https://wrestlingrumors.net/derekstoughton/breaking-paul-heyman-eric-bischoff-named-wwe-executive-directors/

This is NOT a storyline and wow.I mean….wow.  It was clear that something had to be done to shake things up and this is certainly something.  Heyman has had a lot of success in a creative role before and Bischoff has experience running a major company.  The line you’ll hear about them though is they need a leash and while both will answer to Vince, that might not be the most sane source at the moment.  Either way, SOMETHING needed to change and it should be interesting to see who we get freshly pushed now.  I’m excited, though cautiously so.

Happy Anniversary.

https://wrestlingrumors.net/tommyhall/kbs-review-wwes-latest-brilliant-disaster/

IMG Credit: WWE

Monday Night Raw
Date: January 24, 2005
Location: Ford Center, Oklahoma City, Oklahoma
Commentators: Jim Ross, Jerry Lawler

It’s the last Raw before the Royal Rumble and since it’s Batista’s match to win, he has to qualify tonight. Other than that, we should get more not too bad promos from Randy Orton and HHH before their World Title match on Sunday, which will be a lot worse than the buildup. Let’s get to it.

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

We open with a look back at Kane chokeslamming Gene Snitsky off the stage last week. The conversation they had on the ground is omitted.

Opening sequence.

Shawn Michaels/Chris Benoit/Chris Jericho vs. Edge/Christian/Tyson Tomko

Well if you insist. Shawn headlocks Christian to start and an early Edge distraction doesn’t work. Benoit comes in and slides between Christian’s legs but it’s off to Tomko. That’s fine with Benoit, who takes him into the corner for the chops and a tag to Jericho. Tomko keeps shoving him out of the corner so Jericho drop toeholds him and starts a little dance. Must be a Canadian thing.

The threat of the Walls makes everything break down and Christian gets launched over the top and onto his partners as we take a break. Back with Benoit in trouble as tends to be the case when you come back from a commercial. Benoit gets over for the tag to Shawn, who is quickly low bridged out to the floor. Christian’s neckbreaker gets two and Tomko drops a fast elbow.

The chinlock goes on (with Christian’s back to the camera, which changes….well very little actually) but Shawn fights up and hits a Thesz press. It’s still too early for the hot tag though as Edge is more than willing to come in with Shawn down. Christian goes over to yell at Jericho, drawing him in so the referee can’t see a small package.

Shawn gets in a double clothesline and they’re both down. The hot tag brings in Benoit for a barrage of suplexes, including one to Edge onto Christian. The rolling German suplexes drop Christian and it’s the Swan Dive into the Sharpshooter. Edge breaks that up in a hurry but Shawn superkicks Tomko into a rollup to give Benoit the pin.

Rating: C+. Nice match here with the right person taking the fall. We even got a few tastes of Edge vs. Shawn before their big match on Sunday for a nice bonus. The rest of the people don’t exactly matter as they’ll be in the Rumble, so this was almost all bonus stuff and it went quite well.

Smackdown Rebound.

Here’s Stacy Keibler for a chat. Jerry: “Wouldn’t you like to be her thigh master?” Apparently the Governor has declared today Jim Ross Day in Oklahoma and here’s Danny Hodge, who at 72 years old is able to jump over the top, to help celebrate it. We see a clip of the Jim Ross Day event, which really is a cool honor. Back in the arena, Stacy even throws in a kiss on the cheek. JR talks about how much he loves being from Oklahoma and how much he wishes his parents could be here, but he knows they’re watching.

Cue HHH and Ric Flair to interrupt though and I don’t see this ending well. HHH says this would bring a tear to a glass eye because Oklahoma is celebrating JR Day. HHH: “Are you guys that big a losers that you have nothing going on but JIM ROSS?” Flair talks about the Oklahoma Sooners getting crushed against USC earlier in the month and HHH busts out laughing.

HHH sends JR and Hodge packing, thankfully before Hodge can take him down and remove a variety of his limbs. Stacy gets to stay though as HHH grabs her wrist and hits on her. JR actually stands up to HHH because that’s what a man does. This might be a bit better of a John Wayne moment if he didn’t have lipstick on his cheek. HHH says if JR doesn’t leave, he’ll be sooner dead.

Flair hits him low so Hodge decks HHH in the jaw, setting up a double beatdown. Stacy gets dragged back to the middle of the ring because HHH wants a kiss. Actually he has a better idea and loads up a Pedigree, drawing out Randy Orton for the save. Thanks for coming when the announcer and 72 year old man were getting beaten down Randy. I just want to see more Danny Hodge looking awesome.

Post break HHH and Flair are in the back with HHH pulling up Candice Michelle’s skirt. They head into their locker room and find Batista, who didn’t see what just happened. HHH recaps everything but Batista doesn’t exactly seem impressed, mainly because Hodge is seventy years old and Keibler is tiny. Flair: “She loved it.” Batista changes the subject and says he’s getting in on that Royal Rumble qualifying match. HHH isn’t happy but Batista says that maybe HHH loses to Orton on Sunday. Then Batista can take it back at Wrestlemania and keep it in Evolution. Flair’s side eye glare at Batista is rather great here.

Post another break, William Regal comes in to see Eric Bischoff about a Royal Rumble spot. That’s not happening because Regal was a jerk last year about Eugene. Coach can have it instead. La Resistance comes in but so does Batista. For some reason La Resistance challenges Batista for the Rumble spot, apparently not being all that bright. Batista doesn’t think much of them and promises to stick the flag somewhere else.

Coach is in the ring and has a change made to the following Royal Rumble qualifying match. Now it’s an Over the Top Rope Challenge.

Royal Rumble Qualifying Match: Viscera vs. Tajiri

Viscera shrugs off the mist and some kicks before throwing Tajiri out to win in less than thirty seconds.

We recap Kane chokeslamming Trish Stratus last week and the ensuing chokeslam off the stage to Gene Snitsky.

Tajiri is upset that he didn’t qualify for the Royal Rumble but Regal comes in with an idea about getting back at Bischoff. First though, Regal hits on Maria but gets shot down in a funny bit.

Royal Rumble Qualifying Match: Batista vs. La Resistance

La Resistance doesn’t have to tag here so Batista breaks up the song. House is cleaned in a hurry but Batista misses a charge into the post. The fans get WAY behind Batista as he gets stomped down but Conway makes the mistake of slapping him in the face. That means a powerslam as HHH and Flair look on in fear. Grenier gets spinebustered onto Conway for the pin in a hurry. And that’s why the Tag Team Titles are worthless.

Post match Batista plant the flag between the two of them. Flair is impressed but HHH isn’t pleased. The official face turn is going to be massive.

Royal Rumble Qualifying Match: Val Venis vs. Muhammad Hassan

Daivari rants at Venis during his entrance and Hassan gets in a cheap shot to take over from behind. That sets up the variety of kicking and stomping as Daivari continues to rant on the microphone. A backbreaker sets up a chinlock, with Daivari wanting Venis’ neck broken. Hassan gets in a slam to keep Venis down and it’s back to the chinlock with a knee in the back. Venis fights up and hits the Blue Thunder Bomb for two but misses the Money Shot. The Downward Spiral gives Hassan the easy pin.

Rating: D-. Oh yeah Hassan is in trouble and there’s not much of a way around it. This was as lame of a match as you could get with Hassan having no heat and Daivari just being annoying in an attempt to get him some. It didn’t help that Hassan’s offense is as generic as you can get and the fans were falling asleep in less than five minutes.

HHH tells Batista that the final spot in the Royal Rumble is going to Ric Flair, though Flair isn’t sure about this one. HHH talks him into it though, saying Evolution is united.

Maven is in the ring and wants someone to put their Royal Rumble spot on the line.

Kane vs. Maven

Maven: “I DIDN’T MEAN YOU!” Hang on though as Kane is too banged up so Maven won’t do this to him. He issues the challenge again.

Maven vs. Kane vs. Gene Snitsky

The monsters are both heavily bandaged and Maven has to win to get in the Rumble. Maven is smart enough to let the two of them hit each other and then steals two on Snitsky. Kane clotheslines Snitsky down so Maven goes after Kane’s bad arm. That goes as well as you would expect as Kane shoves Maven away and hits the chokeslam to finish Snitsky. This was nothing.

Video on Randy Orton vs. HHH.

Recap of Steve Austin’s press conference, which was about him making movies for WWE Films.

