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

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

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

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

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

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

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:

http://www.amazon.com/dp/product/B015IN12I2

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

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

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

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

IMG Credit: WWE

Smackdown
Date: October 30, 2018
Location: Phillips Arena, Atlanta, Georgia
Commentators: Corey Graves, Tom Phillips, Byron Saxton

It’s the go home show before Crown Jewel and there isn’t much to talk about with this show. I’d expect a lot of build towards the World Cup of Wrestling with a tag match between the four participants already announced. I guess that since we’re already done with Money in the Bank this year we need another form of the same lazy booking style. Let’s get to it.

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

Here’s AJ Styles to open things up. With no time wasted, AJ calls out Daniel Bryan for a chat. After last week, AJ feels that he needs to apologize so he does just that. Bryan accepts the apology and says AJ knows there’s respect between the two of them. He wants the WWE Championship back though and AJ is the only thing in between himself and being champion again.

Bryan is going to take the title on Friday and there’s nothing AJ can do about it. AJ admits that he hit Bryan on purpose a few weeks ago so Bryan says he feels like hitting AJ on purpose right now. AJ: “So what’s stopping you?” The fight is almost on but here’s Shane McMahon to cut them off. Shane says he’s back and says we can have the title match tonight right here in Atlanta. Actually we can do it RIGHT NOW.

Smackdown World Title: AJ Styles vs. Daniel Bryan

AJ is defending. Bryan takes him to the mat by the wrist to start and stomps on the arm. They get back up with AJ wrestling him to the mat before getting taken into the corner. That means an exchange of shoves until Bryan goes back to the arm. Bryan does the moonsault out of the corner and tries the running clothesline but walks into the dropdown into the dropkick instead. Nice sequence. Bryan bails to the floor and avoids a slingshot dive, setting up the suicide dive as we take a break.

Back with Styles working on the knee with a DDT and some kicks. A little cranking on the knee is countered with an armbar but AJ rams the knee into the mat for a break. Bryan is right back by countering the middle rope moonsault with a cravate and uses the good knee for some shots to the face. The YES Kicks have AJ in trouble with the big one actually connecting. Bryan’s knee slows him down though and the running knee is blocked. The Phenomenal Forearm is broken up as well so Bryan tries a superplex but AJ turns it into a crossbody in midair. AJ lands on his arm and Bryan is holding his neck as we take a break.

Back again with Bryan slapping on the YES Lock but AJ is right in front of the rope. AJ heads to the apron and suplexes Bryan outside where the knee gets banged up again. Bryan is fine enough to send him into the steps and takes it back inside for the limping dropkicks in the corner. A super hurricanrana doesn’t work as AJ tries a super Styles Clash, only to be reversed into the hurricanrana for the double knockdown.

It’s Bryan up first and wrapping the arm around the top rope, setting up some kicks to the ribs and chest. A running kick is countered into a dragon screw legwhip onto the rope. Back in and Bryan grabs a double underhook and spins him over into a cross armbreaker, which he transitions into the YES Lock in the middle of the ring. AJ slips out but Bryan switches into a triangle choke. That’s lifted up into a one armed Styles Clash and AJ goes with the Calf Crusher instead of covering as Bryan taps at 22:07.

Rating: B+. This was the technical spectacle that they should have had with the knee playing a role throughout the match. In theory this is the way they switch Bryan out of the title match and put someone else in there instead. It’s nice of WWE to actually give us the match with a definitive ending instead of doing a five minute version that means nothing, as I think even they realized they couldn’t do one more annoying thing with Crown Jewel.

Post match they hug but Samoa Joe runs in and lays AJ out. The Koquina Clutch goes on Styles so Bryan tries to make a save, only to get choked out as well. Joe holds up the title.

Jeff Hardy talks about being an artist and adding one more stroke to his world.

The Miz talks about waking up next to his perfect wife and then looking over at his beautiful daughter, who thinks he’s the best father in the world. That’s all true, but he’s also the best superstar in the world.

Paige names Charlotte as the captain of the Smackdown women’s team at Survivor Series. Charlotte seems flattered but says she’s not the right woman for the job. Paige brings up what Charlotte said about failure not defining her and tells her to think about it.

Video on D-Generation X vs. Brothers of Destruction.

Here’s New Day for a street fight….and they’re dressed as the Brood, complete with the still incredible theme song and the properly colored shirts (two white and one black). They even have people holding up fake flames to mock the circle of fire. The Bar comes out with Sheamus having a bunch of pale paint on his face which is apparently something from Irish folklore.

