Royal Rumble Count-Up – 2008 (2019 Redo): Gotcha

IMG Credit: WWE

Royal Rumble 2008
Date: January 27, 2008
Location: Madison Square Garden, New York City New York
Attendance: 20,798
Commentators: Jim Ross, Jerry Lawler, Michael Cole Jonathan Coachman, Joey Styles, Tazz

This was the other request so let’s throw up a triple shot this year. The big story here is Jeff Hardy challenging Randy Orton for the Raw World Title. This was set up incredibly well with Hardy being set up as the ultimate underdog who might be able to pull off the miracle. The fans believe in him and it’s an absolutely incredible build that had me dying to see what they did. Let’s get to it.

The opening video features a bunch of wrestlers getting on a subway before going into a history of the Rumble. This year’s show gets some time as well and we cut to a fight in the subway, because wrestlers are going to wrestle.

I love the MSG setup with the entrance opposite the hard camera. It’s the only major arena to do that and it feels special.

Ric Flair vs. MVP

MVP’s US Title isn’t on the line. This was during the “if Flair loses he retires” period and MVP wanted to take him out for good, as did so many others. Before the match, Flair talks about how important this arena is and how he first wrestled here in March 1976. MVP’s entrance cuts off a rather nice speech because MVP is a rather good jerk. MVP easily takes him down and strikes a pose but Flair just WOOs at him.

Back up and Flair takes him into the corner for the chops and punches, including a big chop to put MVP down. That’s about it for the offense though as MVP kicks him in the face and gets two off a neckbreaker. Cole says he’s sure that there are fans here who were here for Flair’s first match. Really? A fan who is there for two shows 32 years apart? That’s a bit of a stretch, but Cole never was all that logical. Flair comes back with a quick Figure Four attempt but gets small packaged for two instead.

Another running boot in the corner (Helluva Kick) gives MVP three….with Flair’s foot on the rope. You know Little Naitch is thrilled to be able to say Flair gets to keep going. A superplex gives MVP two more but Flair gets in a clothesline out of the corner for a breather. Flair grabs a rollup and backslide for two each and it’s time for stylin and profilin. The Playmaker is countered into the Figure Four and MVP taps out clean.

Rating: C. Perfectly watchable match here and I can even forgive the US Champion doing a clean job for the sake of what is likely Flair’s last match in the Garden. I didn’t care for this whole story at first but it’s grown on me a bit over time. Flair deserves this kind of goodbye and his matches were still perfectly watchable at this point. Not too bad here, and a great feel good moment to ope the show.

Flair gets the big standing ovation that you knew was coming.

Hornswoggle, Vince McMahon’s son at this point in a story that is still so bizarre and gets worse every time, is in Vince’s office. Vince gives him a history of the McMahon Family in the Garden. Tonight it’s every man for himself and you can’t even trust your own family. Finlay comes in and Hornswoggle is rather happy to see him. Vince tells Finlay not to trust Hornswoggle, who jumps into Finlay’s arms as they leave. I’m still not sure if they know how old Hornswoggle is supposed to be here. That was never quite clear.

We meet new correspondent Mike Adamle, who actually doesn’t screw anything up! Yet.

We recap JBL vs. Chris Jericho. JBL had been doing commentary on Jericho’s World Title shot and got knocked down so he cost Jericho the match. The feud ensued with JBL even yelling about Jericho’s family. It’s time for the fight as Jericho continues to try to click in his return.

Chris Jericho vs. John Bradshaw Layfield

Ah the days of a ton of pyro for a midcard match entrance. They shove each other around to start with JBL hiding in the corner and the ropes. The second break is enough for JBL to get in a few right hands so Jericho takes him down for some of his own. The early Walls are broken up by a grab of the rope and JBL drops him throat first (the throat/neck that was damaged in the buildup) onto the top rope.

A standing Clothesline From JBL gets two and he catapults the throat into the middle rope to make it even worse. We hit the sleeper to stay on Jericho’s neck until Jericho slips out and hits a clothesline of his own. JBL is fine enough to send him shoulder first into the post and Jericho is busted open. Back in and JBL stomps away as the blood is starting to flow. They fight to the floor again and Jericho BLASTS him with a chair to the head for the DQ. Kind of a sudden finish but that sounded amazing.

Rating: D+. This really didn’t work as JBL can’t do much and Jericho didn’t exactly do much other than throw punches. Jericho is already in need of a heel turn as the face push isn’t exactly working. Maybe it’s the lack of hair or just rust but it’s not exactly clicking here. Then again Jericho is known for being able to change things up at the drop of a hat so I’m sure he’ll be fine.

Post match Jericho beats the heck out of JBL and chokes him with the television cable.

Ashley Massaro tries to go see Maria but boyfriend Santino cuts her off. See, Maria is NOT interested in posing for Playboy, though the magazine had probably already been shot by this point. For the sake of modesty, we’ll move on.

We recap Edge vs. Rey Mysterio. Edge has used his relationship with Vickie Guerrero to become World Heavyweight Champion but Mysterio won a Beat the Clock Challenge (with the help of Batista and Undertaker) by pinning Edge on Smackdown. This earned Rey some beatings from Edge and the Edgeheads (Curt Hawkins and Zack Ryder), because you have to have some lackeys.

Smackdown World Title: Edge vs. Rey Mysterio

Edge is defending and has Vickie (in a wheelchair) and the Edgeheads out here with him. The fans actually boo Mysterio a bit and cheer loudly for Edge. Feeling out process to start with Edge slipping out of the corner to continue the staredown. Rey takes him down and gets two off a basement dropkick as the fans are relentless with the booing. Back up and Edge sends him outside for the quick beating from the Edgeheads. For once the referee isn’t an idiot and ejects him, allowing Rey to get two off a springboard seated senton.

Edge takes out the knee though in a smart move and Mysterio is right back in trouble. A kneeling half crab stays on the knee but Rey fights up and scores with an enziguri. The bad knee means the 619 is very slow though and Edge grabs a powerslam for two. Something close to an ankle lock keeps the leg in trouble and now it’s time to get series as Edge loosens the knee brace. That’s enough to wake Rey up for the sitout bulldog and another kick to the head (with the good leg) gets two.

Rey changes things up a bit with a top rope double stomp for two, followed by a hurricanrana to send Edge outside. The slide into the tornado DDT has Edge in even more trouble but he kicks Rey in the head to get a breather. Mysterio is right back with a drop toehold into the 619, which draws Vickie out of the wheelchair. The distraction means Rey has to hit another 619 so Vickie jumps up to take the blow. That’s enough for Edge to get up and spear a springboarding Rey out of the air for the pin to retain.

Rating: B. This was good, though it never got up to the level you would expect from these two. Edge retaining is far from a surprise and the ending worked really well, with Vickie showing her love for Edge, who likely doesn’t care because it’s all about the title. That spear out of the air was awesome too, meaning this was perfectly fine for a Royal Rumble title defense.

Mr. Kennedy gives Flair, in a towel, a slow clap and sounds like he wants to face Flair next but here’s Shawn Michaels to get rid of him. Shawn says a loud mouthed bleach blonde guy will never work as a gimmick today and Flair seems pleased. Batista and HHH come in with HHH telling Flair to put his pants on. Tensions are teased over who will win the Royal Rumble so Shawn turns it into a merch plug.

Here’s Maria for the Kiss Cam, which totally feels in place at the Royal Rumble. This is the excuse to bring out Ashley to ask about the Playboy shoot again. Cue Santino with someone under a blanket to say stop it. There will be no Playboy because no one wants to see Maria with no clothes on.

We hit the cheap New York sports teams suck heat and, after a LET’S GO GIANTS chant, the fans seem interested in having Maria in the magazine. Santino: “They would cheer for hepatitis if you asked them to!” Santino brings in the blanketed person and of course it’s Big Dick Johnson in Patriots (Giants opponent in next week’s Super Bowl) gear for some dancing. Ashley beats him up to conclude our comedy.

Wrestlemania ad with a Baywatch theme. Believe it or not, Kelly Kelly fits this perfectly.

Adamle throws us to the recap video for Randy Orton vs Jeff “Harvey” in a fairly infamous botch.

So this is the biggest match on the show, even bigger than the Royal Rumble. Apparently the buys went WAY up as a result of Hardy getting the shot and it’s one of the best builds I’ve ever seen. You might remember me saying that Mysterio was the challenger that had no chance of winning. Well Jeff is the polar opposite, as WWE has done a masterful job at making you believe that Hardy could win.

The idea is that Orton is the perfect wrestler but Hardy is willing to do anything to win and could actually pull it off. This included one dive after another to Orton and sweet goodness did they ever work. I COMPLETELY bought Jeff as a real challenger and a lot of other people did too. It didn’t make sense, but WWE managed to create something where you believed the impossible could happen and it was amazing. I still love the build to this and it’s one of the handful of best jobs I’ve ever seen them do.

Raw World Title: Jeff Hardy vs. Randy Orton

Orton is defending and Jeff’s Intercontinental Title isn’t on the line. Dang I miss Burn In My Light as Orton’s theme. The fans are behind Hardy for the early lockup exchange and Jeff takes him down with a headlock. The legdrop between the legs into the basement dropkick gives Jeff two but Orton is right back with some forearms to the back. Orton to the crowd: “WHO’S YOUR BOY NOW???”

Jeff clotheslines him right back down and hits a heck of a dropkick through the ropes, leaving Orton’s head a bit crooked against the barricade. The first big dive takes Orton down and the fans believe it all over again. Back in and Orton hits a big dropkick to break up a springboard, which you had to know was coming sooner or later. There’s a suplex on the floor to give Orton two and it’s time to slowly stomp away. Back up and Jeff sends him over the top for a clothesline from the apron. Jeff takes him back inside but gets sent into the post, allowing Orton to throw on a chinlock.

Since it’s a big match though, he adds a grapevine for a bonus. The powerslam gives Orton two and we hit the chinlock for the second time in a minute. Jeff fights up again and hits the Whisper in the Wind, followed by the slingshot dropkick in the corner. It’s too early for the Swanton so Jeff settles for a missile dropkick to knock him off the apron instead. Jeff’s moonsault to the floor barely makes contact and they’re both down. Back in and Jeff tries the Twist of Fate but gets countered into the RKO for the pin to retain.

Rating: B-. It was good, but without a title change (which didn’t need to happen yet) there was no way they could live up to the hype that had been built. Hardy got in some dives but there was only so much you can do when you’re not winning the title. They NAILED the build and the match itself was fine, but it was a little deflating. Jeff certainly moved up a few levels though and that’s what matters most.

Jeff gets the standing ovation, but it’s not the strongest in the world.

Rumble By The Numbers:

21 Winners

569 Wrestlers Eliminated

36 Eliminations for Steve Austin, the most ever

11 Royal Rumbles for Shawn Michaels, the most ever

11 Eliminations for Kane, the most in one match

10 Consecutive Royal Rumbles for Kane

3 Times Mick Foley entered in 1998

2 Feet that need to hit the ground for an elimination

1 Woman to have entered, with Chyna

62:12 for Rey Mysterio in 2006, the most ever

:02 For Warlord in 1990, the least ever

3 Wins for Steve Austin, the most ever

#1 Spot, which has produced more winners than #30

1 Winner from #30, the Undertaker in 2007

4 Winners from #27, the most of all time

73% Success rate for winners at Wrestlemania

1 Road to Wrestlemania

Royal Rumble

Michael Buffer of all people gets to do the intro, which is a very WCW thing to do, though that voice is hard to turn down. There are ninety second intervals this year so things are going to be moving. Undertaker is in at #1 and Shawn Michaels is in at #2, with Buffer just calling him the Heartbreak Kid and never mentioning his name. Shawn (or Heartbreak) chops away in the corner to start but gets grabbed by the throat and sent into the corner for his efforts. Undertaker misses a running boot though and gets sent out to the apron. He’s fine enough to grab Shawn by the throat and hit a big boot as Santino Marella is in at #3.