Royal Rumble rundown, featuring both sets of commentators listing off matches.

Edge can’t wait for Sunday because he’s sat out the last two Wrestlemanias with a broken neck. Sunday, it’s time for him to beat Shawn Michaels and then win the Royal Rumble.

Chris Masters is still coming.

Randy Orton vs. Ric Flair

Batista and HHH are here with Flair. It’s an energetic start for Flair as he runs Orton over with a shoulder. A poke to the eye and a chop have Orton in more trouble, meaning it’s time for the chops in the corner. Orton is right back with a backdrop and the fans….don’t really seem to care. Flair gets away and heads up top for exactly what you would expect to happen.

With nothing else working, HHH trips Orton but Batista gets ejected for it instead. Batista glares down at HHH, who can’t look him in the eye. We take a break and come back with Flair still in trouble and being knocked out to the floor. A suplex brings him back inside for two but HHH offers a distraction so Flair can get in a low blow (a common move for him tonight).

Flair hammers away at Orton’s bandaged head to bust him open again. The throat gets catapulted into the bottom rope but Orton gets fired up. The right hands and chops have no effect so Orton knocks him into the corner. HHH offers another distraction though and it’s a chop block to slow Orton down again.

The ref gets bumped though, allowing HHH to come in with a belt shot to the knee. Given how unimportant this match is, what took him so long? The Figure Four goes on and the blood is flowing until Orton turns it over. HHH pulls the referee out and it’s time to really work on the leg. A middle rope belt shot to the knee is blocked with a raised boot and it’s the RKO for the pin. The match hadn’t been thrown out yet?

Rating: D+. Not terrible but Orton couldn’t be more of a lame duck going into Sunday if his life depended on it. The fans have moved on and while that isn’t Orton’s fault (given how bad the last few months have gone for him, it’s completely expected), it’s also not a surprise whatsoever. Why in the world would I care about Orton’s title push when Batista is clearly the next big thing?

Overall Rating: D. Speaking of lame ducks, that’s exactly what this show was due to how well WWE has built up Batista. Aside from John Cena, there is no one with any chance of winning the Royal Rumble and sitting through a bunch of qualifying matches so we can see them have no chance on Sunday wasn’t the most interesting thing in the world. That being said, the build for Batista is one of the most underrated in years as they have hit it to perfection on every point. Getting through Sunday will help, but it wasn’t the easiest show to get through on the way there.

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

Monday Night Raw
Date: June 24, 2019
Location: Angel of the Winds Arena, Everett, Washington
Commentators: Michael Cole, Renee Young, Corey Graves

It’s the night after Stomping Grounds and given how things are looking at the moment, I’m not sure how much that’s going to change the direction we’re going. Extreme Rules is in less than three weeks and there is a strong chance that we’re looking either at rematches or matches that are so similar you won’t notice much of a difference. Let’s get to it.

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

Here’s Seth Rollins to get things going. Rollins says last night, Baron Corbin thought he was going to take the title from him, but here’s Becky Lynch to interrupt. Seth: “Hey, you kind of interrupted me.” Rollins talks about how Corbin tried to stack the deck but he didn’t know that Rollins had the best backup on the planet. Becky: “I guess it pays to be the Man’s man.” Lynch recaps the evening between herself and Lacey Evans but Corbin’s music interrupts.

There’s no Corbin though as Evans runs in from behind to jump Becky. Now Corbin comes in and gets taken down with a Sling Blade. The Bexploder sends Lacey outside as well and the villains are left on the floor. Corbin tells Seth to go make the Man a sandwich and Lacey threatens to hit them both again. Lacey wants a mixed tag for Extreme Rules, which works for Becky, but with a condition: after Baron and Lacey lose, neither get to face Seth and Becky again. Actually hang on as Baron has an idea: both titles are on the line and it’s winners take all. Never let it be said that WWE can’t drag things out beyond their expiration date.

Daniel Bryan/Rowan/Revival vs. Usos/New Day

Elimination rules here with a fall getting rid of a team. Dawson tags himself in to take Bryan’s place so New Day takes him down for a splash/legdrop combination. Rowan comes in and cleans house, including a sitout Rock Bottom to Big E. The splash misses though and it’s Woods kicking Bryan in the chest. Bryan sends him outside for the suicide shove but it hits Dawson by mistake. Woods gets forearmed for his efforts and Bryan adds a missile dropkick. The YES Kicks connect but Dawson elbows Bryan by mistake, allowing Woods to roll Bryan up for the pin at 3:32.

The Shatter Machine gets rid of Woods at 4:03 and we take a break. Back with the Usos hitting stereo dives, followed by a bell so the match is “officially” restarted. Ignore that there seemed to be action during the break and the lack of a bell between the previous falls as they now have to find ways around the “no wrestling during a break” rule. To be fair though, it’s not an official rule.

Dawson grabs a powerslam on Jimmy, followed by a Steiner Bulldog (Renee: “Classic Revival!” Steiners, Revival, whatever.) for two. Dawson’s superplex hits Jimmy but Jey tags himself in and dives off of Wilder’s back with a Superfly Splash to Dawson to steal the pin at 11:36. Nice finish there.

Rating: D+. This was the usual elimination match with everything having to happen in a hurry because they don’t have a lot of time. At least one pair of champions lost via miscommunication and the other lost via a quick pin. I’m sure we’ll get some title matches at Extreme Rules and that’s fine.

We recap Drew McIntyre vs. Roman Reigns last night to set up tonight’s handicap match.

Earlier today, Braun Strowman pulled a 17,000lb tractor trailer. Tonight, it’s a tug of war against Bobby Lashley.

Miz is walking to the ring and Abby the Witch from Firefly Fun House appears behind him, though she isn’t mentioned.

Here’s Miz for MizTV and we get straight to the guests: R-Truth/Carmella. Truth is nervous about getting inside but the 24/7 Title rules are suspended during the course of the interview. Miz recaps the history of the title, including the pinfall at Drake Maverick’s wedding over the weekend. Miz: “Truth, A MAN’S WEDDING??? REALLY???” Truth talks about how he can’t do anything in life without having to look over his shoulder. He can’t even have a picnic! WWE Superstars are showing up at his house dressed up as police officers and telling him that his car is on fire.

Cue Maverick to say that winning the title was the biggest moment of his career and his wedding was supposed to be the biggest day of his life. Truth ruined everything and now his wife won’t talk to him. They haven’t even consummated the marriage. Truth: “Fiber is good for that!” Maverick wants a rematch right now. For the title, not his wedding. Miz gets word that the title match can happen right now and all other competitors are banned from interfering. Truth grants Hornswoggle his match.

24/7 Title: R-Truth vs. Drake Maverick

Truth is defending and hits Little Jimmy to retain in 14 seconds.

Post match the mob comes out to give chase and Cedric Alexander hits the Neuralizer. No Way Jose makes the save though, allowing Truth and Carmella to run. Drake is asked where he goes from here but can’t say anything.

We recap the opening segment.

Evans and Corbin are ready to win at Extreme Rules. If they take out Lynch, they can take out Rollins.

Shane McMahon/Drew McIntyre vs. Roman Reigns

Rating: D. Well that came out of nowhere. The match itself was inconsequential of course and there’s nothing wrong with that. As scared as I am of Shane pinning Undertaker at Extreme Rules, I’ll take it over a handicap match with Reigns having to sell for Shane again. At least Drew didn’t take another fall here so it could be worse.

And now, a tug of war between Bobby Lashley and Braun Strowman. Lashley gets the early advantage and has Strowman at the line, but then Strowman smiles. Strowman pulls him over without much effort but Lashley jumps at him and the beating is on. The rope goes around Strowman’s eyes and he falls to the floor with Lashley beating him down. At least it was short, though putting it on after Undertaker wasn’t the best idea.

AJ Styles tries to talk about Ricochet but No Way Jose’s conga line interrupts him. The Good Brothers have joined in but AJ tells them to take their match against the Viking Raiders more seriously. AJ wants to know what happened to the guys he met in Japan but Gallows says they’re at the top of their game.

Good Brothers vs. Viking Raiders

Anderson gets taken down to start with Erik slamming Ivar onto him. One heck of a clothesline takes Ivar down and it’s Gallows coming in for a chinlock. The Boot of Doom gets two on Erik and the Good Brothers are rather pleased. Ivar comes back in for the seated senton in the corner though and a dive takes out Gallows. The Viking Experience finishes Anderson at 3:20 as AJ is disgusted in the back.