Big E. vs. Cesaro

Street fight with a bunch of Halloween style weapons around the ring and joined in progress with Cesaro candy corn caning Big E. That gets taken away and broken over Cesaro’s back but everyone else comes in, including Big Show to clean house. Big E. takes a pie to the face and Woods is put into a bucket of apples.

Back in and Cesaro slams Big E. into a pile of Jack-O-Lanterns but Big E suplexes him right back onto them as well. Sheamus comes in but get sent through a table, leaving Big Show to grab Woods and Kofi by the throat. That means RED MIST for Show, followed by Big E. misting Cesaro as well. The Big Ending is good for the pin at 4:04.

Rating: A+. For the Brood entrance alone. The match was exactly what you would expect from a comedy street fight with a Halloween theme and there’s nothing wrong with that. New Day is perfect to play a fun role like this and the Brood stuff was great. Big Show teaming with the Bar is still a little weird, but at least they’ve done it for a few weeks now.

AJ demands Joe at Crown Jewel and Paige makes the match. Makes as much sense as anything else.

Shinsuke Nakamura vs. R-Truth

Non-title and Truth is substituting for an injured Tye Dillinger. An early headscissors takes Nakamura down and Truth starts his dancing. Truth clotheslines him out to the floor and it’s time for a dance break. Back from a regular break with Nakamura holding a seated abdominal stretch. That doesn’t last long as Truth is back up with the leg lariats and the Lie Detector for two. Nakamura will have none of that though and hits the running knee to the ribs in the corner for two of his own. Kinshasa finishes Truth at 6:49.

Rating: D+. This was the same match these two have had a few times and that’s not meant to be a compliment. Truth did his dancing but wasn’t exactly energetic otherwise and the dance break in the middle didn’t help anything. Nakamura needs an actual story as his longest title reign in two and a half years (seriously) has gone nowhere in a few weeks already.

Here’s Becky Lynch to brag about being the Last Woman Standing. She’s ready to face Ronda Rousey and doesn’t like the WE WANT RONDA chants. Sure Rousey is the baddest woman on the planet, but what planet is that? Everyone Ronda has fought has been beaten before the bell rang but that’s not the case with her. Becky is coming to Survivor Series to rip Rousey’s arm off. Good stuff from Becky here and they might have something special if they do that match right.

Video on Braun Strowman vs. Brock Lesnar.

Samoa Joe says he isn’t done with AJ and asks how his family is doing. When Shane made the title match earlier tonight, he knew that it was time to write the final chapter. The story ends with AJ out cold on the mat and Joe finally raising the title above his head. The end.

The Miz/Randy Orton vs. Jeff Hardy/Rey Mysterio

Jeff and Miz start things off with Jeff picking up the pace, only to have Orton come in for a distraction. Rey comes in as well but gets sent to the apron, allowing Miz to shove Hardy off the top to take over. The running kick to Hardy’s face gets two and it’s off to a quickly broken chinlock. More stomping sets up Orton’s standing dropkick for two but he charges into a boot in the corner.

The Whisper in the Wind puts Orton down and it’s off to Rey with a springboard crossbody. A running DDT plants Miz for two but he’s right back with the Reality Check for two of his own. Rey rolls out of the Skull Crushing Finale attempt and brings Hardy back in for a little Poetry in Motion. Orton gets sent outside and it’s a 619 into the Swanton to finish Miz at 8:36.

Rating: C-. This was a Coliseum Video style main event and I can go for that almost every time. They kept it short and just sent the fans home happy (or at least sent them into Mixed Match Challenge) without doing anything out of the ordinary. The World Cup can be over and done with on Friday so the match was all it could and shove have been.

Post match, Orton hits an RKO on all three of them to end the show.

Overall Rating: C+. The opener more than carried this show and I had a much easier time watching it than last night’s show. This was much more about the World Cup, which isn’t interesting in the first place, but at least they gave it some attention. Crown Jewel’s main event being changed was somewhat expected and I can give them big points for at least delivering the match at some point. Very easy show to watch as usual, though I’ll have the Brood theme in my head for days.

Results

AJ Styles b. Daniel Bryan – Styles Clash

Big E. b. Cesaro – Big Ending

Shinsuke Nakamura b. R-Truth – Kinshasa

Jeff Hardy/Rey Mysterio b. The Miz/Randy Orton – Swanton Bomb to Miz

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

IMG Credit: WWE

Smackdown
Date: May 27, 2004
Location: Bradley Center, Milwaukee, Wisconsin
Commentators: Michael Cole, Tazz

We’re in for another edition of the Eddie Guerrero Show this week and while that doesn’t sound like the worst concept in the world, it might be a little weaker when Eddie passed out to end last week’s show. In other words, expect more of JBL talking about how he should be champion and droning on for far too long. Oh and Booker T. looking bored out of his mind out there. Let’s get to it.

