IMG Credit: WWE

Smackdown
Date: December 25, 2003
Location: Camp Victory, Baghdad, Iraq
Commentators: Michael Cole, Tazz

This is a very special show as it’s Christmas in Iraq for the first of a series later called Tribute to the Troops. Back in the day they actually went overseas for the shows, giving this a very special feeling indeed. The focus isn’t going to be on the wrestling tonight but rather the atmosphere as a whole, which is how things should be going for something like this. Let’s get to it.

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

We open with the National Anthem, though not by Lilian Garcia for a change.

Here’s Vince McMahon to get things going and he’s staying in character with the scowl. That’s gone pretty quickly though as on behalf of freedom loving people around the world, WWE is hear to say thank you. Vince thanks everyone for their sacrifices and for protecting our great nation. Oh and thanks for catching Saddam. Vince wants to say one more thing….but here’s a rather rotund Santa Claus with bags of presents.

The presents aren’t for Vince though, because they’re for the troops. Santa starts handing out shirts from the bags but Vince wants him to come back in for one more thing. Vince wants his present and thinks it’s somewhere in Santa’s stomach. And why didn’t Santa come visit him when he was a kid? Vince shoves Santa over and the hat comes off….to reveal a bald head. There’s the Stunner and let’s drink some beer.

Austin isn’t done though and, while still wearing the furry Santa boots, says he’s going to go backstage and drink some more beer instead of hurting us by trying to sing Christmas carols. He thanks the troops and talks about how much WWE supports them before having the troops throw up the middle fingers to Saddam. Perfect way to open things up with one of the few timeless segments that will never stop working.

We see some of the wrestlers being told what to do if terrorists attack. That’s a rather sobering discussion.

Clip of the ring and arena being set up. The troops who helped got to sit in the front row.

World’s Greatest Tag Team vs. APA

Bradshaw is in a helmet and flack jacket. Shelton takes Faarooq into the corner to start but gets taken down by a middle rope shoulder. Bradshaw comes in to forearm Haas in the back for two but has to let go of an early torture rack as Shelton tries to make a save. The Dominator doesn’t work on Haas and Shelton gets in a cheap shot to take over. Faarooq shoves Haas away and brings in Bradshaw to clean house. Everything breaks down and Shelton superkicks Bradshaw down. Not that it matters as Faarooq tosses Shelton to the floor, leaving Bradshaw to Clothesline Haas for the pin.

Rating: C. I’m going to be a lot nicer to the wrestling here as that’s not the point to a show like this one. This match was about letting the APA, a popular team, come in and get a quick win and to have Bradshaw, who was one of the big names behind the whole idea, out there as he should be. If nothing else, Bradshaw hitting a Clothesline that hard is going to get a reaction.

Austin gives Chris Benoit a pep talk before his match with Eddie Guerrero. That’s kind of an odd segment as it’s not like they’re great friends or anything.

Some troops say hi to their families.

Rikishi vs. Rhyno

Rhyno gets shoved away to start as the announcers talk about this being in the middle of an active war zone. Some kicks to the, ahem, thong arena, have Rikishi in some trouble but he stops a charge with a superkick. The announcers actually act like they’re there (commentary is being recorded in Connecticut), even talking about their clothes in the desert for a little flavor. The Rump Shaker hits raised knees but the Gore misses. Rikishi grabs a Samoan drop for the fast pin.

Post match, Rhyno takes a Stinkface and dancing ensues with some (armed) troops coming into the ring.

Video of wrestlers meeting troops.

Some wrestlers went up on a helicopter to another camp to meet more troops.

Here’s John Cena for a chat. He wants to give Torrie Wilson a pearl necklace for Christmas but tonight he has to deal with Big Show. Sure he’s wrestling a giant but the real big show is in his crotch. Show is picking the wrong day to fight when Cena has all of the troops behind him and Saddam should be buried in a hole.

Now Austin gives Eddie Guerrero a pep talk. Apparently Benoit promised to lie, steal and cheat tonight. Eddie: “THAT’S MY STUFF!”

More troops say hello.

Wrestlers signed autographs and met troops at the other camp. Cena even had some battle raps.

Eddie Guerrero vs. Chris Benoit

Feeling out process to start as Cole and Tazz go over the history between these two. Eddie starts in on the arm and gets two off a tilt-a-whirl backbreaker. Benoit comes back with some forearms and Eddie grabs the referee’s waist for security. Hang on as a security helicopter flies over the ring so Eddie puts on a flack jacket. As you might expect, Eddie throws the jacket at Benoit and takes over with a dropkick.

They fall out to the floor and we take a break. Back with Benoit cranking on both arms as the fans chant for Eddie. That seems to do him some good as he sends Benoit into the corner to take over again but falls off the ropes on a sunset bomb attempt. The Three Amigos are countered into the Crossface but Eddie rolls over to the ropes.

Some rolling German suplex soften Eddie up a bit more and a shoulder breaker has the arm banged up even more. Benoit barely misses the Swan Dive but avoids the frog splash for another double knockdown. Back up and Eddie gets in a rollup with feet on the ropes for the fast pin.

Rating: B-. That’s all you can ask for her with the two guys who know each other well enough to have a good match in their sleep. There were a few botches here but wrestling in that kind of heat in this kind of atmosphere isn’t the easiest thing in the world. The fans were more into Eddie anyway and it’s not like a win or a loss on this show means much.

Post match Eddie puts the jacket and helmet back on for a handshake.

We look at the opening segment again.

More soldiers say hello.

Another video on wrestlers meeting troops.

More soldiers say hello.

Wrestlers shoot guns with Big Show being the best shot.

It’s time for a Santa’s Little Helper’s contest between Torrie Wilson, Dawn Marie and Sable as Cole tries to figure out the rules. Thankfully Tazz points out the obvious that the rules really aren’t likely to mean much here. Cole: “I’d like to be the Crocodile Hunter and Dawn Marie be the crocodile.” I…really don’t know what that means and I think I’ll keep it that way. It’s a dance contest, they all look great, and Torrie wins. A brawl breaks out, which is rather difficult as Torrie is in lingerie. Sable gets stripped and the villains bail. This was exactly what you would expect.

Wrestlers visited wounded troops.

One more video of the wrestlers with the troops.

One more video of troops saying hello to their families.

John Cena vs. Big Show

Say it with me: non-title. Cena gets chokeslammed about five seconds in and rolls to the floor for a breather. Back in and Show hits the overhand chop in the corner, followed by a hard headbutt to put Cena down. It’s off to the abdominal stretch for a few seconds but the ref gets kicked down. Show grabs the chain but gets kicked low, allowing Cena to hit him with the chain for two. Another chokeslam is countered into the FU to give Cena the pin.

Rating: C. I remember watching this match with my dad, who is one of those people who tends to not think much of wrestling because it’s fake. When Cena tossed Show onto his shoulders and flipped him over like it was nothing, my dad’s jaw dropped for a second. There’s nothing to the match of course and it’s not like Show losing means anything to his title reign, which is as unnecessary as any I can ever remember.

Post match Austin comes out to Stun both guys. Austin calls out the ladies and the locker room for one last celebration. One more Stunner to Big Show and beer consumption ends the show.

Overall Rating: B. As mentioned, the wrestling really isn’t the point to something like this. The wrestling is secondary to entertaining the troops and that’s what happened. It did exactly what it was designed to do and felt important, unlike what this show would eventually become. This had nothing to do with storylines and nothing was advanced, which didn’t need to be the case. It was a fun show and having Austin as a big star was the right call. Just let it be fun and come back home for the real stuff later on. And be glad La Resistance didn’t get squashed.

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

IMG Credit: WWE

Smackdown
Date: July 8, 2004
Location: Winnipeg Arena, Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada
Commentators: Michael Cole, Tazz

It’s title night around here as John Cena is defending the US Title against Booker T., who earned his shot at the title by winning a triple threat match last week. Other than that it’s time to build things up for next week when JBL defends the Smackdown World Title against Eddie Guerrero. Let’s get to it.

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

Opening sequence.

Rob Van Dam vs. Mark Jindrak

Rene Dupree is on commentary. I had forgotten Jindrak is a thing, though he’s now called the Reflection of Perfection, meaning he has Lex Luger’s mirror in the ring. He and Teddy Long have also split, but it’s described as amicable. Jindrak knocks him to the floor at the bell and the beating is on in a hurry with some rams into the barricade. Back in and the choking continues with Jindrak nipping up to show off a bit.

Rob tries to go up top but Jindrak hits an awesome looking standing dropkick (at one point Jindrak had the highest vertical leap in WWE history) to knock him into the barricade. The reverse chinlock with a knee in the back has Van Dam in more trouble but Rob comes back with a kick to the face. Rob’s rolling monkey flip out of the corner sets up another kick to the face but Rolling Thunder hits knees. A belly to back superplex is broken up though and Van Dam hits the Five Star for the pin.

Rating: C-. Jindrak was an amazing athlete and could jump like few others but everything between those jumps didn’t work so well. At least he’s a fresh name though as we haven’t see him do anything in recent months. That’s better than having Van Dam and Dupree fight each other time after time and a lesson that WWE could learn a lot from today.

We look back at JBL defending the World Title against Spike Dudley last week and Eddie Guerrero coming in for the post match beatdown. Eddie announced a cage match for the title two weeks later. Good ending after a dull match.

JBL talks about how much better a champion he is because Eddie didn’t offer handshakes or come to Canada while he held the title. Eddie is no gentleman and he probably didn’t even graduate from high school. JBL isn’t worried because he’s a champion’s champion and a man’s man who doesn’t belong in a cage. The growing JBL fan club will carry him through though and he can hear the chants starting from here. Tonight, he’s facing El Gran Luchadore, the champion of Mexico, who he’s fought before and comes in to see him here (looks to be Shannon Moore this time around). This time, it’s going to be a massacre.

Tag Team Titles: Paul London/Billy Kidman vs. Dudley Boyz

The Dudleys are defending and this is a rematch from Velocity where the champs had to get themselves disqualified to save the titles. It’s a brawl to start with London hitting a top rope missile dropkick, followed by an assisted moonsault for two on D-Von. London unloads with right hands until Bubba low bridges him out to the floor. Back in and D-Von hits a Hennig neck snap of all things and it’s Bubba coming in to stay on the neck.

Actually make that the knee as Bubba finally takes notice of the big brace. D-Von comes back in to grab the foot and….really that’s about it. He doesn’t twist on it or anything and is really just putting his hands on the foot. Bubba adds the apron legdrop and it’s a reverse chinlock to keep D-Von in control.

The middle rope headbutt misses though and there’s the hot tag to Kidman, in full accordance with the tag team formula. Everything breaks down and it’s D-Von and London being sent to the floor. What would have been the longest What’s Up ever is broken up so Kidman rolls through and lets London hit it on Bubba instead. London’s superkick sets up the shooting star press to give Kidman the pin and the titles.

Rating: C. The title change is quite the surprise but the big deal here is how fast the Dudleys fell. They went from main eventing a pay per view to losing the titles completely clean here in about two weeks. That’s an incredible collapse and really, something that needed to happen. Amazingly enough, that would be the team’s last title reign in WWE. It’s almost hard to believe that they never did it again but they would be gone in a few months and then left for about ten years. Quite the low key ending to their title years.

Post break the celebration is on, complete with champagne and congratulations from Billy Gunn. Well now it’s certainly a big deal. The Dudleys come in and shake their hands and no violence ensues.

Kenzo Suzuki has Hiroko translate a promo for him. He doesn’t like what John Cena has been saying about him lately and wants revenge. Kenzo is misunderstood and has great respect for America because it’s the land of opportunity. Kenzo: “God bless of America!”

US Title: John Cena vs. Booker T.

