IMG Credit: WWE

Monday Night Raw
Date: March 12, 2018
Location: Little Caesars Arena, Detroit, Michigan
Commentators: Michael Cole, Corey Graves, Jonathan Coachman

We’re FINALLY away from all other pay per views and that means it’s time to get on with the real Wrestlemania build. Tonight is scheduled to featured Roman Reigns and Brock Lesnar going face to face but that was the case two weeks ago as well. I can’t shake the feeling that WWE is going to manage to screw this one up. Let’s get to it.

Here’s last week’s show if you need a recap.

Here’s Kurt Angle to open things up. He’s looking forward to competing at Wrestlemania where he and his partner are going to give HHH and Stephanie McMahon the beatings of their life. That takes us to the Universal Title match…and Brock Lesnar isn’t here tonight because of something ranging from transportation issues to not feeling well to just not showing up.

Cue Roman Reigns to say what just happened was Brock didn’t show up for work today. For anyone else, there would be a fine, a suspension, or being fired, but that’s not happening to Vince’s boy. Reigns says if Angle didn’t show up, he’d be fired and not be able to feed his kids. Reigns passed Vince McMahon in the back and Vince didn’t have the courtesy to apologize. Roman isn’t going to have Vince disrespect him so he leaves the ring and goes to the gorilla position, where Vince and Shane are producing the show. Vince gets up and says they’ll talk in his office.

Reigns leaves Vince’s office and has nothing to say. Vince comes out a second later and says he had to tell Reigns to know his role and shut his mouth. Brock has certain privileges and may not like anyone but he respects competition. Vince says Brock will be at Wrestlemania and will defend his title but he also promises that Brock will be here next week. As for Reigns, he’s been temporarily suspended.

Sasha Banks vs. Sonya Deville

Bayley and the rest of Absolution are at ringside. Sasha gets two off an early sunset flip and sends Sonya outside as we take an early break. Back with Sasha getting kicked in the ribs and caught in a bodyscissors. Sasha fights up again and knees Sonya out of the corner. The middle rope knees get two and Bayley cutting off Absolution sets up the Bank Statement to make Sonya tap at 7:39.

Rating: D+. This felt like angle advancement instead of a match and that’s fine. You can see Banks vs. Bayley in a singles match at Wrestlemania (unless they go stupid and have some multi-woman match for the title instead) and Absolution can help get them there. Nothing to see here of course but that wasn’t the point of the match.

Bayley leaves and Absolution beats Sasha down with no one to stop them.

Kid Rock Hall of Fame announcement.

It’s time for MizTV. Miz talks about being forced to defend his title against two opponents at Wrestlemania and those challengers are his guests tonight: Seth Rollins and Finn Balor. Miz immediately tries to play them against each other, saying that Balor is getting in the way of what could have been a great singles match. Rollins knows what’s going on so Miz says Balor is the man in bingo halls. He was the first ever Universal Champion and beat Rollins to do it.

Miz tries the same thing he tried with Rollins but Balor sees through it as well. Rollins says they don’t need to get fired up because it’s Wrestlemania and the Intercontinental Title. They get back to the Universal Title match though and Balor says he beat Seth with one arm. They’re ready to fight now and Miz is all for this, only to be clotheslined to the floor. Rollins gets in a right hand to Balor though and Miz is very pleased. More angle advancement and that’s fine.

The Bar vs. Miztourage

Non-title. The Miztourage jumps the champs before the bell and there’s no match as the Revival comes in to jump the Bar as well. Anderson and Gallows run out as well and PLEASE tell me this isn’t setting up a freaking ladder match. Titus Worldwide and Heath Slater/Rhyno join in too. The Bar slips out and bails as there was no match of course.

Here’s John Cena to address his loss last night. Cena has found his path to Wrestlemania and some people might not like that. He’s tried as hard as he can but he’s lost every chance. The fans chant for Undertaker and Cena says he hopes the people backstage are listening. He won’t be contributing to Wrestlemania this year (I’m guessing he misspoke when he said he had found his path.).

That doesn’t mean that he’s quitting or walking away because he’ll be there on the same road to Wrestlemania as the fans. He’s going as a fan this year and he’ll be having a blast. Cena may be sitting next to us and goes into the crowd to steal a sip of beer. He starts a THIS IS AWESOME chant before switching to a LET’S GO ROMAN which doesn’t work so well.

Back in the ring, Cena says we need to get one chant out of our system: LET’S GO CENA! You know what comes from there and Cena says the only way that’s going to happen is if he does something he’s not supposed to do. Actually, what does he have to lose if he does it? Cena: “Well screw it. I challenge the Undertaker to a match at Wrestlemania.” He’s been told that’s impossible but he doesn’t quite get why.

Cena says the challenge a few more times and since his mic is still working, it’s clearly not WWE that doesn’t want it to happen. That leaves just Undertaker, who needs to, and I quote, get over his own ego. Undertaker is hiding behind his loss and needs to take his head out of the sand. He’s not too old and he’s not broken down. If he was, he wouldn’t be posting workout videos on his wife’s Instagram. Undertaker is hiding and needs to come try and Tombstone Cena in front of 75,000 people. If Cena was Undertaker, he’d want one more match.

So, to recap, this match is going to have, at most, three weeks of official build (assuming Undertaker doesn’t Tweet a response) because we needed Cena in a six way match at Fastlane. I don’t want to see this match and while it could have a good feeling to it, I would really just prefer that Undertaker goes away after last year’s great moment. The Cena vs. Undertaker match could have been awesome, but unless that hip surgery completely changed Undertaker, last year was a really bad sign.

The Bar is in Angle’s office saying they wanted competition, not to be jumped from behind. They don’t feel safe around here and since they’ve heard rumors of a Superstar Shakeup, they want to go to Smackdown right now. Maybe they could fight the Bludgeon Brothers, New Day or the Usos. Champions vs. champions sounds good to Sheamus. Angle won’t trade them but tonight we’ll find out who the challengers are in a tag team battle royal later tonight. That’s all well and good, as long as a ladder isn’t involved.

We recap last week’s Symphony of Destruction match with Elias having a piano dropped on top of him.

Here’s Elias in a neck brace but still ready to perform because he’s a professional. Elias says this is all our fault and walks away.

Braun Strowman says he dropped a piano on Elias last week. Elias should be grateful that he never made music on an anvil. Braun doesn’t have a Wrestlemania match so tonight he’s making his own path of destruction. I mean, Cena is available at the moment.

Seth Rollins vs. Finn Balor

They fight over the arm to start (there’s a bingo space) until Rollins takes over with an elbow and chop. A pair of dropkicks puts Rollins on the floor and there’s a running apron kick to take us to a break. Back with Rollins grabbing a chinlock until Balor fights up and hits a Sling Blade.

1916 and the ripcord knee are both blocked so they trade kicks to the head. They trade kicks to the head with Rollins’ getting two. Rollins charges into another kick to the head but it’s too early for the Coup de Grace. Instead Rollins tries the superplex into the Falcon Arrow, only to have Balor cradle him in a small package for the pin at 14:14.

Rating: C+. Nice match here and I’m a bit surprised that Balor would get a clean pin over the other challenger. I’ll take that over a double countout or DQ though and it’s not like losing to a big name like Balor is the worst thing in the world. Also, at least the champion managed to not lose again.

Video on the Fabulous Moolah, including an announcement of the Fabulous Moolah Battle Royal at Wrestlemania.

Here’s Asuka to address challenging Charlotte last night. After we see the clip, Alexa Bliss and Mickie James cut her off in short order. Alexa can outsmart anyone and she congratulates Asuka on choosing the champion of the B show. Asuka says she chose Charlotte because to be the woman, you have to beat the woman. Bliss thinks that must be a language issue so Asuka wants to beat Alexa right now. Alexa says no because Asuka is getting someone who has unfinished business with her. She tries to bring someone out (presumably Nia) but Mickie jumps Asuka instead.

Mickie James vs. Asuka

Joined in progress with Mickie in control until Asuka kicks her down without much effort. Mickie tries to bail and gets posted for her efforts but Asuka kicks the post by mistake. Asuka barely beats the count back in but the MickieDT is countered and Asuka kicks her in the head with the bad leg. The backfists to the head rock Mickie and there’s the hip attack in the corner. Mickie is smart enough to go back to the leg and there’s a flapjack for good measure. For some reason Mickie goes up top and scores with a heck of a sunset bomb for two. The Mick Kick misses though and the Asuka Lock is good for the submission at 6:31.

Rating: C+. I was getting into this match with Asuka being tested, even in a match that she had no real danger of losing. There’s something cool to see about having people actually work in a match that is little more than a warmup for Asuka. Good stuff here as Mickie really hasn’t lost a step.

Graves explains the Great War to Cole and Coachman and the confused looks are perfect.

Alexa comes in to see Nia and asks where she was. Kurt told her not to come out because she has a match next but that’s not enough for Alexa. Nia doesn’t seem happy with Alexa over what she said last week but Alexa gets all serious and says she loves Nia as her best friend. The love is returned but it’s time for some tough love: Nia needs to be in her corner next week. That’s cool with Nia so everything is fine.

Women’s History Month in Indira Gandhi.

Nia Jax vs. Joan King

Samoan drop in 46 seconds.

Alexa and Mickie are in the back and annoyed over the loss to Asuka. Mickie brings up what Alexa said to Nia last week and Alexa says it was the truth and could have been a lot worse. James thought it was hilarious when Alexa said everyone looks at Nia in the airport. Alexa: “It’s like Shrek going through the TSA.” They keep mocking Nia’s size and intelligence as Nia is near tears. Apparently Charly Caruso is late for an interview but she comes in and says the microphone has been on the entire time. Panic ensues and Nia is storming to the back. Alexa and Mickie leave in a rush and Nia is here a few seconds later to break a lot of stuff.

We get a preview of the Ultimate Deletion, which will take place at the Hardy Compound. The Great War has gone on throughout history and will come to its completion. We actually see Rebecca, Maxel, Wolfgang (Matt’s other son), Senor Benjamin and Vanguard 1. They will vanquish Sister Abigail from Bray Wyatt into the Lake of Reincarnation. The lake could be amazing in WWE’s hands.

Bray says Matt is a liar and a fool but above all else, Matt is just a man. When the devil is standing on your doorstep, never let him in. Bray accepts the invitation and threatens Matt’s family.

Kurt knew Bray was nuts but wants to know what happened to Matt. A referee comes in and Kurt assigns him to Ultimate Deletion next week. Referee: “Did I do something wrong?”

We recap the opening sequence and Reigns’ suspension.

Next week: Asuka vs. Alexa Bliss and Ultimate Deletion.

Tag Team Battle Royal

Heath Slater/Rhyno, Titus Worldwide, Revival, Anderson and Gallows, Miztourage

The winners get the Wrestlemania title shot against the Bar, who are on commentary here. Hang on a second though as here’s Strowman with no partner. He demands that the bell ring and the referee isn’t about to say no. Apollo (with Cole saying Crews) is eliminated and, after a quick chase, Slater is tossed as well. Everyone stares Strowman down and the big beatdown is on but Revival gets smart by eliminating Rhyno.

Titus punches both of them but Strowman throws everyone away and is left alone after everyone went underneath the ropes. It’s Titus going back in to face off with Strowman on his own…and then changing his mind. Back with everyone going after Strowman and a kick to the face putting him through the ropes. A shot with the steps drops Strowman but he’s just in the timekeeper’s area. O’Neil kicks Anderson out of the air and Dawson takes the Clash of the Titus.

The Revival is eliminated and it’s hard to tell how many people are left. Strowman comes back in and gets rid of Titus and Gallows. A powerslam each takes out the Miztourage and we’re down to Strowman and Anderson. A dropkick to Strowman’s knee slows him down and some low superkicks keep him in trouble. The third kick is shoved away though and, with a shout of I’M GOING TO WRESTLEMANIA, Strowman tosses him out to win at 11:02.

Rating: D. It’s a cool idea but this was way too confusing with people being sent outside over and over to the point where I was having trouble remembering who was in the match at times. Strowman needed something to do though and this is about as good of an idea as they had. Him winning a handicap match could be fun, though it’s quite the downgrade after what he’s been doing in recent months.

