IMG Credit: AEW

Dark
Date: March 10, 2020
Location: 1^st Bank Center, Broomfield, Colorado
Commentators: Taz, Excalibur
Hosts: Tony Schiavone, Dasha Gonzalez

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

Taz and Excalibur run down the card.

Jurassic Express vs. Peter Avalon/Kip Sabian

Marko Stunt, Penelope Ford and Leva Bates are all at ringside. Sabian has to backflip out of a Luchasaurus chokeslam attempt and that means a Karate Kid pose. Boy and Avalon come in with Peter telling us to be quiet. That earns him a chop to the chest and a springboard armdrag to put him down as the pace picks up. A dropkick has Avalon in more trouble and a springboard dive drops Sabian for a bonus.

Ford breaks up a springboard though and Sabian gets two off a neckbreaker. Sabian is back up with a springboard dropkick into a spinebuster, followed by a double suplex for one. Ford and Bates get in an argument over a book though and, after they shove Stunt away, the distraction lets Luchasaurus come in to clean house. Avalon actually escapes a chokeslam attempt but gets kicked down, setting up a standing moonsault for two instead. It’s back to Boy to start rapid firing the strikes as everything breaks down. The Tail Whip sends Sabian outside and the reverse powerbomb/cutter combination finishes Avalon at 7:58.

Rating: C. Pretty standard match here but it’s great to see Jurassic Express do something after just kind of sitting around for months. I’m not sure what happened to them but they were looking like one of the biggest teams in all of the company. If nothing else, it was nice to see the better version without Stunt out there as the novelty act.

Buy a Pharaoh shirt with some of the money going to charity!

Severino Corrente vs. Jimmy Havoc

This is Corrente’s debut. Havoc works on the arm to start so Corrente punches him in the face. You don’t do that to someone like Havoc, who sends him face first into the buckle to take over again. A double stomp out of the corner sets up a middle rope double stomp but the Acid Rainmaker is countered into a German suplex back into the corner. Havoc bites the finger and pokes the eye though, setting up a running dropkick. A Death Valley Driver into the Acid Rainmaker finishes Corrente at 4:48.

Rating: D+. Just a squash here and that might be a good idea for Havoc. He hasn’t done much around here in a long time and having him get a win like this at least keeps him around. I’m not sure what it means for Havoc’s future, but I can’t imagine seeing him facing Luther on Dynamite.

Post match Luther comes in and beats Havoc down.

Here’s where Dynamite is coming! And buy that shirt.

Abadon vs. Hikaru Shida

It’s Abadon’s debut as well and she’s rather evil looking. Shida seems scared of her to start and backs off early on before running Abadon over with a shoulder. A headscissors puts Shida down and she yells at Shida a lot. Abadon bends Shida’s neck across the rope and it’s time to chop it out. A knee to the face sets up a middle rope dropkick on Abadon but she’s right back with an Edge-O-Matic for two. That just earns Abadon a brainbuster into the running knee for the pin at 5:31.

Rating: C. Abadon feels like one of several evil/creepy wrestlers that you have probably seen time after time but she had a perfectly fine performance here. Shida is someone else who can do a lot in the ring, but at some point she needs to do something a little more than just the running knee. She’s one of the better women in the division though and I can see why AEW is pushing her.

Jimmy Havoc isn’t hurt and wants to fight Luther, who jumps him again.

Avalon and Bates come up to Colt Cabana and tell him to read more instead of listening to podcasts. Peter storms off but Bates comes back up to say that she’s a big fan of his podcast.

Private Party vs. Sonny Kiss/Brandon Cutler

Cutler armbars Cassidy to start and it’s Kiss coming in off a blind tag but everything breaks down. A bunch of kicks miss until Kiss misses a handspring elbow in the corner. Kiss is fine enough to knock Quen down but he’s right back with a monkey flip, allowing the tag back to Cassidy. An atomic drop sets up an enziguri to drop Kiss and the leapfrog double stomp to the back gets two.

Kiss slips out of a double suplex and slides under a double clothesline for the hot tag to Cutler for the house cleaning. Cutler ties both of them in the ropes for springboard legdrops, followed by a suicide dive to Quen. A springboard legdrop gets two on Cassidy, followed by some kicks from Kiss.

Back in and Kiss snaps off a middle rope hurricanrana for two on Cassidy. Quen breaks up the splits though and Kiss is driven back into the corner. A moonsault to the back gives Cassidy two with Cutler breaking the save, setting up back to back fireman’s carry gutbusters. Cutler is sent outside though and it’s Gin and Juice to pin Kiss at 11:21.

Rating: C-. Much like Jurassic Express, what in the world happened to Private Party? They came in as one of the more promising teams in the company and now they’re taking eleven minutes to beat two jobbers? The match wasn’t too bad but Private Party should be at least a little higher up than this.

Post match the Death Triangle runs in for the beatdown on all four. Pac says this is just the beginning so here’s Joey Janela to get beaten down. The Best Friends and Orange Cassidy run in for the save. That’s quite a bit to end Dark.

Results

Jurassic Express b. Peter Avalon/Kip Sabian – Reverse powerbomb/cutter combination to Avalon

Jimmy Havoc b. Severino Corrente – Acid Rainmaker

Hikaru Shida b. Abadon – Running knee

Private Party b. Brandon Cutler/Sonny Kiss – Gin and Juice to Kiss

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

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

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

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

IMG Credit: AEW

Dynamite
Date: February 26, 2020
Location: Silverstein Eye Centers Arena, Kansas City, Missouri
Commentators: Tony Schiavone, Jim Ross, Excalibur

It’s another big week as we have the go home show for Revolution, but at the same time we also have an Iron Man match between Kenny Omega and Pac. This show has been on a roll lately with one good week after another so hopefully they can keep it going on the way to the pay per view. Let’s get to it.

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

The announcers preview the show.

Kenny Omega vs. Pac

Thirty minute Iron Man match. The Young Bucks are here with Omega but Hangman Page is nowhere to be seen. Feeling out process to start as it’s Omega grabbing a wristlock a minute in. Pac flips out of a wristdrag attempt and that means a standoff, with Omega’s look saying “so that’s how it’s going to be”. They chop it out until Omega kicks the leg out, only to charge into a hard superkick.

The early One Winged Angel attempt is countered into a Brutalizer but Omega falls into the corner for the break. Pac heads outside and that means a big flip dive, much to the fans’ delight. The running jumping bulldog (it was nowhere near a Fameasser this time) plants Pac for two and Omega strikes away against the ropes. There’s the Snapdragon as we’re five minutes in with both of them down.

They head outside with Pac managing a quick tornado DDT to plant Omega and give them another chance to breathe. Back in and Omega headbutts him off the top, only to have Pac run the ropes for the super brainbuster. Pac scores with a missile dropkick for two and we hit the chinlock. A hard faceplant gives Pac two as we hit ten minutes. The fans call Pac a b****** as he kicks Omega in the back of the head to keep him down.

Back up and they go into the slow motion slugout with Pac hitting a pump kick to the face. Omega doesn’t go down though so it’s a snap German suplex to drop him instead. That doesn’t seem to matter very much as Omega hits some knees to the head, followed by a Tiger Driver 98 for two.

After JR makes fun of the Tiger Driver 98 name, Pac breaks out of the One Winged Angle, only to get German suplexed HARD for two. Omega hits running knees to the back in the corner before loading up….a super One Winged Angel? That’s reversed into a sunset bomb as we hit the halfway point. Pac’s super hurricanrana is countered as well and there’s a Snapdragon into a V Trigger for two more. Pac staggers to the floor and BLASTS Omega in the head for the DQ with 14:06 to go.

Omega – 1

Pac – 0

We take a thirty second rest period but Pac gets in another shot to the head to keep Omega in trouble. A running kick to the head sets up the Black Arrow to tie it up with 13:21 to go.

Omega – 1

Pac – 1

Back from a break with 10:46 to go and the slugout on the apron going to Pac. A Falcon Arrow off the apron drops Omega again and the audio is muted for the sake of swearing fans. They’re both down again and we have less than ten minutes to go. Pac knocks him off the apron and the ref is bumped.

With no one seeing it, Pac pulls out a table and hits a shooting star off the top to send Omega through the table (which pretty much explodes). They both beat the count (I’m not sure on Omega but they give it to him anyway) and Pac can’t believe it. Another Black Arrow hits raised knees with five minutes left and Omega has an opener. A heck of a V Trigger sets up a spinning Rock Bottom for two on Pac, followed by another V Trigger.

Pac is back up with a tornado DDT and the Brutalizer (on the mat this time) has Omega in real trouble. We have two minutes left as Omega finally gets his foot on the rope. Pac is smart enough to go right back to the hold as we hit a minute left. The hold stays on with Omega looking at the clock as time expires at 30:00. Pac blasts the referee but hang on as we’re getting sudden death. Omega hits another V Trigger and then another knee to the head for two. The One Winged Angel finishes Pac at 33:14, counting the breaks between falls.

Omega – 2

Pac – 1

Rating: B+. They beat the heck out of each other here and while they could do another match, this felt like the definitive end of the feud. Omega gets a big singles win for the first time in a good while and Pac hardly looks bad in defeat. What does look bad is the Brutalizer, which was on for the better part of three minutes but then Omega just popped up and dominated overtime to win. I didn’t like it when Shawn Michaels survived that long in the Sharpshooter and I don’t like this either. That being said, heck of a fight and that’s what it needed to be.

Post break Pac doesn’t want to hear about getting what he deserves so here’s Orange Cassidy for a chat. Cassidy takes his glasses off so Pac drops him with a single forearm. Good for him.

Jake Hager isn’t allowing any interviews with Chris Jericho before tonight’s weigh-in.

