Main Event
Date: January 9, 2020
Location: Chesapeake Energy Arena, Oklahoma City, Oklahoma
Commentators: Byron Saxton, Mickie James

It’s time to start setting up the Royal Rumble and that could go a few different ways. The big story this time around is having Brock Lesnar enter at #1, which could make for a few cool moments in the early going, plus a big deal when someone throws him out. I’m not sure what we’ll be seeing in the way of highlights but it’s nice to get a refresher. Let’s get to it.

Opening sequence.

Mojo Rawley vs. Curt Hawkins

Zack Ryder is here with Hawkins. Rawley chills in the corner to start before clotheslining Hawkins down and talking a lot of trash. Hawkins manages to knock him down and go up, only to have Mojo bail to the floor. That means a neck snap across the top rope and the chinlock is on. It’s broken up in a hurry though as Hawkins jawbreaks his way to freedom. Some dropkicks put Rawley in the corner and the top rope elbow gets two. Rawley runs him over though and it’s a fireman’s carry faceplant to put Hawkins away at 4:39.

Rating: D+. I know his career barely exists at this point but it’s great to see Hawkins trying so hard every time he’s out there. It means a lot to see someone working like that and it makes these matches a lot more fun. He likely won’t ever get anywhere significant, but he’s doing something and it’s better than just sitting around doing nothing for months at a time.

From Raw.

Here are Brock Lesnar and Paul Heyman for a chat. Heyman talks about Brock wondering who will be facing him at the Royal Rumble but realizing that no one from Raw, Smackdown or NXT is worthy. That’s why Brock is going to do something unprecedented, which is what he does. Brock promised to beat the Undertaker at Wrestlemania and then he did it. So what is his next unprecedented move? Brock is entering the Royal Rumble at #1 so he can fight twenty nine people at once. Heyman promises Lesnar will throw everyone out and win the whole thing and yes, that is a spoiler. No word on if the title will be on the line.

I saw someone suggest this same idea somewhere else and it’s an interesting idea. I’d prefer this over having Lesnar face and destroy someone else like he’d done over the last few years, though I’m almost scared to imagine who we might get as the person who throws Lesnar out. Still though, interesting idea.

We look at Daniel Bryan becoming #1 contender to challenge the Fiend at Royal Rumble.

From Smackdown.

Roman Reigns/Daniel Bryan vs. King Corbin/Dolph Ziggler

Corbin jumps Reigns at the bell and gets punched in the face for his efforts. It’s off to Ziggler, whose neckbreaker is easily broken up so Reigns can hit a big boot. Bryan comes in and kicks away….but we have the Fiend laughing and lights flickering. Back from a break with Reigns kicking Corbin in the face but running into Deep Six for two. Corbin sends him into the steps and Ziggler begs Reigns to do something.

The Superman Punch finally gets Reigns out of trouble and it’s back to Bryan to pick up the pace. Bryan elbows Ziggler down and hits the YES Kicks, only to miss the big one. Ziggler’s rollup is reversed into the LeBell Lock with Corbin making the save. Reigns spears Corbin and Bryan knees Ziggler….as the lights go out. The Fiend is here so Bryan hits him with a suicide dive.

Fiend gets posted but is right back with the Mandible Claw to send Bryan through the barricade. The Claw goes on again and there go the lights, meaning the Fiend is gone. Ziggler and Corbin jump Reigns as he goes to check on Bryan, meaning it’s time for the handcuffs and dog food. Cue the returning Usos for the save though, which is pretty long overdue. We’ll say the match ended at about 10:00.

Rating: C-. This was all just a means to get to the end of the match and that’s fine as it didn’t exactly overstay its welcome. That being said, this didn’t help hide the fact that Ziggler and Corbin aren’t exactly as interesting as a lot of the other people on the show, including the three other people involved in the match. Not a bad match or anything, but a means to an end more than anything on its own.

Royal Rumble rundown.

Natalya vs. Chelsea Green

They go to the mat and trade headscissors until Chelsea is up with a wristlock. Natalya goes for more grappling though and Green dives over for the ropes in a smart move. A hammerlock doesn’t do much to Natalya and Green has to go to the ropes again. Green shoulders her down but gets sent into the corner, only to have to escape the Sharpshooter attempt. A cheap shot puts Natalya down though and we take a break.

Back with Green choking in the corner but getting rolled up for two. The chinlock goes on to keep Natalya down, followed by some choking on the rope for a similar effect. It’s another chinlock, as Green certainly likes working that neck. Natalya powers out and hits her slingshot belly to back drop for two. A hard clothesline sets up the Sharpshooter to make Green tap at 10:24.

Rating: D+. Green isn’t exactly thrilling in the ring but she has charisma and makes you pay attention, which is more than a lot of women on the main roster can say. The match was nothing we haven’t seen before, but it’s nice to see someone fresh getting a chance for once. Granted she’s already back in NXT, though at least she got her feet wet on the main roster for a bit.

Video on Bobby Lashley and Lana’s wedding, with Liv Morgan interrupting.

From Raw.

Here are Lashley and Lana with the minister from last week in the ring (apparently the minister was the fan, which would be some major miscommunication). Lana is furious about last week and wants things made right so they get married in a hurry, because the minister can officiate weddings in multiple states.

Lana kicks the minister out for being boring but still doesn’t seem happy. It’s because of all these people here who don’t want to see this ring on her finger. Last week a bunch of exes came out to interrupt the wedding over and over again because so many people are so jealous of their love. Lashley says Rusev is the sorriest of them all but here’s Rusev on the screen, standing in front of a superimposed island.

Since Lana and Lashley didn’t have a honeymoon, he’s taking it for them. But first, he needs to give them their wedding gift: a wedding album, with pictures from last week’s fiasco. Lana rants about how much she hates Rusev….and Lashley tells her to shut up. Lashley says Rusev used to be a man but they need to fight one more time. Rusev agrees to fight him next week and the Bulgarian Brute will be back. There was no reference to or mention of Liv Morgan.

From Raw.

Seth Rollins/AOP vs. Samoa Joe/Kevin Owens/???

Rollins is officially dubbed the Monday Night Messiah and says he knows what is best for everyone. The mystery partner is….the Big Show, who hasn’t wrestled in over a year due to hip surgery. Show cleans house to start and hits a big chop on Rollins to send us to a break. Back with Rollins still in trouble as Owens hits a tilt-a-whirl backbreaker for two. Rezar gets in a cheap shot though and sends Owens into the barricade, as the fans want Big Show.

Back in and we hit the neck crank on Owens to slow things down so Show starts playing cheerleader (the veterans are always good at that). The side slam/middle rope stomp combination gets two on Owens and it’s off to Rollins for a chinlock of his own. Owens fights up and hits an enziguri on Akam, so Rezar comes in to knock Joe off the apron. That earns him a superkick from Owens and the hot tag brings Show back in. Joe gets sent into the steps, leaving Show to pull Rollins out of the air. The double chokeslam to AOP is broken up with a chair shot from Rollins for the DQ at 10:15.

Rating: C-. I know the fans were chanting for him a bit during the match, but Big Show? I don’t think he’s going to be a big feature attraction but I don’t exactly see this as being the impactful move that WWE thinks it might be. It has been a long time and I was surprised to hear that music again, though the excitement died down in a hurry as you knew the DQ or countout was coming. It’s a nice surprise in the short term but long term, they’re going to need something else.

Post match the beatdown is on but Show punches Rollins out to end the show.

Overall Rating: D+. This show did the same thing that so many bad episodes of Main Event have done over the last year or two: showed just how uninteresting Raw and Smackdown can be. The full shows have some different perks that you don’t see on here, but the shortened versions aren’t exactly making me want to watch more of the main shows in the future.

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and pick up the paperback edition of KB’s Complete 2004 Monday Night Raw Reviews (also -available as an e-book) from Amazon. Check out the information here:

http://kbwrestlingreviews.com/2019/08/26/new-book-and-e-book-kbs-complete-2004-monday-night-raw-reviews/

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

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

Monday Night Raw
Date: January 13, 2020
Location: Rupp Arena, Lexington, Kentucky
Commentators: Jerry Lawler, Vic Joseph

We’re less than two weeks away from the Royal Rumble and that means things need to pick up a lot. The Rumbles themselves have barely meant anything so far as it seems to be all about Brock Lesnar for the men and Charlotte seems destined for the women’s. You know, in case you were worrying about something fresh sneaking in. Let’s get to it.

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

I was in the arena for this show, sitting in the end zone in the lower arena.

Opening sequence.

Your regular rant that only I care about: this show is not on the campus of the University of Kentucky. Rupp Arena is not owned by the University nor on its campus. I know just saying “Lexington” is too much to ask for WWE, but when you spend four years of your life at a school, it can get annoying hearing them get it wrong (or intentionally saying it wrong) EVERY SINGLE TIME.

Here’s Randy Orton for an opening chat. The music stops but Orton gets cheered so much that he has to get on the ropes for one more pose. Orton, not on the mic: “I had to.” Orton says he was asked to come out here and excitedly welcome everyone to Raw. He isn’t the excitedly kind of guy though so he’ll invited one single person out here instead.

That would be AJ Styles and sweet goodness that hair has a life of its own. AJ mocks Orton for faking a knee injury and having the gall to suggest that he is the favorite to win the Royal Rumble. Last week, the world saw AJ Styles hit the greatest RKO anyone has ever seen. AJ: “It was beautiful!” People even said it was phenomenal but AJ would rather talk about the Rumble, which draws out Drew McIntyre.

Drew says he’s been tested lately, with the Conga Line putting him on the ropes last week. Now he wants some more competition, so here are AJ Styles and Randy Orton having an RKO size measuring contest. Drew: “My Claymore is bigger.” That makes Orton drop his mic and McIntyre wants a triple threat right now. Ring the bell.

Randy Orton vs. AJ Styles vs. Drew McIntyre

McIntyre gets knocked to the floor early on and Orton breaks up a way too soon Phenomenal Forearm attempt. Cue the Good Brothers in a hurry with an RKO taking down Anderson and a Claymore to Gallows as we take a break. Back with AJ sitting on top and getting chopped by Drew, who gets crotched on top. Orton joins them and tries a superplex on AJ, only to have Drew sit up and German superplex Orton who superplexes AJ for a rather cool spot.

The fans accurately think this is awesome as Drew beats on both of them in turn. There’s the Futureshock to AJ and a headbutt to Orton but the Claymore is cut off with a dropkick. They all head outside with Orton hitting Drew in the face to knock him silly before staring AJ down. Back in and AJ catches Orton with a hanging DDT but Orton blocks an RKO (that’s weird to say). Another attempt is countered….and that means a Styles Clash to AJ for a close two. AJ is back up but walks into the RKO, only to get Claymored by Drew, who pins Orton for the win at 10:22.

Rating: C+. This was a weird setup where they were trying to do two things at once: advance AJ vs. Orton and make Drew seem like more of a threat. That was a little hard to do in a match that has nothing to do with winning the Royal Rumble but it was good for him to get this kind of a win. The Styles Clash to AJ was a great touch and I’m curious to see how they blow the thing off. Good match too, even with the triple threat formula.

We recap Big Show returning last week to help Kevin Owens and Samoa Joe against Seth Rollins and the AOP.

Rollins talks to the AOP about how you’re either with us or against us but no one can stop them. That includes Owens, Joe and Big Show in case that wasn’t clear. Rollins has done everything to make sure their destiny is intact and tonight, you will see what happens when you don’t embrace his vision.

Ricochet vs. Mojo Rawley

Ricochet starts fast with an anklescissors into a dropkick, allowing him to get in a little dancing for a bonus. Mojo gets thrown outside and that means a big flip dive as the announcers talk about what that would mean in the Royal Rumble. Back in and Mojo hits a quick Pounce for two, followed by a corner splash to make it worse. The Alabama Slam out of the corner is blocked though and Ricochet kicks him in the head, setting up the Recoil. Ricochet hits the 630 for the pin at 3:21.

Rating: C-. Rawley is still someone who I’d like to see a bit more from but he was just a warm body for Ricochet to pin here. That’s all well and good too as Ricochet is one of the brightest stars around. I could go for seeing him get a big run in the Rumble, though there is no way he’s getting close to the main event because he’s never been in the main event before so we can’t put him there for the first time.

The Street Profits are excited about what is coming for the rest of the of the night, but Dawkins is too concerned with his Oscar ballot. Ford: “WOW! An important pop culture reference!” For now though, ring Charlotte’s music.

Charlotte vs. Sarah Logan

Fallout (not a rematch since the bell never rang) from last week when Sarah jumped Charlotte and attacked her robe. Charlotte kicks her in the face at the bell and Logan is already on the floor for a breather as Lawler recites nursery rhymes. Charlotte follows her outside for some chops so Logan hammers away at the ribs. The rather slow paced count continues as they keep brawling but they dive back in at nine. That works for Charlotte, who sends her into the buckle and slaps on the Figure Eight for the pin at 2:04. Just give Charlotte the Rumble already, unless there’s a heck of a surprise in the works.

Post match Charlotte puts on her robe and leaves but comes back to throw Logan over the top in a nice touch.

Samoa Joe and Kevin Owens are looking forward to the Fist Fight. Big Show comes in and says it’s time to reintroduce Seth Rollins to his fist.

Here are Paul Heyman and Brock Lesnar, with Heyman making fun of the crowd. Heyman: “Ladies and gentlemen and things that live in Kentucky….” The fans then cheer his introduction so Heyman calls them stupid for not getting the idea. Now it’s a YOU SUCK chant so the two of them walk to the ramp and think about leaving. Heyman: “My client DOES NOT suck!” They get back in the ring so Heyman can recap the fact that Lesnar is in the Royal Rumble and entering #1, though it takes some shouting to get over the fans booing him out of the building.

Heyman talks about the new Streak in WWE, which is different from the one that Brock Lesnar broke. This Streak is made up of his spoilers, like the one where he says Brock will win the Royal Rumble despite entering at #1. The spoilers will set you free because they are truth….and here’s R-Truth to interrupt. He’s heard about the big man being in the Rumble and just like his childhood hero John Cena taught him, he’ll never give up. That’s why at the Royal Rumble, he’s throwing Paul Heyman over the top.

Paul is stunned and Lesnar is DONE, laughing his head off and not being able to look at Truth. That doesn’t stop Truth from talking about how he’ll get rid of Heyman, who calls Truth “Bong Hit” and says Brock is the one in the Rumble. Truth unenters the Rumble and says it’s hard to keep track of what Heyman says because “you talk a lot”. Brock can barely stand up straight from the laughter and even Heyman can’t calm him down.

Truth says he doesn’t want to be taken to Sioux Falls City. Heyman: “IT’S SUPLEX CITY! SUPLEX CITY! SUPLEX CITY! YOU’RE NOT FUNNY!” Brock gets in Truth’s face so Truth asks what’s up and starts dancing, only to get taken down by a clothesline. The F5 leaves Truth laying and Brock picks up the 24/7 Title, which he throws back at Truth. Brock: “That’s what’s up.” This was hysterical, even if it added nothing. Seeing Brock not being able to control himself was a special feeling and I can’t blame him as Truth was great here, as always.

Post break Truth is being helped to the back so here’s Mojo Rawley to pin him and steal the title.

Earlier tonight, Lana and Bobby Lashley arrived. They’re not happy with being asked about the wedding and we see some highlights. Lana understands that everyone is jealous of them because they’re so amazing. They’ve made some New Year’s Resolutions: accept that everyone is jealous of them and CRUSH RUSEV.

Bobby Lashley vs. Rusev

They go straight into the brawl and Rusev gets two off a spinwheel kick. Lashley is right back with right hands in the corner but a suplex gets Rusev out of trouble. Some kicks to the back and another suplex have Lashley down, and the Cannonball gets two. A thumb to the eye and a running clothesline put Rusev on the floor though and a spear takes us to a break.

Back with Rusev fighting out of a chinlock but getting kicked in the knee to cut that off in a hurry. Rusev kicks his way out of trouble and hits a Samoa drop. Lashley’s German suplex is no sold and it’s the jumping superkick to put Lashley down. Lana offers a distraction though and Lashley gets in a cheap shot.

Cue Liv Morgan to go after Lana and threaten to rip the wig off her hair, among other insults that we can’t make out due to rapid fire camera cuts. Lana steals a drink from a fan to throw in her face and send her into the barricade, leaving Lashley to hit the spear and finish Rusev at 14:22.

Rating: C-. This felt a lot shorter than it was and the match wasn’t all that good. That’s a big part of the feud as we are not in the fifth month and we have only seen two matches. Neither of them have been very good either, and now we are likely setting up a mixed tag with the men needing to take care of the not very good women. How is this supposed to be an upgrade?

Post match Lana rants about how no one mistreats her because she’s a supermodel, a fashionista, a fashionista and a celebrity. Therefore, next week it’s a mixed tag, with Lashley not exactly being happy with needing to take care of Rusev and Lana at the same time.

Here are the Viking Raiders to issue an open challenge because they want to fight.

Viking Raiders vs. ???

Non-title, Open Challenge, Singh Brothers, Viking Experience, 38 seconds. That’s still too much Singh Brothers.

Rusev and Liv accept, with Liv saying she is the “living embodiment of karma and karma isn’t a goddess.” NO ONE TALKS LIKE THIS! And they’re never going to go into what could have been an interesting story with Liv and Lana are they?