Cena is defending but before the match he needs to remind us that the champ is here in Manitoba. Booker isn’t getting the title back tonight because Cena is five times better and has five times the groupies. Cena isn’t losing to a Whoopi Goldberg lookalike, which is a line that the fans rather like. Cue Kenzo Suzuki for a fight but Cena beats him down with ease. With Suzuki down on the floor, Luther Reigns comes in and lays Cena out with the reverse swinging neckbreaker. I guess the match will be taking place later, because Kurt Angle will send his goon in to lay Cena out, but he’s fair about things.

John Bradshaw Layfield vs. El Gran Luchadore

Non-title and JBL makes sure to shake hands on the way to the ring. It’s such a relief to have this new “I love you people” gimmick than what we were getting before he won the title. It’s still bad, but it’s not insufferably bad and that’s a step up. Hang on though as JBL needs to sanitize his hands. That’s very important in a foreign company. Luchadore rolls away to start but gets caught with a right hand to the mask.

Back up and Luchadore poses a bit too much, earning himself another knockdown. A running dropkick has JBL in trouble and a moonsault press gets two. JBL has had it with this and sends him outside so the real beating can begin. The huge clothesline drops Luchadore and there’s a second one to make it even worse as the fans chant for Eddie. Luchadore gets tied in the Tree of Woe with JBL ripping at his face for painful measure. A belly to back superplex makes things even worse and JBL kicks him out to the floor.

Cue a second El Gran Luchadore from underneath the ring to throw JBL outside and leave a banana peel on the mat before hiding again. The referee is so confused that the Luchadores are able to switch and the Eddie Guerrero dance might give you a clue as to what’s going on (in case you’re REALLY slow). Three Amigos (Cole: “That’s Mexican!”) have JBL bailing to the floor and it’s a countout as Luchadore says there’s no running next week.

Rating: D+. This was an entertaining squash until the angle, which went on a little longer than it needed to. JBL not taking a pin is a good idea as he doesn’t have the highest standing in the world at the moment and having him get beaten so soon would have been a bad idea. Not as bad of an idea as making him champion in the first place, but a bad idea nonetheless.

Luchadore says play Eddie’s music because they’re close.

Booker says he’ll win the title because he’s better than Cena. That’s about as to the point as you can get.

Raw Rebound.

Rey Mysterio, Scotty 2 Hotty and Spike Dudley are ready for their six man tonight when Bubba and D-Von come in to talk to their cousin. Scotty and Rey leave and advise Spike to help defend the family name tonight because he already let them down last week. Spike says he didn’t want their advice last week when they were champions. Why would he want it now? Sick little burn there.

Rey Mysterio/Scotty 2 Hotty/Spike Dudley vs. Chavo Guerrero/Akio/Jamie Noble

What a random match. Akio and Rey start things off with Akio taking him down in short order, allowing Chavo to come in and stomp away. The chinlock goes on Noble throws Rey into the hands in front of Chavo’s raised boot but Rey snaps off an armdrag. Scotty tries to come in and the distraction…lets Rey beat up Chavo and Noble at the same time without too much effort. Why does Rey need partners in the first place?

It’s off to Scotty to clean house and everything breaks down. Spike drops a top rope double stomp to the ribs and stomps on Chavo in the corner. The Dudley Dog gets two on Noble with Chavo making a quick save. That earns Chavo the Worm but Akio knocks Scotty outside. Chavo ducks the 619 so Rey catapults him outside, setting up a top rope Asai moonsault onto Chavo and Akio. Back in and Noble tiger drives the heck out of Spike for the pin. Like I said: Rey didn’t need partners.

Rating: B-. This was a heck of a fun little match with all six guys going out there and getting in everything they could in a little bit of time. Mysterio needs a fresh challenger though and it would make sense to have Noble (or anyone for that matter) come after the title. They could have had something special with more time, but what we got was quite good.

Paul Heyman doesn’t care about the Dudleys losing the Tag Team Titles because he has to worry about the Undertaker. Fair point actually. Heyman needs to say something to Undertaker and he’ll do it in the ring tonight.

We look back at last week’s completely unshocking moment with Undertaker announcing that with Paul Bearer gone, he’s going to destroy Paul Heyman.

Speaking of Heyman, he’s in the ring, with the Urn, to address Undertaker. He pulls out a statement, which says that everything that happened to Bearer was the Dudleys’ fault. Then the Dudleys got what they deserved so now Heyman wants to make a peace offering: the return of the Urn. Near tears, Heyman gets down on his knees and begs for a pass, rather than begging for forgiveness. No one is backing him up out here and he’s a little lamb lost in the wilderness, begging the reaper to pass on by. If Undertaker lets him live, Heyman will cross his path no more. And that’s it as I guess we’ll get to that later.

US Title: John Cena vs. Booker T.

The banged up Cena is defending. Hang on though as here’s Kurt Angle, still in a wheelchair but now carrying a cane. The distraction lets Booker get in a cheap shot and the beating is on in a hurry. A superkick gets two and it’s off to a top wristlock instead of staying on the bad neck. Cena starts the early comeback with a powerslam and hip toss for two each, followed by the Shuffle for two more.

The FU is blocked with the grab of the rope and Booker dumps him. Angle gets to his feet for the first time in months and limps over to Cena for a cane shot (breaking the cane) to the back. We take a break and come back with Booker dropping a knee and grabbing the chinlock. What a change of pace to coming back to the chinlock. Totally different you see. Cena fights up like a good guy fighting out of a chinlock but walks into a spinebuster.

The jumping kick to the face gets a delayed two and it’s right back to the chinlock. Cena kicks out of three straight covers and, you know it, back to the chinlock again. Back up yet again and Cena grabs a DDT for two of his own. Booker’s snap suplex gets the same and a Cactus Clothesline puts them both on the floor. Cena isn’t done and clotheslines Booker into Angle. Back in and Cena hits the FU but Reigns comes in for the DQ.

Rating: D. Quite the slog of a match here with Booker using a ton of chinlocks and Cena’s neck injury not having much to do with the match. With Booker jumping Cena from behind, you could have written the Reigns attack from earlier out entirely and not changed a thing. These two should be capable of so much more and that’s kind of a shame given how the match had been set up.

Post match Reigns beats Cena down but Angle says bring the title with him. Cena causing Angle to be knocked over is enough for him to be stripped of the US Title. Angle is very happy to end the show.

Overall Rating: C-. Not a very good show here with the six man tag being the only really strong part. The Eddie/JBL segment did its job but took too long to make it work as well as it should have. Other than that, the show was pretty mediocre at best and that’s not enough to make a full show work. That being said, I’ll take this over the horrible shows they were putting on just a few months ago any day.

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 1, 2004
Location: Crown Coliseum, Fayetteville, North Carolina
Commentators: Michael Cole, Tazz

It’s very fitting that this is the halfway point of the year because it’s all downhill from here. JBL won the Smackdown World Title on Sunday, leaving us with a barren wasteland to look forward to. Other than that, Undertaker murdered Paul Bearer, which I’m sure will result in an explanation rather than, you know, life in prison for killing a man on television. Let’s get to it.

Just like on Monday, we open with the announcement that WWE has won some marketing awards.

A smug Kurt Angle opens the show and brags about costing Eddie Guerrero the title, even though the replay shows that it wasn’t exactly a questionable call. We see a video on the match and my stomach turns a bit at having to relieve the start of such a nightmare. Angle introduces JBL as the new champion and we jump to the arena.

Cole sounds as depressed as I am about the whole thing, though hearing Cole makes things even worse. The limo is covered in American flags and we get the long form entrance. The one compliment I’ll give JBL: I like the way he held the title with the belt clasped. Just looked cool. He even shakes hands and kisses babies on the way to the ring. There are even more flags on the ring, plus a CONGRATULATIONS JBL banner.

JBL declares it the dawning of a new era (wrestling loves eras) and promises to become the most popular WWE Champion of all time. He’ll shake hands, followed by a good washing of course because the champ can’t get sick. JBL: “It’s not personal. It’s just personal hygiene.” He talks about how JFK and Ronald Reagan were both taken away from us so America needs a hero. If you’d like, you can chant JBL. Those chants will inspire him to be a better champion than Eddie Guerrero, and they make him want to defend the title tonight.

After having to be reminded what city they’re in, it turns out that he gets to pick who gets the title shot. It will NOT be Eddie though, because Eddie has fallen off the wagon a bit. Right now, Eddie is probably knee deep in pills or vodka because he’s not here shaking JBL’s hand and calling him the better man. JBL promises to be a fighting champion to wrap things up. This was what you would have expected from a new gloating champion, but that doesn’t make the fact that JBL is champion any better.

Rob Van Dam vs. Booker T. vs. Rene Dupree

The winner gets a US Title shot at some point in the future. Rob strikes away to start and cleans a bit of the house, including backdropping Dupree to the floor. Another kick and the standing moonsault get two on Booker and the top rope kick to the face is good for the same with Dupree making the save. They’re certainly starting fast here. Dupree punches Rob down but gets kicked down just as fast as Booker was.

Rolling Thunder gets two and of course Booker comes in just in time for the save. It’s kind of amazing how triple threat matches wind up having so many coincidences no? They all stay in for a change with Rene dropping an elbow on Van Dam but Booker’s kick misses Van Dam and puts Dupree down by mistake. With Dupree tied in the ropes, Booker tries to bring in a chair but gets caught in a Van Daminator for his efforts. A big dive to the floor drops Dupree again and we take a break.

Back with Dupree dropping a middle rope elbow on Van Dam and getting annoyed when Booker goes for the cover. Fair enough. That’s the extent of the argument as it’s back to double teaming Van Dam in the corner until Dupree throws him outside. Booker takes a low blow and gets choked a bit until Van Dam comes back in, only to be thrown face first into a chair in the corner.

The spinebuster sends Dupree outside and there’s the Spinarooni for good measure. Van Dam kicks him down though and the Five Star crushes Booker, with Rob writhing around in so much pain that Dupree covers him for two. With Booker on the floor, Dupree gets in some snap jabs until Rob kicks him down again. The Five Star hits Dupree this time but Booker pulls Rob out at two and steals the pin.

Rating: B-. This was much better than I was expecting, even though it was the same formula that you’ve seen a dozen times in these things. Booker winning is the best option as a feud with Cena will only do good for both guys. If nothing else, maybe it can make Booker put in some more effort after some uninspired performances. Dupree vs. Van Dam can be fine for a one off match if that’s where they want to go.

JBL’s opponents are assembled in the locker room whenever he can get around to them.

Luther Reigns makes Charles Robinson watch a clip of the end of Torrie Wilson vs. Sable with the horribly botched ending where Torrie’s shoulders were both up. Robinson is sorry, but tonight he has to referee the rematch. Sweet goodness can’t we just have him tarred and feathered instead?

Cena and Booker yell at each other when JBL comes in. A few others are there and one of them will get a title shot tonight. After teasing various people getting the shot, he picks Spike Dudley, who isn’t in the room. Cena laughs at Bubba and D-Von for this, even though it’s not funny.

We look back at Booker winning the title shot. We’ve had a promo, the match and some backstage segments. That really needed to be shown again? Anyway the title match is next week.

Rey Mysterio vs. Mordecai

Non-title, though that might just be understood. Rey kicks at the leg to start but a drop toehold doesn’t work. Instead he goes with the basement dropkick and Mordecai is in more trouble than he’s been in to date. A lifting full nelson puts Rey in some trouble and Mordecai puts the back of Rey’s head against the post for a good pulling.

Mordecai throws Rey over his back for a choke until Rey slips out and starts kicking even more. No wonder he and Van Dam teamed up so often. A crossbody gives Rey two and the springboard DDT plants Mordecai. The 619 looks to set up the West Coast Pop but Mordecai powerbombs him onto the rope (looked like a botch). The crucifix bomb is countered into a hurricanrana to put Mordecai away.

