We’re on the Road To Wrestlemania and since WWE likes to have a few extra events these days, we have two pay per views before we can get there. This time around that includes Elimination Chamber, which does have something interesting with the show’s namesake matches. They’re doing something different with the two World Title matches this time around so maybe they’ll have something. Let’s get to it.

US Title: Bobby Lashley(c) vs. Keith Lee vs. Riddle

Lashley is on a heck of a roll as US Champion but I’m not sure if he is going to hang onto the title here. They have done a nice job of setting up the match but that’s assuming you ignore the absence of Lee, who was not even on the go home Raw. I’m not sure if that is going to be a big deal, but at the same time, it could give them an out to retain the title because WWE doesn’t mind having Lee lose quite often.

I’ll go with Lashley retaining the title, though I’m not sure how much longer he’ll be champion. In theory he should be on the way to challenging for the World Title sooner rather than later but he’ll need to lose the US Title first. I’ll take Lashley beating Lee here though, as Riddle continues to get close to winning the title but never actually gets there. I’m not sure he’ll notice though and he’ll still be just fine anyway.

Women’s Tag Team Titles: Nia Jax/Shayna Baszler(c) vs. Bianca Belair/Sasha Banks

My goodness these titles continue to find new ways to feel completely worthless. How many times in a row can the challengers be another thrown together team who have almost no time together as partners? That’s where we are again here, but at least Belair and Banks have a story together. I mean, of course they have the chance to have a story together because they totally haven’t made it clear that Belair is challenging Banks at Wrestlemania.

Anyway I’ll take Belair and Banks winning the title here, as there is no reason to keep the titles on Jax and Baszler. I don’t like the champions who feud with each other, but at least it could give them a chance to transition the titles to Raquel Gonzalez/Dakota Kai in NXT where they belong. Just go with what makes sense for the titles for once. It might be nice for a change.

Raw World Title: Drew McIntyre(c) vs. Sheamus vs. AJ Styles vs. Jeff Hardy vs. Randy Orton vs. Kofi Kingston

I have no idea where they are going with the WWE Title right now. Everything on paper says it should be McIntyre vs. Sheamus in a one or two match program for the title but unless Sheamus wins the belt here and they go to Fastlane where McIntyre gets it back and then moves on to Wrestlemania, I’m not sure what else there is to do. That somehow leaves them with few options and a lot of options, which is quite the situation.

In what is rarely a good idea, I’ll go with the logical way and say Sheamus leaves as champion here, setting up the showdown with McIntyre at Fastlane. I’ll also ignore the Money in the Bank briefcase because I can’t manage to care that much less about Miz and the contract. But yeah, we’ll go with Sheamus winning here, probably eliminating McIntyre last to get the title.

Jey Uso vs. Kevin Owens vs. Daniel Bryan vs. Cesaro vs. King Corbin vs. Sami Zayn

Now we have a match with even more options to win because it’s kind of obvious what is coming after this match is over. This time around, the winner of the Elimination Chamber gets to challenge Roman Reigns immediately thereafter, making this kind of the consolation prize for the winner due to reasons of impending destruction. That doesn’t mean it is going to be a bad match, but it kind of weakens the impact.

I know the easy answers are either Cesaro or Owens….so I’ll go with Owens, hopefully allowing him to wrap up the feud with Reigns once and for all in another pretty awesome match. The match has a lot of potential and could go several different ways, but having the Chamber as a #1 contenders match never set all that right with me. It should be good though, and that’s all it needs to be.

Smackdown World Title: Roman Reigns(c) vs. ???

So yeah I don’t think there is going to be that much drama to this one. Unless they have some kind of screwy finish to the Chamber where the winner is only in the ring for about ten seconds and comes into the title match fresh, this is about as much of a layup as you’re going to find. There is a good chance that Reigns is still champion going into Wrestlemania next year so I can’t imagine him dropping it here.

I think I’ve made it clear enough but just for the sake of completion, Reigns retains here and should do it pretty easily. Above all else, this continues the theme of Paul Heyman being smart enough to keep Reigns from having to work that much a lot of the time, and that is a great use for him. It fits everything they’re doing and Reigns has to do nothing but hold out his hand and take the title, because he knows he’s good enough to get away with it.

Note that I’m leaving off Asuka vs. Lacey Evans, which isn’t going to happen because WWE isn’t that crazy, despite it still being listed on the WWE.com preview as of early Sunday morning. Granted WWE.com also says that the show starts at both 7pm (Network schedule) and 8pm (show’s official page) so maybe I’m thinking too much into this.

Overall Thoughts

Overall….I’m really not sure what to expect from this one and that’s a nice thing to be able to say. Above all else, either Chamber match could go in a few different directions and I’ll absolutely take that over last year where Shayna Baszler was the biggest lock to win in the history of the match. It shouldn’t be so difficult to write a story that leaves you with multiple options but since WWE does not have the best track record in that area, it’s rather nice to have that kind of a feeling for this show.

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We’re back to the good ones here as NXT returns with another Takeover event. This time around we have Vengeance Day, which isn’t the best name but maybe the obvious St. Valentine’s Day Massacre is a little too violent for them. Believe it or not, the card is stacked as we have three title matches plus the two Dusty Rhodes Tag Team Classic finals. Let’s get to it.

Men’s Dusty Rhodes Tag Team Classic Finals: MSK vs. Grizzled Young Veterans

We’ll start with a good one here as I’m actually not sure who is going to win this thing. MSK debuted in the start of the tournament and have made it all the way to the finals. This certainly works for me as I’ve been a fan of the team since they debuted in Impact Wrestling and now they might actually win something. At the same time, the Veterans lost in last year’s finals and it seems that they are due.

I’ll go with MSK to win in an upset though, as they would make for a more interesting matchup against Oney Lorcan and Danny Burch. This is one of those matches that could get some time with some awesome near falls at the end and that’s where NXT’s tag team division shines. The good thing is that they are building up some new teams (like these two) and the future might be a bit brighter. See how nice it is when there is a problem and the promotion actually addresses it?

Women’s Title: Io Shirai(c) vs. Toni Storm vs. Mercedes Martinez

Did you realize that Shirai has been champion for over eight months? It always seems like she is ready to lose the thing at any given time but here she is again, getting rather close to the elite level of Women’s Champions. This is quite the task though as you could see either one of these two taking the title. That’s exactly the point of something like this though and NXT has set things up well.

I’m tempted to pick Martinez here as she has gotten the least hype out of the three but I’ll take Storm to win here. This is more along the lines of a gut feeling as they have been building towards Storm taking the title. They could go multiple ways here, but I’ll go with Storm winning. It gets the title off of Shirai, though I’m not sure what is next for her either. But yeah, Storm wins here.