Rating: D+. Again this was much more about angle advancement than the match and there’s nothing wrong with that. The Good Brothers joining forces with AJ again is about all they’re going to get at the moment, though I can’t imagine that’s going to be enough to keep them in WWE. Given how they’ve been used in the last year or so though, that’s hardly the worst thing for everyone involved.

Nikki Cross apologizes to Alexa Bliss about last night. Bliss says it’s ok because she’s going to try to get a rematch against Bayley.

Post match Naomi and Natalya come in to see Cross, who doesn’t know what Bliss is all about. Bliss comes in and accuses them of talking about her behind her back. That classic women’s dialogue sets up a match between Naomi and Bliss for tonight.

Heath Slater vs. Mojo Rawley

And then Slater walks into the Little Jimmy to give Truth the title back.

And then Cedric Alexander hits a Lumbar Check on Truth to win the title.

And then EC3 hits the 1%er on the floor to win the title.

And then Carmella comes out to distract EC3 so Truth can roll him up and win the title for the ninth time.

We look back at Ricochet winning the US Title last night.

Ricochet talks about working hard to win the title but tonight he’s facing someone he’s looked up to for his entire career in AJ Styles.

Here’s Kofi Kingston for a chat but Sami Zayn and Kevin Owens cut him off for a quick interview. Why is he here, who does he think he is and why won’t he leave? Sami wants to know why Kofi’s entire identity as WWE Champion is having New Day save him. The New Day that Sami and Kevin DESTROYED last night. Kofi talks about New Day being a brotherhood that nobody can break and brings up beating Owens at Money in the Bank. Sami gets invited to the ring to take another Trouble in Paradise right now.

Kofi Kingston vs. Sami Zayn

Non-title and this was announced earlier in the show. Kofi takes him down for an early splash before grabbing a headlock. The top rope forearm to the head sets up the Boom Drop but Trouble in Paradise misses. Sami kicks him in the ribs to take over and Owens gets in a few shots of his own.

Back in and Kofi fights back with some right hands but charges into the exploder into the corner. The Michinoku Driver gets two but Kofi is right back with his jumping double stomp. Sami makes another comeback and tries the Blue Thunder Bomb, which is reversed into a rollup to give Kofi the pin at 8:12.

Rating: C-. Not much time to do anything here, but the other problem is Sami and Kevin being knocked down yet another peg. I’m not sure how many more times WWE thinks they can lose to Kofi but I’m sure we’re going to find out. It’s like that’s their only job on TV anymore and it’s not really helping anyone.

Post match Owens says he wants a shot and Kofi comes back to the ring.

Kofi Kingston vs. Kevin Owens

Non-title again. Sami’s early distraction lets Owens go up for the Swanton, which hits raised knees. A superkick gives Owens two and they head outside with Owens trying the apron powerbomb. Kofi reverses and hits an SOS (with a NASTY landing on the ramp) for the rather fast countout at 1:34.

Post match Kofi sends Sami to the floor and hits the big dive onto both of them. Kofi poses but Samoa Joe jumps Kofi from behind. A Rock Bottom plants Kofi on the stage and Joe glares down at Kofi. Joe leaves but runs back out to put Kofi in the Koquina Clutch. BUT WE HAD TO SIT THROUGH DOLPH ZIGGLER TWICE???

For Extreme Rules: Undertaker/Reigns vs. McMahon/McIntyre.

Naomi vs. Alexa Bliss

Cross is here with Bliss. Naomi starts with the splits and a little gyrating on the mat, only to be pulled down by the hair. Back up and Naomi gets her own takedown, setting up the splits splash. Naomi baseball slides Nikki by mistake, with the distraction being enough for Bliss to hit the DDT for the pin at 1:15.

Post match Bliss beats Naomi down and has Nikki help her but Natalya runs in for the save.

Natalya/Naomi vs. Alexa Bliss/Nikki Cross

Natalya drives Bliss into the corner to start and it’s off to Naomi for a full nelson. It’s already back to Natalya but a distraction lets Bliss take her down into a chinlock. That doesn’t last long as Natalya pops up with some suplexes to put Bliss down. The Sharpshooter doesn’t work and it’s off to Cross for the faster pace. A running bulldog gets two on Natalya and the fisherman’s neckbreaker connects, but Bliss steals the pin at 5:39.

Rating: D. Nothing match here as Bliss vs. Cross continues, albeit without being the most interesting prospect in the world. At some point Cross is going to have to snap into her old self if they want her to matter, because what they’re doing here isn’t working. However, I have a bad feeling that it’s what they want her to be.

Ricochet vs. AJ Styles

Non-title. Ricochet tries his flipping counter to a wristlock but AJ just drops down into a headlock for a smart counter. They get up to their feet but here are the Good Brothers to stand at ringside. Anderson offers a distraction but AJ goes to the floor and throws them out so they can’t ruin the match. That’s fine, as the match will be restarted after the break.

Back with Ricochet flipping into an anklescissors to stagger AJ and a dropkick gets two. Ricochet starts in on the arm and rolls AJ up for two more but Styles is right back with the Pele. Another dropkick sends Styles outside though and that means the big running flip dive to take him down again. Styles is fine enough to suplex him into the corner for two and it’s off tot he reverse chinlock.

Ricochet fights up so Styles hits a spinning backfist, which is answered with an enziguri. A springboard clothesline into a standing shooting star press gets two on AJ. The moonsault into the reverse DDT gets two on Ricochet, followed by the Phenomenal Blitz for the same. Ricochet knocks him down again and hits a moonsault for two but the 630 misses. AJ’s forearm sets up the Phenomenal Forearm for the pin at 10:54.

Rating: B-. You know, I blame myself for this one. I was dumb enough to believe that they might actually give Ricochet a solid push without throwing in these stumbling blocks like so many other wrestlers have to face. This isn’t the death knell and I’m not mourning the end of Ricochet’s push but he really had to lose a day after the title win? Hopefully he gets to beat AJ at Extreme Rules, but the clean pin is the only way to get there?

AJ helps Ricochet up to end the show.

Overall Rating: C-. Man there was a lot on this show. A lot of the wrestling wasn’t very good, but the energy was back and the show had some surprises in there to keep things going. That’s WAY better than what we had been getting and I think WWE knew they had to pick up the pace after the last few months. Extreme Rules is already looking better than I was expecting, but we have a long time to go for them to grind me down into nothing. Still not a good show here, but they’re getting a few steps away from those nightmare shows in May and early June.

Results

Usos/New Day b. Daniel Bryan/Rowan/Revival – Superfly Splash to Dawson

R-Truth b. Drake Maverick – Little Jimmy

Shane McMahon/Drew McIntyre vs. Roman Reigns went to a no contest when Undertaker interfered

Viking Raiders b. Good Brothers – Viking Experience to Anderson

Kofi Kingston b. Sami Zayn – Rollup

Kofi Kingston b. Kevin Owens via countout

Alexa Bliss b. Naomi – DDT

Alexa Bliss/Nikki Cross b. Naomi/Natalya – Fisherman’s neckbreaker to Naomi

AJ Styles b. Ricochet – Phenomenal Forearm

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

There was some good stuff this week and that deserves some attention.

https://wrestlingrumors.net/tommyhall/kbs-review-one-small-step-monday-night-raw/

IMG Credit: WWE

Monday Night Raw
Date: January 17, 2005
Location: Air Canada Center, Toronto, Ontario, Canada
Attendance: 9,600
Commentators: Jim Ross, Jerry Lawler

The focus is on Canada this week with Chris Benoit facing Chris Jericho in a challenge match. Other than that, the big story is likely to be the continuing issues between HHH and Batista, the latter of whom is starting to rebel against his boss. This seems to be leading to the Royal Rumble, where Randy Orton is getting a World Title shot after beating Batista last week. Let’s get to it.

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

We open with a recap of Orton beating Batista, though not before planing some seeds in Batista’s mind about HHH using him.

Opening sequence.

We open with the Highlight Reel and you know the fans are going to love Jericho here. Before we get to the guest though, Jericho brings up that he won a match last night and is officially in the Royal Rumble. See how much easier that is than having us sit through a match that had an obvious ending? Jericho has something else to say but here are Muhammad Hassan and Daivari to interrupt.

