IMG Credit: WWE

205 Live
Date: May 1, 2020
Host: Tom Phillips

It’s more of the Matches That Made Us with the Singh Brothers getting a turn. I’m not sure what that could include but these things have been a pleasant surprise so far. While I’ve never been anything close to a Singh Brothers fan, they’ve probably had a good match in there somewhere for the second half of the show. Let’s get to it.

Tom gives us a quick intro.

The Singhs talk about the match that made them huge fans when they were kids so here it is.

From Wrestlemania XII (clipped on the show but this is the full version):

WWF World Title: Bret Hart vs. Shawn Michaels

Feeling out process to start as Shawn grabs some quick takedowns to frustrate Bret just a bit. Bret holds on to a headlock to slow things down as Vince tries to say there are no Bret or Shawn fans but only WWF fans. Lawler is all over him for sounding stupid as this headlock continues. In this case though it makes sense as both guys would want to conserve energy.

With three minutes left, Shawn gets two off a top rope ax handle. The top rope elbow gets the same and Shawn plants him with a gutwrench powerbomb. He goes up with two minutes left and a moonsault press gets another near fall. A middle rope hurricanrana gets the same and Shawn is winded. With a minute left, Shawn goes up top but misses a dropkick and gets caught in the Sharpshooter. Bret cranks back on it but the time limit expires at 1:00:00.

Bret is all ticked off and leaves, not to be seen for over seven months. Vince gets in the great line of “the boyhood dream has come true for Shawn Michaels.” Shawn is stunned but finally celebrates like you knew he was going to do.

And a match with the Singhs in it.

From 205 Live, July 9, 2019.

Lucha House Party vs. Singh Brothers

Tornado tag with Gran Metalik and Lince Dorado for the House Party. It’s a dance/pose off to start before the House Party punch them out to the floor. The Singhs get chopped a lot until it’s Metalik kicking away at Sunil back inside. Dorado comes back in and throws Metalik onto Sunil for two as Sumir comes back in for a save. That’s fine with Dorado, who hits a springboard moonsault for two of his own.

Something like a reverse hart Attack gets two on Sumir but Sunil crotches Dorado to break up the rope walk elbow. A double suplex gets two and a spinwheel kick sets up some hip swiveling. Some kicks keep Metalik down and, of course, that means it’s time for dancing, because that’s what the Singh Brothers do. A top rope Demolition Decapitator (Nigel: “BUENOS NOCHES!!!”) gets two as Dorado seems to have fallen into a hole somewhere.

As Metalik gets sent outside, Dorado FINALLY comes back in to break up some more hip swiveling. A high crossbody gets two with Sunil making a save of his own. The Golden Rewind puts Sumir down but the luchadors get double superkicked out of the air. Sunil brings in the Boscar trophy, which is taken away by Kalisto. The Metalik Driver sets up the rope walk DDT/a shooting star press for the stereo pins at 10:52.

Rating: C-. It wasn’t bad but this did a lot to expose the Singh Brothers as little more than a one note act. They did very little other than their dancing and that’s not enough to carry a ten minute match. The Bollywood Boys deal is fine, but come up with a better way to present that during the matches.

Tom says goodbye.

Overall Rating: C. This could have been a lot worse as Shawn winning is a major moment and one of the biggest moments of the era. The 205 Live match was nothing to see but there is only so much to be gotten out of a Singh Brothers match in the first place. I could go for something a little more out of left field next time though, as they’ve only been hitting the big classics over the last few weeks. Mix it up a bit.

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

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

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

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

IMG Credit: WWE

Monday Night Raw
Date: December 5, 2005
Location: North Charleston Coliseum, North Charleston, South Carolina
Attendance: 7,000
Commentators: Jerry Lawler, Joey Styles

We’re closing in on the final pay per view of the year and the Raw vs. Smackdown theme seems to be continuing. That’s not the most thrilling idea in the world but it’s not like Armageddon has ever been an important show in the first place. Hopefully the build works out well so let’s get to it.

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

Opening sequence.

Joey talks about Ric Flair being arrested for road rage last week, which will be addressed on the Cutting Edge. This screams bad impersonation somewhere along the lines.

Here’s Vince McMahon, who drives a garbage truck into the arena. There are two chairs and a podium in the ring so here’s Eric Bischoff to face the music. Bischoff is looking rather upset and talks about what this job means to him. The fans are already singing the Goodbye Song as Vince talks about how he’s fair. Everyone should deserve their day in court so tonight is the trial of Eric Bischoff. Vince calls out Bischoff’s lawyer, the Coach, and Bischoff doesn’t seem impressed. Coach: “My client Eric Bischoff is an a******.”

Bischoff is paid to provide an exciting show and deserves a raise. Now we get to the prosecutor: Mick Foley. Mick says no one has ever done more for Raw than Bischoff, who told the fans about a title change on January 4, 1999, which gave the company a lead in the Monday Night Wars which they never released. Vince says they’re going to WWE Court and the decision will be announced by the end of the night.

Tag Team Titles: Kane/Big Show vs. Val Venis/Viscera vs. Tyson Tomko/Snitsky vs. Heart Throbs

Kane and Big Show are defending in a warmup before they face Rey Mysterio and Batista at Armageddon. House is cleaned in a hurry but Viscera manages a running splash on Kane. That earns him a double chokeslam to send him outside, with Show throwing Antonio onto him. Back in and a triple chokeslam to Antonio, Tomko and Venis is good for three pins at once. Total squash, which is impressive against six people.

We go to the court with Judge Vince McMahon, who is flanked by Bailiff Chris Masters. After taking his feet off the table, Mick calls in Stephanie McMahon, complete with music, as his first witness. She and Shane both think Bischoff should be removed from office and we see exhibit A: the kiss from Halloween 2002. Coach: “I object!” Vince: “SHUT UP!”

Mickie James vs. Victoria

Trish Stratus, Torrie Wilson and Candice Michelle are all here. Mickie snapmares her down to start for the basement dropkick as Lawler is drooling extra hard this week. Victoria manages to send things outside though and the other women get in some cheap shots. Back in and Victoria stands on her chest before hitting the standing moonsault for two.

Mickie’s arm is sent into the buckle and then the mat, followed by a clothesline to take her down again. Mickie gets a hurricanrana out of the corner to start the comeback and a spinning kick to the face drops Victoria. Torrie gets on the apron and is dragged inside, allowing Candice to distract Mickie. A rollup gives Victoria the pin despite Trish’s best efforts.

Rating: D+. This is one of the matches that makes the future generations of Divas all the more frustrating. They put together a coherent story here with the wrestlers doing the wrestling and the eye candy being there for their most basic purposes. It can be done at an acceptable (ok barely acceptable) level but it just wouldn’t be the case most of the time.

Post match, Mickie looks incensed that Trish couldn’t help her more.

Back in court, Tajiri, through a translator, talks about how he was a star in ECW but was wasted on Raw. Now he wants a pregnant rhinoceros to violate Bischoff, and then that he get fired. Coach, now with matchmaking powers, makes Tajiri vs. HHH. With Tajiri gone, Mick brings in Moolah and Mae Young.

Post break, Mae: “And that’s why Eric Bischoff has no penis.” Foley gives us exhibit B: Mae kissing and Bronco Bustering Bischoff at Bad Blood 2003. Coach blames Mae for being oversexed as Bischoff is about to be sick. With that out of the way, Coach gets to call Chris Masters as his first witness. Masters, with no shirt and after removing his hat…..is instantly accused of perjury because his real name is Chris Mordetzky so he’s disqualified from testifying. Vince: “Bailiff, if you would please remove yourself.” I chuckled a few times in there so they’re off to a good start.

Shawn Michaels and Shelton Benjamin are ready for their main event tag match. We hear some of Shelton’s amateur credentials but Shawn points out his lack of recent success around here. See, Shawn might not have the best reputation, but he’s successful. So does Shelton want to win, or make friends? Shelton seems to get something out of the idea.

Coach has a special witness coming in.

Chavo Guerrero vs. Lance Cade

Chavo slugs away to start but gets sent over the top in a hurry. Cade rams him into the post as the EDDIE chants start up. Back in and Chavo hits a dropkick before slugging away. Cade grabs Chavo and drives him into the corner though and shows him how to give a real beating. A suplex is countered into a DDT though and Chavo hits the frog splash for the fast pin.

Rating: C-. This was little more than a showcase match for Chavo and that’s not a bad thing. Chavo is a fine choice for a midcard hand and putting him into a story here or there isn’t going to hurt anything. I’m a little surprised at how fast Cade and Trevor Murdoch have fallen though. Yeah they won the titles, but you would think they would have done something else before dropping them.

Coach’s witness is Daivari, who says that Bischoff was a fair man who gave him his job back and a chance to make a name for himself. Vince, however, has his headphones in. Vince: “Sorry, I was listening to Ashlee Simpson on my new iPod.” Never mind repeating it because we’ll be having a recess. Mick is happy and busts out the Moon Pies and RC Cola.

It’s time for the debut of the Cutting Edge, with Edge and Lita promising to offend everyone and ask the hard questions. Lita doesn’t mind Edge staring at various parts of her and brings up Edge yelling at Dmitri Young at Survivor Series. As for tonight, Ric Flair isn’t here tonight and Edge thinks it’s out of fear. Edge says Flair is now the mug shot posin, handcuff wearin, road rage commitin convict!

Cue Sgt. Slaughter and Michael Hayes to break this up (Lita: “AKA two legends who now make a living kissing Vince McMahon’s a**! Edge: “Wait, Michael, someone told you I had a bottle of Jack Daniels and an eight ball down here didn’t they?”) with Hayes saying he doesn’t get kids today.

They don’t have any respect for the business the legends like the two of them and Flair build. Hayes respects Flair and everything he’s done around here. He’ll give Flair the benefit of the doubt and asks Edge how many main events he’s been in. How many arenas has he sold out so the people had to be turned away? How many World Titles has he had?

Edge says cut the mic and says Terry Gordy isn’t coming to help him because Gordy is dead. Hayes: “The only reason you have this show is you’re banging Matt Hardy’s ex-girlfriend.” That’s enough for Edge, who slugs Hayes down and low blows Slaughter. Hayes gets back up and fires off in the corner but a briefcase to the head takes him down. We’ve seen this kind of thing before but it was nice having someone different in the role for a change.

HHH vs. Tajiri

Tajiri goes straight to the strikes in the corner early on but HHH clotheslines him from behind to break up the handspring elbow. The second attempt connects but the Tarantula is broken up. HHH suplexes him down and hits the Pedigree for the quick pin.

Simon Dean is the next witness but the Boogeyman pops up instead. He says a lot, breaks the clock, and disappears, sending Vince into confusion and Mick into another Moon Pie.

HHH runs into Big Show in the back and a challenge is teased for later.

Mick calls his next witness in the form of Maria, who wants to be questioned by Mr. Socko. Foley slowly agrees and Maria goes into a rant involving several big words about how Bischoff abused his power and should be fired. That’s it for Maria, and everyone, save for Bischoff, watches as she leaves. Vince says that’s enough and closing arguments will take place in the arena.

Smackdown Rebound.

Kurt Angle/Carlito vs. Shelton Benjamin/Shawn Michaels

Daivari is at ringside and not refereeing as per Vince’s orders. Shelton and Carlito start things off with Carlito getting his arm barred. A belly to belly lets Shelton hammer away even more and Carlito is rather upset (possibly about his hair). Angle comes in to take Shelton to the mat by the leg but Angle has to escape the exploder. The Dragon Whip works instead and we take a break.

