NXT
Date: December 19, 2012
Location: Full Sail University, Winter Park, Florida
Commentators: William Regal, Tony Dawson

We’re into the new cycle of NXT now, but the problem continues to be the gap between the current WWE product and the current NXT product. It’s a bit off putting to have the Shield version of Rollins on Raw and this version of him on NXT. It looks like we’re moving towards Rollins vs. Graves in the main event scene around here. Oh and Big Show vs. Bo Dallas is tonight. Let’s get to it.

The opening video is all about Dallas vs. Big Show.

Welcome Home.

Primo/Epico vs. Usos

Jimmy starts with Primo and we quickly hit the mat. There’s an armdrag to put Primo down but Primo comes back with a hammerlock. Primo rolls away from an arm hold by Jimmy and we’ve got a standoff. Rosa gives Primo a quick kiss which earns him an elbow to the face. Back to the armbar and here’s Jey for the first time. Epico comes in as well and immediately puts on a chinlock which doesn’t last long either. This is a back and forth match so far but no one has any kind of long term advantage.

The Usos load up the Superfly Splash but Primo bails to the floor for a breather. Jey is all cool with that and hits a HUGE dive to take out the cousins. We take a break and come back with Epico holding a chinlock on Jey. Epico rolls some belly to back suplexes for two. Primo gets the same off a dropkick as the fans want Carlito. Jey avoids a dropkick in the corner and gets Primo caught in the Tree of Woe for a few seconds.

Hot tag brings in Jimmy but the referee didn’t see it. Nice touch. Jey counters a whip into the corner and hits a big backdrop to give himself a breather. There’s the real hot tag to Jimmy and a Bubba Bomb takes Primo down. The running Umaga attack in the corner sets up a Samoan Drop for two. Everything breaks down and a Jimmy superkick sets up the Superfly Splash to Epico for the pin at 8:28 shown of 11:58.

Rating: C+. They stuck with the formula here and it worked really well. The Usos are so talented and smooth together out there but they can barely ever get on TV. The few times recently where they were on television, they got the biggest reactions of the match. Interesting how that works. Anyway, good stuff here and a nice opener.

Post match the lights go out and it’s Ascension (complete with recently released Kenneth Cameron) on the screen, telling the Usos that the war is far from over.

Camacho/Aiden English vs. Big E. Langston

Camacho can pick anyone to fight Langston with him and he picks this jobber? English has to start and is immediately pounded down by knees in the ribs and a running clothesline. Langston drags English over to Camacho and extends English’s hand for a tag but Camacho bails. Big Ending ends English at 1:12.

Post match there’s another Big Ending and the FIVE, then does both of them again. The reactions for the FIVE thing are tremendous.

Percy Watson vs. Kassius Ohno

Watson speeds things up to start and pounds on Ohno’s back to start. Ohno comes back with a suplex and a corner splash followed by some high energy stomps/knees to the head. Off to a dragon sleeper by Kassius followed by some choking on the top rope. They chop it out a bit but Ohno charges into an elbow to the face. Percy makes his comeback but the Persecution is blocked. Ohno Blade (or whatever he’s calling that elbow now) knocks Watson out cold at 5:23.

Rating: D. I am so bored with Ohno. The guy is talented but he’s got NOTHING going for him at all. He’s a bad guy who likes to strike people, but his attitude is all wrong for it. There’s nothing to dislike about him and that makes him a weak heel. He’s just kind of there and has his time every week. Watson continues to be nothing.

Ohno shouts at Regal post match.

Here’s Seth Rollins for a chat with JR. Seth says he’s here for anyone that wants to fight him and he’s not hard to find. Corey Graves jumps Rollins from behind and puts him in the 13^th Step leg lock. Graves talks about how his tattoos all tell a story and now he wants the Title. He says Rollins feeds off the fans and he’ll see Seth in his nightmares. Not bad here but calling himself the Savior of Misbehavior isn’t going to get him over.

Cena tells us to watch the NXT Year In Review show next week.

Bo Dallas vs. Big Show

Non-title I’d assume. This is about what you would expect to start: Dallas goes nuts with strikes and is easily shoved away. The beating goes on for awhile until Dallas gets on his back and chokes away. Show falls back on him to break the hold but misses an elbow. Dallas escapes the chokeslam but a bulldog is countered with a basic slam. WMD ends this at 4:53.

Rating: D. What in the world were you expecting here? It’s a tiny minor league guy against a massive world champion. I have no idea why they picked Show here because it doesn’t do Dallas any good and the match sucked as a result. I don’t get this one at all, as there are a ton of guys you could bring in to beat Dallas but get a better match out of him at the same time. Odd choice here.

Overall Rating: C. This didn’t work all that well for me. It wasn’t a bad show or anything, but this didn’t really advance anything. The only storyline stuff we got was Ascension vs. Usos which we’ve done before and Ohno staring at Regal. Oh and Graves vs. Rollins, but we already knew that was coming. Not much to see here but it wasn’t terrible or anything.

