Smackdown
Date: December 23, 2022
Location: Allstate Arena, Rosemont, Illinois
Commentators: Michael Cole, Wade Barrett

It’s a taped show from Chicago, which means the fans should be livelier than most regular crowds. Since it is the Christmas season, the main event is a Miracle On 34th Street Fight as Ricochet and Braun Strowman vs. Imperium, but we also have a gauntlet match for a future Women’s Title match. Let’s get to it.

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

Here is the Bloodline to get things going. Paul Heyman talks about all of their upcoming wins, including the Usos defeating Hit Row later tonight and Solo Sikoa getting another victory. Next week though, it’s the biggest televised match of the year, as Roman Reigns and Sami Zayn team up to defeat Kevin Owens and John Cena. Reigns get the mic, but has to pause for a SAMI chant. Next week, Reigns is going to SMASH someone, but Sami is looking a little off.

Reigns tells him to get it off of his chest, so Sami talks about how he has found family and respect in the Bloodline. You would think that would be enough, but there is a Kevin Owens cloud hanging over him. Owens’ existence and the fact that their names have been tired together makes Sami mad because he can’t get away.

Now John Cena is coming back too and wants to steal the show, but the Bloodline IS the show. Next week, Owens and Cena will acknowledge Reigns. Sami gets a hug to wrap it up. I’m not sure when it’s happening, but the Bloodline turning on Sami and him coming back to fight against them is going to be the reaction of the year.

Tag Team Titles: Usos vs. Hit Row

Hit Row, with B Fab is challenging and Sami Zayn is here too. Adonis armdrags Jey to start but a chop block cuts Dolla off. Dolla fights up and brings Jey in but a chop block puts him right back down. We take a break and come back with Dolla getting over to the corner for the hot tag to Adonis so house can be cleaned. A cheap shot cuts Adonis off though and a Samoan drop gives Jimmy two. Dolla is back in and the Heavy Hitter gets two, with Jimmy having to make a save. Back up and Adonis gets sent outside, leaving the 1D to finish Dolla at 9:06.

Rating: C. The titles weren’t going to change hands here and I don’t think anyone bought the idea that they were. The Usos have been on top for so long that it is hard to fathom them losing, which is one of the problems with a match like this. There wasn’t much drama and Hit Row isn’t good enough to create it, so this was just ok at best.

We look at Ricochet coming up short to Gunther last week in a great match.

Imperium is ready to take out Ricochet and Braun Strowman tonight.

Gauntlet Match

For a future Smackdown Women’s title match. It’s Emma in at #1 and Xia Li in at #2, with Li running her over to start. Emma gets a suplex for a breather, but Li knees her in the face. The Cyclone kick finishes Emma at 1:47 and it’s Tegan Nox in at #3. Nox strikes away but gets kneed in the head for her efforts. Another Cyclone Kick finishes Nox at 3:19 total and it’s Raquel Rodriguez in at #4.

We take a break and come back with Li working on Rodriguez’s banged up arm. Rodriguez fights up and hits the spinning Vader Bomb elbow for two. Back up and Li misses the Cyclone Kick, allowing Rodriguez to grab the Tejana Bomb for the pin at 9:05. Liv Morgan is in at #5 and goes right at her, but has to power out of what seems to be a powerbomb attempt. Morgan’s victory roll gets two and they trade rollups for a near fall each. A choke works a bit better for Morgan but Rodriguez powers out for a double knockdown.

We take a break and come back again with Rodriguez hitting a superplex but Morgan manages a shot to the arm for a breather. There’s the middle rope dropkick to Rodriguez, setting up the Rings of Saturn for a smart hold. Rodriguez powers up again and swings Morgan off, only to get caught in a Codebreaker for two more. Back up and Rodriguez is fine enough to hit a fall away slam into the springboard corkscrew Vader Bomb elbow for another near fall. Morgan is back up with a sunset bomb but Rodriguez powers her up into a Tejana Bomb for the pin at 19:35.

Sonya Deville is in at #6 to complete the field and starts fast with the rapid fire kicks in the corner. Rodriguez tries to make the comeback but gets sent shoulder first into the buckle. An armbar in the ropes has Rodriguez in more trouble but she has to let go, allowing Rodriguez to plant her down for the pin at 22:35. Hold out though as here is Ronda Rousey to announce that Shayna Baszler is a surprise entrant at #7. Baszler goes right in and strikes away, even pulling off Rodriguez’s arm brace. The posing takes too long though and Rodriguez rolls her up for the pin at 24:11.

Rating: B-. Like most gauntlet matches, this left me wondering why some of the regular matches we see aren’t over as fast as some of the falls in this one. At the same time, the Morgan vs. Rodriguez stuff worked well and they had a nice chemistry going. Rodriguez winning was the only real option here and they made her look good in the process, so call this a nice success.

We look at Uncle Howdy being revealed as a real person last week, freaking LA Knight out even more.

Here is Bray Wyatt for a chat. Bray talks about how hard it is to come out here and be yourself, but he’ll never be tired of people wanting to see him. He talks about trying to present the realest version of him that he can, meaning LA Knight owes him an apology. No one, including Knight, believed that it was really him with all of those attacks…and then the light switches a bit. Wyatt seems to get sidetracked and crouches down before grabbing the Mandible Claw on the cameraman. The weird stare goes on as Wyatt has to be pulled off, leaving him confused and upset. The mind games continue, but they seem to have a direction.

Angel vs. Rey Mysterio

Karrion Kross and Scarlett are watching from the crowd while Humberto is here with Angel. Rey snaps off a headscissors to start and pounds away in the corner, only to have Angel TAKE OFF HIS PANTS. A backbreaker gives Angel two but Rey sends him into the ropes to set up the 619. Humberto breaks that up, allowing Angel to hit a superkick for two. The Wing Clipper is blocked so Angel tries his own 619. That doesn’t work either as Rey hits his own, setting up a slingshot DDT for the pin at 3:51.

Rating: C. Well first of all, oh yeah, Los Lotharios still work here. Other than that, this was a completely watchable back and forth match with Mysterio busting out a nifty new finisher. There wasn’t exactly a lot to see here but Mysterio getting in the ring and wrestling a basic match shows you just how good he really is. He can wrestle a completely competent match against almost anyone, which isn’t exactly a universal skill.

Ricochet and Braun Strowman are ready for Imperium.

Emma yells at Scarlett and Karrion Kross for getting on Riddick (as in Madcap Moss) and Rey Mysterio. She slaps Scarlett, causing Kross to say Emma doesn’t know what she just did.

We look back at John Cena’s career before he returns next week. The Make-A-Wish and military stuff gets a look at well before wrestlers talk about what a legend he is. I’m assuming this is airing rather than a Kevin Owens segment as Owens missed the double taping.

Lacey Evans is back next week.

Ricochet/Braun Strowman vs. Imperium

Miracle On 34th Street Fight. Strowman cleans house to start and throws Ricochet into a dropkick to Vinci in the corner. Vinci’s middle rope crossbody is pulled out of the air but Imperium starts in on Strowman’s leg for a breather. Strowman is fine enough to backdrop the villains to the floor, where Ricochet adds a hurricanrana as we take a break.

Back with Strowman getting posted and Ricochet getting beaten with a candy cane. Strowman gets back up and lifts Imperium onto his shoulders but they rake the eyes for a save. There’s a double suplex on the stage as Ricochet is back up. Some right hands stagger the already bleeding Vinci but Kaiser manages a chair shot for a breather. It’s time to open the giant present on stage and it’s….a ballerina, who dances away.

Another box is opened to reveal New Day dressed as soldiers to kick Imperium low (Barrett: “They’re nutcrackers!”) and march away. Strowman is back up and runs Imperium over before dragging Ricochet over to ring announcer Samantha Irvin. Some mistletoe is busted out and the kiss (from his real life girlfriend, in Cole’s words) brings Ricochet back to life. House is cleaned and it’s the running powerslam into the splash off of Strowman’s shoulders to pin Vinci at 11:54.

Rating: C+. What else were you expecting here? They were in a match involving big presents and Christmas decorations at the end of a holiday show. There was one result to this match and it was never supposed to be anything else. The match was completely fine and felt like something you might see on a house show, making this a completely entertaining main event.

Overall Rating: C+. For a show that was taped and the second two hour episode of the night, this was a totally acceptable show, which even had some good stuff included. WWE knew it wasn’t going to have a huge audience so why try doing anything important? The biggest development is finding Ronda Rousey’s next challenger for next week, which is hardly earth shattering. Nice show here though and I had a good time with it throughout.

Results
Usos b. Hit Row – 1D to Dolla
Raquel Rodriguez won a gauntlet match last eliminating Shayna Baszler
Rey Mysterio b. Angel – Slingshot DDT
Ricochet/Braun Strowman b. Imperium – Splash to Vinci

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Smackdown
Date: November 25, 2022
Location: Amica Mutual Pavilion, Providence, Rhode Island
Commentators: Michael Cole, Wade Barrett

It’s the go home show for Survivor Series and we have a big time main event. This week it’s the Usos vs. Sheamus/Drew McIntyre for the WarGames advantage and what wouldn’t surprise me as a big preview for a future Tag Team Title match. Other than that, we’ll find out the final member of Team Belair, so let’s get to it.

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

Team Damage Ctrl is in the ring to start and Bayley doesn’t want to waste any time. She wants to know who the fifth member of Team Belair is right now, so here is Team Belair in a hurry. Belair doesn’t waste time and introduces the fifth member of her team: the returning Becky Lynch. The brawl is quickly on, with Team Belair clearing the ring.

Smackdown World Cup Semifinals: Butch vs. Santos Escobar

The rest of their teams are at ringside and Zelina Vega joins commentary. Escobar takes him down fast to start but gets pulled into an armbar for his efforts. That’s reversed into an armbar from Escobar as Vega is sounding very cocky. Butch fights up again and goes to the top, only to be shoved down onto the apron for a nasty crash.

We take a break and come back with Dunne hammering away and knocking Escobar off the top to the floor this time. Butch hits a great moonsault onto the rest of Legado. Stereo clotheslines put them both down and we see Team McIntyre and the Bloodline brawling in the back. Zelina gets on the apron for a distraction, allowing Legado to make a save so the Phantom Driver can give Escobar the pin at 9:03.

Rating: C+. Escobar winning is an interesting way to go as he continues to get a bit of a push around here. I’m not sure how far that is going to go for him but even a little shine is better than nothing. Butch is a far more made man than Escobar, but it’s still strange to see him losing after so much dominance earlier in his career. Good opening match and I think I like the result.

Long video on LA Knight vs. Bray Wyatt over the last two weeks.

Here is Bray Wyatt for a chat. He talks about everything he has gone through and how everyone wants to see the monster. Everyone wants to see the Fiend. That is not what he wants though, because he did not attack LA Knight last week. Uncle Howdy pops up on screen to show us clips of Wyatt’s past before saying everyone lies. So the split personality continues? I think?

LA Knight had a horrible Thanksgiving because of his injuries and now he has to hear Wyatt lie like this. When he gets the chance, he’ll beat Bray up. Yeah.