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

We open with a recap of Eddie’s collapse last week.

Kurt Angle is in the back and says that Eddie Guerrero is allowed to be wrestle tonight, but EMT’s will be waiting for him to pass out again.

Opening sequence.

Rob Van Dam/Rey Mysterio vs. Dudley Boyz

Yes AGAIN. They really don’t have anything else they could be doing? Bubba shoves Rey down to start and seems annoyed at having to do so. Rey takes him down with a flying mare so Bubba tosses him into the other corner with ease. The armbar goes on so Rey climbs the ropes into a wristdrag to leave Bubba all confuzzled. Van Dam and D-Von come in, meaning it’s time for some kicks to the face and a standing moonsault. I’ll let you figure out who did what.

Rey comes back in with a springboard hurricanrana (which looked like it was supposed to be the seated senton but D-Von didn’t go down) but Bubba dives in and takes Rey’s knee out to break up the 619. The fans boo the heck out of that and here’s Paul Heyman through the crowd as we take a break. Back with Rey in trouble and Heyman sitting in the front row. Bubba misses a sitdown splash but it’s not bad enough for Rey to get over for the tag.

The Dudleys start taking turns on the leg but an enziguri gets Rey out of trouble. A springboard moonsault press drops D-Von so Bubba comes in for an elbow to keep Rey down. Since Van Dam isn’t into that whole helping your partner thing, Rey has to avoid a splash from D-Von and spinwheel kick Bubba to make the hot tag.

Van Dam starts in with the kicks and a top rope version gets two on D-Von. A Rolling Thunder/springboard legdrop combination gets the same with Bubba having to make a save. There’s the 619 to D-Von but Heyman jumps the barricade and breaks up the West Coast Pop. Bubba drops Rey onto the announcers’ table and D-Von steals the pin.

Rating: C. Long and watchable match here but I’m sick of seeing these teams fight. I’m not sure why the announcers acted like Heyman supporting the Dudleys was a big deal when he’s been doing that for weeks now but I don’t get a lot of what Smackdown does. I’m sure this makes Bubba and D-Von perfectly fine after all these losses, because fans want to see the Dudleys as major heels.

The Dudleys leave with Heyman.

Post break the Dudleys celebrate and let Heyman into their locker room. Heyman slaps D-Von and tries to do the same to Bubba but gets his arm grabbed. Why are they happy with just winning a match? Beating Eddie Guerrero didn’t get them a title shot or a pay per view main event. All they got was another win and that doesn’t get them anywhere. Tonight, they need to pick a victim and make an impact or he’ll have someone make an impact on them. Egads we’re really supposed to care about the Dudley Boys?

Cole brings out JBL for a chat. We look back at the chair shot at Judgment Day and Eddie collapsing later in the week so JBL could pin him. Cole mentions that some people don’t think that was very manly of JBL so we get the big tough guy voice to send Cole back to commentary. We hear the same JBL speech that he’s made for the last month and a half with shots at Eddie for not being a man. Last week Eddie was laying down so he didn’t have to take another beating.

What JBL is going to do to him next time will be nearly criminal but let’s stop to yell at the fans for chanting EDDIE. See, at Judgment Day, Eddie got disqualified because he knew he was beat. The beating will be even better at the Great American Bash because it’s JBL’s rules. This was way too long with JBL saying the same stuff he’s always said and droning on about how great he is. In other words: everything that has been wrong with him since this run started.

Compare him to Ted DiBiase for a minute. Above all else, DiBiase played it so much more over the top instead of serious. When JBL talks about having a stock portfolio and a business radio show, it feels too real. DiBiase never really explained where his money came from (and he certainly didn’t say it over and over week after week). He was just the rich guy who never ran out of money and did whatever he wanted because that’s what he did. You didn’t need an explanation of why he was who he is. The character spoke for itself and he did ridiculous things to show off his wealth (the laugh alone was a good chunk of it).

With JBL, it’s a guy who has money and brags about it, but he does it so boringly that it’s not something I care to see. It also doesn’t help that he spent all those years as a bar fighter and now he’s supposed to be something totally different. It’s not working and you can feel the energy go out of the room when he starts talking. I don’t really want to see him lose because I don’t like him. I want to see him lose so he’s not featured anymore. Those are two very different things and one of them isn’t good.

Booker T. vs. Scotty 2 Hotty

Scotty sends him into the corner a few times to start but gets kicked in the face. Booker shrugs off a comeback attempt and finishes with the ax kick in a hurry.

