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: November 25, 2020
Location: Capitol Wrestling Center, Winter Park, Florida
Commentators: Beth Phoenix, Kevin Owens, Vic Joseph

We’re rapidly approaching the next Takeover and that means it’s time to get ready for WarGames. The men’s match is already set up but the women’s match needs a little more tweaking. There are a few more other things to be set up this week as well and that means they better be moving fast. Let’s get to it.

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

We open with a recap of the end of last week’s show, with the Undisputed Era returning to go after Pac McAfee and company. After the show went off the air, William Regal announced WARGAMES (he must practice that all year, like the Sorting Hat in Harry Potter).

Candice LeRae vs. Ember Moon

Indi Hartwell is here with Candice but Moon goes straight after her to start. Candice is knocked outside and dropped onto the announcers’ table (Owens: “HI CANDICE!”), followed by a trip back inside. That doesn’t last long as Moon beats her up by the entrance, only to get caught with a cheap shot on the way back in. A neck crank doesn’t last long for Candice but she does get one off a sunset flip.

That sets off a pinfall reversal sequence, followed by a Moon kicking her in the chest for two. Candice scores with a running clothesline though and a head slam onto the mat gets two more. Moon manages to knock her into the corner and then hits a kick to the face for two of her own. Cue Raquel Gonzalez and Dakota Kai for a distraction though and we take a break.

Back with Moon fighting out of a chinlock and snapping off a hurricanrana. Candice manages a spinning faceplant and the Gargano Escape goes on. That’s switched into a sleeper but Moon drops backwards for the break. Moon strikes away and scores with a release gordbuster before loading up the Eclipse. Gonzalez and Kai offer a distraction though, meaning Hartwell takes the Eclipse instead. LeRae uses the distraction (and lack of being Eclipsed) to hit a superkick into the Wicked Stepsister for the pin at 12:58.

Rating: C. You really can see the tier system around here and that’s not the worst thing in the world. While you have matches like Io Shirai vs. Rhea Ripley last week, you also have people at this level. This was a perfectly watchable and acceptable match, but it was a step or two below what we were seeing at the higher level. Candice is good for almost anything and Moon is starting to get her time back, so hopefully everything keeps improving.

Post match the group beatdown appears to be on but Moon manages to get to the floor. Cue Toni Storm to even things up a bit….until she turns on Moon, who is destroyed by the trio (Hartwell is still down and Storm has fun watching on the floor).

Santos Escobar talks about how he started Legado del Fantasma to bring respect back to lucha libre. This has been their year and their careers are taking off. They have taken out everyone who have come against them and turned Isaiah Scott into a talk show host. Next up is Curt Stallion, who is going to be a HUGE challenge. The difference between them and everyone else is they get things done. Cheers. Or maybe salud in this case.

Here’s the Undisputed Era to talk about WarGames, though first we see a clip from Pat McAfee’s podcast where he talks about how Pete Dunne is going to win a match tonight to gain the WarGames advantage. Adam Cole says they don’t look dead and he can’t count how many times people have promised to take them out. McAfee and company gave them a dose of their own medicine and yeah the Undisputed Era had it coming.

The only thing Cole is going to enjoy more than kicking McAfee in the face is being locked inside WarGames with him. WarGames is in two weeks though, and tonight they have to have the advantage match first. Kyle O’Reilly volunteers to fight for the team and Cole loves the idea. In two weeks, McAfee and company are going to face a new Undisputed Era, and they are taking those four to h***. That is undisputed. Cole is one of the best talkers around here and he sold the confidence and anger well here.

Candice LeRae and company talk rather quietly but the gist is that Candice’s WarGames team will be Raquel Gonzalez, Dakota Kai and Toni Storm. They’re all cool with each other.

Johnny Gargano and Candice LeRae (she’s been busy tonight) shill merchandise.

Timothy Thatcher vs. Kushida

Hold on as Tommaso Ciampa comes out with a chair to watch (Owens: “Oh he’s going to sit. That’s not so bad.”) as Thatcher takes him down by the arm to start. Kushida slips out of a front facelock and kicks at the leg, only to have to kick Thatcher in the face. A belly to belly plants Kushida and Thatcher grabs a leglock, which Kushida reverses into one of his own. Make that a Muta Lock, which doesn’t last long by definition.

Thatcher is sent to the apron where he manages to bend Kushida’s leg around the rope as Ciampa isn’t looking pleased. We take a break and come back with Kushida striking away until an uppercut cuts him off. Kushida gets taken down into another leg crank but he’s right back with some stomps to the chest. The Hoverboard Lock goes on but Thatcher blocks a lot of the pressure by grasping his hands. Thatcher reverses into a Hoverboard Lock of his own, with Kushida reversing that into a failed cross armbreaker attempt.

With that not working, Kushida goes to an ankle lock but switches into a bridging rollup for two instead. Thatcher is out of that too and grabs a sleeper, only to be sent outside in a big crash. Kushida drives him down by the arm on the floor as Thatcher is bleeding from the nose. Back in and Kushida kicks him in the arm, only to get caught in a butterfly suplex. Ciampa pops up and shoves the chair away, with the distraction setting up the Hoverboard Lock for the tap at 12:35.

Rating: B-. I think you can get the idea here and they worked rather well with all of the submission stuff here. The ending wasn’t quite the screwy finish that you usually get as Kushida wasn’t beaten when Ciampa stood up. Thatcher vs. Ciampa should be good, though I’m still waiting to see Kushida actually get to do something of note.

Post match Ciampa thinks Thatcher might have a problem with him now.

We look back at last week’s main event with Io Shirai defeating Rhea Ripley to retain the Women’s Title in a hard hitting fight. Even the ringside physician gets to talk about how banged up they are after that kind of a match. Rhea Ripley isn’t sure what she is going to do next.

Oney Lorcan and Danny Burch are a little more fired up for Pete Dunne’s match with Kyle O’Reilly than Dunne is. Dunne promises to break Undisputed Era’s spirit tonight.

It’s time for the Kevin Owens Show, with Owens saying last November he was in WarGames and this time he’s doing commentary so maybe he’ll be a referee next time. Either way, this week it’s time to talk to someone who just had the biggest win of his career: the North American Champion Leon Ruff. Leon is glad to be here and Owens wants to give him the chance to tell his story. The fans are happy to see him and Ruff can’t believe that he only signed his contract seven weeks ago.

We look at Ruff winning the title, even with the title not fitting. Owens: “Same thing happened to me when I won the NXT Title.” Owens talks about how great of a feeling this is and Ruff needs to appreciate what he is getting to do. Ruff talks about wanting to be an inspiration to others, but Owens doesn’t think that he’s selling it hard enough. You need to let them hear who you are so Ruff starts shouting about how he beat Johnny Gargano twice, even shoving his chair away.

Owens facepalms, with Ruff immediately apologizing for the chair. Owens says it isn’t the chair because he knows what’s about to happen. Cue Johnny Gargano (Owens: “I was a little off on the count but that’s what I meant. I knew it.”) to ask if this is a prank show. Owens gets Gargano his own chair, which is thrown over the top rope. That means Owens grabs another chair, which is for someone other than Gargano.

That’s shaken off so Gargano can get in Ruff’s face as he rants about Damian Priest. Owens: “Come on Johnny, I just told him what happened.” Owens counts it down again (and again….Owens: “Oh man maybe things in NXT are different!”) so here’s Priest to get in Gargano’s face. Owens: “Before this gets too far, do you need a chair?” Gargano yells at the smiling Ruff but Priest says hang on a second.

Priest remembers Ruff saying he could beat both of them at once. Owens: “Oh man. What a shame that Teddy Long isn’t in NXT!” He wishes the NXT version of Teddy Long could come out and make a triple threat match so here’s William Regal to make the triple threat title match at WarGames. Regal: “Playa.” I knew that last line was coming and I laughed anyway.

Finn Balor talks about preparing for war. Some advice for whomever wins the war: don’t put checkers on his chess board. He isn’t hard to find.

Shotzi Blackheart has some fun with a blowtorch and asks what is the best part of war. That would be crushing your enemies and she laughs a lot.

Cameron Grimes vs. Jake Atlas

Atlas goes right after Grimes to start but a German suplex drops him down for an early two. Grimes ducks his head for a backdrop and gets it kicked right back up, only to have Atlas do the exact same thing. Now it’s Atlas with his own German suplex and a shot to the face gets two. That’s enough for Grimes though as he hits Atlas in the face and finishes with the Cave In at 2:46. Nice to see Grimes being himself again.

Post match here’s Dexter Lumis to scare the hat off of Grimes. That’s enough to send Grimes running off but a video of Grimes running away from the haunted house match, complete with a singalong, starts playing on the screen. Lumis pulls out a strap and I think we know where Takeover is going.

Post break, Grimes is trying to leave but William Regal makes a strap match between Grimes and Lumis at Takeover. Grimes asks Regal why he hates him so much, with Regal thinking it’s his personality.

Here’s Rhea Ripley to address her future. She had a big fight with Io Shirai last week and then hugged her after the match. That was all about respect though, because Ripley isn’t going anywhere. All that matters is winning the NXT Women’s Title but here are Candice LeRae and Toni Storm to interrupt. LeRae makes fun of her for never being able to win and says she’s all talk. On the other hand, LeRae can walk the walk, so here are Raquel Gonzalez and Dakota Kai, with the former carrying the unconscious Io Shirai on her shoulder. Ripley tries to fight but the numbers game catches up with her. Sign her up.

A terrified looking Xia Li and Boa go up to what appears to be their master and beg her forgiveness for losing again. They plead for one more change but a mark is written on their hands and the master says it’s time.

Here’s Ever Rise for a tag match but the Grizzled Young Veterans are back to beat them down instead. The beatdown is on and Zack Gibson promises to dominate going forward.

The Garganos take Indi Hartwell, in a neck brace, to the car. Johnny Gargano and Candice LeRae promise to dominate at Takeover….and there’s another Ghost Face in the car next to Hartwell.

Kyle O’Reilly vs. Pete Dunne

It’s a ladder match for the WarGames advantage. They go straight to the brawling before the bell with Dunne being knocked outside as we take a break. Back with the match joined in progress and O’Reilly knocking him outside again for the running knee from the apron. Dunne gets in a shot to take over though and bridges a ladder between the apron and the barricade. O’Reilly gets back up though and catapults Dunne face first into the Plexiglas.

Back in and Dunne runs over the ladder to put O’Reilly down, with the ladder landing on his leg for a painful visual. O’Reilly’s arm is crushed in the ladder but he manages a dragon screw legwhip into a knee hold with Dunne on the ladder to make it worse. The knee is fine enough to pick O’Reilly up for a powerbomb onto a ladder in the corner but O’Reilly is back up to nearly knock Dunne into the bridged ladder. A charge hits a raised boot though and Dunne suplexes him through the ladder for the huge crash.

We take a break and come back with O’Reilly kicking a chair out of Dunne’s hand and suplexing him down onto a ladder. The top rope knee only hits ladder though (that looked and sounded great) and a limping Dunne goes up. O’Reilly pulls him down by the leg though, only to have Dunne’s enziguri only hit the ladder. They slug it out from underneath the ladder and then get up so Dunne can go for the fingers.

That means a double knockdown and the ladder goes down as well, landing on Dunne’s knee. It’s time for the big stereo climb until O’Reilly snaps the arm. Dunne snaps the fingers to knock O’Reilly down….but he can land on his feet just fine, meaning Dunne gets knocked down again.

A heck of a rebound lariat drops Dunne and they’re both down. O’Reilly goes up but gets chaired in the knee and then the back to make it worse. The Bitter End onto the barricade leaves O’Reilly laying but he’s up again to turn the ladder over, sending Dunne into the ladder in the corner. O’Reilly goes up again but here’s a man with a hood over his face to jump from the floor to the apron shove O’Reilly down in a crash. Dunne wins at 15:53.

Rating: B. This was your usual violent ladder match without much drama in the end. I think you can guess who the masked man was and that’s a fine way to go, as even WWE knows better than to have the heels go into WarGames at a disadvantage. They did their thing here and kept popping up over and over, which tends to be the case in a ladder match. I’m not sure why this needed to be a ladder match (and hey we’ll be seeing another one next week) but at least they did what they needed to do.

Post match, Dunne poses with Lorcan and Burch while the Undisputed Era yells at ringside.

Overall Rating: B-. The main event was the big spectacle to set up the REALLY big spectacle later on but that’s about the only thing worth your time. Candice LeRae was all over this show, appearing in about five segments. LeRae is good at this wrestling thing but that’s a lot for almost anyone. The rest of the show was designed to set things up for Takeover and the show needed that, but it wasn’t the big awesome show that they needed to get us ready for WarGames. That’s probably next week, and they need it at this point.

Result

Candice LeRae b. Ember Moon – Wicked Stepsister

Kushida b. Timothy Thatcher – Hoverboard Lock

Cameron Grimes b. Jake Atlas – Cave In

Pete Dunne b. Kyle O’Reilly – Dunne 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

IMG Credit: WWE

NXT
Date: November 18, 2020
Location: Capitol Wrestling Center, Winter Park, Florida
Commentators: Beth Phoenix, Vic Joseph, Wade Barrett

We’re coming off a huge upset last week as Leon Ruff won the North American Title from Johnny Gargano, albeit with a big assist from Damian Priest. Tonight it’s time for a rematch so Gargano can set the world right, but we also have Women’s Champion Io Shirai defending against Rhea Ripley in a showdown. Let’s get to it.

