Takeover: Vengeance Day
Date: February 14, 2021
Location: Capitol Wrestling Center, Winter Park, Florida
Commentators: Beth Phoenix, Wade Barrett, Vic Joseph

It’s time for the next big one and this time around, it means a rather strange name as St. Valentine’s Day something isn’t allowed anymore. Fair enough, but it’s not like it matters if the show winds up being great and the potential is there this time around. The card is stacked and hopefully it lives up to the hype. Let’s get to it.

The opening video is a Valentine’s Day rap about how much this place is loved, including a rundown of the card.

There’s a ramp instead of an aisle for a change.

Women’s Dusty Rhodes Tag Team Classic Finals: Ember Moon/Shotzi Blackheart vs. Dakota Kai/Raquel Gonzalez

Gonzalez powers Blackheart around with ease to start and does the same to Moon. It’s already back to Blackheart, who is driven into the corner for a hard ram into the buckle. Kai comes in and gets two off Gonzalez’s knockdown. The running kick in the corner misses though and Blackheart gets in a kick to the leg. The Texas Cloverleaf goes on but Kai is all of eight inches from the rope for the easy break.

Blackheart hits the reverse Cannonball against the ropes and it’s Moon coming in with the slingshot splash for two. A double takedown slams Kai down and Moon cranks on the leg for a bonus. Moon pulls her back in to stay on the leg so Kai uses the free leg to kick her way to….well nothing actually as Moon drags her away again. Gonzalez comes in to yell so Blackheart switches without a tag.

Moon is smart enough to knock Gonzalez off the apron to break up the tag though and the ankle lock goes on. Kai finally sends Moon into the corner and the (Hot?) tag brings in Gonzalez to clean house. Some rams in the corner set up a fall away slam to drop Moon and Gonzalez drags Blackheart in for the same. Gonzalez is knocked outside so Blackheart tries a hurricanrana, only to get swung into the barricade.

Back in and Moon dropkicks Gonzalez off the apron but gets taken into the corner again. Kai hits the running kick to the face for two but Moon manages a leg lariat to Kai, causing her to DDT Gonzalez. Moon goes for Kai, only to get picked up by Gonzalez. That’s broken up by Blackheart’s missile dropkick to give Moon two and it’s Blackheart coming back in to clean house. Sliced Bread gets two on Gonzalez with Kai making another save. Blackheart hits a suicide dive to take Kai down again and then puts Kai up in an electric chair.

Moon dives off the top with a crossbody for a modified Doomsday Device and then kicks Gonzalez in the face. Back in and the STF has Gonzalez in trouble so Kai makes another save. Blackheart gets the tag so Kai takes her down with the Kairopractor for two. The assisted GTK gets two on Blackheart with Moon making another save. Gonzalez LAUNCHES Moon onto the ramp but Blackheart dropkicks her down. Kai is tossed onto Gonzalez, who is up to shove Blackheart off the top. A very high powerbomb finally puts Blackheart away to give Gonzalez the pin at 15:45.

Rating: B+. This was a lot better than I would have bet on here with straight action throughout. I’m rather happy to see the established team beat the thrown together team for a change, even though I can’t really imagine Kai and Gonzalez against Nia Jax and Shayna Baszler. What matters here though is the match itself, as these four beat the fire out of each other with some great saves and near falls.

William Regal comes out for the trophy presentation.

We recap Kushida vs. Johnny Gargano for the North American Title. Gargano won the title back a few months ago and Kushida has given him trouble since. Title match set.

Johnny Gargano and the Way do their pre-match dance and cheer for Gargano to retain the title.

North American Title: Johnny Gargano vs. Kushida

Gargano is defending and sends the rest of the Way to the back. Kushida goes straight for the Hoverboard Lock to start but Gargano is out in a hurry. They head to the mat with an exchange of armbars, followed by an exchange of front facelocks. Gargano tries the Gargano Escape but Kushida gets it on him instead, with Gargano escaping in a hurry. They head outside with Gargano sending him into the steps but getting caught in the cross armbreaker.

Gargano is in trouble but manages a neckbreaker over the ropes to cut Kushida off again. A floatover suplex gets…nothing actually as Kushida is up before one. Gargano hits a gordbuster into a kick to the arm (Barrett: “That’s a receipt!”) but Kushida manages an Octopus out of nowhere. That’s broken up and they hit the pinfall reversal sequence for a series of near falls until a double clothesline puts them both down. Back up and Kushida strikes away but can’t get one of the holds.

Instead it’s a German suplex into a kick to the back of the head for two on Gargano. A chickenwing northern lights suplex gets two on Gargano so he heads to the apron. That’s fine with Kushida, who breaks up a springboard and sends him shoulder first into the post. Kushida puts him on top but Gargano hits a swinging superplex, followed by a tornado DDT for two of his own. Back up and Gargano can’t get the Escape but neither can Kushida.

Instead Kushida goes for the arm again, only to get stacked up for two. Another double shot to the face gives us a double knockdown and the NXT chants strike up again. They slug it out from their knees with Kushida getting the better of it. The handspring elbow is countered into the Gargano Escape but Kushida goes for the bad arm and gets the Hoverboard Lock.

That’s escaped as well and a bridging rollup gives Gargano two. A superkick into the lawn dart knocks Kushida silly though and they’re both down again. Kushida manages a chickenwing suplex into the corner and they go up top, with Kushida flipping him down into the cross armbreaker. Gargano is about to tap but rolls over and gets the feet in the ropes. They head outside with Gargano sending him into the barricade for a breather but Kushida slips around to the stage.

That means a running kick to the arm and the Hoverboard Lock goes on, with commentary taking away the drama by declaring it over. Gargano drives him neck first into the rope for the break and One Final Beat onto the ramp knocks Kushida silly. Another One Final Beat back inside retains the title at 24:47.

Rating: A-. This got some serious time and the action worked well as both guys beat the heck out of each other. I’m not sure how many people were expecting a title change here but it’s by far Kushida’s best match in NXT. The biggest problem here was a lack of drama near the end, as Gargano getting out of the cross armbreaker cut off any real drama about a title change, but it takes something pretty great to make about 25 minutes fly by this fast. Awesome stuff here in a Takeover worthy match.

We recap the Men’s Dusty Rhodes Tag Team Classic with MSK and the Grizzled Young Veterans meeting in the finals.

Men’s Dusty Rhodes Tag Team Classic Finals: MSK vs. Grizzled Young Veterans

That would be Nash Carter/Wes Lee vs. Zack Gibson/James Drake. The Veterans do their usual intro and it’s Gibson cranking on Carter’s arm to start so it’s off to Drake for a headlock on the mat. Carter fights up and brings Lee in though and the pace picks up. The Veterans are sent outside with Lee hitting a cartwheel into a dive to take them out, followed by Carter’s dive to hit Drake.

Gibson gets away though and blasts Carter with a clothesline to take over again. Back in and Drake gets a series of near falls before slapping on a chinlock. That doesn’t last long either so Drake runs Carter over with an elbow for two more. It’s back to Gibson to work on the arm before switching to a front facelock. Drake comes back in but Carter manages a suplex for a breather.

Gibson breaks up the tag by pulling Lee to the floor though and it’s a Downward Spiral/missile dropkick combination (or “Maximum Skullduggery” according to Barrett) for two on Carter. The chinlock goes on for a bit but Carter ducks a spinwheel kick and brings in Lee to clean house. A big dive to the floor takes out the Veterans and then faceplants Gibson back inside.

Carter comes in for a running dropkick to Drake and some rather questionable language to Gibson. A bunch of right hands and a cutter out of the corner gets two on Gibson and they’re both down. Lee’s backflip kick to the head is cut off with a knee though and Helter Skelter into Drake’s 450 gets two with Gibson not believing the kickout. Lee rolls Gibson up for two and sends the Veterans into each other. The push moonsault his Gibson and a poisonrana hits Drake, setting up the Spinal Tap (Lee called it the Final Flash in Impact) gets a very close two.

Lee is sent outside where Drake puts him in an electric chair for the suicide Doomsday Device and a nasty landing. That leaves Carter to fight them both off but it’s a powerbomb/Backstabber combination for a rather close two. Lee is back in though and it’s a spinebuster/middle rope spinning neckbreaker for the pin and the tournament at 18:45.

Rating: B+. And that’s how you pull the trigger on someone, which Impact Wrestling didn’t do for the Rascalz in the two or so years they were in the company. They had one crazy spot after another here and that’s all it needed to be. There’s something awesome about seeing a new team come in and tear the house down like this and it worked to near perfection. Great match and there is going to be a heck of a moment when the Veterans finally win something. The Tag Team Title match should be great too so everything works out.

William Regal comes out for the trophy presentation.

Video on Cameron Grimes being rich, complete with him rolling around in cash in his underwear. This might be the best thing in NXT today.

We recap the triple threat match for the Women’s Title. Io Shirai has been champion since June and Mercedes Martinez attacked her. Then Toni Storm decided she wanted the title too. The triple threat was on.

Women’s Title: Mercedes Martinez vs. Toni Storm vs. Io Shirai

Shirai is defending. Martinez isn’t waiting around to start and jumps Shirai during the Big Match Intros to get things going fast. Shirai is right back in to put Martinez down but Storm shoulders her over. Another shot knocks Martinez off the apron and Shirai plants Storm. A slingshot dropkick hits Storm in the corner but she’s back up with a basement clothesline to knock Shirai against the ropes.

Martinez takes Storm to the floor so Shirai loads up an Asai moonsault…but Martinez just steps to the side so it’s a crash landing. Makes sense. Back in and Martinez plants Storm for two more but Shirai is back in with a missile dropkick to Martinez. Storm cuts Shirai off with a Boss Man Slam, only to walk into Martinez’s spinebuster for two. Shirai takes Martinez down though and it’s a Crossface to Storm, but Martinez adds a Dragon Sleeper on Shirai at the same time.

The holds are both broken up and Martinez hits a reverse suplex on Shirai. That’s fine with the champ, who is back up with a 619 and missile dropkick to put Martinez down again. Storm and Shirai go up but Martinez German superplexes Storm off. The Alberto double stomp hits Martinez, leaving Storm to get back up. They head outside with Storm clearing off the announcers’ table….which breaks after she just touches it a bit.

Storm Zero onto the wreckage is countered into a DDT from Martinez but Shirai climbs onto the lighting structure to dive onto both of them. Shirai is done so Martinez takes Storm back inside for some knees to the face. A fisherman’s buster gets two on Storm and Storm Zero gets two on Martinez with a pair of shocked faces in between. Storm adds a top rope headbutt to Martinez but it’s Shirai moonsaulting in for the pin to retain at 12:42.

Rating: B. This was another match that was almost all action and it worked out well, though I’m not sure who is going to take the title from Shirai. She is coming up on nine months as champion and could hold onto the thing for a lot longer to come. Maybe she drops it to Storm in a singles match, or maybe it is someone else coming up to go after her. Either way, good match here and Shirai’s reign is starting to get kind of historic.

We look at LA Knight (Eli Drake) signing with NXT earlier tonight and then interrupting the Kickoff Show.

We recap Finn Balor vs. Pete Dunne for the NXT Title. Balor has been champion for a few months now and bumped into Dunne in the back one night on TV. Dunne seemed interested in the title and they have brawled a few times, setting up a UK dream match for the title.

NXT Title: Finn Balor vs. Pete Dunne

Balor is defending and they take their time on the entrances. Dunne takes him down by the arm to start but Balor reverses into an armbar of his own. A monkey flip can’t get Dunne out of trouble so Balor works on a headlock on the mat. The grinding continues until Dunne finally counters with a headscissors to work on the neck. That’s broken up as well and we’re at a standoff as second gear continues.

Dunne starts in on the arm so Balor tries to flip out, only to get pulled into a triangle choke. That’s escaped as well and Balor cranks on the arm to keep Dunne in trouble. Dunne reverses as well and starts cranking on the arm to put the champ in more trouble. This time Balor reverses into a leglock so Dunne tries for the arm again, only to have his leg kicked out again. Another leglock goes on but this time Dunne reverses into a front facelock to work on the neck a bit.

The X Plex gets two on Balor and it’s time to slug it out. Balor blasts him with a clothesline for two and it’s back to the leg. An STF has Dunne in more trouble but he sends Balor’s fingers into the mat for the break. Back up and Balor goes for the knee again but 1916 is broken up. Dunne stomps at the face and plants him with a sitout powerbomb for two more. The big stomp on the arm has Balor in more trouble and there’s a German suplex, only to have Balor kick the knee out again.

A Backstabber to Dunne sets up a shotgun dropkick in the corner but Dunne pulls him into a triangle choke. Balor can’t roll free and is knocked out…but his foot is in the rope. Balor can’t stand but he can counter the Bitter End into an abdominal stretch of all things. They go to the mat with the hold still on but Dunne gets to the fingers for some snapping. Dunne holds the hand and avoids a stomp, meaning the Bitter End can connect for two. The kickout stuns Dunne and they’re both down for a bit.