Results

Usos b. Epico/Primo – Superfly Splash to Epico

Big E. Langston b. Camacho/Aiden English – Big Ending to English

Kassius Ohno b. Percy Watson – Ohno Blade

Big Show b. Bo Dallas – WMD

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews

NXT
Date: October 17, 2012
Location: Full Sail University, Winter Park, Florida
Commentators: Byron Saxton, William Regal

Things have kind of reset after last week and now we need a new challenger for Rollins and the NXT Title. Other than that we had Punk here last week who really didn’t do all that much. The good thing about last week’s episode was that the show stood alone but it had some great stuff on it. Hopefully that keeps up tonight. Let’s get to it.

We open with a recap of last week’s main event with Rollins successfully defending against McGillicutty.

Alex Riley vs. Jinder Mahal

This is before the 3MB phase began for Mahal and is apparently the first time he’s been on NXT since he lost in the title tournament final. Feeling out process to start with Mahal working over the arm. Riley does exactly the same as the first minute is pretty even. They mix things up with a headlock and Riley dropkicks him down with one foot to the stomach and one to the chest.

A middle rope shoulder gets two for Alex as Regal is talking about his family singing in the bathroom. You certainly can’t say he lets things stay dull. Mahal drives knees into the chest for two and it’s off to a chinlock. Out of absolutely nowhere, Riley grabs a rollup and gets the big upset at 3:50.

Rating: C+. I like Riley and for the life of me I don’t get why the guy can’t get on TV more often. Even when he’s jobbing, the guy gets at least a small reaction which is more than you can say for a lot of people. I was really surprised to see him win here, as Mahal was the top heel on NXT just a few weeks ago. More Riley is fine with me.

Post match Mahal beats up Riley and puts him in the camel clutch.

Jake Carter vs. Trent Barretta

This was set up in a backstage segment last week. Regal talks about Vader training Carter (his son) since he was a kid and now it’s paying off apparently. Trent takes him to the mat with a headlock to start but Carter shoves him off and pounds away in the corner to take over. If there is ever a guy who you wouldn’t associate with his father based on his look and gimmick, Carter would be near the top of such a list. Jake hooks a chinlock but gets suplexed down by Trent.

An enziguri puts Carter down again and the fans are behind Trent. Not that it works that well as Carter takes his head off with a clothesline but the fans were indeed behind him. Carter loads up a belly to back superplex but gets knocked to the mat. A Whisper in the Wind gets two for Trent but he walks into a belly to belly overhead suplex for two. Another suplex is escaped and Trent hits a running boot/knee to the face for the pin at 6:28.

Rating: C+. This was another good match with a guy that I like who isn’t on TV enough. Trent is a guy who seems like he’s having a great time out there and looks incredibly smooth at the same time. Carter isn’t quite clicking for me but he certainly isn’t terrible. I think being Vader’s son hurts him a bit because you expect someone similar to Vader, but he’s got a long way to go to get that close to Vader’s level.

Here’s Sandow who says George Washington would be ashamed of everyone here. He thinks the fans boo him because they know he’s right.

Damien Sandow vs. Brandon Traven

I think I got the jobber’s last name right. Damien takes it to the mat to start and they trade some basic holds. Sandow misses a clothesline but runs to the corner to avoid a right hand. Damien takes it back to the mat and works on a headlock before stomping away a bit. Traven misses a dropkick and Sandow snaps, punching Traven down and raking his face with a knee. Off to a chinlock followed by some knees to the chest and then right back to the chinlock by Sandow. Traven gets in some jobber offense but misses a knee drop. The wind up elbow and the Terminus neckbreaker get the pin at 6:07.

Rating: C. This was just a squash and that’s all it should have been. Sandow is a guy who has a lot of upside and while his in ring stuff isn’t great, it’s good enough to get by when you have a solid gimmick like he’s got. The more I see of his singles stuff, the less I care for the Rhodes Scholars team, as Sandow is more than entertaining on his own.

Ascension/Kassius Ohno vs. Richie Steamboat/Usos

Main event time. Steamboat charges at the ring to get at Ohno and we take a break during the brawl. We come back with Cameron controlling Steamboat before tagging in to Ohno. Steamboat starts his comeback and Ohno immediately runs away. It’s off to O’Brien vs. Jey and O’Brien can’t hurt Jey head. I miss racial stereotypes in wrestling. Conor takes him down into a bodyscissors instead to take over.

Jey gets put in a chinlock as we take a break. Back with Conor kicking Jey in the head from the apron and Cameron dropping an elbow for two. Off to Ohno who stomps away in the corner for two. We hit the cravate and then a front facelock and Jey crawls for the corner, only to get dragged back to the wrong part of town. Back to Conor for more beating but Jey grabs a quick kind of Angle Slam move into a rollup for two.

Cameron comes in and gets caught in a backslide for two but Jey still can’t make the tag. This is quite a beatdown. JR says most people would have folded their tent by now, which launches Regal into stories of his carnival days. Back to Ohno but Jey punches his way to the corner for the hot tag to Steamboat. Richie destroys Kassius as everything breaks down. The Usos hit stereo dives onto Ascension on the floor but Ohno hits the spinning forearm (called OBE, or One Behind the Ear) for the pin at 10:16 shown of 12:46.