Rating: D. And that’s it for Mordecai, as he’s going back to OVW. He’s a rather infamous failure and one of those guys who came and went while making a bit of a lasting impression. I never realized how short an amount of time he was around as he only had three televised matches. I know the matches he had were bad, but there’s only so much you can do when your two matches are on pay per view against Scotty 2 Hotty and Hardcore Holly, neither of which had any significant story.

Getting into a bar fight a few weeks before this and having someone get injured in the process didn’t help things either, but they didn’t exactly give him much to work with in the ring. It’s a cool gimmick and he looked awesome, though it was pretty clear that there were a lot of things working against him. Granted, the stuff he did in the ring wasn’t exactly great. What kind of a religious extremist uses chinlocks to purge sin?

The announcers talk about Undertaker turning on Paul Bearer and burying him in concrete to end the Great American Bash. Footage is promised, even though it might not be suitable for all audiences. Who exactly is that suitable for?

Before we get the footage though, here’s Paul Heyman to talk about what Undertaker did. It was Heyman who showed Undertaker the way and apparently that was the right thing, rather than what Heyman told him was the right thing (laying down in the match). Now we see the video, which is just a long recap of the match and post match murder. Back in the arena, Heyman talks about Undertaker no longer has a conscious and will be more deadly than ever.

Lighting comes out of the posts though and Undertaker appears on the screen (likely in an undisclosed location to avoids prosecution). Undertaker calls Bearer his one weakness and points out the obvious: now that Bearer is gone, Heyman is a dead man. For some reason this shocks Heyman, who is WAY smarter than this. What exactly was he expecting to happen here? This is the kind of thing that some crazy, stupid manager would do and that’s not Heyman whatsoever. It’s very out of character for him and thankfully that’s the last straw on this stupid story.

Sable vs. Torrie Wilson

So you have two Playboy cover girls here and the focus is on the referee. Torrie doesn’t wait for the bell so Sable runs outside, only to get thrown back in rather quickly. Sable gets catapulted face first into the buckle and Torrie hits some of the lamest stomps I’ve ever seen. A forearm knocks Torrie off the apron though and Sable starts in with the knees and legs. Choking ensues and Sable yells at Robinson for telling her to break. Torrie’s backslide gets two and a DDT finishes Sable. Robinson wasn’t really a factor.

Rating: D-. I’m not sure if I can call anything with Torrie and Sable involved a failure but this was about as close as you can get. They can’t wrestle, they can’t move around the ring well, they can’t show emotion and they can’t….well pretty much anything positive outside of look good. I get the gist here, but this stuff is really hard to watch.

Actually hang on a second as Kurt Angle pops up on screen to say Robinson needs to learn a lesson. Now take off your shirt.

Charles Robinson vs. Luther Reigns

And never mind as Charlie Haas runs in for the save after about ten seconds. Reigns isn’t happy.

Raw Rebound.

Spike is warming up when the Dudleys come in and think something is up. Bubba says they’ve never gotten an opportunity like this (yes he has) and tonight they’ll help Spike win so they can come get a title shot of their own. Spike turns them down and doesn’t seem happy. I don’t like where this is going.

Here are Kenzo Suzuki and Hiroko so the former can rant in Japanese and laugh evily. This brings out John Cena to say that Suzuki is angry every week but no one understands a thing he’s saying. Cena knows some basic Japanese like sushi and sake, sending him into a story about having a little too much one night. After a Godzilla impression, Cena says he’s here for Suzuki because he’s fluent in Japanese. We see the same Suzuki promo with Cena “translating” into a bunch of jokes about bodily functions and Hiroko’s white face paint. That’s about it actually, with no violence or big punch line.

JBL shakes more hands but finds Eddie Guerrero’s car. Nervous laughter abounds.

Smackdown World Title: John Bradshaw Layfield vs. Spike Dudley

Spike is challenging and the announcers are smartly bringing up the small Mysterio beating the monster Mordecai earlier in the night. JBL powers him around (well duh) to start as the Eddie chants are trying to get going. The slow beating continues and the pro-Eddie chants have morphed into BRADSHAW SUCKS chants. Spike manages to take him down into the corner for some rapid fire stomps but the champ sends him outside in a heap.

A hard forearm to the back sets up a whip into the steps and it’s off to a torture rack. That’s broken up and Spike hammers away in the corner, only to get slammed right back down. The Clothesline From JBL misses and the Dudley Dog gets two, with the fans gasping at some false hope. A spinebuster sets up a pair of Clotheslines From JBL, followed by a powerbomb to retain.

Rating: D-. Well what else were you expecting from JBL vs. Spike Dudley for about eight minutes? This was mostly a squash with the fans gasping at the idea of the title changing hands. I don’t know if that’s just the shock or wanting anyone but JBL to be champion, but it’s not the best sign if this reign is going to last a long time.

Post match Eddie is here and the beatdown is on but JBL rolls away before the frog splash. As the champ leaves, Eddie says enjoy the title while you can, because the rematch is in two weeks inside a cage.

Overall Rating: D. It could have been worse. JBL has started become a bit more bearable as he’s not talking about the same things over and over again every time. Now that he’s finally champion, we can finally get back to some new challengers and not hearing about how he’s claiming his destiny or whatever it is that he babbled about forever.

Other than that the US Title stuff was fine, but the lower midcard acts were some of the weakest they’ve been in a long time. Between that and Undertaker being like “oh, and now I’m a monster again” and Heyman being stunned, there wasn’t much to get excited about this week.

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

There have been many great rematches in the history of wrestling and although a significant portion of these have failed to live up to the hype, there have also been a number of memorable match-ups. We take a look of the three of the stand-out rematches which managed to keep WWE fans on the edge of their seats.

Source: WWEX Stream via Twitter

John Cena vs Shawn Michaels

When questioned about the greatest rematch of all time, this is the one immediately springs to mind. The legendary Shawn Michaels has been involved in the majority of the classic WWE rematches but his Monday night RAW meeting with John Cena in 2007 remains towards the top of many peoples lists. Lasting nearly an hour, this clash certainly gave wrestling fans value for money with the pair trading blows throughout. The Heartbreak Kid emerged victorious courtesy of a superkick which was a superb way to bring the curtain down on a memorable sixty minutes of wrestling. Cena, who took time off in 2015, has been involved in some of the sport’s greatest clashes in recent years and many fans described this one as a throwback match which evoked memories of WWE in the 1990s. It remains one of the most memorable rematches in recent history.

The Rock vs Steve Austin

Harking back to WrestleMania 19, this pair were regular opponents and their clashes always served up plenty of entertainment. This match-up was one of their finest and it was also notable for being Stone Cold’s final act before retiring from the sport. The Rock emerged victorious on this occasion but it was the chemistry between the pair which kept WWE fans glued to the action throughout. This match also saw three rock-bottoms from the Rock with both competitors also using one another’s signature finishing moves which simply added to the spectacle and helped create a hugely entertaining contest.

There are many fascinating head-to-head battles in sport – also drawing in lots of sports bettors – including Floyd Mayweather and Manny Pacquiao, who re-oppose once again in late 2018. The pair will be aiming to recreate their sensational 2015 bout which saw the undefeated five-division world champion win by a unanimous decision. It is a fight which will be watched not by millions of sports fans not only for its entertainment value but also as a chance to place a wager and potentially win some money. There are numerous Floyd Mayweather vs Manny Pacquiao betting offers already available ahead of the big rematch. The Rock and Steve Austin was an equally anticipated rematch and the pair did not disappoint. It was the third time that they had faced one another but this was the most memorable of the three.

Source: Sajjad Fazli via Twitter

Andre the Giant vs Hulk Hogan

This was one of the most hyped and advertised WWE rematches of all time and although it took place in 1988, it is still fondly remembered by fans of the sport. It was aired on NBC and attracted an audience of 33 million as the first ever Friday night Main Event. Hogan, who had been struggling throughout was eventually beaten by his opponent in memorable circumstances. With the assistance of Ted DiBiase and Virgil, Andre the Giant was victorious – but he was also aided by evil twin Earl Hebner who was hired to throw the bout. It provided great drama and provoked a number of talking points. It was a hugely memorable rematch and the highlights are still regularly watched online by wrestling aficionados.

WWE is likely to throw up plenty more rematches in the future but the sport has a knack of scheduling mouth-watering match-ups on a semi-regular basis. There is a rich history of wrestlers re-opposing and each one of these clashes always keeps fans coming back for more.

IMG Credit: WWE

Smackdown
Date: June 17, 2004
Location: Allstate Arena, Chicago, Illinois
Commentators: Michael Cole, Tazz

We’re ten days away from the Great American Bash and the Undertaker has joined Paul Heyman. It makes things a little better, though the Dudleys being there is still slowing things down. If nothing else we had a little hope last week with JBL being over the top and goofy for a change, which could help things out if they stick with it. I mean, they likely won’t, but it was nice for a week. Let’s get to it.

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

Opening sequence.

Bradshaw has been fired by CNBC and gets to comment on it tonight. This is the only time CNBC will be mentioned in the history of wrestling shows.

There’s a cement mixer in the arena.

Tag Team Titles: Dudley Boyz vs. Rico/Charlie Haas

The Dudleys are challenging and there’s no Heyman with them. Haas and D-Von start things off with Charlie taking him to the mat. An early Oklahoma roll gets two but Bubba low bridges him to the floor to put Charlie in trouble. Right hands cut off a sunset flip attempt and Bubba drops his big elbows for two. We hit the chinlock for a bit until Charlie snaps off a t-bone suplex.

That’s enough for the hot tag and Rico hits a neckbreaker on D-Von. A spear of all things takes Bubba down but there’s no referee. Bubba sends Rico outside though and the champs are in trouble again. There’s a big boot to Charlie and Bubba rams him into Jackie for a bonus. With Charlie checking on her, Bubba rolls Rico up with D-Von holding the feet for the pin and the titles.

Rating: D. This was the most obvious ending ever and there was no reason to not do it. Rico and Haas aren’t the most thrilling team in the world and it was clear that they were just filling in time until we got to a more serious team. That being said, Heyman kept going on about how the Dudleys needed to do something new. Winning the titles for the 18^th time isn’t new.

Post match Heyman comes out to celebrate with the new champs.

Back from a break and Heyman is alone near the stage to take credit for the Dudleys winning the titles. The fans got to witness that tonight but Paul Bearer didn’t get to. We see a clip from last week with Undertaker joining Heyman so the fans tell Heyman that he sucks. Heyman warns us that one day, Undertaker will be loyal to him due to Heyman’s greatness alone. For now though, Heyman is willing to exploit Undertaker’s weakness because the Big Dog needs to be trained.

Therefore, at the Great American Bash, the Undertaker will be facing the Dudley Boyz. That’s not it though, as the Undertaker will do the right thing there. That brings Heyman to the concrete machine and a casket in front of it. At the Great American Bash, Bearer will be held in a crypt with a cement truck pouring cement in every time Undertaker doesn’t do the right thing.

The cement truck fills the casket as Heyman talks about the crypt being made of three inch thick glass. The cement will begin to fill the crypt but when it gets close to Bearer’s chin, Undertaker will have the chance to do the right thing. Heyman wants to see emotion from Undertaker and if it’s not there, Bearer will be suffocated by the cement. As for tonight, Undertaker will bow down to Heyman.

I haven’t had so many questions since last year with Mr. America. First of all, out of every option Heyman has, BURYING BEARER IN CEMENT is the first one he picks? Did he just watch a bad mob movie where they put someone’s feet in blocks of cement and think it needed to go a lot further? Second, are there no cops watching this show? I’m pretty sure that threatening to put someone in a crypt and bury them in cement is some kind of a crime. Or at least something worth investigating.