Here’s Becky Lynch to sign the contract for her Royal Rumble title defense against Asuka. Before Asuka comes out, Lynch can’t manage to say anything, which is rather out of character for her. Asuka comes out with Kairi Sane and rants in Japanese. Kairi messes with Becky with the umbrella so Becky throws it out in an emotional outburst.

Asuka, looking bored, signs and Becky, with a heavy sigh, does as well. Becky says may the best woman win and takes the mist to the face as Asuka laughs a lot and leaves with Sane. Replays show that it hit her square in the eyes too. The medics come out and work on Becky’s eyes as she screams in pain.

She demands a microphone though and talks about how the money and the fame are poison to people who fight for a living and her veins are full of it. Asuka has brought out something in her and she is coming to the Rumble to fight. If she goes down, she is going down swinging and taking Asuka with her. This was the fired up promo that Becky can deliver very well and I really, really want to see this match.

We look back at Andrade retaining the United States Title over Rey Mysterio and stealing Mysterio’s mask, only to have Rey snap and take it back later in the night.

Next week: Andrade defends against Mysterio in a ladder match.

Zelina Vega talks about how Andrade was man enough to take the title from Mysterio and then beat him again last week. Then Andrade was man enough to take Rey’s mask but Rey had to attack and steal the title from them. That’s why they have filed a criminal complaint against him and why Mysterio is a horrible example to Latinos everywhere. Andrade promise to defeat Mysterio again and then rants in Spanish about keeping his title.

Mysterio talks about representing Latinos with all of his heart. He’s coming for the title next week and will give it everything he has because he’s fighting for respect as well.

Video on Aleister Black vs. Buddy Murphy.

Buddy Murphy vs. Aleister Black

They go straight for the strikes until Black just glares at him. The threat of Black Mass sends Murphy to the floor and they brawl against the barricade. Black gets the better of it and they fight up the aisle with Lawler talking about various opponents he just could not beat over the years. Black gets slammed hard onto the ramp but Murphy is smart (I think?) enough to break up the count.

Another kick to the leg knocks Murphy off the barricade though and they head back inside for the first time in a good while. Back in and Black gets sent into the post, setting up a suplex to the floor and we take a break. We come back with Black hitting a running knee to send Murphy into the timekeeper’s area. They get back in with the fans finding it awesome as Black strikes away.

Neither Black Mass nor Murphy’s Law can connect though so Murphy sends him outside again, only to have Black slide back in for a running knee to the face. Murphy hits a kick to the head though and drops Black off the top. He spends too much time on top though and gets kicked out to the floor for the massive crash. Black crashes to the floor also though and we need a bit of a breather.

They both crawl back in to beat the count and the slugout is on again. Black gets the better of it again by kicking him in the head, only to get superkicked out of the air on a moonsault attempt. Murphy’s Law connects for two as Black puts his foot on the rope. With nothing else working, Murphy tries his own Black Mass, only to get caught with the real thing. That’s only good for two, due to what seems to be a ridiculous complaint from the referee about a shoulder being up. That’s fine with Black, who hits a second for the pin at 13:48.

Rating: B. These two have awesome chemistry together and I could watch Black strike away for days. Murphy has been excellent as well as he tries to figure out a way to stop the monster that is Black. They have found a nice feud here and even though Buddy has lost three times in a row, he has moved forward and away from 205 Live so it’s a step in the right direction.

Erick Rowan vs. ???

Murphy is still sitting at ringside and says not now on the questions. Rowan throws him outside and then into the barricade but it’s time to look into the cage. Rowan even reaches inside, only to be bitten to draw some blood. That’s not cool with Rowan, who takes it out on the jobber. The Iron Claw finishes at 1:32.

Big Show/Kevin Owens/Samoa Joe vs. Seth Rollins/AOP

Fist Fight, meaning anything goes and the only way to win is for the referee to say your team can’t continue. The AOP and Rollins jump Show during his entrance so here are Owens and Joe with kendo sticks for the save. The fight is on and it’s Show and Rollins in the ring while the other four fight by the entrance.

Show chops Rollins against the barricade but Rollins manages a posting. Owens one ups that by running up the curved set and flip diving onto the AOP on the floor (very cool moment). Joe dives off the ramp onto Akam and everyone is down again. Rollins is sent outside and finds the still seated Murphy, who he begs for help.

That’s just what happens, as Murphy gets in and hits Show low, allowing the two of them to put Show through a table in the corner. Joe and Owens are sent through the announcers’ table for the huge crash and now it’s time to surround Show. The AOP powerbomb Show and it’s the Stomp to make the referee end it at 5:17.

Rating: D+. The angle with Murphy was the point of course and that’s the right way to go. Rollins as the Monday Night Messiah is interesting and having him get some followers is a good idea. What matters most here though is getting someone fresh on a higher level and that includes Murphy. I don’t know if he’s the big solution, but you have to upgrade someone at some point and they tried it here. The surprise was better in person as Murphy wasn’t shown on the big screen, or at least not shown for more than a split second, so it was an even bigger surprise.

Post match Rollins hugs the AOP and then Murphy to end the show. Nothing happened after the show went off the air.

Overall Rating: C+. This was a show dedicated to moving things forward but at the same time they had some pretty good wrestling to go with it. The deal at the end with Murphy helped more than anything else and it was a show that helped get things ready for the Rumble. Throw in Lesnar dying of laughter as he couldn’t handle Truth’s antics and I had a rather good time with the show. Maybe part of it was being there live, but I had fun with this one.

Results

Drew McIntyre b. AJ Styles and Randy Orton – Claymore to Orton

Ricochet b. Mojo Rawley – 630

Charlotte b. Sarah Logan – Figure Eight

Bobby Lashley b. Rusev – Spear

Viking Raiders b. Singh Brothers – Viking Experience to Samir

Aleister Black b. Buddy Murphy – Black Mass

Erick Rowan b. ??? – Iron Claw

Seth Rollins/AOP b. Big Show/Kevin Owens/Samoa Joe via knockout

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and pick up the paperback edition of KB’s Complete 2004 Monday Night Raw Reviews (also -available as an e-book) from Amazon. Check out the information here:

http://kbwrestlingreviews.com/2019/08/26/new-book-and-e-book-kbs-complete-2004-monday-night-raw-reviews/

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

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

Monday Night Raw
Date: January 6, 2020
Location: Chesapeake Energy Arena, Oklahoma City, Oklahoma
Commentators: Vic Joseph, Jerry Lawler

It’s a big night as we get some fallout from last week’s messy/controversial wedding plus the return of Brock Lesnar as we are less than three weeks away from the Royal Rumble. That means things need to pick up in a hurry and something needs to be done around here. Let’s get to it.

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

We open with a recap from the wedding, focusing on Liv Morgan’s big surprise of course.

Opening sequence.

Here are Brock Lesnar and Paul Heyman for a chat. Heyman talks about Brock wondering who will be facing him at the Royal Rumble but realizing that no one from Raw, Smackdown or NXT is worthy. That’s why Brock is going to do something unprecedented, which is what he does. Brock promised to beat the Undertaker at Wrestlemania and then he did it. So what is his next unprecedented move? Brock is entering the Royal Rumble at #1 so he can fight twenty nine people at once. Heyman promises Lesnar will throw everyone out and win the whole thing and yes, that is a spoiler. No word on if the title will be on the line.

I saw someone suggest this same idea somewhere else and it’s an interesting idea. I’d prefer this over having Lesnar face and destroy someone else like he’d done over the last few years, though I’m almost scared to imagine who we might get as the person who throws Lesnar out. Still though, interesting idea.

Rey Mysterio is fired up for his United States Title shot and thanks his son for being his inspiration. Tonight, he’s taking the title back to represent Latinos.

United States Title: Andrade vs. Rey Mysterio

Andrade is defending and has Zelina Vega with him. Andrade starts punching away to start so Rey climbs onto his shoulders so they can fall outside. A victory roll sends Andrade face first into the steps and Zelina panics. Back in and Andrade dropkicks him out of the air as we take a break.

Back with both guys staggered but Rey gets to the apron for a springboard seated senton. The tornado DDT gets two but Andrade ties him in the ropes. The top rope double stomp misses so Rey tries the sliding sunset bomb, only to have Andrade roll through and hit double knees to put Rey down again. Back in and Rey busts out a Canadian Destroyer to knock Andrade silly for the pin….but Vega got the foot on the rope just in time. Rey celebrates but we have to keep going so we take another break.

We come back with Rey hitting a running hurricanrana off the apron to send Andrade crashing into the barricade. A sunset bomb sends Andrade into the post and the springboard Fameasser gives Rey two more. Andrade is back with a wheelbarrow faceplant for the same but Rey hurricanranas him into the ropes for the 619.

Andrade manages to roll outside so Rey dives onto Zelina by mistake. The distraction lets Andrade send him into the post and Rey is staggered. He’s so banged up that the referee breaks up the hammerlock DDT so Rey staggers to the floor, where he seems to check on Zelina. Back in and the hammerlock DDT retains the title at 19:52.

Rating: B. These two are incapable of having a bad match and WWE knows they can put them out there for a good match every single time. I’m curious about how they’re going somewhere with the tensions between Andrade and Vega, though Andrade getting the big win is what matters most here.

Post match Andrade rips off Rey’s mask. A Rumble rematch with some stipulations could work well.

We look back at Samoa Joe and Kevin Owens fighting back against the AOP.

Owens and Joe confirm that they are usually out for themselves, but Joe has someone to join in with them. Joe tells Owens not to worry about who it is.

The AOP doesn’t seem thrilled but Rollins isn’t worried. Rollins has overcome challenges forever and is used to it because he is the chosen one of Monday Night Raw. Anyone who steps up to them will be taken care of by the AOP.

Tag Team Titles: OC vs. Viking Raiders vs. Street Profits

The Raiders are defending but first, the Profits say they’re blinging in the new decade. Tonight, they want the smoke. Erik throws Anderson down to start and it’s Ivar coming in to send him face first into Erik’s knee. A blind tag lets Dawkins come in to dropkick Anderson but Ford does the same, meaning it’s a flip off with Ivar.

Gallows, a self described non-fan of cartwheels, unloads on Ford in the corner before Anderson knocks Ford down for two. That’s enough waiting around for the Raiders as they both come in to clean house with Gallows having to save Ford after the Viking Experience. Everyone fights to the floor with the OC getting the better of things as we take a break. Back with Anderson chinlocking Erik but the comeback is on in a hurry.

Erik jumps over Anderson in the corner and dives over for the hot tag to Erik. House is cleaned in a hurry but the Bronco Buster misses. Dawkins and Eric tag themselves in with the spinebuster into the frog splash connecting on Erik. Ivar makes the save and it’s Ford hitting the running flip dive onto Gallows and Dawkins. That leaves Anderson to get powerbombed into a splash from Ivar to retain the titles at 15:13.

Rating: B-. This was the kind of action packed match that you would have expected here, though I’m curious to see who the Vikings can face now. There isn’t really anyone left but the AOP and the good thing is that doesn’t need much of a build. Just let them hit each other a lot at the Rumble and everything will be fine.

Joe won’t say who the partner is but he’ll show Owens. They go to a locker room and Owens sees the partner, which makes him very happy.

Here’s Becky Lynch to talk about her match with Asuka. Becky has been the confident champion but now she needs to rethink things. Yeah she’s been on the cereal boxes and walked the red carpets but there is one person she can’t beat. We see clips of Asuka beating her multiple times but here’s Asuka to cut her off. Asuka shouts in Japanese but Becky punches her down and walks off.

Mojo Rawley gets to look inside Erick Rowan’s cage and screams a lot.

We recap the US Title match.

Andrade and Zelina brag about the win but here’s an unmasked Rey to jump Andrade from behind and take the mask back. With the mask on again, Mysterio steals the title and leaves.

Erick Rowan vs. KJ Orso

Rowan grabs him before the bell and says he knows Orso wants to see what’s in the cage. Orso gets back inside and says bring it on so Rowan kicks him in the face. The Iron Claw is good for the pin at 23 seconds.

Post match Rowan puts Orso’s head near the cage and Orso comes up with a bloody face, sending him running away.

AJ Styles vs. Akira Tozawa

We see a clip of last week’s surprise RKO from Randy Orton, who faces AJ again next week. Tozawa kicks away to start but AJ gets in a shot out of the corner. The Phenomenal Forearm connects, but AJ pulls him up at two. A Randy Orton hanging DDT drops Tozawa again and an RKO gives AJ the pin at 2:20.

Post match AJ strikes Orton’s pose to really rub it in. AJ leaves and a fan runs in so security deals with him as we take a break.

We look at the wedding again.

Here are Lashley and Lana with the minister from last week in the ring (apparently the minister was the fan, which would be some major miscommunication). Lana is furious about last week and wants things made right so they get married in a hurry, because the minister can officiate weddings in multiple states.

Lana kicks the minister out for being boring but still doesn’t seem happy. It’s because of all these people here who don’t want to see this ring on her finger. Last week a bunch of exes came out to interrupt the wedding over and over again because so many people are so jealous of their love. Lashley says Rusev is the sorriest of them all but here’s Rusev on the screen, standing in front of a superimposed island.

Since Lana and Lashley didn’t have a honeymoon, he’s taking it for them. But first, he needs to give them their wedding gift: a wedding album, with pictures from last week’s fiasco. Lana rants about how much she hates Rusev….and Lashley tells her to shut up. Lashley says Rusev used to be a man but they need to fight one more time. Rusev agrees to fight him next week and the Bulgarian Brute will be back. There was no reference to or mention of Liv Morgan.

R-Truth is ready for the new decade but Liv Morgan interrupts to say she’ll be in Rusev’s corner next week. It’s a moment she lives for.

Charlotte vs. Sarah Logan

Logan jumps her before the bell and they fight to the floor with Charlotte hammering away against the barricade. They go into the crowd for a bit until Charlotte throws her back over, only to get posed for her efforts. With Charlotte down, Logan grabs the robe and slams it onto the mat a few times. A spear puts Logan down on the floor and Charlotte suplexes her into the barricade. Charlotte sends Logan into the post, puts the robe on, and leaves. No match as the bell never rang.

Erick Rowan, Randy Orton, Rey Mysterio and Ricochet are official for the Rumble.

Drew McIntyre vs. No Way Jose

Jose starts fast but gets kicked in the ribs for his efforts. An overhead belly to belly sends Jose flying but Drew heads outside to beat up the Conga Line. Back in and the Future Shock sets up the Claymore to finish Jose at 1:45.

Post match McIntyre asks if the fans want to see another Claymore. Drew throws Jose back in and kicks his head off a second time. It’s interesting that Drew has never had a World Title shot, so he’s in the Rumble as well.

Shelton Benjamin vs. Aleister Black

Black grabs a rollup for an early two before having a seat to mess with Benjamin’s mind. What looked like a Rings of Saturn attempt is countered into a deadlift to put Black down. Some forearms have Black rocked but he’s right back with Black Mass for the pin at 1:58.

Post match Buddy Murphy jumps Black and sends him into the post. Murphy tosses Black into the timekeeper’s area and hits the running knee to the face. A chair is put under Black’s face and it’s a knee to smash the chair into Black. Murphy sits on the barricade as medics come out.

Seth Rollins/AOP vs. Samoa Joe/Kevin Owens/???

Rollins is officially dubbed the Monday Night Messiah and says he knows what is best for everyone. The mystery partner is….the Big Show, who hasn’t wrestled in over a year due to hip surgery. Show cleans house to start and hits a big chop on Rollins to send us to a break. Back with Rollins still in trouble as Owens hits a tilt-a-whirl backbreaker for two. Rezar gets in a cheap shot though and sends Owens into the barricade, as the fans want Big Show.

Back in and we hit the neck crank on Owens to slow things down so Show starts playing cheerleader (the veterans are always good at that). The side slam/middle rope stomp combination gets two on Owens and it’s off to Rollins for a chinlock of his own. Owens fights up and hits an enziguri on Akam, so Rezar comes in to knock Joe off the apron. That earns him a superkick from Owens and the hot tag brings Show back in. Joe gets sent into the steps, leaving Show to pull Rollins out of the air. The double chokeslam to AOP is broken up with a chair shot from Rollins for the DQ at 10:15.

Rating: C-. I know the fans were chanting for him a bit during the match, but Big Show? I don’t think he’s going to be a big feature attraction but I don’t exactly see this as being the impactful move that WWE thinks it might be. It has been a long time and I was surprised to hear that music again, though the excitement died down in a hurry as you knew the DQ or countout was coming. It’s a nice surprise in the short term but long term, they’re going to need something else.

Post match the beatdown is on but Show punches Rollins out to end the show.

Overall Rating: C+. There was more of an effort this week and that was noticeable all night long. It’s clear to tell when they are trying and when they aren’t and it was the former this week. I’m glad to see that as we are getting close to the Royal Rumble, though it would be nice to see it take place more often than just this time of year. Anyway, good wrestling tonight but some of the angles weren’t that thrilling. There’s a good chance I’ll be at the show next week and I really hope I don’t regret the decision (again).

Results

Andrade b. Rey Mysterio – Hammerlock DDT

Viking Raiders b. OC and Street Profits – Frog splash to Anderson

Erick Rowan b. KJ Orso – Iron Claw

AJ Styles b. Akira Tozawa – RKO

Drew McIntyre b. No Way Jose – Claymore

Aleister Black b. Shelton Benjamin – Black Mass

Big Show/Samoa Joe/Kevin Owens b. Seth Rollins/AOP via DQ when Rollins used a chair

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and pick up the paperback edition of KB’s Complete 2004 Monday Night Raw Reviews (also available as an e-book) from Amazon. Check out the information here:

http://kbwrestlingreviews.com/2019/08/26/new-book-and-e-book-kbs-complete-2004-monday-night-raw-reviews/

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

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

Monday Night Raw
Date: December 30, 2019
Location: XL Center, Hartford, Connecticut
Commentators: Jerry Lawler, Vic Joseph

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

Opening sequence.