North American Title: Johnny Gargano(c) vs. Kushida

This has been built up for a long time now and I wasn’t sure if they were ever actually going to do it. Kushida is my favorite guy out of New Japan and while he isn’t the same as he was there, I still like seeing him out there and getting a bit of a push like this. Above all else, it’s nice to see someone new getting a shot at the title.

As nice as it is to see Kushida getting a chance like this, Gargano keeps the title. We’ve done the thing with him losing the title in a hurry far too often already so they need to have him retain here. Gargano needs the win more than Kushida here as it’s not like Kushida is going to lose anything by taking the loss here. He’s been playing with the house’s money for this entire feud so Gargano going over here is fine.

Women’s Dusty Rhodes Tag Team Classic Finals: Dakota Kai/Raquel Gonzalez vs. Ember Moon/Shotzi Blackheart

Yes, believe it or not a team with no history together has made the finals of a Dusty Classic. That is as much of a tradition as the tournament itself because WWE really, really likes that idea. This time around we do at least have a regular team included, though I have a bad feeling that it isn’t going to matter, which tends to be the case throughout the history of the tournament.

In other words, yeah Blackheart and Moon win here because they’re a more logical team to lose to Nia Jax and Shayna Baszler. I’m rather sick of seeing the thrown together teams winning here but I guess it makes for a better story or something. Granted that might not be the case when you see the same thing taking place so often but it’s likely taking place here so I’ll go with Blackheart and Moon.

NXT Title: Finn Balor(c) vs. Pete Dunne

And then we cap it off with a dream match as these two seem like they could have an absolute classic. The cool thing about NXT: it is more likely than not that they will. This is going to be a hard hitting fight and they are going to get the time that they need to make it work out as well as they could. It’s a match I would have preferred to see a year or two ago, but I’ll certainly take what I can get.

As for a winner……dang it where’s a quarter I can flip? I’ll take Balor here, but my goodness this one could go either way. I’m not sure how this one is going to end but they are going to beat the living fire out of each other and it’s going to be absolutely awesome. This feels like a Takeover main event and that’s about as good of an accolade as you can give to a match these days.

Overall Thoughts

This is as stacked of a card as there has been in a long time and that’s a great thing to see. I want to see how almost everything goes and it’s nice to have the hype back for these shows. It has all of the potential in the world and it’s even better to have Takeover’s reputation behind the whole thing. Just go with what works here, and that means following Takeover’s tried and true formula.

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It’s time for one of the biggest events of the year and that is a great thing to see. While it is going to be weird to see the Royal Rumble with no fans in attendance, it should be interesting to see how they put things forward. This is a year where the matches are kind of wide open and that is a nice feeling to have. It’s cool to see where WWE is going to go for Wrestlemania and we will learn a lot more about this by the end of the show. Let’s get to it.

Universal Title: Roman Reigns(c) vs. Kevin Owens

This is one of the more fascinating stories in WWE at the moment and while that is the case for several reasons, the most impressive is that despite Owens not having any real chance of winning, you could believe that there is at least a chance of him pulling it off. Owens has more than lived up to the hype but he is facing a monster in Reigns. I think I know how the result is going to go, but I want to see how they get there and that is a great feeling.

I’ll take Reigns to win in what should be the obvious ending, but at least they should be having a heck of a match on the way there. I want to see how they manage to have Reigns keep Owens down and while I could see it involving the return of Jimmy Uso or someone in Owens’ family being threatened, it could be a heck of a way to make something work. Despite it being the end of the feud, I want to see where it goes and that’s how things are supposed to be.

Women’s Tag Team Titles: Asuka/Charlotte(c) vs. Nia Jax/Shayna Baszler

I don’t remember the last time I saw a title reign this worthless and there is no reason to keep the titles on Charlotte and Asuka. They don’t act like a team, they don’t talk like a team and there is no need for them to be a team. They were thrown together and given the titles because Charlotte needed another title and that isn’t enough of a reason for the title reign to continue.

That being said, I’m only hoping that Jax and Baszler get the belts back here, as you never can tell with WWE when it comes to Charlotte and titles. Both Charlotte and Asuka have seemed to move on, but I’m almost scared to see how WWE might get the titles off of them. This is not something I’m looking forward to seeing and hopefully they keep it short while getting Charlotte and Asuka far away from the titles, as they always should have been.

Smackdown Women’s Title: Sasha Banks(c) vs. Carmella

Now this one has me confused and that’s a good thing….I think. We’ve already seen this match a few times and Carmella’s assistant is the one who is getting the most attention. Banks is still relatively early in her title reign (at least compared to what Bayley did with the title) so it would be a little strange to see her drop the title. That being said, this is the third title match between the two of them and I’m not sure I can see Carmella losing again.

I’ll take Banks retaining here, but I’m a lot less sure about it than I probably should be. Banks is someone who feels like the top star of the division while Carmella feels like the challenger of the month to keep Banks busy until we get to someone serious (like Bianca Belair). This should be Banks, but I kind of like the fact that I’m not sure how accurate that is.

Women’s Royal Rumble

I have no idea who is winning this. There are currently thirteen entrants announced and there are at least three people out of those thirteen who could win the thing. That’s not even including some of the more marginal names who very well could pull it off. There are a few people who stand out above the rest, but narrowing that down is one of the trickiest things to pull off.

I’m likely to be wrong but I’ll take Bianca Belair here. The Smackdown women’s division needs some fresh blood and she will do as well as anyone else at the moment. The Raw side is a lot more complicated as you have a host of people capable of challenging Charlotte, but it would seem like Alexa Bliss is the right choice at the moment. However, she doesn’t feel like the right choice to win the Rumble and then wait two and a half months to get the title shot. Bliss winning the title on Raw or at the Elimination Chamber and then dropping it to someone (say a certain Rhea Ripley) at Wrestlemania makes more sense, but Belair wins here.

Men’s Royal Rumble

There are twenty one entrants for this match and the betting favorite seems to be Daniel Bryan. That would certainly make the most sense, but I’m not sure if it is going to be that easy. If nothing else, it would make sense to have someone on Raw pick up the win to immediately set them up against Drew McIntyre, who doesn’t exactly have a clear opponent at Wrestlemania. That leaves you with a ton of options, and that makes things interesting.

But yeah I’ll take Bryan to win. As much as I think there might be someone else who makes sense, I’m not sure I can figure out who that other person is. Bryan winning is a perfectly safe bet and setting him up to face Reigns at Wrestlemania is one of the easiest ideas that WWE could use. This very well may be someone else, but I’ll take Bryan out of the announced field.