Death comes quickly as Shawn superkicks him and Undertaker gets the elimination in less than thirty seconds. Shawn goes to throw Undertaker out and that’s just not bright. Old School is broken up with a pull off the top but Undertaker hits a chokeslam as Great Khali is in at #4. The fans immediately start the YOU CAN’T WRESTLE chants as Undertaker and Khali slug it out. The big chop is blocked though and Undertaker throws him out to get us back down to two. Hardcore Holly is in at #5 and might have some more staying power.

Undertaker and Shawn take turns knocking him down until Holly gets in a cheap shot on Undertaker to knock him into the ropes. Shawn and Holly chop it out in the corner until John Morrison is in at #6. As Coach talks about Morrison and Miz spending all night partying, Shawn throws Morrison off the top and hits the top rope elbow. It’s too early for Sweet Chin Music and Tommy Dreamer is in at #7, because WE NEED TOMMY DREAMER!!!

The traditional brawling around the ring begins with Dreamer pretending he has a chance to eliminate Undertaker. Batista is in at #8 and that keeps the crowd going even more. That gives us the big showdown with Undertaker but Dreamer (OF COURSE) breaks it up, thankfully getting eliminated. Batista spears Morrison but gets punched down in the corner by Undertaker.

Hornswoggle is in at #9 and immediately hides underneath the ring. Another spear takes Undertaker down and the brawling continues. Angry biker Chuck Palumbo is in at #10, giving us Undertaker, Shawn, Holly, Morrison, Batista, Hornswoggle and Palumbo. Morrison pulls himself back in from the apron as we get to the standard operating procedure of people trying to save themselves on the ropes. Jamie Noble, currently feuding with Palumbo and rather banged up, is in at #11 and slugs it out with Palumbo.

That’s good for an elimination in about thirty seconds to keep the ring from getting too full. CM Punk is in at #12 and you know the fans are going to be into him. A bunch of running knees have Punk on a roll and he throws Palumbo out. Cody Rhodes is in at #13 and a grand total of nothing happens. Well unless you count basic brawling and no one being close to an elimination. Umaga is in at #14 and knocks Holly out in a hurry to keep things balanced.

Snitsky is in at #15 (He was still around in 2008?) and the Big Bald starts cleaning house. Cody takes him to the apron but Punk can’t shove either of them out. As Cole says Morrison is like a young Shawn Michaels, Morrison’s partner Miz is in at #16. Undertaker puts Umaga on the apron but can’t stomp him out as Shelton Benjamin is in at #17. The jump to the top lets him knock Miz and Morrison to the apron, followed by Paydirt to Morrison.

That’s enough from Shelton though as Sweet Chin Music is good for an elimination. Well that works. I loved the original Shelton run but he never recovered from that Gold Standard nonsense. Jimmy Snuka of all people is in at #18 and the fans literally get to their feet for that one. Undertaker tries a headbutt and hurts himself in a little payback from Wrestlemania VII. The old man abuse stops….and Roddy Piper is in at #19 to blow away Snuka’s pop.

Piper and Snuka have the big showdown in slow motion (thankfully with Piper in shorts instead of trunks) and everyone stops to watch the fight. Things settle back down until Kane is in at #20 to get rid of Piper and Snuka, leaving us with Undertaker, Michaels, Morrison, Batista, Hornswoggle (still under the ring), Punk, Rhodes, Umaga, Snitsky, Miz and Kane. Undertaker loads up a chokeslam on Kane but goes after Michaels instead, with Kane making the save for some reason.

Carlito is in at #21 and spits the apple at Cody as there are too many people who have been around too long. A nice backflip gets Carlito out of trouble and it’s Mick Foley in at #22 to a very long and positive reaction. Batista takes the Last Ride and Foley hits a double arm DDT on Kane. There’s a Samoan drop from Umaga to Undertaker as the ring is way too full. Mr. Kennedy is in at #23 to make it even worse but Undertaker takes him down with a chokeslam. A lot of people are down as Undertaker starts hitting his running clotheslines in the corner.

Undertaker gets rid of Snitsky but walks into Sweet Chin Music for the big surprise elimination. Kennedy gets rid of Shawn immediately thereafter, all while Big Daddy V is in at #24. Undertaker beats up Snitsky to blow off some steam before leaving. We get some near eliminations with Cody and Kennedy fighting to the apron and Mark Henry is in at #25. Hornswoggle returns from the dead and pulls Miz out before heading right back underneath the ring. As Snitsky finally gets up to leave, V can’t get rid of Morrison or Kennedy. Chavo Guerrero is in at #26 and Kane kicks Morrison out.

Henry pulls the returning Hornswoggle inside so here’s Finlay to jump the gun at #27 to swing the shillelagh. He and Hornswoggle leave, with the explanation being that Finlay was disqualified for using the club and Hornswoggle was, uh, short? Finlay holds Hornswoggle’s hand on the way out, again acting like he’s about five. Elijah Burke is in at #28 and MY GOODNESS get rid of some people already. The Samoan Spike sends Batista underneath the ropes and outside for a breather.

Chavo gets rid of Punk and it’s HHH at #29 to hopefully eliminate half the field. Cody, Big Daddy V, Foley (nice slugout first) and Burke are all gone to make things way better. Umaga gets sent head first into the post and Pedigreed….and JOHN CENA is in at #30 to one of the all time great pops.

See, Cena had torn his pectoral muscle back in October and the word was he was going to miss Wrestlemania, if not the following Summerslam. WWE had this wild idea for Cena: use a combination of Cena’s uncanny ability to heal and recover in a crazy hurry and, of course, LIE. This is one of the best shocking returns ever because Cena had been completely written off for at least the next six months. The fans, as in the MSG fans, are STUNNED and pop the roof off the place before realizing that it’s Cena and they’re supposed to boo at him.

Cena starts cleaning house and gets rid of Carlito, Chavo and Henry to get us down to Cena, HHH, Umaga, Kane, Batista and Kennedy. We get the big showdown with Cena and HHH as the right hands start fast. HHH hits a spinebuster but walks into an uppercut from Umaga. Kane and Kennedy are dispatched in a hurry and it’s HHH and Batista teaming up to toss Umaga. That leaves us with three, which is a heck of a triple threat. Batista gives both of them the thumbs down and the fight is on with a double clothesline putting HHH and Cena down.

There’s the big spinebuster to both of them but Cena counters the Batista Bomb. A clothesline gets rid of Batista and we’re down to the major showdown, which the fans certainly enjoy. That means POINTING AT THE SIGN (take that Ronda) and they slug it out with the fans being behind Cena. HHH gets caught with Cena’s usual but it’s a double clothesline for the double knockdown. A DDT takes Cena down again but he counters another Pedigree attempt into the AA over the top for the win.

Rating: C+. This was a bumpy road as they didn’t pace things well, meaning the match was way too full for far too long. They had a nice balance of legends and modern stars though with those three New York pops being very well done. It’s not a great match or anything, but what we got worked.

Now, with that out of the way, this is ALL about Cena’s return with nothing else coming close. That’s the kind of ovation and reaction you only get once in a long time and my goodness did it work here. Cena being back changed everything and it was a great moment all around. Just watching that crowd of smarks lose their minds because they were actually surprised is an all time favorite of mine and it still works eleven years later.

Overall Rating: C. Kind of an awkward show as the whole big moment at the end doesn’t exactly make up for everything else. Now that being said, there’s nothing too bad or even bad at all, but nothing that stands out either. The Hardy vs. Orton match was all hype but still entertaining, while I’m already having trouble remembering the rest of the card. Cena’s return stole everything and that’s fine, as it wasn’t really a great show to start.

Ratings Comparison

Ric Flair vs. MVP

Original: B-

2013 Redo: C

2018 Redo: C

John Bradshaw Layfield vs. Chris Jericho

Original: D+

2013 Redo: D+

2018 Redo: D+

Edge vs. Rey Mysterio

Original: A-

2013 Redo: C+

2018 Redo: B

Jeff Hardy vs. Randy Orton

Original: C-

2013 Redo: C+

2018 Redo: B-

Royal Rumble

Original: C-

2013 Redo: C+

2018 Redo: C+

Overall Rating

Original: C+

2013 Redo: C-

2018 Redo: C

http://kbwrestlingreviews.com/2011/01/27/royal-rumble-count-up-2008-screw-wwes-list-this-is-the-1-rumble-moment/

And the 2013 Redo:

http://kbwrestlingreviews.com/2013/01/22/royal-rumble-count-up-2013-redo-2008-the-biggest-surprise-in-rumble-history/

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and pick up the paperback edition of KB’s Complete 1997 Monday Night Raw Reviews (also available as an e-book) from Amazon. Check out the information here:

http://kbwrestlingreviews.com/2018/11/20/new-paperback-complete-1997-monday-night-raw-reviews/

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

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

Smackdown – January 15, 2019: Always Bring Your Gear

IMG Credit: WWE

Smackdown
Date: January 15, 2019
Location: Legacy Arena, Birmingham, Alabama
Commentators: Corey Graves, Byron Saxton, Tom Phillips

We’re getting rather close to the Rumble and that means it’s time to hammer home some final details before the pay per view. While I can’t imagine anything as big as last night’s change on Raw, there’s always the chance of something big happening. We also have Andrade Cien Almas vs. Rey Mysterio set for tonight, which should be fun. Let’s get to it.

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

Becky Lynch arrives and says everyone knows if she’s ready for Asuka. She’ll answer it in the ring though. She walks forward and sees Heavy Machinery making a pancake and egg shake as a disgusted New Day watches. Becky drinks it instead and says it’s a little weak. As I said a few weeks back: that’s a very Becky thing to say.

Here’s Becky to say how hard it is to run this division. That’s why Asuka isn’t here, because this is hard. There are people who say she’s all hype, but she delivers every single time. Now if you want to talk about hype, look at Asuka walking into last year’s Wrestlemania unstoppable and losing. Then Asuka fell off the radar and couldn’t beat the same woman that Becky has beaten or months. But now she’s not ready for Asuka?

This brings out Asuka to say Becky is like a bee with no sting. After the Rumble, Becky will be out of Charlotte’s shadow but into Asuka’s. This brings out the IIconics to say Becky is a bossy bully and Asuka isn’t acting like a champion should. It doesn’t matter how Becky and Asuka act anyway because they’re going to win the Royal Rumble, win the Women’s Tag Team Titles, and then make Wrestlemania ICONIC! Becky throws out the challenge and we take a break.

Becky Lynch vs. Peyton Royce

Becky is in jeans. An early Disarm-Her attempt sends Peyton to the ropes so Becky leg lariats her down. A backslide gives Becky two and she grabs an armbar as we see Lacey Evans watching from the back. Peyton fights up and gets in some kicks in the corner, followed by the chinlock. Becky sends her outside but a Billie distraction lets Peyton score with a clothesline as we take a break. Back with Becky fighting out of another chinlock before a Thesz press takes Peyton down for some right hands. There’s the Bexploder into the Disarm-Her for the tap at 9:51.