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

We open with a look back at Ruff winning the North American Title, including Gargano trying to rig the whole thing. Priest laughing in shock at the win was a great touch.

North American Title: Leon Ruff vs. Johnny Gargano

Gargano is challenging but before the match he says he wants everyone to stop talking about last week. The fans chant JOHNNY FAILURE but he says that the real failure is holding his title. Gargano knocks Ruff down and we’re ready to go in a hurry. The shoulders in the corner have Ruff in early trouble and there’s a hard whip to make it worse. Gargano hammers away in the corner, even hurting his own hand in the process.

Ruff is back with a quick enziguri but the crucifix bomb is countered. Gargano hits a pair of Lawn Darts but as he loads up a superkick, here’s Damian Priest for a distraction. That lets Ruff grab a rollup for two but the Swanton misses. A superkick drops Ruff and there’s One Final Beat for two as Priest pulls Ruff to the floor. Priest apologizes in advance and hits Ruff in the face for the DQ to keep the title at 4:50.

Rating: C-. The wrestling wasn’t the point here and there’s nothing wrong with stretching this out for another week. It’s still not like Ruff is being presented as anything better than Gargano as this is little more than a prop in the Priest vs. Gargano feud. The match was a squash until the ending and Priest’s “I’m sorry” before knocking him out was a good idea. Fine little storyline advancing match here.

Post match Gargano grabs the title but Priest takes it away and hands it to the champ.

Cameron Grimes says that he showed that Dexter Lumis is just a man. Tonight, Grimes is going to prove that he’s a rocket ship.

Cameron Grimes vs. Dexter Lumis

Blindfold match. Grimes puts his hood on and misses an early dropkick before barely being able to stand up. The referee has to duck a wild swing from Grimes, as Lumis has been standing in the middle of the ring the entire time. Grimes knocks the referee down in the corner and stomps away, allowing him to take his mask off for some reason.

Lumis is still standing in the middle of the ring without moving, but he’s still able to avoid the Cave In. Now Lumis takes his own mask off and hammers away but Grimes elbows his way out of the Silence. They head outside with Grimes being sent into various things before he finally just jumps the barricade and runs off at about 4:15.

Rating: D. This was barely a match and the ending was just there to set up something else, likely at the next Takeover. As usual, Grimes came off like the star here as he’s a ball of energy and charisma, while Lumis literally just stood there for a few minutes. I’m not sure how that makes him worthy of this much screen time, but if it means more Grimes, I’m all for it.

William Regal asks Damian Priest what was up with that and Priest says Ruff is just a joke. Ruff comes up and sounds crushed, saying that if he’s a joke he shouldn’t be defending the title. He even tries to hand Priest the belt but Regal says no. Ruff says he’s sorry to Priest, just like Priest did to him, and then hits his own slap. He says he’s no one’s joke and Regal says it serves Priest right.

Takeover: WarGames is on December 6, with Shotzi Blackheart telling Candice LeRae to find an army because they’re going to war. So what is her new tank going to look like?

Candice LeRae/Indi Hartwell vs. Kayden Carder/Kacy Catanzaro

Carter goes for Hartwell’s leg to start and finally manages to take her down, even sitting on Hartwell’s back. It’s off to Catanzaro for a kick to the face and a slingshot hilo gets two. LeRae comes in and counters a backflip into a gutbuster to put Catanzaro down. Hartwell’s spinning side slam gets two but LeRae misses the step up backsplash. The hot tag brings in Carter to clean house as Catanzaro dives onto Hartwell. Back in and LeRae hits a neckbreaker into the Wicked Stepsister for the pin on Carter at 4:33.

Rating: C-. They didn’t have a ton of time here but is anyone going to want to see these four having a longer match? It’s the best thing that they can do for a tag match like this as we start getting ready for Takeover. Above all else, it’s nice to have the women’s division getting some matches to build things up like this, because some of them just need to be in the ring and establish themselves a bit more.

Video on Arturo Ruas.

Arturo Ruas vs. Kushida

Ruas takes him to the mat and goes for the neck before slipping out of Kushida’s attempt at the same. Back up and Kushida kicks out of an armbar attempt, only to have Ruas snap him down by the arm. The armbar has Kushida in trouble as we get a voice over saying that Finn Balor isn’t here yet but once he is, he’ll have all the time he needs. At least they didn’t put a camera on the announcement.

Ruas keeps cranking on the arm before taking him down into a Kimura. That doesn’t last long either as Kushida fights up for some kicks, including the basement dropkick for two. An elbow to the face gets Ruas out of a German suplex attempt. Ruas goes for the leg but Kushida ties him up in a leglock and bridges backwards for the pin at 4:24.

Rating: C. I liked this one rather well as it was cool to see Kushida having someone who either matched or even surpassed his submission skills so he had to switch things up a bit. I could see Kushida going towards the North American Title, or I could also see myself saying that for even longer than I have been, which is getting a little frustrating already.

Ember Moon and Toni Storm are ready to take out Dakota Kai and Raquel Gonzalez tonight because they’re tired of being shoved around. Storm wants the Women’s Title though and there can only be one. Moon says we can worry about that later.

Various wrestlers make their picks for Rhea Ripley vs. Io Shirai.

Dakota Kai/Raquel Gonzalez vs. Ember Moon/Toni Storm

Gonzalez throws Storm around to start and sends her into the corner for a running boot from Kai. It’s off to another corner for a facewash but Storm is right back with a basement dropkick. A snap suplex gets two and it’ Moon coming in for a double clothesline to put Gonzalez on the floor.

Back from a break with Storm snapping off a headscissors to put Gonzalez in the corner and Moon coming back in to clean house again. The middle rope Codebreaker gives Moon two with Kai having to make a save. Moon is pulled outside for a boot to the face and a drop onto the apron gives Gonzalez two. It’s off to a Gory Stretch to put Moon in more trouble and something like a Pounce cuts off the tag attempt.

Moon is right back up with a headscissors to Kai though and now the hot tag brings in Storm for some release German suplexes to Kai. Everything breaks down and Moon hits a tornado DDT on Gonzalez, only to walk into a superkick from Kai. Storm and Kai forearm it out until a double clothesline puts both of them down as well. They get back up for another slugout until Gonzalez sends Storm into the post. Moon suicide dives onto Gonzalez but Storm small packages Kai for the pin at 12:07.

Rating: B-. They went with the formula here but the people involved had the skills to make the whole thing work out well. You can see some of the setup for Takeover coming from here and that makes these matches a little more interesting than usual. Good stuff, and it’s nice to see Storm getting a win.

Post match Candice LeRae and Indi Hartwell run in to attack Moon and Storm, allowing Gonzalez and Kai to leave them laying. Sounds like a WarGames team.

Pat McAfee and company are here. McAfee has heard Finn Balor is back and there are four guys interested in what he has to say.

Timothy Thatcher vs. August Grey

They go right to the slugout to start with Grey managing to pull him down for two off a backslide. That’s just dumb to do against Thatcher, who snaps off a belly to belly into a chinlock. A front facelock suplex drops Grey again and it’s time to crank on the arm for a bit. The comeback is cut off with a single uppercut and it’s time for another armbar on Grey. A leglock is broken up with some kicks to the leg and Grey hammers away before being sent to the apron. Grey hits a superkick from the apron but dives into an uppercut. Thatcher hits a butterfly suplex and guillotines him for the win at 4:26.

Rating: C-. Just a quick squash for Thatcher here and that’s the kind of match that he needed. Grey got destroyed in short order here and that makes him look like a monster all over again. Thatcher beat up someone he shouldn’t have had trouble with and now he’s ready for someone else, which is the right idea.

Post match Thatcher says there is one more lesson so he slaps on the guillotine again, drawing out Tommaso Ciampa for a pretty interesting staredown. Thatcher says he has no problem here and backs off.

Post break, Ciampa says he came out there because he wants to fight Thatcher. Well that’s to the point.

Damian Priest comes out for a match but Johnny Gargano jumps him during the entrance. The brawl is on with Priest hitting a big forearm to put Gargano outside. Priest follows him outside and throws Gargano onto the announcers’ table for the forearms to the head. Gargano kicks him away though and hits an elbow off of said table. It’s time for a chair but here’s Leon Ruff to go after both of them. Ruff avoids a big boot to put Priest into the ropes and then sends Gargano into him, sending both guys outside in a heap. The two of them get inside and scare Ruff off, leaving Priest to stare down at Gargano. Cool segment and fight.

Next week, Wade Barrett is going to be out for some reason but Kevin Owens is going to be replacing him.

We look at the older man giving Boa a message last week.

Earlier today, William Regal came to Boa’s home, saying he has missed a week of training. Boa says she is coming so he isn’t leaving. It’s not Xia (who Regal says hasn’t been at training in two weeks), because she’s in hiding too.

Regal caught Ruff leaving and asked what he was doing. Ruff said he’ll fight both of them at once. That takes Regal a bit off guard.

Women’s Title: Rhea Ripley vs. Io Shirai

Shirai is defending and gets shoved down with raw power to start. Back up and Shirai says bring it before snapping off a headscissors. That just earns her a shot to the face but Shirai is back with a dropkick to put Ripley on the floor. The big dive is cut off with a forearm though and Shirai is dropped face first onto the apron. We take a break and come back with Shirai missing some double knees in the corner and being dropped face first onto the mat.

Shirai’s small package is blocked with more muscle and a suplex gives Ripley two. The seated abdominal stretch is broken up so Ripley takes her up top, only to have Shirai slip out of a suplex. Ripley punches the buckle by mistake and gets German superplexed down in a big crash. A basement dropkick gives Shirai two as Ripley’s ear is bleeding. Shirai’s Crossface doesn’t last long so Ripley is back up with a big boot to kick her head off. Shirai grabs the arm for a flying armbar though and there’s a dropkick to the arm to make Ripley scream some more.

The arm is snapped across the top rope and Shirai slams the arm into the apron. Ripley gets sent into the steps and we take a break. Back with both of them down as the fans declare this awesome. Ripley knocks her down again and grabs the Prism Trap. It’s spun around and they go to the mat with Ripley cranking on the leg even more. The rope is grabbed so Shirai is right back with a Cross armbreaker, which Ripley can’t muscle her way out of.

She can however rope grab her way out of it and avoid a pair of 619s from the champ. Instead Shirai knocks her into the ropes and hits the third attempt, followed by the missile dropkick for two. Shirai nails the running knees in the corner and steps over Ripley to set up the moonsault. Well in theory at least as Ripley is up in time and nails a running clothesline for two.

Riptide is countered into a snappy DDT and there’s the NXT chant (haven’t heard that in a bit). Ripley goes to the apron so Shirai hits a running sunset bomb through the announcers’ table for the massive crash. Ripley staggers back in so Shirai immediately moonsaults her (legs) for the pin to retain at 22:04.

Rating: A-. The chants were right as these two destroyed each other and had an awesome match doing so. This had the big fight atmosphere and Shirai popping up for the moonsault because she knew it was the only chance she had was a brilliant finish. Beating Ripley clean is the crowning jewel of her reign, which has gone on for quite a long time now. The good thing is the division is deep enough for Shirai to have a bunch of challengers, but she needed the classic to really solidify an already good reign. Ripley was awesome too and she’s going to be awesome for a long time to come. Check this out if you get the chance.

Post match hugs abound and here’s Finn Balor (not through the entrance because he doesn’t steal the spotlight) to praise Shirai for the win. After talking about how he defended his title with a broken jaw in two places, here are Pat McAfee and company to interrupt. McAfee calls Balor the Princess of NXT and talks about how he must have seen what the four of them were doing while Balor has been gone.

They got rid of Killian Dain, took the Tag Team Titles, and then killed all four members of the Undisputed Era. Now they want to know what Balor is going to do and get on the apron to find out all the faster. Balor needs to hand over the title before it gets even worse for him. That’s not happening because it’s easy for the mice to play while the cat’s away….and look what the cat dragged in.

Cue the Undisputed Era and the big fight is on, with Cole kicking McAfee’s head off on the floor. Chaos reigns to end the show (notice that the brawling wasn’t finished, which you don’t see at the end of the night too often). This is the first time in a VERY long time that something felt hot around here and it was a heck of a way to finish the show.

Overall Rating: B. That last half hour was excellent stuff and felt like the NXT of old, which is a great feeling to have again. It felt like they were building stories up and now we are getting ready for the payoffs. That is the kind of thing that you get around here and it feels so nice. There were some outstanding parts to this show and while not everything is perfect, it’s the first time that I’ve been actually excited about what they’re doing in far too long. Do this more often and be NXT again.

