IMG Credit: WWE

Monday Night Raw
Date: April 17, 2006
Location: Savvis Center, St. Louis, Missouri
Attendance: 16,108
Commentators: Jonathan Coachman, Jerry Lawler, Joey Styles

We are less than two weeks away from Backlash and that means it’s probably time for another handicap match this week. The three way feud between Edge, John Cena and HHH continues, which makes it a lot easier to sit through than Vince McMahon/Shane McMahon vs. Shawn Michaels/God. Let’s get to it.

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

Opening sequence.

Here is Vince McMahon to get things going. Vince: “The question is, will Mr. McMahon go to h***?” Vince was asked that last week by Shane and tonight he needs to set the record straight. The answer is no, because he was there this morning when his driver got lost and he wound up in east St. Louis. He respects all religions and tonight he is going to announce his own. That would be McMahonism, which is based on the principle that he is lord and master of all sports entertainment. Everyone involved with wrestling will worship him, whether you are in the ring or if you buy a ticket.

That makes McMahon wonder what would happen if McMahonism had been around at various points in history. We see a version of Michelangelo’s The Creation Of Adam with McMahon in the middle, with McMahon of course talking about his endowment. Then we have Moses coming down Mt. Cyanide carrying the Ten Commandments while McMahon has his Muscle and Fitness cover. There are some commandments of McMahonism as well. These include screw unto others, do not covet they neighbor’s wife unless she is really hot.

Back to the photos, with McMahon at the Last Supper. Or what if McMahonism went to Asia? That means a photo of him with a statue of Buddha. And another one at Shea Stadium with the Pope. The fans accurately describe this as boring so Vince talks about how we are in America where there are various freedoms. Tonight, Vince allows everyone to join his church.

Shawn Michaels certainly will not convert, but at Backlash, Shawn will worship at Vince’s feet. If he is lying, strike him down right here in this ring. Vince promises to beat Shawn tonight but here’s Shawn to superkick him and throw in a crotch chop for good measure. The joke went on WAY too long here, even though it wasn’t as long as some of the other opening segments. It wasn’t funny in the first place and then they just kept going with it, making things even worse.

Post break Vince yells at HHH for calling him an old man last week. Tonight, HHH vs. John Cena/Edge.

Rob Conway vs. Kane

Conway says he’s sick of being treated so badly and is then chokeslammed for the pin in less than a minute.

Post match Kane goes outside and grabs Lilian Garcia by the throat for mentioning May 19. Big Show, in workout pants for a weird look, comes out for the save. That means a chokeslam to Kane, who sits up and smiles.

We recap Chavo Guerrero failing to win the Intercontinental Title two weeks ago and quitting as a result.

Chavo has a sitdown interview with Jim Ross. Maybe he made a hasty decision, but the more he thinks about it, the less sure he is. He made a promise to his friends, family and to Eddie Guerrero. The loss summed everything up and JR asks if quitting is honoring Eddie’s memory. Chavo thinks Eddie would have been disgusted by his loss so maybe he should go get a real estate license. JR doesn’t buy this but Chavo says his career is at an end. They shake hands but JR doesn’t seem convinced.

Coach takes over as ring announcer as Lilian is traumatized.

Shelton Benjamin vs. ???

Non-title and if Benjamin wins, the Money in the Bank contract is on the line at Backlash but if Haas wins, the title is on the line. The mystery opponent is….the returning Charlie Haas, meaning Benjamin looks like he has seen a ghost. Charlie German suplexes the look off of his face and snaps off some armdrags to keep Shelton in trouble. A clothesline puts Shelton on the floor and Haas chops away against the apron. Charlie: “DID YOU FORGET ABOUT ME???” Well yeah kind of.

Back in and Shelton gets in a running clothesline to cut Haas down, followed by a hard whip into the steps. The chinlock goes on back inside but Haas fights up, only to miss a dropkick. A belly to back drops Haas again and Shelton does the Rob Van Dam finger point to set up his own Rolling Thunder. Shelton has to bail out of his own Five Star though and Haas grabs a rollup for the surprise pin.

Rating: C-. Haas was looking intense here and the match wasn’t bad at all, but it is rarely a good idea to have a champion lose clean, especially when he is heading into a big match against someone else. Throw in that Shelton doesn’t have the best record over the last few months and I wasn’t wild on the pin here. They certainly did have a surprise though and Haas looked good enough.

During the break, Maria held the Kiss Cam. That is all.

Armando Alejandro Estrada comes in to see Vince McMahon and, because he is a follower of McMahonism, he offers Umaga to face Shawn Michaels tonight. Vince says it’s next so Estrada leaves. Shelton Benjamin comes in to say he saw the light that led him straight to the office. Benjamin drops to a knee and says only McMahon can save him. Vince: “I do kind of like people on their knees before me.” Shelton looks a little unsure. And moving on, thank goodness.

Umaga vs. Shawn Michaels

We take a look back at the opening segment and we’re ready to go. Shawn sticks and moves to start until Umaga blasts him with a clothesline. A kick to the chest puts Shawn on the floor and here’s Vince to watch in person. More shots to the chest have Shawn sailing over the announcers’ table and a running knee drop crushes him again back inside. The falling headbutt makes it worse but Umaga charges into a boot in the corner.

Umaga knocks him straight back down but misses the running hip attack in the corner. The forearm puts Umaga down and there’s the nip up into the top rope elbow. Estrada breaks up Sweet Chin Music and Umaga sends Shawn into the Tree of Woe for the running headbutt. Another running headbutt connects and Umaga chokes away for the DQ.

Rating: C. They didn’t do anything wrong here as it advanced the story, kept Shawn from taking a loss and gave Umaga a dominant performance. It wouldn’t make a ton of sense for someone presented as a savage to care about a disqualification so the ending is as logical as they could have had. Good enough here, especially for such a short match.

Post match Umaga beats Shawn down some more but Vince calls him off from using the Samoan Spike. Vince wants to do this himself and ties Shawn in the ropes. He goes to grab a chair….and an explosion comes out of the ring post. Then another explosion comes out of another post, sending a worried Vince running. Another explosion goes off on the stage and now we have a wall of fire keeping Vince from the ring. We officially have divine intervention.

Vince sped away in the limo during the break.

This Week In Wrestling History, Rock held a funeral for Steve Austin and revealed that he still had the Smoking Skull Title. As a result, Austin crushed Rock’s Lincoln Continental with a monster truck.

Here’s Matt Striker for Striker’s Classroom. He says what we just saw from Austin and Rock is everything wrong with this nation today. Students at his school in New York couldn’t even tell him about the Bill Of Rights so imagine how bad it is here in St. Louis. Everyone is so obsessed with being cool and being like Nelly or whomever that is rather than learning about Nixon. Everyone here gets an F, but here is Carlito to interrupt. The fans are rather pleased to see Carlito, but he isn’t happy that Striker STOLE HIS APPLE.

Teachers didn’t get him back in the day and kept sending him to detention, so he spat the teacher’s apple in his face. Carlito thinks Striker looks like his old teacher so let’s do it again. Striker has an analogy for him (Carlito: “Anal what?”) and it involves giving Carlito a beating. The fight is on but here’s Chris Masters with the Masterlock to Carlito. I never cared for Carlito as a heel so maybe the face turn can help him a bit.

Rob Van Dam vs. Spirit Squad

The Money in the Bank briefcase has been spray painted for a change. Speaking of the Money in the Bank briefcase, it is on the line along with the Intercontinental Title at Backlash should Van Dam lose here. Van Dam tries to send the Squad outside as fast as he can but they finally get him down. The High Spirits (appropriate) set up the guillotine legdrop for the pin in just over a minute.

Trish Stratus, as Mickie James, has a surprise for the real Mickie James.

There is a big gift box in the ring for James (Where do you buy those things?) and here’s Trish (as Mickie, complete with entrance and outfit) to remind us of the time where Mickie gave Trish a present just before Wrestlemania. Since Trish is going to be challenging Mickie at Backlash, she has a gift for her this time around. Cue Mickie, as Trish, to sound rather nervous about what could be in the box.

Trish insists though and it’s….Trish’s boyfriend Jack, tied to a chair. Trish ungags him and he says that he thinks “both of you b****** are crazy.” With the gag put back in, Trish sits down on his lap (the fans seem to approve) and says if Mickie is really Trish, she’ll be worried right now, but if she’s really Mickie, this means nothing.

Trish: “Ya dig?” Mickie: “GET YOUR FILTHY HANDS OFF MY BOYFRIEND!” Trish leaves so Mickie (seemingly with some issues of her top not holding up) helps Jack…who she accuses of cheating on her and kicks him in the head. That’s not how it played out when Mary Ann thought she was Ginger on Gilligan’s Island so I’m completely lost.

HHH comes up to Edge and Lita in the back with Edge promising to pin HHH tonight. HHH says it’s possible, unless John Cena does something about it. What has Edge done about Cena taking his title? Think about it.

Here’s the See No Evil trailer, plus some people in the crew talking about the movie. This isn’t on the Network of course.

We look back at Kane snapping on Lilian Garcia.

Backlash rundown, including Big Show vs. Kane.

John Cena/Edge vs. HHH

Lita is here as well. HHH jumps Cena to start and Edge is more than happy to start on the apron. Cena is back up with the whips into the corner and the release fisherman’s suplex for two. A back elbow cuts Cena off though and the fans are VERY pleased. HHH throws in a crotch chop before dropping the knee for two but Cena is back up with the clotheslines.

The Shuffle is countered with a spinebuster though and now Edge is willing to tag himself in. Edge gets in a shot to Cena but then walks into a spinebuster of his own. There’s the facebuster but Edge goes old school with a spinwheel kick. Cena is back in to suplex Edge and the referee gets bumped. HHH whips out the sledgehammer and lays out Cena but walks into the spear to give Edge the pin.

Rating: D+. Just like last week, the wrestling wasn’t the point here and that’s ok. I can go with everyone going for the mind games and getting the pins, as they at least have some bearing on what we will be seeing at Backlash. The falls don’t mean anything about elevating everyone and in this case, that’s an acceptable situation.

Overall Rating: C. The McMahonism stuff is going to be hit or miss for everyone and that’s understandable given the subject matter and how over the top it is. It is rather dumb, but Vince can make something like this work and is certainly trying to do so. Other than that though, Backlash is still a two match show, though Mickie vs. Trish is so goofy and borderline insane that I’m liking it more every week. They’re doing well enough for a show that is nothing but Wrestlemania fallout though and that’s a nice surprise.

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: August 24, 2020
Location: Amway Center, Orlando, Florida
Commentators: Tom Phillips, Byron Saxton, Samoa Joe

It’s a triple threat tonight, but mainly because of WWE’s weird scheduling. Tonight is the Raw debut of the Thunderdome, the fallout show from Summerslam and the go home show for Payback. Since we have less than six days to get ready for the pay per view, expect a lot of matches to be announced in a hurry. Let’s get to it.

Here is Summerslam if you need a recap.

Opening sequence.

Here’s what’s coming on the show.

Commentary talks about Roman Reigns’ return. At Payback, it’s Reigns vs. Strowman vs. the Fiend in a No Holds Barred triple threat match for the title.

Here’s WWE Champion Drew McIntyre for a chat (including a bunch of pyro in the stands, seemingly lighting a lot of people on fire). After a long video on his successful title defense over Randy Orton last night, Drew asks for a thumbs up from all of the fans in the Thunderdome. McIntyre thinks that’s cool and says retaining the title was cool too. He knows what it’s like to have to climb up to the top of the mountain and become WWE Champion.

Orton has been one of the best for a long time now but last night, Drew was that much better. Drew remembers Orton winning a match called the Greatest Wrestling Match Ever but then Drew beat him, so what does that mean? Anyway, Drew can’t wait for his next challenger and if that’s Orton, so be it, because he’d love to take Orton to Claymore Country. Drew goes to leave but Orton jumps him from behind and they fight into the gorilla position. Orton rakes the eyes and send him into a wall, followed by the Punt. Referees and agents come in but Orton manages another Punt to leave McIntyre cold.

Post break McIntyre is being helped up but shoves everyone away, insisting that he is fine.

Video on Keith Lee.

Nia Jax doesn’t like a question about how she’s still here but it was easy to get around her suspension. All she had to do was get Pat Buck alone and….apologize of course. Get your mind out of the gutter. Shayna Baszler pops up to say it’s a matter of time before Nia gets suspended again. She makes a Haystacks Calhoun reference (Shayna: “Oh sorry. At least he was good looking.”) so Nia says Shayna looks like something out of the Addams Family. So we have a guy who passed away 31 years ago and a television series that has been off the air for about 55 years. And they wonder why they can’t get younger fans to watch.

Bayley vs. Shayna Baszler

Sasha Banks is with Bayley and here’s Nia Jax to watch, with a break coming before the bell. Shayna knocks her into the corner to start and Bayley is taken to the mat for some arm cranking. Bayley fights up and is quickly forearmed down, setting up a running knee in the corner. A triangle choke goes on so Sasha teases coming in to get Bayley out of trouble. Bayley finally sends Baszler outside and Nia jumps Baszler for the DQ at 5:31.

Rating: C-. This didn’t get to go anywhere but hey, at least we’re getting more from Nia Jax, because it has been a good while since she got to do her….whatever it is that she does. Something about being the Rock’s cousin or something I’m sure, because that’s enough of an excuse to have her come out there and do the same thing over and over and over and over.

Post match the beating is on with Banks and Bayley’s encouragement….until Baszler and Jax stop to glare at them. So there’s Payback, because we’re so lucky that way.

Kevin Owens goes to see Aleister Black before the Kevin Owens Show later. Owens opens the dressing room door and talks to Black, who doesn’t actually say anything or appear, though his hand does pull the door closed after Owens leaves.

Here’s Owens for the Kevin Owens Show and he finds the fans wonderful. He wastes no time in bringing out Aleister Black, who has a wrap around his right eye thanks to Buddy Murphy attacking him last month. Black looks at the steps but hesitates and comes in underneath the middle of the ropes instead. Owens isn’t sure what to talk about so Black says let’s just show the clip of him getting his eye taken out.

Back with Owens talking about how Seth can get under your skin….and Black starts grabbing his eye and falling to a knee. Owens wants medics out here but Black pops up with Black Mass to take him down and leave. The heel turn is a fine idea as brooding Black with the deadly finisher could go a long way.

Bayley and Banks are ready to retain Banks’ title and then deal with Jax and Baszler.

24/7 Title: R-Truth vs. Akira Tozawa vs. Cedric Alexander vs. Shelton Benjamin

Shelton is defending and Truth is the only one to get an entrance. Everyone goes for rollups to start until Alexander unloads on Benjamin. The anklescissors sends Benjamin into the corner but Alexander’s springboard is broken up with a knee to the face. Truth’s ax kick misses Shelton but he has to powerbomb Tozawa onto the Ninjas. Tozawa throws Truth outside as well though and rolls Truth up for the pin and the title at 1:37.