Rating: D+. Nothing much to see here but it did its job well enough. At least the IIconics are still around, which is more than has been the case in recent weeks. They’re fine for roles like this and can be the annoying duo for a long time going forward. Asuka vs. Becky is starting to feel personal, which is exactly where it needs to go.

Post match Asuka yells a lot and drags Billie in as we have a second match.

Asuka vs. Billie Kay

Non-title. Asuka kicks her in the head and grabs an armbar with a stare at Becky. The Asuka Lock makes Billie tap at 46 seconds.

Post match Asuka and Becky yell at each other….and here’s AJ Styles? The women leave and AJ jumps the barricade to head up the steps. Back from a break with AJ in the concourse at the concession stand. Last week Bryan said these people weren’t healthy and happy but they look happy to him. Eat what you want if it makes you happy. If you want a hot dog, go get yourself one. These people are no different than the ones in Phoenix, where AJ is getting the title back. Off to the merchandise stand now, as AJ grabs some shirts and throws them into the crowd. Cue Bryan for the brawl until security breaks it up. More good stuff.

The Usos are at a photo shoot when Jimmy gets a package. It’s their anniversary tomorrow so Jimmy thinks it’s an early present. Jey opens it up and finds a rose with a note. The message says that she’s been a naughty girl and needs to be locked up in the Uso Penitentiary, signed Mandy. There’s a hotel room key included and Jimmy says he’s not sure what he’s doing. This is interesting, even if I think you know where the payoff is going.

Samoa Joe walks to the ring and sees EC3 posing in front of a mirror.

Andrade (yes Andrade, who has lost his Cien Almas) says he used to idolize Rey Mysterio but it’s time to start thinking about the future. He wins tonight, and then wins the Royal Rumble.

Samoa Joe vs. Mustafa Ali

Joe jumps him before the bell and sends Ali hard into the post for a knockout. No match. Joe goes to leave but comes back and beats Ali up even more. He goes to leave again but comes back again, this time for a powerbomb, but Joe opts to throw Ali into the barricade instead. Note that the light on Ali’s vest never went out, meaning that’s a high quality product.

Sonya Deville isn’t sure if Mandy Rose should give Jimmy Uso her room key. Mandy knows how scandalous it is and it’s all being done because she hates Naomi. Breaking up their marriage sounds like a good idea to her.

Rey Mysterio is on his way to the ring and gets freaked out by Nikki Cross.

Samoa Joe says that was just a preview for the Royal Rumble. He’s entering for the first time and is hunting anyone who gets in his way.

Rey Mysterio vs. Andrade

Rey starts spinning around to start and armdrags Andrade into the corner. A headlock slows Andrade down a bit more and the hold hits the mat. Andrade is right back with a hammerlock and wrenches Rey down to really stay on the arm. The arm gets sent into the corner and the armbar goes right back on. Rey sends him outside with a headscissors but Andrade slides back in where he has to duck the 619.

The hammerlock DDT is countered into a rollup which is countered into another rollup for two on Rey, with Andrade saying it was that close. That’s fine with Rey as he kicks Andrade in the head and hurricanranas him to the floor but Andrade doesn’t let go, meaning it’s a sitout powerbomb on the floor as we take a break.

Back with Rey speeding things up again and hitting a hurricanrana, followed by a tornado DDT for two. Rey gets caught on the top but is fine enough to hit a nice looking hurricanrana to take Andrade from the apron to the floor. A seated senton off the apron takes Andrade down again and we take a break. Back with Rey getting two off a Code Red until Almas kicks him in the face for the same.

Andrade’s double moonsault gets two but Rey is right back with something like a running Canadian Destroyer to drop Andrade HARD on his head for two more. The 619 is blocked so Rey settles for a crucifix driver for two instead. Now the 619 connects but a Vega distraction lets Andrade crotch Rey on top. The hanging hammerlock DDT finishes Mysterio at 20:36.

Rating: B. This was a very fun match, assuming you can ignore Rey’s knees being torn and wrecked every time he takes a step. They’re doing a good job of making Almas look like a star here and that’s exactly the point. Mysterio is one of those guys who could lose every match he has for the rest of his career and still be a legend so it’s not like losing a competitive and entertaining twenty minute match is going to hurt anything.

We recap the Mandy/Jimmy stuff.

Jimmy goes to the hotel room where Mandy is in a robe. She says the time to play hard to get is over and takes off her robe to reveal some lingerie, which again is about the same as what she wears to the ring. Jimmy says no and reaches out a hand to hold her back, as a photographer pops out to take pictures. Mandy laughs off the idea that she wanted Jimmy because this is all about destroying Naomi. Mandy: “She will never be as hot as me.”

Once Naomi sees the photos, she’ll be destroyed. Jimmy doesn’t seem shaken and walks away. As he leaves, Naomi comes in and beats Mandy down, proving that there are intelligent people in wrestling. Mandy fights back and knocks her into a wall before leaving. Jimmy comes in to help Naomi up as she said this isn’t over.

We look at the unveiling of the Women’s Tag Team Titles.

Royal Rumble rundown.

Here’s Miz for a big celebration of Shane McMahon’s birthday, complete with cakes and presents. Miz introduces Shane for a birthday dance as Shane is rather energetic, as usual. Miz has two cakes for him, including a little chocolate and vanilla, though one of them has a picture of Miz and Shane on it.

That brings us to the first present, the Jordan 33 sneakers, with Shane (known for his love of sneakers), listing off every feature. Next up is a video tribute to Shane, who then talks about always wanting to be Tag Team Champions. Now his first pick was Andre the Giant but he’s happy to walk into the Rumble this Sunday (or next Sunday) with Miz as his partner.

Miz then leads the crowd in Happy Birthday but here’s the Bar to interrupt. They say Vince was invited to this whole thing but he doesn’t care enough to actually show up. Shane didn’t like the Bar attacking Miz last week so let’s have Sheamus vs. Miz tonight. Miz is in a suit but Shane says he wore a suit when he won the Best in the World tournament. That’s enough for Miz and we’re on.

Sheamus vs. The Miz

Joined in progress with Miz (in suit pants) hammering away but getting sent to the apron for the forearms to the chest. White Noise is countered into a rollup to give Miz two so Sheamus knees him in the ribs. The Skull Crushing Finale is blocked but Miz avoids a charge into the post and hits some running dropkicks. Sheamus gets in another shot so Cesaro gets on the apron, allowing Shane to throw him through a cake at ringside. Miz grabs a rollup for the pin at 4:03.

Rating: D. I like both guys but this is much more about Shane than anything else and that’s not going to work. He’s turning 49 years old today and is somehow getting a title shot at the Royal Rumble. I’m not sure how that’s supposed to work, but he’s a McMahon so that’s what matters. The Shane portion of the show ate up about half an hour, which is way more than Shane could ever need. Just please don’t let this lead to Shane getting another big Wrestlemania spot, even though you know it’s going there.

Post match Sheamus beats on Miz with Shane making the save. The Skull Crushing Finale plants Sheamus and Miz is surprised that Shane helped him. Shane goes up top as Miz grabs a cake, which is driven into Sheamus’ face off the Coast to Coast. Shane is banged up to end the show.

Overall Rating: C-. That last quarter really hurt thins and there wasn’t much of a way to fix it. The Mysterio vs. Andrade match was good but it’s not good enough to make up for half an hour of the Shane and Miz Show. The rest of the show was fine enough with Bryan vs. AJ being good stuff and the Mandy/Naomi story being good enough soap opera drama which thankfully didn’t include Naomi being an idiot. I liked most of the show but that focus on Miz/Shane has me worried for the future.

Results

Becky Lynch b. Peyton Royce – Disarm-Her

Asuka b. Billie Kay – Asuka Lock

Andrade b. Rey Mysterio – Hanging hammerlock DDT

The Miz b. Sheamus – Rollup

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Royal Rumble Count-Up – 2006: That Man Is An Impostor

IMG Credit: WWE

Royal Rumble 2006
Date: January 29, 2006
Location: American Airlines Arena, Miami, Florida
Attendance: 16,178
Commentators: Michael Cole, Jerry Lawler, Joey Styles, Tazz

The opening video is about Mark Henry vs. Kurt Angle. The Rumble and Edge vs. Cena gets a little time as well.

Cruiserweight Title: Gregory Helms vs. Kid Kash vs. Funaki vs. Jamie Noble vs. Nunzio vs. Paul London

Nunzio hits a slingshot to send Noble into the corner and Funaki adds a bulldog for two. We finally get to the dives with Nunzio diving on a pair of guys, allowing Noble to get two on Kash via a leg lariat. Noble dives on Helms and Nunzio on the floor and Funaki is knocked off the top onto Nunzio and Noble. London kicks Kash to the floor as well and dives on everyone not named Helms with a shooting star off the top.

Trish is looking GREAT in a referee outfit when Mickie, currently the psycho lesbian, comes up and says she loves Trish. Ok then.

Mickie James vs. Ashley Massaro

Big Show draws his number. Rey comes in to talk about Eddie a bit. Apparently Eddie is joking with Rey by giving him this number.

John Bradshaw Layfield vs. Boogeyman

Before the Rumble starts, the Spirit Squad comes out to give us a chant.

Royal Rumble

HHH is #1 and Mysterio is #2, naturally coming out in a lowrider and an Eddie shirt. HHH tries to power him down to start but Rey comes back with kicks to the knee. Rey hits a headscissors to take HHH down and into the corner but HHH lifts him to the apron. Rey comes back with a springboard dropkick to the back but HHH ducks the 619. Simon Dean is #3 and goes after Rey to a bunch of boos. Dean sends him to the apron and wants a high five from HHH but gets punched in the face and hit by a seated senton. The elimination is academic.

Lashley immediately comes back with an overhead belly to belly and a third press slam to HHH. Kane takes a Dominator and Sylvan, the “Smackdown fashion consultant” is #10 and lasts about 18 seconds before Lashley throws him out. Unfortunately he turns around and gets caught in a double chokeslam followed by the elimination. The partners quickly turn on each other with Kane getting a boot up to stop a charging Show. They fight to the ropes and HHH runs up to throw them both out, emulating the same thing Shawn did in 1996 with Vader and Yokozuna.

Benoit chops on HHH until Joey Mercury is #14. Mercury fires off dropkicks but gets caught in Rolling Germans. Carlito jumps Benoit to break it up and Mercury pounds on Benoit a bit. Freaking Tatanka is #15, giving us a group of Mysterio, HHH, Carlito, Benoit, Mercury and Tatanka. Seriously why did the bring TATANKA back? He fires off chops as the fans do the Seminole chant.

Shawn has to skin the cat to stay in and turns into a kick to the head from Shelton. Michaels is cool with that and sends Shelton to the apron followed by a superkick to eliminate him. This brings out Vince who hates Shawn and the distraction lets Shane run in and dump HBK. Shawn is ticked and runs back in and superkicks HHH after escaping a Pedigree attempt. He goes after Vince but a single referee stops him. Ok then.

Mickie comes in to hit on Trish as she does an interview on WWE.com.

We recap Edge vs. Cena. Edge won MITB back at Mania and waited nine months before cashing in on Cena after Cena survived the Elimination Chamber. Tonight is the rematch three weeks later.