Results

Leon Ruff b. Johnny Gargano via DQ when Damian Priest interfered

Dexter Lumis vs. Cameron Grimes went to a no contest

Candice LeRae/Indi Hartwell b. Kayden Carter/Kacy Catanzaro – Wicked Stepsister to Carter

Kushida b. Arturo Ruas – Bridging rollup

Toni Storm/Ember Moon b. Raquel Gonzalez/Dakota Kai – Small package to Kai

Io Shirai b. Rhea Ripley – Moonsault

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: November 11, 2020
Location: Capitol Wrestling Center, Orlando, Florida
Commentators: Beth Phoenix, Wade Barrett, Vic Joseph

Things are starting to get back to normal after Halloween Havoc and that means we need to start the build for the next Takeover, which has yet to be officially announced. I’m not sure what to expect from the show, but we still have a lot of building to do for whenever the show is taking place. Let’s get to it.

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

Veterans Day video, as usual.

Here’s North American Champion Johnny Gargano in the ring with his Wheel of Challengers. It’s exactly what it sounds like, with a bunch of legitimate challengers and Leon Ruff being written in as an option. Gargano talks about losing his titles in his first defense every time but tonight it’s going to be difference. After starting a SPIN THE WHEEL chant, the wheel is spin and believe it or not, it winds up on Ruff, albeit after spinning backwards to get there.

North American Title: Leon Ruff vs. Johnny Gargano

Gargano is defending and kicks him in the face to start, followed by stomping Ruff down in the corner. The beating is on in various corners and Gargano throws in a little dance. Gargano sends him outside as the cockiness is high, partially because Ruff is holding his knee. Hold on though as Damian Priest is in the crowd to distract Gargano, who mocks him with the arrow.

Priest comes out from around the fence to scare Gargano inside for two off a rollup. Gargano hits a heck of a clothesline into the Lawn Dart but stops to glare at Priest again, which isn’t that bright. Ruff uses the distraction to hit a crucifix bomb for the pin and the title in a huge upset at 3:36.

Rating: C-. I like it! Ruff isn’t going to be the next big thing or the long reigning champion but points for throwing a big surprise in there to keep Gargano vs. Priest going. It plays up the idea that anything can happen and gives the show a bit of a spark, which has been missing in a bad way as of late. They surprised me here and that’s a nice feeling to have again.

Priest cracks up and Ruff (Ruff: “I’M THE CHAMPION???”) is stunned as Gargano screams at the referee. Barrett: “THE CURSE IS BACK!!! IT’S REAL!!!” Ruff puts on the title, which falls down because he’s so skinny.

Post break Ruff can’t believe it but Priest says Gargano is going to come through the curtain and beat him up. Priest pulls out his keys and says go get in the black Challenger and get out. Gargano comes through the curtain and has to be held back from Priest. They argue a lot with Priest saying that was his idea and Gargano blaming him for the loss.

Earlier today, Jake Atlas attacked a member of Legado del Fantasma with his club and called out Santos Escobar for the title shot.

Cruiserweight Title: Santos Escobar vs. Jake Atlas

Escobar is defending and has the rest of Legado del Fantasma with him. Feeling out process to start until Atlas scores with a dropkick to put him on the floor. Back in and it’s time for Atlas to win a chop off, earning himself a knee to the ribs. Escobar takes him to the mat and wraps his leg around Atlas’ neck for some stretching. That’s broken up so Escobar slams him down to counter a headscissors attempt and some stomps keep Atlas in trouble.

We hit the chinlock with Escobar cranking on the arm for a bonus. As usual, the chinlock makes Atlas come back to his feet so Escobar sends him to the apron. The rest of Legado tries to get in some club shots but Atlas takes him down. Some club shots put Legado down and a springboard Blockbuster gives Atlas two. Escobar bails to the floor and we take a break. Back with the rest of Legado being ejected and Escobar choking in the corner. The frog splash gives Escobar two but Atlas starts the real comeback.

A suplex into a superkick gives Atlas two but Escobar shoves him off the top and into the announcers’ table. Escobar slides outside and sends Atlas into the steps as the confidence is growing. Atlas makes it back inside and sends Escobar outside this time, only to get caught in the ropes on a suicide dive attempt. It knocks Escobar down enough to set up a small package for two back inside but a jumping superkick gives Escobar the same. Atlas hits a Regal Roll though and goes up top, only to have the cartwheel DDT blocked. The double underhook facebreaker finishes Atlas at 15:01.

Rating: B-. That was the most fire that Atlas has ever shown and it helped a lot. Atlas is still a long way from being a big deal but he has come along rather well in recent weeks. That being said, it is a good idea to have Escobar get some wins like this as it makes him seem like someone who can get a big win without a ton of help from his goons. You need to have some wins like that here and there and that’s what Escobar got to do here.

Dexter Lumis draws a picture of Cameron Grimes running away from the zombie referee. It seems to get some good reviews.

Shotzi Blackheart talks about what her tank meant to her before Candice LeRae destroyed it. The tank represented freedom, family and members of the military, so no they aren’t even. Now it’s time for her to beat LeRae up. Fair enough, but that seems like a fairly flimsy reason to care about a toy tank.

Raquel Gonzalez vs. Xia Li

Hold on as here’s Boa to say Li isn’t here tonight so they can’t have a match. Gonzalez kicks him in the head and beats the heck out of him, including the powerbomb to leave him laying. She says everybody better get her name out of their mouth. Gonzalez leaves and a bunch of red lights come on. An older man comes out and Boa bows to him, with the old man handing him a letter. Ok then.

August Grey was being interviewed when Timothy Thatcher jumped him from behind. The brawl was on with Grey being sent through Lumis’ picture from earlier. Lumis showed up for a staredown with William Regal joining them. I think you know where this is going.

Toni Storm vs. Candice LeRae

During her entrance, Candice talks about loving the sound of hearing the tank crushed last week. They trade headlocks to start with Storm taking her down to the mat. Back up and Candice gets caught in a wristlock but manages to reverse into one of her own. Storm takes her down to the mat with an armbar but Candice is back up with a hair pull to take over.

Now it’s Candice with her own headlock as this isn’t exactly in high gear yet. There’s a suplex to get Storm out of trouble and she hits a basement dropkick to start the comeback (despite not exactly being in much trouble). They head outside with Candice avoiding a hip attack into the steps to send us to a break. Back with Candice hitting a Backstabber but missing a Lionsault. Storm scores with a headbutt to put them both for a bit, allowing the fans to start some rhythmic stomping.

A German suplex drops Candice and the running hip attack connects in the corner. There’s a sliding lariat against the ropes and another in the middle of the ring has Candice rocked again. A fisherman’s suplex gives Storm two so she goes up top, only to miss the guillotine legdrop. Candice kicks her in the face for two but Storm knocks her into the corner. Storm misses a charge though and Candice grabs a rollup with feet on the ropes for the pin at 10:14.

Rating: C+. They beat each other up rather well and I can go for more of Candice cheating to win, but at the same time it’s weird to see Storm taking a loss. She would seem to be one of the most can’t miss prospects in all of NXT, though at least it wasn’t a clean loss here so it isn’t some horrible tragedy.

Post match Storm goes after her again but the Ghostface attacker comes in. Shotzi Blackheart comes in for the save but gets double teamed down. The Ghostface is revealed as….Indi Hartwell, which shouldn’t be that big of a surprise, just like the tag match likely taking place next week.

Breezango says it took them five years to get the titles but they pulled it off. They don’t like Pat McAfee because he isn’t even a wrestler. Tonight, they’re taking the titles back because they can do it again. I doubt it, but it was the serious promo they should have been cutting here.

Dexter Lumis vs. Timothy Thatcher

Lumis goes with a Thesz press to start and knocks Thatcher outside early on. Back in and Thatcher goes for the leg but gets kicked away into another standoff. Lumis rides him on the mat for a bit until Thatcher goes for the ankle again with a little more success. There’s a suplex to drop Lumis again but he crawls over to Thatcher without much effort. A front facelock has Lumis in more trouble and it’s back to the ankle to make it worse.

Lumis’ choking doesn’t get him very far as Thatcher is right back with a bow and arrow (always nice to see). Back up and Lumis gets in a spinebuster into a dropkick as the ankle seems ok. Lumis is favoring his arm as he sends Thatcher outside but follows him anyway. They slug it out on the floor with the bad arm being sent into the post as we take a break. Back with Thatcher getting two off a butterfly suplex before slapping on another armbar.

That’s broken up as well so Thatcher tries another suplex, with Lumis reversing into a belly to back of his own. Lumis nips up into a spinning legdrop and grabs a bulldog out of the corner. Thatcher catches him on top but Lumis shoves him off and this a Swanton. Cue Cameron Grimes on the apron so Thatcher sends them together and pulls Lumis into a cradle for the pin at 13:34.

Rating: C-. The wrestling was fine but sweet goodness WHAT IS THE OBSESSION WITH LUMIS??? He’s here week after week and I don’t remember a match where I’ve been overly interested with or impressed by him. For some reason NXT seems to think he’s some kind of awesome star for I just do not get it no matter what he does. At least Thatcher got the win though.

Post match Grimes stays on Lumis and puts a burlap sack over Lumis’ face. Lumis gets beaten to the floor, where Grimes puts him in a chair for the Cave In. Yeah I’m still not interested in Lumis. Grimes yes, Lumis no.

Johnny Gargano goes to William Regal’s office and thinks the decision should be reversed. That isn’t happening so Gargano snaps and admits to rigging the wheel. Regal says the decision stands and shuts the door in Gargano’s face, meaning it’s time to yell some more.

Tommaso Ciampa talks about being around NXT for a long time. He trained with some legends like Killer Kowalski and Harley Race, who were really tough men. They never took liberties because they didn’t need to. Now he looks around the NXT locker room and everyone will tell you how tough they are. Maybe it’s the world we live in today, where you complain and get rewarded. There are actions without consequences so maybe he is the last of a dying breed. Two weeks ago he told us that this 2020 locker room culture is going to change and he is that change. Ciampa turns the chair over as he leaves. I’m intrigued.

We get a Prime Target on Io Shirai vs. Rhea Ripley. Rhea talks about walking into Raymond James Stadium at 23 years old and being ready for Wrestlemania….but then it didn’t happen, and the match took place in front of no fans with no energy and no emotion. Then she got beat as well and it wasn’t what she expected. Then two months later, Io Shirai won the Women’s Title in a triple threat match, also involving Ripley.

Shirai talks about not being able to have regrets and failed as champion, which every challenger has learned. She stops momentum and defeats the best and now that Rhea has taken months to recover from Wrestlemania, Shirai is ready to be her nightmare. Ripley talks about how she doesn’t quit and is ready when the lights go on. The title match is next week. It doesn’t have the biggest build, but Ripley getting a shot feels like an important deal no matter what.

Here are the Kings of NXT for a chat. McAfee talks about how great it was to take out Killian Dain last week and even though he is stuck in Orlando, it has been a great day. Not only has he traded tweets with Tom Brady and found out that his business is worth $150 million, but now he gets to watch Oney Lorcan and Danny Burch destroy Breezango while he dominates that commentary desk. McAfee goes over to sit next to Stupid Joseph and Bad News Barrett.

Cameron Grimes is VERY pleased with what he did and is off to celebrate.

Finn Balor is back next week.

Tag Team Titles: Breezango vs. Oney Lorcan/Danny Burch

Burch and Lorcan are defending with Pete Dunne at ringside and Pat McAfee on commentary. The champs jump Breezango to start as McAfee talks about losing in the Super Bowl to “Drew Brees and his dumb baby.” Breeze manages to catapult Burch into the barricade as we settle down to a regular match. It’s Breeze getting caught in the wrong corner but managing to block a suplex and drive Burch over for the tag to Fandango.

Lorcan comes in and blocks a suplex to take over on Fandango but everything breaks down. They head outside with the champs both getting superkicked as we take a break. Back with McAfee off commentary and double tags bringing in Fandango and Lorcan as the pace picks up. Fandango starts cleaning house and hits a hiptoss into a neckbreaker on Burch. The Falcon Arrow gets two on Lorcan as everything breaks down again.

Breeze tries a flip dive to the floor but Dunne pulls Burch out of the way. Fandango dives onto them instead but Lorcan crotches him back inside. McAfee offers a distraction but here’s Drake Maverick to kick Lorcan off the top. Maverick dives onto McAfee as well, leaving Fandango to hit the Last Dance for two on Lorcan. Dunne runs Maverick over and then knocks Breeze off the apron so Fandango can’t make a tag. Burch comes in off a blind tag and it’s a headbutt into the elevated DDT for the pin to retain the titles at 9:59.

Rating: C+. The action helped overcome the fact that there was no drama to the match, but it was good to get the rematch out of the way. McAfee and company are looking like they could be a big deal around here for a long time to come and it’s not like Breezango are serious threats to get the titles back. This was a good enough match to make the point and Maverick being willing to fight for his friend works out well, especially if this foursome’s failure sets up the Undisputed Era coming in for the war.

Post match Maverick dives onto Burch and goes after the other three, earning himself a big group beatdown. Dunne X Plexes him onto the announcers’ table and Fandango’s save attempt earns him a beating as well. Breeze is held up and McAfee adds the Punt to leave him laying. McAfee takes over the camera to say that they’re the greatest and these three suck to end the show.

Overall Rating: B-. This is a fine example of a show where there was a lot more going on than just the wrestling. What mattered here were things like stories being moved forward (in a Takeover direction) and setting things up for the future. I liked what we got here rather well and they’re starting to get some of that momentum back. Balor returning next week should help and things are looking up on the way to Takeover, assuming they bother announcing it in the near future.