Back with Shawn charging into Carlito’s elbow in the corner but getting over to the corner for a tag to Shelton anyway. Angle gets knocked off the apron but a Daivari distraction lets Angle knock Shelton down. Back in and Angle unloads in the corner before snapping off the overhead belly to belly.

The fans are behind Shelton, even as Angle German suplexes him into a waistlock. The Angle Slam is countered into a DDT and the hot tag brings in Shawn. House is cleaned, including the forearm into the nipup and a bunch of clotheslines. There’s the top rope elbow so Shawn tunes up the band, only to have Shelton tag himself in. Shelton misses a top rope clothesline though and Carlito gets the easy pin.

Rating: C. This was a story based match and that’s not a bad thing. The idea here was to show that Shelton needs a lot of work and given how much he’s been losing as of late, a heel turn might not be the worst thing for him. They’re way past the point where he can just bounce back so a big change is all they can really do.

Post match Shawn is incensed but Shelton won’t hear it.

Vince and Stephanie arrive in a limo, because they left….I guess? HHH pops up to say Bischoff should say but Vince thinks it’s just so HHH can manipulate him. He’ll take it under advisement, and then introduces HHH to Stephanie for the awkward staring.

We go into the arena for the closing arguments, with Foley just saying Bischoff is bad at his job. Bischoff says he makes WWE money with ideas like the Elimination Chamber. Maybe they could use it again at the next Raw pay per view for the WWE Championship. Vince knows what it’s like to be hated in this industry so he should be able to sympathize with Bischoff. Just let him keep his job so they can make money. Vince seems to think about it but here’s John Cena to interrupt.

Cena is here to point out everything Bischoff does and how much fun he’s taken away from this show. Like when he censors the SUCK in Kurt Angle’s YOU SUCK. Cena asks the 10,000 witnesses here in the building about Bischoff staying, but they seem to want him gone. The two letters that sum up Bischoff’s career are FU so Vince asks the fans about the Elimination Chamber. They seem pleased, so the match is on. Bischoff won’t be there for it though, because HE’S FIRED. Cena gives Bischoff the FU and Vince throws him in the back of the garbage truck. Vince even drives it out of the arena to end the show.

Overall Rating: D+. There wasn’t much here other than the Bischoff deal, which is long overdue at this point. Bischoff has done everything possible as the evil boss and it’s time to give us something new. The rest of the show just came and went though with little wrestling of note as we need to fill time before New Year’s Revolution. Hopefully things can pick up in the next few weeks, but I wouldn’t get my hopes up.

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

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

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

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

IMG Credit: WWE

Main Event
Date: April 30, 2020
Location: WWE Performance Center, Orlando, Florida
Commentators: MVP, Tom Phillips

No matter what the situations are around here, Main Event is going to Main Event. It’s been the same batch of repetitive matches and recaps. I was liking the random assortment of matches we were getting for a little while there and those have already stopped for the sake of it’s just Main Event. Lucky us. Let’s get to it.

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

Opening sequence.

Bianca Belair vs. Catalina

Belair shoves her down and then into the corner to start, followed by a running clothesline. We hit the abdominal stretch on Catalina, followed by a splash to the back into a nipup. A backbreaker cuts off Catalina’s comeback and we hit the double arm crank. That’s broken up and Catalina hits a running dropkick but Belair pulls her off the ropes. The KOD finishes Catalina at 5:43.

Rating: D+. Longer form squash here with Belair getting to showcase herself a bit, though it could have been done better. The match should have been a little shorter to make it more effective, though what we got wasn’t bad. Catalina was just there for the most part and that’s about all she should be around to do.

From Smackdown.

Here’s HHH for his big celebration and they’ve got a LONG time for this. HHH talks about how hard it is to believe that it’s been twenty five years….and here’s Shawn Michaels to interrupt. Shawn talks about how awesome this is and he has two words for you: “Social distancing buddy! Don’t touch!”. He’s sent out hundreds of invitations to HHH’s friends and family and they’re all here.

After we look at the empty arena, Shawn talks about how they’ve been friends for the entire twenty five years. He has some nice memories of his own twenty fifth anniversary celebration on Smackdown and HHH can’t even pick his favorite moment from that night. HHH can’t believe Shawn didn’t have his own celebration and promises heads will roll when he gets back into the office. Anyway, Shawn talks about how much money they were when they were in DX (ignore the fact that Shawn and HHH’s DX didn’t beat Nitro once of course) and we get get a blooper reel of DX moments. HHH: “Almost in one take.”

Shawn says his Wrestlemania career pales in comparison to what HHH did at Wrestlemania and we see a look at HHH’s Wrestlemania losses. Shawn: “You weren’t that good.” HHH: “How many losses did you have at Wrestlemania?” Shawn: “This isn’t about me.” After some more platitudes, Shawn gets to Stephanie No Fun, who calls HHH. Stephanie: “I’m watching your twenty fifth anniversary celebration.”

After more talking in a way NO ONE WOULD EVER USE IN REAL LIFE, Stephanie says to tell that lazy eyed….and the call ends. Shawn brings up Ric Flair, who calls in as well to praise HHH and his family. Flair: “Don’t let Shawn superkick you at the end of the segment.” Flair starts to cry to end the call, calls back, and cries some more as we take a break.

Back with Road Dogg on the phone saying HHH got a haircut but needs a bigger one. He finds out that he’s on live TV and gets out in a hurry. Shawn says they need to wrap this up but HHH says he called the bosses at Fox and says they can have all night. Shawn: “Good. We haven’t even gotten to the Katie Vick segment yet.” With that mind blowing line out of the way, here’s Vince McMahon himself for a big moment.

Vince goes into a story about seeing HHH wrestle for the first time. It was like the buildup to the egg hatching at Survivor Series 1990 and then it was such a big disaster. Vince then explains the Katie Vick story (without every detail of course) and the Bayley: This Is Your Life segment, which wasn’t a good idea but it wasn’t Bayley’s fault (Vince’s words).

Anyway, Vince loves him but this was a horrible way to go out. As HHH would say, it was ROTTEN. Vince: “If you haven’t put everybody to sleep by now, I’ll say goodnight.” The lights go out to end the show and some crickets chirp. Shawn: “Story of your career buddy. Story of your career.” This was a lot more lighthearted than I was expecting and there were some funny lines, but other than HHH and WWE, was anyone asking to see this for twenty minutes?

From Raw.

United States Title: Andrade vs. Apollo Crews

Crews is challenging and Vega is here with Andrade. Feeling out process to start with Andrade working on a wristlock. That’s reversed into an armbar as Vega isn’t looking pleased with the goings on. Crews’ front facelock doesn’t last long and it’s Andrade grabbing a headlock instead. They go to the floor for a bit, followed by Andrade taking him back inside to stomp away.

Some choking and a dropkick keep Crews in trouble but Andrade misses a running knee in the corner. That means a nasty crash to the floor but Andrade avoids a moonsault, causing Crews to tweak his knee as we take a break. Back with Andrade working on a half crab, only to miss the running knees in the corner. Crews hits an Angle Slam and they’re both down. An overhead belly to belly sends Andrade flying but he gets a boot up in the corner.

Crews is back with a press slam and the standing moonsault for two but Andrade is back with a whip into the corner. Now the running knees can connect for two as Vega is losing her mind. Crews blocks the spinning elbow but the gorilla press is countered into a DDT for two. The hammerlock DDT is countered into an enziguri and a powerslam gives Crews two of his own. Crews knocks Andrade off the top but misses a top rope splash and hurts the knee again. Andrade kicks him to the apron and the referee stops it at 16:45.

Rating: B-. I was surprised by the ending but this doesn’t feel like it’s over. Crews is someone who needs a major moment if he is ever going to break through and I’m not sure how much longer he can go without one. It’s not like Andrade has done anything with the title in four months, which is the case with almost anyone who holds it for almost any amount of time.

Money in the Bank rundown.

Humberto Carrillo vs. Murphy

Murphy takes him down by the arm to start so Carrillo reverses into a wristlock. A running hurricanrana into the springboard armdrag gives Carrillo two but Murphy sends him outside. Carrillo gets rammed head first onto the ramp and we take a break. Back with Murphy pounding away even more and grabbing the chinlock.

That’s broken up and Murphy charges into a superkick, meaning it’s time to forearm it out from their knees. A jumping enziguri takes Murphy down and it’s a springboard dropkick to send him outside. Back in and a missile dropkick gives Carrillo two but he has to roll out of the moonsault. Carrillo kicks him in the head for two more but Murphy hits a knee to the face. Murphy’s Law is good for the pin at 10:49.

Rating: C. Not too bad here and that’s as good as you’re going to get on a show like this. These two are in need of something to do, as Murphy being the lackey for the #1 contender isn’t exactly gold and Carrillo has been the same person since the day he debuted. Neither is on fire or even lukewarm at the moment, but maybe that can get better with time. Not that it likely will, but it might.

Video on Bray Wyatt vs. Braun Strowman.

Video on Drew McIntyre vs. Seth Rollins.

From Raw.

Jerry Lawler is in the ring to talk about Money in the Bank, including the Raw World Title match. Seth Rollins and Drew McIntyre come out and McIntyre tells Lawler to leave for this. Lawler is out in a hurry and McIntyre signs without much thinking about it. Rollins doesn’t sign yet so McIntyre says time’s ticking.

That sends Rollins into a rant about how he doesn’t want to do this but has to. This is bigger than all of them and Drew will be a great champion one day. Rollins has to do this because he had to suffer for that title. He doesn’t want what happened to him to happen to Drew because it is his burden to carry. When that time comes, Rollins can lead Drew as well. Drew: “You’re full of s***.”

Drew tells him to stop talking forever because no one wants to hear Seth talk. Rollins says that the big picture will be clear at Money in the Bank and he signs. He goes to talk about having faith but Drew sends him face first into the table. The ring is cleared and a headbutt drops Seth so the Claymore is loaded up. Cue Murphy to kick McIntyre in the head, earning himself a hug from Rollins. McIntyre is back up and Claymores Murphy to end the show. This was the latest in WWE’s rather long string of contract signings, most of which aren’t all that interesting. That was the case here, but Rollins’ delivery did help.

Overall Rating: C-. As usual, all this show did was point out how boring things are in WWE at the moment. We’re less than a month removed from Wrestlemania and you would never know it based on what we’re seeing. There is nothing that makes me care about what is going on and I don’t see that getting better anytime soon. They need a spark or at least a few hot matches, but that has been the case for way too long now.

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

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

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

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

IMG Credit: WWE

Monday Night Raw
Date: November 28, 2005
Location: Quicken Loans Arena, Cleveland, Ohio
Commentators: Joey Styles, Jerry Lawler, Jonathan Coachman

We’re done with Survivor Series and unless Raw is doing something at Armageddon, we’re building towards New Year’s Revolution. John Cena retained the World Title on Sunday and needs a new challenger now that Kurt Angle is out of the way. I’m not sure who that is going to be though and that could be a problem. Let’s get to it.

Here is Survivor Series if you need a recap.

Opening sequence.