Raw World Title: Drew McIntyre(c) vs. Goldberg

And we have this to wrap things up, as WWE has to scare us with the idea of Goldberg winning another World Title. McIntyre has already held the title for a long time and might be ready to move down just a hair, but my goodness not Goldberg again. I grew up in his heyday and I cannot bring myself to care about another reign out of him. WWE certainly thinks a lot of him though and that puts us in this dangerous situation.

I’m going to hold onto some hope here and say McIntyre wins as I hope WWE comes to their senses. There is little to no reason for Goldberg to get the title but that has never stopped them before. Please just go with what makes sense and let McIntyre have a big title match at Wrestlemania in front of thousands of fans like he deserves. Goldberg has a place in modern WWE, but it isn’t winning the WWE Title in the main event of the Royal Rumble.

Overall Thoughts

I know it might not be the biggest and most best built show, but there is something special about the Royal Rumble. If nothing else, it is great to see who might be brought into the matches because WWE can get in some nice surprises. The Royal Rumble is a good show most of the time and if nothing else it is going to be an awesome to hear that buzzer all over again. Now just please don’t screw it up.

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We’re back with another Impact pay per view, even though the point seems to be to make another company’s World Champion look good. This time around the focal point is the invading Kenny Omega, will will team with the Good Brothers against Impact World Champion Rich Swann, Chris Sabin and Moose, after Alex Shelley was forced out of the show for unclear reasons. The rest of the card looks ok so let’s get to it.

Pre-Show: Brian Myers vs. Josh Alexander

This was thrown in this week on Impact since every pay per view needs a pre-show match these days. Myers beat Alexander via DQ and bragged about it so we’re having this for the sake of shutting him up. I’m not sure what Impact sees in Myers but there are far worse places he could be than in the pre-show match. Alexander is going to need a boost soon so we could have something going here.

I’m going to take Alexander here as there is no reason for this to drag on for another match. As much as he has been featured, Myers isn’t being pushed to the moon so they aren’t likely to give him anything here. The match will likely be on about the same level as a regular TV match and that’s all it needs to be given where they are here. It probably didn’t need to be here, but Alexander can get your attention well enough.

Eric Young/Deaner/Joe Doering vs. Tommy Dreamer/Rhino/Cousin Jake

It isn’t a good sign when my first reaction to a match is “at least they’re keeping it all here” but that’s about as good as I can go with this. We have Dreamer being Dreamer, the epic Deaners split, Doering (he was big in Japan, right up there with Jesse and the Rippers) and Young as some kind of mastermind because this company loves him very much. It’s also Old School rules, because they can’t say Extreme and Dreamer can’t do much else.

I’ll go with Young and company as for some reason this seems to be one of the upcoming big things. Young is tolerable enough in some spots, though the love affair with Doering isn’t exactly doing much for me. Adding in the turned Deaner isn’t going to make things better, but if they can keep all of this stuff crammed into one match, it could be a lot worse than what we’re getting.

Eddie Edwards vs. Sami Callihan

This feud MUST continue and this time it’s Barbed Wire Massacre because when you think Edwards, you need something like this thrown in. I know this is viewed as some legendary rivalry but it feels like they are just warming it up because neither has anything to do. Edwards is able to carry almost anything to at least watchable, but as soon as I heard the barbed wire deal, I could hear Josh Matthews with his machine gun delivery taking away any impact it might have.

Give me Callihan to win, likely thanks to Ken Shamrock because we need another evil alliance to triumph. Shamrock and Callihan are somewhat intriguing, but I don’t need a Barbed Wire Massacre to make it work. The match should be good enough and odds are Alisha will get involved, but I’ve been over this feud for a good while now because it ran out of steam years ago.

Ethan Page vs. Karate Man

We continue with the “why is this a thing” section, but in this case Page has so much charisma that he can manage to face himself and make it work. I’m going to assume this is a cinematic match and Page’s way out of the promotion, but you never know with something like this. The Karate Man stuff alone is always worth a look, but I’m almost scared of what to see here.

Since they’re facing each other, I’ll go with Karate Man to win and get rid of Page once and for all, which should make your head spin at least a little bit. There is a chance that we could be in for some good jokes here and under the right circumstances, this could be one of the best things on the entire show. Page is awesome at his goofy stuff, and hopefully he gets to showcase himself well on the way out.

X-Division Title: Manik(c) vs. Chris Bey vs. Rohit Raju

This is part of one of those stories that works out well almost every time because it’s a classic. Bey and Raju are convinced that Manik is TJP (because Manik is TJP) but can’t beat him or prove it, meaning their frustration factor has increased about 17 fold. Now it’s a free for all for the title, which opens up a few interesting doors as they could go in a few different directions.

I think they’ll play it safe here and have Manik retain the title because there are more places to go with something like this. Manik is someone who can have a good match with anyone and Bey is one of the better young stars around here. Raju has been rather nice as well lately, so we could be in for something good. This might be the match with the most promise on the whole show and I can’t say I’m surprised.

Knockouts Tag Team Titles: Nevaeh/Havok vs. Kiera Hogan/Tasha Steelz

Who would have thought that a tournament for the vacant titles would come down to two of the only regular teams who happened to be feuding for weeks before the tournament started? Hogan and Steelz have done a nice job of being the most annoying heels imaginable, which made Havok and Nevaeh grabbing them by their throats that much better. This was almost a guarantee for the final, so at least they’re doing the logical thing.

I’ll take Havok and Nevaeh to win here as you need some faces to win on this show. It isn’t the most intriguing match on the show but it was the only way to go to get to the tournament finals. I’m not sure how far these titles can go as WWE hasn’t been able to make theirs work for years now. The match will be the same thing that we’ve seen several times between them now but….yay belts?

Rosemary/Crazzy Steve vs. Tenille Dashwood/Kaleb With A K

This seems to have been added near the last minute and I’m still trying to make myself care about Dashwood. The Instagram deal is fine, but it feels like something you would see at a tiny independent promotion because it’s that easy of a story. There is no doubt that the talent is there, but for some reason it isn’t clicking. You can only get so far with something like this though and I think we’ve reached her current limit.

I don’t see a reason for Kaleb With A K and Dashwood to win here, even though they need it a lot more. Rosemary seems to be building up something with Susan, so unless she interferes and costs them the match, I don’t see a reason to have Rosemary and Steve lose here. The match itself should be another TV level match, which is quite the trend for most of this show.

Knockouts Title: Deonna Purrazzo(c) vs. Taya Valkyrie

The Knockouts singles division has done well enough for itself in recent months and Purrazzo is awesome as the technical wizard champion. Valkyrie is almost the old guard in a way, despite her title reign not even feeling all that long ago. While her big reign is over, Valkyrie can go in the ring with anyone and Purrazzo is one of the best things going in the company today.