Hit Row vs. Viking Raiders

B Fab and Valhalla (Sarah Evans’ official new name) are the respective seconds. Adonis gets pulled into the corner to start and the double teaming clubbering is on. Ivar loads up a suplex but Adonis slips out and brings in Dolla to clean house. That doesn’t last long as Adonis comes back in, misses a dive, and gets Ragnaroked for the pin at 2:45. Pretty much a squash.

We look at Dominik Mysterio and Rhea Ripley invading Rey Mysterio’s house and beating the daylights out of him in a rather effective assault.

LA Knight has been attacked again.

Smackdown World Cup Semifinals: Ricochet vs. Braun Strowman

Strowman powers him around to start but Ricochet turns up the speed. A quick dropkick gets Ricochet out of trouble and he knocks Strowman outside. That’s fine with Strowman, who whips him into the barricade, followed by the big toss back inside. Cue Imperium for a distraction though, allowing Ricochet to steal the crucifix pin at 3:46.

Rating: C. It was pretty much get rid of Strowman here or have him win the whole thing so this was the better of the two choices. Strowman vs. Gunther seems likely no matter what else they do so this way they can set up someone else to get there first. Strowman saves some face by losing clean and Ricochet gets a nice win for once, making this a nicely put together match.

Post match Imperium comes in to go after Strowman but Ricochet makes the save. Strowman has to save Ricochet though and Imperium bails, leaving Strowman to show respect and help Ricochet up.

We look back at Kevin Owens being revealed as the fifth man on Team Brawling Brutes for WarGames.

Sami Zayn is heading to the Bloodline’s locker room when Owens cuts him off. With Jey Uso listening at the door, Owens tells him to turn on the Bloodline before they can do it to him. Owens says see you tomorrow and leaves. Jey comes out and asks who Sami was talking to, but Sami says no one. Uh oh.

Becky Lynch wants to hurt Damage Ctrl for putting her on the shelf.

Shayna Baszler and Ronda Rousey jump Shotzi and Raquel Rodriguez in the back, with Rodriguez’s arm being crushed in an anvil case. Referees arrive just too late.

Post break here are Rousey and Baszler to gloat, only to have Shotzi want to do it alone.

Shozi vs. Ronda Rousey/Shayna Baszler

Shotzi charges in and tries to start fast but gets caught in an armbar over the ropes. Baszler adds her own armbar on the mat….and here is Rodriguez, favoring her arm, to make it an even match. Shotzi gets over to Rodriguez to clean house with one arm, only to have Baszler take her down by said arm. The stomp set up Rousey’s armbar for the win at 3:18.

Rating: C-. This was more of an angle than a match as Rousey and Baszler get to beat up Rodriguez to make up for her getting involved with them last week. Other than that, Shotzi gets to look like she is standing up to the bullies before she gets crushed by Rousey on Saturday. That is about as good as she is going to get and Rodriguez is probably set up as a future challenger.

Post break Shotzi swears vengeance.

Usos vs. Sheamus/Drew McIntyre

Non-title but for the WarGames advantage with the rest of the rest of the WarGames teams, minus Roman Reigns, at ringside. Sheamus throws Jey around to start and a double clothesline puts him on the floor. We get the big staredown on the outside and take an early break. Back with Sheamus being low bridged to the floor but he manages a knockdown back inside. The tag brings in McIntyre for some house cleaning, including a spinebuster for two on Jimmy.

Jey has to break up the Claymore attempt and Jimmy knocks Drew to the floor, setting up back to back Uso dives. McIntyre gets sent into the steps and we take a break. Back with Jey hitting the running Umaga Attack in the corner but McIntyre runs Jimmy over. The hot tag brings in Sheamus to clean house, including seventeen forearms to Jey’s chest.

There’s a knee to Jimmy’s face for two but Jey manages to knock Sheamus down. Sheamus pulls Jey off the top for a crash as everyone else brawls on the floor. McIntyre takes them out so Sami grabs a belt, which is taken away by Owens. The referee pretty easily sees Sami with the belt in the ring and that’s an ejection. The Brogue Kick finishes Jey at 17:18.

Rating: B. It would not surprise me a bit if this was a preview for a Tag Team Title match (it should be with the champs losing) but it is a little weird to see the good guys with the advantage going into WarGames. That isn’t how things usually go, but now we might be in for something all the more interesting with Sami Zayn possibly having some differing loyalties.

Overall Rating: C+. The main focus here was on the men’s WarGames match, but they also had something big with the return of Becky Lynch. I’m more interested in what is happening at Survivor Series than I was coming into this week’s show and that is the best sign from a go home show. The Bloodline saga could get a lot more interesting tomorrow if they go in a certain direction and now I want to see if that is what they do. If that is what WWE was hoping to accomplish tonight, they did it very well.

Results
Santos Escobar b. Butch – Phantom Driver
Viking Raiders b. Hit Row – Ragnarok to Adonis
Ricochet b. Braun Strowman – Crucifix
Ronda Rousey/Shayna Baszler b. Raquel Rodriguez/Shotzi – Armbar to Rodriguez
Sheamus/Drew McIntyre b. Usos – Brogue Kick to Jey

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

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Smackdown
Date: November 18, 2022
Location: XL Center, Hartford, Connecticut
Commentators: Michael Cole, Wade Barrett

Survivor Series is next week and odds are we find out what we are going to be getting in the men’s WarGames match. You can probably guess one of the teams but we are going to need another team to oppose them. The rest of the show could use some work too though and we might be getting something like that tonight. Let’s get to it.

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

Here are the Brawling Brutes and Drew McIntyre for a chat, likely about their officially announced WarGames match against the Bloodline. Sheamus checks his mic in a callback to last week before asking how many times he and McIntyre have been to war. They have known each other for twenty years and it has created respect between them. Sheamus even had McIntyre as the best man at his wedding three weeks ago.

The fans chant UCEY but Sheamus says they want a Brutey. Drew: “Did you just say Brutey?” Sheamus wants McIntyre to be an honorary Brute in WarGames and McIntyre is down. Cool moment, though it might have been a bit better if they hadn’t shown McIntyre in the graphic when they came to the ring. They’re ready for WarGames, but they need a fifth member. That will be….interrupted by Sami Zayn, calling them “his dogs”.

Sami says the Bloodline is feeling pretty ucey about WarGames because you’re talking to the master strategist, the Honorary Uce and…..Ucey In The Sky With Diamonds. He guarantees that the Bloodline will win WarGames and if Butch is ready, they can go earlier than expected tonight. Sheamus thinks Sami will have a problem with the fifth man, because it’s the last person he’s going to expect. Sami continues to mine gold with Ucey, but they better have someone good for the fifth man.

Smackdown World Cup First Round: Mustafa Ali vs. Ricochet

Ali has taped up ribs after Bobby Lashley wrecked him on Raw and is wrestling against doctor’s/Ricochet’s recommendations. Ricochet takes him down to start and Ali’s ribs are already bothering him. Ali grabs him in the corner but a reluctant Ricochet elbows his way out of trouble. That doesn’t work for Ali, who hits him in the back of the head to take over. A top rope Backstabber sends Ricochet outside and we take a break.

Back with Ali in trouble off a superplex during the break but still managing a headscissors. A running dropkick sends Ricochet to the floor and a good looking sling shot dive….is pulled out of the air. Ricochet Michinoku Drivers him on the floor (ouch) but the Phoenix splash misses inside.

Ali’s Koji Clutch sends Ricochet over to the ropes so he blasts Ali with a heck of a discus lariat. A moonsault gives Ricochet two and he goes to the ribs to cut off Ali’s comeback. The ribs are fine enough to grab a tornado DDT but the 450 takes too long to set up. Ricochet goes up as Ali is getting to his feet and hits a shooting star crossbody (Kind of?) to finish Ali at 11:02.

Rating: B-. Ali was selling the heck out of his ribs here and even teased going to the dark side to compensate for his injury. That being said, there was no reason to have Ricochet even come close to losing here so they went with the smart idea. Ricochet was even mocked by Gunther last week so he has a personal reason to keep moving forward.

Respect is shown post match.

Jey Uso yells at Sami Zayn for speaking for the Bloodline and guaranteeing a win in WarGames. Jimmy finally gets involved and says they need to be on the same page before Roman Reigns arrives. Sami is told to chill and seems ok, complete with a special handshake with Jimmy as Jey glares.

We look at the Usos retaining over the New Day last week.

New Day is disappointed but Imperium comes in to say New Day is everything wrong with wrestling. Woods says they’ll get a partner.

Emma gives Madcap Moss some water as Moss is upset over getting choked out three weeks ago. She seems to believe in him.

Madcap Moss vs. Karrion Kross

Scarlett is here with Kross. Moss goes right after him to start and stomps away in the corner as we get a graphic with both of their names and faces. Simple, effective, tells fans who they are without wasting any time. Do more things like that. Back up and Kross runs him over, setting up a release tiger suplex. Scarlett even gets in a slap, which fires Moss up enough to run Kross over with a shoulder. Some running shoulders in the corner have Kross in trouble but a Scarlett distraction lets Kross get in a cheap shot. The Krossjacket goes on and Moss can’t power out, setting up the tap at 3:45.

Rating: C. This was more about dealing with Moss having troubles lately and needing someone, perhaps like Emma, to help him with those troubles. At the same time, Kross seems destined to move on to something bigger so there was no reason for him to be in trouble here. Moss did his thing but Kross weathered the storm and won, like he should have.

Kross takes his time letting go and Emma runs down to check on Moss.

Here is Bray Wyatt to make amends. Bray talks about being conditioned a certain way and it makes you feel like changing is impossible. Then last week he got a little too violent on LA Knight and wants to apologize. Cue Knight, who says that he might have earned some respect by not being afraid of Wyatt last week. Knight says respect is the most valuable quantity around here and slaps Wyatt in the face. That makes them even but Wyatt looks ready to snap.

Wyatt says ok, they’re even, and he’s going to fight the urges of what he wants to do to Knight. Now though, Knight has a decision to make that will affect the rest of his life. Wyatt extends his hand but Knight slaps him again, saying he has been waiting all week to do that. Wyatt stares him down as the Titantron behind Knight starts to go all wacky. This should work well for Wyatt’s first match back.

We look back at Shayna Baszler and Ronda Rousey beating down Shotzi last week.

The Usos ask Karrion Kross if he is the fifth member but Jimmy doesn’t think so. Kross says he isn’t a follower but he’ll come for Roman Reigns’ titles on his own time.

Shayna Baszler vs. Shotzi

Ronda Rousey is here with Baszler. Baszler knocks her down to start and strikes away until Shotzi fights up. Rousey trips Shotzi up though and the beating is back on. Shotzi fights up again but this time Rousey messes with the hair. An enziguri gets Shotzi out of trouble but she goes after Rousey, allowing Shayna to grab a German suplex.

Shotzi makes her third comeback with the hip attack against the ropes but Rousey offers her fourth distraction so Shayna can knocks Shotzi into the corner. Cue Raquel Rodriguez to even things up so Shayna yells at her. That’s enough of a distraction for Shotzi to avoid the arm stomp and roll Shayna up for the pin at 4:55.