An annoyed Eric Bischoff is in the ring to start things off. He’s about to call every Raw wrestler out here because he needs to give them a piece of his mind. Last night, Raw let him down and failures like that will not be tolerated. Bischoff demands everyone out here right now so he can fire the first person he sees.….so here’s Vince McMahon. Vince: “How do you do? I’m Vince McMahon, the Chairman of the Board.” Vince talks about Bischoff failing at everything he promised to do last night. Bischoff tries to explain himself but is told to shut up.

Vince: “YOUR RECORD SUCKS! If Monday Night Raw is a failure, they’re going to perceive ME as a failure!” Bischoff has one job tonight: set a goal of any kind and accomplish it, or Vince can look for his replacement. That’s fine with Bischoff, who doesn’t think Vince can find much of a replacement. Almost on cue, here’s the returning Shane McMahon and Bischoff looks like he just ate a bad chimichanga. Shane says he’s never liked Bischoff and is looking forward to seeing him go. In case you’re not that bright, Shane clarifies that he will be the replacement if Bischoff fails.

Shawn Michaels vs. Carlito

Carlito is out to prove that he should have been the captain of Team Raw. The apple goes into Shawn’s face to start and Carlito knocks him to the floor. Shawn chops away but gets knocked down again, setting up the headlock on the mat. Back up and Shawn tries to skin the cat but gets knocked outside, setting up a slingshot dive to the floor. Shawn is right back up for a chop off in the corner, followed by a middle rope crossbody for two on Carlito.

The forearm into the nipup doesn’t quite work as Shawn’s knee gives out and we take a break. Back with Carlito staying on the knee until he fights out of the corner. The moonsault press takes too long to set up though and Carlito crotches him down. That earns Carlito some elbows to the face and now the top rope elbow connects. Sweet Chin Music is countered into a DDT for two but Shawn escapes a Roll of the Dice. Now the superkick can put Carlito away.

Rating: C+. This was one of the better Carlito matches I can remember, though a match with Shawn might not be the best measuring stick of Carlito’s abilities. Maybe he was fired up for some reason but it was a stronger performance than usual from him. Granted when your normal isn’t very good, any improvement is a nice thing to see.

Kurt Angle storms in to Bischoff’s office and says last night was the biggest screwjob in the history of Survivor Series. Daivari comes in to rant as well. Angle wants the World Title tonight.

Clips from last night’s main event.

Video on HHH beating Ric Flair in a Last Man Standing match.

Kurt Angle vs. Maria

Daivari is referee and yells at Maria, so the regular referee pulls him off. The referee hits Daivari in the mouth so Daivari stomps him down and puts on the camel clutch. Angle comes out and hugs Maria….followed by the Angle Slam. John Cena runs in for the save as this feud must continue.

Post match (the bell rang), Chris Masters runs in for a Masterlock on Cena so Angle can hammer away. Bischoff comes out and has a main event: an anything goes triple threat submission match for the World Title. Angle gives Cena an Angle Slam for a bonus.

Post break, we look at what we just saw.

Trish Stratus/Mickie James/Ashley Massaro vs. Victoria/Candice Michelle/Torrie Wilson

Mickie sends Torrie into the buckle to start and it’s off to Ashley for an ax handle to the arm. Torrie pulls her into the corner though and Victoria comes in for a wishbone. A snap suplex gives Victoria two and we hit the chinlock. That doesn’t last long and Victoria misses the slingshot flip legdrop so Mickie can get the hot tag. Mickie cleans house and there’s a hurricanrana out of the corner to drop Victoria. Trish takes Torrie down and Mickie hits Stratusfaction to finish Victoria off.

Rating: D+. What are you expecting here? They made no secrets about the fact that the women are in there to look good and the wrestling is secondary. It does help that Trish vs. Mickie is turning into a story, though we could be a long way off from them getting to the point. That’s the only real opponent on the horizon for Trish at the moment and that’s not a good sign.

Shane comes in to see Bischoff, who is confident that he’ll accomplish his goal. Shane didn’t think much of the Maria deal so Bischoff calls him a member of the Lucky Sperm Club (that family has some weird clubs). Bischoff winds up against the wall and the threat seems to make its intended point.

Daivari assures Angle that he’s ringing the bell the first time that Angle grabs a hammerlock. Masters comes in and says he knew something was up. That’s why he’s gone to Vince and they’ll be having an impartial referee tonight.

Video on the European tour.

Trevor Murdoch vs. Shelton Benjamin

Shelton knocks him to the floor in a hurry and hits a big clothesline off the top. Back in and the Stinger Splash misses so Murdoch can stomp away. The Dragon Whip gives Shelton two but he misses another top rope clothesline. A Downward Spiral gives Murdoch two but Shelton is back with the Stinger Splash from behind. Murdoch sends him face first into the middle buckle though and a rollup with trunks finishes Benjamin.

Rating: D+. That’s not something you expect to see and I still can’t get what they’re doing this for. The losing streak is something that has been done for years but who looked at Shelton and thought it was the right move for him? Shelton’s momentum has been gone for months now and I have no idea why they’re giving him this story.

Here’s HHH for a chat. HHH knows that some people don’t think he’s compassionate but he took care of Ric Flair. He made sure Flair is in a nice hospital room with a plasma TV on the wall and the USA Network included. His advice to Flair is easy: stay down, because he’s done. There is nothing left for Flair to do after back to back pay per view matches with HHH. There’s no shame in losing to the best, so Flair needs to go home after this is over. The fans don’t like that but HHH says that’s what separates them from him: they knew something needed to be done about Flair but HHH did it.

There is no one alive who will look him in the eye and say something to his face, so here’s Big Show to interrupt. Show has known him for a long time but now HHH needs to hear it to his face: he is a piece of s***. The fist is held up next to HHH’s face so does he have the guts to fight Show now? HHH tries to say something and the mic is knocked out of his hand. That’s going to be it for HHH, who bails in a hurry.

Raw Tag Team Titles: Kane/Big Show vs. Snitsky/Tyson Tomko

Snitsky and Tomko are challenging and we’re joined in progress with Tomko hammering Kane down for two. It’s off to Snitsky to choke on the ropes until Kane sends him face first into the mat. Show comes in with the big side slam as everything breaks down. Kane hits the top rope clothesline to Snitsky and Show chokeslams Tomko to retain in a hurry.

Raw World Title: Kurt Angle vs. Chris Masters vs. John Cena

Cena is defending and it’s submission only. Cena charges straight at Angle but the numbers have him in trouble early. Masters and Angle take turns dropping elbows on him but Angle sends Masters to the floor. That leaves Angle to slip out of an FU attempt and grab the ankle lock until Masters makes the save with the Masterlock to Angle. That’s broken up by Cena so Masters Masterlocks him.

Angle makes a very delayed save and hammers away, while managing to tell Masters that he sucks. The ankle lock has Masters in trouble so Cena hits a top rope ax handle for another save. Cena unloads on Angle until Masters breaks up the Shuffle. The straps come down and Angle grabs the chair, which is kicked straight back into his face. Cena smashes the chair on Masters’ leg and grabs an STF to retain. Coach: “WHERE DID CENA LEARN THE STF???” Make your own jokes.

Rating: C-. This was a weird one but I remember watching it live and being very surprised by the STF. It was a good surprise and while I know Cena’s version doesn’t have the best reputation, it was a great debut for the hold. That came out of nowhere and gives Cena a new weapon to use. The FU is good but now he can switch things up a bit, which is a smart idea.

We cut to Vince, who says that next week, the trash is taken out.

Overall Rating: C. They got out of Survivor Series mode here and that’s what they needed to do. There’s only so much that you can do when you have the one big story going on for so many weeks and it was time to move on. Now we have some fresh feuds and hopefully some of them can pick up the pace around here. I liked this well enough and maybe things can improve a bit as they hit December.

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

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

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

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

IMG Credit: WWE

Smackdown
Date: November 25, 2005
Location: Hallam FM Arena, Sheffield, England
Commentators: Michael Cole, Tazz

It’s the go home show for Survivor Series and that means we will probably be having some Raw appearances to hammer home the show’s main event. The brand vs. brand idea has worked out well enough so far so hopefully they can take it over the finish line well enough. Let’s get to it.

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

We open with a recap of the Smackdown vs. Raw feud, which has centered around Kane/Big Show vs. Batista.

Opening sequence.

Teddy Long is in the parking lot and tells security to be on guard for Raw.

United States Title: Chris Benoit vs. Booker T.

Booker is defending and here’s Sharmell, now in a crown, to handle his introduction. They stare and shove to start before locking up around the ropes. A drop toehold takes Booker down and frustration is setting in early. Benoit chops away in the corner but Booker kicks him in the face and grabs a front facelock. You don’t do that to Benoit, who pops up and starts chopping away again.

Booker’s sidekick misses but he drapes Benoit over the top rope instead. They fight over a suplex to the floor until Booker sends him into the corner and we take a break. Back with Booker working on the arm but Benoit hits a running should for the double knockdown. It’s Booker up first with a suplex for two and Sharmell is not happy with the speed of the count.

The armbar goes on again and Cole starts comparing the fans’ reactions between Raw and Smackdown, which actually makes sense for once. Back up and the referee gets bumped, leaving Benoit to roll the German suplexes into the Sharpshooter. Another referee comes in to see Booker make the rope. More rolling German suplexes put both of them down until Benoit heads up top. The superplex brings him back down and they interlock legs on the landing with the original referee getting up to count the double pin.

Rating: B-. These two are always good together and they had another nice match here. The ending should set up something for Survivor Series, which does have room for a few more matches to round out the card. We could be in for something good if they’re given the time on the pay per view.

Post match the argument is on so here’s Long to look at the replay. He doesn’t see either of them winning so let’s have a best of seven series for the title with the first match taking place on Sunday.

In the parking lot, JBL goes up to a white van because it must have the Raw guys inside. It’s actually the Boogeyman and freaking out ensues.

Animal/Heidenreich vs. The Dicks

It’s a brawl on the floor to start as Cole reminds us that the Dicks cost Animal and Heidenreich the Tag Team Titles a few weeks back. Heidenreich punches at James to start and then does the same to James to keep things even. A throat snap across the top puts Heidenreich in trouble and the slow beatdown is on. Heidenreich gets a boot up in the corner though and it’s off to Animal to run them over. James sprays baby oil in Animal’s eyes though and a rollup (with an assist) gives Chad the cheap pin.

Rating: D. Well at least the Animal/Heidenreich run seems to be over. The team worked for a short while and while having them hold the titles for three months was a bit much, it didn’t go on so long that it was a major problem. Then you have two guys named the Dicks and suddenly I could go for a heck of a lot more Animal/Heidenreich.

Mr. Kennedy vs. Matt Hardy

Matt grabs a headlock to start and a suplex doesn’t even get Kennedy out of trouble. Kennedy gets him on top but Hardy elbows his way to freedom. The moonsault….well it hit Kennedy’s legs but he was rolling away so I guess that counts as a miss? Kennedy puts on a chinlock with a knee in the back until Hardy fights up and hits a Russian legsweep. The Side Effect gives Hardy two so he goes up, where he has to fight out of the super Regal Roll. Hardy clotheslines him to the floor and they fight outside with Kennedy grabbing a chair. The referee tries to take it away but gets hit in the ribs instead, meaning Hardy winds by DQ.