Here’s an annoyed Kevin Owens to get things going. Owens gets right to the point and promises fireworks for what happened last week. We see a clip of Seth Rollins and the AOP laying out Samoa Joe last week. Owens promises to take one of them out with him because he saw someone he respects get taken out.

That would be Rey Mysterio, and it made him sick to see Mysterio get beaten down a few weeks back. The beatdown is why Andrade defeated Mysterio for the United States Title and we see a clip of the title change. Cue Rollins and the AOP to say this wasn’t Seth’s decision. He was forced into this roll and now the AOP will enforce his will.

The fight is on with Owens getting crushed in the corner, only to have Samoa Joe come down for the save. Joe beats up the AOP and chokes Rollins but AOP comes back in. Owens makes the next save with some chair shots to the back as security comes down to break it up. Owens hits a bit flip dive onto the three of them plus security, with Joe joining in.

Post break, here’s everything you just saw before the commercial.

Joe and Owens are talking in the back when Charly Caruso comes in to say security is going to be coming after them. Joe says he doesn’t have a choice to do what he did, just like Rollins. Owens is glad to have someone like Joe by his side. Security comes in and the two of them leave, with promises to be back next week.

Aleister Black vs. Buddy Murphy

Rematch from TLC. Murphy wastes no time in hurricanranaing him to the floor and having a seat ala Black to get in his head. Back in and Black sends him outside, only to have a seat of his own when Murphy comes in again. Black elbows him down and we hit the front facelock to slow things down a bit. That’s broken up with some shots to the face so Black shows him how it’s done with a sliding kick to the face.

The armbar goes on for a bit until Murphy sends him face first into the buckle. He takes too long going up though and Black kicks him in the face, setting Black to go up top. That earns him a face first drop onto the turnbuckle though and we take a break. Back with Black hitting a middle rope moonsault, followed by even more kicks to the face and chest.

Another shot to the face looks to set up the top rope moonsault but Murphy rolls away instead. A corner dropkick sets up a rollup with feet on the ropes for two but the referee catches him red footed. Black gets sent outside again for the big flip dive and seems to be favoring his knee.

Back in and Murphy’s top rope Meteora gets two as they’re both spent. Murphy is up first and goes to the top, only to have to reverse a superplex attempt into a rolling sitout powerbomb for a very close two. For some reason Murphy tries his own Black Mass and gets superkicked for his efforts. A brainbuster gives Black two so it’s time for Black Mass. That’s blocked so Murphy grabs a quick Murphy’s Law attempt. That’s reversed into a victory roll and Black Mass connects for the pin on Murphy at 14:31.

Rating: B. This might not have been as good as their first match but it is still a heck of a match. What they did here was the same match they had before but it was very entertaining with Black looking like a killer while Murphy looks like someone who could wrestle with anyone. They’re both benefiting from these matches and that’s exactly the point.

Rollins and the AOP want revenge but are willing to leave peacefully when security shows up.

Erick Rowan comes up to Lana to ask why he wasn’t invited. He and whatever is in the cage don’t care anyway.

Erick Rowan vs. Kip Stevens

Just like every week, Stevens goes for the cage and gets mauled for his efforts. A ram into the apron, a big boot and a splash inside set up the Iron Claw for the pin at 1:37. Same as always.

Lana is getting ready and talks about Rowan being obsessed with her.

Here’s Charlotte for a chat, after the pyro of course. She’s here to announce her introduction into the Women’s Royal Rumble, which isn’t a surprise. Charlotte lists off some of her accomplishments and thinks she needs something else on her list. As for tonight though, let’s hit that open challenge. Like she said: did anyone expect otherwise?

Charlotte vs. Natalya

Charlotte starts fast with a headscissors takeover and then a headlock takeover, only to have Natalya nip up. The Flair Strut is on but Natalya sends her to the apron. That’s fine with Charlotte, who shoulders her in the ribs and hits a clothesline to drop Natalya again. A hard clothesline gives Natalya her own two and the surfboard is on. That’s broken up in a hurry as well and Charlotte boots her down for another near fall.

Natalya is right back up to send Charlotte face first into the steps and then suplex her on the ramp. Back in and Natalya kicks away in the corner, only to miss a charge into the post. Charlotte poses while Natalya is mostly done on the floor….and here’s the Mob to chase R-Truth. A big boot drops Eric Young and we take a break with Truth running away. Back with Natalya getting two off a high crossbody but Charlotte kicks her away.

The moonsault is countered into a sitout powerbomb though and Charlotte is rocked. Natalya slugs away but the discus forearm is cut off with a big boot to the arm. The spear gets two on Natalya but she sends Charlotte face first into the corner. It’s too early for a Sharpshooter attempt though as Charlotte kicks her in the face for two more. Another big boot rocks Natalya and it’s the Figure Eight to give Charlotte the win at 14:31.

Rating: C+. These two always work well together and that was the case here, albeit made slightly better for the lack of a mention of either of their older male relatives. Charlotte winning makes sense and it’s not like Natalya has any real reason to exist other than to put someone over like this most of the time. Just find something else for Charlotte to do, as in without making her champion again.

Becky Lynch is ready to face Asuka at the Royal Rumble. She knows that to be the golden child, you have to be ready to be the golden goose. Maybe she can’t beat Asuka, but she has to know.

Liv Morgan video on wanting to be different. Someone has made her feel different.

Here’s the OC for a chat. We see a clip of the OC beating the Viking Raiders two weeks ago and then the whole team winning a six man tag last week. Anderson talks about the Vikings being unbeatable but the OC has beaten them twice now. So they should get the next title shot, but here are the Street Profits to interrupt. The Profits talk about the OC’s resume before throwing in that they beat the OC in their debut. The OC calls them lucky for that win but the Profits want the smoke so ring the bell.

OC vs. Street Profits

Anderson is taken into the corner to start and it’s Ford snapping off an armbar to take over early on. AJ offers a quick distraction to trip up Dawkins but that’s an ejection as we take a break. Back with Anderson holding Ford in a chinlock after a Gallows drop onto the barricade during the break. A neckbreaker gives Anderson two so he pulls Ford back to the corner by the ear (that’s too far). Gallows gets two more off a suplex and we hit another chinlock.

The legdrop sets up the third chinlock but Gallows spends too much time going after Dawkins, allowing Ford to hit an enziguri. One heck of a diving tag brings Dawkins in and it’s time to clean house. A powerslam gets two on Anderson but Anderson’s spinebuster connects for the same. There’s the belly to back neckbreaker for another two and everything breaks down with Ford making the save. A big running flip dive hits Gallows and it’s the Sky High to Anderson, setting up Ford’s frog splash for the pin at 11:36.

Rating: C-. Pretty standard match here with Ford getting to showcase himself as usual, though Dawkins had some highlights of his own. The Profits are showing some staying power so far and that’s a great sign for their future. Their natural charisma is more than enough to keep them around and the fact that they can have some exciting matches makes things even better.

Post break the Profits are fired up over their win, which makes them the best tag team in the multiverse. Ford: “The multiverse???” Dawkins then explains the multiverse and Ford is rather confused, meaning we should talk about the wedding again. All Dawkins wants to know is where his bridesmaids are. Ford on the other hand wants the smoke.

Zack Ryder/Curt Hawkins vs. Drew McIntyre

Before the match, Drew says he doesn’t think he’s the one in a handicap here, but he does a poll to see what the audience thinks. Hawkins and Ryder jump him before the bell but get beaten down as well, meaning it’s a suplex to send Hawkins flying. The Claymore drops Hawkins and it’s a Future Shock to Ryder, with McIntyre nipping up for the double pin at 51 seconds. Remember when these guys won the Tag Team Titles at WrestleMania?

Next week: Brock Lesnar is back, Andrade vs. Rey Mysterio for the US Title and Street Profits/OC/Viking Raiders in a triple threat match for the Tag Team Titles.

Here’s Randy Orton in street clothes and on crutches to slowly make his way to the ring. Orton talks about how you never know what is going to happen in this ring and sounds a lot more serious than usual. He has seen titles lost over injuries, including Edge, who is someone he respects.

Last night he hurt his knee really badly but we need to pause for the RANDY chants. He’s going to be out for a long time and he might not be able to come back at all. Orton promises to try to RKO someone at Wrestlemania but here’s AJ Styles to interrupt. He isn’t waiting until Wrestlemania to get his hands on Orton and teases taking Orton out right here.

AJ is feeling sporty though and sticks out his chin so Orton can RKO him. Since Orton didn’t do it, AJ says he can’t wait until Wrestlemania to end Orton’s career in the Calf Crusher. AJ kicks the crutch away and laughs but Orton calls him back over. Orton says AJ may be patient but he isn’t….and there’s the RKO on a completely healthy leg. That was a great one and they sold me on the injury. It’s a unique enough segment too and I was suckered in on the whole thing. Nicely done.

We look at Andrade winning the United States Title from Rey Mysterio at Madison Square Garden.

Mysterio promises to win the title back. Then he’s coming for Rollins and the AOP.

Andrade vs. ???

Non-title and the beating is on in a hurry. Some stomping in the corner sets up some knees to the face, but Zelina Vega calls off the hammerlock DDT. She wants the floor mats pulled back but cue Ricochet for the save and I think we have a replacement.

Andrade vs. Ricochet

Non-title again. Feeling out process to start with Ricochet being sent to the apron but having to deal with a Zelina distraction. That lets Andrade dropkick a springboard out of the way. There’s a back elbow to keep Ricochet down as the ring mats are still pulled up. A standing double underhook pull has Ricochet in more trouble but Ricochet slips out and sends him outside.

Now the twisting flip dive to the floor puts Andrade down again. The tease of Andrade leaving draws Ricochet over so Andrade can sent him back first into the apron. A backdrop onto the concrete has Ricochet screaming and we take a break. Back with Ricochet fighting up from a chinlock and rolling forward for a dropkick.

Vega grabs Andrade’s hand for a failed save attempt but Andrade is able to block to Recoil. The spinning back elbow gives Andrade two more but Ricochet is back with a superkick. A swinging suplex looks to set up the 630, only to have Vega offer another distraction. Andrade is right back with the hammerlock DDT for the pin at 11:33.

Rating: C+. This worked quite well for a thrown together match. It’s a case where you probably knew it was going to go well because of who was in the ring. Ricochet can wrestle a good match with anyone and Andrade looks like the star of the future. Give them time and a reason for a rematch and it’s a nice combination.

Post match, Vega and Andre aren’t worried about the title match next week.

Preview of next week’s show.

They get to read their own vows but Lana screeches about the fans chanting RUSEV DAY and how they’re trying to make this day anyone but her. Lana tells Lashley about how awesome she is and starts her own LANA DAY chant. She’s so happy that she wants to jump on him right now….and so she does.

With that broken up, Lana hands Lashley the vows she wrote for him. Lashley reads the very complimentary statements about Lana but has to pause for the WHAT chants. Those don’t sit well with Lana, who spells her name because it’s WHO, not WHAT. He finally wraps it up, with the minister saying that was different. The ring statements go on so long that Lana says “ok we’ve got it, thank you.”

Now we get to the part the minister really dreads and he asks if anyone has reason why they shouldn’t be married. This brings out an unidentified man who says that he’s Lana’s first husband. They got married when she was 18 and then she left him for Rusev, just like she’ll leave Lashley for someone else. Lashley chokeslams him so the minister asks again, which draws out Lashley’s first wife (Minister: “WHO ARE YOU???”), who Lana didn’t seem to know about. Lana beats her up so we ask one more time….and here’s Liv Morgan.

She talks about how she was a lost soul earlier this year but the love of her life brought her to where she needed to be. How could they do this to her? Lashley insists he never laid a finger on her (Minister: “OH COME ON!”), but Liv is talking about Lana. That finally gives the fans something to care about and Liv is near tears, only to be driven into the corner.

A flower pot to the head starts the catfight as Lashley isn’t sure what to do. They’re taken to the floor but Lana gets back in so we can try this one more time. Cue Rusev out of the cake and the fight is on again, with Liv getting back in as the wedding set is destroyed. Lana gets sent into the cake but manages to slap Rusev to end the show.

This was REALLY long at nearly thirty minutes, including an eleven minute overrun. The Liv stuff is at least a twist, but it took so long to get here (both tonight and for the last three months) that it didn’t have much of an impact. This could have been worse, but they needed to cut out a lot of the same stuff going on over and over again.

Overall Rating: C-. This show was trying to be good but that wedding just did not have the lift to get where it needed to go. It could have been a lot worse and there was some good wrestling, but the wedding/love….shape with a lot of sides is hurting things badly. Maybe Lesnar being back next week will help, but if he goes away again right after the Rumble, we’re right back where we were before. In other words, we’re going to be right back where we started in about four weeks. Not a bad show this week, but the big problems remain

Results

Aleister Black b. Buddy Murphy – Black Mass

Erick Rowan b. Kip Stevens – Iron Claw

Charlotte b. Natalya – Figure Eight

Street Profits b. OC – Frog splash to Anderson

Drew McIntyre b. Curt Hawkins/Zack Ryder – Double pin

Andrade vs. ??? went to a no contest when Ricochet interfered

Andrade b. Ricochet – Hammerlock DDT

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and pick up the paperback edition of KB’s Complete 2004 Monday Night Raw Reviews (also available as an e-book) from Amazon. Check out the information here:

http://kbwrestlingreviews.com/2019/08/26/new-book-and-e-book-kbs-complete-2004-monday-night-raw-reviews/

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

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

Monday Night Raw
Date: September 9, 2019
Location: Madison Square Garden, New York City, New York
Commentators: Michael Cole, Corey Graves, Renee Young

We’re in the World’s Most Famous Arena this week for the first of two shows. They’re also the last two shows before Clash of Champions, which is looking like quite the lame duck show given the Bray Wyatt match being all but confirmed for October. Oh and Steve Austin is here too. Let’s get to it.

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

We’re not wasting time this week as here’s Austin to open the show for some beer consuming. Before Austin gets to the point, we take a trip down memory lane and hear about some of his great moments in MSG, including Survivor Series vs. Bret Hart, the first Stunner to Vince and Summerslam vs. Undertaker, complete with Austin being knocked silly. With that out of the way, it’s time to get down to the contract signing between Braun Strowman and Seth Rollins.

Strowman comes out first and stares Austin down, drawing a heck of an AUSTIN chant. Strowman offers a handshake but Austin introduces Rollins instead, with some extra bass in his voice. Rollins wants to sign but first has to talk about how awesome it is to be in the Garden with Austin. See, Strowman thinks there is something going on here and Austin might have it in for him. Rollins isn’t sure if that’s the case or not but gets in on the WHATs for a bonus.

Austin says we need to sign the contract so Rollins says he’ll win on Sunday and then signs. Strowman says he respects Austin but a rattlesnake is still a rattlesnake. He won’t turn his back on Rollins because he loves being Tag Team Champions. He’ll love being Universal Champion more though and promises to give Rollins these hands. Strowman signs….and here’s the OC to interrupt.

Styles mocks a bunch of Austin catchphrases and threatens Steve a bit, with Styles not exactly buying it. AJ rips on New York a bit so Austin tells him to put some bass in his voice. The OC gets in the ring with AJ asking how Strowman got a title match so easily and calls Austin old. Austin moves the table and it’s Strowman and Rollins fighting the OC as Austin looks on. AJ dodges the Stomp and sends Rollins outside, only to turn into the Stunner to blow the roof off the place.

AJ Styles vs. Cedric Alexander

Non-title and Cedric starts fast as AJ is banged up. AJ gets sent into the barricade early on and Alexander’s anklescissors has him in more trouble. A pair of dropkicks gets two and the Neuralizer puts AJ on the floor for the big flip dive. Back in and AJ pulls on the bad arm to take over as we go to a break. We come back with Cedric fighting out of a chinlock and snapping off the Michinoku Driver for two. An enziguri from the apron looks to set up a springboard but Karl Anderson grabs Alexander for the DQ at 8:26.

Rating: C+. The match was entertaining while it lasted but what makes me happier here is how the booking. In theory this sets up Cedric for the US Title shot on Sunday but they did it without having him pin Styles. It’s another case where you can do this kind of thing and protect your champion, which WWE has been doing better lately (for the most part). I could go for more of Cedric vs. Styles, especially in Cedric’s hometown on Sunday.

Post match the beatdown is on but here are the Viking Raiders to go after the OC and lay out AJ.

Sasha Banks and Bayley are glad they’re back together because nothing is stronger than the two of them.

Conor’s Cure video.

Here’s Roman Reigns to talk about battling cancer last year and how he wanted to use his platform to bring awareness to the issues cancer patients face. That’s why he’s been going to a bunch of children’s hospitals and tonight, they’re getting to come out here in front of all of you. Five children come out in homemade wrestling gear, each with their own wrestling name. This is always cool and you can hear the sincerity in Reigns’ voice as he talks about it.

Video on Bayley’s heel turn and a good chunk of the women’s division being dragged into it.