Rating: C+. The action here was just ok but they put the match together well. Yes Shotzi won off a distraction rollup, but it was a case of her fighting through a lot of cheating before winning when things evened out a bit. Also note that Rodriguez didn’t do anything to Baszler, who got mad all on her own. This kept Shotzi looking strong, even if she is going to get smashed by Rousey.

LA Knight tries to leave, but he is NOT scared of Bray Wyatt.

Post break and Knight is out cold in the back with a bunch of stuff on top of him.

Imperium vs. New Day/Braun Strowman

The brawl is on before the bell and Kofi tries the trust fall, only to get pulled out of the air. Imperium drops him onto the apron so Woods loads up a dive of his own. Gunther cuts that off with a chop but Strowman comes in and we ring the bell. That’s enough for Gunther to bail as we take an early break.

Back with Woods fighting out of trouble and kicking Kaiser away, allowing the tag off to Strowman. Gunther comes in as well and Strowman chases him around the ring, shouldering various people down on the way. Back in and Gunther has to escape a powerslam, setting up the big chop. A spinebuster gives Strowman two but Gunther slips out of the Monster Bomb. The double tag brings in Kaiser and Kofi but a blind tag allows Woods to hit the Midnight Hour for the pin at 7:21.

Rating: C+. This was a fun one with Strowman coming in as the wrecking machine that even has Gunther thinking twice. They are doing a very nice job of tying the tournament in to other stuff so that it feels more important, along with teasing people going after Gunther. Some interference next week to cost Strowman the match wouldn’t shock me and WWE planted the seeds for it here.

Strowman heads to the back where he runs into Ricochet, who doesn’t think Strowman is winning the tournament. Ricochet dubs himself a flippy flipper (Ricochet: “Your words not mine”) and says Strowman will have some trouble with him.

Smackdown World Cup First Round: Sami Zayn vs. Pete Dunne

The respective groups are here too. Butch hammers away to start but charges into a powerbomb. That’s enough for Dunne to be sent outside but he’s right back in with a tornado DDT for two. Sami knocks him outside and we take an early break. Back with Sami hitting the Blue Thunder Bomb as everyone else gets in a fight on the floor. Sami cuts off a comeback with an exploder suplex into the corner but Sheamus throws Jey Uso inside, breaking up the Helluva Kick. The Bitter End gives Butch the pin at 7:49.

Rating: C+. There is only so much you can get when such a big chunk of the match was taking place during the break. Butch winning is going to cause some problems with the Bloodline and that is where things should get interesting. Sami is someone who can lose a match or two and not be hurt, so Butch going forward was the right move.

Post match the big brawl stays on but Roman Reigns comes out to wreck things. McIntyre takes the shirt off and wants the big fight but Solo Sikoa offers a distraction. The spear drops McIntyre so Sheamus wants a fight of his own. The slugout is on with Reigns hitting a Superman Punch….and it’s Kevin Owens (limping a bit) for the staredown with Reigns, apparently as the fifth man.

The knee is good enough to hit a superkick on Jimmy Uso before Owens goes inside for the fight with Reigns. After Roman is cleared out, Sami comes in for the big distraction, allowing Reigns to hit the Superman Punch on Owens. The spear is cut off though and it’s a Stunner to Reigns to end the show. They’re doing a great job of building up an army of people who could take the title from Reigns. The walls might be starting to close in.

Overall Rating: B-. This was a show where it was more about setting things up for later rather than what was going on here. That is the kind of show you need at times and they made it work well this week. What mattered here was setting up WarGames but also making the tournament feel that much more important. Tournaments matches are tied into something else or at least build up in some way and now that is paying some dividends. This might not have been the best show, but it was a very well set up one.

Results
Ricochet b. Mustafa Ali – Shooting star press
Karrion Kross b. Madcap Moss – Krossjacket
Shotzi b. Shayna Baszler – Rollup
New Day/Braun Strowman b. Imperium – Midnight Hour to Kaiser
Butch b. Sami Zayn – Bitter End

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

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AND

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Smackdown
Date: November 11, 2022
Location: Gainbridge Fieldhouse, Indianapolis, Indiana
Commentators: Michael Cole, Wade Barrett

We have just over two weeks to go before Survivor Series and that card has started to come together. We have most of the participants set for the women’s WarGames match so maybe this week we can get someone set up for the men’s. Other than that, New Day is challenging the Usos in the hopes of saving their Tag Team Title record. Let’s get to it.

Here is Crown Jewel if you need a recap.

We open with a recap of Roman Reigns retaining the World Title over Logan Paul at Crown Jewel.

Opening sequence.

Tag Team Titles: New Day vs. Usos

The Usos are defending and they’re starting big here. Jey, with his hand taped, starts with Woods and they stare each other down a bit. Woods grabs a headlock as we hear about the histories between the teams. Kofi springboards in with a crossbody for two on Jey but it’s off to Jimmy with a right hand to the face. Everything breaks down and Kofi hits a Trust Fall onto both Usos as we take a break.

We come back with Jey hitting a suicide dive to send Kofi into the barricade and then whipping him into it again for a bonus. The fans want Sami, who is apparently missing due to a personal issue. We slow down a bit to Kofi being sent into the corner, setting up a wishbone leg split. A middle rope dropkick gets Kofi out of trouble though and Jey gets kicked away, only to have Jimmy pull Woods off the apron in a classic move. The pop up neckbreaker gives Jey two and we take a break.

Back again with Kofi fighting out of a chinlock and making the hot tag to Woods so house can be cleaned. Kofi hits a splash to set up a good looking Woods top rope legdrop for two. The Boom Drop connects on Jimmy but Jey makes a blind tag. That’s fine with Kofi who hits the SOS for two. Frustration is setting in as it’s off to Woods, who gets superkicked down to set up the double Superfly Splash. The 1D is broken up though and the Midnight Hour hits Jey on the floor.

Back in and a tornado DDT to Jimmy sets up the Midnight Hour for two as Jey makes a VERY last second save for two. The four of them stand up and slug it out with Woods being sent outside and superkicked over the barricade. That leaves Kofi to be sat up top where he goes old school with a double noggin knocker. Kofi tries a diving something, only to land in the 1D to retain the titles at 23:47.

Rating: A-. Yeah these guys are awesome together and this was no exception, as they had a long, pay per view quality tag match. I know it’s been done before and I’ve not been wild on seeing them fight again, but this should have been the final match to give the Usos the record. Unless there is some surprise Tag Team Title match on Monday (and there might be), New Day’s record has fallen and it happened after a great match.

Roman Reigns and company are pleased in the back as the Usos show some respect after the match.

Post break the Usos go in to see Reigns, who says it feels good. Now though, Reigns is going to handle something, but he wants the Usos by his side. It is time to handle some business in the ring live tonight. The Usos are with him.

Smackdown World Cup First Round: Shinsuke Nakamura vs. Santos Escobar

The rest of Legado del Fantasma is here with Escobar. They run the ropes to start until Nakamura knocks him outside as we take an early break. Back with Escobar working on the knee until Nakamura manages a kick to the head. The sliding German suplex drops Escobar again but Escobar is back with la majistral for two. That’s fine with Nakamura, who is back up with a middle rope knee for two of his own. The reverse German suplex drops Escobar again but Nakamura has to deal with Legado. Escobar catches him on top back inside though and it’s a super Phantom Driver for the pin at 8:19.

Rating: C+. I wouldn’t have bet on that one but it is nice to see Escobar get moved forward, at least a little ways. While I can’t imagine Escobar winning the whole thing, it is nice to see him getting a win like this as Nakamura isn’t going to take any kind of a hit. Good match too, even if it ended off of a pretty basic interference.

Veterans Day video.

LA Knight is mad about not being in the World Cup but the video monitor behind him keeps glitching in a Bray Wyatt style. Then he turns back around and Wyatt himself is waiting on him. Wyatt says now that they have been introduced, they can be friends. For his entire life, Bray has been told that his rage will make a monster out of him, but for the longest time, he has pretended to not be proud of the things that he does. Knight doesn’t care, so Bray drops him with a single shot and leaves. Knight isn’t sure where Wyatt went. As usual, Wyatt was a bit odd, but having him interact with another wrestler is a bit of a step forward.

Liv Morgan vs. Lacey Evans vs. Raquel Rodriguez vs. Shotzi vs. Sonya Deville vs. Xia Li

For a shot at Ronda Rousey at Survivor Series and one fall to a finish. It’s a brawl to start and Evans blasts Li with a Woman’s Right for two, with Deville making the save with a running knee. Liv makes a save of her own and sends Deville outside, where Liv can start messing with the steps. Deville is back up to send Liv face first into the steps, leaving the other four to fight inside. Rodriguez hits a delayed superplex to Li, with Deville running back in to steal a near fall.

We take a break and come back with Liv hitting a middle rope dropkick on Li and firing off some running backsplashes in the corner. Deville comes back in to send Liv outside but it’s not enough to steal a pin on Rodriguez. Li kicks Evans down but Rodriguez hits Li with the Tejana Bomb.

Deville and Rodriguez take turns trying to get the pin….and let’s have a table, just because. Liv dives off the barricade to hit Rodriguez, who slams into the side of the table (that didn’t look good). The camera stays on Morgan, Deville and Rodriguez down on the floor for a good bit as the fans chant for the table. Back in and Shotzi hits Never Wake Up for the pin on Evans at 11:30.

Rating: C. This was the kind of a mess that you get with six people in the ring at once but that landing with the three of them on the floor was a bit weird. If nothing else, keeping the camera on them for that long was odd and the match ended out of nowhere after the spot. Shotzi is a good pick for a one off title shot though, even if she won it in such an all over the place match.

Post break Emma comes up to Shotzi in the back and offers congratulations. Emma asks if Shotzi has seen Madcap Moss, with Shotzi thinking Emma has a thing for him. With Emma gone, Shayna Baszler comes up to say Ronda Rousey will wreck her at Survivor Series. Shotzi isn’t worried, but Ronda Rousey pops up for a distraction so Shayna can choke Shotzi out. Simple heeling there.

Ricochet has Mustafa Ali in the first round of the World Cup and knows what it takes. Imperium comes in to mock Ricochet for thinking he can win. Gunther hopes Ricochet can win so Gunther can beat him again.

Video on Braun Strowman beating Omos at Crown Jewel.

Smackdown World Cup First Round: Jinder Mahal vs. Braun Strowman

Mahal promises to win, jumps him before the bell and even manages to kick out the knee. Strowman is back up with a shoulder t othe floor, followed by the running shoulder on the floor. Back in and a powerbomb finishes for Strowman at 1:48.

B Fab vs. Zelina Vega

The rest of Hit Row and Legado del Fantasma are here…..and we’re cut off by the Viking Raiders, complete with the still unidentified woman on the stage. The Raiders clean house and the woman is identified as Sarah Logan as she beats up B Fab. Total destruction and no match.

We look at Roman Reigns beating Logan Paul again.

Here is the Bloodline for whatever Roman Reigns needs to say. Paul Heyman talks about being on the private jet with Reigns on the way to this h*** hole….and we now pause for booing. Paul: “Indianapolis, that’s not very Ucey of you.” Heyman talks about all of the great sports rivalries that play out on Fox, such as the United States vs. the UK in soccer and the Cowboys vs. the Packers coming up this weekend. You have the Usos vs. New Day and Heyman can’t keep a straight face as he says that isn’t a rivalry at all.