The announcers aren’t sure if this is legal to end the show.

Overall Rating: C+. The show did what it needed to do as far as setting up more stuff for Wrestlemania, but there are some questionable choices here. The Undertaker vs. Cena match is going to divide fans no matter how it goes. I don’t want to see it, but I easily get why people do want it to happen. Strowman in the Tag Team Title match…..it’s something for him to do, but not exactly worthy of his year. The Nia/Bliss stuff was very good and the rest of the stories were advanced well. It feels like we’re rushing through everything though and that’s going to cause a problem with so little TV time left.

Results

Sasha Banks b. Sonya Deville – Bank Statement

Finn Balor b. Seth Rollins – Small package

Asuka b. Mickie James – Asuka Lock

Nia Jax b. Joan King – Samoan drop

Braun Strowman won a tag team battle royal last eliminating Karl Anderson

Remember to check out my new forum at steelcageforums.com, follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and pick up the 2018 Updated Version of the History of the WWE Championship in e-book or paperback. Check out the information here:

http://kbwrestlingreviews.com/2018/01/26/new-book-kbs-history-of-the-wwe-championship-2018-updated-version/

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

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

IMG Credit: WWE

Fastlane 2018
Date: March 11, 2018
Location: Nationwide Arena, Columbus, Ohio
Commentators: Tom Phillips, Byron Saxton, Corey Graves

So this is a thing that exists for reasons that I don’t quite grasp. With four weeks to go before Wrestlemania, we have this stop for the final Smackdown pay per view before the big show. The main event is a Six Pack Challenge for the Smackdown World Title as there was no other way to break things up and add another match to a six match card. Let’s get to it.

Here’s this week’s Smackdown if you need a recap.

Kickoff Show: Tye Dillinger/Breezango vs. Mojo Rawley/Chad Gable/Shelton Benjamin

Gable throws Breeze down to start and calls him a joke. Just don’t insult his shoes. Fandango comes in and puts on some amateur wrestling headgear, allowing Gable to take him down as well. It’s back to Breeze so Gable drops down to give him a shot. Breeze rides him like a horse and the good guys clear the ring in short order. Gable comes back in with a hard monkey flip and we go to an early break.

Back with Shelton working on Breeze’s arm before it’s off to Gable for some shots to the face. Another armbar sets up an overhead belly to belly for two with Fandango making the save. Mojo takes over on Tyler and knocks Fandango into the barricade but a hot tag brings in Tye. Dillinger comes in and cleans house as everything breaks down. Gable rolls Tye up (in what seemed to be an incomplete Rolling Chaos Theory) for two but Breeze is right there with the Beauty Shot. Tye superkicks Rawley and hits his one kneed Codebreaker for the pin at 7:26.

Rating: C+. I liked this one better than most Kickoff Show matches I can remember seeing. They were actually trying to put in some effort out there, mainly in hope of getting some attention on Smackdown. It’s not like anyone has paid attention to them in recent weeks because of the Six Pack Challenge eating up the time, so hopefully a hot match helps things out a bit.

The opening video looks at Wrestlemania with tonight being the last chance to get there. Especially if you’re John Cena you see. Every match gets a little time here, which isn’t that hard to do.

Shinsuke Nakamura vs. Rusev

Aiden English is back to sing Rusev to the ring. Rusev wristlocks him to start and actually works on an armbar for a bit. A shot to the face staggers Rusev but he avoids the big kick to the head. Instead a knee drop gives Nakamura two as the announcers discuss a potential Nakamura day.

Nakamura has to spin out of another wristlock as this is far more technical than you might have expected. A little dance sets up COME ON but Rusev rolls outside to cut off the momentum. I always wanted someone to do that to Hogan back in the day. Nakamura follows him out this time and it’s a knee to the back of the neck to rock Rusev. A hard drive into the barricade cuts Nakamura off though and it’s time to start in on the back.

Rusev gets caught in a quick heel hook but is right back up and working on the back again. Nakamura shrugs them off again and slaps on a guillotine but gets caught in a fall away slam. They trade missed kicks until Kinshasa misses. Instead it’s Nakamura slipping out of the Accolade, followed by the kick to the head. The Machka Kick gets two, only to have Nakamura hit Kinshasa for the pin at 14:51.

Rating: B. They were beating the heck out of each other here and it was actually a heck of a match. This is the kind of thing that Nakamura has been needing: to beat someone with a resume in a competitive, hard hitting match. Why have we been stuck with video packages when this is what we could be seeing? That makes no sense but it’s all they’ve been doing as of late. Better late than never with this, but this needs to be happening every week now.

We recap the US Title match. There isn’t much to this one: Bobby Roode is champion, Randy Orton has never held the title and Jinder Mahal is lurking around for whatever reason.

US Title: Randy Orton vs. Bobby Roode

Roode is defending and we get Big Match Intros. They fight over a wristlock to start (FIND SOMETHING NEW ALREADY) and Roode throws him into the corner, setting up the GLORIOUS pose. That just earns Roode an elbow to the face and we hit that RKO chant. They trade some hard shots to the face/chest until the threat of an RKO sends Roode bailing to the floor.

With Mahal watching in the back, Orton drapes Roode ribs first over the ropes for two. Roode kicks him away though and grabs a chinlock for quite a bit of spot calling. Roode’s ribs won’t let him hit a suplex so Orton gives him one instead. A neckbreaker is more Roode’s speed and he follows up with a top rope clothesline. The Glorious DDT is reversed into a rollup for two and Roode needs a breather.

Roode scores with a Blockbuster for two but the ribs are banged up all over again. There’s the hanging DDT to keep the back and forth style going but neither can hit a finisher. They head outside with Roode being dropped back first onto the barricade (you can’t say Orton doesn’t have a target) and that means it’s time for the superplex. Roode is ready though (could be due to every Orton ever using that move) and reverses into a sunset powerbomb for a big crash.

This time it’s Roode going up top and getting crotched back down, meaning the superplex works on the second attempt. Roode kicks out again so it’s time for the slower paced punches. The Glorious DDT doesn’t work so Roode goes with the spinebuster for two instead. With nothing else working, Roode goes up top….and dives right into the RKO to give Orton the pin and the title at 19:30.

Rating: B. This was better than I would have bet on, though I’m not looking forward to the triple threat match next month. I’m assuming this is all designed to push Mahal because something about India (because it worked SO well last year) or just to get another multi-man match at Wrestlemania. At least we got one good singles match though and now we can move on to the REAL wrestling that fans want to see.

Post match Jinder Mahal comes down and jumps Randy but Roode gives them both Glorious DDT’s. So yeah, we really are getting that triple threat at Wrestlemania. Why? No idea really but WWE loves its triple threats and its Jinder Mahal so there’s no way around it.

Here’s a long recap on HHH/Stephanie McMahon vs. Kurt Angle/Ronda Rousey to fill in some time.

Kevin Owens yells at Sami Zayn for not laying down on Tuesday but Sami only meant he’d do it here. Everything is fine.

Natalya/Carmella vs. Naomi/Becky Lynch

This was added to the show on Tuesday. Becky rolls Carmella up to start but can’t get an early Disarm-Her. It’s off to Naomi and Natalya with the former kicking Natalya down for two. Carmella comes in and sends Naomi into the corner before rubbing her face into the mat. Carmella: “FEEL THE GLOW!” We hit the chinlock as the announcers tease Carmella cashing in Money in the Bank tonight. With that chinlock having run its course, Natalya comes in for one of her own.

Carmella grabs Naomi’s ponytail and pulls it over the ropes, followed by a running knee to the head. Naomi backflips out of a belly to back suplex though and the hot tag brings in Becky (who happens to be wearing flame attire so the hot tag fits well). Everything breaks down and Natalya tries to bring in the briefcase. The distraction only kind of works though as Becky drops her with a right hand but Carmella superkicks her for the pin at 8:50.

Rating: D+. Well at least there’s something to giving Carmella some momentum heading into the cash-in, which very well may come at Wrestlemania. This was pure filler though and there’s not much hiding it given how fast the match was set up. I do like getting the women on the show though and it’s nice to have them actually doing something other than just having the title on the line.

New Day auditions to host next year’s Kids’ Choice Awards, capped off by getting slimed.

We recap the Usos vs. New Day. They had a great feud last year and capped it off with their final match but since the tag division has all of four teams, we’re back to it again. This time the Usos are obsessed with getting a Wrestlemania match because the Kickoff Shows don’t matter.

Tag Team Titles: Usos vs. New Day

New Day, comprised of Kofi Kingston and Xavier Woods this time, are challenging. An early blind tag sets up a shot to drop Woods in short order (at least it wasn’t a wristlock) and New Day is in trouble. The champs do their own version of the Unicorn Stampede and Graves won’t have Saxton interfering in his analysis.

Woods rolls over and brings in Kofi for a Boom Drop but Trouble in Paradise is caught in the air. A running Umaga Attack rocks Jey in the corner so it’s Jimmy coming in with a pop up Samoan drop. Jimmy hits his own Boom Drop as they’re certainly doing something different here. A Midnight Hour gets two on Kofi and things settle back down. Jimmy misses a corner splash and the hot tag brings in Woods.

This time it’s the Usos being knocked around, allowing Kofi to get two off a Superfly Splash. Jimmy saves his brother from the double Superfly Splash (that would be the next step) and it’s a BIG double dive onto New Day. Everyone is down….so here are the Bludgeon Brothers to attack all four for a no contest at 9:07.

Rating: B-. Give this an ending and it’s another instant classic. They were starting to roll here and actually had a fresh idea for the match, which I never would have thought coming into this. I mean, of course it’s designed to set up another triple threat match because that’s what we do around here, but at least we got most of a good match here.

Post match, destruction ensues as we set up another triple threat at Wrestlemania. The Usos are both crushed with Rowan slamming Harper onto them both and a double splash. Woods gets powerbombed onto the steps to knock him cold.

Long video on Roman Reigns vs. Brock Lesnar. You have to get to that overrun somehow.

AJ Styles is ready to make the impossible phenomenal again but Nakamura interrupts. They’re ready for each other at Wrestlemania.

New Day and the Usos are still being taken out of the arena.

We recap Charlotte vs. Ruby Riott. Ruby debuted a few months back with the Riott Squad and wants to prove that Charlotte’s greatness is just a myth. She’s defeated most of the other women and now just the champ is left. This has been a much better build than you get most of the time because it makes sense: Ruby wants the title and has won a bunch of matches to get the shot. Why is that so complicated?

Women’s Title: Charlotte vs. Ruby Riott

Riott is challenging. They both try an early finisher before going to the standard wristlock. Charlotte takes over with the power but here’s the Riott Squad for a distraction. A quick Riott Kick gives Ruby two and Charlotte is sent outside. Cue Becky and Naomi for backup to cut off the Squad, allowing Charlotte to score with a slingshot suplex (with Graves crediting it to Uncle Tully).

Riott drops her again though and falls off the middle rope (on purpose) onto the champ. We’re off to the chinlock for a good while but another falling splash hits Charlotte’s knees. Charlotte loads up the moonsault but gets shoved outside. Ruby follows her so Charlotte goes with (and mostly misses) the moonsault off the barricade instead. Back in and a hurricanrana takes Charlotte down but she bails into the corner.

The Squad teases interfering so Becky and Naomi get in, meaning a quadruple ejection. Ruby gets two off a small package but gets caught in an electric chair. Instead of dropping her back though, Charlotte whips her face first into the turnbuckle. A spear into the Figure Eight retains the title at 13:38.

Rating: C+. This was all it needed to be: Riott coming close but losing in the end. With Asuka vs. Charlotte all but set for Wrestlemania, what would the point be in having a surprise title change here? Riott looked good in defeat and the match was rather entertaining, although I could have gone without having the other four interfere. Sometimes one on one is ok, which WWE doesn’t seem to comprehend.

Post match Charlotte is celebrating when Asuka interrupts. She motions that she wants the title and points to the sign. Works for me.

Trailer for the Andre the Giant documentary.

We recap the Smackdown World Title match. AJ wants to go to Wrestlemania and a bunch of people want the title as well. Sami Zayn has volunteered to lay down for Kevin Owens, who deserves to be champion. John Cena needs a path to Wrestlemania and this is his LAST way to get there. Or something.