Results

Leon Ruff b. Johnny Gargano – Crucifix bomb

Santos Escobar b. Jake Atlas – Double underhook facebreaker

Candice LeRae b. Toni Storm – Rollup with feet on the ropes

Timothy Thatcher b. Dexter Lumis – Rollup

Oney Lorcan/Danny Burch b. Breezango – Elevated DDT 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:

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: October 21, 2020
Location: Capitol Wrestling Center, Orlando, Florida
Commentators: Beth Phoenix, Wade Barrett, Vic Joseph

Things continue to be in a weird place around here as we are still needing a big star. Finn Balor is still out injured and I’m not sure how things are going to go without something to focus on. Next week’s Halloween Havoc should help, but you can only get so far with so little to build around. Let’s get to it.

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

Kushida vs. Tommaso Ciampa vs. Velveteen Dream

The show takes a page from Dynamite’s playbook by starting with Kushida in the ring and Dream making his entrance, only to be jumped by Ciampa to start fast. Everyone gets in for the bell and it’s Dream being double teamed with a toss out to the floor. Back in and Ciampa sends Kushida into the corner before stomping on Dream’s hand. Kushida sends Ciampa head first into Dream’s ribs/lower than his ribs before going for Ciampa’s arm.

Ciampa takes them both down for two each and frustration starts early. A snap suplex hits Dream but Kushida is back up with a sunset flip for two on Ciampa. Dream sends them into each other in the corner but Ciampa is back with a bunch of chops. The Dream Valley Driver hits Kushida and Ciampa sends Dream outside as we take a break. Back with Kushida slapping on the cross armbreaker on Dream on the floor with Ciampa making an illogical save.

Kushida comes back in and kicks Ciampa in the arm until the Purple Rainmaker hits Kushida for two. Another Dream Valley Driver gets two on Ciampa with Kushida making a save of his own. Dream starts swiveling his hips so Kushida sends them both to the floor, setting up back to back flip dives. Kushida loads up another dive but charges into Willow’s Bell from Ciampa. That brings Dream back in to kick Ciampa in the face but Kushida kicks Dream to the floor. Willow’s Bell doesn’t work on Dream and Kushida sends both of them together, setting up a bridging German suplex to pin Ciampa at 15:33.

Rating: B. Aside from having Ciampa take the pin here, this was a good way to start things off. Kushida seems to be getting a nice push at the moment and if Johnny Gargano wins the North American Title, it wouldn’t surprise me to see him as the first challenger. Ciampa is just kind of floating here at the moment and Dream….yeah he’s still there too.

Adam Cole joins the Undisputed Era on a monitor and says the team is getting back on track, starting tonight.

Video on Rhea Ripley vs. Raquel Gonzalez.

Jessi Kamea vs. Ember Moon

Moon takes her down to start but Jessi switches places and hits a running elbow. The cravate doesn’t last long and Moon says Jessi screwed up. A running dropkick sets up a standing moonsault for two and it’s off to a crossface. That’s switched into something like an ankle lock but Jessi sends her into the corner for the break. Moon’s backsplash misses and Jessi is right back with a spinwheel kick. Moon is right back with a middle rope Codebreaker and something close to an STF makes Kamea tap at 4:00.

Rating: C. I can certainly go for Moon having something other than the Eclipse as an alternative finisher so that’s a good idea. Moon still doesn’t feel like a top star but if she is just here for a short term run before moving back up to the main roster (which may not be the best move) then it’s fine, but I’m not sure how well this current setup is going to work out.

Post match here’s Dakota Kai to lay Moon out.

Bobby Fish has been attacked backstage.

Bronson Reed vs. Austin Theory

Theory grabs a headlock as we’re told Fish is officially on his way to a hospital (!) and is out of tonight’s title match. Reed shoves him off with pure power but Theory is right back with a dropkick. It’s time to get smart with a shot to Reed’s knee but Reed is out of the chinlock in a hurry. A powerslam into a backsplash crushes Theory so Reed goes up, only to get caught with some chops. That’s broken up as well and the Tsunami finishes Theory at 3:26.

Rating: C-. The more I see of Theory, the more confused I am by what NXT is doing with him. You would think that he would be tailor made to be one of the next stars but for some reason he keeps losing over and over. It is turning into the losing streak deal that tends to happen over and over again which tends to just make the person losing look like a loser. The match was short too, with Theory being little more than an inconvenience for Reed. I don’t quite get it.

Post match Theory says we’re doing this again because he is the future around here.

Bronson Reed vs. Austin Theory

Pop up Samoan drop finishes Theory in 14 seconds.

Xia Li thanks Kacy Catanzaro for agreeing to face her tonight because she needs to win. Kacy is cool with some competition.

Post break, Austin Theory quits and leaves.

Legado del Fantasma vs. Isaiah Scott/Jake Atlas/Ashante Adonis

Legado bails to the floor at the bell before diving up to come in from different sides. Everyone pairs off and Atlas hammers away on Wilde as they settle down to a regular match. Adonis adds a shot to Wilde’s back and Atlas is back in with Three Amigos. Atlas manages to get up top while holding Wilde’s hand, kicks Santos down and headscissors Mendoza/wristdrags Wilde at the same time in a rather nifty display. Adonis teases a dive so Scott can hit the real dive as we take a break.

Back with Adonis fighting out of a chinlock but getting sent into the corner for an assisted moonsault from Wilde. The assorted villainous beatings continue with Mendoza cutting off a crawl towards the corner. Adonis finally kicks him away though and the hot tag brings in Wilde to clean house. Everything breaks down and it’s Scott coming in with the rolling Downward Spiral for two on Escobar. Mendoza and Scott slug it out on the apron and both wind up on the floor until Atlas and Wilde crash down onto them in a somewhat scary landing.

Scott throws Mendoza back inside for two off a flipping slam with Wilde making the save. It’s back to Adonis, who is hurricanranaed into Scott, leaving Escobar to dive onto Scott onto the announcers’ table. Atlas is right there with the cartwheel DDT to drop Escobar, leaving Adonis to take a running kick/Russian legsweep combination for the pin at 15:27.

Rating: B. This started off a bit slow but turned into some great action by the end. They had me wondering who was going to win in the last few minutes and that is a heck of a trick to pull off. Legado winning by beating one of the newcomers is a fine way to go, though I’m curious to see if Atlas is going to become the next challenger for the title. Good stuff here and it got that much better near the end.

We go to the Garganos’ house where they are practicing Spinning The Wheel To Make The Deal with a training wheel. Johnny is panicking and keeps spinning because he hates wheels and doesn’t like the outcome. He even storms off as Candice is left sitting there.

Ever Rise vs. Drake Maverick/Killian Dain

Dain orders the whistling music cut off this time. Maverick gets caught with a backbreaker/running knee to the head combination and some shots to the back make it worse. A step up elbow to the back keeps Maverick down but he makes a tag so Dain can run them over. Ever Rise cuts him off at the knee to set up a half crab, leaving Martel to shout that Dain is a loser, just like Maverick. That’s too far for Maverick, who sends him into the barricade and then hits Parker in the back with a chair for the DQ at 2:55.

Post match Maverick cleans house with the chair (without hitting anyone) as Dain is stunned. Dain loads up the right hand…..and then says THAT WAS AWESOME. The music plays and Drake dances, but that’s too far for Dain, who walks off.

Roderick Strong has been attacked as well.

Post break, Kyle O’Reilly says he isn’t wrestling tonight, even when Oney Lorcan and Danny Burch offer to team up with him. They can have the shot instead though, which is fine with Breezango.

Xia Li vs. Kacy Catanzaro

Kayden Carter is here with Catanzaro. Li grabs a rollup for two but Kacy is back with a running dropkick for the same. A chop knocks Catanzaro into the ropes and Li kicks her down for two. Back up and Catanzaro kicks away even more, setting up a quick rollup for the pin at 2:27. That was sudden.

Post match Li shoves Kacy down and says she should have won but here’s Raquel Gonzalez to wreck both of them, plus Carter. Gonzalez says this is what is waiting for Rhea Ripley next week.

Cameron Grimes is ready for his match next week against Dexter Lumis…until he finds out that it’s a Haunted House of Terror match. Grimes isn’t scared, despite a lot of stammering and Dexter watching through a window.

Video on Io Shirai vs. Candice LeRae, with Shirai saying she can win any match on the wheel.

It’s time for a live edition of Thatch As Thatch Can. The student is Anthony Greene, who Thatcher thinks is named Andrew. Thatcher demonstrates how to hurt someone when they go for your leg and doesn’t like Greene glaring at him. Greene takes him down and grabs a front facelock, which seems to get on Thatcher’s nerves. Thatcher has a referee come in, decks Greene, and says ring the bell.

Anthony Greene vs. Timothy Thatcher

Thatcher drops him in a hurry, pounds away in the corner, and finishes with a half crab at 54 seconds.

Damian Priest is getting a new tattoo and is ready for Johnny Gargano next week.

Tag Team Titles: Danny Burch/Oney Lorcan vs. Breezango

Breezango is defending. Lorcan and Fandango start things off with Fandango grabbing the headlock. A shoulder puts Lorcan down and Fandango gets in a quick dance, only to get caught in a half crab. That’s broken up so Burch comes in for a double chop but it’s off to Breeze for a snap suplex. Some shoulders to the ribs in the corner have Burch in a bit of trouble. They head outside with Burch sending him hard into the barricade, only to have Breeze wrap Burch’s leg around the post.

We take a break and come back with Lorcan uppercutting Fandango for two but some clotheslines get Fandango out of trouble. Everyone brawls on the floor until Lorcan’s suicide dive is cut off with a kick to the head. Back in and the Falcon Arrow into the Last Dance gets two on Lorcan, with Fandango not being able to follow up. A half crab/Crossface combination has Breeze in trouble until Fandango makes the save and everyone is down.

We settle down to Breeze dropping elbows on Burch’s knee but getting crotched on top. Lorcan and Fandango come in without tags and everyone is down again. Double superkicks put both challengers down…and here’s a masked man to shove Fandango off the top. Burch hits Breeze low and the assisted DDT gives us new champions at 12:53.

Rating: C+. This wasn’t so much a good match as much as it was a necessary change. Breezango aren’t exactly the most serious team and the Tag Team Titles have long since been an important part of NXT. You aren’t going to get that potential show stealer out of Breezango most of the time so switching the titles was the right move. Lorcan and Burch needed to win something at some point too, or otherwise they’re just two guys who aren’t serious threats to anyone. This is what needed to happen and that’s a good thing.

Post match the masked man celebrates with the new champions and it’s….Pat McAfee. After praising Lorcan and Burch, McAfee throws up a mocking Undisputed Era pose to end the show. I usually don’t care for celebrities in wrestling but McAfee more than impressed in his limited time so this should work.

Overall Rating: B. The wrestling was better than it has been in recent weeks, though I’m not sure on some of the booking choices. What matters here is they made some moves that have me a little more interested and I could go for some more of this kind of show. It was one of the more well put together NXT’s in a good while and hopefully it is the start of a change, because NXT has been needing one for a bit now.

Results

Kushida b. Tommaso Ciampa and Velveteen Dream – German suplex to Ciampa

Ember Moon b. Jessi Kamea – STF

Bronson Reed b. Austin Theory – Tsunami

Bronson Reed b. Austin Theory – Pop up Samoan drop

Legado del Fantasma b. Ashante Adonis/Isaiah Scott/Jake Atlas – Running kick/Russian legsweep combination to Atlas

Ever Rise b. Drake Maverick/Killian Dain via DQ when Maverick used a chair

Kacy Catanzaro b. Xia Li – Victory roll

Timothy Thatcher b. Anthony Greene – Half crab

Oney Lorcan/Danny Burch b. Breezango – Elevated DDT to Breeze

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: September 23, 2020
Location: Full Sail University, Winter Park, Florida
Commentators: Beth Phoenix, Tom Phillips

NXT has their backs up against the wall at the moment as we are less than two weeks away from Takeover, there is one match announced so far, and apparently the company has been rocked by the Coronavirus. I’m not sure what that is going to mean but we are getting two #1 contenders crowned tonight. Let’s get to it.

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

In Memory of Road Warrior Animal.

Opening sequence.

Battle Royal

Shotzi Blackheart, Candice LeRae, Xia Li, Kacy Catanzaro, Raquel Gonzalez, Dakota Kai, Kayden Carter, Rhea Ripley, Aliyah, Gia, Marina Shafir, Catalina, Raven, Ellie, Adrian, Rita, Emily, Indi Hartwell

The winner gets a shot at Io Shirai at Takeover. There is no Tegan Nox as Candice LeRae attacked her knee earlier today. I know I’m not going to be able to get everyone listed here as Gonzalez and Ripley have a staredown at the bell. That goes nowhere as everyone starts brawling everywhere else. Ripley tosses Gia without much trouble as commentary talks about William Regal trying to expand the competition for this match.