Post match Benjamin beats up the Ninjas while Tozawa runs away.

Randy Orton cares about what McIntyre said about him.

We look back at Orton attacking McIntyre.

Here’s Orton for a chat. Orton talks about doing whatever he wants to whomever he wants but that wasn’t the case last night. He promised everyone that he was going to RKO McIntyre and then kick him in the skull to take the title…but he didn’t. Orton is a lot of things and he has proven that he will always be the Legend Killer. He has killed a lot of legends recently and that’s what he was doing earlier when he kicked McIntyre twice in a row. Earlier tonight, Drew came out here and offered him a rematch out of pity. Does McIntyre know who he is?

He is Randy Orton….and here’s Keith Lee. Orton isn’t sure what to think of this so Lee says Orton looks perplexed. Lee: “Greetings and salutations Mr. Orton.” Lee thought Orton might want to take this chance to bask in his glory. Orton has been called a lot of things over the years, as has Lee, but the only thing that is true is that Lee is limitless. The challenge is issued for right now and Orton says….maybe later. I can go for more of Lee and I’ll take this over squashing some jobber.

Charly Caruso talks about what we just saw and Drew McIntyre but overhears Zelina Vega, Angel Garza and Demi (Did WWE ever bother to say why she’s here every week? I get that she’s part of the story now but why was she even here in the first place?). Charly asks if Vega is ready to admit that she poisoned Montez Ford but Vega yells about how the footage proves nothing. She leaves and Angel invites Demi to the ring with her for his match. Charly is invited too but seems disgusted.

Montez Ford vs. Angel Garza

Andrade, Demi and Dawkins are all here. Before the match, the Street Profits say they want the smoke. Dawkins tries to take his pants off ala Garza but Ford puts a stop to that. Red cups drop from the ceiling during the Profits’ entrance for a nice touch. Ford takes him into the corner to start and does the Ultimate Warrior rope shake.

Something off the top is dropkicked out of the air and Angel TAKES OFF HIS PANTS. Ford can’t hit a neckbreaker or an enziguri but here’s Ivar to offer Demi….a turkey leg. They leave together and Angel is so furious that Ford kicks him in the head. Angel catches him on top but gets knocked down, setting up the twisting frog splash for the pin at 4:09.

Rating: D+. This was more about Ivar, a woman from the Bachelor and a turkey leg, because that’s what the Tag Team Titles are now about. We’ve seen the same stuff for weeks now, but at the same time, I’m not sure what else they can actually do with the titles at the moment. Are there even four teams on the show?

It’s time for Nia Jax segment 3 as she comes up to Shayna and says they can win the Women’s Tag Team Titles. Shayna says if she helps with that, Nia gets off her back. Nia says Shayna can follow her lead and gives her a mock punch to the jaw. Shayna slaps her and walks away.

As they leave, Ruby Riott and Liv Morgan come in with Bianca Belair come in to mock the IIconics.

Bianca Belair/Riott Squad vs. IIconics/Zelina Vega

Kay sends Liv into the corner to start but Liv escapes for the tag off to Ruby. Peyton grabs a waistlock on Ruby and feeds her into Shades of Kay for two. Vega comes in for a kick to the head in the corner and a dragon sleeper (with the behind her back grip ala Aleister Black) goes on. That’s released so Vega can laugh at Belair, allowing Riott to get over for the tag to Belair. That means the beatdown is on in a hurry with Belair hitting a release Glam Slam to Vega with the IIconics making the save. The Squad takes care of the IIconics and the KOD finishes Vega at 3:27.

Rating: D+. Just a quick six man here as we continue to wait on Belair to destroy Vega (again). In theory the feud should be over but a rematch for the Tag Team Titles at Payback wouldn’t surprise me. I do like the Riott Squad winning again, but it would be nice if these people had something to go after instead of being stuck in the second tier of the division.

Cedric Alexander beats Ricochet at arm wrestling with Mark Henry (here to officiate another arm wrestling contest) coming in to offer a shot at the winner. That’s not going to happen so Henry has the table moved to the ring. MVP comes in and asks why Cedric is wasting his time with someone like Ricochet. Cedric doesn’t seem impressed but MVP says he’s off to deal with some US Title work for the Hurt Business. He’ll see Cedric later.

Here’s Mark Henry to say we’re coming up on Payback, where these two will be facing off for the US Title. This brings out Bobby Lashley (on his own) and Apollo Crews for some arm wrestling. Lashley wants to get this over with so he can beat Apollo up tonight and then do it again on Sunday for the US Title. Crews doesn’t think so and is ready to go. Lashley takes his time starting…and loses in a very quick match as Crews steps on his foot. Post match Crews loads up the Toss Powerbomb but settles for a pump kick to put Lashley on the floor. The rest of the Hurt Business comes out so Crews dives on them and runs away.

We look at Seth Rollins beating Dominik Mysterio last night and still trying for the big emotional moment.

The Mysterios are ready for their tag match tonight and Rey is proud of Dominik no matter what. Dominik says his family gives him the strength, and Rey is looking forward to Rollins having his own family to see what he has done to them. Rey keeps talking about how proud he is to share the ring with his son and they’re ready for Rollins. If they’re going this way, they’re doing a great job of setting up a possible Dominik heel turn.

Here are Natalya and Liv Morgan to induct a special woman into the Hall of Fame. Natalya knows she is going to get her own induction one day because she is the hashtag boat tonight tonight they are here to honor Mickie James. We get a video package on James, as made by Natalya, showing…..nothing because she has no career highlights. Cue Mickie to shove Natalya down and kick Lana in the head.

Lashley, with the Hurt Business, wants to fight in Raw Underground tonight so Shane McMahon tells him to come right on in.

Off to Raw Underground where Lashley chokes someone out and throws him off the platform. Dolph Ziggler gets up to try his hand with Lashley and takes him down but Lashley kicks him in the back. Ziggler manages a kick to the head and the sleeper, with Lashley not being able to roll out. He can however flip Ziggler over and Pounce him off the stage and into a post. MVP and Shelton Benjamin throw in another nameless guy who is knocked out with a single kick to the arm.

Two things. First of all, they’ve done a good job of keeping these things quick. They aren’t taking five to ten minutes straight every week and that has helped a lot. I know they’re not for everyone, but they’re in and out in a hurry, which is the best move. Second: did the Hurt Business drive over to the Performance Center or has the whole thing moved to the Amway Center and just happens to look completely identical when there isn’t much of a set?

Randy Orton vs. Keith Lee

Lee shoves him away to start and gets in a leapfrog, followed by a big shove out to the floor. Back in and Orton’s right hand is caught, allowing Lee to hit a standing overhead belly to belly. Orton bails to the floor again and this time Lee follows for a…failed posting attempt as Orton sends him shoulder first in instead. Orton stomps away back inside and covers, with Lee firing him off with the kickout.

The chinlock into a sleeper goes on but Lee drives him into the corner for the quick break. Lee hits the running corner splash and a crossbody takes Orton down again. Orton gets knocked outside again but Lee throws him back inside this time, only to get kicked in the face to set up the hanging DDT. Orton loads up the RKO but here’s McIntyre for the DQ at 4:47.

Rating: C. I’m not sure on this one as Lee got in a good about of impressive stuff and wasn’t beaten when McIntyre interfered, but the match ended with Lee down and Orton loading up his finisher. Lee didn’t need to pin Orton here, but it could have had a little better ending. Like Orton walking out for a countout or something, as the McIntyre match is all but already set.

We look at the Fiend winning the Universal Title and Roman Reigns returning.

Drew McIntyre is mad at Randy Orton and promises vengeance. Cue Orton to jump him from behind and hit a THIRD Punt.

Post break, Drew might have a skull fracture. Just wrap a bandage around his head and he’ll be fine.

Raw Women’s Title: Asuka vs. Sasha Banks

Asuka is defending in a lumberjack match. Banks is sent outside in a hurry and a hip attack knocks her off the apron again. Baszler stares Bayley down for daring to help Banks up and we take a break. Back with Banks kicking Asuka down but getting reversed into the ankle lock. Asuka is kicked out to the floor though and Banks dives at her, only to hit the Riott Squad by mistake.

That lets Asuka get up and hit a sliding shot off the apron to take Banks down again. Asuka goes after Bayley, who throws lumberjacks at her to avoid a bad case of death. Banks gets in a cheap shot from behind and nails the frog splash for two back inside. Bayley tries to throw in a chair but Baszler makes the save, leaving Banks to get Asuka Locked for the tap at 7:41.

Rating: C+. There was too much going on here and it was a far cry from what they did last night. The bigger problem though is having the same people face each other so often. They have a lot of talented people in the division but it is rare to see someone new getting into the title picture. Banks, Bayley and Asuka (and Becky Lynch and Charlotte) have been the divisions for a long time now and they need to do something different. Look around the ring and pick someone. Who isn’t Nia Jax.

McIntyre is taken away in the ambulance and Keith Lee pops up. While he would like to tell Drew to stay out of his match, he knows that McIntyre is tough enough to be fine. Lee can’t say the same thing about Randy Orton.

Back to Raw Underground where Lashley beats up Cedric Alexander. Has he just been destroying people for the last half hour or so? Kind of a cool thought actually. Ivar jumps Lashley, drawing in the rest of the Hurt Business and Erik for the big brawl. The Viking Raiders are destroyed and that seemed to be a regular match. Shane McMahon says we’ll see you next week.

Also for Payback: Keith Lee vs. Randy Orton.

Rey Mysterio/Dominik Mysterio vs. Seth Rollins/Buddy Murphy

The Mysterios jump them on the floor before the bell and the fight is on in a hurry. Dominik and Murphy start things off with Dominik dropkicking him to the floor and knocking Rollins into the announcers’ table. A backdrop puts Murphy on the floor again and Rey hits a….something that the camera misses to send Rollins into the barricade. Rollins is left alone in the ring and it’s a dropkick into a failed 619 attempt from Rey. Dominik dives onto both of them and we take a break.

Back with Rollins mocking Rey for not being able to make the tag but Rey scores with the sitout bulldog. Murphy cuts off the tag to Dominik but Rey scores with an enziguri, allowing the hot tag. A springboard crossbody gets two on Murphy and Dominik sends him into the corner. The tornado DDT gives Dominik two but he has to slip out of the buckle bomb. Rey comes in off the hot tag and it’s a double 619 to Murphy. Dominik goes up….and it’s Retribution to destroy the Mysterios for the DQ at 10:00.

Rating: C. While I didn’t need to see any combination of these four again, above all else they kept it WAY shorter than last night and that’s a big improvement. Dominik has the skills to hang in there in short bursts but there is only so much that you can do in a match that goes on that long. Retribution showing up suggests that things may be finally moving on, but dang it took some time to get us here.

Post match the beatdown is on with Rollins and Murphy watching from the stage as Retribution (six of them this time) leave the Mysterios laying to end the show.

Overall Rating: C. I liked this one more than I expected to as they weren’t wasting time (mostly) this week. They were zipping through the show and set up as much of Payback as they could in one night. Lee vs. Orton is interesting, but I’m not sure I like the potential result. The match was set up well though and hopefully it works in execution. What mattered here was Payback though and they got things ready fast, as they should have.

Results

Shayna Baszler b. Bayley via DQ when Nia Jax interfered

Akira Tozawa b. Shelton Benjamin, R-Truth and Cedric Alexander – Rollup to R-Truth

Montez Ford b. Angel Garza – Frog splash

Bianca Belair/Riott Squad b. Zelina Vega/IIconics – KOD to Vega

Randy Orton b. Keith Lee via DQ when Drew McIntyre interfered

Asuka b. Sasha Banks – Asuka Lock

Rey Mysterio/Dominik Mysterio b. Seth Rollins/Buddy Murphy via DQ when Retribution 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

IMG Credit: WWE

Monday Night Raw
Date: March 20, 2006
Location: FedEx Forum, Memphis, Tennessee
Commentators: Joey Styles, Jerry Lawler, Jonathan Coachman

So we are finally done with everything between here and Wrestlemania, unless WWE brings back some randy episode of All American Wrestling to promote the show. There is still a little more work to do to get to Wrestlemania and there are four shows left to get it all done. Let’s get to it.

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

The opening recap looks at Vince and Shane McMahon cheating Shawn Michaels out of the street fight at Saturday Night’s Main Event.

The Spirit Squad is in the ring to cheer about Shawn tapping and to introduce the McMahon. That means a marching band playing When The Saints Go Marching In, a bunch of confetti, and Vince dancing to guarantee a good opening. Vince praises Shane, who talks about Shawn losing on Saturday. That makes it McMahons 3, Michaels 0, including two pins on one night. Shane knows Vince is going to make it 4-0 at Vince’s greatest creation when he beats Shawn at Wrestlemania.

Vince says Shane is his greatest creation and talks about various horrible things he has done to Shawn in recent weeks. Things are all heading to Wrestlemania though and it is going to be a turning point for him. Shawn is going to crash at Wrestlemania and become his old self again. Just to make it more fun, their match is now No Holds Barred. Shane: “I love it!” As for tonight, Shawn can face HHH. Before we get to that though, here’s John Cena to interrupt.

Vince doesn’t like being disturbed but Cena tells Darth McMahon to calm down. Cena doesn’t want to wait for Wrestlemania because he took a Pedigree on Saturday. Shane gets in Cena’s face and says he doesn’t make the rules around here and threats are made. Cena wastes no time in taking the shirt off but Vince breaks it up and gets annoyed at the CENA chants. As for tonight, Cena can have HHH….when he teams with Shawn against HHH/Shane. Vince dances off as only he can, but Shane is a little unsure about this one.

Post break Shane isn’t sure about this but here’s HHH to say Vince better have a plan. Vince is going to be out there with them.

Carlito vs. Kane

Carlito ducks a right hand to start and slugs away in the corner to as much success as you would expect. A DDT works a bit better as Kane takes a full second before sitting up. The faceplant lets Kane step on Carlito’s head but he comes back with a quick Backstabber. Kane isn’t having any of that and grabs him by the throat, followed by the uppercuts. The top rope clothesline is dropkicked out of the air for two but Kane is back with a big boot. Carlito breaks up the chokeslam, only to springboard into another attempt to give Kane the pin.

Rating: C-. There wasn’t much to see here but that’s not exactly surprising. You can only get so much out of Carlito against a monster like Kane and that doesn’t exactly bode well for the Wrestlemania title match. Chris Masters and Carlito aren’t the best team in the first place and putting them against two monsters because there is no one else to get the shot isn’t a good sign.

The Blackjacks are going into the Hall of Fame. I would have thought they were in before.

Intercontinental Title: Ric Flair vs. Shelton Benjamin vs. Rob Van Dam

Shelton is defending but has no Mama. Flair and Van Dam knock the champ down to start and Flair drops a knee. Van Dam’s spinning legdrop lets Flair get two but Rob isn’t happy with the cover. The alliance falls apart in a hurry this time around so Rob gives Flair the spinning legdrop this time around. Rob hits the big running flip dive to the floor and we take a break.