Smackdown World Title: John Cena vs. Baron Corbin vs. AJ Styles, Sami Zayn vs. Kevin Owens vs. Dolph Ziggler

Styles is defending, Commissioner Shane McMahon is at ringside and it’s one fall to a finish. We hit the Big Match Intros and Cena gives everyone not named Styles (or in a referee shirt) an AA in about thirty seconds. Cena and Styles slug it out with AJ flipping out of an AA attempt. The Clash is countered into another failed AA so Styles gets to the apron. Everyone is back up and circles Cena, who suddenly gets the idea.

Cena is sent outside and the other five are left to brawl on their own. AJ and Owens are left inside and it’s Styles planting him face first to take over. Corbin comes back in and we’re firmly in the rapid fire replacements as AJ keeps clearing them out. It’s Owens finally getting in a shot to the head and knocking Styles outside. Cena is back in but Ziggler cuts him off with a DDT.

Owens frog splashes Ziggler for two and Styles has to run in with a save. Styles strikes away at Owens and hits the Pele but it’s too early for the Styles Clash. There’s a chokebreaker to Owens as we hit the parade of secondary finishers. The AA is countered into a Fameasser for two on Ziggler and AJ has to break up the STF. Cena gets caught in the Styles Clash for two with Sami making a save this time around.

Corbin punches Sami out of the air to break up a springboard and the Dream Crusher (that sliding clothesline) takes Owens down. Since there are too many people in the match, Corbin and Ziggler fight into the crowd and are thrown through some hockey boards. Back at ringside, Owens loads up the announcers’ table but gets kicked in the head. AJ clotheslines Sami into the timekeeper’s area but Cena AA’s AJ through another table.

Back in and Kevin sends Cena to the floor, leaving the Sami vs. Kevin showdown. Sami says he’s a man of his word and takes forever to lay down. Kevin isn’t sure what to do but has to kick out of the surprise rollup. The fight is on and Shane seems pleased so Sami yells at him and Kevin superkicks the boss. Sami dives through the ropes for the tornado DDT on Owens and everyone is down.

There’s the Pop Up Powerbomb to Ziggler but Shane pulls the referee out at two. A Helluva Kick gets the same on Owens with Shane making another save. Corbin is back up with some steps to Cena’s head but Cena takes them away and decks Cena with them instead. An AA onto the steps gets two with Ziggler diving in for the save this time around. The superkick to Cena is no sold and there’s an AA to Ziggler. Owens gives Cena the Pop Up Powerbomb but Styles comes in with the Phenomenal Forearm to pin Kevin at 20:57.

Rating: B+. Yeah it was a lot of fun, and much better than the one they did on Tuesday. You know, the one that was almost this match but with nothing on the line. They also benefited from focusing on other stuff besides the drama of a new champion, which clearly wasn’t in the cards tonight. This was more in the vein of sit back and enjoy and that’s where they should have gone. I still don’t like this as the way they went, but at least it was really fun.

Shane shakes his head and Cena sits in the corner because that’s still a thing. AJ looks at the sign to end the show.

Overall Rating: A-. Honestly, as much as I complained about not caring for the show coming in, the rating doesn’t surprise me. WWE has a tendency to knock it out of the park with the least interesting shows and that’s what they did here. This was a blast (no overrun, thank goodness) and had a bunch of fun stuff. Some stuff was set up for Wrestlemania (the most important thing) but overall, just a fun night of wrestling. Great show, even if it didn’t mean anything in the long run.

Results

Shinsuke Nakamura b. Rusev – Kinshasa

Randy Orton b. Bobby Roode – RKO

Carmella/Natalya b. Naomi/Becky Lynch – Superkick to Natalya

Usos vs. New Day went to a no contest when the Bludgeon Brothers interfered

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and pick up the 2018 Updated Version of the History of the WWE Championship in e-book or paperback. Check out the information here:

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IMG Credit: WWE

Smackdown
Date: October 9, 2003
Location: Hartford Civic Center, Hartford, Connecticut
Commentators: Michael Cole, Tazz

With less than two weeks to No Mercy, the question becomes how can we find more time to talk about Vince and Stephanie. That story dominated last week’s show and has done so for months now. At least we’re heading towards their pay per view blowoff and that means we might be free soon enough. Let’s get to it.

Here’s last week’s show if you need a recap.

We open with a recap of last week’s Vince/Stephanie segment with Vince demanding that she quit (again) and Stephanie saying no (again) and getting in a fight with Sable (again).

Opening sequence.

Here’s Linda McMahon with the always awesome old school Wrestlemania theme music. She knows people are used to the McMahon Family drama but then Shane wrecked a limo with Kane inside. The week before that, Vince slammed Stephanie in the middle of this ring. Now there’s an I Quit match at No Mercy so maybe she can talk some sense into Stephanie. You know you can’t let Stephanie have that much attention without her being here in person so here she is.

She’s not going to back down and let Vince win….so here’s Vince because of course we need all of them out here. Vince talks about giving Stephanie a chance to get out of this match last week but now he wouldn’t let her out of it if she got on her knees and begged her. She’s made him brutalize her but he’ll do it with a clear conscience. His soul will be cleansed because he’s being forced to do it, just like Linda forced him to sire a second child. Linda says this match isn’t fair and asks what Vince is putting up. After a little goading, Vince puts up his Chairman spot to even things up.

We’re still not done though as Sable comes out with Vince calling her voluptuous. He introduces her to Linda and Sable rubs his chest while announcing she’ll be in Vince’s corner at No Mercy. Linda isn’t surprised because Sable will offer her services to anyone. Sable slaps Linda so Stephanie jumps her, only to get clotheslined by Vince. That’s your fifteen minute opening, because last year’s great wrestling show needed to be turned into the McMahon Variety Show.

Ultimo Dragon vs. Tajiri

Non-title and Rey Mysterio, announced as the #1 contender for No Mercy, is on commentary. Tajiri grabs a wristlock to start but the handspring elbow is broken up with a kick to the back. The Asai moonsault mostly misses and they head back inside. Dragon grabs a tilt-a-whirl backbreaker but Tajiri hits a Michinoku Driver for two of his own. The Tarantula is broken up and Rey talks about using these same counters. Makes sense. Not that it matters as the Buzzsaw kick ends Dragon in short order.

Rating: C-. Nothing wrong with this one as Tajiri gets some momentum heading into the title match. I liked Rey actually talking about what he could get out of doing commentary as most of the time it’s just a way to advance a story. You can do that after the match while also making it seem like there’s a reason to be out there in the first place. I’m still not sure what happened to Dragon though, as he came in and never even got warmed up before being turned into this.

Post match Tajiri kicks Dragon again, drawing Rey in for a 619.

Stephanie has big news: LINDA will be in her corner at No Mercy! That’s so lame I can’t even bother to make fun of it.

Undertaker comes out for a match but first he promises to break Lesnar at No Mercy. Vince is about to send the FBI out here to soften him up but he hasn’t come alone. Undertaker wants us to meet his best friend and pulls out a chain.

Undertaker vs. Chuck Palumbo

Yes the FBI still exists. Undertaker wastes no time in throwing Chuck around and hits an early Old School. Nunzio offers a distraction so Chuck can get in a few shots, only to miss a charge into the post. Another distraction lets Palumbo try a superkick, which is countered into the chokeslam for a fast pin.

Post match Lesnar comes in but Undertaker cleans house with the chain.

Paul London interrupts Vince and Sable and can’t get a handshake from the boss. He can however get a title match with Lesnar tonight. Didn’t we do this with Spanky earlier this year?

Big Show shoves a burrito into the face of some guy at catering.

Zach Gowen is back. Egads good for him.

Big Show vs. Orlando Jordan

Rematch from last week when Show’s burritos gave him some issues. The announcers discuss Show’s body fat as he throws Jordan around with ease. A dropkick to the back annoys Show so much that he clotheslines Jordan’s head off. Show boots him in the face and finishes with a chokeslam in short order.

In the back, Eddie says of course he’s nervous about Big Show chasing after him. The thing is, he has some cousins around here and if Show does get some revenge, it’s going to be a very stinky situation. Eddie compares this to Jack and the Beanstalk but Big Show jumps him and kicks the heck out of Eddie’s ribs.

We look at John Cena using a chain to beat Kurt Angle last week.

Tazz is emceeing a battle rap between Angle and Cena. It’s Cena out first to say Angle has less street cred than Michael Cole. Now those are fighting words. Cole: “I’ve got some street cred!” After Angle comes out, Cena goes first and raps his usual string of insults: Angle couldn’t win a bronze in the Special Olympics, he has no testicles, and….something that Angle cuts him off which sounded like foul language.

Angle praises the rapping skills and tells a story in rhyme, talking about how Cena thinks he’s black, threatening Cena if he uses the chain again (or a-gain as the story goes) and promising to make Cena tap. That’s enough for the fight to be on until Cena hits him with the mic. Cena gets in a few kicks tot he ribs but Angle rolls some German suplexes. The thread of an ankle lock sends Cena bailing. Fine segment, though it was no “I’m just a sexy Kurt, I’ll make your ankle hurt!”

Video on Zach Gowen.

Zach Gowen vs. Shannon Moore

Matt Hardy, who is not afraid to eat alone in public and likes portabella mushrooms, is on commentary. Moore puts him on top and gets kicked in the face, followed by another kick for two. Matt: “I may be going out on a limb here, one limb in particular, but Zach Gowen doesn’t impress me as a wrestler.” A suplex into the corner takes Gowen down and it’s off to a chinlock.

Back up and a springboard kick to the face drops Moore, followed by a swinging neckbreaker. Hardy offers a distraction and Moore gets two off a rollup. Gowen grabs a DDT but Matt shoves Gowen off the top (the referee seems fine with the idea that Gowen just dove down onto his back for no apparent reason), setting up Shannon’s running flip neckbreaker for the pin.

Rating: D. And that’s a Zach Gowen match: he does fairly impressive moves and the announcers talk about how amazing it is. It still has the exact same problem as always though: if you’ve seen it once, there’s not much appeal to seeing it again. Now that I’ve seen it for several months now, I’m really over it as the action is nothing above an independent level and the commentary beating the idea into my head gets really old.

Undertaker leaves Stephanie’s office and laughs.

No Mercy rundown. The card isn’t too bad but that double main event is death.

We recap the opening segment and Linda sneering still isn’t intimidating.

Chris Benoit/APA vs. Basham Brothers/A-Train

Hang on a second as the Bashams chair the APA down, leaving Faarooq down in the aisle and making this a handicap match. This must be the start of transitioning Faarooq out as it’s the second time in a few weeks where Bradshaw has wrestled and Faarooq hasn’t for one reason or another.

The double teaming is on with Bradshaw getting taken apart, including a Vader Bomb from A-Train as Faarooq is taken out. Danny grabs a chinlock but A-Train misses another splash, allowing the hot tag to Benoit. A-Train takes a German suplex and the Sharpshooter makes Danny tap but he’s not legal. The referee says no and it’s A-Train hitting the Derailer for the pin.

Rating: D+. I know I’ve said this a lot tonight but that’s another match where it went as you would expect. A-Train pinning Benoit when he had an advantage was fine, but it’s still setting up A-Train vs. Benoit on pay per view. This also seems to be setting up Bradshaw’s singles run and….egads.

Smackdown World Title: Brock Lesnar vs. Paul London

Paul, who is challenging, doesn’t even get an entrance. Brock actually says he respects London for coming out here but gets cut off by the YOU TAPPED OUT chants. He offers London a chance to look at the title, which he might get to hold himself one day. London does touch is and gets a hard clothesline as the beating begins in a hurry. Powerslams and a powerbomb set up the F5 to destroy London in less than ninety seconds. In case you didn’t get the idea when he did this to Gowen and Spanky earlier this year.

Post match Brock loads up the F5 into the post but Spanky runs out for the failed save attempt. Lesnar throws him back first into the post for a great looking bump. Cue Undertaker to say Stephanie has made their match at No Mercy a biker chain match. That’s all we hear and the announcers are left wondering what the heck that is. Good thing Undertaker decided he liked chains earlier in the night.

We look back at Big Show attacking Eddie earlier.