Bayley/Sasha Banks vs. Charlotte/Becky Lynch

Charlotte and Becky are ticked about having to team with each other so they charge to the floor to start the fight in a hurry. Charlotte gets sent into the barricade and it’s Becky getting double teamed before the bell. Charlotte clears the ring with a chair and we take a break before the match starts. Back with the bell ringing (thank you) with Banks bailing instead of having to face Becky. That’s fine with Becky, who sends Bayley into the barricade and hands it off to Charlotte to keep up the beating.

Charlotte fights out of the corner in a hurry and hands it back to Becky for a jumping kick to the face. Banks comes back in and grabs a suplex for two on Becky. They don’t waste time on the hot tag though as Charlotte comes in and kicks Bayley off the apron. The neckbreaker gets two on Banks and the Figure Eight goes on. Becky tries the Disarm-Her on Bayley, who sends Becky into Charlotte for the save. The Meteora off the apron hits Charlotte and we take a break.

Back with Charlotte getting knocked into the corner but getting up a knee to stop a charging Bayley. The hot tag (the sequel) brings in Becky to clean house with the Bexploder to Sasha. Bayley can’t get the Bayley to Belly so Sasha hits the Backstabber instead. Charlotte big boots Sasha and Becky adds a double missile dropkick. The moonsault actually hits Bayley (though Charlotte almost landed in a pushup) but Banks breaks up the cover at two.

Becky gets the Disarm-Her on Banks on the floor with Bayley making the save. That means a baseball slide from Charlotte….but there is no one there so it was just an over enthusiastic dive to the floor. Bayley suplexes Becky into the barricade and German suplexes Charlotte on the floor before taking it back inside. The top rope elbow hits raised knees and Natural Selection pins Bayley at 17:27.

Rating: B. This was an energetic match and the crowd was hot for it throughout. You could tell they were fired up to have the Horsewomen in the same match and we had a good one here. It’s a tag match so the champ getting pinned isn’t the worst thing, though I’m hoping it means Bayley retains on Sunday as there is no need to put the title on Charlotte again just yet.

The OC isn’t happy with what happened but they run into Robert Roode and Dolph Ziggler. Roode and Ziggler laugh it off but bring up having mutual enemies. They offer to join forces but want to know where the OC stands. Fists are bumped and we have an alliance for….whatever is planned for later.

Rey Mysterio vs. Gran Metalik

They exchange some quite wrist control to start so Metalik tries a headlock. The battle over a monkey flip ensues and Metalik starts flipping around and counters a hurricanrana. An anklescissors looks to set up the 619 but Metalik ducks and grabs a rollup for two. Metalik sends Rey hard to the floor and nails the step up flip dive.

Back in and a slingshot hilo gets two, followed by the required chinlock. Rey fights up in a hurry and headscissors Metalik into the middle buckle, setting up the top rope seated senton. Metalik hits his rope walk dropkick and a hurricanrana gets two. Code Red gives Rey two more and it’s the springboard frog splash to put Metalik away at 6:25.

Rating: C+. They were energized here and the match worked well as a result. The idea here was to show that Mysterio can still go, which is exactly what he did throughout the match. Metalik got to showcase himself as well and it made for a rather nice, albeit short, match, which is what they were looking for.

The Street Profits hype up the rest of the show, including a ten man tag later tonight. Oh and Angelo Dawkins seems to approve of Sasha with the blue hair.

Video on Erick Rowan destroying Roman Reigns and Daniel Bryan on Smackdown.

King of the Ring Semifinals: Ricochet vs. Samoa Joe vs. Baron Corbin

The fans are VERY into Joe. Corbin gets sent outside to start and it’s a headscissors into a dropkick to put Joe outside as well. Back in and Corbin shoulders Ricochet down to some rather warm heat. That’s fine with Ricochet, who kicks Corbin in the face and hits the running shooting star press for two. A hurricanrana off the apron takes Corbin down as well and we take a break.

Back with everyone down and the fans going back and forth on Corbin. Ricochet goes outside to go after Ricochet and sends him face first into the post with a reverse powerbomb. Joe’s suicide elbow drops Corbin and a big boot gives him two with Ricochet making the save. A snap powerslam gives Joe two on Ricochet but the Tower of Doom is broken up.

Corbin turns Ricochet inside out with a clothesline but Joe kicks Corbin in the face for the three way knockdown. Back up and Corbin big boots Ricochet, followed by Deep Six for two with Joe making the save. The Koquina Clutch has Corbin in trouble on the floor, with Joe taking him down. Ricochet hits the shooting star off the apron onto both of them and everyone is down again. Back in and Ricochet has to flip out of the Clutch, setting up the Recoil to Joe. The 630 connects (with Ricochet leaving it a bit short and landing back first onto Joe’s stomach) but Corbin pulls Ricochet to the floor and steals the pin at 14:07.

Rating: B-. So our hopes are now down to Elias and a guy called Shorty G. I’m sure we’ll be getting King Corbin and then have to hear about him for the next several months, because why not try something again and again when it hasn’t worked well in the first place? The match was fast paced, but seeing Corbin win just sucked the life out of the whole thing, as it almost always does when Corbin is involved.

Lacey Evans vs. Natalya

Rematch from last week where Evans knocked Natalya cold. Evans powers her into the corner to start so Natalya hits a slap to the face and some right hands of her own. It’s already time to go after Evans’ leg with a weird leglock making it worse. That’s broken up so it’s an attempted Sharpshooter to send Lacey outside. This time Lacey gets in some shots to the face and wraps the ring skirt across her face.

Back in and a slingshot elbow gets two but the double jump moonsault only hits mat. The discus lariat is countered with a kick to the ribs though and Lacey sends her face first into the mat a few times. That means a napkin to wipe down the face so Natalya kicks her in the ribs. The Sharpshooter makes Lacey tap at 5:05.

Rating: C. Natalya? Winning clean on Raw? Over someone who main evented a pay per view earlier this year? Does WWE really see value in a Natalya vs. Lacey Evans feud? I know Evans has fallen a lot in recent weeks but come on. Anyway it was another energetic match as the Garden is bringing out the work in a lot of people tonight.

Before Raw went on the air, former New York Knick Enes Kanter won the 24/7 Title from R-Truth. He then revealed his Boston Celtic jersey, only to get rolled up to give Truth the title for the fifteenth time.

Clash of Champions rundown.

It’s time for the Firefly Fun House. Bray is speaking with a Spanish accent so here’s Ramblin Rabbit to say he’s experienced STRANGER DANGER. Wyatt thinks that might be Steve Austin, with the rest of the friends confirming the identity. That’s not something Bray is going to deal with because the Fiend took care of everyone else. Everyone keeps saying stranger danger so Bray shouts for QUIET.

You’re supposed to take turns talking in the Fun House, so Bray fixes Abby’s clock (stuck on 3:16) with a hammer. See, Austin is a rattlesnake and you can’t blame a rattlesnake for doing rattlesnake things. Strangers are just friends you haven’t made yet. Think of Strowman and Rollins tonight. They met the Viking Raiders and now they’re all friends. The problem is that friends won’t help you because the Fiend never forgets. See you in h***!

Cedric Alexander/Braun Strowman/Seth Rollins/Viking Raiders vs. OC/Dolph Ziggler/Robert Roode

Rollins and Ziggler start things off because we can never see these two fight enough. A hiptoss into an armbar has Ziggler in trouble and Erik slams Ivar onto him. Everything breaks down for a wild fight and Strowman chokeslams the heck out of Ziggler. We take an early break and come back with Cedric in trouble in the corner. Cedric gets in a faceplant but AJ takes him down by the bad arm and brings Gallows in. The New York fans, getting AJ, the OC and more in the main event, respond with the Wave.

Roode comes back in to work on an armbar and slams the arm into the mat for two. Cedric fights up and knocks Roode down, allowing the hot tag off to Rollins. House is cleaned, including the springboard knee to Anderson for two. The parade of strikes to the face begins with Rollins superkicking Styles to the floor to clear the ring. It’s off to Strowman for the running shoulders around the ring. The running powerslam gets two on Anderson with Roode and Ziggler shoving Seth into the cover for the save.

Strowman isn’t happy with Rollins and we take a break. Back with Anderson spinebustering Rollins for two but Rollins grabs a Blockbuster for a breather. The buckle bomb to Ziggler allows the tag to Strowman and house is cleaned again. Strowman goes shoulder first into the post (it’s a tradition) and Erik comes in to beat people up and shout a lot. Ivar goes up top and hits the big flip dive onto the pile. That leaves Cedric to Lumbar Check Styles for the pin at 19:35.

Rating: C+. The ending makes sense and is a lot more acceptable than having the champ get pinned in a singles match. It was the big spectacle match to end the show with everyone in there at once so it’s hard to complain about what they went with for a main event. Sometimes it’s better to go with the big match instead of some singles match that we’ve seen before and that’s what they did here.

Post match here’s Austin again and a lot of beer is consumed to end the show.

Overall Rating: B+. This was one of the better shows they’ve done in a very long time with everyone working hard and the feel of the Garden making things seem that much better. The idea here was to make the show feel like it was a big deal and that was what we got. Now the problem is I doubt a lot of people actually watched the show because Monday Night Football premiered, but at least those who watched it had a good time. There was nothing bad and the show flew by with everyone working harder than usual. Very good show and the kind that you almost never get from Raw these days.

Results

Cedric Alexander b. AJ Styles via DQ when Karl Anderson interfered

Becky Lynch/Charlotte b. Bayley/Sasha Banks – Natural Selection to Bayley

Rey Mysterio b. Gran Metalik – Springboard frog splash

Baron Corbin b. Ricochet and Samoa Joe – 630 to Samoa Joe

Natalya b. Lacey Evans – Sharpshooter

Cedric Alexander/Braun Strowman/Seth Rollins/Viking Raiders b. OC/Dolph Ziggler/Robert Roode – Lumbar Check to Styles

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and pick up the paperback edition of KB’s Complete 2004 Monday Night Raw Reviews (also available as an e-book) from Amazon. Check out the information here:

http://kbwrestlingreviews.com/2019/08/26/new-book-and-e-book-kbs-complete-2004-monday-night-raw-reviews/

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

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

Monday Night Raw
Date: September 2, 2019
Location: Royal Farms Arena, Baltimore, Maryland
Commentators: Michael Cole, Corey Graves, Renee Young

The King of the Ring continues as we find out the final names on the Raw side. This time around it’s Ricochet vs. Samoa Joe and Baron Corbin vs. Cedric Alexander, meaning you should be able to guess where both matches are going. Other than that we’ll likely get some more build to Clash of Champions. Let’s get to it.

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

Here are Braun Strowman and Seth Rollins to open things up with a contract signing. Rollins knows they can work together to beat Robert Roode and Dolph Ziggler but his intentions are to walk out of Clash as a double champ. Strowman says he’ll win but Rollins brings up slaying the beast to win the Universal Title, which is something Strowman doesn’t know about. At Clash, he’ll slay the monster.

Seth signs but here’s the OC to interrupt before Strowman can do the same. AJ explains the double title concept and asks who he’s going to face. He’ll just walk around showing off his title because that’s how you get a title shot around here. AJ wants to know why the Good Brothers aren’t getting their title shot and threatens to slap Cole’s teeth down his throat. Once inside, he rips up the contract that Strowman hadn’t signed, so the table is turned over and the fight is on.

Braun Strowman/Seth Rollins vs. OC

Non-title and joined in progress with Rollins kicking at Anderson before it’s off to Gallows for the power. Strowman comes in and kicks Gallows down without much trouble so it’s back to Anderson for an armbar on Rollins. Seth gets sent outside and into the barricade for a knockdown as we take a break.

Back with Rollins hitting an enziguri on Gallows and bringing Strowman in for the house cleaning. The running powerslam is broken up and everything breaks down, with AJ getting on the apron for a distraction. That’s broken up and Rolling grabs a rollup to finish Anderson at 11:43.

Rating: C-. Just a match here with the break in the middle breaking up the momentum. That being said, I’m much happier with the champs winning instead of having them lose so soon into their title reign. I know they’re not going to be long term champions or anything, but there is no need to have them lose here. For once WWE gets that and doesn’t have the champs lose, which is nice for a change.

Post match Strowman does the run around the ring shoulders but hits Rollins by mistake. Cue Roode and Ziggler to help with the beatdown as all five lay out Strowman and Rollins.

Post break the OC lays out Cedric Alexander before he can give an interview. Cedric seems to have a bad arm injury.

Dolph Ziggler/Bobby Roode vs. Curt Hawkins/Zack Ryder

Ziggler starts fast on Hawkins with Ryder getting knocked off the apron. Roode drops Hawkins ribs first across the top rope but an elbow to the face lets Ryder come in off the hot tag. Everything breaks down and it’s a superkick into the Glorious DDT to finish Hawkins at 4:01.

Rating: D. Just a squash for Roode and Ziggler, which is a fine way to do things. It’s nice to give them a chance to establish themselves a bit more as they have only teamed together once so far. It’s not like beating Hawkins and Ryder means much either way but it’s better than having a team go from debuting to the title match with nothing in between.

Natalya vs. Lacey Evans

Natalya jumps Lacey from behind during the entrances and takes her down to start. They head outside early on and a whip into the barricade has Natalya in trouble for a change. Back in and Lacey calls her a nasty before throwing on the chinlock. The double jump moonsault misses so Natalya hits a discus lariat for two. Lacey grabs a tissue and throws it at Natalya though, setting up the Woman’s Right for the pin at 5:11.

Rating: D. I get that Natalya was angry and emotional, but the cat ears took something away from the emotion they were going for. This felt like a way to get Evans back on track, which she certainly needs, though a win over Natalya isn’t meaning as much as it has before. Evans is a good heel, though she needs someone to feud against.

Here’s Becky Lynch to respond to Sasha Banks. Becky wants to know where Sasha is after she heard a bunch of reasons Sasha left after Wrestlemania last week. She remembers Sasha being a star in NXT while Becky was off to the side. Then Sasha and Charlotte came up to the main roster while Becky was trying to get TV time. Sasha even got bouquets of flowers after her matches. Then Sasha left after Wrestlemania and Bayley has done just fine without Sasha, which has to sting her a bit.

Sasha should be the center of attention, just like Becky is now. If Sasha wants to do this right now, come out here right now you little blue haired freak. Cue Sasha, who laughs off the idea of wanting to be Becky. Sasha: “Haha I wish Nia Jax broke my face so people cared about me!” Becky offers to fight right now but Banks laughs it off because she isn’t fighting for the people. She’ll do it for the paycheck at Clash of Champions. Becky accepts and Sasha promises to make the man the Boss’ b****. Banks is much better as a heel and already the best challenger Becky has had since she won the title.

The Street Profits aren’t sure what to think about that so they send it to commercial.

King of the Ring Quarterfinals: Cedric Alexander vs. Baron Corbin

Cedric’s arm is injured coming in and Corbin promises to win. Corbin starts fast with the slide under the ropes for the heavy clothesline but Cedric scores with a dropkick. The Neuralizer sends Corbin outside and a springboard clothesline gets two back inside. Corbin has had it with this and sends him arm first into the post twice in a row as we take a break. Back with driving elbows into the shoulder and cranking on the chinlock. Alexander fights up and hits a corner dropkick but the springboard Downward Spiral is countered into Deep Six for two.

Cedric gets back up and sends him shoulder first into the post four times in a row, followed by some hard kicks in the corner. The running flip dive to the floor hits Corbin again and a missile dropkick gets two (not bad as it barely connected). The Michinoku Driver is good for the same but another springboard is broken up. Corbin gets serious and finishes with End of Days at 14:30.

Rating: B-. Easily one of the better Corbin matches to date, though I have little faith in him to keep this up. At the same time though, it’s the problem of everything that he’s done over the last few months being a bit harder than that to shake off. Having him come back and win three or four matches doesn’t make up for the horrible last nine months, but I have a feeling WWE will see it differently.

Corbin sits on the throne again.

Long video on the attacks on Roman Reigns.

We look back at the opening segment.

Bayley has no comments on Sasha Banks. Yeah they’ve talked about what is happening lately and their conversations are personal. Banks left but Bayley stayed and took the opportunities. Tonight she is teaming with Becky so ask her a question about that. She isn’t worried about Becky overshadowing her tonight because she’s the Smackdown Women’s Champion.

Viking Raiders vs. ???/???

Before the match, the jobbers say they came all the way from Pittsburgh and are going to make the Raiders look like some Balti-morons. German suplex/springboard clothesline, crossbody against the barricade to another, Razor’s Edge toss sends one into the other and the Viking Experience is good for the pin at 1:24.

King of the Ring Quarterfinals: Samoa Joe vs. Ricochet

The winner faces Corbin next week. Before the match, Joe promises to make this his kingdom. Ricochet on the other hand talks about always redefining what is possible. Ricochet goes for the arm to start so Joe kicks away at the knee to take him down. The comeback out of the corner lets Ricochet get in some shots of his own but a sunset flip doesn’t work.

A low bridge to the floor does though and Ricochet’s moonsault off the barricade drops Joe again. Back in and Joe goes after the knee again by slamming it off the mat and putting on the half crab. Ricochet grabs a rope and is fine enough for two off a Lionsault (that’s a fast healing knee). Joe doesn’t like the lack of selling so he takes it outside for a suplex into the barricade.