Third, is there a reason Cole and Tazz were more upset about the Dudleys winning the titles than THREATENING TO KILL A MAN ON PAY PER VIEW??? Finally, hasn’t Heyman already “trained” Undertaker by getting him to join him? Is this really necessary in the grand scheme of things? I know that’s a minor point by comparison, but I’d love some explanations here.

Here’s Eddie Guerrero to suck up to the Chicago fans and to bring up JBL being fired from CNBC. He watched all week and never saw the show once. It must have been a bad week, but at least JBL had a fun limo ride last week. We see a clip of the limo ride from last week and JBL’s clothes being ruined in the melee. Eddie knows JBL is going to be out here later so come out here right now instead. That brings out the Bashams instead to say Eddie has some unfinished business with the two of them. Therefore, it’s match time.

Eddie Guerrero vs. Doug Basham

They start before the referee even gets in and Eddie scores with a backdrop. The fans are way behind Eddie here, as you had to see coming. Three Amigos hit in a hurry but the referee gets knocked into an interfering Danny. That’s enough for a leg lariat from Doug, followed by a little double teaming. Doug only gets two and it’s off to the chinlock. Three Amigos hit again but Eddie brings Danny in instead of following up. Both of them get taken down out of the corner though, setting up the frog splash to finish Doug in a hurry. Just a short match that showcased Eddie well.

Post match Eddie beats Danny up for fun.

John Cena goes in to see Kurt Angle and Luther Reigns but they can’t see him. Tonight, Cena has to team with Rob Van Dam against Rene Dupree and Booker T. before the match at the Great American Bash. As a bonus, that match will now be an elimination match. Doesn’t that make it a little easier for Cena to retain? Cena makes jokes about Angle not being able to walk and puts a hat on Angle without touching him.

And now, a battle rap between Funaki and Josh Matthews. I think Funaki wins but Angle and Reigns come in to say Funaki thinks he’s Cena. Therefore, Funaki has a match with Reigns tonight.

Spike Dudley vs. Kenzo Suzuki

Kenzo sends him hard into the corner and drops Spike with a shot to the throat. A kick to the chest sets up that spin from Suzuki and it’s off to an armbar. Spike’s comeback consists of the running headbutt to the ribs, only to get cut off with a Tongan Deathgrip. The claw legsweep gives Kenzo the win. He’s still not working.

Here’s JBL with a bullrope to talk about his bad week. He was fired from CNBC and Eddie wrecked his limo. Even though Ronald Reagan passed away last week, the media just wanted to talk about him. The media and Americans are what’s wrong with America because he was the one that stuffed you in the locker in high school. He’s better than these people because he has a backbone.

Even though the world is against him he won’t back up or cower away because he’ll be successful again. This turns into a rant about JBL going to Afghanistan and visiting the troops. Then a solider died but everyone was talking about Sean Penn being a guest of Saddam Hussein. JBL: “Calling me anything but a great American is like calling Mother Teresa a prostitute.” CNBC found out that he’s a wrestler and has a big mouth, which is absolutely true.

Freedom of speech is great until you speak, which is proof that the people are lazy and complacent because they don’t have the guts to speak up. JBL yells at the fans a lot before moving on to Eddie and the bullrope match. Blood will flow because Eddie is what JBL hates about America. He’ll destroy Eddie no matter what and he doesn’t care if he angers CNBC or the liberal media. No one can stop him from becoming WWE Champion. Eddie FINALLY runs in and clears the ring with ease.

This went on FOREVER and was the same old JBL: long winded, boring, ranting about the same stuff over and over and leaving people so numb that they fall asleep with the show on. Last week was fun but this was right back to what makes JBL feel like the worst heel in years. It was bragging about how American he is and how much money he has and that’s not interesting, no matter how many times he says the same things over and over.

In case you were wondering, JBL got fired from CNBC for goose stepping and doing Nazi salutes at a show in Germany. He’s said that it was his character doing this and not him, which I can go with, but dude, anytime Nazis are involved, it’s not going to go over well, no matter the circumstances.

Cruiserweight Title: Rey Mysterio vs. Chavo Classic

Classic is defending and has his son with him. Rey actually gets taken down to start and a moonsault press of all things gives Classic two. A headscissors takes Classic down though and there’s the springboard seated senton. Rey knocks Jr. off the apron and the 619 sets up Dropping the Dime for the pin and the title in less than two minutes. The joke was long past its expiration date so this was the right call. There was no need to wait for the Bash to change the title and I’m still not sure what the point was in having Classic win the thing in the first place. At least the reign didn’t last long.

Mordecai, surrounded by candles and torches, sees a locker room full of sinners. None of them are worthy of mercy and they will all feel his wrath. One of them is the worst of them all because he lies, cheats and steals.

Luther Reigns vs. Funaki

Reigns is jacked and hammers Funaki down with no trouble. A comeback goes nowhere and it’s a spinebuster into a sitout powerslam for the pin to put Funaki away.

Post match Reigns says that’s what happens when you disrespect Angle. Kurt isn’t happy though so Reigns adds a swinging neckbreaker.

Raw Rebound.

The announcers recap the show so far.

Great American Bash rundown, including the Live Free or Die handicap match with undertaker and the Dudleys. Again, do cops just not watch this show???

Here’s Torrie Wilson as a sexy Uncle Sam, implying women in various stages of undress at the Bash. She lights a fire on a grill because it’s going to be hot.

Booker T. says he should be getting a singles match for the US Title at the Bash because the judge might have been French last week. Rene Dupree comes in to say Booker is just making excuses like an American. Booker doesn’t want to hear about a non-American becoming US Champion, so Rene threatens him with a French Tickling.

Rob Van Dam/John Cena vs. Booker T./Rene Dupree

Cena and Van Dam get in each others faces thanks to Rob punching him last week. Dupree and Cena start things off with Renee trying a leapfrog and getting punched in the face. It’s off to Rob for a sunset flip and a spinning kick to the face, followed by the top rope kick to the face for two. Booker makes the save so Rene shoves him, only to get rolled up for two more.

Another argument lets Van Dam kick them both into the announcers’ table as we take a break. Back with Van Dam kicking Rene down again as this is one sided so far. Booker finally gets in a shot to the back to break up Rolling Thunder and comes in with an elbow to the face. There’s the knee to the chest and Rene comes back in for the French Tickler.

That’s enough to set up the chinlock from Booker but Rob fights up without too much effort. It’s off to Cena for the first time and everything breaks down. Booker and Dupree are sent outside so we get the Cena vs. Van Dam showdown, which turns into a slugout. Everyone gets in for the fight….and there’s the gong. Undertaker appears in the ring and we’ll call that a no contest.

Rating: D+. This didn’t have time to go anywhere and was more of an angle than a match. The brawl between Cena and Van Dam makes sense after last week and I like the idea of them following up on the punch instead of just ignoring it because they’re a team here. The ending was annoying, but well done on keeping them from having one of the four lose a fall before the title match.

Undertaker beats up Van Dam with a chokeslam, followed by the Tombstone to Cena. Heyman comes out with the Urn and Undertaker takes the knee to end the show.

Overall Rating: D. This was a very strange episode as there was barely any wrestling with two matches being long enough to rate and three squashes in the middle. The storyline stuff ranges from necessary (Rey and the Dudleys winning titles) to WHAT THE HECK (Heyman’s big speech and the whole concrete idea). That’s quite a ride in two hours but when you add in that never ending JBL speech and stuff like Mordecai and Kenzo Suzuki, the bad heavily outweighs the good. It’s definitely not the worst show, but they’re going in a very questionable direction with their top stories.

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and pick up the paperback edition of KB’s Complete 2003 Smackdown Reviews (also available as an e-book) from Amazon. Check out the information here:

http://kbwrestlingreviews.com/2018/09/07/new-book-kbs-complete-smackdown-2003-reviews/

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

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

IMG Credit: WWE

Survivor Series 2013
Date: November 24, 2013
Location: TD Garden, Boston, Massachusetts
Attendance: 13,500
Commentators: Michael Cole, Jerry Lawler, John Bradshaw Layfield

While those two matches aren’t the most interesting in the world, there is one match that had people’s interest. Daniel Bryan and CM Punk have both been having issues with the bizarre cult leader Bray Wyatt and his Family. The two will pair up tonight to face the Family (Luke Harper and Erick Rowan), though the real story will pick up when Bray himself gets involved. Let’s get to it.

Pre-Show: Kofi Kingston vs. The Miz

Miz turned on Kofi in a tag match on Raw to set this up. He offers a handshake to start but Kofi is too smart for that. We get a surprisingly fast start with Kofi trying to get a grip on Miz but settling for a rollup for two. They trade about three rollups each for three in a very nice chain wrestling sequence until we reach a stalemate. Miz goes for the Figure Four but has to duck Trouble in Paradise. Kofi sends him to the floor for a nice dive and we take a break. Back with Kofi holding a chinlock before getting two off a cross body.

Kingston pounds away in the corner but Miz sneaks underneath him and scores with a big boot to the face. Kofi fights out and hits a double stomp to the chest followed by some nice dropkicks. The Boom Drop looks to set up Trouble In Paradise but Miz ducks, only to get caught in the SOS for two. Another Figure Four attempt is countered into a small package for two and Kofi’s high cross body gets the same. Two low knees to the face/chest put Miz down but he ducks the third and grabs a rollup for the pin.

Rating: B-. This was one of the better opening matches they’ve had in a long time. The reversal sequences were very fast paced and other than a few moments here and there, the action barely stopped. Kofi losing here doesn’t hurt him at all and Miz gets a win to help boost his heel turn. Everybody wins. Well except Kofi but you get the idea.

The opening video talks about how survival is a must before transitioning to your usual hype video for the World Title matches.

Rey Mysterio/Usos/Goldust/Cody Rhodes vs. Real Americans/Shield

Elimination rules of course and the Real Americans are Jack Swagger and Cesaro. The Usos are twin Samoan high fliers. Ricardo Rodriguez is on Spanish commentary. Colter (a VERY proud American who wants all non-Americans to leave the country) does his usual routine before the match before attempting to twerk because what would a wrestling show be without that?

Cody and Ambrose get things going as this is the anniversary of Shield’s debut. They trade waistlocks to start but Cody takes over with some right hands, only to have Ambrose pound away in the corner. Rhodes comes back with even more punches as Cole tells us that Friday is Lawler, Colter and JBL’s birthday. Ambrose pounds away in the corner but gets in an argument with the referee, allowing Cody to get a quick rollup for the elimination.

Everything breaks down with the Usos cleaning house and hitting dives to take out all of their opponents. We settle down with Goldust vs. Rollins but it’s quickly off to Swagger to drive Goldust into the corner. Jack takes him down and Cesaro comes in with a knee drop for two. Cole messes up his history by saying Andre the Giant was the sole survivor of the first Survivor Series match (that would be the main event of the first Survivor Series and the fourth match ever).

Goldust gets a backslide for two on Cesaro and scores with a powerslam. A jawbreaker puts both guys down but Cesaro is able to tag first. Swagger comes in but misses the Vader Bomb, allowing for the hot tag off to Mysterio. He easily takes Swagger down to set up the 619 and it’s a superkick from Jimmy followed by the Superfly Splash from Jey to eliminate Swagger.

Cesaro immediately comes in with an uppercut to Jey to set up the Cesaro Swing. The fans count along with the swings but it’s only 15 revolutions. He must be tired tonight. Jimmy comes in without a tag and gets a swing of his own 19 revolution swing. Cody gets the tag and scores with a sunset flip out of nowhere for the elimination, leaving us with Rollins/Reigns vs. all five members of the other team.