Purrazzo being one of the best things going today is more than enough to keep the title on her here. Beating Valkyrie is more along the lines of beating a challenger of the month, but she just happens to be a really successful challenger of the month. It means something to beat her though and Purrazzo can continue her reign with another rather nice win added to her list.

Kenny Omega/Good Brothers vs. Rich Swann/Chris Sabin/Moose

This whole invasion (if that’s what you call Omega and Omega alone showing up from AEW) is making me think of Lando Calrissian saying “this deal is getting worse all the time”. So far, the highlight of the feud for Impact is their World Champion escaping with a pin over their Tag Team Champion. Omega and Don Callis have been treated as stars who are gracing Impact with their presence. I know it gives Impact exposure, but this is feeling more like New Japan coming to Ring of Honor every day (and that’s not a good thing).

Of course Omega and the Good Brothers win here, because why would they lose here? I know this is probably heading towards Omega taking the Impact World Title, as that is the best way to continue making Impact look like they don’t compare to AEW in any way. Yes AEW is more important and Omega is a bigger star, but sweet goodness could Impact look much worse so far?

Overall Thoughts

This show looks pretty dreadful on paper as there is nothing of note to look forward to. I’m sure some of the matches will work as Impact tends to shine when they just go to the ring and focus on the wrestling, but nothing on here really jumps out. Hopefully the show winds up working, because this feels like they have almost no reason to do this show other than they have to. It will likely be good enough, but they need to work on spicing things up.

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and check out my Amazon author page with 30 different cheap wrestling books at:

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It’s time to wrap things up and that means we have one show left before the Road To WrestleMania can begin. As usual that means Tables, Ladders And Chairs but this time around they are going in a different direction. Instead of a tables match, ladder match and chairs match, we’re getting tables, ladders and chairs matches. Ok so it isn’t the biggest difference on paper, but at least they’re trying something. Let’s get to it.

SmackDown Women’s Title: Sasha Banks(c) vs. Carmella

We’ll get one of the weaker matches out of the way early on. Banks has only had the title for a few months now and already has the stigma of not being able to hold onto the thing all that long. It makes sense to let her have a pretty easy feud to start off her reign, but Carmella is not exactly the most thrilling challenger in the world. She’ll do fine here, but I wouldn’t get my hopes up.

Banks retains here, and there really shouldn’t be that much doubt. Carmella has come a long way since her debut, but she is firmly in the second tier (at best) in every era of the women’s division. She is still a former champion though and Banks beating her will mean a little something, though I can’t imagine this being more than a one off shot. MAYBE they have a third match at the Royal Rumble, but Banks isn’t dropping the title to her.

Raw Tag Team Titles: New Day(c) vs. Hurt Business

I feel like I’m in some kind of time loop with New Day, as they seem like they have been the stay the course choice for the Tag Team Titles for literally years now, always waiting to drop the belts to the next team. That doesn’t exactly make for a thrilling story, and given how many times we’ve seen these four fight in one combination or another, the limited interest has already been taken away.

I’m going to go with new champions here, in the hopes that the Hurt Business gets an even bigger push. The whole group is one of the best around today and I could go for them having even more gold. I know I’ve said this time and time again, but New Day doesn’t need the titles and they could be good for Shelton Benjamin and Cedric Alexander, as both could use the boost. New champions here, even though I don’t quite believe it’s happening.

The Fiend vs. Randy Orton

This is now a Firefly Inferno match, because I guess WWE thinks that fireflies have actual fire or something. It sounds like an Inferno match, which feels really, really tacked on after Orton’s ATTEMPTED MURDER earlier this week. The story has been set up, but I’m still not sure why I should want to see these two fight. That being said, it’s not like the Fiend makes the most sense in the first place and having him outsmart the master strategist is intriguing

I’ll go with Orton to win here though, mainly because his basic boots and trunks don’t leave much to be set on fire (assuming that’s how you win of course). The Fiend winning makes more sense, but I can live with Orton if he doesn’t use Alexa Bliss to upset Fiend. It’s an interesting enough match, but I could go without the fire. Just do what makes sense instead of tacking something on at the last second and (pun intended), leaping straight into the fire.

Women’s Tag Team Titles: Nia Jax/Shayna Baszler(c) vs. Asuka/???

So after about three months of Jax tormenting Lana and setting up the revenge at this show, Lana isn’t even on the card. Instead Asuka is getting the shot with a mystery partner, meaning the whole thing is going to come down to who she has. I’m not entirely convinced it won’t wind up being Dana Brooke and Mandy Rose getting the shot, which would at least make some more sense than whatever they’re doing here.

No matter who it is, I’ll take the champs to retain here as there is zero reason to have Asuka holding two titles again. It would be nice to not have something insane here and hopefully they don’t go too far. Just pick someone who makes sense (Brooke or Rose would make sense on their own) and have the champs beat them up after a bit of a sweat. Don’t go wacky here, because that’s the last thing this story needs.

Raw World Title: Drew McIntyre(c) vs. AJ Styles

This is the first of the two namesake matches and probably the easier one to guess. The idea here is mainly built around Omos and possibly Sheamus getting involved, but I’m not sure how much that is going to change anything about where it goes. Styles might not be the big monster they were hoping for in Braun Strowman, but he’s as good of a replacement as you are going to get.

Of course McIntyre retains here, as they aren’t going to put the title on McIntyre back in October and then take it off of him in December. There is no reason to think Styles will win here, though that’s not the worst idea in the world. Sometimes it’s ok to have the champ face off with a tough challenge and then win anyway, which is what seems to be the case here. The match should be fun, and Sheamus can challenge McIntyre next month just fine.

SmackDown World Title: Roman Reigns(c) vs. Kevin Owens

Oh man I want to see how this could go with a several months long story where Owens might have an actual chance to win the title. Owens has been doing some great stuff as the challenger who will not die no matter what, even if he is up against the monster of monsters in Reigns. The match isn’t exactly full of drama, but I want to see Owens get the title, which is the right feeling.

But yeah, Reigns isn’t losing here and he probably isn’t losing for a very long time. At the end of the day, Reigns is a total star and should not be in any serious danger. Owens is someone who could be a major threat to the title, but it’s not happening here and I don’t think there is any real drama. The story has been quite good though and I want to see Owens give it his all and fail. Owens has done very well in this story and hopefully that goes somewhere in the future, but Reigns is leaving with the title here.

Overall Thoughts

Even with only six matches announced so far, the more I think about this show, the more I like the different format. I know it’s a good bit different than usual, but I really don’t need to have five or six gimmick matches on a single card. You have the big gimmick match in the title so go with what should work well. It’s not like there are many matches on the show that need the gimmicks to help them (though there are a few, including the one that we’re not even getting), so let the big ones get the focus and go from there.