Jericho rants about how they came out before their introduction so Hassan rants about being forgotten. We get a proper introduction (with Jericho being called a creepy little sidekick) before Jericho mocks Hassan for being so serious all the time. Shouldn’t he be happier that we’re in Canada tonight? Hassan says Jericho is right as he’s felt a connection to Canada. See, in the US, Canadians are viewed as second class citizens.

They deserve it though because the REAL terrorists gained access to America through Canada. That’s why everyone here booing him is a hypocrite. See, Canadians are afraid to show their true feelings because they can’t back it up in a confrontation. Jericho tells him to shut the h*** up so Daivari rants at him for a bit.

Jericho has been studying though and offers a translation: Fozzy’s All That Remains comes out tomorrow and Daivari wants an autographed CD! Well he didn’t say please so that’s not happening. Hassan keeps ranting and the fight is on with Jericho putting on the Walls. Daivari breaks it up though and it’s a double beatdown until Chris Benoit comes inf or the save.

HHH and Ric Flair arrive with Ric insisting that everything is cool with Batista. They didn’t actually talk, but Flair has a feeling about it. HHH isn’t impressed.

La Resistance/Maven vs. Shelton Benjamin/Rosey/Hurricane

La Resistance are Tag Team Champions again, having won the titles in a handicap last night over William Regal. Fair enough as they didn’t have many other options with Eugene being out for months. Benjamin and Conway slug it out to start and Maven’s interference is scared off by a single glare.

Hurricane comes in for WHATUPWITHDAT and a thumb to the eye. A cheap shot from Maven lets Grenier throw Hurricane to the floor, followed by the chinlock back inside. That’s broken up with an atomic drop and it’s off to Rosey as the fans don’t seem interested. Rosey sits on Conway’s chest for two with Shelton making the save. Everything breaks down and Au Revoir finishes Rosey.

Rating: D. Just a match here with La Resistance getting their footing back after a quick title win. It’s not like they have anyone to feud with at the moment so this was about as good as they were going to get. Maven is much, much better suited in this role and while he isn’t going to win anything, it’s better than watching him take up a spot he’s not ready to be in.

Stacy Keibler wishes Randy Orton luck tonight and kisses him on the cheek. Orton doesn’t seem to mind.

Steve Austin is having a press conference on Wednesday.

Here’s Orton for a chat. This is a special place for Orton as he won the World Title right here back at Summerslam. Orton cried that night because no one thought he could pull this off. Then the next night, HHH ruined everything by throwing him out of Evolution. Now Orton wants it all back and he’s coming for it all at the Royal Rumble.

This brings out HHH, who says he’s heard this from Orton before. HHH is going to make him suffer because HHH is the greatest wrestler alive today. We hear all the names that HHH has beaten before but Orton says he’s heard this before. He had to hear every day when he was in Evolution, from the car to the gym to the hotel.

HHH says he’s sick of saying it but he has to do it because some young punk kid like him keeps coming out here and trying to take his spot. The fight is teased but HHH says it’s his time. Dang I miss that song. Orton charges up the ramp and the fight is on, with Flair coming out to help. That doesn’t go well as Orton beats up both of them, albeit with the help of a chair. This still isn’t interesting, but points for calling out HHH for his interviews being repetitive.

Post break HHH is livid and bubbly Maria comes up to ask him a question. He shouts her down and storms into his locker room where Batista is waiting. You can see HHH’s mood change because he knows Batista is a big problem if handled wrong. Batista is ok with what happened last week and HHH calms down a bit. Right now though, Batista needs to talk to Eric Bischoff about something.

HHH offers to go get whatever Batista wants, but Batista is talking about getting in the Royal Rumble and getting a shot at the title. HHH: “….my….my World Title?” I watched this story as it airs but watching it back, it deserves WAY more credit than it receives. They’re hitting every point to near perfection and I’m digging it.

Shawn Michaels talks about how he’s tried to apologize to Canada but for now, he’s focused on the Royal Rumble. See, if he wins tonight and wins the World Title, Edge can’t be champion. Bischoff comes up and goes over Shawn’s Royal Rumble history, including winning in 1996 to take the title from Bret Hart. Based on that history, Shawn is in, but he gets to fight Christian tonight.

Shawn Michaels vs. Christian

Christian, with Tyson Tomko, gets the big hometown hero pop. Before Shawn comes out, we look at his rather good brawl with Edge last week. Edge comes out and we take a break before the bell. We’re joined in progress with both guys getting up for the slugout. A backdrop sends Christian to the floor as the fans just do not let up on Shawn. Edge offers a distraction so Tomko can get in a cheap shot and the Canadians rejoice.

Back in and the chinlock goes on, followed by a backbreaker to keep it on. Shawn fights up and gets in a Thesz press as the fans continue their anti-Shawn tradition. Edge tries to come in with a spear but misses, allowing Shawn to drop the top rope elbow. Sweet Chin Music is countered into the Unprettier attempt which is countered into Sweet chin Music for the pin.

Rating: C. Just a match here as Christian isn’t big enough to give Shawn a real threat. What matters here is letting Edge get out there to mess with Shawn a bit because Edge does feel like he could give Shawn trouble. This was perfectly watchable though and that’s better than a lot of what we get on Raw.

Post match Edge hits the spear and puts on the Edgecator, making him look like a bigger star than he has been in years.

Batista vs. Viscera

Big pop for Batista. Viscera powers him around to start but Batista gets in some shoulders in the corner. A middle rope forearm to the back has Viscera in trouble but he’s right back with a Samoan drop. The big elbow gets two as Flair and HHH are watching in the back. Batista is right back with a spinebuster for the pin. This was a total face performance from Batista and there’s no other way to present him at this point. It’s a perfect rise to the top of the card and it’s been a lot of fun to watch.

Batista comes back in to see HHH and Flair. Next week, he can have a Royal Rumble qualifying match, if he wants it. HHH says “Uhhh…..” as Flair shakes his head no. See, Evolution should have one focus at the Royal Rumble and it should be Randy Orton. It would be a little selfish for Batista to enter the match because it could lead to Batista wanting a title shot. That would make it all about Batista and not Evolution because he would sound like Orton. Batista agrees because no one likes a selfish, self-centered egomaniac. The stare at HHH as he said that wasn’t exactly hidden.

Chris Jericho vs. Chris Benoit

The fans aren’t sure what to do here as they start with some grappling on the mat. The standoff gets some polite applause and Benoit takes him down into an armbar. Jericho reverses into one of his own but Benoit starts rolling some German suplexes. A cross armbreaker is broken up and another standoff takes us to a break.

Back with Jericho fighting out of a chinlock and catching Benoit on top with a butterfly superplex. Some near falls ensue before Benoit suplexes him to the floor, only to fall outside with him. Back in and a very hard clothesline gives Benoit two as the fans are getting quiet again. The rolling German suplexes have Jericho rocked but the Swan Dive misses. Jericho can’t follow up so Benoit goes for the Sharpshooter but gets small packaged for the pin.

Rating: C+. The crowd hurt things a good bit here as they didn’t want to boo either of them but cheering would mean a knock on the other guy so they sat there quietly for the most part. The wrestling was good stuff of course, but they never cranked it up as these two know how to do. With no issue though, why would they do that?

We recap Gene Snitsky vs. Kane, which is happening again tonight because reasons.

Chris Masters is coming.

Royal Rumble rundown.

Here’s Trish Stratus to another hometown pop for a chat. Trish runs down America for mocking her so often but that’s beside the point. She’s not here to say she told us so, but she told us she would take the title back from Lita, which she did. Trish destroyed Lita’s knee and she’s going to be out for a long, long time. But don’t worry, because there is a locker room full of men who would be more than happy to impregnate Lita. Cue Kane to chase Trish off but he throws her back inside. Kane lets go of the chokeslam though and smiles….before chokeslamming her anyway.

Kane vs. Gene Snitsky

No holds barred. They slug it out on the floor with Kane charging into a big boot. The clothesline off the barricade drops Snitsky though and they go inside for the first time. The threat of a chokeslam sends Snitsky right back to the floor and he gets in a bell shot to take over. It’s time for a weightlifting belt (which just happened to be underneath the ring) and the whipping is on. The fans would rather do the Wave though Kane’s comeback seems to get their attention.