Raw World Title: John Cena vs. Edge

Edge tries for a countout but Cena DIVES back in at nine. Back in and Cena pounds away but charges into a spinwheel kick for two from the Canadian. Edge punches Cena to the floor again but goes after him instead of going for the countout again. Cena gets sent into the steps and back inside a missile dropkick gets two for the champion. Edge loads up a superplex but gets shoved off, only to avoid a guillotine legdrop from Cena.

Edge freaks out on Todd Grisham in the back. Edge storms off and Lita panics a bit. We get a random Hacksaw Jim Duggan cameo (does anyone do those better?) to call her a HO!

Smackdown World Title: Kurt Angle vs. Mark Henry

Instead Angle hits a German (kind of) to put both guys down. The Angle Slam gets two (duh) and the ankle lock is broken up again. The counter causes the referee to get bumped so Angle gets a chair. A low blow and two chair shots take Henry down for two, so Angle takes a buckle off. Kurt drop toeholds him into the buckle and rolls Henry up to retain. Our hero everyone.

Taker comes out in a freaking horse drawn chariot and motions that he wants the title. Then he shoots lightning from his hands at the stuff over the ring, before slamming his arms down to send lightning at the posts. The ring collapses to end the show. Yeah that happened.

Ratings Comparison

Gregory Helms vs. Kid Kash vs. Funaki vs. Jamie Noble vs. Nunzio vs. Paul London

Original: B-

Redo: C+

Mickie James vs. Ashley Massaro

Original: C-

Redo: D

Boogeyman vs. John Bradshaw Layfield

Original: F-

Redo: N/A

Royal Rumble

Original: D

Redo: C-

John Cena vs. Edge

Original: B

Redo: D+

Kurt Angle vs. Mark Henry

Original: D-

Redo: D

Overall Rating

Original: C-

Redo: D

What was I on for that Edge vs. Cena match?

http://kbwrestlingreviews.com/2011/01/25/royal-rumble-count-up-2006-eddie-guerrero-puts-on-a-mask-and-wins-the-rumble/

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Smackdown – August 5, 2004: Oh Yeah He Exists

IMG Credit: WWE

Smackdown
Date: August 5, 2004
Location: Toyota Center, Houston, Texas
Commentators: Michael Cole, Tazz

We’re getting close to Summerslam and the big story around here is over the US Title with Booker T. winning the title in an eight way match last week. John Cena isn’t happy though and is still coming for Booker and the title, which you have to imagine will take place at Summerslam. Oh and Kurt Angle and Eddie Guerrero still hate each other. Let’s get to it.

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

New General Manager Theodore Long opens the show with pictures of Vince McMahon and Martin Luther King Jr. in his office. One had a vision and the other had a dream but they’ve both made him want to make Smackdown a great show for the fans. If you thought last week’s show was great, you haven’t seen anything yet. Call your friends and knock on your neighbor’s door because we’re starting with a #1 contenders match.

John Cena vs. Rob Van Dam

The winner gets a shot at Booker at some point in the future. They trade waistlocks to start and that’s a clean break. Van Dam slips out of a headscissors of all things and that’s an early standoff. Another clean break gives us a handshake as the fans switch from Van Dam to Cena. Van Dam gets tossed outside where he kicks Cena in the head to take over. Cena is smart enough to get off the barricade before the spinning kick can connect. Now why has no one else ever thought of that?

They fight over a suplex on the apron with Cena suplexing him out to the floor for a nasty landing as we take a break. Back with Cena getting two off a release fisherman’s suplex but Van Dam kicks him in the head again. Another kick to the face keeps Cena in trouble as Booker is cheering both of them on in the back. The split legged moonsault gives Van Dam two and Rolling Thunder is good for the same.

Since it’s been a few minutes since we’ve seen one, Van Dam kicks him in the face and goes up top for….actually a guillotine legdrop instead of the Five Star. Cena grabs a DDT (Why did he stop using that?) for a delayed two of his own. One heck of an elbow to the jaw rocks Van Dam and the ProtoBomb plants him again.

The Shuffle gets two and Cena goes up, which isn’t likely to be a good idea. Indeed Van Dam kicks him in the head and grabs a superplex but Cena reverses into a small package for the pin (the stupid kind where they’re both laying down and then kick their legs up for no reason other than to get to the finish) and the title shot.

Rating: B-. Cena is looking more and more like the guy who could be the next star every time he’s out there. The comedy is starting to take a backseat to the good, quality matches and while this wasn’t a great one, it was solid with Cena helping Van Dam put on a nice performance. A feud with Booker is only going to help him.

We get a show of respect post match.

Long comes in to see Booker and says he and Cena are so equal that one match isn’t enough. There’s going to be a best of five series for the title with the first match taking place at “Summer Games”.

Here’s Eddie Guerrero for a chat, complete with Torrie Wilson, Sable and Dawn Marie in the low rider. All of Kurt Angle’s stuff that Eddie is auctioning off is in the ring and the auction ends tonight. That’s why the women are here: to help raise the value. This includes putting the cast on Torrie and having her sit in the wheelchair so the women can sign the cast. Then we have the signed photo of Angle but Eddie is staring at Sable instead.

The girls autograph that too before Eddie moves on to talking about Angle’s last match. That just happened to be against Eddie at Wrestlemania where Eddie pinned him in a classic. Eddie promises to win again and we see an Olympic themed commercial of Eddie gluing the other runners to their starting blocks to win a Gold Medal of his own.

Rene Dupree vs. Orlando Jordan

I had almost forgotten Jordan existed. Dupree knocks him outside and into the steps to start before throwing right hands inside. Jordan gets thrown to the apron so Dupree can hit the French Tickler. With the dancing done, Dupree turns around into a high crossbody to give Jordan the upset. Yay.

JBL arrives and asks Josh how he’s doing while using hand sanitizer after shaking hands. He’s not afraid of Undertaker you see and is calling him out tonight.

Kurt Angle vs. Charlie Haas

This is Angle’s first match since Wrestlemania with Luther Reigns and Miss Jackie here as well. Feeling out process to start as they trade takedowns and escapes. Angle hits a hiptoss and Haas is right back with an armdrag into an armbar. Another armdrag sends Angle bailing out to the floor and we take an early break.

Back with Haas grabbing a hammerlock but getting snapmared into a chinlock. With the wrestling not getting us very far, Angle starts hammering away in the corner to really take over. Haas grabs a suplex and hammers away in the corner but walks into the belly to belly. The chinlock with a knee in the back goes on before Angle gets frustrated at the repeated kickouts.

A bodyscissors keeps Haas down but he fights up and sends Angle outside for a breather. Back in and Angle goes shoulder first into the post, setting up a springboard twisting ax handle (the announcers are surprised too) to give Haas two. That’s enough for Angle as he picks the ankle but gets sent into the corner. Angle isn’t having that either and takes down the straps, setting up the grapevined ankle lock for the tap.

Rating: B-. This was a good return for Angle as he wasn’t as sharp as he used to be but started to put it together as the match went on. Haas was a smart choice here as Angle is better at everything that Haas can do but Haas can still make him work. Angle is going to get better and better with some more matches, capped off by the big one at Summerslam.

Summerslam rundown.

Raw Rebound.

Tag Team Titles: Basham Brothers vs. Billy Kidman/Paul London

Kidman and London are defending. Danny starts with Kidman but it’s quickly off to London for a double hiptoss. A slingshot legdrop keeps Danny in trouble but Doug pulls Kidman off the apron to take over. Kidman gets dropped ribs first onto the top rope to make things even worse and we hit the bearhug. A kick to the head gives Danny two but Kidman scores with a dropkick and dives over for the tag off to London. Everything breaks down and Kidman uses London’s back as a launchpad for an enziguri. The 450 retains the titles.

Rating: C. Now this is the kind of thing that the champs needed. They had a nice little title defense here against a known team and won clean. Build up the credibility a bit and the reign will feel a little more important. The Bashams are so much better without Shaniqua, as they’ve gone from a joke to an average team, which is quite the upgrade.

John Cena wants you to vote.

Paul Heyman/Heidenreich video.

Rey Mysterio/Spike Dudley vs. Dudley Boyz

A loud Bubba drives Spike into the corner to start and a dropkick to Bubba only hurts Spike’s knee. Rey comes in and Spike walks it off on the floor as you might see something coming here. Mysterio’s springboard moonsault has Bubba in trouble and D-Von charges into a boot in the corner. In a questionable move, Spike tags himself in and missile dropkicks D-Von, only to hurt the knee again.

The distraction lets Bubba gorilla press Rey onto D-Von’s raised knee to bang up the ribs. The bearhug doesn’t last long and Bubba/s big elbow draws a smile. D-Von dives into a raised boot and the springboard seated senton puts Bubba down. Rey has to fight both Dudleys off at the same time with D-Von breaking up the 619. The 3D finishes Mysterio with Spike not being able to get in for the save.

Rating: D+. Just a match here and there’s a good chance that its main purpose was to set up a post match angle. Mysterio losing to both Dudleys in a glorified handicap match is fine and it gets the Dudleys some momentum back, though I’m not sure how interesting a story built around Spike is going to be.

Post match Spike helps Rey up and then turns on him, celebrating with his brothers instead. Spike wants a table and puts Rey through one with a top rope double stomp, setting up villainous posing. Uh, ok. I’m not sure why I’m supposed to care about Spike Dudley as a big villain, but this is somewhat (I think) better than having the Dudleys as the top heels. At least there’s no attempted murder involved.

Here’s JBL in the ring to call out Undertaker. He used to be a Texan but now he’s so glad to have moved to New York City. Now that he’s returned, he was hoping for the hero’s welcome that he deserved but tonight is about business. That’s why he’s calling Undertaker out right here and right now instead of waiting for Summerslam. The gong sounds and, in one of the famous WWE tropes, it’s a mini Taker. Tazz finds it hilarious, calling him the Undertoddler. JBL: “You look a lot bigger on television.”

He gets on his knees to look Undertaker eye to eye and makes a bunch of short jokes before loading the mini Taker up for a Tombstone. The gong goes off again though and the real Undertaker appears. It’s a quick beatdown to set up a Tombstone but Orlando Jordan of all people runs in for the save. Undertaker poses and the mini version does the same, earning a chokeslam to end the show. There were some good lines from JBL but this was eye rolling WWE comedy at its “finest”.

Overall Rating: C+. The wrestling was good here and they advanced some stories, there were a few things on here holding it back. The ending segment, along with Spike’s turn, aren’t exactly thrilling stuff and having Jordan be JBL’s lackey is far from interesting. I mean, there’s a reason that I had forgotten Jordan even existed until tonight. There’s some good stuff on here and enough to make the show easy to watch, which is about as you can ask for at times. Hopefully Summerslam is as good as the better half of the build has been, though it’s still not as strong as Raw at the moment.

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Smackdown – January 1, 2019: It’s A Becky Thing

IMG Credit: WWE

Smackdown
Date: January 1, 2019
Location: PPG Paints Arena, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
Commentators: Tom Phillips, Corey Graves, Byron Saxton

It’s the first show of the year and we’re taped again, though for the last time here. The big story this week is the return of John Cena, who is making one of his regular stops here in between movies. It’s not clear what he’s going to be doing but there could be some interesting interactions with some of the people on the roster. Let’s get to it.

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

Here’s New Day, with Big E. as the New Year’s Baby, to open things up. They’re happy to be on the first Smackdown of the new year and we’ll start things off with an important announcement: all three of them will be in the Royal Rumble. Big E. goes into the Scott Steiner math promo, with Woods asking why he’s doing Steiner Math. If they win, they might be able to challenge for the Universal Title but Brock Lesnar won’t show up anyway. Kofi snaps about not being able to get a title shot so Big E. gives him some of the bottle.