Rating: D+. Another match that didn’t have much time to make anything work here but they’re more interesting than the people in the tag match. Kennedy continues to be protected as he still hasn’t been pinned around here. It’s nice to see them doing something with someone and Hardy getting a win might help him build up some momentum. Now if only the match could have done more than existing.

Eric Bischoff is here but can’t get through security. Long comes up and Bischoff says they’re coming.

Christy Hemme vs. Melina

MNM is here with Melina. Christy dropkicks her before the bell but Mercury shoves Christy down on the floor. That’s good for a double ejection and Christy is back on her at the bell. A hair pull lets Melina get in a backbreaker though and we hit the bow and arrow. Back up and Christy grabs a sunset flip for two but Melina is right back with a faceplant for the pin.

Rating: D. This was all about eye candy and that’s fine and good given what the two of them are capable of doing. Christy is clearly trying as hard as she can out there and she isn’t a nightmare in the ring or anything, but she’s firmly in the group of women mainly there for her looks who has a match every now and then. The effort means a lot though and that was on display here.

Batista gets taped up but Randy Orton, his challenger for later tonight, comes in to say he wants no excuses in their title match. Orton is better than the rest of Evolution, and tonight he’s proving it. Batista remembers HHH beating Orton and then Batista beat HHH. Wasn’t Orton the one who got kicked to the curb? Orton isn’t pleased as Batista leaves.

We see Nunzio winning the Cruiserweight Title at a house show in Rome.

Here are Carlito and Chris Masters carrying tickets.

Cruiserweight Title: Nunzio vs. Juventud Guerrera

Nunzio is defending, Vito and the Mexicools are outside and they forearm it out to start. Juvy hits a few chops and a spinwheel kick gets two. That’s enough to send Nunzio outside but Juvy misses a dive. The chinlock doesn’t last long as Juvy is back up with a spinwheel kick. A pumphandle driver gives Juvy two so he sends Nunzio into the corner. Nunzio tries to jump over him but gets Juvy Drivered to give Juvy the title back.

Rating: C-. They packed a decent bit into this and having the title change hands again was the right call. Nunzio winning the title for a feel good moment in Italy was fine but Juvy is a lot more important at the moment. Granted that’s on the Cruiserweight Title scale so it’s not like any of this matters compared to anything else on the show. At least it was better than some of the previous matches though.

Survivor Series rundown.

William Regal/Paul Burchill vs. John Bradshaw Layfield/Rey Mysterio

Jillian Hall is here with JBL and Mysterio. Regal and Mysterio start for what could be an interesting pairing. JBL breaks up a very early cover so Mysterio is taken into the English corner with Burchill coming in. The 619 connects and Rey Drops the Dime, followed by the Clothesline From JBL to Regal. Cue Shawn Michaels for a superkick to JBL though, followed by Carlito and Masters running in. Some Smackdown wrestlers chase them off.

Undertaker is back at Survivor Series.

Bobby Lashley vs. Orlando Jordan

Jordan doesn’t even get an entrance. He tries to jump Lashley at the bell but gets spinebustered and suplexed. The Dominator finishes Jordan in about a minute.

Smackdown security has been beaten down in the parking lot so Teddy has sent the locker room to ringside for the main event.

Smackdown World Title: Randy Orton vs. Batista

Batista is defending and heavily taped up. They stare each other down, circle a bit, lock up, and then start fighting off the invading Raw wrestlers as the match is thrown out in about a minute.

Post match the big brawl is on with Orton and Batista cleaning house until Big Show and Kane show up. It’s a double chokeslam through the announcers’ table to destroy Batista to end the show.

Overall Rating: C-. This was the kind of hyper focused show that the pay per view needed and to be fair I do want to see the show a bit more now. That main event is going to carry the show though and they made that very clear here. Hopefully they can pull that off but you never know around here. Not a very good show on its own but it did what it was supposed to do.

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

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

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

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

IMG Credit: WWE

Monday Night Raw
Date: November 21, 2005
Location: Hallam FM Arena, Sheffield, England
Attendance: 12,000
Commentators: Jonathan Coachman, Joey Styles, Jerry Lawler

Things are back to normal after last week’s Eddie Guerrero Tribute Show and as a bonus, it’s the go home show for Survivor Series. Throw in the fact that they’re taped from overseas and this is one of the more detail heavy shows in a long time. Now hopefully it’s also a good one to get things back on track. Let’s get to it.

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

We open with a recap of Raw vs. Smackdown, which wasn’t touched on last week.

Opening sequence.

Here’s Team Raw to get things going, followed by Eric Bischoff. Eric brags about the team but doesn’t like rumors about Team Smackdown showing up here tonight. He doesn’t buy it though because Smackdown saw what happened when they invade. Smackdown isn’t coming because of his soldiers and his strength but Big Show grabs the mic. He and Kane aren’t Bischoff’s anything….and Smackdown is here in the back.

Shawn and company head to the back, even as Bischoff screams about it being a setup. Post break the fight is on in a hurry. The street fight ensues with Batista being chokeslammed onto the hood of a car as security comes in for the save. As banged up as Batista’s shoulder was around this point, that would seem like a way to give him an out at Survivor Series.

Trevor Murdoch vs. Ric Flair

Non-title. Flair starts fast with a backdrop so Murdoch hammers away at him in the corner. That earns him some chops but Flair gets punched out of the air. An elbow gives Murdoch two and we hit the seated abdominal stretch. Murdoch misses the knee drop though and Flair starts in on said knee but the Figure Four is broken up. A charge misses in the corner though and Flair grabs a rollup with trunks for the pin.

Rating: C-. Just a quick match here and it’s not like losing to Ric Flair is going to hurt your career. Then again it’s not like Murdoch has anything to lose at this point as he’s half of a tag team who already lost the titles to some monsters. There wasn’t much to see here because there wasn’t much here, which is fine for a quick opener like this.

Post match HHH pops up on screen and promises to end Flair at Survivor Series.

Rob Conway vs. Tajiri

Joined in progress after a break and here’s JBL to jump both of them after literally three seconds shown.

Post match (even though there wasn’t a bell), JBL wants Chris Masters out here right now. Bischoff comes out instead and says he thought they got rid of all the trash. JBL can have a match tonight, but it’s going to be against Shawn Michaels. That’s fine with JBL, who leaves through the crowd.

Here’s a look at John Cena on MadTV.

Kurt Angle vs. Shelton Benjamin

The SUCK is still censored. There’s no referee, but here’s Daivari to take the job. After a weapons check to Shelton, we’re ready to go with Angle headlocking him to the mat. That earns him an armdrag into an armbar but Angle is right up with an overhead belly to belly. Angle stomps away and gets two off another suplex. We hit the waistlock to keep Shelton in trouble so he has to elbow his way to freedom. A running forearm and some clotheslines set up a Samoan drop to plant Angle.

Shelton flips out of a German suplex and hits a Dragon Whip to send things outside. Angle can’t hit the German suplex off the apron but Shelton can hit a DDT onto the apron. Back in and Angle grabs the ankle lock but Shelton makes the rope. Shelton makes the rope but Daivari doesn’t break the hold, nor does he count the pin when Shelton reverses into a rollup. Instead Daivari turns it over so Angle is on top for a fast counted pin, sending Joey into hysterics.

Rating: C. This was a match built around the story and that’s fine. Shelton loses again, but at least he didn’t lose clean (as if it matters to him at this point). The crooked referee thing has been done before but it’s fine for a plot device in a feud like Angle vs. Cena. Angle being the better wrestler than Cena and still needing to cheat to beat him is a good plot device and hopefully they can do something good on Sunday.

Post match, Angle talks about how he and Daivari have been abused by the people. They’re both proud Americans but these people will cheer Cena and boo Daivari? As a result, Bischoff has named Daivari as Angle’s permanent referee, including at Survivor Series. This is announced as a shock for those fans who don’t pay that much attention.

Cena pops up on screen and calls Angle a ham sandwich. He’s going on a backstage tour to find out what wrestlers think of Angle, starting in the women’s locker room. Candice drops her towel and Cena can barely talk but the other women run him off. Next up it’s Snitsky, who is rubbing Tomko’s shoulders. Snitsky: “It’s a kink!” Cena leaves, with a little vomit in his mouth.

Another door is opened and it’s the Boogeyman, who sings a little London Bridge Is Falling Down. Cena looks scared, closes the door, opens it again, and gets “My fair lady”. With that out of the way, it’s time to come into the arena so Cena can poll the fans on Angle. As luck would have it, most of them think he sucks. Angle doesn’t like it and the fight is on with Cena clearing the ring and taking off his shirt to a well received reaction.

HHH vs. Val Venis

They fight to the floor and HHH uses a chair for the DQ in about thirty seconds.

Post match, HHH unloads with the chair and adds a Pedigree (HHH: “FLAIR! FLAIR!”) for a bonus.

Undertaker is back at Survivor Series.

Candice Michelle vs. Mickie James

Victoria and Trish Stratus are the seconds. Candice hits the Go Daddy dance to start and then lays on the ropes, earning herself some chops from Mickie. A baseball slide takes out Victoria….and here are two masked men to kidnap Trish. The distraction lets Victoria get in a cheap shot so Candice can steal the pin.

Post break, the masked men have Trish tied up in the back. They unmask as MNM and Melina is here to demand a Women’s Title match at Survivor Series. After taking the tape off of Trish’s mouth, the fight seems to be set. Melina kicks Trish in the head for a bonus.

Lawler goes off to help Trish.

Survivor Series rundown.

Maria is mesmerized by Shawn Michaels’ new book Heartbreak and Triumph. Shawn comes in and says that tonight he’d rather talk about his match with JBL. Shawn: “The initial contest if you will.” It’s going to be a lumberjack match as per the GM’s orders.

Shawn Michaels vs. John Bradshaw Layfield

The rest of the Raw and Smackdown teams (minus Batista) are at ringside. Shawn slugs away to start but the threat of Sweet Chin Music sends JBL outside. He realizes that it’s right between Big Show and Kane though, meaning it’s time to go back inside. Shawn charges into a boot in the corner and JBL hammers away as the fans are behind him for a change. Weird British people.

Some chops put JBL down for two and Shawn gets two but JBL is right back with a backbreaker for the same. We hit the bearhug but Shawn it out in a hurry, only to get slammed off the top. A hard running shoulder gives JBL two more and the forearms to the back keep Shawn down. Shawn gets sent outside so Orton and company hammer away, meaning it’s a hard glare to get rid of them.

Back from a break with Shawn getting two off a sunset flip, only to be elbowed right back to the floor. Some forearms to the chest get another near fall and JBL throws him outside again. This time Big Show and Kane are there immediately so Shawn can get back in without another beating. JBL knocks him right back down and there’s the fall away slam for two.

The flying forearm connects though and the comeback is on. Instead of going with the superkick though, Shawn dives onto the lumberjacks, which just lets JBL get in a big boot back inside. Shawn knocks him down again and tries the elbow, only to get shoved down by Orton. The Clothesline From JBL misses and Sweet Chin Music connects. Everyone comes in to trade finishers but here’s a taped up Batista with a pipe to take out Big Show and Kane. A spinebuster plants show to wrap things up.

Rating: C+. JBL can be brought up to a good match and that’s what happened here. These two had some nice chemistry together as JBL can do the power stuff and Shawn has the perfect timing so it was always going to be at least decent. They did the right thing with the no contest as there is no need to have one of the big names on either team take a fall. It was the right choice for the right setting and it was even a decent match as a bonus.