Raven gets tossed out and Ellie (I don’t know who these people are either) is gone as well. Ripley eliminates Shafir and Gonzalez gets rid of Adrian. Gonzalez isn’t done and eliminates a woman whose name we don’t hear. There goes Rita at Gonzalez’s hands as well and Rhea kicks Emily (they’re just getting single names here so it isn’t like you should know who these people are) out too. Gonzalez tosses Catalina but can’t get rid of Hartwell.

Aliyah sends Catanzaro to the floor but the feet don’t touch, allowing Catanzaro to do a Kofi Kingston style save, involving a backflip, walking on her hands, and pulling herself up by her feet. Back from a break with Kacy having to save herself again but Hartwell kicks her off the steps…and onto the barricade. Carter tries to help but gets eliminated, so Catanzaro stands on Carter’s shoulders for the save and gets back in. Ripley and Gonzalez gets in the big slugout but eliminate each other, leaving Kai panicking over her lack of an insurance policy.

We’re down to LeRae, Blackheart, Catanzaro, Hartwell and Kai, with Catanzaro swinging around the post to save herself again. A hurricanrana gets rid of Hartwell to get us down to four. Candice and Kai get together to finally get rid of Catanzaro and it’s time to double team Blackheart. Shotzi gets rid of Kai in a hurry and sends LeRae to the apron. LeRae gets back in so it’s a step up enziguri, only to have Blackheart miss the running charge into the ropes.

A neckbreaker drops Shotzi and LeRae sends her to the apron. Shotzi hits a kick to the head to get back in and goes up top but LeRae is right there again. They both go over the top and wind up on the apron, with Shotzi kicking her down onto the steps. LeRae manages a monkey flip to send Shotzi to the floor for the win at 15:06.

Rating: C-. It got some time and that isn’t the best idea in this case. The problem here was they had a bunch of people included to increase the numbers (probably indy wrestlers or Performance Center students), but it didn’t matter for the most part. Rhea and Raquel threw them out in a hurry to build them up and then just went out together, which didn’t make for the most exciting conclusion. Candice was the fairly obvious winner once we got near the end, though at least the ending was good.

Damian Priest is ready to beat Johnny Gargano at Takeover and he’ll warm up against Austin Theory tonight. Sarah Schriber is invited to the after party too.

Fandango, in a deerstalker hat, is in front of a dry erase board with a bunch of tag wrestlers around when William Regal comes up. After a warning from Regal about bad British accents, Fandango gives us his idea: we team up members of four teams (as in one member from four teams) in a tag match and the winning members’ teams face off to become #1 contenders for the Tag Team Titles.

Tommaso Ciampa vs. Jake Atlas

Fallout from Ciampa attacking Atlas a few weeks back. The threat of an early Willow’s Bell sends them outside with Atlas getting in some shots against the steps. Atlas pulls the ring skirt back and tries the catapult into the ring but Ciampa gets away in a hurry. Back in and Ciampa hits a hard clothesline but Atlas comes back and hammers away with right hands.

Ciampa is knocked outside for a middle rope moonsault, followed by a Blockbuster back inside. The cartwheel DDT misses though and Willow’s Bell gives Ciampa the…one count as he pulls off. Ciampa yells a lot before finishing with the Fairy Tale Ending (now spinning Atlas around to land on his back instead of his face) at 4:48.

Rating: C. This was all about making Ciampa look like a killer and that’s what they accomplished. Ciampa could be put into almost any level on the card and look good so I’m not sure why they are having him waste time with Atlas over a few different weeks. This should be it though and Ciampa can move on to something bigger and better.

Video on Ridge Holland, who is rather strong and rough.

Video on tonight’s Gauntlet Eliminator, set to a new Corey Taylor (of Slipknot) song, with all five participants saying they are ready to win.

Danny Burch/Roderick Strong vs. Fabian Aichner/Raul Mendoza

The winning team will then meet off in another tag match with their usual partners for a future Tag Team Title shot. Aichner throws Strong down to start and then brings in Mendoza, who is taken into the corner for the tag to Burch. The beating continues but Aichner’s distraction lets Mendoza pull Burch off the middle rope. Back from a break with Burch fighting out of Aichner’s chinlock but getting suplexed down hard. Mendoza stomps away in the corner and we hit the cobra clutch on the mat.

Aichner breaks up a sunset flip on Mendoza and even knocks Strong off the apron in a smart move. Therefore there is no one for Burch to tag so Aichner blasts him with a clothesline. The hot tag brings in Strong anyway and it’s time to start picking up the pace. An Angle Slam gives Strong two on Aichner but Mendoza gets in a cheap shot from the apron. Aichner hits a spinebuster for two but Strong kicks him in the face. Burch hits the Tower of London out of the corner to finish Mendoza at 8:49.

Rating: C-. This was a messy match, but that was kind of the point given that they aren’t regular partners. I’m a bit surprised to see Legado del Fantasma losing here as they seemed to be the next challengers, though maybe we are going to see Breezango win a big match before dropping them. Or I’m still really bad at fantasy booking, as I have been for years. Either way, this feels like a match thrown together because some partners might be missing due to illness.

Austin Theory is ready for Damian Priest but Johnny Gargano comes up to give him a bit of a pep talk anyway. Maybe Gargano will throw him a bone if Theory softens him up for Takeover.

Austin Theory vs. Damian Priest

Non-title. Priest works on the arm to start and then shoves Theory away without much effort. Theory seems to know he’s in a fight and then definitely knows he’s in a headlock. Back up and Priest goes up top for Old School before jumping down with a high crossbody to change things up. Theory is right back with a belly to back suplex into a standing moonsault for two as the pace slows a bit. Priest gets knocked outside in a heap and we take a break.

Back with Priest hitting the running elbow in the corner and the toss Falcon Arrow gets two. Priest misses the spinning kick to the head and Theory grabs a spinning torture rack slam (not a Blue Thunder Bomb Tom) for his own two. They head outside with Theory slipping out of a chokeslam onto the apron. The spinning kick connects this time though and there’s the powerbomb onto the apron to rock Theory. Back in and the Reckoning finishes Theory at 11:06.

Rating: C+. I like both guys and they both looked good here, as they should. Priest is infinitely better as a face than a heel. Just let him go out there and show off all of his cool stuff where we are supposed to cheer for it this time. That being said, the Reckoning isn’t exactly the most suitable finish for a monster of his size and athleticism. He can do something cooler looking, so maybe he should switch it up.

Post match Johnny Gargano runs in and superkicks Priest to set up their title match a bit more.

We get a night vision video with a distorted voice talking about titles. Someone wipes the dust off of a case holding some NXT Titles. The voice talks about coming back for what belongs to them and the person breaks the case to pick up one of the titles. The date of Takeover ends the show. Karrion Kross already? That seems a little optimistic but not impossible.

Video on Isaiah Scott.

Ridge Holland vs. Antonio de Luca

The much bigger Holland knocks him down to start but ducks his head to get kicked in the face. A Pounce sends de Luca flying though and an overhead belly to belly does the same. Holland headbutts him over and over in the corner (that was brutal) and Northern Grit finishes de Luca at 1:33. That worked.

Io Shirai is ready for Candice LeRae, who comes in to interrupt. Candice doesn’t think much of Shirai and Johnny Gargano comes in to yell as well. Damian Priest comes in and decks Gargano, likely setting up a mixed tag next week.

Next week: Shotzi Blackheart vs. Dakota Kai.

Gauntlet Eliminator

This is a hybrid of a Royal Rumble and a gauntlet match. There are five entrants and two start. Another comes in every four minutes and it’s pinfall/submission only for eliminations. The winner faces Finn Balor for the NXT Title at Takeover. Kyle O’Reilly is in at #1 and Kushida is in at #2, though neither get entrances. O’Reilly takes him to the mat to start and it’s time to hit the grappling. Kushida goes for the arm but O’Reilly gets in a bodyscissors until it’s a standoff to give them a breather from the grappling exchange. Kushida goes for the arm again but gets his legs tied up and they head to the rope.

Back up and Kushida gets in a hiptoss into the basement dropkick before cranking on the arm on the mat. That’s broken up as well so Kushida kicks away at the arm to mix things up a bit. They slug it out until it’s Bronson Reed in at #3. Reed wastes no time in throwing Kushida at O’Reilly and then fireman’s carries both of them at once. That’s broken up so Kushida kicks Reed in the ribs and then in the head.

O’Reilly goes for a cross armbreaker on Kushida but lets go to take Reed down by the leg. For some reason Kushida breaks that up for the Hoverboard Lock on O’Reilly until Reed breaks that up with a suplex to Kushida. Reed knocks Kushida outside and goes up top, only to be forearmed in the head by O’Reilly. Kushida knocks O’Reilly outside but here’s Velveteen Dream with a Dream Valley Driver to take Kushida down. Reed adds the Tsunami to get rid of Kushida at 7:48.

Timothy Thatcher is in at #4 and gets knocked off the apron as we take a break. Back with all three slugging away, with Thatcher going for Reed’s arm. Reed suplexes Thatcher down and it’s Cameron Grimes in at #5 to complete the field. Thatcher blocks Grimes’ kick to the face and goes for his arm but Reed knocks them both down. Everyone is down for a bit with Thatcher and O’Reilly being the first up for a slugout on the apron. O’Reilly knocks Thatcher off the apron and hits a running knee, with Reed catapulting Grimes onto the two of them.

Back in and Reed hits a Death Valley Driver for two on Thatcher and a powerbomb gets the same on O’Reilly. Grimes comes back in and gets sent down in a hurry, followed by a suicide dive onto everyone else. We take another break and come back with Thatcher and Grimes double teaming Reed. O’Reilly gets back in as Reed knocks the other two down. A Rock Bottom sends Thatcher onto Grimes for two and Reed goes up top. The Tsunami “misses” Thatcher (read as it hit Thatcher’s legs as he rolled away) so O’Reilly adds a top rope knee to Reed’s back for the pin at 21:37.

Thatcher and O’Reilly exchange ankle locks until Thatcher suplexes him down. Thatcher isn’t done and grabs Grimes’ leg before belly to bellying him down as well. O’Reilly goes for Thatcher’s arm but gets caught in a sleeper. That’s fine with O’Reilly, who ankle locks Grimes at the same time. That’s broken up by the sleeper so O’Reilly kicks off of Grimes to backflip onto Thatcher for two. O’Reilly strikes away at Thatcher and gets two off a backslide, followed by a rollup for the pin to get rid of Thatcher at 25:24.

We’re down to Grimes vs. O’Reilly with Grimes hitting a quick Cave In For two. Grimes yells about O’Reilly not being the star of the Undisputed Era and hits the flipping powerslam for two. O’Reilly is right back with a leg crank but Grimes kicks him in the face. Another Cave In misses and the knee seems to go out. O’Reilly grabs a heel look for the tap at 27:49.

Rating: B-. There was a lot to unpack here but what matters is they managed to make a new singles star, even if it is only in the short term, in O’Reilly. They needed someone fresh to go after the title and that’s what we got. That could be a heck of a match and O’Reilly has been on the big stage elsewhere before.

The problem here though is he didn’t exactly beat the biggest stars. The best illustration I heard about this match is that it felt like a North American Title #1 contenders match. Maybe that’s due to Coronavirus or maybe it’s due to trying someone new, but they might need O’Reilly to get one more big win next week. What we got was fine, but I’m not sure if it’s enough to carry it to the main event of a Takeover.

Post match Adam Cole and Roderick Strong come out to celebrate so here’s Finn Balor for the staredown to end the show.

Overall Rating: B. The big, long main event helped here as they are trying to slap things together as well as they can because their backs have never been this far up against a wall. What we could wind up seeing should work because it’s NXT, but dang they are stretching with some of these things. O’Reilly vs. Balor has my attention though and they could absolutely tear the house down. Couple that with a mystery return story and they could be fine. That’s a lot of could’s though, and that scares me.

Results

Candice LeRae won a battle royal last eliminating Shotzi Blackheart

Tommaso Ciampa b. Jake Atlas – Fairy Tale Ending

Danny Burch/Roderick Strong b. Fabian Aichner/Raul Mendoza – Tower of London to Mendoza

Damian Priest b. Austin Theory – Reckoning

Ridge Holland b. Antonio de Luca – Northern Grit

Kyle O’Reilly won the Gauntlet Eliminator last eliminating Cameron Grimes

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: September 16, 2020
Location: Full Sail University, Winter Park, Florida
Commentators: Vic Joseph, Beth Phoenix, Wade Barrett

Things are back to normal around here as the show is back on Wednesday after heading over to Tuesday for a few weeks due to the NHL Playoffs. They aren’t wasting time either as we have two title matches tonight with Damian Priest defending the North American Title against Timothy Thatcher and Imperium getting their rematch for Breezango’s Tag Team Titles. 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 outstanding show.

Shotzi Blackheart vs. Io Shirai

Non-title. Feeling out to start with Shirai missing a running big boot and Shotzi getting away from a monkey flip. Blackheart grabs a jackknife rollup for two and starts in on the arm. An armbar sends Shirai over to the ropes for the break and she knocks Shotzi outside. That means a Lionsault can take Shirai down and it’s back inside for a delayed two. We take a break and come back with Shotzi sending her into the corner and hitting a running knee.