Inner Circle vs. Jurassic Express

It’s Santana/Ortiz/Sammy Guevara this time around. The Express starts fast with Boy knocking Guevara off the apron and Stunt dropkicking Santana and Ortiz to the floor. Boy hits some suicide dives but Stunt gets pulled out of the air and thrown into Boy, driving him into the barricade. Back in and Luchasaurus gets taken down with a double flapjack, followed by a big toss to Stunt.

We take a break and come back with Santana hitting a big Poetry In Cannonball to crush Stunt in the corner. Stunt is fine enough to escape a German suplex attempt and bring in Luchasaurus to clean house. A chokeslam into a standing moonsault have Ortiz down but Sammy hits Luchasaurus in the back for reasons of overconfidence. Triple kicks in the corner rock Sammy and it’s a kick to the chest/Vertebreaker combination for two with Santana making the save.

A double enziguri puts Boy down and Sammy’s running shooting star press gets two with Stunt making the save. Luchasaurus moonsaults onto Stunt, Santana and Ortiz but Sammy grabs the loaded sock. Cue Darby Allin to steal it away though and Boy hurricanranas Sammy for the pin at 9:43.

Rating: B-. It was action packed and aside from my general issues with Stunt, there wasn’t much to complain about here, save for one thing. If you’re going to bust out a big move like a Vertebreaker in a match like this, it should be the finish. I know they had more to do, but if that’s the case, don’t do the move. Save a move that big for a more important spot instead of another near fall in a six man that isn’t going to mean much in the long run.

Video on Cody vs. Maxwell Jacob Friedman. They’ve done an awesome job of making me want to see Cody destroy him.

Best Friends vs. Butcher And Blade

Cassidy and Bunny are at ringside. Butcher runs Trent over to start and Blade walks around the ring a lot. Trent gets dropped ribs first across the top rope but he manages a running knee to set up the hot tag to Chuck. House is cleaned and we take a break. Back with Trent’s dive over the top being sent into the barricade but he’s fine enough to spear Blade down.

Hold on though, as it’s time for ORANGE CASSIDY TO DO THE SAME THING HE DOES EVERY WEEK, BUT THIS TIME IT’S SOMEONE DIFFERENT SO HE’S AWESOME! This time Bunny steals his sunglasses so he steals her bunny ears and then dives onto Blade. Strong Zero finishes Butcher at 8:06.

Rating: C-. It was the usual match with the usual Cassidy spot and that isn’t enough to overcome my lack of caring about either team. Butcher and Blade don’t win matches and don’t really hurt anyone so I’m not sure why they’re continuing their roles as enforcers/bounty hunters/whatever they’re called at the moment. It wasn’t a bad match, but after the first two matches, this wasn’t up to the same level.

Post match Tony Schiavone is in the ring with Best Friends and Cassidy to announce Cassidy vs. Pac for Revolution. Chuck: “Pac, the joke’s on you buddy, because this time he’s going to TRY!”

Big Swole vs. Shanna vs. Yuka Sakazaki vs. Hikaru Shida

Everyone gets in a shot or two to start with Shanna hurricanranaing Swole and Shida at the same time. Sakazaki stands on the apron while the other three do a triple test of strength. She comes back in to break it up but Swole kicks her down, setting up the parade of rollups for two each. Back with Shida cleaning house and suplexing Shanna into Sakazaki in the corner.

Swole is back in to clean house and kicks Shanna on the head, setting up a springboard cutter for two. Now it’s Sakazaki getting back up, only to get taken down with a lifting Pedigree to give Shanna two of her own. Dirty Dancing drops Shanna but Shida gives Swole a backbreaker. Sakazaki hits a springboard splash for two but Shida makes the save. A running knee hits Swole to give Shida the pin at 9:12.

Rating: C-. This was just another four way with the wrestlers doing their spots until one of them won. I’m rarely a fan of matches like this one as there is next to no story or psychology to the whole thing and it’s just moves after moves. It feels like there’s a multi person match every week or two and I don’t need to see another one for a good while.

The Dark Order says the Exalted One is coming and they’re beating up SCU at Revolution.

Jim Ross moderates a sitdown interview between the Young Bucks and Kenny Omega/Hangman Page (with a drink in hand). The Bucks couldn’t believe this being the case a year ago because Omega and Page were singles wrestlers. Omega says the Bucks are the best but he and Page were in the right place at the right time. Page looks rather anxious and the Bucks call him out for needing a drink.

They’re worried about him because they’re friends in and out of the ring. Page says he tried to leave the Elite, with the Bucks saying he’s walking away from everything they did for him. He was a jobber in ROH and they made him a star on Being The Elite. Page walks out, despite the Bucks saying they have a match to promote. Not titles to win mind you, but a match to promote.

Revolution rundown.

Lance Archer debuts next week.

It’s time for the official weigh-in between Jon Moxley and Chris Jericho, with Gary Michael Cappetta of all people as master of ceremonies. After hyping up the pay per view, Cappetta brings out the two of them but Jericho calls him a weird little man instead of getting on the scale. Jericho: “It’s no wonder WCW went out of business.” Moxley goes first and weighs 234lbs.

Jericho takes his time getting on the scale because he needs to insult the fans and Kansas City Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes. He goes after Moxley, who headbutts Jericho down to bust him open. The Inner Circle is on Moxley in a hurry but here’s Dustin Rhodes to go after Jake Hager. They fight to the back (JR: “For the love of God stay away from the Dippin’ Dots!!!”) and yes, Dustin is sent into the Dippin’ Dots cart.

Back in the arena, Darby Allin runs in (as in he doesn’t wait around on the stage for thirty seconds this week) for the save but Sammy takes the skateboard away and breaks it over Darby’s head. Moxley fights up and it’s time for the big slugout with Jericho. Guevara breaks up the Paradigm Shift with a low blow and the Judas Effect hits Moxley. Jericho gives him a Paradigm Shift onto the scale. That was a hot ending and covered three matches at once so well done all around.

Overall Rating: B. The opening hour was rather good and while things slowed down a lot from there, it was still a heck of a show with the ending picking up a lot of the slack. The last two weeks were better but this got me ready for Revolution and they’re still in a groove at the right time. Rather good show this week and if they can fix some of their issues, they’re as good as anything going at the moment, if not a fair bit better.

Results

Kenny Omega b. Pac two falls to one

Jurassic Express b. Inner Circle – Hurricanrana to Sammy Guevara

Best Friends b. Butcher and Blade – Strong Zero to Butcher

Hikaru Shida b. Big Swole, Yuka Sakazaki and Shanna – Running knee to Swole

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

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

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

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

IMG Credit: AEW

Dark
Date: February 11, 2020
Location: Von Braun Center, Huntsville, Alabama
Commentators: Tazz, Excalibur
Host: Tony Schiavone

This show continues to be all over the place and that is rather interesting at times. You never can tell what to expect on something like this and that’s one of the best things about it. Hopefully it’s a bit shorter than last week, which was longer than a show like this needs to be. Let’s get to it.

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

Tony runs down the card.

Riho vs. Shoko Nakajima

Non-title. They go with the technical stuff to start with Nakajima grabbing a headlock to little avail. A dropkick puts Nakajima down but she’s able to send Riho out side for a suicide dive. Back in and a cravate with knees to the head rock Riho some more, setting up a running basement Blockbuster. Nakajima pulls on both arms at once but Riho rolls through into a double stomp.

Riho misses a 619 so Nakajima tries and misses her own, only to keep swinging to hit a second attempt for a cool spot. They slug it out until Nakajima grabs a guillotine, only to get reversed into a northern lights suplex for two. A top rope double stomp gets two on Nakajima and it’s off to a pinfall reversal sequence for two each. Nakajima misses a top rope backsplash, allowing Riho to hit a running knee to the face for the pin at 7:32.

Rating: B-. The action was pretty good but Nakajima is the latest name added to a long list of women who aren’t all that interesting in the first place. The biggest problem continues to be we know nothing about them and there is little that sets them apart other than their name and their gear. Yes the action can carry them, but they are going to need something else.

Jimmy Havoc vs. Sonny Kiss

Havoc takes him to the mat to start and Sonny can’t spin out of a wristlock. A quick reversal into a sunset flip gives Kiss two and he takes Havoc down with a hurricanrana. The handspring splash just annoys Havoc so he knocks Kiss down in the corner. They fight to the floor with Kiss chopping the post by mistake, allowing Havoc to bend the arm around the turnbuckle.

Back in and we hit the armbar on Kiss, followed by a suplex to send him into the corner for two. A Death Valley Driver gets two and we hit the Fujiwara armbar to keep Kiss in trouble. That’s broken up and Kiss hits a one armed belly to belly, plus a front flip kick to the ribs for two. Kiss tries a Matrix but hurts his arm, setting up Havoc’s cross armbreaker, with the finger being bent back to make Kiss tap at 10:01.

Rating: C. I was shocked by the fact that the arm actually played into the finish and that’s a good thing. It’s the kind of a finish that you don’t get very often and I’m glad to see them doing something like that for a change. Nice enough match and I’m not sure what Havoc is doing next, but I’m not sure I even remembered him being around.

Dr. Luther seems to threaten Jimmy Havoc.

Here’s where Dynamite is coming.

Hikaru Shida vs. Cassandra Golden

Golden is taller and grabs a headlock to start. Shida’s shoulder has no effect and Golden throws her down by the hair. A whip into the corner gets two but Shida manages a backbreaker. Golden is right back with a much bigger side slam and a Vader Bomb gets a deep cover for two. This time it’s Shida coming back with a running forearm and a missile dropkick puts Golden down. She isn’t down long though as she is right back up with a running enziguri and a Falcon Arrow. Shida is fine enough to hit a running knee (popular move around here) for the pin at 6:29.

Rating: C-. Golden was impressive enough here and Shida has already proven herself. I got more out of Golden than I did Nakajima earlier, if nothing else because she stood out a bit more. We got a good enough match here but it’s nothing overly memorable, which is fine enough on a show like this one.