Overall Rating: C-. This was a weird one as they had so many things working against them and did what they could. It didn’t help that they had to cram in an extra week of build after last week’s shows had no bearing on the storylines. Couple that with the likely jet lag and the show was only so good. However, with this many things against them, I can understand why the show had so many faults.

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

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

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

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

IMG Credit: WWE

Monday Night Raw
Date: November 14, 2005
Location: Target Center, Minneapolis, Minnesota
Attendance: 6,000
Commentators: Joey Styles, Jonathan Coachman, Jerry Lawler

And then everything changed as Eddie Guerrero passed away in a stunning moment, dying of heart failure on Sunday, November 13, 2005. As you can probably guess, everything has shut down for the time being as a result and this will not be your normal show. I’m not sure what to think about this so let’s get to it.

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

The Raw and Smackdown rosters are on the stage, complete with the low rider, with Vince McMahon saying that we are celebrating his life. Vince talks about how Eddie loved to perform and he loved to be out in front of the fans trying to steal the show. Tonight will be a tribute to Eddie, starting with a moment of silence as the bell is tolled ten times.

We get a video tribute to Eddie, set to Johnny Cash’s Hurt, edited off of the Network version of course. It finishes with a shot of Eddie’s smile, because how else could it end.

Back in the arena, Vince says VIVA LA RAZA and a lot of crying ensues.

John Cena gets the first sitdown interview talking about Eddie. He says you’ll hear from a lot of people tonight and you’ll hear them all say that Eddie was a great man. On a personal level, Eddie helped mentor Cena when he was starting and was even a father figure to him. Eddie taught him to find his heart and that isn’t something you can teach.

We see Eddie spraying Big Show with sewage.

Big Show/Kane vs. MNM

Non-title. Nitro tries to circle around Show and gets chopped hard for his efforts. Kane comes in for a running clothesline but a Melina distraction lets Mercury break up the top rope clothesline. Another distraction lets Nitro get in a belt shot for two on Kane but he sits back up. Some running kicks to the face cut him down again so he suplexes them both at once. That’s enough for the hot tag to Show and house is cleaned, including a kiss to Melina. Now Kane’s top rope clothesline connects and the double chokeslam finishes Nitro.

Rating: D+. The ratings on a show like this are going to be a lot more lax than usual as there is only so much you can complain about given the circumstances. Big Show and Kane beating anyone is acceptable enough and MNM aren’t the kind of champions who are going to win a fist fight anyway. Not a terrible match but they got in and out pretty quickly.

Lilian Garcia talks about speaking in Spanish with Eddie. Her fondest memory is being in a small group with him in Iraq last year and seeing Eddie being so humble around the troops.

Here’s Eddie auctioning off some of Kurt Angle’s stuff.

Kurt Angle vs. Shelton Benjamin

Shelton gets the college pop and slugs away at Angle to start. That just gets him suplexed and stomped in the corner, followed by the waistlock. Some backbreakers set up a reverse chinlock with a knee in the back but Shelton fights up and grabs a DDT. The comeback is on with the clotheslines into the Samoan drop.

Shelton hits the Dragon Whip for two and there’s the top rope clothesline for a bonus. The rolling German suplexes are countered into a rollup for two more but Angle clotheslines him down. Shelton catches him on top with a German superplex (with Angle almost landing on his head). That’s good for two but Angle pulls him into the ankle lock with the grapevine for the tap.

Rating: C+. This was more like the old Shelton and that’s a very good thing to see. When he was on a roll he could hang with anyone in the world, if not outright beat them, and Angle was no exception. That being said, Angle was feeling it here and that’s one of the best things you can see. It’s almost impossible to screw up Angle vs. Benjamin and they didn’t come close here.

Post match Angle holds up an Eddie armband in a nice moment.

Shawn Michaels talks about his relationship with Eddie being built around faith. His last breath here was his first breath in eternity and they will wrestle one day on the biggest stage of them all.

We get a montage of the Eddie and Chavo Lie/Cheat/Steal vignettes and they are still some of the best things from that era.

Chavo Guerrero talks about how they were uncle and nephew but really more like brothers. We hear about the two of them wrestling in intermissions of their grandfather’s shows and they had to stop because fans were watching them and not going to the concession stands. They always wanted to be Tag Team Champions and that’s what they did, with one of their first matches being against Kurt Angle and Chris Benoit. After the match, Angle came up to Chavo and said they beat them up pretty badly. They were a great team because they knew each other inside and out. Eddie was Chavo’s brother and he’ll see him again.

Shawn Michaels vs. Rey Mysterio

They’re both wearing I’m Your Papi shirts and it’s hard not to smile. We get a handshake to start and it’s Shawn working on the arm. A fight over arm control sets up a pair of kickoffs and that means a standoff. Joey brings up the good point of Shawn rarely being the bigger man, showing that even he can have some insight when he stops thinking he’s a radio announcer for ten seconds.

Shawn catapults him to the apron but Rey is back in with a springboard Thesz press for two. Mysterio tosses him outside and we take a break. Back with Shawn holding a sleeper, followed by a backbreaker and knees to the back to send Rey outside. We hit the chinlock with a knee in the back but Rey fights up, hits the Eddie dance, and dropkicks Shawn in the face for two.

Shawn hits the forearm though and Coach predicts that he’ll nip up. That’s exactly true but Shawn has to duck the 619. A clothesline gives Shawn two and he drops Rey with a second one for a bonus. There’s the top rope elbow but Sweet Chin Music misses. Instead Rey hurricanranas him into the 619 and Dropping The Dime finishes Shawn.

Rating: B-. You can only get so much out of matches like this but they did what they were supposed to do out here: entertain the fans during a trying time. Shawn isn’t going to be hurt a bit by losing to Mysterio and it’s hardly a stretch that Mysterio could beat him in the first place. This was a feel good moment and a pretty good match as well, which is all you should have expected.

Batista talks about getting close to Eddie over the last few months and how shocked he was by hearing the news this morning. Eddie was an inspiration and Batista misses him.

Battle Royal

Ashley, Maria, Christy Hemme, Victoria, Melina, Jillian Hall, Mickie James, Candice Michelle, Trish Stratus

Non-title and they’re all in Eddie shirts, which all come off at the same time for the expected reactions. Trish and Victoria wind up on top in a hurry for a slugout and Jillian dumps Mickie early. Maria knocks Jillian out and Candice gets sent to the apron, where she manages to do the Go Daddy Dance but come back in anyway. Victoria sends Christy to the apron and Candice gets the elimination but Trish headscissors Candice out. Maria gets rid of Victoria and we’re down to Maria, Trish and Victoria. Melina tosses Maria and blocks Stratusfaction to get rid of Trish for the win.

Rating: D. What else were you expecting here? The match was all about one thing and the women delivered it, albeit with a bit of a surprise winner. Battle royals are fair game for something like this and it’s not like anyone winning or losing matters in the first place, especially on a show like this one.

Rey Mysterio talks about the bond he and Eddie shared. He misses Eddie right now and wishes that this was a dream. After a pause, Rey talks about what an inspiration Eddie really was to everyone. Rey even takes the mask off as he puts his head in his hands. This is not included on the Network version.

We see the still amazing moment of Eddie and Chris Benoit at the end of Wrestlemania XX.

Simon Dean vs. Eugene

Dean offers Eugene a protein bar and the disgust lets Dean roll him up for two. An elbow misses and Eugene goes into Junkyard Dog mode for the headbutts. Hold on though as Eugene needs to go outside to play with the Dean Machine, allowing Dean to get in a shot from behind. A clothesline gets two and we hit the chinlock. That’s broken up so Eugene tries a rollup out of the corner, but Dean grabs his elastic bands. Eugene pulls him into the middle of the ring though and Dean gets slingshotted into the corner for a funny moment. The Rock Bottom finishes Dean.

Rating: D. There was no mention of Eddie here and that made it just your usual Eugene match: not overly funny (the bands bit at the end was good) and more of the same comedy stuff that we’ve seen for a long time now. There’s nothing wrong with it as they were having a comedy match, but don’t expect me to get overly excited about something I’ve seen this many times.

Eugene leaves on the Dean Machine.

And now for perhaps the saddest part of the show, Chris Benoit talks about losing his best friend. They knew each other for fifteen years and have been up and down the highways and over the mountains. Eddie would always understand and they would talk for hours a day. They would always say they loved each other and his thoughts and prayers go out to Eddie’s family. Eddie is in a better place and he misses him. Benoit breaks down in tears and thanks Eddie for everything he gave him. Knowing what is coming out of all this, that’s one of the most disturbing things you can ever see as you can feel Benoit’s heart breaking.

We see Eddie winning the WWE Championship in one of the best feel good moments of all time. Cole NAILS it on commentary here and doesn’t get enough credit for that call.

HHH talks about what an inspiration Eddie was for overcoming all of his personal demons. He starts to cry as well and talks about how much Eddie’s family meant to him. Eddie is up there lying to someone and cheating someone, but he’s already stolen all of our hearts.

Ric Flair vs. William Regal

Non-title. Flair takes him down to the mat to start and works on the leg as Jerry thinks we’ll be seeing some cheating. Regal gets Flair into the corner for some left hands and a European uppercut gets two. An abdominal stretch of all things slows Regal down but he unlaces Flair’s boot for a distraction to get himself to the rope. Regal sends him to the floor and whips Flair into the barricade. Back in and Flair hits the chop block and the Figure Four is good for the fast tap.

Rating: C-. This is one of those matches that could have been interesting on a different stage but it was always nice to see Regal go out there and do his so simple but so effective heel stuff. As usual though, the match itself wasn’t the point here, though it’s always cool to see an interesting pairing like this.

Eddie won the Intercontinental Title by accidentally pinning Chyna in a triple threat match on Raw back in 2000. He apologized after the match but then smiled quite a bit because that’s what Eddie did.

John Cena vs. Randy Orton

Non-title and Bob Orton is here with Randy (in case you thought he was here with Cena). This is actually their first singles match on the main roster, which is almost hard to believe. Orton takes Cena (in his Eddie shirt) to the mat to start but Cena is back up with an elbow to the face. Bob’s distraction lets Randy get in a shot to the face and the over the back backbreaker gets two. We hit the chinlock, followed by a big dropkick for two more. Back up and they collide for a double knockdown but it’s Cena on his feet to initiate the finishing sequence. The FU is loaded up but Bob comes in for the DQ.

Rating: C-. One more match where the result didn’t matter but it’s got a little history to it. It’s always a little interesting to see a match where you never know what it is going to lead to, as Cena and Orton would go on to have roughly 183,374 matches in their careers. You could see some of the natural dynamic here though and WWE would mike that for years to come.

Post match Cena clears the ring and hits the FU on Randy. Cena takes off the shirt and lays it in the ring, with the title on top of it, to end the show.

Overall Rating: A. I wasn’t an Eddie fan in any sense of the word. He had some good matches but I didn’t see the big deal when he passed away. Of course it was both saddening and a bit sobering to see someone taken away so suddenly, but I never thought anything of him and really did not get the big deal. I saw him as a wrestler who was praised so much because he died while still wrestling, to the point where I said he had no business being in the Hall of Fame.

