save, only to get beaten down as well. Rob Van Dam runs in as well and the good guys clean house as the match is thrown out somewhere in there.

Spike Dudley/Dudley Boyz vs. Rey Mysterio/Hardcore Holly/Rob Van Dam

There’s no opening bell as Van Dam kicks D-Von in the face for an early two. The middle rope kick to the face is good for the same but D-Von gets in a neckbreaker to take over. Bubba adds one of his own, setting up Spike’s top rope double stomp. The rib work continues with the reverse chinlock from D-Von, followed by a jumping back elbow for two.

Spike gets kicked in the chest though and the hot tag brings in Holly, because when you think high energy, you think Sparky Plugg. Everything breaks down and Rey (that’s more like it) comes in with a springboard seated senton for two. Rob kicks Bubba and D-Von down, setting up the Five Star on Bubba. There’s no cover though, leaving Holly to hit the Alabama Slam on Spike. Rey Drops the Dime for the pin.

Rating: D+. Just a quick match here, likely setting up Spike’s title defense against Mysterio at No Mercy. It’s not the worst idea in the world, though Holly being there felt rather out of place. I know Gunn is gone, but did they really not have anything better for Holly to do? Not terrible, but just a means to an end and that’s acceptable.

Kurt Angle says there is no controversy because he won last week. Josh Matthews would know that if he kept his record book on him!

Here’s John Cena for a chat, likely in rhyme. Cena talks about his back being against the wall, but it’s because Booker has been cheating. We get a Stevie Ray reference to set up the usual barrage of gay jokes. They can be amusing, but they feel cringe worthy at this point.

The Tough Enough deadline has been extended. That’s awesome.

We recap last week’s 2/3 falls match.

Carlito is still coming and kicks over a kid’s sandcastle on the way.

Paul Heyman tells Long that Heidenreich isn’t here tonight because he’s been given the night off. That’s fine with Long, as Heyman can wrestle a match instead. It can be against a ring announcer, sending Heyman into a panic at the idea of fighting Tazz. Long says it’s not Tazz, so Heyman goes into a rant about Cole. This actually prompts Cole to say he can take Heyman out just like that. Heyman comes to the arena….and it’s a swerve.

Funaki vs. Paul Heyman

Well it’s a better idea….and it doesn’t happen as Heidenreich comes in and wrecks Funaki before the bell ever rings. Heyman covers and counts his own pin.

Heidenreich chases Cole off and I’m scared of where this is going.

Smackdown Throwback: Vince, Rikishi and a thong.

Raw Rundown.

Cole is terrified but agrees to come back to the desk.

Eddie Guerrero vs. Kurt Angle

Lumberjack match, with the usual suspects around the ring. They all get their own introductions to fill in a good chunk of the time we have left. Feeling out process to start with Eddie hitting an early dropkick, followed by a clothesline to send Angle outside. It’s on the villain side though and Angle is sent back inside without any issue. A backdrop puts Eddie in trouble and some right hands keep him that way.

Eddie is right back with right hands of his own, followed by another dropkick to put Angle on the good side. That means a failed escape attempt as they really haven’t gotten out of first gear so far. Just to mix things up a bit, Angle sends Eddie outside onto the heel side but since the referee is watching, nothing happens. Eddie comes up swinging anyway and gets back inside as we take a break.

Back with Angle getting two off a backbreaker and slapping on the abdominal stretch. The reverse chinlock goes on for a bit until Eddie suplexes his way to freedom. This time Eddie gets sent outside on the good side, where they’re nice enough to throw him inside for another suplex. Eddie dances back up though and the Three Amigos connect.

The referee checks on Angle for no logical reason, allowing Luther Reigns to crotch Eddie on top. That means a heck of a top rope superplex for a delayed two but Eddie slips out of the Angle Slam and grabs the ankle lock. The lumberjacks finally erupt….and here’s the Big Show to go after everyone as I’m assuming the match is thrown out.

Rating: C+. It’s hard to argue against Angle vs. Eddie but there’s only so much you can do when a majority of the match is spent on having both guys thrown outside for the usual lumberjack shenanigans. Big Show returning here is acceptable as a way to get out of the ending, but they already had a screwy finish last week. Show being back is important, though I’m not exactly thrilled at the idea of another Show push.

House is cleaned inside and outside as no one can do a thing to Show. Chokeslams crush Eddie and Angle, followed by one more to Reigns to end the show.

Overall Rating: C-. While nothing was all that great on here, it was a good showcase of everything Smackdown had going on with a bunch of different stories getting some TV time. You can see a lot of No Mercy from here and that’s good with less than a month to go. The show was a really easy hour and a half to watch and I’ll gladly take that right now.

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

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

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

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

IMG Credit: WWE

Smackdown
Date: August 26, 2004
Location: Save Mart Center, Fresno, California
Commentators: Michael Cole, Tazz

We’ll wrap up the Smackdown half of the month here and that’s not the worst thing in the world. The big match this week will see john Cena face Booker T. in the second match in the best of five series for the US Title. Other than that we have the very injured JBL running from the Undertaker and Eddie Guerrero wanting one more match with Kurt Angle. Let’s get to it.

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

We open with a recap of Rey Mysterio saving Eddie Guerrero from Kurt Angle and Luther Reigns, setting up last week’s tag match main event. Angle pouring paint on the low rider to end the show was a great touch.

Opening sequence.

Here’s Eddie to get things going. Last week, Angle defaced his personal property so this week, Eddie is going to deface him. That means Eddie wants a fight but he gets Luther Reigns instead. Reigns has seen a lot of fights in his day from prisons to bars, and he knows that Angle would annihilate him. Eddie is ready to fight anyway but Angle pops up on screen to say come to the parking lot.

The chase is on and Angle hides behind what he says is his car. Eddie pours trash on it and smashes the windows with a pipe but Reigns runs in from behind and beats him down. They get in another car and speed away, leaving Eddie to beat up the car a little more. Theodore Long comes up and says it’s his car. Eddie’s look makes up for any problems this might have had. Security takes Eddie away as Long cries over the car. Alas, no Final Fight reenactment.

Kenzo Suzuki vs. Rob Van Dam

Fallout from last week when Kenzo beat Van Dam down after a match. Before the match, Kenzo brags about Japanese cars before saying he loves America. Van Dam kicks him off the throne and starts beating up the people who carried it in. American jerk. Back in and Kenzo shoulders him down at the opening bell to take over.

The abdominal stretch goes on for a bit until Rob slips out and fires off some kicks. The top rope kick to the face gives Rob two and the split legged moonsault is good for the same as Rob finally changes up the offense a bit. It’s time for the Five Star but Rob has to dive onto an invading Rene Dupree. Not that it matters as a small package finishes Suzuki.

Rating: D. What were you expecting here? It’s very clear that Suzuki is already a lost cause and while Rene is better, he’s not exactly an upgrade as a partner. Van Dam hasn’t had trouble beating either of these goons and whoever he finds as a partner shouldn’t have any issue either.

Post match Dupree and Suzuki beat Rob down and show each other respect. Yeah it’s still not interesting.

Long is still crying over his car and talking about how it was a classic and all he had. JBL and Orlando Jordan come up and yell about Long ignoring them all week. They want something done about Undertaker because this is an unsafe working environment. Long makes a title match for tonight against Undertaker but since JBL can’t wrestle, Jordan can defend it for him. So now his future depends on Orlando Jordan. Just give up now man.

Chavo Guerrero vs. Billy Kidman

Jamie Noble and Paul London are at ringside. Kidman isn’t having this feeling out process and snaps off an early hurricanrana. Chavo gets in a few shots of his own to take over and it’s an armbar to keep him in trouble. That goes nowhere so Kidman fights up with a backdrop and a clothesline. The BK Bomb doesn’t work due to the bad arm so Kidman kicks him in the head instead. Noble breaks up the shooting star so London takes him out and kicks Chavo in the head. That’s enough for Kidman to hit the shooting star for the pin.

Rating: D+. This didn’t have time to get very far but the Tag Team Title match should be fun. The problem is the champs aren’t exactly lighting the world on fire and no one buys the challengers as a serious threat. There’s no division at the moment and that’s not likely to get better anytime soon.

Carlito Caribbean Cool vignette, this time showing him for the first time. The apple spit and catchphrase make their debuts as well.

Long is STILL devastated over his car when Angle and Reigns return. Angle doesn’t care about the car and gets a 2/3 falls match with Eddie next week. As for tonight, he can face Rey Mysterio. Dang Long is on fire and he makes Luther sweep up the mess as a bonus.

John Cena vs. Booker T.

Match #2 in the best of 5 series with Cena up 1-0. Booker starts fast by forearming him down and a suplex gets two. Cena is right back with an elbow of his own but Booker hits a superkick. The chinlock goes on early until Booker knees him in the back, followed by a missile dropkick for two. Another kick to the face gets another two and it’s already off to the second chinlock.

Booker switches it up to a double arm crank before getting two more off a spinebuster. This has been almost all Booker and the comeback can come anytime now. We hit another chinlock for another little while until Cena pops back to live with shoulders. The Shuffle connects for two but Booker sends him face first into the buckle. That and a backslide with feet on the ropes ties the series up.

Rating: D+. If there was a rating between D and D+, I’d go with that for this one. It was a lot of laying around in chinlocks and while it wasn’t the worst, it wasn’t thrilling. To be fair though, it’s the second of what is likely to be five matches so you can only get so annoyed at what they’re doing. Not the worst, but it felt like they were holding back/saving stuff for later. Understandable, but not really thrilling.

Match #3 will be taking place in Australia over the weekend at a house show. Good idea actually.