Dark Order vs. Jurassic Express

Jungle Boy/Marko Stunt here while Alex Reynolds and John Silver are out with the Order. Stunt avoids a charge from Grayson to start and hits a springboard bulldog. That just earns Stunt a running elbow to the face so it’s off to Jungle Boy for a hiptoss. A basement superkick has Grayson in trouble and it’s Uno coming in for an elbow to the face. Uno hits a Swanton for two more and Grayson adds a spinebuster for the same.

Boy tries to fight up but gets his back raked to take him down again. A slingshot hilo to the apron keeps Boy down and there’s a t-bone suplex to make it worse. The Fatality is broken up though and it’s Stunt coming back in for the dodging disguised as offense. A tornado DDT plants Uno as everything breaks down.

Boy hits a suicide dive on Silver and Reynolds, followed by a Samoan drop for two on Uno. Grayson gets caught in a bridging German suplex so Uno slams Stunt onto him for the save. Uno tells Boy to stop and then punches him in the face before Grayson catches Stunt’s super hurricanrana. That means Stunt can be thrown at Uno for a sitout powerbomb and now the Fatality is good for the pin at 9:45.

Rating: C. I’m not sure on having a THIS IS AWESOME during this one but at least they had some fast paced action at times and Stunt took the fall. It’s amazing how much more interesting the Dark Order is when they’re not talking and how much less intimidating they are when Uno is one of the focal points. Grayson looks fine but Uno looks like an indy guy who stumbled in here. Fix that and you might have something.

Post match the Dark Order goes after Boy but here are Luchasaurus and SCU for the save. Posing ends the show.

Overall Rating: C+. The wrestling is what mattered here and we had a nice enough night. Couple that with the show being shorter than last week and the lack of a match being shot with a handheld camera and this was an upgrade. They had a decent enough variety this week and I liked what we got well enough. This show is going to be built entirely around the wrestling and this week’s was better than most so call it a good one.

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

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

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

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

IMG Credit: AEW

Dark
Date: February 4, 2020
Location: Wolstein Center, Cleveland, Ohio
Commentators: Excalibur, Tazz
Host: Tony Schiavone

This show has gone in a very different direction over the last few weeks as they have been averaging about half an hour. I’m not sure what that means for the future but it’s been rather nice just getting in and getting out. Granted the show hasn’t been around long enough to exactly have a history or lineage so it could be completely different this time. Let’s get to it.

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

Tony welcomes us to the show and talks about the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. He’s rather glad that KISS finally got in….six years ago.

Jurassic Express vs. Brandon Cutler/Sonny Kiss

Marko Stunt/Jungle Boy for the Express here. Stunt and Cutler start things off as we hear about Stunt being exactly a foot shorter than Cutler. Not something I’d point out but Stunt is unique or something and that makes it fun. Some rollups give Stunt two and it’s off to Jungle Boy, who ducks underneath a moonsault out of the corner. A multiple springboard armdrag puts Cutler down and it’s off to Kiss for the splits armdrag. Jungle Boy gets laid over the middle rope and Kiss flips forward into a kick to the ribs. This of course means dancing, which is a theme for this match.

Boy beats up both of them at once and launches Stunt onto him in a flipping splash. Cutler is right back to run Stunt over and a swinging slam gives Cutler two. A hurricanrana finally gets Stunt over to the corner though and it’s Boy coming in to clean house. Something like a Last Chancery (with Cutler on his knees instead of on his stomach) has Cutler in trouble but Kiss makes the save. That earns Kiss a trip to the floor and Boy puts Cutler in a Gory Stretch. Stunt comes off the top with a flipping Stunner for the pin at 7:28.

Rating: C-. It was a step above a squash and that’s a good thing, mainly as it didn’t go on too long. Stunt getting a pin is more acceptable in this situation, though it’s still a big stretch to believe that anything he does can do much damage. That being said, Cutler and Kiss are the lowest of low level wrestlers so it’s not like it makes a difference.

We go to therapy with Brandi Rhodes because we need to get her on the show. She knows something isn’t right and has visions of the therapist wearing her own clothes. Brandi needs to let go of the people she hates. I wouldn’t mind if we let go of this story in general but that’s just me.

Mel vs. Hikaru Shida

Back in and Mel hits an enziguri to drop Mel, followed by a snap suplex for two. Mel kicks her down and drops a leg for her own near fall. A few shots to the face are shrugged off and Shida hits a running knee to the face for two more. Luther offers a distraction so Kong can interfere, only to hit Mel with the kendo stick by mistake. Another running knee finishes Mel at 8:16.

Rating: D+. This is another match that just kind of happened, which tends to be the case with the women’s division. The Nightmare Collective is still one of the least interesting groups (out of several of them) in AEW and I don’t need to see them around all that often. Shida is one of the better women in the division, but the thing is such a mess these days that it doesn’t make much of a difference.

Post match Shida leaves so Kong yells at Mel, who fights back. She and Mel double team Kong and send her through the barricade. A legdrop off the steps leaves Kong down. I’m not sure how one of the most dominant female wrestlers ever will deal with an old hardcore “legend” and a loser like Mel.

Here’s where Dynamite is coming.

From the Jericho cruise.

Kip Sabian/Penelope Ford vs. Kenny Omega/Riho

Gotta get Riho in there. She and Omega are in matching pink and white because they’re long term partners. In Japan but that’s just something we’re supposed to know about. As a bonus, there’s no commentary here and it’s shot indy style with a handheld camera. Ford slaps Omega to start and they lock up as the fans chant for AEW while declaring this wrestling. An exchange of headlocks lets Ford take him down, only to have Omega reverse into a headscissors.

Sabian comes in and says he wants Riho, who works on her own wristlock. That earns her a forearm to the back but she hits a running dropkick and armdrag. Sabian slams her a few times but Riho slips out of a third and brings in Omega to clean house. A running powerslam gives Omega two and it’s Riho coming in for a double stomp and half crab. Back up and Sabian sends them into the corner together but Omega comes out with the jumping Fameasser for two.

It’s back to Riho for some chops in the corner but he takes her over to Ford for the standard stomping and choking package. We’re clipped to Sabian dropping Riho into a camel clutch so Omega can come in for the save. Omega stomps away on her so Ford comes back in to punch Riho in the stomach for two. Riho kicks her down and headscissors Sabian, allowing another hot tag to Omega. You Can’t Escape gets two and Riho’s high crossbody is good for the same.

Sabian scores with an enziguri to Omega and Ford is back in for the handspring elbow. We’re clipped again to Ford hitting a Codebreaker and Sabian adding a legdrop to the back of the head to give her two. Omega finally hits a V Trigger on Sabian and the women come in again, this time with Ford hitting a Stunner for another near fall. Riho misses her top rope double stomp and it’s back to Omega for the slugout and Snapdragon on Sabian. Ford hits Omega low though, leaving Riho to Snapdragon Sabian as well. Omega Snapdragons Ford to even it up and the One Winged Angel finishes Sabian at 16:49.

Rating: C-. Ignoring the parts with Sabian and Omega selling for people half their side or the continued push for Riho, this was a lot longer than it needed to be and not something that needed to be broadcast. It’s one thing as a special feature for the live crowd but having the lack of commentary and handheld camera deal made it feel like I was watching a bad indy. The action was good enough but this didn’t need to air and would have been better left on the cruise deck.

Post match Omega talks about how wrestlers like him are told to stay in their place but this was the beauty of pro wrestling. Now they’re running international TV from a cruise ship and we get some applause for everyone involved. Goodnight and goodbye.

There is no update on Awesome Kong.

Best Friends vs. Shawn Spears/???

It’s another mystery partner and this time that would be….Colin Delaney, with Tully Blanchard thinking he looks good on paper. Is there a point to this story other than making Blanchard look stupid and out of touch? Orange Cassidy and Tully are here of course. Spears flips Cassidy off to start but gets hammerlocked by Trent for his efforts. That’s escaped but Spears cuts himself off from the TEN.

Some chops have Spears wincing and Trent knees him in the chest to send him outside. Delaney (who was the loser jobber in ECW about ten years ago) comes in and armdrags Chuck into an armbar. They flip around a bit into a standoff so Spears comes in at the same time, allowing Chuck to beat them both up. The ring is cleared but Delaney and Spears break up the big hug. Delaney wants his own hug but Spears goes to hug Tully instead.

Back in and Spears gets in an argument with the referee over a count before Delaney grabs a chinlock on Chuck. That’s broken up and it’s Trent coming back in to chop away. A hard clothesline drops Delaney and a running flip dive takes him down as well. Things settle back down and Trent slips out of a double suplex and brings Chuck back in. Soul Food into a half and half suplex gets two on Delaney but Spears crotches Trent on top.

Delaney hits a top rope Stunner into Spears’ Death Valley Driver for two with Chuck making the save. Everything breaks down again so let’s get the Cassidy vs. Blanchard showdown. All four hands go into the pockets and Cassidy does the kicks to the legs but Spears jumps him from behind to break that up. Trent sends Delaney into Spears and it’s a running knee to set up the big hug. That’s enough for Tully and Spears who walk out, leaving Delaney to take Strong Zero for the pin at 15:03.

Rating: D+. What exactly was the point of this? To continue the joke of “Spears needs a partner” which is leading….where? Spears has shown that he is little more than just a hand in the ring and Tully is there with him for the sake of they have nothing else for him. If the best you have is having him put his hands in his pockets so Orange Cassidy can do his signature deal, stop bringing Blanchard out there because he’s a lot more valuable than that.

Delaney and the other three have a group hug.

Tony says goodnight.