Reigns comes in to work on Cody’s arm but it’s off to Jey instead. Roman easily tags him into the Shield corner and the two remaining members take over with the alternating tags. Rollins comes in with a top rope fist to Jey’s jaw and we hit the chinlock. Jey fights up and backdrops Rollins over the top rope, allowing for the tag off to Jimmy. A Samoan Drop gets two on Reigns and the running Umaga attack in the corner keeps him in trouble. Jimmy goes up top but has to headbutt Reigns down. He jumps down but the spear is enough for a quick elimination.

Cody comes in with a missile dropkick followed by the moonsault press for two on Rollins. Cross Rhodes connects but Reigns made a blind tag, allowing him to spear Cody in half for the elimination, leaving us at 3-2. Jey comes in and takes Reigns to the floor, sending him into the barricade and post. Back in and Rollins makes a quick tag to set up the Black Out (running one foot curb stomp) to eliminate Jey, leaving us with Reigns/Rollins vs. Goldust/Mysterio.

It’s Rey vs. Rollins with Mysterio getting in a quick dropkick, only to go up top and get caught in the Tree of Woe. Back to Reigns who sends Mysterio out to the floor but Rey makes it back in at 9. Reigns’ spear goes into the post by mistake but Rollins knocks Goldust to the floor to prevent the hot tag. Rey grabs a rollup out of nowhere to get rid of Rollins and make it 2-1.

Rollins stomps on Mysterio a bit before leaving, giving Roman a big advantage. Rey slides through Reigns’ legs and catches him with an enziguri before sending him into the corner with a drop toehold. There’s the hot tag to Goldust who gets two off a spinebuster. He pounds down right hands to Roman in the corner before a powerslam gets two. Reigns comes right back by countering the bulldog into a spear and it’s one on one. Rey tries the 619 but gets speared in half as well, giving Reigns his star making performance with his fourth elimination for the win.

Rating: B-. Total star making performance by Reigns as he was completely unstoppable out there. Save for a meaningless fall over an Uso, Reigns literally got every elimination for his team. They’re clearly setting him up to be something special, though the results since have been very mixed.

Orton interrupts an Authority meeting and wants to make sure they’re all on the same page to start. The Authority talks down to him before telling him to go prove his worth on his own.

Intercontinental Title: Curtis Axel vs. Big E. Langston

Langston, defending here, is a powerlifter and incredibly strong. This is the rematch from when Axel lost the title on Monday before why change the title here? Axel grabs a headlock to start but Langston easily powers out. They trade leapfrogs until Langston runs him over with ease. Axel sends him to the apron and forearms Langston down to the floor for his first advantage.

The fans chant You Can’t Wrestle, presumably at Axel, though the same chant at Langston wouldn’t surprise me. Axel hits a Hennig neck snap and puts on a chinlock only to have Langston power out and suplex Axel down. There’s the Warrior Splash but Axel kicks the knee and gets two off a PerfectPlex. Not that it matters as Big E. grabs Curtis for the Big Ending to retain.

Rating: D+. Well at least it was short. This was one of the least important title matches I can think of in a long time as I don’t even think Axel believed he was taking the title here. Nothing to see here and basically it was an extended squash for Langston. That’s all it should have been too since they couldn’t do the title change here due to reasons.

Post match Langston cuts a promo that would make Mick Foley proud, mentioning Boston three times in about 20 seconds.

AJ gives a semi-maniacal speech to her teammates which they take as her saying she’s better than them. AJ says yeah she’s better because they’re just here because they’re not good enough to be on Total Divas. The promo basically buries the entire division by pointing out how worthless all of them are. Rebellion is imminent even though AJ gets a great line: “Get your own show by stealing this one.”

Team AJ vs. Total Divas

AJ Lee/Tamina Snuka/Summer Rae/Alicia Fox/Rosa Mendes/Kaitlyn/Aksana

Bella Twins/Funkadactyls/JoJo/Eva Marie/Natalya

This is the result of a reality show on the E Network called Total Divas. The show resulted in Divas Champion AJ Lee going on an incredible rant about how she was a wrestler and not a reality star, setting up a feud. The Funkadactyls (Cameron and Naomi) are Brodus Clay’s former dancers. Eva Marie and JoJo were hired only to be on Total Divas. Aksana is Lithuanian and not very good. Rosa Mendes is even worse, Summer Rae is the dance partner of a wrestler named Fandango and Kaitlyn is the anti-Diva.

The Total Divas come out in a big line to the show’s theme song because they’re SO close on that show. Naomi starts with Alicia and rolls her up for a pin in just over a minute. Rosa avoids a Rear View but gets caught in a double suplex by the Funkadactyls. Mendes comes back with a quick kick to the face to eliminate Cameron, only to be taken out by a Bella Buster from Naomi.

It’s 6-5 now and here’s Summer to dance a bit. Nikki does the Worm and we’re in a dance off. Another Bella Buster gets rid of Summer and it’s time for Eva Marie who is booed out of the building. Kaitlyn only needs the gutbuster to get rid of Eva and it’s off to Naomi again. Another gutbuster takes Naomi out as we aren’t even five minutes into the match. Brie avoids a spear from Kaitlyn and takes her out with a missile dropkick.

Aksana comes in and pins Brie after an AJ cheap shot and a spinebuster. Nikki comes in and puts Aksana in a Torture Rack backbreaker for a pin. I’m not skipping anything between these falls by the way. Tamina headbutts Nikki down a few times but the Bella comes back with an enziguri. Natalya was taken down by something the camera missed so it’s off to JoJo vs. Tamina.

Snuka toys with her but gets rolled up for two, only to kick JoJo in the face. There’s a Samoan drop for no cover because AJ wants and gets the pin. Natalya is driven into the corner by Tamina but the monster misses a charge and gets caught in the Sharpshooter. AJ tries a save but can’t get there in time and Tamina taps. Natalya reverses a quick AJ rollup into the Sharpshooter for the submission, leaving her and Nikki as the dual sole survivors.

Rating: D-. Other than their looks, nothing was good about this. The whole thing was a way to show us that Total Divas are AWESOME while making it clear that most of them are models who look good in little outfits but have no business EVER being in a ring. AJ continues to be exactly right about everything she says but WWE has decided that the reality “stars” are the heroes, no matter what.

Orton tries to get Charles Robinson on his side to no avail.

The expert panel looks to talk a bit but Ryback cuts them off. He says he’s the talent here and issues an open challenge to anyone on the roster. Here’s his answer.

Mark Henry vs. Ryback

Henry is shaved bald now and shoves Ryback around with ease. Ryback is thrown around again but gets taken down by a shot to the knee. Henry shoves Ryback to the floor for a six count but Ryback comes back in with a headbutt. Some JYD all fours headbutts get two for Henry but Ryback takes the knee out again. We hit the chinlock on Mark before he fights up with relative ease. The World’s Strongest Slam is countered and Ryback spinebusters him down. The Meathook is countered with something resembling a cross body and the World’s Strongest Slam gets the pin.

Rating: D. This was as stereotypical of a power match as you could have ever asked for. Henry didn’t look good here and was way too aloof out there rather than being the monster that got him over for good. Ryback is desperately in need of a change after all these losses he’s suffered in the last year.

Now the panel talks a bit.

We recap Cena vs. Del Rio. Nothing special to say here: Cena won the title last month and this is the rematch. Cena opts for no arm brace despite having to take a few months off for elbow surgery.

World Heavyweight Championship: John Cena vs. Alberto Del Rio

Cena is defending. After some big match intros we’re ready to go. Cena grabs a waistlock which gets him nowhere so Del Rio puts on a headlock to take him down to the mat. Del Rio fights free and gets two off a snap suplex before going to an armbar. They head outside for a bit with Cena going shoulder first into the steps. Back in and a top rope forearm to Cena’s shoulder gets two and we hit the armbar again. This is a really slow pace so far with Del Rio talking a lot of trash and not following up on most of his offense.

Cena starts a comeback but misses a shoulder block to keep things right where they have been all match. They head outside again with Cena being sent into the steps again, allowing Del Rio to do You Can’t See Me. Back inside and we hit the armbar again as we’re somehow approaching ten minutes into this match. Cena tries a comeback with his finishing sequence but gets caught in the Backstabber for two.

Del Rio goes up top again but gets dropkicked out of the air to put both guys down again. Cena’s finishing sequence is broken up again by a thumb to the eye and Alberto gets two off a DDT. Alberto is sent to the floor and has to dive in to beat the count. Cena does the finishing sequence at triple speed but the AA is countered into a German suplex for two but the corner enziguri misses.

The STF is countered so Cena grabs a tornado DDT for another near fall. Del Rio takes him down again and stands around a lot before putting John in the Tree of Woe. That goes nowhere as Cena avoids a charge to send Del Rio into the post. The top rope Fameasser gets two but the STF is broken by a rope. Del Rio’s low superkick gets two and a neckbreaker from Cena gets the same. Del Rio grabs the armbreaker out of nowhere but Cena counters into a powerbomb to escape. Another armbreaker is countered and the AA retains Cena’s title.

Rating: D+. The lack of drama crippled this one for me. There was zero doubt for me as to who was going to win and the only question was whether it would be the AA or the STF. Del Rio just isn’t a threat to Cena at all and he never has been. Why WWE insists on going with that match time after time is beyond me. Put Alberto against Langston for a while to give Big E. a rub or whatever, but keep him away from Cena.

Santino and R-Truth play with toys. Los Matadores (Primo and Epico as bullfighters), Fandango and John Laurinitis come in for some unfunny comedy. Ok Ace was funny at least.

We recap the Wyatts vs. Punk/Bryan. Not much to this one either. The good guys are heroes and that’s not cool with Bray so he’s sent his monsters to show the world that there are no heroes.

Wyatt Family vs. CM Punk/Daniel Bryan

Before the match Bray talks about Sister Abigail telling him how tough Bryan and Punk would be. They’re the reapers though, so Punk and Bryan should run. Bray’s promos have always been strange. Bryan and Rowan get things going with Daniel firing off kicks to the leg. Rowan easily throws him down but Daniel takes him into the corner for a tag off to Punk which doesn’t get a huge reaction.

Harper comes in and charges into a boot in the corner, only to rip away at Punk’s face and chop him down. Back to Rowan for a bearhug but Punk fights out very quickly. Punk escapes a suplex and Bryan comes in to try a double suplex, only to have Rowan suplex both guys down. Bryan drives Rowan into the corner for some double kicks to the ribs to put Erick down. The crowd doesn’t seem interested in this match.

Back to Harper who is taken into the hero corner as well before a double dropkick puts both guys down. Bryan fires off the kicks and plays Bret to Punk’s Neidhart in a Hart Attack. Rowan tries to come in and the distraction lets Harper kick Punk’s head off for two. Rowan cranks on Punk’s neck for a bit before getting two off a backbreaker. Back to Harper for an uppercut followed by a quickly released Gator Roll. Rowan gets caught talking to the sheep mask which Cole finds strange for some reason.

Harper gets two off a Michinoku Driver before it’s back to Erick for some more neck cranking. Punk gets a boot up in the corner to stagger Rowan and a running DDT puts both guys down. A double tag brings in Bryan to face Harper and Daniel starts up his usual sequence. Luke gets low bridged to the floor and the FLYING GOAT (suicide dive) takes Harper out, possibly injuring the monster’s knee.

A missile dropkick gets two and there are the YES Kicks. The running dropkick in the corner staggers the big man but Harper counters a top rope hurricanrana into a super sitout powerbomb for two. The fans think this is awesome as Bray yells at the Family. Rowan splashes Bryan for two and the second heat segment begins. Harper comes in with some forearms to the back but Punk kicks him in the back of the head to give Bryan a breather.