Reigns talks about how difficult it is to be his cousin and he thought this moment would ever come. He addresses the Usos….and here are the Brawling Brutes to interrupt. Ridge Holland talks about the Bloodline using their numbers advantage very week. Well tonight it’s fight night, and they have backup. Cue the returning Sheamus…and his mic keeps cutting in and out.

Sheamus seems to say this is the start of the end of the Bloodline. Reigns mocks the mic screwing up so Sheamus says he’ll say it to Reigns’ face. The Bloodline beats him down but Drew McIntyre comes in for the save. McIntyre fights off most of them but Reigns kicks him in the face. Sheamus is back up for the slugout with Reigns and the big brawl ends the show. Why is that so rare in WWE? End on something hot, not with everything wrapped up. Anyway, there’s WarGames, maybe with Kevin Owens and Sami Zayn completing the field.

Overall Rating: B. The opener was great and everything else was good enough to make this a breezy two hours. They also had people come back and a big match is all but set for the pay per view. Good show here, as it feels like they have a plan going into a major show other than Wrestlemania. That seems to be a trend about the HHH regime and it is as welcome of a change as I could ask to see.

Results
Usos b. New Day – 1D to Kingston
Santos Escobar b. Shinsuke Nakamura – Super Phantom Driver
Shotzi b. Liv Morgan, Lacey Evans, Xia Li, Sonya Deville and Raquel Rodriguez – Never Wake Up to Evans
Braun Strowman b. Jinder Mahal – Powerbomb

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

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Smackdown
Date: October 21, 2022
Location: Huntington Center, Toledo, Ohio
Commentators: Michael Cole, Wade Barrett

We are just over two weeks away from Crown Jewel and that means Logan Paul is back tonight. That means we might be in for another kind of weird segment, but hopefully Paul Heyman will be there to walk him through it. The feud feels rather cold going into the match and I don’t know how to fix that. Let’s get to it.

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

Sheamus vs. Solo Sikoa

The rest of the Brawling Brutes, Sami Zayn and the Usos are here too. During the Brutes’ entrance, Bray Wyatt hacks the feed but commentary doesn’t acknowledge it this time. They hit each other hard to start and Sikoa is already needing a breather on the floor. Back in and Sheamus knocks him down again, setting up an armbar. Sikoa fights up and hits a spinwheel kick before sending Sheamus outside and we take a break.

Back with Sikoa hitting a running Umaga attack in the corner but another attempt is cut off by a clotheslines. Sheamus, favoring his arm, grabs an Irish Curse for a breather and uses his good arm for a powerslam. The ten forearms connect and it’s time for everyone to brawl on the floor. The Usos turn the announcers’ table on the Brutes so Sheamus dives off the top onto the two of them. A Sami distraction lets Sikoa kick him in the bad arm and it’s the Swinging Solo for the pin at 13:05.

Rating: C+. WWE is already doing a good job with Sikoa by just having him win. It’s really not that hard and this is the biggest win of his main roster career. While he might not be a game changer, he already feels like he belongs on the main roster and could be a safe bet on his own whenever the Bloodline wraps up. Sheamus will be back for revenge and a WarGames showdown with the Bloodline isn’t the worst idea.

Post match the beatdown stays on Sheamus and Jey uses a chair to crush it on the steps over and over, with Sami having to break it up because it’s over.

We recap Rey Mysterio becoming the new #1 contender to the Intercontinental Title last week.

Earlier today, Imperium didn’t think much of Mysterio so he challenged Ludwig Kaiser to a match later.

We go backstage to find Bray Wyatt, who talks about how confessing some things to the fans might help them. He has always had problems with anger and sometimes it can take him to places he doesn’t want to go. For some reason, he gets chances that most people won’t get but this time, he was happy and content. All he wanted to be was to be left alone but he confesses that he is glad he came back. He needed everyone to pull him up and he is thankful for that.

Now he can see and he knows who you are and what you are trying to do. He confesses that on this journey, he is going to do horrible things that he will never feel sorry over. Bray knows where the circle takes him. No word on who the “you” he was talking about is. This still feels like something we’ll get a piece at a time and still not have the whole picture, which is pretty standard for Wyatt.

The Bloodline celebrates Solo Sikoa’s win and Jey Uso is ready to take Logan Paul apart. Sami Zayn says hang on though, as Roman Reigns has told the Bloodline to keep their hands off Paul. It wouldn’t be very Ucey to let Paul in their heads, which Jey agrees with, but he doesn’t like being called a hothead.

Liv Morgan vs. Sonya Deville

This is fallout from Deville ranting about Morgan getting one opportunity handed to her after another last week. Morgan takes her into the corner to start and grabs a backslide for less than one. Back up and Deville hits a knee to the face for two and Morgan gets kicked off the apron as we take a break.

We come back with Deville charging into an elbow to the face and an enziguri puts her down. Deville gets in a shot to the face of her own for two and yells at Morgan, who completely snaps and sends her outside. A face plant onto the announcers’ table and some rams into the steps have Deville rocked but it’s a double countout at 8:45.

Rating: C-. So apparently we’re still doing the Morgan being all aggressive and insane stuff which didn’t quite work going into Extreme Rules and I don’t know how well it will work after. If WWE wants Morgan to be a big deal, let her win big matches without shenanigans and see what happens. Until then, I don’t know how well this is going to work but it seems to be what we are getting.

Post match Morgan snaps and throws in a bunch of chairs, setting up a superplex to send Deville into said chairs. So yeah, Morgan is still all insane and violence hungry.

Video on LA Knight.

The Viking Raiders are still coming back.

Here is Braun Strowman for a chat and he wastes no time in calling out Omos and MVP. Cue only MVP, who says Strowman needs to stay away from a real giant like Omos before he gets exposed. Strowman is tired of the talk and issues the challenge for Crown Jewel, with MVP accepting. Cue Omos for the big staredown and a shove sends Strowman outside. That match was pretty clearly coming and it was just a matter of announcing it.

Sheamus has been taken to the hospital.

We look at Drew McIntyre attacking Karrion Kross last week.

Drew has been told to stay away from Kross and he will…..until they meet in a cage match at Crown Jewel.

Women’s Tag Team Titles: Shotzi/Raquel Rodriguez vs. Damage Ctrl

Damage Ctrl, with Bayley, is defending and it’s Rodriguez starting with Sky (with commentary thankfully bringing up their NXT history). Rodriguez goes straight to the power to start and sends her outside for the Shotzi dive. Back in and Shotzi hits a running elbow in the corner but Sky comes in for a shot of her own as we take a break.

We come back with Shotzi kneeing her way to freedom and handing it back to Rodriguez to clean house. A superplex is broken up though and Sky hits a great looking top rope tornado DDT for two. Everything breaks down and Shotzi has to deck Bayley, allowing Sky to hit an Air Raid Crash. The moonsault retains the titles at 10:12.

Rating: C+. This got better as it went on and it’s still amazing how much better of a partner Shotzi is than Aliyah. Shotzi and Rodriguez don’t have the best chemistry but they are capable of having a better match together by a wide margin. Damage Ctrl is a good choice for champions, though Bayley needs to win a title of her own sooner than later.

Ronda Rousey is asked about an open challenge tonight but she doesn’t want to do it. We’ll do it next week instead. And she’s rather mad.

The Bray Wyatt mask hacks the screen and we see some scrambled images, including another QR code. Then we see what looks to be an old cowboy who says “howdy”, though we don’t see his face.

Santos Escobar is given a drink and talks about how businesses grow into an empire. Legado del Fantasma latest acquisition is Zelina Vega, who talks about how they’re going to take over everything, starting with Hit Row.

Hit Row is watching and wants to know how Legado is standing head and shoulders over them when the tallest member of the team only comes up to Top Dolla’s shoulder. That was a great line.

Ludwig Kaiser vs. Rey Mysterio

The rest Imperium is here too as Rey starts with an enziguri and some right hands. Giovanni Vinci breaks up the 619 attempt though and Rey has to stop to shout at Gunther. There’s a baseball slide to Kaiser but he’s right back up with an uppercut as we take a break. Back with Rey blocking a top rope superplex and hitting the top rope seated senton. A Lionsault gives Rey two and he rains down some right hands in the corner.

There’s a hurricanrana to send Kaiser outside, where Kaiser ducks a dive to send Rey crashing into the barricade. Imperium goes after Rey, who feigns being attacked (cue Eddie Guerrero reference) so the other two are ejected. Rey goes up for a top rope splash but only hits raised knees. Not that it matters as Rey is right back with the 619 into the springboard splash for the pin at 11:20.

Rating: B-. This is where Mysterio continues to shine. He has been one of the best for the last few decades and somehow can still do stuff like this in his late 40s. At the same time you have Kaiser, who is quite the fit as the henchman who could be dangerous enough to beat someone on the right night. Good stuff here and Mysterio looked more like his old self (ten years older, not twenty five of course).

Here is Logan Paul for his big moment. Paul knows he is supposed to address the hard cams but first he needs to say it is nice to be back in Ohio. As for the Bloodline, Paul doesn’t have anyone in his corner, like two guys who look alike, a guy named Solo who is never alone or someone like Sami Zayn…..whatever he is. Of course he’s the underdog in this whole fight, but what happens if he wins? What happens then?

Cue Jey Uso to jump Paul from behind and the beatdown is on. Sami Zayn comes in to try to cool Jey down but Paul is back up to knock Jey silly with a single right hand (Sami is stunned). Paul escapes as Sami knows they’re in trouble (remember Reigns told him not to go after Paul to end the show.

Overall Rating: B-. Kind of an up and down show and while the Paul stuff was better, it wasn’t quite good enough to make me care about the title match. The lack of Reigns didn’t help things but the Jey Uso stuff is good enough to drag things forward next week. Other than that, the Mysterio vs. Kaiser match was good and the Wyatt segment still has me wondering where it’s going. Just get through Crown Jewel so we can move away from the Paul title shot and get on to WarGames.

Results
Solo Sikoa b. Sheamus – Swinging Solo
Liv Morgan vs. Sonya Deville went to a double countout
Damage Ctrl b. Raquel Rodriguez/Shotzi – Moonsault to Shotzi
Rey Mysterio b. Ludwig Kaiser – Springboard splash

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

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NXT
Date: October 18, 2022
Location: Capitol Wrestling Center, Orlando, Florida
Commentators: Booker T, Vic Joseph

It’s the go home show for Halloween Havoc and that means it is time for the final push towards the show. In this case that means we have some main roster stars in some Pick Your Poison matches for Cora Jade and Roxanne Perez. Other than that, we need one more night to set up the triple threat NXT Title match, which certainly needs the help. Let’s get to it.

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

Rhea Ripley vs. Roxanne Perez

The rest of Judgment Day is here with Ripley, who is Cora Jade’s pick to face Perez. The fans are glad to see Rhea and think she is going to kill Perez, rather enthusiastically really. Perez goes for the wristlock to little avail and the spinning headscissors doesn’t work. A chop just makes Ripley mad so she headbutts Perez in the ribs. Ripley forearms her into the back and is starting to look rather comfortable.

