IMG Credit: WWE

NXT
Date: February 5, 2020
Location: Full Sail University, Winter Park, Florida
Commentators: Mauro Ranallo, Beth Phoenix, Nigel McGuinness

With less than two weeks to go before Takeover, the entire card seems to be set. However, there are some things beyond Takeover which also need to be taken care of and that includes Wrestlemania. Therefore, we have a guest star this week as Charlotte is here to answer Rhea Ripley’s Wrestlemania challenge. Let’s get to it.

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

Opening recap.

Here are the Broserweights, in a golf cart, with the Dusty Classic trophy in the back. You can tell Matt Riddle is in a good mood as he’s wearing a tie. They’ve been celebrating ever since and tonight it continues because the trophy is in a golf cart. Dunne can’t believe that he’s in a tag team with Riddle, who says it’s meant to be. Riddle wants to know how they’ll get to Portland but here’s the Undisputed Era to interrupt.

O’Reilly: “You’re Matthew Riddell and Peter Dune.” They’re ready to fight now but here’s Roderick Strong to pull them back. Fish: “There are much bigger fish to try than you too.” Riddle: “Bobby Fish just said fish!” He gets in a fish tongue twister but Dunne says not to worry about how many fish Bobby Fish could fry if Bobby Fish could fry fish. Riddle turns it into a song and does a Randy Savage spin for a nice touch. Dunne promises to smoke the Era in Portland.

Angel Garza vs. Isaiah Scott

They start fast and miss a clothesline each, meaning it’s an early standoff. Scott tries to cartwheel around but gets kicked in the ribs to put Garza in control. That’s fine with Scott, who springboards back up for a hurricanrana to send Garza outside. Garza is read for the dive so Scott puts on the brakes and kicks him back to the floor. Scott’s running flip over the ropes is superkicked down and we take a break. Back with Garza hitting a reverse powerbomb, allowing him to TAKE OFF HIS PANTS.

A superkick gives Garza two but Scott reverses a slingshot reverse suplex. Scott slaps him in the face but his springboard is superkicked out of the air (ok not much air as it was off the bottom rope). Garza tries a headscissors out of the corner, which is flipped forward into something like an Iconoclasm for two. It’s time to go up again but this time Garza throws his pants at him for a distraction. Scott doesn’t seem to mind and hits the House Call for two but Garza crotches him on top. The Wing Clipper finishes Scott at 10:38.

Rating: C+. The high flying was good here but I’m not sure how far Scott is going to get at this point. He seems tailor made for a big push but for some reason he keeps losing time after time. The action worked here though as they kept the movement up and the pants thing was a good spot at the end. Garza winning here was the only choice they had after Raw, but maybe he shouldn’t have been facing Scott.

Post match, Garza says he took out his cousin and Rey Mysterio, so now he wants his Cruiserweight Title back.

The Undisputed Era beat up some people for not knowing where Tommaso Ciampa is. Strong even messes up someone getting a haircut, because people get haircuts backstage at NXT.

Video on Mercedes Martinez.

Sgt. Slaughter is here for your random cameo.

Dominik Dijakovic vs. Killian Dain

Oh yeah Dain is a thing. These two got in each other’s faces earlier today at the Performance Center over who should get the next shot at Keith Lee. Dain goes right at him with the shoulders in the corner but Dijakovic fights out in a hurry and hits a middle rope elbow to the head. A clothesline puts Dijakovic over the top though and the SHAVE YOUR BACK chants start up. Dijakovic doesn’t seem to like hairy backs either and hits a flip dive off the steps, turning the chants into FEAST YOUR EYES. Back in and the discus lariat is cut off by Dain’s crossbody to send us to a break.

We come back with Dijakovic flipping out of a belly to back suplex and elbowing Dain hard in the face. The suplex slam into the chokebomb gets two on Dain but he’s right back up to catch Dijakovic on top. Dain’s superplex puts them both down but Dijakovic wins a battle of boots to the face for two. The moonsault misses and the Vader Bomb is broken up, meaning it’s Feast Your Eyes to finish Dain at 8:15.

Rating: B-. This was a hoss fight and another good example of what Dijakovic can do. There are so many times where I look at one of his matches and wonder how I’m seeing this stuff. He and Keith Lee took it to another level but these two more than held their own, making it a heck of a match.

Post match we’re told that Dijakovic gets a title shot in Portland so here’s Lee for the staredown.

Kushida doesn’t know where Ciampa is so the Undisputed Era throws him in a crate. Bronson Reed comes in to stare them down so it’s a jumping knee to the head.

We get a split screen sitdown interview between Johnny Gargano and Finn Balor. They were ready to fight at Takeover: WarGames and Gargano has been counting the days for three months. Finn says he’s been counting the days for four years because he’s sick of Gargano being called the next Finn Balor. Gargano says he’s the first Johnny Gargano and Balor needs this match as much as he does. Balor doesn’t need this match because he doesn’t get paid by the hour but he’s going to take his time and enjoy this.

That’s what Johnny has been looking for: the NXT Finn Balor, not the Finn Balor who lost to Bobby Lashley like seventeen weeks in a row on Raw. Balor isn’t here for the Match of the Year, because he’s here for the last match of Gargano’s life. Gargano promises to take the NXT flag that Balor dropped and drive it through his heart. Balor: “I don’t have a heart.” Heck of a heated exchange here and I want to see these two fight.

Video on Kacy Catanzaro.

Mercedes Martinez vs. Kacy Catanzaro

Martinez starts fast by shrugging off a waistlock and planting her with a spinebuster. A one armed delayed suplex….is broken up and Catanzaro hits a basement dropkick. Catanzaro grabs a hurricanrana for two but her springboard is broken up with a hard forearm. Martinez takes it to the floor and posts her, followed by a whip into the barricade. Back in and the fisherman’s buster finishes Catanzaro at 2:59. They got some stuff in here and Catanzaro looked good in defeat.

Rhea Ripley (listed as NXT Women’s Champion rather than NXT Champion) is ready for Charlotte and Bianca Belair.

The Undisputed Era gets jumped by Ciampa and the fight heads into the arena. Cole is sent into the announcers’ table over and over, which is good for some applause. The rest of the team catches up with them and beats down Ciampa. They get inside but the Broserweights come in for the save. Security breaks it up so here’s William Regal to make a six man. The fight breaks out again and they head to the back.

Jordan Devlin vs. Tyler Breeze

Non-title. Devlin jumps him during the entrance and the beating is on in a hurry. We take a break and come back joined in progress with Devlin elbowing him in the corner but getting kicked in the ribs for his efforts. A basement superkick gives Breeze two and he wraps Devlin’s knee around the post. Breeze drops a knee to the knee and cranks on the leg to keep Devlin down.

That doesn’t work very well as Devlin gets back up with a backbreaker, only to get dropkicked in the face. The neck crank goes on for a bit, followed by a clothesline to put Devlin on the floor. Devlin is right back up again and this time it’s a moonsault to take Breeze down again. Back in and the release Rock Bottom into the standing moonsault gets two on Breeze as we take a break.

We come back with Devlin standing on Breeze’s face (not fair to the gorgeousness), only to charge into a boot in the corner. Back to back dropkicks have Devlin in trouble and a clothesline gives Breeze two. Devlin pops up for a high crossbody, with Breeze rolling through for two more.

A standing Spanish Fly gets two on Breeze and they’re both a bit winded. Devlin tries the moonsault but hits raised boots, allowing Breeze to slap on a half crab. He has to pull it back to the middle but lets it go for some reason, setting up the Supermodel kick for a rather close two. The slingshot cutter gives Devlin two and that’s enough for him, meaning it’s the Devlin Side to put Breeze away at 15:33.

Rating: B. This took some time to get going but once it found its footing, they were off to the races. They’ve got something with Devlin, who has been great in almost everything that he’s done and looked very good here too. This is also the closest Breeze has looked to his old self around here and I could certainly go for more of him. Devlin was the star here though and I think they know it.

Charlotte arrives.

Here’s Bianca Belair for the big showdown. She’s on her way to Portland to become the new NXT Women’s Champion but here’s Charlotte to interrupt in a hurry. We get the big welcome home reaction and she says there is nothing like a Full Sail WOO. Charlotte respects the heck out of Belair but Bianca isn’t the Queen.

Rhea doesn’t like the disrespect and the saying around here is WE ARE NXT. Belair jumps Charlotte and they put her on their shoulders for a double faceplant. Rhea and Bianca trash talk each other until Belair leaves. Charlotte didn’t accept or decline Ripley’s challenge. Good segment here and I want to see where this goes.

Undisputed Era vs. Tommaso Ciampa/Broserweights

Roderick Strong is the odd man out but the other three jump the Era on the stage and the fight is on before the bell. Dunne X Plexes O’Reilly onto the apron and Ciampa kicks Fish in the face. Strong gets beaten down in the aisle and the limping Ciampa goes inside with O’Reilly going after the knee as the bell rings. Ciampa elbows him down and it’s Riddle coming in to strike away at Fish.

The MMA exchange doesn’t exactly work so Dunne and Cole come in. Dunne gets pulled to the floor though and Strong is back up to drop Dunne onto the apron. Back in and the Era takes turns on Dunne in the corner until he sends Fish to the floor and dropkicks O’Reilly to the floor, allowing the diving tag to Riddle (Ciampa’s arm wasn’t exactly extended there). Riddle starts cleaning house with strikes and throws into the back to back Brotons.

The Era needs a breather on the floor and we come back with Riddle getting knocked into the Era’s corner, allowing Cole to come back in for a chinlock. O’Reilly slaps on a guillotine choke but Riddle lifts him up without too much effort. Riddle no sells a German suplex, O’Reilly no sells a German suplex, Riddle hits him in the head and O’Reilly kicks him in the head for a double knockdown.

Dunne gets the hot tag and starts wrecking Cole, including X Plexing O’Reilly onto him for two. The Panama Sunrise is cut off by a forearm but Cole is right back with a brainbuster onto the knee for his own near fall. Dunne ducks a double kick from O’Reilly and Fish and the hot tag brings in Ciampa. Project Ciampa gets two on O’Reilly with Fish making the save. We get the big showdown between Ciampa and Cole but a kick to the head breaks it up in a hurry. Everyone starts hitting each other in the head/face but Strong comes in to break up the Fairy Tale Ending for the DQ at 13:41.

Rating: B. I could have gone for the clean pin at the end here but this was mostly all action throughout and they pulled me in near the end. If nothing else it was nice to see that Ciampa hadn’t hurt his knee again and that he got back in and started taking over. Strong interfering is fine enough, but it could have been a better ending and that slows it down a bit.

Post match the beatdown is on, including Chasing the Dragon to Dunne on the floor. Riddle takes High/Low and Ciampa gets End of Heartache. The Era goes NWO and paints an X on Ciampa’s back (ala Ciampa with the table last week)….but we’ve got three rings on the screen. Those rings would be like the Velveteen Dream’s glasses and he’s back, diving off the top onto the Era and beating all of them up at once.

The Era gets taken out and Dream rips off his gear, revealing Rick Rude style tights with Strong’s family painted on, plus an old school hip swivel. Dream clears the ring and the fans go coconuts to end the show. It’s a cool moment, though I wouldn’t have done the circles thing last week. Why telegraph it at all?

Overall Rating: B+. This is more like it with segments and matches that built towards Takeover. It’s a case of things being better when they have something to focus on and that’s always a good thing. The wrestling was quite strong tonight as well and overall, it was a heck of a show that flew by. Takeover is looking rather stacked, even with six matches at the moment. Hopefully they don’t overdo it, but what we have so far should be great.

Results

Angel Garza b. Isaiah Scott – Wing Clipper

Dominick Dijakovic b. Killian Dain – Feast Your Eyes

Mercedes Martinez b. Kacy Catanzaro – Fisherman’s buster

Jordan Devlin b. Tyler Breeze – Devlin Side

Tommaso Ciampa/Broserweights b. Undisputed Era via DQ when Roderick Strong interfered

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

NXT
Date: December 18, 2019
Location: Full Sail University, Winter Park, Florida
Commentators: Beth Phoenix, Mauro Ranallo, Nigel McGuinness

It’s a double title night here with both the NXT Title and Women’s Title on the line. First up Adam Cole will defend against Finn Balor and odds are the main event will see Rhea Ripley challenging Shayna Baszler. NXT knows how to do these big shows so it should be interesting to see how things go. Let’s get to it.

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

The opening recap looks at last week’s show.