Post match Booker says he wants another shot at the Undertaker next week. The lights go out and come back up blue, followed by lightning hitting the posts. Booker: “Alright. So you are a little scary.” Next week, he’ll shock the world.

Mordecai promises to make sinners pay for their sins. His crusade has just begun.

Danny Basham vs. Eddie Guerrero

Non-title with EMT’s on standby, until Eddie breaks the stretcher and sends them away because he doesn’t need that. The Bashams are cleared out but here’s Angle to say he’s legally responsible for everyone here. Eddie was going to fake another injury and then sue Smackdown, so he’s off until he signs a release saying Angle and Smackdown aren’t at fault. Danny tries a cheap shot and gets sent outside again. No match.

Torrie Wilson/Spike Dudley vs. Jamie Noble/Dawn Marie

I wonder if there will be any mention of Torrie sleeping with both of her opponents. Noble is in trunks for a change. The guys start things off with Spike working on the arm but Jamie sends him throat first into the ropes. A glare sends Torrie out to the floor so Spike headbutts Jamie in the ribs. It’s off to the women and the wolf whistles begin. Torrie dropkicks her down for two so Jamie gets in a knee to the back to cut her off.

An X Factor gives Dawn two and the chinlock goes on. Torrie’s jawbreaker allows the hot tag to Spike and a top rope double stomp gets two on Jamie. Everything breaks down and Jamie goes after Torrie, allowing Spike to hit the Dudley Dog on Jamie, dropping her onto Dawn for the pin.

Rating: D+. This….wasn’t horrible. Maybe it was limiting the women’s interactions or just a harder effort but that’s one of the better of these matches I’ve seen in a good while. The wrestling was passable as Jamie and Spike are usually good for at least a decent match and with Torrie and Dawn only in there for a few minutes, it wasn’t the worst in the world.

Kenzo Suzuki is still coming. Get here already so you can leave.

Rico and Charlie Haas preview Jackie Gayda’s bikini for next week’s contest, though we only see part of it. Charlie almost drools but Rico criticizes the look, telling her to go try on the other one. As she goes to change, Rico shows off his rather revealing gear of his own. Haas is disgusted….because it doesn’t compliment the complexion of his skin. Rico goes to try on his other one and Charlie tries to figure out what he’s doing.

John Cena comes in to see Angle, who isn’t happy about a meeting Cena had with the board of directors. The gist of the whole thing: the military can see the Great American Bash for free and Cena beat Angle to the idea. Angle yells at him for a bonus because he’s waited months for Cena to lose that title. He’ll even cheer for a Frenchman from ringside tonight.

Chavo Guerrero Jr. goes into Chavo Classic’s office but gets yelled at for not knocking. Classic wants Jr. to introduce him.

Cruiserweight Title: Chavo Classic vs. Akio

Akio is challenging and Jr. has to introduce his dad, who comes out in an old school robe. During Akio’s entrance, we see Mordecai destroying him last week. And you wonder why they’re relying on Jacqueline and Chavo Guerrero Sr. instead of their young stars. Classic takes him down and drives an elbow into the face but Akio speeds things up with a leg lariat.

His neck is too damages to follow up but he’s finally fine enough for a corkscrew moonsault. Jr. grabs the referee though, allowing Classic to kick out after a delayed two. Classic sends Akio outside and distracts the referee as well, allowing Chavo to hit a tornado DDT on the floor so Classic can retain the title.

Post match the Chavos argue over the belt a bit.

Raw Rebound.

The Dudleys kidnap someone named Paul and slam the trunk of a car on his ankle. We can’t see who it is but they throw him in the trunk and drive away. The Urn is left in the parking lot and Heyman picks it up. Cole: “The Dudleys kidnapped Paul Bearer!” Cole is really good at stating the obvious.

US Title: John Cena vs. Rene Dupree

Cena is defending in a lumberjack match with Angle watching on a platform draped with American flags. A rollup gives Cena a very early two and it’s already a standoff. Dupree takes him down by the waist as the fans start the required USA chant. That drives Cena to grab a hammerlock, which goes nowhere. Instead it’s a hard shoulder so Dupree thinks about rolling outside but thinks better of the idea.

We come back with Dupree cranking on the neck and driving an elbow into it for two. More neck cranking fires Cena up so it’s a running clothesline to cut him back down. Cena’s next comeback is cut off by Booker T. pulling the top rope down so the next beating can ensue. Dupree adds a backbreaker and a middle rope elbow for two. Cena gets sent outside again and this time it’s Booker getting in some extra shots to give Rene two. A spinebuster sets up the French Tickler but Cena backdrops out of a powerbomb. Right hands have Dupree in trouble and Booker screaming NO. The FU retains the title.