A quick hurricanrana sends Ripley outside but she moves before Perez can dive. Instead Perez tries another hurricanrana off the apron, earning herself a HARD face first drop onto the apron as we take a break. Back with Ripley holding her in a waistlock and driving in forearms to the back of Perez’s head. Perez fights up and fires off some kicks to the leg but an armdrag is blocked.

One heck of a missed charge sends Ripley shoulder first into the post, setting up Perez’s suicide dive. Perez slips out of a superplex attempt back inside and grabs a super hurricanrana for two. Another charge is countered into a faceplant for two and Ripley is stunned off the kickout. Riptide and Pop Rox are both broken up so Dominik Mysterio distracts Perez, allowing Riptide to give Ripley the pin at 12:47.

Rating: B-. Perez is looking more and more like a star every day as she is hanging in there with big names, from Bayley on Smackdown last week and Ripley here. Ripley winning, especially via cheating, is a fine way to go and she got to look dominant again in doing so. What mattered here was making Perez look good and they pulled that off rather well.

The OC aren’t sure about teaming with Cameron Grimes. Then Grimes pulls out a bunch of money and now they’re ready to go to the moon.

Here are Tony D’Angelo and Stacks, with the former having a mystery opponent. We’ll see who that is….after a break.

Grayson Waller is ready to get rid of Apollo Crews. Then Chucky from Child’s Play pops up on screen to taunt him about Spin The Wheel, Make The Deal. Waller is freaked out.

Stacks vs. Shinsuke Nakamura

Now there’s a surprise and the fans are rather glad to see him. Stacks grabs a headlock to start and hammers away to little effect. Nakamura remembers that he’s fighting Stacks and kicks away without much trouble. Some right hands actually put Nakamura down though and the chinlock goes on. That’s broken up and Nakamura wins the strike off without much effort. The sliding German suplex gives Nakamura two but he can’t keep a cross armbreaker. Stacks is back up with another shot but Nakamura kicks him in the head. Kinshasa sends Stacks outside, followed by another to finish him off at 5:22.

Rating: C. Nakamura being back is a nice surprise, but it’s more than a little weird to see Stacks getting in that much offense on him. This actually wasn’t a squash, but rather Stacks being overwhelmed by someone on a much higher level. I’m not sure I get the story here, though hopefully it doesn’t involve Stacks being split off on his own.

Nathan Frazer and Axiom reminisce on their best of three series when Von Wagner, with Mr. Stone, comes in. Wagner mocks them and gets a match with Frazer as a result.

Sonya Deville vs. Alba Fyre

Deville has Jacy Jayne and Gigi Dolin with her. Neither can hit a kick to start so Fyre headbutts her into the corner. Deville pulls Fyre off the middle rope though and the crash is good for two. A faceplant drops Deville though and Fyre goes up top. That doesn’t work as she has to beat up Toxic Attraction, with Deville accidentally helping by kicking Dolin in the face. A rollup gives Fyre the pin at 2:09.

Post match Toxic Attraction gets back in to go after Fyre, with Mandy Rose making her return to say she she’s ready for Fyre. That’s enough for Fyre to come back with the bat on the other two, before shoving an invading Rose out to the floor.

Oro Mensah and Wes Lee are in the back when Carmelo Hayes and Trick Williams come in to start a brawl. They fight into the arena and you know what that means.

Oro Mensah/Wes Lee vs. Carmelo Hayes/Trick Williams

We’re joined in progress with Lee headlocking Williams, who fights up with some forearms. Hayes comes in and gets missile dropkicked down by Mensah. Williams trips Mensah down though and Williams gets to stomp away. That doesn’t last long and it’s Lee coming back in to strike away on Hayes. Everything breaks down and Hayes hits a top rope ax kick to finish Lee at 2:52. Short and to the point here, which was “these people are in a ladder match on Saturday so here they are”.

Post match the brawl stays on, with Nathan Frazer running in. Some dives leave everyone laying.

Schism doesn’t like Cameron Grimes running from them over to the OC. No one is stopping them of course.

Bron Breakker is ready to go through JD McDonagh and Ilja Dragunov. As for tonight, he is looking forward to being on the KO Show, because he knows something is going to happen.

Schism vs. OC/Cameron Grimes

Grimes throws Reid around to start and kicks him in the face so it’s off to Fowler, who has about the same luck. Fowler gets taken into the corner and Anderson comes in to work on the arm. Some elbows from Gallows make it worse but a blind tag brings in Reid, who knees Anderson from the apron. Anderson gets beaten down on the floor, meaning it’s time for some Schism hugs. Back in and Anderson wins a slugout with Reid, which is enough for the hot tag to Grimes. Everything breaks down and Schism is knocked outside and we take a break.

We come back with Grimes crossbodying Gacy for two but getting elbowed back down. Grimes can’t quite suplex his way to freedom but he can crawl through Fowler’s legs and bring Gallows in to clean house. Everything breaks down and Reid has to save Fowler from the Magic Killer. Gacy hits Grimes with a backbreaker but Anderson drops him with a neckbreaker. Grimes hits a Cage In and the Magic Killer finishes Reid at 11:56.

Rating: C+. Now LET IT BE OVER. There is no reason for Grimes to be dragged down any more than he already has been by this stupid feud and it needs to end. Gacy is fine enough as a midcard heel but Grimes is someone who could be a big deal in more than one place. That isn’t going to happen with Schism so move on already.

Veer Mahaan isn’t going to say what he said to Sanga last week. Sanga comes in and is ready to talk.

Video on Katana Chance/Kayden Carter vs. Zoey Stark/Nikkita Lyons.

We get the contract signing for the Women’s Tag Team Title match, with Lyons and Stark signing while saying they’re ready to take the titles. Carter and Chance sign as well, saying they’re a real team.

We get a split screen interview between Julius Creed and Damon Kemp, with Julius being ready to fight for his brother’s career. He isn’t intimidated by Kemp and is ready to take him out in an ambulance for what he did to Diamond Mine. Kemp says Creed may be great, but he’s also jealous. That has Julius chuckling, because Kemp isn’t willing to put in the work to be great. Kemp says this is about violence and not skill, but Julius promises to put Kemp in an ambulance on Saturday before storming off.

Shotzi is back to host Halloween Havoc again this year. The fans are rather glad to see her again and she is ready to be all weird and evil. She needs a co-host though so here is Xyon Quinn to say it should be him. Quincy Elliott is here to say the same, so let’s just have a match for the gig.

Quincy Elliott vs. Xyon Quinn

Joined in progress with Quinn hitting a clothesline as Shotzi sits in on commentary. The chinlock doesn’t last long as Elliott is back up with a running elbow. Quinn tries a Samoan drop but Elliott falls on him. Elliott’s splash misses though and Quinn tries for a chair, only to have Hank Walker cut him off. Back in and Elliott hits a splash, setting up a Banzai drop for the pin at 2:53.

Thea Hail is upset over her loss to Kiana James and freaks out in need of a rematch. Andre Chase says they’ll talk about it later and goes over the history of Halloween Havoc, with moments like Hulk Hogan beating Ric Flair, Goldberg vs. Diamond Dallas Page, Rey Mysterio vs. Eddie Guerrero and Mandy Rose winning the NXT Women’s Title. Their homework is to watch Halloween Havoc, but Chucky pops up on screen to threaten them via swearing, because that is a teachable moment. Hail: “What the F***???” Chase and Bodie Hayward are stunned. As usual, funny stuff.

Pretty Deadly sign their contract for the Tag Team Title match next week. Edris Enofe and Malik Blade aren’t so sure that Pretty Deadly is leaving with the titles.

Cora Jade vs. Raquel Rodriguez

This is the other Pick Your Poison match. Rodriguez backs her into the corner to start so Jade chills on the top. Jade gets dropped face first onto the top turnbuckle and the chops against the announcers’ table make it worse. Back in and Jade manages to get in a few shots before grabbing the baseball bat. Rodriguez takes it away so Jade slaps her in the face. That’s enough for a bat shot to Jade and the DQ at 2:43.

Post match Roxanne Perez comes in and beats Jade up to send her running. Rodriguez puts Perez on her shoulder to celebrate.

Halloween Havoc rundown.

Brooks Jensen and Josh Briggs are hosting a party in the back to watch the KO Show and put down some bets on what various people are going to say about Saturday. Sol Ruca walks by on her hands and it’s time to drink. This was a weird collection of cameos.

It’s time for the KO Show for the big finale. Without any introductions, here are Bron Breakker, JD McDonagh and Ilja Dragunov for a chat. Owens talks about how Shawn Michaels wanted him here, oddly enough to keep the peace. McDonagh is asked why he stirs the pot so much but McDonagh says Breakker and Dragunov are the ones who attacked each other last week. Dragunov doesn’t think much of Breakker and promises to take the title from him on Saturday. Breakker: “Over my dead body.”

Owens tries to calm things down, but he doesn’t want McDonagh as the NXT Champion. Owens: “I talked to his mom earlier and SHE doesn’t want him to be NXT Champion!” Dragunov says McDonagh can be great but NEVER a champion. Breakker wants Dragunov in the same category, but Dragunov brings up Breakker actually losing his title.

The challenge is on for right now so Owens takes his leave. Dragunov clears house….and Austin Theory comes out, points at the title, and holds up the briefcase to end the show. Now there’s a twist, and it might be a good thing for Theory. Better this than losing over and over on Raw/Smackdown and eventually becoming a lame champion who is seen as a failure when he doesn’t get over with the title. Good segment overall, as this match needs all the help it can get.

Overall Rating: C+. They were flying through this show and the guest stars didn’t exactly do much, which made the show a bit strange. I get that they were trying to hype up Halloween Havoc and fight back against AEW at the same time, but maybe advertise these names a bit better? The other thing here was that they were moving from one match to another as fast as they could here and little had a chance to set in. I’m not overly excited about Halloween Havoc, but the last segment did make me more interested in the main event. Pretty good show, but I’m not sure how much impact it had.

Results
Rhea Ripley b. Roxanne Perez – Riptide
Shinsuke Nakamura b. Stacks – Kinshasa
Alba Fyre b. Sonya Deville – Rollup
Carmelo Hayes/Trick Williams b. Wes Lee/Oro Mensah – Top rope ax kick to Lee
OC/Cameron Grimes b. Schism – Magic Killer to Reid
Quincy Elliott b. Xyon Quinn – Banzai drop
Cora Jade b. Raquel Rodriguez via DQ when Rodriguez hit her with a baseball bat

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

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

AND

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Smackdown
Date: October 14, 2022
Location: Smoothie King Center, New Orleans, Louisiana
Commentators: Wade Barrett, Michael Cole

We’re on the road to Crown Jewel but this is going to be the Bray Wyatt Show. After not appearing on Monday Night Raw Wyatt is advertised for this week’s show, meaning we might get an idea of what the new version will be like. Other than that, we find out the new #1 contender to the Intercontinental Title so let’s get to it.

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

We open with Scarlett and Karrion Kross having been in a car wreck outside the arena and barely able to walk. Drew McIntyre runs up and jumps Kross, ramming him into the side of a truck over and over, with the trunk being dented. The door is slammed on Kross and referees break it up, with McIntyre shouting that this is just the beginning. Major points for starting with something different for a change.