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

We’re already back to Takeover but this time around we have a special attraction which is all you need to sell the show. This time around it’s WarGames, with a pair of the show’s namesake matches. That should make for some awesome stuff in its own right, but there are some other things in there to help fill in the gap. I have a good feeling of where this one is going so let’s get to it.

Dexter Lumis vs. Cameron Grimes

Let’s get this one out of the way first. This is a strap match as Grimes keeps trying to run off so now they’re tying him to the monster. I would be scared of Lumis as well, as he is the kind of guy where I really don’t get what WWE sees in him but that hasn’t stopped them yet. Lumis continues to be just kind of there (literally in some cases as he just stands there a lot of the time) but Grimes is a national treasure, so it balances out a bit.

I’ll take Lumis to win here because that’s how NXT works with him, though Grimes is the kind of guy who can stay over without ever winning a single thing. All I can hope for here is to have Grimes steal the show and do whatever he can, because that’s the best thing that I can hope for here. Lumis is absolutely not the worst thing in the world, but he isn’t someone I want to see in a spot like this. Grimes loses, and I shake my head a bit more.

North American Title: Leon Ruff(c) vs. Damian Priest vs. Johnny Gargano

So we have the big culmination of Gargano messing around with Ruff and losing the title to him, though Ruff has decided to stand up for himself and fight both of them at once. This sounds like something where Ruff should get destroyed so one of them will win the title….and yeah that’s probably exactly what we are going to be seeing here, as we should be getting.

I’ll take Gargano to win here, even though him winning a third time seems to be a little bit much. Ruff does not need to hold onto the title to keep the gag going any longer and the point has already been made. Gargano barely got to hold the title and Priest already had a decent reign (though I could go for more of him holding the title in the future). Go with what was planned before we took the detour, meaning Gargano wins.

Tommaso Ciampa vs. Timothy Thatcher

This is much more of a grudge match, as Ciampa went after Thatcher, who doesn’t take kindly to that. Therefore, let’s have a match. That’s about as easy of a plot as you can get and the rest is dressing everything else up to make the whole story work. They have good chemistry here too and I want to see where it goes. You don’t get that very often in a grudge match and it should work out.

As much as I want to go with Thatcher here, Ciampa needs to get back on the winning track and I can’t imagine Thatcher beating him. Unless Thatcher’s student interferes, it would make the most sense to have Ciampa go over here. If nothing else, you need a nice moment for one of the winners here as there might not be many other things for them to get behind here. Ciampa wins, because he kind of has to.

Women’s WarGames

This has been a little bit of a weird one as it seems to stem from Candice LeRae destroying Shotzi Blackheart’s tank. That is quite the forced reason to start up a WarGames match, but….well ok I haven’t heard many worse, but at least there is a reason to have this one. Granted the teams have been thrown together and I’m not sure how much of a reason they have to be here other than there need to be some people on the teams, but WarGames is better than nothing.

I’m sure Blackheart is going to have her new tank here but I think I’ll go with Team LeRae for the win here. They have a stacked lineup and seem to have a bit more chemistry, though I’m not sure who they have who is going to take out Rhea Ripley. I’m probably wrong on this one, but I really don’t know if I can see Blackheart and her merry band winning here, so we’ll go with LeRae.

Men’s WarGames

Now this is a much more traditional WarGames matches you have two teams ready to fight each other. Believe it or not, one of them is the Undisputed Era, who has been in one of them every year so far. That does not exactly bode well for their futures, but at least they are the established name in the match ala the Horsemen. It gives them some more possibilities, and I think we are going to get to the important one.

I’ll take Pat McAfee and Company (their official name as far as I’m concerned) for the win here, because they have nowhere to go with a loss and the Undisputed Era doesn’t need to win a thing at this point. If nothing else, the main event of the next Takeover almost has to be Pete Dunne taking the NXT Title from Finn Balor (unless Karrion Kross is ready again, though I’m not sure I can imagine going with him again as champion) and this is a good way to get him there. McAfee and Company win, as the Undisputed Era….oh of course they aren’t going up yet, because that’s just not what they do.

Overall Thoughts

This is the first time in a long while that I have felt interested in a Takeover just by looking at the card. The show is looking like it will hit on every point, which is where Takeover tends to shine. There is always the chance that things could go slightly beneath expectations, but just putting WarGames on the card should be more than enough to carry the whole thing. I think.

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: All Elite Wrestling

It’s that time again. AEW has not been around all that long but they are already getting some traditional shows together. That is the case again with the second annual Full Gear, which hopefully ends their streak of completely watchable and even good pay per views that were completely beneath their usual shows. That’s kind of a good problem to have and hopefully everything is at their normal level this time around. Let’s get to it.

Pre-Show: NWA Women’s Title: Serena Deeb(c) vs. Allysin Kay

My head shakes every time I see the NWA on a big time wrestling show as it never stops amazing me. The NWA got a lot of miles out of that rather short Powerrr run but here they are again. Deeb has been a great addition to the AEW women’s division and the NWA name still has the slightest value. It’s not like this is taking up some big spot so hopefully we get a solid match as a bonus.

I’ll take Deeb to retain here as there is no reason to believe that she is going to lose. Deeb has recently signed to AEW and the NWA would be insane to cut off any kind of mainstream connection they have like AEW. It’s going to be a good match as the two of them are both rather talented in the ring and can probably put on a heck of a match if they are given the chance.

Orange Cassidy vs. John Silver

I don’t watch Being The Elite but everything I’ve heard about it says that Silver has started stealing the show as of late. He has been showing some of that on AEW as well and it is nice to see him getting a spot like this. It isn’t like anything is going to change in a significant way because he is getting this spot, and Cassidy still has a lot of status around here so it should work.

Of course Cassidy wins here because he is the star of the two, even though he has fell down a few good steps since the feud with Chris Jericho ended. This is likely to be the comedy match of the night and that’s a fine spot for them after one of the bigger matches. It has some potential and Silver is coming off like a star, so maybe we could be in for something good here.

Women’s Title: Hikaru Shida(c) vs. Nyla Rose

Is it just me or does Rose get half of the title shots in this promotion? Anyway, this is the same thing that we have seen more than once now, with the great striker Shida defending against the monster. It worked well enough once so hopefully they can make it work again. Shida feels like she has cooled WAY off in recent weeks though and I had mostly forgotten about her more than once.

I know I’ve said something like this before but I can’t imagine Rose loses here. Why in the world would you have her lose all over again, especially with Vickie Guerrero as a good mouthpiece for her? Shida is hardly an exciting champion these days and Rose (or eventually Britt Baker) taking the title from her should be the ultimate goal. For now though, Rose leaves as champion.