We hit the neck crank before a toss across the ring has Ricochet in trouble. Back from the break with Ricochet fighting out of another chinlock and hitting the springboard clothesline. The running shooting star press gets two and Joe is sent outside for the Space Flying Tiger Drop. Back in and Ricochet goes up, meaning it’s the Koquina Clutch from Joe. Ricochet drops back for the big crash though….and it’s a double pin at 16:00.

Rating: C. The knee being fine after the break was a bit much but I’m more worried about where this is going. This sounds like a way to get Corbin to the finals while not having Ricochet lose and other than him, I don’t see anyone stopping Corbin in the whole thing. It’s going to be a long Clash if that’s where we’re going and I have a feeling it is.

The referee goes outside to get a headset and seems to call another referee for a ruling. That ruling….will come later so Ricochet beats up Joe a bit more.

Strowman isn’t happy that Steve Austin is back to moderate the next contract signing next week. Rollins laughs off the idea that he and Austin are in this against Strowman, so Strowman threatens to give Austin these hands.

It’s time for the Firefly Fun House with Bray saying that what the Fiend did to Finn Balor was super duper rude. He apologizes to Balor on behalf of everyone here but it’s Demon Vince popping in to say Bray shouldn’t have challenged the Universal Champion at Hell in a Cell. It’s almost time to be fired but Bray pulls out the money he has been making and feeds it to Vince.

That’s enough for Vince, leaving Bray to say Seth and Braun aren’t a great team but they stole something from him before. We see Bray’s team, which is all of his puppet friends. They help him cope with pain but the Fiend helps him inflict it. Bray: “See you in h***. Let me in. BYE!”

The official decision: a triple threat match next week with Corbin involved.

Rey Mysterio talks about Dominick convincing him not to retire. They had a father and son talk about what it means for Dominick to grow up in the WWE family. It’s a parent’s responsibility to push their children to pursue their dreams but Dominick is pushing him to pursue him. Rey isn’t done because he has more to accomplish.

The Miz vs. Cesaro

The running uppercut gives Cesaro two at the bell and another uppercut gets the same. Miz comes back with some YES Kicks, only to get uppercutted down again. To mix things up a bit, Cesaro uppercuts him off the top and busts out the apron superplex. We hit the armbar for a bit until Miz fights up with kicks in the corner. Swiss Death cuts Miz off for two more but his grab of the rope gets him caught. Miz slugs away but gets uppercutted again, only to come back with the Skull Crushing Finale for the pin at 5:05.

Rating: D. As much as Cesaro showed over in the UK, it was nothing but uppercuts here and that got a bit annoying. Can you blame him though? He has a rather good match over at NXT and comes here to put over Miz before another run at the Intercontinental Title in five minutes. I know someone had to take the loss, but can we find ANYONE other than Cesaro? The fans have long since caught on that he isn’t going to get a big win so the returns are going to diminish in a hurry.

Bayley/Becky Lynch vs. Alexa Bliss/Nikki Cross

The Stunner over the ropes but Bliss cuts off the tag this time around. That’s not enough to cut the tag off three times though as it’s Becky comes in to clean house with MMA style strikes. A middle rope legdrop gives Becky two and she unloads on Bliss in the corner, only to have Banks come in for the DQ at 10:53.

Rating: D+. This was tag team formula stuff until the ending and I can give them a few extra points for not having a champion get pinned (they’ve been doing a bit better about that as of late). Banks vs. Lynch could be an interesting match and certainly feels bigger so the ending works well in that area.

Post match Banks grabs a chair but Bayley takes it away….and turns on Becky with chair shots of her own. The beating continues to end the show. Now that’s interesting as Bayley is more likely to retain over Charlotte while also throwing in a curve ball to Becky vs. Banks. Smart booking choice there, and it’s not like face Bayley was working anyway.

Overall Rating: C-. What an odd show with mostly bad wrestling, good creative and….Baron Corbin with the match of the night? Huh? Anyway, it’s nice to see the champions getting a focus for a change, though it’s kind of annoying that it takes the calendar to make them feel extra special. It’s quite the mixture of good and bad overall but there were a few too many instances of wondering when something was going to end to tilt it down just a bit. That being said, I’ll take them getting rid of the especially annoying stuff and replacing it with slightly uninteresting stuff so they’re moving in the right direction to an extent.

Results

Seth Rollins/Braun Strowman b. OC – Rollup to Anderson

Dolph Ziggler/Robert Roode b. Curt Hawkins/Zack Ryder – Glorious DDT to Hawkins

Lacey Evans b. Natalya – Woman’s Right

Baron Corbin b. Cedric Alexander – End of Days

Viking Experience b. ???/??? – Viking Experience

Samoa Joe vs. Ricochet went to a double pin

The Miz b. Cesaro – Skull Crushing Finale

Bayley/Becky Lynch b. Alexa Bliss/Nikki Cross via DQ when Sasha Banks interfered

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and pick up the paperback edition of KB’s Complete 2004 Monday Night Raw Reviews (also available as an e-book) from Amazon. Check out the information here:

http://kbwrestlingreviews.com/2019/08/26/new-book-and-e-book-kbs-complete-2004-monday-night-raw-reviews/

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

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

Hidden Gems #11
Date: 2007, 2011, 2016, 2017

Since it took me the better part of forever to get through with the Christmas stuff, I might as well pick up the pace a little bit here. This time around it’s just a collection of matches and with this, I’ll have everything from 2007 until the present, at least until they add even more stuff to this amazing lineup of stuff. Let’s get to it.

Jamin Olivencia vs. Tommaso
Date: March 10, 2007
Location: Davis Arena, Louisville, Kentucky
Commentators: Dean Hill, Kenny Bolin

From Ohio Valley Wrestling. Jamin is an OVW legend and this is Tommaso’s (Ciampa of course) debut. Just to mess with me, Tomasso has hair and they go with a lockup onto the mat. A rollup gives Tommaso two and Jamin gets his own for the same. Jamin’s shoulder gets two more and it’s off to a headlock for some of the most obvious spot calling I’ve ever seen. Back up and Tommaso hits a Samoan drop and a whip into the corner for two each. The chinlock goes on for a bit but Olivencia gets up an elbow in the corner. Jamin’s top rope elbow misses though and it’s a reverse DDT to finish Olivencia at 3:31.

Rating: C-. There was nothing great or even noteworthy here but they were working at a fast pace and had a lot of energy. Having Tommaso win is a good way to set him up for the future, though he wouldn’t be in OVW for very long. This is another historical curiosity and that’s what this series specializes in.

To FCW!

Grand Royale
Date: January 16, 2011
Location: FCW Arena, Tampa, Florida
Commentators: Matt Martlaro, Byron Saxton

The winner gets a Florida Heavyweight Title shot against Masion Ryan, Rotundo is Bo Dallas, Orlov is Alex Kozlov and the other names you don’t know aren’t important enough to talk about. This is a different kind of match as everyone stands on the floor to start and a bell rings. Everyone tries to get in and whoever is in after thirty seconds has a battle royal.

A bunch of them get in and Li is thrown out almost immediately. That leaves twelve names in the ring and a battle royal breaks out. Maddox is sent over the top and grabs the post as Sandow is sent out. The near eliminations continue as Maddox saves himself again. For some reason Hunico tries a springboard and gets knocked out for his efforts. Steamboat is put out and Leakee is sent out after him.

We take a break and come back with Rotund eliminating Mahal, which saves Cannon at the same time. Maddox follows him out as the fans are behind Cannon. We’re down to Woods, Rotund, Cannon, Raines, Rollins and Owens. Rollins is sent out in a hurry and Cannon clotheslines Owens out.

Woods and Cannon fight on the ropes while Raines and Rotundo do the same on some other ropes. Everyone heads to a corner until Woods starts going after Raines. The yet to be named Honor Roll misses Raines, who puts Woods out. Cannon dumps Rotundo but gets tossed by Raines for the win at 15:42.

Rating: D. This was just a battle royal and not a very good one. The problem is that the match didn’t really age well as a lot of the names aren’t that well known and we were never given a list of who was in there, meaning it was a lot of figuring it out as the match went on. It certainly wasn’t great, though the fans stayed into it, which you have to expect in a match like this.

We’ve hit two big developmentals so let’s head down to NXT for the next three matches.

NXT Title: Shinsuke Nakamura vs. Eric Young vs. Samoa Joe
Date: October 30, 2016
Location: Palladium Theater, Los Angeles, California

Nakamura is defending and this is an NXT house show so no commentary, though it’s shot like the TV show. Joe gets a nice pop, likely because he’s from Los Angeles. Or because he’s Samoa Joe. Nakamura on the other hand gets a roar and a superstar pop because he was still awesome at this point. If nothing else, it’s cool to see the full Nakamura entrance again. After some Big Match Intros, we’re ready to go.

Nakamura and Joe go nose to nose but Young breaks it up in what might not be his smartest move. Young locks up with Nakamura in the corner and gets the wavy arms treatment and a COME ON as Joe stands back and watches. Young yells at Joe instead and gets punched out to the floor, leaving us with the showdown the fans want to see. Joe works on a wristlock but Young pulls Nakamura outside and screams at him a lot.

Back in and Young hits Joe in the face, earning himself an enziguri in the corner. The Facewash makes it worse but Nakamura is back in for Good Vibrations on Joe. Young gets some much weaker Vibrations of his own but it’s Joe coming in with the snap jabs. That’s broken up again as Young takes Joe’s place and the fans switch between TNA and SUPER ERIC chants.

Joe is back in and kicks the super out of Eric until Nakamura comes back in, meaning it’s Eric heading outside this time. The knees in the corner rock Joe but he’s fine enough to powerslam the returning Young for two. The STF into the Crossface requires a save from Nakamura but Joe blocks the reverse exploder. Young is back up with a belly to back suplex and the top rope elbow for two on Nakamura, though the fans weren’t exactly buying the near fall.

Nakamura gets caught on top but is fine enough to reverse the MuscleBuster into a sunset flip. Joe isn’t happy with being countered and Rock Bottoms Nakamura out of the corner, setting up the non-finishing version of the Koquina Clutch. The backflip rollup gets Nakamura out of trouble and it’s the middle rope knee for Young. With Joe knocked outside, Kinshasa to Young retains the title at 15:07.

Rating: B-. This was straight out of the triple threat playbook with two in and one out for the most part but it still worked well. What mattered here was giving the fans the thrill of seeing Nakamura and Joe while Young was there to take the fall. I don’t think anyone ever really bought the title as being in jeopardy and that isn’t surprising given where this was and the kind of audience they were in front of. Still good though and it’s cool to see a different version of NXT.

Post match Nakamura and Joe go nose to nose but Joe leaves so Nakamura can celebrate for a good while. Nakamura thanks the fans to wrap it up.

Bobby Roode vs. Kota Ibushi
Date: October 30, 2016
Location: Palladium Theater, Los Angeles, California

Same show obviously so no commentary again. Roode gets quite the reception here (duh) but Ibushi gets the “oh dang we’re really seeing this guy” reaction. Just because he can, Roode throws his robe on the ring announcer’s face. They circle each other to start but Roode hits the GLORIOUS pose to offer some frustration. Roode takes him down and does the pose again as they’re taking their time to start here.

A shoulder puts Ibushi down and we hit the BEER! MONEY! Chants. Ibushi knocks him outside and strikes his own GLORIOUS pose, which is just too far for Roode (it’s all he’s got so you have to protect it). That just earns him a hurricanrana to the floor but Roode breaks up a springboard attempt to put Ibushi on the floor. The referee starts the count and EGADS I had forgotten how annoying the “fans count ten on every count” thing was.

Back in and Roode drops a knee to the face, followed by a middle rope elbow to the back of the neck. As usual, Roode doesn’t do anything flashy but he does it so efficiently that it works. A big clothesline takes Ibushi down and we hit the chinlock. That’s broken up through the power of CHINLOCKS CAUSE COMEBACKS and it’s time for the slugout, with Ibushi hitting a dropkick for the double knockdown.

Some kicks to the chest drop Roode and it’s the running shooting star press for two. A springboard missile dropkick sends Roode outside and that’s just not a good place to be. The perfect springboard moonsault takes him down again with the fans insisting that Roode didn’t make the count back in. Speaking of back in, they head back in and Roode grabs a heck of a spinebuster for two. Fans: “THIS IS GLORIOUS!”

A rollup with feet on the ropes gives Roode two but Ibushi is right back with the sitout Last Ride for the same. The fans want them to fight forever because apparently they have that much time to watch these two kill each other. The Phoenix splash misses though and Roode drops him with the Glorious DDT for the pin at 16:14.

Rating: B. I liked this one better than the triple threat as Roode is so efficient in the ring and took Ibushi’s high flying down through better technique and relying on what worked for him. I know Roode isn’t the most consistent performer but the more I watch him, the more I can see what people find appealing about him. He’s not going to get the big push, but he’s perfect for something like this or a midcard push somewhere down the line.

We’ll head to the UK to wrap it up.

United Kingdom Title: Pete Dunne vs. Mark Andrews
Date: June 8, 2017
Location: Brighton Centre, Brighton, England

Dunne is defending and there is no commentary again. This is shot differently though as it’s one or two handheld cameras, meaning we keep seeing shots running around the ring to get a better angle. It’s so strange to see that on a WWE show. They fight over the arm to start until Dunne takes him down and cranks on the leg. Just to show off a bit, Dunne pulls on the arm at the same time.

A rope grab gets Andrews out of trouble and it’s a basement dropkick to put Dunne on the floor. That’s a very bad idea as he forearms the heck out of Andrews and cranks on the arm again. We run around the ring to get a shot of Dunne stomping away in the corner and then working on a hammerlock. There’s a stomp to the arm and the BRUISERWEIGHT chants continue.

Andrews’ legs are fine enough for a hurricanrana to the floor, setting up the big running flip dive. Back in and Andrews hits a jumping double stomp to the ribs but Dunne shrugs off the forearms. A tornado DDT works a bit better for Andrews but Dunne is right back up with kicks to the head. The slugout is on with Dunne getting the better of it, only to have the X Plex countered into a hurricanrana. Stundog Millionaire rocks Dunne again but Fall To Pieces misses. The Bitter End retains the title at 9:38.

Rating: C+. They were working but I don’t think anyone was buying the idea of Andrews as a threat to the title. Dunne had only been champion for a few weeks at this point so he wasn’t losing here. Andrews is the kind of high flier who can get the fans behind him but Dunne is a different kind of wrestler and not losing in this spot.

Overall Rating: C. This was a total mixed bag with all kinds of matches up and down the list. Developmental is a different world from the main roster as you get to see these people trying and seeing what they can do without all of the restrictions that the main roster puts on them. It makes for some fun matches and situations as these shows have their own worlds and continuities. I had a good time with this, though the matches were all over the place both in star power and quality.

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and pick up the paperback edition of KB’s History Of In Your House (also available as an e-book) from Amazon. Check out the information here:

http://kbwrestlingreviews.com/2019/05/31/new-paperback-kbs-history-of-in-your-house/

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

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

Monday Night Raw
Date: August 19, 2019
Location: XCEL Energy Center, St. Paul, Minnesota
Commentators: Michael Cole, Jerry Lawler, Renee Young

It’s royalty night with the first round of the King of the Ring tournament kicking off. That means we should be in for some good wrestling, but it could also mean that we’re in for some annoying booking. This would also apply to the likely announcement of NXT moving to USA to fight off the combined forces of Marko Stunt, Orange Cassidy and Sonny Kiss. Let’s get to it.

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

Here’s Roman Reigns to open things up. After we see a long recap of the whole Whodunit story, here’s Dolph Ziggler before anything can be said.

Roman Reigns vs. Dolph Ziggler

Hang on though as Ziggler insists that he is NOT a Twitter warrior like the fans and is worried about what is happening to Reigns. Ziggler goes into a rant about how he was beaten up at Summerslam and even lost to Maryse’s husband last week. Now it should be him, and there’s a superkick to Reigns before the bell.

Reigns takes his time getting up for the bell but manages to knock Ziggler outside. The clothesline off the steps misses though and Ziggler hits the Zig Zag on the floor as we take a break. Back with Reigns backdropping him to the floor and hitting the apron kick. A big boot drops Ziggler again but Ziggler scores with the running DDT for two.

The Fameasser is countered into a powerbomb attempt with Ziggler slipping over the back and hitting the Zig Zag for two more. The superkick (with Cole calling it Sweet Chin Music) is blocked with a Superman Punch. Back up and the spear is countered into the Fameasser for two as it’s the friendly exchange of moves. Ziggler shouts about being better than Reigns and how Roman blew his chance. The Stinger Splash is cut off by the spear to end Ziggler at 10:55.

Rating: C+. Yeah fine. This was pure Ziggler and that’s why the interest wasn’t there. It’s the EXACT SAME THING that Ziggler always does to the completely nothing returns. I know he’s been around for a long time now but what does WWE see in Ziggler from a character standpoint? I don’t remember the last time he did anything different and I don’t see that changing anytime soon.

Video on Sasha Banks returning last week and attacking Natalya and Becky Lynch.

Becky talks about how everyone is coming for the title, including Banks, who just vanished for four months. It took Becky a few interviews to do what Banks never did: become the top dog in the division. Why did it take Becky to unleash the real Sasha? The real great ones don’t need to be provoked. This is a cat and mouse game and Becky is going to give Sasha something to go home and cry about.