Rating: C-. This one missed for me. I don’t know if it’s because I really don’t like Ohno or if it’s something else, but I had problems making myself care about this. Ascension and the Usos continue to be entertaining, but I’m having a really hard time making myself care about Steamboat vs. Ohno. That elbow to the head looked even worse than usual today.

Overall Rating: B. This was another good show although not as good as last week. NXT is 45 minutes of pretty good wrestling with almost no stupid stuff at all. The main event was probably the weakest of all the matches and it certainly wasn’t bad. The one thing NXT is very good at is mixing things up from week to week. It keeps things on the show from getting worn out and stale, which is one of WWE’s biggest problems anymore.

Results

Alex Riley b. Jinder Mahal – Rollup

Trent Barretta b. Jake Carter – Running knee to the face

Damien Sandow b. Brandon Traven – Terminus

Ascension/Kassius Ohno b. Usos/Richie Steamboat – OBE to Steamboat

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews

NXT
Date: September 19, 2012
Location: Full Sail University, Winter Park, Florida
Commentators: Byron Saxton, William Regal

We have our first challenger for Rollins tonight in the form of Rick Victor, but I’m not sure if it’s a title match or not. Also we’re getting a workout from Kassius Ohno, which could mean a lot of things. I’m liking that they’re slowly bringing in storylines instead of the random matches they were having for the first few weeks of the show. Let’s get to it.

Trent Barreta vs. Johnny Curtis

Sweet. I’ve always liked what I’ve seen from Barreta so having him back is a good thing. Feeling out process to start with both guys avoiding the other through some gymnastics. A nice dropkick sends Johnny into the corner but as Trent goes up, Curtis drops him onto the top rope to take over. Johnny takes over with an armbar followed by something similar to a high angle AA for two.

Curtis loads up a superplex but Trent counters with a sunset bomb for two. An enziguri sets up a Whisper in the Wind from Trent for a close two. The crowd is silent when these guys aren’t flipping and diving. Trent tries his tornado DDT but gets suplexed into the corner for two. Curtis misses his guillotine legdrop and Trent hits a running knee to the chest/face for the pin at 5:32.

Rating: C. I like Trent but man alive Curtis is worthless. His gimmick is that he’s supposed to be weird but he hasn’t done anything odd in like three months, so all he has to go on is his in ring ability. The problem with that is he’s so generic in the ring that there’s no reason to care about him at all. Then again that’s probably why he keeps getting ring time: he’s as bland as you can ask for which tends to get high marks in WWE anymore.

Alicia Fox vs. Paige

We get a long lockup to start with Alicia taking her to the mat for a second without breaking the hold. A backslide gets two for Paige as do a small package and a cradle. They slap it out and Alicia hits a tilt-a-whirl backbreaker for two. Paige fires off some forearms but she can’t slam Alicia due to her back. A northern lights suplex gets two for Fox and it’s off to a chinlock with a knee in Paige’s back.

Paige tries to fight out of the hold but gets stomped in the face to break up her comeback attempt. Paige gets all fired up and beats on Alicia before they botch a rollup. Paige picks her up and hits a DDT while holding Alicia up with a leg hooked. It wasn’t a fisherman’s buster but it looked good and it got the pin at 4:48.

Rating: C. This was better than most Divas matches you would get on Raw or Smackdown. At the end of the day, the girls aren’t going to get any better by having 90 second matches so giving them nearly five minutes isn’t a terrible idea. Fox continues to be pretty much a mess in the ring while Paige is coming along pretty nicely. Not bad here.

Raw ReBound eats up some time.

Jimmy Uso vs. Conor O’Brien

It’s amazing how much a good gimmick can change someone. O’Brien used to be Rat Boy in season 4 and now he’s part of a team that I’d love to see on the main shows. Jimmy hits a quick headbutt and a clothesline puts O’Brien on the floor. Conor rams Jimmy into the apron to take over and drops an elbow back in the ring for two. Off to a chinlock by O’Brien Jimmy comes back with a clothesline and a Samoan Drop but Cameron crotches him as he loads up the Superfly Splash. O’Brien hits a running boot to the face for the pin at 3:50.

Rating: C. Not as good as the match last week but it puts the teams at one and one against each other in singles matches and that’s all you need to do with them at the moment. This sets up a bigger tag match down the line which hopefully leads to one if not both of them being on the main roster. The match being so short didn’t do it any favors.

Ascension hits a Total Elimination on Jey post match.

Bo Dallas is about to say something when Michael McGillicutty interrupts him. Michael brags about his win last week and a fight breaks out.

It’s time for Ohno’s sparring session. There’s a referee here and the bell rang so we’ll call this a match I guess.