Rating: C+. It’s not as good as their previous matches but at least they had the good ending that made things a little bit better. Cena finishes off his first feud with a win and the fans are very pleased with the victory. Dupree has been an actual surprise during this feud as you would have expected him to be a one off victory for Cena but he held up his own end of the feud, which is something you can always use.

The good guys put Cena on their shoulders in a pretty big overreaction to end the show.

Overall Rating: C-. I’d hesitate to say that this show was better but it was at least less bad. The JBL involvement was limited to a single promo and while the Dudleys going after Undertaker makes you say “seriously?”, they had a good opening match and the rest of the stuff was pretty quick. They still need better heels, but focusing on Cena for a week was a nice change of pace as the Eddie vs. JBL feud isn’t doing anyone any favors. Not a terrible show, but it was better than recent weeks. Granted, that’s not the highest hurdle to clear.

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

IMG Credit: WWE

Smackdown
Date: October 23, 2018
Location: Prudential Center, Newark, New Jersey
Commentators: Corey Graves, Tom Phillips, Byron Saxton

It’s the go home show for Evolution and one of the last shows before Crown Jewel, which may or may not still take place in Saudi Arabia. The big match this week is a rematch of last week’s 1000^th episode as AJ Styles and Daniel Bryan team up to face the Usos. Other than that, expect a lot of not saying where next week’s show will be taking place. Let’s get to it.

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

Here’s New Day to open things up, with Big E. saying “don’t you dare be shower.” I guess Newark is a bathtub town. New Day talks about losing their Tag Team Titles and that lowered the bar. What Kofi doesn’t get is the Big Show involvement though. He helped them, so is he the Bar tender? Big Show has flipped more times than a flapjack so tonight Kofi wants some payback. Well here we go.

Kofi Kingston vs. Sheamus

Show and Cesaro are at ringside too….and hang on a second as we have a change of pace.

Kofi Kingston vs. Cesaro

Or not again.

Kofi Kingston vs. Big Show

Show throws him around to start and hits a trio of chokeslams. The fourth is loaded up but New Day and the Bar come in for the no contest at 1:30.

Post match New Day gets wrecked with a chokeslam to Big E. and a KO to Woods.

We see the Roman Reigns announcement from last night.

The fans give him a THANK YOU ROMAN chant.

Usos vs. AJ Styles/Daniel Bryan

Rematch from last week. Bryan headlocks Jimmy to start but a blind tag brings in Jey, who is clotheslined to the floor. AJ knocks Jimmy out and there are the stereo dives to drop the Usos again. Back from a break with Bryan fighting out of a chinlock until they both hit crossbodies for a double knockdown. The hot tag brings in AJ and everything breaks down. Jey gets caught in the Calf Crusher but Jimmy makes a save. The Phenomenal Forearm almost hits Bryan but AJ pulls up at the last second. Instead though, the Pele hits Bryan, allowing Jey to hit a superkick into the Superfly Splash to finish AJ at 7:46.

Rating: C. I’m liking the story they have here and it’s about as good of an idea as you can have to set up the title match in Saudi Arabia. They don’t have anything personal between them so building something up makes as much sense as anything else. Also, it’s not like they’re losing to some thrown together team as the Usos are one of the best and most successful teams of this era. Now just let us get something new for the Usos.

Video on the Bella Twins turning on Ronda Rousey.

Post break AJ says it was an accident but Bryan accuses his nose of growing. Eventually it turns into the Too Sweet sign.

On Saturday, Charlotte was giving a speech at the Performance Center, talking about respect. She talked about how she’s grown up in the last few months and being ready for the first Last Woman Standing match when Becky Lynch came in. Becky is the one they should really be listening to and the fight was on. The rookies break it up.

Backstage, Charlotte is near tears as she talks about Becky going over the line at the Performance Center. At Evolution, she’ll win the title back and be standing over both an opponent and a friend who lost her way.

Rusev vs. Aiden English

Aiden sings about how Lana could have had a long Aiden Night instead of a Rusev Day. The chase is on and Aiden is thrown into a variety of things. Back in and Aiden hits a swinging neckbreaker but stops to yell at Lana. That means a Machka Kick and the Accolade for the tap at 1:24.

Here’s Miz for MizTV. Miz talks about the World Cup and how he’s ready to become the best in the world. That brings him to his guest this week: the man who defeated Shinsuke Nakamura last week, Rey Mysterio. Miz accuses him of being stuck in the 90s because people are no longer interested in the plucky underdog. It’s all about the bigger stars like him, who has been here becoming a must see man while Mysterio has been on hiatus.