Here’s Jerry Lawler in the ring for the King’s Court. Before he brings out Sasha Banks as his guest, he talks about the King of the Ring and how important it has been to some careers. We see the bracket, with Lawler picking Cedric Alexander and Ricochet on the Raw side….and there go the lights for Bray Wyatt. Lawler is smart enough to bail before the lights go out in full but the Fiend pops up behind Lawler on the stage. Cole: “TURN AROUND KING!” Yes so the Fiend can give him the Mandible Claw, which is exactly what happens.

Vic Joseph has replaced Lawler on commentary.

Ricochet/The Miz vs. Drew McIntyre/Baron Corbin

On the prospect of Baron being King, Renee says “for the love of God, someone please stop Baron Corbin.” Ricochet starts fast with a springboard crossbody to McIntyre as there is some weird red light in the ring. The fans are happy when it goes off as the villains are sent outside. Ricochet adds the big middle rope moonsault and we take a break. Back McIntyre throwing Miz with a suplex and cranking on the arm.

It’s off to Corbin, who is now in a black tank top, which looks at least somewhat less stupid. Corbin does the slide around the post for the clothesline to set up McIntyre’s spinebuster for two. Miz gets in a DDT and brings in Ricochet for the fast paced kicks. A rolling dropkick gets one on Corbin and the running shooting star gets two.

McIntyre is back in to throw people around but the Claymore is broken up. The Skull Crushing Finale hits McIntyre but Corbin chokeslams Miz. Another chokeslam to Ricochet is broken up so Corbin settles for two off the Deep Six instead. Miz pulls Ricochet out of the way of a charge in the corner though and the Recoil finishes Corbin at 10:20.

Rating: C-. Baron Corbin, who main evented pay per views earlier this year, has made his biggest impact by changing his shirt. What does that tell you about the level of interest this guy has? I have a bad feeling he’s going to go far in the tournament though and him winning it wouldn’t be out of the question. It would be out of the realm of something that makes fans happy, but that’s always the case with Corbin.

Booker T. joins us via Skype to talk about the Fiend being a monster. As for King of the Ring, he likes Drew McIntyre. There’s nothing significant to these interviews but they’re a nice little change of pace for two minutes a week.

US Title: AJ Styles vs. Braun Strowman

AJ is defending and has the rest of the OC with him. This is fallout from Strowman running in last week to save Seth Rollins from a beatdown last week. AJ slaps him in the face to start and tries a chop block, which has no effect. A chase to the floor doesn’t work well and it’s Strowman backdropping AJ. The OC is knocked off the apron but Strowman charges into a boot in the corner. The Phenomenal Forearm is knocked out of the air but the OC comes in for the DQ at 1:50.

Post match the beatdown is on but Rollins runs in for the save. With the OC cleaned out, Rollins shakes Strowman’s hand, but Strowman takes his time letting go. Eventually he does and nods at Rollins, who doesn’t look sure about this.

Post break Rollins comes up to Strowman in the back and says Strowman should be the next challenger. Strowman sounds intrigued but tonight, Rollins thinks they should become Raw Tag Team Champions. Strowman growls in what seems like an agreement.

King of the Ring First Round: Samoa Joe vs. Cesaro

Joe says that he’ll win and let his actions do the talking. Cesaro says the tournament plays to his strengths so the King of Swing can be the King of the Ring. Cesaro’s running uppercut gets two about five seconds in so Joe elbows him right back. The springboard spinning uppercut gives Cesaro two more but Joe sends him outside and over the barricade as we take a break.

Back with Joe knocking him down again and cranking on the neck. The backsplash misses though and Cesaro kicks him in the face. A suplex gives Cesaro two more and the high crossbody is good for the same. Joe knocks him out of the corner though and drops the backsplash. That just earns him an uppercut into a Crossface but Joe slips out and pulls him into the Koquina Clutch for the win at 10:11.

Rating: C-. Good, hard hitting match with Joe getting a not very surprising win. Cesaro is mainly in WWE to put people over these days so there is only so much that can be done to make him a convincing challenger. Joe winning the tournament isn’t out of the question as he is always a threat, which is a very valuable thing to have.

Cole talks about some matches coming up later and mentions the Wild Card Rule for the first time in probably a month.

Over the weekend, Drake Maverick tried to attack Elias in a recording studio and got beaten up.

Here’s Elias for a song. Hang on though as his microphone keeps messing up. With that out of the way, Elias says hang onto your loved ones because this is his farewell performance. He has too much going on, from the 24/7 Title to being King of the Ring that he doesn’t have time to perform. The guitar is out of tune though so he needs a replacement as the mic keeps messing up. The assistant gets in the ring and even Renee know what’s going on here. It’s R-Truth and a referee but the rollup only gets two. Truth gets smart by hitting the ax kick for two more but the big guitar shot misses. Elias bails and escapes for now.

Rey Mysterio talks about having a beautiful family and a wonderful career. He’s had the chance to meet people all over the world and considers them his friends. Things haven’t been clicking for him recently though and Andrade ripped his mask off. When he’s in the ring, he knows what he needs to do but his body isn’t responding to it.

His biggest fear though is that his injuries have caught up with him and he didn’t expect it to come so soon. It’s time for him to hang up the mask (big gasp for that) and let the new generation step in. Rey goes to unmask but his son Dominick stops him. With Rey crying, Dominick says he wants to be Rey’s partner. Rey says he’ll stay for Dominick. Good promo here, with Rey showing as much emotion as I’ve ever heard from him.

New Day vs. Revival

Non-title. Revival is wearing snake skin boots, courtesy of Randy Orton. Big E. shoulders Dawson in the corner to start and it’s off to Woods for a change. Everything breaks down early on and the Revival is clotheslined outside as we take an early break. Back with Big E. cleaning house and loading up the dive to the floor, only to have Orton run in for the RKO for the DQ at 6:20. Not enough shown to rate but the action was entertaining while it lasted.

Post match Kofi Kingston runs in to fight off all three of them but walks into the RKO. Woods gets back in but runs into a three man 3D. They’re not done yet though as Revival goes old school and crushes Woods’ knee, with Orton making Kofi watch.

Sasha Banks joins us from the back for an interview with Cole. Banks talks about how crazy of a week it has been for her and she would like to explain from the beginning. Last week she looked in the mirror and realized that blue is her color and now it’s all over social media. She looks good and feels even better. Cole: “No one is talking about your new hair.” When asked about attacking Becky and Natalya last week, Banks says you’re welcome and walks off. If that microphone offended her, it might be three months before we see Banks again.

Alexa Bliss/Nikki Cross vs. Fire And Desire

Non-title. Sonya gets some early rollups for two each on Bliss to start and it’s off to Mandy, who cartwheels over Bliss and poses a bit. Mandy gets knocked outside with Bliss not looking happy with her. It’s back to Cross for a crossarm choke but Bliss comes back in very quickly, earning herself a knee to the face from Mandy. The hot (?) tag brings in Sonya for some strikes of her own and a spinebuster to Bliss. Cross is right back with the Purge for a very sudden pin at 4:20.

Rating: D+. That ending was out of nowhere and it seemed like they were told to go home in a hurry. Bliss and Cross are already doing more with the titles than either of the previous champions and while I wasn’t really looking forward to seeing the titles on TV more, this is a lot better than what we’ve seen before from them.

Rollins tries to talk strategy with Strowman, who keeps looking at the Universal Title. They argue over who should follow who’s lead.

King of the Ring First Round: Cedric Alexander vs. Sami Zayn

Cedric says he’s a man of action and it’s time to raise the Age of Alexander. Sami says he’s been losing for months now and it turns around tonight. Zayn is aggressive to start and kicks Alexander down for some early one counts. A backbreaker gives him some near falls and we hit the chinlock. The chinlock doesn’t last long so Zayn goes with a Michinoku Driver for another two. Alexander fights back up and hits the spinning elbow to the face, followed by the anklescissors. That means a suicide dive to the floor and the Neuralizer connects back inside. The Lumbar Check finishes Zayn clean at 3:38.

Rating: C-. I like the Alexander push though my goodness whose dog did Zayn kidnap and sell for Pop Tarts cereal? He’s not just losing a lot but he’s losing in fast matches. At least he did get some offense in here though and looked aggressive, but it seems that they might be leading somewhere with these losses. I hope so at least.

The Street Profits (minus the NXT Tag Team Titles) check their brackets. Ford is 2-0 but Dawkins’ is already busted. They preview the rest of the first round but Dawkins wonders why we can’t have a tag team King of the Ring tournament. Ford: “We’re already kings.” I mean, he is wearing a crown. They’re ready for the Tag Team Title match tonight when Seth Braulins can win the gold.

AJ Styles gives the OC a pep talk.

Natalya has just seen the WWE doctor again but needs to rant about Sasha for interrupting her last week. Cue Banks to jump Natalya again and send her into an anvil case. Banks: “Go to h*** Nattie. And tell your daddy I say hi.” That was a good line.

Tag Team Titles: Seth Rollins/Braun Strowman vs. OC

The OC is defending and has AJ with them. Strowman runs Gallows over to start and it’s off to the taped up Rollins to work on Gallows’ arm. Anderson comes in but a quick tag brings Gallows back in, meaning Rollins has to knee him to the floor. A running kick to the head puts Anderson outside as well but the numbers catch up with him.

That means Gallows gets to drop Rollins ribs first into the barricade a few times and we take an early break. Back with Anderson hitting a spinebuster on Rollins, but Anderson gets knocked off the top. That means the Blockbuster, but Rollins bangs up the ribs again. With the hot tag near, Gallows is smart enough to post Strowman and cut him off. Gallows comes back in as everything breaks down, with Rollins getting to clean house again.

A low bridge puts Gallows on the floor, leaving Anderson to take the Falcon Arrow for two. The numbers catch up with Rollins again as AJ crotches him on top but it’s Strowman back up to run over AJ and Gallows. Back in and Rollins rolls over for the hot tag to Strowman and it’s time to wreck things. Rollins cuts Styles off with the Stomp and Strowman hits the running powerslam on Anderson for the pin and the titles at 12:04.

Rating: B-. Good match here with a surprise ending and that’s not a bad thing. This seems to be the way to set up the Strowman vs. Rollins match next month so odds are we’ll be seeing the OC get the titles back pretty soon. It’s a booking trope that has been done for years and it’s going to work fine enough here.

Strowman and Rollins celebrate to end the show. There is NO announcement about NXT.

Overall Rating: C+. It was another acceptable show where it felt like things were happening. That’s what makes a show work so much better and the show never felt long. What mattered here was they’re setting things up for Clash of Champions and it feels like we’re seeing some fresh names getting a chance. For so long it was the same people over and over so that’s the best thing that could happen to the show. Good night here, and I’m curious to see where things are going for the first time in a long while.

Results

Roman Reigns b. Dolph Ziggler – Spear

The Miz/Ricochet b. Drew McIntyre/Baron Corbin – Recoil to Corbin

Braun Strowman b. AJ Styles via DQ when the OC interfered

Samoa Joe b. Cesaro – Koquina Clutch

New Day b. Revival via DQ when Randy Orton interrupted

Nikki Cross/Alexa Bliss b. Fire and Desire – Purge to Deville

Cedric Alexander b. Sami Zayn – Lumbar Check

Seth Rollins/Braun Strowman b. OC – Running powerslam to Anderson

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and pick up the paperback edition of KB’s History Of In Your House (also available as an e-book) from Amazon. Check out the information here:

http://kbwrestlingreviews.com/2019/05/31/new-paperback-kbs-history-of-in-your-house/

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

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

Smackdown
Date: August 13, 2019
Location: Scotiabank Arena, Toronto, Ontario, Canada
Commentators: Tom Phillips, Corey Graves, Byron Saxton

It’s the final night in Toronto and we’re already starting on the path towards Clash of Champions. As for tonight though, we have the first round of fallout from last week’s revelation that Rowan tried to take out Roman Reigns. Since Buddy Murphy was the one to tell Reigns the news, that means Murphy faces Reigns tonight. Let’s get to it.

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

Here’s Kevin Owens to open us up and the fans are rather happy to see him. The cheers go on long enough that Owens has to pause before saying anything. Yesterday was five years to the day since he signed with WWE. Over those five years he has created and experienced things he will never forget. He’s been in the ring with people he’s looked up to for years and on Sunday he was in the ring with someone who calls themselves the Best in the World.

As inaccurate as that was, it was special because Owens’ family was ringside to see him in the ring. That Stunner will be with him for the rest of his life, but now it’s time to set his sights on the King of the Ring tournament. He has been a fan his whole life and he loved watching the tournament growing up. Winning the tournament would mean much as anything he has won so far in WWE. We get the usual list of great names to have won, including Owen Hart.

Cue Shane McMahon and Owens actually falls down onto his knees as the music hits. Owens: “Why? Why?” Shane isn’t happy with the loss but shows us a shot of Owens kicking him low on Sunday. Is that what it means to be a man? Owens isn’t going to be lectured about being a man by someone who was part of the Mean Street Posse.

Being a man is doing whatever it takes to keep your job, but Shane says Owens is nothing but a cheater. Owens will be wrestling later tonight but first, we need to see a clip of Owens attacking Elias with a chair. That’s going to cost Owens $100,000 and that does not sit well with him. He demands Shane reconsider, but Shane says nope and leaves.

Post break Owens goes into Shane’s office where he threatens him with a lawsuit if Owens hits him. Owens says we’ll make it 105 and throws a stool into a TV.

Charlotte vs. Ember Moon

Neither gets an entrance. Charlotte pulls her down by the hair to start and works on a headlock. An elbow to the face drops Moon again but she’s back up with a headscissors to try and change things up a bit. Charlotte gets knocked outside but Ember takes her down with a kick through the ropes.

The springboard dive connects with Charlotte, who sends Moon straight into the apron as we take a break. Back after what seemed like a longer than usual break with Ember holding her knee on the floor. That means it’s time for some knees to the leg but it’s too early for the Figure Eight. Instead Charlotte goes with a Liontamer for a JERICHO chant. Charlotte switches back to the knee with some cannonballs down onto it as she channels her dad.

Moon moves away from the last one and starts throwing knees. A kick to the chest gets two, followed by a bottom rope Codebreaker for the same. The Eclipse misses but so does the spear into the corner, allowing Moon to hit a superkick for two more. Charlotte is back up with the big boot though and it’s the Figure Eight to make Ember tap at 11:43.

Rating: B-. Moon is getting more entertaining in the ring but she still hasn’t had that big win. What worries me is that we seem almost destined for another Charlotte title feud, which she is likely to win because nine title reigns in four years just isn’t enough. Even if Bayley beats her, how long before Charlotte gets it back from someone else? It’s how things work with her and since there is little else for her to do, this is what we get.

Video on the Roman Reigns attacks and Buddy Murphy blaming Rowan.

Here are Rowan and Daniel Bryan for a chat. It’s clear that someone is out to get Reigns but neither of them had anything to do with the attacks. All that matters is Murphy is a liar but Bryan doesn’t blame him for what he said. Any one of you would cave if Reigns held you against a wall and Murphy had to give a name. The problem is Murphy gave the wrong name. The fans say Bryan did it and Bryan says that’s what’s wrong with society. A lie is spread all over social media and then it becomes the truth. They had nothing to do with it and tonight they’ll prove it.

Samoa Joe comes in to Shane’s office because he’s going to be facing Owens tonight. That could be interesting.

Aleister Black talks about the due sin around him, but he will soon find a way out for everyone in the locker room. All they have to do is knock.

Buddy Murphy vs. Roman Reigns

Roman doesn’t like being shoved in the face to start so he hits an uppercut. Murphy is right back with a jumping knee to the face for an early two and the stomping is on in the corner. They head outside with Reigns being sent into the barricade a few times so he throws Murphy hard over the announcers’ table. Murphy sends him into the steps though and comes back with knees off the apron as we take a break.

Back with Reigns fighting out of a chinlock and hitting a powerbomb out of the corner. Reigns hits the clotheslines in the corner and a big boot puts Murphy down. The spear goes into the post though and Murphy gets two off a rollup. Reigns is sent outside for the big running flip dive (which looked great) and the top rope Meteora gets two back inside. A Superman Punch out of nowhere gives Reigns two but Murphy hits a series of knees to the face. The brainbuster gives Murphy two and he goes up top, with a Superman Punch knocking him back down. Reigns hits a spear for the pin at 13:40.

Rating: B. This felt similar to last night’s Cedric Alexander vs. Drew McIntyre match as a young star gets a chance on the show against a hard hitting big man. Ok so it sounds very similar but that’s a good idea when it makes for a strong match on both nights. Murphy looked like a star here, though I’m not sure why it took four months for his first match.

Revival is here to face New Day because they want to prove that things can be serious.

Xavier Woods is upset that he isn’t in the King of the Ring tournament but they don’t like the Revival saying they have ruined the tag team division. They’ve ruined their dinners, Christmas and that adult circumcision but never the tag division. Kofi isn’t worried about what he did to Randy Orton after their match on Sunday because he was protecting their family. As for tonight, he’ll be out there supporting his brothers.

Samoa Joe vs. Kevin Owens

Hold on though as Elias is the outside enforcer referee (with the 24/7 Title rules suspended for the match). Owens starts fast with a dropkick and a clothesline but Joe bails to the floor before the Cannonball. Elias won’t let Owens dive off the apron so Joe takes Owens down by the leg as we go to an early break.

Back with Joe charging into an elbow in the corner and getting dropped with a middle rope dropkick. The backsplash gives Owens two and the Swanton is good for the same. The Stunner is countered into a Koquina Clutch but Owens slips out. Now it’s the Pop Up Powerbomb connecting but Elias pulls the referee out at two. Elias gets in for the staredown so Joe can grab a rollup for the fastest three ever at 5:42.