On a sadder note, their doctors have told them to stop eating pancakes but Big E. pulls some out of the diaper. After Kofi freaks out, he and Woods have new year’s resolutions….which are the plots to Bumblebee and Bird Box. Big E. gets us back on track by talking about the fatal five way for the WWE Title shot at the Royal Rumble, but first we need to have a regular match to fill in the fifth spot. Let’s do that now.

Jeff Hardy vs. Samoa Joe

Before the match, we get clips of their match last where Jeff snapped. See, why couldn’t they just combine the two matches? Either have last week’s match be for the spot in the five way or do something else and only have them do this match. That’s a big reason why these feuds feel like they go on forever. Anyway Joe pulls him down into a kneebar to start and punches away in the corner. Jeff slips down to the floor and wraps Joe’s knee around the post to keep things even. Joe gets mad and unloads the announcers’ table to send us to a break.

Back with Joe hammering away in the corner, which is rather different than the expected chinlock. Joe ties him in the Tree of Woe to break up the Whisper in the Wind, setting up a sliding dropkick. Jeff makes his comeback with all of the usual, including the Twisting Stunner to set up the Swanton but Joe bails to the floor. Hardy goes with him but gets caught in the Koquina Clutch. That gives Joe a nine, so he slaps it on again back inside to knock Hardy out at 10:26 for a spot in the five way.

Rating: C. The match was the usual stuff they’re capable of doing, but that doesn’t make it that much more interesting. Joe’s promos were great before the matches started but they’ve already done this match enough that it’s hard to care about it again. Joe just won clean, so why would I want to see them fight again? I’m sure they will, and that’s a problem.

We look back at Vince McMahon bringing out the animal in AJ Styles, who beat Vince down due to a slap.

Vince and Shane McMahon are in their office and explain the fatal five way in a fashion that they would never use. AJ comes in and asks if Vince is sure he wanted to see him. He’s not apologizing for what happened last week so watch the real AJ tonight. AJ teases showing the real version to Vince right now and Vince has to hold Shane back. With AJ gone, Shane tells Vince to be careful what he wishes for. Better advice: make sure that HHH isn’t doing the same storyline with Seth Rollins on Raw.

Here are Rusev and Lana for their celebration of winning the US Title last week. Rusev talks about how great he is, including his animal magnetism (Lana seems to approve) and smelling like a bacon flavored Cinnabon. We get a RUSEV DAY USA chant but here’s Nakamura to jump him from behind. Lana tried to jump on Nakamura’s back and Rusev uses the distraction to superkick him down. That crushes Lana, who can handle wrestling matches but not having a 220lb man fall on her. Nakamura uses the distraction to kick Rusev in the face and then hit Kinshasa.

We look back at Mandy Rose trying to get Jimmy Uso under the mistletoe last week, which didn’t sit well with Naomi.

Mandy Rose vs. Naomi

Mandy takes off the Mandy Rose shirt to reveal an Usos shirt….and apparently we have a change.

Sonya Deville vs. Naomi

Sonya uses the early distraction to hit a sliding knee for two and it’s off to the chinlock. Naomi comes right back with a Disaster kick but Mandy grabs the mic. She was getting ready earlier today and sent Jimmy a picture of herself in a towel (which is covering her more than her gear). That’s enough of a distraction for Sonya to hit a Hellevator (suplex into a Rock Bottom) for the pin at 2:23.

Randy Orton promises to make victims out of everyone else in the five way.

Rey Mysterio has shown that he can’t be pushed around and he’ll prove that he’s not just here for nostalgia.

Mustafa Ali used to be known as the heart of the cruiserweights but now he wants to be known as the heart of Smackdown. He may be the underdog but he has hope and heart.

We get some new year’s resolutions.

The IIconics want to be the first ever Women’s Tag Team Champions.

The Good Brothers want to eradicate Smackdown of all the nerds.

Shelton Benjamin doesn’t care because no one is going to live up to their promises, and pulls down the New Year’s resolution curtains.

Samoa Joe promises to win the five way and then win the WWE Title because he wants to prove himself to people like Jeff Hardy.

Here’s John Cena, bad hair and all, for a chat. Cena thanks the fans for the energy and talks about the year in review. He bought a ticket to Wrestlemania and probably shouldn’t have had those beers before the match. His personal life was all over national television, he wrote a best selling children’s book that he’s very proud of and lived in China for six months. With all that though, he still thinks this hair is a good idea. On top of that though, he can still float like a butterfly and sting like a bumblebee, which is still certified fresh.

The question now is why is he here. Well he knows that someone is going to come out here right now and say Cena should leave WWE faster than Nikki Bella left him. That brings out Becky Lynch to some applause from Cena. Becky asks how it feels to expect a man to come out here but to get The Man instead. Things have gotten a bit more complicated since Cena left, because now Becky wants to take his place instead of Charlotte’s. He’s been THE star of WWE and now she wants to be on those posters and filling his shoes. If Cena has a problem with that, Nikki won’t be the only woman to drop him this year.

This brings out Andrade Cien Almas and Zelina Vega, with the latter saying a fresh start was promised not too long ago. What she sees though is an old face in Cena and a still broken face in Becky. Vega introduces the two of them and promises that this will be the year of tranquilo. Cena: “Allow me to introduce myself. My name is John Cena and you may know me from being John Cena.” The challenge is thrown out and the mixed tag starts after the break.

John Cena/Becky Lynch vs. Zelina Vega/Andrade Cien Almas

The women start with a chop sending Vega bailing for a tag to Almas. That means Cena comes in as well and Andrade is rather pleased. The early tranquilo pose doesn’t have Cena very impressed and Almas’ headlock doesn’t make things much better. The fans want Becky but have to settle for more headlocking instead. Almas kicks him down but gets his suplex reversed. A running clothesline takes Cena down though and we take a break.

Back with Vega holding Cena on the ropes and Almas still in control. Cena fights up and avoids a charge, allowing the hot tag to Becky as the fans stay interested. Some kicks have Vega in trouble and the Bexploder makes things even worse. A top rope dropkick with almost no elevation (Becky might have slipped) gets two but Almas breaks up the Disarm-Her. Cena takes care of him with the usual, including the Lightning Fist. Becky shoves Cena out of the ring though and grabs the Disarm-Her for the win at 10:11.

Rating: C-. That ending was a great example of something that Becky would do and fitting her character. She didn’t ask permission from Cena to do what she wanted and just took the spot herself. That fits her very well and was the right call. It’s not going to mean anything, but it fit for the moment.

Post match Cena offers a handshake but Becky does You Can’t See Me instead.

We look back at Shane finally agreeing to be Miz’s tag partner.

Miz comes in to see Shane and has ideas for matching gear. That means Shane in Miz’s coat, but Shane isn’t thrilled. He doesn’t seem that much happier with the red version with sunglasses either. Miz’s last idea is Shane in Miz trunks, with Shane looking rather ripped. Shane suggests coming up with something brighter and leaves.

The same video on the coming NXT stars. Good grief WE GET IT ALREADY.

HHH comes up to see Asuka in the back and asks her who should get a title shot at the Royal Rumble. Asuka is up for anyone because no one is ready for her. Charlotte pops in to say Ronda Rousey is the only reason she’s not champion. Carmella comes in to say she was champion for a long time, followed by Becky saying she’s the only option. Advisement has been undertaken.

Rey Mysterio vs Mustafa Ali vs. Samoa Joe vs. Randy Orton vs. AJ Styles

One fall to a finish and the winner gets Bryan at the Rumble. Everyone is in the ring at once so Ali goes right at Joe, who throws him down without much effort. AJ hits a tilt-a-whirl backbreaker on Rey before hammering away at Orton in the corner. Everyone but Orton heads outside with the aggressive AJ sending Ali face first into the post. Ali is fine enough to hit the rolling X Factor for two on Orton as Joe makes the save.

Rey dives in to take Joe down but AJ sends him hard into the corner. Mysterio is fine enough to hurricanrana AJ out to the floor, only to walk right into a powerslam. Joe suplexes Ali but charges into AJ’s elbow in the corner, setting up the moonsault into the reverse DDT for two. Back from a break with AJ taking over again but not being able to launch the Phenomenal Forearm. Joe drops him through the announcers’ table, only to have Ali take him down.

Rey does the same to Orton and we get an Ali vs Mysterio showdown. Ali flips out of a headscissors and catches Rey on top with a super Spanish Fly. That’s good for a delayed two with Joe making a save this time and firing off knees to Ali. The Satellite DDT plans Joe but the 054 misses. Joe grabs the Koquina Clutch with Rey making a save off a 619. Another 619 hits Ali and there’s the RKO to make it worse, with Rey coming off the top with a legdrop for the save. A hurricanrana on the floor takes care of Joe and AJ hits the springboard 450 to pin Orton for the title shot at 13:09.

Rating: B-. Not too bad here with the right call. You don’t want to have AJ get that big moment last year and then lose his first match back. I don’t think they’ll put the title back on him but there’s a good chance he’ll get screwed out of the title, which is a fine enough way to set up a Rumble match. Ali got some nice offense in here as well and that’s a good sign for his future.

Overall Rating: C. The show wasn’t exactly great, but it set up things for the Rumble and advanced some stories without feeling long, which is a lot better than what you would see on the Monday counterpart. Things will pick way back up next week so this was little more than a filler, but at least we got a watchable show this time around. Hopefully we get more of the Rumble card next week, but what we’ve gotten so far isn’t too bad.

Results

Samoa Joe b. Jeff Hardy – Koquina Clutch

Sonya Deville b. Naomi – Hellevator

John Cena/Becky Lynch b. Andrade Cien Almas/Zelina Vega – Disarm-Her to Vega

AJ Styles b. Randy Orton, Samoa Joe, Rey Mysterio and Mustafa Ali – Springboard 450 to Orton

http://kbwrestlingreviews.com/2018/11/20/new-paperback-complete-1997-monday-night-raw-reviews/

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

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

Starrcade 2018: There’s More To It Than That

IMG Credit: WWE

Starrcade 2018
Date: November 25, 2018
Location: US Bank Arena, Cincinnati, Ohio
Commentators: Tom Phillips, Byron Saxton

This is something that could range from interesting to head scratching. Last night, WWE held a big house show featuring stars from both shows under the name of Starrcade. The show ran about three and a half hours and tonight we’re seeing a one hour version with some special moments and matches selected. Let’s get to it.

Note that I was in the arena for the show so this will be my second time seeing it. You can check out a full set of results right here.

We open with Elias playing a little song. He knows it can’t get better than having him here but he’s willing to try with a special guest. That would be Ric Flair, who puts Elias over as a big deal. Elias thinks they need to sing a son off his album and asks people to silence their cell phones, but here are Nia Jax, Mickie James, Tamina and Alicia Fox to cut them off. Nia says they want to walk with him and Flair is rather pleased.

Flair calls them all beautiful and Elias sings some of Elias’ Words. Even Flair gets in a few lines and dances a bit until Nia screeches out a line, much to the fans’ annoyance. Fox starts dancing but Elias calms them down. Elias tells Nia to shut her mouth, but he’s got some friends to do it for him. This was HEAVILY edited as the full version ran nearly twenty minutes as opposed to the ten it got here.