Miz will be winning the Smackdown bracket and then the rest of the tournament while Mysterio is disappointed. Mysterio already is disappointed because he was supposed to be on TruthTV. Miz talks about how that show was canceled but Mysterio wants to fight now. That earns him a cheap shot but Rey fights back and almost hits the 619.

The Miz vs. Rey Mysterio

Joined in progress with Rey speeding things up and running Miz over without much effort. A missed charge in the corner lets Miz get in a few shots of his own but he has to avoid the 619. Miz gets two off the short DDT and we take a break. Back with Miz hitting the YES Kicks and taking Rey up for a super Skull Crushing Finale. That’s reversed into a super victory roll and the springboard seated senton has Miz in more trouble. The Reality Check gives Miz two but the Skull Crushing Finale is broken up. Rey hits a quick 619 into the springboard splash for the pin at 9:05.

Rating: C. Mysterio was looking better here and while I’m not interested at all in the World Cup, it’s nice to have the field be as stacked as it currently is. Let us see what these people can do when they’re given the chance, which will hopefully be in front of a crowd that actually cares this time around.

Asuka/Naomi vs. Mandy Rose/Sonya Deville

Evolution rundown.

Here’s Shane McMahon for a chat about the World Cup. He applauds everyone at Evolution before moving on to the World Cup. On the words Best in the World, the CM Punk chants begin with Shane saying he’s not in the tournament. Shane thinks someone from Smackdown will win and we hear the entrants involved. With that said, it’s main event time. Were they running two minutes short or something?

Randy Orton vs. Jeff Hardy

This is billed as their first match in a month. Jeff kicks away to start but gets sent outside for a ram into the steps. Back in and a chinlock sets up one of the weakest chinlocks I can ever remember to keep Jeff down. Orton ties him in the Tree of Woe for some kicks to the chest and the pulling of the ear, followed by a drop onto the announcers’ table.

Jeff fights up and hits the legdrop between the legs for two, followed by the Whisper in the Wind for the same. The Twisting Stunner connects but Orton rolls away before the Swanton. Instead Hardy misses one to the floor and gets brought back inside for the RKO to give Orton the pin at 8:48.

Rating: D+. I just can’t get into this whole World Cup thing. Maybe it’s the leftover feelings from how worthless the Greatest Royal Rumble was, but these things just feel so unimportant and so boring that it’s crippling any show it’s on. At least with Raw there’s the slightly amusing Angle vs. Corbin feud, but on here it’s just two guys having a match that isn’t likely to have anything to do with the tournament itself. That’s a very Money in the Bank style feeling and I could go without it.

Overall Rating: D. This show wasn’t bad, but it was lifeless and that’s even worse. There’s no hiding the fact that Crown Jewel isn’t something people want to see and while the build for Evolution has been better, it’s still not exactly an interesting show. Hopefully once Crown Jewel is over, they cut out this promoting multiple shows at the same time nonsense. It hasn’t worked, but there’s a chance that it’s just trying to promote these specific shows more than anything else.

Results

Kofi Kingston vs. Big Show went to a no contest when New Day and the Bar interfered

Usos b. AJ Styles/Daniel Bryan – Superfly Splash to Styles

Rusev b. Aiden English – Accolade

Rey Mysterio b. The Miz – Springboard splash

Randy Orton b. Jeff Hardy – RKO

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

IMG Credit: WWE

Smackdown
Date: May 20, 2004
Commentators: Michael Cole, Tazz

Here are Sunday’s results if you need a recap.

Opening sequence.

Here’s Eddie, in what looks to be a card from the 1930s, though of course with hydraulics included. He’s also got a duffle bag for a bonus. The fans are very glad to see him and…..OH MY GOODNESS THAT’S THE CUT ON HIS HEAD!!! I thought that was his hair being out of place because that’s the longest cut I’ve ever seen on a wrestler. Or on almost anyone for that matter.

Eddie says he was hurt on Sunday but he’s feeling better now that he’s in Las Vegas. JBL may have taken his blood on Sunday but Eddie is still WWE Champion. He’s also got a souvenir in the bag and it’s JBL’s cowboy hat, which is covered in his blood. Since that’s his blood, Eddie figures it’s not his hat and he can do whatever he wants with it. Eddie even has a stock tip for JBL. He should invest in bandages because tonight, they’re having a fight and it’s JBL’s turn to bleed.