They slug it out until Shirai pulls her down into a Crossface but Blackheart makes the rope this time. The running backsplash against the ropes connects and a tiger suplex gives Shotzi two. Blackheart keeps the grip and flips forward into Cattle Mutilation, which is broken in a hurry as well.

Shirai hits a flapjack into the 619, followed by the missile dropkick for two. Back up and Blackheart runs the corner to hit a super hurricanrana for two more but Shirai crotches her on top. A German suplex onto the apron knocks Blackheart mostly silly so Shirai hits the moonsault (with the legs only hitting Shotzi) to put her out of her misery at 14:21.

Rating: B-. The more I see of Blackheart the more I like her and she was getting to hang with the champ in along match here. They’re pushing her as something special and it wouldn’t shock me to see her get a pretty big time title match one day. They were beating each other up here and it was a heck of a match all around, especially with the time helping them out.

Respect is shown post match.

Video on Tommaso Ciampa destroying Jake Atlas.

Tommaso Ciampa vs. Desmond Troy

Troy is formerly known as Desmond DeJournette. Ciampa takes him down with ease to start and hits a running corner clothesline. The stomping is on and there’s the catapult face first into the bottom buckle. Willow’s Bell finishes at 1:52.

Post match Ciampa grabs a chair but here’s Jake Atlas for the challenge for next week. Ciampa smiles.

Drake Maverick arrived earlier today and is ready to team up with Killian Dain against the Undisputed Era. They are a TEAM, even though Dain hasn’t talked to him all week and punched him in the face a few times. Maverick: “Do you have his number?”

Finn Balor talks about winning the NXT Title four years after losing it. People are asking how this reign will be different than the last. The first reign was all about building the brand and being the brand. Now the brand needs him because it is not the most important title in the game. We see shots of Walter, Roman Reigns and Drew McIntyre, with Balor saying the line starts here. You better look both ways before you cross the Prince.

Here’s Austin Theory for a chat. He is a first ballot Hall of Famer and last week against Bronson Reed was just a fluke. For now though, he has another match on his hands.

Kushida vs. Austin Theory

Kushida goes straight for the arm to start but Theory takes him down and pounds away. Kushida is back up with a kick to the arm and it’s a hiptoss into a basement dropkick. A kick to the head sends Theory to the floor, where he forearms the post by mistake. Back in and Kushida hammers away, setting up the Hoverboard Lock makes Theory tap at 3:28.

Rating: C. Well that was surprising as Kushida seems to be the kind of guy who is there to put people over rather than get a clean win like this. That being said, Kushida was my favorite New Japan guy so I can certainly go for seeing more of him like this. I’ve been hoping to see him get a push and this is better than nothing.

Johnny Gargano and Candice LeRae complain about having to sit in the guest room because Tegan Nox broke their TV. Candice calms things down and talks about a #1 contenders battle royal next week, which she can win to get a Women’s Title shot at Takeover. Gargano looks up a new TV, deciding on a 100 inch plasma screen 3D model. Candice: “O….k.”

Tag Team Titles: Breezango vs. Imperium

Imperium is challenging and jump the champs before the bell. We officially start with Aichner slamming Fandango down and bringing Barthel in to send him into the corner. An uppercut keeps Fandango in trouble and Barthel jawbreaks him for good measure. Aichner comes in with a belly to back suplex and a hard clothesline gets two. Barthel’s butterfly suplex gets two and the double running dropkicks in the corner have Fandango mostly done as we take a break.

Back with Fandango elbowing Barthel in the face and finally bringing Breeze in to start cleaning house. Running forearms abound and Breeze grabs a half crab. Barthel tries to interfere but gets sent to the floor, leaving Aichner to hit a Regal Roll on Breeze. Back up and Breeze catches Aichner with a Cheeky Nandos kick for two with Barthel making a save. Aichner catches Breeze coming off the ropes and muscles him over with a suplex.

Fandango makes the save though and is smart enough to drag Breeze over for the tag. Everything breaks down and Fandango saves Breeze from another suplex on the floor. Back to back superkicks put Imperium down but the Last Dance misses. Aichner German suplexes Fandango for two but he’s back with a tornado DDT. It’s back to Breeze, who is quickly caught in the European Bomb. Fandango breaks it up though and a hurricanrana finishes Aichner to retain at 14:28.

Rating: C+. The match had good action but sweet goodness the tag division has fallen a long way. Breezango aren’t exactly feeling like the next big thing and Imperium is so nothing without Walter around. They need to find some new people around here soon and it’s rather boring to watch at the moment.

Jessi Kamea/Xia Li vs. Kayden Carter/Kacy Catanzaro

Carter takes Li down with an armbar to start and it’s Kacy coming in with a slingshot hilo for two. Li takes Kacy into the corner and kicks away though, allowing Jessi to come in with a running corner clothesline. Kacy fights up without much trouble though and it’s Carter coming in to clean house. It’s quickly back to Kacy for a bicycle kick into a crucifix into a jackknife cover to pin Li at 3:55.

Rating: C-. The point here was to push Carter and Kacy as good friends who work well together, with commentary even mentioning a possible Women’s Tag Team Title shot in the future. Oddly enough, this reminded me of Bobby Heenan in WCW, where he would hype up anyone he could, even if it didn’t seem possible. It at least shows some effort, and I’ll take that over commentary ignoring the match to talk about anything but the stuff in front of them.

Post match respect is shown but Li walks away instead.

Drake Maverick finds Killian Dain, who isn’t interested in teaming together.

Tegan Nox says if Candice wants to believe that she (Tegan) is the one who changed, so be it. It’s better than listening to Gargano complain about a $200 TV that he broke so he can watch himself lose every week. Nox is going to win the battle royal and next time, it’s going to be different with Shirai.

Undisputed Era vs. Killian Dain/Drake Maverick

It’s Bobby Fish/Roderick Strong for the Era. And there’s no Dain, leaving Maverick on his own. Maverick gets driven into the corner to start but gets a boot up in the corner. The middle rope dropkick gets two on Fish but Maverick gets cut off with a backbreaker. We see Dain watching from backstage as Strong hits another backbreaker for two more.

A third backbreaker connects as Dain is still watching in the back. William Regal comes up to Dain and says that’s his partner out there. Cue Dain in the arena as Maverick is thrown outside….and he throws Maverick back in and goes to leave again. Strong yells at him so Dain gets inside and cleans house. Fish brings in a chair for the DQ at 9:42.

Rating: C-. The wrestling wasn’t the point here and that’s fine, though they had kind of made the point a good bit before they started doing anything to get to the ending. Maverick vs. Dain is an interesting deal, though I’d lean more towards Maverick earning Dain’s respect and turning into an actual team. As mentioned earlier, the show needs some more teams so why not these two?

Post match the Era leaves so Maverick yells at Dain, saying they’re a team. Dain knocks him out again.

Tommaso Ciampa jumps Jake Atlas in the parking lot and Kyle O’Reilly of all people gets in Ciampa’s face to get rid of him.

William Regal says we need a new #1 contender so next week, it’s the first ever Gauntlet Eliminator. Five unnamed men will be involved with two starting. Every four minutes, another name will enter and it is elimination rules with pinfall or submission only for eliminations. Whoever wins gets the title shot at Takeover.

North American Title: Damian Priest vs. Timothy Thatcher

Thatcher is challenging and goes straight to the arm to slow Priest down. Priest fights up but gets headlocked to the mat. That’s broken up as well so Thatcher headbutts him in the arm to make Priest clutch at the arm a bit. Priest tries to kick away but another shot tot he arm puts him on the floor. Thatcher follows him and fights out of a powerbomb attempt, allowing him to send Priest into the steps. A suplex on the floor makes it worse for Priest and we take a break.

Back with Thatcher hitting the uppercut so Priest slug away until a chop cuts him off again. The toss Falcon Arrow gives Priest two and he kicks Thatcher in the head to put him in trouble. The springboard flip dive misses so Thatcher goes after the armbar again. This time Priest fights up but Thatcher kicks the leg out and gets the half crab. That’s broken up so Thatcher goes with the Fujiwara armbar, with Priest using the legs to make the rope. The arm is fine enough to hit a Flatliner into the South of Heaven chokeslam for two. Priest has had it and goes up top for a super spinwheel kick, setting up the Reckoning to retain at 12:48.

Rating: B-. This was all about Priest getting his first achievement as champion and it worked out well. Thatcher gets to get his feet wet at a somewhat higher level and he did just fine in the role. Both guys have a nice future ahead of them, but Priest’s future is a lot closer than Thatcher’s at the moment. Good match, though the spinwheel kick should have been the pin.

Overall Rating: B-. Another good show here as you kind of have to expect from NXT, but nothing compared to last week’s instant classic. To be fair though, this was a much more laid back edition by design as last week’s was supposed to be the huge edition. NXT is starting to roll again, but dang that is a fast turnaround in between Takeovers. I’m curious as to what we are going to see on the card, because nothing has been specifically announced so far. Anyway, another win this week.

Results

Io Shirai b. Shotzi Blackheart – Moonsault

Tommaso Ciampa b. Desmond Troy – Willow’s Bell

Breezango b. Imperium – Hurricanrana to Aichner

Kayden Carter/Kacy Catanzaro b. Xia Li/Jessi Kamea – Jackknife cover to Li

Killian Dain/Drake Maverick b. Undisputed Era via DQ when Fish used a chair

Damian Priest b. Timothy Thatcher – Reckoning

Remember to check out my website at kbwrestlingreviews.com 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: September 1, 2020
Location: Full Sail University, Winter Park, Florida
Commentator Wade Barrett, Vic Joseph, Beth Phoenix

It’s Super Tuesday and they have a big time main event this time around. Tonight it’s a four way sixty minute Iron Man match for the vacant NXT Title. Tommaso Ciampa, Johnny Gargano, Adam Cole and Finn Balor are facing off for the title and that could make for a pretty major moment. Let’s get to it.

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

Long video on the Iron Man match, which is all they need to focus on here.

Legado del Fantasma vs. Breezango/Isaiah Scott

Street fight with weapons around the ring. It’s a huge brawl to start with everyone going after each other and hitting/throwing people into the weapons. A table is set up at ringside and Fandango puts a ladder on his head for the helicopter spot. Beth calls this innovative because it’s been a good while since ECW was around. Scott kicks a trashcan lid into Mendoza’s face and then knees Escobar in the face. Breeze sprays a fire extinguisher to clean house and we take a break.

Back with Scott kicking his way out of trouble but being knocked to the floor for a heck of a suicide dive from Escobar. Breezango tries to get back up but here’s Imperium to jump Breeze for a four on one beatdown. They get back inside but Scott and Fandango are standing on top of a well placed forklift to dive onto all four of them. Breeze is back in to clean house, followed by Breezango diving onto everyone but Escobar on the floor. Scott is alone with Escobar inside and it’s the JML Driver to give Scott the pin at 11:56.

Rating: C+. They got the important part here and the rest is pretty much gravy. Breezango still feel like they are going to be the most transitional champions in a long time but at least they might get another win over Imperium first. The match was entertaining enough with the dives looking good and the right ending so not too bad.

Connor’s Cure video.

Tegan Nox talks about being friends with Candice Michelle for years but since Johnny Gargano started following the Gargano Way, the spark went out of her eyes. Nox isn’t ready to live in a world where they aren’t friends because they’re sisters and sisters fight. These videos aren’t exactly setting up a huge match but they’re telling you everything you need to know about these two and giving you a connection to Nox. That’s more than you get on the main roster 95% of the time and these took about a minute and a half a week.

Candice LeRae vs. Kacy Catanzaro

Kayden Carter is in Catanzaro’s corner. Kacy armdrags her down to start and grabs an anklescissors but LeRae is right back with a hanging neckbreaker. A quick trip to the floor doesn’t hurt Kacy that much as she comes back in with a rollup but gets elbowed in the face. Kacy gets fired up and unloads in the corner but gets taken down to the mat. LeRae ties her legs up and stomps Kacy’s head into the mat for the pin at 2:59.

Post match Candice grabs the mic and says seeing Carter and Catanzaro has made her miss her time with Nox. She would love to talk this out too so Nox should come by the house, because dinner is on Candice.

Rhea Ripley is sick of the Robert Stone Brand and wants Mercedes Martinez in a cage. That makes sense, even after the quick detour last week against Raquel Gonzalez and Dakota Kai.

Timothy Thatcher vs. Bronson Reed

They go with some grappling to start until Reed starts slugging away. Thatcher is smart enough to go for the arm to slow Reed down, though a big clothesline gives Reed two. It’s right back to the arm though with an armbar taking Reed down. Back up and Reed knocks him to the floor with a single shot, setting up a suicide dive to take Thatcher down again. Cue Austin Theory to jump Reed from behind though and Thatcher hooks a cross armbreaker. Reed turns it over but Thatcher switches into a Fujiwara armbar for the tap at 4:48.

Rating: C-. NXT is doing a good job of setting up a midcard again as what has been lacking for a little while now. You have to build some people up for the future and this was a good example, with three people getting some time to set things up. Throw in all of them being a possible challenger for the North American Title and you’re almost in for some good stuff going forward.

Mercedes Martinez is down for a cage match with Rhea Ripley.