NXT Title: Finn Balor vs. Adam Cole

Cole is defending. They go to the mat to start with Balor getting the better of things off a headlock. Back up and Cole takes over on the arm, only to get caught with a basement dropkick for one. This time it’s Balor working on the arm instead before stomping away. Cole gets knocked outside but he’s fine enough to superkick the leg before Balor can kick him from the apron.

Back in and we hit the chinlock to keep Balor in trouble as the announcers talk about Cole’s mind games. Another kick to the leg takes Balor down again and a neckbreaker gets two. Balor bridges out of a Figure Four necklock and the Eye of the Hurricane gets two on the champ. Cole is right back with a Backstabber, only to have Balor grab a Sling Blade. The superkick cuts off a running Balor for two but Cole is slow to get up. He walks into a Pele kick but Balor falls down as well, allowing Cole to get his own two.

The Panama Sunrise and 1916 are both countered so Cole grabs the brainbuster onto the knee for two more. We get the dueling UNDISPUTED/LET’S GO FINN chants as Balor fights up, only to get knocked off the top. The Panama Sunrise to the floor is countered with a backdrop though and Balor hits the John Woo dropkick against the barricade.

Back in and the Coup de Grace misses, allowing Cole to hit the Last Shot….for two, giving us an outstanding ARE YOU SERIOUS face. Balor clotheslines him down though and now the Coup de Grace connects. 1916 is loaded up….but here’s Johnny Gargano for the first time in nearly two months. The distraction lets Cole hit a low blow and the Last Shot retains the title at 15:17.

Rating: A-. This was another great match for Cole and another instance of him beating a big name to further solidify himself as one of the best in the world today. Gargano vs. Balor is going to be a huge deal and I’m curious to see where they go with Cole now. It would seem that it’s time for either Tommaso Ciampa or Keith Lee, but dang they could go a lot of different ways.

Post match Cole leaves and Gargano grabs a chair. Balor tries to get out but Gargano is right there with some chair shots to the back to send him outside. More shots send Balor bailing through the crowd to escape.

Video on Pete Dunne vs. Damien Priest vs. Killian Dain from Takeover: WarGames.

Killian Dain vs. Damien Priest

Priest has taped up ribs coming in. Dain shoves him into the corner to start so Priest comes out slugging. That just earns Priest the running crossbody and Dain grabs a waistlock. Priest gets sent into the corner so Dain hits a baseball slide to the ribs to put him on the floor. Back in and we hit the second waistlock with Dain quickly switching into a reverse chinlock with a knee in the spine.

Dain adds a backsplash and the tape is pulled off to make the ribs even more vulnerable. There’s a fisherman’s suplex for two more and a running dropkick puts Priest on the floor as we take a break. Back with Priest managing to hit a Flatliner for a breather. A jumping back elbow and some rapid strikes make it even worse for Dain, with a clothesline putting him down.

Priest somehow manages a suplex and the fans bring him back to his feet. Dain tries to bail so Priest is right there with a step up flip dive. Back in and South of Heaven gives Priest two in a great near fall. Dain manages a kick to the ribs and a powerbomb though, plus a big elbow for two. The Ulster Plantation is countered so Priest hits the spinning kick to the head but a powerbomb is too much for the ribs. Dain’s Vader Bomb hits raised knees though and the Reckoning finishes Dain at 14:18.

Rating: B-. This was all about two big, strong men hitting each other very hard with Priest’s ribs being the focal point of the match. Dain tried once too often though and Priest used the opening to get the win. Priest is someone who could go a long way around here (Say after the NXT Title?) and I’m for it, provided I can stop calling him Punishment Martinez.

Vote for the Year End Awards!

The Dusty Rhodes Tag Team Classic is back, with things getting started on January 1.

Kushida vs. Cameron Grimes

Kushida still has Grimes’ hat. They go to the mat for some grappling and Kushida gets the better of it to a rather nice reaction. Kushida pulls him down into a cross armbreaker before twisting both arms around at the same time. Grimes bails to the floor so Kushida hits him with a baseball slide and throws him back inside.

The Octopus Hold has Grimes in more trouble until he flips out, only to get caught in the same thing again. Back from a break with Kushida in trouble after Grimes hit his running belly to belly. There’s a big throw and Kushida is in even more trouble. Grimes stays on the back with a backbreaker and even bends Kushida over the knee for a bonus.

The back is fine enough for a handspring elbow to drop Grimes and it’s a cartwheel into the basement dropkick. Kushida goes after the arm again with a dropkick but the attempted Hoverboard Lock is countered into a sitout Rock Bottom for two. Kushida snaps off a German suplex so Grimes one ups him with a bridging version for two more. Grimes heads to the apron and that means a handspring kick to the face to put him on the floor.

The big flip dive to the floor nearly misses Grimes but they’re both down. Back in and Kushida goes for the Hoverboard Lock in the corner but gets shoved down. That just means another handspring kick and a super victory roll gives Kushida his own two. Grimes hits the enziguri but misses the Cave In. Kushida misses a kick of his own though and the Cave In connects to give Grimes the pin at 13:58.

Rating: B. The matches on this shove have been awesome at this point and this was another great one. Grimes just got a heck of a win as Kushida is a much more established name at this (or likely any) point. It’s clear that they’re giving Grimes something and that is an a big treat as he has been a HUGE surprise for me and someone I’m liking more every time I see him.

Grimes gets his hat back.

Video on Io Shirai.

Io Shirai vs. Santana Garrett

Shirai backflips to start and runs her over, only to get wristdragged out of the corner. That doesn’t sit well with Shirai so Garrett superkicks her instead. A flapjack works a bit better for Shirai but she misses some running knees in the corner. Garrett’s Russian legsweep gets two and a forearm rocks her again. There’s the handspring elbow in the corner and a floatover suplex gets two more on Shirai. The Last Chancery has Shirai in more trouble but she sends Garrett throat first into the top rope. Running knees in the corner set up the moonsault to finish Garrett at 4:01.

Rating: C. This was a step above a squash for Shirai as Garrett is someone who can have a good match with just about anyone but she hasn’t had the strongest career in NXT so far. She seems like someone who is biding her time though as she is too talented to be left on the sidelines for long. It’s Shirai’s town though and she should be moving higher up the card soon.

When Worlds Collide is coming.

Pete Dunne vs. Travis Banks

Dunne starts on the arm to start, as is his custom. Some rollups give Dunne two and it’s a standoff. Dunne tries to drop down but Banks is right there with a dropkick to the side of the head. They strike it out next to the rope and Dunne easily gets the better of things to put Banks down. A double stomp to the hands sets up the X Plex onto the apron and we take a break.

Back with Banks hitting a pair of running dropkicks in the corner to set up the Cannonball. Dunne bails to the floor and it’s the suicide dive to send him into the barricade. A missile dropkick sends Dunne back into the corner and there’s a middle rope double stomp for two. Dunne flips over him out of the corner and just sidesteps Slice of Heaven for a crash. Another X Plex gets two but Banks is right back with an enziguri.

Banks goes up top for a super sunset flip but Dunne lands on his feet. The Bitter End is countered so Banks tries the Slice of Heaven, which is countered into a leg tied stomp. Banks counters the Bitter End again and hits the Kiwi Crusher for two more. Dunne powerbombs him out of the corner and busts out a super X Plex. Now the Bitter End is good for the pin on Banks at 10:54.

Rating: B. This was the hard hitting, back and forth style that you expect from the NXT UK wrestlers. They beat each other up here and Dunne gets a win to get himself back on track. Banks is someone who looks good every time he’s out there and if he wants it, I’m sure he could be a big star in the regular NXT as well.

Post match Dunne shows some respect.

Dakota Kai isn’t worried about Mia Yim and wants the Women’s Title.

Next week: Lio Rush/Keith Lee vs. Damian Priest/Tony Nese and Roderick Strong issues an open challenge.

Women’s Title: Rhea Ripley vs. Shayna Baszler

Ripley is challenging and we get the Big Match Intros again. They go with the grappling to start and Baszler takes her to the mat by the arm. The stomp to the arm is blocked though and Ripley gets back up. The threat of Ripley’s big right hands sends Baszler running into the corner and there’s a hard whip into the corner to send Baszler to the floor. Back from a break with Ripley hitting some clotheslines and knees to the head to put Baszler down.

A running dropkick sends Baszler into the corner again, meaning it’s the top rope superplex to make Baszler bounce off the mat. Rhea sends her outside so here are the Horsewomen, only to have them taken down by a Cannonball off the apron. Baszler uses the distraction to stomp the arm into the steps and it’s time to twist the arm around back inside. The arm gets twisted around again and we take another break.

Back again with Baszler stomping on the arm again, though this time with the Horsewomen having been ejected for working on Ripley’s arm again. She even had to get checked by the doctor during the break but was ruled able to continue. Baszler starts kicking at the ribs but Ripley hits the running dropkick to send her into the referee in the corner. Riptide connects for no count so Baszler rolls outside again.

This time the Cannonball off the apron misses but Rhea is able to slip out of a Kirifuda Clutch. Baszler throws in a chair and a DDT onto said chair gets two more. The fans believe all over again and Rhea flips out of another Kirifuda Clutch. The standing Cloverleaf is broken up and now the Clutch goes on for a VERY long time with Ripley not being able to get out.

We go old school with the referee checking the arm but she grabs the referee’s shirt to say she’s not done. She flips out again and stomps Baszler in the head, setting up the standing Cloverleaf (now dubbed the Prism Trap). Baszler kicks that away too and hits a running knee in the corner. They go up top but Baszler talks too much trash, allowing Ripley to get in a headbutt. The super Riptide gives Rhea the pin and the title at 20:50. Ripley nearly loses it on the celebration for a great moment.

Rating: A-. Above all else, this felt like a big changing of the guard. Baszler has been champion for the better part of a year and a half (save for Kairi Sane’s short reign) and she had beaten so many people that it was going to take a monumental effort to finally stop her. That’s what Ripley had and you could feel the energy in the whole thing. I had a great time watching this and they gave some awesome false finishes where I wasn’t sure they were going to pull the trigger. This should have been Ripley’s win and it feels like she had to earn every bit of it. Awesome main event and a better moment.

After all the replays, we come back to the locker room filling the ring (and I mean completely filling the ring) to celebrate with Ripley to end the show.

Overall Rating: A. Dang that was an awesome show with two great bookends and some very good stuff in the middle. The worst part of the show was Shirai vs. Garrett and even that was perfectly watchable. This show felt just shy of Takeover levels and they even have stuff to look forward to later. It’s one of the better weeks of TV they’ve ever done and it nailed just about everything. Great show and worth checking out in full.

Results

Adam Cole b. Finn Balor – Last Shot

Damien Priest b. Killian Dain – Reckoning

Cameron Grimes b. Kushida – Cave In

Io Shirai b. Santana Garrett – Moonsault

Pete Dunne b. Travis Banks – Bitter End

Rhea Ripley b. Shayna Baszler – Super Riptide

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

NXT
Date: December 4, 2019
Location: Full Sail University, Winter Park, Florida
Commentators: Mauro Ranallo, Beth Phoenix, Nigel McGuinness

Things got more interesting last week with Finn Balor going after Adam Cole, though it isn’t clear if they’re going to be alone, as Tommaso Ciampa was in the mix too. They have something interesting with the NXT Title picture and that is going to make for some fun shows as we get ready for Portland. Granted that’s a long way off though and a lot could change by then. Let’s get to it.

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

Opening recap.

Opening sequence.

Mauro Ranallo previews the show.

Killian Dain is in the ring to call out an opponent to replace the injured Damian Priest.

Killian Dain vs. Pete Dunne

They go straight to the fight with Dunne kicking him down and working on the arm. The fingers are bent back but a clothesline doesn’t put Dunne on the floor. Instead Dain hits a crossbody and crushes Dunne for two. The reverse chinlock goes on, followed by a running elbow to give Dain two more.

The second chinlock goes on, this time with Dain hammering away at the chest at the same time. Dunne fights up and hits a German suplex, only to get caught going up top. Dain pulls him to the apron, only to get stomped on the hand. A moonsault jams Dunne’s knee though and Dain hits a dive, with the camera missing most of it.

Back from a break with Dunne hitting a tornado DDT and stomping on the fingers again. A kick to the head gives Dunne two and now the moonsault to the floor connects. Dain drops him onto the apron though and a Cannonball against the steps makes it even worse. Back in and Dunne tries to catch him on top, only to get dropped backwards for the big crash to give Dain the pin at 14:46 (the same thing Dain did to Dunne at Takeover to accidentally give Dunne the pin on Priest).