Cue JBL, who is bandaged up as well. JBL makes sure he has it clear: he can have another title match tonight? Eddie: “Did you get too much blood in your ear holmes?” JBL says no and brags about winning on Sunday, so fighting Eddie again tonight is an unnecessary gamble. He didn’t become a millionaire by gambling because that’s how lazy people look for a quick buck.

Instead, Eddie needs to come down the aisle and hand over that WWE Championship. Eddie says he’ll hand JBL a beating but here’s Kurt Angle to cut them off. Kurt: “Well it’s official. Everybody has lost their minds.” Eddie isn’t allowed to make matches around here and he’s certainly not getting a rematch with JBL because he just wants to get himself disqualified again. JBL isn’t getting the title either, but tonight we’ll have JBL and the Dudleys vs. Eddie, Rey Mysterio and Rob Van Dam in a six man tag.

Rico/Charlie Haas vs. FBI

Non-title and it’s Nunzio/Johnny Stamboli for the Italians. Rico is the hometown boy and Jackie is….well my goodness and we’ll leave it at that. Charlie and Johnny start things off and Rico offers a quick spank from the apron. Apparently not a fan, Johnny press slams him but gets rolled up for two instead. Rico comes in legally and takes Johnny down into an armbar, complete with a little wiggling. It’s off to Nunzio, who comes in and gets spanked for his efforts.

Rico does it again so Nunzio takes him down and rams Rico’s head into the mat a few times. The FBI manages to screw up their advantage as Johnny can’t hit a clothesline even while Nunzio has Rico’s foot. Instead it’s the hot tag to Charlie to start cleaning house. Jackie grabs Nunzio’s foot so he tries to kiss her but gets Rico instead. In his search for mouthwash, Nunzio gets German suplexed for the pin.

Rating: D. It takes a lot to have Rico and Charlie seem lifeless but the FBI pulled it off. This wasn’t interesting or fun and you can tell the team is starting to run out of gas. That being said, there was no reason to believe Rico and Haas were going to be around for very long so you can probably bet on them losing the titles soon. This was pretty bad, though maybe it was just the FBI.

Stills of Chavo Guerrero Jr. regaining the Cruiserweight Title.

Tonight, Chavo defends the Cruiserweight Title against Spike Dudley and his father. Chavo Classic says he might win but Chavo doesn’t want to hear it because this is his time. So tell me: why couldn’t Spike have done the exact same story that Jacqueline did? How is it that much different?

Billy Kidman vs. Akio

The bell rings but here’s Mordecai, with the full entrance, to wreck them both instead. Fair enough, as the match didn’t exactly sound thrilling.

JBL gets his head examined and tells the doctor to not believe anything Eddie tells him. Wouldn’t that likely be the same doctor who stitched Eddie up in the first place? Eh just give him a z-pak and he’ll be fine.

US Title: Rene Dupree vs. John Cena

Cena is defending in a rematch from Sunday where he beat Dupree. They lock up to start with Cena throwing him off and Rene isn’t sure what to do. A shoulder works a bit better for Dupree but Cena is right back up with a slam for two. Cena slaps on a rare chinlock before stereo crossbodies put both guys down.

Back from a break with Cena going shoulder first into the post and falling to the floor. Dupree starts in on the shoulder and takes him down by the arm for two. The Fujiwara armbar goes on and it’s a long crawl for Cena to make the ropes. A regular armbar keeps the arm in trouble but Cena fights up with some backdrops.

Cena uses the good arm to pound away at Dupree’s face and they fight to the floor. Dupree can’t powerbomb him on the floor so Cena hits another backdrop and heads back inside. They go back out almost immediately (pick something already) and Dupree grabs the French flag. Cena takes it away and breaks it over his knee but Dupree kicks him low and wins via countout.

Rating: D+. It was worse than their pay per view match and that’s not a good sign given the extra time. There wasn’t the same level of efforts here and that showed badly this time around. I’m still not sure how many people buy Dupree as a challenger to the title but it’s not like Cena has anyone else to fight. I mean, Booker T. is busy jobbing to Undertaker, so who else is there already on that level?

Post match Dupree lays him out again and busts out the French Tickler, which is a great name for such an obnoxious dance.

We see/hear the chair shot to Eddie’s head on Sunday. Thankfully we don’t see the crazy gory blade job up close again.

Cruiserweight Title: Chavo Guerrero Jr. vs. Chavo Classic vs. Spike Dudley

Chavo Jr. is defending. Spike gets double teamed to start, which even the announcers knew was coming. Classic gets sent outside though and Spike stomps away in the corner. The double teaming picks up again though until Jr. is fine enough to look at the crowd while his dad does the work. Classic tries a rollup on Spike for two but Jr. misses a splash in the corner. A high crossbody takes down both Guerreros and there’s the Dudley Dog to Jr. Classic comes back in and collides with Spike though, only to call on Jr. to win the title.