Paul Heyman is in the ring and introduces the new reason for his supreme confidence: Heidenreich. They get right to the point with Heidenreich saying he’s more than just hype and beating the heck out of Josh Matthews, including a shoulder breaker and a cobra clutch. Anything that involves Josh being hurt is a good thing for me.

Big Show is coming back.

Kurt Angle vs. Rey Mysterio

It’s worked before so this should be fine. Angle takes him down without much effort to start, which tends to be the case. Rey is back up with an armdrag and it’s time to mock Angle’s pose. You know that makes it serious but Angle charges into another headlock and the early frustration is setting in. Rey headscissors him outside for a baseball slide and we take a break. Back with Rey caught in a chinlock, as tends to be the case when you come back from a break around here. At least Angle has a knee in the back to keep things fresh.

An overhead belly to belly makes things even worse and it’s off to a bearhug, with Angle dropping to a knee to deal with the height. A release German suplex gives Angle two more so Rey pops back up with a dropkick. The 619 connects but the West Coast Pop is countered into a powerbomb for two. The Angle Slam is countered into an inverted DDT for a heck of a near fall so Rey tries a victory roll. Angle has been studying his Owen Hart though as he sits down on it for the pin.

Rating: B. Well of course these two had a good match. They’ve always had solid chemistry together and this was no exception. Angle winning clean over a guy who wrestles a similar style as Eddie Guerrero is a good way to set up next week’s 2/3 falls. It’s also not like a loss to Angle hurts Mysterio very much, especially when Mysterio isn’t doing anything at the moment anyway.

Smackdown flashback: Arnold Schwarzenegger beats up HHH.

Raw Rebound.

JBL gives Jordan a pep talk and isn’t exactly thrilled with the prospects. Jordan wants to wear the title and that’s shot down as fast as you might guess.

Smackdown World Title: Orlando Jordan vs. Undertaker

Jordan is defending in JBL’s place. He also gets to hold the title in what feels like fan fiction gone mad. Undertaker’s entrance gives us a hilarious visual of JBL, with the cowboy hat on top of the halo, turning to look and looking into the camera in the process with his eyes bugging out. Jordan tries slugging away and gets his head kicked off for two. Old School connects in a hurry and the jumping clothesline gets two. A JBL distraction lets Jordan get in his first major offense, because it’s not like he can do it himself.

Back in and some right hands stagger Jordan but Undertaker goes after JBL again. The results are the same this time around and Jordan gets two off a Downward Spiral. That just makes Undertaker sit up though and it’s time for the proper beating to begin. A right hand knocks JBL off the apron and there’s the Tombstone, but JBL pulls the referee out for the DQ.

Rating: D+. All things considered, this wasn’t the worst thing in the world. I don’t think anyone was expecting anything other than JBL interfering for the DQ and it’s not a bad thing to go with the obvious. Jordan still isn’t anything more than a warm body who isn’t any good in the ring, but he serves a purpose here. Not a terrible match, but an exercise in killing time.

Post match Undertaker beats up JBL, ripping the braces off and hitting a chokeslam. Undertaker poses with the title to end the show.

Overall Rating: C. It’s hard to put into words, but there’s something about Smackdown that feels so much more together than Raw. Over on Raw you get the big angles and stories and promos, but Smackdown tends to be more low key, allowing them to show things off a little bit better and let them develop. It might never get as big around here, but it also never feels as bogged down when a story is bad. You can go either way with that, but both are rather entertaining.

This was a great example of that kind of Smackdown and I had a good time with it, though it wasn’t the most interesting thing in the world. They’re building things up for the next few weeks and those stories sound interesting. If we can get some great action out of these stories (Eddie vs. Kurt seems like), it’s going to be easy to see Smackdown pulling ahead, though both shows are getting a little better.

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

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

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

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

IMG Credit: WWE

Smackdown
Date: August 19, 2004
Location: Copps Coliseum, Hamilton, Ontario, Canada
Commentators: Michael Cole, Tazz

The Canadian adventure continues as JBL is still Smackdown World Champion and likely in line to continue feuding with the Undertaker. I’m sure you’re as thrilled as I am. Other than that Kurt Angle pinned Eddie Guerrero in a match that should set up a third match to settle things for good, though you never know with them. Let’s get to it.

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

Opening sequence.

Here’s the limo to open things up with Orlando Jordan helping JBL out. This gives us one of my all time favorite visuals, with JBL wearing a halo around his neck with the cowboy hat sitting on top, above JBL’s head. The entrance takes forever as JBL can barely walk but he eventually (and very slowly) says he’s in tremendous pain. All the booing from these inferior Canadians are hurting his head but it’s ok if they want to chant JBL.

He won at Summerslam though and just like Martin Luther King, he had a dream. At his Hall of Fame induction, he wanted a clip of himself pinning Undertaker to introduce his speech. It wasn’t fair that Undertaker got himself disqualified so he didn’t have to pass the torch to JBL. We see some stills of the beatdown from Sunday (JBL: “Why are you people cheering that?”), which takes a lot of time as well.

JBL remembers seeing Undertaker’s evil face before passing out, which the fans seem to enjoy. After a quick rant about the American army protecting Canada, JBL says Undertaker will NOT be getting a rematch. This brings out Undertaker so JBL takes another minute or so to get out of the ring as he sells the heck out of those injuries. As JBL stumbles over a fan, Undertaker holds up the title because there MUST be a rematch.

It’s far better when JBL is played this way instead of bragging about everything he’s done over the years, which was just boring. This is actually entertaining and if we see more like this, he’s downright tolerable. It ran about fifteen minutes, but JBL selling his injuries made it worth the time.

Cruiserweight Title: Spike Dudley vs. Scotty 2 Hotty

Spike is defending and has Bubba and D-Von with him. Scotty starts fast with some slams into an armbar, followed by a backdrop onto the other Dudleys. D-Von gets up and offers a distraction so Bubba can break up the Worm. The top rope double stomp is blocked by a raised boot and the very quick comeback is on. Bubba has to make a save after a superkick and the Dudley Dog retains the title.

Rating: D. We’re never going to get an explanation of why Bubba and D-Von are listening to Spike are we? It’s not the most interesting story in the first place and I don’t see it getting any better. The fact that it took all three to deal with Scotty 2 Hotty should tell you everything you need to know about the legs this story has.

Carlito Caribbean Cool is coming.

Raw Rebound.

As the announcers talk, two guys come up with a HEIDENREICH NEXT WEEK banner.

John Cena (in a Wrestlemania inspired Word Life shirt) promises to go up 2-0 on Booker T. next week. Spike Dudley comes in and doesn’t like the idea of Cena calling himself a champ. Cena says it looks like Dennis the Menace finally grew up. Now Spike needs some glasses though because he can’t see Cena. Bubba and D-Von come in for the beatdown.

Billy Kidman/Paul London vs. Chavo Guerrero/Jamie Noble

Non-title. Noble and London start things off with Paul’s front facelock not getting him very far. London gets thrown to the apron but slingshots back in with a headscissors, only to get his head clotheslined off. It’s off to Chavo for a front facelock of his own as the villains take over. Chavo hits a slingshot legdrop for two but London gets to his feet for a double knockdown. That’s enough for the hot tag to Kidman so house can really be cleaned. Everything breaks down and it’s a BK Bomb to Chavo, followed by a sunset flip but Jamie pulls Chavo on top. A grab of the rope is enough for the pin on Kidman.

Rating: C. Not too bad here, though I’m not sure on having the Tag Team Champions lose on Sunday and then lose again on Thursday. They aren’t the strongest champions in the world in the first place and it doesn’t seem like a great idea to have them lose twice in a row like this. Noble and Guerrero aren’t winning the titles so did you really need to do this on two straight shows?

Teddy Long sends Brian Hebner to tell John Cena that he’ll be facing a Dudley later tonight.

Here’s a disappointed Eddie Guerrero for a chat. He calls Kurt Angle out because we haven’t really determined the better man. This brings out Angle, who thinks Eddie is nuts for wanting to do this again. Angle is looking for action though and Eddie likes that idea, but Angle says no. Eddie says they’ve done this twice and are 1-1, so we need a rubber match. It’s true that Angle outwrestled him and no one has ever done it to him like that in his career.

Eddie wants Angle to shake his hand but Angle doesn’t buy it. Some persuasion gets Angle inside and Eddie says he’s telling the truth…..before punching him in the face. Luther Reigns comes out for the save until Rey Mysterio runs out to even things up. Eddie lying after convincing Angle that he’s telling the truth still works. It’s like Ric Flair turning on Sting back in 1995. You know exactly where it’s going but it’s still fun to watch because you want to see these people act like they’re supposed to.

John Cena vs. D-Von Dudley

Booker T. is on commentary. D-Von hammers away in the corner to start but Cena is right back with a hiptoss. They slug it out some more with D-Von elbowing him in the face for two more. A splash misses in the corner and Cena scores with a backdrop. Cena slugs away, knocks Bubba off the apron, and hits an AA (Booker: “NO! NO!”) for the fast pin.

Post match Cena says Booker has something of his, and next week they’re having the second match in their series.

Video on the debut episode of Smackdown, just shy of five years ago.

Rob Van Dam vs. Rene Dupree

Rematch from Sunday’s Heat match. They fight over a wristlock to start as the announcers talk about the wrestling history in this building. Van Dam kicks him down but misses the flip legdrop to give us a standoff. The corner shoulders and a monkey flip sends Rene down but he’s able to send Van Dam shoulder first into the post. An armbar keeps Van Dam in trouble as a pull of the hair gives Rene two.

The armbar goes on again as the announcers talk about underwater basket weaving and synchronized swimming. Rob pops up with a superkick and a bridging German suplex for two. Rolling Thunder hits raised knees and a good looking superplex keeps Van Dam’s back in trouble. Rob is fine enough to kick him in the face and hit the Five Star for the pin.