Rating: B-. Nice match here with a good callback to the previous match at Takeover. Dunne losing is still something I’m not used to after watching him destroy people for so long but it’s what happens when you move up in competition. He jumped into NXT when the talent pool was crazy deep and it’s going to take some time for him to adjust himself.

Dakota Kai thinks Tegan Nox isn’t worth her time and now Rhea Ripley wants to play hero. Tonight, Dakota is taking her out, just like she did to Mia Yim.

Here’s the Undisputed Era, minus Bobby Fish, for a chat. They’ve been on a roll lately and the greatness is just beginning. However, they don’t like the way they were treated last week, as NXT allowed Bobby Fish to get hurt and then Keith Lee knocked Adam Cole around like a rag doll. Cole is NOT a rag doll and wants Lee out here right now for an explanation. Cole dubs him Mr. Moment Maker so the fans sing about basking in his glory.

Strong brings up Roman Reigns beating Lee at Survivor Series, because he’s a loser you see. Lee gets to the point and looks at all the gold. Cole: “My eyes are up here.” Lee: “I’m just deciding which of these championships I should take first.” The fight is on with Lee cleaning house. Tommaso Ciampa runs down to send Cole back in, but Strong saves him from the Spirit Bomb.

Xia Li wants revenge on Shayna Baszler.

Kushida is back from his broken wrist.

Xia Li vs. Shayna Baszler

Non-title. Li wins an early strike off and Baszler isn’t sure what to do. They go to the mat with Baszler not being able to hang in the striking. Instead she flips Li over, only to get kicked in the head. Baszler takes her down by the arm though and hits the big stomp to put Li in trouble. More strikes give Li a breather but she can only do so much with one arm. Li heads up top and strikes her way out of a superplex attempt. A powerbomb out of the corner gets two but Baszler pulls her into the Kirifuda Clutch for the tap at 4:06.

Rating: C+. Li was giving it everything she had here and got in some big shots that made her look good. It wasn’t like the ending was ever in doubt here as Baszler just won the main event of Survivor Series and isn’t going to lose something like this. Li got to show off a lot and I could see her being something in a few months.

Kassius Ohno is back from the UK and wants to be ready for Worlds Collide, when NXT meets NXT UK. That could be good if they treat it like something special, and it seems that they might.

Forgotten Sons vs. Adrian Alanis/Leon Ruff

Ruff and Alanis are from Evolve. Blake wastes no time in clotheslining Ruff in the back of the head and there’s the buckle bomb to make it worse. Alanis comes in and gets taken down by a running knee to the head. A release German suplex sets up the reverse DDT/middle rope stomp finishes Alanis at 1:21.

Post match Jaxson Ryker chokeslams Ruff onto the apron for a heck of a nasty crash.

Dakota Kai vs. Rhea Ripley

Kai’s new Titantron is the attack on Tegan Nox for an outstanding addition. Hold on though as Ripley has a mic and says not so fast. It was a great setup at Takeover, and now we have another one. Cue Mia Yim to run Kai over and the fight is on. Yim destroys Kai, sending her into the barricade over and over again. They eventually go into the crowd with Kai crawling away. No match of course.

With Ripley still at ringside, cue the Horsewomen for the other brawl. Ripley fights them off as well as she can but the numbers game eventually gets the better of her, allowing Baszler to choke her out. Ripley is out so Baszler talks trash about how Ripley can’t win when anything is on the line. Now Ripley wants a title shot, and so does Baszler. They’ll fight for the title in two weeks. Best thing about this: flowing from one story into another without having to go to the back and set things up. It feels MUCH more natural and that is the best thing that they could have done here.

Ciampa and Lee are ready to face the Undisputed Era. Dominick Dijakovic shows up and seems to be joining them tonight.

Video on Finn Balor, who wants the NXT Title back. He’s playing chess while Cole is playing checkers, so checkmate.

Video on Isaiah Scott.

Matt Riddle vs. Kassius Ohno

The fans chant for Riddle in the Goldberg cadence for a fun moment. They go with the grappling to start until Riddle takes him down by the (right) arm. The cravate has Riddle in more trouble but he’s back out with a German suplex as the eyes get a bit more serious. Ohno gets sent outside for a kick to the chest and we take a break.

Back with Riddle kicking at the chest as the announcers keep hyping up When Worlds Collide. Ohno gets in a shot to the throat and a big boot to drop Riddle as he is willing to cheat to finally beat him. Or he’s just a villain in general. The cravate goes back on and is switched into a crossarm choke to keep Riddle in trouble.

That’s broken up as well and Riddle hits a Broton but has to bail out of a standing moonsault. The Bro To Sleep sets up a powerbomb to plant Ohno, and the Final Flash knocks him silly. Riddle’s Floating Bro gets two but Ohno is right back with a suplex. Ohno tries a cradle piledriver but gets reversed into a knee to the face and the Bro Derek to give Riddle the pin at 12:33.

Rating: B-. Yeah of course these two have good matches against each other because they work well together and have similar styles. At the end of the day though, Ohno exists to put Riddle over and that’s a great role for him. What matters more than anything else here though is the hype for When Worlds Collide, meaning it might actually be important for once. They have been watchable before, but it would be great to see the show have some meaning.

We look back at Baszler beating Ripley down. The title match is official for the 18^th.

Kushida vs. Raul Mendoza

Or not as here’s Cameron Grimes to jump Mendoza and take his place. This stuns Kushida for some reason.

Kushida vs. Cameron Grimes

As stunned as he is, Kushida is fine enough to hit a handspring kick to the face to put Grimes on the floor to start, setting up a big flip dive off the top to take Grimes down again. Back in and Kushida grabs something like the Black Widow and bends the arm WAY back for a nearly terrifying visual. Another handspring is countered into a German suplex to put Kushida down for the first time and the Superman forearm connects. Grimes tries his backflip into a German suplex but Kushida reverses into a rollup for the pin at 4:16.

Rating: C. This was a weird one as Grimes has been getting a pretty big push in recent weeks but then loses here to the returning Kushida. I get why Kushida gets the win to put himself back on track but why have him beat Grimes and not, say, Mendoza like you had planned? Just a weird moment but it came at the end of a fine match.

We recap Lio Rush vs. Angel Garza. They meet for Rush’s Cruiserweight Title next week.

Also next week: Yim vs. Kai.

Undisputed Era vs. Dominick Dijakovic/Tommaso Ciampa/Keith Lee

Strong gets taken into the corner for the early beating and Ciampa already has to give himself some applause. O’Reilly comes in for a standing guillotine on Dijakovic and is quickly tossed out of a suplex. A middle rope splash gives Dijakovic two and the standing knees to the back make it even worse. The Era is sent outside and we take a break. Back with Dijakovic fighting out of O’Reilly’s abdominal stretch and hitting one heck of a clothesline.

That’s not enough to get over for the tag though as O’Reilly grabs the leg. It takes all three members of the Era to pull Dijakovic back into the corner for a unique visual. Dijakovic fights up and makes the tag off to Ciampa so house can be cleaned. A jumping knee to the back of O’Reilly’s head sets up Project Ciampa for two.

The Fairy Tale Ending is broken up and it’s High/Low to give Strong two with Lee and Dijakovic making a double save. Strong drops Ciampa again as things settle into the normal structure again. Cole and Lee get the hot tags and it’s time for the real house cleaning. The threat of a big dive sends the Era scattering so Lee runs over O’Reilly and Strong.

Dijakovic hits a spinning springboard dive but Cole breaks up a superplex to put O’Reilly on the pile outside. Cue Finn Balor to dropkick Cole into the referee in the corner. 1916 plants Ciampa but Lee rises up behind Balor for a great visual. Lee hits the Spirit Bomb on Balor and, after avoiding the Last Shot, hits the Limit Breaker for the pin on Cole at 11:48.

Rating: B. This was the kind of match that NXT knows how to do very well as they had the interference but then gave us the big moment to end things as well. These guys beat the heck out of each other and had the big spots in there, with Lee continuing to get the rocket push. That being said, there are other people involved who could get the title shot as well, which makes for a lot of great possibilities.

Post match here’s William Regal to make Keith Lee vs. Finn Balor vs. Tommaso Ciampa for next week with the winner getting a title shot the following week. That really could go any of the three ways and that’s not something you see every day.

Overall Rating: B. Another night with the wrestling being good throughout, as well as setting up multiple things that I want to see later on. You don’t get that very often and they made it work here, which almost no one else can do. The future is crazy bright with Lee and Ripley getting the monster pushes, but what makes it so much better is you could see them winning, which is almost unthinkable. More good stuff here though, as NXT’s roll continues (for years now).

Results

Killian Dain b. Pete Dunne – Middle rope belly to back slam

Shayna Baszler b. Xia Li – Kirifuda Clutch

Forgotten Sons b. Adrian Alanis/Leon Ruff – Reverse DDT/middle rope stomp to Alanis

Matt Riddle b. Kassius Ohno – Bro Derek

Kushida b. Cameron Grimes – Cradle

Keith Lee/Tommaso Ciampa/Dominick Dijakovic b. Undisputed Era – Limit Breaker to Cole

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

Takeover: WarGames III
Date: November 23, 2019
Location: Allstate Arena, Chicago, Illinois
Commentators: Mauro Ranallo, Beth Phoenix, Nigel McGuinness

It’s a big night around here as we have not one but two WarGames matches on the same show, which I’m pretty sure has never happened before in a major company. The card is a little bit shorter than your usual Takeover but I have a feeling the quality is going to be just fine. The big question for tonight is who is the final member of Team Ciampa, which could be a lot of people. Let’s get to it.

During the Kickoff Show, it was announced that Mia Yim has been injured and is out of WarGames. No word on the attacker, yet.

Kickoff Show: Angel Garza vs. Isaiah Scott

The first ever Kickoff Show match in NXT history. The entrance features the production area for the Kickoff Show panel, including a video screen for a weird behind the scenes/in front of the scenes hybrid. Hold on as Garza needs to take off his pants but Scott grabs them, only to give us a series of escapes into a standoff.

A headscissors puts Garza on the floor for a handspring hurricanrana (which wasn’t the smoothest thing in the world). Back in and Scott hits a gordbuster into a….I guess cartwheel splash onto the legs? A high crossbody connects but Garza rolls through and sends him into the corner. With Scott down, GARZA HAS TO TAKE OFF HIS PANTS! Scott is so distracted that it’s a superkick into a slingshot reverse suplex into another superkick for two.

The Lionsault misses so Scott is right back with a clothesline. Something close to a side slam gives Scott his own two as commentary keeps swooning over Garza. Scott tries a backdrop into the ropes but Garza flips back into a sitout powerbomb (cool) for two. With Scott on the apron, Garza dives at him but lands in a Death Valley Driver, followed by the double stomp to the floor. Fans: “YOU GOT SWERVED!” The House Call gets two back inside and Scott is shocked. Garza drives him into the corner but can’t use the distraction to hit a low blow. Instead he blocks Scott’s kick and hits the Wing Clipper for the pin at 7:34.

Rating: C. The missed execution hurt both of them but they have been good enough as of late to write that one off as a bad night. Scott continues to be someone with all the potential in the world but WWE keeps having him lose like this. I’m not sure if Garza has that much potential, though the amount of charisma he has is going to take him wherever he wants to go.

Shawn Michaels narrates the opening video, talking about how war is inevitable. The two WarGames matches get the focus, with the two regular matches being mentioned as well, as it should be.

Team Ripley vs. Team Baszler

Rhea Ripley, Tegan Nox, Candice LeRae, Dakota Kai

Shayna Baszler, Bianca Belair, Io Shirai, Kay Lee Ray

Kai is Yim’s replacement in WarGames. The first two will face off for five minutes, followed by Team Baszler sending in a second member for a three minute advantage. After that, Team Ripley gets to tie it up for three minutes. The teams alternate entrances every three minutes until everyone is in, and then it’s first pinfall or submission wins. If you leave the cage, you forfeit the match for your entire team. Rhea and Io get huge reactions while Kai is seen as a big of a disappointment.

Shirai and LeRae get things going and they hit the right hands early on. Candice’s headscissors is rolled through as the fans are entirely behind Io. Shirai gets sent to the other ring but is fine enough to block a dive, setting up a 619 from both directions. A rope walk missile dropkick puts Candice down again and she gets sent head first into the metal board between the rings. LeRae’s face gets raked across the cage but she scores with some right hands as Bianca Belair is in to make it 2-1.