A chair is brought in but Snitsky knocks it out of his hands. The GO LEAFS GO chant starts up as Snitsky wraps the chair around Kane’s throat. Kane gets up and chairs Snitsky off the middle rope though and it’s time for another whipping. They fight up to the stage with Snitsky going into the steel. Snitsky misses the big right hand and gets chokeslammed off the stage with Kane going with him through the table. That’s good for a no contest of course.

Rating: D+. The fans’ reaction isn’t a good sign here as there’s no interest left in this feud. Kane defeated him cleanly at the pay per view so why should it keep going? He has his revenge and Snitsky lost his appeal as soon as someone beat him for the first time. This didn’t need to happen and the fans didn’t care, which tells you a lot about where these two are.

Post match everyone checks on the two of them to end the show.

Overall Rating: C. Batista is carrying this show right now, but you don’t need to do anything else going into the Rumble. There are some other good things going on at the moment so it’s not a bad show, but there are parts of it that are better than others. Just getting Batista right is all that matters, and it’s working very well right now.

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

Monday Night Raw
Date: June 17, 2019
Location: Staples Center, Los Angeles, California
Commentators: Michael Cole, Corey Graves, Renee Young

It’s the go home show for Stomping Grounds and egads they need to come up with something to bring some fire to the show. There are all kinds of tickets still available and while you could come up with a variety of reasons why, the biggest problem is the show doesn’t feel interesting. Maybe they can pick things up a bit tonight, but I wouldn’t get too excited. Let’s get to it.

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

Here’s Elias to open things up. He talks about being friends with Anthony Davis (basketball star recently traded to the Lakers), who came here because he needed to surround himself with trash. With that out of the way though, Elias reveals that he is the referee for Sunday’s Baron Corbin vs. Seth Rollins Universal Title match. Cue Rollins to chair Elias down and say that whoever chooses to be the referee (So it’s not Elias?) will be answering to the chair.

The announcers make it clear that Elias, as well as Sami Zayn from last week, are having second thoughts.

The Miz vs. Ricochet vs. Braun Strowman vs. Bobby Lashley vs. Cesaro

Elimination match with the winner getting to face Samoa Joe for the US Title on Sunday. Since Elias is still in the ring, everyone hits something on him during their entrances. I get what they’re going for here with giving the fans something fun to start the show, but what is the motivation for everyone to beat him up? It’s another good example of doing something because the script tells you to and that’s not a smart move for anyone. Samoa Joe is at ringside to watch as well.

The match starts after a break with Strowman cleaning house until Cesaro manages to hit his reverse Angle Slam. That earns him a powerslam from Strowman, who then powerslams Lashley onto Cesaro to get rid of the latter at 1:18. Another powerslam gets rid of Lashley at 2:21. Strowman runs over Ricochet and Miz on the floor before throwing Miz back inside. Hang on though as Lashley spears Strowman and Cesaro adds a Neutralizer, setting up the 630 for a triple pin to get rid of Strowman at 4:21.

Strowman isn’t done either and throws Ricochet onto the two of them before driving Cesaro into the set. Back from a break with Ricochet hurricanranaing Miz to the floor, setting up a flip dive. Back in and Ricochet counters the Skull Crushing Finale with a rollup for two but Miz drops him on his head with a DDT. The YES Kicks keep Ricochet in trouble but Miz gets smart by going for the knee. The Figure Four goes on until Ricochet turns it over, only to have Miz do the same until a rope is grabbed. Ricochet kicks him down and stumbles up to the top for the 630 and the pin at 14:21.

Rating: C-. This was all over the place with the first three eliminations being just a means to get us to the final showdown. Ricochet winning is the right call as he has won a few matches against Cesaro in the last few weeks. It’s a smart move to build up someone for a change, especially when you use the same methods that have always worked in wrestling and always will.

Post match Samoa Joe comes after Ricochet, who knocks him to the floor for a running flip dive.

Here’s Becky Lynch for a chat. She gets straight to the point and calls out Lacey Evans, who comes out without much trouble. Evans talks about how jealous Becky is of her and how many things she’s done that Becky can never dream of. She’s a former United States Marine who can run boot camp in the morning and a cotillion at night. Lynch just wants to fight while Evans talks about how the women’s division needs a real woman as champion. Becky is beatable, but Lacey spends too much time getting in the ring and gets caught in the Bexploder. Becky steals her hat. More of the same from these two, though that’s not terrible.

The Revival, dressed rather nicely this week, joins Shane McMahon and Drew McIntyre’s celebration.

Corbin says he still needs to find his referee and will announce it tonight on the Kevin and Sami Show. Rollins hits him in the back with a chair.

Here are Daniel Bryan and Rowan to insult the people of Los Angeles. This is the capital of smog and full of stupid and impotent people. Tonight though they are going to excite the audience, which means here are the Viking Raiders. Uh….ok.

Viking Raiders vs. Russ Taylor/Randy Taylor

So that’s what Randy did after Home Improvement. The beating is on in a hurry with the Viking Experience finishing Russ at 34 seconds.

R-Truth and Carmella are in disguise in the crowd but they get caught in a hurry. The mob comes out and chases Truth under the ring…..where Titus O’Neil is hiding? The distraction lets Truth and Carmella escape.

Heath Slater comes in to see Shane and company where he asks for a raise. That’s a big no so Slater goes into the hall to call his wife. Drew follows and the beating is on and Dawson takes Slater’s wallet.

It’s time for the Kevin and Sami Show, with Kevin yelling at their graphics guy. Owens brings out the guest, which is of course Baron Corbin. Sami calls this a safe space but pulls himself out of the running to be guest referee on Sunday. Owens does the same but now we get to find out who the referee will be. That would be someone born to count 1-2-3: EC3. As EC3 comes to the ring, Rollins chairs him down as well. Baron says it’s back to the drawing board but here’s New Day to interrupt.

Sami says that they’re not invited, nor are they official Wild Cards (so that’s their answer this week) but since Kofi is champion, he goes wherever he wants. Owens says Kofi isn’t going to be champion again after Sunday and even if he is, Owens will take the title from him the next chance he gets. Kofi promises to retain on Sunday but as for tonight, Corbin wants a six man tag. New Day is down and picks up EC3 to referee, with Big E. and Woods shaking him up and down to nod yes.

We go to the trainer’s room where AJ Styles is cleared to return. Hang on though as the Good Brothers come in. AJ says they debuted three years ago right here in the Staples Center when they jumped the Usos. They’ve had some classics, but AJ thinks they’ve gotten comfortable. When is the last time they won a match? The doctors’ coats come off and things get serious.

New Day vs. Baron Corbin/Sami Zayn/Kevin Owens

This is now 2/3 falls and it’s Zayn/Owens vs. Big E./Woods on Sunday. Woods gets taken into the wrong corner to start and the stomping is on. Corbin comes in and mocks the clap before hitting a running right hand to the head. An enziguri drops Corbin but Owens is right there to break up the tag. That earns him raised knees to block the backsplash so Sami breaks up another tag attempt. A quick rollup gives Woods the first fall at 4:41 and we take a break.

Back with Big E. in trouble in the corner and Woods and Kofi down on the floor. Big E. tries to fight out but gets superkicked down for two instead. The villains take turns beating on Big E. until Owens gets sent into the post. A belly to belly plants Owens and the hot tag brings in Kingston to beat up Corbin. Kofi’s dropkick into a high crossbody gets two and there’s the Boom Drop. Deep Six cuts Kofi off but Owens and Corbin get in an argument with Owens giving him a superkick. Zayn and Owens leave and it’s Trouble in Paradise to give New Day the 2-0 win at 12:15.

Rating: C. Well that was a bad idea. Corbin is already a weak challenger for the Universal Title and now he’s getting his head kicked off to lose a fall six days before the title shot. I’m not sure what the point was in having this be 2/3 falls but I’m sure just sticking a gimmick onto the match makes it better.

Alexa Bliss brings Nikki Cross a gift: a Women’s Tag Team Title shot against the IIconics. Nikki is thrilled and Alexa slips in a few lines about Bayley causing drama.

Here’s Paul Heyman for a chat. He isn’t that comfortable tonight because Seth Rollins is running around with a chair. Heyman will NOT be guest referee on Sunday because he doesn’t want to get beaten up with a chair. This morning, he thought of something: what do Rollins and the Los Angeles Lakers have in common? They’ve both traded away their balls.