Nia Jax/Tamina/Mickie James/Alicia Fox vs. Bayley/Sasha Banks/Ember Moon/Dana Brooke

Ember and Mickie start things off with both going for the arm until Ember hits the spinning middle rope crossbody for two. Brooke comes in for the handspring elbow and the cartwheel moonsault for a near fall of her own. It’s off to Bayley to a nice reaction, sending Mickie over to Tamina for some hiding. Tamina comes in properly and crushes Bayley in the corner before sending her to the apron. That earns Tamina a Stunner over the middle rope but Nia sneaks in to run Bayley over for two.

The rapid fire tags in the corner allow Fox to grab a chinlock before Jax does the same. Bayley sends Jax into her partners though and that’s enough for the hot tag to Banks. Everything breaks down and Moon hits the Eclipse on Tamina, followed by Brooke’s high crossbody to Mickie’s knees. Jax gets taken down and Bayley drops a top rope elbow to the back, leaving Fox to get caught in the Bank Statement for the tap at 6:53.

Rating: C-. Perfectly fine opener here that didn’t overstay its welcome and played off a fun opening segment. Banks and Bayley were very over with the live crowd and anything that involved Jax taking a beating was getting a strong reaction. Now if only Bayley and Banks were allowed to do anything interesting, or even different, from week to week.

Samoa Joe says the definition of insanity is trying the same thing over and over again and expecting a different result. Some might say Joe has been insane, but others might think AJ has been because AJ has taken beating after beating. The real definition of insanity is walking into a cage with Joe and expecting to walk out at all.

Here’s Miz for MizTV, starting off with a discussion of some great Starrcade matches from years gone by. One such match was for the US Title, which will be on the line tonight. That includes Rey Mysterio, who comes out in a neck brace thanks to Randy Orton on Smackdown and Shinsuke Nakamura, who looks weird in all blue. Miz asks Rey what it means for Rey to be here and we hear some Starrcade legends name dropping.

Rey wants to take a piece of history with him, like the US Title. Nakamura doesn’t quite get the idea of Starrcade but eventually clarifies that he doesn’t care about the show or Rey. He loved watching Orton go evil on Rey and Miz agrees, so Rey tells him to shut up. Rey invites Nakamura to get evil right now but Miz runs his mouth again, this time for a distraction so Nakamura can jump Rey to start us off.

US Title: Shinsuke Nakamura vs. Rey Mysterio

Nakamura is defending and rips the neck brace off to start fast with the knees to the neck. Kinshasa is countered into a rollup for two but Nakamura blasts him down again. Rey is put on the corner for the running knee to the ribs but kicks Nakamura down. That sets up a missed dive which takes out Miz instead and I think you know where this is going. The springboard seated senton drops Nakamura, only to have Miz come in for the DQ at 2:11.

Post match the beatdown is on until Rusev makes the save. Lana is out with him and wants a tag match right now.

Rusev/Rey Mysterio vs. Shinsuke Nakamura/The Miz

The villains tease leaving to start but get thrown back in so we can start properly. Nakamura breaks up an early 619 to Miz and cranks on a cravate to Rey’s bad neck. Rey gets sent outside for some cheap shots from Miz and it’s right back to the neck cranking. A kick to the face finally gets Rey out of trouble and an enziguri is enough for the hot tag to Rusev.

Everything breaks down in a hurry and there’s the Machka Kick for two on Miz with Nakamura making the save. Another distraction lets Miz hit the Skull Crushing Finale for two but Rey is right back up with a double 619. The jumping superkick is enough to put Miz away at 6:05.

Rating: C. All it was missing was Alfred Hayes and Sean Mooney calling it a Coliseum Video exclusive. This was a rather random tag match that worked just fine, even though it didn’t get a ton of time. There’s nothing wrong with that of course and the wrestling worked perfectly fine for what it was. I don’t need to see either of them team together again, but at least it was fun.

Samoa Joe vs. AJ Styles

In a cage. Joe goes right at him to start and drives AJ into the corner but some kicks to the leg have Joe in trouble. AJ starts driving him into the corner as well, this time for some shoulders to the ribs. Back up and Joe faceplants him before starting the whips into the cage, which you had to know were coming. A running forearm drives AJ into the cage and a back elbow gets two.

It’s too early for Joe to leave so Joe slams him out of the corner instead. The corner enziguri rocks AJ again for two but Joe misses a charge into the cage to give AJ a shot. AJ’s moonsault out of the corner into the reverse DDT gets two, even with Joe’s foot on the ropes because that doesn’t matter in a cage match. Well not in this one at least as that rule changes depending on how the referee is feeling at the time.

Joe ducks the Phenomenal Forearm and plants AJ again for a double knockdown. It’s time to fight next to the door but Joe misses another charge and gets caught with a tornado DDT. That’s good for two and AJ is sent face first into the cage again, setting up the backsplash for two. AJ charges into a Rock Bottom out of the corner but Joe takes too much time going for the door, allowing AJ to get in a chop block. The Calf Crusher makes Joe tap at 11:54.

Rating: B-. Good match here, but were you expecting anything else from these two? They could have a good match in their sleep so having them do it inside a cage isn’t exactly shocking. AJ winning makes complete sense as it’s not like this match means much in the first place and he’s won almost everything in the whole feud now anyway. As solid as these two are against each other, Joe really needs to move on to someone else, just to avoid losing any more.

Overall Rating: C+. Well it was fun while it lasted, but the whole thing ran three and a half hours as opposed to this one only getting fifty seven minutes. Given that it’s the WWE Network, you would think they could just air the full show, especially since they were already filming the thing anyway. What we got was good, but there was a lot of other rather entertaining stuff that was left out for reasons I still don’t quite get. Anyway, fun little show, but nothing worth going out of your way to see.

Results

Bayley/Sasha Banks/Dana Brooke/Ember Moon b. Tamina/Nia Jax/Alicia Fox/Mickie James – Bank Statement to Fox

Rey Mysterio b. Shinsuke Nakamura via DQ when Miz interfered

Rusev/Rey Mysterio b. Shinsuke Nakamura/The Miz – Jumping superkick to Miz

AJ Styles b. Samoa Joe – Calf Crusher

http://kbwrestlingreviews.com/2018/11/20/new-paperback-complete-1997-monday-night-raw-reviews/

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

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

Smackdown – November 20, 2018: Make Up The Positives, Ignore The Negatives

IMG Credit: WWE

Smackdown
Date: November 20, 2018
Location: Staples Center, Los Angeles, California
Commentators: Corey Graves, Byron Saxton, Tom Phillips

It’s the final night in Los Angeles and that means it’s probably time for the Shane McMahon Show. Since being swept by Raw on Sunday, Shane has promised big changes for the show and that could mean several things. In theory this is the start of the long awaited Shane heel turn, meaning Paige’s job might be in jeopardy. Let’s get to it.

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

We open with a recap of Charlotte snapping and attacking Ronda Rousey on Sunday, turning hard heel in the process.

Here’s Charlotte to get things going. Charlotte is very proud of what she did on Sunday and some of the fans don’t seem to mind. Rousey is moving around a little more slowly since Sunday because Charlotte was fighting for everyone in the back. She was fighting for Becky Lynch, who wanted Rousey to take the beating of her life. Well mission accomplished, because Rousey bowed down to the queen.

Cue Paige, to remind Charlotte that Rousey is coming for her soon enough. Charlotte shoved a bunch of referees on Sunday so it’s going to be a $100,000 fine. This brings out the IIconics, who know they’re Paige’s favorite. They want the $100,000 (It’s not a bounty.) so Charlotte will fight one of them right now.

Charlotte vs. Billie Kay

Charlotte sends her outside to start but a Peyton Royce distraction lets Billie get in a big boot to take over. Some right hands keep Charlotte in trouble but she’s right back up with a few shots of her own. Natural Selection finishes Kay at 3:14.

Rating: D. Well what else are you supposed to say about that? Charlotte seemingly turned heel on Sunday and now she’s squashing a heel jobber here. I’m sure this is exactly what WWE had planned and makes perfect sense if you squint hard enough, but I’m still trying to get over Charlotte fighting for Becky, who she hated just a few weeks ago.

Post match Charlotte tells Peyton to get in here but she’d rather leave.

Charlotte vs. Peyton Royce

So much for that. Joined in progress with Peyton hitting some knees to the face for two each and we hit the chinlock. Kay offers a distraction but Charlotte cuts Peyton off with a big boot. That’s enough to draw Kay in for the DQ at 1:48.

Post match the IIconics take her to the floor and grab a chair but Charlotte spears both of them down and rams them into the announcers’ table over and over. Charlotte knees them in the head and throws them over the table before posing a bit. I have no idea where we are right now. Is Charlotte a heel when she’s fighting Rousey but a face when she’s back on Smackdown? Am I missing something?

Rey Mysterio is ready to take on Randy Orton tonight.

We look back at Daniel Bryan turning heel (again, apparently only on this show) to win the WWE Title last week.

Here’s Miz for MizTV to a hometown welcome. He was honored to fight alongside his guest tonight: Shane McMahon. Shane limps to the ring so Miz does the dance for him. Miz says it’s fitting that the two of them were the last men standing for Smackdown, just like at WWE World Cup (So they can’t say Crown Jewel anymore.) when they left it all in the ring. Shane lists off everything he did on Sunday but Miz gets to the point: since they’re both the Best in the World, they should be a team. The Besties in the World! Shane isn’t sure but Miz has already gotten them a match for right here, right now.

Shane McMahon/The Miz vs. The Bryant Brothers

The Brothers are apparently brothers in the same sense as the Dudleys. The announcers make fun of the tiny jobbers as Miz knees one of the them in the ribs. A kick to the face lets Miz do another shuffle and hit a DDT. Miz goes to brag to Shane….and gets small packaged for the pin at 1:16. Shane’s smirk is pretty funny.

New Day runs into the Gobbledy Gooker, as played by R-Truth.

New Day vs. The Bar/Big Show

It’s a Thanksgiving Feast Fight. Before the match, Sheamus and the Bar talk about how stupid this is and how they want to fight. Joined not in progress after a break with Show chopping the shirt off of Woods and handing it off to Sheamus for the forearms to the chest. Cesaro grabs a chinlock for a bit but Woods pops back up and makes the tag off to Kofi. Everything breaks down and Show gets kicked through a table of food. The turkey is brought in and Kofi comes off the top with a turkey to Sheamus’ head, driving him through the mashed potatoes. Big E. turkeys Sheamus in the head for the pin at 6:39.

Rating: F. Remember last month when they did this with Halloween stuff? Well now it’s turkey stuff. I’m not sure why WWE thinks this stuff is funny but we’ll be seeing it again next month for Christmas and maybe even in February with some groundhog casserole. I know it’s a wrestling staple and I’m just rather done with being amused by it.

Post match Cesaro gets covered in cranberry sauce.

Randy Orton has a Mysterio mask and says it means nothing to him. It deserves to be destroyed, just like the man who wears it. Tonight, Orton is destroying him with an RKO.

Naomi/Asuka vs. Sonya Deville/Mandy Rose

It’s a brawl to start with Naomi and Asuka hitting stereo hip attacks to put them on the floor as we take a very early break. Back with Naomi getting stomped down in the corner and Sonya coming in for a choke in the corner. An enziguri drops Sonya though and the hot tag brings in Asuka to run through Mandy. Sonya gets knocked off the apron by mistake and there’s no one for Mandy to tag. A German suplex drops Mandy and a Shining Wizard gives Asuka two. Sonya tags herself in and nearly hits Mandy before getting kicked in the head by Asuka. Naomi hits the Rear View on Sonya and the Asuka Lock makes Mandy tap at 6:44.