Rating: C. Not too bad here and one of Rene’s best matches to date. They kept it short and Rene’s offense, especially that superplex, looked rather sharp. Van Dam isn’t about to lose to Dupree, whose status is starting to fade fast. Rob might not be the top star in the company, but he’s still ahead of Dupree.

Post match Kenzo Suzuki comes in and lays out Van Dam. It still doesn’t make him interesting.

Theodore Long gives a tape to a production worker, followed by some holla holla holla lessons. This was oddly creepy with Long flirting with the production woman.

The $1 Million Tough Enough is coming. There’s someone involved in that and he’s awesome.

Long is in the ring and has a major announcement: he’s rehired the Big Show. As a bonus, he introduces the main event.

Kurt Angle/Luther Reigns vs. Eddie Guerrero/Rey Mysterio

Rey dropkicks Luther to start and it’s Eddie coming in for a suplex. It’s already back to Rey, whose crossbody is countered into a backbreaker to change control in a hurry. Angle gets two off a clothesline and it’s off to a chinlock. The impatient Eddie breaks that up in a hurry so Rey snaps off a headscissors. The hot tag brings in Eddie and Angle hides in the corner like a true coward.

Angle starts in on the ankle and knocks him to the floor as we take a break. Back with Angle grabbing the ankle lock but Eddie rolls out in a hurry. Another leglock keeps Angle in control until a quick rollup gives Eddie two and a break. Reigns comes back in for a hold of his own and tags Angle after getting kicked away. That’s fine with Kurt, who cuts Eddie’s trip to the corner off with an overhead belly to belly. Eddie breaks up another suplex attempt and now it’s the hot tag to Rey so the pace can pick up.

A springboard seated senton gets two on Angle but the hurricanrana to Reigns takes bumps the referee. The 619 around the post knocks Angle silly and Reigns is knocked into position as well. Angle is back up with a chair to Rey’s knee though, sending Eddie after Angle with a chair of his own. With Angle gone, a low blow drops Reigns and it’s the Three Amigos into the 619 into the frog splash for the pin.

Rating: C+. Eddie and Rey were always fun to see together and that was the case again here. They gel together so smoothly and that was the case here. Reigns was kept to a minimum here and that’s the right idea for a match like this. Let the three masters do their thing and have him come in for the power stuff. That’s all it should be and it worked fine here, even if the match followed a pretty simple formula.

Post match Eddie and Rey celebrate the win but here’s Angle to pour paint on the low rider. Eddie is distraught to end the show.

Overall Rating: C-. Other than the hilarious JBL image, there wasn’t a lot going on with this one. There was some average at best wrestling and storyline advancement that feels like we’re just heading to rematches either on television or at No Mercy. The Smackdown half of Summerslam was only so good in the first place so this isn’t the most thrilling show in the world. Not terrible, but not exactly exciting.

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

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

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

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

IMG Credit: WWE

Summerslam 2004
Date: August 15, 2004
Location: Air Canada Centre, Toronto, Ontario, Canada
Attendance: 17,640
Commentators: Michael Cole, Tazz, Jim Ross, Jerry Lawler

It’s the second biggest show of the year and that could go multiple ways. Smackdown has been getting better as of late but it’s still not very good. Raw has had its moments, but with the second biggest match from the red show being HHH vs. Eugene, they’re working underneath a pretty low ceiling. Let’s get to it.

The theme is the Summer Games, giving us an Olympic themed opening. I’ve always liked these as they’re actually rather entertaining.

The opening video looks at the big matches, but Diva Dodgeball is in the middle, even before the Intercontinental Title and Smackdown World Title matches. I’m thinking no on that one.

Dudley Boys vs. Paul London/Billy Kidman/Rey Mysterio

Spike recently joined his brothers and since there are no other teams on Smackdown, Kidman and London are still feuding with the Dudleys. Rey just walks out to his music, which takes a lot of the impact away. D-Von hammers on Kidman to start but gets armdragged down for his efforts. London comes in for an assisted moonsault and the dropkick gets two.

A rather hard clothesline takes London down and it’s off to Spike for some screaming stomps in the corner. Bubba comes in for the trash talking elbow drop and the villains start taking turns working on London. Straight right hands break up the comeback attempt but Bubba hits D-Von by mistake. Spike gets kicked away and that’s enough for the tag off to Mysterio.

The springboard legdrop gets two on Spike and a hurricanrana out of the corner makes things even worse. A reverse DDT plants D-Von and it’s back to Kidman for a top rope back elbow to Spike. Everything breaks down and a BK Bomb gets two on Spike. Bubba gets double dropkicked to the floor and Spike takes a Hart Attack of all things. The 619 sends Spike into the shooting star from Billy for two with D-Von making the save. Back in and Kidman walks into the 3D to give Spike the pin.

Rating: C. Well that was a dumb ending. You have Spike as Cruiserweight Champion and have him pin a Tag Team Champion to open one of the biggest shows of the year? You couldn’t have Rey pin D-Von here to let the fans feel good? This didn’t help anything other than building Spike up, which was done as well as it was going to be with the Cruiserweight Title win. Bad decision here, in a match that didn’t need to have this kind of a finish.

We recap Kane vs. Matt Hardy. Lita slept with Kane to get him to leave Matt alone, actually being stupid enough to believe it would work. As a result Lita is pregnant but still loves Matt. Therefore, she’s marrying the winner of this match. Somehow, not even the most bizarre stipulation in Summerslam history.

Kane vs. Matt Hardy

Matt goes straight at him to start and hits what I guess was a middle rope Side Effect for two. The middle rope legdrop to the back of the head gets the same and a weird looking tornado DDT (with Matt landing on his stomach) gets the third two. Kane finally hits a clothesline to take over but a Lita distraction lets Matt low bridge him to the floor.

The slingshot dive sets up a Twist of Fate for nine and probably the best chance Matt had. Lita throws in the bell and distracts the very stupid referee so Matt can clock Kane for two. Kane kicks him in the face and goes up but gets caught by Matt. That’s fine with Kane, who hits a super chokeslam for the pin and Lita’s hand.

Rating: D. Short and bad here, with Matt having less than no chance throughout. Matt has been destroyed and turned into an idiot this whole feud and Kane winning in the end was the only way it could go. Now just get to the wedding, which is destined to be the most entertaining part of this whole thing. The match was nothing that couldn’t have been done on Raw but with a nice looking ending. That’s also Matt’s last WWE match for about a year as he had a bad knee injury and was then released in April.

Randy Orton doesn’t want to hear about anyone being upset because tonight is a night for celebration. John Cena cuts him off and promises him some merch. He’s an Orton fan, but a quick fan poll seems to suggest that they don’t agree with him. And so it begins.

Booker T. vs. John Cena

Match #1 in a best of five series for Booker’s US Title. They slug it out to start with Cena hitting a clothesline for one. Cena gets in the Throwback for two so Booker crotches him on top to cut that off in a hurry. Booker throws in a You Can’t See Me and drops a knee for no cover. A jumping kick to the face cuts off Cena’s early comeback and it’s a camel clutch to keep things slow.

That’s broken up so Booker goes with a spinebuster and side slam to drop Cena again. The ax kick misses though and Cena hits his running clothesline out of the corner. That just earns him a flapjack into a Spinarooni but Cena hits a quick FU for the pin, ignoring Booker’s shoulder being way off the mat.

Rating: D+. That’s the third straight fast match here and that’s not a good thing on a show like this. They didn’t even have seven minutes here, which is the kind of match that could have been on Smackdown instead of wasting it on this show. Cena is likely losing the next two matches to put him in a hole which is fine, but I could have gone for a better start to this thing.

Eric Bischoff (“the head cracker in charge of Raw”) comes in to see Theodore Long and points out the revolving door to the Smackdown GM office. Bischoff advises him to enjoy it while it lasts but Teddy tells him to get to steppin.

Intercontinental Title: Batista vs. Edge vs. Chris Jericho

Hometown boy Edge is defending and Batista is on fire at the moment. Speaking of Batista, he knocks Edge off the apron during his entrance and we hit the Y2J chants early on. A hard elbow knocks Jericho down and a shoulder does it again. Edge comes back in with a chop block to break up the Batista Bomb though and it’s time for some Canadian violence on Batista. Snake Eyes gets Batista out of trouble but Jericho grabs his boot to slow him down a bit.

A clothesline puts Batista outside and leaves Edge alone in the ring….where he’s booed out of the building. Well that’s rather surprising. Batista gets sent face first into the steps and we’re down to Jericho vs. Edge in the ring. Edge gets the better of the fight but gets loudly booed when loading up the Edgecution. The Walls attempt gets a much better reaction, though Edge reversing into a small package isn’t as well received. Back up and Jericho pokes him in the eye, setting up the full Walls of Jericho.

The hold is pulled back into the middle until Batista finally makes a save with the clothesline. Edge takes Batista down with an Edgecution for two as Jericho is banged up on the floor. The spear is loaded up but for some reason Jericho cuts Edge down on the way to Batista. A spinebuster gives Batista two on Jericho but this time it’s Edge sending the big man outside. That gives us another battle of the Canadians and another loud Y2J chant. Batista gets dropkicked off the apron but the distraction lets Edge spear Jericho down to retain.

Rating: D+. The odd crowd reactions threw things off here, though they’re not quite as out there as you might think when you remember Edge teasing a heel turn as of late. Now that being said, you would think the hometown deal would be enough to overcome the recent cheating but that wasn’t the case here. On top of that, the match didn’t have a ton of heat and was a string of one on one matches instead of all three at once. Edge retaining is fine, though Batista is getting bigger and bigger every week.