Rating: C. The action was good while it lasted but my goodness I’m sick of the corrupt authority figure stacking the deck motif. I know the criticism is that we’ve seen it for years and that’s pretty accurate. This was the same thing that we’ve seen dozens of times with nothing really changing other than the people involved. The sooner we can move on from this stuff the better, because the horse has been dead so long it’s already compost.

Bryan and Rowan go into the locker room and tell everyone but Murphy to get out. Bryan gets right in his face and demands that Murphy admit that he lied. Rowan hits Murphy in the face and pins him against the wall, with Bryan wanting Murphy to admit that he lied. Murphy admits it and Rowan lets him go, but Bryan says he hates liars. That earns Murphy a trip into the garbage.

Video on King of the Ring.

New Day vs. Revival

Woods and Big E. for New Day here but before we’re ready to go, here’s Orton to talk about Summerslam. Kofi couldn’t beat him ten years ago and he couldn’t do it on Sunday so he snapped in front of his family. One day Kofi’s sons are going to grow up and Kofi is going to have to tell them that he couldn’t beat Orton. Kofi can have one more chance though: make this a six man tag. It seems to be on.

Randy Orton/Revival vs. New Day

Kofi and Orton start with Orton tagging out to Dawson before anything happens. A monkey flip and dropkick have Dawson in trouble and it’s off to Woods, with Big E. wheelbarrowing him into a splash for two. Wilder comes in and gets headscissored down for two but Dawson makes the blind tag. That’s fine with Woods, who rolls him up as well, only to have Wilder take Woods down by the arm. The armbar goes on before Wilder comes back in for one of his own.

Woods fights up and hits a discus forearm but gets taken into the corner again. Orton drops him onto the announcers’ table and we take a break. Back with Woods’ arm still in trouble and Dawson doing the rather tired taunt of mocking the clap. Another armbar is more his speed but Woods gets up and brings in Big E. for the house cleaning. The Warrior Splash hits Wilder for two as everything breaks down. Kofi dives onto Orton, leaving Woods to take the Shatter Machine for the pin at 11:53.

Rating: C-. The armbars got a bit repetitive after awhile and that made the match feel longer than it would have otherwise. You can see where they’re going with all six of them for Clash of Champions and that makes sense, as New Day doesn’t have any challengers on Smackdown at the moment. Maybe Kofi vs. Orton can be better the next time around too.

Post match Orton gives New Day an RKO each.

Roman comes in to see Bryan and Rowan, who have been conducting their own investigation. Next week, they’ll bring the one who did it to Reigns.

Overall Rating: B-. It wasn’t as good as Raw but they moved things forwards on most accounts. That might not be the most thrilling in every case but at least they have a direction and aren’t as boring as they were before. Couple that with some rather good action (a trend as of late for both shows) and this was one of the better Smackdowns in a while. The shows aren’t perfect yet but you would have a hard time believing they were as bad as they were about six weeks ago. I’ll certainly take that change as the old ones were almost unwatchable. There’s more to do but the hard part seems to be over.

Results

Charlotte b. Ember Moon – Figure Eight

Roman Reigns b. Buddy Murphy – Spear

Samoa Joe b. Kevin Owens – Rollup

Revival/Randy Orton b. New Day – Shatter Machine to Kingston

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and pick up the paperback edition of KB’s History Of In Your House (also available as an e-book) from Amazon. Check out the information here:

http://kbwrestlingreviews.com/2019/05/31/new-paperback-kbs-history-of-in-your-house/

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

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

Summerslam 2018
Date: August 19, 2018
Location: Barclays Center, New York City, New York
Attendance: 16,169
Commentators: Michael Cole, Corey Graves, Byron Saxton, Tom Phillips, Jonathan Coachman

This time for sure, Summerslam edition! Yes believe it or not the main event is once again Roman Reigns challenging Brock Lesnar for the Universal Title because that hasn’t gotten old this year. Other than that….as usual I can barely remember anything on these shows as they run together so much. Let’s get to it.

Oh and due to the recent WWE Network update, I get to watch the Kickoff Show on YouTube. Well done with that one people.

Kickoff Show: Andrade Cien Almas/Zelina Vega vs. Lana/Rusev

Rusev is on fire at this point and it’s a battle of the wrestling pairs. Andrade gets Rusev to chase him and it’s right into the double Tranquilo pose. Rusev and Lana shout at them but Andrade gets in a cheap shot to break up the chase. That’s fine with Rusev, who stomps him down in the corner until Zelina offers a distraction. Andrade posts him like a good rudo, setting up the armbreaker over the ropes. An armbar takes us to a break and we come back with Vega pulling Lana off the apron to prevent the tag.

The reverse tornado DDT gives Andrade two and the armbar goes on again. Another reverse tornado DDT is countered with a forearm (keeping it simple can work) though and it’s the hot tag to Lana. A bulldog lets Lana dance up and the neckbreaker gets two. Vega sends her face first into the buckle but Lana breaks up the running knees with a kick to the head. Andrade makes sure the Accolade doesn’t go on with a well timed distraction though and Vega grabs a rollup with her feet…..as close to the ropes as she can get them for the pin at 7:02. That was pretty adorable with Vega trying to get there and not reaching.

Rating: D+. What happened with Rusev and Lana? I know I ask that a lot but egads man. They’re married in real life, Rusev has more charisma than he knows what to do with and Lana is the walking definition of a blonde bombshell who can talk. A year later they’ve basically disappeared and I would love to know why. At least Andrade is getting a push, and with as much talent as he has, there is no reason for him not to. The fans are properly fired up now so well done on the job, even if the match wasn’t great.

Kickoff Show: Cruiserweight Title: Drew Gulak vs. Cedric Alexander

Cedric is defending in the first of NINE title matches because WWE has too many times and doesn’t get why that is such a problem. Gulak’s friends Brian Kendrick and Jack Gallagher are barred from ringside. Feeling out process to start with Cedric taking him into the corner but having his headscissors blocked. The Gulock is broken up in a hurry and Cedric hits a dropkick to take things outside.

Gulak gets in a big boot on the way back inside and Cedric has banged up his neck. The neck crank goes on and we take a break. Back with Gulak’s continued logical offense, including some clotheslines and a chinlock. Gulak throws him over his back and pulls on the neck some more (close to a Gory Special) but since that can’t last long, Cedric is right back with a springboard Downward Spiral. With the wrestling not working, it’s time to hammer away at the head before sending him outside.

The big running flip dive hits Gulak again but he’s fine enough to break up a springboard. The Gulak over the ropes is half and half on the logical offense theme but the regular version can’t go on. A hard elbow to the head rocks Gulak, who comes right back with the biggest right hand I’ve ever seen him throw. The Neuralizer is countered into the ankle lock but Cedric rolls into a cradle for two. Cedric’s Spanish Fly is countered into a rollup for two, which is reversed into a stacked up rollup to give Cedric the pin at 10:43.

Rating: B-. This was the well done match that I was expecting, with Gulak going after the obvious target but not being able to finish off the more well rounded Alexander. Cedric was kind of a dull character but he is more than good enough to have a fast paced match like this. Gulak winning the title here would have been a good moment, but Cedric was hardly a bad choice for champion.

Kickoff Show: Raw Tag Team Titles: B-Team vs. Revival

The B-Team is defending because WWE would rather laugh than go with a team they have invested so much in already. At least we get the B-TEAM B-TEAM GO GO GO entrance. Dallas headlocks Dawson down over but everything breaks down in a hurry with a shot to Dallas’ leg. The Shatter Machine hits the illegal Axel and a missile dropkick/spinebuster (Hart Attack variation) gets three straight twos on Dallas. More leg cranking takes us to a break and we come back with more leg cranking.

Dawson puts on a spinning toehold but gets kicked shoulder first into the post. Since Axel is still down (well done on making the Shatter Machine look awesome) though, it’s a backbreaker/middle rope knee for two more. Dallas grabs a hanging swinging neckbreaker on Wilder and now it’s back to Axel off the hot tag. Everything breaks down with the PerfectPlex being countered into a small package. Dallas shoves Wilder into the pile though and Axel winds up on top to retain at 6:12.

Rating: D+. This was the “let’s add a Raw match to the Kickoff Show because it’s for a title and people will care” theme and, as usual, it didn’t work very well. We’re three matches in and now the four hour Summerslam gets to start. It’s just one more thing added to the card that was completely forgettable and took a little bit more out of the fans. How does this make the night better?

Terry Crews is outside the Barclays Center and talks about the measure of success. You can feel the heartbeat in your chest to drive you and then you grind to find the moments that define success for you. Tonight, this is where dreams come true because all the world’s a stage. So what defines success and greatness and how bad do you want it? Go ahead and take a bow because we’ll let you take a bow because you’re about to bear witness to another great Summerslam. The things he was saying only kind of made sense, but sweet goodness that man can get you fired up for a show.

The CGI Empire State Building is over the ring again. You can’t see it live in the arena of course and that will mess you up when you see it on a monitor and not before your eyes.

Intercontinental Title: Seth Rollins vs. Dolph Ziggler

Rollins is challenging with the freshly returned Dean Ambrose in his corner (because having him show up on Raw was far smarter than having him show up at Summerslam) to counter Drew McIntyre (because DOLPH ZIGGLER was the bigger prospect in 2018…..and kind of was in 2019 as well). As a bonus, Rollins is in Thanos inspired gear while Ziggler has a picture of the title over the front of his tights.

They go with the grappling to start with Rollins being backed up to the ropes, meaning it’s time for Ambrose to stare at McIntyre. The early superkick misses Rollins and Ziggler bails to the floor. That means a double staredown until Rollins throws him back in for some chops. Ziggler kicks at the leg to take over and we get a Flair Flip of all things. The chinlock goes on with Ziggler kicking the knee to keep Rollins down in a smart move.

Rollins’ comeback doesn’t last long as Ziggler backdrops him to the floor. Back in and Ziggler’s high crossbody is pulled out of the air but they crash to the floor again off of a suplex attempt (that’s always a scary looking spot). Back in again and Rollins gets two off a middle rope Blockbuster but Ziggler crotches him on top. Another superplex attempt is broken up and Rollins sends him outside for a suicide dive.

Rollins’ windup knee gets two but the buckle bomb is countered into a quickly broken sleeper. They fight to the apron with Ziggler kicking him into the post and nailing the DDT onto the apron for what should be a huge knockout. Since it’s this kind of a match though, it’s only good for two. Rollins hits him in the face again and gets his own two off the great looking frog splash.

Ziggler goes up top but Ziggler catches him with a reverse superplex into a reverse Falcon Arrow for a nice twist on the usual sequence. The fans give it a standing ovation so they seem to have some good taste. Hold on though as McIntyre sends Ambrose into the steps with the distraction letting Ziggler hit the Zig Zag for two. I blame the kickout on Cole declaring it over, which is the magical cure for a finisher. Rollins is busted open as he reverses a rollup into the buckle bomb. Dean gets back up and takes care of an interfering McIntyre, leaving Rollins to him the Stomp to get the title back at 22:02.

Rating: B. You don’t expect the opener to get this kind of time. The match was entertaining though it wasn’t quite the instant classic they were going for. It felt like the match was more of a collection of spots than a match that built on itself to get somewhere. That’s a great way to get an entertaining match and for what they were going for, I can certainly live with something like this. Maybe not the highest quality but very entertaining, which more or less defines Rollins.

Rollins and Ambrose celebrate a lot.

The Bellas are here to support their bestest friend ever Ronda Rousey, and to plug all their stuff of course. They might even get back in the ring at Evolution.

Smackdown Tag Team Titles: New Day vs. Bludgeon Brothers

Big E. and Xavier Woods are challenging and it’s almost weird to see Kofi around a Tag Team Title match these days. Rowan wastes no time by spin kicking Woods in the face to start. Harper hits a big boot of his own and it’s off to the Gator Roll into the chinlock. A running splash from Rowan sets up the head vice as it’s total dominance to start. Big E. gets knocked off the apron and Woods is sent outside to join him, but Rowan can’t powerbomb Woods onto the steps.

A hurricanrana sends Harper into the steps and the hot tag brings in Big E. Belly to belly suplexes on the floor abound (with Harper landing on his head and thankfully not breaking something), followed by the Warrior Splash to Harper inside. Harper is right back with a Michinoku Driver but Big E. sends Rowan into the post. Woods hits a dive onto Rowan and Big E. spears Harper through the ropes.

Rowan is back up with his own dive off the apron to Big E. and things finally settle down a notch. Woods can’t complete a springboard tornado DDT as Harper reverses into a powerbomb for two, meaning it’s time for Kofi to play cheerleader. Apparently not a fan of cheerleading, Rowan plants Kofi but walks into the Big Ending.

Big E. Rock Bottoms Harper off the apron into what was supposed to be a backstabber from Woods, though it was more like Harper just landed on Woods’ legs. Eh can’t hit them all. Woods makes up for it by dropping the big elbow off the top to the floor and Harper is actually in trouble. UpUpDownDown is loaded up but Rowan hits Woods with the hammer for the DQ at 9:27.

Rating: B-. They didn’t play around here and went with the all action match, which was the right call here. Let them do whatever they wanted and have an entertaining match as a result. New Day was throwing everything they could against the unstoppable monsters and came close to getting a win. That’s the kind of hope spot you need over a team like the Brothers as you have to have a reason to believe something could happen in the future. That being said, it didn’t mean anything in the end as Rowan tore his bicep and New Day would win the titles in two days.

Post match the Brothers destroy New Day with the hammer.

Jon Stewart is here.

We recap Kevin Owens vs. Braun Strowman. Owens said he was on a role and tried to get Strowman’s help to win Money in the Bank. Strowman didn’t like it when Owens inevitably turned on him and threw him through a bunch of tables before winning the briefcase. The Strowman destroyed Owens’ car and put him in a portable toilet, which he knocked off the stage. Owens “beat” Strowman in a cage match when Strowman threw him off a cage so now it’s a rematch for the Money in the Bank briefcase.

Money In The Bank Briefcase: Braun Strowman vs. Kevin Owens

Strowman is defending and can lose the briefcase by losing in any way. An early pair of running splashes in the corner sends Owens outside and Strowman runs him over again. Owens’ superkick just makes Strowman angrier and it’s a chokeslam onto the ramp. The running powerslam finishes Owens at 1:55. Well that worked and makes Strowman look like the monster, but HAHA if you actually thought they would put the title on him.

Clip of a Be A Star rally.

We recap the Smackdown Women’s Title match. Carmella cashed in Money in the Bank at the Smackdown after Wrestlemania and has been put over one name after another, though she is still seen as in over her head. Becky Lynch has been trying to get back to the top and is getting the shot here. Then Charlotte saved Becky from a beatdown and got a match where she could be added to the match if she won. Since it’s Charlotte, OF COURSE she was added in, which Becky saw as someone else trying to steal her chance. Charlotte did get in a good line with Carmella “is a Diva living in a woman’s world.”

Smackdown Women’s Title: Becky Lynch vs. Charlotte vs. Carmella

Carmella is defending and we get the Big Match Intros, with the hometown champ not being well received. As I continue to not understand why the title belt is shown inside what looks like the Elimination Chamber during the graphic, the bell rings and Carmella starts running her mouth. Charlotte gets sent outside so Becky can hit a running legdrop but the second misses.

Carmella isn’t happy with Charlotte breaking up the cover but it’s time to get crafty. She slaps Becky in the head and blames Charlotte, who says she’s innocent as they knock Carmella to the floor. Becky and Charlotte trade rollups and it’s a standoff for some applause. An armbar puts Charlotte down for all of two seconds but Carmella is back in because she can’t just go away.

Becky gets sent into the steps so Carmella can shout and dance a lot. Charlotte is whipped down as well and Carmella takes Becky inside for, you know it, more shouting. She does even things out a bit with a chinlock until Charlotte comes back in, only to be taken down by the hair. Now it’s Charlotte getting chinlocked as we see the wide range of Carmella’s offense. Becky makes her own save, gets dropkicked down, and Carmella shouts about being champion again. How can she be repeating stuff that many times less than six minutes into a match?

Carmella mocks Becky’s pose and ducks a shot from Charlotte, which hits Becky instead. Some fall away slams drop Carmella and Charlotte nips up but Becky knees her in the face. A double missile dropkick puts Carmella and Charlotte down again with Charlotte being sent outside. Becky gets caught on top for a hurricanrana to give Carmella two, leaving herself open to Charlotte’s spear.

Since we can’t go that long with Carmella being on defense, she knocks Charlotte into the corner and shouts that no one cares about her anymore. Another hurricanrana out of the corner is countered into a Boston crab (with Charlotte driving her down from the corner almost like a Styles Clash) before switching to the Figure Four. That’s broken up with Becky’s top rope legdrop and they’re all down.

Becky gets up first and hammers on Carmella, who of course knocks her outside because SHE IS THE CHAMP. A rather hard suicide dive hits Becky but it’s Charlotte coming off the top with the moonsault, which goes right between them and barely makes contact, as usual. Back in and Carmella breaks up the Disarm-Her so Becky gets two off a Rock Bottom, with Carmella making ANOTHER save.

Carmella gets two off a superkick with Charlotte making the very last second save. Charlotte gets sent outside so it’s another superkick to Becky, who shrugs it off without much trouble. The Disarm-Her goes on but Charlotte dives in with Natural Selection for the pin on Becky at 14:42.