Rating: D+. What does it say that I was relieved when Asuka didn’t lose to these two? Mandy and Sonya splitting will do both of them some good as WWE seems to want to push Sonya but you can only get so far when you’re teaming with someone like Mandy. Naomi and Asuka as a team still does nothing for me so it would be nice if we could just have Stephanie come out for her photo op with the Women’s Tag Team Titles.

We recap Randy Orton vs. Rey Mysterio, which started when Rey eliminated him from the World Cup at World Cup.

Lars Sullivan is coming.

At TLC: AJ Styles vs. Daniel Bryan for the title.

Here’s Daniel Bryan for a chat. Speaking in the third person, Bryan says he gave up on his dreams three years ago and betrayed himself when he retired. The difference between Bryan and the people is he doesn’t give up and accept failure. He decided to fight and went to every doctor he could find and spent three hours inside a hyperbolic chamber every day. The healing worked but it also allowed him to meditate on his mantra of “fight for your dreams and your dreams will fight for you.” And it worked!

How else can you explain the miracle of him being able to return to the ring? He heard the loudest YES chants ever and it was a great moment. For these people though, it was just a moment because they weren’t there for the struggle and the pain. They weren’t there for everyone telling him to move on. The people were the only ones who moved on and you can hear it as these idiots chant for AJ Styles.

Bryan calls them fickle and says last week, Bryan’s dreams took over like they were programmed to do and kicked AJ low. Bryan’s dreams told him that he didn’t need to beat Brock Lesnar at Survivor Series because he won when Brock beat the weakness out of him. There would be a new emergence after that match because the old Bryan, the one that these people loved, is dead. The YES Movement is dead and all that’s left is Daniel Bryan: WWE Champion. All that matters is that you never give up on your dreams. He goes to leave but has the announcer say he is the NEW Daniel Bryan.

It’s going to take some time to see how this sticks, but I think I can go with it for now. The problem of course is the fans cheering Bryan anyway because he’s going to be great in this role, but WWE has pretty clearly given up on the concepts of faces and heels so you can’t exactly expect anything else.

R-Truth and Carmella sell stuff and dance.

Rey Mysterio vs. Randy Orton

Rating: D+. I’m still not sure why WWE insists on ending the show with guys on this level so often. They’re fine, but really they’re ending it with the upper midcard in a feud that doesn’t have a lot of heat instead of their big stuff. I can understand that more on Raw when the show is ending at 11, but I’m really not sure I get it here. The match was watchable, but nothing more than that.

Post match Randy puts the chair around Rey’s throat and gently throws it into the chair, knocking Rey’s mask off. Randy takes the mask with him to end the show. This might be more effective if Ronda Rousey hadn’t had something similar happen to her on Sunday before she won a match the next night.

Overall Rating: D. I don’t know what I just watched. Once the show was over, I didn’t remember disliking anything that much save for the really stupid food fight, but looking back there’s almost nothing good, aside from the Bryan promo. This show felt like they’re completely ignoring Survivor Series (the sweep wasn’t mentioned and Shane’s advertised State of the State address didn’t happen.

I’m still not sure where they’re going with the stories. Are we supposed to cheer Charlotte after what she did on Sunday? Or like Shane because he fought oh so hard? It’s like this show just ignored Survivor Series but wanted to use some parts of it in different ways than they set them up in the first place. Why I’d want to see Shane vs. Miz isn’t clear, but that’s the case with almost everything Shane does. The show wasn’t bad at first look, but when you look back at it, I’m more confused than anything else.

Results

Charlotte b. Billie Kay – Natural Selection

Charlotte b. Peyton Royce via DQ when Billie Kay interfered

The Bryant Brothers b. Shane McMahon/The Miz – Small package to Miz

New Day b. The Bar/Big Show – Turkey to the head

Naomi/Asuka b. Mandy Rose/Sonya Deville – Asuka Lock to Rose

Randy Orton b. Rey Mysterio – RKO

http://kbwrestlingreviews.com/2018/11/20/new-paperback-complete-1997-monday-night-raw-reviews/

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

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

Survivor Series Count-Up – 2010: Oh.

IMG Credit: WWE

Survivor Series 2010
Date: November 21, 2010
Location: American Airlines Arena, Miami, Florida
Attendance: 8,000
Commentators: Michael Cole, Jerry Lawler, Matt Striker

US Title: Daniel Bryan vs. Ted DiBiase

DiBiase is challenging here because he wants to win his first singles title. Simple but effective I guess. Bryan has Rise of the Valkyries as his new music here but the lack of beard hurts. Maryse is with Ted here too and is rocking a beige dress. Bryan speeds things up to start and there go the lights. Daniel dropkicks DiBiase to the apron but as he goes to get Ted, Bryan gets suplexed out to the floor in a cool bump.

Sheamus says Morrison is jealous of him for being a former and future World Champion because Morrison never will reach that level.

Sheamus vs. John Morrison

Cole says Morrison described this match as a tank against a fighter jet. Cole: “Of course Morrison the jet and Sheamus the tank.” Thanks Michael. Morrison starts fast and dropkicks Sheamus to the floor followed by a corkscrew dive to take the pale one out. Sheamus sends him into the barricade and runs Morrison over with an ax handle.

Intercontinental Title: Kaval vs. Dolph Ziggler

Kaval comes back with a handspring into an awesome kick to the face in the corner. Kaval goes up with his back to the ring, allowing Dolph to put on a sleeper on the top rope for some reason. Dolph gets knocked back and Kaval misses a big flip dive, allowing Dolph to hit the Fameasser for two. The sleeper gets slapped on again (on the mat this time) but Kaval escapes and is launched to the top rope where he springs off and hits a spin kick to the face in ANOTHER awesome looking move. Ziggler misses a charge in the corner and gets rolled up for two before Ziggler gets a rollup of his own with tights to retain.

Team Del Rio vs. Team Mysterio

Alberto Del Rio, Tyler Reks, Drew McIntyre, Jack Swagger, Cody Rhodes

Rey Mysterio, Chris Masters, Big Show, MVP, Kofi Kingston

Divas Title: Laycool vs. Natalya

Back in and Natalya suplexes both girls at once but her back is hurt in the process. Michelle blasts her in said back on the floor, but Natalya shoves Michelle over the barricade. They all brawl at ringside for a bit before Natalya and Michelle head into the ring. McCool gets rammed into Layla and the Sharpshooter gives Natalya the title.

but once they split, they fell off the face of the earth.

Beth Phoenix returns to save Natalya from a double beatdown. This would set up a Divas tables match next month.

Smackdown World Title: Edge vs. Kane

Kane beats up Edge post match. Edge comes back and puts Kane in the wheelchair and sends him through part of the barricade.

Tag Team Titles: Nexus vs. Vladimir Kozlov/Santino Marella

Raw World Title: Wade Barrett vs. Randy Orton

We head to the floor where Barrett hits a kick to the ribs to take over. Orton gets sent into the steps and punched down back in the ring. Barrett covers and gets a fair one count. We hit the chinlock for a good while until Orton fights back with his usual comeback stuff. The backbreaker gets two and Orton glares at Cena. Barrett gets in an uppercut and hits a top rope elbow for two.

Cena has no idea what to do post match. Nexus runs in and gets beaten down by the Super Best Friends. Cena hands Orton the title to end the show.

Ratings Comparison

Daniel Bryan vs. Ted DiBiase

Original: B

Redo: C+

John Morrison vs. Sheamus

Original: B

Redo: B-

Dolph Ziggler vs. Kaval

Original: B-

Redo: C-

Team Mysterio vs. Team Del Rio

Original: B-

Redo: B-

Natalya vs. Laycool

Original: D+

Redo: D

Kane vs. Edge

Original: D

Redo: F+

Nexus vs. Santino Marella/Vladimir Kozlov

Original: D

Redo: D+

Randy Orton vs. Wade Barrett

Original: D+

Redo: D

Overall Rating

Original: B

Redo: D+

I liked this one WAY better on first viewing. Then again I didn’t know what was coming for Nexus back then.

Here’s the original review if you’re interested:

http://kbwrestlingreviews.com/2011/11/19/history-of-survivor-series-count-up-2010-when-did-orton-and-barrett-get-good/

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and pick up my new book of Complete 1997 Monday Night Raw Reviews at Amazon for just $3.99 at:

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

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Smackdown – November 6, 2018: I Elect That We Need A New Idea

IMG Credit: WWE

Smackdown
Date: November 6, 2018
Location: Manchester Arena, Manchester, England
Commentators: Corey Graves, Byron Saxton, Tom Phillips

We’re in England again for the final big show on the long international tour. This show is going to be almost all about the fallout from Crown Jewel and the build towards Survivor Series, which is a mere twelve days away. Expect a lot of people being added to the card in a hurry. Let’s get to it.

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

Here’s Paige to get things going. She wastes no time in introducing Shane McMahon, though the fans are NOT happy to see him. After a quick clip of the ending of the tournament and a photo op with the cup, Shane says he isn’t the Best in the World. That trophy doesn’t belong to him, but it does belong to everyone here on Smackdown. He reacted by instinct on Friday because he couldn’t handle the idea of Smackdown not being considered the best.

That brings him to Survivor Series so we run down the champion vs. champion matches. What matters most though are the elimination matches so here’s the captain of the men’s team: Daniel Bryan. After soaking in some cheers, Daniel says Shane deserves some cheers for not saying he’s the Best in the World. That’s quickly cut off by the Miz, who comes out with a slight limp.

Miz doesn’t like the idea of Shane coming in to steal his trophy, because 2/3 of it should belong to the man who won the first two matches. So how are they splitting this up? Does Shane come live at his house? Shane says if things had gone the way they should, Miz would have been fired. Miz doesn’t buy that, because he’s never been too injured to compete.

Based on his performance at the World Cup, he should be the captain. Shane agrees, but Bryan is captain too. My goodness they overbook the heck out of things like this one match. It puts the focus on the battling teammates instead of the story, and then the Raw vs. Smackdown stuff means nothing because there’s still no reason for them to be fighting. Just do Team Miz vs. Team Bryan and Team Corbin vs. Team Angle with some of the people in the champion vs. champion matches included.

Post break Miz and Bryan are bickering when Shane comes in to say they bring out the best in each other. That’s what he’s counting on to win at Survivor Series. By the end of the night, they need to pick their other members. Miz picks Shane and Bryan agrees as Shane leaves. Bryan will get to pick the next member at some point.

New Day vs. Usos

The winners are the captains, because there are totally five Smackdown teams to pick from. After New Day throws a bunch of pancakes into the crowd, Kofi and Jimmy start things off. The Usos are sent outside in a hurry and it’s off to Big E. as Woods plays the trombone and Kofi vibrates on the ropes, allowing E. to run Jimmy over. That was so odd that we need to take a break.

Back with Big E. coming in off the hot tag and throwing some suplexes. The Rock Bottom out of the corner gets two and there’s the Big Ending for two with Jimmy making a very last second save. Kofi tags himself in as Jey avoids a charge to send Big E. outside. Big E. is fine enough to drive Jimmy HARD into the barricade, only to be sent over it himself. With everyone else on the floor, Kofi dives onto both Usos (Graves: “That was falling with style!”) and throws Jey back in for two.