Matt Hardy vs. Sammy Guevara

It’s time for another cinematic match with the Elite Deletion match. I know that Hardy is the originator of this kind of match but I can’t really bring myself to get decided about the thing again. The feud has not exactly been the strongest in company history and other than seeing some of Hardy’s calculated insanity, I’m not sure how much appeal this has.

I’ll take Guevara to win here as there is just no reason to have Hardy win. Hardy is an established star and has been foe about fifteen years now. The match should be complete shenanigans and insanity, but at the end of the day, Guevara can be a force for a long time to come. I don’t think this is going to be the match that puts him on the stage for good, but at least a win over Hardy could mean at least a little something.

TNT Title: Cody(c) vs. Darby Allin

Now we’re getting somewhere as we have a history between the two of them and a shiny title for someone to take with them. Cody is back to the blond hair to make it feel like a member of his Elite and that is working out well enough for everyone. They even hyped up the match a bit this week to give it some heat and that is a good thing. Now though we get to see if Allin can hang here on the big show, which is hard to screw.

This is a tough one actually but I can’t imagine Cody dropping the title for a second time just a few weeks after getting it back. At the same time though, I don’t want or need to see Allin taking another loss after coming up short in most of his big matches. The good thing here is the fact that they have managed to do a really solid job with making Allin feel like a star and he’ll get there one day. It just isn’t today, but it is going to make for an interesting chance.

Tag Team Titles: FTR(c) vs. Young Bucks

This is the next dream match and in this case, that might actually be an accurate description for a change. These are two very successful and popular teams, though this time we have a twist with the Bucks doing the old “if we don’t win we can’t challenge again” deal. Normally that would seal the deal in a title match like this but that does not seem to be the case with AEW (so far at least).

I’m going to take….dang….yeah I’ll go with the Bucks here, even with Matt’s knee not being entirely healed up yet. This is a match that has been hyped up for a very long now and I’m curious to see which way they can take it. FTR could feel like transitional champions, but that doesn’t mean they can’t have a great match on the way there. Just cool it with some of the Bucks’ flips they’re likely to have a better match (with a few flips of course).

Chris Jericho vs. Maxwell Jacob Friedman

In a way, I kind of wish they weren’t having this match. Friedman is an amazing talker and a great character, but he is a lot better in those areas than he is in the ring. That isn’t to say he can’t have a great match as he and Jungle Boy were awesome at All Out, but I’m not entirely sold here. Part of the appeal of this has been the teasing of a fight and I don’t know if I really need to see them actually go at it.

That being said, there is no reason whatsoever for Jericho to win here, as Friedman joining the team is the obvious next step. The question though is which way do you go to get there. I’m not sure if you have someone turn on Jericho yet or wait for later, but you can almost write in the idea of the Inner Circle (or at least part of it) turning on him. I don’t think they need to do it yet, but they do need to have Friedman win here, which he will.

Kenny Omega vs. Hangman Page

If there wasn’t a World Title match left, this would be headlining the show. It has received a lot more hype than the World Title match and the story is a good bit more detailed. The Page interview on this week’s Dynamite made me a lot more interested in what he was doing than I was before, so hopefully they can live up to the hype while also continuing to mess with Page’s psyche.

Of course I’ll go with Omega, as I just can’t imagine them going with anything but Omega as the next World Title challenger. It is pretty clear that he is going to get the big breakout star push and I’m curious to see how well that works in front of an American audience. There is no need to have Page go over here, meaning he takes another hit and slips further away how he was originally presented (as he should be).

AEW World Title: Jon Moxley(c) vs. Eddie Kingston

Then there’s this, which doesn’t exactly feel like a top of the card main event match. The I Quit stipulation helps out a lot though as these two having a heck of a fight is the best thing they can do. Moxley can brawl and Kingston can fight, which doesn’t leave much in the area of technical expertise. They are going to have to do something special to make one of them quit and believe they can pull it off somehow.

Moxley retains here as there is almost no way to imagine Kingston as a World Champion in a major promotion. His promos have been straight fire as of late though and AEW would be insane to not try and do something with him. Assuming Omega wins, there id no reason to have him go after anyone but Moxley needs to retain the title, which is exactly what he will do.

Overall Thoughts

All Out was not the best show in the world but AEW has long since shown that they can do some very entertaining pay per views. The card is absolutely stacked and it was feeling bigger and bigger with each match I looked at here. This has a lot of potential and if everything delivers, we could be in a full time classic. I’m looking forward to this one and that means they’re doing something right.

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

What is it about this show that makes WWE not want to build it up? Last year there were three matches set up after the final SmackDown and this time there are only five. Granted three of them are inside the Cell but don’t you think that’s a little bit low? I’m sure there will be two or three more (plus a Kickoff Show match) but for now, as of rather early Sunday morning, we only have five to work with. Let’s get to it.

Jeff Hardy vs. Elias

This is one of the two matches that was set up this week and is the only match without something on the line. They are tying this back to the May segment where Hardy allegedly hit Elias with a car and I’m not sure if that is enough to make it work out that well. It’s certainly a match that can be thrown onto pay per view with no issues, but at the same time, it might not be that thrilling.

This has to go to Elias, as there is little reason for it to continue if Hardy wins so early. If nothing else, with Elias’ album coming out this week, you don’t want to have him lose so soon. I’m not sure where they are going to go with who drove the car, mainly because it seemed like they established that it was Sheamus. Either way, the match should be fine, though it’s not something I’m looking forward to all that much.

Money In The Bank Briefcase: Otis(c) vs. The Miz

I don’t want to get on Otis for the briefcase situation because it hasn’t been his fault, but dang this has been a big fall off from where he was just a few months ago. It was one thing when the fans were there cheering for him and you could imagine him stealing the title from Braun Strowman, but there is no way you can put Otis in the ring with this version of Roman Reigns and expect it to be taken anything closer to seriously. That isn’t on Otis, but it isn’t going to work either.

Miz almost has to win here, as at least you can imagine him cashing in and taking a thrashing for daring to step to Reigns. It makes a lot more sense than Otis, and while I feel bad for Otis losing everything, a Tucker turn wouldn’t shock me. They almost have to do it here though, and that’s going to make things a little bit easier for everyone involved. Well save for Otis of course but you get the idea.

SmackDown World Title: Roman Reigns(c) vs. Jey Uso

Much like their previous match, this isn’t so much about who leaves as champion as much as how they get there, and in this case, what happens next. This story has turned more into a way of knowing what is coming but still making it interesting, which is actually a heck of a trick. Reigns has turned into something from another planet as of late and I could go for a lot more of him on top, especially if he has some lackeys with him.

Of course Reigns wins here, and it is going to be brutal to watch. That is exactly what they should be doing too and under the right circumstances, this could steal the show all over again. Reigns can turn up the brutality when he needs to and Uso is a pretty snappy underdog. Letting these two do it again inside the Cell is interesting, but they already have months worth of story ready for when Reigns wins. Good storytelling has gotten Reigns this far and it is going to get him a lot further than this after another successful title defense.