Now that was a good many years ago and watching these back have made me appreciate Eddie so much more. He’s one of the few wrestlers who could make anything he did look so easy and that is a talent almost no one has. His in-ring skills were outstanding but his talking and that grin were second to none. You really could see that smile and know that you were seeing something special. I’ve gained a completely new respect for him watching the last few years back with a different eye and sweet goodness I was wrong about him back in the day. Eddie really was great and that’s something that should be very easy to see.

I’ll wrap it up with a story that CM Punk told on his big WWE DVD. Punk was in his independent promotion in Chicago and really did believe that he was the best wrestler in the world. Eddie had been fired from WWE and came in to work a match against Punk. As Punk said, the bell rang and it took him about three seconds with an actually great wrestler to know that he was nowhere near as good as he thought he was. Eddie was that talented and there weren’t many people who could hang with him. I got a little emotional watching this one and that shows you what kind of skill Eddie had. Amazing tribute, and they’re not done.

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

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

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

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

IMG Credit: WWE

Monday Night Raw
Date: November 7, 2005
Location: Allen County War Memorial, Fort Wayne, Indiana
Commentators: Jonathan Coachman, Jerry Lawler, Joey Styles

Taboo Tuesday has come and gone with the big development being Ric Flair beating HHH in something of an upset. Other than that John Cena is still Raw World Champion and in need of a next challenger. The Raw vs. Smackdown feud is certainly not done thougu and Survivor Series is coming up this month with the brand vs. brand theme. Let’s get to it.

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

Opening sequence.

Joey Styles is quickly introduced as the new commentator.

Most of the roster is around the ring and here’s Eric Bischoff for a chat. He’s looking forward to Raw vs. Smackdown at Survivor Series but he has two more matches to announce: HHH vs. Ric Flair in a Last Man Standing match and John Cena defending the Raw World Title against Kurt Angle. As for the Raw team against Smackdown, Big Show and Kane are already in, along with captain Shawn Michaels.

That leaves two spots, so someone needs to step up. Carlito says he’ll do it and promises no more Cabanas because he’s a wrestler. Shelton Benjamin: “Are you high?” Shelton says he deserves the spot so let’s have a qualifying match tonight. Trevor Murdoch thinks he and Lance Cade should be in the match and want their rematch for the titles tonight. Bischoff is game and makes it a hardcore match.

Since Bischoff is handing out matches, Gregory Helms wants one with Rosey and Mickie James wants….a round of applause for Trish Stratus. Bischoff: “Uh….yeah. Whatever.” With that out of the way, Bischoff brings in Edge and Lita because he forgot they were here. Bischoff remembers them walking out on Raw last night so he sends them to Smackdown where Edge can face Batista in a street fight this week. That sends them off, complete with the Goodbye Song.

Survivor Series Qualifying Match: Carlito vs. Shelton Benjamin

Joined in progress after a break with Carlito working on a wristlock. Shelton backdrops him to the floor in a heap though and hits a running Blockbuster off the apron. He comes up holding his knee however and it’s time to stomp away. Carlito starts cranking on the leg so Shelton gets smart by pulling on the hair to escape. A toss into the air lets Carlito crash onto his face and the comeback is on, including clotheslines.

Shelton gets two off a bridging northern lights suplex but the top rope clothesline misses. Carlito grabs a DDT for two more (Joey: “Look, his hair is standing on end!”) but Shelton is right back with a Samoan drop. A dropkick to the knee cuts Shelton down again and we hit the half crab. That’s countered into a rollup but Carlito counters the counter and grabs the rope for the pin.

Rating: D+. It’s the same pains that I’ve had for months now about Shelton and Carlito being the one to beat him makes it even worse. We’re long past the point of the pin not being clean meaning anything as this was another dull match with Carlito winning because WWE saw all of his charisma (which did exist) but nothing to go with it.

Trish Stratus tries to talk to Mickie James about Taboo Tuesday but Mickie cuts her off because they have a tag match tonight.

Trish Stratus/Mickie James vs. Victoria/Candice Michelle

Mickie and Victoria start things off and a quick low bridging from the apron sends Mickie outside. Victoria gets in an elbow to the back and Trish gets knocked off the apron to get her all annoyed. Everything breaks down and Candice is driven into Victoria in the corner. The referee gets rid of Trish but Victoria gets in a shot with Candice’s magic wand for the cheap pin.

Rating: D+. They kept it moving well enough to not be a complete disaster and the addition of Mickie is one of the best things that could have happened to the division at the moment. Trish vs. Mickie is being built up very slowly and that’s something that could make it a big deal. Now as long as they can keep interest up until the match, they could be fine, but that’s easier said than done.

Video on the Raw World Title match at Taboo Tuesday.

Video on Taboo Tuesday.

Big Show and Kane have the most scripted conversation I’ve seen from this era to establish that Kane wants to hurt Cade and Murdoch. This was awful.

Gregory Helms vs. Rosey

Rosey starts fast with some clotheslines and forearms to the back but Helms sends him face first into the middle buckle. That’s too much for Rosey who pounds him back down but misses a Vader Bomb. An enziguri (called a Shining Wizard) finishes Rosey in a hurry.

Tag Team Titles: Kane/Big Show vs. Lance Cade/Trevor Murdoch

Cade and Murdoch are challenging and this is hardcore, much to Joey’s delight. Murdoch wheels out the shopping cart full of weapons and we’re ready to go in a hurry. The threat of a kendo stick sends Cade running while Show chokes Murdoch in the corner. Show gets low bridged to the floor though and Kane gets trashcan lidded out of the air.

That’s it for Cade and Murdoch though as Show is back in, meaning it’s time to clean house in a hurry. They go outside with Murdoch getting a trashcan put over his head for a big boot from Kane. Show clotheslines Cade on the stage and it’s a double chokeslam through the announcers’ table to retain.

Rating: C-. This was as short as it should have been and they kept things in the right setup. There was no reason to go with anything other than Big Show and Kane dominating, which should be the case every time they’re in the ring. Don’t bother with anything more than the two of them wrecking people until someone steals the pin and the titles one day.

Kurt Angle comes out for a match but doesn’t like the YOU SUCK chants. He’s so upset that he says we’re doing this again and goes to the back. His music plays again and there are those chants a second time. Angle gives them ONE MORE CHANCE but then has to rant at them for not having good family values. They are abusing both the First Amendment and ANGLE HIMSELF. We hear about everything Angle has lost for these people so he’s not going to take it anymore. These people suck and he’s out of the main event tonight. Well that’s abrupt.

Post break, Bischoff says Angle can’t do that. If he needs Angle out there though, there needs to be a handpicked referee.

Here’s a bandaged HHH to sit in a chair on the stage for the next match.

Intercontinental Title: Ric Flair vs. Rob Conway

Flair is defending and insists on being introduced as “the man that beat HHH at Taboo Tuesday” to really get under HHH’s skin (Flair would be great at that kind of thing). Flair hiptosses him to start so Conway tries to pick up the pace. You don’t try to leapfrog Flair though as he’s waiting on Conway and pokes him in the eye. Conway gets in a few shots in the corner, only to have Flair go with the testicular claw and some chops. Flair’s top rope shot to the head connects and the Figure Four, with a grab of the rope of course, retains the title.

Rating: C-. Just a match here and there isn’t much to be said about the whole thing. Flair winning over Conway is fine and Conway could have been anyone at this point. They’re doing a nice job of making Flair look like he still has it and it’s not like Conway’s push was even still alive at this point.

Post match HHH is at ringside with a chain but Flair fights him into the crowd for a crash through a table.

Smackdown Rebound.

Lita flashes Bischoff to get Edge out of the street fight but he throws her out.

Shawn Michaels/John Cena vs. Kurt Angle/Chris Masters

The fans chant YOU…..something that is beeped out for one of the more annoying things you’ll see for a good while. Angle also has a guest referee with….the returning Daivari of all people. We’re joined in progress after a break with Masters pulling Shawn down by the hair for some VERY fast two counts.

Angle comes in and gets double elbowed for not even two as Daivari takes some sweet time. Cena’s release fisherman’s suplex gets one more so Cena yells a lot while tagging in Shawn. Shawn starts in on Angle’s arm as the fans are back with that chanting again. Angle gets him into the corner though and it’s back to Masters for the bearhug. Leg cranking and a forearm to knock Cena off the apron have Angle in control but he walks into a DDT.

That’s enough for the hot tag to Cena and house is cleaned in a hurry. A cheap shot from the apron lets Angle get in a backbreaker for another very fast two. Cena suplexes his way to freedom and it’s back to Shawn for the house cleaning. The top rope elbow is loaded up but Daivari doesn’t mind Masters getting in a chair shot tot he ribs. Shawn takes the chair away though and that’s a DQ.

Rating: C. Fine enough for the idea of a match like this and you can see Survivor Series from here. Part of the problem is that Angle feels like a filler feud for Cena, but he’s coming up on his third pay per view title shot. Shawn vs. Masters could continue as tension on the Survivor Series team but other than that, this isn’t exactly inspiring stuff.

Shawn and Cena get chaired down (including a shot from Daivari) to end the show with Joey losing his freaking mind.

Overall Rating: D+. I really wasn’t feeling this one as the focus was on almost everything but the Survivor Series match, leaving us focusing on either a lot of rematches or stuff that wasn’t all that interesting in the first place. I need something a little more than that to carry a show and while this wasn’t terrible, it also wasn’t all that good and I wasn’t interested in a lot of what they had going on.

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

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

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

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

IMG Credit: WWE

Taboo Tuesday 2005
Date: November 1, 2005
Location: iPayOne Center, San Diego, California
Attendance: 6,000
Commentators: Joey Styles, Jerry Lawler

It’s the second edition of this concept and this time around the card is looking a little better. This show features a double main event of John Cena defending against Kurt Angle and another challenger to be determined (it’s going to be Shawn Michaels), but the bigger match is HHH vs. Ric Flair in a violent grudge match. Flair has begged to be put in a cage and I think you know where this is going. Let’s get to it.

The opening video is all about power with HHH vs. Ric Flair getting more attention than anything else, as it should.

Joey Styles is proud to make his regular pay per view debut.

The big keyboard stage is a cool visual. Do more stuff like that please.

The first vote is to decide which two Smackdown wrestlers will face Edge and Christ Masters:

Matt Hardy – 31%

Rey Mysterio – 29%

John Bradshaw Layfield – 17%

Christian – 13%

Hardcore Holly – 10%

Other than a match that had been taped in advance, that would be Christian’s last WWE appearance until 2009.

Edge/Chris Masters vs. Matt Hardy/Rey Mysterio

Actually hold on as Lita says Edge isn’t wrestling tonight because he has nothing to gain from this. Here’s the replacement.

Snitsky/Chris Masters vs. Matt Hardy/Rey Mysterio

What a horrifying team. Masters jumps Mysterio from behind to start and Snitsky decks Matt on the floor. We start with Rey in trouble and a pair of referees (one from each show) in the ring. Snitsky’s slam gets two (each that is) so Masters hits a series of backbreakers, including one to bend Rey over his knee. The sitout bulldog is countered with a hard slam down but the chinlock doesn’t last long.

Rey gets the tag off to Matt so the place can pick up, including a Side Effect for two on Snitsky. A superplex (nearly a brainbuster) gives Matt the same with Masters having to make the save. The monsters send Matt hard into the corner though and Masters cranks on the arms to keep him down. Masters gets two off a heck of a clothesline with Rey needing to make a save.