We recap Eddie Guerrero vs. Kurt Angle in a Wrestlemania rematch. Eddie cheated (kind of) to win at Wrestlemania in Angle’s last match for about five months. Angle is back now, though while he was on the shelf he cost Eddie the WWE Championship so Eddie is out for revenge and to prove that he can hang with Angle on an even playing field. This has been the best set up feud for the whole show and the match should be able to live up to the hype.

Kurt Angle vs. Eddie Guerrero

Angle has Luther Reigns with him. Feeling out process to start as the odd fans are cheering for Angle here. Shockingly enough Angle is more than fine against Eddie on the mat so Eddie tries for the ankle. He’ll settle for a headlock instead so Angle reverses into a quick keylock. Eddie armdrags him straight into an armbar but it’s time to start the rolling German suplexes. That doesn’t work either as Eddie reverses the second into the ankle lock as the wrestling lesson continues. Angle reverses into the real thing but Eddie puts his own on at the same time. It doesn’t last long, though cool idea there.

A rope finally saves Eddie so Reigns gets in a cheap shot like a good lackey should do. That means another ankle lock before Angle finally switches gears a bit for something close to an STF. With Eddie down, Angle starts untying Eddie’s boot but the delay lets Eddie get in a kick to the face. It’s right back to Eddie’s ankle until Eddie gets in an Angle Slam of his own. Eddie makes his comeback with right hands but the ankle isn’t exactly sturdy.

It’s fine enough for the Three Amigos so Eddie goes up for the frog splash, only to get caught with the running belly to belly superplex. Angle’s Angle Slam is countered into a DDT and another frog splash attempt misses. The Angle Slam gets two so Angle rips the boot off to set up the ankle lock again.

The roll through sends Angle into the referee so Eddie hits Angle and Reigns with the boot. Of course Eddie throws the boot away and falls down instead of hitting a frog splash, which would have made more sense. Eddie hits the frog splash for two a few seconds later and yells at the referee on the kickout. That’s enough for Angle to pick the ankle and put on the grapevine to make Eddie tap.

Rating: C+. What exactly are they saving all the time for on this show? That’s the first match to break thirteen minutes and nothing else has even hit nine. There are three matches left on the card and nearly an hour and a half left in the show, but nothing has even hit fifteen minutes yet. Did Diva Dodgeball need the extra time?

Anyway, this wasn’t all that great as the first few minutes were looking like the start of a thirty minute classic but then they just jumped the stolen finishers (which is becoming a rather tired trope) and had Angle break the ankle down for the win. This was dying for another eight minutes of build towards the finish but for some reason this show has to go as fast as it can because of reasons.

We recap HHH vs. Eugene. HHH found out that Eugene was his favorite wrestler and agreed to use him to help get the World Title if HHH could eventually make Eugene want to quit. In other words, it was a story that was way more complicated than it needed to be and Eugene, who started off as a very fun, unique character has turned into the clueless putz that cost HHH the title. Therefore, HHH must destroy him to prove that he’s better than a mentally disabled person who doesn’t know how to wrestle but imitates wrestling he watched on TV as a kid. In the second biggest Raw match on Summerslam. Of course.

HHH vs. Eugene

No one is at ringside for a bit of a surprise. HHH wins an early slugout but Eugene elbows him in the face so it’s time head outside. That means a chance for HHH to hide behind Lilian Garcia, allowing him to take over again. It’s time to load up the announcers’ table but Eugene blocks a suplex to the floor. Some right hands in the corner set up a Flair Flop and HHH has a bad knee. Believe it or not, it’s a way for HHH to sucker Eugene in again and outsmart him for a cheap shot.

A backbreaker keeps Eugene in trouble as JR freaks out of the fake injury. He certainly must have loathed Bret Hart then. The fans think Eugene sucks so his comeback isn’t exactly well received. HHH offers a handshake but this time Eugene is ready for him and pulls it into a Rock Bottom. The People’s Elbow is countered with the spinebuster to a face pop as the trip into the bizarre continues. HHH chokes away and it’s back to the floor for a whip into the steps.

Back in and HHH slowly beats on him, setting up the sleeper because this match needed a sleeper. Eugene escapes and hits a backdrop, followed by a middle finger and the Stunner. That’s enough to send HHH outside for a breather though and here’s Ric Flair because HHH is actually in trouble. The big boot into the legdrop connects but Flair gets knocked off the apron. Eugene goes up top and dives into the Pedigree but spins out, setting up a Pedigree on HHH instead. Flair puts his foot on the rope so it’s just a two, earning an ejection. Cue William Regal to knock Flair cold with the brass knuckles as the Pedigree finishes Eugene.

Rating: D. Well thank goodness for that. After a few months of getting frustrated, the great and mighty HHH came back and beat the comedy act in a match at one of the biggest show of the year. All it cost Eugene was all of the good will he built up too, but at least HHH got the big win. This whole story was really stupid and a huge waste of time, which really doesn’t work when it boils down to HHH needing almost fifteen minutes to beat a comedy guy. It was just bad all around and didn’t help anyone other than HHH, who didn’t get that much out of it anyway.

And then, Diva Dodgeball with the Diva Search girls basically in swimsuits while the Raw women are in matching gear. Before the game starts, Coach tells us about some trash talk that happened after Raw went off the air. They proceed to play dodgeball, which is in no way shape or form an excuse to have good looking women in barely existing clothing running around. The Diva Search girls dominate and win. Trish yells about the refereeing and then blames Victoria, triggering a fight. This took up nearly six minutes, which is about seven minutes too long.

Smackdown World Title: John Bradshaw Layfield vs. Undertaker

No recap for this one because the build hasn’t exactly been thrilling. JBL won the title earlier in the summer and needed an opponent so Undertaker showed up. For some reason JBL decided he wasn’t afraid of Undertaker and brought out a mini version, who Undertaker wound up beating up instead. Then JBL brought in Orlando Jordan as his Chief of Staff because he needed a designated lackey.

Undertaker knocks him to the floor early on and the beating begins, including JBL’s arm going into the steps. Back in and JBL hits a quick swinging neckbreaker before going up top for a good looking top rope shoulder. An armbar doesn’t get JBL anywhere so Undertaker pulls on the arm as well and hits Old School. Undertaker grabs an ugly triangle choke until Jordan pulls the foot under the rope.

With that not working, Undertaker hits a big boot to JBL but misses a running version in the corner to let JBL take out the knee. The leg is wrapped around the post and a Jordan distraction lets JBL smash the leg with a chair. Undertaker gets sent into the barricade so Jordan can get in a few shots before sending him inside. The fans start the Wave as the leg work continues.

The leglock goes on as JBL is smart enough to just throw on a hold and let the fans die down. It’s not exactly thrilling for the fans at home but it’s a smart idea here. Undertaker fights out and pulls JBL down into a quickly broken kneebar. They head outside again with Undertaker hitting the apron legdrop. The announcers start chanting for the Spanish table but JBL snaps the throat across the top for a breather. Again JBL takes too long going up though and it’s a superplex for two.

JBL goes right back to the knee with a spinning toehold of all things but Undertaker hits a sloppy release spinebuster for two more. The jumping clothesline puts JBL down again and Snake Eyes into…a running clothesline instead of the big boot gives Undertaker another two. The chokeslam gets a delayed near fall, which seems to shock the announcers. Who hasn’t kicked out of a chokeslam? Jordan gets up for a quick distraction and it’s the Clothesline From JBL to give the champ two of his own. The referee gets bumped though and it’s a double big boot for a double knockdown.

Jordan throws the belt in for a shot to the head and the very delayed near fall with Jordan grabbing the hand to slap the mat. Undertaker finally beats up Jordan but eats another Clothesline From JBL. With the referee still down, JBL rains down right hands in the corner which is only done to set up the Last Ride. Jordan is back in with the belt so Undertaker takes it away and hits JBL for the DQ.

Rating: D. The thing is, it’s not even the worst match in the world. It felt like it was straight out of the HHH/Ric Flair Greatest Hits playbook with Jordan being the worst Flair impersonator of all time. The leg work was fine and JBL still wasn’t horrible yet, but the ending was pretty lame with Jordan being pathetic and JBL’s finisher not being able to do much damage. It’s not so much horrible or even bad as much as it is uninteresting and uninspired, which made for a very long seventeen minutes.

Post match the beatdown continues with the bloody JBL being chokeslammed through the roof of the limo. JBL does a stretcher job, guaranteeing a rematch. Of note: at some point during the match, a fan tried to climb onto the limo and security kept him from not only, you know, climbing onto the limo but also breaking the roof and injuring himself/ruining the spot.

Cole shows us a replay and tells us to listen. There’s no sound.

Raw World Title: Chris Benoit vs. Randy Orton

Orton is challenging after winning a battle royal and pinning Benoit in a tag match. Here’s your exchange that would never happen today: Lawler: “Hey JR you got a camera on you?” JR, dripping with sarcasm: “Yeah right here in my pocket.” The fans are all over Earl Hebner with the YOU SCREWED BRET chants as they stare each other down at the bell. Benoit drives him into the corner and takes Orton down for a rather early chinlock. A test of strength goes to Orton but he misses a knee drop.

Benoit is right back with the armbar and armdrags him down into another armbar. That’s reversed as well with Orton grabbing a Sharpshooter of his own. Benoit slips out of that and tries a Crossface, sending Orton to the floor where he posts Benoit to really take over. A second posting keeps the champ down and Orton drapes him over the top rope for good measure.

Something like a DDT on the apron gets Benoit out of trouble but he misses a dive through the ropes, sending himself HARD into the barricade. Back in and Orton hits the over the shoulder neckbreaker for two, followed by the chinlock. Benoit fights up for stereo crossbodies but gets up first for a northern lights suplex. A release German suplex has Orton in more trouble and the Sharpshooter goes on.