The Lakers traded away their (Lonzo) Ball so LeBron James can have a playmate when he loses again. Rollins traded his balls for a chair so he can fight Brock Lesnar. Heyman threatens Rollins with a cash-in either tonight, Sunday, or any night for that matter. More of the same from Heyman, who seems like a waste of time at this point.

Corbin offers Eric Young the referee job and leaves. Rollins comes in to say he’s turning the job down because he doesn’t look good in stripes. They’re friends (Have they ever been together on TV before?) but Rollins destroys him anyway.

The Usos are ready for the Good Brothers.

Usos vs. Good Brothers

The Brothers waste no time with the Boot Of Doom getting two on Jimmy. The chinlock goes on for a bit but Anderson stops for a Too Sweet. Jey breaks up the Magic Killer with a superkick and it’s another superkick into a double superkick to finish Gallows at 2:40. This feels like the beginning of the traditional losing streak to get rid of someone.

AJ isn’t happy in the back.

Hulk Hogan of all people praises the US Women’s soccer team. There’s your random segment of the week.

Here’s Roman Reigns, who isn’t happy with having to see a video of his loss to Shane McMahon at Super ShowDown. He wants to beat someone up tonight so Shane can come out here and fight. Shane pops up on screen to say no because Reigns needs to worry about McIntyre on Sunday. Drew promises to beat Roman up on Sunday until it becomes very uncomfortable. Maybe he’ll pin Reigns then, but it won’t be over until Reigns is physically disfigured.

He wants Reigns’ children to scream at the sight of him and that’s enough for Reigns to come through the crowd and head after him. Reigns beats up the Revival and puts Drew through the table before chasing Shane into the arena. A diving clothesline over the barricade drops Shane and it’s the Superman Punch into the spear. Reigns tells him to tell Drew he’s getting beaten up on Sunday. Somehow, this is still all about Shane.

Bayley says there is no truth to the rumors that she wouldn’t take a picture with a fan in a Nikki Cross shirt. Naomi and Natalya aren’t so convinced.

Women’s Tag Team Titles: IIconics vs. Nikki Cross/Alexa Bliss

The IIconics are defending but before the match they say they can’t believe they’re having to defend against these two. Billie laughs at LeBron James for not being able to win with the Lakers (because there are NO OTHER sports in Los Angeles). We get Big Match Intros and Bayley comes out to watch. Alexa slaps Billie to start and sends her face first into the middle buckle.

Peyton comes in and a trip lets the champs pose on Bliss. It’s off to Cross for an armdrag and a rollup for two of her own. Nikki has to fight out of the corner but Bliss gets knocked off the apron and into a fight with Bayley. The distraction lets Billie roll Cross up to retain at 3:31.

Rating: D. Just a way to build towards Bliss vs. Bayley, which needs a bit more help. Bliss being involved in multiple stories at the same time is interesting, but at this point Bayley has to win, just to exorcise some of the demons of her earlier career. Oh and one more thing: there were five people involved in this segment. Three of them have titles. That’s a bit much.

Stomping Grounds rundown.

Cross wants Bliss to win on Sunday and will be in here corner.

It’s time for the Firefly Fun House. Bray is watering his plants, which he says is just like our minds. If you water them and give them care, they can grow. Some ideas are just full of worms though and that’s not good. Some kids have been told bad ideas, like the earth being round or dinosaurs being extinct. Bray knows what it feels like to not belong or to be different.

That’s why he built this place for us, so they can all be together. We see all the puppets looking at him as Bray gets more sinister and tells everyone to join him here. People worship what they fear and fear is power. Follow the leader. The video starts breaking up and we see various clips from the series’ history, including the Muscle Man Dance, all with the words LET HIM IN flashing on the screen and voices singing “Follow the Leader” as the Fiend appears. Let him in. So is this all in Bray’s mind or some way for him to deal with his psychosis?

Daniel Bryan rants about how he’s a better wrestler than Rollins because Seth can’t have his chair all the time. Rollins has never beaten him and that won’t change tonight.

We recap tonight’s referee chronicles.

Seth Rollins vs. Daniel Bryan

Non-title and Rowan is in Bryan’s corner. Bryan tries to wrestle to start but gets knocked to the floor for the suicide dives. Rowan catches one though and it’s a claw slam onto the apron for the DQ at 1:28.

Post match the beatdown is on but New Day, Owens, Zayn and the Revival all run in for the brawl. The Usos come in as well and the bad guys are sent to the floor for the big dives from the Usos.

Seth Rollins vs. Daniel Bryan

Still non-title and restarted after a break with everyone banned from ringside. Bryan backdrops him to the floor to start with Rollins landing hard. Back in and Bryan hits a running dropkick in the corner but a second attempt is cut off by a hard clothesline. The threat of a Sling Blade sends Bryan outside, followed by another slugout. Rollins’ enziguri is countered into an ankle lock, followed by a German suplex to send Seth outside.

A running knee off the apron has Rollins in more trouble. Back in and Rollins hits the superplex but the Falcon Arrow is countered into the LeBell Lock. That’s broken up with a rope grab but the running knee is countered into a buckle bomb. The low superkick gets two but Bryan pulls him into the LeBell Lock again. This time it’s reversed into a cradle for two, followed by the Stomp to finish Bryan at 8:02.

Rating: B-. They didn’t have much time to do anything here and that’s fine. What matters most here though is Rollins winning and the fact that they didn’t go with the minute and a half version of the match from earlier. This wasn’t anything great, but it was the best match of the night, even in such a short form.

Post match Corbin chairs Rollins from behind and beats him down with the chair (including a shot that seemed to catch Rollins in the head). Corbin poses with the title to end the show. No announcement on the referee.

Overall Rating: C. The main thing here was the energy. The last several shows have felt so lethargic and it’s been killing anything that might have been good about them. However, the energy doesn’t make up for the big problem that Sunday’s show faces: it’s still a possible Baron Corbin main event and there’s no way around that. I know they can’t have this kind of energy every week, but having something a little more interesting in the main event scene would do wonders for them week to week.

Oh and this week’s Wild Card:

Kevin Owens

Carmella

Daniel Bryan/Rowan

Bayley

Elias

Shane McMahon

R-Truth

New Day

And those are just the ones I counted, meaning there could have been more in the mob chasing R-Truth. Even if you factor out New Day (designated as non-Wild Cards yet they show up and have a match anyway), Shane (because him being listed as a Smackdown star doesn’t count because reasons), Rowan (because two man tag teams are one person) and R-Truth (fair enough, even though he’s still a Smackdown guy), you have five people. The fact that they needed excuses for SIX people to get it down to five shows you that the Wild Card Rule is being phased out for the sake of everyone being on the show. Fine, but hide it better.

Results

Ricochet b. The Miz, Braun Strowman, Cesaro and Bobby Lashley – 630 to Miz

Viking Raiders b. Russ Taylor/Randy Taylor – Viking Experience to Russ

New Day b. Baron Corbin/Sami Zayn/Kevin Owens – Trouble in Paradise to Corbin

Usos b. Good Brothers – Double superkick to Gallows

IIconics b. Nikki Cross/Alexa Bliss – Rollup to Cross

Seth Rollins b. Daniel Bryan via DQ when Rowan interfered

Seth Rollins b. Daniel Bryan – Stomp

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

Monday Night Raw
Date: October 31, 1994
Location: Memorial Auditorium, Burlington, Vermont
Attendance: 1,800
Commentators: Vince McMahon, Randy Savage

I’m almost scared to see how this era of the company does Halloween. It’s already been a terrible enough time around here and that means it could only get worse given what we’re building towards. The big match for this week is Lex Luger vs. Bob Backlund, which could work under optimal circumstances. However, there is nothing optimal about this time. Let’s get to it.

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

We open with some shots of a graveyard, which Vince manages to transition into Backlund’s nightmares haunting him. Now he’s changed from Dr. Jekyll (he doesn’t say into what exactly) and Luger needs to slay the monster.

Opening sequence.

Lex Luger vs. Bob Backlund

A quick armdrag puts Backlund down and Luger does Backlund’s lunging steps thing. Some leg sweeps have Backlund in more trouble and Bob can’t believe it. The standoff lets Backlund take him down but Luger slips out in something I wouldn’t have bet on. Backlund goes to a wristlock and Luger can’t power out this time. Luger gets taken down by the arm for two as Savage thinks Backlund is scared that the chickenwing won’t work here. Savage: “What if Lex Luger doesn’t exist and we’re watching Lex Luger by himself???” Vince: “Uh….how much of that candy have you eaten?”