NXT Title: Johnny Gargano vs. Adam Cole vs. Finn Balor vs. Tommaso Ciampa

The title is vacant coming in and it’s a 60 minute Iron Man match, meaning no countouts or disqualifications. It’s a brawl to start with Ciampa clearing the ring off a bunch of knees. Ciampa hits some running knees to Balor and Gargano before getting in a slugout with Cole. Back in and Ciampa beats on Balor a bit more as we’re three minutes in. Cole gets in as well and Ciampa is sent outside, leaving Balor to hit a basement dropkick to put Cole down. Gargano joins them and stomps away on everyone before working on Cole’s arm.

Gargano kicks at the arm and grabs kind of a standing Crossface, or at least the standing Crossface’s weird out of town cousin that it only sees on major holidays. Cole gets out and hits a neckbreaker so Balor takes Gargano’s place. That’s fine with Cole, who takes him down with a chinlock. Balor fights up with a running forearm into a double stomp to Cole. The Eye of the Hurricane gets two on Ciampa and it’s off to another chinlock. We take a break and come back with no falls and Gargano pounding Cole down into the corner and no clock to be seen.

Cole’s fireman’s carry backbreaker gets two on Gargano but the other two get back in. That’s fine with Cole, who kicks them in the head but gets kneed down as we have 43:00 left. Cole goes up so Balor catches him, with Ciampa turning it into a Tower of Doom. Gargano crotches Ciampa against the post though and gets two on each of them. We’re down to about 40:00 to go as Gargano hammers on Balor in the corner.

Balor comes back with a quick 1916 for two so he follows up with a Sling Blade into the shotgun dropkick. The Coup de Grace misses but Ciampa is right there with an Air Raid Crash for two on Balor. We take another break and come back with 36:00 to go and still no score. Ciampa and Gargano get ready for the big showdown but Cole and Balor send them outside. Cole suggests a Too Sweet reunion but Balor sends him outside for the big flip dive. The shotgun dropkick sends Ciampa into the timekeeper’s area and the Coup de Grace gives Balor the first fall on Cole with 34:23 to go.

Balor starts chopping away at Gargano and grabs a chinlock. That’s let go so he can take Ciampa down and then alternates stomps to Ciampa and Gargano. Cole gets knocked off the apron and we take a break. Back again with the same score and Ciampa hitting the Willow’s Bell on Balor. The Fairy Tale Ending connects but Gargano steals the pin to tie things up with 26:38 to go.

Ciampa breaks up One Final beat but Cole hits the Last Shot on Ciampa for a near fall. Another Last Shot (or Last Call as Vic puts it) is cut off by a hard clothesline but Cole is back with a superkick to Ciampa. Balor is back in with the Sling Blade to Cole but Cole superkicks him as well. There’s another superkick to Gargano and the Panama City Sunrise finishes Gargano at 24:40 to go.

That puts everyone but Ciampa at one fall and they’re getting winded. Balor breaks up the Last Shot to Gargano and Ciampa steals a near fall. A double Willow’s Bell hits Gargano and Cole, followed by the Fairy Tale Ending to Cole to tie things up with 22:41 to go. Everyone pulls themselves up on the ropes and the slugout is on again. Gargano and Cole fight to the floor while Balor wins a slugout with Ciampa inside. Another quadruple knockdown gives everyone a breather with about 19:15 to go.

Ciampa and Balor are back up inside with Balor being sent hard into the corner for two. A running knee in the corner rocks Balor but Ciampa knocks Cole off the apron and goes outside. Ciampa sends Gargano into the barricade and tosses Cole into the Plexiglas. That lets Ciampa applaud himself but Cole kicks him in the knee back inside. We take another break and come back again with the same score and 11:45 to go.

Balor cleans house again and Ciampa’s knee gives out to make it even worse. Cole is kicked to the floor and Balor grabs a half crab on the bad leg. That’s broken up as Balor has to go after Cole, followed by another shotgun dropkick to Ciampa. Balor has to knock Gargano off the apron meaning he misses the Coup de Grace. A double superkick from Gargano and Cole drops Balor and Gargano superkicks Cole to the floor for a bonus. There’s the suicide dive to Ciampa and another to Cole, capped off by a third to Balor, who pulls his out of the air. 1916 on the floor is blocked and Gargano hits a tornado DDT instead.

Back from another break with 5:00 left and the same score as Gargano getting the Gargano Escape on Cole. Ciampa pulls it to the floor for the break, putting them all outside. The limping Ciampa sends Balor into the Plexiglas and suplexes Cole on the floor. There’s a ram for Balor as well but Gargano is up to slug away at Ciampa with 3:00 left. Ciampa catapults Gargano throat first into the bottom of the ring but Cole makes the save. Ciampa covers again and this time Balor breaks it up, much to Ciampa’s annoyance. Balor and Cole are sent into parts of the set, with the delay allowing Gargano to get two off a small package.

We have 1:30 to go with Ciampa hitting Gargano in the throat to put him down again. Ciampa puts Gargano on top for a super Air Raid Crash with 30 seconds left. Balor comes in with the Coup de Grace though and goes up 2-1-1-1 with 20 seconds to go. Barrett declares him the new champion but Cole hits a Last Shot on Balor for the pin to even things up as time expires at 58:31 (close enough).

Rating: B+. You could feel the screwy finish coming the second they announced the match and that’s what they gave us here. Hopefully they don’t wait a few weeks for the match as it would be nice to have a champion instead of waiting for whenever the next Takeover is going down. It was a good, action filled match as you knew it would be, but it had the same problem that every Iron Man match (or tournament for that matter) has: you can skip everything until the very end and not miss the part that really matters. It was as good as expected, but dang the ending didn’t sit all that well, as predictable as it might have been.

Post match William Regal comes out to make Cole vs. Balor next week, one fall to a finish. Well at least they’re not waiting.

Overall Rating: A-. This was a one match show and that one match delivered so of course the whole thing works. What matters here is they gave us what was advertised, at least with the match, and I can live with waiting one more week. It might be annoying, but guaranteeing a one on one title match (without the time factor) is as surefire of a way to grab an audience as you can get. The rest of the show was hit and miss, but this was all about the main event and it worked out well.

Results

Breezango/Isaiah Scott b. Legado del Fantasma – JML Driver to Escobar

Candice LeRae b. Kacy Catanzaro – Stomp

Timothy Thatcher b. Bronson Reed – Fujiwara armbar

Adam Cole and Finn Balor b. Tommaso Ciampa and Johnny Gargano 2-2-1-1

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: XXX
Date: August 22, 2020
Location: Full Sail University, Winter Park, Florida
Commentators: Corey Graves, Vic Joseph, Beth Phoenix

It’s time for the milestone edition of the show and this time around it’s not exactly feeling like that important of an entry. Maybe it’s the rushed build to the show or the lack of star power, but there is something missing here. The main event should be a heck of a hoss fight between Keith Lee and Karrion Kross for the NXT Title. Let’s get to it.

Kickoff Show: Breezango vs. Legado del Fantasma vs. Oney Lorcan/Danny Burch

For the #1 contendership. Fandango jumps Mendoza to start and goes to the apron with Oney. Oney is knocked to the floor and Fandango hits a heck of a clothesline to Mendoza. Burch comes back in and gets small packaged for two, meaning it’s time for the showdown with Lorcan. Fandango gyrates while Lorcan glares but Mendoza gets up to run the corner and hits a springboard corkscrew dive.

Back in and Lorcan DDTs Breeze while Mendoza neckbreakers Lorcan for two each. The hot tag (yes there are tags in this) brings in Burch to clean house, including the German suplexes. Something that looked like a Doomsday Device is broken up as Wilde slips out of the electric chair. Lorcan’s uppercut gets two on Wilde as everything breaks down again. A Spanish Fly into the 450 gives Mendoza two with Burch and Lorcan making the save. Back up and Breeze hits a quick superkick for the pin on Lorcan at 6:56.

Rating: C. They didn’t have much to do here and I can’t say I’m surprised at the winners. That being said, Breezango vs. Imperium isn’t all that interesting, though it’s not like anyone else is getting much out of Imperium these days. They need to do something with the titles and if that means Breezango as transitional champions, so be it. Good enough choice for an opener though.

The opening video looks at the history of Takeover before going into your traditional look at all of the matches.

Timothy Thatcher vs. Finn Balor

Grudge match after Thatcher cost Balor a spots in the North American Title ladder match. Balor charges at him in the corner to start but gets taken to the mat which isn’t likely to go well. They go to the grappling with Balor working on the arm but getting caught in a front facelock for his efforts. Balor gets up and strikes Balor against the ropes before taking it back down to the mat to crank on the leg.

Thatcher hits him in the face and puts on a bow and arrow hold as Balor can’t get away from the holds. Balor flips over into a cover for two but Thatcher is right back with a Kimura. The arm is pinned back and Thatcher puts on something like an abdominal stretch on the mat. They get back up but Balor can’t get away from the grip, instead having to backdrop Thatcher into a cover for two. The hold still isn’t broken but Balor rolls into a basement dropkick for the much needed break.

They slug it out with Thatcher getting the better of it until Balor drops him with a Pele for the double knockdown. Balor gets in a double stomp and tries 1916 but has to slip out of a fireman’s carry. This time it’s Thatcher getting caught in the abdominal stretch with Balor planting him again. The Coup de Grace misses though and Balor bangs up his knee again. The half crab goes on but Balor slips out.

That’s fine with Thatcher, who kicks him in the back but Balor switches places and gets in a kick to the ribs. Thatcher gets in a shot to the face but gets rolled into the abdominal stretch again. The next reversal lets Thatcher grab an ankle lock so Balor rolls out and hits a double stomp. Another double stomp sets up the Coup de Grace but the knee means there can’t be a cover. 1916 connects to give Balor the clean pin at 14:16.

Rating: B-. It was a good grappling match but the ending was a little flat. Balor just started hitting his moves and then won with his finishers. I didn’t think Thatcher was going to win (though maybe he should have) but I was hoping for something a little better than that. What we got was good though and I’ll take that over something completely flat.

Bayley and Sasha Banks are here.

Video on the North American Title ladder match, including everyone qualifying.

North American Title: Damian Priest vs. Johnny Gargano vs. Velveteen Dream vs. Cameron Grimes vs. Bronson Reed

Ladder match for the vacant title. It’s a brawl to start (duh) until Reed (in Bam Bam Bigelow inspired gear) and Priest are left alone. Dream comes back in to break it up with a DDT as Grimes pulls out the first ladder….which is about three feet tall. He isn’t pleased but gets knocked down by Priest, only to come back with a big kick to the chest. Gargano pulls in his own full sized ladder and Grimes brings in a second. It’s Grimes going up, only to get caught with a leg on each ladder as they are spread apart, leaving Grimes in the splits.

Reed comes back in and cleans house, including dropping a backsplash onto a ladder onto Dream’s chest. More house is cleaned as Reed sets up a ladder but he has to shoves Gargano up as he tries to climb the standing ladder. Gargano’s next attempt to go up is countered into a powerbomb attempt from Reed but Dream takes out Reed’s knee. Gargano wants Grimes and Dream to help him but goes up, only to get caught. Johnny: “I had to try it!”

It’s Grimes in trouble this time around until Gargano crotches Dream on top. Priest crushes Grimes into a ladder into Dream’s head but it’s Reed cleaning house to take over. The massive Tower of Doom is broken up and Gargano is the only one left standing. Reed takes care of him and Grimes is sent off the ladder and into the rope. Priest is all alone on top of the ladder but Dream makes the save. That means kicks to Gargano and Dream’s heads so Gargano hits the slingshot DDT to the ladder around Reed’s neck.

Gargano heads outside but gets caught with the standing flip belly to belly from Grimes. Reed dives onto them but Grimes is up first to load up the ladder inside. For some reason he sets it up next to the ropes and Priest runs up the bridged ladder to take out everyone with a flip dive. Grimes goes up but Candice LeRae runs in for the save. Corey: “Maybe Candice just wants directions to the moon.”

Candice tries a headscissors but Gargano goes with a ladder to Grimes’ head for a more effective move. Gargano goes up so Reed knocks him off, only to have Candice climb onto his back. Reed dives off onto Gargano for the big triple splash (Corey: “The Wednesday night’s been squashed!” Since Gargano is mostly dead, Reed goes up but Priest is waiting on him. Grimes has his own bigger ladder as Reed is knocked down. Reed sends Grimes off the big ladder onto the regular one but Dream makes a save, only to get his leg tied into the falling ladder.

Dream is back up to bridge a ladder from the middle rope into the standing one before going up. The title is swinging away so Dream can’t get it, allowing Priest to shove him down. Priest drops down and knocks Reed down, only to have Grimes hit the Cave In. Grimes climbs until Gargano hits a powerbomb to send him into the bridged ladder. Instead of climbing, Gargano fires off superkicks but the One Final Beat is countered by Dream into a Dream Valley Driver onto Priest onto a ladder.

It’s Dream climbing this time but Reed shoves the ladder over, sending Dream bouncing off the top rope and over the barricade for the huge crash of the match. Grimes is up on the ladder for the title with Gargano making the save this time. Priest and Gargano go up and the title is unhooked, with Priest knocking Gargano down to win the title at 21:16.