There’s the hot tag off to Punk who takes Harper down but he dives on Rowan and Bray instead of Luke. Now the Macho Elbow connects on Harper for two and everything breaks down. The running knee takes Rowan down and Punk counters the discus lariat into the GTS for the pin on Harper.

Rating: B. This was the old school tag team formula and it worked perfectly well. Punk and Bryan are good choices for matches like this and there’s nothing wrong with the Wyatts getting pinned. The money in the feud is Bray in the ring with either of them and that’s certainly coming in the future.

Bray teases getting in but stays on the floor.

Cena is talking to the Authority about something when Orton comes in to glare at them. The Viper sounds jealous.

We recap Big Show vs. Randy Orton. Orton is supposed to be the face of the WWE but the Authority isn’t very confident in him. Big Show has weaseled his way into a title match tonight due to the threat of a lawsuit which could take over the entire company because that’s what heroes do. They’ve been brawling for a few weeks and Big Show looks dominant while Orton has no backup tonight. I wonder what’s going to happen.

WWE Championship: Randy Orton vs. Big Show

Orton is defending and is on the floor about a second after the bell rings. He trips getting back inside to show how confused he is tonight and gets chopped LOUDLY by Big Show. More slow offense sets up more chops by Big Show but Orton comes back with a dropkick and some kicks to the head. A knee drop gets two for the champion and we hit a sleeper. Big Show loudly says “two clotheslines” before hitting two clotheslines and calling for the chokeslam, sending Orton running to the floor.

Back in and Big Show slams him down before going to the top rope, only to be crotched on the top rope. The Elevated DDT out of the corner puts Big Show down and Orton poses a lot. Show grabs a chokeslam out of nowhere for two and loads up the KO punch but Orton bails to the floor. The big man follows him to the floor and throws Orton at the ropes, taking out the referee in the process. Randy finds a chair but gets it slapped out of his hands before they go into the crowd.

That goes nowhere so they head back to ringside where Orton tries the Elevated DDT again, only to have Show escape and hit the KO punch. Back inside and the Authority comes out for a distraction, allowing Orton to hit a quick RKO. The annoying crowd chants for Daniel Bryan as Orton hits the Punt to retain.

Rating: D-. What the heck was that? Unfortunately, it was exactly what most people were expecting. Big Show was trying but there’s only so much you can do when Orton spends a third of an eleven minute match running, not counting the interference at the end. Horrid main event but I guess it sets up HHH vs. Big Show.

Post match here’s Cena to hold up the World Heavyweight Championship while Orton holds up the WWE Championship. That’s Wrestlemania it would seem, but it would actually be next month.

Overall Rating: D+. This show had its moments but they totally lost me around the time of the Henry match. The card was about the same as it felt like it was going to be with a few good matches but little to care about in the main event scenes. Orton vs. Big Show was as nothing of a match as it could have been and the interference was just predictable. This show just didn’t feel necessary though it wasn’t the worst effort ever.

Ratings Comparison

The Miz vs. Kofi Kingston

Original:B-

Redo: C

Real Americans/Shield vs. Cody Rhodes/Goldust/Rey Mysterio/Usos

Original:B-

Redo: C

Curtis Axel vs. Big E. Langston

Original:D+

Redo: D+

Total Divas vs. True Divas

Original:D-

Redo: F

Mark Henry vs. Ryback

Original:D

Redo: D

Alberto Del Rio vs. John Cena

Original:D+

Redo: B

Wyatt Family vs. CM Punk/Daniel Bryan

Original:B

Redo: B-

Big Show vs. Randy Orton

Original:D-

Redo: D

Overall Rating

Original:D+

Redo: C-

Dang I hated Del Rio back then.

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

http://kbwrestlingreviews.com/2013/11/24/survivor-series-2013-they-had-me-for-a-bit/

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and pick up the paperback edition of KB’s Complete 2003 Smackdown Reviews (also available as an e-book) from Amazon. Check out the information here:

http://kbwrestlingreviews.com/2018/09/07/new-book-kbs-complete-smackdown-2003-reviews/

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

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

IMG Credit: WWE

Survivor Series 2012
Date: November 18, 2012
Location: Bankers Life Fieldhouse, Indianapolis, Indiana
Attendance: 8,500
Commentators: Michael Cole, Jerry Lawler, John Bradshaw Layfield

While the main event is easy enough to explain, the other big match on the card is one of the more confusing in recent memory. Originally, the Survivor Series match was scheduled to be Team Mick Foley vs. Team CM Punk. However, Punk was put in the title match instead so Team Punk became Team Ziggler. A series of injuries and storyline changes resulted in the match being completely different than originally announced. It also didn’t help that Ziggler and Foley had almost no interaction on television and no real reason to be angry at each other. Let’s get to it.

Pre-Show: 3MB vs. Zack Ryder/Santino Marella

It’s Slater and Mahal (Jinder Mahal, who never did much) here. Ryder starts with Mahal as Matt Striker rips Ryder on commentary. Mahal takes him down with a shoulder block but gets caught in an armdrag. Off to Santino who works on a headlock before it’s off to Slater for another armdrag. Ryder comes back in as the announcers talk about Halloween a good three weeks since it’s been over. McIntyre holds Slater’s belt from the floor to avoids Santino’s dropkick. Tag off to Mahal who gets two off a knee drop.

Back to Slater for some shots in the corner but he gives up the hot tag to Santino for all his usual antics. Heath punches him down and brings Jinder in again for some knee drops off the ropes. Santino misses a double clothesline which gives Slater another near fall. The Band stays on Marella but he backdrops Mahal down, allowing for the lukewarm tag off to Ryder. The Broski Boot connects and everything breaks down. A Rough Ryder connects on Slater but the legal Mahal sneaks in with a full nelson slam for the pin on Zack.

Rating: D+. This wasn’t much to see. It isn’t a bad match or anything but how good can a match be when 3MB is getting a clean pin? That’s not exactly a match that’s going to light the world on fire. Also, you’re trying to get a crowd going for a show, you have Santino Marella, and he doesn’t get the hot tag?

The opening video talks about the history that has taken place at this show, ranging from Undertaker and Rock debuting, Montreal, and Rock and Cena teaming up for the first time ever. We then shift over to the main event hype videos you would expect, focusing on the World Title matches and….nothing else. Seriously Foley vs. Ziggler isn’t mentioned here at all. There is a nice idea of Punk surviving as champion at various amounts of days into his reign.

Team Clay vs. Team Tensai

Brodus Clay, Justin Gabriel, Tyson Kidd, Sin Cara, Rey Mysterio

Tensai, Primo, Epico, Prime Time Players

This is a bonus match to fill out the card. Clay is a big man who likes to dance, Tensai is formerly known as Albert/A-Train, Epico and Primo are cousins from Puerto Rico, Kidd is a high flier from Canada and the Prime Time Players are Titus O’Neil and Darren Young, a team who used to fight each other on NXT. This was also back when Tensai was all evil but was a total joke by this point, just as he had been all along.

Kidd works on Epico’s arm to start before taking him down into a headlock. Epico is sent to the floor but manages to send Kidd face first into the apron to take over but it’s quickly off to Gabriel. A sunset flip gets two for Justin and he cranks on Epico’s arm as well. Back to Kidd for a headscissors before putting on another armbar. That doesn’t last long as Mysterio comes in with a low dropkick for two.

Young gets the tag and is almost immediately sent face first into the middle buckle, allowing for a tag off to Sin Cara. The masked men hit a combination wheelbarrow slam/X-Factor for two on Young, sending him over to the corner for a tag off to Primo. Cara hits a quick cross body for two and a sunset flip gets the same as this is a very fast paced match. Tensai gets the tag and runs over Cara with a few slams as JBL lists off Tensai’s Japanese accomplishments.

Off to Titus as Sin Cara is in a lot of trouble. Another slam puts Sin down and it’s off to Primo for a camel clutch. Tensai comes back in to work over the downed Cara but goes after the rest of the team instead of covering. Sin Cara gets up for an enziguri, allowing the hot tag to Clay. Brodus cleans house and the Players, Epico and Primo are sent to the floor. Kidd and Gabriel hit stereo dives to take out the cousins followed by Asai moonsaults from Cara and Mysterio to take out the Players.

The monsters are going at it back inside and Clay botches his high collar suplex, making it into more of a lifting downward spiral. Tensai avoids a charge in the corner and shoulders Brodus down, setting up a backsplash for the elimination. Gabriel comes in with some kicks to the side but gets taken down by a big shoulder block. Off to Titus for an abdominal stretch followed by a backbreaker. Back to Tensai for two off a backsplash but he misses a second one, allowing Gabriel to get a quick rollup for the elimination.

Titus comes in to stomp on the spent Gabriel before it’s back to Epico for a chinlock. Epico misses some elbow drops, allowing Gabriel to make the tag off to Tyson. Kidd heads to the apron but gets sent to the floor where Primo gets in a cheap shot. Back inside with Primo now legal but getting forearmed in the face. Cole says Primo has been a general out there.

Back to Titus who crotches himself off a missed big boot, allowing Tyson to kick him in the side of the head, setting up a rolling cradle for the pin and an elimination. Young comes in to keep the pressure on Kidd before it’s back to Epico for some rolling belly to back suplexes. Not that they matter though as Kidd sweeps the legs and puts on the Sharpshooter to get rid of Epico. Cole of course talks about Montreal.

Primo comes in now but gets elbowed in the ribs for his efforts. He comes back with a quick belly to back suplex, only to go up top and dive into a dropkick to the ribs. The hot tag brings in Mysterio who rolls through a sunset flip and kicks Primo in the face for two. A seated senton looks to set up the 619 but Primo moves to the side, only to get caught in La Majistral for the pin. Darren Young is left all alone and it’s finishers a go-go until Rey finishes him with a top rope splash for the win.

Rating: C. The winners were never really in doubt but this was the right way to get a show going. The fast paced stuff worked very well here with all of the smaller guys hitting their dives to wake the crowd up and give them a fun match. It’s no masterpiece or anything but it did exactly what it was supposed to do. A little trivia for you: that loss makes Tensai 0-5 at Survivor Series, good for the worst record ever at the show.

Kaitlyn is on her way to the ring when someone in black attacks her. Kaitlyn fights back to reveal a blonde wig which falls off as the attacker leaves. Eve pops up and acts all shocked even though she’s evil at the moment. The attacker wound up being Aksana in a meaningless story.

Divas Title: Kaitlyn vs. Eve Torres

Eve is defending. Kaitlyn jumps her to start and pounds away in the corner before sending Eve out to the floor. The champion is sent into the barricade and apron before heading back inside for some hair pulling. Eve kicks her in the ribs and slams Kaitlyn’s head into the mat over and over for two. Off to the corner for some choking and an elbow to the back gets two on Kaitlyn.

Eve puts on a figure four choke before clotheslining Kaitlyn down for no cover. Kaitlyn pops back up to break up the moonsault, sending Eve out to the floor. Back in and Eve is tossed around by the hair followed by a fireman’s carry gutbuster for two. Eve comes right back by sweeping Kaitlyn’s legs out and finishing her with a swinging neckbreaker.

Rating: D. As is the case with the Divas around this time, there isn’t much to brag about other than the girls looked good in their outfits. Kaitlyn just wasn’t that good in the ring and didn’t get much better in the future. Eve was better but her character had hit a ceiling around this time.

Team Ziggler argues over who is the leader.

Team Foley argues over who will survive. Foley unites them in a BANG BANG chant, save for Orton. Foley: “Randy?” Orton: “I hate you.” Foley: “He’s ready.”