Chavo Guerrero leaves the trainer’s room and says Eddie is pretty banged up. He’s going to call Big Show out.

Post break Chavo is in the ring calling Show out. Here’s Show in a suit to say he’s hitting the town. Oh dear I’m scared of where this is going. Chavo says he’s chicken and that’s actually enough to get a match started. Who knew Big Show was a Marty McFly fan?

Big Show vs. Chavo Guerrero Jr.

Chavo rolls outside and it’s a countout at about forty five seconds.

Chavo isn’t done as he waves a sewage truck out with Eddie riding on the back. For some reason, Big Show stands in the ring which Eddie talks about his cousin bringing this truck to the arena. Eddie talks about the hose on the truck that you put in the ground to pull out all the….well you know. He’s going to spray it on Show, who FINALLY gets out of the ring and runs away, only to trip over a cord. Eddie sprays him down a few times and Big Show falls down multiple times to end the show. Counting the stuff before the break, this was the last fifteen minutes of the show.

Overall Rating: D-. Oh man that was awful. The show started with a fifteen minute McMahon summit and then ended with a fifteen minute segment built around spraying Big Show with human waste. In between, there was something about Undertaker discovering a love of chains, a battle rap, and some short squashes. That’s how they’re going to make us want to see a pay per view featuring the battling McMahons and something called a biker chain match. This was a total misfire and one of the worst Smackdowns I can ever remember.

Remember to check out my new forum at steelcageforums.com, follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and pick up the 2018 Updated Version of the History of the WWE Championship in e-book or paperback. Check out the information here:

http://kbwrestlingreviews.com/2018/01/26/new-book-kbs-history-of-the-wwe-championship-2018-updated-version/

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

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

IMG Credit: WWE

It’s almost the middle of March and for some reason we’re talking about a pay per view that isn’t Wrestlemania. Due to the calendar going the way it’s set up, we have a “Smackdown Live” pay per view to get through, leaving us four weeks to get ready for “Wrestlemania XXXIV”. WWE hasn’t exactly done much to make this show look good, but of course we have to deal with it as well. Therefore, “Fastlane 2018” comes off more as something that we have to do rather than something I’m likely to enjoy. Let’s get to it.

Here’s last week’s Smackdown if you need a recap.

Tag Team Titles: Usos(c) vs. New Day

I know this seems like little more than a way to fill in time before the Bludgeon Brothers take the titles but at least we should be having a great match on the way in. These teams have some of the best chemistry in WWE today and their previous matches have been nothing short of outstanding. I could go for watching these teams for days and thankfully they’ve taken some time off so the feud doesn’t get stale.

I’m going to take the Usos to win here, as the New Day just doesn’t need to win the titles. Above all else though, they’re better opponents for the Bludgeon Brothers down the line. They’re tailor made to get in the Brothers’ faces and then get beaten later on. New Day would make the team too much of a joke and that’s not the way you want to go with a team like the Bludgeon Brothers. Either way, great match, which is exactly why you put these four together.

Becky Lynch/Naomi vs. Carmella/Natalya

This is a match that was tacked on to the card earlier this week and I’m really not sure what the purpose is, aside from reminding us that Carmella and her Money in the Bank briefcase exist. Carmella hasn’t been much of a factor in recent weeks and this match doesn’t feel like the biggest deal in the world. At least it’s going to fill in some time though and we’re at a point where you can trust these four to give you ten minutes of good to quite good action.

I’ll take Lynch and Naomi for the win here as there’s not much of a point to the match. Odds are this goes on after Usos vs. New Day for the sake of letting the fans cool down a bit before the main event. Natalya is going to be fine for a spot here and Lynch/Naomi are both great at firing up the crowd. Carmella is a good character and passable in the ring so the match should be fine, albeit nothing worth remembering.

Shinsuke Nakamura vs. Rusev

Here’s the second match that was added to the pay per view on this week’s “Smackdown Live” and that’s not the best thing in the world. Nakamura is coming up on a Smackdown World Title match at “Wrestlemania XXXIV” and for some reason this is his highest profile match since winning the Royal Rumble over a month ago. It’s like they’ve forgotten about him for some reason. Speaking of forgotten about, I won’t even bother getting into the rant about how Rusev has been treated like an afterthought since striking gold with Rusev Day.

Of course Nakamura wins here and there’s not much of a doubt about that whatsoever. Nakamura is just a bigger deal and Rusev is glorified cannon fodder for him at the moment. Let Nakamura get a big win (well, biggish) under his belt before he goes after AJ Styles and the title. He should be against a bigger name but take what he can get here, which is a sad thing to say about the #1 contender.

US Title: Bobby Roode(c) vs. Randy Orton

Now this one I’m not sure about. In theory this is designed to set up another match down the line with Jinder Mahal added to the mix (save us now) but at the moment, it’s just a solo effort. Roode is starting to find his groove as the champion but at the end of the day, Orton is Orton. They’re playing up the idea that Orton has never won the title, though the question is whether that’s enough to change things here.

I’m thinking no, as I’m expecting Mahal to interfere and cost Orton the match. Orton complains and a triple threat rematch is made for “Wrestlemania”. This isn’t exactly thrilling stuff as there’s little reason for Roode to want to face Orton, though at least Orton has a reason to go after the title. This could be a pleasant surprise, but it completely depends on which Orton shows up.

Women’s Title: Charlotte(c) vs. Ruby Riott

While I don’t see the ending as being in doubt, this one intrigues me quite a bit. This match is going to be a way to test Riott’s abilities in a big match and that could open some doors for her in the future. Charlotte is capable of having some of the best matches with anyone and it would be nice to see what she can get out of Riott.

Of course I’m going with Charlotte to retain here as most signs seem to point towards her defending against Asuka at “Wrestlemania”. This can be a nice tuneup for the champ before she heads to New Orleans, but again I’m more interested in Riott here. She’s done well on the mic and her matches have been better, so it should be interesting to give her a shot on a much bigger stage against a better opponent. Maybe she can make something of it and if that’s the case, well done.

Smackdown World Title: AJ Styles(c) vs. Sami Zayn vs. Kevin Owens vs. Baron Corbin vs. Dolph Ziggler vs. John Cena

If one match sums up every problem that I have with WWE’s booking in one long list of names, this is it. Instead of writing up a more interesting story or having two of these people in a singles match with a feud of their own or even having one of them face Nakamura, everyone is thrown into one mess of a match. Why have creative be creative when you can have them be, well, not creative?

Styles retains here, but the more interesting question is what happens to everyone else. You can almost guarantee Owens and Zayn having issues that are going to lead to something between the two of them, but the others are all just kind of there. Cena won’t be going to “Wrestlemania” because this is his LAST option (until a gong sounds of course) and that really leaves Styles as the best option (Ziggler and Corbin winning is laughable). This is all about Styles winning and a lack of effort otherwise, but that’s a rant for another time.

Overall Thoughts

I think I’ve made my take on this show pretty clear already. A week or so ago I dubbed this show Speed Bump because it’s slowing things down instead of moving us forward to something actually worthwhile. There’s some stuff on this show that interests me but at the same time, the show feels like something we’re getting through rather than something worth watching. I just want to get it done and move on to something actually worthwhile, like Wrestlemania for example.

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and pick up the 2018 Updated Version of the History of the WWE Championship in e-book or paperback. Check out the information here:

http://kbwrestlingreviews.com/2018/01/26/new-book-kbs-history-of-the-wwe-championship-2018-updated-version/

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: October 2, 2003
Location: Bradley Center, Milwaukee, Wisconsin
Commentators: Michael Cole, Tazz

Somehow we’re less than three weeks away from No Mercy but as luck would have it we already have a double main event. In this case it’s Vince McMahon vs. his daughter Stephanie in an I Quit match and Brock Lesnar defending the Smackdown World Title against Undertaker. This isn’t exactly the most thrilling stuff in the world but guess which one is going to get the most attention. Let’s get to it.

Here’s last week’s show if you need a recap.

Opening sequence, still including Sean O’Haire. I don’t remember the last time he was even on this show.

US Title: Eddie Guerrero vs. Matt Hardy

Matt, who has had four speeding tickets but gotten out of over twenty of them, is challenging. Eddie is ticked off at Matt for injuring his ribs last week so the stomping is on in a hurry. A shoulder puts Matt down but bangs up Eddie’s ribs all over again. Eddie gets dropped ribs first onto the top rope and Matt starts in like a villain should.

Matt plants him with a powerbomb for two and the Side Effect gets the same. A bow and arrow hold is countered into a neckbreaker and Eddie gets a breather. Three Amigos connect as Tazz is talking about Mexican hockey teams. Matt is ready for the frog splash though and brings Eddie down with a superplex.

A neckbreaker cuts Eddie down again but Matt would rather distract Chavo, allowing Shannon to come in with a title. This is what happens when you let lackeys run wild. Naturally Eddie takes it away and throws the title to Matt while feigning innocence. The referee gets rid of that belt but Chavo hits Matt with the other one because cheating is a family business. The frog splash retains the title.

Rating: C+. The endings might be a bit unoriginal but you try turning down that grin. Eddie had so much charisma that it’s almost impossible to not like him at least on some level and that’s what worked so well here. I could watch Eddie do this stuff for hours and the wrestling working so well helped too. Eddie has been the best thing about the last several shows and I don’t see that changing anytime soon.

Video on Wrestlemania tickets going on sale.

John Cena got annoyed at Josh Matthews for talking about “dope rhymes”. Tonight, Cena puts Angle in his shadow.

Eddie and Chavo run into Big Show and ask him about him attacking Eddie last week. Show doesn’t like “Eddie’s kind”, but he does like Mexican food. He shoves Eddie down and Chavo isn’t happy with the lack of Latino heat. Eddie is going to take care of this Guerrero style.

APA vs. Basham Brothers

It’s a brawl to start and of course the APA gets the better of it, easily clearing out the ring. Faarooq beats both of them up on his own before it’s off to Bradshaw for chops and a Last Call on Doug. Shaniqua offers a distraction though and Danny posts Bradshaw to take over. As usual, Shaniqua comes off like the star of the team, completely defeating the purpose of her being out there. Bradshaw suplexes his way out of a chinlock and it’s back to Faarooq for the house cleaning. The referee gets bumped (In this match?) so Shaniqua kicks Bradshaw in the face, leaving Faarooq to take the Ball and Gag for the pin.

Rating: D. Again, I’d like to point out that I’m supposed to be interested in a team whose finishing move is called the Ball and Gag. There are times where a gimmick is going to kill yo before you can do anything else and that’s what’s happened with the Bashams. I have no idea why they spent so much time down in developmental to be given this treatment on the main roster, but it shows the disconnect between the two places.

Post match, Bradshaw hits Shaniqua with the Clothesline. Again: she’s treated like a more important deal than the team she’s managing.

Chris Benoit vs. Charlie Haas

A-Train is on commentary. As you might expect, it’s a grappling exchange to start with neither being able to get much of an advantage on the mat. Charlie’s hammerlock is reversed into a wristlock as A-Train rants about Benoit not being able to get him in the Crossface. Benoit headlocks him down and does it again when Charlie tries to get up. It’s too early for the Crossface though and Benoit is sent outside.

A-Train actually does something by offering a distraction, allowing Haas to baseball slide Benoit down. Haas starts in on the ribs with a gutbuster before a clothesline gets two. Something like an abdominal stretch with Benoit on the mat keeps the ribs in trouble as A-Train continues to have nothing interesting to say. Some kicks to the ribs set up a normal standard abdominal stretch as Benoit just can’t get anything going.

A single German suplex rocks Charlie but he takes Benoit right back down to continue the wrestling clinic. Benoit finally gets in a clothesline and the release German suplex is good for two. Haas is right back with a suplex of his own, dropping Benoit on his head in a scary landing. Not that it matters as Benoit slaps on the Crossface, drawing A-Train in for the DQ.

Rating: C+. Haas is someone who sticks to a game plan very well as his finisher works the ribs so he beats on the opponent’s ribs for the entire match. What’s not all well and good is A-Train talking. He looks like a monster and wrestles a monster style, but egads he doesn’t need to be out there talking. It’s just not something he’s good at and him saying these really lame limes for the whole match didn’t make me want to see them fight. Stick to what people are good at and stop trying to wedge them into places where they don’t fit.