Another powerbomb attempt is countered into a DDT from Balor but Dunne is back with an enziguri. The Bitter End is countered into the reverse 1916 for another near fall and they’re both down one more time. Dunne grabs the hand and bends the fingers back so Balor double stomps him in the back. Balor ribs Dunne’s mouthpiece out and nails a basement dropkick. The Coup de Grace connects but Balor can’t immediately cover. 1916 retains the title at 25:17.

Rating: A-. This took its time to get going but then they beat the heck out of each other, which has been a theme tonight. Dunne losing still feels weird but it also comes off as a huge deal because he barely ever gets beaten. Balor is a full on legend in NXT and whoever takes the title from him is going to be an instant star no matter who it is. They could have gone either way here as the winner is going to be facing Karrion Kross for the title anyway.

Post match Balor poses but here are Oney Lorcan and Danny Burch to jump him from behind. The three on one beatdown is on but the Undisputed Era runs in for the save. Balor isn’t sure what to do and is scared to accept Kyle O’Reilly’s help up. Eventually he does though and they respect each other….and then Adam Cole superkicks Balor. The rest of the team asks what he’s doing so Cole lays out O’Reilly as well. Roderick Strong isn’t sure what to do and looks back and forth from O’Reilly and Balor on the mat to Cole to end the show. It might not be popular, but was there anything else for the Era to do?

Overall Rating: A. The worst match on the show would have been the match of the week 90% of the year so I’m not sure what there is to complain about here. This was five straight awesome matches because that’s what Takeover does. The ending was a surprise but a necessary one to give it a big moment that carries things into the next cycle. As usual, the action was great and they gave you a reason to come back, which are two of the most important things a show can do. Outstanding stuff here, in case there was any doubt there would be for some odd reason.

Results

Dakota Kai/Raquel Gonzalez b. Ember Moon/Shotzi Blackheart – Powerbomb to Blackheart

Johnny Gargano b. Kushida – One Final Beat

MSK b. Grizzled Young Veterans – Spinebuster/Spinning middle rope neckbreaker to Drake

Io Shirai b. Mercedes Martinez and Toni Storm – Moonsault to Martinez

Finn Balor b. Pete Dunne – 1916

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We’re back to the good ones here as NXT returns with another Takeover event. This time around we have Vengeance Day, which isn’t the best name but maybe the obvious St. Valentine’s Day Massacre is a little too violent for them. Believe it or not, the card is stacked as we have three title matches plus the two Dusty Rhodes Tag Team Classic finals. Let’s get to it.

Men’s Dusty Rhodes Tag Team Classic Finals: MSK vs. Grizzled Young Veterans

We’ll start with a good one here as I’m actually not sure who is going to win this thing. MSK debuted in the start of the tournament and have made it all the way to the finals. This certainly works for me as I’ve been a fan of the team since they debuted in Impact Wrestling and now they might actually win something. At the same time, the Veterans lost in last year’s finals and it seems that they are due.

I’ll go with MSK to win in an upset though, as they would make for a more interesting matchup against Oney Lorcan and Danny Burch. This is one of those matches that could get some time with some awesome near falls at the end and that’s where NXT’s tag team division shines. The good thing is that they are building up some new teams (like these two) and the future might be a bit brighter. See how nice it is when there is a problem and the promotion actually addresses it?

Women’s Title: Io Shirai(c) vs. Toni Storm vs. Mercedes Martinez

Did you realize that Shirai has been champion for over eight months? It always seems like she is ready to lose the thing at any given time but here she is again, getting rather close to the elite level of Women’s Champions. This is quite the task though as you could see either one of these two taking the title. That’s exactly the point of something like this though and NXT has set things up well.

I’m tempted to pick Martinez here as she has gotten the least hype out of the three but I’ll take Storm to win here. This is more along the lines of a gut feeling as they have been building towards Storm taking the title. They could go multiple ways here, but I’ll go with Storm winning. It gets the title off of Shirai, though I’m not sure what is next for her either. But yeah, Storm wins here.

North American Title: Johnny Gargano(c) vs. Kushida

This has been built up for a long time now and I wasn’t sure if they were ever actually going to do it. Kushida is my favorite guy out of New Japan and while he isn’t the same as he was there, I still like seeing him out there and getting a bit of a push like this. Above all else, it’s nice to see someone new getting a shot at the title.

As nice as it is to see Kushida getting a chance like this, Gargano keeps the title. We’ve done the thing with him losing the title in a hurry far too often already so they need to have him retain here. Gargano needs the win more than Kushida here as it’s not like Kushida is going to lose anything by taking the loss here. He’s been playing with the house’s money for this entire feud so Gargano going over here is fine.

Women’s Dusty Rhodes Tag Team Classic Finals: Dakota Kai/Raquel Gonzalez vs. Ember Moon/Shotzi Blackheart

Yes, believe it or not a team with no history together has made the finals of a Dusty Classic. That is as much of a tradition as the tournament itself because WWE really, really likes that idea. This time around we do at least have a regular team included, though I have a bad feeling that it isn’t going to matter, which tends to be the case throughout the history of the tournament.

In other words, yeah Blackheart and Moon win here because they’re a more logical team to lose to Nia Jax and Shayna Baszler. I’m rather sick of seeing the thrown together teams winning here but I guess it makes for a better story or something. Granted that might not be the case when you see the same thing taking place so often but it’s likely taking place here so I’ll go with Blackheart and Moon.

NXT Title: Finn Balor(c) vs. Pete Dunne

And then we cap it off with a dream match as these two seem like they could have an absolute classic. The cool thing about NXT: it is more likely than not that they will. This is going to be a hard hitting fight and they are going to get the time that they need to make it work out as well as they could. It’s a match I would have preferred to see a year or two ago, but I’ll certainly take what I can get.

As for a winner……dang it where’s a quarter I can flip? I’ll take Balor here, but my goodness this one could go either way. I’m not sure how this one is going to end but they are going to beat the living fire out of each other and it’s going to be absolutely awesome. This feels like a Takeover main event and that’s about as good of an accolade as you can give to a match these days.

Overall Thoughts

This is as stacked of a card as there has been in a long time and that’s a great thing to see. I want to see how almost everything goes and it’s nice to have the hype back for these shows. It has all of the potential in the world and it’s even better to have Takeover’s reputation behind the whole thing. Just go with what works here, and that means following Takeover’s tried and true formula.

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NXT
Date: February 10, 2021
Location: Capitol Wrestling Center, Winter Park, Florida
Commentators: Vic Joseph, Beth Phoenix, Wade Barrett

It’s the go home show for Takeover: Vengeance Day and it’s still tournament time with three more Dusty Classic matches before we can finally wrap up the brackets for the time being. These things have dominated NXT TV for a few weeks now and I can’t wait for the them to wrap up so we don’t have to spend so much time on them every week. Let’s get to it.

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

Men’s Dusty Rhodes Tag Team Classic Semifinals: MSK vs. Legado del Fantasma

Joaquin Wilde and Wes Lee start things off and go to the mat for some arm cranking. Wilde takes over on the leg but gets pulled into an armbar. That’s enough for the early tag to Nash Carter, who hits a Bronco Buster in the corner. Carter dropkicks Wilde into the corner and it’s off to Raul Mendoza to crank on the arm. Some double kicks have Mendoza in the corner and Lee stays in, only to get caught with a double suplex.

Wilde is hiptossed onto the ropes to set up a moonsault for two but Lee is over for the tag to Carter to pick up the pace again. Wilde isn’t having this though and knocks both of MSK outside as we take a break. Back with Lee cleaning house and kicking Mendoza out to the floor. A backdrop puts Wilde on the floor as well and it’s the push moonsault to take Legado out. Lee adds the big flip dive but he tries another one and gets kicked in the head.

Back in and Mendoza walks the rope for a missile dropkick, setting up Wilde’s reverse hurricanrana. Mendoza grabs a swinging suplex for two and puts Carter in a fireman’s carry. That lets Wilde use Carter’s back for a 450 but Lee small packages him in a hurry. Mendoza is smart enough to drop Carter onto the cover for two and MSK is in more trouble. The Russian legsweep/big boot is broken up though and the spinebuster/Blockbuster combination finishes Wilde at 12:58.

Rating: B-. There were good parts here but it didn’t have the best flow or chemistry throughout. The good thing is that MSK can wrestle the high flying style and hang in there just fine. MSK has looked good in the tournament so far and it’s nice to see someone getting a push right out of the blocks instead of having to go through a bunch of squash matches to get there first.

Mercedes Martinez talks about how it has taken twenty years to get here and now she is going to show the world what she can do.

Xia Li vs. Cora Jade

Boa is here with Li as well. Kayden Carter and Kacy Catanzaro come out to try and talk sense into Li, but she has a spinning kick to the face to give Jade for the pin at 46 seconds. Li’s entrance was about three times that long.

Post match Li beats on Jade some more, so Carter goes up to yell at Tian Sha for ruining Li. That sends Li up to throw Carter off the stage and then Sha chokes Boa. Li beats up Catanzaro as well. Having a little extra backstory has made this story work a good bit better.

William Regal is happy with the Dusty Classic but finds Scarlett in his office. She wants Santos Escobar’s time to be up next week. Regal agrees.

Here’s the Way, with Johnny Gargano in a wheelchair because of his broken arm. Gargano says this is the result of Kushida’s attack last week and we see a clip of Kushida kicking the arm. After Candice LeRae moves her hands from over Gargano’s eyes and the Way turns him back to the camera, Gargano says this is ruining his life. He is a known power walker but now he can’t swing his arms. And he hates wheels! Anyway, Gargano can’t defend the NXT Title on Sunday and Kushida should be suspended.

Cue William Regal to say Gargano was medically cleared yesterday but Gargano has an X-RAY showing the longest bone in his arm. The arm is broken horribly but Regal says that’s of a fight arm and Gargano’s left is in the sling. Also, if it’s that bad, Gargano would be in extreme pain.

Regal says Gargano has two options: he can either have Austin Theory as the surrogate to defend the title tonight or just forfeit the title outright. Gargano begs for more time but Regal says we can just ask Kushida, who is in the ring. Kushida cleans house, including superkicking Gargano who popped to his feet. That earns him a superkick back into the chair as Kushida clears the ring.

Women’s Dusty Rhodes Tag Team Classic Semifinals: The Way vs. Shotzi Blackheart/Ember Moon

We’re joined in progress with Ember working on Candice’s arm and handing it off to Shotzi for a backsplash. The shoulders in the ribs keep Candice in trouble but she avoids a charge and brings in Hartwell. A side slam gets two on Blackheart and Candice comes back in to work on an armbar. It’s already back to Hartwell, who mocks Ember but manages to drag Shotzi back to the corner.

Candice elbows her down for two more and the armbar goes on again. This time Blackheart jawbreaks her way to freedom and it’s straight back to Moon to pick up the pace. Candice gets knocked into the corner so Blackheart kicks Hartwell for two more. Blackheart gets knocked to the floor though and Candice walks the ropes for a hurricanrana to send Moon into Blackheart outside.

We take a break and come back with Shotzi coming in off the hot tag and starting to clean house. The running reverse cannonball to the back gives Shotzi two and Moon is back in. Moon’s knees are laid up for a bulldog to Candice and another near fall as frustration sets in. This time it’s Ember getting caught in the wrong corner, with Hartwell holding Moon up for Candice’s Lionsault.

A shot to the face is enough for the hot tag back to Blackheart though and things pick up all over again. Everything breaks down but Candice drops Shotzi, setting up Hartwell’s top rope for her own two. That goes to Shotzi though, and it’s an Eclipse to Candice. Hartwell covers Candice for protection so Blackheart’s top rope backsplash hits both of them for the pin at 14:17.

Rating: C-. This gave us the right and fairly clear ending but they didn’t have a smooth match out there. It had multiple botches and both teams didn’t look all that great. Then again, it isn’t like they have much experience together so you can only expect so much. The ending made sense with Hartwell wanting to save Candice more than win, even if it might not appeal to Candice herself. Blackheart and Moon work well enough as a team, but this was none of the four’s best night.

Post match Raquel Gonzalez and Dakota Kai come out for the staredown. William Regal comes in to say the winners will also get a future Women’s Tag Team Title shot. I thought they had said that before. Oh well.

Timothy Thatcher and Tommaso Ciampa talk about the hard match they had last week. Tonight they have the Grizzled Young Veterans, which is a better name for them. They’re winning tonight and then doing the same on Sunday. Class dismissed, and Ciampa storms off, leaving Thatcher smiling a lot.

Santos Escobar isn’t worried about Karrion Kross. He isn’t apologizing either, even when a nervous Wilde and Mendoza come in. Escobar tells them to go pay Kross a visit.

Video on Finn Balor being untouchable as NXT Champion, which got Pete Dunne’s attention. The two have been going at it since, with Dunne even breaking Balor’s fingers. Now it’s time for the big showdown on Sunday.