That’s good for two arm drops until Orton makes the rope so they’re both exhausted. Some rolling German suplexes put Orton down again but he gets his feet up to block the Swan Dive (FREAKING OW MAN!). The cover is countered into a Crossface but Orton rolls out. Back up and Benoit tries it again but Orton spins him around into the RKO for the pin and the title.

Rating: B. It’s not a masterpiece but it was a good, long, well put together match with a completely clean ending that made Orton look like the better man. The new heel on top is long overdue and it’s nice to see Orton, who has gotten a lot better in a hurry, win the title here. Benoit’s title reign was very respectable and he beat HHH a few times, which is about as good as you’re going to get. It’s a rather good main event, though not exactly a classic.

Post match Benoit gets back in and shakes his hand, demanding that Orton be a man. Orton shakes his hand and Benoit leaves in peace, allowing Orton to pose to end the show.

Overall Rating: D+. This show is two different halves and it’s as noticeable as you’re ever going to see. The first four matches are all short and need more time while the remaining four, as in the big matches, either fail to live up to the hype or just aren’t very good in the first place. This show needed to be reshuffled a bit with some extra time being given to a few other matches. Stuff like Diva Dodgeball and the opener could have been cut to give the time to other matches. It would have done the show a lot of good, but there was only so much this show could do.

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

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

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

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

IMG Credit: WWE

Smackdown
Date: August 12, 2004
Location: Joe Louis Arena, Detroit, Michigan
Commentators: Michael Cole, Tazz

It’s the go home show for Summerslam and things are mostly set for the pay per view. The big story (if you can call it that) coming out of last week’s show is Orlando Jordan joining forces with JBL, meaning it’s probably time for Jordan to die at Undertaker’s hands. Other than that we’ll be in for some last minute pushes towards the pay per view. Let’s get to it.

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

Opening sequence.

Here are JBL and Orlando Jordan to open things up. After a quick look at the mini Undertaker and Jordan saving JBL last week, JBL paraphrases Richard Nixon by saying that he is not a midget. He’s certainly not intimidated by Undertaker though he’s certainly respectful of what Undertaker has done in WWE. JBL lists off a variety of names that Undertaker has defeated over his career but JBL isn’t on that list.

Undertaker may have few weaknesses, but JBL is going to exploit them at Summerslam. Championships are won in the ring, which is where JBL defies the odds. At Summerslam, JBL will not only remain WWE Champion but defeat the Undertaker. That brings him to Jordan, who is both a great American and JBL’s new Chief of Staff.

Jordan says JBL has taught him that you have to take something you want, which is why he stopped Undertaker last week. Not that JBL needed the help or anything. JBL compares Jordan to the troops overseas and announces that it’s Jordan vs. Undertaker tonight. They’re trying to hide the fact that Jordan is Jordan and it’s not really working.

Spike Dudley vs. Paul London

Non-title. The Dudleys vs. Rey Mysterio/Billy Kidman/London is confirmed for Summerslam. Speaking of the Dudleys, they come out to start things off, complete with Bubba wearing a bandanna for an odd look. London gets sent outside early on and Kidman stares the Dudleys down to prevent violence. Back in and the Dudley Dog is blocked and London kicks him in the face for two. An enziguri drops Spike again but Ray breaks up the 450, allowing Spike to get a rollup for the pin.

Rating: D+. Short angle advancement here as the Dudleys win because of the numbers game. I’m still not sold on Spike as the evil boss but there are worse storylines to get upset about around here. London and Kidman still can’t get away from the Dudleys, which isn’t doing their title reign any favors. Not a terrible match, but it wasn’t exactly designed to be a great one.

Post match the Dudleys beat the champs down.

Cole and Tazz explain the main event, which is called a Summer Games Relay. It’s a six man tag, but the catch is the match is made up of five minute periods. One person each will start for five minutes, then there’s a coin toss. The winning team gets to send in a replacement for five minutes. After that is over, the team that lost the toss gets to send in their replacement for five minutes. They keep alternating every five minutes until there’s a fall. That doesn’t sound bad.

Heidenreich and Paul Heyman will be at Summerslam.

Scotty 2 Hotty asks what’s up with Spike. It’s simple: Spike has just come home to his family and it’s gotten him the Cruiserweight Title. So who needs friends? A slap to the face looks to set up a fight but Bubba and D-Von intervene.

Kurt Angle comes in to Theodore Long’s office to rant about Eddie Guerrero selling his stuff. Long says it was for charity and offers to let Angle call Eddie out tonight. But is Kurt man enough to go out there and do it? Angle says he is, so Teddy tells him to get to steppin.

Chavo Guerrero vs. Nunzio

Nunzio has Johnny the Bull with him. Chavo works on the arm to start but gets taken down into a front facelock. That’s broken up so a Johnny distraction lets Nunzio snap off a hurricanrana. Chavo is fine enough to hit a t-bone suplex but the Gory Bomb is reversed. A rollup with a grab of the ropes gives Chavo two as Johnny breaks it up. Nunzio grabs a rollup of his own for the pin, even though Chavo seemed to get his shoulder up. Nothing special but quite the random filler match.

Undertaker vs. Orlando Jordan

There’s smoke in the ring as a loud TAKER chant starts up. The arm cranking begins but Jordan shoulders away in the corner to break up Old School. Undertaker charges into a boot in the corner and Jordan stomps away. That’s pretty much it for Jordan’s offense as it’s a chokeslam to send him outside. Back in and Old School connects, setting up something like a DDT for two.

The required JBL distraction lets Jordan get in a low blow and a few right hands. Undertaker realizes how bad it looks to sell for this goof and throws Jordan outside again, only to get thrown into the steps. Back in again and the jumping clothesline sets up the running corner clothesline. Snake Eyes connects but JBL comes in for the DQ.

Rating: D-. There’s just no way around it: Jordan is terrible at just about everything he does and having Undertaker sell for him wasn’t a good idea. Undertaker is challenging for the World Title in three days and he’s in trouble against Jordan? There’s a reason that Jordan hasn’t been around in months and this showed just how bad he was. Really bad match and I don’t see it getting any better.

The villains bail and Undertaker sits up for the stare.

Here’s Long to talk about Angle vs. Guerrero at Summerslam. Angle and Guerrero come out with Eddie asking about Angle’s wheelchair and the missing Luther Reigns. Since Angle doesn’t have anywhere to hide, he has to say something to Eddie’s face. Angle says he doesn’t have to hide because he had a legitimate injury. Eddie has no idea what it’s like to have something taken from you like that, but Eddie says that’s what Angle did to him when he stole the WWE Championship.

Angle brings up Eddie stealing his stuff (Eddie: “That was for a good cause!”) and then showing that footage from Wrestlemania where Eddie stole a victory. It’s just a way of hiding the fact that Eddie has to cheat to beat him. Maybe it’s true that Eddie can’t beat him without cheating, maybe he can. That’s what we need to find out on Sunday because Angle can’t hide behind his General Manager position any longer. Maybe Angle doesn’t know if he can beat Eddie either.

Long cuts them off and says that in the spirit of competition, he wants to see a handshake, if they’re man enough that is. They shake hands rather aggressively to end a very good segment. This is a well told story with both guys having a reason to be here. They’ve built it up over several months and I want to see what’s going to be a great match. Sometimes it really is that simple.

Team Cena vs. Team Booker T.

Rob Van Dam, Charlie Haas, John Cena

Booker T., Luther Reigns, Rene Dupree

One fall to a finish with Van Dam and Booker starting. Why it’s not Captain Cena starting isn’t clear but maybe they want to save that showdown for the first of at least three matches at Summerslam. Team Booker already won the toss so they’ll get the first replacement after five minutes. The rules are a little complicated but it sounds fun. Before the match, Cena praises his teammates and likes Jackie’s eyes. Yes eyes.

Booker and Van Dam trade hammerlocks to start with Rob getting the better of an armbar. A hot shot gets Booker out of trouble and the hook kick to the face gets two. The armbar doesn’t get Booker very far so he chops away in the corner. Rob is right back with a loud kick to the head and the step over kick gets two more. There’s a jumping kick to the face and the Five Star but the first period expires, meaning Luther Reigns comes in before the pin. The beatdown is on and we take a break.

Back with Rob throwing some right hands and hitting the springboard kick to the face. Rolling Thunder gets two but Reigns catches him with a spinebuster to end the second period. That means Haas comes into tie Luther’s leg in the ropes and pull on it a bit. A quick crank of the leg and a takedown keeps the leg in trouble but Reigns is right up with a butterfly suplex. Haas gets clotheslined for two and a belly to back gets the same.

Back from another break with Rene working over a beaten down Haas. Rene takes a bit too long going up top though and gets dropkicked out of the air. That and a bridging German suplex give Haas two, followed by more suplexes for more two’s. Booker trips Haas from the floor though and Rene grabs an STF (which might be worse than Cena’s) until time expires. Cena comes in and, after checking on Haas, takes Rene down for some bad right hands to the head. A running neckbreaker out of the corner gets Dupree out of trouble and it’s off to a camel clutch.

Cena breaks up that and a regular chinlock but misses the flying shoulder. The French Tickler wastes some time, but Tazz does get to sing about it which is always a highlight. Another comeback includes the FU attempt but Dupree grabs the rope to kill off the rest of the time. Booker comes in again and hits the hooking kick to the face. A You Can’t See Me knee drop gets two and it’s off to the chinlock. Cena fights up and drops Booker to the floor, with Van Dam getting in a few shots. Tazz declares that not kosher, especially as Cena rolls Booker up for the pin.