The SOS gets two, followed by a high crossbody for the same as we take a break. Back with Big E. saving Kofi from a double suplex to the floor by spearing Jey through the ropes. Trouble in Paradise hits Jimmy on the apron but the delayed cover only gets two. A superplex is broken up as Jimmy superbombs him down in a huge crash. The Superfly Splash gives Jimmy the pin at 16:14.

Rating: B. Another good match from these guys and it’s nice to see the Usos do something for a change. I still don’t get why they can’t be sent to Raw, just for the sake of having them rock the house with the AOP. It’s not like that show has many teams to go around in the first place and the Usos are too good to have sitting on the sidelines.

Post match the Usos offer New Day a spot on the team. But they’re not CAPTAINS are they?

Miz is on the phone plugging the new Marine movie, but apparently the talk shows want Becky Lynch instead. Bryan comes in to pick Rey Mysterio for his next spot on the Survivor Series team. Miz isn’t impressed, so Bryan lists off everything Mysterio has done since he came back. However, Miz will agree if Mysterio impresses him tonight against Andrade Cien Almas. For the third man, they can each pick someone who will have a match for the final spot.

We see Ronda Rousey’s comments about Becky Lynch on Raw.

Here’s Becky to respond. Ronda has said that she’s the last woman on earth to provoke, but who is Ronda to tell the champ what to do? It’s true that Ronda holds a championship but she’s not a champion. A champion wills herself to keep going but Ronda has never been tested. The truth is that Becky is the man, and that’s why she’s a champion and Ronda isn’t. At Survivor Series, Ronda’s titanium body will be let down by her weak mind.

Lynch has kept fighting every day and is the most relentless person that Rousey has ever met. Becky wasn’t handpicked like Ronda but here she is. The fans cheer her again as Becky says she’s not coming to Survivor Series for Ronda’s respect, but rather the arm. Ronda might be the baddest b**** in the world, but Becky is making Ronda hers. Becky is so fired up that she wants to fight right now. Cue Sanity with Nikki Cross of all people to say she wants to play. I have no idea how this is supposed to make Becky come off as a heel, but I’m sure it’s just going over my head.

Nikki Cross vs. Becky Lynch

Non-title. Becky takes her down to start so Nikki gets up and screams a lot. The fans are behind Nikki as she headscissors Becky to the floor. Some forearms and stomps have Becky in even more trouble on the floor but she trips Nikki onto the apron. Becky whips her into the barricade a few times and it’s time for the chinlock back inside.

A dropkick gives Becky two and the Bexploder has Nikki in the corner. She’s right back with forearms to the chest and the running clotheslines put Becky down again. A high crossbody gives Cross two and a falling reverse DDT gets the same. Becky finally sends the arm into the rope and the Disarm-Her makes Cross tap at 5:36.

Rating: C+. I’m not sure if Nikki is going to be up here full time or not but it’s a nice sign to see her getting in some offense against the champ. She got to show off the insanity well here and even if this is just a one off cameo, at least she’s had the chance to make an impact. Good little match too, even if the ending wasn’t in doubt.

Bryan and Miz pick Jeff Hardy and Samoa Joe for the final match tonight.

Shinsuke Nakamura promises Seth Rollins will take a knee to the face.

Rey Mysterio vs. Andrade Cien Almas

No Zelina Vega, instantly making this less interesting. Mysterio, all banged up from World Cup, flips him down to start but gets elbowed in the face for his efforts. Almas gets two off a kick to the chest but misses a running knee in the corner. The running seated senton off the apron is caught though and Almas swings him into the barricade as we take a break. Back with Mysterio hitting the springboard seated senton and kicking Almas in the head for two.

Rey takes too much time going up top though and gets punched in the face. Almas hits a pair of running knees in the face for two but his moonsault hits knees. The 619 is broken up as well though and they head outside with Mysterio on Almas’ shoulders. That means a hurricanrana into the apron and a sliding tornado DDT (he almost lost Almas but it could have been worse) makes things even worse. Back in and the 619 into the springboard splash finishes Almas at 8:22.

Rating: C+. Perfectly fine match here as Mysterio is certainly getting in some big matches on his return. That’s the reason you bring someone like him back, though I’m sure the losses where he puts people over are coming. I could go for more of Almas, but that doesn’t seem to be what WWE is looking for at the moment.

Post match Randy Orton runs in for an RKO on Mysterio.

Bryan and Miz watch on and Miz agrees that Mysterio can be on the team. If that goes badly though, it’s Bryan’s fault.

Video on WWE partnering with Girl Up.

AJ Styles talks about winning the WWE Championship a year ago right here in Manchester. Now he’s coming up against Brock Lesnar again at Survivor Series. Last year he gave Lesnar everything he had but it just wasn’t enough. Maybe it ends the same way this year, but it’s not easy being a WWE superstar. At Survivor Series, he’s going to beat Lesnar and that’s a spoiler.

Here’s Paige to announce the women’s Survivor Series team. That would be Carmella, Naomi, Sonya Deville, Asuka and Charlotte, each with their own entrance. Well save for Charlotte, who doesn’t come out. Instead here’s Mandy Rose to say she might not be the blonde you’re looking for but she’s an upgrade. Paige says she won’t be taking Charlotte’s place but Mandy isn’t sure about her decision making. If you remember, Mandy eliminated Sonya from the Evolution battle royal but Sonya is on the team anyway.

Mandy insults everyone, including saying Carmella’s dance breaks are like her title reign: short and meaningless and asking if even Jimmy Uso is still feeling the Glow. That’s too much for Naomi so the fight is on with Sonya pulling Mandy off. Mandy stares Sonya down before storming off.

Jeff Hardy vs. Samoa Joe

The winner is on the team and Miz and Bryan are on commentary. Joe goes straight at Hardy in the corner to start and even shouts trash talk at Bryan. Jeff is right back up and tries the Twist of Fate but Joe bails to the floor. Back in and Joe runs him over with an elbow and we take a break. We come back with Joe peppering him with right hands in the corner and the enziguri getting two.

The neck crank keeps Jeff in trouble until Joe takes him outside for a whip into the barricade. This serves as a backdrop for Bryan and Miz’s latest argument, meaning they ignore Jeff walking the barricade for the clothesline. Back in and the basement dropkick gets two on Joe, followed by the Twisting Stunner. The Swanton hits knees (in a great looking crash) and Hardy taps to the Clutch at 9:27.

Rating: C-. This was just going through the motions until the ending and there’s nothing wrong with that, especially given the story here. Joe is the better choice for the spot here, though that landing on the Swanton alone should give Jeff something. Maybe a nice back brace or a full body cast at this point.

Post match Joe talks more trash to Bryan and the fight is on. Miz breaks it up so Bryan beats him up as well, only to have Shane come in for the save. Bryan flips him over, not realizing who it was. Shane is incensed as Bryan walks off to end the show.

Overall Rating: C+. The wrestling was good tonight but my goodness that was one of the most heavy handed shows I’ve ever seen with the battling over being captains taking over the whole show. I still have no idea how I’m supposed to care about this but it’s the same thing on Raw: battling teams with more focus on who is in charge than who is actually in the match. That was the whole focus on this show and it got really annoying, especially when it means we’ll have to hear about bragging rights all next week. Good show wrestling wise, but really tiresome storyline wise.

Results

Usos b. New Day – Superfly Splash to Kingston

Becky Lynch b. Nikki Cross – Disarm-Her

Rey Mysterio b. Andrade Cien Almas – Springboard splash

Samoa Joe b. Jeff Hardy – Koquina Clutch

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and pick up the paperback edition of KB’s Complete 2003 Smackdown Reviews (also available as an e-book) from Amazon. Check out the information here:

http://kbwrestlingreviews.com/2018/09/07/new-book-kbs-complete-smackdown-2003-reviews/

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

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

Survivor Series Count-Up – 2005: This Can Be Done

IMG Credit: WWE

Survivor Series 2005
Date: November 27, 2005
Location: Joe Louis Arena, Detroit, Michigan
Attendance: 15,000
Commentators: Joey Styles, Jerry Lawler, Jonathan Coachman, Michael Cole, Tazz

Booker T. vs. Chris Benoit

Benoit fights up and starts the Germans, only to eat another kick to the face. A quick dragon screw leg whip looks to set up the Sharpshooter but Booker rolls him up for two. More rolling Germans look to set up the Swan Dive but Sharmell offers a distraction, only to have Benoit headbutt Booker down. The Swan Dive misses anyway and Booker grabs a rollup with his feet on the ropes (and Sharmell holding them there) to win the first match in the series.

Detroit Tiger Dmitri Young is here.

Ric Flair vs. HHH

Last man standing. HHH jumps him in the aisle before Flair can even get his robe off. They get inside with Flair in big trouble, made even worse by HHH grabbing a chair. Flair comes back with a kendo stick, which really looks weird in his hands. They brawl to the hockey boards with HHH taking over again and bringing it back to ringside. Flair is up at seven after a backdrop on the floor and an elbow to the back makes Flair swear a lot.

Flair goes out on a stretcher.

Trish and Mickie are online.

Raw World Title: Kurt Angle vs. John Cena

Cena gets sent into the steps and a second referee comes in to count two. Well you knew there was going to be a way around Daivari. Kurt grabs a waistlock before throwing Cena hard into the corner to keep him in trouble. The fans are ALL OVER Cena and another suplex gives Kurt two. Off to something like an STF on Cena but Kurt goes to a regular chinlock instead. Cena fights up and grab a DDT without selling the ankle injury one bit. The champ wins a slugout and initiates his finishing sequence, including pumping up the shoes.

Eric Bischoff vs. Teddy Long

The Raw and Smackdown teams are cheered on by their respective rosters.

Team Raw vs. Team Smackdown

Raw: Big Show, Kane, Shawn Michaels, Carlito, Chris Masters

Smackdown: Rey Mysterio, Bobby Lashley, Batista, Randy Orton, John Bradshaw Layfield

Orton is quickly sent to the floor for a big dive as things speed up. Back in and some clotheslines set up the top rope elbow as the fans want Undertaker (who was advertised for the show). JBL tries to come in with a chair but eats a superkick, setting up the RKO to give Smackdown the pin.

Ratings Comparison

Booker T vs. Chris Benoit

Original: B

2012 Redo: B-

2015 Redo: B+

Trish Stratus vs. Melina

Original: B

2012 Redo: C-

2015 Redo: D+

HHH vs. Ric Flair

Original: B-

2012 Redo: B+

2015 Redo: B

John Cena vs. Kurt Angle

Original: B+

2012 Redo: C

2015 Redo: B-

Theodore Long vs. Eric Bischoff

Original: O (For Oh I can’t think about this anymore)

2012 Redo: S (For Six Minutes)

Team Smackdown vs. Team Raw

Original: B

2012 Redo: B

2015 Redo: B+

Overall Rating

Original: B

2012 Redo: B

2015 Redo: A-

I’m surprised by how much more I liked the girls and Cena vs. Angle. They’re good but they’re not that good. Still a solid show though.

Here’s the original review if you’re interested:

http://kbwrestlingreviews.com/2011/11/14/history-of-survivor-series-count-up-2005-a-forgotten-almost-classic/

And the redo:

http://kbwrestlingreviews.com/2012/11/11/survivor-series-count-up-2012-edition-2005-raw-vs-smackdown/

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and pick up the paperback edition of KB’s Complete 2003 Smackdown Reviews (also available as an e-book) from Amazon. Check out the information here:

http://kbwrestlingreviews.com/2018/09/07/new-book-kbs-complete-smackdown-2003-reviews/

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

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