Back with Flair and Van Dam both busted open as their heads collided on the flip dive. Flair stomps Van Dam in the corner but Shelton pokes Flair in the eye to take him down. Rob is sent hard into the post so Flair is left to chop away at Shelton. A Samoan drop into a suplex puts Flair down for two with Rob making a save this time around. Rob grabs a northern lights suplex for two on Shelton but Flair gets in a save of his own.

The spinwheel kick staggers Flair again and Rob follows with Rolling Thunder. Shelton is kicked to the floor and Rob adds the split legged moonsault for two. The champ brings in the title but gets kicked away, leaving Rob to miss the Five Star. Flair Figure Fours Van Dam but Shelton runs in for the cover to pin Flair and retain.

Rating: C+. I liked this more than I was expecting to and there is a good chance that this is going to shift things over to Shelton vs. Van Dam for the title. Flair has already had his title reign and there is no reason to keep him around the title picture after the losses. Van Dam needs something to get him back into the thick of things and an Intercontinental Title feud would do just fine.

We look at Saturday Night’s Main Event Cutting Edge, with Mick Foley destroying Edge. A Conchairto on the ramp was included.

Here’s a bandaged Mick Foley for a chat. Foley says Edge is speaking the truth when he says that Foley is a big teddy bear. It’s true that Foley has never had the Wrestlemania moment and yes, a few weeks ago he would have said a town’s name, plugged a book no one would read, and then prance around with a sock puppet. Then Edge busted him open with a Conchairto and it was different.

This time it was Chinese food, because just a short while after tasting it, he wanted it all over again. Edge has awakened something inside of Foley and it is known as Cactus Jack. The BANG BANG brings out…actually just Lita this time around. The fans aren’t pleased to see her but Lita says none of them are getting any of her so just shut up. Edge is stuck in Detroit with vertigo so Lita needs to speak to the Winner the Pooh shirt wearing Foley, just for a minute.

See, Edge has an idea: let’s just have a wrestling match at Wrestlemania. That isn’t Foley’s thing, but maybe it could be his Wrestlemania moment. Foley isn’t sold and demands that Lita slap him so Edge can come out here for the cheap shot. He demands that Lita slap him so she does, drawing out Edge. Foley is ready for him though and sends Edge to the floor, setting up the Mandible Claw on Lita to keep Edge from coming in for the big beatdown. Edge is furious as Foley leaves.

Now confirmed for Wrestlemania: Candice Michelle vs. Torrie Wilson in a Playboy pillow fight.

Torrie Wilson vs. Victoria

Hold on though as Candice is carried out on a bed with her big Playboy cover behind it. Candice throws pillows at Torrie and the Widow’s Peak gives Victoria the pin in less than a minute.

Big Show vs. Chris Masters

Show starts with the big chops in the corner and shrugs off Masters’ clotheslines. A superkick drops Masters instead and another shot puts him on the floor. Show follows him and misses a big boot, crotching himself on the barricade. Masters uses the distraction to grab a chair and blasts Show for the quick DQ.

Post match another chair shot lets Masters try the Masterlock but settle for a posting instead.

Here’s Mickie James and there is a big present in the ring. She admits that she did the wrong thing on Saturday and it’s a shame because the two of them could have been beautiful together. There is a silver lining though, because now she can become Women’s Champion. That way millions of girls can look up to her, but she won’t shove them away like Trish did to her. As for tonight though, Mickie has a gift for her. Trish doesn’t come out, so Mickie has the box opened to reveal….a kidnapped Ashley.

Now Trish comes out but as she’s a few feet from the ring, Mickie tells her to stay down or she’ll….I’m not sure what she could do to Ashley in the time it would take for Trish to get inside actually but it stops her anyway. Mickie screams at Ashley but walks too close to Trish, who pulls her out to the floor. Trish goes in to save Ashley, but Mickie gets back in to give Trish the DDT. With Trish out, Mickie kisses her and smiles a lot, despite having a busted nose.

This Week In Wrestling History: Bret Hart vs. Steve Austin in the submission match. I still get something new out of that match every time I see it.

Wrestlemania rundown.

HHH/Shane McMahon vs. Shawn Michaels/John Cena

Vince McMahon is here too. Shawn charges straight at Shane, who runs into the crowd in fear. As security holds Shawn back and Vince does a little Shane dance, Shane sneaks back around (that red baseball jersey is such a great disguise) to ringside but Cena punches him out of the air and we’re ready to go. Hold on though as Vince says that’s a DQ for Cena using a closed fist.

Cena is thrown out under threats of losing the title so let’s have a handicap match.

HHH/Shane McMahon vs. Shawn Michaels

Security holds Shawn back so HHH can get in a cheap shot before the bell rings. Vince has a mic to taunt Shawn as Shane gets in a kick to the ribs. HHH comes in and gets caught with a right hand, only to grab the spinebuster on Shawn. Shane adds an elbow and hands it right back to HHH to unload in the corner.

The facebuster cuts Shawn down again and Vince declares this as brutal. Shawn fights back on Shane though and hits the forearm into the nipup. HHH comes in sans tag so Shawn fights them both off and sends HHH outside. The top rope elbow connects on Shane but HHH breaks up Sweet Chin Music. That means a crotching against the post but here’s Cena to shove Shane off the top. Security comes in for the no contest.

Rating: C-. This was another storyline advancing match as Shawn continues to want to beat the fire out of Vince, who continues to get himself in trouble by not knowing when to let something go. We should be in for a pair of good matches at Wrestlemania, as both of these stories have been set up rather well.

Shawn and Cena clean house but Vince announces himself (with his eyes bugging out) vs. Cena for next week.

Overall Rating: B. I really don’t remember liking the build to Wrestlemania this well as the Raw side has been very good. They have three big matches on the red side and they are making me want to see all three of them. Just keep things going over the last week and then make the show work well in Chicago. Rather strong show here that did everything they needed to do with less than two weeks before Wrestlemania.

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: August 17, 2020
Location: WWE Performance Center, Orlando, Florida
Commentators: Tom Phillips, Samoa Joe, Byron Saxton

It’s the last night in the Performance Center and that means we are also less than a week away from Summerslam. This week’s show gets to deal with the big fallout from the Punt last week as Randy Orton kicked Ric Flair in the head. Since it’s a Flair story, we need the combined forces of Shawn Michaels and likely HHH down the line to tell us how great Flair is all over again. Let’s get to it.

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

Opening sequence.

Here’s what’s coming tonight.

Here’s Drew McIntyre for an opening chat. After a long video on what happened to Flair last week, McIntyre talks about how Flair is a 71 year old legend with a tear in his eye and Orton kicked him in the head. McIntyre is ready to do whatever he has to do at Summerslam..and the video goes nuts as Retribution has struck again. We cut to the truck where they are wrecking everything in sight and we jump to a commercial with McIntyre still talking.

Post break, the locker room wants to know what’s going on. Drew McIntyre comes in and says he doesn’t like being disrespected like this and wants them to ban together to stomp them out. Seth Rollins and Murphy come in to talk about being the Messiah, meaning that the roster already has a leader. Rollins should be getting a title shot but Ricochet brings up Rey Mysterio returning tonight. No Rollins isn’t scared and asks for a match with McIntyre instead. They have to be separated and a match seems likely.

Here’s the Hurt Business, with the cameras staying on a wide shot for a good while and the graphics taking their time to start up. Still on the wide shot, MVP rants about Retribution and calls them out. He has been following the money, which takes you to catering, where you find Apollo Crews and his merry band of pranksters. Retribution showed up around the time that MVP faced Crews for the US Title.

Cue Apollo to laugh off the allegations and accuse MVP of trying to throw out some distractions before Crews beats him at Summerslam. MVP says Crews has had more starts and stops to his career than a bad car, and it’s back to catering as soon as he loses the title. Crews says he knows that’s why MVP wanted him in the Hurt Business, so maybe they can do some business right now. He can face Shelton Benjamin right now and if he wins, Lashley and Benjamin aren’t at ringside at Summerslam. Let’s go.

Shelton Benjamin vs. Apollo Crews

Non-title. Joined in progress with Shelton stomping away and unloading on Crews in the corner. Crews gets beaten down even more and here’s R-Truth, as chased by Ninjas. The distraction lets Crews get in a rollup for the pin at 2:03. They really needed to pin Shelton for that?

Post match the Hurt Business keeps up the beating but Cedric Alexander, Ricochet and Mustafa Ali make the save. Lashley gets the Full Lashley on Cedric but the numbers game gets the better of Lashley and sends him outside. R-Truth comes running back and gets kicked in the face by Shelton, who wins the 24/7 Title. MVP says this isn’t happening so let’s do a six man elimination later. Just give the title back to Truth already.

Angel Garza hits on Demi from the Bachelor again when Ivar comes in to hit on her instead. Demi is invited to join the hunt tonight and Ivar accuses Garza of poisoning Montez Ford. That’s not true, so Ivar eats a drumstick and is ready for their match tonight.

Ivar vs. Angel Garza

Ivar’s early spinning kick to the face is cut off and Garza sends him face first into the mat by the beard. Garza TAKES OFF HIS PANTS as Angelo Dawkins is hitting on Demi in the back. Ivar hits a running crossbody to crush Garza, followed by some running clotheslines in the corner. A backsplash gives Ivar two and Garza heads outside, only to have Zelina Vega block the dive. Back in and Garza gets in a neck snap and the low dropkick finishes Ivar at 3:54.

Rating: C-. Just a match here which wasn’t all that bad but it did well enough. I’m not sure why we can’t have the #1 contenders to the Tag Team Titles in a singles match before their Summerslam title shot but I’m guessing Erik’s Raw Underground match is a little more important. Not a bad match, but they haven’t done the best job of hyping this up.

Post match Dawkins pops up and suggests they ask Charly Caruso a little more about Garza. That’s shouted down so Dawkins says he has a tape. Garza goes running off, with Vega asking Samoa Joe what is going on. Naturally Joe knows, and talks about all of the extra security around here to deal with Retribution. The tape is going to show how far someone is willing to go around here. Vega leaves and isn’t happy.

We look at what Seth Rollins and Murphy did to Dominik Mysterio last week.

Vega and company try to get the tape away from Dawkins so Charly Caruso comes up to ask what’s going on. Dawkins plays the video (which is loaded into the tape machines despite him taunting Vega and company with his phone), which shows Vega poisoning Montez Ford’s red cup. Vega says it’s doctored and accuses Charly of being behind this because Garza upgraded to Demi (Garza gives a “well yeah” look). Dawkins is ready to fight on Sunday and is holding himself back but Ford runs in for the brawl. That was a rather badly put together…well everything actually.

Natalya vs. Mickie James

Lana is here with Natalya. This is Mickie’s first match in over a year and it was hyped up on WWE’s preview, so naturally she doesn’t get an entrance. Natalya takes her into the corner so Lana can film things before Mickie fights back and grabs a headlock. Mickie goes over to shout at Lana but the MickDT is countered.

A double clothesline gives is a double knockdown and here are Rollins and Murphy to yell at Joe. Rollins wants to know why Joe thinks Mysterio is going to be here as Mickie snaps off a hurricanrana out of the corner. A neckbreaker puts Natalya down again but Natalya knocks her off the top. The camera mainly stays on the argument as Mickie is counted out at 3:13.

Rating: D. This had me thinking of the opening scene to Guardians of the Galaxy 2 where the focus is on Groot while the battle is going on in the back. Picture that, but not entertaining or funny in any way. That being said, there is something funny about Natalya and Lana literally being downgraded to background noise during something else.

Post match Rollins threatens Joe and says he’ll take care of the Mysterios.

Sasha Banks/Bayley vs. Asuka/Shayna Baszler

Non-title. Before the match, Sasha and Bayley friendly bicker about who faces Asuka first at Summerslam. Either way, they’ll laugh all the way to Payback and their Tag Team Title defense. Cue Shayna to say she has the next shot at the Raw Women’s Title but here’s Asuka to say they have to fight together before Shayna can fight her. Asuka and Shayna charge the ring to start things off and it’s a Codebreaker to put Sasha down.

As Asuka goes after Sasha, it’s Nia Jax knocking the Plexiglas down to take Shayna out. Pat Buck and some referees come out to take care of her but Shayna starts the brawl into the stands. Asuka hits the hip attack on Sasha and we take a break. Back with Bayley working on Asuka’s back and handing it off to Sasha for two off the Meteora. Bayley comes back in to clothesline Asuka down for two more but the big elbow hits raised boots. Asuka fights back but gets caught in the Bank Statement.

Cue Shayna for the save and Asuka brings her in off the hot tag. Shayna’s stomp to the arm is countered with a rollup for two but Bayley has to break up the Kirifuda Clutch. Banks has to save Bayley from the same and the Bayley to Belly gets two more. Asuka pulls Banks to the floor for the Asuka Lock and Baszler Clutches Bayley for the tap (two in two weeks for Bayley) at 11:58.

Rating: C-. Let’s see: champ loses via tap out for the second week in a row, they set up the Payback Tag Team Title match, Nia is back (making me sigh heavily), Shayna now looks like she should be challenging Bayley on the other show and Asuka only looks like a threat to one champion. Did I miss anything here or did they pack in another five stories into one match while I turned my head for a second? And can we get a match without some kind of shenanigans?

Video on Dominik being attacked last week.

Apollo Crews and company are ready and walk off. Randy Orton comes in and seems to be pondering things.

Shawn Michaels comes up to see Drew McIntyre and they talk about all of the bad things Randy Orton has done. Shawn talks about how Drew drove five hours to watch film with him every day while he was healing up and knows he can deal with Orton. As for tonight though, Shawn needs to handle Orton so give him his space.

The IIconics and the Riott Squad argue about who is winning their singles matches tonight. The camera pans over to show Shayna Baszler talking to Marina Shafir and Jessamyn Duke in their Raw debuts.

Long video on Retribution.

Ruby Riott vs. Peyton Royce

They fight to the floor early on before Peyton blocks an O’Connor Roll back inside. A knee to the head gets two on Riott but she fights back with a running elbow in the corner. Peyton is sent outside for an apron crossbody but Billie Kay and Liv Morgan get in an argument. That lets Peyton shove them into each other and throw Ruby back in for the Deja Vu and the pin at 2:54. This was nothing.

Shane McMahon is ready for Raw Underground.

We join Raw Underground in progress with Erik mauling an unknown. Dolph Ziggler gives it a 4/10 so Erik calls him out for a fight. Ziggler gets on the stage and we have our first name vs. name match. Ziggler goes for a leg but Erik blasts him in the face with a left hand. A suplex drops Ziggler again but he keeps a grip on Erik. They trade hard shots with Erik getting the better of it and picking him up by the leg. Ziggler grabs a sleeper though and adds a thumb to the eye as Erik is out. After the bell, Ivar knocks Ziggler onto a bunch of people.