Kassius Ohno vs. Oliver Gray

Ohno blasts him into the corner and pounds Gray’s head. Saxton wants to know how this is different from a regular match and Regal has no answer for him. Off to a reverse cravate by Ohno and it gets a tap out at 58 seconds.

Ohno gets a mic and says Gray wasn’t ready. Gray gets another shot and Ohno says ring the bell. The spinning forearm and the reverse cravate get the second win at 26 seconds. Richie Steamboat runs out for the save.

Leo Kruger is psycho.

Rick Victor vs. Seth Rollins

Non-title here. Victor stalls to start before taking over with a headlock. It’s a very slow paced start so far. I’m not sure why Victor is the guy they’re giving the first match with Rollins but he’s not a horrible choice. A suplex gets two on Rollins and Victor bites himself. We take a break and come back with Rollins in a chinlock. Regal will not stop praising Rick so maybe there’s something there.

Rollins tries to speed things up but gets caught by a big knee to the face for two. Victor bites himself some more and Rollins Hulks Up. Victor slaps him in the face and the champion snaps, taking over with right hands and a kick to the head. A running boot to the face (popular move tonight) takes Victor down and the Blackout gets the pin at 6:50 shown of 10:20.

Rating: C. Not a bad match here but Victor never felt like a threat to Rollins at all. Then again maybe that’s what they were going for with this. Rollins is being built up quite well as a big deal and they treated his first match as champion as something we needed to see, which is more than you can say about most new champions. This wasn’t a good match or anything but it served its purpose well enough.

Overall Rating: C. This was pretty easily the weakest show they’ve had so far. Nothing on the show stood out at all and nothing really happened here. Rollins beating Victor is no surprise and we knew Steamboat would be coming back for revenge on Ohno, plus the tag team feud is roughly where it was before last week’s show with a few more wrinkles. The show wasn’t bad or boring or anything like that, but there was no spark here. The one good thing about this week though is Dusty wasn’t around, which means him being on the show three times last week might have been an anomaly.

Results

Trent Barreta b. Johnny Curtis – Running Knee Smash

Paige b. Alicia Fox – Leg Trap DDT

Conor O’Brien b. Jimmy Uso – Running Boot To The Face

Kassius Ohno b. Oliver Gray – Reverse Cravate

Seth Rollins b. Rick Victor – Blackout

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews

NXT
Date: September 6, 2012
Location: Full Sail University, Winter Park, Florida
Commentators: William Regal, Byron Saxton

We’re into the second part of NXT now as we have a champion, which means people are going to be gunning for him now. Things have been going very well so far on the show so far and hopefully things keep going the same way now that Rollins won the tournament last week. I don’t think any matches were made for this week already. Let’s get to it.

We open with a recap of the end of last week’s show.

Welcome Home.

Kassius Ohno vs. Richie Steamboat

I guess I did forget a match that was scheduled. Steamboat saved Mike Dalton from getting destroyed by Ohno after a match and a challenge was issued as a result. They head to the mat to start and we have a standoff. Steamboat takes him to two different corners, pounding away in both of them. Kassius uses the forgotten heel move of poking Steamboat in the eye to take over. Richie comes back with a right hand so Ohno rakes the eyes again….and that’s a DQ at 2:42? For raking the eyes? I don’t think I’ve ever seen that before.

Ohno kicks Steamboat to the floor post match. He beats on Richie a bit more and hits the forearm/elbow to the back of the head before Ricky Steamboat and some referees come out for the save.

Audrey Marie vs. Paige

Paige, the British chick, is from Norwitch but Byron can’t pronounce it so Regal rips into him a bit. Marie takes her to the mat to start but Paige takes over with ease. Audrey goes nuts and we’ve got a catfight. Marie winds up in control with a long rolling cradle (Terry Funk called it the Tumbleweed I believe) for two.

Audrey sends her into the corner but charges into a forearm, causing some of the most overdramatic selling I’ve ever seen. Marie looked like she got shot dead. Even Saxton sounded like he was trying not to laugh at it. Paige picks her up for what looks like a fisherman’s buster but instead drops Audrey down into a stiff DDT for the pin at 2:44. Both girls looked pretty good here.

Ricky Steamboat is in the back looking for the trainer’s room to see how his son is doing. Why he didn’t go with him in the first place is anyone’s guess, but Ricky runs into Ohno. You can tell this because Ricky shouts OHNO at the top of his lungs. Ohno has on some Clark Kent style glasses and seems to be in awe of meeting Steamboat.

Ricky won’t shake his hand and Ohno says Richie doesn’t have a ton of potential. Ricky shoves Ohno and referees break it up. Ohno: “What are you going to do? Arm drag me???” This would be a lot more effective if the beatdown had been big, but it was nothing you wouldn’t see in a regular match.

Percy Watson vs. Leo Kruger

Kruger is psycho now and wears something that looks like khakis. Apparently he’s a big game hunter now. That’s something different. He grabs a quick snap suplex on Watson to start and pounds him into the corner. Watson gets up a knee in the corner and tries to speed things up. Percy fires off some good dropkicks and the Showtime Splash for two. Kruger gets up very quickly and hits a hot shot into a twisting neckbreaker (started as a reverse neckbreaker but spun Watson around almost into a cutter on the way down) for the pin at 3:16.