Overall Rating: D. So to recap, we had what should have been an extended squash, a match that focused entirely on the Nightmare Collective, that weird indy special match and the latest edition of Spears Needs A Partner/Blanchard Isn’t That Bright. We needed nearly an hour and twenty minutes to get through that? This felt like the lower level card getting their shine and showing why they’re the lower part of the card.

Omega and Riho are the only names of value here and they were in a complete throwaway match which had nothing to do with what they’re doing. It was a waste of time tonight and not a good show, which isn’t a good feeling. Stick with the short and sweet stuff or recaps, not these long, drawn out matches which don’t serve much of a purpose other than catering to people already watching your promotion.

Results

Jurassic Express b. Sonny Kiss/Brandon Cutler – Gory Stretch/Flipping Stunner combination to Cutler

Hikaru Shida b. Mel – Running knee

Kenny Omega/Riho b. Kip Sabian/Penelope Ford – One Winged Angel to Sabian

Best Friends b. Colin Delaney/Shawn Spears – Strong Zero to Delaney

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

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

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

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

IMG Credit: WWE

Dynamite
Date: January 22, 2020
Location: Norwegian Pearl, International Waters
Commentators: Jim Ross, Tony Schiavone, Excalibur

And now, we’re on a boat. If there is one thing that AEW has managed to do well it is offering in some changes of venue. That is the case again here as they are presenting this week’s show from Chris Jericho’s Rock N Rager cruise, with the matches taking place on the deck of the boat. That’s cool enough as it is, but there are some big matches as well. Let’s get to it.

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

Tag Team Titles: SCU vs. Hangman Page/Kenny Omega

SCU is defending and Page’s name graphic says “was hoping this was a booze cruise”. Kazarian headlocks Page to start as JR gets to talk about Danny Hodge a bit. Page tries to send him into the ropes and drops down, only to get headlocked again. Back up and Kazarian strikes away, setting up a discus lariat to put Page down again. Page fights up and shoves Kazarian away so it’s off to Omega and Sky.

The feeling out process goes on until Omega shoulders him down, only to have Sky nip right back up. The running Fameasser puts Sky down again and it’s back to Page for some chops. A blind tag brings Kazarian back in though and it’s a spinwheel kick to drop Page and put the champs in control again. The springboard legdrop gets two and Page gets dropped on his head, with Omega coming in before the referee can even get to the mat. Sky gets sent to the apron though and Page blasts Kazarian with a clothesline. JR: “Clothesline from Page, who has delivered the mail tonight!”

Kazarian is back up with a Backstabber and an Unprettier for two on Page but a double clothesline gives us a double knockdown. That’s enough for the hot tag to Omega so the pace can pick up a little bit. Omega hurricanranas Sky and Snapdragons Kazarian, setting up YOU CAN’T ESCAPE (with Page adding a shooting star in the middle) to Sky. Page dives onto Kazarian as Omega plants Sky for two, only to miss the V Trigger. A jumping knee works a bit better but Sky catches him on the middle rope with a super hurricanrana.

Back with Page superplexing Kazarian down and Omega feeding him into a discus forearm from Page. The Snapdragon drops Sky and a Jay Driller gives Omega two. Everything breaks down again and a quick SCULater gets two on Omega with Page shoving Sky into the cover for the save. Page cleans house again and hits a pop up powerbomb on Kazarian, followed by the Buckshot Lariat to Sky on the ramp. Another Buckshot Lariat finishes Kazarian for the pin and the titles at 19:09.

Rating: B+. It’s almost hard to believe that it’s the first time a title has changed hands around here. It was a heck of a match too with both teams looking great until the finish. I’m not sure where this is going to go with Page splitting away from the Elite and the whole alcohol thing but it’s a story that has a lot of possibilities. There was a lot of action here though and it opens up a lot of doors going forward.

Post match the Young Bucks come out to celebrate but Page goes into the crowd to drink and crowd surf.

Priscilla Kelly vs. Britt Baker

Baker takes her down for an early rollup and we take a slightly less early break. Back with Baker getting tied in the ropes for a pull of the arms, setting up a running dropkick from behind. Baker hits a clothesline and they run the ropes without hitting anything for a bit. A Sling Blade gives Baker two but Kelly kicks her in the head for the same. Baker hits her own kick though and pulls Kelly down into Lockjaw for the tap at 6:02.

Rating: C-. Just a match here as they try to get Baker over without giving her the title. Baker is someone where she seems to have all the tools but the whole is different than the sum of all the parts. It just isn’t clicking for some reason and I’m not sure if that’s going to get better. Kelly has a great look but she didn’t do much of anything here, albeit without having much time.

Post match Tony Schiavone goes to the ring to talk with Baker, who says we all love him even though he used to work at Starbucks. Sure he was a bad barista but no one looks down on him for that. The people look up to her and shouldn’t hate her because she’s beautiful, smart and a dentist. She keeps talking down to Tony as we take a break.

We look back at Jungle Boy surviving ten minutes against Chris Jericho.

Jurassic Express vs. Santana/Ortiz/Chris Jericho

Believe it or not, Chris Jericho (with Jake Hager) is the most popular guy on his own cruise with the fans singing him to the ring. Jericho and Boy start things off with Jericho shoving him in the face, earning himself a bunch of shots to the face. Ortiz comes in and avoids a dropkick but can’t do it twice, allowing Boy to get the first near fall. Luchasaurus comes in and sends Boy at Ortiz for the Downward Spiral.

Stunt comes in (wearing a child size life jacket) with a splash off of Luchasaurus’ shoulders and no count because the referee didn’t see the tag. Stunt gets in a fight with the life jacket but finally gets it off as the Express gets to pose. Luchasaurus kicks Santana in the head and Boy kicks him in the back for two of his own. Santana knocks him off the top though and we take a break.

Back with Jericho standing on Boy’s hair and handing it off to Santana to do the same. Santana works on a backbreaker with Boy being bent over the knee. It’s back to Jericho, who gets shoved off the top and hit with a high crossbody for two but Santana and Ortiz prevent the hot tag. Ortiz’s running splash gets two but Boy is right back with a reverse hurricanrana to plant Ortiz on the afro.

The hot tag brings in Luchasaurus to clean house and grab Jericho by the throat, with Ortiz making the save. JR: “Ortiz is insane.” More strikes, including the Tail Whip, knock the Inner Circle down again and it’s a standing moonsault for two on Jericho. Luchasaurus goes after Hager on the stage though, leaving Stunt to hit a 450 on Jericho for two. That’s enough for Jericho who hits the Judas Effect on Stunt for the pin at 14:08.

Rating: C+. I think I can live with Jericho getting a pin on a glorified mascot on his own cruise. It was a nice enough match too and Luchasaurus got to look great, which is what mattered more than anything else. They’ve done a great job of protecting him and if this means we get Luchasaurus vs. Hager in a hoss fight at Revolution, so be it.

Video on MJF vs. Cody.

Maxwell Jacob Friedman vs. Joey Janela

MJF shoves him away to start and it’s some headlock takeovers with headscissors breaking them up. A handshake offer doesn’t work as MJF spits in his face, only to bail from the threat of a right hand. He changes his mind though and charges down the ramp at Janela, who backdrops him back inside.

MJF hides behind the referee though and the distraction lets him forearm the heck out of Janela. Back from a break with Janela superplexing MJF but here are Kip Sabian and Penelope Ford on the ramp to distract Janela. The top rope elbow misses and MJF hits Cross Rhodes for the pin at 9:00.

Rating: C-. I don’t think it’s any secret that MJF is better on the mic than in the ring but this was fine enough. Janela on the other hand has just fallen through the floor and feels like the biggest afterthought in the company these days. His feud with Sabian isn’t interesting and I’m not sure why it keeps going, but that’s what we’re getting for weeks on end. It isn’t much every week, but both guys need to do something else.

Post match MJF talks about Cody getting all intense last week but MJF wasn’t impressed. Cue Cody to interrupt but MJF demands that his music be cut. MJF reminds Cody that he can’t touch him and MJF is very sorry about that. He offers Cody the mic and then drops it, demanding that Cody pick it up, only to kick it away. MJF gets on the ramp and Cody agrees that he can’t touch him. Instead, here are the Young Bucks to superkick MJF and then throw him in the pool.

Video on the cruise.

Kenny Omega and Hangman Page are proud of their win with Page taking most of the credit (and most of the drinks). As for Pac, Omega is willing to get his rubber match. The Young Bucks pop in and Omega says the two of them always have their backs. Page laughs that the Bucks didn’t win the titles first and walks off. Omega plays peacekeeper again.

Jon Moxley vs. Pac

#1 contenders match with Chris Jericho on commentary and Moxley’s eye bandaged after last week’s spike attack. After the Big Match Intros, they go technical to start with the fans seemingly behind Moxley. Some chops have Pac in trouble and a release German suplex makes it even worse. Pac is right back with some crossface shots and choking as the fans shout at another ship pulling up beside this one.

They head outside with Moxley sending him into the post as we take a break. Back with Moxley hitting a heck of a clothesline and they’re both down. A release vertical suplex gets two on Pac, who comes right back with an eyebreaker (as in a jawbreaker but he puts his head under Moxley’s eye instead). Pac takes him up top for a superplex but Moxley shoves him off. The top rope elbow hits knees though and Pac tries the Brutalizer. That’s broken up so Pac kicks him in the eye over and over.

Pac hits a running dropkick to the eye but a 450 hits knees, allowing Moxley to grab his own two. A release German suplex sends Moxley flying but the Black Arrow misses. Pac hits a superplex but Moxley is right back with the Paradigm Shift for two. Jericho: “STAY DOWN MOXLEY STAY DOWN!” Moxley goes up top again, earning himself a top rope superplex into the Brutalizer. That’s broken up with a foot on the ropes so Pac hammers at the bandaged eye some more. Moxley grabs a small package for two, followed by the Paradigm Shift. Another Paradigm Shift finishes Pac at 17:13.