Rating: B+. This was long and chaotic, which is exactly what you want out of something like a five way ladder match. I had Grimes winning but Priest is the second best choice as Gargano doesn’t need the title, Reed isn’t ready, and Dream probably shouldn’t be near….well anything at the moment. That Dream spot was great and there’s something special about seeing him in extreme pain at the moment. Good, long match here and I liked it more than I expected.

We recap Pat McAfee vs. Adam Cole. McAfee mocked Cole for being small on his podcast and for thinking that he’s the king of NXT. Then McAfee invaded NXT and punted Cole in the face for a big knockout. McAfee went on to have some of the best promos in NXT and the match was made for tonight. As has been the case throughout: McAfee has been a great heel, but that doesn’t make me want to cheer for Cole, which is holding things back a bit.

Adam Cole vs. Pat McAfee

Cole comes to the ring but we cut to the back where McAfee, with his football players, says he’s got this and promises to destroy Cole once and for all. The other players come out with McAfee, though Cole is on his own. Well that’s somewhat noble. Cole grabs a headlock to start and McAfee can’t do much here. That means Cole can send him into the corner and tease a kick of his own so McAfee asks for a timeout.

Back up and the threat of a superkick sends McAfee outside for some trash talk. Cole follows so the players get in his way, which draws out the rest of the Era. McAfee uses the distraction to go up for the big dive onto everyone, meaning the trash talk is back on. Back in and McAfee slugs away in the corner as commentary starts being amazed by every single thing McAfee does. A slam, with squats, gets two on Cole and we hit the chinlock. That’s broken up after longer than you might expect and Cole gets fired up in the corner.

They slug it out with Cole pulling the shirt over McAfee’s head and slugging away before kicking McAfee in the head for two. The shock at the kickout sends Cole up top but Cole shoves him down…with McAfee landing on his feet. Cole is STUNNED and it’s even worse when McAfee runs the corner for a top rope superplex into a near fall. Cole’s head is hung over the apron so McAfee loads up the punt, which only hits the steps.

Back in and Cole grabs the Figure Four, sending McAfee over to the ropes for the break. Cole goes after him in the corner but a quick low blow puts Cole down. Now the Punt connects for two, sending McAfee up top. That takes too long though (It could have been the MCAFEE BAY BAY!) and Cole superkicks him out of the air, setting up the Panama City Sunrise for the pin at 16:20.

Rating: B-. It isn’t really shocking that McAfee was impressive, but I’m not sure people were expecting him to be this athletic. This was a good effort from both and Cole winning is the right call so they didn’t go too far. They had a pretty quick feud and while Cole is far from a face so far, it went about as well as could be expected.

Post match Cole looks at McAfee in the corner before turning to the camera to pose.

Drew McIntyre is here and picks Keith Lee to win the main event.

We recap Io Shirai vs. Dakota Kai for Shirai’s Women’s Title. Kai has been extra evil as of late and is ready to beat Shirai, because she is in her head. That and having the monster Raquel Gonalez in her corner.

Women’s Title: Io Shirai vs. Dakota Kai

Kai is challenging and has Gonzalez with her. Shirai goes with the double leg and starts kicking at Kai’s leg, including a dragon screw leg whip on the mat. A Gonzalez distraction lets Kai go after the arm though and wraps it around the arm. Shirai kicks her in the arm sets up an arm trap choke over the ropes and then stomps her down a bit. The armbar goes on, followed by one with Kai’s legs.

Shirai gets out and hits a kick to the face, followed by the 619 into a missile dropkick for two. Another armbar is broken up with a kick to the head but Kai breaks up a German suplex and sends her hard into the corner. Shirai is right back up with the running knees in the corner but the moonsault takes too long. Kai gets shoved down though and a double stomp gives Shirai two. The Kairopractor gives Kai two though and we hit the armbar, with Shirai having to get over to the ropes for the break.

Shirai is sat on top for a fireman’s carry into a kick to the head for two more with a foot on the ropes saving the title. Kai kicks the referee down by mistake so Gonzalez comes in to plant Shirai, giving Kai two. The Crossface goes on but Gonzalez makes the save. That means a moonsault to the floor to take both of them out, followed by the regular version for the pin to retain the title at 16:12.

Rating: B. Good showing here with both women looking awesome. Gonzalez added a lot here as there is only so much that you can do with Shirai vs. Kai on their own. Shirai is a monster who can destroy Kai on her own but the monster makes things that much more interesting. That turned this into a solid back and forth match and I had a good time with it, which was more than I expected.

Post match Gonzalez goes after Shirai again but Rhea Ripley runs in for the save. The staredown is on but Kai and Gonzalez run.

Damien Priest jumps in a hot tub with some women to celebrate.

NXT UK is back on September 17.

Tommaso Ciampa is back on Wednesday.

We recap Keith Lee vs. Karrion Kross for the NXT Title. Lee won the title at the Great American Bash and Kross didn’t seem happy. Kross then choked out Lee’s friend Dominick Dijakovic so Lee wanted revenge. That resulted in a fireball to Lee’s face to get us slightly away from the Rocky IV theme. Now it’s about revenge and the title.

NXT Title: Karrion Kross vs. Keith Lee

Kross, with Scarlett, is challenging and we get the big intro. Lee knocks him straight back to start and unloads with right hands in the corner to put Kross in early trouble. They head to the floor with Kross hammering away but Lee’s right hand busts up the Plexiglas by mistake. Lee’s arm gets caught on another swing though and the champ is hurt early on. Back in and Kross cranks on the arm (as he should) before putting him down for two. The armbar goes on again but this time Lee powers up.

That’s fine with Kross, as he sends the arm into the buckle to put Lee down again. It’s a hammerlock to put Lee down on the mat again and Kross cranks on it even harder. With that not working, Kross tries a cross armbreaker so Lee latches his hands together for the block. Lee hits a running splash in the corner and muscles him up for a spinning powerslam into the near fall. Back up and Lee misses a charge in the corner but Kross can’t Saito him. Kross can hit a DDT for two but Lee blocks the Saito again.

Lee hits a suplex of his own for a slightly delayed two of his own and they get back up. After what looked to be a little miscommunication, Kross hits a hard clothesline for two more. They slug it out until Lee is knocked to his knee, only to come back with a heck of a clothesline. Kross kicks him in the face and Lee isn’t happy. The Grizzly Magnum is blocked though and now the Saito connects for two.

Scarlett is furious about the kickout so the Crossjacket goes on, with Lee’s arm almost hitting the mat. A groggy Lee gets over to his stomach and finally makes the rope for the save. Back up and Lee headbutts him in the chest, setting up the Spirit Bomb for two. Lee goes up but Kross catches him with a shot to the arm. The super Doomsday Saito gives Kross the pin and the title at 21:56.

Rating: B+. This started slowly but they wound up going with what was the best possible choice. Kross would have been dead in the water if he had lost here and Lee is someone who can bounce back from a big loss. They didn’t quite go with the hoss battle the whole way but they got it working by the end, which is what matters here. Kross should have won, and I have no idea where Lee goes next. As for who is next for Kross….that Takeover machine Finn Balor sounds like a smart choice no?

Overall Rating: A-. As I’ve said about Dynamite before, if this is their bad show, they’re going to be fine. This wasn’t even close to what Takeover can do but it was still a rather good show with nothing resembling a bad match. There were some memorable moments and you can see where some things are going, but it was lacking that show stealer and it stuck out pretty badly.

In addition, there are some things here that make it clear the times have changed. One thing that NXT made look easy was having each match feel different. While they were different matches, there was something off about the last two matches being built around the champion’s arm being hurt. It feels like NXT should know better, but maybe that’s just the past talking. Still though, very good show, but not up to the old standards.

Results

Finn Balor b. Timothy Thatcher – 1916

Damian Priest won a ladder match – Priest pulled down the title

Adam Cole b. Pat McAfee – Panama City Sunrise

Io Shirai b. Dakota Kai – Moonsault

Karrion Kross b. Keith Lee – Super Doomsday Saito

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

It’s that time again. There may not be a series of wrestling shows with the reputation of NXT: Takeover. The shows have hovered somewhere around great and often moved up to show of the year on a number of occasions. Saturday will see a milestone version with the thirtieth edition, but things aren’t as hot as they usually are. NXT has had that feeling before, but I’m not sure if they can shake it off this time. Hopefully I’m wrong though so let’s get to it.

Kickoff Show: Legado del Fantasma vs. Breezango vs. Oney Lorcan/Danny Burch

This is for a future Tag Team Title shot, assuming you can remember who the Tag Team Champions even are at the moment. The tag division has taken some major hits over the last few months and this is the second straight Takeover without the titles being defended. I can’t say I’m overly surprised as Imperium aren’t the most thrilling challengers, but they need to do something sooner rather than later.

I’ll take Burch and Lorcan to win here, as they haven’t been around much lately but it is going to be a little easier to take them seriously than Imperium. Throw in that they would give Imperium a better match than Breezango and this should be an easy pick. That is assuming they aren’t going to give the rest of Legado the titles to make all three members champions, which is certainly a possibility. Either way, I’ll take Lorcan and Burch with pretty minimal confidence.

Women’s Title: Io Shirai(c) vs. Dakota Kai

This one hasn’t been all that thrilling so far as Kai seems dangerous, but not dangerous enough to be a real threat to win the title. It was like she needed something extra to boost her chances of winning the title, like someone who could give Shirai more of a run for her money. Maybe a monster enforcer who could be a physical threat to Shirai and who destro…yeah you get what I’m going for here. Raquel Gonzalez is back and Shirai could be in trouble.

I want to go with Kai here but I can’t bring myself to say it. Therefore I’ll take Shirai to retain, as Mercedes Martinez seems destined to be the next big threat to come after the title. Kai has been a heck of an even woman in recent months and throwing Gonzalez in helps a lot, but I don’t think it’s enough to get her the title. Considering how goofy and innocent Kai used to be, her transformation has been remarkable but it isn’t enough to get her to the promised land just yet.

Timothy Thatcher vs. Finn Balor

Sometimes you need a good grudge match and that’s what we have here. This is also the kind of match that the show needed to help boost things up and hopefully that is what we are going to be getting. Balor and Thatcher both lost to Dexter Lumis in a North American Title qualifying match and Thatcher isn’t happy as he took the fall. He cost Balor his second chance match and here we are.

Give me Balor to win here, as somehow he needs to get back on track. At the same time, Thatcher is someone who needs his second big win as he has only defeated Matt Riddle in the cage match. That being said, Balor has only lost in one singles match ever at Takeover and I’m not sure I can see Thatcher adding his name to the Samoa Joe list. Balor wins here, but I’m really not convinced.

Adam Cole vs. Pat McAfee

This is being treated as more of the main event than anything else on the show. It’s the old wrestler vs. football player match, but in this case, McAfee might be the best talker in the promotion. I’ve wanted to hear someone shut him up because he really is that great of a villain, but I don’t want to hear Cole be the one to shut him up. Cole has spent a year as the top heel in the promotion. I need a reason to cheer him, not just to boo McAfee.

Of course I’ll go with Cole here, as there isn’t much of a reason to have him lose to the outside here. Cole can be turned face (anyone can) but having him getting beaten down by McAfee isn’t an idea that has legs. Go with what makes sense here in the big mess, as McAfee has a weapon in the big kick but doesn’t need to win here. Then again there is a chance that he could as he could have something bigger in mind as part of Cole’s redemption, but I’ll play it safe and go with Cole winning here.

North American Title: Bronson Reed vs. Damian Priest vs. Cameron Grimes vs. Johnny Gargano vs. Velveteen Dream

Sometimes in wrestling you need a new champion and the best solution is to hang the title above the ring so a bunch of wrestlers can try to climb a ladder and pull it down. Ok so wrestling can be a little strange at times but that’s what makes it so much fun. That is what we have here as Keith Lee vacated the title after winning the NXT Title, meaning it’s time for some multiman carnage.

You could go in a bunch of ways here but I’ll take Grimes to win as he has been rather impressive for a long time now. Gargano is fine without the title, Dream is….moving on, Reed and Priest don’t make the most sense as winning here and Grimes has been outstanding as of late. Go with the best choice and someone who could get a long way with the title, which is where Grimes comes in.

NXT Title: Keith Lee(c) vs. Karrion Kross

And now we have a heck of a hoss fight to wrap things up. Lee won the title back in early July and Kross has targeted him ever since. Kross has since choked out Dominick Dijakovic and burned Lee with a fireball, meaning it’s time for a big fight. This could be an interesting way to go as they both seem unstoppable, which is where you can tell they have a good match going.

I think I’ll go with Kross to win the title here as there is no reason at all to have him lose so soon. Having him overcome the monster Lee is a way to make him look even more unstoppable, but I’m not sure where things go from there. The key thing here though is Lee can absorb a loss a lot more than Kross, though if there was ever a place for a non-finish, this would be it. Kross wins, even if it’s the second best option.

Overall Thoughts

I’m trying to get excited about this show but it isn’t working this time around. The two hour deal has hurt NXT quite a bit and while it makes WWE a lot of money, it doesn’t exactly help with the quality of the show. That being said, you never bet against Takeover and you would be crazy to do so here. They know how to do these things and hopefully that’s what happens again here, as it probably will.

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/

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