Post match A-Train puts Benoit in a Crossface of his own.

Here are Vince and Sable for their weekly segment as Cole tries to explain why Vince vs. Stephanie is still going. Tazz thinks it’s all a way to get Stephanie to quit. What gave you that idea Tazz? All the times where he ordered her to quit? Vince talks about everyone needing an opportunity to be forgiven for making a mistake, which brings him to Stephanie. She needs to reverse her decision to have Brock Lesnar defend the title against Undertaker and then quit immediately.

Cue Stephanie (nearly falling out of her top the entire way) to say she won’t do either of those things. Vince ups the ante for No Mercy: when she quits, she’s out of a job too. Stephanie almost begs him not to make the match but Vince goes into a rant about how Stephanie is throwing away all the years of their relationship. He calls what she’s doing defiance and Stephanie starts getting what she considers emotional.

Sable reminds Vince of what he called Stephanie last week so Stephanie tells her to go lay on her back in the men’s locker room like she does best. The catfight is on until Vince slams Stephanie, who starts crying. Undertaker comes out for the save and kicks fellow invader Brock Lesnar in the face as more crying ensues.

So quick recap of this story: we’re supposed to be on the side of and feel sympathy for the rather good looking (and surgically enhanced) millionaire heiress who is being told to quit her vanity job by the father who caused her to be a millionaire heiress in the first place? Oh and after EVERYTHING that Vince has done to people over the years (and that Stephanie has done to people over the years for that matter), a single slam is supposed to be this big, devastating moment? And this is their best idea?

A very stereotypical Mexican delivery guy (complete with a brightly colored blanket and a sombrero with MEXICO written on it) shouts about a delivery of burritos for Eddie. Big Show intercepts them and eats one before spitting in another, which is especially for Eddie. The delivery guy has no issue with any of this.

Cruiserweight Title: Billy Kidman vs. Tajiri

Tajiri is defending. Kidman accidentally runs into the referee to start (not something you see very often) but manages to hurricanrana the champ out to the floor. That means a big dive as things are starting fast. Back in and Kidman’s slingshot is countered with a kick to the shoulder and Tajiri takes over. Tajiri starts in on the arm with a hammerlock and some knees as Tazz talks about the importance of intensity.

Another kick to the shoulder set s up another hammerlock as this isn’t exactly what you would expect from Tajiri. Kidman comes back with an enziguri for two but Tajiri kicks him out of the air (that’s more like it) to take Kidman down again. The BK Bomb gets two and Kidman ducks the Buzzsaw Kick, only to get caught with a low blow. Now the Buzzsaw Kick connects to retain the title.

Rating: C. The arm work was a nice change for Tajiri and it made for a fun match. The cruiserweight division isn’t the most interesting in the world right now but at least the talent still around is putting on some good to very good matches. That being said, what in the world happened to Ultimo Dragon? He’s still doing dark matches and Velocity, but that might be a record for the fastest fall from grace I can remember in a long time. It was like two weeks.

Orlando Jordan vs. Big Show

Show comes to the ring holding his stomach and seems to have some issues after kicking Jordan in the ribs. A clothesline puts Jordan down but Show bails to the floor and takes the countout due to stomach issues. Cole after the countout: “The burritos having a negative effect on Big Show!” Thirty seconds later: “What is wrong with Big Show???”

Zach Gowen joins us live via satellite and says he’s tired of being asked how he’s doing. He knows wrestling is for him and he’s back in the ring next week.

We now join Big Show in the bathroom with various sound effects. Eddie comes in and admits that he spiked the burritos, knowing that Show would steal them. He also steals the toilet paper because COMEDY! So to recap: a few weeks ago, Eddie was in a great fight with Cena inside a ring of cars and then became a double champion. Now it’s toilet humor. Thanks for that WWE.

John Cena/Brock Lesnar vs. Kurt Angle/Undertaker

Cena’s rap says he makes it ok to root for the villain and something about a man dressed as a woman. The fans remind Lesnar that he tapped out as Kurt and Cena start things off. Kurt takes him down without much effort and armdrags Cena into an armbar. One heck of a clothesline gives Angle two and it’s off to Undertaker. The arm cranking continues but Undertaker stops to swing at Lesnar.

The distraction lets Cena poke Angle in the eye and Kurt gets beaten down in the corner. A good looking backdrop puts Cena down though and we take a break. Back with Lesnar firing off shoulders to Kurt’s ribs in the corner as we’re firmly in the tag team formula. Lesnar stomps on Kurt and hits a gorilla press, only to have Angle grab a German suplex. Cena offers a distraction though and the referee misses the ensuing hot tag.

A Shell Shock of all things gives Brock two and a powerslam plants Kurt again. Somehow Kurt is right back up with the Angle Slam and it’s a double knockdown. That’s enough for the hot tag to Undertaker, who comes in with the running corner clotheslines. Brock is thrown to the floor (nearly landing on his head in the process) but still comes back in to break up the cover on Cena. There’s a spinebuster to Undertaker though and it’s back to Angle via the power of Olympic recovery skills. Suplexes a go-go have the villains reeling but Cena grabs the chain to knock Angle cold for the fast pin.

Rating: B-. Pretty solid main event tag here as I’m always a fan of combining two feuds into one for an easy match like this. Cena pinning Angle is the right call as Angle showed he’s dominant with wrestling and playing by the rules but loses when Cena cheats. Undertaker being all fired up doesn’t do much for me but it’s all we’ve got for a co-main event right now.

Post match Lesnar loads up the F5 to put Undertaker through the table but gets reversed, setting a chokeslam through said table to end the show.

Overall Rating: C+. This was a show where the wrestling was completely acceptable for the majority of the show but the stuff outside of the matches was dreadful. I mean, spiked burritos and OH NO VINCE MCMAHON DID A WRESTLING MOVE??? We’re coming up on a pretty weak pay per view with the battling McMahons as the real main event but the rest of the show isn’t exactly thrilling either. At least the TV is watchable, which is more than can be said about the episodes of Raw leading up to Unforgiven.

Remember to check out my new forum at steelcageforums.com, follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and pick up the 2018 Updated Version of the History of the WWE Championship in e-book or paperback. Check out the information here:

http://kbwrestlingreviews.com/2018/01/26/new-book-kbs-history-of-the-wwe-championship-2018-updated-version/

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: February 27, 2018
Location: Staples Center, Los Angeles, California
Commentators: Tom Phillips, Corey Graves, Byron Saxton

It’s time for some crossover appeal as John Cena is making his return to the show in an attempt to find a way to get to Wrestlemania. You know, because that’s just so hard otherwise. Other than that we have to get ready for Fastlane because it’s cool to have a pay per view four weeks before Wrestlemania. Let’s get to it.

Here’s last week’s show.

And here’s how Cena got here tonight.

Here’s John Cena to open things up. He makes no bones about it: he wants in on the Fatal Five Way for the #1 contendership at Fastlane so let’s find out what he has to do to get there. Fans: “NO! NO! NO!” Cue Commissioner Shane McMahon to summarize everything, only to be cut off by a LET’S GO CENA/CENA SUCKS chant.

Cena says half the people want him in the match so he should go in. The fans switch to RUSEV DAY and it seems that Cena will be having a shot. This brings out Daniel Bryan, to say he agrees with Shane. They’re willing to put Cena in the main event and if he wins, he’s in the Fastlane title match. His opponent tonight: AJ Styles. The DQ finish seems obvious and that would make the most sense at this point.

Baron Corbin vs. Sami Zayn

Kevin Owens is on commentary. Byron: “Well let me ask you this Kevin.” Kevin: “No.” Corbin sends Sami outside to start as Owens makes bald jokes. Sami gets in a shot on the announcers’ table and a backdrop sends Corbin over the barricade. We cut to the back where Shane and Daniel are arguing over Owens being allowed to do commentary as Shane thinks he’ll interfere. Bryan thinks he’s entertaining and we take a break.

Back with another RUSEV DAY chant and let’s cut to Shane eating popcorn while Bryan continues to defend Owens being on commentary. Sami dives into a chokebreaker and Corbin’s slide under the ropes into the clothesline gets two. They head outside with Sami getting dropped but Corbin stops to yell at Owens. The distraction lets Sami hit a DDT back inside as Dolph Ziggler comes in through the crowd for a superkick to Owens. Sami glares at Ziggler and walks into the End of Days for the pin at 9:41.

Rating: C+. The fact that they’re now having these battling bosses arguing over actual matches is not a good sign, nor is it a sign that these things are ending anytime soon. I have a feeling we’ll be seeing a lot of that in the coming weeks, plus at least another week of random singles matches to set up the five way, because that’s all WWE knows how to do for something like this.

Ziggler gives Corbin the Zig Zag.

Bryan says that was fun and takes off for the night with Shane’s blessing.

Post break Sami and Kevin are furious and don’t get any better when Shane (and his box of popcorn) doesn’t seem to think much of their complaint. Geez END THIS STORY ALREADY!

Naomi vs. Ruby Riott

Of course the other four are at ringside because having this be a singles match might involve developing more than one person and that’s too much to ask from the precious writers. They go to the floor for the big staredown to start and it’s an early break. Back with Riott holding a seated full nelson as we cut to Carmella answering fan questions in the back. Naomi fights up and it’s a double kick to the head for a knockdown. A shot off the top misses so Naomi goes with a scorpion kick instead. Ruby sends her into the corner though and the Riott Kick is good for the pin at 6:50.

Rating: D+. Not enough time to mean much but Riott winning to further her chance against Charlotte makes sense. Riott isn’t going to win the title but it’s a good idea to push someone before we get to Wrestlemania and what is likely Asuka vs. Charlotte. I mean, we of course can’t announce anything like that yet because the world needs Fastlane but I’m sure four weeks for Wrestlemania is fine.

Charlotte and Becky run the Squad off.

We go to the Fashion Police’s office where Breezango runs into the star of the new USA series Unsolved. The series is about the unsolved murders of Biggie Smalls and Tupac so we get a Biggie/Big E. joke/cameo. The actor says he’s just an actor and not a real detective, making Fandango sad. This was a rather unfunny cross promotional ad.

Here’s New Day (with the words on the screen because NEW DAY’S entrance isn’t easy to remember) for a chat about renewing their rivalry with the Usos. Big E. says it’s as hot as his inner thighs in the summer. Or winter. Or anytime. He has Kofi spritz his thighs with a bit of water so Woods can talk about how they’re ready to go to New Orleans and party on Bourbon Street as the new champions.

Cue the Usos to say they used to be the New Day with the bright colors looking like a box of Skittles. That didn’t get them to the top because they ground their way up. They’ve been here nine years and have been left on the sideline of EVERY Wrestlemania (so Kickoff Show matches don’t count).

Big E. gets right back in their faces and says they’ve taken the ball and rushed the field. They hosted Wrestlemania while the Usos were sitting in the back eating catering. New Day didn’t get here because of their daddies and they’ll take the titles for the fifth time. This brings out the Bludgeon Brothers, who bring the hammers into the ring. That’s enough for the Usos and the New Day, who bail in short order. Very strong segment here with Big E. showing some great fire before the big title match.

Earlier today, Rusev Day came in to see Shane and get a match tonight. Shane, in song, made Aiden English vs. Shinsuke Nakamura.

Ziggler says he’s not back to get lost in the shuffle and deserves to main event Wrestlemania.

Bobby Roode is glad to be fighting Randy Orton because the US Title means a lot. Maybe Orton is just jealous over the top ten list. Orton comes in to say it’s because the US Title is the only title he’s never won, which is as good of a motivation as any.

Aiden English comes to the ring for his song but the fans cut him off with the Rusev Day chants. Eventually he sings Shinsuke is an artist but not the real artiste.

Shinsuke Nakamura vs. Aiden English

Nakamura wastes no time in firing off the kicks, followed by COME ON. More kicks have English in trouble and we take a break. Back with English getting knocked off the corner but a Ruse distraction lets English hit a reverse fireman’s carry slam for two. The running knees in the corner miss but Aiden’s high crossbody just seems to fire Nakamura up. Good Vibrations into the running knee has English in trouble and the Kinshasa is good for the pin at 6:22.