Kushida vs. Austin Theory

No entrance for either of them and the slugout is on early. Johnny Gargano offers a quick distraction so Theory can take over, including a good looking dropkick. Kushida’s hiptoss is blocked so he throws Theory down and nails the basement dropkick. Theory gets taken down by the arm, which has Barrett fuming over Kushida’s hatred of all things arms. More kicks to the arm set up Kushida tying the arms around his legs and dropping backwards.

The arm is twisted around some more and then snapped down over Kushida’s shoulder, followed by a kick to the shoulder. Theory manages to knock him off the apron though and we take a break. Back with Kushida still in trouble and Theory sending him flying with a fall away slam. The referee checks on Kushida, which seems a little premature, especially since he grabs a rollup for two.

Kushida hits a springboard back elbow into a release German suplex. It’s time to work on the arm some more, this time with a Stunner of all things to send Theory outside. Kushida follows and gets run over but manages to slap on a cross armbreaker on the apron. That’s enough for Gargano to nail the superkick for the DQ at 11:57.

Rating: C. The ending was the right call as this was much more about setting up Takeover than the match itself. I could go for a lot more of Theory and Kushida, either on their own or against each other because they really are that good. Theory has all the tools you could hope for and you don’t get that kind of a talent very often. Go with what works, like Kushida vs. Gargano on Sunday.

Post match the beatdown is on with Gargano going to get a chair to break Kushida’s arm. As he goes around the ring though, someone pulls Theory underneath the ring. Gargano comes back and pulls out Dexter Lumis, who scares Gargano up the ramp. Theory is scared into the Hoverboard Lock from Kushida, who does the same thing to Gargano for a bonus. Lumis comes in to Silence Theory at the same time so Kushida can pose with the title.

Toni Storm talks about beating Io Shirai in the Mae Young Classic. She can do it again and after Sunday, it’s Toni Time.

We get an Imperium video, introducing everyone on the team.

Karrion Kross has taken out Joaquin Wilde and Raul Mendoza. Next week it’s Escobar’s turn.

Cameron Grimes is back, in a rather nice car. He pays security a lot of money to park it and then walks into the arena, where he hands some wrestlers some money as well. Grimes (now with glasses) gets in the ring and tells people to get up, promising a reward for anyone who does (Vic: “Sit down Barrett.”). Two months ago, Timothy Thatcher left him laying and injured so Grimes has been out of action.

While he has been hurt, he started playing a lot of video games and that meant trips to Game Stop. It was so great that he invested and now he has SO MUCH MONEY. Then he invested in Dogecoin and now he’s even MORE RICH. The clothes start to come off as Grimes rants about how William Regal can kiss his grits. I could absolutely go for this as it’s an angle that works every time and Grimes is perfect for the thing. Also, how often do we get something this topical?

Johnny Gargano says Kushida better be ready for Takeover because that’s Johnny’s world.

Io Shirai talks about winning the Women’s Title in a triple threat match and she can do it again. She is a different person than when she lost to Toni Storm and now this title reign will never end.

Men’s Dusty Rhodes Tag Team Classic Semifinals: Timothy Thatcher/Tommaso Ciampa vs. Grizzled Young Veterans

Before the match, Zack Gibson says these two are as dumb as they look. When have either of them ever had a team end well? The Veterans are winning the trophy so they will be recognized as….whatever Gibson was going to say before Ciampa kicked James Drake in the face. It’s a big brawl on the floor before the bell with the Veterans beating them down and then switching places so the beating can continue.

They finally get inside for the opening bell with Gibson taking Thatcher down and bringing in Ciampa. The stomping ensues again so it’s back to Thatcher, who allows the tag off to Drake. Thatcher gets knocked into the corner and Gibson comes back in, allowing Drake to pull Ciampa to the floor. Ciampa is sent into the steps and then double teamed onto the apron as we take a break.

Back with Ciampa still down after being checked by the medics during the break. Gibson takes Thatcher down into a chinlock for a bit before loading up a Doomsday Device. That’s broken up though and Ciampa blasts Drake as Ciampa gets back on the apron. There’s the hot tag and house is cleaned, including a bunch of clotheslines. Some German suplexes have the Veterans down again and Ciampa gets two on Drake.

We settle back down with Drake having to power Ciampa into the corner to block the Fairy Tale Ending. Gibson and Ciampa slug it out with Gibson hitting him in the throat, setting up a swinging suplex. Drake comes in and uses Ciampa as a launchpad to take Thatcher down, followed by the Doomsday Device. Thatcher breaks that up as well but the Veterans put him down on the floor. Willow’s Bell is blocked and the Ticket To Mayhem hits Ciampa for the pin at 11:39.

Rating: C+. The ending helped but the injury spot felt pretty wedged in. Ciampa was right back up like nothing was wrong later and it’s not like the Veterans beating Ciampa and Thatcher is some huge upset. I’m not sure why they needed the injury deal when some simple cheating would have worked just fine, but it’s not like it ruined anything. The Veterans moving on makes sense and as long as that works, there isn’t much to complain about here.

Post match MSK and the Veterans glare at each other.

Commentary stands up and hypes Takeover, with everyone in each match coming to the stage for a staredown. Finn Balor and Pete Dunne stare each other down in the ring to end the show.

Overall Rating: C+. This show did a nice job of setting up Takeover, though I never need to think about the Dusty Classic again. Adding in the prize for the women helped, though it wasn’t exactly a groundbreaking change. The wrestling was good here and I’m glad Gargano vs. Kushida is back on, plus the Grimes stuff has me giddy with how fun it could be. Nice show here, but Takeover is the main course on Sunday.

Results

MSK b. Legado del Fantasma – Spinebuster/Blockbuster combination to Wilde

Xia Li b. Cora Jade – Spinning kick to the face

Shotzi Blackheart/Ember Moon b. The Way – Top rope backsplash to LeRae

Kushida b. Austin Theory via DQ when Johnny Gargano interfered

Grizzled Young Veterans b. Tommaso Ciampa/Timothy Thatcher – Ticket to Mayhem to Ciampa

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205 Live
Date: January 29, 2021
Location: Capitol Wrestling Center, Winter Park, Florida
Commentators: Nigel McGuinness, Vic Joseph

We’re still in the middle of both Dusty Classics and that means another match taking up space on this show. That’s still a good idea too, because there is very little that 205 Live is going to be able to do that is anywhere near as important as something pretty big from NXT. Let’s get to it.

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

We open with a recap of the Women’s Dusty Rhodes Tag Team Classic so far.

Jake Atlas vs. Ariya Daivari vs. August Grey

Daivari takes over to start but Grey sends him outside for a suicide dive. Back in and Grey and Atlas fight over wrist control until Atlas cartwheels out of a hurricanrana attempt. Daivari misses a dive off the top, leaving the other two to keep fighting. Atlas gets knocked down though and Daivari flips Grey off the top onto him for two. With Atlas on the floor, Grey charges into an elbow to the face to give Daivari two more.

Grey gets chinlocked, which seems like a rather bad idea in a triple threat match. Indeed it is as Atlas comes back in to roll both of them up for two but Daivari knocks Atlas to the floor. Grey hits a high crossbody on Daivari but Atlas comes back in and everyone is knocked down. Atlas kicks Daivari in the face for two but Daivari is back up to hiptoss Grey into Atlas in the corner.

The Persian Lion splash gets two on Grey and Atlas is back in to hit him with a brainbuster. A dropkick puts Daivari on the floor but Grey is up with a superkick to Atlas. Grey dives onto Daivari and walks into a Stunner from Atlas, followed by the cartwheel DDT. Daivari breaks up the cover and hits Atlas with the chain for the knockout. Back in and the hammerlock lariat gives Daivari the pin on Grey at 10:58.

Rating: C. I felt like I was watching an indy show here with three people thrown into the match for no apparent reason other than they felt like they needed to have a triple threat match. The action was fine, but this match really did show you just how low level the 205 Live regulars seem to be.

We see Curt Stallion’s NXT promo about having a rocket attached to his back. Then he was attacked so the title match was off for the night. William Regal came in and yelled at Legado del Fantasma, setting up the match for next week.

Women’s Dusty Rhodes Tag Team Classic First Round: Zoey Stark/Marina Shafir vs. Shotzi Blackheart/Ember Moon

I think they’re smart to put this one on 205 Live. This is Stark’s debut and she starts with Blackheart, who is launched into the corner with some straight power. Moon comes in and it’s a double dropkick for two on Stark, who is already requiring cheating to take her down. It’s off to Shafir, who wrestles Moon down for two and a slam onto Stark’s knees gets two more. Moon kicks away from a cradle but Shafir flips forward to slap her in the face.

You don’t do that to Moon as everything breaks down, with Shotzi hitting a running hip attack to both of them in 619 position. Blackheart’s reverse Sling Blade plants Shafir but Stark gets in a cheap shot from the apron to put her in trouble. Stark comes back in to stomp away and drives some knees into Blackheart’s arm. A reverse t-bone suplex from Shafir sets up Stark’s running knee for two with Moon having to make a save. Shotzi enziguris her way to freedom though and the hot tag brings in Moon. Everything breaks down and Moon ties Stark up in a modified STF for the tap at 8:52.

Rating: C+. Stark came off like a potential star here and looked a lot more polished than most you’ll see in their debut. Granted it helps when you come in with this much experience from outside WWE and you could see it on display here. Shafir continues to be someone who looks like she needs more experience, but how much can you get when you’re only on TV once a….what, year or so? Then there’s Moon, who still feels like someone who isn’t close to being back to where she was before the injury. Shotzi and Stark had the energy here though and Stark got a heck of a rub.

Overall Rating: C. This wasn’t the strongest show and some of that is due to the matches not feeling important. They didn’t exactly give you much to get excited about here and you could feel how weak the card came off. That has been a problem for 205 Live for a long time and having a low level Dusty Classic match didn’t help that feeling. Not a bad show, but something that you absolutely did not need to watch, even for just over half an hour.

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NXT
Date: January 13, 2021
Location: Capitol Wrestling Center, Winter Park, Florida
Commentators: Nigel McGuinness, Beth Phoenix, Vic Joseph

We’re a little over a month away from Takeover and that means it is time to start putting things together. Last week’s show featured a stacked card with Finn Balor retaining the NXT Title over Kyle O’Reilly, meaning that he is going to need a new #1 contender. This week is also going to focus on the Dusty Rhodes Tag Team Classic. Let’s get to it.

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

We open with a recap of last week’s show and a quick look at the Dusty Classic, with three first round matches tonight.

Candice LeRae vs. Shotzi Blackheart

Candice has Indi Hartwell with her. Shotzi ducks a kick to start and shrugs off a neckbreaker, allowing her to go up top. The high crossbody gets two on Candice and it’s time to work on the arm. The armbar sends Candice bailing to the ropes so Shotzi goes after the other arm for a change. This time they go to the apron with Shotzi dropping her onto the steps but managing to avoid getting tossed into the barricade ala the battle royal from a few months ago.

An Indi distraction lets Candice hit a springboard spinning crossbody to the floor and we take a break. Back with Shotzi winning a slugout and nailing the running reverse Cannonball against the ropes. They go to the apron again with Shotzi hitting a DDT and then diving onto Indi and Candice at the same time. Back in and Candice manages a dropkick into the corner into a low superkick for two. Blackheart grabs another DDT but gets distracted by Indi, setting up Mrs. LeRae’s Wild Ride for the pin at 11:22.

Rating: C+. They went back and forth rather well, though it did slip into the succession of spots rather than much of a flowing match at times. I’m not sure on Shotzi losing, but I do get Candice winning here, as the Way still hasn’t been around all that long as an official faction and needs to look strong. Good opener here though, with Indi paying dividends.

Pete Dunne, Oney Lorcan and Danny Burch arrive, which seems to be a surprise.

Here’s Finn Balor for a chat. Balor says this is the day that he’s still the champ. Kyle O’Reilly again showed that he was great but he isn’t on Balor’s level. O’Reilly stepped up and got put down, because now he he is the one eating through a straw. Whoever is coming next better understand that they don’t make the cloth he is cut from anymore.

Cue Pete Dunne and company, with Dunne saying that he knew it would come down to these two to be the face of British wrestling. They were always going to go one on one so Balor tries to start fast. The beatdown gets the better of him through with Dunne taking him down by the arm. O’Reilly runs in for the save but it takes Adam Cole and Roderick Strong to chase the villains off. Balor has an awkward but seemingly respectful staredown with O’Reilly before leaving. Dunne vs. Balor is about as awesome of a match as there is right now, even if Dunne has lost a bit of his mystique.

Johnny Gargano is ready to take out Dexter Lumis and then he’ll beat Kushida too….but here is Austin Theory with some of Lumis’ drawings of the two of them. Gargano doesn’t handle things well.

Dusty Rhodes Tag Team Classic First Round: Grizzled Young Veterans vs. Ever-Rise

Before the match, Zack Gibson does his usual stuff, saying this is going to be their year. William Regal pops up on the screen to say the tournament is on and we’re ready to go. Gibson drives Martel into the corner so it’s off to Parker, who tries some trash talk. That earns him a beating into the corner so Drake can take him down with a headlock. Parker uses the hair to pull him down and stomp away, with Gibson getting things out to the floor.