Rating: C-. Pretty much a squash here. I like the new persona from Kruger as before he was just proud to be South African. As for his finisher, not so much. There are too many neckbreakers/face first drops in WWE anymore and I’m tired of seeing them. From Bateman to Ziggler to Truth to Sandow to Layla and now to Kruger, use something else already.

Brodus Clay vs. Ryan Collins

Brodus does the full intro, complete with Cameron because this was taped a few weeks ago. Total squash with the crowd WAY into Brodus. The big splash pins Collins at 49 seconds.

Some kids get to dance post match.

We recap the Usos getting jumped by Ascension last week.

Ascension vs. Usos

Whichever Uso that is pounds Cameron (the wrestler, not the dancer) down into the corner to start and everything breaks down quickly. The Usos clear the ring and we take a break. Back with I think Jimmy getting tagged in to splash Cameron in the corner. Back to Jimmy who gets two off a double back elbow. Conor comes in off a blind tag and clotheslines Jimmy down for two to take over. Ascension does their fast tags to stomp away on Jimmy in the corner which is always cool.

Conor puts on a bodyscissors and it’s off to Cameron with a neck crank followed by an armbar. Back to Conor who grabs a headlock takeover then rolls Jimmy over two more times without letting it go. That was different. Jimmy gets in a kick to the face but the referee doesn’t see the tag. Back to Cameron for another armbar before Conor comes in for a headlock. This is a great example of how to pick someone apart.

Jimmy gets sent into the corner and gets a boot up into O’Brien’s face. There’s the hot tag (with no reaction from the crowd) to Jey. He cleans house on his own but Cameron escapes the Samoan Drop. Instead Jey hits a superkick to put him down but goes up instead of covering. Jimmy takes Conor out but Cameron crotches Jey and hits a kind of running jawbreaker for the pin at 8:58 shown of 12:28.

Rating: C+. This was an old school style tag match where they played the formula to perfection. Why in the world are these four not on TV but guys like Epico/Primo are? You can always make room for a Samoan team. Anyway, good stuff here and that’s a very rare thing to see in WWE tag matches anymore.

Here’s Rollins for his first interview with JR as champion. Rollins talks about overcoming his back injury last week to win the title. He’s used to being called a loser and he uses it as motivation every single day. He doesn’t care who he faces or who wants a shot at the title, because sooner or later, everybody gets blacked out. Good first speech from the champ here.

Overall Rating: B. This was one of the best TV shows I’ve seen in a very long time. They got a ton of stuff into this and nothing was boring on it at all. We had a feud being advanced, Divas, a squash, a good tag match and a big name appearing, all before the champion got to talk. He doesn’t have a first opponent yet so there’s nothing wrong with him just talking tonight. Very good show here and I wasn’t annoyed by anything here which is incredibly rare.

Results

Richie Steamboat b. Kassius Ohno via DQ when Ohno raked Steamboat’s eyes

Paige b. Audrey Marie – Fisherman’s DDT

Leo Kruger b. Percy Watson – Twisting neckbreaker

Brodus Clay b. Ryan Collins – Big Splash

Ascension b. Usos – Running Jawbreaker to Jey

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews

NXT
Date: July 11, 2012
Location: Full Sail University, Winter Park, Florida
Commentators: Byron Saxton, William Regal

We’re back with the fourth week of the show which I believe is the final show from the first batch of tapings. After the six man that ended the last episode, there really isn’t anything set for tonight. I’ve heard talk of creating an NXT Title but that wouldn’t be for at least four more weeks because the next set of tapings is already done. Let’s get to it.

Welcome Home everyone.

Tyson Kidd vs. Camacho

See, this is what NXT is good for: you can get a guy like Camacho some ring time. He hasn’t had much but he can get some here and it’s fine for him to get it at this level. Kidd avoids a kick to the ribs and nips up into a dropkick. Camacho takes over with a fist to the head but Kidd flips through a backdrop and grabs a quickly broken leg hold. Backslide gets two on Camacho and it’s off to an armbar.

Camacho sends him to the apron but Kidd skins the cat and sends Camacho to the floor. Hunico tries to interfere and gets ejected for his efforts. Kidd dives on both guys and we take a break. Back with Kidd kicking Camacho in the face and trying the Sharpshooter but a rope is grabbed. Camacho goes to the floor but grabs a running boot, sending Kidd face first into the apron.

Back inside and Camacho is in control and working on the back of Kidd. A backbreaker gets two and he stomps on the chest of Kidd a bit. Another backbreaker gets another two and Kidd gets draped over the top rope. Camacho hooks a seated third cousin twice removed of an abdominal stretch which Kidd breaks, only to be headbutted right back down. A belly to back suplex puts Kidd down and a legdrop gets two.