Here are the Mysterios with Rey talking about how hard this has been on the two of them. It was torture seeing Dominik beaten down last week but no doctor is keeping him away from Summerslam. Rey is going to be in Dominik’s corner at Summerslam, but Dominik says he knew what he was getting into. Rollins and Murphy pop up on screen and promise to destroy both Mysterios at Summerslam. The Mysterio name will be destroyed, so Rey says get out here. Cue the two of them and the Mysterios bail…and come back in with kendo sticks to clean house.

MVP sits down next to Cedric Alexander and asks why he isn’t in the six man tonight. He brings up Cedric being caught in the full nelson (because he’s already forgotten that he named it the Full Lashley an hour and a half ago) and offers Cedric a spot on the team again. MVP leaves and Cedric is frustrated.

Back on Raw Underground, Riddick Moss and Arturo Ruas beat the heck out of each other and fall off the stage. They fight with security and the match is deemed a draw.

Hurt Business vs. Ricochet/Apollo Crews/Mustafa Ali

Elimination rules. Ricochet kicks Benjamin down for two to start but it’s off to Lashley, who runs over the legal Ali. The spinning Dominator gets rid of Ali at 1:35 and it’s 3-2. A big spinebuster plants Ricochet and Paydirt gets rid of him at 2:15, leaving Crews all alone. Crews comes in and hits the Toss Powerbomb to get rid of Shelton at 2:55 to even things up a bit. Cue Cedric Alexander to roll Shelton up for the pin and the 24/7 Title as we take a break.

Back with MVP stomping away in the corner and throwing Crews outside. MVP misses a charge in the corner though and Crews hits the Toss Powerbomb to finish him off at 9:29. Lashley comes straight in to knee Crews down but Crews hits some kicks to the head. The standing moonsault gets two but Lashley spears him down for the pin at 10:50.

Rating: C-. I’m still not sure why it isn’t Crews vs. Lashley for the title at Summerslam but maybe that’s what we have for Payback. There isn’t much shame in having Crews lose a glorified gauntlet match and this goes a long way to give MVP a chance on Sunday. Not a good match or anything, but it did its job well enough.

Summerslam rundown.

24/7 Title: Akira Tozawa vs. Cedric Alexander

Cedric is defending and knocks Tozawa to the floor early on, sending him crashing into the Ninjas. Tozawa comes back in with a spinning kick to the head but has to bail out of the top rope backsplash. The Neuralizer into the Lumbar Check retains the title at 1:22.

Shelton Benjamin runs in with Paydirt to win the title back.

Back at Raw Underground, Marina Shafir destroys a woman for the win. Nia Jax runs in and takes out Shafir and Duke. Shayna pops up for the fight and Jax bails. ENOUGH WITH NIA JAX ALREADY!!!!

Montez Ford vs. Andrade

Ford starts fast and sends Andrade outside for the big flip dive. Back in and Ford gets crotched on top, allowing Andrade to hit a superplex for two. We hit the chinlock for a bit until Ford fights back and hits a standing moonsault for his own near fall. Andrade goes up and gets hurricanranaed right back down. Zelina Vega offers a distraction so Andrade can break up the frog splash. Vega dives at an invading Bianca Belair but gets slammed down, allowing Ford to grab a rollup for the pin at 3:08.

Rating: D+. Another match that was energetic while it lasted, though I’m a bit surprised that they had Ford get back in the ring before Summerslam. They did an angle with him getting poisoned and he’s just back two weeks later? I guess it wasn’t all that important, but it would have been nice to see them hold out until the pay per view to add a little something to the match.

Here’s Shawn Michaels to show us what happened to Ric Flair again. Shawn talks about how the 31 days Flair spent on his death bed were some of the hardest days of all of our lives (uh….). Without Flair, there would be no Shawn, HHH, Edge, Christian, Big Show or Drew McIntyre (UH…….). Randy Orton is on that list as well and then he had the nerve to take out Flair last week. Shawn doesn’t know how it is going to happen but it is going to happen at Summerslam. Maybe it’s from Sweet Chin Music or the Claymore, but someone is going to give Randy what he deserves. Whatever it is, Orton is going to see it coming.

Shawn goes to leave and there’s the RKO into the Punt. McIntyre runs in to run Orton off and a referee comes out to check on Shawn. Orton comes back and McIntyre beats the heck out of him, including throwing him over the announcers’ table. McIntyre checks on Shawn but Orton comes back in again for the RKO as Shawn can’t get up to end the show. This was as expected, including the over the top praise of Ric Flair, because Shawn and HHH still haven’t officially opened their eternal shrine to him.

Overall Rating: D+. There’s quite a bit to unpack here. First of all, you can’t really say the show was boring, because it didn’t stop moving all night long. Now that being said, there were a lot of highlight packages (often different versions of the same one) and a lot of them made you feel like they were just filling in time. There wasn’t much on here that you needed to see and last week’s show felt a lot more like the go home show for Summerslam. It also doesn’t help that Thunderdome is coming and that means this show was little more than a placeholder.

What we got here wasn’t exactly great though, as there was a lot of stuff that got multiple segments despite not really warranting them. That’s the kind of thing that can get annoying in a hurry as you would like to see them space this stuff out a bit more so they don’t run through all of the creative so fast. But that might mean having a plan for more than a week at a time and Vince doesn’t seem to like that these…well years really. Not the worst show, but it doesn’t matter with the next few shows coming. Oh and get rid of Nia Jax. Have badgers bury her in the desert or something. It would be more useful.

Results

Apollo Crews b. Shelton Benjamin – Rollup

Angel Garza b. Ivar – Low dropkick

Natalya b. Mickie James via countout

Asuka/Shayna Baszler b. Sasha Banks/Bayley – Kirifuda Clutch to Bayley

Peyton Royce b. Ruby Riott – Deja Vu

Hurt Business b. Mustafa Ali/Apollo Crews/Ricochet – Spear to Crews

Cedric Alexander b. Akira Tozawa – Lumbar Check

Montez Ford b. Andrade – Rollup

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: March 13, 2006
Location: Ford Arena, Beaumont, Texas
Attendance: 5,000
Commentators: Jim Ross, Jerry Lawler, Jonathan Coachman

We’re still on the way to Wrestlemania and John Cena vs. HHH is starting to look good. Other than that you have Vince McMahon vs. Shawn Michaels in the big soap opera feud, which is setting up Saturday Night’s Main Event later this week. I’m not sure what else we are going to be getting on the way there but it could be a good one. Let’s get to it.

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

Opening recap.

Opening sequence.

Here are Vince and Shane McMahon to open things up, along with some security and what looks like a doctor. There is no way this can end well. They get inside and there is a black curtain waiting in the ring. Vince talks about how they both beat Shawn Michaels last week, but after the matches, Shawn was slurring his speech and could barely stand. Therefore, it is clear that SHAWN MICHAELS IS ON DRUGS!

Tonight, Shawn is going to take a public urination test. Shawn is ordered to come out here right now so here he comes in a hurry. Vince doesn’t like the pro-Shawn chants and wants to know why Shawn did what he did last week. Shane calls him a hypocrite and a disgusting junkie. Vince isn’t done and says that if Shawn tests positive, he forfeits both Saturday Night’s Main Event and Wrestlemania.

Shawn goes behind the curtain with the doctor as Vince cuts a PSA about not doing drugs. The doctor has the sample in the cup and Vince asks Shawn if he has anything to say. Shane thinks Shawn should just say no, but Shawn says it’s better to be p***** off than p***** on. Shawn throws the cup into the McMahon’s faces in a segment that would be copied almost verbatim in 2020. I know Vince loves this stuff but egads it can be grating to sit through.

Post break, Vince and Shane rapidly wash their faces and mouths, with Vince making Shawn vs. the Spirit Squad in a cage.

Women’s Title: Trish Stratus vs. Victoria

Trish is defending and Candice Michelle is at ringside. Victoria charges at her to start but gets Thesz pressed down for some right hands to the face. A kick to the head slows Trish down and the spinning side slam gives Victoria two. Victoria’s over the back choke has Trish in more trouble and she gets dumped outside. That doesn’t go anywhere and they’re back inside for a double clothesline. Trish is up with the handstand into the spinning headscissors but Candice breaks up Stratusfaction. The Widow’s Peak is loaded up but here’s Torrie Wilson for the save as Candice has the referee. The Chick Kick retains the title.

Rating: D+. Given that the Torrie vs. Candice feud is built on who looked better in Playboy, what are you expecting from a match with the two both getting involved? Trish vs. Victoria is one of the only good combinations they had for a long time but they did it so many times that it wasn’t exactly interesting again. Not the worst, but it was more about the people not in the match.

We get a movie trailer for Mick Foley, which is rated O for Overrated. It includes a bunch of clips of his Wrestlemania losses, plus some critics saying they can’t wait to see Foley lose to Edge.

Edge vs. Goldust

Cowboy Troy, the host of a country music competition show, joins commentary. Goldust starts with the hip attack as commentary completely ignores the match to plug the show and talk about country music. Edge hammers away but Goldust comes back with some right hands and the powerslam. Granted since the camera is on commentary, some of the impact is kind of lost. The right hands in the corner have Edge in trouble but a Lita distraction lets him hit the spear for the pin.

Rating: D. They really didn’t have another time to do the country music thing? This was just a way to get Edge on screen and run the trailers, but the focus was on the cowboy. Goldust wasn’t going to do anything here and I had forgotten he was even with the company at this point.

Post match Edge mocks Cowboy Troy and rolls his own trailer, promising to end Foley for good at Wrestlemania. Back in the arena, Edge says Foley will be his guest on a special hardcore edition of the Cutting Edge at Saturday Night’s Main Event.

Big Time Wrestlemania Moment: Roddy Piper vs. Morton Downey Jr.

Trish interrupts Maria’s chest workout (with the Bowflex Extreme) to ask if she has seen Torrie. Maria hasn’t, but Trish finds Torrie out cold with a Playboy on her chest.

Verne Gagne is going into the Hall of Fame.

It’s time for the John Cena/HHH contract signing, with Coach running things. Both guys come out and HHH throws his feet on the table. Before signing, HHH talks about Cena FUing Big Show last week. That should kill a normal man, but not John Cena. At Wrestlemania, that doesn’t mean anything because the match is a formality. The title is coming back home, and HHH signs his side. Cena signs as well without saying anything. HHH: “And just like that, it is over.”

Usually this is the time where HHH hits someone with a sledgehammer, so Cena says bring it on. HHH doesn’t need an advantage this time though, because Cena is already at a disadvantage. Cena laughs it off and threatens to violate HHH if he tries to use the sledgehammer. They both get up but here are Big Show and Kane to interrupt. HHH has the sledgehammer attached to the table but here are Chris Masters and Carlito to jump the monsters. Vince pops up to say not so fast and makes a six man tag main event.

Shawn Michaels vs. Spirit Squad

In a cage with Texas Tornado rules. Ignore commentary saying that it’s Shawn vs. the entire Spirit Squad when only four of the five are in there. The team gets smart by climbing in from different sides of the cage and Shawn can only fight them off for so long. They toss him into the air for a big crash and then into the cage but a big Poetry In Motion misses. Kenny misses the top rope legdrop and Shawn starts slugging away, including the top rope elbow to Mikey. Sweet Chin Music hits but here’s Shane to slam the door on Shawn’s head and put Kenny on top for the pin.

Rating: D. Another angle disguised as a match and that’s fine. They’re doing a nice job of making you want to see Shawn beat the fire out of both Vince and Shane (more the former than the latter) and that’s how you set up a match like this. There isn’t much else that can be done and they have gone with this for months now. Give us a good payoff and it will be fine.

Post match Shane sends Shawn into the cage and asks for it to be raised. Shawn is busted open and Shane hits the Van Terminator.

Trish says Torrie has a concussion and is out of Saturday Night’s Main Event. Mickie James comes in to offer her services as a replacement. After the match, they can go their separate ways. Trish agrees and Mickie has a creepy smile.

Video on Steve Austin, featuring the old Oh H*** Yeah song.

Vince is pleased with Shane and announces that Jim Ross is coming back to call the match. Shane threatens to bloody JR if he doesn’t call the match right.

Smackdown Rebound.

Intercontinental Title: Shelton Benjamin vs. Rob Van Dam

Shelton is defending and Ric Flair is on commentary. There is no Mama Benjamin though because she is having heart surgery, all because of Flair causing her to get even worse. Feeling out process to start with Rob driving him into the corner and hitting a running clothesline. A dropkick puts Shelton on the floor but he comes back in and runs the corner to superplex Rob back down.

We take a break and come back with Rob caught in an armbar as Flair talks about where he wants to be partying in Chicago after winning Money in the Bank. Shelton misses a dropkick and Rob starts striking away, setting up a running splash for two. The stepover kick puts Shelton on the apron and the top rope kick to the face makes it worse. Shelton grabs the title so Flair takes it away, only to be knocked outside by Rob. A rollup with a grab of the ropes retains the title.

Rating: C. The commercial and ending took away from what they had here but it was a nice job of pushing Money in the Bank, which hasn’t had the biggest build so far. Then again it’s not exactly a concept that needs a lot of setup. Flair doesn’t really fit into the idea of a ladder match but the match is set up in a way that he can be used in the right way.

Saturday Night’s Main Event rundown.

Carlito/Chris Masters/HHH vs. Big Show/Kane/John Cena

Show shoves Carlito into the corner to start and it’s off to Kane for a clothesline. The side slam drops Carlito again but it’s a rake to the eyes, allowing the double tag to Cena and HHH. The fans seem to like this but HHH hands it back to Carlito before doing anything. Cena drops him in a hurry and glares at HHH, allowing Masters to get in a cheap shot from behind.

Carlito comes back in to stomp away for two, followed by a lifting Downward Spiral for the same. Cena avoids a charge in the corner though and brings in Big Show to clean house. Everything breaks down and HHH is left alone with the monsters. The double chokeslam is loaded up but Carlito and Masters come in with chairs for the DQ.

Rating: C. Run of the mill main event tag match here and they’re doing a good job of making me want to see Cena vs. HHH. Cena wanting to fight and HHH hiding until Wrestlemania makes sense and that’s a nice way to set things up. Carlito/Masters vs. Big Show/Kane isn’t exactly the same thing but when have the Tag Team Titles been?

Post match the tag teams leave and Cena tells HHH to bring it. HHH teases getting in but Randy Orton runs in for the RKO to Cena to end the show.

Overall Rating: C-. This was kind of a weird one as they are less than three weeks away from Wrestlemania but at the same time they are building towards Saturday Night’s Main Event. They managed to make it work this time though and that’s a nice thing to see, even if the wrestling wasn’t great. Cena vs. HHH is going far better than I remember and it feels like a major match. Just get down to Wrestlemania though and things will feel a lot better.

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: August 10, 2020
Location: WWE Performance Center, Orlando, Florida
Commentators: Tom Phillips, Samoa Joe, Byron Saxton

For the first time in a very long while, some interesting stuff actually took place last week. That would include both Raw Underground and the debut of Retribution, but the problem with any WWE story is that at some point it has to go somewhere, and that’s where they get lost. I’m not sure what to expect here and that scares me. Let’s get to it.