The release Glam Slam into the running shooting star have Candice down again but she scores with a reverse hurricanrana. Belair’s charge hits Shirai in the corner so she makes up for it with a triple powerbomb, with the third being a buckle bomb into the cage (Cage bomb?). Belair grabs a camel clutch so Shirai can run the ropes several times into a dropkick to a huge reaction (it’s not that hard to work a crowd up you know).

Rhea Ripley ties things up and it’s already time to bring in the weapons. Hold on though as Rhea pauses to slam the cage door onto Belair’s head before grabbing even more weapons. The fans want tables but have to settle for EVERYTHING else as Rhea goes under the ring at least six times to get weapon after weapon. A belly to back faceplant onto the trashcan makes it even worse for Belair and it’s time to set up some chairs.

Shirai saves Belair from a double suplex through the chairs to prevent a bad case of death as Kay Lee Ray makes it 3-2. She pulls out her own weapons, including a pile of chairs, before pulling out a table….which she slides back under the ring in a good heel move. Chair shots abound, including a tornado DDT to plant Rhea on one of the chairs. A lot of people head over to the corner above the open chairs so Ray folds them down, setting up the HUGE Tower of Doom to crush everyone save for Belair onto the chairs. That’s fine for Belair, who snaps off the gorgeous 450 onto Ripley.

Everyone is down so it’s Dakota Kai to tie things up….but she turns around and kicks Nox in the face before slamming her into the small cage so hard that the cage is actually rocking back and forth. The cage door is slammed onto Nox’s head (you could hear that one all over the arena) and then the knees over and over. Kai takes the brace off so here’s William Regal for the save. Kai shoves HIM and swears a lot as Regal orders her to the back. She comes back though and pulls on the leg again before shouting at a furious Ripley, who is watching from the cage (yeah the cage, which we haven’t seen in a few minutes now).

With Kai finally taken to the back, Baszler finally gets to come out to complete her team and doesn’t exactly seem in a hurry. Ripley is being held back but she breaks free to slug it out with Baszler, only to have the numbers get the better of her. Kai and Nox are officially out so pins and submissions are open. Candice gets in a shot to knock down Shirai and Ray but she has to save Ripley from being handcuffed to the ropes (something I couldn’t see at all watching live). The stereo two on one fights are on with Belair being sent into a trashcan in the corner.

Ripley blocks Ray’s DDT and suplexes her into the cage, setting up the Cloverleaf to Shirai on the top. Not to be outdone, Baszler grabs the Kirifuda Clutch on LeRae across the ring. LeRae slips out though and Ray makes a save with a kick to the head, followed by LeRae’s moonsault for two on Baszler. Belair gorilla presses LeRae over the top onto Ripley and it’s the Gory Bomb to leave LeRae laying. The moonsault gives Shirai two and there are the hair whips to Ripley.

LeRae is back with the kendo stick shots for the save but Shirai takes her down. Shirai goes all the way to the top but LeRae catches her, followed by the super reverse hurricanrana to Ray for the huge crash. LeRae and Belair stand up, only to have Shirai moonsault onto both of them (Mauro: “MAMA F’ING MIA!”) for an even bigger crash. Ripley loads up a trashcan onto two open chairs but stops to knock a trashcan into Ray’s face. That lets Baszler grab the Kirifuda Clutch but Ripley escapes and cuffs them together. Baszler’s big kick misses and it’s Riptide through the chairs to pin Baszler at 27:26.

Rating: B. This was definitely better on a second watch with the additional camera angles showing me a lot that I didn’t see before (including the handcuffs all together). Ripley continues to look like the star of stars and I don’t see how they can’t put the title on her soon. At the same time though, it’s going to take a long time for me to get my head around two women, including one who started the match, beating four, including two champions, at the same time. That’s a lot, and some of the villains just disappeared for long stretches. It’s not some horrible idea or completely unacceptable, but it’s going to take some time.

Ripley and LeRae pose as Baszler knows she’s in big trouble.

We recap the triple threat #1 contenders match. Damian Priest and Pete Dunne were having a match when Killian Dain stared Dunne down. Dain would attack both of them and a three way feud broke out. The match was turned into a #1 contenders match with the winner getting an NXT Title shot at Survivor Series.

Imperium is here.

Pete Dunne vs. Killian Dain vs. Damian Priest

The winner gets Adam Cole tomorrow night. Priest is in Outsiders inspired gear for a nice (and rather random) touch. They all miss some shots to the head to start and stare each other down until Priest sends Dunne outside. With Dain down in the corner, Dunne comes back in to kick away at Priest’s legs. Dunne stomps on Dain’s arm but gets hit in the face by Priest for his efforts. Priest’s big step up flip dive is cut off by Dunne and Dain crossbodies Priest down.

For a bonus, Dain Michinoku Drivers Dunne and sits on Priest’s face at the same time. They head outside with Dain Samoan dropping Priest and Dunne hitting a fall away slam on Dunne at the same time, just to show off a bit. Back in and Dain gets double teamed as Dunne and Priest get smart for a change. A suplex puts Dain down and Dunne steps on the fingers to some well received applause. Dunne goes for a triangle on Priest but Dain grabs the fingers, setting up a double powerbomb to plant Dunne hard.

The monsters slug it out so Dunne comes back in to hammer on both of them as he just likes to fight. A double stomp onto a hand of both sends everyone into a series of strikes until all three go down. As the other two fight, Priest heads up top for a flip dive and it’s the South of Heaven chokeslam for two on Dunne. Priest isn’t done though and drops Dunn onto the announcers’ table, only to get taken down by Dain’s dive. A Cannonball sends Priest through part of the barricade and everyone is down again.

Dain is back in with a backsplash to Priest but the Vader Bomb is broken up with a kick to the head. A Razor’s Edge (impressive one too) drops Dain with Dunne having to dive back in for the save. Dain is sent outside again so Priest hits the big dive over the top. Dunne isn’t about to be outdone and hits a moonsault off the top onto both of them. It’s Dunne and Priest heading back inside to slug it out but Dunne can’t hit the Reckoning. The chokeslam is countered into a cross armbreaker and Priest certainly appears to be tapping.

Dain makes the save and hits a One Winged Angel for two on Priest. Dunne somehow gets Dain up for the Bitter End so Priest has to kick him in the head for the save. It’s Priest back up for a kick to the head for two on Dunne though, with Dain literally falling onto them for the break. A chop block sends Priest to the floor, leaving Dunne to superplex Dain. The Bitter End hits Priest with Dain’s backsplash making another save. Dunne grabs the choke on Dain, who backsplashes onto Priest, only to have Dunne shove Dain away to pin Priest at 19:57.

Rating: B+. I had a great time with this one as they were working hard the entire way and hitting one big spot after another. This didn’t feel anywhere close to twenty minutes and that made for an entertaining match. Dunne was the pretty obvious winner as the monsters split the difference, but that doesn’t mean it was any less entertaining. Heck of a fight here and Dunne vs. Cole should be even better.

Takeover: Portland is on Sunday (that’s a new one) February 16.

We recap Finn Balor vs. Matt Riddle. Balor returned to the promotion a few weeks back and turned on Johnny Gargano. The big explanation was that NXT isn’t as tough as it used to be. Gargano was hurt, so Riddle is taking his place to fight for the modern NXT’s honor.

Matt Riddle vs. Finn Balor

To keep up as a heel, Balor has to avoid the pose in time with his song. Feeling out process to start with Riddle taking him down by the arm but getting stacked up for two. That means a standoff and we reset early on. They head to the mat and with Riddle pretty clearly more dominant, Balor dives over to grab a headlock. Riddle rolls the northern lights suplexes but gets pulled straight down into the chinlock. Seemingly tired of the holds, Balor stomps away in the corner….before grabbing the chinlock again.

Riddle gets sent outside for the baseball slide, with one boot NAILING him in the jaw for a great visual, made even better by slow motion. That just seems to wake him up as he hits a kick to the face into a Broton for two. The running forearms are blocked by a raised boot in the corner though and a forearm keeps Riddle in trouble. Riddle is right back with the ankle lock so Balor finally gets over to the rope for the break.

Balor’s German suplex doesn’t really work so Riddle knees him in the head and gets two off his own German suplex. There’s the ripcord knee but Balor shrugs it off again and hits the double stomp to stay on Riddle’s ribs. A spear cuts Balor down though and it’s a Jackhammer for two and the GOLDBERG chants are on in full.

Balor is right back up with an inverted 1916 for his own two but Riddle Bro to Sleeps him right back. The Floating Bro misses though and Balor dropkicks him into the corner. The Coup de Grace is pulled straight down into the Bromission (that was sweet) but Balor rolls out. Riddle goes for the knee again but gets pulled into 1916 for the pin at 14:24.

Rating: B-. This was good but not quite as awesome as I was expecting. They never hit that next gear which you would expect them to be able to reach. Riddle losing here makes sense as he’ll likely get his big moment at Survivor Series. Balor needs the win more as he’s freshly back in NXT and can move way up the ladder, but he needed to win here to start him on the right path. Good match, but not great.

We recap the men’s WarGames match. The Undisputed Era holds all of the titles but Ciampa is back to get the NXT Championship that he never lost. Lee and Keith Lee and Dominick Dijakovic are as hot as anyone in WWE at the moment so they’re joining in, but they still don’t have a fourth man. Ciampa telling the title that it has to wait because Daddy’s going to war was outstanding and made Ciampa seem even stronger than he was coming in.

Team Ciampa vs. Undisputed Era

There is no fourth man for Team Ciampa to start as the waiting continues. The Era has the advantage because they’re the villains and NXT knows its WarGames history. Ciampa, sporting the war paint, and Strong are starting things off with Ciampa holding his crutch before the bell. Fans: “DADDY’S HOME!” Desperate to fight, Ciampa throws him the crutch and the war is on in a hurry. Ciampa stomps away in the corner and sends him into the cage, only to have Strong come back with a backbreaker.

They head over to the other ring with Strong being dropped ribs first over the top rope. Ciampa unloads with right hands in the corner and there’s a running knee to the face to make it worse. A hard knee knocks Strong silly again but he’s able to break up Willow’s Bell. Back in the other ring, Strong has to fight out of the Fairy Tale Ending and hits double knees to the chest. They slug it out some more until O’Reilly comes in to make it 2-1.

The knees and kicks to the chest drop Ciampa as the fans are ready to bask in some glory. O’Reilly holds Ciampa on the ropes for the running forearms from O’Reilly. The beating continues until Dijakovic ties things up and starts hitting people rather hard. Dijakovic throws O’Reilly onto Strong but it’s too early for Feast Your Eyes. Therefore, Strong gets thrown into the cage over and over for a consolation prize. O’Reilly gets the same and Ciampa is back up to hammer away even more. Some right hands put O’Reilly down between the rings but it’s Bobby Fish to give the advantage back.

Fish gets to take over and it’s a High/Low to Dijakovic. Ciampa is knocked down as well and Fish insists that “WE GOT THIS COLE!” A lot of strikes have the good guys in trouble until it’s Lee coming in to wreck people in a hurry. Lee leapfrogs Fish and O’Reilly before crossbodying both of them to show off a bit. O’Reilly has to save Fish from a powerbomb and it’s time to triple team Lee as the Era has to get rid of him as long as possible. Ciampa is back up and makes the fired up comeback until the numbers get the better of him too.

Dijakovic slams O’Reilly into the other ring and it’s time for everyone but Ciampa to join them. Things slow down a bit until Cole completes the Era. He isn’t ready to come in just yet though as he pulls out a table, then another, then another, then another, then another, the another, with one of them being laid against the barricade and FIVE being sent inside. Cole still can’t get inside though as Ciampa shoves him through the table against the barricade.

Ciampa goes out to get him, which should have meant he left the cage and forfeited the match but maybe that only counts once everyone is in. Everyone gets into one ring for the cool visual and the fight is on. A low blow cuts Lee down but the time is up and it’s…..no one at first, as we wait on the Era to turn around so they can be shocked. It’s Kevin Owens (with his old Titantron and first NXT shirt) to complete the team to a huge hero’s welcome. Owens starts wrecking people, including a release sleeper suplex to O’Reilly.

Strong gets powerbombed onto O’Reilly’s back and it’s the big staredown with Cole. Owens tells Cole to suck it and hits the Stunner for two as Lee and Dijakovic are back up. They launch Strong over the ropes and into the other ring onto Strong. Willow’s Bell plants O’Reilly and it’s time to set up the tables. Lee hits the big dive onto almost everyone but O’Reilly comes in off the top with a knee to Lee’s knee, setting up a kneebar. That’s broken up by Dijakovic but Fish comes in with a moonsault.