Rating: C+. The action was good but the important thing here is that Carmella can go off to do ANYTHING but be in the title picture. Her reign showed the entire problem with using Money in the Bank as a quick rise to the top: Carmella was never viewed as a serious wrestler but she won a ladder match and stole the title so now she can hang with Charlotte and Becky? It never worked and this match exposed how limited she was in the ring, with all the shouting and superkicks getting old in a hurry. She is perfectly fine as the cheerleader type character and it fits her SO much better, as time has proven.

The match itself was pretty good with a lot of saves and back and forth action, but I kept wanting Carmella to fall in a hole somewhere so the other two could have a better match. The fans wanted to see Becky and having Charlotte get the title back wasn’t the most thrilling result. Becky’s frustrations are proven right again and things could get interesting as a result.

Post match Becky hugs Charlotte but completely snaps, beating the fire out of her and throwing Charlotte over the announcers’ table to one of the biggest face reactions in forever. WWE actually tried to treat this as a heel turn for a bit before realizing that it just wasn’t working and strapped a rocket to Becky’s back, leading all the way to the main event of Wrestlemania and the biggest push in women’s history.

We recap AJ Styles vs. Samoa Joe. AJ has been champion for about nine months and has beaten a bunch of challengers so he issued an open challenge for Summerslam. Joe choked AJ out and signed the contract before starting his real attack. He called out AJ for neglecting his family but promised to send AJ home by ending the title reign. Then he read a letter from AJ’s wife, saying that everything Joe said was true and how much she wanted Joe to win.

Smackdown World Title: AJ Styles vs. Samoa Joe

Joe is challenging and the fans certainly seem to like him, though AJ isn’t exactly being booed. AJ’s wife and daughter are in the crowd so Joe breaks up the Big Match Intros and says hi to both of them, promising to send daddy home tonight. An early Koquina Clutch attempt doesn’t work and it’s a TNA chant for a little flashback. Joe gets in a cheap shot in the corner and then bails to the ropes as the mind games continue.

AJ takes him down with a headlock as they’re starting slowly (which is ok). Back up and a big shoulder sends AJ into the ropes as Graves explains the psychology in a rare bit of usefulness. They trade kicks to the leg so things can start picking up a bit. In what shouldn’t be a surprise, Joe wins the battle of the strikes at first but AJ keeps going with chops against the ropes.

The drop down into the dropkick has Joe in trouble and AJ knocks him outside. Since AJ isn’t that bright, he gets his leg kicked out to send him face first into the apron. Joe hits the big suicide elbow to send AJ into the announcers’ table, with Graves saying it’s like a flying school bus. Can someone explain to Graves that the Magic School Bus is fiction? Back in and a clothesline gives Joe two and the chinlock goes on.

That goes nowhere so AJ fights up and sends Joe outside for the slingshot forearm. Back in and the middle rope moonsault into the reverse DDT gets two but Joe is right back up with a middle rope leg lariat. A big boot into the backsplash is good for two more as Joe keeps using the power advantage. AJ’s fireman’s carry gutbuster hurts his own knee so Joe is right back with the snap powerslam (great one too).

AJ is right back up and manages the Styles Clash for two and the fans bought the near fall. The Rock Bottom out of the corner gives Joe a breather but AJ is right back with the Calf Crusher (remember the leg kicks earlier). You don’t put holds on Joe though and he slams AJ’s head into the mat for the break, quickly followed by the Koquina Clutch. A foot on the rope breaks things up so Joe takes it outside….and talks to AJ’s wife, saying AJ won’t be coming home but he’ll be her new daddy. You know it’s on now as AJ tackles Joe over the barricade and hits him with a chair for the DQ at 22:45.

Rating: B. This is one where the DQ finish makes sense to keep the story going, though I’m not sure why Joe, who has been very calculating this whole time, would do something like that when he was in control. It came off more like he was admitting he couldn’t beat AJ tonight and that’s not Joe’s style. What we did get was a solid back and forth match with AJ fighting his heart out and Joe using the power and size advantage to dominate the emotional champ. I’m certainly down for a rematch and that’s where this is obviously going.

Post match AJ beats the fire out of Joe with the chair, drawing a WHO’S YOUR DADDY chant. With Joe gone, AJ checks on his wife and daughter, the latter of whom says he’s bleeding. AJ: “I’m sorry.”

Here’s Elias for a song. Believe it or not, he was a child once but then he grew up and wrote a great album. That album included a song called Elias’ Words and knowing that the entire world loves you is an incredible feeling. Tonight we’re getting a new song and it might be his greatest yet. This song is dedicated to all of the New Yorkers out there tonight, because all of the dirt in their ears and mind and the harsh reality of living in this city is all about to be washed away. And then his guitar breaks. Well so much for that.

Miz runs into the B-Team backstage (why they’re still in their gear two hours after their match isn’t clear) but he doesn’t need their luck. Tonight he’s proving that he’s better than Daniel Bryan, but if they want to fetch the limo for the post match celebration, he’s good with that. They’re leaving actually because they have their own celebrating to do. They’re not the Miztourage anymore because they’re the B-Team. The B stands for Daniel Bryan and offer him a spot on their new reality show: “Total Fellas, but with a B, so Total Bellas!” Miz looks confused.

We recap the Miz vs. Daniel Bryan, which is eight years in the making. Miz was Bryan’s NXT Pro back in the day despite Bryan being much more experienced. Bryan broke away from Miz and turned into a star but never could shake the Miz, who thought Bryan was a huge fluke. Then Bryan got hurt and had to leave for years, with Miz taunting him after he walked away and retired. Miz called him out for being a coward and started using Bryan’s offense for years.

This included Miz’s incredible Talking Smack promo where Bryan called Miz a coward, sending Miz into an all time rant about how Bryan was the coward for not getting back in the ring while Miz was here every day. Then one day Bryan was medically cleared and everyone saw this match coming. Now it’s on the big stage as everyone is ready to see Bryan kick Miz’s head off. The theme is passion vs. fame and completely different ideologies about wrestling. It’s a natural rivalry and this match has more than earned a spot on this kind of a major show.

Daniel Bryan vs. The Miz

Miz’s wife and daughter are in the front row (who knew AJ was so influential). Bryan has talked for months about wanting to punch Miz in the face so he immediately balls up his fist, sending Miz into the ropes. Miz gets in the first few shots and fires off the kicks in the corner but the running dropkick is caught by the throat. Bryan gets to punch him in the face to a BIG reaction and now it’s Miz getting kicked in the corner for his efforts.

Another kick to the chest gets two but Miz takes him down for a surfboard. It turns out that Bryan knows how to escape that pretty easily and puts Miz in it to even things up. More YES Kicks (Graves: “Paying homage to the Miz.” Tom: “I swear to God.”) connect but Miz is right back with a hard clothesline to drop Bryan again. A cravate lets Miz hit some knees to the head and Bryan is back down.

The Reality Check gets two but Miz takes too long loading up the kicks, allowing Bryan to hit the moonsault out of the corner into the running clothesline. A hurricanrana out of the corner gets two and Miz is sent outside, meaning it’s the running dropkick through the ropes. The big dive to the floor drops Miz again and Bryan gets smart by tying him in the Tree of Woe for the kicks to the chest. The belly to back superplex gets two as it keeps getting worse for Miz.

Bryan misses the big YES Kick though and Miz hits a DDT for a breather. Miz’s YES Kicks just wake Bryan up so he catches a kick and hits Miz in the face (as promised). It’s too early for the running knee as Miz counters into a failed Figure Four attempt. The Skull Crushing Finale doesn’t fail though and gives Miz his next close two. With his chest looking very banged up, Miz’s running knee is countered with another kick to the head for two and they’re both dazed.

As tends to be the case at this point in a match, they had to the apron, where Bryan’s kick hits the post to give Miz a big target. He’s smart enough to go straight to the Figure Four but Bryan eventually turns it over to reverse the pressure. Miz isn’t smart enough to just unhook his leg so it’s a long crawl to the rope for the break. Bryan is right back on him by tying up Miz’s arm for the elbows to the face and then the YES Lock.

With Miz getting close to the rope, Bryan punches him in the back of the head for some good measure. Miz gets a boot on the rope and rolls to the floor, where Bryan hits the running knee from the apron. As luck would have it though, he winds up next to Maryse, who slips him something made of metal. Bryan tries a suicide dive but gets knocked cold with a shot to the head, allowing Miz to get the pin at 23:45.

Rating: B. It wasn’t the big, epic match they were shooting for but what we got was something that got pretty close to living up to the hype. The problem is it’s nearly impossible to live up to a reality that fans had in their heads after so long, but they did very well anyway. Miz being cocky the whole time but not being able to survive against the more naturally talented Bryan made perfect sense. The cheating leaves them wide open for a rematch and since Miz’s wife got involved, Bryan’s should as well, right?

Super ShowDown is coming, including HHH vs. Undertaker for the last time ever.

Video on Undertaker vs. HHH, which is quite the story.

Baron Corbin vs. Finn Balor

Corbin has been a jerk to Balor so it’s Demon time, thankfully in a complete surprise so we didn’t have to hear THE DEMON IS FINN BALOR’S ALTER EGO for a month. The entrance shakes Corbin, possible because he’s realized that he’s Baron Corbin. Balor dropkicks him to the floor at the bell and hits the Sling Blade. The running flip dive hits Corbin and Balor sends him into the barricade. As Coach tries to figure out why Balor doesn’t use the Demon more often, it’s a top rope double stomp to Corbin’s back and the Coup de Grace finishes at 1:22. Exactly what it should have been, assuming you absolutely have to have Corbin employed.

Brie Bella checks on Bryan and they’re not happy with Miz and Maryse. Bryan says his comeback has been a bust but Brie calms him down.

United States Title: Jeff Hardy vs. Shinsuke Nakamura

Nakamura is defending and this is your “it just sounds cool” match of the show, as well as a rematch after Nakamura won the title in six seconds after a low blow last month. Jeff has been dealing with Randy Orton as of late as well so you can probably pencil in the interference. There’s no major contact for the first minute or so, meaning we need a COME ON from Nakamura. Hardy charges into a knee but stops to dance like Nakamura, which doesn’t sit well with the champ. Neither does Hardy doing COME ON as things actually get going.

Nakamura knees him in the face and grabs an arm trap chinlock, which is broken with a rather quick jawbreaker. Some more kicks have Hardy right back in trouble and we hit another chinlock. Jeff fights up again and hits something close to a Sling Blade to put them both down again. Another kick drops Hardy again though as he can’t seem to figure out that he needs to avoid the feet. He finally gets the idea as a running knee hits the buckle, allowing Hardy to nail the Whisper in the Wind for two.

Since that isn’t the most high impact move, Nakamura is right back with the hard knees but the low blow misses. Jeff dropkicks him down to set up the Swanton for a delayed two. With Nakamura rolling to the apron, Hardy tries another Swanton but crashes back first onto the apron for his efforts. Kinshasa retains the title at 10:57.

Rating: D+. The chinlocks hurt this one a lot and you could feel the energy going out of the crowd. This was around the time that Nakamura was putting it in coast mode and there wasn’t much that could draw him out. His charisma is more than enough to carry him, but it would be nice to see some effort into his matches. Jeff continues to drift around, which is pretty much all he does as a singles guy these days.

Post match Orton comes out but instead of going after Jeff, he just hits himself in the head and leaves without doing anything else. He can be an odd guy.

We recap Ronda Rousey vs. Alexa Bliss. Rousey had the Raw Women’s Title won at Money in the Bank but Bliss cashed in her briefcase to steal the title from Nia Jax. Bliss has been WAY too confident coming into this so Rousey has been suspended several times, yet still getting her title match here. Tonight Rousey is going to destroy Bliss and get the title for the first time.

Raw Women’s Title: Ronda Rousey vs. Alexa Bliss

Ronda is challenging and has Natalya, whose dad Jim Neidhart died a few weeks back (meaning she has her dad’s Summerslam 1990 jacket on for a great touch). Oh and the Bellas are here too because they’re stars. Bliss hides in the ropes a few times to start as she is trying to delay the inevitable for as long as she can. A cheap shot is blocked by a single right hand to send Bliss outside.

Back in and Bliss bails a second time so Rousey turns her back and sits down to let Bliss get in safely. Bliss comes in and tries a chinlock, not realizing that it leaves her arm exposed. Rousey picks her up for the yet to be named Piper’s Pit and Bliss is on the floor again. The chase lets Bliss get in a few shots….and there’s the stare. Rousey unloads in the corner and hits the judo throws (while talking trash), setting up the armbar (with Bliss popping the arm out of joint as only she can) for the easy tap and the title at 4:38.

Rating: C+. This is one where the presentation was all that mattered. Rousey was never in any danger and the match was a complete squash, which was the right call. There was no reason to pretend that Bliss could be a threat to her and they didn’t waste their time on anything stupid. Rousey is the biggest star in the division and one of the biggest in the company, so making her champion was the obvious move, especially since she’s here full time.

Post match Rousey hugs Natalya and the Bellas. Guess which two are booed. Her husband gets a big kiss as well. Rousey’s husband that is, in case it’s not clear.

We recap the Raw World Title match. Roman Reigns has been chasing the title and the win against Brock Lesnar for the better part of forever, having lost at Wrestlemania XXXI, Wrestlemania XXXIV and Greatest Royal Rumble. Now we’re doing it again because these two are joined at the hip in an eternal chase. This time around they’re presenting it as Reigns is here and Lesnar isn’t, even though the fans don’t seem to think much of Reigns so his attendance doesn’t make much difference. They teased Heyman jumping to Reigns but it was dropped in all of ten seconds so Lesnar could beat Reigns up again.

Raw World Title: Roman Reigns vs. Brock Lesnar

Reigns’ CGI entrance is a big dog head over the Shield logo, which is rather terrifying when you don’t know it’s coming. Lesnar is defending and Paul Heyman handles his Big Match Intro. Hold on though as Strowman comes out to say he’s going to be cashing in on whomever wins. Reigns hits three Superman Punches and two spears in the first thirty seconds but the third is countered into a guillotine choke.

That’s broken up with a spinebuster and we’re just over a minute in. Brock grabs it again so Reigns uses the same counter. For once it makes sense to have them laying down this early as they’ve beaten each other up quite a bit so far. Brock takes the gloves off and counters another Superman Punch into the rolling German suplexes. The fans say the two of them suck and Reigns escapes the F5.

A missed charge sends Reigns through the ropes and into Strowman, who Lesnar plants with an F5 on the floor. Reigns is thrown back in and Strowman grabs Lesnar’s leg. That earns him a beating with the briefcase, which Lesnar throws up to the stage (egads that’s not normal). Lesnar unloads with a chair, walks back inside and gets speared to give Reigns the title at 6:09.

Rating: D. NOW NEVER FIGHT AGAIN! This feud went on forever and their matches were the same finisher fests over and over again. Strowman could have been anything from the Monster to a stray puppy as he only served as a distraction to cost Lesnar the title. Reigns winning here doesn’t feel like some major moment, though it’s nice to have Lesnar FINALLY lose the title. They should have done this at Wrestlemania at the latest though and by the time they got here, no one cared and there was no reason for them to. At least it was shorter this time around so there is one minor positive. Just get on to any other feud, please.

Reigns poses as Strowman is still down to end the show.

Overall Rating: A-. I had forgotten how good this show was as WWE managed to cut out a bunch of the nonsense and just roll with the awesome matches that have been well built up. It’s so frustrating to see what they’re capable of doing when they actually try because they don’t put in the effort so much of the time. This was an awesome show with nothing very bad (Reigns vs. Lesnar is more the result of everything that came before it between the two of them) and three or four matches that got time and lived up to it. Check this one out if you have the time, but completely skip the Kickoff Show.

Ratings Comparison

Zelina Vega/Andrade Cien Almas vs. Rusev/Lana

Original: D

2019 Redo: D+

Cedric Alexander vs. Drew Gulak

Original: C+

2019 Redo: B-

Revival vs. B-Team

Original: D+

2019 Redo: D+

Dolph Ziggler vs. Seth Rollins

Original: B

2019 Redo: B

Bludgeon Brothers vs. New Day

Original: C+

2019 Redo: B-

Kevin Owens vs. Braun Strowman

Original: N/A

2019 Redo: N/A

Charlotte vs. Becky Lynch vs. Carmella

Original: C+

2019 Redo: C+

AJ Styles vs. Samoa Joe

Original: A-

2019 Redo: B

The Miz vs. Daniel Bryan

Original: B+

2019 Redo: B

Finn Balor vs. Baron Corbin

Original: N/A

2019 Redo: N/A

Shinsuke Nakamura vs. Jeff Hardy

Original: C

2019 Redo: D+

Ronda Rousey vs. Alexa Bliss

Original: C+

2019 Redo: C+

Roman Reigns vs. Brock Lesnar

Original: C+

2019 Redo: D

Overall Rating

Original: A-

2019 Redo: A-

Most of them are in the same ballpark, but AJ vs. Joe and Reigns vs. Lesnar must have canceled each other out. Still a great show though and one of the better ones WWE has done in recent(ish) memory.

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

http://kbwrestlingreviews.com/2018/08/19/summerslam-2018-they-can-still-do-a-thing-or-two/

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and pick up the paperback edition of KB’s History Of In Your House (also available as an e-book) from Amazon. Check out the information here:

http://kbwrestlingreviews.com/2019/05/31/new-paperback-kbs-history-of-in-your-house/

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

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