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

In Memory of Kamala.

Opening sequence.

Here’s what’s coming tonight.

We open with Samoa Joe in the ring for a contract signing. Seth Rollins comes out with Murphy, followed by Dominik, because they really do think this is what we should use to keep the fans’ interest early. Dominik comes out with a kendo stick and Rollins laughs him off for treating this like a joke. Joe doesn’t think much of Rollins treating this as a joke and asks why Rollins is acting like this. Why did he take out Rey Mysterio’s eye, have Murphy take out Aleister Black’s eye, and think about going for Joe’s eye last week?

Rollins threatens Joe and says that he himself is the only one with no choice in this whole thing. He goes into a rant about everything he has done around here with everyone not thinking anything of his efforts. All he is doing is for the greater good and when is it going to be enough? Dominik says it never will be because Rollins’ greater good is for himself. Rollins calls him ungrateful because everything Dominik is doing is because of him.

Dominik is ready to go, so Rollins says Dominik wouldn’t last ten seconds against him in a regular wrestling match. That’s why Rollins is going to do him a favor: Dominik can bring his kendo stick at Summerslam. Or any weapon he wants for that matter, so there are no excuses. Rollins and Dominik both sign, with Rollins being rather pleased.

Seth Rollins vs. Humberto Carrillo

Rollins grabs an armbar to start and sends Carrillo to the apron. Carrillo comes back in with a sunset flip and hammers away in the corner, only to get crotched on top. The belly to back superplex is broken up but Murphy’s distraction means no moonsault. Dominik kendo sticks Murphy though and Rollins gets the boots up to block the moonsault. A superkick sets up a powerbomb into the Stomp to finish Carrillo at 3:03.

Rating: D+. The match was decent enough but the lack of interest in anything they’re doing here hurts things a lot. There is only so much that can be done with such an uninteresting story and hopefully they make a change. It seems that they’re teasing Samoa Joe getting involved somehow, and that’s probably as good of a move as they can make. Dominik isn’t ready for this and that becomes ore obvious every week.

Post match Rollins and Murphy beat Dominik down, including a series of hard kendo stick shots. Rollins even takes the shirt off so the shots can hurt more. Murphy and Rollins tie him into the ropes with Rollins saying HI DAD over and over. With Dominik still helpless, Rollins has Murphy grab some more kendo sticks and now Murphy gets in his own shots. The double beating continues with Murphy saying that Dominik is a WWE Superstar now. This was a heck of a brutal beatdown with Dominik being destroyed and I do want to see him get back up and fight. Just find something else to say about him other than he’s Rey’s son.

Post break, commentary is rather serious about what we just saw.

Video on Retribution’s attacks last week.

Andrade vs. Angelo Dawkins

Before the match, Zelina insists that she had nothing to do with Montez Ford being poisoned. Why would she mess with the most important night of her team’s career? The Street Profits can have the smoke, because Angel Garza and Andrade want the Tag Team Titles. The lights go out again during Dawkins’ entrance because Retribution is around somewhere tonight. Dawkins jumps him from behind to start but Andrade gets in such a hard right hand that Dawkins loses his headband.

Back up and Dawkins hits a dropkick to send him outside, where Andrade sweeps the leg to send Dawkins face first into the apron. The chinlock doesn’t last long as Dawkins fights back with the clotheslines and the jumping spinning elbow. Andrade sends him into the corner again though and it’s the running knees for two. Back up and Andrade gets punched out of the air for no count as Vega has the referee. Cue Bianca Belair to pull Vega off the apron though and the spinebuster gives Dawkins the pin at 4:02.

Rating: C-. I was surprised by Dawkins winning here but it’s not like Andrade has been anything but a tag guy in recent months. The poisoning thing is interesting, but I’m hoping that they don’t go with some outsider and just have Vega be the person behind it. Go with what makes sense instead of the surprise in this one.

Bianca Belair vs. Zelina Vega

Joined in progress with Vega being driven into the corner and then muscled over with a snap suplex. Vega pulls her into a triangle choke but Belair powers out and hammers away in the corner. A poke to the eye gets Vega out of trouble again and she hits Belair in the face for a bonus. There are the running knees in the corner for two but Belair has had enough of Vega and tries the KOD.

That earns her some elbows to the face though and Vega headscissors her throat first into the middle rope. A crossbody is countered into a gorilla press drop though and Belair is annoyed again. Belair unloads on her with forearms to the back and throws Vega down with ease. Vega avoids a charge into the post and pounds away, only to get powerbombed out of the corner. The KOD is enough to finish Vega at 6:13.

Rating: D+. This was a scrappy one as Belair was pounding away on Vega as much as she could but Vega wasn’t quite enough of a threat to her. There is only so much that you can do here and Belair was only in limited danger. Again: go with what makes sense instead of something screwy and it’s that much better.

Post match Belair says she and Ford like to keep their careers separate, but Belair had to do something to stand up for her husband. Dawkins says Ford isn’t missing Summerslam and they’re bringing the ruckus and the red cups.

Here is the Hurt Business for the VIP Lounge. MVP says this is a more serious episode and talks about being the man who told you so. Last week, you had weird things going on with the lights going out in his match. He is a seasoned professional and a world class athlete but he can’t win titles in unsafe working conditions.

Cue Apollo Crews, to say MVP is always complaining and making excuses. MVP says Crews was the one who missed Extreme Rules because he had a bad neck. Crews says that he can make bad decisions because he’s a bad man. At Summerslam, the only lights that are going out are MVP’s. Crews charges the ring and throws the couch to the floor to clear the ring.

Apollo Crews vs. Shelton Benjamin

Non-title and joined in progress with Shelton driving him into the corner, only to have Crews flip forward and hit the dropkick. Benjamin throws Crews outside though and gets in a knee to the ribs as the referee keeps a close eye on the MVP and Lashley. Back in and we hit the chinlock until Crews fights up and hits a crossbody. Crews drives him into the corner for the shoulders to the ribs and the Stinger Splash for a bonus. The Toss Powerbomb doesn’t work so Crews settles for a powerslam into the standing moonsault. Crews gets back up but Lashley offers a distraction, allowing Shelton to grab a rollup for the pin at 5:11.

Rating: C-. The athleticism was good, which shouldn’t be a surprise given who was in there, but it doesn’t quite make for a great match. This still seems to be building towards Crews vs. Lashley, though I’m not sure when we are actually getting there. Shelton not losing for a change is nice, though I’m still not thrilled with a champion losing again.

Post match Lashley goes after Crews with the full nelson but MVP calls him off because that would take him out of the title match again. Crews gets in a quick shot and runs off.

We go outside where Retribution throws a cinder block through a window with the WWE logo.

Mickie James is back and says she has gold on her mind. Lana and Natalya, in matching outfits, come in to say Mickie can’t be the face of the division without a Tik Tok. Natalya says she has won more than anyone else and that makes her the best of all time. Natalya and Lana: “HASHTAG BOAT!” Mickie says Natalya should know better and tells Lana that boats sink. Mickie leaves and the two of them call her rude. The new outfit didn’t help Natalya’s charisma.

Video on Raw Underground.

Ivar is flirting with a blonde when Erik, Ricochet and Cedric Alexander come up. The blonde says not to yell at Ivar because he’s cute. Not so much with Erik. How many times can they do that same joke? Ricochet and Cedric crack up.

We look at the beating of Dominik again.

Cedric Alexander/Ricochet/Viking Raiders vs. Akira Tozawa/Ninjas

Ricochet kicks a Ninja in the face to start and it’s a middle rope double stomp to the back into a Downward Spiral. Another Ninja gets kneed in the face and it’s off to Ivar for the knee to the ribs. Another one to the face rocks the Ninja but the third Ninja, who seems to be R-Truth in disguise, won’t get in. Tozawa yells at him and the other Ninja gets the Viking Experience for the pin at 1:10.

Post match it’s Truth and he rolls Tozawa up for the pin and the title.

Drew McIntyre promises to beat Randy Orton at Summerslam and make it clear that Evolution has passed him by. If Kevin Owens beats Orton tonight, he and Drew will be having a long talk.

Liv Morgan vs. Peyton Royce

Before the match, the IIconics accuse the Riott Squad of wanting to stab each other in the back. Morgan takes Peyton down to start and hammers away before they head outside. The brawl continues for a bit until Morgan sends it back inside for two off a rollup. Peyton gets kicked into the corner but Riott deals with an interfering Royce. That’s enough for Royce to get in a cheap shot and finish Morgan with the Deju Vu at 2:06.

Post match the Squad doesn’t see eye to eye again.

We recap Sasha Banks vs. Shayna Baszler with Bayley and Asuka causing the no contest.

Shane McMahon is ready for Raw Underground.

It’s time for Raw Underground, with Cal Bloom vs. Riddick Moss. They fight in the ring and then brawl to the floor, with Moss sending him into a bunch of poles. Back inside and Moss slugs away again, eventually dropping Bloom with a shot to the head for the win. Good for them if this is a way to boost someone like that. The dancing girls are notably absent this week.

Asuka vs. Bayley

Non-title, Sasha Banks is with Bayley, and if Asuka wins, she gets the Raw Women’s Title shot against Banks at Summerslam. Asuka starts fast and hits the hip attack in the corner. Bayley catches her on top though and a sliding elbow gets two. Back up and a lot of shouting lets Asuka get two off a backslide, followed by a kick to the face. The lights flicker some more and it’s Asuka up first with a running shoulder into a release German suplex.

The hip attack gets two on Bayley and she gets tied up in the corner for a running stomp. That’s enough to send Bayley outside and we take a break, coming back to Bayley getting stomped down again. Bayley pulls her down into a kneebar of all things though and kicks away at the leg for a bonus. The referee gets distracted by yelling at Bayley, allowing Banks to ram the leg into the apron to give Bayley two. Asuka is right back up to pull her into a grounded Octopus and then a cross armbreaker.

Bayley stacks her up for two and then pulls Asuka into an Indian Deathlock of all things. Banks goes to taunt Asuka with the title, causing Asuka to reverse into a kneebar. That’s reversed as well and Asuka hits a running knee attack for two more. Asuka puts her on top but Bayley knocks her down, setting up the top rope elbow for another near fall. A sunset bomb sends Asuka into the corner but Bayley stops to mock Kairi Sane, only to get pulled into the Asuka Lock for the tap and the title shot at 15:05.

Rating: B. There is something interesting about Asuka being Bayley’s Kryptonite as Bayley has never beaten her in a singles match. What we got here was another good, hard hitting, back and forth match with two women beating the heck out of each other. I’m not sure how surprising the result was, but they had a good time getting there.

Back at Raw Underground, Arturo Ruas destroys an unknown.

Post break, Dabba-Kato destroys another unnamed victim, with a testicular claw included. Post match, Shayna Baszler gets up to get in the massive Kato’s….well chest actually but Shane breaks it up. Shayna goes to the ground and starts beating up a woman but a blonde makes the save. Shayna beats her up too, then does it again to a second blonde, who did show some submission skills. All three of them go after Shayna at once but she beats them all down with throws and strikes. The first blonde gets Kirifuda Clutched to give Shayna the win.

Retribution has turned over someone’s car and beat on it a little bit more.

Randy Orton vs. Kevin Owens

Ric Flair is here with Orton. Owens gets headlocked to start but they fight outside in a hurry. Orton pokes him in the eye, only to be sent face first into the announcers’ table. Back in and Owens stomps away before shouting a WOO at Flair. The Stunner doesn’t work so Owens goes with the superkick instead, setting up the Cannonball. Owens seems to bang up his shoulder on the landing, even as Orton bails to the floor. That’s fine with Owens, as he hits another Cannonball against the barricade and we take a break.

Back with Owens hammering away some more and throwing in a strut (with another WOO). Orton gets knocked outside but sends Owens’ bad arm into the steps and then the barricade. Back in and Orton rakes the boot over Owens’ face and drops a knee. The chinlock, with a rake to the eye, goes on but Owens is back up in a hurry. Owens hits a clothesline into the backsplash but Orton knocks him down again and puts him on top. Orton gets knocked off the top and the Swanton connects for two. The Stunner is blocked though and it’s the RKO to finish Owens at 13:16.

Rating: B-. That’s the kind of win that can give Orton a nice boost. Owens is a former World Champion so a win over him means something, while losing to Orton is hardly a major defeat. It helps that it was a pretty good match too, with Owens getting in quite a bit of offense.

Post match Flair poses with Orton, who wants a microphone. Orton asks Flair to hang on a second and we take a break. Back with Orton saying he loves Flair after all these years, but he shouldn’t have been in this match with Owens. Of course he cares about Flair, but they will not be together any longer. Flair is a liability to him these days and that can no longer be the case. About eighteen years ago, Flair bailed Orton out of trouble in Peoria, Illinois and Orton thinks that he did it because he wanted Orton to be the son that he never had.

Flair starts crying and Orton talks down to him over having a pacemaker and going into a coma last week. Is this the best that Flair can be? Flair says that he’s not the same man he was before but there are some things that Orton wants to hear. Of course Flair wants to be in the spotlight. He’s 71 years old and he’s on Raw. Flair wants to be there with Orton when he wins his 14^th, 15^th, 16^th and 17^th World Title. He doesn’t want to see Orton beat John Cena’s record, because it’s his record.

Orton knows what it’s like to be where Flair was because Orton’s dad did it for years. Flair knows Orton is the greatest of all time and as soon as he got out of intensive care for 31 days and out of a coma for 12 of them, all he wanted to do was tell the people he cared about that he loved them. All he is now is Charlotte’s dad so he wants to have a good time with Orton.

They hug, but Orton hits him low and leaves Flair laying. Orton looks down at him, goes to the corner, waits for the lights to flicker, and then hits the Punt (with the lights off so we don’t see the contact in a clever way around it) to end Flair. Orton whispers something to Flair and here’s Drew McIntyre to chase Orton off, shouting “EVEN HIM???” Medics and Adam Pearce come out to tend to Flair.

Overall Rating: B-. Maybe it’s because things were such a mess last week, but this was WAY better than what they have been doing in recent weeks. Above all else, it felt like they have a series of targets in mind and focused on every single one of them in a row. The show wasn’t all over the place for a change and you can see what they are going for. The closing segment was quite good and the show worked as a whole. There was nothing outstanding and the wrestling wasn’t the best, but there was a focus here and that has been sorely missing from the show over the last few….well probably years. Good stuff.

Results

Seth Rollins b. Humberto Carrillo – Stomp

Angelo Dawkins b. Andrade – Spinebuster

Bianca Belair b. Zelina Vega – KOD

Shelton Benjamin b. Apollo Crews – Rollup

Peyton Royce b. Liv Morgan – Deja Vu

Cedric Alexander/Ricochet/Viking Raiders b. Akira Tozawa/Ninjas – Viking Experience to Ninja

Asuka b. Bayley – Asuka Lock

Randy Orton b. Kevin Owens – RKO

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: March 6, 2006
Location: Birmingham Jefferson Convention Complex, Birmingham, Alabama
Commentators: Joey Styles, Jonathan Coachman, Jerry Lawler

We have less than a month to go before Wrestlemania and that means we need to get in some more build between HHH and John Cena. That being said, the bigger story going on is Vince McMahon vs. Shawn Michaels, which is likely to get a lot more time tonight. That and maybe some more Money in the Bank setup. Let’s get to it.