US Title: Antonio Cesaro vs. R-Truth

Cesaro (known as the Swiss Superman) is defending and asks why Americans are thankful. The only thing he can think of is how great of a champion he is. Truth gets a quick rollup, sunset flip and rolling cradle for two each before thrusting his hips a bit. Cesaro comes back with a headbutt and a clothesline before pounding away on Truth in the corner. Off to an armbar but a USA chant gets Truth to his feet. The champion shoulders him in the corner and puts on a body vice to keep Truth down again.

A knee to the ribs gets two as JBL lists off some facts about Cesaro’s rugby career. Cole brushes him off and starts listing off rugby facts of his own, sending JBL into a hilarious rant about Cole not listening and asking if Cole is a parrot. The gutwrench suplex gets two for Cesaro and an uppercut gets the same. Back to the body vice for a bit before Truth makes his comeback. Some clotheslines take Cesaro down and a spinning kick to the face gets two. A front suplex gets the same for Truth but the ax kick misses and Cesaro Neutralizes him to retain.

Rating: D. Other than JBL’s rant there was nothing to pay attention to here. These kind of title defenses tend to be very dull as someone like Truth isn’t going to take the title off Cesaro. For the life of me I don’t get why Cesaro isn’t a bigger deal than he is today. The guy has everything you would need but he doesn’t get that big push.

We get a clip from Raw of voicemails from AJ (a psychotic Diva who grew obsessed with various wrestlers), saying that she wants to end her relationship with Cena, but she loses control when she sees him. AJ claims that Ziggler hacked her phone and set those up. Ziggler makes fun of Cena’s, ahem, performance issues, drawing out Cena as backup. AJ slapped Ziggler down without Cena doing a thing.

Here’s AJ with some evidence against someone for something. Over the last month Vickie has been trying to prove that AJ is having an affair with Cena (remember that they’re both single at this point) which AJ thinks means Vickie has something to hide. This brings out Vickie, ranting as always about how much power she has and how she’s being disrespected.

AJ has pictures of Vickie eating with various wrestling personalities and this is scandalous! I’ve spent a long time trying to block this storyline out of my head but now I’m remembering how dumb it was. Vickie is shown in a one piece leopard swimsuit dancing with Brodus causing her to shout a lot. Slapping is threatened but they both get fired for touching the other, so here’s Tamina Snuka to destroy AJ on Vickie’s behalf. This story would keep going for WEEKS.

Paul Heyman talks about how Punk is now #8 on the all time list for longest title reign and will be rising up the ranks even further after tonight because he’s the best in the world. Heyman is just awesome at promoting his guys.

We recap Big Show vs. Sheamus. Not much of a story here other than they had a war at Hell in a Cell with both guys kicking out of each others’ finishers in a great match. Tonight is a rematch.

World Heavyweight Championship: Sheamus vs. Big Show

Big Show is defending. It’s another brawl to start with Sheamus pounding away but Big Show gets in a few shots of his own to take over. The big chop misses in the corner and Sheamus gets in some more shots to little avail. Finally Sheamus wakes up and goes after the knees before tying Show up in the ropes for the forearms to the chest. Big Show escapes to the floor but Sheamus dives off the apron to get in even more right hands to the head.

Back in and Sheamus goes up top but Big Show spears him out of the air in a cool looking crash. They head outside again with Show sending Sheamus into the steps. Sheamus is thrown back in and can barely move. Big Show steps on Sheamus’ ribs a few times as the match has slowed way down. A huge elbow drop gets two and we hit the nerve hold. Sheamus fights up quickly but walks into a side slam for two as the match stays in slow motion. Since the slams aren’t working, Show just stands on Sheamus’ head. Sheamus fights up and grabs a sleeper but Big Show throws him off.

Big Show is getting winded so Sheamus pounds away as much as he can, only to miss a charge and go shoulder first into the post. The Final Cut gets two and Show goes to the middle rope, only to be caught in an electric chair of all things for two. They slug it out from their knees and Sheamus takes over, knocking Show down with a running ax handle.

The Brogue Kick and chokeslam are countered and Sheamus gets two off White Noise. Now the fans are getting into this again. Sheamus loads up the Brogue Kick again but takes out the referee by mistake. Four people immediately come out to check on the referee as the replay shows the champion pulling him in the way. Big Show knocks out Sheamus and one of the referees counts a pin to end the match out of nowhere.

Rating: C. The match was slow for the most part and the ending hurts it even worse. This took all the good stuff out of their match at Hell in a Cell and turned it into a dull imitation. This needed to be two monsters firing bombs at each other until neither guy could get up but instead it was your usual Big Show match at about 4 miles per hour.

Post match Show is disqualified and Sheamus lays the alleged thirty one chair shots on him. I never remembered it being that many and that’s because it’s more like eighteen and a Brogue Kick. Big Show crawls to the back as WE WANT ZIGGLER (Mr. Money in the Bank) chants are ignored.

Team Ziggler vs. Team Foley

Dolph Ziggler, Alberto Del Rio, David Otunga, Damien Sandow, Wade Barrett

The Miz, Kofi Kingston, HELL NO, Randy Orton

So as I said, it was supposed to be Punk vs. Foley over old school vs. new school, but Punk was put in the main event and Ziggler was picked despite having no issue with Foley. The match was originally Punk/Sandow/Miz/Del Rio/Rhodes, but Cody got hurt and Miz felt he didn’t deserve the spot, so Miz was replaced by Barrett and Cody was replaced by Otunga.

Ryback was originally on Team Foley but was moved to the main event and replaced by Miz in a Raw poll. As you can see, the match is a huge mess and almost no one was interested in it for the most part. HELL NO (Kane and Daniel Bryan) are the Tag Team Champions and Kofi is Intercontinental Champion of course. Sandow is an intellectual.

Kofi grabs a quick rollup for two on Otunga to start. David avoids a quick Trouble in Paradise but gets caught by a dive on the floor. Otunga’s trunks are pulled up a bit as Bryan comes in with his kicks. Off to Sandow for the Russian legsweep and the Wind-Up elbow gets two. Bryan fights out of a chinlock and fires off the kicks to the chest to send Sandow out to the floor. Damien says good luck and walks out but Kane will have none of that. Back in and Bryan’s big kick to the head sets up a chokeslam for a fast elimination.

The Tag Team Champions get in an argument for no apparent reason, allowing Ziggler to hit a quick Zig Zag on Kane for the pin. That makes the move look strong if nothing else. Orton and Miz get in a quick fight for some reason but Randy catches a sneaky Ziggler in the slingshot suplex for two. Off to Kofi for the matchup that will not die with Ziggler being launched face first into the buckle for two. Back to Bryan who gets poked in the eye, allowing Dolph to tag in Barrett.

Bryan shouts NO a lot but misses a charge into the corner, setting up Barrett’s big boot in the ropes. Otunga comes in again and the YES Lock goes on almost immediately for the submission. It’s 4-3 with Foley in the lead as Del Rio comes in with a chinlock on Bryan. Back up and Del Rio misses a charge into the corner, allowing Bryan to kick him out to the floor. Kofi gets the not very hot tag and kicks Del Rio down, setting up the Boom Drop for no cover. Instead Ziggler distracts Kofi so Trouble in Paradise misses, but Kofi runs up the corner for a cross body and two.

Wade comes right back with the Bull Hammer for a quick pin, getting us down to 3-3 (Orton/Miz/Bryan vs. Barrett/Ziggler/Del Rio). Orton comes in right away and suplexes Barrett down before cranking on the arm. Miz doesn’t seem interested in a tag but Bryan is glad to come in and work on an arm. A middle rope dropkick gets two and Bryan snaps off even more kicks. Barrett avoids a big one and tags in Del Rio but Alberto has to fight out of a quick YES Lock attempt.

Alberto tries a running enziguri in the corner but hits the arm instead, setting up the cross armbreaker for the elimination. Miz comes in for the first time and scores with some left hands before it’s back to Orton for his traditional stuff. Back to Ziggler who takes over on Randy with a big elbow followed by a chinlock. Orton fights up and launches Ziggler into the air in a nice crash.

A double tag brings in Barrett and Miz with the American connecting with the corner clothesline. The Skull Crushing Finale is countered into a pumphandle attempt (called Wasteland by Cole) but Miz escapes into the Finale for the elimination to tie us up at two. Del Rio comes in next but charges into a DDT for two. Alberto grabs a German suplex for two but gets pulled off the middle rope in a crash. Miz misses the corner clothesline and gets enziguried for an elimination.

That leaves Orton vs. Ziggler/Del Rio with Alberto starting for his pair. Orton fires off some punches but gets caught by a cheap shot, allowing Ziggler to come in and slow things down. Alberto is back in very quickly with a double stomp to the ribs but goes up top, only to dive into a dropkick. Ricardo trips up Orton, earning him Socko down the throat. Ziggler accidentally dropkicks Del Rio and gets sent into the post. A quick RKO takes out Alberto and it’s one on one now with Orton having that evil look in his eyes.

Orton immediately goes into RKO mode but Ziggler holds the ropes and hits the Zig Zag for a quick near fall. So it can beat Kane after he’s taken no damage at all but Orton kicks out at two after twenty minutes? Score one for the Viper. The Fameasser misses and Orton hits the Elevated DDT despite bleeding from the mouth a bit. Orton loads up the Punt but walks into a superkick for the pin.

Rating: C-. Here’s the problem again: the match isn’t bad but there’s no reason for these guys to be fighting each other. Yeah they’ve all feuded with each other at some point in the past, but there’s nothing going on setting up this match. It’s really just ten guys fighting each other with a minor feud here or there. There was no reason to care about this match and that’s exactly how the match felt. Decent match, but the absence of emotion held it back.

We recap the main event. Punk has been champion for a year almost to the day, Ryback got screwed over by referee Brad Maddox inside the Cell and Cena gave Ryback his spot in the Cell due to injury. The solution was a triple threat match.

WWE Championship: John Cena vs. Ryback vs. CM Punk

Punk, with Paul Heyman in his corner, bails to the floor to start and gets chased by both challengers. Ryback finally catches him in the corner but Cena wants to do it himself and pulls Ryback away, allowing Punk to get in shots on both guys. Ryback kicks him in the chest and Cena adds a bulldog before Ryback clotheslines Punk to the floor. It’s the battle of the heroes with Cena pounding away but Ryback escapes the AA and knocks Cena to the outside.

Punk is back in now and scores with a snap suplex on Ryback, but the monster pops right back up and gorilla presses the champion into a fall away slam. Cena comes back in with a belly to belly for two on Ryback before putting on a chinlock. Punk breaks it up with a top rope ax handle and Cena falls to the floor. Another ax handle attempt is caught in midair but Punk takes Ryback down with a neckbreaker. Cena sneaks in with a rollup for two but Punk DDTs him down for two more.

With Cena down, Punk channels his inner Austin Aries and puts on the Last Chancery but Ryback lifts Punk into the air for a powerslam. Cena grabs the ProtoBomb on Ryback but Ryback pops up, leading to a slugout. The shoulder blocks look to take Ryback down but Punk pulls John to the floor and sends him into the steps. Punk’s springboard clothesline gets two on Ryback and we hit the chinlock. Ryback fights up and slams Punk down followed by the Meathook. Cena breaks up the Shell Shock and puts Ryback in the STF but it’s Punk with the Macho Elbow for the save.

Everyone is down now and Punk might have hurt himself on that elbow. He’s up first but can’t hit the GTS on Cena. Punk and Cena slug it out but Ryback clotheslines both guys down to take over again. Ryback sends both guys to the floor for some reason but they double team Ryback down as a result. A double suplex puts Ryback through the table and they head inside for the real showdown.