SmackDown Women’s Title: Bayley(c) vs. Sasha Banks

this is one of the most confusing and also interesting matches on the show. The story has been a very long time in the making and they have set this up very well. It’s good enough to make an exception for the first (real) match in the feud taking place inside the Cell but that leaves a heck of a question: what happens here? They really could stretch this out for several more months and possibly even make it a featured match at WrestleMania (if not the headliner), but that might be asking too much.

I think I’m going to go with Bayley retaining here, maybe by some shenanigans, as there seems to be some steam to this feud and if they play it right, this could go on all the way to WrestleMania. I’m not sure I want it to or if that’s a good idea, but I think they have Bayley hold onto the title for one more month at least. If nothing else, have Bayley debut some kind of a bodyguard that Banks has to beat next month to set up something in December. I wouldn’t be shocked at all if Banks wins, but I kind of don’t want her to just yet.

Raw World Title: Drew McIntyre(c) vs. Randy Orton

Yes we’re still on this feud that started back in July and I’m kind of over the whole thing. I don’t need to see them fight again though for some reason that’s what we’re getting for a third time. Orton isn’t the kind of guy who is going to lose over and over again on pay per view, but at the same time, he’s now 40 years old and someone who has been a made man for at least ten years. A loss wouldn’t kill him, but how much does McIntyre get after beating him twice already?

I’ll take Orton to win here, though I’d love to see McIntyre hold onto the title. Either way, I think McIntyre gets it back before WrestleMania 37 ends, though at some point he has to lose to make that a possibility. Orton tacking on another World Title isn’t the worst idea, but it isn’t a match I really need to see again as they are already repeating the same setup that got us to Summerslam.

Overall Thoughts

I keep thinking I’ve left something out of this and somehow that isn’t the case. I’m not sure why they only have five matches set for a pay per view less than twenty four hours in advance, but WWE has only had a month to set this up and that’s a lot of scripts that can be torn in half in advance. The big matches are set and that’s what matters, but dang man. How hard is it to announce a few matches on Talking Smack or Raw Talk?

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: Impact Wrestling

Yeah you might have forgotten about the company but Impact Wrestling is back on pay per view with their biggest show of the year. The card has been built up as well as it can be, but that is kind of a firm limit. The show isn’t exactly jumping off the page at me, though Impact Wrestling has managed to surprise me before. Hopefully that is the case again so let’s get to it.

Pre-Show: Rascalz vs. Deaners

There is something so fun about the Rascalz. I have a good time watching them but their win/loss record could be a lot better. There is only so much you can do when you can’t consistently win and that has been a problem for them for a very long time now. Hopefully they can get a lot better, and there are only a few ways to do that. We might be seeing it here.

I’ll take the Rascalz, for the double reason of I like them and I can remember which one is which. The Deaners got a lot out of Wrestle House but they are still more of a gimmick tag team than anything else. Maybe they can become a bigger deal one day, because while they’re not terrible, they leave a lot to be desired. Give me the Rascalz in a fast paced match.

Ken Shamrock vs. Eddie Edwards

This is a tricky one as Shamrock is entering the Hall of Fame this weekend but probably shouldn’t be beating someone like Edwards, who was World Champion just a few months ago. Then again, Shamrock wins a good amount of matches that he probably shouldn’t be winning, meaning that this could be in play. Shamrock has been impressive enough in his return, but that might not be enough to beat Edwards.

That being said, I’ll take Shamrock here, as Impact Wrestling REALLY likes honoring its legends, even though Edwards has been far more successful in the company than Shamrock. Edwards can absorb a loss far more easily than Shamrock, and if the idea is to make Shamrock a machine again, he shouldn’t be losing his first big match after the heel turn.

Call Your Shot Gauntlet Match

It’s your usual casserole of wrestlers who have nothing else going on (yes Tommy Dreamer is in there too) and the winner gets a title shot of their choice. The catch is that if Rhino or Heath win, Heath gets a contract and Rhino gets to keep his job. You can probably knock out a few of the options in a hurry, so at least it’s a little bit more limited of a field to pick through.

I’ll take Heath to win and go with the layup of the two of them going for the Tag Team Titles in the more feel good moment. It isn’t like most of the people involved have much of a story anyway and winning a ten person gauntlet match is only so difficult in the first place. Hopefully they don’t stay out there too long though, which is always a big danger in something like this. And go with the right winner of course, as in the person that I picked.

X-Division Title: Rohit Raju(c) vs. Chris Bey vs. Jordynne Grace vs. TJP vs. Trey Miguel vs. Willie Mack

Blast it with these messy matches. The X-Division has actually been a division as of late and now we are getting another one of these big car crash matches for the sake of getting everyone involved rather than having one challenger for a change. Raju is a fine choice as the heel champion who escapes with the title that he doesn’t really deserve and that is a good role to have in a match like this. There are a lot of ways this could go and that could make for something interesting.

I’ll take….eh give me Bey to get the title back here, if nothing else because I’ve liked a lot of what I’ve seen from him. Odds are Raju winds up retaining the title and escaping again, but that’s a bit of a traditional pick and Impact Wrestling likes to mix things up a bit. I’m not sure if that is what they are going to do here, but it really could go a lot of ways and that is a good thing.

TNA World Title: Moose(c) vs. EC3

So EC3 was the big surprise at the end of Slammiversary and he has set his sights on Moose. Now why did he do that? Honestly I’m not sure that I know as he has been going on and on about controlling your narrative…and I don’t know if I quite understand what the heck he is talking about. I know he wants to get rid of the TNA World Title to change his legacy or something, but that’s about as far as I can go.

The only other place I can go is to the place where EC3 wins the title, as he should here. There is no reason to have Moose retain here, though I’m not sure what else to expect from the match. It is going to take place in an undisclosed location and I wouldn’t be shocked to see this as a cinematic match, because we haven’t had one around here in awhile. Just have it regular please. Is that so much to ask?

Tag Team Titles: Motor City Machine Guns(c) vs. Good Brothers vs. Ace Austin/Madman Fulton vs. The North

The Good Brothers have become the biggest stars in the company almost by default and now all they need is the gold. They showed up announced at Slammiversary and were instantly treated as some of the most important people in the company, overshadowing the entire tag team division in a hurry. They don’t need the titles, but it doesn’t exactly do the titles much good for the Good Brothers to not have them.

Actually I’ll go with the instinct and pick Austin and Fulton to win, with the Good Brothers hunting them down for the regular title match later on rather than winning the four way here. This has gotten most of the recent main event slots and while it isn’t (or at least shouldn’t) main event the show, it is going to be one of the more important matches on the card. Odds are the Good Brothers win, but I feel like a gamble.