An EVER-RISE RULES shout has Drake ready to kill him so Gibson calms things down. Drake fights up again and drops Parker, before throwing in a shot to Martel on the apron. Gibson comes back in for a front facelock and a belly to back slam. A half crab is blocked with some kicks to the face so Drake comes back in for a running elbow in the corner. There’s a spinwheel kick to give Drake two and he grabs the wristlock to cut off a near hot tag attempt.

Parker finally manages to drag Drake over for the hot tag to Martel, who immediately cleans house. There’s a suplex to Drake followed by a running clothesline and it’s already back to Parker. The Sweet Taste is broken up by Gibson and Drake hits a dropkick to Martel. The Ticket to Mayhem sends the Veterans on at 7:58.

Rating: C. They tried but the idea of the Veterans being actually threatened by Ever-Rise is laughable on its best day. The Veterans are going to be favorites to win the whole thing so there was little drama to be seen here. They are one of the better teams going today but could use the boost from a strong showing in the tournament.

Raquel Gonzalez talks about how important last week’s win was for her because just one year ago, Rhea Ripley was the chosen one. She is looking forward to the division and the Women’s Title because she is the baddest b**** around.

Shotzi Blackheart isn’t happy but she’s ready to win the Dusty Classic and beat Candice up on the way. She needs a partner and it needs to be someone she went to war with. Cue Ember Moon and the team is formed in a hurry.

Johnny Gargano vs. Dexter Lumis

Non-title and Gargano has Austin Theory with him. The bell rings and Gargano rips up the picture Lumis drew. That earns him a boot to the face and some right hands from Lumis, who does not appreciate the disrespect. Gargano misses the rolling kick to the head so Lumis is right there to stare at him. They head outside with Lumis ducking the running kick and nipping up to freak Gargano out.

Back in and Lumis gets caught on top but a superplex attempt is cut off by a series of headbutts. Lumis shoves him off the top but misses a Swanton as we take a break. We come back with Gargano in control and driving in knees to the back. Lumis manages a spinebuster though and the comeback is on with some right hands to the face. A slingshot suplex into a legdrop gives Lumis two but Gargano’s crucifix gets the same. The low superkick gets two more and it’s time for a slugout. Lumis has to deal with Theory and even Silences him, but Gargano uses the distraction to grab a rollup pin at 11:12.

Rating: C-. This was certainly a Lumis match, as I couldn’t get into anything they were doing. Lumis can do a few things in the ring but NXT thinks he is the most interesting person around. It’s much more an indifference to him than disdain, but that doesn’t exactly make things much better. Standard Lumis here, meaning the weakest thing on the show.

Post match the beatdown stays on with Gargano grabbing a chair. Kushida runs in for the save and makes Gargano tap with the Hoverboard Lock. Kushida hands him the title and poses for a good visual.

Pete Dunne, Oney Lorcan and Danny Burch are ready to take out the Undisputed Era.

Timothy Thatcher and Tommaso Ciampa have a sitdown interview with Wade Barrett. Thatcher is cleared for the Fight Pit so we’ll do that next week. Ciampa challenged him to this because he wanted to change the culture but Thatcher says Ciampa doesn’t know what he’s getting into. Thatcher talks about Ciampa interrupting Thatcher’s students but Ciampa calls him a piece of garbage as a teacher. Ciampa is ready to change things in the Fight Pit and he’ll see if he still has it.

The Undisputed Era is ready to end Lorcan and Burch. They respect Breezango, but the two of them are in the Era’s way.

Dusty Rhodes Tag Team Classic First Round: MSK vs. Isaiah Scott/Jake Atlas

MSK is……Nash Carter/Wes Lee, better known as the former Rascalz. Carter (formerly Zachary Wentz) starts things off with Atlas and they go to the mat, only to pop up for a standoff. Atlas’ armbar doesn’t last long so Carter starts flipping around, setting up a jumping back elbow for one. Scott comes in and the flipping around is on, setting up Carter’s springboard corkscrew spinning crossbody.

Lee (formerly Dezmond Xavier) comes in to work on the arm a bit more. Scott takes him into the corner though and Atlas gets in a knee to the ribs. A low bridge from the apron puts Lee on the floor and Atlas takes him down. Carter goes over for the save and Lee adds the flip dive. Vic calls them some rascals and we take a break. Back with Scott having to block a hot tag attempt, meaning Carter gets over to Lee for the tag a few seconds later (even the newcomers get that one).

Atlas gets knocked down so the push moonsault can connect for two as Atlas makes the save. This time it’s Lee getting caught in the corner so Atlas can kick him in the head. Scott’s 450 gets two with Carter having to dive in for the save. Carter hits a big dive onto Atlas on the floor but pops back up in the corner to get the tag from Lee. With Atlas down, it’s a modified Hart Attack with Lee hitting a running Blockbuster into the spinebuster to finish Scott at 11:54.

Rating: B. I’ve been a big Rascalz fan since they debuted so it’s cool to have them here on a stage where people might see them. They looked great here and I could go for a lot more of them. While winning the tournament seems far fetched, it isn’t out of the question and that is the kind of thing that can make the team a big deal in a hurry.

Here are the first four teams in the Women’s Dusty Classic:

Indi Hartwell/Candice LeRae

Kacy Catanzaro/Kayden Carter

Mercedes Martinez/Toni Storm

Shotzi Blackheart/Ember Moon

More teams to be announced and the first match is next week.

Video on Boa/Xia Li and their mystery master.

Scarlett, with Karrion Kross, uses Tarot cards to say things are about to get bad, especially for Finn Balor.

Xia Li vs. ???

The awesome entrance takes three times longer than the match, as Li finishes with the spinning kick to the face in 22 seconds.

Post match Li ties her in the ropes and beats her up even more, much to the master’s approval.

Kacy Catanzaro and Kayden Carter are ready to win their first round match over Mercedes Martinez and Toni Storm. They’re used to being overlooked though and beg everyone to do just that.

Isaiah Scott and Jake Atlas had to be separated. Bronson Reed handles the separating and Scott doesn’t seem to like that.

Next week: more first round matches, plus the Fight Pit.

Dusty Rhodes Tag Team Classic First Round: Undisputed Era vs. Breezango

Adam Cole/Roderick Strong for the Era here with Kyle O’Reilly in their corner. Breeze headlocks Cole to start and shoulders him down, but both of them try superkicks to no avail. They go with another grapple off to the mat with neither being able to get anywhere. Fandango and Strong come in with Strong grabbing an armbar to take over. Fandango gets in his own armbar as they’re completely even so far. A spinwheel kick gives Fandango two and we go to a break.

Back with Cole kicking Breeze in the head but getting sent outside before the hot tag. Breeze’s dive is cut off with a kick to the head, which is enough for the double tag to Strong and Fandango. Strong slams Breeze onto Fandango for two and it’s back to Cole, who misses the Last Shot. Breeze hits a Backstabber for two on Cole and knocks Strong to the floor. That means a backbreaker/slingshot elbow combination can get two on Cole.

Strong is back in as everything breaks down, meaning everyone can kick someone in the face for the four way knockdown. Cue Lorcan/Burch/Dunne to go after O’Reilly but Finn Balor runs in for the save before the jaw can be crushed again. That doesn’t matter though as Dunne knees O’Reilly in the jaw and Balor’s bad arm is sent into various things. Cole is distracted and walks into a superkick but Strong makes the save this time. The Panama Sunrise is countered but Cole superkicks Fandango out of the air for the pin at 11:57.

Rating: B-. This was the best Breezango match I’ve seen in a long time and that is probably due to having a team like the Era in there to rein them in. You knew the Era wasn’t losing in the first round without a bunch of interference and that was teased here, so there was a bit of drama near the end. I’m curious to see where this is going, which is why you tie an angle into a tournament match like this. Good stuff.

Dunne and company smirk from the stage to end the show as the Era checks on O’Reilly’s injured jaw.

Overall Rating: B. They did a nice job with the opening round of the tournament, which is rarely going to be the most interesting stuff. What matters here is they gave me some interest in every match, with the Veterans vs. Ever-Rise having a bit of a history, a mystery team and then the main event tying into the title feud. Throw in a few other things here and there and it was a nice show up and down.

Results

Candice LeRae b. Shotzi Blackheart – Mrs. LeRae’s Wild Ride

Grizzled Young Veterans b. Ever-Rise – Ticket To Mayhem to Martel

Johnny Gargano b. Dexter Lumis – Rollup

MSK b. Jake Atlas/Isaiah Scott – Spinebuster/Blockbuster combination to Scott

Xia Li b. ??? – Spinning kick to the face

Undisputed Era b. Breezango – Superkick to Fandango

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:

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NXT
Date: January 6, 2021
Location: Capitol Wrestling Center, Winter Park, Florida
Commentators: Beth Phoenix, Wade Barrett, Vic Joseph

It’s a huge night this week with the absolutely stacked New Year’s Evil card. The main event is Finn Balor defending the NXT Title against Kyle O’Reilly in a Takeover rematch, which should be a heck of a fight. Other than that, we have a hoss fight between Karrion Kross and Damian Priest, plus the Cruiserweight Title on the line. Let’s get to it.

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

Dexter Lumis, our host for the evening, is in the empty arena to start things off. He goes to the control and hits some buttons to mess with the lights before turning everything on. What a great way to draw in viewers! A guy pushing buttons in silence!

Damian Priest vs. Karrion Kross

Scarlett is here with Kross and this is a grudge match after Kross returned and Priest said he’s in if Kross wants a fight. They go with the hard lockup to start and fight out to the floor without breaking it up. Back in and Priest kicks him into the head and starts slugging away but Kross knocks him down as well. A running clothesline in the corner has Priest in trouble again and the t-bone suplex gets two.

We hit the double arm crank for a bit before they go out to the floor. Priest kicks the steps out of his hands and slugs away back inside, even managing to kick Kross down. A spinning suplex gets two on Kross and it’s time to crank on the arm, including a reverse cross armbreaker. They trade kicks to the head until Priest hits a springboard flip dive to take him down again.

That just earns him a running clothesline for two and Priest is put on the top. The super Doomsday Saito is broken up though and a Razor’s Edge out of the corner gets two. Kross breaks up the chokeslam onto the apron so Priest knocks him to the floor for the big dive. Back in and a kick to the face sets up South of Heaven for two on Kross.

That doesn’t really keep him down as it’s right back up for a powerbomb to Priest for two more. It’s back to the floor with Kross powerslamming him onto the steps to mess with the ribs even more. Back in and Priest tells him to bring it, earning himself the Doomsday Saito and a running forearm to the back of the head for the pin at 15:29.

Rating: B. They gave us what they advertised here by having two big, strong people beat each other up for fifteen minutes. Priest losing is fine as Kross seems destined for the title scene and it’s not like losing to a former NXT Champion is going to hurt him. Good opener here, with Priest looking good on his way down and Kross looking even better.

The Undisputed Era is ready for their first round Dusty Classic match against Breezango. They may be entertaining but the Undisputed Era is that much better.

Cruiserweight Title: Gran Metalik vs. Santos Escobar

Escobar, with Legado del Fantasma, is defending and Lince Dorado is here with Metalik. They start fast with Metalik snapping off a hurricanrana out to the floor. Back in and a double springboard hurricanrana takes Escobar down again, setting up the big dive to the floor. Escobar kicks him in the head but a rope walk hurricanrana is mostly botched and they fall to the floor.

Back from a break with Escobar dropping him ribs first onto the turnbuckle. The surfboard goes on for a bit, followed by a clothesline for two. Metalik gets in a superkick into a reverse Sling Blade to send Escobar outside again. That means another step up flip dive, followed by a top rope splash for two back inside.

Escobar knees him out of the air though and now it’s Metalik getting crushed by a dive for a change. Back in again and Escobar almost knocks the mask off but Dorado has to take out the rest of Legado. Metalik’s next hurricanrana gets two but the top rope elbow misses. The Phantom Driver retains the title at 12:26.

Rating: C. There wasn’t much drama here and that’s a good thing, as Escobar isn’t going to drop the title to someone coming down from Raw for a two match run. Metalik wasn’t great here either as some of his stuff wasn’t hitting and he used that hurricanrana quite a few times. Not bad, but it wasn’t quite memorable.

Mercedes Martinez doesn’t care that Io Shirai is the Competitor of the Year. She wants the Women’s Title and she’s waiting on the champ.

Xia Li vs. Katrina Cortez

This is Li’s, with a masked man, return after being trapped in a kung fu torture movie for a few weeks. Li kicks her down to start and hits some knees to the ribs. Cortez’s strikes are shrugged off and a big kick to the face finishes for Li at 1:27. Li, especially the finish, looked awesome here.

William Regal regrets to inform us that Timothy Thatcher is injured, meaning the Fight Pit against Tommaso Ciampa isn’t happening. The match will happen when Thatcher is healthy.