Rating: B. Good stuff here, even if the ending wasn’t the most shocking in the world. Moxley vs. Jericho should be very good, but well done with having Jericho talk about wanting to face Pac. The eye was a nice addition too and Moxley sold it rather well. This was the kind of hard hitting match that both of them can do very well and it should set up another awesome match at Revolution.

Moxley stares Jericho down to end the show.

Overall Rating: A-. Another very good show here with the book ending matches both working. They did a great job of setting things up for the future, both at Revolution and at some undetermined point. I liked what they did here with a lot of stuff and the atmosphere made it even better. Heck of a show here and they’re clicking well in the new year.

Results

Hangman Page/Kenny Omega b. SCU – Buckshot lariat to Kazarian

Britt Baker b. Priscilla Kelly – Lockjaw

Chris Jericho/Santana/Ortiz b. Jurassic Express – Judas Effect to Stunt

Maxwell Jacob Friedman b. Joey Janela – Cross Rhodes

Jon Moxley b. Pac – Paradigm Shift

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

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

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

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

IMG Credit: WWE

Dark
Date: January 21, 2020
Location: Watsco Center, Miami, Florida
Commentators: Excalibur, Taz
Hosts: Tony Schiavone, Dasha Gonzalez

It’s another show from the Bash At The Beach special, though I’m not sure if this one counts or not. Dark has gotten a lot shorter in recent weeks and that’s a good thing. Keeping things short lets the show pack a bit more of a punch without wearing out its welcome. Now hopefully they keep it that way. Let’s get to it.

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

Opening sequence.

The hosts welcome run down the card.

Big Swole vs. Diamante

Swole grabs the wristlock to start and rolls her up for a fast one. An exchange of rollups is good for an exchange of one counts and sets up an exchange of headlocks. Swole wins an exchange of shoulders and kicks Diamante in the face for the first real knockdown. Diamante knees her right back and chokes a bit, but can only hit two Amigos.

A lot of taunting the crowd doesn’t get Diamante very far so she German suplexes Swole into the corner for two instead. Frustration sets in so Diamante grabs….a pair of sandals? One of them is taken away but the second connects for a few shots, only to have Swole take it away. That means an abdominal stretch for some spanking with the sandal, much to the fans’ delight. Now even more annoyed, Diamante misses a bunch of kicks before getting headbutted away. Dirty Dancing finishes for Swole at 7:22.

Rating: D+. I wasn’t feeling this one very well, but Swole is the kind of person that AEW needs. She isn’t well known but has an interesting story that people could get behind. Push her and see what she can do as she can back it up well enough in the ring. I don’t know if she’s going to be the next big thing, but they need a big thing for the future at some point so see what she might have.

Here’s where Dynamite is coming.

Strong Hearts vs. Jurassic Express

Jungle Boy headlocks T-Hawk to start but loses a battle of the shoulder blocks. The pace picks up a bit with Boy flipping him into a pair of kicks to the face. A chop knocks Boy back though, meaning it’s Stunt tagging himself in to face Lindaman. Stunt pumps himself up to try some shoulders, which go as well as you would expect. A slingshot sunset flip gets two on Lindaman but he avoids a leg lariat for a standoff.

It’s off to Cima for a running dropkick on Luchasaurus, which doesn’t have much effect. Luchasaurus cleans house and throws Boy at Cima for a Downward Spiral. Back to back springboard armdrags put T-Hawk and Cima on the floor and that means back to back suicide dives. Luchasaurus throws Stunt onto the two of them for a bonus and we settle down to Stunt pounding on Cima, only to get caught with a triple basement dropkick.

Something like an STF has Stunt in more trouble until a rope grab is good for the save. Stunt forearms away but runs into a sitout spinebuster for two, setting up an assisted double flip powerslam (Chikara fans would know it better as Ragnarok). Jungle Boy makes the save as everything breaks down.

The hot tag brings in Luchasaurus to start wrecking people, including slamming T-Hawk onto Cima. A standing moonsault gets two on Lindaman and it’s Boy’s lifted Downward Spiral for two. Luchasaurus gets to kick more people in the face and then tosses Lindaman into a sitout spinebuster (similar to the North’s finisher) to give Boy the pin at 10:51.

Rating: C+. I’m still not big on Stunt but this was a fun six man with Luchasaurus getting to show off and Boy continuing his good roll over the last few months. The Jurassic Express got off to a pretty slow start so it’s nice to see them getting back on their feet in the new year. Hopefully that continues, as Luchasaurus could go somewhere with or without the other two.

Tony and Dasha wrap it up.

Overall Rating: C. Well that was quick. This one didn’t even clock in at half an hour, which makes it more like the kind of show I was expecting when the show was announced. You don’t need all of the recaps and story building things around here (though the latter are nice bonuses on occasion) and going with a straight wrestling show is a good idea. Not a bad show here, but the length was the most surprising part, as the show has been cut by nearly forty five minutes in just a few weeks.

Results

Big Swole b. Diamante – Dirty Dancing

Jurassic Express b. Strong Hearts – Assisted sitout spinebuster to Lindaman

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

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

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

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

IMG Credit: AEW

Dynamite
Date: January 8, 2020
Location: Landers Center, Southaven, Mississippi
Commentators: Jim Ross, Tony Schiavone, Excalibur

We’re in the south again this week and it’s time for Jon Moxley to make his decision about joining the Inner Circle. That could go multiple ways but I think you know where this is headed. Other than that, we’ll be getting a tribute to Memphis wrestling legends, which seems prime for a certain loudmouthed rich kid to come in and mess everything up. Let’s get to it.

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

Opening recap.

Memphis broadcasting legend Dave Brown is on commentary.

Kenny Omega/Hangman Page vs. Private Party

Page, whose name graphic says he’s “not gonna pay Private Party that $12”, and Quen start things off with the fans wanting some cowboy s***. Page slugs away to start but gets sent into the corner, with Kassidy coming in for a top rope double stomp/neckbreaker combination, plus a running knee to knock Omega off the apron. An elbow to the face gets Page out of trouble and it’s off to Omega, with Page seemingly getting along with him just fine.

A backbreaker plants Kassidy so it’s already back to Page, only to have Kassidy fight out of the corner. Kassidy hits a slingshot Downward Spiral to plant Omega and it’s a double tag off to Page and Quen. A standing C4 gets two on Page with Omega having to make the save. Everything breaks down and it’s a powerbomb to Kassidy, setting up Omega’s running knee to the back for two more.

Kassidy is right back with the Silly String for two but Page loads up a powerbomb. That’s broken up with a double dropkick to send Page into Omega though and Gin and Juice gets a VERY close two on Omega. Quen gets flipped away by Omega, but it lands in a Pele on Page as Omega panics. Page is fine enough to hit a Buckshot lariat as Omega nails the V Trigger. The One Winged Angel finishes Quen at 12:25.

Rating: C+. It was an energetic match and continued the story of Page’s issues, though I’m still not sure how this is going to wind up going. I could see Page being the leader of the Dark Order or just turning on Omega whenever he faces Pac again, but maybe they have something else in mind.

Post match Page and Omega seem fine but it’s Pac popping up on screen with Michael Nakazawa in the Brutalizer. Page demands his rubber match with Omega, who runs to the back. I’m so glad Nakazawa was there because he never wrestles but rather just stands in the back so Pac can beat him up.

Brandi Rhodes replaces Brown on commentary.

Women’s Title: Riho vs. Kris Stadtlander

Riho is defending but has bad ribs after last week. Brandi says that she’s more interested in having a nap than watching this match and asks if Excalibur takes his mask off to shower. Excalibur says that he keeps it on because of lucha libre tradition. I would have thought it’s because he thinks it’s a lot cooler than it really is.

Riho has to bridge out of an early cover but Stadtlander blocks a 619. The tilt-a-whirl backbreaker plants Riho for two and we take a break. Back with Stadtlander hitting a delayed superplex but here’s the Nightmare Collective at ringside. Riho gets kicked in the face but manages an elbow to Stadtlander’s face. The referee checks on her and it’s the Collective pulling Riho off the apron.

Stadtlander dives onto both of them as Brandi comes out to the ring. She and Stadtlander yell at each other but here’s the bald guy from the Nightmare Collective (identified as Luther, the Japanese deathmatch legend) to grab Stadtlander. Kong clotheslines Stadtlander down so Riho dives onto Luther instead of covering.

Back in and Riho misses the top rope double stomp, allowing Stadtlander to gorilla press her way up. That’s countered into a rollup for two, followed by Stadtlander’s Michinoku Driver for the same. Stadtlander loads up a piledriver but Kong trips her up, allowing Riho (who didn’t seem to see the interference) to get the rollup to retain at 9:35.

Rating: C-. And so much for that. They seemed to have something going with Stadtlander but hey let’s go with Riho retaining again and the focus being on the Nightmare Collective. I know Riho isn’t as bad as some people would say but egads people. You have so much talent out there and Riho is going over all of them for reasons that I don’t quite grasp. If Riho is that much more over than the rest of the division, she can survive without the title for a bit. But yeah it’s all about the Nightmare Collective (read as Brandi), again.

Post match the beatdown is on but some of the women’s roster, watching from the crowd, jump the barricade for the save.

Video on Kip Sabian and Penelope Ford.

Sammy Guevara vs. Christopher Daniels

Sammy has been saying Daniels doesn’t have it anymore so Daniels starts with a bunch of armdrags and chops in the corner. Sammy is right back with a fireman’s carry, with squats, into a Samoan drop for two. The 450 misses though and it’s a t-bone suplex to send Guevara down.

A running knee and running shooting star press give Sammy two but Daniels gets the same off a backslide. There’s a release Rock Bottom from Daniels but hang on as here’s Pentagon Jr. to show Daniels he can still do the Arabian moonsault. The distraction lets Sammy hit a jumping knee and a superkick to the back of the head for the pin at 5:49.