Punk grabs a GTS out of nowhere for two and Heyman is livid. The AA gets the same result other than Heyman being relieved. Punk comes back with the running knee but the bulldog is countered into the STF. Ryback makes the save and throws Cena into the barricade to put him down. The Meathook and Shell Shock lay out Punk but Cena makes a diving save. The Shell Shock lays out Cena as well……but here are three guys in black to destroy Ryback. They pound away on Ryback and take him to the floor for a TripleBomb through the table. Punk crawls over and pins Cena to retain.

Rating: C+. It’s probably the best match of the night but that’s not saying much at this point. Punk winning was a good idea and set up more stuff down the line which is the best possible outcome. You could feel the wind blowing as Ryback fell down the card though and he wouldn’t really recover. Fairly good match but nowhere near enough to save the show though.

The three men would be revealed as Roman Reigns, Seth Rollins and Dean Ambrose (DUN DUN DUN!), which Cole tells us during Punk’s celebration to end the show.

Overall Rating: D. Man alive has time been cruel to this show. Watching it live there was some drama, but looking back you have two LONG Survivor Series matches with no real story behind them and two screwjob finishes in title matches. Shield would become a bigger deal but no one knew that at this point. This was a “tune into Raw tomorrow night” show and that’s not good for the Survivor Series.

Ratings Comparison

3MB vs. Zack Ryder/Santino Marella

Original:

Redo: D+

Team Clay vs. Team Tensai

Original: B-

Redo: C

Eve Torres vs. Kaitlyn

Original: D-

Redo: D

R-Truth vs. Antonio Cesaro

Original: D

Redo: D

Sheamus vs. Big Show

Original: C-

Redo: C

Team Foley vs. Team Ziggler

Original: C-

Redo: C-

Ryback vs. John Cena vs. CM Punk

Original: B-

Redo: C+

Overall Rating

Original: D+

Redo: D

About the same down the line. It sucked back then and it sucked now. I actually watched most of this show late and while still tired from a flight the first time around but apparently it had more problems than that.

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

http://kbwrestlingreviews.com/2012/11/21/survivor-series-2012-a-filler-ppv-disguised-as-a-major-show/

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and pick up the paperback edition of KB’s Complete 2003 Smackdown Reviews (also available as an e-book) from Amazon. Check out the information here:

http://kbwrestlingreviews.com/2018/09/07/new-book-kbs-complete-smackdown-2003-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: June 10, 2004
Location: Nassau Veterans Memorial Coliseum, New York City, New York
Commentators: Michael Cole, Tazz

We’re getting closer and closer to the Great American Bash and this week is all about the Undertaker possibly joining forces with Paul Heyman and the Dudley Boyz for the sake of saving Paul Bearer. That just screams bad idea due to some of the people involved (hint: their names are Bubba and D-Von) but maybe the others can save things. Let’s get to it.

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

We open with a recap of Bearer being kidnapped and Heyman’s proposition. This is somehow better than JBL’s radio show discussions.

Opening sequence.

Kurt Angle is in the ring to open the show. He used to come here to Long Island when he was WWE Champion and people booed him out of the building. It didn’t matter though because Angle knew he was better than everyone. The fans start a pretty fast paced YOU SUCK chant until Angle says he can never wrestle again. We see a clip of last week’s brawl between Booker T. and John Cena, which saw Angle get knocked over by Cena and hit in the knee by Booker’s chair shot.

Angle wants an apology so here’s Booker to say it was all Cena’s fault. He couldn’t sleep for three days after he hit Angle, so now he’ll apologize five times. Angle accepts it and excuses him but now it’s Cena’s turn. The rap is cut off by a raving Angle (always entertaining) but Cena says he didn’t mean to hit Angle last week, because Angle would still be in the hospital if he tried to.

Angle has talked to the board of directors and Cena is now on probation, meaning he’s stripped of the US Title on the spot if he lays a hand on Angle again. For tonight though, Cena needs to apologize for who he is. That’s not happening because Cena isn’t changing a thing and if Angle doesn’t like it, he can wheel himself out of here. Besides, they’re even. Cena can’t touch him but Angle can’t see him. That’s enough for Cena but Angle says Cena has three matches tonight. Each one will be five minutes long and the first man to beat him gets a US Title shot at the Great American Bash. I’ve heard worse ideas….I think?

Kenzo Suzuki vs. Scotty 2 Hotty

Suzuki is carried to the ring on a throne with a woman walking behind him. The announcers talk about Suzuki wanting vengeance, though they’re not sure what the vengeance is for actually. My guess is for Scotty’s dancing. Suzuki goes after the arm to start and chops at the neck, with a big one putting Scotty down in the corner. A kick to the face drops Scotty again and Kenzo starts spinning around for some reason. Scotty scores with a superkick but a claw STO finishes him off in a hurry. Based on this match, Suzuki has an awesome future. Provided he can build a time machine and go back to a territory in 1984.

Angle talks to Cena’s opponents for tonight (Booker T., Rob Van Dam and Rene Dupree) so they can draw straws to determine an order, but that has to be behind closed doors.

Earlier today, JBL went to a salon and made fun of the immigrants who took care of him. It’s far too late, but this is the kind of thing he should have been doing from the beginning: going over the top and taking advantage of the people he constantly insults to show what a hypocrite he is. That’s the kind of person you want to see take a beating, not a guy droning on about a radio show and a stock portfolio.

JBL arrives at the arena, decides this place isn’t worth his time, and leaves. The driver won’t listen to him though, mainly because the driver is Eddie. So was Eddie driving all day or did he switch places in the fifteen seconds JBL was outside of the car and looking forward the whole time? Either way, JBL can’t operate a door so Eddie drives off, hitting some trash on the way.

Earlier today, the Dudleys and Heyman drank to celebrate what they did. Heyman says not so fast, because Paul Bearer was the only person Undertaker would go to for advice. Now they control Bearer, who controls the Undertaker. Heyman is going to the arena alone tonight so they tell him to be careful.

Rey Mysterio vs. Chavo Guerrero Jr.

Chavo Classic, with his ladies, is on commentary. Rey wristdrags him to start and Chavo isn’t sure what to do. Chavo gets in a dropkick though and it’s already time to choke on the rope. That’s not the best idea though as Rey sends him through those ropes for a big dive off the top. Back from a break with Chavo dropkick Rey out of the air and Classic turning into the biggest cheerleader ever, though he does think he could do it better than Jr. We hit the chinlock with a knee in the back for a bit before Chavo puts him on top.

That earns him an elbow to the face and a moonsault press for two. A kick to the face has Rey right back down and Tazz starts singing Beatles songs and talking about Fantasy Island. The springboard seated senton gives Rey two and a spinning armdrag has Chavo in….and never mind the trouble as he Alley Oops Rey to drop him again. Chavo’s Gory Bomb (Classic: “My dad invented this move!”) is broken up and there’s the 619, followed by some failed interference from Classic. Rey grabs a hurricanrana for the pin.

Rating: C-. Ok it’s time to get the title on Rey again. The Classic stuff was funny for a little while (his commentary is still great) but having him holding the title has already run its limited course. Either put it on Jr. or give it back to Rey, because they really need to restore some credibility to the title after the last few weeks.

Jr. is furious with his dad.

Raw Rebound.

As the parking lot is being cleaned up, Eddie drives the (now smoking and mostly destroyed) limo back in. He switches to reverse and backs into another car, knocking what looks like a bunch of crash pads onto it.

Back from a break and Eddie drives the ruined limo (only one horn left and a headlight hanging off) into the arena. He opens the back door but Bradshaw has passed out with the food and drinks all over him. Eddie gets in the ring and makes some jokes as Bradshaw is waking up and stumbles out of the limo. After putting on the hat, he sees the damage and panics. Again: much more entertaining because it’s not just JBL talking about the same thing he’s talked about for weeks.

Video on the European tour.

The following three matches are all non-title with five minute time limits and whoever beats Cena first gets a US Title shot at the Great American Bash. That’s actually unique for a change.

John Cena vs. Booker T.

Kurt Angle is out to watch. Booker slams him down to start but Cena comes out of the corner with a running clothesline. A hot shot and the superkick give Booker two, followed by a kick to the face for two more. We hit the chinlock, which Tazz calls good strategy after talking about how little time he has left. Cena fights up but gets knocked right back down with the side kick. Booker takes his sweet time though and Cena blasts him with a clothesline. A slow motion ax kick misses as time expires.

Rating: D. That’s on a bit of a sliding scale as you can only do so much with a match designed to go to a short time limit. Booker wasn’t even acting urgently here and it made you wonder what he was thinking. He knew the idea of the match (the big clock on the screen probably gave him an idea) but he was walking around rather slowly and not really going for it. That doesn’t make sense.

John Cena vs. Rob Van Dam

Joined in progress after the break (Nine seconds after the break. What’s the point?) with Van Dam spinning around and getting two off a spinning kick to the face. Cena clotheslines him out of the air for two of his own and hits a running forearm to the back (kind of an odd move). A running knee to the ribs and a suplex give Cena two but Van Dam scores with the stepover kick. The split legged moonsault connects for two more but Booker crotches Rob to break up the Five Star. Angle ejects Booker from ringside so Rob breaks up a superplex attempt and kicks Cena in the face. There’s the Five Star, but time expires again.

Rating: C-. Better match but still not good, though having Booker interfere made Van Dam look a little bit better. It’s a bit of a stretch for Rob to not be able to beat a tired Cena so the interference worked well here. It could also set up a Van Dam vs. Booker match, which could help out the pay per view card quite a bit.

John Cena vs. Rene Dupree

Cena is spent but takes him down for some right hands anyway. Dupree punches him right back though and drops an elbow for two. The abdominal stretch goes on for a bit until Cena hiptosses his way out. A sunset flip dives Cena two but Dupree tries a powerslam and…I guess forgets to rotate as Cena almost lands on his face. Cena, holding his hip, comes back with the shoulders and the Shuffle for two but the FU is countered into a spinebuster. That’s only a delayed near fall and a powerbomb is blocked as time expires.

Dupree asks for five more minutes so Angle says go ahead. A belly to belly plants Cena and Dupree hits the French Tickler….but walks into the FU for the pin.

Rating: D+. Well it wasn’t exactly great and the bonus stuff just made Dupree look even weaker than he has in recent weeks. Dupree still knows how to get booed and that’s going to be worth something but Cena is on a different level right now and isn’t about to lose to him. It wasn’t a good match or anything, but at least Dupree lasted the five minutes.

Post match Angle says Cena didn’t win in the five minutes so it didn’t count. Booker runs back in and beats Cena down with Van Dam making the save. Angle says Cena didn’t win anything in the challenge so he’ll defend against all three of them at the Bash. Cena and Van Dam have some words and Rob kicks him in the head.

Long recap of the Heyman/Dudleys/Undertaker story.

Here’s Paul Heyman with a bag over his shoulder. He wants to make sure the cameras are recording because this is where everything begins. Tonight is the night when the most powerful force in wrestling joins forces with the most creative man in wrestling. So Undertaker needs to come out here with an answer….and there’s the gong. Undertaker slowly comes to the ring and Heyman pulls the Urn out of the bag. He holds it up and Undertaker stares at it before taking the knee to end the show with Tazz and Cole panicking.

Overall Rating: D. The Cena stuff was a fine idea that didn’t work great in practicality, the Eddie/JBL stuff was an improvement but that’s not exactly a huge step up, and Kenzo Suzuki debuted. What exactly is there that was a good thing on this show? Somehow, it’s Chavo Classic, who was entertaining on commentary and part of the only story that didn’t have me checking the time to see how much longer was left. The show is getting slightly better, but it’s still one of the worst times the show has ever seen.

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and pick up the paperback edition of KB’s Complete 2003 Smackdown Reviews (also available as an e-book) from Amazon. Check out the information here:

http://kbwrestlingreviews.com/2018/09/07/new-book-kbs-complete-smackdown-2003-reviews/

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