Rating: C-. This was just a step above a squash with Nakamura never feeling like he was in any real danger. Nakamura needs some bigger wins than this though as just fighting various low level people (and by various I mean this one as he hasn’t had a match in nearly a month) like English isn’t the best way to set up Wrestlemania.

Cena comes out for a quick staredown before his match.

AJ Styles vs. John Cena

Non-title. Feeling out process to start with Cena hitting an early shoulder block for two. A chickening/half nelson has AJ in trouble but he fights out with some chops for a breather. The tornado DDT out of the corner lands awkwardly and gives Cena two as we take a break. Back with Cena hitting the ProtoBomb and Five Knuckle Shuffle but AJ comes back with the fireman’s carry neckbreaker for a near fall of his own.

A TKO of all things gives Cena the same and Baron Corbin is watching in the back. AJ’s torture rack neckbreaker and Cena’s hard running clothesline get two each but Cena charges into an enziguri as we take another break. Back again with AJ getting two off a clothesline of his own but a Lionsault misses. Cena grabs a Code Red for two more and floats over from the near fall into the STF.

That’s reversed as well and the Phenomenal Forearm gets two. The springboard 450 hits knees though and the AA connects. Cena tries another though and winds up on the floor where a missed charge sends him into the steps. AJ won’t take the countout though and gets AA’d through the announcers’ table for a knockout. Cena rolls back in as the referee checks on AJ, meaning Styles can dive back in to beat the ten count. There’s the Calf Crusher but Cena powers to his feet for another AA and the pin at 22:00.

Rating: B+. These two could have a good match in their sleep so this is no surprise. It’s also not a surprise that Cena is going to the pay per view where he can have another shot at Wrestlemania, which means he’s likely losing at Fastlane so we can set up Cena vs. Undertaker in less than a month. Still though, as good as you would have expected here.

Post match Corbin, Owens and Zayn come down to beat on Cena and Styles. Ziggler runs in for the save but decks AJ. That earns him an AA to end the show.

Overall Rating: C+. You know, last week I said maybe we could add the rest of the roster to the Fastlane match to save some time. At the time, I wasn’t serious but now, we’re a step closer to that actually happening. Assuming this is just a big way to set up Cena vs. Undertaker, we’re looking at less than four weeks to build it up, because of Fastlane (and Nikki Bella last year).

I’m starting to think Fastlane should just be called Speed Bump. It slows you down on the way to where you want to go, can cause damage to what’s working just fine, and it’s better if you just can just pull to the side and avoid it altogether. The show won’t be bad, but they REALLY shouldn’t be building to another pay per view when Wrestlemania is in forty days. Good show this week, but it’s building to the wrong pay per view.

Results

Baron Corbin b. Sami Zayn – End of Days

Ruby Riott b. Naomi – Riott Kick

Shinsuke Nakamura b. Aiden English – Kinshasa

John Cena b. AJ Styles – Attitude Adjustment

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and pick up the 2018 Updated Version of the History of the WWE Championship in e-book or paperback. Check out the information here:

http://kbwrestlingreviews.com/2018/01/26/new-book-kbs-history-of-the-wwe-championship-2018-updated-version/

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

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IMG Credit: WWE

Smackdown
Date: September 25, 2003
Location: Wachovia Center, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Commentators: Michael Cole, Tazz

It’s time to start building to No Mercy and we have a new World Champion with Brock Lesnar having taken the title from Kurt Angle in last week’s Iron Man match. The other big story is Los Guerreros winning the Tag Team Titles to make Eddie a double champion. I’m sure there will be no animosity on Chavo’s part. Let’s get to it.

Last week was a big week and you should look at it again.

Opening sequence.

Tonight, the Cruiserweight, Tag Team and US Titles are on the line. That’s quite the show.

The World Title is on a podium in the ring and here are Vince McMahon and Sable for a presentation. Vince praises Brock for his win last week but here’s Angle to interrupt. Before Kurt can say anything, Vince knows he’s here to claim Brock cheated and to challenge him for the title tonight.

That’s not happening though, because Angle might have to wait a long time to get another chance. That means starting from the bottom so tonight he’s going to be here to present Brock with the title. Angle isn’t feeling that and says either Brock comes out here and gets a beating or Kurt can go outside and give him the beating there.

Instead here’s John Cena to accuse Angle of having female genitalia. The fight is on and Cena is thrown over the top with ease before he heads to the back. That’s enough waiting for Angle so he goes to the back and finds a door labeled Brock Lesnar. That might be a good place to start. All he finds is a gym bag but here’s Cena to jump Angle.

During the break, Cena ran to the parking lot and drove away. Angle commandeered Vince’s limo and driver for a very late pursuit.

Tag Team Titles: Los Guerreros vs. Matt Hardy/Shannon Moore

Matt, who has wrestled with strep throat and hates taking medicine, and Shannon are challenging. As someone with at least fifteen diagnosed cases of strep (to go with eight cases of bronchitis and three pneumonias, two of which were double pneumonia, I feel for him). Eddie and Matt start things off with Matt stopping for an early pose. It’s Chavo coming in off a blind tag to take Matt down as the champs start taking turns on Hardy.

Matt finally sends Chavo outside into the announcers’ table and Moore sends him into the apron for good measure. Shannon comes in and shows some nice fire with the forearms to the back. It’s not enough fire to keep Chavo in trouble for long though as he gets over for the hot tag.

Everything breaks down in a hurry with Eddie having to fight them both off, only to get caught in a neckbreaker from Matt. Chavo hits a high crossbody on Shannon to give Eddie two, only to have Shannon hit a dropkick to the back for the same. With Matt sent outside, Chavo belly to backs Shannon down so Eddie can drop the frog splash to retain.

Rating: C+. It’s always a good sign when a match makes me wonder what they could do with more time and that’s what happened here. Shannon is a pretty good high flier and he looked solid in support of Matt here. Los Guerreros are more than talented enough to make this work, especially when we get to the eventual split over Chavo being jealous.

Post match Matt jumps Eddie and gives him a Side Effect onto the belt.

During the break, Charlie Haas, who challenges Eddie tonight, ran out and attacked Chavo, followed by a Haas of Pain to Eddie. Tonight could make Eddie look like an even bigger star.

Here’s a ticked off A-Train for a chat. Now who thought this was a good idea? He’s tired of hearing that he can’t beat Chris Benoit because he can beat anyone. A-Train gives an open challenge but settles for beating up the timekeeper, even giving him a Crossface. Benoit runs out for the save and puts the Crossface on A-Train. That’s broken up with raw power though and A-Train chairs him down.

Eddie’s ribs are badly damaged but he swears he can wrestle.

Vince tells Sable how great she looks tonight and admires her figure. She takes off his jacket when a production guy comes in. Vince wanted to see him twenty minutes ago and yells as a result. Anyway, we’re doing the Brock presentation later. I’m sure nothing bad will happen.

Charlie says he’s taking the US Title tonight to make up for losing the Tag Team Titles.

We recap Tajiri’s heel turn and beatdown of Rey Mysterio to set up tonight’s title match.

Cruiserweight Title: Tajiri vs. Rey Mysterio

Mysterio is defending. Tajiri cranks on the arm to start and drops a knee for an early two. A hurricanrana into a victory roll gives Rey two and we hit a quick pinfall reversal sequence. Rey’s charge hits the corner though and we hit the Tarantula for a few seconds. Tajiri loads up the mist but misses, allowing Rey to knock him outside and follow with a good looking slingshot dive.

Back from a break with Rey getting kicked out of the air for two. Tajiri hammers away at the ribs and hooks something like an abdominal stretch. It’s off to the bodyscissors with Tajiri even throwing in a few rollups for two as a bonus. That’s so much better than what you usually get with this hold. How often do you see a hold like this go on and stop paying attention for a bit because nothing is happening? Those rollups aren’t anything great but they’re keeping it from being boring, which is more than you can expect otherwise.

Rey fights up and hits a sitout bulldog, followed by a moonsault press for two. Tajiri is right back with a Michinoku Driver but kicks the referee by mistake. The handspring elbow is blocked with a dropkick to the back and Rey scores with the 619. The West Coast Pop misses and Tajiri kicks him in the face. Cue a second ref to check on the first and count a very delayed two. Rey snaps off a standing hurricanrana but the replacement referee is still checking on the first. Tajiri goes with the red mist and steals the pin and the title.

Rating: B. This got the time that it needed to make things work, though the referee stupidly turning his head at the end didn’t work so well. Tajiri winning the title makes the most sense as it strengthens his heel turn and lets Rey do something else. It’s not like he’s going to regularly defend the title so let someone else have it and get some more momentum as a result.

Video on WWF and the Russell Simmons’ Hip Hop Action Network coming together for a voting drive.

Cole and Tazz brag about UPN’s ratings successes. But did Smackdown beat the Mullets?

Basham Brothers vs. Jamie Noble/Bradshaw

Billy Gunn is hurt so Jamie bought half of the APA for the night. It’s a brawl to start with Jamie diving onto Danny as Bradshaw beats Doug up in the corner. Danny low bridges Jamie to the floor though and Shaniqua kicks him in the head to take over. Back in and we hit the chinlock for a bit until Jamie dragon screw leg whips his way to freedom. A swinging neckbreaker is enough for the tag to Bradshaw for the quick beatdown. The Last Call sends Doug flying but Shaniqua takes Nidia’s head off with a clothesline. Jamie checks on her so Bradshaw hits the Clothesline, drawing in Shaniqua for the DQ.

Rating: D. So the point here was to push Bradshaw and Shaniqua? This would have made more sense as the APA vs. the Bashams but if that’s the case, just have the Bashams get a win. As usual, WWE feels the need to push the worst possible options out of a match and for some reason I don’t see Shaniqua panning out as the latest force in the women’s division.

Long recap of the Iron Man match.

US Title: Eddie Guerrero vs. Charlie Haas

Eddie is defending and has bad ribs while an angry Big Show is on commentary. Show claims that he’s tired of being ignored so he gets up and posts Eddie before the bell. Charlie is smart enough to stomp away and hits a backdrop to stay on the ribs. A quick toss to the floor gives Eddie a breather but Charlie is back in with a double leg takedown for two. The back is bent over Charlie’s knee until Eddie grabs the face for the break.

Charlie is right back up with another posting so here’s Chavo to check on him. That earns the nephew a right hand and an ejection but the distraction allows Eddie to grab the rope at two. The Haas of Pain goes on but Eddie slips out after a good while. Haas grabs the belt, which is quickly taken away and laid in the corner. Eddie of course grabs it and wraps it around the corner as Charlie shoves the referee. That’s not a DQ so Charlie dives at the buckle and knocks himself silly, setting up the frog splash to retain.

Rating: B-. So we’re heading towards Big Show vs. Eddie? That would be a good way to make Eddie look like a giant killer, but if history has shown me anything, it’s never bet against WWE’s ability to push Big Show over the wrong talent. Eddie looked great here as he fought through the injuries and he continues to be the best thing on this show every single week.

Here are Vince and Sable to try the presentation again. Vince demands us on our feet to welcome Brock, who at least gets to come out this time. After Brock’s posing, Vince declares him the new unstoppable face of Smackdown. Brock doesn’t mind the YOU TAPPED OUT chants because he’s the new champion. As for Kurt, he had him in the palm of his hand last week and was never in danger of not getting the title back. Brock says he’s unstoppable so here’s Undertaker because who else was it going to be.

Undertaker didn’t interfere last week because he has too much respect for the title but he’ll get in Lesnar’s face now. He doesn’t forget or forgive but he does have some advice for Brock: polish that title up because his first defense is against Undertaker. Vince wants to know how that happened and here’s Stephanie, because this is still about the McMahons. Stephanie explains the match but Vince says no because her authority is going to be rescinded. If she doesn’t change her mind right now, it’s Vince vs. Stephanie in a match at No Mercy.

Stephanie is completely taken aback by this (Someone wants to hurt Stephanie? What insanity is this?) but won’t change her mind. Vince makes it an I Quit match and yells at Stephanie so Undertaker grabs his arm. That earns Undertaker a belt shot but he’s back up with a chokeslam to Lesnar to end the show. That’s a really bad double main event but they’re still way ahead of Unforgiven, which says more about that show than No Mercy.