Opening sequence.

Kofi Kingston vs. Sami Zayn

Before the match, New Day talks about the Usos challenging their Tag Team Title reign. We cut to the back where Jey Uso isn’t happy with Sami Zayn. The phone rings and it’s Roman Reigns, who seems happy with Sami but not happy with Jey. Rather than fighting though, Jey goes along with whatever Reigns (who we can’t hear) is saying. As for the match, Kofi sends him outside to start and we take a break less than a minute in.

Back with Sami hitting a suplex and adding a running Umaga attack in the corner. Sami goes up top, only to be dropkicked out of the air for a big crash. Kofi seems to try a hurricanrana out of the corner but they mistime something, with Sami managing to turn it into a rollup (that was a sweet save and it could have been WAY worse). Sami knocks him off the top and out tot he floor as we take a break.

Back with Sami being sent outside for a change so Kofi can hit a dive. Jimmy Uso drops Woods with a heck of a superkick on the floor, allowing Sami to hit the Blue Thunder Bomb for two. Kofi flips out of a suplex and rolls him up, only to have Jey make the reversal and Sami gets the pin at 14:50.

Rating: B. These two are both better known for their out of the ring antics (or at least well known for them) and I think people forget just how good they are once the bell rings. Kofi vs. Sami is a match that could work well under almost any circumstances because they’re both so talented at what they do. Jey biting the bullet and helping Sami win should calm things down for the time being, but that explosion is coming one day.

HHH is here when Rey Mysterio comes up to him. Rey talks about how bad things are going with Dominik on Monday Night Raw. He doesn’t see a way forward….so he quits. HHH says hang on a second and asks to talk about this in his office.

NXT’s Roxanne Perez is here with Shotzi to pick Cora Jade’s opponent for next week’s NXT. She picks Raquel Rodriguez, but Damage Ctrl comes in. Bayley says she should be the pick, but instead, we’ll have a six woman tag tonight.

Braun Strowman vs. James Maverick/Brian Thomas

The destruction is on but Omos and MVP come through the crowd for a distraction. Strowman doesn’t mind and it’s the powerslam into a powerbomb for the double stack pin at 1:57.

Post match MVP mocks the idea of Strowman being the monster among monsters. Next to Omos, Strowman looks normal. Strowman calls Omos to the ring but MVP seems to think we’ll do this later.

Jey Uso wants Sami Zayn to thank him for that out there but neither Sami nor Solo Sikoa saw it. Sami is happy that Solo is following in his footsteps.

Mansoor vs. LA Knight

Mace and Maxxine Dupri are here too. Knight backdrops him to start and hits a running clothesline to the floor. Mace offers a distraction though, allowing Mansoor to get in a cheap shot. A DDT drops Knight but he’s right back with a jumping neckbreaker. The slingshot shoulder drops Mansoor and BFT (Blunt Force Trauma) gives Knight the pin at 2:52. Knight looked just fine here as usual, making me wonder why they bothered with the Dupri stuff in the first place. I mean ok so the answer is “Vince” but it’s still an odd choice.

Post match Knight mocks the fans for cheering him and puts the locker room on notice. It’s his game so everyone can line up to get their ticket punched.

We look back at Bray Wyatt’s Extreme Rules return.

Damage Ctrl vs. Raquel Rodriguez/Roxanne Perez/Shotzi

Perez and Kai start things off with Perez managing to hit a headscissors. Sky comes in and takes Perez into the corner. That’s broken up and Perez sends her outside for a suicide dive. Back in and it’s off to Shotzi to knock Sky to the floor. Back in and Shotzi gets caught in the wrong corner, only to come back out to send Kai face first into the apron.

The hot tag brings in Rodriguez to clean house, including loading up a powerbomb to Kai on the floor. Sky breaks that up with an Asai moonsault, leaving Shotzi to hit a big dive. Back in and the Bayley to Belly gets two on Perez, leaving Bayley stunned. Bayley goes up top but gets super hurricanranaed right back down. The Rose Plant is countered into a rollup which is countered into a crucifix to give Bayley the pin at 6:42.

Rating: C+. This was all about showcasing Perez and she nailed her part out there. That sequence at the end with Bayley saw her going move for move with an established veteran and I think WWE knows they have something special with her. The other four more or less vanished near the end and let Bayley vs. Perez go, which wound up being great.

We look back at Ronda Rousey taking the Smackdown Women’s Title from Liv Morgan.

The Viking Raiders are coming back.

Legado del Fantasma vs. Hit Row

Santos Escobar/Zelina Vega/B Fab are here too. Hit Row starts the fight in the aisle until Top Dolla throws Cruz del Toro inside for a dancing jumping elbow. Santos Escobar pulls Ashonte Adonis off the apron for a crash into the steps though, albeit by being smart enough to go down as well so the referee doesn’t know what happened. The distraction lets Legado hit Sacrificio to finish Dolla at 1:22.

Sonya Deville trash talks Liv Morgan, who runs in and beats Deville down. Morgan puts her on a table, climbs up a scaffolding and drives through Deville to leave her laying.

Sheamus vs. Solo Sikoa vs. Ricochet vs. Rey Mysterio

The winner gets a future Intercontinental Title shot and Mysterio is replacing an injured Karrion Kross. House is cleaned rather quickly and Rey hits his big dive as we take an early break. Back with Sheamus powerbombing Ricochet as we’re told that Rey is officially part of Smackdown. We get a Sheamus vs. Sikoa showdown and slugout until they fight to the floor.

Sikoa hits a Samoan drop so Rey dives onto him, setting up a showdown with Ricochet back inside. Ricochet flips out of a running hurricanrana but Sikoa is back in to run them over. A running spinwheel kick drops Sheamus and we take another break. Back again with Sikoa still in control until Sheamus knocks him down.

Rey and Ricochet catch Sheamus on top but Sikoa powerbombs the two of them down. Sheamus breaks up Sikoa’s cover with a top rope knee to the back and grabs the Cloverleaf on Sikoa. Cue Jey Uso and Sami Zayn for the save and a beatdown on Sheamus, though they get in a fight over who should get to beat him up. The Brawling Brutes come out to help Sheamus and they all brawl to the back. That leaves Rey to 619 and frog splash Ricochet for the pin at 16:19.

Rating: B. Another match built around action and near carnage and that isn’t a bad thing. Once Mysterio was introduced, it felt like a pretty safe bet that he might be winning but Sheamus being there for a potential trilogy match with Gunther added just enough intrigue. It was fun insanity and that is what you tend to get out of these things.

And now, Bray Wyatt. The lights go out and the door near the entrance opens, with Bray coming out for the full lantern entrance. Bray gets on the mic and says he never thought he would get to be here. This is just him being himself for the first time and he seems rather choked up about this whole thing.

Over the last year, he lost a lot of things, like his grandmother, his career, his self confidence and two people who were very close to him. He thought nothing he ever did mattered and he was wrong. Once he was done feeling sorry for himself, people started asking him to come back. There were people he met who said he helped get them through some tough times and those people would say thank you Bray. Fans: THANK YOU BRAY!

The thing is, he could sit right here and say they were there when he was weak and vulnerable so thank you for saving his life. He talks about the reason things got better….and then the (limited) lights go out. The mask pops up on screen and says to forget the future and follow him. The new Wyatt logo appears and that’s the show. That was definitely different and that’s a good thing, though I’m curious about where it goes. This feels like the kind of story where we’re going to get a little bit each week and that’s not a bad thing.

Overall Rating: B-. Well it wasn’t boring. This was one of those shows where it felt like a lot of stuff was happening but it might take awhile before we see where some of it goes. The opener and main event were both rather good and the Bray promo….well that’s going to get some very polarizing responses. What matters is they moved things forward and added some intrigue throughout the show, so now we wait and see what is going on. As you’re supposed to want to do when a wrestling show ends.

Results
Sami Zayn b. Kofi Kingston – Rollup
Braun Strowman b. James Maverick/Brian Thomas – Double pin
LA Knight b. Mansoor – BFT
Damage Ctrl b. Shotzi/Roxanne Perez/Raquel Rodriguez – Crucifix to Perez
Legado del Fantasma b. Hit Row – Sacrifico to Dolla
Rey Mysterio b. Ricochet, Sheamus and Solo Sikoa – Frog splash to Ricochet

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Impact Wrestling
Date: October 13, 2022
Location: Albany Armory, Albany, New York
Commentators: Matthew Rehwoldt, Tom Hannifan

It’s the Bound For Glory fallout show, as the biggest pay per view of the year ended with Bully Ray as the next challenger to Josh Alexander. Since there was no way to have him show up on Impact and make a challenge, Ray won a twenty man match by pinning Steve Maclin to get the shot. I’m sure nothing but good will come from this. Let’s get to it.

Here is Bound For Glory if you need a recap.

We open with a long recap of Bound For Glory.

Here is Josh Alexander to get things going. The fans are rather glad to see Alexander, who talks about how Eddie Edwards said their match was going to be a war. That is what it was, but now the war is over because here he stands, still the World Champion. He is the champion but he has made mistakes. Now he knows that the next challenger is waiting so Bully Ray, get out here right now.

Cue Bully, who Alexander welcomes back to the company, but wants to know why Ray helped him at Bound For Glory. Bully talks about how he could have stabbed Alexander in the back but didn’t. He has been here longer than he has any other company he has ever worked for, just like he did to Sting, Hulk Hogan, Brooke and his own brother. Ray says he has done it all, but now he needs to do it right. He knows that no one has a good thing to say about him and he wants to change that. Ray isn’t cashing in his title shot like Moose did last year, so Alexander is going to see him coming.

Cue Steve Maclin to interrupt because he doesn’t trust Ray. How exactly did Ray get into Call Your Shot anyway? Maclin talks about how he has done things the right way but now he wants to know what it takes for him to get his title shot. Cue Moose to say Maclin is in the presence of World Champions so step aside. As for Ray, he is a scumbag, but that’s ok, because Moose likes scumbags. Moose learned his bad ways from Ray, just like how he won the title last year.

He would go after Alexander again….but here is Bobby Fish to interrupt as well. Fish agrees that Moose has turned into quite the scumbag himself and Maclin is becoming quite the locker room politician. Sure Ray is a scumbag, but he didn’t scumbag Alexander at Bound For Glory. For tonight though, Fish wants his own match against the champ, with Alexander saying it’s on. This was a good bit longer than it needed to be and hopefully it isn’t the start of a new style.

The Motor City Machine Guns are happy with their win on Before The Impact and they want another Tag Team Title shot. They walk off and run into Heath and Rhino, who are getting a title shot next week. Rhino wants revenge on Honor No More so they’ll get it next week. Don’t worry though, as the Guns can have a title match when they win the belts.

Killer Kelly vs. Tasha Steelz

No DQ and Savannah Evans is here with Steelz. Evans doesn’t waste time by jumping Kelly before the bell to start fast. Kelly gets dropped face first onto the apron but sits up to glare at Steelz for a cool visual. A basement dropkick drops Kelly and it’s time for a chain. With that taking too long, Steelz has to counter an attempt at the Killer Klutch. Kelly gets two off an Alabama Slam and grabs a chair but settles for two off a Death Valley Driver. Evans comes in to grab Kelly but she fights both of them off. Steelz gets in a superkick and grabs the chain, only to get choked into the Killer Klutch for the tap at 6:52.