Luger powers up but here’s Tatanka as we take a break. Back with Backlund….holding a bearhug? The heck? Luger bails to the ropes from the threat of the chickenwing so it’s off to a hammerlock bearhug (that’s a new one). Some right hands get Luger out of trouble and a running knee lift drops Backlund. Cue Tatanka again and this time the distraction lets Backlund get the chickenwing. Backlund takes him down….and Tatanka comes in for the DQ. What sense does that make?

Rating: D+. I’m still trying to get my mind around Backlund using a bearhug. Anyway, this was a mostly dull match but there was no way they were going to have a clean finish. I’ll give them points for making the chickenwing feel like the scariest move in the company, which is hard to pull off. I remember being scared of it because it was beating EVERYONE and that’s exactly the point.

Post match referees break it up but Backlund goes back in to put the hold on again. Savage finally gets off commentary and breaks it up. Instead of beating on Backlund, he pulls on him instead, which would likely crank on Luger’s arm even more. Then again, Savage was never one to think before he acted. Pretty awesome segment though, with Savage going into the crazy eyes look after the break when he rants about Backlund.

The main event of the third Action Zone: Mabel vs. Yokozuna. So much for that show.

1-2-3 Kid vs. Tony DeVito

The Kid’s hair is rather huge for some reason. Must be a Halloween thing. Savage keeps ranting about Backlund and I kind of want to see that match. DeVito shrugs off a dropkick and sends the Kid into the buckle a few times, only to miss the big elbow. The rapid fire kicks in the corner rock DeVito and it’s the running legdrop to make it even worse. A slam sets up the guillotine legdrop to finish DeVito.

Rating: D. DeVito was one of the regular jobbers around this time and while he didn’t have a good look, he was more than fine enough for a watchable match. Unfortunately that wasn’t the case here, which is hard to do against the Kid. At the same time, it’s hard to see the Kid win a squash as he’s at his best when he’s selling and you didn’t get much of that here.

Survivor Series Report, featuring the announcement that Bob Backlund wants the title match to be a submission match. Moving on though, Undertaker vs. Yokozuna is going to be a casket match and Chuck Norris (seriously) is going to be the guest enforcer. There will also be the Bad Guys (Razor Ramon/1-2-3 Kid/British Bulldog/Headshrinkers) vs. the Teamsters (Diesel/Shawn Michaels/Jim Neidhart/Owen Hart/Jeff Jarrett) and Clowns R Us (Doink/Dink/Wink/Pink) vs. the Royal Family (Jerry Lawler/Cheesy/Sleazy/Queasy) in a show that is making me cringe just thinking about it.

There was a charity softball game with the WWF Superstars beating a women’s union team.

King Kong Bundy vs. Bert Centeno

Bundy chokes him in the corner to start and goes with the general beatdown as this isn’t the most interesting thing in the world. Savage keeps going on about Backlund as the Avalanche finishes Centeno for five. Bad squash.

IRS goes to a cemetery and yells at the grave of a man named John Dough for not paying his taxes. His daughter’s birthday dinner was NOT deductible so he’ll be taking the flowers from the grave.

It’s time for the King’s Court with the Undertaker and Paul Bearer as the guests. The lights come back up and Bearer asks if Lawler is comfortable now. I’m more confused by the image of Bearer and Lawler in the same ring (you just don’t see them together that often). Lawler brings up the previous Undertaker vs. Yokozuna casket match and Undertaker doesn’t like it.

Bearer breaks out a WWF Magazine to recap the other match and promises there will be no deja vu this time around. See, Chuck Norris will be at ringside to deal with things between the undead mortician and the Samoan/Japanese sumo wrestler. Undertaker makes his usual threats and says the Creatures of the Night will help Yokozuna rest in peace. This story is so over the top that it’s kind of incredible, though not incredible enough to make up for everything else.

Next week: Bret Hart/British Bulldog vs. Owen Hart/Jim Neidhart. Well ok then.

Jim Neidhart vs. Tony Roy

Neidhart starts fast and throws Roy around as we hear about Neidhart hanging around the White House. Roy gets tied in the Tree of Woe so Owen can choke from the floor and talk trash, which is more interesting than the squash. A slam sets up the chinlock into a gutwrench suplex as this needs to end already. Neidhart finally finishes with a camel clutch.

Rating: D. All this made me want to do was skip over the rest of the show and get to the tag match next week. Neidhart doesn’t get to do squashes that often but that’s because he’s a lot better as the muscle of a team or the insane promo. This was rather dull but what else were you expecting?

Post match the hold goes on again with Owen putting the sunglasses on Roy.

Vince is in the back with Luger but we can’t hear anything being said. Savage talks over it instead….and Tatanka runs in to brawl with Luger to end the show.

Overall Rating: D-. Sweet goodness this was a bad time for the show. There were a few bright spots here and there but the biggest problem was how they tried to mix the comedy with the serious to no avail. The Survivor Series matches are looking awful with Backlund doing everything he can to carry the show. Really uninteresting show and it’s leading up to an awful pay per view.

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

Monday Night Raw
Date: October 24, 1994
Location: Memorial Auditorium, Burlington, Vermont
Attendance: 1,800
Commentators: Vince McMahon, Randy Savage

We’re still in Vermont and still on the very slow build towards Survivor Series, but first up we have Razor Ramon defending the Intercontinental Title against Yokozuna. Other than that we have the bizarre feud between Lex Luger and Bob Backlund over chickenwings and drugs. Let’s get to it.

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

Opening sequence.

Intercontinental Title: Razor Ramon vs. Yokozuna

Razor is defending and Jim Cornette and Mr. Fuji are in Yokozuna’s corner. Yokozuna jumps him from behind to start as the arena is still full of smoke from the pyro. Some right hand slaps and a clothesline don’t put Yokozuna down so it’s a jumping clothesline to finally drop the monster.

Razor knocks him to the floor and it’s time for the stumbling turtle look. Apparently those were Miami street smarts that put Yokozuna on the floor. What the heck do they do in the streets of Miami? Razor is smart enough to let him get back in as we hear about Oprah running a marathon.

A slam plants Razor and the big legdrop crushes Razor’s head. We hit the nerve hold and take a break, coming back to the hold keeping Razor down. Razor fights up with some elbows so Yokozuna pounds away in the corner. It’s back to the nerve hold as we talk about football. Back up and Razor avoids the charge in the corner, setting up the middle rope bulldog for two. Cue the casket though and Yokozuna bails for the countout.

Rating: D. That was a pretty weird way to end the match as Razor wasn’t exactly in trouble. I can appreciate the idea of not having Razor look weak, but it’s not the kind of thing that you usually see happen. At least they were smart enough to go with the logical ending instead of having someone take a clean loss, which you wouldn’t see today.

It’s time for the Survivor Series Report, with the big Texas theme rolling strong. There needs to be a main event though so we look back at yesterday’s premiere episode of the Action Zone, where WWF Champion Bret Hart offers Bob Backlund a title shot. As for the traditional Survivor Series matches, we have Guts N Glory (Smoking Gunns/Adam Bomb/Mabel/Lex Luger) vs. the Million Dollar Team (Bam Bam Bigelow/King Kong Bundy/Tatanka/Heavenly Bodies). And yes, you are supposed to want to pay for that match.

Next week: Backlund vs. Luger. That’s some great timing given the matches they just announced.

Smoking Gunns vs. Mike Bell/Barry Hardy

Joined in progress (Seriously?) with the Gunns in control as Bart whips Bell all over the place. A double Russian legsweep plants Bell as Savage starts talking like Dusty Rhodes for some reason. Billy’s powerslam sets up an over the shoulder backbreaker/top rope elbow to finish Bell with ease.

Tatanka vs. Scott Taylor

Tatanka sends him into the corner to start as we hear about Walter Cronkite going to a Grateful Dead concert. Savage: “I wonder if the Undertaker knows about that.” DiBiase brags about Tatanka, showing that he has some pretty low standards. Now we hear about Savage going to a car race and where he went to dinner after it was over. Taylor gets two off a rollup and gets clotheslined right back down. The very (and I mean VERY) slow beating continues until the End of the Trail gives Tatanka the pin.