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

We open with a recap of Marty Jannetty trying to get a job last week, leading to Shawn Michaels having to save him from Chris Masters. Shane McMahon got involved as well and forced Shawn into Vince McMahon’s Club instead.

Here are Vince and Shane, flanked by a bunch of security, to open things up. With the camera pointed at the ramp for a weird visual, Vince talks about the Oscars last night and seeing three hours of a** kissing. That was weird to see, but it was nothing close to what we saw last week. Of course we have visuals on the screen, but Vince has some people to thank, complete with music playing behind him.

He thanks the Spirit Squad and Chris Masters, the latter of whom was so helpful that he and Carlito are now receiving a Tag Team Title shot at Wrestlemania. Then there is Marty Jannetty, who will not be here tonight and will never be in the ring again. The fans deserve some thanks as well because they are willing do do anything to keep their jobs. Finally there is Shane, who humiliated Shawn, which is why Vince loves him so much.

That brings us to Wrestlemania, where Shawn is facing a 60 year old man on the cover of Muscle and Fitness magazine. Shawn’s music hits so security runs to the floor, because they’re really stupid. Shawn runs in through the crowd and jumps Vince until security pulls him off. Vince and Shane escape, with Vince saying Shawn faces Shane at Saturday Night’s Main Event in a street fight. Tonight though, Shawn is facing…..Shane!

Post break Shane doesn’t get it but Vince says he is going to ruin Shawn’s life.

Intercontinental Title: Ric Flair vs. Shelton Benjamin

Shelton is defending and has Mama Benjamin in his corner. Flair goes after him to start but walks into an early Samoan drop for two. A delayed suplex gets the same but Flair slugs his way out of the corner. Shelton even reaches out for his Mama as Flair keeps hammering away. It’s too much for Shelton so he pokes the referee in the eye. Flair grabs the Figure Four to make Shelton tap but the referee calls for the DQ instead.

Post match Flair is livid and beats Shelton up with Mama’s oxygen tank.

During the break, Teddy Long announced that Money in the Bank was now inter-promotional, with qualifying matches continuing this week on Smackdown. Rob Van Dam was there too. Yeah it’s quite the unnecessary cameo.

HHH vs. Kane

Wrestlemania XV rematch. HHH circles around a bit to start and gets in a poke to the eye, earning himself a beating in the corner. Kane goes up top but gets crotched back down, leaving HHH to not be able to hit a suplex. It’s too early for the Pedigree as Kane backdrops his way to freedom and hits a delayed side slam. Now the top rope clothesline connects but Chris Masters runs in for the distraction. HHH clotheslines Kane outside so Kane grabs his feet and HHH grabs the referee. That’s enough for Carlito to run out and spit apple in Kane’s face and post him, setting up the Pedigree for the pin.

Rating: D+. You wouldn’t usually expect a match in 2006 to be about as overbooked as the original version booked by Vince Russo. At least there was nothing that left you scratching your head this time and the Tag Team Champions finally have someone to face for the titles. HHH getting a win on the road to Wrestlemania helps, even if it took a distracted referee and two people interfering.

Victoria and Torrie Wilson are ready to unveil Candice Michelle’s Playboy cover. Torrie is upset over Candice being mad at her but Victoria says Torrie messed up and Candice is under a lot of pressure. Torrie implies Candice might be disrobed in the ring tonight.

Stephanie McMahon comes in to see Shawn and tries to apologize for Vince and Shane, plus everything she has ever done. She goes to leave but has some pregnancy issues. Shawn goes to get her a water and Stephanie spikes his water.

Video on Candice Michelle’s Playboy shoot.

Victoria and Torrie are in the ring and unveil the Playboy cover. The cover rises up and Candice herself is inside for the Go Daddy dance. She says she is hotter than Trish Stratus and Stacy Keibler (Candice: “Congratulations on finishing third by the way Stace.”) and has the hottest Playboy cover of all time. Right Torrie? That’s a little too far for Torrie but Candice keeps pushing until Torrie calls her a b****. Candice backs off and they hug, with Candice winking at Victoria, who jumps Torrie from behind. Victoria and Candice even have a quick kiss as they leave.

Shawn isn’t feeling right but drinks more water.

Shawn Michaels vs. Shane McMahon

Vince McMahon is here too. Shawn charges in and slugs away with the chase being on. Shane gets in a cheap shot though and Shawn looks a little shaky. Some right hands in the corner have Shawn in more trouble but he comes back with a right hand. He can’t follow up though and the chops have little effect. There’s the nip up but Shawn can’t get all the way to his feet. Shane punches him down again and here are the doctors but Vince won’t let them come to the ring. Shane dances around as Shawn can’t even stand up. Shawn finally collapses and Shane gets the easy pin.

Rating: D. The match wasn’t the point of course, but the McMahons really need to work on their poisoning skills as Stephanie did the whole thing on worldwide TV. The point here was the angle advancement as we continue to get ready for Shawn to destroy Vince once and for….well probably at least a day or so.

Post match Shane tells Lilian Garcia that Shawn has another match right now.

Vince McMahon vs. Shawn Michaels

Vince covers him for the pin in about five seconds.

Post match the McMahons do the big celebration until the Spirit Squad comes out and puts the McMahons on their shoulders.

Eugene vs. Kenny

Hold on though as we need a quick dance off and then a game of hide the air horn. Kenny uses the distraction to get in a cheap shot and the beating is on in a hurry. A jumping elbow to the face and another to the chest give Kenny two and we hit the chinlock. Kenny hits a basement dropkick for two and we’re back to the chinlock. Some forearms to the head get two more and the chinlock goes on again.

That doesn’t last long though and Eugene is sent into the buckle, meaning it’s time to get fired up. The airplane spin into a bulldog gives Eugene two and a bridging O’Connor roll is good for the same. Eugene hits a Rock Bottom but a distraction lets Johnny come in for a kick to the head. Kenny adds the top rope legdrop for the pin.

Rating: D+. You do need to have the Spirit Squad get in the ring at some point as they are just glorified background characters otherwise. That being said, it is rather amazing to see that they have turned so many OVW stars, including Eugene, into this stuff. It is good to have them on the show and that is the point for all of them, but how long were they expecting these characters to last?

Video on Saturday Night’s Main Event.

Lita vs. Maria

Lita is out for revenge from a few weeks back when Lita pinned her in a mixed tag. Edge is here too and Maria is looking a little nervous. A clothesline and some knees have Maria in early trouble and Edge mocks her from ringside. We stop for a quick kiss from Edge, allowing Maria to grab a rollup for two. The cockiness continues with Lita talking trash but the fans are right there with the Jim Duggan catchphrases. Lita finally plants her with the DDT for the pin.

Rating: D. Another match built around the story more than anything else and that’s fine. They made it very clear that Lita is a Women’s Champion and Maria is there because of the Diva Search. It didn’t make for the most exciting match but it was what they should have done here from a logic perspective.

Post match Edge loads up the spear on Maria but Mick Foley comes in for the save. Lita offers a distraction though and Edge spears Foley. The Conchairto follows and Edge accepts the challenge for Wrestlemania.

Sherri Martel is going into the Hall of Fame. That’s a good choice.

Mickie James is very happy with Sherri being inducted when Trish Stratus comes up. Trish says they need to talk and finally cuts Mickie off, saying she’s going too far and they need to be apart. Trish leaves and Mickie is devastated.

Saturday Night’s Main Event rundown.

Big Show vs. John Cena

Non-title Wrestlemania XX rematch. Show shoves him down to start and Cena isn’t sure what to do here. The big shots knock Cena into the corner and there’s a beal back out of it. Cena gets slammed as Show stays on his back and a side slam cuts him off for two. We hit the required bearhug but Cena fights out and low bridges Show to the floor. Cue HHH with the sledgehammer and we take a break.

Back with Cena hitting a delayed vertical suplex for two with Cena getting his foot on the ropes. Another slam gets another two but Cena gets the boots up in the corner. A middle rope crossbody is pulled out of the air though and Cena is down again. Cue Carlito and Masters but Kane jumps them from behind.

That lets Cena catch Show on the middle rope with a suplex (with the camera cutting to a shot of HHH, though they show the full thing on the replay). Cena stares at HHH though and gets shouldered down, only to counter the chokeslam into a DDT. Another chokeslam attempt is escaped and it’s the FU for the pin, much to HHH’s shock.

Rating: C. This was another match where it was all about the angle advancement with HHH vs. Cena and there’s nothing wrong with that. They took a step here with HHH realizing he might be up against something special with Cena and that could bring out the bigger, more evil HHH. Granted that might not be the best thing in the world, but at least they have a reason for going there.

The big staredown ends the show.

Overall Rating: C-. We are firmly to the point where the wrestling does not matter and that was the case right here. The wrestling was mostly bad tonight but that is far from important whatsoever at the moment. They advanced some stories here and that is one of the best things that they can do with less than four weeks to go before Wrestlemania.

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: August 3, 2020
Location: WWE Performance Center, Orlando, Florida
Commentators: Samoa Joe, Tom Phillips, Byron Saxton

Things might be on the verge of a big shakeup around here as we have two big deals going on in a single show. First up we have Shane McMahon making his return after about nine months away with some kind of a big announcement. Other than that, there is a new faction debuting, which isn’t usually the kind of thing you have announced in advance. Let’s get to it.

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

Opening sequence.

The announcers welcome us to the show and the lights flicker a bit.

US Title: Apollo Crews vs. MVP

Crews is defending and the lights go out again during his entrance. The Hurt Business is here with MVP, who has the new title. Before the match, MVP says this should have happened at Extreme Rules but Lashley went full Lashley. After tonight, this is all done and Crews can go hang out with Ricochet and Cedric Alexander in catering. Crews grabs a headlock to no avail to start so MVP stomps him on the foot as the flickering continues.

Crews is right back with a shoulder and a snap suplex for two. We hit the armbar on MVP for a bit before Crews hammers away on the ropes. MVP is sent outside for more flickering so Crews hits a big flip dive onto the whole team. Back from a break with MVP working on a cravate before putting on something like a camel clutch in the ropes. MVP elbows away in the corner but misses a running big boot. A crossbody into a spinebuster gives Crews two, followed by the Toss Powerbomb to retain the title at 10:35.

Rating: C-. Just a match here and not exactly thrilling stuff. That being said, this has felt like a path to get to Lashley vs. Crews at Summerslam and having a part time wrestler lose isn’t going to hurt anything. Crews getting some more wins where he has to fight from behind is a good thing and hopefully we get somewhere else with him going forward.

Post match Crews has to run from the threat of a full nelson.

In the back, Crews talks about how strong Lashley is. That power kept him sitting at home and not being able to turn his head. His kids thought he was the real champion and now he can give them the old belt to hang in their room to see the first title their daddy ever won. Thanks for paying for the new belt MVP. Good emotion from Crews here.

Back in the arena, MVP rants about the lights flickering causing an unsafe working environment (the line we have to get in at least twice a year). Crews missed Extreme Rules and now he steals his title. MVP wants his rematch at Summerslam.

Sasha Banks and Bayley are very happy with having all of the gold. They don’t like being asked a bunch of questions, like if they will be defending their titles at Summerslam. They’re going to spice things up, so here’s a video tribute….to themselves, mainly focusing on Sasha beating Asuka last week. Asuka interrupts and says revenge will be very, very sweet. Bayley and Banks are not happy but here’s Shayna Baszler to interrupt. She has a bit of a problem with this and slaps Banks down.

The IIconics offer to be on the Kevin Owens Show but he already has guests. They can have a water instead.

It’s time for the Kevin Owens Show but his microphone keeps cutting out. He knows Shane McMahon is back tonight but he would rather talk to his guest: Ruby Riott. Ruby comes out and says she has dealt with “toxic sad broads” like the IIconics her whole life. Then last week she put an end to the IIconic bull****. Riott wished Liv Morgan could have been there to share it with her, so here’s Liv to join them. Liv doesn’t seem happy and asks for Ruby to say what she wants to say.

Owens remembers the two of them when they started and, after his mic cuts out again, says he remembers the two of them and Sarah starting something special. Owens traveled the world with them and doesn’t want this to be messed up. Ruby gets very emotional and talks about coming back here and thinking everything would be the same. Now Sarah is gone though and Ruby blamed Liv for everything.

That wasn’t fair and she looks at the tattoo with their debut date and all she wants is another chance. All she wants is one more chance for the Riott Squad to be stronger than ever, but here are the IIconics to interrupt. Owens: “I had nothing to do with that.” Kay isn’t sure why Ruby was so happy with one win after 400 losses in a row. Peyton, with her mic cutting in and out again, talks about how they are best friends.

Liv says that she and Ruby aren’t IIconic but they can start a riot like no one else. Owens thinks the IIconics should leave but a challenge is issued instead. The IIconics can’t decide who should do their catchphrase, so Owens asks if we can get some more technical difficulties for just the two of them. Peyton slaps him so the Squad jumps them to start the fight.

Back from a break and a delivery man tries to bring some drinks to a locker room. A rather large security guard glares him off. This seems to be associated with Shane McMahon.

Riott Squad vs. IIconics

Owens is on commentary and Kay Regal Cutters Riott for an early two. Peyton comes in for the chinlock before it’s back to Billie, who gets superkicked down. Liv comes in and hits some clotheslines into a spinning faceplant to Peyton. Kay kicks her down though and drags Peyton over for the tag. Not that it matters as Ruby grabs a rollup for the pin at 2:34.

Post match the IIconics jump Liv again but Ruby makes the save. A double STO plants Kay.

Earlier today, a loud noise was heard and some crates were knocked over backstage with some technical equipment falling out. Some people say it was deliberate but MVP comes in to complain about losing earlier. There is some good news for him though: he gets his rematch for the title at Summerslam. Shelton Benjamin comes up to say someone stole his title.

Here’s Drew McIntyre for a chat. He talks about Randy Orton has spent twenty years preying on vulnerability and then coming after McIntyre last week after an Extreme Rules match. McIntyre should have seen it coming and that’s on him. He has gotten in trouble for being lazy before and that was why Vince McMahon fired him. Orton has had everything handed to him over the years though and has gotten in so much trouble over the years that he should have been fired a long time ago.

Cue Orton with Ric Flair to say he wants to be here because he enjoys being here. He enjoys hitting RKOs and punting heads. Orton likes Drew’s spirit, which is going to make beating him at Summerslam all the sweeter. McIntyre says Orton should have been fired years ago and he’s right. Orton should have been fired multiple times but Drew was the one who was fired. That’s because Orton was more valuable to this company than Drew ever could be. He has gotten chance after chance because he is the chosen one, then now and forever.