Kidd tries to speed things up but gets caught in a wheelbarrow slam for two. A middle rope legdrop misses for Camacho and Kidd fires off his kicks. Camacho is draped over the bottom rope and Kidd hits a slingshot legdrop to the head to keep Camacho down. Back in and Camacho hits a butterfly suplex off the top for two. Camacho sends him to the apron but charges into a kick to the head. A Blockbuster gets two on Camacho as he gets his foot on the rope. Dang I thought that would have been it. Kidd loads up the Sharpshooter but here’s McGillicutty for a distraction. Kidd knocks him to the floor but walks into a DDT from Camacho for the pin at 12:15 shown of 15:45.

Rating: B-. I was really getting into this by the end of it. It’s amazing what guys like Camacho are capable of when they have time and a guy like Kidd to work off of. I’m so glad that Tyson is getting a main show push as it’s long overdue for someone as steady in the ring as he is. This McGillicutty feud has gone on for awhile though and it’s hard to see why it needs to continue.

Bray Wyatt video, this time about faith. It’s a shame that he’s out for so many months.

Hugh Jackman was on Raw once.

Justin Gabriel says he’s back to make a statement. Heath Slater comes up and says that Gabriel will make a statement of failure. Slater talks about taking out legends and Gabriel says it’ll be a young guy beating up Slater tonight.

Aiden English vs. Bray Wyatt

Wyatt talks on the way to the ring, calling himself the angel in the dirt and singing Time is on My Side by the Rolling Stones. Wyatt pounds him down and sends English to the floor and into the barricade. Back in and Wyatt rolls around on the apron before splashing English in the corner. Wyatt dances with English a bit (literally) before hitting a rolling Downward Spiral for the pin at 1:48. Awesome debut here and a good transition from promos to in ring work which was what I was worried about from Wyatt.

Video on Seth Rollins, who will knock you out.

We run down the MITB card.

Richie Steamboat says he’s got a great opportunity here. Leo Kruger comes up and they get in a brawl.

Video on Raquel Diaz, featuring Tweets from her.

Usos vs. Prime Time Players

Apparently Slater vs. Gabriel is next week. JR sits in on commentary for this one and there’s no AW for the Players. Jimmy and Darren get us going and Jimmy goes nuclear by going for the hair. Young gets takes into the Uso corner for a continued beating before it’s off to Titus for more of the same. Back to Young who charges into a powerslam from Jey for no cover. The Players head to the floor and Jey has a hair pick.

Jimmy hits a dive onto both Players and we take a break. Back with Jimmy uppercutting Titus, only to be knocked down after looking at Young. Young comes in with a kind of spinning toe hold. It’s clear JR has no idea which Uso is which, nor does he care. Jimmy kicks Darren to the floor where Darren trips up Jey before there can be a tag. Back in and Young works on the knee some more and tags Titus.

Jimmy gets in a shot to Titus but O’Neal breaks up the tag at the last possible second. Back to the knee but Jimmy breaks it up. For some reason though he goes to the Players’ corner instead of his own. A backdrop puts Titus down and there’s the tag to Jey. Jey cleans house and hits the running Umaga attack on Young in the corner for two. Titus takes Jimmy’s leg out again which allows the Players to hit the Demolition Decapitator on Jey for the pin at 9:51 shown of 13:21.

Rating: C+. Nothing great here but another win for the Players before they finally get their title match is just fine. The Usos are still stuck in limbo but they’re good at a job like this. JR not knowing which was which says a small something, as there’s nothing to tell the two guys apart unless you’re looking at their chest. That being said, they’re a tag team and there’s nothing wrong with them being so similar, as it makes them look more like a unit.

Overall Rating: B-. This was a totally different kind of show this week but it still worked. This came off a lot more like a show that the old NXT did and that’s ok for the most part. Having a fresh batch of faces makes that work well, and given the match quality was good all around, what more can you ask for? With talk of the tournament coming for a title, there’s a lot of upside on NXT in the future.

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews

NXT
Date: June 13, 2012
Location: Verizon Wireless Arena, Manchester, New Hampshire
Commentators: Josh Matthews, William Regal

So I went to WWE.com, sort of dreading this show as usual when I saw it: “On the final episode of NXT before the ALL NEW NXT…”. For the first time in a good many Wednesdays, the sight of NXT brought a smile to my face. After SIXTY SIX WEEKS, it’s finally ending. This is the last episode of this season and I can’t believe it’s really here. Let’s get to it.

I can’t believe I’m saying this but it’s kind of saddening to hear this song for the final time this season.

Curt Hawkins/Tyler Reks vs. Derrick Bateman/Percy Watson

Regal says the bright green is apparently a tribute to the Dynamic Dudes. There’s something you’ll never hear again. Hawkins and Bateman gets us going here. Bateman takes it to the mat so Hawkins celebrates his escape. The fans start clapping for Bateman so it’s off to Reks who gets crucifixed down for two. Watson comes in and speeds things up a bit.