We hit another chinlock before Snitsky goes with something more worthwhile in a hard spinebuster. It’s back to Masters for a front facelock but a missed charge gives Matt a breather. That’s broken up as well though and Snitsky goes with more sending him into the corner. Matt slips over the shoulder and gets in a reverse DDT though and now the hot tag brings in Rey.

Everything breaks down and Rey’s tornado DDT is countered into the Masterlock. Rey kicks off the ropes to flip onto Masters for two, with the Raw referee breaking up the count. Matt and Rey hit stereo dives to the floor, setting up a springboard sunset flip for two on Masters. Back up and Masters grabs a torture rack neckbreaker for the same on Rey with Matt making the save. That’s enough for Masters though and it’s a 619 into the Twist of Fate into the springboard splash for the pin.

Rating: B. The Smackdown team had potential but who would have thought that Masters and Snitsky had that in them? This was a heck of a match with a very hot finish and a much better showcase than I was expecting from these four. You can guarantee that this story isn’t over though and Survivor Series seems to be looming in a nice way.

Mick Foley and Maria’s luggage has gotten switched as Mick has lingerie and Maria has his Mankind mask. Maria: “Interesting smell!” Maria strips off screen and Mick has a nice day (their words).

Eugene needs a partner:

Jimmy Snuka – 43%

Jim Duggan – 40%

Kamala – 17%

Rob Conway/Tyson Tomko vs. Eugene/Jimmy Snuka

Eugene and Tomko start things off with the big bald gladly accepting a test of strength. That earns him alternating thrust chops to the throat but Tomko breaks up the tag to Snuka. Conway is so annoyed that he takes off his sunglasses before elbowing Eugene in the face. The chinlock goes on and a right hand breaks up the comeback attempt. Eugene finally gets in a clothesline on Conway and the diving tag brings in Snuka. The chops are on and everything breaks down. Tomko gets knocked outside and Snuka and Eugene headbutt Conway into a Rock Bottom. The Superfly Splash finishes Conway off.

Rating: D. What else were you expecting here? This was Snuka having little more than a cameo at the end of the match with Eugene working on his own. It’s fine for a short feel good match though and I can’t really get annoyed at that. It wasn’t good, but it did what it was supposed to do.

Post match Tomko goes after Snuka but Kamala and Duggan run in for the save.

Here’s who Carlito will be facing:

Mankind – 52%

Cactus Jack – 35%

Dude Love – 13%

We recap Carlito vs. Mick Foley. Believe it or not, it’s about being cool and apple spitting.

Mankind vs. Carlito

Carlito slugs away to start and hits a dropkick, only to get elbowed in the face. The Tree of Woe elbow connects and they head outside with Mankind grabbing a chair. A drop toehold sends Mankind into the chair into the steps so they head inside with Carlito snapping off a Russian legsweep.

Carlito grabs the rare standing chinlock but Mankind is out fast enough, setting up a double clothesline to put both of them down. It’s Mankind up first to hammer Carlito down in the corner and there’s the running knee to make it worse. The Bang Bang elbow to the floor connects for two back inside and Carlito is reeling. The double arm DDT into the Mandible Claw (Mr. Socko is sporting an afro) to give Mankind the win.

Rating: D. The weirdest part of this: seeing a Mick Foley match that had no stipulations and ended clean. This should tell you a lot about where Carlito is at the moment as he lost the match in pretty short order and to someone who has not been a full time wrestler in several years. It wasn’t the worst but it was little more than a workout for Foley, who didn’t need a win like this.

Vince McMahon comes in to see Eric Bischoff and is annoyed that he missed the Raw vs. Smackdown match. Eric admits that Raw lost and Vince yells at him for messing up. Vince is tired of people like Eric being around here and waiting for Vince to save them. From now on, Bischoff is on his own.

Now we get two matches at once. Here’s who is in the Raw World Title match along with John Cena and Kurt Angle:

Shawn Michaels – 46%

Kane – 38%

Big Show – 16%

Those results also give us this.

Raw Tag Team Titles: Kane/Big Show vs. Trevor Murdoch/Lance Cade

Cade and Murdoch are defending and get knocked around before the bell. Kane beats on Murdoch to start and some running clotheslines make it worse. Murdoch actually gets in his own clothesline and brings Cade in, so Kane drags him over to Show instead. Well so much for that plan. Show comes in for the chop but it’s off to Murdoch, who completely fails with the kicks to Show’s ribs.

Rating: D+. Cade and Murdoch were almost squashed here but what are you expecting against Big Show and Kane? They’re the kind of team who are going to dominate things for a good while and really, who else were Cade and Murdoch supposed to face? The fact that we were less than a month into their reign and they were already at that point isn’t a good sign, but there hasn’t been much good for the Tag Team Titles in a long time.

Post break Murdoch tries to interrupt an interview and gets double chokeslammed as well.

Coach gives Vader and Goldust a pep talk because this could lead to him winning the WWE Championship.

The Divas come out in robes so we can find out what they will be wearing:

Lingerie: 43%

Leather and Lace: 32%

Cheerleaders: 25%

We recap Coach/Goldust/Vader vs. Batista. This was going to be Steve Austin vs. Coach but since Austin isn’t a complete numskull, he walked out before he had to put Coach over. This was going to be about Jim Ross’ job but since Austin isn’t a factor, that has been dropped.

First though, what kind of match are they having:

Street fight: 91%

Verbal debate: 6%

Arm wrestling: 3%

Jonathan Coachman vs. Batista

Non-title and Vader and Goldust are officially in Coach’s corner but they start the match in the ring because they actually understand the rules. Coach hides on the floor while the other two beat Batista down in the corner. That earns Goldust a spear so Coach comes in for some reason, earning himself a knockdown.

Coach’s kendo stick doesn’t work but Vader and Goldust take Batista down for a whipping with a belt. This time though Batista powers up and beats all three of them with the belt (Joey: “Batista is doing to Coach what Coach does to commentary every Monday night!”). With Goldust and Vader down, the Batista Bomb ends Coach in a hurry.

Rating: D. Batista has been presented as smart since his singles push began and he was intelligent again here, earning a pay per view payday for a pretty nothing match. That being said, there was no reason to have it be anything else, with Vader and Goldust being higher level lackeys but still lackeys nonetheless.

Shawn Michaels is ready to win the title but here’s Kurt Angle to say they should team up on John Cena and then find out who the best man is. Shawn will think about it, mainly because it’s not a bad plan.

Women’s Title: Battle Royal

Trish Stratus, Ashley, Candice Michelle, Mickie James, Victoria, Maria

Trish is defending and everyone is in lingerie (Victoria may or may not be, as her gear is close enough). An early Stratusphere attempt almost has Trish eliminated so Mickie makes a save. Maria runs Candice over and poses, but Mickie and Trish toss her out without much trouble. Candice triangle chokes Ashley over the ropes and gets eliminated as well, followed by Trish getting planted by Victoria’s spinning side slam.

Victoria fights off elimination again and catapults Ashley out with ease. Trish and Victoria fight to the apron so Mickie makes another save. The Matrish is broken up with a knee to the ribs but Mickie spears Victoria through the ropes for the sacrificial elimination to retain Trish’s title.

Rating: D. This is a great example of “it was what it was”. There was no point to this one other than the eye candy and that’s all well and good. Trish and Mickie are at least having some kind of a story and that’s more than what you would usually get int his division. You can only run Trish vs. Victoria so many times and we are long past that point. Not a good match from a quality standpoint, but I have no idea why you would expect one.

Post match Mickie cuts off Trish’s interview to talk about how awesome Trish is. Trish seems annoyed as she leaves.

We recap HHH vs. Ric Flair for the Intercontinental Title in what might as well be the real main event. HHH came back from a hiatus and destroyed Flair, because he thought Flair was settling for mediocrity when Flair was happy being Intercontinental Champion. The attack sent Flair over the edge and he was his old self again, swearing revenge against HHH. Flair has begged for a cage match and I think you know where this is going.

So where is this going?

Steel cage: 83%

Submission match: 13%

One fall to a finish: 4%

Intercontinental Title: Ric Flair vs. HHH

Flair is defending in a cage. They stare each other down to start until the first chop in the corner annoys HHH. Flair fights out of the other corner and isn’t taking anything from HHH early on. A spinebuster works much better for HHH and he sends Flair into the cage to bust him open (that took longer than I thought). HHH’s look at Flair of “I have to do this” is great and he makes it better by raking his face over the cage.

The knee pad is lowered and, after a WOO, the bare knee hits Flair’s head. HHH goes up top to escape but Flair makes the stop and chops away in the corner. That means a double crotching and they’re both down again. HHH goes up top again and finds a chain, only to dive into a raised boot. Flair tries a quick Figure Four but gets punched with the chain for two. Flair is COVERED in blood so HHH hammers away in the corner, setting up the Flair Flop.

The Figure Four makes Flair scream but he flips HHH off and turns it over. Another Figure Four attempt is kicked into the cage and HHH is busted this time. That wakes Flair up and he unloads on HHH, including a big bite of the forehead. Lawler: “It’s getting a little bit easier to watch!” The head is raked across the cage and a knee drop to the head connects as Flair is doing everything HHH did to him. It’s time to go after the leg as only Flair can, including the Figure Four.

HHH finally sends the referee into Flair for the break so Flair goes up….and hits the shot to the head for two. That always feels special, as does Flair’s signature HARD low blow. Flair goes to the door with HHH making the save, though Flair does bring a chair back in with him. A testicular claw lets Flair hammer away and he backdrops HHH onto the chair, followed by a shot to HHH’s head. Some more chair shots to the head have fans gasping and Flair escapes through the door to retain in an upset.

Rating: A-. I’ve seen this match a few times before and it keeps getting better. This was an amazing story of HHH beating Flair down and giving him everything he had but drawing out the legendary Flair for one more night. It was a situation of “I taught you everything you know, but I didn’t teach you everything I know” and the violence made it even better. Outstanding stuff here and I loved every bit of it despite not being a huge Flair fan.

We have a new record for Taboo Tuesday voting, smashing that whole one other time they’ve done this. Years later, WWE would probably include talking heads bragging about it in a documentary.

Raw World Title: John Cena vs. Kurt Angle vs. Shawn Michaels

Cena is defending and Angle knocks Shawn outside so he can go after the champ. That earns Angle a suplex for one as Shawn is right back in for a save. Shawn stomps Cena down and covers Angle for two as Cena makes a save of his own. Everyone hits everyone else until Cena backdrops Angle over the top. Shawn’s clothesline puts Cena in the corner but Angle is back in for the German suplexes.

No one can hit a finisher so Shawn and Angle get together and pound Cena down. Cena gets sent shoulder first into the post and out to the floor but instead of fighting each other, the other two follow him out. There goes the Spanish announcers’ table and now it’s time for Shawn vs. Angle. Shawn gets hammered in the corner and a suplex gives Angle two. The bodyscissors keeps Shawn in trouble and Angle throws on a chinlock for a bonus.

Shawn turns around to escape so Angle runs him over without much trouble. Angle gets knocked off the top but runs the corner for the super Angle Slam and two more. It’s Cena back in for the high impact clotheslines to both with the second putting Angle on the floor. The Shuffle is broken up as Angle pulls Cena outside so Shawn hits a big flip dive onto Angle for a huge crash.