We get a special look at Bronson Reed, who promises a colossal 2021 and thinks Rhea Ripley wins tonight.

Rhea Ripley vs. Raquel Gonzalez

Last Woman Standing. Ripley dropkicks her into the corner to start and hammers away with right hands to the head. Back up and Gonzalez blasts her with a clothesline, followed by the fall away slam. Gonzalez cranks on the arm and kicks away but talks a bit too much trash about their matching tattoos. That means they go out to the floor with Ripley busting out the kendo sticks to put Gonzalez in some pain.

Gonzalez chairs her out of the air though and hits a hard whip into the barricade. The handcuffs are brought in but Ripley gets them away and attaches her to the barricade. That’s fine with Gonzalez, who rips them off and hits Ripley in the face. Ripley is sent face first into the bell and a backdrop onto the edge of the announcers’ table (geez) puts Ripley down again. Ripley makes it back in and we take a break.

Back with the Gonzalez hitting her in the face with the steps on the stage and then kicking Ripley down the steps. They fight to the back with Ripley spearing her through a glass door. Gonzalez is laid on a table and hits a Swanton off a box to drive her through it. Cue Dakota Kai with a kendo stick though and Ripley is in more trouble. That’s fine with Ripley, who kicks Kai into a locker and puts an anvil case in front of her for a nice trap.

Gonzalez and Ripley go back to the stage with Ripley grabbing the Prism Trap and choking with a chair. That’s broken up though with Gonzalez kicking her into the lighting structure. Ripley goes into the LED board (messing it up for a bit on the process) and it’s the one armed powerbomb to drive them both through the stage for the huge crash. Gonzalez is the only one to climb out for the win at 18:04.

Rating: B+. These two beat the fire out of each other and that’s all you could ask for here. The only thing that worries me is Ripley losing AGAIN because that seems to be the case almost all the time these days. The ending looked great though and Ripley locking Kai in a locker was funny so the whole thing was a success. Ripley almost has to be heading to the main roster now though right?

The Way, with a police escort, arrives for their latest celebration. They get in the ring, where something is under a sheet for them. Johnny Gargano talks about reversing the curse last week, just like the Cleveland Browns. Gargano: “YO CANDICE! I DID IT!” Candice is proud of him and has a plaque commemorating the curse being broken.

Austin Theory and Indi Hartwell offer their own praises and have a gift for him: a portrait of the Way as superheroes. Gargano is touched and announces that he and Theory are entering the Dusty Classic. Cue Shotzi Blackheart with the tank, which she fires at Theory’s crotch. As Theory is writhing in pain, here’s Kushida to go after Gargano. Lumis shows up to ring the bell.

Johnny Gargano/Candice LeRae vs. Kushida/Shotzi Blackheart

Gargano and Candice, in street clothes, rant on the floor before Shotzi kicks Candice in the head to start. We take an early break and come back with Shotzi getting kicked out of the corner as Lumis sits on commentary in silence. Blackheart snaps the arm down and it’s off to the men to pick up the pace.

Kushida goes for the cross armbreaker but Gargano gets his foot on the rope. Candice comes in for the save and offers to fight Kushida herself but Blackheart cuts her off in a hurry. Gargano and Candice are knocked outside so Shotzi can hit a big dive onto LeRae. A Theory cheap shot gets him pulled inside and kicked down, leaving Kushida to grab a rollup for the pin on Gargano at 9:05.

Rating: C. I’m still looking forward to both singles matches but this was just kind of there as a tag match. I love the Way’s wacky devotion to Gargano and Candice sells everything rather well, but the matches are only ok for the most part. Nothing too bad here, but not exactly must see stuff.

Takeover is back on Valentine’s Day.

The Dusty Classic is back next week, with the Undisputed Era vs. Breezango and the Grizzled Young Veterans vs. Ever-Rise.

William Regal announces the first ever women’s Dusty Rhodes Tag Team Classic. That could actually work.

NXT Title: Kyle O’Reilly vs. Finn Balor

Balor is defending and they’re both on their own. After the Big Match Intros, O’Reilly shoulders him down to start and Balor touches the previously broken jaw. A headscissors doesn’t go anywhere and it’s the threat of a kick to the head to shake Balor again. The second headscissors keeps Balor down and O’Reilly starts in on the arm. Balor tries to get up and grabs an abdominal stretch, sending O’Reilly to the ropes, which he bites for the break.

The trainer checks on O’Reilly’s mouth but Balor pulls O’Reilly into a headlock to stay on the jaw. O’Reilly fights up and starts in on the arm, including twisting it around the ropes. Balor goes back to the jaw and then stomps away, setting up a Crossface. That sends O’Reilly feet first to the rope for a change so Balor elbows him in the face and drives the forearm into the jaw.

Back up and O’Reilly kicks him down and goes for the arm, earning another shot tot he jaw for a breather. Balor hits the kick to the head to send O’Reilly outside and he has to beat the count. O’Reilly gets back in and it’s time to go after the leg, earning O’Reilly another kick to the face. Balor goes right back to the Crossface and hits the Sling Blade into a jumping stomp to the chest.

The shotgun dropkick puts O’Reilly in the corner but Balor gets crotched on top. A superplex into a brainbuster gets two and it’s back to the arm. A foot on the leg gets Balor out of trouble, even though his eye is cut. O’Reilly charges into a kick to the side and collapses, allowing Balor to put on something like the Rings of Saturn with a Crossface to make O’Reilly tap at 17:27.

Rating: A-. These guys were fighting an uphill battle as they had to live up to some unbelievable hype. Somehow they managed to have a heck of a match with Balor going after the jaw to mirror what happened last time. There wasn’t a lot of drama about the winner, but watching these guys beat the fire out of each other for about eighteen minutes was all you needed, and Balor looks all the more ready for Kross.

Medics and the Undisputed Era check on O’Reilly as Balor poses to end the show.

Overall Rating: A-. This lived up to the hype and that’s a heck of a trick given how much this show was built up. You could have passed this off as a slightly weaker than usual Takeover and it would have worked just fine. There are some very good matches up and down the card and a limited use of Dexter Lumis makes everything better. Check this one out as it was a great show, with the main event and Last Woman Standing being some hard hitting fights.

Results

Karrion Kross b. Damian Priest – Running forearm to the back of the head

Santos Escobar b. Gran Metalik – Phantom Driver

Xia Li b. Katrina Cortez – Spinning kick to the face

Raquel Gonzalez b. Rhea Ripley – Ripley could not answer the ten count

Kushida/Shotzi Blackheart b. Johnny Gargano/Candice LeRae – Rollup to Gargano

Finn Balor b. Kyle O’Reilly – Rings of Saturn with a Crossface

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

NXT
Date: December 16, 2020
Location: Capitol Wrestling Center, Winter Park, Florida
Commentators: Wade Barrett, Beth Phoenix, Vic Joseph

We’re on the way to New Year’s Evil and that could go a variety of ways. Tonight we find out the new #1 contender to the NXT Title though as Pete Dunne faces Kyle O’Reilly. That could be a heck of a fight and that’s what NXT is shooting for with the showdown. Other than that, the whole show could be all over the place. Let’s get to it.

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

Kushida/Leon Ruff vs. The Way

That would be Johnny Gargano/Austin Theory with Candice LeRae/Indi Hartwell. Kushida takes Theory to the mat and the frustration is on in a hurry. Ruff comes in so Theory runs him over with a clothesline and hands it off to Gargano to glare at Kushida. The delay lets Ruff take Gargano down and kick him in the head for two, only to have Gargano hit a gordbuster.

Theory comes back in so Kushida makes the save, with stereo dropkick sending Theory and Gargano to the floor. Ruff loads up a big flip dive but slips and falls flat on his back on the floor for a scary landing. Thankfully he seems to be ok as Theory sends Ruff face first into the apron. Back in and Ruff scores with a DDT for two but Gargano hits his slingshot spear. We take a break and come back with Ruff fighting out of a chinlock and enziguring Gargano, allowing the hot tag off to Kushida.

House is cleaned with Kushida kicking Gargano in the arm but getting kicked in the head for his efforts. Ruff comes back in with a missile dropkick to Gargano and stereo running kicks in the corner give Ruff two. Theory is back in with the spinning torture rack powerbomb for two on Ruff and a double superkick is good for the same. Ruff hits his own superkick to send Gargano into the corner but Theory is back in with This Is The Way (where he picks Ruff up and flips him into a Downward Spiral) for the pin at 13:35.

Rating: B-. They did things the right way here with Gargano and Theory working well together and finishing Ruff in the end. Kushida continues to look strong and it wouldn’t shock me to see him get the first shot at Gargano. That has been a logical place for him to go for the last several months so it would be nice to see them actually do something about it.

Dexter Lumis is watching from the balcony with an easel. Uh yeah.

Video on Toni Storm vs. Rhea Ripley, with Toni saying that all that matters is her time. She is ending this rivalry on her terms tonight.

Video on Legado del Fantasma.

Shotzi Blackheart is proud of her WarGames team and doesn’t think much of Candice LeRae carrying a trophy that her husband got from a Little League banquet. She broke Candice’s arm in the cage and tonight she’s breaking Candice’s best friend Indi Hartwell.

Tommaso Ciampa vs. Tyler Rust

Ciampa leaves a chair and shirt for Timothy Thatcher at ringside. Rust works on the wrist to start but gets taken down into a front facelock. Cue Thatcher to watch so Ciampa hits a running shot to the face to drop Rust again. Ciampa heads outside to yell at Thatcher and Rust runs Thatcher over by mistake. That’s enough to get Thatcher ejected but Rust uses the distraction to get in a shot on Ciampa as we take a break.

Back with Ciampa hitting a Samoan drop to get a breather and elbowing Rust in the face. Rust scores with an ax kick for two but can’t get a cross armbreaker as Ciampa stacks him up. The hold goes on with the second attempt but Ciampa is out again and blasts Rust in the face. The arm is too banged up for the Fairy Tale Ending so Rust grabs a cravate and flips Ciampa forward for two. Rust slaps on a Rings of Saturn with his legs, meaning Ciampa has to use his own leg for the break. Ciampa unloads with chops in the ropes, followed by a running knee to the face. Willow’s Bell is good for the pin at 12:24.

Rating: C+. Rust got to showcase himself here and that’s the reason you put him in a spot like this. Ciampa is in the middle of his big feud with Thatcher and beating up Thatcher’s glorified lackey is as good of an idea as you can have. If nothing else, Rust got a chance to showcase himself and that worked well. Nice stuff here, as both did what they were supposed to do.

Post match Ciampa picks up the Thatcher shirt but here’s Thatcher to glare at him. The two are held back but Ciampa throws the shirt in Thatcher’s face to make it worse.

Video on the Grizzled Young Veterans, who are back after eight months away. There are a lot of new teams around here and they are still the best around.

Video on Karrion Kross.

During the break, Malcolm Bivens came out to tell Rust that he is a star. Rust bumped fists with him and they left together.

Dexter Lumis has drawn the New Year’s Evil logo.

Pete Dunne vs. Kyle O’Reilly

The winner gets the title shot against Finn Balor at New Year’s Evil. Oney Lorcan and Danny Burch are here to start but here’s the Undisputed Era and the returning Breezango to take care of them, meaning it’s one on one. Dunne and O’Reilly go straight to the slugging to start with Dunne not being able to get anywhere off the hammerlock. Instead Dunne takes him down and pulls on the leg but O’Reilly is out of that in a hurry.

O’Reilly sits on his stomach to strike away but the dragon screw legwhip is countered without much trouble. Back up and they run the ropes with Dunne hitting a clothesline to send O’Reilly to the floor. The moonsault off the apron misses O’Reilly but he misses a knee of his own. Dunne scores with a pump kick but O’Reilly slips out of an X Plex onto the apron. The slugout on the floor almost gives us a double countout with both of them diving back in at nine.

Back in and they slug it out with O’Reilly kicking him in the leg. Another kick puts Dunne on the floor again and we take a break. We come back with Dunne’s Bitter End being countered into a guillotine choke. That’s broken up and Dunne is back with the X Plex, allowing him to glare with his bloody mouth. Dunne starts in on the arm with the big stomp having O’Reilly in trouble. The cobra clutch with a leg trap has O’Reilly in pain to go with the trouble.

Back up and O’Reilly starts striking away, including the running elbow in the corner. Dunne tries to run the ropes in the corner but O’Reilly kicks him back down. O’Reilly goes up top with him but Dunne flips out of a German superplex attempt and kicks O’Reilly in the head. The dropkick in the corner connects and we take another break. Back with the two of them on the apron and pulling the other into the buckle over and over. That means a double knockdown until O’Reilly charges into a knee.

Dunne powerbombs him for two and cranks on the arm again. That’s reversed into an ankle lock on Dunne which is reversed into the Kimura on O’Reilly’s bad arm. O’Reilly tries a choke to escape but settles for a brainbuster to put Dunne down again. A jumping knee sets up a belly to back fisherman’s suplex for two more on Dunne. O’Reilly gets pulled into a triangle but slips out in a hurry to hammer away with forearms.