Rating: D-. Egads this was slow but I do want to hear about that Vinny’s restaurant that Savage went to. There wasn’t much other than that though as the Million Dollar Corporation vs….well anyone actually was just awful. It was as low level of a stable as you can get and there was no way to hide that.

IRS can’t believe Undertaker would DIE to avoid paying taxes. Even after you come to the funeral home, you still need to pay up!

Adam Bomb vs. Phil Apollo

Apollo is better known as Doink and he actually jumps Bomb to start. This goes as well as you would expect as Bomb…hiptosses him. What a power display. A dropkick sends Apollo into the corner as Savage talks about John Candy movies. The pumphandle powerslam finishes Apollo in a hurry.

Post match Backlund comes out and puts Bomb in the crossface chickenwing.

It’s time for the King’s Court and I have a bad feeling about this. Lawler does his usual set of insults of the crowd before talking about the mini kings. He recaps the entire history of the mini kings vs. the mini clowns and sounds like he loses himself somewhere in the process. Savage: “GET TO THE POINT!” That is indeed what he does, by introducing Cheesy as the third mini. Lawler issues a challenge to Doink and the mini clowns (That wasn’t already set up?) with the mini kings talking some horrible trash. Sweet goodness this is awful and the match would be even worse.

This week on Action Zone: Shawn Michaels and Diesel defend the Tag Team Titles against Razor Ramon/1-2-3 Kid in a pretty famous match.

Diesel vs. Ben Jordan

Believe it or not, Diesel runs him over to start and hits the big boot into the side slam as the announcers pay attention to this one. It’s almost like Diesel could wind up going somewhere. The neck crank goes on, followed by a bearhug as we hear about YA Tittle’s (former NFL quarterback, who happened to date my grandmother WAY back in the day, believe it or not) birthday. Another neck crank doesn’t last as long this time as Diesel hits the Jackknife for the win.

Rating: D. See, this is the Diesel who had all the potential in and I can get that entirely. He was big, he was cool (no word on if he was a daddy at this point) and he was dominant while having a great look. What else can you ask for at this point? It’s pretty clear that they need something else so why not try Diesel?

Now let’s make fun of the Major League Baseball strike. Just makes me want to watch baseball.

Bob Backlund comes to the ring and dances around to end the show.

Overall Rating: D-. E pluribus gads I had forgotten how bad things got around this time. What in the world am I supposed to be interested in on this show? Tatanka vs. Lex Luger? The Smoking Gunns? Backlund is entertaining but I don’t think any sane person would believe that he was going to be the next big thing, or even a thing that was big whatsoever. Oh and the battle of the minis is an all time nightmare but I think that one speaks for itself.

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

Monday Night Raw
Date: October 17, 1994
Location: Memorial Auditorium, Burlington, Vermont
Attendance: 1,800
Commentators: Vince McMahon, Randy Savage

The march to Survivor Series continues and that means I need to up my blood pressure medication. This isn’t a good time for the company and I don’t see that getting any better anytime soon. As long as the show doesn’t focus too heavily on Lawler vs. Doink, I think I can make it through this. Let’s get to it.

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

We open with some shots of Burlington, which seem to confuse the announcers. Ok then.

Opening sequence.

Doink the Clown vs. Jeff Jarrett

And Doink has a second mini clown by the name of Wink. They give the Spanish announcers a fake flower, because that’s what this show has turned into. Jeff bails straight to the floor but gets in a shot to the knee to take over early on. Back in and Doink gets in a slam, allowing Dink to bite Jeff in the tights area. A headlock doesn’t slow Jarrett down very much as he comes back with a drop toehold.

An abdominal stretch with a grab of the rope puts Doink in trouble, allowing Vince to talk about the minis running around as of late. Cue Dink to bite Jeff’s hand to get Doink out of the hold as the pace picks up. Now it’s Queasy and another unnamed mini King, drawing Dink and Wink over to chase them off. Things settle down until Doink charges into a boot in the corner as we take a break. Back with Doink still in trouble and Jeff getting two off a dropkick, meaning it’s time for the chinlock.

Doink slams his way to freedom but misses an elbow as this keeps going. Jeff’s sleeper is broken up pretty quickly so it’s a whatamaneuever (enziguri here) for two on Doink instead. Doink makes his comeback with a butterfly suplex as Vince and Randy talk about Savage’s old Gremlin needing a steering wheel. Jarrett misses a middle rope splash and gets powerslammed. A suplex gives Doink two more as the mini clowns chase the mini kings. Doink hits the Whoopee Cushion but here’s Jerry Lawler to deck Doink, giving Jarrett the pin.

Rating: C. You know what? Why not? They were trying here and got some time to turn it into a half decent match. It’s not like there were any expectations to this one and the focus was on the minis running around anyway. What we got was decent though and I can think of worse ways to spend the first third of the show.

Post match, Lawler introduces the second mini king as Sleazy.

British Bulldog vs. Roy Raymond

They shove each other to start and Roy actually goes with a slap. The beating is on in a hurry and there’s the delayed vertical suplex. Bulldog grabs a chinlock as the announcers talk about Action Zone. A butterfly suplex gets a very delayed two and it’s back to the chinlock. Roy fights up and manages to go up top, only to be tossed back down. A kick to the ribs, as in Roy’s ribs, knocks Bulldog down and a release fisherman’s suplex gets two. The running powerslam gives Bulldog the pin.

Rating: D. This was Bulldog’s big return after being let go (I assure you the timing had nothing to do with the steroid investigations) and he’s….exactly the same guy as he was before. As has been said, there is only so much you can do to repackage the British Bulldog and this is more proof.

Post break Bulldog is still here….and he just poses without saying or doing anything else.

Here’s a random cameo from Burt Reynolds, saying to watch Raw.

Here’s an angry Bob Backlund, who wants to talk to Vince. Bob does NOT want to show the tape of what he did to Arnold Skaaland over the weekend but Vince shows it anyway. Backlund refused to accept Skaaland’s apology for throwing in the towel to cost Backlund the WWF Title back in 1983 and gave his a crossface chickenwing instead. Back in the arena, Backlund says he should apologize to everyone involved….for having Skaaland as his manager.

Back in July, Backlund understood that the people didn’t get him and they are doomed to be down in life. He did more to try to help people, including never eating marijuana or ever swearing in front of children. How can you expect your children to not take drugs when they’re in your billfolds??? HIS daughter isn’t out there with a gun.

Vince: “What does this have to do with the crossface chickenwing?” Backlund says the chickenwing is about discipline because no one can break it, and yes that’s a challenge. Cue Lex Luger to say he’s heard enough about the chickenwing so try it on him instead. Backlund: “He’s got a lot of panache!” Agents and referees keep anything from happening.

Bob Holly vs. Reno Riggins

Randy is trying to figure out the eating marijuana thing as Holly works on a weak headlock. An armbar keeps Riggins in trouble but he’s back with a slam to the mat by the hair. Riggins charges into an elbow in the corner and gets shoved off the ropes, setting up a high crossbody to give Holly the pin.

Next week: Razor Ramon vs. Yokozuna for the Intercontinental Title.

IRS vs. Tim McNeany

Before the match, IRS says he’s coming after the Undertaker for cheating on his taxes. Egads I had forgotten that nightmare feud. Randy gets in on the IRWIN chants but stops before IRS hits a hiptoss. Some elbows keep Tim in trouble as Vince praises the Million Dollar Corporation, which is still a pretty lame stable. A suplex sets up the Penalty (a weird STF) to make McNeany tap.

We look at Yokozuna being scared of caskets on Superstars.

Heavenly Bodies vs. Barry Horowitz/Nick Barbarry

Jim Cornette introduces the Heavenly Bodies as the team that has won more matches than Elvis and the Beatles combined. Tom and Barry start things off with a bit of shoving until Barry gets two off a rollup. The Bodies switch places until Barry armdrags Tom down again. Barbarry comes in and gets caught with a bad looking floatover DDT, allowing Del Ray to drop Tom into a legdrop onto Nick. The moonsault gives Del Ray the pin in a hurry.

Luger says he wants Backlund.

Overall Rating: D+. It’s a weird night when Backlund and Doink carry the show, because I don’t think that has ever happened before. We’re coming up on Survivor Series but so far we’re not quite ready for things yet. I’m not sure what they’re going to do, because Luger vs. Backlund doesn’t quite feel big, but then again there’s a reason this era is so poorly remembered.

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