Rating: C+. The wrestling wasn’t awesome here but they did have a unique idea and it was perfectly watchable throughout. Cena getting the pin ahead of Sunday is fine, even if that match doesn’t mean anything on that night. It was fun and different though, which is certainly better than watching some of the same stuff over and over again, which happens far too often.

A brawl ends the show.

Overall Rating: D+. It’s a tale of two shows here with the main event working and the JBL/Orlando Jordan stuff being rather awful. There’s not much you can do to get around a lack of talent and WWE doesn’t seem to get that with Jordan. At least there was some other stuff to balance it out, but that’s not exactly enough to make this show work. Angle and Eddie were awesome and that helped a lot, but they couldn’t make up for the rest of the show being pretty lame.

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

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

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

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

IMG Credit: WWE

Smackdown
Date: August 5, 2004
Location: Toyota Center, Houston, Texas
Commentators: Michael Cole, Tazz

We’re getting close to Summerslam and the big story around here is over the US Title with Booker T. winning the title in an eight way match last week. John Cena isn’t happy though and is still coming for Booker and the title, which you have to imagine will take place at Summerslam. Oh and Kurt Angle and Eddie Guerrero still hate each other. Let’s get to it.

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

New General Manager Theodore Long opens the show with pictures of Vince McMahon and Martin Luther King Jr. in his office. One had a vision and the other had a dream but they’ve both made him want to make Smackdown a great show for the fans. If you thought last week’s show was great, you haven’t seen anything yet. Call your friends and knock on your neighbor’s door because we’re starting with a #1 contenders match.

John Cena vs. Rob Van Dam

The winner gets a shot at Booker at some point in the future. They trade waistlocks to start and that’s a clean break. Van Dam slips out of a headscissors of all things and that’s an early standoff. Another clean break gives us a handshake as the fans switch from Van Dam to Cena. Van Dam gets tossed outside where he kicks Cena in the head to take over. Cena is smart enough to get off the barricade before the spinning kick can connect. Now why has no one else ever thought of that?

They fight over a suplex on the apron with Cena suplexing him out to the floor for a nasty landing as we take a break. Back with Cena getting two off a release fisherman’s suplex but Van Dam kicks him in the head again. Another kick to the face keeps Cena in trouble as Booker is cheering both of them on in the back. The split legged moonsault gives Van Dam two and Rolling Thunder is good for the same.

Since it’s been a few minutes since we’ve seen one, Van Dam kicks him in the face and goes up top for….actually a guillotine legdrop instead of the Five Star. Cena grabs a DDT (Why did he stop using that?) for a delayed two of his own. One heck of an elbow to the jaw rocks Van Dam and the ProtoBomb plants him again.

The Shuffle gets two and Cena goes up, which isn’t likely to be a good idea. Indeed Van Dam kicks him in the head and grabs a superplex but Cena reverses into a small package for the pin (the stupid kind where they’re both laying down and then kick their legs up for no reason other than to get to the finish) and the title shot.

Rating: B-. Cena is looking more and more like the guy who could be the next star every time he’s out there. The comedy is starting to take a backseat to the good, quality matches and while this wasn’t a great one, it was solid with Cena helping Van Dam put on a nice performance. A feud with Booker is only going to help him.

We get a show of respect post match.

Long comes in to see Booker and says he and Cena are so equal that one match isn’t enough. There’s going to be a best of five series for the title with the first match taking place at “Summer Games”.

Here’s Eddie Guerrero for a chat, complete with Torrie Wilson, Sable and Dawn Marie in the low rider. All of Kurt Angle’s stuff that Eddie is auctioning off is in the ring and the auction ends tonight. That’s why the women are here: to help raise the value. This includes putting the cast on Torrie and having her sit in the wheelchair so the women can sign the cast. Then we have the signed photo of Angle but Eddie is staring at Sable instead.

The girls autograph that too before Eddie moves on to talking about Angle’s last match. That just happened to be against Eddie at Wrestlemania where Eddie pinned him in a classic. Eddie promises to win again and we see an Olympic themed commercial of Eddie gluing the other runners to their starting blocks to win a Gold Medal of his own.

Rene Dupree vs. Orlando Jordan

I had almost forgotten Jordan existed. Dupree knocks him outside and into the steps to start before throwing right hands inside. Jordan gets thrown to the apron so Dupree can hit the French Tickler. With the dancing done, Dupree turns around into a high crossbody to give Jordan the upset. Yay.

JBL arrives and asks Josh how he’s doing while using hand sanitizer after shaking hands. He’s not afraid of Undertaker you see and is calling him out tonight.

Kurt Angle vs. Charlie Haas

This is Angle’s first match since Wrestlemania with Luther Reigns and Miss Jackie here as well. Feeling out process to start as they trade takedowns and escapes. Angle hits a hiptoss and Haas is right back with an armdrag into an armbar. Another armdrag sends Angle bailing out to the floor and we take an early break.

Back with Haas grabbing a hammerlock but getting snapmared into a chinlock. With the wrestling not getting us very far, Angle starts hammering away in the corner to really take over. Haas grabs a suplex and hammers away in the corner but walks into the belly to belly. The chinlock with a knee in the back goes on before Angle gets frustrated at the repeated kickouts.

A bodyscissors keeps Haas down but he fights up and sends Angle outside for a breather. Back in and Angle goes shoulder first into the post, setting up a springboard twisting ax handle (the announcers are surprised too) to give Haas two. That’s enough for Angle as he picks the ankle but gets sent into the corner. Angle isn’t having that either and takes down the straps, setting up the grapevined ankle lock for the tap.

Rating: B-. This was a good return for Angle as he wasn’t as sharp as he used to be but started to put it together as the match went on. Haas was a smart choice here as Angle is better at everything that Haas can do but Haas can still make him work. Angle is going to get better and better with some more matches, capped off by the big one at Summerslam.

Summerslam rundown.

Raw Rebound.

Tag Team Titles: Basham Brothers vs. Billy Kidman/Paul London

Kidman and London are defending. Danny starts with Kidman but it’s quickly off to London for a double hiptoss. A slingshot legdrop keeps Danny in trouble but Doug pulls Kidman off the apron to take over. Kidman gets dropped ribs first onto the top rope to make things even worse and we hit the bearhug. A kick to the head gives Danny two but Kidman scores with a dropkick and dives over for the tag off to London. Everything breaks down and Kidman uses London’s back as a launchpad for an enziguri. The 450 retains the titles.

Rating: C. Now this is the kind of thing that the champs needed. They had a nice little title defense here against a known team and won clean. Build up the credibility a bit and the reign will feel a little more important. The Bashams are so much better without Shaniqua, as they’ve gone from a joke to an average team, which is quite the upgrade.

John Cena wants you to vote.

Paul Heyman/Heidenreich video.

Rey Mysterio/Spike Dudley vs. Dudley Boyz

A loud Bubba drives Spike into the corner to start and a dropkick to Bubba only hurts Spike’s knee. Rey comes in and Spike walks it off on the floor as you might see something coming here. Mysterio’s springboard moonsault has Bubba in trouble and D-Von charges into a boot in the corner. In a questionable move, Spike tags himself in and missile dropkicks D-Von, only to hurt the knee again.

The distraction lets Bubba gorilla press Rey onto D-Von’s raised knee to bang up the ribs. The bearhug doesn’t last long and Bubba/s big elbow draws a smile. D-Von dives into a raised boot and the springboard seated senton puts Bubba down. Rey has to fight both Dudleys off at the same time with D-Von breaking up the 619. The 3D finishes Mysterio with Spike not being able to get in for the save.

Rating: D+. Just a match here and there’s a good chance that its main purpose was to set up a post match angle. Mysterio losing to both Dudleys in a glorified handicap match is fine and it gets the Dudleys some momentum back, though I’m not sure how interesting a story built around Spike is going to be.

Post match Spike helps Rey up and then turns on him, celebrating with his brothers instead. Spike wants a table and puts Rey through one with a top rope double stomp, setting up villainous posing. Uh, ok. I’m not sure why I’m supposed to care about Spike Dudley as a big villain, but this is somewhat (I think) better than having the Dudleys as the top heels. At least there’s no attempted murder involved.

Here’s JBL in the ring to call out Undertaker. He used to be a Texan but now he’s so glad to have moved to New York City. Now that he’s returned, he was hoping for the hero’s welcome that he deserved but tonight is about business. That’s why he’s calling Undertaker out right here and right now instead of waiting for Summerslam. The gong sounds and, in one of the famous WWE tropes, it’s a mini Taker. Tazz finds it hilarious, calling him the Undertoddler. JBL: “You look a lot bigger on television.”

He gets on his knees to look Undertaker eye to eye and makes a bunch of short jokes before loading the mini Taker up for a Tombstone. The gong goes off again though and the real Undertaker appears. It’s a quick beatdown to set up a Tombstone but Orlando Jordan of all people runs in for the save. Undertaker poses and the mini version does the same, earning a chokeslam to end the show. There were some good lines from JBL but this was eye rolling WWE comedy at its “finest”.

Overall Rating: C+. The wrestling was good here and they advanced some stories, there were a few things on here holding it back. The ending segment, along with Spike’s turn, aren’t exactly thrilling stuff and having Jordan be JBL’s lackey is far from interesting. I mean, there’s a reason that I had forgotten Jordan even existed until tonight. There’s some good stuff on here and enough to make the show easy to watch, which is about as you can ask for at times. Hopefully Summerslam is as good as the better half of the build has been, though it’s still not as strong as Raw at the moment.

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

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

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

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

IMG Credit: WWE

Smackdown
Date: July 22, 2004
Location: Wachovia Center, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Commentators: Michael Cole, Tazz

Things got interesting again last week with General Manager Kurt Angle revealing that his leg seems to be fine as he attacked Eddie Guerrero, costing him the Smackdown World Title in the process. Tonight is going to be all about the fallout as we’re coming up on Summerslam next month. Let’s get to it.