The Fairy Tale Ending to Strong sets up the Swanton from Owens for two, meaning Cole has to make his own save. Lee heads up again but gets pulled down with a super Angle Slam. Ax and Smash gets two and there’s the High/Low to Dijakovic. Owens and Lee fight in between the rings with Owens not being able to hit the package piledriver. Cole however can hit a superkick and a (slightly delayed) Panama Sunrise for the huge knockdown. Fish and O’Reilly are up first and set up the tables but it’s Ciampa with Project Ciampa to O’Reilly.

Running knees to the face have the rest of the Era in trouble, including several to send Cole’s head into the cage. They head to the top and there is no way this can end well. Ciampa can’t hit White Noise but he can block the Panama Sunrise through the tables. It’s Cole heading all the way to the top of the cage and Ciampa joins him, drawing the PLEASE DON’T DIE chants.

Dijakovic sends Strong through a table but gets triangled by O’Reilly. They head to the table with Owens hitting a frog splash to drive O’Reilly through, leaving Lee to superbomb Strong through another. Cole and Ciampa stand up on top of the cage and it’s a SUPER WHITE NOISE OFF THE CAGE THROUGH THE TABLES to END Cole at 38:28.

Rating: A. This felt like the war that it was supposed to be and my goodness that finish. I don’t remember being that nervous since I saw Shane McMahon dive off the Cell. That was the big finish that the match needed and the whole thing was a great showcase of all eight guys. Awesome stuff and I got WAY more into it on the second watch than the first time around. Ciampa pinning Cole was the way to go here as it gives us a nearly guaranteed title match while also giving us the big finish. Great stuff here and it felt like war, which is hard to pull off.

Post match, Britt Baker, identified by name and as Cole’s girlfriend, is shown looking terrified as everyone is done. Team Ciampa pulls themselves up and poses to end the show.

Overall Rating: A. This one was a little shorter than most recent Takeovers and in a way, that is the best thing that could have happened. They had everything making sense and went hard the entire way, leaving us with four rather awesome matches. Survivor Series is NXT’s chance to shine on the big stage but this was their big show where they had to take care of things on their own. Another awesome show and more than worth seeing, especially with the somewhat shorter run time.

Results

Team Ripley b. Team Baszler – Riptide onto a chair to Baszler

Pete Dunne b. Damian Priest and Killian Dain – Backsplash to Priest

Finn Balor b. Matt Riddle – 1916

Team Ciampa b. Undisputed Era – Super White Noise through tables to Cole

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

Back in 2017, NXT shocked a lot of wrestling fans by announcing the WarGames was making its WWE debut at the November Takeover, which happened to be called Takeover: WarGames. Then they had the match….and it wasn’t exactly WarGames with a weird three way format that only kind of worked. The problem was fixed the following year with a much more traditional format, but since WWE can’t keep things the same, we are up for a different format this year with TWO WarGames, including the first women’s WarGames match. The card is shorter than the usual Takeover, but that makes sense. Let’s get to it.

Pete Dunne vs. Killian Dain vs. Damien Priest

This, which was originally announced for this week’s TV, is now taking place here with the winner moving on to Survivor Series for a shot against NXT Champion Adam Cole. That could go multiple ways, but with Cole in WarGames and having wrestled in a ladder match on Wednesday, it would be a big stretch to have him lose to anyone (barring some form of interference from the Undisputed Era, which would be pretty lame).

I’ll take Dunne to win here and go on to become NXT Champion. Yeah that sounds like the easy way to go, but at the same time, Dunne is someone that could easily become a top guy. The Undisputed Era holding all four titles is not something that can last forever and after having them exposed to the main roster with so much success, how much longer can you really keep them together down in NXT? If Cole can beat Seth Rollins and Daniel Bryan, it’s a bit much to believe that he belongs in the third brand. So yeah, Dunne wins and becomes champion in my prediction almost guaranteed to go wrong.

Matt Riddle vs. Finn Balor

Riddle is taking the place of Johnny Gargano, who was injured at Balor’s hands. That’s such a major perk of NXT: they have the kind of roster where one star is out so they can just pop another one in like it’s nothing. That kind of thing is so valuable to them and almost no one can come close to doing that. There isn’t much of a personal issue here, but it’s Balor’s first major match since his heel turn and you know what that means.

On paper, this should be Balor’s all day, but you never know what you might get. My guess is Balor, but Riddle getting one of the biggest wins of his career isn’t out of the question either. I would go with Balor winning to establish him as something bigger though, especially with the big showdown with Gargano coming sooner or later. If you have Balor lose here, what is the point in having Gargano beat him later? Balor wins here, and likely by cheating to show how he’s fully evil now.

Women’s WarGames

So this is a first and we even have the lineups set in advance for this one (Rhea Ripley/Mia Yim/Tegan Nox/Candice LeRae vs. Shayna Baszler/Io Shirai/Bianca Belair/Kay Lee Ray). This match has been built up well enough, though I’m not sure how much sense it makes to put them inside of WarGames. It would seem more suited for something like a street fight, but I’ll take what I can get. Letting them have weapons would make sense, as Shirai can certainly swing a kendo stick. I’m curious to see how this goes, but I’m not sure how well it is going to work.

I’ll take Team Ripley to win as Ripley seems primed to be the next person to go after Baszler. She doesn’t have to beat Baszler herself, but that swinging Cloverleaf is one of the coolest looking finishers going today. Have her slap that on Belair for the win and then move on to FINALLY (and I do mean FINALLY) take the title off of Baszler. Just let everyone get some time to shine and everything should be fine.

Men’s WarGames

This one is about who will be the final member of Team Ciampa (Tommaso Ciampa/Keith Lee/Dominik Dijakovic/???) as they face the Undisputed Era. Triple H has hyped up the final member of the team being a big deal but I don’t think it’s going to be Triple H himself. The question now is who gets the big spot, which is more intriguing to me than who wins. I’m not sure who it is going to be, but that is the more fun part.

I’ll certainly take Team Ciampa to win as there is little point in having the all champions team go over here. That brings up the big question of the mystery partner and I’ll take….let’s go with Sami Zayn. It would be a surprise, the place would be rather pleased and it would fit well. Either him or Isaiah Scott, who has been treated as a big deal. Or maybe they have a fresh name coming in, though that isn’t something NXT does very often. And no, it won’t be CM Punk, even in Chicago.

Overall Thoughts

The car has one fewer match than usual but come on. It’s TWO WARGAMES matches, which has never actually happened before in any major company. They have title implications plus the question of the mystery entrant, which really could be quite a number of people. I’m excited to see the show and the fact that I’ll be in the arena has nothing to do with that, I assure you.

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

NXT
Date: October 16, 2019
Location: Full Sail University, Winter Park, Florida
Commentators: Mauro Ranallo, Beth Phoenix, Nigel McGuinness

It’s a big night as we have the return of Tommaso Ciampa to in ring action. That’s quite the get for NXT, as they are in for a fight against Dynamite. There are only so many people you can throw out there and Ciampa is already a legend around here. Speaking of legends, the advertisements for the show have featured Finn Balor so we could be in for another major appearance. Let’s get to it.

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

Opening recap.

Opening sequence.

Tommaso Ciampa vs. Angel Garza

Ciampa gets the hero’s return welcome. They start fast with Ciampa running him over but they both miss kicks to the ribs, allowing Garza to kneel for a handshake over. Ciampa kicks that away but gets enziguried for his efforts. Back in and the Fairy Tale Ending is blocked and Garza dropkicks him in the corner for a trip to the floor.

That means a big flip dive but hang on, because GARZA HAS TO TAKE OFF HIS PANTS. Ever the pants fan, Ciampa snaps and stomps away in the corner, before stomping on the Mexican flag in the corner, including a kneeing knee. He even loads up the Fairy Tale Ending on the flag but stops to hit the Willow’s Bell (hanging DDT) to finish Garza at 3:17.

Rating: C. The stuff with the flag was a little weird but at least they didn’t go into anything too strange and it didn’t become a mess. It’s good to have Ciampa back and there was no reason to have him break a major sweat in his first match back. I’m a bit surprised by having Garza be the one to take the fall here, but Ciampa is what matters the most.

Post match here’s the Undisputed Era to stare Ciampa down. Ciampa grabs his chair and crutch but hang on a second as Kyle O’Reilly goes over to the announcers’ table and throws Mauro a USB drive. The Era walks out without saying or doing anything else.

Post break we see what is on the USB, which shows the Era in the back, having laid out the Velveteen Dream and Strong BREAKING HIS SUNGLASSES.

Oney Lorcan/Danny Burch vs. Imperium

Marcel Barthel/Fabian Aichner for Imperium and they have Alexander Wolfe as a bonus. Aichner literally throws Burch into the corner to start so Burch runs him over with a shoulder. It’s off to Lorcan for a double elbow so Barthel comes in, only to dive into a headbutt from Burch.

It seems to mess with Burch even more though as Barthel hits a sliding dropkick in the corner as we take a break. Back with Burch hitting Aichner in the face and bringing Burch in for the house cleaning. Uppercuts into a slingshot dive to the floor sets up a big dive onto both of them. Back in and Burch German suplexes Aichner, followed by a powerbomb into a jackknife cover for two.

The assisted elevated DDT is broken up by Barthel so it’s Lorcan and Aichner chopping it out. Barthel dives on Burch on the floor, leaving Aichner to hit a double springboard moonsault for a close two on Lorcan. That leaves Lorcan to get beaten up with a series of strikes and the European Bomb gives Barthel the pin at 8:32.

Rating: B-. This was about four people beating the heck out of each other and that’s exactly what we got. Lorcan and Burch are not looking like a team who will ever win the titles, though that tends to make them guaranteed champions around here. Imperium being on both NXT and NXT UK adds a fresh change of pace around here and it’s an interesting twist.

Video on Johnny Gargano. He has wanted to wrestle forever and is living his dream by staying in NXT.

Gargano isn’t sure what to think about Ciampa being back and won’t know what to think until they see each other face to face.

Io Shirai vs. Kayden Carter

Carter starts fast but flips around once too often and gets shouldered down. Something like a sunset flip gives Carter two and Shirai bails to the floor. That doesn’t go well for Carter as Shirai hits her in the face, setting up a springboard missile dropkick for two back inside. Carter sweeps the leg though and a kick to Shirai’s chest staggers her a bit. A low superkick gets two on Shirai but she’s right back with a hard release German suplex. The moonsault finishes Carter at 2:37. That was a rather entertaining match for so little time.

Post match, Shirai says she only wants Shayna Baszler and not Rhea Ripley or Bianca Belair. Cue Ripley and Shirai is looking a bit nervous. Rhea is ready for Belair next week but she’ll shut Shirai up too. Shirai teases a fight but bails instead.

We look back at Killian Dain distracting Boa so Cameron Grimes could beat him in about five seconds. Dain destroyed Boa after the match for a bonus.

Boa wants revenge on Dain.

William Regal says Velveteen Dream is out of action for the time being due to the attack. Therefore, Strong needs a new #1 contender so Keith Lee vs. Dominick Dijakovic is now for a title shot.

Keith Lee vs. Dominick Dijakovic

The winner gets Strong for the North American Title next week. The exchange of shoulders goes nowhere to start so they try it again for the same result. They try a test of strength with Lee going to one arm and lifting him into the air in a nice power display. Lee shoulders him down and stays on the arm with a splash for two.

Back up and Dijakovic gets in a clothesline with the good arm and we take a break. We come back with Lee hammering away in the corner before tossing him across the ring. The Pounce gives Lee two and Dijakovic’s sitout chokeslam gets the same. Dijakovic can’t hit a superplex though as Lee shoves him down and hits a middle rope splash onto the arm. The Spirit Bomb sends Dijakovic rolling out to the floor but he’s right back with the cyclone boot for two back inside.

That means it’s Lee’s turn so he muscles Dijakovic up (on the third time in a crazy strength display) for a suplex and the big crash. Lee loads up what looked to be a Vader Bomb so Dijakovic gets him in an electric chair, which is countered into a reverse hurricanrana for the big knockdown. They get to the corner with Lee loading up a super powerbomb, only to have Strong come out and hit both of them at the same time for the no contest at 15:23.

Rating: B. It was good, but they were under the pressure of their previous outstanding matches and it didn’t hold up as well as they were shooting for. What we got was good, though the ending is the same heel idea that has never worked before and hopefully they get to the point and do the triple threat. We don’t need to see these two again in another singles match for a long time though, because the impact isn’t as strong anymore.