Overall Rating: B-. The main event angle and the Basham match were the only bad things going on this week as the rest was focused around Eddie Guerrero, which is never a bad thing. There was good wrestling here though and the stories are solid enough to make the show not feel long, which is a lot more than Raw can say.

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and pick up the 2018 Updated Version of the History of the WWE Championship in e-book or paperback. Check out the information here:

http://kbwrestlingreviews.com/2018/01/26/new-book-kbs-history-of-the-wwe-championship-2018-updated-version/

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

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

IMG Credit: WWE

Main Event
Date: February 22, 2018
Location: Talking Stick Resort Arena, Phoenix, Arizona
Commentators: Vic Joseph, Nigel McGuinness

I’ve actually been looking forward to this show as I’m wondering how they’re going to air anything from the gauntlet match here. Unless it’s about a minute or two from each section, it doesn’t leave much time for anything else. Then again it’s not like Smackdown was all that interesting. Let’s get to it.

Just in case there’s not enough Smackdown, here it is.

Opening sequence.

Tony Nese vs. Gran Metalik

Nese poses at him to start (some things never change) so Metalik snaps off the headscissors and forearms him into the corner. A nipup gets Nese out of the way of a kick to the chest and he blocks a moonsault with some raised boots. Nese grabs a bodyscissors with Nigel admiring the size of Tony’s thighs. A Quebrada misses and Metalik is back with the rope walk dropkick. Metalik sends him to the floor for a big flipping corkscrew dive and Nese is rocked. Back in and Nese gets crotched on top, setting up the Metalik Driver for the pin at 5:42.

Rating: C. Totally standard cruiserweight match which means there’s not much to say about it. It also felt like an old 205 Live match without much drama or intensity and rather just two smaller guys doing moves to each other. I’ve gotten into the 205 Live style as of late and it would be nice to see that happening more often rather than going back to the weaker stuff.

Now it’s gauntlet match time and since they air about fifteen minutes here and I’m not about to put a nearly two hour match when they’re airing about a seventh, here’s a link to the full think if you’d like to see it again, but it’s a little too much to put in full here.

http://kbwrestlingreviews.com/2018/02/19/monday-night-raw-february-19-2018-this-didnt-feel-like-the-longest-match-in-wwe-history/

Jeff Jarrett Hall of Fame announcement.

Heath Slater/Rhyno vs. Revival

Slater and Dawson start things off with Heath working on the arm as the fans remind us that Slater has kids. Wilder tries to sneak in but Slater throws up some fists and rolls away. Heath actually beats them both up without too much effort and it’s off to Rhyno. Everything breaks down and a double backdrop puts Dawson down as we take a break. Back with Slater getting a hot tag to clean house, including a neckbreaker for two on Wilder. A small package gets the same but a blind tag sets up the Shatter Machine for the pin on Slater at 7:46.

Rating: C+. It seems that there’s a heck of a match in there if you take away the commercial. That’s not exactly a surprise either as Slater is the perfect guy for the heels to get heat on until Rhyno comes in on a hot tag. I liked what we saw but the gauntlet match took a lot out of this one.

Ronda Rousey video.

From Raw.

Sasha Banks/Bayley/Mickie James vs. Mandy Rose/Sonya Deville/Alexa Bliss

Bliss and James start but Alexa bails in short order. With neither getting anywhere, it’s off to Mandy vs. Sasha with Graves saying that if they studied art like Rose in college, he wouldn’t have dropped out. Bayley comes in with a hair whip, followed by a suplex to send Mandy outside.

Back from a break with Bayley in trouble but getting in a shot to Mandy’s jaw. Mandy pulls her right back though and Bliss tags herself in, much to Mandy’s annoyance. The running slap drops Bayley and it’s off to Deville for a chinlock. Bayley fights up and brings in Mickie for some house cleaning, only to have Rose take her down with a cheap shot.

Deville gets in a hard shot for two of her own, only to have Mickie get in a double neckbreaker for the break. Sasha comes in off the hot tag and house is cleaned, including the double knees to the chest to drop Bliss. The middle rope double knees gets two with Mandy making the save. Not that it matters though as the Bank Statement makes Bliss tap at 15:55.

Rating: C+. This was a way to give Banks some momentum heading into Sunday and that’s all it needed to be. I would have gone with Absolution as they don’t exactly have much momentum in the first place but Banks is a much more likely winner. It was nothing great, but at least it did something good as we head into the pay per view.

Post match Absolution destroys Banks and Bayley before turning on Bliss. Mickie makes the save though and it’s a double implant DDT to Deville to end the show.

Overall Rating: B-. This was a hard one to rate as the gauntlet match is the big centerpiece, but at the same time it’s cut up so badly that you can barely get anything out of it. What we did get was good though and that’s what matters most. Smackdown got no attention at all here but really, Monday wasn’t leaving it a lot of room anyway.

Remember to check out my new forum at steelcageforums.com and pick up the 2018 Updated Version of the History of the WWE Championship in e-book or paperback. Check out the information here:

http://kbwrestlingreviews.com/2018/01/26/new-book-kbs-history-of-the-wwe-championship-2018-updated-version/

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

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

Main Event
Date: February 16, 2018
Location: SAP Center, San Jose, California
Commentators: Vic Joseph, Nigel McGuinness

The pay per view season is starting to pick up around here and that means we’re getting closer to the big show with Wrestlemania. Thankfully Main Event is now a show that actually hypes up both Raw and Smackdown, which has needed to be the case for a long time now. Let’s get to it.

Opening sequence.

Heath Slater vs. Curt Hawkins

Slater doesn’t waste time in shouldering him down a few times and hitting an atomic drop. Rhyno isn’t interested in punching Hawkins, who tries to draw a DQ. Slater follows him out and gets sent into the apron, allowing Curt to send him into the barricade. Back in and Curt gets two off a clothesline, only to have Slater grab a belly to back suplex. A running knee into a neckbreaker gets two but Hawkins grabs a Michinoku Driver for the same. Hawkins is ticked and goes up for a top rope elbow and another near fall. He’s so ticked off that Slater is able to roll him up for the pin at 4:58.

Rating: C+. The elbow near fall was good but you knew the losing streak wasn’t ending here. Hawkins is going to win a match one day (match #200 would make sense) and it’s going to be a nice little moment, but it’s pretty clear that the win is going to be the high point of his latest WWE run. Still though, nothing wrong with being a well paid loser.

From Raw.

The Miz vs. John Cena

Non-title. Miz covers for two and hammers away for two more as we take a break. Back with Miz hitting his top rope ax handle for two and putting a knee in the ribs for the same. Some rights and lefts to the ribs set up a sleeper for a good while, eventually taking us to a second break.

We come back again with Cena being put into the Figure Four, only to easily raise Miz’s leg for the break. That sets up the STF but Miz is quickly in the ropes. Instead Miz heads up top for a high crossbody, only to have Cena roll through into the AA. That’s countered as well with Miz grabbing a DDT for two. The AA hits on the second attempt but that’s only good for two as well.

Miz crotches him on top and we hit the Figure Four again, but Cena reverses into a Crossface of all things. After the rope is grabbed again, Miz grabs a quick Skull Crushing Finale for two more and frustration is setting in. The frustration is so strong that Miz takes Cena up top for a super Skull Crushing Finale, only to be reversed into the super AA to give Cena the pin at 16:04.

Rating: B. They did a good job of teasing an upset here and while that doesn’t make up for the fact that the Intercontinental Champion lost clean, it does make things a lot easier. Miz being in at #1 will help him a bit as he’ll lose the match but have taken such a beating that it doesn’t matter as much. Also, another good match from these two as that Wrestlemania match looks more and more like a fluke every time they’re out there.

From Smackdown.

Kevin Owens vs. Baron Corbin

The brawl is on to start with Corbin sending Kevin outside and sending him into the barricade, despite holding onto his banged up ribs. Back in and Owens scores with a shot to the ribs, only to get POPPED in the face for his efforts. They’re right back on the floor in short order with Corbin sending him into the barricade again. They head inside for the second time where Corbin’s slide underneath the ropes is cut off with a superkick to the ribs. The backsplash gets two and we take a break.

Back with Owens still on the ribs before grabbing a chinlock. Corbin fights up (perhaps pushed on by the RUSEV DAY chants) and hits a chokebreaker, followed by the slide under the ropes clothesline for two. Owens gets in another shot to the ribs but charges into Deep Six for two more. End of Days is enough to send Corbin to the pay per view at 10:42.

Rating: C. Well you knew that was coming, which is likely what I’ll say when Ziggler is added to the match as well. Corbin was wrestling as a face here and that made for a surprisingly good match. He’s a natural heel and I wouldn’t think a turn is the best idea in the world, but this showed that it wouldn’t be the worst thing.

And again.

Sami Zayn vs. Dolph Ziggler

Sami hides in the corner to start with Ziggler not being able to take him down. Instead he hits Sami in the head and nails the Stinger Splash in the corner. Zayn is right back up with forearms in the corner and a kick to the face as they’re not exactly speeding through the paces so far. Sami’s top rope dive for the sake of being dropkicked out of the air is dropkicked out of the air and we take a break.

Back with Sami in control until Ziggler’s DDT gets him out of trouble. The Fameasser gets two but Sami crotches him on top for a breather. Sami is right back up with a super exploder suplex (that looked awesome) for two and the shock is apparently. Back up and Sami misses the Helluva Kick, allowing Ziggler to grab the Zig Zag for two of his own. Sami sends him shoulder first into the post and does it again for good measure. Back up and the Helluva Kick is countered with a superkick to send Ziggler to the pay per view at 16:10.

Rating: B-. So Ziggler is back and a face again, just because…he is I guess. If that’s not enough for you, in the span of a week we’ve doubled the amount of challengers for AJ Styles at Fastlane. Why you ask? Well Raw added an extra challenger and it’s not like Smackdown can think of its own ideas. The match was good, with that super exploder looking awesome. Pretty predictable finish aside, it’s a nice main event.

Cedric Alexander vs. Ariya Daivari

Feeling out process to start, as you might expect in a barn burner from Daivari. Cedric gets shouldered down and Daivari poses, only to have Cedric pop back up and show him how it’s done. An armdrag into an armbar takes Daivari down but he fights up to knock Cedric outside as we take an early break.

Back with Daivari whipping him around the ring, getting as close to showing fire as he’s capable of doing. Reach for the stars man. A superkick sets up Daivari’s frog splash for two. The hammerlock lariat is broken up and Cedric easily reverses into the Lumbar Check to put Daivari away at 9:45.

Rating: C-. That’s all you can expect on Main Event as it’s not like a heel is going to win, especially against Cedric, who is on a roll as of late. I’d be surprised if he’s not at least in the tournament final at Wrestlemania, but stranger things have happened. I would say like Daivari being interesting, but that hasn’t happened as far as I’ve seen.

We’ll wrap it up here. From Raw again.

Bray Wyatt vs. Matt Hardy vs. Apollo Crews vs. Seth Rollins vs. Finn Balor

One fall to a finish and we’re joined in progress with Crews cleaning house until Balor sends him to the apron for a kick to the head. An Eye of the Hurricane gives Finn two on Bray but Matt has to break up Sister Abigail. Crews and Rollins head up top but it’s Bray breaking up a superplex. The release Rock Bottom into the backsplash is good for two on Crews and we take a break.

Back with Matt applauding Bray before hitting him with the Side Effect. It’s too early for the Twist of Fate though with Rollins making the save. A double Blockbuster takes Crews and Wyatt down, followed by a suicide dive on Wyatt. Back in and one heck of a clothesline gives Bray two on Rollins. The Sling Blade cuts Bray down but Rollins breaks up the Coup de Grace. Bray gets back up so Matt grabs a Twist of Fate for two of his own.

Rollins hits the Curb Stomp on Balor for two with Crews diving in for the save. A pop up Samoan drop into the standing moonsault gives Crews two on Rollins. The standing shooting star gets the same and frustration is setting in. Bray pulls Matt outside for Sister Abigail on the floor to knock him silly. Back in and Bray loads up a superplex on Crews, only to have it reversed into the Tower of Doom. Balor and Rollins cover Wyatt at the same time and it’s a double pin at 16:18.