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

We open with a recap of the cage match and Angle screwing Eddie over. That frog splash off the top of the cage looks better every time I see it.

Opening sequence.

Here’s Angle, again in the wheelchair with Luther Reigns pushing him to ringside. Angle gets in the ring on a crutch and insists that he is NOT a con artist. He’s an extraordinary human being capable of incredible things. Like winning an Olympic gold medal with a broken freaking neck. Last week he saw a horrible human like Eddie Guerrero about to steal the title and that inspired him to do the impossible. Sure he regressed after that and his surgeon wasn’t happy with him, but it was the moral thing to do.

Angle likes a Smackdown where people like John Cena are stripped of the US Title, men like John Bradshaw Layfield stand tall as the WWE Champion and Eddie becomes obsolete. As for tonight, Eddie needs to come out here and get on his knees to beg for his job. Before Eddie can come out though, Angle has hometown boy Tony Chimmel get in the ring. Tony announced Eddie as the winner of Angle’s last match, but since Eddie cheated and Tony announced him as the winner anyway, Tony should be fired.

Therefore, Tony has to get on his knees and beg first. He does beg, and it’s weird to hear the announcer voice talking in conversation instead of introductions. Angle fires him anyway and promises to have Eddie beg tonight as well. Good opening segment with Angle’s lies looking better than they did before. The Chimmel thing seemed very forced though.

Josh Matthews is filling in for Tony. Egads help me now.

Chavo Guerrero vs. Jamie Noble vs. Spike Dudley

The winner gets a title shot next week. Jamie and Chavo double team Spike to start until a missed clothesline puts Jamie down. Chavo is back up to jump Spike but the villains can’t get along, allowing Spike to get Jamie in a half crab. That’s broken up as well with Chavo throwing Jamie outside and Spike sending Chavo out as well. A dive hits both of them and everyone is down. Back in and Spike’s top rope double stomp hits Noble with Chavo adding a side salto for two. With Jamie down in the corner, the Dudley Dog finishes Chavo to give Spike the title shot.

Rating: C. The wrestling was good but it didn’t have any heat from the crowd. Spike winning is the best choice as Jamie hasn’t meant anything in about a year and Chavo vs. Mysterio has been done to death. It’s nice to have an entertaining match like this though and that’s always going to have a place on a wrestling show.

Video on the Japan tour. Now this makes sense compared to Raw’s version when they looked at shows in New England.

The women (they’re not wrestlers and I don’t think you can call four people a division) want to perform more often so Angle (still holding the US Title) makes a four way lingerie match. I think the women are supposed to be disappointed by the lingerie match but they’re such bad actresses that you can’t tell.

Bubba Ray Dudley vs. Billy Kidman

D-Von and Paul London are here of course. Bubba goes with the power to start and runs him over with a shoulder. Speeding things up works for a bit for Kidman until he walks into a spinebuster to cut him right back down. A falling headbutt sets up a neck crank as the announcers talk about JBL’s Rocky Challenge later tonight, while making it clear that the Rock is NOT here. Just in case you started to get excited over something JBL related you see. Kidman fights up and hits an enziguri but the seconds distract the referee by mistake, allowing D-Von to break up the shooting star press. The Bubba Bomb is good for the pin.

Rating: D+. I can go with the singles matches to build up the rematch, mainly because there aren’t exactly many other teams for the Dudleys to fight. The cheating finish was fine and the rematch should be good, but it would be smart to have London and Kidman win a match after becoming champions. Even a squash or two.

We recap John Cena’s issues with Angle and Luther Reigns.

Angle is very proud of Booker T. and awards him the US Title…..kind of, as he has to wait to clear it with the Board of Directors. Booker can hold the title tonight though. Funaki says this isn’t fair and Angle doesn’t want to hear it. Angle: “You know what’s not fair? You’re a broadcast journalist and can’t even say broadcast journalist!” Angle fires him.

The Dudleys congratulate Spike on his win and next week they get their own shot at the Tag Team Titles. They take credit for Spike’s success and promise to not interfere next week if Spike doesn’t interfere in D-Von’s match tonight. Spike seems fine with that, until he finds out that D-Von is facing Rey Mysterio. We’re supposed to believe that Rey would be in over his head with D-Von?

Here’s JBL for his Rocky Challenge. He talks about being a great American in Philadelphia and promises to be the champion that Philadelphia needs. Unlike the Philadelphia 76ers, he doesn’t have to go through a metal detector on his way to work. As for the Flyers….well that’s a Canadian sport and he doesn’t watch it. That leaves him with Rocky Balboa and tonight’s Rocky Challenge. JBL calls in a wrestler he has sitting at ringside and if the unnamed wrestler wins, he gets a title shot at Summerslam.

John Bradshaw Layfield vs. ???

Non-title and the unnamed wrestler is future OVW Champion Mike Kruel (listed on the WWE Network but not on commentary). Belly to back suplex, fall away slam, powerbomb, Clothesline From JBL for the pin.

Post match JBL says he doesn’t have an opponent for Summerslam so he’ll just go watch….and here’s the Undertaker. JBL actually stays in place and says he was going to announce his Summerslam title defense against Shannon Moore. He offers to let Undertaker leave but opts to leave himself, only to get chokeslammed. So there’s Summerslam, because that’s the match the world needed to see.

Heidenreich video, which is off the Network version for some reason.

Dawn Marie vs. Torrie Wilson vs. Sable vs. Miss Jackie

One fall to a finish and they all get to disrobe. Hang on though as Angle wheels himself out to say they’re all useless. No one wants to see them wrestle in their lingerie so they’re all fired. I know this is supposed to be a big heel moment but he’s right: what exactly do these women do around here? It’s certainly better than having them try to wrestle.

Rey Mysterio vs. D-Von Dudley

Non-title of course. D-Von hammers him down to start and a tilt-a-whirl backbreaker makes things even worse. Some headbutts to the back set up a chinlock but Rey is right back up with a top rope seated senton. Since it’s Mysterio though, he’s already grabbing his knee. Rey is fine enough for some right hands and a moonsault into a reverse DDT (in one motion as opposed to the AJ Styles version where he stops on his feet in the middle).

D-Von takes him to the apron but his powerbomb is reversed into a hurricanrana to bring it right back inside. Bubba breaks up the 619 though and somehow the referee didn’t see a thing. This brings out London and Kidman to take care of Bubba, with Kidman shoving D-Von off the top as payback from earlier. The 619 into the springboard splash is good for the pin, which Cole calls an upset. I know Rey hadn’t won the World Title yet, but him pinning D-Von in a singles match isn’t an upset.

Rating: D+. Stupid line from Cole at the end aside, there wasn’t much to this one but it was fine as a way for Kidman and London to get back at the Dudleys for earlier. Mysterio vs. Spike seems to be setting up as something interesting next week and while I can’t imagine the Tag Team Titles changing hands, a surprise Cruiserweight Title change isn’t out of the cards.

Raw Rebound.

John Cena vs. Luther Reigns

Cena has thundersticks, which I always thought were cool. Before the match, Cena says that Angle may have stolen his belt but the champ is still here in Philadelphia. Cena talks about Angle’s wife cheating on him with some AA batteries and how Luther is more stuck to Angle than Kurt’s wheelchair. Luther is ready to fight here and the brawl is on in a hurry with Cena being knocked to the floor.

A butterfly suplex has Cena in more trouble and it’s off to the chinlock. The comeback is cut off with a spinebuster but Reigns misses the kneedrop that takes way too long to set up. Cena makes the real comeback with the ProtoPlex into the Shuffle but the referee gets bumped. There’s a DDT and Cena pumps up the shows as Booker T. comes out. The belt shot misses though and Cena steals the fast pin.

Rating: D. This is a match that happened and was little more than a way to help the build towards Cena vs. Booker for the US Title. Reigns is fine in the role as an enforcer but he’s not exactly the best wrestler in the world. Cena is now to the point where he can help carry something like this but it didn’t have the time to go anywhere and Reigns’ offense wasn’t exactly good.

Here’s Angle on a crutch so Eddie can beg him for his job. Eddie has two choices: beg Angle or go beg in the streets. See, this way Eddie doesn’t have to wash windows. Instead, here’s Vince McMahon to interrupt. Vince doesn’t like Angle making people beg for their jobs and grovel like this while pulling the wool over everyone’s eyes. Angle has committed career suicide by messing with Vince because this could cost Vince a humanitarian award since he isn’t employing a handicapped General Manager.

Therefore, Angle needs to resign RIGHT NOW. Kurt swears that he really is handicapped but Vince tells him to get on his feet. Vince kicks the crutch out and Angle is fine, so he’s back on the active roster of wrestlers. He’s going to wrestle, and we’ll make that match at Summerslam against Eddie Guerrero. Cue Eddie (with Vince doing the dance) to smile at Angle and give Vince a ride to end the show.

Overall Rating: C. Here’s the big thing about this show: you can see the stories that they’re going for and in this case, the stories are actually decent. The lack of attempted murder helps a lot too. Undertaker vs. JBL sounds pretty weak and while we’re waiting on more matches to be set up for Summerslam, the Eddie vs. Angle match sounds awesome. The show is starting to make sense again and while it’s still not good, Cena is rising up in a hurry and coupling that with an actually interesting heel in Angle should make for a much, much easier show to watch.

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

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

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

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

IMG Credit: WWE

Smackdown
Date: July 15, 2004
Location: Dunkin Donuts Center, Providence, Rhode Island
Commentators: Michael Cole, Tazz

It’s a big night around here with JBL defending the World Title against Eddie Guerrero inside a cage. This is Eddie’s big rematch since Smackdown doesn’t have a pay per view this month so the question is what kind of shenanigans should we expect. The show could be ok, though I’ve been very wrong on that front before. Let’s get to it.