Hold on though as Regal wastes no time in saying that isn’t going to work and next week it’s a triple threat match for the title.

Matt Riddle vs. Bronson Reed

Riddle’s shoe flip misfires this time for a somewhat funny moment. We get a quick bit of respect before Riddle hits him in the face. The Final Flash sets up the running forearms in the corner and a t-bone suplex makes it even worse. Reed runs him over though and drops a backsplash for a fast two.

Riddle is right back with a powerbomb and the second Final Flash for two of his own. The Floating Bro is countered into a sitout powerbomb to knock Riddle silly and the straps come down. Reed tries a suplex but Riddle reverses into a sleeper. That’s escaped as well and Reed tries to jump over Riddle in the corner, only to get caught on Riddle’s shoulder in a rather nice power display. The Bro Derek finishes Reed at 3:04.

Rating: C. This was a fired up Riddle, who threw everything he had at Reed and took the big guy down. Reed looked good as well though as you can always use a monster who can move. It was more about Riddle here though and this should get him back on tract after the loss to Cole.

Video on Bianca Belair, who is ready to beat Shayna and is tired of people jumping in front of her.

Kushida has a fractured wrist and will be out for a month.

Taynara vs. Tegan Nox

Nox starts fast with a kick to the face for two but a bicycle kick puts her on the floor in a heap. Back in and Taynara gets in some rolling judo throws into some running knees in the corner for two. Nox is right back up and a running knee and a chokeslam, followed by a Willie Mack style reverse Cannonball. The Shiniest Wizard finishes Taynara at 2:55. Mauro:” Tegan Nox it out of the park!” She did look good here and just seeing her getting to wrestle again without having her knee explode is a good sign.

Post match Dakota Kai comes out to hug Nox but here are the Horsewomen to interrupt. Baszler doesn’t like the idea of Nox jumping into the title picture because she’s running out of limbs to rehab. When she does something important, come see the champ.

Finn Balor talks about needing a new path to take so he’s taking the one he took before. He’s in the ring next week.

Boa vs. Killian Dain

Rating: D+. Just a squash here for the most part with Dain dominating, as he should. Boa is someone with a good look though he is just one of the warm bodies around to take beating at the moment. That can change in the future though and he looked good for the first thirty seconds or so.

Pete Dunne comes out for his match but gets in a staredown with Dain. For some reason Dain thinks it’s a good idea to point his finger at Dunne, who snaps it to send Dain running.

Pete Dunne vs. Damien Priest

Priest goes with an elbow to the face to start before winning a battle of the kicks. With that not working for Dunne, he grabs the finger and gets in the stomp to the arm to take over. They head outside with Dunne working on the arm even more, including another stomp on the steps. Priest kicks him off the apron though and a right hand puts Dunne down again as we take a break.

Back with Dunne hitting a superplex and striking away with lefts and rights. An enziguri sets up a middle rope dropkick to the knee and Priest heads outside again. That doesn’t go well either as Dunne hits the middle rope moonsault for another knockdown. Back in and a Liger Bomb gives Dunne two more so he loads up the stomps, only to get kicked in the head.

Dunne can’t get a cross armbreaker so he tries a triangle, which Priest counters into a rollup with feet on the ropes for two. Priest sends him shoulder first into the post and gets two of his own off a Razor’s Edge (somehow without a Razor Ramon reference from Mauro). Dunne is sent outside for a crazy running flip dive from Priest, followed by the South of Heaven chokeslam for another near fall.

They slug it out with Priest turning him inside out with a clothesline. The Reckoning is blocked but Dunne can’t hit the Bitter End. Another chokeslam is countered with an enziguri so Priest hits a spinning kick to the head. They’re both down but Dunne gets up first, only to have his moonsault hit knees. Dunne slips out of a powerbomb though and cranks on the finger, with the referee getting between them. That’s enough for a low blow from Priest and the Reckoning gives Priest the pin at 14:20.

Rating: B. This worked very well with two guys beating the heck out of each other and one of them taking the shortcut to win in the end. Dunne doesn’t lose anything here and you can almost guarantee a rematch here, perhaps in the form of a tag match with Dain joining Priest against Dunne and….Riddle maybe? If that’s still a thing?

Overall Rating: B-. The main event helped a lot here but the show hasn’t felt quite as special since the show moved up to two hours. The shows are still quite good though and we are getting some big stuff in the future, though it doesn’t have exactly the same spark that it had for all those years. Good show here, though it was missing a little something.

Overall, AEW wins this week but as usual it’s just by a hair. They had a tighter show with better matches up and down the card. The big tag match on Dynamite was the best thing all night and I liked how they were setting up Full Gear. NXT worked rather well too, though it lagged a few times and it hurt things just enough to give Dynamite the win.

Results

Tommaso Ciampa b. Angel Garza – Willow’s Bell

Imperium b. Danny Burch/Oney Lorcan – European Bomb to Lorcan

Io Shirai b. Kayden Carter – Moonsault

Keith Lee vs. Dominick Dijakovic went to a no contest when Roderick Strong interfered

Matt Riddle b. Bronson Reed – Bro Derek

Tegan Nox b. Taynara – Shiniest Wizard

Killian Dain b. Boa – Seated abdominal stretch

Damien Priest b. Pete Dunne – Reckoning

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

NXT
Date: September 25, 2019
Location: Full Sail University, Winter Park, Florida
Commentators: Nigel McGuinness, Mauro Ranallo, Beth Phoenix

Well it was a good run while it lasted, but things have to come to an end at some point. This will be the last week that the show is split between USA and the WWE Network. Therefore, this week’s show is going to be setting up next week’s two hour USA debut and that means we should be in for the usual big night. The big announced match is Matt Riddle vs. Killian Dain in a street fight to crown a new #1 contender. Let’s get to it.

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

We open with a recap of last week’s show, including HHH in the crowd leading an NXT chant and the Undisputed Era holding all of the titles.

The Undisputed Era is above the announcers’ booth.

Keith Lee vs. Dominick Dijakovic

They miss strikes to start, including Lee missing a spinning kick to the face. Just to show off, Lee leapfrogs him and hits a crossbody to crush Dijakovic. A big shoulder sends Dijakovic to the apron and they fight over a suplex with neither being able to get anywhere. Dijakovic pulls him to the apron for a chokeslam (THUD) and we take a break.

Back with Lee hitting a one handed spinebuster and some overhand chops to the chest. Dijakovic looks at him and gets sent head first into the buckle. That means a slingshot corkscrew dive and somehow Dijakovic isn’t a splat on the floor. Back in and Lee can’t muscle him up for a suplex, though thankfully Dijakovic manages to turn it into a small package attempt.

Back up and Lee elbows him in the head over and over, setting up a middle rope moonsault for two. Lee takes it to the top but Dijakovic reverses into a super Canadian Destroyer for two, followed by his own moonsault for two more as Lee just sits up for the cover. The Limit Breaker finishes Dijakovic at 12:35.

Rating: B. This is one of those pairings that just works no matter what they do. Those spots were making my eyes open up and that’s the kind of thing you don’t get to do very often. Both guys are looking awesome from these matches and I’m sure there will be one more match, possibly next week even, and I can more than go for that.

We look back at Candice LeRae becoming #1 contender and getting in a staredown with Shayna Baszler.

We look back at last week’s wild brawl to end the show. William Regal had to break it up and made Matt Riddle vs. Killian Dain in another street fight for the #1 contendership tonight.

The Street Profits promise to get their titles back next week.

Dakota Kai vs. Taynara

This is Kai’s big return after destroying her knee. Taynara on the other hand has lost her last name. Kai kicks her in the face to start and goes up, only to get crotched down. Taynara gets in a kick, a judo throw and another kick for two as Kai is in trouble. That doesn’t last long as Kai hits a kick to the face and an ax kick to the back. Some Kawada kicks have Taynara in more trouble, followed by the running kick to the face in the corner. The GTK finishes Taynara at 2:42. Kai looked good in a limited capacity here and hopefully they give her the push that she never got before.

Video on Johnny Gargano.

Matt Riddle vs. Killian Dain

Street fight and the winner gets Cole for the NXT Title at some point. They go straight for the strikes but Riddle can’t get a cross armbreaker. He can however German suplex Dain for two so the big guy heads outside. A running forearm off the steps rocks Dain and we take a break.

Back with Dain choking in the corner until Riddle scores with a knee to the face. An exploder suplex sends Dain flying and the Broton connects. A Penalty Kick gets two but Dain is right back with a powerbomb for two. Riddle is fine enough to hit an Alabama Slam into the Floating Bro for another near fall.

Back up and Dain sends him outside for a suicide dive, followed by the pelting of a chair to the shoulder. They head into the crowd with Riddle hitting some kicks but it’s a crossbody through a wooden wall to crush both of them. Back from another break with Riddle hitting a Broton off the bleachers through another table. A bunch of kicks to the face and chest have Dain in trouble and they head back inside for a slingshot Broton.

Dain is fine enough to crossbody a chair onto Riddle to take over. Three straight Vader Bombs (how Dain beat him in the first match) get two but a fourth attempt with a chair is blocked with a chair shot to Dain’s back. The Final Flash knee into the chair into Dain’s head gets two and Riddle hammers away with shots to the head. What looked to be a low blow doesn’t seem to stop Riddle as he grabs a Fujiwara armbar for the tap at 20:29.

Rating: B. What else were you expecting here? They beat each other up for twenty minutes here and Riddle gets to slay the dragon to set up the title match. The title match is next week but it would make sense to let it be the big main event in a few weeks instead of cramming it onto an already stacked show. Either way, very good showing here and Dain can be a monster again at almost any time.

Post match here’s Cole to shout at Riddle, who armbars him as well. The Undisputed Era runs out so Riddle bails.

Over on the WWE Network now and we look at more replays from the street fight. That’s a good idea as the fans need some time to switch platforms.

Rhea Ripley vs. Kayden Carter

Carter explodes at the bell so Ripley runs her over with a dropkick for two. The delayed vertical suplex gets the same and Ripley forearms her in the head. A hurricanrana sends Ripley down and Carter runs the corner for a several springboard hurricanrana. Carter’s low superkick gets two but Ripley is back up with Riptide at 2:37. They packed a TON into this and it was a blast in such a short amount of time.

Ever Rise vs. Danny Burch/Oney Lorcan

That would be 3.0 under what seems to be their official name. Martel takes Lorcan down to start as Mauro clarifies that there is no relation to Rick the Model. Parker comes in and gets headlocked down by Burch before handing it back to Lorcan for a double Russian legsweep. With the referee yelling at Burch, Martel sneaks in and throws Lorcan outside so the villains can take over.

A snap suplex gets two on Lorcan and we hit the armbar. Lorcan gets knocked down again and Martel takes him down with a backbreaker. A northern lariat connects but Parker runs into Martel by mistake, allowing Burch to come in and clean house. Burch and Lorcan get very fired up and the assisted elevated DDT finishes Martel at 6:28.

Rating: C+. Nice hard hitting match here with Burch and Lorcan being fine for an upper midcard team who isn’t likely to win the titles. However, in NXT that means they very well may get them some day and it would work well enough. I liked what we saw here and Ever Rise (bad name) was working as well.

Chelsea Green and Deonna Purrazzo are here.

Raul Mendoza vs. Cameron Grimes

Grimes goes for the standing double stomp at the bell again but gets caught in a wristlock instead. A quick hurricanrana takes Grimes down and it’s a springboard headlock takeover to show off a bit. Back up and Grimes gets in his cool counter to a crossbody into a powerslam for two of his own. Grimes whips him hard into the corner and grabs the armbar to keep Mendoza down.

Back up and Grimes gets two off a Superman punch before it’s right back to the armbar. Mendoza fights to his feet and hits a running knee to set up a missile dropkick. A cartwheel kick staggers Grimes on top and a springboard hurricanrana gets two. Grimes is back up and hits the standing double stomp for the pin at 7:26.

Rating: C. The abundance of armbars got a little annoying here but Grimes continues to be miles ahead of what he was doing back in Impact. He has a certain charisma to him and that stomp is a solid finisher. Mendoza is still one of the smoothest people on the roster and what we got here was even more proof.

Kushida/???/??? vs. Imperium

Kushida needs partners to face the team (minus Walter) and he has…..Breezango, which is an interesting choice. Aichner sends Kushida into the corner to start but gets hiptossed into the basement dropkick for two. A blind tag lets Imperium get in the triple teaming, with Breezango only coming in for the save once it’s down to one on one. Fandango comes in for two off a sunset flip and a double boot to the head gets two on Barthel.