Reks gets knocked into the wrong corner by a European Uppercut. Hawkins: “REKS I’M OVER HERE!” Bateman hooks a headlock but charges into a boot in the corner to shift momentum again. Hawkins hooks a chinlock which is quickly broken by a jawbreaker. Watson comes in for some dropkicks and throws Hawkins into Reks to send them out to the floor. Bateman dives on both guys and we take a break.

Back with Watson fighting off both guys but getting dropped on the top turnbuckle for two. Reks hooks a chinlock for a bit followed by a neckbreaker for two. Back to Curt who hits a suplex for two. Off to another chinlock as Regal talks about how a chinlock is supposed to be executed. An other the shoulder bicycle kick gets two on Watson. Josh confirms that next week the New NXT begins.

Back to Reks who kicks Percy in the ribs and hooks chinlock #3. Watson finally comes back and hits an enziguri to Tyler, allowing for the hot tag to Bateman. Reks doesn’t tag out at all and things speed up. Bateman hits a running flip neckbreaker (think Morrison’s flip neckbreaker) for two. After a Hawkins distraction, Reks hits his powerbomb into a spinning DDT for the pin at 11:05.

Rating: C+. This was fine. It was a formula based tag match and the ending was pretty solid. Bateman has gotten a lot better in the last few months and it’s no longer a strain to watch the guy. I don’t see him as anything better than a jobber at the moment but maybe things could change with the proper changes.

During the break we get a clip of the All New NXT. It looks pretty awesome actually.

Kaitlyn vs. Natalya

Natalya immediately takes her down with a heel trip and they trade rollups for two each. Another rollup gets two for Kaitlyn. Natalya sends her to the floor and poses before knocking Kaitlyn off the apron. She sits on Kaitlyn for two and then hooks on a bow and arrow hold. Kaitlyn rolls her up again for two. That seems to be her only offense. Nattie misses a charge in the corner and Kaitlyn shoves her down. A crossbody gets two. Natalya cradles her in the corner with feet on the ropes for two. Her argument with the referee lets Kaitlyn hook ANOTHER rollup for two. A sunset flip out of nowhere gets the pin for Kaitlyn at 5:20.

Rating: D-. This was horrible. Kaitlyn looked terrible out there, both in the ring and in the face. For some reason all she did here were rollups other than just a few shots here or there. The match was terrible with neither girl really doing anything at all other than Natalya posing and Kaitlyn rolling people up. Terrible match.

Natalya throws a fit post match.

We get a quick word from Bo Dallas (Taylor Rotunda) who is ready to fight.

Raw ReBound is about Vince/Ace/Show/Cena.

Usos vs. Michael McGillicutty/Johnny Curtis

They have almost fifteen minutes for this. Before the match starts, Richie Steamboat says he’s looking to fill his own shoes, not his father’s. Michael and Jimmy start things off and McGillicutty takes him down to the mat with ease. Regal talks about how great Samoans are at wrestling as well as rugby. Jimmy takes him down with an armbar and it’s off to Jey. Curtis comes in and rips at Jey’s face.

A legdrop misses and Jey hooks a chinlock. McGillicutty offers a distraction and Curtis drops him onto the top rope in the EXACT same sequence from the first tag match. Curtis drops Jey’s leg onto the top rope to ground him even further and McGillicutty adds some cheating offense of his own to it. Curtis cannonballs down onto the knee as we take a break. Back with McGillicutty with a knee hold on Jey.

Back to Curtis and the knee gets wrapped around the post. We get a full Indian Deathlock but Jey chops his way out of it. When all else fails, hit the other guy I guess. Curtis prevents the tag but McGillicutty’s attempted cannonball onto the leg is countered by having him kicked over the top. Off to Jimmy who cleans house. Jey is almost immediately tagged back in for a double team Samoan Drop. Curtis drops a guillotine legdrop to break up the cover and both guys are down. The McGillicutter is countered and after a superkick from Jey, the Superfly Splash from Jimmy gets the pin on McGillicutty at 11:42.

Rating: B-. Another good match here with the leg work being a good idea, as the Usos are a flying team so slowing them down is the right idea. There’s something appropriate about the Usos winning the last match of this season, and there’s something even more appropriate about it being a meaningless tag match as so many of their matches have been.

Overall Rating: C+. And that’s NXT Season 5. The overall rating of slightly above average is about right for the whole season too: there were some ok moments, but all in all it was just ok. Nothing significant ever happened, no one won, almost everyone wound up on Smackdown, and it was clear that the contest part of the show was worthless by the end of it. The new season will help things a lot as it can be just a regular show instead of a contest, which is something they’ve needed to do for about a year now. Tonight’s show was decent but as usual, it means nothing at all.

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews

NXT
Date: June 6, 2012
Location: Colonial Center, Columbia, South Carolina
Commentators: Matt Striker, Josh Matthews

Back to the land of no storylines allowed. I would usually say that this should be interesting, but for the most part I’m pretty sure it won’t be. At the end of the day, we have about 45 minutes of wrestling here which isn’t bad between guys that aren’t good enough to get into the top two shows. Let’s get to it.

Dang it no Regal this week.