Everyone gets back in and Shawn forearms Cena down but Angle suplexes him to the floor again. Cena is back up with the Shuffle to Angle but the FU is countered into the ankle lock. The grapevine even goes on until Shawn takes way too much time to make the save via the top rope elbow. Sweet Chin Music hits Angle but Shawn walks into the FU to retain Cena’s title.

Rating: B. This was much more about Shawn vs. Angle but Cena did well enough to make things work well on his end. At the end of the day, Cena is very good but he’s not at this level yet and it’s ok to have the other two do most of the heavier lifting. It’s a heck of a match though and Cena getting another big win will only enhance his star power, which is what matters the most right now.

Cena can’t stand on the ankle to end the show.

Overall Rating: B-. The opener and two main events carry this thing and make up for the horrible middle section, which was little more than a disaster. In other words, if this was an In Your House, it could have been a near classic. What we got was good enough as the middle section is full of short matches, but the cage match is great and the main event worked well. The gimmick still doesn’t work very well and the Tuesday thing adds nothing, but the good matches made this work rather well.

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

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

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

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

IMG Credit: WWE

Smackdown
Date: April 3, 2020
Location: WWE Performance Center, Orlando, Florida
Commentator: Michael Cole

While it might not feel like it, this is the go home show for Wrestlemania. The show is again taped, and maybe now that we are only twenty two hours away from the start of the show, we can get some kind of information about the changed World Title match. I mean it’s not like it’s that important or anything. Let’s get to it.

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

Opening sequence.

There are ladders around the arena and it’s time for MizTV, but here are the Usos instead. They aren’t waiting to be invited out here because it’s time for them to win the Tag Team Titles at Wrestlemania. Cue the New Day to say not so fast because it’s time for them to enter the annals (Big E: “Hehe annals.”) of history by winning the titles again. The fight is about to start but here are Miz and Morrison to interrupt.

Miz talks about how New Day and the Usos will destroy each other, allowing he and Morrison to retain. They climb the ladders and say BE JEALOUS but New Day and the Usos run up the ramp so the brawl can be on in a hurry. The ladders are knocked over and, just as Miz said, New Day and the Usos beat each other up, allowing the champs to pose.

Naomi vs. Lacey Evans vs. Tamina

Sasha Banks and Bayley are on commentary. Tamina cleans house to start and we take a very early break. Back with Tamina getting one on Naomi but Lacey comes back in to take over. The slingshot Bronco Buster connects as Sasha and Bayley no sell questions about turning on each other at Wrestlemania. Sasha gets up and sends Lacey into the steps, leaving Naomi to sunset flip Tamina for two. A Samoan drop gives Tamina two so Bayley offers a quick distraction, allowing Tamina to superkick Naomi for the pin at 8:24.

Rating: D+. This was your “hey Tamina really could win” match, followed by everyone collectively laughing. She’s in the match to get it up to a higher number, though I’m still not entirely sure why she’s on the roster. Nothing to see here of course, but at least they got the Tamina stuff out of their system tonight.

Post match Bayley tries to make amends with Tamina and gets superkicked. Sasha tries the same and gets Samoan dropped.

Tucker is warming up when the circle of lights pops up. This time the words “THE TRUTH WILL BE TOLD” flashes up on screen.

From Wrestlemania XXIV:

Ric Flair vs. Shawn Michaels

Flair has the blue robe one more time and while I’m still a fan of the black and white one, I can’t help but smile at seeing the classic look again. Shawn shoulders him down to start and it’s clear that they’re going to have all the time they want here. They trade some hammerlocks with Shawn getting the better of it on the mat. That’s broken up as well and we get the first WOO.

The chops in the corner let Flair yell about Old Yeller but Shawn slaps him in the face and asks if that’s all he has. An exchange of chops in the corner goes to Flair (as it should) but Shawn elbows him in the jaw and goes up. This time Flair slams him off the top and goes up…..for a crossbody into a near fall! You would think that would get more of a reaction but he has to fail at an early Figure Four attempt.

Shawn kicks him to the floor and tries an Asai moonsault, which only hits the announcers’ table, with his ribs landing on the edge which doesn’t break (I’ve seen that many times and it draws a very real cringe). That’s only good for a nine count and Shawn can barely move because of the ribs. A belly to back suplex gives Flair two and he manages a delayed vertical for the same. Note: Charles Robinson (Little Naitch) is referee here and for some reason he’s in a Smackdown shirt. Yeah he’s a Smackdown referee, but you can’t just throw him in a Raw shirt for the occasion?

Flair’s neckbreaker gets two more but Shawn sends him outside. That means a moonsault to the floor which takes Flair out and bangs up the ribs even more. They chop it out back inside and it’s Shawn’s forearm into the nipup as the pace picks up a bit. A slam drops Flair and Shawn’s top rope elbow connects, meaning it’s time to Tune of the Band. Shawn can’t bring himself to do it though and Flair grabs the legs and slaps on the Figure Four in the middle of the ring.

The hold is turned over and they load up the bridge into the backslide….but Flair just can’t do it anymore so they go into a rollup instead. It’s time for the chop block and NOW the Figure Four is on for real. Shawn crawls to the rope so Flair stomps away some more until the referee drags him away. That’s enough of a delay for Shawn to hit Sweet Chin Music for a very close two and the fans go nuts on the kickout.

Shawn loads it up again but stops to tell Flair to get up. That means a low blow (again, you knew he was getting that in somehow) for two more and the fans really bought the near fall. To mix things up a bit, Shawn sweeps the legs and tries a reverse Figure Four (thank goodness it wasn’t a Sharpshooter) to send Flair bailing to the ropes this time.

A rollup with tights gets two and they chop it out from their knees. The chops bring them to their feet and Shawn hits another superkick to put Flair down. There’s no cover though as Shawn goes into the corner and Flair slowly gets up. Shawn says the now legendary I’m Sorry, I Love You and superkicks Flair one more time, this time for the pin at 20:34.

Rating: B+. I don’t remember truly liking this one before and that’s because there are different ways to look at it. It’s hard not to look at a match like this through the emotional lens but if you take that away (which you kind of have to given that Flair wound up wrestling again), it’s actually a heck of a match with all of the old Flair tropes thrown in. Those worked for so long because it’s a great formula that can work against anyone. When you add in Shawn’s second to none abilities, there was no way this wouldn’t be outstanding.

The problem though is that Flair just can’t do a lot of this stuff anymore. He’s trying as hard as he can and what he could still do was good, but seeing him not be able to bridge up anymore was rather sad because it’s something he’s done for so many years before. I don’t remember liking this match that much but it really is a strong one, even ignoring all the other things added to it.

Post match Shawn leaves the ring and a crying Flair gets to his feet for one of the best standing ovations you’ll ever see. This is more than deserved and while he should have retired a long time ago (you could argue all the way back in the 90s), he was far from embarrassing himself and someone as influential, successful and downright talented as he was should absolutely get this kind of a sendoff. And for those who are wondering why, this was originally going to close the show but Flair refused and insisted it go in the middle.

We look back at Elias being attacked last week.

Goldberg is now defending against Braun Strowman. No reason is given and the match is just changed.

Otis tells Tucker to leave him a little piece of Dolph Ziggler. Tucker says he ran into Mandy Rose earlier and she asked about him. Otis gets a text and is rather happy before running off.

Tucker vs. Dolph Ziggler

No Otis this time. Tucker runs him over to start and the fight is on in a hurry, including some kicks to Ziggler’s ribs. A quick shot puts Tucker down for the jumping elbow but he’s right back up with a big boot. Ziggler’s DDT out of the corner puts them both down and we take a break. Back with Tucker slugging away and knocking Ziggler outside. That means a ram into the barricade and a side slam gets two back inside. They head outside again and this time it’s a Zig Zag onto the steps for the DQ at 9:17.

Rating: D+. This is the latest part of your soap opera story around here and that’s not the best thing in the world. Otis vs. Ziggler could be entertaining but at the same time, it’s not the kind of match that I need to see at WrestleMania. Ziggler probably could have won here and then taken Tucker out but it could have been a lot worse.

Post match Ziggler loads up the steps but Mandy Rose and Sonya Deville appear to break it up with Otis making the real save. The Truth Will Be Heard appears again and this time we go to a control room. Someone whose face we can’t see says he told us the truth will be heard. He plays a video from Valentine’s Day showing Mandy talking to Sonya.

After Mandy leaves to do something, Sonya picks up Mandy’s phone and sends Otis a text, saying she’ll be late. We see Otis saying that sounds great and Sonya deletes both messages. Sonya then talks to Ziggler, saying both of them will get what they want. Back in the arena, Mandy walks away from Sonya. Otis chases Dolph out as well. Eh GTV could be fun back in the day so this should work.

Post break, Mandy won’t talk to Sonya.

Daniel Bryan vs. Shinsuke Nakamura

Cesaro and Drew Gulak are at ringside while Sami Zayn is on commentary. They fight over arm control to start until Bryan dropkicks him to the floor the running baseball slide sets up Bryan’s running knee from the apron and Nakamura is down. Back in and Bryan hits a running dropkick in the corner, only to get knocked off the middle rope. Nakamura’s middle rope knee to the chest gets two and the sliding German suplex in the corner takes us to a break.

Back with Bryan still in trouble as Nakamura kicks away at the chest. Bryan kicks away and goes for the arm, followed by even more kicks to stagger Nakamura again. The YES Lock is countered and Nakamura pulls him into a blocked cross armbreaker. That’s reverses into another armbreaker from Bryan (Sami: “HOW DID HE DO THAT???”) which is switched into the LeBell Lock. Cesaro runs in for the DQ at 11:39.

Rating: C+. This was the first match all night that felt like something worth watching. Bryan and Nakamura are a great pairing and can have a solid match against each other, which is what we got here. They had some time and while Bryan getting the tap out would have been a bit better, this was the best match of the night by a mile.

Video on the Fiend vs. John Cena.

Here’s Cena for the big closing segment. Cena thanks the fans for getting us here and now we are less than one day until Wrestlemania. The thing is, no one knows what is going to happen, including Bray Wyatt himself. See, no one, including Bray, will tell him what a Firefly Fun House match is. Fear can lead to panic and panic can lead to collapse. The Fiend feeds on fear and panic and here we are. Cena will not be afraid and the poor man’s Mr. Rogers isn’t scaring him.

Goldberg has shown how to beat the Fiend and now the Fiend has made this happen. Cena promises a beating but here are the Firefly Fun House characters, saying that after Fiend is done with Cena, he’ll play with them forever. They say forever over and over again until Ramblin Rabbit says he’s here. The lights go out and the Fiend appears in the crow’s nest. Bray himself pops up behind Cena to say let him in. The lights go out again and Cena is alone to end the show.

Overall Rating: C-. This didn’t add much to Wrestlemania but then again it’s not like this is the kind of show that really needs to. Not this year at least, as nothing else makes sense this time around. The announcement of Strowman replacing Reigns was laughably bad as there was no build or explanation, but other than that we had some perfectly fine building for the matches. I don’t really want to see anything more than I did coming in though and the wrestling was mostly weak, but it could have been a lot worse.

Results

Tamina b. Lacey Evans and Naomi – Superkick to Naomi

Tucker b. Dolph Ziggler via DQ when Ziggler slammed Tucker into the steps

Daniel Bryan b. Shinsuke Nakamura via DQ when Cesaro 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