There’s a kick to Dunne’s head, followed by one to O’Reilly’s head. A second to O’Reilly lets Dunne snap the fingers and they head to the apron. The Bitter End onto the apron is countered into a suplex to the floor and Dunne is in big trouble. O’Reilly drapes him over the bottom rope and a top rope knee to the back of the neck sends O’Reilly to the title match at 22:48.

Rating: A-. Well that was awesome and I don’t think that’s any surprise. Two talented people getting the time and having the chance to beat the heck out of each other. What else could you possibly need? What might be a bit surprising is having Dunne loses, as he seemed to be the perfect choice to get the title shot. That being said, O’Reilly vs. Balor was amazing the first time so letting them go at it again in a huge rematch works for me.

Rhea Ripley knows how to deal with Raquel Gonzalez because Gonzalez backed away last week. As for tonight, she’s ending Toni Storm once and for all.

We go back to Xia Li/Boa (hey I didn’t miss it this week) where the old man is ordering a very sweaty Li to attack Boa over and over. She hammers away as the bloody Boa begs them to stop. The old man says do it again as Li is in tears. Li unloads on Boa and they both go a bit stoic.

Indi Hartwell vs. Shotzi Blackheart

The rest of the Way is here with Hartwell. Blackheart is more serious to start here and hits an early dropkick before starting in on the limbs. The running reverse Cannonball in the corner mostly misses Hartwell, who elbows Shotzi down for two. Blackheart jumps over her in the corner though and hammers away, meaning now the reverse Cannonball can connect. A running dropkick sends Hartwell to the floor but Candice gets on the apron for a distraction. Hartwell hits Shotzi with the trophy (and yes it breaks) for the DQ at 4:05.

Rating: D+. Not much to see here but the match was there for the sake of getting to the ending and likely the post match beatdown. Shotzi and some other people fighting the Way could go on for months and this worked just fine as a way to move things forward. The idea of Shotzi continuing the fight works well, even if it did mainly start with breaking a tank.

Post match the beatdown is on, including the Wicked Stepsister to Shotzi. Barrett is more worried about the trophy because he knows how to be a commentator.

Karrion Kross video.

Bronson Reed is back at New Year’s Evil.

Karrion Kross vs. Desmond Troy

Scarlett is here as well. Total destruction with the Doomsday Saito setting up the Krossjacket choke to finish Troy at 1:05. That worked.

Post match Kross confirms his match against Damian Priest at New Year’s Evil.

Isaiah Scott confirms that he gets frustrated when he loses to someone like Jake At…..and he cuts himself off. The rematch is next week and the result will be different.

Scott leaves and here’s Ever Rise to say last week was a handicap match so they have tried to have it stricken from the record. Therefore, the team is still on a winning streak. Martel: “You hear that Goldberg? WE’RE COMING FOR YOU!” And no they don’t want a rematch.

Lumis is still drawing and now he is going to be the host of New Year’s Evil. Oh sweet goodness.

Finn Balor says New Year’s Evil isn’t Balor vs. O’Reilly II. It’s Balor vs. O’Reilly The End.

We run down the New Year’s Evil card, which certainly does look big.

Toni Storm vs. Rhea Ripley

They fight over the lockup to start with Storm slapping on a headlock for little avail. Ripley shoulders her down and they trade crucifixes on the mat. Back up and Storm hits some chops but Ripley is back with some of her own. A double chop to the back knocks Storm down but she slips out of an electric chair. Ripley pulls her to the apron but gets sent into the post and kicked in the face as we take a break. Back with Ripley fighting out of a chinlock but missing an elbow. A superkick connects with Storm though and Ripley knees her in the face.

The Riptide is broken up with some elbows to the face and Storm headbutts her down. Back up and they slug it out until Ripley gets two off a dropkick. The Prism Trap goes on but Storm rolls her into the ropes for the break. A German suplex gives Storm two and Ripley dropping Storm face first onto the turnbuckle gets the same. Ripley drops the leg for another two but here’s Raquel Gonzalez. Ripley kicks Storm onto her but as the referee checks on Storm, Gonzalez sends Ripley shoulder first into the post. Storm Zero gives Storm the pin at 13:48.

Rating: B. This was a big match feel with both women working to make it feel like a fight. Ripley is already a major star and Storm kind of is, so getting the big win here makes her feel that much more important. Throw in the idea of Gonzalez fighting Ripley again and this was a heck of a packed match, as the women’s division is getting crazy deep in a hurry.

Ripley isn’t happy to end the show.

Overall Rating: B+. Yeah what else are you expecting from a show like this? They had an excellent match in the middle, a rather good main event and a pretty good opener, while also setting up the big New Year’s Evil card. This was a heck of a show though and one of the better things that NXT has done in a pretty long time, as they had good to great wrestling and set stuff up for the future. What more can you want?

Results

The Way b. Kushida/Leon Ruff – This Is The Way to Ruff

Tommaso Ciampa b. Tyler Rust – Willow’s Bell

Kyle O’Reilly b. Pete Dunne – Top rope knee

Shotzi Blackheart b. Indi Hartwell via DQ when Hartwell used a trophy

Karrion Kross b. Desmond Troy – Krossjacket Choke

Toni Storm b. Rhea Ripley – Storm Zero

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

Takeover: WarGames 2020
Date: December 6, 2020
Location: Capitol Wrestling Center, Winter Park, Florida
Commentators: Beth Phoenix, Vic Joseph, Wade Barrett

It’s time for what has become something close to NXT’s signature match and that year has one of the better looking matches in the show’s history. Just like last year, we have the men’s and women’s edition of the show’s namesake match, with a good enough looking undercard. Let’s get to it.

The opening video is a general look at WarGames, including the cage being lowered. With that out of the way, we switch into a look at the two WarGames matches.

Team Blackheart vs. Team LeRae

Shotzi Blackheart, Rhea Ripley, Ember Moon, Io Shirai

Candice LeRae, Raquel Gonzalez, Dakota Kai, Toni Storm

We start with the Women’s WarGames match, including a rundown of the rules. After the time is up, the team who won the advantage coming in (Blackheart in this case) sends someone in for a 2-1 advantage for three minutes. Once that time is up, Team LeRae will even things up for three minutes. They alternate until all four each are in and then it’s first pinfall or submission wins. And yes Shotzi has a new and bigger tank, which even shoots something at the side of the cage.

Dakota Kai and Moon start things off and go straight to the mat for the brawl. Moon flips off a sleeper attempt and hits a flipping clothesline in the corner. Dakota sends her into the ropes but Moon is right back with a crossbody against the cage. A charge is cut off by Kai’s raised boots and the Kairopractor connects. Kai chokes away and it’s Shotzi coming in for the advantage. Blackheart whips out a toolbox as she comes in to clean house on Kai. The reverse Cannonball connects against the ropes but Shotzi rams her into the cage.

Kai goes after Moon but Shotzi is back up with a doomsday missile dropkick to put Kai down. Gonzalez comes in to tie it up but Shotzi and Moon are right there to jump her at the door. It doesn’t seem to matter though as Gonzalez wrecks both of them, including powerbombing Shotzi against the cage. Kai is back in to clean house and a kick to the face rocks Shotzi in the corner. A springboard from one ring to another takes out Blackheart and Moon again but it’s Ripley coming in, giving Gonzalez a VERY interested face.

The showdown is on (they’ve got something with these two) until Ripley is cut off by Kai. Moon and Shotzi take care of Gonzalez, leaving Ripley to destroy Kai on her own. It’s time for the toolbox and Ripley busts out a hammer, only to drop it to send Kai into the cage. Gonzalez has dropped Moon and Shotzi though, meaning NOW we get the real showdown. They meet between the rings and slug it out with Ripley getting the better of things until Storm, with kendo sticks, comes in to take over.

Everyone else gets back in but Team LeRae takes over without much trouble. The stick beating is on but all six go to the corner, with Moon hitting a Steiner Bulldog on Kai and Blackheart/Ripley being slammed down as well, leaving all six down. Shirai is in for the final advantage and slides in a ladder, only to be kicked out by Gonzalez. Things get creative as Gonzalez keeps knocking Shirai off, either out of the door or off the side. The time expires and it’s LeRae coming in, only to have Shirai waiting on her outside.

Cue Indi Hartwell to jump Shirai and throw in some more weapons. The big beatdown is on, with the referee even telling LeRae and company to stop and give Shotzi a breather. Moon is back up but it’s Shirai on top of the cage, putting a trashcan over herself and diving onto EVERYBODY for the huge spot. Shirai gets the hammer and cleans house with it (meaning she hits people either with the bottom or flat across the back) and the recorded NXT chants start up again.

There’s the moonsault to Gonzalez but everyone makes the save. LeRae gets the Gargano Escape on Moon (with a wrench) at the same time Shotzi puts Storm in Cattle Mutilation. Shotzi uses a chair to knock a kendo stick out of Storm’s hands before picking up the stick (uh…) to clean house again. Shirai’s charge is sent into the corner and Kai hits the running boot to the face. Kai puts Shirai in the trashcan again for a top rope double stomp but Moon makes the save.

Two chairs are set up and Moon hits the Eclipse to drive Kai into said chairs. Storm makes the save and hits Storm Zero to drive Moon into the trashcan for two. Ripley is back up with the Prism Trap to Storm, with Shirai adding a running dropkick for a bonus. That gives Ripley two and the ladder is bridged between the rings. LeRae superkicks a trashcan lid into Ripley’s face as another ladder is set up in the corner. Shotzi and LeRae climb at the same time, with LeRae being knocked off and onto some chairs.

LeRae puts the chair onto herself, flips it over, and points at it before Shotzi drops a backsplash for the (very well choreographed) crushing. Shirai’s Over The Moonsault hits Ripley but Storm drives Ripley into the cover for the save. Shirai gets caught on top and Gonzalez superbombs her through the bridged ladder for the pin (and likely the next title shot) at 35:34.

Rating: B. This was a long and brutal fight, though it didn’t feel quite like your traditional WarGames. That’s because this isn’t your traditional WarGames, and for the NXT version, it worked out well. There were some great spots in here (that Eclipse onto the chairs looked awesome) but it did feel like they were stretching things out for the sake of stretching things out at times. What we got was a heck of a fight though and that’s what it needed to be, with the right team winning.

Finn Balor says after the team sports end, it’s time for all eyes to go back on the Prince.

Tommaso Ciampa vs. Timothy Thatcher

Ciampa said he wanted to fight and Thatcher was game. Thatcher takes him to the mat and starts working on the arm before switching over to the leg for a change. Ciampa is right back by working on the leg, including stomping on the leg. Thatcher sends him outside though and catches him with an uppercut on the way back in. Hold on though as Ciampa gets knocked into the ropes, meaning the referee needs to check on him. Thatcher is fine enough to uppercut away and sends Ciampa outside for a second.

Back in and another uppercut means another check from the referee so Thatcher grabs a neck crank. Thatcher pulls on the arm as the slugout begins, only to have to send Ciampa into the corner. They bang heads for a double knockdown but it’s Ciampa coming up with the clothesline comeback. A superplex gets two on Thatcher, who is right back with the guillotine. Ciampa drives him through the ropes for the break and they’re both down on the floor.

Back in and Ciampa runs him over, setting up a bulldog choke. Thatcher’s ear is busted open as he makes the rope and manages a German suplex to drop Ciampa again. Ciampa can’t hit Willow’s Bell as he is pulled throat first into the top rope instead. That’s fine with Ciampa, who ties him in the ropes and chops away, setting up Willow’s Bell for the pin at 16:55.

Rating: B. They built this up as two people wanting to beat the heck out of each other and that’s what we got. There was no reason to try for anything more than Thatcher using his technical stuff against Ciampa’s brawling and the formula worked out rather well. Good, hard hitting match here and while I might have gone with Thatcher winning, Ciampa being rebuilt is a good thing for NXT.

They stare at each other after the match so this might not be over.

We recap Cameron Grimes vs. Dexter Lumis. Grimes is cocky and loud so Lumis has been stalking him, including inside a haunted house at Halloween Havoc. As a result, Grimes has been running away over and over so let’s have a strap match.

Cameron Grimes vs. Dexter Lumis

The referee is ready to put the strap on but Grimes wants to use his own. That’s not cool but Grimes jumps Lumis before the bell. They head outside with Grimes sending him into various things and choking with the strap. Back in and Lumis hits a Thesz press to hammer away and now the strap goes on, meaning the bell can ring (so we can get some bonus Lumis you see). Grimes heads outside and tries to escape over the barricade, only to get pulled back for an uppercut.

A hard whip sends Grimes into the barricade but Lumis gets sent over for a change. That lets Lumis do his big scary pull up (he’s no Keith Lee) but Grimes pulls him back to ringside in a crash. A shot to the face drops Lumis again and Grimes wraps the strap around his eyes. With that not being enough, Grimes puts a hood over Lumis’ head and takes him back inside for a whipping. Lumis whips out a spinebuster and, after taking off the hood, heads outside to wrap the strap around the structure around the post.