Rating: C. Kelly winning in what should be the last match of the feud is a good thing but I was expecting a bit more out of a No DQ match. I did like Evans not bothering to just stand around as she got involved from the beginning, but Steelz and Evans are pretty clearly on the downside of their run. Kelly has a charisma that makes me want to watch her and that is a major step towards being a star.

Zicky Dice and Johnny Swinger are bragging when Dirty Dango comes in to say he should cuff them for being stupid. Swinger invites him to Swinger’s Dungeon.

Sami Callihan jumps two guys in yellow because they part of Violent By Design. Good. Get rid of all of them.

Scott D’Amore praises Josh Alexander for his recent efforts but tells him to keep an eye out for Bully Ray.

Black Taurus vs. Trey Miguel vs. Kenny King vs. Alex Zayne vs. Yuya Uemura vs. Laredo Kid

It’s a brawl to start with no one actually getting an entrance. Taurus is sent outside into a pile of people, leaving Zayne to work on King’s wrist. Zayne’s dive is broken up and it’s a series of dives to send us to a break. Back with a bunch of reverse DDTs into King’s Blockbuster, setting up a spinebuster for two on Miguel. Uemura comes in with a high crossbody to King and a super hurricanrana brings Taurus off the top. Back in and Miguel grabs something like a reverse Angle Slam for the pin on Zayne at 5:20.

Rating: B-. The match was the usual insanity that comes with this kind of a scramble match, meaning that it was only going to be so good. You can’t put together any kind of a serious story in something like this as it’s all about flying around and getting in whatever you can. Miguel winning is nice, but it only means so much in a match with this format.

Mike Bailey gives Frankie Kazarian a very respectful congratulation. Trey Miguel comes in to say he’s coming for the title but Kazarian says we’ll see what happens. Bailey continues to be quite less than interesting.

VXT/Gisele Shaw vs. Death Dollz

Jessicka slugs away at Shaw to start and takes her into the wrong corner for the running knees from Taya. Purrazzo comes in and gets caught in Rosemary’s Upside Down, sending Rehwoldt into a frenzy. A Green distraction lets Purrazzo hit a Backstabber on Taya though and the villains take over with the stomping in the corner.

Taya and Green go down off a double clothesline though and it’s back to Rosemary for the house cleaning. Green catches Rosemary with a Bully Bomb into a faceplant but Rosemary is right back up with a spear for two. Everything breaks down and Rosemary hits a spear on Purrazzo, only to get kneed in the head to give Shaw the pin at 5:38.

Rating: C. Another match that didn’t have much time to do anything and it hut things a lot. What mattered was giving Shaw and VXT a win to give them some momentum back. The Dollz having success without Rosemary continues as well and that should make for an interesting story down the road.

Tommy Dreamer begs Bully Ray to not lie to everyone about his intentions. Ray says he’s telling the truth and they’ll team together.

Maria Kanellis gives Honor No More a pep talk but they think the company is trying to kill them off again. They’re not sure where Eddie Edwards is but next week, they’ll retain the Tag Team Titles.

Matt Cardona vs. Bhupinder Gujjar

Cardona’s headlock doesn’t get him very far as Gujjar hits a dropkick into a slingshot elbow for an early two. They head to the floor with Cardona knocking him down for a change, setting up a hangman’s neckbreaker for two back inside. The middle rope missile dropkick misses though and Gujjar strikes away but here is Brian Myers for a distraction. Radio silence finishes Gujjar at 4:22.

Rating: C. Not much to see here but Cardona and Myers being back together is a good thing. Cardona being back in general is nice to see as he really is good at his heel stuff, though Myers does add a nice bonus to the mix. Gujjar continues to seem like he has potential and he’s starting to feel more like one of the regular guys around here, but please give him something else to make him interesting.

Video on Jordynne Grace vs. Masha Slamovich.

Mickie James would love to face Grace if she gets to the top of the mountain. VXT and Gisele Shaw interrupt, saying Mickie should respect them instead of losers like Mia Yim. Chelsea Green mocks James for beating her but James challenges Deonna Purrazzo instead.

Bullet Club would love to face Tommy Dreamer/Bully Ray next week.

Here’s what’s coming up next week.

Impact Wrestling World Title: Bobby Fish vs. Josh Alexander

Alexander is defending. Feeling out process to start as they grapple up against the ropes. Some headlock takeovers work well for Alexander but Fish is back up with some knees to the ribs. Alexander is right back with an overhead belly to belly but the crossbody to the back doesn’t get to launch.

Fish is fine enough to drop him with a dragon screw legwhip on the ramp and we take a break. Back with Fish hitting a slingshot elbow and kicking away in the corner. Neither of them can hit a suplex so Alexander goes with a clothesline and then drops Fish with a hard right hand.

The C4 Spike is blocked and Fish kicks him in the head, setting up a Saito suplex for two. The ankle lock is broken up as well though and Fish catches him on top. Alexander knocks him down and hits a moonsault, only to have the ankle lock pulled into a triangle choke. That’s countered into a backbreaker and now the C4 Spike can retain at 16:18.

Rating: B-. This was another match that had no story and was a showdown between two technicians, meaning it was only going to be so good. They had no reason to be mad at each other and it was hard to imagine that Fish was going to be a real threat to the title. The action carried it to pretty good, but they had a firm ceiling above them.

Post match Frankie Kazarian comes out to congratulate Alexander for being a great champion. For now though, he is cashing in his X-Division Title, using Option C, to get a World Title shot.

Overall Rating: C+. I don’t know if it’s the focus being on Bully Ray or the X-Division Title being vacated but there was a lack of interesting stuff going on this week. Hopefully things pick up again as we get back to normal next week, but this show didn’t feel like it was coming off the biggest night of the year. Granted any show with an announcement of Ray and Tommy Dreamer getting a featured match the next week isn’t going to do me much good, but the rest wasn’t exactly great.

Results
Killer Kelly b. Tasha Steelz – Killer Klutch
Trey Miguel b. Black Taurus, Kenny King, Alex Zayne, Yuya Uemura and Laredo Kid – Snap neckbreaker to Zayne
VXT/Gisele Shaw b. Death Dollz – Running knee to Rosemary
Matt Cardona b. Bhupinder Gujjar – Radio Silence
Josh Alexander b. Bobby Fish – C4 Spike

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

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Smackdown
Date: October 7, 2022
Location: DCU Center, Worcester, Massachusetts
Commentators: Michael Cole, Wade Barrett

It’s the season premiere of a show that has seasons in the loosest sense of the world. This week features a showdown between Roman Reigns and Logan Paul, plus a rematch from Clash At The Castle with Gunther defending the Intercontinental Title against Sheamus. One of these things should be awesome so let’s get to it.

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

HHH is in the ring to get things going to say that there will be a time when you think everything is over but it is just the beginning. Welcome to Smackdown, where there is another QR code on the microphone cube.

Wade Barrett is introduced as the new member of the commentary teams. I’ve heard worse ideas.

With HHH gone, here is the Bloodline for a chat. Roman Reigns hits the catchphrase but gets cut off by Logan Paul, who stays on the apron. Reigns invites him in and the fans DO NOT like Paul. Reigns: “Don’t worry, they did that to me years ago too.” Paul Heyman is told to smarten Paul up, with Heyman saying that Logan (too many Paul’s around here) is the Mr. T. and Cyndi Lauper of his day.

The good thing is that Logan brings in more eyes who can acknowledge Reigns, so he is a good thing. Heyman goes over some other online celebrities like Ben Shapiro who would not have the guts to fight Roman Reigns. He can’t for Logan to be in a hospital bed, where he can acknowledge Reigns. Logan asks if Jey Uso is the Tribal Chief, which doesn’t sit well with Reigns. Sami Zayn plays peacemaker and rants about Logan before promising that Reigns will crush him. Zayn hits the catchphrase as Logan leaves. I’m not sure what they were going for here but if the idea was to get Logan over, they might want to try again.

Solo Sikoa vs. Ricochet

Sikoa jumps Ricochet after his flipping entrance but gets sent outside for a dive, with Ricochet still having his vest on. A triangle dropkick puts Sikoa on the floor and Ricochet flips into the superhero pose. Ricochet starts fighting back but a springboard is broken up, dropping Ricochet on the back of his head on the apron (OUCH) and we take a break. Back with Ricochet fighting out of a chinlock and striking away. A superkick into a jumping knee drops Sikoa so Ricochet goes up, only to have his shooting star press countered into Spinning Solo for the pin at 8:40.

Rating: C. Well thankfully Ricochet’s head isn’t broken after that landing. Other than that, the match was another win for Sikoa, which is exactly how you get someone over. Sikoa is brand new to the main roster and he pinned a former Intercontinental Champion clean. What else can you do to get him over?

The Bloodline is pleased with what happened, with Sami Zayn taking some credit for Sikoa’s success. Jey Uso doesn’t like that so Roman Reigns calling him a hothead. Now Sami gets to deal with the Jey problem.

The Usos and Sami Zayn run into New Day. Insults are thrown and a six man is set for later.

Hit Row comes out for a match but three masked men jump them. Zelina Vega joins in and the men unmask to reveal Legado del Fantasma. Yes believe it or not, the three masked men who wear Legado del Fantasma masks, look like Legado del Fantasma and move like Legado del Fantasma are in fact Legado del Fantasma. Vega introduces the team in case you’re slow on the uptake.

We get a White Rabbit vignette, which says the date of 10.8.22, or Extreme Rules. Feed Your Hero.

Sonya Deville/Xia Li vs. Shotzi/Raquel Rodriguez

Deville drives Li into the corner to start and Li comes in for a shot of her own. That doesn’t last long though as the hot tag brings in Rodriguez to clean house. The Vader Bomb elbow connects and everything breaks down. An assisted standing Sliced bread drops Li and the Tejana Bomb finishes Deville at 2:14.

Video on Ronda Rousey vs. Liv Morgan.

Karrion Kross and Scarlett come to the ring but Drew McIntyre jumps him from behind. The strap is tied up but McIntyre has to beat up security. That’s enough to let Kross pull McIntyre into the post a few times before giving him quite the whipping. Drew’s back is all messed up but he gets to his feet and glares as the villains leave. That is always going to work and it did here.

The Viking Raiders talk about waiting and healing. A woman’s voice says Valhalla awaits.

Usos/Sami Zayn vs. New Day/???

The mystery partner is…..Braun Strowman, who should work well. Sami and Woods start things off but let’s go with Kofi instead. Jey comes in, glares at Zayn, and gets dropkicked down. New Day hits the double dive to take out the Usos and we take a break. Back with Kofi in trouble and Sami giving Jey a rather rough tag.

That’s fine with Jey, who chokes Kofi on the ropes to let off some steam. Kofi fights up and knocks Jimmy away, allowing the hot tag off to Strowman for the house cleaning. Sami and Jey get in an argument on the floor, leaving Jimmy to get caught with UpUpDownDown for the pin at 10:28.