Rating: C-. This was much more about the storyline advancement than the wrestling and that’s fine. The Daniels doesn’t have it anymore story is perfectly fine and I’m curious to see which way they take to wrap it up. That’s more important than having some outstanding match here as the future is more of a positive than the present.

Post match it’s the Dark Order with Evil Uno saying that he’s known Daniels for fifteen years. Daniels isn’t the man he once was but they can help him with that. Uno holds up the mask but Daniels throws it back at him, meaning the big beatdown is on. SCU and the Young Bucks (that’s a nice addition as they should be out here) run in for the save. House is cleaned and Daniels hits the BME on Uno.

Cody/Dustin Rhodes vs. Lucha Bros

Arn Anderson is here with Cody and Dustin. Cody and Pentagon pose off to start so Cody sends him into the ropes. The Fear Factor and Cross Rhodes are both blocked so it’s Fenix and Dustin coming in for one of the strangest combinations I can imagine. Dustin gets kicked to the floor for the suicide dive and Pentagon adds the top rope double stomp for two as we take a break.

Back with Dustin still in trouble but Anderson kicks a chair away from Fenix. Dustin grabs a spinebuster to set up the hot tag to Cody, who can’t quite hit a headlock takeover/hurricanrana combination. Fenix kicks Cody in the head though and grabs a rolling cutter to drop him again. The rope run kick to the head drops Cody and the Pentagon Driver nearly drops him on his head. Dustin makes the save and hits a Canadian Destroyer on Fenix. The Cody Cutter sets up the Final Reckoning to give Dustin the pin at 10:15.

Rating: B-. I could watch the Lucha Bros do their awesome spots and flips for days as they are just so smooth out there. They lose too often though and while that’s not a problem yet, it might become one someday. Just let them win a few matches to keep their status and their talent will do the rest. Good match here though and the best one of the night so far.

Post match Arn says he and Cody will talk about MJF’s demands and get back to him next week.

Lanny Poffo talks about how great the Memphis legends are and he’s glad to be here.

Here are MJF and Wardlow with MJF wanting Cody out here right now. After giving him a ten count, it’s Diamond Dallas Page interrupting MJF instead. Page lists off his resume and we get a YOGA chant. As MJF checks his phone (so appropriate for him), Page puts over AEW and plugs his Instagram before saying people have been asking him for one more match. MJF: “ENOUGH!”

MJF doesn’t want to fight them but these guys do. Cue the Butcher, the Bunny and the Blade as MJF says Page can kiss the ring, or MJF can have one of Page’s daughters. The fight is on with Page laying out Butcher and Blade but getting kicked low by MJF. QT Marshall and Dustin Rhodes make the save. Page took WAY too long to get to the point here and is still one of the most protected guys in the company despite not really being in the company.

Orange Cassidy/Best Friends vs. Jurassic Express

Jungle Boy dropkicks Trent to start so it’s off to Stunt, who psyches himself up for a bit until Trent shoves him down. Stunt does his floss dance and it’s Boy coming in to put Trent down. Everything breaks down and we take a break. Back with Luchasaurus coming in to hit everyone in a hurry.

The Tail Whip hits Trent and it’s off to Cassidy to the big reaction. The slow motion kicks to the legs don’t do much to Luchasaurus but a Stundog Millionaire sends him to the floor. Cassidy hits his hands in the pockets dive but it’s Marko hitting a spinning Downward Spiral to Chuck. A Canadian Destroyer makes it worse so Stunt gets tossed onto Trent on the floor. Back in and Jungle Boy grabs a rollup for the pin at 10:42.

Rating: C. This was a good example of a lot of the things that get on my nerves about these guys. It isn’t the fact that Stunt is so small or the fact that Cassidy isn’t really funny. It’s having them do the same gags over and over. Stunt does the dance and Cassidy does the slow kicks. Those bits were funny once or maybe twice but we see them in every match. It’s like something we have to get through rather than something that should be included.

Here’s the Inner Circle for Jon Moxley’s answer. Moxley comes down as Jericho says he would beat up Elvis if he was here because the Beatles were way better. The car is gassed up and ready to go and Beal Street is blocked off for the Inner Circle only. Jericho asks the question so Moxley talks about how he has a lot of goals. Moxley doesn’t want a car or money but rather to dominate. That’s why he says yes, because the Inner Circle is the most dominant force in AEW. They can stand together and dominate AEW so let’s open up some of the bubbly.

Moxley asks for the car keys and is proud of having the $750,000 Ford. Sammy Guevara and Jake Hager leave but Moxley says cut the music. Moxley says he’s forgotten one thing: he’s just kidding because the Inner Circle is stupid. The only thing he wants is the World Title so Moxley breaks a bottle over Jericho’s head. Paradigm Shifts abound and Moxley, with the keys, bails before Hager can kill him. There’s nothing wrong with setting up an angle where you know what is coming but get strung along for a bit on the way there and they did it well here.

Overall Rating: C-. This was another one of their weak entries as the wrestling was just kind of there for the most part with nothing being all that memorable. It’s still a completely watchable show, but there were things that just left me sitting there and a good closing angle to set up the Revolution main event. Just not much of note here, though it was far from bad.

Results

Kenny Omega/Hangman Page b. Private Party – One Winged Angel to Quen

Riho b. Kris Stadtlander – Rollup

Sammy Guevara b. Christopher Daniels – Superkick to the back of the head

Cody/Dustin Rhodes b. Lucha Bros – Final Reckoning to Fenix

Jurassic Express b. Orange Cassidy/Best Friends – Rollup to Taylor

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

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

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

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

IMG Credit: AEW Wrestling

Dark
Date: December 10, 2019
Location: State Farm Center, Champaign, Illinois
Commentators: Excalibur, Chuck Taylor, Orange Cassidy
Hosts: Dasha Gonzalez, Tony Schiavone

It’s another week as we get closer to the end of the year. The card is going to be your usual mystery bag as the show is likely to get even longer. Rather than just being a collection of dark matches (which aren’t dark as they are being filmed and aired but that isn’t the point). Instead it’s just a toned down Dynamite, which doesn’t work as well when it’s the day before next week’s show. Let’s get to it.

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

Opening recap.

The announcers run down the card.

Scorpio Sky vs. Jimmy Havoc vs. Peter Avalon

Havoc goes straight for the weapons to start so Sky knocks him down before the staple gun can be brought in. That lets Sky hit a spinning crossbody for two on Avalon as Havoc gets inside again. Havoc sends Sky into the corner and hits a sitout implant DDT on Avalon. Sky fights back but Avalon knocks him down as well, meaning it’s time for the double teaming.

That’s fine with Sky, who suplexes Avalon onto Havoc and then dives onto both of them again. With Avalon down on the floor, Havoc hits a Landslide for two on Sky. It’s staple gun time but Avalon knocks it out of Havoc’s hand and gets his own two. Sky throws Havoc outside though and TKOs Avalon for the pin at 6:30.

Rating: C-. Just a match here and a way to get Sky back on the winning track, even though the title should be more than enough to do just that. Avalon taking the fall was of course the right way to go as Havoc has a lot more value than an average wrestler with a bad gimmick. This would have been fine as a dark match, but instead it’s on TV as something completely forgettable, much like a lot of this show.

Dark Order initiation video.

From Dynamite.

Here’s Chris Jericho, flanked by Jake Hager, for a chat. After shilling A Little Bit Of The Bubbly, Jericho pulls out a list….and the fans cheer. Actually they need to get out of 2016 because this is THE LEXICON OF LE CHAMPION! Anyway he has to wrestle one more time in two weeks to wrap up the year but he has some people he won’t wrestle:

Jon Moxley, Cody (“Because he can’t.”), the Young Bucks, Papa Buck, Uncle Buck, Buck Owens, Moxley, Hangman Page, Diamond Dallas Page, Paige, Moxley, Scorpio Sky, 2 Cold Scorpio, Any member of the Scorpions, Moxley, Michael Nakazawa, Kenny Omega, Kenny Ortega, Kenny Shields, Kenny Chesney, Kenny from South Park, Moxley, the chubby guy with the popcorn in the fifth row, the ugly guy with the dumb glasses in the third row, Moxley, Darby Allin, Rick Allen, Alan Jones (AJ Styles), Moxley, Evil Uno, Angry Dos, Hateful Tres, Moxley, Marty…..and here’s the Jurassic Express to interrupt.

Jericho says he wasn’t finished because dinosaurs and little children were up next. Luchasaurus roars at him and then speaks normally, bringing up that he can talk and has a degree in Medieval History. It’s no surprise that dinosaurs are on the list because they’ve been marginalized for 65 million years. Yes Marko is small, but he’s more of a man than Jericho will ever be. That leaves Jungle Boy, who Jericho dubs “a piece of s***”. Jericho doesn’t think Boy could last ten minutes with him, so Boy takes the mic and says he’ll take Jericho out. The fight is on with Hager and Jericho bailing.

Jurassic Express vs. John Silver/Alex Reynolds

Marko Stunt and Luchasaurus for the Express here. Luchasaurus growls Reynolds into the corner so it’s off to Silver, whose chop is swatted away. The monster starts kicking away so it’s off to Stunt to miss a charge in the corner. A running knee gets two on Silver but Reynolds breaks up the dive. Silver’s superkick gets two and Reynolds stands on Stunt’s hair as it is rather cathartic to see Stunt get hurt.

A gorilla press into a cutter gets two on Stunt but he’s fine enough to small package Reynolds for the same. Stunt can’t kick him away so it’s a wheelbarrow roll to get over to Luchasaurus instead. House is cleaned in a hurry (as expected) and there’s the double chokeslam. A powerbomb/top rope flip neckbreaker combination finishes Reynolds at 6:18.