That goes nowhere as Grimes escapes and kicks Lumis in the chest, only to be pulled off the apron. Back in again and Lumis whips away, only to get German suplexed into the corner. Grimes unloads with a chair before having a seat in it for a change. Lumis catches a charge and hits a fall away slam, only to get pulled off the top. Grimes’ flipping powerslam gets two but both the Cave In and Silence are countered. Lumis ties the legs up with the strap and Grimes goes face first into the open chair. Silence goes on and Grimes taps at 12:55.

Rating: B-. They had a good match here and Grimes is still a natural treasure but….WHAT IS SO SPECIAL ABOUT LUMIS??? I’ve yet to miss an episode of NXT and for the life of me I do not understand what is so special about this guy. I don’t get what NXT sees in him and yet it just keeps going for months on end. Anyway, pretty good match with some creative spots, but in the end, it’s still Lumis and that cuts off a lot of my interest.

The lights flicker and a vulture flies around. Karrion Kross’ voice is heard saying Tick Tock. Since Kross’ theme is a clock and he said tick tock over and over, commentary has no idea who this is.

We recap the triple threat match for the North American Title. Johnny Gargano won the title from Damian Priest thanks to some outside interference at Halloween Havoc. That made him cocky so he rigged a wheel to choose Leon Ruff as his first challenger. Priest interfered to cost Gargano the title, making Ruff the fluke champion. Ruff did not like being called a joke and agreed to defend against both at once.

North American Title: Leon Ruff vs. Johnny Gargano vs. Damian Priest

Ruff is defending and gets sent into the corner early on, leaving Gargano to hit a superkick. Gargano takes Ruff into the corner but Priest is back in to throw Ruff out of the way for a second time. Back in and Ruff hits a double missile dropkick before stepping up to Priest. That isn’t the best idea as Priest grabs him by the throat until Gargano makes the save. Priest gets double teamed down but Gargano turns on Ruff with the slingshot spear. Priest is back up as they head outside, with Ruff insisting that he is not a joke.

That earns him a shot to the face and a Razor’s Edge through the barricade as the crowd noise doesn’t seem pleased with Priest. Referees check on Ruff as Priest apologizes for hurting him like that. Gargano is back up but One Final Beat is blocked so Gargano goes with a standing Sliced Bread for two instead. Priest blasts him with a clothesline and they’re both down. With Priest down on the ramp, Ruff comes back and uses him as a launchpad for a clothesline.

A rope walk flip dive off the top takes both challengers down on the floor. Back in and a twisting rope rope cutter (The heck was that?) drops Gargano again, but it only seems to get on his nerves. Ruff clotheslines Gargano for two but Priest is back in, saying Ruff is out of chances. Priest kicks him in the head and lifts them both up in a double Downward Spiral. The double teaming takes Priest down again though, this time with his arms getting tied in the ropes.

Ruff gets quite the two count off a crucifix but Gargano pulls him into the Gargano Escape, right in front of Priest. That’s as bad of an idea as it sounds as Priest gets out and makes the save. The spinwheel kick drops Gargano and Ruff is sent outside, leaving Gargano to take the South of Heaven chokeslam. Cue three Ghostfaces to jump Priest, who shrugs all of them off. Three more show up so Priest hits a big step up flip dive to the floor. Another dive takes out the original trio.

Priest is all fired up (great visual) and chokeslams Gargano onto the apron. Back in and Ruff hits the frog splash for two on Gargano with Priest making the save. The Reckoning is broken up and they trade kicks to the face, with Priest knocking Gargano silly. Cue another Ghostface with a lead pipe to Priest’s back though, allowing Gargano to hit One Final Beat on Ruff for the pin and the title at 17:31.

Rating: B. This was an interesting match as you had Gargano winning the title, but Priest and Ruff got to showcase themselves very well. Priest looks like the monster of monsters right now and that fired up look on his face after the dives was great. At the same time you have Ruff, who probably just moved past the peak of his career, getting a chance to show you what he can do. I can always go for someone making the most of their chances and that is exactly what he did here. Nice job all around with probably the right result.

Post match the main Ghostface is…..Austin Theory.

New Year’s Evil is a special episode of NXT on January 6.

We recap the men’s WarGames match. Pat McAfee and Company got together and ran over NXT, including taking out the Undisputed Era. They set their sights on Finn Balor, but the Era is back for a big fight. That means a William Regal WARGAMES announcement and here we are.

Undisputed Era vs. Team McAfee

Adam Cole, Kyle O’Reilly, Bobby Fish, Roderick Strong

Pat McAfee, Oney Lorcan, Danny Burch, Pete Dunne

O’Reilly and Dunne start things off and Team McAfee has the advantage. The take their time to start with neither being able to get very far early on. O’Reilly takes him down by the arm to start but can’t get the triangle. He can’t get the cross armbreaker either so Dunne pulls him into a triangle choke in the ropes for a change. With that not going very far, Dunne cranks on the fingers, only to have go after the fingers in the corner. A stomp to the fingers misses so O’Reilly goes with a choke.

O’Reilly knees him in the chest, only to get pulled into a cross armbreaker. That’s broken and it’s Oney Lorcan coming in to kick away at O’Reilly. The double teaming is on with O’Reilly going down but fighting back in a hurry. Lorcan gets caught in the ropes for a guillotine legdrop but Dunne dropkicks the leg out. It’s Bobby Fish coming in to start throwing the knees and there’s a spinebuster to Lorcan. Dunne is back up with a Kimura on O’Reilly but Fish makes the save with a choke.

They go into the cage until time runs out, with Danny Burch telling Pat McAfee that he has this. Burch grabs a bag to pull out a cricket bat to clean house. Like any villain though, Burch takes too long talking trash and gets pulled into a kneebar. Dunne breaks it up with a stomp to the arm and it’s Lorcan with his own cricket bat. The group stomping is on but here’s Roderick Strong running in….and getting stomped down immediately.

Strong fights up to clean house with a dropkick to Lorcan and a backbreaker to Dunne. He heads to the middle of the rings and hits the running forearms to all three at once in a nice little sequence. Lorcan manages to send Strong face first into the cage though and McAfee and Company take over again. With the Era in trouble, it’s McAfee coming in to complete the team, though he needs to grab a table. Make that four tables, each with a member of the Era’s name included.

With all four in, McAfee finally gets in as the team is dismantling the Era. Strong is driven through his table and it’s Cole coming in to finally complete the field. Since McAfee and Company are waiting on him, Cole whips out a fire extinguisher to clear the ring and it’s time to get going. All of the usual takes care of everyone but McAfee and the showdown is on. Dunne steps in Cole’s way though and we hit the slugout, with Dunne taking him down and stomping away at the head.

The Bitter End is countered with a quick DDT but McAfee grabs Cole’s arms so Dunne can kick him in the head. O’Reilly takes Dunne down with a chair and tells McAfee to come fight him if he wants to be a wrestler. Kyle goes on the best rant I’ve ever heard from him, telling McAfee that he’s nothing and to come get some. Everyone is back up and the big fight is on with Lorcan hitting a Blockbuster. O’Reilly and Strong knee Dunne down with Lorcan making the save.

Cole starts kicking people in the face until McAfee chop blocks him down. With the required WOO’s, McAfee puts on a pretty good Figure Four while the other six are brawling at the ropes. Cole turns it over with Dunne having to make his own save. The Era is in trouble with the Cole table being set up but Strong and Fish kick Lorcan and Burch down. Cole hits Dunne with the brainbuster onto the knee for two and sets up a table in the middle of the ring.

Dunne gets powerbombed onto Burch onto a table, which doesn’t break (Barrett: “Where are we getting these tables from?”). Strong splashes both of them through the table and Cole shoves McAfee off the top and through another table in a massive crash. And Company is caught up against the cage so the rest of the Era charges into them with a long series of strikes. Cole gets in on it as well and the Era stands tall. McAfee is all alone and despite claims of a bad back, he tries to scale the cage, which goes about as well as expected.

The group beatdown is on and McAfee is sent hard into the cage. With McAfee mostly done, the rest of the team gets back up and we’re right back at it. A Doomsday European uppercut drops Strong but Dunne is taken off the top with a super neckbreaker. There’s a superplex to McAfee and they’re all down again. Everyone gets together for the big staredown but it’s McAfee going to the top of the cage for the HUGE flip dive onto everyone else for the huge crash.

O’Reilly and Dunne slug it out in the other ring with O’Reilly kicking away, only to get his fingers snapped. A suplex drops Dunne between the rings for two. McAfee grabs a chair and Cole tells him to do his best. Cole knocks it down and takes it away, only to get kicked low. Fish drives Burch through another table and Cole superkicks McAfee out of the air.

The Panama Sunrise plants McAfee for two in a heck of a false finish. The Last Shot misses McAfee but hits Lorcan instead. Dunne is back up with the Bitter End onto an open chair (geez) but O’Reilly kicks him down. A top rope knee onto a chair onto Lorcan’s head gives the Era the pin at 45:06.

Rating: A-. It says a lot when a 45 minute match doesn’t feel long and makes you feel every bit of the pain. I’m surprised at the Era winning but if McAfee isn’t going to be around regularly (fair enough), there was little reason to have his team win. McAfee can come back when he wants and be the best heel in the company, which is probably going to keep him a lot more fresh. I’m not sure what is next for the Era now as there is nothing left for them to do, but dang they had a great one here. Awesome match and crazy brutal throughout, with the Era getting the win in the definitive NXT team battle.

A lot of posing takes us out.

Overall Rating: A-. Yeah it was great and I’m not sure what else there is to say about something like this. All five matches were good to great and I had an awesome time throughout. It’s a heck of a show and worth seeing, though it didn’t have that big show stealing match. Still though, this felt like a Takeover and that’s as strong of an endorsement as you’re going to get.

Results

Team LeRae b. Team Blackheart – Superbomb to Shirai through a ladder

Tommaso Ciampa b. Timothy Thatcher – Willow’s Bell

Dexter Lumis b. Cameron Grimes – Silence

Johnny Gargano b. Leon Ruff and Damian Priest – One Final beat to Ruff

Undisputed Era b. Team McAfee – Top rope knee to a chair to Lorcan

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

We’re already back to Takeover but this time around we have a special attraction which is all you need to sell the show. This time around it’s WarGames, with a pair of the show’s namesake matches. That should make for some awesome stuff in its own right, but there are some other things in there to help fill in the gap. I have a good feeling of where this one is going so let’s get to it.

Dexter Lumis vs. Cameron Grimes

Let’s get this one out of the way first. This is a strap match as Grimes keeps trying to run off so now they’re tying him to the monster. I would be scared of Lumis as well, as he is the kind of guy where I really don’t get what WWE sees in him but that hasn’t stopped them yet. Lumis continues to be just kind of there (literally in some cases as he just stands there a lot of the time) but Grimes is a national treasure, so it balances out a bit.

I’ll take Lumis to win here because that’s how NXT works with him, though Grimes is the kind of guy who can stay over without ever winning a single thing. All I can hope for here is to have Grimes steal the show and do whatever he can, because that’s the best thing that I can hope for here. Lumis is absolutely not the worst thing in the world, but he isn’t someone I want to see in a spot like this. Grimes loses, and I shake my head a bit more.

North American Title: Leon Ruff(c) vs. Damian Priest vs. Johnny Gargano

So we have the big culmination of Gargano messing around with Ruff and losing the title to him, though Ruff has decided to stand up for himself and fight both of them at once. This sounds like something where Ruff should get destroyed so one of them will win the title….and yeah that’s probably exactly what we are going to be seeing here, as we should be getting.

I’ll take Gargano to win here, even though him winning a third time seems to be a little bit much. Ruff does not need to hold onto the title to keep the gag going any longer and the point has already been made. Gargano barely got to hold the title and Priest already had a decent reign (though I could go for more of him holding the title in the future). Go with what was planned before we took the detour, meaning Gargano wins.

Tommaso Ciampa vs. Timothy Thatcher

This is much more of a grudge match, as Ciampa went after Thatcher, who doesn’t take kindly to that. Therefore, let’s have a match. That’s about as easy of a plot as you can get and the rest is dressing everything else up to make the whole story work. They have good chemistry here too and I want to see where it goes. You don’t get that very often in a grudge match and it should work out.

As much as I want to go with Thatcher here, Ciampa needs to get back on the winning track and I can’t imagine Thatcher beating him. Unless Thatcher’s student interferes, it would make the most sense to have Ciampa go over here. If nothing else, you need a nice moment for one of the winners here as there might not be many other things for them to get behind here. Ciampa wins, because he kind of has to.

Women’s WarGames

This has been a little bit of a weird one as it seems to stem from Candice LeRae destroying Shotzi Blackheart’s tank. That is quite the forced reason to start up a WarGames match, but….well ok I haven’t heard many worse, but at least there is a reason to have this one. Granted the teams have been thrown together and I’m not sure how much of a reason they have to be here other than there need to be some people on the teams, but WarGames is better than nothing.