Knockouts Title: Deonna Purrazzo(c) vs. Kylie Rae

This feels like it was supposed to take place months ago but then the Wrestle house deal slowed everything down. Rae has become one of the perkiest stars the company has seen in years while Purrazzo is more of an assassin who can rip anyone apart whenever she feels like it. That being said, when your opponent has a move called Smile To The Finish, it’s hard to cheer against them. Throw in the fact that Rae is more innocent than the Easter Bunny and it’s hard to argue against her.

I’ll take Purrazzo to win here and crush everyone’s dreams, as she just hasn’t held the title long enough to lose it yet. Rae is someone who could smile her way through anything and it seems like she could be back in the title scene down the line without much effort. Maybe she takes it from Purrazzo one day, but I really don’t think it is going to happen on Saturday night.

Impact Wrestling World Title: Eric Young(c) vs. Rich Swann

And then there’s this, which does not feel like a main event of the biggest show of the year no matter how revered the company wants to make it sound. This feels like it should be for the X-Division Title halfway through the show rather than (probably) headlining everything. Swann came back from a long injury at Slammiversary and eliminated Young from the World Title match, only to have Young take out the knee. Now Swann is back for revenge and the title.

Swann has to win here right? I can’t imagine that Impact Wrestling would go with Young as a long term champion, but then again I can’t believe that we’re seeing him as the champion again in the second place. I’ve liked Swann for a long time now and hopefully he is back to his old self. He should win the title here, though I’m not sure if he is ready for that point. Then again, it’s not like the title feels all that important most of the time anyway.

Overall Thoughts

I’ve thought this for a good while now but this show has been surpassed by Slammiversary as the most important of the year. I know Bound For Glory gets all of the attention and that’s perfectly fine, but this really doesn’t feel like the big showcase event. I’m sure the matches and action will be good as Impact Wrestling almost always delivers when they focus on their in-ring product, but I can’t really bring myself to get overly interested in the show.

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

So just over six weeks after the previous Takeover, we’re up to the next edition and now they’re just counting the shows instead of coming up with a unique name. As has been the case more than once lately, this show felt like something that has the potential to be the first bad one in history, but then they announced the main event and I was left saying ooo. Hopefully that’s enough this time around so let’s get to it.

Kushida vs. Velveteen Dream

Indeed, it does seem like Dream is just back with little reason to suggest that he’s ever going to be punished for what he allegedly did. It’s a risky play as he was accused of some serious stuff, but that’s where we are at the moment. Kushida has looked a lot more aggressive as of late and as my favorite New Japan guy, I’m certainly not complaining about what we’re getting out of him.

I’ll take Dream here, though I can’t shake the feeling that they might pull the trigger on Kushida. NXT has shown that they want to push the heck out of Dream though and that means giving him chance after chance. He has lost more momentum than almost anyone else over the course of the summer, so a win here would help get it back. I would prefer Kushida winning and he might, but this seems to be Dream’s to win.

Women’s Title: Io Shirai(c) vs. Candice LeRae

Now we get to one of the bigger ideas on this show as LeRae and her husband Johnny Gargano are trying to become the first husband and wife to be stereo champions. The result of this match is going to tie into the result of the other match and I’m not sure how well that is going to go. I could see this going either way and that’s a nice feeling to have.

I think I’m going to take Shirai to retain here on a pure hunch. LeRae is someone who will likely be champion one day until the next big thing is ready to take the title, but I just don’t know if I can picture Shirai being the person to drop it to her just yet. The Gargano Way will likely be used, but I’m thinking this might set up a rematch on NXT where LeRae wins the title. Odds are I’m wrong as I tend to be when I play a hunch, but I don’t think LeRae gets the title just yet.

Cruiserweight Title: Santos Escobar(c) vs. Isaiah Scott

For once 205 Live actually served a really good purpose as this week’s show was all about this match, including a history between the two and the sitdown interview between them from this week’s NXT. I’m not sure what that is going to mean as far as a title match goes, but they have had good matches before so hopefully they can continue the trend here. The title has turned into rather nice supplemental feature in NXT so it might as well be on here as well.

It’s another one where I’m not sure what to expect but I’ll go with Scott winning the title here. The sitdown interview made it feel like a big moment, but at the same time Escobar has spent his entire reign feuding with Scott so far. The title is kind of an afterthought, though I like Scott a lot so may be me just hoping for something I want to see. Escobar winning wouldn’t shock me, but I’ll take Scott in a surprise.

North American Title: Damian Priest(c) vs. Johnny Gargano

I like Priest. I like him a lot, as he feels completely different than so many people on NXT. He’s a big guy with some great athleticism (though I’d still switch his finisher) and his promos feel different than most. The face turn has been a major upgrade for him and I could see him going this way for a very long time. That being said, there’s something about Gargano that is hard to turn down in a match like this.

Again I’m going to go with the hope but I’ll take Priest to retain. He feels like he could be something special and there might not be anyone in NXT as established as Gargano. A win over him would be a big deal for Priest, who only won the title a few weeks ago. I know there’s a good chance that Gargano and LeRae walk out with both titles, but it really isn’t something I need to see. Priest needs this more than Gargano and I’ll go with the hope spot of NXT doing what they should do rather than what traditional booking would have them do.

NXT Title: Finn Balor(c) vs. Kyle O’Reilly

And here’s where they have me. I’m really not sure what to expect in this one but dang I want to see it. O’Reilly is someone who seems to always be in a group or on a team but when he gets a chance to shine on his own, he can pull it off like few others. Keep in mind that he is a former Ring of Honor World Champion so he has had a successful singles run before. That being said, it’s Balor, and as he said on Wednesday, if this was anyone else, O’Reilly would be a near lock to win the title.

I’m going to take….Balor here, which is the answer I came up with after having to stop and think for a few minutes. They have done a great job here of making this into a match which could go either way and that’s an impressive thing given the amount of time that they have. O’Reilly winning the title in an upset is absolutely a possibility, but I think it’s more the “he would win on any other day” and Balor escapes as champion than anything else.

Overall Thoughts

This is a weird one as there not a single match on the show that I’m sure about, but at the same time, I’m not entirely locked into wanting to see all of them either. That’s a really strange feeling to have and the mystery man (I’m going with Bo Dallas or a surprise Karrion Kross) isn’t exactly enough to have me drooling over the show like I usually am. They haven’t have the time to set things up and then the outbreak made it even worse. I’m sure it’s going to be a good show (it’s Takeover) but the fire isn’t there, and a lot of that is due to how fast they put this together. Takeover is a special, and that’s not how this feels for a change.

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