Rating: C. Just a step above a squash here and there is some quality Stunt damage in there as well. Sometimes you just need to see a smaller guy get beaten up to entertain you a bit. That’s what we got here, plus the awesome Luchasaurus getting to wreck people. It’s a fine enough match, but just get back to Luchasaurus and Jungle Boy already.

We look at the current state of/recent events in the women’s division, including Nyla Rose being suspended for attacking a referee.

From Dynamite.

Post match here are Awesome Kong and Brandi Rhodes to dub themselves the Nightmare Collective, saying that they do the jobs no one wants to do. Kris is all up in her business and that may give Kris an opportunity. Brandi tells Kris to pledge herself to the Nightmare Collective right now but before there’s a yes, Kong gets in Kris’ face. A female fan at ringside offers to pledge and security lets her come to ringside. She lets Kong cut off her hair and that’s that. No answer from Kris, as she doesn’t seem interested in joining the newest cult/faction.

We get a profile on Big Swole, whose name means a big personality. She had emergency surgery in 2008 and actually died but had to be brought back to life. Then she had a daughter and has taught her that she needs to live every day because you never know when it might end.

Here are the women’s rankings:

5. Kris Stadtlander

4. Britt Baker

3. Emi Sakura

2. Nyla Rose

1. Hikaru Shida

Christopher Daniels was banged up and is furious at hurting himself. He came out early and got beaten up by Pentagon Jr. Daniels isn’t done with him.

We get the explanation from the Bunny of why the Butcher and the Bunny attacked Cody.

From Dynamite.

Here’s Cody for a chat. He talks about how he isn’t allowed to challenge for the World Title again but everything his gone nuts around here. His brother and the Young Bucks are in a blood feud with Santana and Ortiz, his wife has joined forces with a monster who steals women’s hair and then there’s the Butcher and the Blade. If they wanted a match with him, all they had to do was ask and they can even choose his partner.

That brings him to Maxwell Jacob Friedman, who had no business to throw in the towel at Full Gear. There are a lot of things people can criticize about MJF. He’s short, he might wear a fake scarf, and he does the worst Cross Rhodes in wrestling. Cody: “At least they’re botching it on two channels now.” Or maybe it’s the fact that he’s an NWO low rent Chris Jericho. But MJF won’t fight him, so Cody is willing to sweeten the pot.

Cody offers the keys to his Ford Black Ops (Google says it costs about $88,500), his watch from Tony Khan, and his Louis Vuitton shoes. If that’s not MJF’s speed, Cody brings out a briefcase with about $50,000 cash. To prove it’s real, he gives a kid in the front row $100 and the kid looks….confused? Anyway, come play ball with him and name your price. Cody is a great promo, NXT/WWE shot aside.

We get MJF’s response, where he announces that he hired the Butcher and the Blade to jump Cody, which somehow didn’t make Dynamite.

Video on the six man tag opener from Dynamite.

Here’s where Dynamite is coming.

Buy a Little Bit Of The Bubbly!

Kenny Omega vs. Kip Sabian

Sabian has Penelope Ford in his corner. They fight on the mat to start with Omega tripping him a few times to take over. Omega misses a big chop so they run the ropes, with Kenny plowing through him for two. A head fake lets Omega chop away in the corner and some more knock Sabian off the top to the floor. Ford offers a distraction though, allowing Sabian to hurricanrana him to the floor.

Ford’s hurricanrana makes it worse and Sabian keeps it up with a hard whip into the corner. A hanging swinging neckbreaker gets two on Omega but he Hulks Up for the slugout. Omega clotheslines him down and You Can’t Escape gets two. Sabian is right back with a springboard tornado DDT for two and Omega is sent to the apron. Ford grabs the leg but Omega is back with a powerbomb.

The running knee to the back of the head rocks Sabian again but he pulls Aubrey Edwards in the way of the V Trigger. Omega pulls up, allowing Ford to come in for a Stunner so Sabian can get two off a kick to the chest. The V Trigger into the snapdragon so Ford comes in again, only to get thrown into Sabian. A Tiger Driver 98 gets two on Sabian and it’s another running knee to the back of the head, setting up the One Winged Angel for the pin at 14:21.

Rating: B-. This was the kind of win that Omega needs: where he has to sweat a bit but is never in any real danger. At the end of the day, he is going to be the big deal going forward, as he should be, and it makes sense to build him up with wins like this. Ford continues to have more star power than she knows what to do with but she almost never gets to do anything significant. Anyway, fine match here for a Dark main event.

Overall Rating: C. This show hasn’t been around very long but it has already started to evolve. Instead of just a collection of matches, the show is also a recap/backstage show. That makes it a bit longer than it needs to be though, as it is now regularly over an hour, and in this case over an hour and fifteen minutes. AEW isn’t at the point where they need to have that much TV time yet and it might be better to cut this by about fifteen to twenty minutes. The fans who are watching this show are already watching Dynamite so why show them the same things again? It’s still good, but tighten things up a bit.

Results

Scorpio Sky b. Jimmy Havoc and Peter Avalon – TKO to Avalon

Jurassic Express b. John Silver/Alex Reynolds – Powerbomb/top rope flip neckbreaker combination to Reynolds

Kenny Omega b. Kip Sabian – One Winged Angel

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

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

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

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

IMG Credit: AEW

Dark
Date: December 3, 2019
Location: Sears Center Arena, Chicago, Illinois
Commentators: Excalibur, Nyla Rose
Hosts: Tony Schiavone, Dasha Gonzales

I’m not sure what to expect from here and that is one of the best things you can say about a show like this. I know it’s going to be a collection of matches, but it’s kind of nice to see the wrestlers getting out there and showing what they can do without the storylines to keep things in place. That can be a bad thing too, which is what makes the show a bit more interesting. Let’s get to it.

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

We open with a recap of Maxwell Jacob Friedman winning the Dynamite Diamond and Diamond Dallas Page almost getting in a fight with Friedman’s bodyguard Wardlow.

Shanna will not be on commentary after an attack at the hands of Nyla Rose, who will be taking her place.

Brandon Cutler vs. Jimmy Havoc

They start with the wrestling as Havoc crucifixes him for two and grabs a wristlock. Cutler can’t get his own armbar as Havoc bites the arm, as he tends to do. A right hand to the face rocks Cutler again so he moonsaults over Havoc and hits a flying forearm as Excalibur goes into a rather long run on sentence. Havoc bails to the floor and grabs the staple gun to prevent a dive.

Back in and a low blow keeps Cutler in trouble, meaning it’s back to the ear for more biting. There’s a poke to the eye for a bonus, setting up a suplex into the corner for two. The Acid Rainmaker is broken up so Havoc bites him again, with Rose saying it’s because of some new cologne. Havoc hits a double stomp to the chest but Cutler sweeps the leg, setting up a legdrop to the apron. A springboard elbow gives Cutler two but it’s the Acid Rainmaker to give Havoc the pin at 7:55.

Rating: C-. In a way this was more effective for Havoc than most of the hardcore stuff because there is only so much you can get out of all the same stuff every time. Havoc isn’t someone who is going to get a lot of wins so putting him out there like this is as good as you’re going to get. It was more or less a squash, which is about all you can do with Cutler, who isn’t going to win anything of note.

Post match Havoc staples a $10,000 check to Cutler’s head.

In the back, Cutler yells at Havoc and is told that he’s being fined. Havoc says he’s a villain so he doesn’t care about the $10,000 fines for each use of the staple gun. Makes sense in a way.

Dark Order recruitment vignette.

Video on the Blade/Butcher/Bunny debuting and attacking Tony.

Shawn Spears vs. Sonny Kiss

Tully Blanchard is here with Spears. Kiss backflips out of a wristlock to start and drops into the splits as Spears isn’t sure what to do here. After knocking Kiss down, Spears gets in some dancing of his own, with the fans giving it a TEN. Kiss gets in a knockdown of his own and hits a splits legdrop, only to get knocked outside. Back in and the Death Valley Driver finishes Kiss at 3:59.

Rating: D+. Total squash here and that is the best thing it could have been. The best sign out of the whole thing is Kiss being left as a comedy jobber. A lot of fans were worried about less serious characters like Kiss being pushed to the top of the card but that has not been the case and it is quite the relief.

Post match Spears and Blanchard spike piledriver Kiss on the floor.

We look at Dustin Rhodes’ interview being interrupted and a brawl erupting.

We see Christopher Daniels jumping the Lucha Bros, setting up Daniels vs. Pentagon Jr. on Dynamite.

We look at the end of Chris Jericho vs. Scorpio Sky with Jericho retaining the title and being confronted by Jon Moxley as a result.

Here’s where Dynamite is coming.

We go to a documentary feature called Jurassic Planet, featuring a narrator talking about Jungle Boy in the wild. Luchasaurus is seen eating some leaves and the two form a friendship….before running into the dancing Marko Stunt. They have something here and it doesn’t involve Stunt.

Jurassic Express vs. Santana and Ortiz

That name sounds better than Proud and Powerful and they use it enough so I’m going with it. Santana and Jungle Boy start things off with Santana taking him into the corner for a somewhat insulting chop. They hit the mat and fight over a wristlock until Boy snaps off a hurricanrana. A dropkick sends Santana into the corner so Marko can come in, allowing Boy to spear him into the corner.

That leaves Stunt in the ring though and it’s a dropkick into a German suplex to knock him silly. A belly to back suplex lets Santana pose and we get the delayed vertical suplex with a few trades back and forth. Stunt eventually reverses into a small package for two on Santana but Ortiz is right back in with a Falcon Arrow.

Everything breaks down and Santana and Ortiz ram them together to take over again. Jurassic Express is sat in some chairs and Cannonballed right back out of them for the big crash. Back in and Stunt has to crawl to the rope to escape the Boston crab. That’s enough for the tag back to Boy and a high crossbody gets two on Ortiz.