Rating: D. Nothing match of course and the “shock value” of the ending doesn’t exactly earn them a lot of points. The title takes another hit here as it goes into its fourth reign in two weeks, all in the name of “comedy”. It would have been easier to accept this without the Jacqueline reign but two joke wins in two weeks is too much to take.

Jr. is rightfully furious at his dad, who is too busy celebrating.

Raw ReBound of another good show.

Funaki interviews Booker T., who doesn’t want to hear this nonsense about being afraid of Undertaker. See, Undertaker cheated at Judgment Day because Paul Bearer must have switched the magic bag. Since Undertaker isn’t here tonight, Booker can have any match he wants. Maybe the WWE Title? Or the US Title? Nah he’ll beat up Funaki instead, so Funaki punches him and runs off.

Booker T. vs. Funaki

Booker pounds away to start so Funaki dropkicks the knee out to set up a bulldog. That just earns him a superkick as Booker isn’t having any of this tonight. The fans chant for Undertaker as Booker scores with a side slam, only to run into a boot in the corner. Another shot to the face busts Funaki’s nose open and we hit the chinlock. Booker gets bored with that and finishes with the ax kick.

Rating: D-. Was there any reason for this match to go on this long? The match was pretty much a squash and went on for the better part of five minutes. I mean….it’s Funaki, who is barely even a wrestler anymore. It also doesn’t help that Booker looks bored out of his mind at the moment, but if this is the best they have for him, is it that surprising?

Next week: Cena vs. Dupree for the title in a lumberjack match.

JBL has attacked Eddie, who is unconscious.

Kenzo Suzuki is still coming.

John Bradshaw Layfield/Dudley Boyz vs. Eddie Guerrero/Rey Mysterio/Rob Van Dam

There’s no Eddie to start, likely because he’s still recovering from losing that much blood. Here’s Angle to say Eddie can’t wrestle and since Angle can win a gold medal with a BROKEN FREAKIN NECK, Eddie can join in on the match when he gets up from his siesta. D-Von and Rey start but Bubba comes in and jumps him from behind, which is the same as a tag it seems.

JBL comes in and stomps away but Rey kicks at the legs and then the face to build some momentum. The sitout bulldog drops D-Von and it’s off to D-Von, who gets taken down by a JBL neck snap across the ropes. Some swinging neckbreakers keep Rob in trouble as the fans think Bradshaw sucks. The slow paced beatdown continues with JBL hitting a shoulder and elbow drop for two. Rob gets in a springboard kick to the face and there’s the hot tag to Rey.

A headscissors into a dropkick lets Rey Drop the Dime for two as everything breaks down. Van Dam flip dives onto both Dudleys and Rey hurricanranas JBL into the 619. The Five Star connects but Ray pulls Mysterio out as we take a break. Back with Mysterio in trouble thanks to a 3D on the floor to Van Dam. Rey hits a springboard into a reverse DDT but Bubba goes over to Rey’s corner in a clever idea.

D-Von hits a delayed vertical suplex (he’s stronger than you might think) and it’s back to JBL for more of that great offense. The abdominal stretch goes on but here’s Eddie, who can barely walk down the aisle. Eddie is so livid that he stands on the apron while JBL is smart enough to not let go of the hold. Of all people, JBL is smart enough to figure that out?

Rey gets in a dropkick but Bubba isn’t about to allow the hot tag. A little too much trash talk allows Rey to get his feet up in the corner and there’s the tag to Eddie. Right hands and Three Amigos have the Dudleys down but Eddie collapses. His eyes are open as everyone stops doing anything, so JBL again gets smart by stealing the pin.

Rating: C+. Well we certainly know the power of the 3D on the floor as Van Dam disappeared after taking it. The ending was fine enough as Eddie keeps fighting but is trying to do too much and collapsing under the pressure as his body gives out. The others are just kind of there, as you could put the titles on the Dudleys but who are supposed to challenge them? The lack of star power is killing this show and it’s becoming more obvious every week.

Medics check on Eddie to end the show.

Overall Rating: D. The main event was ok but my goodness the rest of the show is such a disaster. The wrestling is uninspired, the stories aren’t interesting and the new stars aren’t exactly clicking (What does it say when Rene Dupree is one of the top prospects?). It’s just a dark time for the show and it seems to be getting even worse as the weeks go by. Eddie is doing as much as he can to carry this show on his back and it’s clearly not working. That’s not on Eddie, who can only do so much with so little around him.

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