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

We open with a recap of John Cena being stripped of the US Title by a power mad Kurt Angle. That makes a lot more sense than having him lose the title.

Opening sequence.

Here’s Booker T. to get things going. Booker says he’s all about championships and isn’t happy with the fans chanting the FIVE TIME part with him. None of them are five time WCW Champions so they shouldn’t be saying anything. Anyway, Booker wants the US Title because he didn’t lose to Cena in last week’s title shot. That’s why he wants Kurt Angle to come out here right now and award him the title. Instead here’s Rene Dupree to say that Americans don’t deserve to be the US Champion since they have no culture. Come on, this place is named after DONUTS.

Dupree wants the title, but here’s Kenzo Suzuki to rant about something in Japanese. Booker says he speaks fluent Japanese and Kenzo says Booker should be champion. Actually Hiroko says Kenzo thinks it should be him because Kenzo loves America. Booker tells Kenzo to say something in English, so he says Booker’s catchphrase to a nice reaction from the crowd. Booker: “TELL ME YOU DIDN’T JUST SAY THAT!” Arguing ensues so here’s Cena to a pretty strong pop.

Cena thinks this is some kind of We Are The World mix tape reunion. Or maybe they’re trying to recreate the Wizard of Oz, with Hiroko as a makeup heavy Dorthy, the dumb Booker as the Scarecrow, the testicle-less Kenzo as the Tin Man, Michael Cole representing the Lollipop Guild and the cowardly Frenchman. We’re not in Kansas anymore though because this is John Cena country and the champ is here.

Cena is going to walk down the yellow brick road to Angle’s office and get his title back, or he’ll just take it himself. He heads to the back and kicks the door in, finding Angle holding the title. Cena picks Angle up from the chair but Luther Reigns makes the save….until Cena throws him through the wall. Security takes Cena away and Angle promises to do something tonight.

Rey Mysterio/Spike Dudley vs. Jamie Noble/Chavo Guerrero

Spike headlocks Jamie down to start and small packages an invading Chavo for two. A spinebuster gives Chavo the same with Rey making an early save. I don’t think it was that bad dude. Rey has had it with the double teaming and springboards in (over the referee) to take both villains out. Stereo dives (with the camera missing Spike’s) take Jamie and Chavo out again but Chavo breaks up a springboard to put Rey in trouble. Since they seem to be in a hurry, Rey bulldogs both of them down almost immediately and it’s back to Spike.

The top rope double stomp gets two on Jamie and everything breaks down. There’s the 619 to Chavo but he’s able to break up one on Jamie. The Dudley Dog connects but Chavo pulls Spike out at two. Jamie hits the tiger driver, only to have D-Von Dudley come in for the distraction, allowing Bubba Ray to kick Jamie low. That’s enough for Spike (who didn’t see what happened) get the pin.

Rating: C. They packed a lot of good stuff in there and made a little something out of a match that should have just been filler. Spike is WAY better when he’s in there against people his own size (or as close to it as you can get) instead of playing the giant killer and this was another entertaining performance, even with the storyline ending.

Post match Spike sees his brothers and figures out what happened so he tells them to leave him alone.

Raw Rebound.

Recap of JBL winning the title from Eddie at the Great American Bash and the El Gran Luchadore thing from last week.

Reigns has been pulled out of the wall but Angle says he might have tweaked his knee and needs his cast adjusted. As for Cena, he can face Booker, Suzuki and Dupree at once.

Summerslam ad with the Olympics theme. I always liked that one.

Booker T./Rene Dupree/Kenzo Suzuki vs. John Cena

Elimination rules. For some reason Kenzo gets his full entrance while Booker and Rene have to share one. No wonder Dupree doesn’t like us. Rene starts for the team as Cole tries to brag about an American winning the Tour de France five times. I’m sure that won’t sound really stupid one day. I mean, it sounds stupid now but it’ll be even worse later. We take a very early break and come back with Kenzo coming in for a slam from Cena. Rene cuts Cena off with a knee to the back though and Kenzo scores with a Shining Wizard. That’s enough to tie Cena in the Tree of Woe and, using Hiroko’s sash, Kenzo chokes away for a DQ.

Rene comes in for a French Tickler but Cena catapults him into the post and gets a very fast rollup to tie things up. Booker starts hammering away and drops the knee for a delayed two. The chinlock goes on for a bit, followed by a superkick to the chest (Does it have to hit the face to be a superkick?) for two. Cena makes the comeback with the usual and the Shuffle connects for two but Booker throws him outside. Cue Reigns to post Cena and the ax kick gives Booker the pin.

Rating: D+. This was angle advancement more than anything else and that’s fine. Cena continues to be kept strong as it took four people to finally put him down. You can pencil in Cena vs. Booker for a US Title feud and that’s a pretty good place to be. Or Cena vs. Angle down the line when Angle gets out of the wheelchair permanently.

Heidenreich is coming. I mean, coming back as he was already on Raw a few times but now he’s going to be a monster. Oh and he has Paul Heyman with him.

Eddie Guerrero praises El Gran Luchadore but says this week, JBL won’t be able to run. Inside the case there is fear, anxiety, pain and the WWE Championship. That’s going to be a real high for Eddie.

Quick look back at Paul London and Billy Kidman winning the Tag Team Titles last week.

D-Von Dudley vs. Paul London

D-Von gets aggressive to start and hammers away in the corner with London’s right hands not having much effect. Bubba’s advice to D-Von: “KILL HIM!” A suplex gives D-Von two and a Hennig neck snap is good for the same. That means it’s off to a neck crank (Bubba: “COME ON CHAMP!”) for a bit before London flips out of a German suplex attempt. An enziguri hits D-Von for two but he backdrops London out to the floor. Bubba decks Kidman and whips London with a belt but London sends the Dudleys into each other and rolls D-Von up for the pin.

Rating: D. Quick and to the point here with London winning off a glorified fluke. That’s not the worst thing in the world though as they won the titles clean in the match that really matters. Beating some fired up Dudleys either at a big Smackdown or at Summerslam will be a good win for the champs as they’re actually being built up as a new team. See how easy it can be?

Reigns wants Cena so Angle makes the match for next week. For now though, Angle wants to watch the main event and promises that no one will forget tonight. Nothing ominous there at all. I do appreciate the hole in the wall not being repaired or addressed in any way.

Smackdown World Title: Eddie Guerrero vs. John Bradshaw Layfield

JBL is defending and the ONLY way to win is pin, submission or escape over the top (the door is chained shut). I don’t think WWE knows the definition of “only”. Also, there’s something amusing about the announcement that this is the cage match as the cage is being lowered. The fans are rabid for Eddie here. JBL seems to panic a bit as he sees that the cage is locked. Eddie can’t send him into the cage to start so he goes with right hands to the head instead.

Instead JBL sends him head first into the cage but it’s way too early to go over the top. A fall away slam sends Eddie flying but he’s still fine enough to make a save. JBL gets knocked down so Eddie tries and misses a frog splash. Eddie is up fast enough to crotch JBL on the top and Three Amigos keep the champ in trouble. They head up top and JBL grabs a top rope superplex to send us to a break.

Back again with Eddie hitting a dropkick to block the Clothesline From JBL and they’re both down. JBL is up first and gets two off a spinebuster as the fans get behind Eddie again. This attempt gets cut off with a grab of the trunks (and a bit too much exposure), setting up a Russian legsweep from the top. Eddie takes his time getting up so JBL slaps on a sleeper this time around. That’s not the most thrilling move in the world and not something that I like to see in a cage match, though JBL choking with the wrist tape helps a bit more.

Eddie gets smart by running in a circle and using the momentum to send JBL flying into the cage for a break. Another ram into the cage gets a delayed two but JBL backdrops him into the cage. That means an even more delayed two, followed by the Clothesline From JBL for a not very near fall.

We take another break and come back again with Eddie jumping up the side of the cage to make a save. They head back down to the mat with Eddie reversing a fall away slam into the cage into a DDT. He goes up instead of covering though and gets a leg over the top before JBL makes a save. The still good powerbomb gets two more and it’s JBL’s turn to climb up and get pulled back down. Eddie goes all the way to the top of the cage….and turns around for the frog splash in the big spot of the match.

There’s no cover at first though so we look at an angle from the side, which makes it look even better. JBL eventually kicks out, which isn’t surprising as it took almost a minute after the splash hit. A DDT gives JBL a long breather and he goes up this time but Eddie is right behind him. Cue El Gran Luchadore to climb into the cage though and grab Eddie’s leg. That’s enough for JBL to get out and retain the title, sucking the life out of the arena.

Rating: B. These two have certainly figured out some better chemistry and this was a heck of a good match with nearly half an hour including commercials. The important thing here was they nailed the drama and Eddie can’t really complain about losing when he had the win but went for the splash instead. The ending is going to move Eddie on to something else, though I’m almost worried about what is next for JBL. It takes the right opponent to get something passable out of him and this show is thin on top at the moment.

Post match Luchadore jumps Eddie and goes to leave but Eddie pulls the mask off just in time. It’s Angle, who is mad that he lost his mask but happy that Eddie lost to end the show.

Overall Rating: B. This was a pretty solid show all things considered, though I’m not sure how good things can be in the future. Eddie vs. Angle is a proven solid match and Cena vs. Booker will be fine. Above all else, the lack of JBL talking helped so much around here. He can have a watchable enough match under the right circumstances, but there aren’t many people left to fight him at the moment. Anyway, I’ll take what I can get for the big show of the month, even though what’s coming might be a lot weaker.

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

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

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

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