A sunset flip into a jackknife cover gives Santana two with Stunt diving off the top for the save. Stunt launches off of Boy’s back for a running DDT and Boy lifts Santana up onto his shoulder. That lets Stunt come off the top with a flipping cutter into a spinning Big Ending for two and the fans are getting into the kickouts. Boy gets sent to the floor though and it’s a powerbomb into kick to the face from Santana for the pin on Stunt at 13:24.

Rating: C. You know every complaint that I’ve had about Stunt so far? It’s the exact same thing here. I can’t get around how small he is as he’s more or less a wrestling mascot with the stupid dancing over and over. Yes the fans cheer for him, but he was a novelty act at first and the novelty has worn off in a hurry.

Post match here’s Sammy Guevara for the beatdown but it’s Luchasaurus coming out for the save. The chokeslam into the standing moonsault crushes Ortiz but here’s Jake Hager. They slug it out until the Inner Circle gets up to beat Luchasaurus down, only to have the Young Bucks come in for the save. Luchasaurus and Boy throw Stunt through the air for a Canadian Destroyer.

Tony and Dasha wrap things up.

Overall Rating: C-. I’m not sure what was up with them on this night but dang it wasn’t exactly working. Last week’s Dynamite wasn’t great and this show was one of the weaker Darks they’ve aired yet. The ending helped, but aside from that, which will likely be shown on Dynamite, there was nothing to see here and that is becoming more of a trend on Dark. It isn’t a bad show, but it’s one I don’t think about after it’s done and it wouldn’t hurt much if it was dropped. Oh and keep Rose FAR away from commentary. She had a few decent moments but she was much more annoying than anything else.

Results

Jimmy Havoc b. Brandon Cutler – Acid Rainmaker

Shawn Spears b. Sonny Kiss – Death Valley Driver

Santana and Ortiz b. Jurassic Express – Kick to Stunt’s head

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

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

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

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

IMG Credit: AEW

Dark
Date: November 5, 2019
Location: Charleston Coliseum, Charleston, West Virginia
Commentators: Maxwell Jacob Friedman, Excalibur
Hosts: Tony Schiavone, Dasha Gonzales

I’m still not 100% sure what to expect from this show but that doesn’t make it a bad thing. In other words, we could get an instant classic or we could get a bunch of nothing, but that Kenny Omega vs. Joey Janela match is starting to seem like more of a fluke than anything else. Hopefully this show is a little better than Dynamite, which was their weakest show yet but still perfectly watchable. Let’s get to it.

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

Tony welcomes us to the show and brings in Spanish commentator Dasha Gonzales. We run down the card and we’re ready to go.

Michael Nakazawa vs. Shawn Spears

This has some potential, though I don’t think it’s the right kind. Tully Blanchard is here with Spears and Friedman is already all over Spears. MJF can’t get why Nakazawa says Naka Naka Naka etc. during his entrance. Nakazawa gets backed into the corner to start and he complains of an eye poke. That doesn’t get him very far so it’s time to trade wristlocks. A snapmare puts Nakazawa down and it’s a little strutting to show off.

The waistlock goes on and there’s the baby oil to get Nakazawa out. See that’s his gimmick because….I have no idea actually. Spears and Tully slip on the oil because that’s how you use a Horseman. Back in and Spears starts in on the spine with some forearms as the pace slows. The half crab stays on the back as the announcers talk about how painful a chop can be.

Nakazawa fights back up with some forearms and a shoulder gets two. A Samoan drop gets the same….and Nakazawa pulls off his underwear to wrap around his hand. Thankfully Spears kicks him in the face and hits a slingshot Jackhammer for the pin at 8:38. MJF: “He is still ridiculously ugly.”

Rating: D+. Well that certainly happened. I’m not sure what else there is to say about it and that isn’t a good sign. Spears continues to be someone who is passable in the ring and not much more than that. He just isn’t that interesting, though I do like the slingshot Jackhammer. Now just find something for him to do. Nakazawa on the other hand can just leave already as he is just plain annoying and nothing in the ring other than some weird semi-sexual stuff. Why would I be interested in seeing him?

Mercedes Martinez/Big Swole vs. Sadie Gibbs/Allie

Allie comes in for a crossbody into a backsplash for two and it’s already back to Sadie. Mercedes gets clever by rolling into the back of Sadie’s legs to take her down into a curb stomp for two. Swole slugs away at Sadie and a kick to the face gets two. The guillotine choke is countered into a suplex to plant Swole and it’s off to Allie to take over on both of them.

Another camera cut seems to hide what was supposed to be a sliding clothesline in the corner but Martinez drives Allie back into the corner. Allie’s Russian legsweep gets two on Swole so she kicks Allie in the face again. Martinez hits Two Amigos into a delayed vertical suplex on Allie as Swole dances on the apron. A Backstabber gets Allie out of trouble but Martinez knees her in the face.

That’s enough for a double tag (with the heel seemingly getting the hot tag) to Gibbs and Swole as everything breaks down. Allie cleans house but MJF wants her to grow up and stop caring about what the fans think of her. Everyone but Sadie heads outside so there’s the Sasuke Special. Even MJF is impressed as it’s time for the parade of secondary finishers to put everyone down. Martinez powerbombs Sadie into a neckbreaker for two with Allie making a save. Allie superkicks Swole down and Gibbs adds the moonsault for the pin at 14:34.

Rating: C. The amount of camera cuts here should be a little worrying as they should be able to work a match like this without having any major trouble. While the match was mainly a formula based tag, the hot tag to Swole was just weird and it was a little sloppy at times. That being said, it was far from a disaster and it’s nice to see the women getting some attention. Now if only they could get close to the title picture for a change.

Britt Baker isn’t happy with Bea Priestly for injuring her at Fight For The Fallen and not even caring. Priestly is no professional and Baker wants her to feel helpless in the Lockjaw at Full Gear. Baker: “That means I can rip your jaw off your f****** face Bea.”

The match is confirmed for the Full Gear Buy In, which Tony says is tomorrow night. They’re really still doing the gambling stuff?

Video on the contract signing between Chris Jericho and Cody, which led to Dustin Rhodes being taken out by the Inner Circle.

Cody’s sitdown interview this week is with Jimmy Havoc, who has gotten where he is by being himself. Then he got into the hardcore stuff and is still being himself, which has made him successful. These can be interesting, but some of them aren’t as strong, which was the case here.

Jurassic Express vs. Joey Janela/Jimmy Havoc

MJF can’t buy that Stung is 23 and older than Jungle Boy. Fair points on both actually. Havoc takes Boy into the corner to start and we get a shockingly clean break. Boy takes him down by the arm but Havoc takes over with one of his own. MJF says Boy is very good, but he is much better of course. Janela comes in for a wristlock of his own but Boy reverses into a headlock and brings in Stunt. That wristlock doesn’t work at all and it’s back to Boy vs. Havoc to prevent any more embarrassment.

Boy dropkicks Havoc for two and it’s back to Stunt to hammer away. MJF: “It’s like if a squirrel had rabies.” Havoc and Janela are sent outside for a suicide dive from Stunt and an Asai moonsault from Boy. Back in and Stunt hits a top rope stomp onto Janela’s arm, meaning it’s Floss Dance time. Thankfully Havoc breaks it up, becoming a huge crowd favorite. Well to me he is at least.

Janela plants Stunt with a German suplex to take over and we hit a cravate. There’s another suplex and MJF is WAY too pleased with Stunt being beaten up. Eh again, I can get it. Havoc bits Stunt’s head but Stunt rolls forward and gets the hot tag off to Boy. House is cleaned in a hurry and it’s Janela hitting Havoc by mistake. Boy’s standing moonsault double knees gets two on Havoc and there’s an atomic drop to Janela. We get the big sell and Boy even inspects the injury.

Another atomic drop makes it worse and Boy powerbombs Stunt onto him for two. Boy has to chop both opponents at once but gets powerbombed thanks to the numbers game. Havoc’s Tiger Driver 98 connects but Stunt comes in for a shot of his own to put everyone down. Havoc can’t hit the Acid Rainmaker on Boy so it’s a Michinoku Driver for two on Stunt instead. It’s staple gun time with Havoc handing it to Janela….who staples Havoc instead. With Boy down, Janela loads up a super package piledriver on Stunt to knock him silly for the pin at 15:05 as Havoc takes care of Boy.

Rating: C-. I’m completely over Stunt, who isn’t entertaining and whose limited charm has completely worn off. There are ways to use someone his size and this isn’t it. It comes off as completely goofy and ridiculous but for some reason he is beloved (allegedly) by the fans and has to be out there a lot of the time. It takes away from the match, though I do enjoy seeing him get dropped on his head like that.

Post break Tully runs into a smoking Janela, who has disrespected him before. Spears jumps Janela from behind and holds his tongue down with pliers so Tully can burn a cigarette onto his tongue. So there’s Spears’ feud.

The hosts wrap it up.

Overall Rating: D+. This show has lost almost all of the charm that it had for me in the first place, which wasn’t all that much. It hasn’t felt like anything you need to see in a long time, though to be fair it never really needed to be in the first place. This is rapidly becoming the Wrestling Challenge to Dynamite’s Superstars and that isn’t the most glowing recommendation. The wrestling is watchable enough, but there is a reason that some of these people are on this show and not Dynamite. It’s completely harmless, but much like Dynamite it is becoming “here’s AEW for the week” rather than “what are they doing this time?”

Results

Shawn Spears b. Michael Nakazawa – Slingshot Jackhammer

Sadie Gibbs/Allie b. Mercedes Martinez/Big Swole – Moonsault to Swole

Joey Janela/Jimmy Havoc b. Jurassic Express – Super package piledriver to Stunt

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

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

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

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