Drew has been quoting legends, but what has he done that makes him that great. McIntyre talks about Undertaker saying he pulled Orton up to his level in the Last Ride, but when has Orton ever done that? How about ten years ago? When Drew’s career was falling down around him and he was self destructing, a kind word from someone like Orton could have changed everything.

Drew looks at Orton and sees a selfish jerk, so at Summerslam it’s time to cash in some receipts both for himself and all the legends that Orton has kicked in the head. This time though, Orton will see it coming. This was good stuff and the kind of thing that can build up a match that makes all the sense in the world on paper.

Ric Flair comes up to Kevin Owens in the back and asks the Riott Squad to leave them alone. Flair talks about the history the two of them have and how much he respects Owens. However, Flair thinks Owens might be too worried about everyone else. Owens isn’t trying to be a guidance counselor but now he is trying to be a better person. Like what Randy Orton could be if he wanted to be.

Flair thinks that’s pretty strong and says he’s giving Owens advice he needs to listen to. Mind your own business and take care of yourself and maybe you can get your own Summerslam title match. Owens says if Flair cares so much, Owens can show him how much fight he has against Orton next week. Flair seems to like the idea.

Here are Nia Jax and agent Pat Buck, who Jax attacked last week. Nia seems emotional about it but doesn’t like a scrawny runt from management who couldn’t make it in his own career stepping to her, it is her responsibility to step back. She didn’t see Buck there but offers him a match right here and right now.

Buck says no and he’s only here for an apology. Jax says he can have one after their match and this is his big chance. That’s still a no, but she was expecting more fire from a ginger like him. Jax tells him to say what he has to say so Buck suspends her without pay. That earns him a quick knockdown and a kick to the floor as Jax screams a lot.

Jax goes to leave but here’s R-Truth with the 24/7 Title as he runs away from Akira Tozawa and the Ninjas. Shelton Benjamin comes out as well and it’s time for a scheduled title match.

24/7 Title: Akira Tozawa vs. Shelton Benjamin vs. R-Truth

Shelton, with the Hurt Business, is defending and beats up Truth to start. Tozawa’s rollup gets one and it’s time to panic. Tozawa misses his spinning kick to the head and the punches to the ribs have no effect. Shelton hits a heck of a powerbomb on Tozawa (that looked great) but Truth is back to kick away. Paydirt plants Truth but one of the ninjas comes in to flip around a lot. Shelton kicks him in the head and throws him into the ropes (that wasn’t good) and the rest of the Hurt Business goes after the other Ninjas. Back in and Tozawa hits the top rope backsplash to pin Truth for the title at 2:07.

We see a bunch of people standing around a ring with no ropes and two guys grappling. Shane McMahon pops up and says tonight at 10pm, it’s Raw Underground.

We look back at Murphy taking out Aleister Black’s eye last week, plus Dominic Mysterio attacking Murphy and Seth Rollins.

Dominic is asked a rather important question: why is he still here? Dominic says he’s here because his dad was blinded, so of course his mind hasn’t been in the right place as of late. If people think he’s crazy now, how crazy will they think he is when he challenges Seth Rollins to a match at Summerslam?

Shayna Baszler vs. Sasha Banks

Non-title and Sasha has Bayley in her corner. Sasha slaps her in the face to start and is quickly taken down, allowing Baszler to tease a kick to the face. Instead she shoves Sasha a bit and Banks isn’t pleased. A kick to the leg cuts Banks down again and stomps down on the hand for a bonus. Baszler grabs a double underhook into a cross armbreaker but Banks rolls over to the ropes for a break on the floor.

A Bayley distraction lets Banks send Shayna into the corner for two. Baszler rolls through a high crossbody though and hits a nasty/somewhat messed up backbreaker for two of her own. The Kirifuda Clutch is blocked though and Banks pulls her into the Bank Statement. That’s broken up as well so Banks hits a knee to the face. That earns her a knee to the face though and they’re both down. Cue Asuka to go after Bayley though….and that’s a DQ at 4:50?

Rating: C+. It was nice while it lasted but this show needs to work on its DQ rules. I went back to make sure I didn’t miss anything on the DQ but how else are they going to get to the tag match? Asuka and Baszler are a weird team, but who else is supposed to challenge for the titles at Summerslam? The Riott Squad?

Post match Asuka chases Banks to the floor and I think you know where this is going.

Indeed it’s a promo from Asuka, who is asked about last week when she went to save Kairi Sane, costing herself the Raw Women’s Title in the process. After seeing the ending of the match, Asuka says Kairi will be ok but for now, she is here and so are Bayley and Banks. She wants her rematch for the title at Summerslam but Shayna pops up next to her. Baszler is cheering for Asuka because she wants Asuka to get the title back so she can take it next. Cue Banks and Bayley to say Asuka can face Bayley next week. If she wins, then she gets the title shot. Bayley doesn’t seem pleased.

Angel Garza hits on a woman named Demi, who is from the Bachelor. Andrade doesn’t seem pleased and neither does Zelina Vega, who says Demi doesn’t belong here.

Back at Raw Underground, Shane declares one of them men the winner as some women dance in the background. This has the potential to be a disaster in the making.

After a break, Shane introduces Raw Underground, where there are very few rules and a lot of carnage. We’ve got a fight to start between Daba Kato, who is over 7’ tall, and a much smaller guy. The smaller guy charges at him to no avail. Kato beats the tar out of him for the win in 19 seconds. Another guy comes up and gets taken down with a spinning Rock Bottom. Elbows to the face finish him in about 15 seconds. Kato throws the guy to the floor and asks who is next. More on this later.

Here are the Street Profits for a pair of singles matches, but first Dawkins wants to hit on Demi. Ford wants him to be more serious, because it’s time to get ready for Summerslam. They have a bond like James, unlike the Angel Garza and Andrade, who Zelina Vega threw together. They want the smoke.

Angel Garza vs. Angelo Dawkins

Dawkins starts fast by sending Garza outside. That means a ram into the Plexiglas and we take a fast break. Back with Dawkins working on the arm before hitting a dropkick for two as Demi is watching backstage, with the rose Garza gave her. Garza fights back up and TAKES OFF HIS PANTS, setting up his own middle rope dropkick. The Wing Clipper is blocked and Dawkins hits his spinning splash in the corner. There’s a bulldog but Ford falls down without being touched. Garza hits a superkick and a dropkick to the side of the face for the pin at 5:52. Not enough shown to rate but the Ford deal seems more important.

Montez Ford vs. Andrade

Joined in progress with Ford slipping out of an armbar and grabbing a waistlock as commentary wonders what was wrong with him. Ford is fine enough to flip out of a wristlock and slap on a headlock. That’s reversed with a belly to back suplex and Andrade kicks him to the floor where Ford is holding his ribs. Ford reverses a whip into the barricade and they head back inside, where Andrade gets in a hard shot to the face. A snap suplex gives Andrade two and we hit the chinlock.

That brings Ford back to life for some elbows and a flip over Andrade. A jumping clothesline has Ford’s eyes bugging out again but he charges into a shot to the chest. Ford is back up with a dropkick to knock Andrade off the top and there’s the big running flip dive to take him down again. Back in and Ford shakes the ropes…but collapses again and the referee stops it at 4:58.

Rating: C. The storylines are strong with this show and I’ll give them points for seeing where they are going with this one. It’s certainly different and something that we haven’t seen in a long time so maybe they have something different. That being said, I’ll need to see where it is going before deciding how good it is.

Murphy watches a clip of him attacking Aleister Black’s eye last week and doesn’t seem pleased with himself. Seth Rollins is proud of him though and says focus on the future. As for the Summerslam challenge from Dominic, Murphy thinks it’s ridiculous but Seth smiles and walks off.

We go back to Raw Underground with Erik of the Viking Raiders fighting another unnamed fighter. Erik takes him down and hammers away, followed by a hard German suplex. The other guy is kicked out of the ring but gets thrown back in for some knees to the chest. Erik finally wins via stoppage. Adding in a wrestler we know is a better idea.

There is no update on Montez Ford but Angel Garza comes up to offer Charly Caruso a rose. Zelina and Andrade come up to say they’re worried about Ford as well, but what does this mean for the Summerslam Tag Team Title match? Angelo Dawkins walks out of the trainer’s room and says someone might have poisoned Ford. Bianca Belair comes out of the room as well to say Zelina has one chance to say what happened. Zelina asks how stupid Belair thinks she is so the earrings come off and they both have to be held back.

We see some security camera footage from earlier where five people in masks threw a fireball at a power generator and blew it up, likely causing the technical issues all night long.

The Hurt Business doesn’t like being asked about their bad night when everything is going insane around here. They find it interesting that this is happening when the Raw Underground stuff starts up and go to look into it.

Here’s what’s coming next week.

We look back at Seth Rollins destroying Rey Mysterio and tormenting his family.

Here are Seth Rollins and Murphy so Seth can make a statement, but first he wants to ask Tom Phillips if he is an unbiased journalist. What was he doing last week when Dominic was attacking Seth with a kendo stick? Rollins starts shouting about Phillips cheering him on and inciting his rage. It’s the bias (oh it’s time to get topical) that causes these problems, so Murphy is going to take care of Phillips. Samoa Joe stands up and says that isn’t happening because he was laughing harder than anyone last week.

Rollins says Joe doesn’t want to do this but Joe says he does. Rollins and Murphy roll inside and tell Joe to come join them. Joe takes off the coat and we go to a break. Back with Joe still not in the ring but here’s Dominic with a kendo stick to lay out Murphy and Rollins. Dominic hits a big dive off the top to take both of them down and the two run off. Rollins grabs the mic and says the match is on for Summerslam.

Back at Raw Underground, Dolph Ziggler beats someone up and chokes him out in a hurry. The Hurt Business shows up and says they’re taking over, with Lashley ruling the ring. A guy comes after him and is immediately taken down with no trouble. MVP gets in the ring as well and Shelton Benjamin throws someone else inside to get beaten up as well. That’s enough for MVP to be called off by a referee so Lashley throws the guy to the floor.

MVP asks who is next but someone has said something about Shelton’s mama (ANYONE but Mama Benjamin). Shelton dispatches him with ease and the Hurt Business drops tot he floor and beats up a bunch of people without much effort. Shane seems pleased and says anything goes around here. They can come back anytime they want and MVP says business is booming to end the show.

Overall Rating: C. Well it was certainly different, and that’s a good thing given how the show has been going as of late. That being said, I’m not exactly thrilled with the idea of an underground fight club breaking out at the arena. It’s certainly a far cry from the Brawl For All of course, but we could be in for some interesting ideas in the coming weeks.

This was definitely the “throw stuff at the wall and see what doesn’t bomb” show, and after everything else going as it did recently, that might not be the worst idea. I’m disappointed in a faction being “introduced” as I wouldn’t call seeing them blow stuff up to be an introduction, but it was better than nothing. I’ll have to see where a lot of this goes, but it has me somewhat interested and that’s a good thing.

Results

Apollo Crews b. MVP – Toss powerbomb

Riott Squad b. IIconics – Rollup to Kay

Akira Tozawa b. R-Truth and Shelton Benjamin – Top rope backsplash to R-Truth

Sasha Banks vs. Shayna Baszler went to a no contest when Asuka interfered

Angel Garza b. Angelo Dawkins – Dropkick to the side of the head

Andrade b. Montez Ford via referee stoppage

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: February 27, 2006
Location: Verizon Center, Washington DC
Attendance: 11,000
Commentators: Jonathan Coachman, Jerry Lawler, Joey Styles

We’re just over a month away from Wrestlemania and the show is starting to take some shape. The big story coming out of last week is HHH becoming the new #1 contender to John Cena’s Raw World Title, which could mean some extra long promos without much being said. Let’s get to it.

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

We open with a recap of the Spirit Squad attacking Shawn Michaels last week, with Marty Jannetty making the save. Marty can have a job tonight, if he joins Vince McMahon’s special club.

Opening sequence.

Here are Edge and Lita to get things going. Edge says Mick Foley’s time is up because it has been a week since Edge challenged him. Foley might have something planned for April 2 but maybe he would rather not waste himself at another indy show or write another book that no one will read. Lita pulls out a pair of tickets to Long Island and if Foley isn’t here, they’re coming to his house.

Cue Foley to say it isn’t that he isn’t man enough to come to Washington DC. It was Edge who lost to John Cena at the Royal Rumble and last week on Raw. Edge was the one who choked, so Edge threatens to choke Foley at Wrestlemania. Foley turns down the Wrestlemania match but points out that he was a three time transitional champion, making him the greatest transitional champion of all time! Edge says Foley will be remembered for three things: having his ear ripped off, being thrown off the Cell and showing up in Vince McMahon’s hospital room with a sock puppet.

See, Foley has never won at Wrestlemania. Yeah he has had his disqualifications and such, but he has never had that classic. Edge is undefeated at Wrestlemania and has had his share of great moments. It’s true that Foley would lose a wrestling match at Wrestlemania, but he would like to challenge Edge to a hardcore match. Lita panics so Foley goes to the back to get some extra incentive. That would be the barbed wire baseball bat so Edge and Lita run off.

Saturday Night’s Main Event is back on March 18.

Tag Team Titles: Kane/Big Show vs. Viscera/Val Venis

Kane and Big Show are defending. Venis strikes away at Kane to start, earning himself a big boot and side slam. Joey tries to shift things over to Jannetty and McMahon but Lawler of all people gets them back on track. Viscera comes in for a Samoan drop and his own near fall but it’s off to Show for the big flying shoulder. A somewhat delayed slam puts Viscera down again and Venis has to make the save. Kane clotheslines Venis down and it’s a double chokeslam to retain the titles.

Rating: D. Another match as we wait around to find challengers for Kane and Show. That has been the case since they won the titles, which is hardly the biggest surprise. There isn’t much that you can do with them, which is a big part of why they have been doing singles stuff for so long. Venis tried as usual though and seeing Viscera thrown around is somewhat impressive.

Ric Flair talks about turning 57 over the weekend and maybe he has one more title run in him.

Shawn Michaels comes up to Marty Jannetty and apologizes for what Marty has gotten into. Marty talks about quitting and getting fired but never doing something like this. He needs to do what he needs to do at the moment though because he needs this job.

Carlito insults Maria and announces that Money in the Bank is coming back at Wrestlemania. Qualifying matches begin tonight.

Money in the Bank Qualifying Match: Rob Van Dam vs. Trevor Murdoch

Murdoch jumps him to start but Rob sweeps the leg and twists it around. A basement dropkick keeps Murdoch in trouble and a kneebar sends Murdoch to the ropes. Murdoch bails outside but Rob’s dive only hits the floor. We get some TREVOR MURDOCH chants as he grabs a reverse chinlock, as the RVD chants take over. The regular chinlock goes on for a bit until Rob sends him into the corner. A running spinwheel kick sets up most of a Rolling Thunder and another kick to the face. The Five Star sends Rob on to Wrestlemania.