Rating: B. Fun match and the ending is acceptable enough. I can get the idea that they’re going with of wanting the Wrestlemania moment, assuming you can ignore Cole saying it doesn’t get much bigger than this. You know, if you ignore the match they’re trying to get into for a shot at the bigger match. Anyway, this had a lot of good action and energy, though I’m getting a bit tired of having these free for all matches so often.

They argue and we fade out, with commentary not even saying good night.

Overall Rating: C-. There’s not much to this one as the big shows were all about setting things up for the pay per views by adding more people to the World Title matches. That’s not the most thrilling thing in the world and not something I needed to see again. The new wrestling was nothing great and that makes for a watchable but not exactly good show.

Remember to check out my new forum at steelcageforums.com and pick up the 2018 Updated Version of the History of the WWE Championship in e-book or paperback. Check out the information here:

http://kbwrestlingreviews.com/2018/01/26/new-book-kbs-history-of-the-wwe-championship-2018-updated-version/

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

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

Monday Night Raw
Date: February 19, 2018
Location: Talking Stick Resort Arena, Phoenix, Arizona
Commentators: Michael Cole, Corey Graves, Jonathan Coachman

It’s the go home show for the Elimination Chamber pay per view and for some reason we’re having a gauntlet match tonight. I guess the theory is that the elimination match tonight is supposed to make us want to watch another elimination match on Sunday. Maybe we can just get the whole roster in the Chamber this time. Let’s get to it.

We open with a moment of silence for the victims of the Florida massacre.

Here’s Roman Reigns as the first entrant in the gauntlet match tonight. He’s not worried about the other people in the Chamber and lists all of them off with Balor/Rollins getting the best reactions.

Gauntlet Match

Roman and Seth Rollins start things off as we have a BURN IT DOWN chant. Roman headlocks him to the mat to start and it seems that we’re in for a long one here. Back from an early break with Rollins fighting out of a chinlock but getting punched down in the corner. Reigns charges into a boot to the face and gets caught with a Blockbuster.

The Sling Blade takes Reigns down again and there’s the springboard clothesline. Reigns is right back with the apron dropkick and some corner clotheslines of his own. The Superman Punch is blocked twice and Rollins actually manages the Buckle Bomb. Reigns is right out of the corner with the Superman Punch and we take another break.

Back again with Rollins missing a frog splash but throwing Reigns outside for a pair of suicide dives. The springboard knee is Superman Punched out of the air for two though and they’re both down. Back up with Reigns avoiding the Curb Stomp but getting rolled up for the pin at 20:08. They stare at each other for a long time until John Cena is in third. Rollins decks him from behind for two and we take another break.

We come back again with Cena, still in the t-shirt, holding Rollins in a headlock. Seth fights back up but Cena takes the shirt off and grabs a chinlock with a grapevine. Cena sends him outside as Cole talks about Cena’s history in the Elimination Chamber, mention that Cena has won from first and sixth. So numbers mean nothing? Seth makes it back in at nine but gets caught in rolling belly to belly suplexes for two. We take yet another break and come back with Rollins barely standing during a slugout until Cena throws him onto his shoulder and spinning it into Stunner.

Rollins refuses to give up so Cena circles him a bit, followed by a right hand between the eyes for one. Cena elbows him in the jaw and shoulders Rollins to the floor as we take ANOTHER break with the match breaking 40 minutes in the process. We’re back again with Rollins down and Cena seeming to take some mercy on him. The STF goes on a few seconds later but Cena lets it go to pull Rollins back to the middle.

That’s enough for an escape and they’re both down again. Rollins gets small packaged for two but comes up with his Falcon Arrow, only to be slammed down. You Can’t See Me is blocked with a pair of superkicks for two, sending Cena bailing to the apron. Rollins takes him outside and avoids a charge to send Cena into the steps. The AA is escaped and Seth slaps on a Crossface in the middle of the ring.

That’s escaped into the AA but Rollins sticks the landing and hits an enziguri. The frog splash gives Rollins two but the AA connects…..for two? Seriously? Now the superplex into the Falcon Arrow gives Rollins two and they’re both down. Cena is right back with the STF but Rollins does the big crawl for the break. Rollins pulls himself up but gets caught in the hold again, this time close to the middle of the ring.

Somehow that’s escaped with ANOTHER rope break and Cena is ticked. That means a Super AA but Rollins elbows out. Cena’s high crossbody is rolled through into an AA to give Rollins ANOTHER close two. These kickouts are getting insane. The Phoenix splash misses and Cena hits an AA. The second AA is escaped and Rollins hits the Curb Stomp to get rid of Cena at 56:44.

Elias is in third (with music) and stomps away for some near falls as we take another break. We come back again with Rollins caught in a half crab as this is now the longest match in Raw history. With Rollins in the hold, we go split screen for an interview with Cena who knows what he has to do in the Chamber and praises Rollins’ abilities. He’s doing a lot of stuff right now and if he doesn’t win on Sunday, he might not have a Road to Wrestlemania.

Rollins tries his flip off the ropes but can’t stand on his knee. He’s fine enough to superkick Elias down for two and hit a slingshot dive to the floor. Back in and the knee gives out, allowing Elias to hit Drift Away for the pin at 1:04:56. Rollins gets a standing ovation as this is now the longest match in WWE TV history. Balor comes in and slugs Elias down but it’s too early for the Coup de Grace as we take a break.

Back again with Elias holding an armbar and we go to another split screen interview with Rollins. Seth thinks the two pins mean something but he’s disappointed if he doesn’t win on Sunday. A shoulder breaker gives Elias two and he slams the arm into the apron. The fans greet this with a WE WANT STROWMAN chant until Balor kicks him in the head. Elias gets taken down with some running forearms (one of which actually makes contact) and another kick to the head.

They go outside again with Balor hitting a shotgun dropkick to drive Elias into the barricade. Back in and an electric chair into a sitout powerbomb gives Elias two as we take another break. We come back again (I’m getting tired of typing that) with Elias grabbing a Fujiwara armbar and then kicking the bar arm a few times. Balor scores with a Sling Blade and a shotgun dropkick in the corner. The Coup de Grace ends Elias at 84:50 and it’s Miz in sixth.

Miz sneaks in through the crowd and decks Balor from behind for an early two count. Miz’s short DDT gets the same and he kicks Balor in the face for a third near fall. Balor is sent outside and then has his bad arm (Miz: “IS IT THIS ARM?”) wrapped around the ropes as we take another break. Back again with Miz holding an armbar as we’ve broken ninety minutes. In another interview, Elias says he’ll pick up the scraps and move on to the performance of a lifetime.

Balor throws him down and hits a pair of running chops in the corner but has to slip out of the Skull Crushing Finale. The Miztourage breaks up a near fall so Balor dives on them, followed by the shotgun dropkick in the corner. Another distraction breaks up the Coup de Grace though and now the Skull Crushing Finale gets rid of Balor at 95:55.

Reality quickly sets in on Miz as Braun Strowman is in seventh. Miz is smart enough to run through the crowd but Strowman CATCHES HIM and drags it back to the ring…as we take another break? With STROWMAN in there? Back with Miz being thrown across the ring twice in a row as the fans are pleased with Strowman. Miz’s kicks to the ribs have as much effect as you would expect as Balor says there won’t be a Miztourage on Sunday.

Strowman gets low bridged to the floor (Coach: “Miz is doing better than I thought he would!”) but clotheslines Miz down (Coach: “My bad.”). Back in and the Miztourage offers a distraction so the Skull Crushing Finale can get two, with Miz being sent outside on the kickout. The running powerslam gives Strowman the pin at 1:45:55.

Rating: B. Cena vs. Rollins (who came off like a mega star here) was outstanding but pretty much everything after Rollins was a series of armbars as we waited on Strowman. The fact that it didn’t actually matter or change anything for Sunday didn’t help either but this is one of those things where you’re going to remember it for a long time, just for how different it was. One of the biggest criticisms of WWE is that they don’t change things enough, which was certainly not the case here. But yeah, this was just a precursor to LOL REIGNS WINS.

Post match Strowman says he’s going to do the same on Sunday because he’s not finished with Lesnar. Then at Wrestlemania, Beasty Boy is going to get these hands. Strowman isn’t done yet as he beats up the Miztourage again, including one to Miz after Strowman goes up the ramp to get him.

Jeff Jarrett Hall of Fame video. This is still so bizarre to see.

Here’s Asuka for a chat. It is her destiny to win the championship at Wrestlemania so this coming Sunday won’t be her first loss. Nia has promised to make her need the mask all the time but she likes to talk. On Sunday, Nia won’t be talking because she’ll be tapping. Cue Nia to catch Asuka with a Samoan drop and a bunch of legdrops.

Video on Ronda Rousey, who signs her contract on Sunday. Various wrestlers talk about how awesome she is, including Stephanie, who I fully expect to interrupt Sunday’s segment.

The Bar vs. Titus Worldwide

Non-title and now it’s just Apollo now instead of Apollo Crews. Cesaro and Titus start things off with Cesaro getting chopped in the corner, meaning it’s off to Apollo for a double back elbow. Everything breaks down and Apollo is sent outside for a clothesline from Sheamus. Double kicks to the ribs have Apollo in more trouble as the announcers discuss Dana Brooke’s research. Apollo fights out of a chinlock but Sheamus broke up a hot tag by pulling Titus to the floor. Cesaro is distracted though and it’s a rollup to give Apollo the pin at 4:33.

Rating: D+. I think we have our Kickoff Show match and that’s not the worst idea in the world. In theory this should give us a fresh team in the division but I’m not sure if WWE would ever pull the trigger on them. That being said, I could definitely for Titus Worldwide as transitional champions to get us to the Revival.

Newly announced for Sunday: Bray Wyatt vs. Matt Hardy.

Bray hopes the end is near for Matt Hardy. Matt pops in and promises to render Bray obsolete. They go back and forth about wanting to end each other as they’re done several times now.

Sasha Banks/Bayley/Mickie James vs. Mandy Rose/Sonya Deville/Alexa Bliss

Bliss and James start but Alexa bails in short order. With neither getting anywhere, it’s off to Mandy vs. Sasha with Graves saying that if they studied art like Rose in college, he wouldn’t have dropped out. Bayley comes in with a hair whip, followed by a suplex to send Mandy outside.

Back from a break with Bayley in trouble but getting in a shot to Mandy’s jaw. Mandy pulls her right back though and Bliss tags herself in, much to Mandy’s annoyance. The running slap drops Bayley and it’s off to Deville for a chinlock. Bayley fights up and brings in Mickie for some house cleaning, only to have Rose take her down with a cheap shot.

Deville gets in a hard shot for two of her own, only to have Mickie get in a double neckbreaker for the break. Sasha comes in off the hot tag and house is cleaned, including the double knees to the chest to drop Bliss. The middle rope double knees gets two with Mandy making the save. Not that it matters though as the Bank Statement makes Bliss tap at 15:55.

Rating: C+. This was a way to give Banks some momentum heading into Sunday and that’s all it needed to be. I would have gone with Absolution as they don’t exactly have much momentum in the first place but Banks is a much more likely winner. It was nothing great, but at least it did something good as we head into the pay per view.

Post match Absolution destroys Banks and Bayley before turning on Bliss. Mickie makes the save though and it’s a double implant DDT to Deville to end the show.

Overall Rating: B+. This was of course ALL about the gauntlet match and since that was excellent, this was a more than solid show. It’s got me interested in the two big matches for Sunday, but the problem is this show is likely going to be more remembered than the big match. That’s not the best thing in the world, but at least we got an amazing performance from Rollins on the way there.

Results

Braun Strowman won a gauntlet match last eliminating The Miz

Titus Worldwide b. The Bar – Rollup to Cesaro

Bayley/Sasha Banks/Mickie James b. Absolution/Alexa Bliss – Bank Statement to Bliss

Remember to check out my new forum at steelcageforums.com and pick up the 2018 Updated Version of the History of the WWE Championship in e-book or paperback. Check out the information here:

http://kbwrestlingreviews.com/2018/01/26/new-book-kbs-history-of-the-wwe-championship-2018-updated-version/

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

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