I’m sure Blackheart is going to have her new tank here but I think I’ll go with Team LeRae for the win here. They have a stacked lineup and seem to have a bit more chemistry, though I’m not sure who they have who is going to take out Rhea Ripley. I’m probably wrong on this one, but I really don’t know if I can see Blackheart and her merry band winning here, so we’ll go with LeRae.

Men’s WarGames

Now this is a much more traditional WarGames matches you have two teams ready to fight each other. Believe it or not, one of them is the Undisputed Era, who has been in one of them every year so far. That does not exactly bode well for their futures, but at least they are the established name in the match ala the Horsemen. It gives them some more possibilities, and I think we are going to get to the important one.

I’ll take Pat McAfee and Company (their official name as far as I’m concerned) for the win here, because they have nowhere to go with a loss and the Undisputed Era doesn’t need to win a thing at this point. If nothing else, the main event of the next Takeover almost has to be Pete Dunne taking the NXT Title from Finn Balor (unless Karrion Kross is ready again, though I’m not sure I can imagine going with him again as champion) and this is a good way to get him there. McAfee and Company win, as the Undisputed Era….oh of course they aren’t going up yet, because that’s just not what they do.

Overall Thoughts

This is the first time in a long while that I have felt interested in a Takeover just by looking at the card. The show is looking like it will hit on every point, which is where Takeover tends to shine. There is always the chance that things could go slightly beneath expectations, but just putting WarGames on the card should be more than enough to carry the whole thing. I think.

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

NXT
Date: December 2, 2020
Location: Capitol Wrestling Center, Winter Park, Florida
Commentators: Beth Phoenix, Wade Barrett, Vic Joseph

It’s the go home show for Takeover: WarGames and that means it’s time for another ladder match (yes I said another ladder match). There is also one last spot to be filled on Team Blackheart and there is a chance that could be revealed tonight. Other than that, it’s time for the final push towards Sunday and that is where NXT shines. Let’s get to it.

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

The roster, including the bosses, are on the stage for an In Memory Of Pat Patterson graphic.

We get the big video tribute, set to Patterson singing My Way, as only it could be. That’s a big one as Patterson really was one of the forces in WWE and an absolute genius at all things wrestling.

The roster gives us a THANK YOU PAT chant in a pretty emotional moment.

Opening sequence.

Damian Priest/Leon Ruff vs. Legado del Fantasma

Johnny Gargano is on commentary and Priest seems to be replacing Curt Stallion, who was jumped by Legado del Fantasma. Earlier today, Priest attacked Joaquin Wilde for sticking a finger in his face, meaning there is no Wilde here with Santos Escobar/Raul Mendoza. Ruff insists that he gets to start with Escobar as Gargano explains what a dad joke is supposed to be. Escobar gets taken down early but Ruff is pulled into the corner for a tag off to Mendoza.

That doesn’t go well for Ruff and it’s already back to Escobar for a jumping knee to the face. Priest comes in for a change and has some trouble with the faster Mendoza. They head outside with Mendoza getting sent into the barricade but Priest is distracted by the Ghost Face in the crowd. That’s enough for Escobar to hit a suicide dive and we take a break. Back with Priest grabbing Mendoza by the throat but getting dropkicked by Escobar.

A suplex gives Escobar two and it’s time to start working on Priest’s knee. Priest is fine enough to power up with a Downward Spiral to Escobar but he’s a little hesitant to bring in Ruff. He finally does though and it’s time to clean some house but a Mendoza cheap shot puts Ruff down. That’s only enough to knock Ruff over to the corner for the hot tag to Priest and now it’s time for the real house cleaning. Priest loads up the Reckoning but Ruff tags himself in. That’s fine with Priest, who Reckonings Mendoza, setting up Ruff’s frog splash for the pin at 12:23.

Rating: C. I don’t need Priest and Ruff as a big man/little man tag team (not without whistling music) but for a one off to build Ruff up a bit, it did well enough. They were also smart enough to not have Escobar take the pin, which shouldn’t be happening anytime soon. I’m curious about Stallion being gone and hopefully it isn’t a health issue, but maybe it’s better to not have him in a spot like this just yet.

Post match Priest shakes Ruff’s hand but turns around to see two Ghost Faces behind Gargano.

We look back at the end of last week’s show with a masked man costing the Undisputed Era the WarGames advantage.

Rhea Ripley and Ember Moon show Shotzi Blackheart an engine for their war machine. Blackheart thinks she’s in love and is ready to go to war.

We look at Undisputed Era’s history in WarGames. The team is together (in suits for a change) and getting ready for one more match, even after Pat McAfee and company have been taking them apart a few times. They’re ready to go to war but their backs are against the wall. This time though, they’re going to make McAfee and company their b******. This did a nice job of making the Era look good, though don’t we already kind of know that?

Team LeRae laughs off the idea of anything from Team Blackheart. The team is ready to fight and Raquel Gonzalez is going to gain the advantage. Tonight, Blackheart is going to feel like she has been run over by a tank.

August Grey vs. Cameron Grimes

Grimes has a bag with him and pulls out the strap. Some kicks to the chest have Grey in trouble to start and there’s a hard whip into the corner. Grey manages a dropkick and a jawbreaker, followed by a running neckbreaker to rock Grimes. Back up and Grimes sends him to the apron, with Grey going up top for a rope walk spinning high crossbody. Grey’s rollup gets two but he gets caught in a swinging Side Effect. The Cave In finishes Grey at 2:17.

Post match Grimes says Dexter Lumis is making a mistake with the strap match and ties Grey by the wrist. A clothesline drops Grey again and the whipping ensues. Grimes gets a little too cocky though and here’s Lumis to take Grey’s place. The beating is on with Grimes being sent running off. Lumis stares a lot because that’s what Lumis does.

Jake Atlas vs. Tony Nese

Atlas armdrags him into an armbar to start and Nese hides in the ropes for a bit. A dropkick sends Nese outside but he’s fine enough to crotch Atlas on the top back inside. We cut to the back where Pat McAfee and Company arrive and come back to full screen with Nese kneeing Atlas in the face. The torture rack keeps Atlas in trouble but he’s right back with a few right hands. Some forearms give Atlas two but Nese is back with a throat snap across the top rope into a low superkick. Nese misses a running knee in the corner though and the cartwheel DDT gives Atlas the pin at 5:24.

Rating: C. This was at least partially there as filler so we could see McAfee and Company arrive. Nese didn’t even get an entrance here so you can only expect so much out of him here. Atlas is still someone who seems like they want to push but he often fails as he gets close to the next level, though he is starting to seem a little more comfortable around here.

Post match Atlas says that bad things have happened around here but he’s not going to stop. One day, he is going to be Cruiserweight Champion.

Here are McAfee And Company for their weekly chat. McAfee says rest in peace to Pat Patterson, who he respects and appreciates. Then you go to the opposite end of the respect spectrum with every wrestling fan at home and here tonight, plus the Undisputed Era. Earlier tonight, we had to see a night out with the Undisputed Era, which was the lamest night out McAfee had ever seen in his entire life.

That was all about nostalgia BROTHER, so let’s do that themselves. McAfee talks about investing into greatness here because he has more money than anyone here has ever seen. He talks about how great they are and talks about Pete Dunne being the longest reigning United Kingdom Champion. Last week, Dunne won a ladder match, with the help of a masked man (who must be handsome and athletic under the mask, but it certainly wasn’t him) and on Sunday, they will have the advantage as a result.

Then you have thirty years of experience between the Tag Team Champions, who have finally gotten the chance that they deserve. McAfee wants everyone to watch on Sunday because he wants them to feel every single bit of pain. You can tune in to see him get hut, but the truth is that these guys broke the Undisputed Era’s spirit. Dunne says the Era is done this Sunday. McAfee wraps it up and continues to make me want to hear him talk more and more.

Quick video on the Grizzled Young Veterans.

The older man makes Boa and Xia Li dunk their heads under water. They then bow to him, only to be attacked from behind. I’m still not sure what to make of these things.

Ever Rise vs. Grizzled Young Veterans

Hang on though as here is Imperium to jump Ever Rise and say this is their tag division. They want the Veterans right now so let’s do this instead.

Imperium vs. Grizzled Young Veterans

Aichner works on Gibson’s arm to start and hands it off to Barthel for more of the same. Drake comes in to slug away at Barthel but gets taken into the corner as well, meaning Imperium can start taking turns on him. A suplex doesn’t work though and it’s back to Gibson to clean a bit of house. An armdrag into a headscissors doesn’t do much to Aichner so they hiptoss each other to the floor.

Back from a break with Aichner in trouble, including a spinwheel kick from Drake to give Gibson two. Drake gets dropped ribs first onto the top rope though and Gibson gets catapulted into the corner to put him in trouble. The stereo dropkicks in the corner set up White Noise to give Barthel two. Gibson gets in a shot to the throat to slow Barthel down but Aichner breaks up the tag attempt (even though Drake is still down on the floor).

A spinebuster into a kick to the face into a tilt-a-whirl faceplant gets two as frustration begins to set in. Aichner’s moonsault hits knees though and now the tag brings in Drake. Aichner catches Drake on top for a superplex though and Gibson has to make a save this time. With everyone else on the floor, Aichner hits a huge dive, only to have Ever Rise come in to send Barthel into the steps for the DQ at 14:04.

Rating: C+. This was getting going near the end and that’s kind of hard to do in a heel vs. heel match. Thank goodness there was no indication that either side was turning, as it would be quite the bad idea all around. The Veterans needed a win here though and I’m not sure why they didn’t get one, when you could have had Ever Rise cost Imperium the match instead. Also, as usual, Imperium without Walter isn’t worth much of your time.

During the break, Ever Rise ran off while still talking trash.

It’s time for Thatch As Thatch Can. Thatcher talks about how tired he is of all the interruptions….and Tommaso Ciampa is behind him. Ciampa says he’s here to teach and class is in session. Thatcher says he doesn’t want any trouble and then tackles Ciampa down, with Ciampa getting the better of things (Ciampa: “LESSON #1: DON’T BE AN A**!”). Thatcher’s student gets in a cheap shot from behind though and the beating is on, with Thatcher choking Ciampa out.

WarGames rundown.

Thatcher is proud of his student and says on Sunday, Ciampa is going to learn respect.

Raquel Gonzalez vs. Shotzi Blackheart

Ladder match for the WarGames advantage. Shotzi kicks away to start but misses a charge in the corner. Gonzalez gets her in an over the shoulder backbreaker before flipping her down and grabbing the hair (kind of an easy target). Blackheart gets knocked off the apron so it’s time to set up the first ladder. A dropkick through said ladder has Gonzalez down but she manages to drop Blackheart face first onto a ladder.

Gonzalez starts heading back in so Blackheart jumps on her back. That doesn’t work either as Gonzalez sends her into the barricade, only to have Blackbeard send her leg first into the steps. A dropkick sends Gonzalez into the steps as well and a Coffin Drop off the barricade puts them both down.

Back from a break with Shotzi hitting a DDT onto the apron for another double knockdown. Gonzalez is right back with a steps shot to the face and it’s time to set up the ladder in the ring. Shotzi makes another save and they take turns sending each other into the ladder. Said ladder is laid over the middle rope and Shotzi’s running inverted Cannonball sends Gonzalez into the ladder. With Gonzalez on the floor, Shotzi hits a big dive to take her down again.

The rest of the teams are looking on from their podiums but come to ringside to start the brawl at ringside. Indi Hartwell can’t get the briefcase down as Blackheart makes the save, only to have Gonzalez take Shotzi down. Gonzalez goes up but here’s Io Shirai to take her down. After sending Gonzalez outside, Shirai hits the huge moonsault onto everyone else. That’s enough for Blackheart to climb the ladder to win the briefcase at 14:39.

Rating: C+. Take two people, have them do a few big spots, then have the interference to set up the ending. This feels like your run of the mill ladder match these days and while it is still good enough, it isn’t exactly inspiring. Shotzi winning is a bit of a surprise, but they probably have a twist to put her team in trouble on Sunday. Fair enough, but this (and last week’s main event) didn’t need to be a ladder match.

Team Blackheart poses on the ladder to end the show.

Overall Rating: B-. This show was all about setting up Sunday but at the same time, the WarGames cage alone is going to be enough to sell the show. The rest of the stories are getting somewhere and while I don’t really need to see Lumis vs. Grimes, the card looks good enough to be a solid night. That’s what this show needed to establish and it did so well enough.

Results

Leon Ruff/Damian Priest b. Legado del Fantasma – Frog splash to Mendoza

Cameron Grimes b. August Grey – Cave In

Jake Atlas b. Tony Nese – Cartwheel DDT

Imperium b. Grizzled Young Veterans via DQ when Ever Rise interfered

Shotzi Blackheart b. Raquel Gonzalez – Blackheart pulled down the briefcase

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