Rating: C+. The Usos vs. New Day will be another fine tag program, as well as another instance where I cannot bring myself to care about seeing them fight again. I know they’re probably the two best WWE teams of their generation, but this is reaching Bockwinkel vs. Gagne levels of FIND SOMEONE NEW. Strowman was the perfect choice as the mystery partner here as he is great at getting the hot tag. It’s a great sign that WWE is getting it with him and that should serve him in the future.

Max and Maxxine Durpi argue in the back, with Max declaring himself LA Knight. Barrett: “I KNEW IT WAS LA KNIGHT ALL ALONG!”

Commentary previews the main event and there is a man in a white rabbit suit behind them.

Video on Gunther vs. Sheamus.

Intercontinental Title: Sheamus vs. Gunther

Gunther is defending and we get the Big Match Intros, complete with WXW and PWG references from Cole. They fight straight to the floor to start with Sheamus driving him into the barricade as we take an early break. Back with Sheamus hitting the forearms to the chest but getting sent chest first into the buckle to break it up. Gunther grabs a choke but Sheamus fights up, earning himself a release German suplex as we take a break.

Back with Sheamus driving him into the corner to break up another choke. Sheamus hits ten forearms on the apron, then does ten more over the other two ropes for a change of pace. White Noise connects for two but Gunther is right back with a powerbomb for the same. A top rope splash to the back gives Gunther two but Sheamus grabs White Noise.

The Cloverleaf goes on and Gunther taps….but it doesn’t count as he was reaching for the rope? That’s either one heck of an error or a bad plot point because that was a tap. As Sheamus seems confused, Imperium and the Brawling Brutes come down for the fight. The Brogue Kick is loaded up but the distracted referee lets Gunther get in a shillelagh shot to retain at 18:17.

Rating: B. It was a good fight but that tap was a REALLY bad visual and hurt all of the momentum they had. I’m assuming they were going for the reaching the rope and it looked like a tap thing but if that’s the case, the execution was terrible. Gunther retaining is ok, but there was no way they were reaching the level of their first match (which is hardly a fair request in the first place) and that tap hurt them a lot.

The brawl continues to end the show.

Overall Rating: B-. This show did work, though it seems WWE is already looking beyond Extreme Rules. There was some build towards the show, but a lot of this week felt like they were getting ready for more important things. Knowing that the White Rabbit will be revealed at Extreme Rules helps and the strap match should be good, but this week felt like it was trying to focus on several different things, with Extreme Rules being just one of them. Still though, good show with some nice action and stories being advanced, just not necessarily ones for tomorrow’s pay per view.

Results
Solo Sikoa b. Ricochet – Spinning Solo
Shotzi/Raquel Rodriguez b. Sonya Deville/Xia Li
New Day/Braun Strowman b. Usos/Sami Zayn – UpUpDownDown to Jimmy
Gunther b. Sheamus – Shillelagh shot

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

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AND

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Smackdown
Date: September 23, 2022
Location: Vivint Arena, Salt Lake City, Utah
Commentators: Corey Graves, Michael Cole

We are just a few weeks away from Extreme Rules but WWE is already focusing on Crown Jewel a month later. The big story is that Roman Reigns will be defending against Logan Paul in Saudi Arabia in November, which could open up more than a few interesting situations. Let’s get to it.

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

Here is the full Bloodline for a rather slow motion entrance. Roman Reigns eventually allows the crowd to acknowledge him before Paul Heyman can’t figure out what to call people from Utah. Eventually he settles on Salt Lake Cidiots before talking about how Reigns has run over everyone. This includes Drew McIntyre, who now has another bridge to Kross. As for Solo Sikoa, he isn’t the idea of Heyman, Reigns, or anyone else (seemingly a nod at Sami Zayn) but rather being sent by the Samoan dynasty.

Sikoa is the enforcer who leaves the Usos to pursue greatness. The Usos are ready to retain the titles tonight, because everyone else is the two’s and they the …..and Reigns wants the microphone before they can complete the catchphrase. Reigns says the elders may have sent Sikoa, but he answers to Reigns now. Acknowledge him, which Sikoa does.

The team goes to leave, but Sami says hang on a second. Sami understands he isn’t blood, but Reigns doesn’t get this. Why does Sami have a Bloodline shirt on? Why is he tagging along? Reigns wants the shirt off and Sami’s explanation doesn’t get him out of trouble. Jey rips the third off, with Reigns saying Sami is never wearing a Bloodline shirt again. Instead, Reigns has a new one for him, which says “SZ: HONORARY UCE”. Sami acknowledges Reigns and is Very happy, to the point of hugging Roman. That was a great moment for Sami, but him vs. Reigns down the line could steal all of the shows.

Lacey Evans vs. Liv Morgan

Non-title and Lacey now has part of her forehead painted. Morgan takes her down to start but gets kicked HARD in the chest. Evans gets in a kick into the corner and we hit the chinlock. A slingshot….something misses for Evans but she sends Morgan into the post as we take a break.

Back with Evans kicking her down again and grabbing a headscissors with some pushups thrown in. Morgan kicks her way out of trouble so Evans grabs a kendo stick. Because of course she does. Morgan isn’t having that though and hits a Codebreaker, setting up Oblivion to finish Evans at 8:39.

Rating: D+. Yeah this didn’t work and I’m not exactly surprised. Evans has never quite been a ring general and trying to have Morgan be more extreme (as commentary kept talking about) didn’t go very far either. Morgan isn’t working as champion and trying to spice her up for her next match with Ronda Rousey isn’t going to work well either.

Post match Morgan grabs the kendo stick and beats on Evans, followed by a Russian legsweep into the barricade. Morgan puts her on a table and climbs onto the post, setting up a backsplash through the table. To show she’s ready for Rousey you see.

Hit Row is going to be watching tonight, and so are the Street Profits, who pop up. Then Shinsuke Nakamura comes up and they all drink.

Sami Zayn is annoyed at catering being gone and even more annoyed when Madcap Moss and Ricochet come up to mock him for the Bloodline stuff. The insults continue but here is Solo Sikoa to beat Ricochet and Moss down. Zayn: “I was just about to do that.”

Video on the Usos’ Tag Team Title reign.

And now…..a Royal Rumble Classic? Ah tickets are on sale next week. Anyway, Shawn Michaels won in 1995 by going coast to coast.

New Day vs. Maximum Male Models

Mansoor gets rolled up to start so Mace comes in to kick woods in the face. Hold on though as Maxxine steals a camera and takes some pictures. A backdrop to the floor isn’t enough for Woods to make the hot tag as Mace comes in to kick Woods down. Not that it matters as Backwoods gives Woods the pin at 2:39.

Post match Max Dupri snaps on the team and storms out, even throwing down his jacket.

Back at Hit Row’s party and more wrestlers have shown up. Los Lotharios show up to hit on B Fab, seemingly much to Sonya Deville’s annoyance. Hit Row and the Profits (and Drew Gulak) chase them off.

Braun Strowman vs. Otis

Chad Gable is here too. They fight over a lock up to start until Strowman shoves him away. Otis gets dropkicked to the floor so Strowman loads up the run around the ring. Gable ducks though, which is enough to distract Strowman. That’s enough for Otis to get in a cheap shot, setting up a discus lariat for two back inside.

Strowman fights up and that means a meeting with Gable on the floor. You don’t do that to Strowman, who pops up and runs both of them over without much trouble. Back in and Strowman can’t hit the powerslam as his knee gives out, allowing Otis to hit the World’s Strongest Slam for two. The Vader bomb gets the same but a middle rope headbutt misses. The powerbomb finishes for Strowman at 5:30.

Rating: C-. I have no idea why Otis is being protected so much against a returning former World Champion but they certainly gave him a lot this time. Strowman did win in the end and the powerbomb looked good, but this should have been a lot closer to a squash. Otis is someone they need to protect that much? Really?

The Brawling Brutes are ready for the Tag Team Titles tonight. As a bonus, Sheamus is ready to win the Intercontinental Title in two weeks when it’s Sheamus vs. Gunther II. Tonight is about the Tag Team Titles though and they’re ready to have banger after banger.

Here is Drew McIntyre to call out Karrion Kross for jumping him from behind again and again. McIntyre has a strap in his hand and a surprise for Kross: a strap match, so Kross can’t sneak up on him. Cue Scarlett on stage for a distraction but McIntyre is ready for Kross this time. Kross is sent into the post and McIntyre straps them together. The beating is on until Scarlett gets in to beg off for Kross’ sake. Then Scarlett throws something like a fireball at McIntyre to no avail. With that not working (because it missed by about two feet, so good for McIntyre for not selling it), a low blow cuts McIntyre off and Kross Krossjackets him.

Dakota Kai vs. Raquel Rodriguez

The rest of Damage Ctrl is here with Kai, whose history with Rodriguez from NXT is explained. Rodriguez starts fast and blocks an early Scorpion Kick but the rest of the team offers a distraction. Now the Scorpion kick can connect, setting up the running boot from Kai in the corner. Bayley gets in a cheap shot but here is Shotzi to take Bayley and Iyo Sky out. The distraction lets Rodriguez grab a rollup at 1:19, which saw three interferences.

Los Lotharios jump Hit Row, who swear revenge.

Tag Team Titles: Usos vs. Brawling Brutes

The Brutes are challenging with Sheamus and the rest of the Bloodline here too. Butch works on Jey’s hand to start but is fine enough to drive Butch into the corner. That doesn’t matter much as everything breaks down and the Usos get taken out. Stereo forearms to the chest drop Jimmy but Jey is back up with a cheap shot. The Usos drop Butch for two and we take a break.

Back with Butch fighting out of trouble and bringing in Ridge to clean house. A shot to the face knocks Ridge back into the corner for the tag to Butch though and a Shining Wizard get two on Jey. Everything breaks down and Butch gets to clean house, though Jey tags himself in blind. Butch’s moonsault gets superkicked out of the air (that looked good) for two and Jimmy isn’t sure what to do. 1D is broken up and it’s a finger snap to allow the tag off to Holland.

The Alabama Slam is countered so Holland backdrops both of them at once. The kick to the head/Norther Grit combination gets a VERY close two with Jimmy making the save. Zayn grabs a chair and goes to slide it inside but Sheamus breaks it up. Cue Imperium to go after Sheamus with Gunther kicking him in the head. The Usos are back up with superkicks to Butch and Holland, setting up 1D to retain the titles at 14:10.

Rating: B. This match did one thing that mattered more than anything else: it made me believe that an upset, as illogical as it would have been, was possible. There was a point where I believed they might do the unthinkable and change the titles and that is a great feeling. Not that the titles might change, but that I was able to believe something was possible. WWE does not get to make that work very often but they sure did it here.

Overall Rating: C. The main event was much better than I would have bet on but some of the other wrestling dragged it down so much. Wrestling isn’t the most important thing on a wrestling show, but it did need to be better than what we got here. There wasn’t much to see here outside of the main event, but they are setting some things up for later that should have some outstanding payoffs. For now though, check out the main event and the opening segment, but not much else.

Results
Liv Morgan b. Lacey Evans – Oblivion
New Day b. Maximum Male Models – Backwoods to Mansoor
Braun Strowman b. Otis – Powerbomb
Raquel Rodriguez b. Dakota Kai – Rollup

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