Rating: D+. Rob seemed especially sloppy this week but at least they kept it short. These qualifying matches can get a little annoying when they don’t have much drama but Murdoch is someone who is believable enough to make something like this work. At the same time though, there isn’t much that can be done when Rob isn’t exactly nailing his signature stuff.

Video on the Philippines tour.

Women’s Title: Trish Stratus vs. Candice Michelle

Trish is defending and Mickie James and Torrie Wilson handle the respective introductions. An early Torrie distraction lets Candice get in a wand shot to take over. Some knees in the corner set up the Go Daddy dance but Trish takes her down and hammers away. Candice chokes away on the ropes but Trish grabs a sunset flip. Torrie grabs Candice’s hands, only to have the referee break that up. Trish rolls her up to retain. Not that it matters of course, because Candice’s Playboy cover is unveiled next week, and that’s what really matters.

Mickie is rather happy that Trish won.

Candice slapped Torrie during the break.

Here’s Coach to interview John Cena. Coach talks about how tough of a challenge HHH is going to be but before Cena can respond, here is HHH to interrupt. HHH gets rid of Coach and says that he is the greatest today. Cena talks about how he has been here four years and HHH probably didn’t think he would last two weeks. It’s true that Cena had to work hard to get to the top and now he is here to headline Wrestlemania XXII. HHH laughs it off and talks about Edge and Foley bringing up transitional champions.

That’s all Cena is because he’s just holding it for HHH. Cena is a tough guy, but he’s like Rocky Balboa. He has a lot of passion and pride, but he isn’t a very good wrestler. Rocky always finds a way to win, but this isn’t the movies and Cena can’t beat the bad guy. After that not so great illustration, Cena talks about how he has heard that from a lot of people, so what makes HHH different? HHH says Cena knows he’s different and he can see it in his eyes.

Cena lists off all of HHH’s accomplishments, including HHH being the kind of person who can walk around without the title and have everyone know he’s one of the best in the world. HHH has beaten a lot of names but Cena isn’t on that list. Cue Vince on screen to say that they will be facing off at Wrestlemania but before then, they are going to be teaming together against Kurt Angle/Rey Mysterio/Randy Orton on Saturday Night’s Main Event (with Vince making sure to get in all of the programming information, because he’s a promoter at heart). Good, intense segment, but the SNME announcement felt like it belong elsewhere.

Money in the Bank Qualifying Match: Shelton Benjamin vs. Chavo Guerrero

Non-title and Mama Benjamin is here too. Shelton hammers away and hits a faceplant as Mama seems rather pleased. Or maybe it’s menacing. The chinlock doesn’t last long and Chavo is up with some quick shots to the face. A running headscissors sets up Two Amigos but the third is blocked for a whip out to the floor. Mama glares at Chavo and seems to have more health issues. Back in and Chavo counters a suplex into a DDT but the referee is with Mama. That lets Randy Orton run in for an RKO to give Shelton the pin.

Rating: D+. You know, if you need Randy Orton to help you beat Chavo Guerrero, you might not be the strongest choice for Intercontinental Champion. This Mama deal has crippled any credibility that Benjamin had left and I don’t see it getting any better. The match was short and to the point, though Orton vs. Chavo sounds rather….nothing.

Gene Okerlund is going into the Hall of Fame. The interview highlights alone are worth it.

Shawn begs Vince to not make Marty do this. Vince compares it to the President of France having to do this to George Bush, because that’s still a thing in 2006. Shawn better not get involved.

Money in the Bank Qualifying Match: Carlito vs. Ric Flair

Flair headlocks him over for some one counts to start until Carlito drives him into the corner. A running shoulder puts Flair down and Carlito slaps him in the face. That means a series of chops from Flair and Carlito bails to the floor as we take a break. Back with Flair getting backdropped on the floor but Carlito has to hold his chest.

They head back inside and we hit the chinlock, with Flair chopping his way up. An enziguri into the Flair Flop gives Carlito two but he misses the knee drop. Flair gets in a few shots to the knee but Carlito dropkicks him out of the air. Carlito goes after the leg, only to have Flair sweep him down and grab a rollup (and ropes) for the pin.

Rating: C-. Another short and to the point match here, which wasn’t exactly thrilling stuff. Seeing Carlito take a beating is always nice though and Flair grabbing the ropes for the pin made me smile a bit. It was also nice to have a little drama to the match as you could go either way here, which is often a nice feeling to have.

Here is the Spirit Squad to sing about Marty joining Vince’s club. Vince comes out and talks about Marty leaving before so he must need this job. That brings out Marty, who looks defeated but willing to do what he has to do. Vince knows that Marty needs this job and demands that he get on his knees. Marty eventually does so Vince takes down his pants (Vince: “What are you smiling at Lilian?”), revealing the thong so Vince can deem everything magnificent.

Vince orders Marty to do it like everyone else does and, while Marty seems like he’s about to crack up, Marty gets to his feet and asks if there is another way. Fine enough, so here’s Chris Masters as Vince demands a chair. The Masterlock Challenge is on and Vince adds a low blow before insisting that Marty is going to kiss it.

Cue Shawn Michaels for the save but Shane McMahon pops out from under the ring to chair Shawn down. Vince makes Shane vs. Shawn at Saturday Night’s Main Event in a street fight. Shane makes Shawn kiss it instead and Vince promises to kick Shawn’s at Wrestlemania to end the show.

And then Marty was fired less than a week later and was never seen again.

Overall Rating: C. They have a focus and that’s what matters most at the moment. The show itself was average with some not great wrestling but good segments to advance stories, but the important thing is those stories exist to be built. They have a framework in place for Wrestlemania and you can see where most of the show is going. That’s a rather good sign over a month out and now they just need to hammer in the details over the next few weeks.

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: February 20, 2006
Location: Sovereign Bank Arena, Trenton, New Jersey
Attendance: 5,500
Commentators: Joey Styles, Jerry Lawler, Jonathan Coachman

Smackdown is done with its pay per view and that means there is nothing left on the way to Wrestlemania. We need a Raw World Title challenger and that will be taken care of tonight as HHH faces Rob Van Dam and Big Show in a HHH Coronation Special. Other than that, Shelton Benjamin gets an Intercontinental Title shot at Ric Flair. Let’s get to it.

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

The opening recap looks at the end of last week’s show with Edge blaming guest referee Mick Foley for costing him the World Title match against John Cena and beating him down as a result.

Opening sequence.

Battle Royal

Candice Michelle, Torrie Wilson, Ashley, Maria, Victoria, Mickie James

The winner gets a shot at Trish Stratus at some point in the future, so Trish comes out to watch from the stage. It’s a brawl to start with multiple catfights breaking out and Lawler wanting a wardrobe malfunction. Candice turns on Torrie and dumps her, much to Victoria’s annoyance. Ashley and Maria get rid of Candice and Mickie throws Maria out. Mickie tries a hurricanrana on Victoria but Candice dumps both of them for the win.

Rating: D. This was your fast paced nothing battle royal and that’s all it needed to be. Candice winning is fine for now, as it’s pretty clear what Trish is going to be doing at Wrestlemania anyway. They didn’t waste time with this one, but Lawler managed to make me cringe at least twice anyway. That takes talent.

Post match Candice brags about her accomplishments and does the GoDaddy dance while promising to win the title. Cue Edge and Lita to tell Candice (“Toots”) to get out of here because Edge is the one who should be champion. Edge is furious over what happened last week and says that’s what happens to Foley when he messes with the Rated R Superstar. Foley likes doing Jim Duggan impressions about Lita, so Edge wants a match…..with Duggan, which he’ll be getting tonight. Lita wants Duggan out here right now and Duggan isn’t making her wait.

Jim Duggan vs. Edge

Joined in progress. Duggan clotheslines away to put Edge on the floor but Edge snaps him throat first across the top. Now it’s Duggan being sent outside for a whip into the steps, followed by a dropkick back inside. Duggan slugs away and hits the ten right hands in the corner, plus the spinning slam. Lita grabs the foot though and the spear gives Edge the pin.

Rating: D+. In theory that should wrap up the Duggan stuff, which was funny once or twice but got a little annoying over time. Edge getting so frustrated over everything is a good way to go and setting up up against Foley is a promising thing, so hopefully we can get some of the amazing promos the two of them can do.

Post match, Edge asks if Foley saw that. Foley cost Edge his dream so he’ll make it simple because Foley only has one ear: Edge wants Foley at Wrestlemania and Foley has one week to make up his mind. If not, Edge is coming to Long Island.

Big Show talks about how important it is to go to Wrestlemania. He was in the main event of Wrestlemania 2000 and he knows what it takes to get there. Tonight, it’s a chokeslam to Rob Van Dam and HHH to stop HHH from having a chance to be WWE Champion again.

This date in WWE history: Bob Backlund beats Billy Graham to become World Champion.

Video on John Cena going to India. For some reason this isn’t on the Network version.

Kane vs. Chris Masters

They lock up to start and Kane wins a quick slugout. That’s enough to send Masters outside, where he pulls Kane into the post to take over. Back in and Masters grabs a quickly broken chinlock and Kane breaks up what looked to be a belly to back superplex. The top rope clothesline and a side slam drop Masters but he blocks a big boot and tries the Masterlock. That doesn’t work either and Kane tries his own, which is broken up with elbows to the face. The big boot finishes Masters out of nowhere.

Rating: D+. The streak of not so great wrestling continues tonight and I can’t say I’m exactly surprised. What were you expecting from these two? Kane and Big Show continue to forget that they’re Tag Team Champions, which isn’t exactly surprised given how nothing the tag division has been around here for, uh, well almost ever now.

Post match Masters grabs the Masterlock to send Kane outside.

Rob Van Dam wants to go to Wrestlemania. Serious Van Dam is always weird to see.

We look back at last week’s Shawn Michaels’ retirement ceremony.

Vince McMahon is in his office when the Spirit Squad comes in. He’s glad to see them because four of them are going to face Shawn tonight. The one left out tells the others to do it for him. These guys are growing on me in a weird way.

Intercontinental Title: Ric Flair vs. Shelton Benjamin

Benjamin is challenging and has Mama with him. Speaking of Mama, we cut to the back where she is on oxygen and Shelton dedicates the win to her. Flair hiptosses him into the corner to start and that’s a WOO. Back up and Flair hits a running shoulder, followed by some chops to the floor as we take a break. We come back with the Figure Four attempt being broken up with a kick out to the floor. Shelton follows and drives him into the apron, setting up a suplex over the top for two back inside.

A kick to the neck gets two and Shelton’s frustration is setting in. Flair charges into a boot in the corner and a top rope clothesline gives Shelton two more. Shelton tries his own Figure Four but gets kicked to the apron. A springboard back in is chopped out of the air though and now the Figure Four goes on. Benjamin makes the rope and gets outside, where Mama is having another heart attack. With the medics running out, Shelton gets in a pair of oxygen tank shots into the exploder suplex for the pin and the title.

Rating: C-. That’s your match of the night so far as Mama continues to get more attention than Shelton, even as he wins a title. Flair wasn’t exactly doing anything as champion so Shelton is a better fit, even if he has fallen off the face of the planet since Mama showed up. Granted he was almost all the way down before she showed up so maybe it wasn’t the worst thing imaginable.

Post match Mama dances with the title and Flair is all upset.

Video on Stacy Keibler on Dancing With The Stars.

Shawn Michaels vs. Spirit Squad

It’s a four on one handicap match with Kenny hitting a hiptoss into a dropkick to put Shawn in some mild trouble. Johnny comes in but Mikey gets in a cheap shot from the apron, allowing Johnny to kick Shawn in the face. Nicky grabs a chinlock for a bit, followed by Kenny low bridging Shawn to the floor.

The trampoline is set up on the floor and Kenny bounces off of it with a clothesline. Back in and Johnny’s assisted moonsault gets two but Shawn is back with a swinging neckbreaker. Kenny comes back in and misses his top rope legdrop, with Shawn nailing the running forearm. The top rope elbow hits Mikey and Shawn nails the superkick, drawing in the rest of the team to lay Shawn out for the DQ.

Rating: D+. The wrestling hasn’t exactly been hot tonight but this was angle advancement rather than the match itself. The Squad is fine enough in the ring, but it isn’t a good sign when your big draw is having a numbers advantage. If nothing else, it’s kind of a shame after watching these guys do so well in OVW and then get turned into a comedy heel act.

Post match the beatdown is on but Marty Jannetty of all people runs in for the save.

Carlito vs. Nick Burke

Carlito takes the mic from Lilian Garcia and punches Burke down while doing his own commentary. He talks about how he has an idea for Wrestlemania, hits the Backstabber and Rolls the Dice for the pin, then says it’s going to be Money in the Bank.

During the commercial, Matt Striker plugged his profile in GQ Magazine.

Eddie Guerrero is going into the Hall of Fame as well. Yeah that’s as much of a layup as you’re getting.

Here is Vince, who thinks Marty Jannetty should be rewarded for what happened. That’s why next week, Marty is getting a full time contract….if he’ll join Vince’s special club.

HHH talks about how important it is to go to Wrestlemania. He’s that big of a star and deserves to go to the biggest stage.

Wrestlemania Big Time Moment: “This is the biggest match in the history of professional wrestling.”

Road to Wrestlemania Tournament Finals: HHH vs. Big Show vs. Rob Van Dam

Show jumps HHH from behind to start and gorilla presses him without much effort. Rob breaks up the cover so Show chops him away. The beating continues with HHH being knocked outside and chopped into the crowd. Rob is right back with a kick to Show but he catches the spinning kick from the apron. HHH gets knocked down again and we take a break.

Back with Show shoving them both into the corner but Rob kicks Show in the head. The alliance forms to try and knock Show down and they finally put him on his knees. Show pops up with a double chokeslam though and they’re all down. A powerslam plants HHH and Rob is sent outside. Rob comes right back in with a top rope kick to Show’s face to put him on the floor for a change. That leaves HHH to get kicked in the face and the split legged moonsault gets two.

The stepover kick puts HHH down again and the Five Star connects but Show is back in. Rob kicks Show down again but HHH knocks him outside. A heck of a chair shot to Show’s head sets up the Pedigree for two, with Van Dam’s save getting a huge reaction. The Five Star connects on Show but HHH grabs the referee. The Pedigree finishes Van Dam to send HHH to Wrestlemania.

Rating: C+. The ending was inevitable as even Show talked about how it was more important to stop HHH from going to Wrestlemania. They didn’t exactly hide what was going on here but Cena vs. HHH does feel like a Wrestlemania main event. Cena is a star, but HHH is always hanging over the whole thing. Not a bad match, even with the obvious ending.

Post match Cena comes out for the big staredown to end the show.

Overall Rating: D+. This was a rough sit as there wasn’t much to see until the main event. What matters here though is setting things up for Wrestlemania and you can see a good chunk of the Raw side from here. That’s what matters more than anything else, but it would have been nice to have some better wrestling at the same time.

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