Breeze has to fight out of the wrong corner but a little misdirection lets Barthel throw him outside. An elbow to the face puts Breeze in trouble and Wolfe comes in for a chinlock. A backbreaker gives Wolfe two and double dropkicks in the corner have Breeze on the floor again. Fans: “NOT THE FACE!” The chinlock doesn’t last long as Breeze backdrops Barthel to the floor but Kushida and Fandango are pulled to the floor before the hot tag can connect.

Breeze manages an enziguri and now the hot tag brings in Fandango. Everything breaks down and Fandango sends everyone to the floor for the big flip dive. Back in and Kushida’s cross armbreaker is broken up so he kicks Aichner and Wolfe to the floor. The handspring elbow is blocked by an uppercut to the head but an O’Connor roll with a bridge pins Barthel at 11:09.

Rating: C+. The ending was a bit of a surprise though it’s a good idea to give Kushida the pin and set him up as a bigger challenger for Walter later on. Kushida has been doing some good things around here but hasn’t had the big moment to get him over the hump so maybe this can help him. Breezango continue to be a lot more motivated down here than on the main roster and can you blame them in the slightest?

Post match Kushida celebrates but Walter kicks him in the head. Imperium poses to end the show.

Overall Rating: B. I’m glad the split format is already gone as it was weird to see the weird double episode thing. Dain vs. Riddle was a rather fun match and they kept the rest of the show moving fast enough to make the show work. I liked it better than last week, though next week is what matters more than anything else. AEW is going to draw in a lot of fans, but they have their work cut out for them.

Results

Keith Lee b. Dominick Dijakovic – Limit Breaker

Dakota Kai b. Taynara – GTK

Matt Riddle b. Killian Dain – Fujiwara armbar

Rhea Ripley b. Kayden Carter – Riptide

Danny Burch/Oney Lorcan b. Ever Rise – Assisted elevated DDT to Martel

Cameron Grimes b. Raul Mendoza – Standing double stomp

Kushida/Breezango b. Imperium – Rollup to Barthel

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

NXT
Date: September 18, 2019
Location: Full Sail University, Winter Park, Florida
Commentators: Mauro Ranallo, Beth Phoenix, Nigel McGuinness

It’s time to make this show live and double the length as well because of course it is. This is the first episode of the anti-AEW defense system and that means we’re in for a stacked show. That would include Velveteen Dream defending the North American Title against Roderick Strong and a street fight between Matt Riddle and Killian Dain. Let’s get to it.

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

An extreme closeup of HHH opens the show, with the boss talking about how this is the present and the future. He’s ready to show us what this is and we get a first person trip through the curtain to see the arena.

Mauro welcomes us to the show and the arena looks more vibrant than usual, though it may be the difference between a laptop and a TV.

Io Shirai vs. Bianca Belair vs. Mia Yim vs. Candice LeRae

One fall to a finish and the winner gets a shot at Shayna Baszler at some point in the future. Candice goes right after Shirai to start but Io gets sent outside. Belair’s handspring moonsault gets two on Candice with Mia making the save. Shirai’s springboard missile dropkick gets the same on Belair with no one making a save. Belair slams Candice on the floor so Mia dives onto both of them, setting up the huge top rope moonsault from Shirai to send us to a break (that’s going to take some getting used to).

Back with Belair getting the worst of a Tower of Doom, followed by Candice grabbing a Black Widow on Belair until Shirai makes the save. Candice suplexes Shirai to the floor but walks into a reverse Alabama Slam into the buckle. Mia breaks up the KOD and hits Code Blue for two on Belair with Shirai making a save.

Belair spears Shirai and Yim down, setting up the KOD for two on LeRae. Protect Ya Neck sends Belair outside but Shirai sends Candice to the floor as well. Running knees in the corner rock Candice but Mia sends Shirai outside. Candice spikes Mia with a reverse hurricanrana and adds a Lionsault for the pin and the title shot at 9:59.

Rating: B-. This worked well with everyone working hard and some good near falls throughout. Candice winning is the absolute right call as she hasn’t gotten a shot at the champ yet and is the better of the two faces in the whole match. It would be a great underdog story to see Candice win the title and that’s how you want to present things from here. Great way to open things and show what NXT is about too.

Post match Shayna Baszler and her cronies come out to stare Candice down.

Quick Adam Cole video.

Video on Dominick Dijakovic vs. Keith Lee and their instant classic last month. They meet again next week.

Video on Matt Riddle vs. Killian Dain to set up tonight’s street fight.

Sean Maluta vs. Cameron Grimes

Standing double stomp finishes Maluta at nine seconds.

Video on Velveteen Dream vs. Roderick Strong.

Video on Damien Priest.

North American Title: Velveteen Dream vs. Roderick Strong

Strong is challenging. Dream takes him into the corner so Strong shoves him away, meaning it’s time to grapple to the mat. A clothesline puts Strong on the floor but Dream is ready for a springboard, sending Strong outside for some ranting and a break. Back with Dream hitting a dropkick for one and hitting an ax handle to put Strong on the floor. That means another ax handle but Strong is right back with a suplex onto the barricade.

Back in and we hit the chinlock, followed by another backbreaker for two. Dream is back up and tries the Sharpshooter but get knocked to the floor instead. A right hand sends Strong into the steps and we take another break. Back again with Dream slugging his way out of the top rope superplex and hitting another ax handle. The Dream Valley Driver gets two but Strong pulls him to the apron. A kick to the face has Dream hanging over the middle rope and Strong ties the arms in the ropes.

Strong hits a series of running shots to the face and it’s another backbreaker into a tiger bomb for two. The Strong Hold goes on so Dream makes the slow crawl to the ropes. Cue the Undisputed Era and of course the ref gets bumped. There’s another Dream Valley Driver but Dream has to knock the Era off the apron. End of Heartache gets a great near fall and Dream hits another Dream Valley Driver. Cole superkicks Dream off the top though and it’s another End of Heartache to give the Era all the titles at 22:30.

Rating: B. I know it’s all about the moment but the match never hit that other gear that Dream matches can get to. Maybe it was the obvious ending but other than that near fall off the first End of Heartache, there wasn’t much here to get excited about. You can see where they’re going with WarGames, but this Undisputed Era Holds All The Titles deal isn’t all that interesting.

We move to the WWE Network and recap the title change.

We recap the four way. Baszler vs. LeRae is in two weeks.

Pete Dunne vs. Arturo Ruas

They trade arm holds to start and it’s an early standoff. With the wrestling out of the way, it’s time for a slugout with Dunne nailing a clothesline. Dunne misses the stomp to the arm and Ruas cartwheels over for a kick to the face. Ruas is back with more kicks to the chest and another to the knee keeps Dunne down.

Another kick is blocked by a grab of the knee for some toe manipulation. The dragon screw legwhip sets up more strikes to Ruas, followed by the stomp to the fingers. The X Plex gets two on Ruas, who is right back with more strikes to the face. Dunne enziguris him and grabs the triangle, meaning it’s time to bend the fingers back for the tap at 6:41.

Rating: C+. The technical stuff was good here though I’m still having issues getting used to seeing Dunne having regular matches. The fact that he is around regularly now is a great sign for the future as Dunne has seemed ready to break through every ceiling there is in WWE and having him presented more often is a great thing.

Xia Li vs. Aliyah

Li goes straight to the kicking to start and Aliyah gets knocked down in a variety of ways. A kick to the leg sets up a spinning kick to the back of the head to finish Aliyah at 1:50. That was quite the surprise as I was expecting Aliyah to get beaten up until she won with a cheating rollup or something. Well done on going with a surprise.

Denzel DeJournette vs. Kushida

Hold on though as here’s Imperium, minus Walter, to beat down Denzel. The fans want Walter and here he is to a MONSTER pop. Walter introduces the team and promises to make anyone who disrespects them pay the price to the ring general. Cue Kushida, who says this is his time. The rest of the team is cleared out but Walter rips off Kushida’s vest. That earns him a kick to the face but Kushida is smart enough to bail. This is where NXT can shine: take two stars you wouldn’t expect to see go at it and then pair them together. It helps when you have several all star teams worth of talent at your disposal.

Lio Rush vs. Oney Lorcan

The winner gets a Cruiserweight Title shot at some point in the future and hokey smoke Rush is allowed to exist again. Lorcan hits some running elbows in the corner and gets two off a Blockbuster. As the announcers explain that Lorcan is angry that Rush is getting this spot (explaining things we wouldn’t otherwise know as commentary should do), the half and half is blocked and Lorcan is sent outside. Three straight suicide dives hit Lorcan but he’s fine enough to whip Rush hard into the corner. Another shot to the face puts Rush on the floor but he’s right back in, allowing Lorcan to hit a gutwrench powerbomb for two.

The half crab works on Rush some more and a chop sends Rush to his knees. Rush is right back with a bottom rope springboard into a Stunner for a VERY close two but he tweaks his knee on a frog splash attempt. Lorcan is right on the leg and powerbombs him into another half crab. Lorcan switches into an STF but somehow Rush makes it over to the rope for another break. For some reason Rush slaps him in the face and Lorcan is all fired up, only to run into a standing Spanish Fly. The Dragon’s Call finishes Lorcan at 10:15.

Rating: C. It’s hard to imagine Rush not winning the title to kick the title’s run on NXT off in a hurry, though I’m not sure how wise it is to have Rush go away for six months and then hand him a title as soon as he gets back. Maybe that won’t be the case, but it’s hard to imagine Gulak retaining the title again.

Matt Riddle vs. Killian Dain

Street fight. Dain goes right at him to start and the fight is on with Riddle not being able to get much in. The Broton hits knees and it’s time for the weapons in a hurry. They fight into the crowd with Dain hitting his own backsplash and they brawl into the back. Riddle gets thrown into the side of a production truck but knees Dain. They fight over to Walter, who jumps Riddle despite not being touched.

Imperium, the Street Profits and the Forgotten Sons (who we saw during the brawl) all get in on it and it’s time to head into the arena again. Pete Dunne and maybe Danny Burch are in there as well with security breaking up Riddle and Dain. Security gets beaten up as well and more wrestlers get involved until Dain is left alone in the ring. That means a suicide dive onto a bunch of people to end the show. I won’t bother rating the match as it was just a few minutes before everyone else got involved, but that was certainly a hot angle.

Overall Rating: B-. This is a hard one to grade as it felt like two big episodes put together with some interesting stuff throughout. The problem though is the double length takes away a lot of what made NXT feel so special. It always had this feeling of getting a little taste and leaving you wanting more. Maybe it’s having so much content on Wednesdays but a lot of that feeling was missing here. I’m sure I’ll get used to it and they’ll get the hang of the feeling, but this felt long instead of special, which makes the show more like every other wrestling program around rather than the special one it became. It’s sad, but that’s wrestling.

Results

Candice LeRae b. Io Shirai, Bianca Belair and Mia Yim – Lionsault to Belair

Cameron Grimes b. Sean Maluta – Standing double stomp

Roderick Strong b. Velveteen Dream – End of Heartache

Pete Dunne b. Arturo Ruas – Bent fingers

Xia Li b. Aliyah – Spinning kick to the head

Matt Riddle vs. Killian Dain went to a no contest

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

NXT
Date: August 21, 2019
Location: Full Sail University, Winter Park, Florida
Commentators: Mauro Ranallo, Nigel McGuinness, Beth Phoenix

So in a bit of a surprise, this is the start of the last of the one hour taping cycles. It’s also the start of the fallout from Takeover: Toronto and that means things could be in for a shakeup as we move towards Takeover: WarGames III, which is likely to feature Undisputed Era again. That’s not a bad thing as they’re becoming the Horsemen of NXT, but now they need opponents. Let’s get to it.

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

We open with a look at Matt Riddle and Killian Dain brawling at Takeover.

Here’s the Undisputed Era, with new shirts, to get things going. Adam Cole says he did everything he promised to do in Toronto and the fans certainly seem to like him. If there was an NXT Mount Rushmore, it would be his face four times over. Roderick Strong says they all deserves to hold the gold.

The other three got screwed though, with Velveteen Dream pinning Pete Dunne, meaning the North American Title reign is on borrowed time. Kyle O’Reilly shows us a clip of Bobby Fish tagging himself in at Takeover but O’Reilly was pinned. As we ignore the referee not seeing the tag, which usually holds precedence in tag matches, they demand that William Regal come out here and make this right. With that not happening, Cole says they are two steps away from making NXT truly Undisputed.

As the team leaves, here’s Jordan Myles with his Breakout Tournament contract. Cole: “You’re joking right?” Cole threatens to break the smile off of Jordan’s face so Myles should go after Shayna Baszler instead. Or maybe go to NXT UK or 205 Live because they’re not on Cole’s level (I know it isn’t happening but seeing the look on Cole’s face if Walter’s music hit would be glorious). Myles hands the contract to Cole but drops it at his feet, which means the challenge is on.

Bronson Reed wants more in NXT but Shane Thorne interrupts him and the match is made for tonight.

Mansoor vs. Damian Priest

Priest isn’t wasting time this week as he pulls Mansoor off the top for a crash into the buckle before knocking him back into the corner. Mansoor’s forearm has no effect as Priest drops him with a single shot. The chokeslam is escaped and Mansoor gets in an enziguri, followed by a low bridge to the floor. There’s the running flip dive and a slingshot neckbreaker (pretty nice) drops Priest back inside. Priest has had it though and it’s a Razor’s Edge toss into the Reckoning for the pin at 3:14.

Rating: D+. Mansoor has some nice charisma to him and some of the offense looked good. Priest came off like a monster, but egads man you have a toss Razor’s Edge and you use Roll the Dice for a finish? It’s not that complicated to figure this out and hopefully he changes it to what makes sense. Find something else to use on bigger people but don’t use one of the most overdone moves ever for your finisher.

NXT to USA announcement.

Mia Yim vs. Vanessa Borne

Borne start fast with a Samoan drop and stomps away in the corner as we hear about Borne’s love of art. With Yim hanging over the ropes, Borne puts a sticker saying LOWER no the back of her jeans. That fires Yim up so she chops away in the corner, followed by a Cannonball. Protect Yo Neck finishes Borne at 2:50. Anytime Yim wants to go away, I’d be perfectly fine with it.

Post match here’s Shayna Baszler to say Mia took her to places no one has taken her to before. Mia has been to some dark places and now she can stand beside Shayna. Cue the other Horsewomen, with Shayna saying it’s a cold business but nice and warm under the dragon’s wing. Mia would rather fight and the beatdown is on. Do we really have to watch these two fight again?

Next week: Keith Lee vs. Dominick Dijakovic.

Video on Lee vs. Dijakovic, which was a heck of a big man fight. They had a history on the indies as well and since NXT does this kind of thing, we get to hear about it. As usual, well done with making a match feel epic.

Shane Thorne vs. Bronson Reed

Thorne’s rage against the Breakout Tournament continues. Some early kicks annoy Reed but Thorne bails out to the floor. Back in and the much bigger Reed sits on Thorne’s back to keep him in trouble. Thorne tries a leapfrog and gets powerslammed down, setting up a facewash in the corner.

A shot to the knee slows Reed down though and Thorne hammers away in the corner and there’s the running Cannonball (Good grief can we get a moratorium on that already? It feels like everyone uses it anymore.). Reed comes back with a Samoan drop into a backsplash (same as the Cannonball) so Thorne rolls outside. Back in and Reed goes up top but gets knocked back down, setting up the running knee to give Shane the pin at 5:15.

Rating: C-. Reed moves well for a big man and I like where he’s going. Thorne on the other hand felt like someone who was there because he had been around forever and they needed to do something with him. I’m not sure what it is but there’s something to him that makes me want to see more, so he’s fine for now.

Here’s Velveteen Dream on the couch. His shirt is $30, his glasses are $10 and retaining the North American Title by pinning Pete Dunne is priceless. The Dream winds up on top of anyone in the locker room because he likes it best on top. That’s where the spotlight is so the spotlight is now on Roderick Strong. If Strong wants a title shot, give Dream an experience he’s never had before.

Myles challenges Cole in two weeks.

Next week: the Street Profits Defend against Fish and O’Reilly.

Matt Riddle vs. Killian Dain

Riddle comes in through the crowd and jumps Dain before revealing taped up ribs. The forearms and strikes knock Dain into the corner and a kick to the head puts him on the floor. The forearm off the steps puts Dain down again but Dain elbows him in the head. Dain’s running crossbody crushes the ribs as he looks more and more like Bray Wyatt every day.

We hit the seated abdominal stretch to stay on the ribs and then Dain just stands on them for a bonus. Dain sits on the ribs (keeping it simple can work well) but Riddle somehow manages a release fisherman’s suplex. Riddle strikes away and gets in an exploder into the Broton. The seated elbows to the face have Dain in more trouble, setting up a German suplex for the double knockdown. Dain is back up with a shotgun dropkick into the corner, setting up the Cannonball (three matches out of four).

Riddle pops up with a Bro To Sleep and a powerbomb into a running knee for two. The spinning Broton hits knees though and Dain sends him shoulder first into the post. Riddle gets dropped onto the steps and a backsplash (two matches out of four) crushes him again. A Vader Bomb off the apron sets up three regular Vader Bombs inside to finish Riddle at 11:20.

Rating: B. Overuse of the same moves aside, this was another case of having two guys hit each other really hard until one came out on top. Dain needed the win to establish himself and Riddle gets to save face because his ribs were banged up. The match was the kind of hard hitting fight that NXT does very well without going to far or over the top with it. Good stuff here and a star is made.

Riddle charges after Dain to end the show.

Overall Rating: B-. Other than a good main event, this wasn’t a show built on the wrestling. What it was built on was setting up things for later and it did that quite well. I want to see where a lot of these stories go and that’s where NXT shines. This is the farewell tour for the old way of doing things and it’s nice to see them doing it the way they do it best.

Results

Damian Priest b. Mansoor – Reckoning

Mia Yim b. Vanessa Borne – Protect Yo Neck

Shane Thorne b. Bronson Reed – Running knee

Killian Dain b. Matt Riddle – Vader Bomb

Remember to check out my website at kbwrestlingreviews.com and pick up the paperback edition of KB’s History Of In Your House (also available as an e-book) from Amazon. Check out the information here:

http://kbwrestlingreviews.com/2019/05/31/new-paperback-kbs-history-of-in-your-house/

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

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

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and pick up the paperback edition of KB’s History Of In Your House (also available as an e-book) from Amazon. Check out the information here:

http://kbwrestlingreviews.com/2019/05/31/new-paperback-kbs-history-of-in-your-house/

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

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

IMG Credit: WWE

NXT
Date: April 18, 2018
Location: Full Sail University, Winter Park, Florida
Commentators: Mauro Ranallo, Percy Watson

We’re out of New Orleans and back home now, albeit without a few names. Over the last week and a half, the Iconics, Ember Moon, Sanity and Andrade Cien Almas/Zelina Vega have moved up to the main roster, meaning it’s time to start rebuilding things. It’s also time for the fallout from Takeover so let’s get to it.

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

In memory of Bruno Sammartino. I’d expect to hear that a lot in the next week and I’d be angry if I didn’t.

Opening sequence.

Here are Johnny Gargano and Candice LeRae to open things up. Johnny talks about dreaming of being here because for the longest time, he was defined by the words Tommaso Ciampa. Then after thirty seven of the most intense minutes he’s ever spent inside a wrestling ring, he stands here with his life back. Johnny thanks the fans for sticking those signs in Ciampa’s face for months and now Johnny Wrestling is back.

That brings him to Candice because he couldn’t have done this without her. Enough of the mushy stuff though, because they have something left to do. That would be Candice fighting Zelina Vega tonight, and if Almas interferes, Johnny will drop him like his name is Tommaso Ciampa. After that, there’s one place left for him to go: the NXT Title. If they do the story right, Gargano going after the title could be insane.

Killian Dain, looking off camera, says that Lars Sullivan took something from him in New Orleans. Tonight, in a No DQ match, he’s taking everything from Sullivan.

Ricochet vs. Fabian Aichner

Ricochet is very popular here, just like he was in New Orleans. An early headscissors takes Aichner down but he grabs a fireman’s carry gutbuster to slow things way down. A tilt-a-whirl backbreaker stays on Ricochet’s ribs and we hit a waistlock. That’s broken up as well and Ricochet rolls forward into a dropkick. Ricochet is right back with a springboard European uppercut and a standing shooting star for two. After Aichner gets knocked off the top, the 630 puts him away at 4:35.

Rating: C. This was just a way to get Ricochet his first win and there’s nothing wrong with that. He wrestles like a superhero and that’s going to work very well as long as you have the high flying skills to back it up. Ricochet looked good here, though I could go for some more Aichner. You don’t waste that kind of look, size and skill.

Post match Ricochet talks about watching people become stars in NXT and now it’s his turn to crank it up a notch.

We look at the War Raiders debuting last week.

Video on EC3. He’s at 97% charisma and 3% body fat.

Sullivan is ready to do whatever he wants to Dain.

War Raiders vs. Chris/J.C.

Chris and J.C. don’t get last names but they’re dressed like Deuce N Domino. Rowe knees one of them down before handing it off to Hanson for a cartwheel dropkick. Whatever they’re calling Fallout is good for the pin on Chris at 1:50.

Shayna Baszler addressed the locker room at the Performance Center where she ripped the name off of Ember Moon’s locker. Everyone here needs to get in line or get out. Dakota Kai gets up and leaves.

Kona Reeves, now saying he has the finest everything (hair, clothes, etc) is back in two weeks.

Pete Dunne leaves but first says he’ll be back with his thoughts about Roderick Strong.

Lars Sullivan vs. Killian Dain

No DQ and the fans greet it with a HOSS FIGHT chant. They waste no time in hammering on each other with Dain getting the better of it by putting Sullivan on the floor. A suicide dive is caught though and Dain sends him into the steps. Back in and Sullivan muscles him up for a German suplex to put Dain outside again. A top rope clothesline drops Dain again and let’s hit those NXT chants. Dain is bleeding from the nose as Sullivan drops a middle rope headbutt for two.

Sullivan brings in a chair but eats a shotgun dropkick as the blood is starting tso flow a little more freely. The Belfast Blitz gets two and it’s time for a table. The table is set in the corner but Dain is smart enough to chair him in the back a few times. Sullivan is right back with the World’s Strongest Slam for one but Dain bicycle kicks him in the face. A running crossbody puts Sullivan through the table….and Dain loads up Coast to Coast? Sullivan gets up though and chairs him down again, setting up the Freak Accident onto the chairs for the pin at 10:50.

Rating: B. Now that was more like it with both guys looking like major monsters who gave each other a run for their money. Sullivan has more potential on his own and Dain is on his way up to the main roster anyway. The best thing here: when Dain loaded up Coast to Coast, I was thinking he could actually do it. That’s not normal but it’s also kind of amazing.

We recap Candice LeRae vs. Zelina Vega, which is an offshoot of Almas vs. Gargano.

Undisputed Era is very proud of what they’ve done.

Candice LeRae vs. Zelina Vega

Zelina talks a bunch of trash to start and gets shoved down, allowing Almas to come onto the apron for a distraction. With Vega pulling Candice down, here’s Johnny to even things out. Things settle down with Candice being sent into the corner and kicked in the head. Vega hits the running knees in the corner for two but the hammerlock DDT is reversed into a small package. Candice gets all fired up and hammers away in the corner, setting up a missile dropkick for two. The Gargano Escape goes on and Johnny grabs one on an invading Almas as Zelina taps at 3:29.

Rating: C. This was a quick way to wrap up the feud between these four as Vega and Almas are main roster bound. It helps having Vega able to work a match in a situation like this as she can be another kind of threat. LeRae was fine in the ring here and the image at the end of the double submission was pretty definitive. Good stuff, especially for a short match.

Post match Candice and Johnny celebrate with Gargano officially challenging Aleister Black for the title. Cue Aleister to say the title match is on for next week.

Overall Rating: B-. This felt more like a wrapping things up episode as some stories had a finish put on them before things move towards the next Takeover. Black vs. Gargano should be fun until Ciampa (likely) interferes to set up the rematch. The rest of the show was a lot of fun with Sullivan vs. Dain as a fun hoss battle and War Raiders/Ricochet looking good in short bursts. It’s a positive sign for the future, and I don’t expect NXT to botch things.

Results

Ricochet b. Fabian Aichner – 630 splash

War Raiders b. Chris/J.C. – Fallout to Chris

Lars Sullivan b. Killian Dain – Freak Accident onto chairs

Candice LeRae b. Zelina Vega – Gargano Escape

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and pick up the paperback edition of the WWE Grab Bag (also available as an e-book) from Amazon. Check out the information here:

http://kbwrestlingreviews.com/2018/03/23/new-paperback-kbs-grab-bag/

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

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