Tyler Reks vs. Jey Uso

Feeling out process to start with Reks running over Uso a few times. Jey comes back with a running chinlock (looked pretty cool actually) to take over. Uso charges into a boot in the corner and a belly to back suplex for two. Reks pounds him down with power strikes but misses a charge, sending his shoulder into the post.

Jey goes after the arm and hits a spinning forearm. He starts doing the chants to the crowd the pops are great. Samoan drop gets two. Reks takes him down again and goes up, but Jey slams him down for two. Now Jey goes up but gets crotched for his efforts. Reks puts him up in a Razor’s Edge position then spins Jey down into a kind of a DDT move for the pin at 5:00.

Rating: D+. Not bad here but other than the crowd popping for the USO shout, things were pretty dead here. It’s not a bad match but it’s likely to lead to Usos vs. Reks/Hawkins #19 or so, which isn’t a match I can really get behind anymore. I still don’t get the appeal of Reks at all. It’s just not clicking for him.

Percy Watson vs. JTG

JTG speeds things up to start which actually works. This is supposed to be the new and improved version of him and I guess that’s true as the tights are less annoying than what he used to wear. Watson smiles a lot in the ring. JTG controls for the opening until Watson avoids a charge. Watson’s headscissors out of the corner is countered and he falls out to the floor.

Back in and JTG pounds away before hooking a seated abdominal stretch. A kind of slam gets two. JTG is getting frustrated. If I had hair like that I likely would be too. He goes to the middle rope but dives into a facebuster to put both guys down. Watson speeds things up and hits his usual jumping attacks. The crowd doesn’t seem to care as much this time. Heisman gets two. We get a freaking JTG chant as Persecution gets the pin at 6:01.

Rating: D. This crowd has lost all of its chanting privileges. I mean……THEY WERE CHANTING FOR FREAKING JTG! The match itself was nothing of note at all as JTG being on offense is never a good idea. Watson again has the same problems: he’s the same guy over and over again, doing the same stuff every week.

Tamina Snuka vs. Natalya

Natalya now wears a kind of cape. She quickly powers Tamina down to the mat and they trade headlocks. Back up and Natalya runs her over as Striker calls her Nattie. Whatever her name is she gets dropkicked down for two. The crowd is almost silent for this. Tamina misses a charge and Natalya sits on her with arms folded for two.

Suplex gets two as well. Natalya tries another one but gets small packaged for two. Off to an abdominal stretch but Natalya picks up Tamina’s leg on top of the regular hold. Tamina escapes and comes back with chops but Natalya rolls away before Tamina can try for the splash. Sharpshooter is broken up as Tamina kicks her to the floor. Natalya charges back in to a Samoan Drop and the Superfly Splash gets the pin at 6:21.

Rating: D. This was nothing. Both girls have jobs because of their dads, but that doesn’t always mean success. Well to be fair Natalya is good but there’s nothing going on for her due to it not being her time right now. The match was your usual boring affair from the Divas, but a longer version of it.

Raw ReBound is about Cole’s destruction.

Tyson Kidd/Justin Gabriel vs. Heath Slater/Johnny Curtis

Kidd and Slater get us going. Slater grabs a headlock but Kidd makes a blind tag. Kidd and Gabriel kind of mess up a double hip toss and it’s off to Curtis instead. Justin sweeps the legs out and brings in Kidd for a slingshot reverse victory roll for two. Tyson tries the Dungeon Lock but has to settle for a wristlock instead. Slater comes in but Kidd dropkicks them both down at once.

Sharpshooter to Slater doesn’t work so it’s back to Gabriel. A BIG suicide dive takes Slater out and Kidd/Gabriel pose in the ring as we take a break. Back with Kidd in control of Slater. He goes up but gets distracted by Curtis, allowing Heath to powerslam him off the top for two and control. Off to the chinlock for a bit and then into the heel corner.

Kidd fights both guys off at once but walks into a spinebuster before he can make the tag off to Gabriel. Curtis comes in and hits a suplex for two. After a quick wear down hold, Curtis and Slater try a double team but Kidd counters and drops them both. Slater blocks the tag again with a running neckbreaker for two. His middle rope knee drop misses though and it’s hot tag to Gabriel. Justin speeds things up as you would expect and hits a jumping tornado DDT for two on Curtis. A combination Hart Attack/Blockbuster gets the pin on Curtis at 10:05.

Rating: C+. This was by far the best match of the night but it’s a far cry from some of the main events we’ve been having lately. Still though it wasn’t that bad and the double team finisher wasn’t bad at all. The problem is there was no doubt as to who would win given the levels of talent on either side.

Overall Rating: D. This was really dull. The same problems I’ve been talking about for weeks are still here and they’re not going to change anytime soon. I can’t believe I’m saying this, but Maxine being on this show is such an improvement that it’s almost uncanny. The show wasn’t bad or anything, but it was really uninteresting.

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews

No shock there. Fun match too.

For the tag titles and likely a dark match.This was announced the week of the show and is going to be streamed for free on the WWE’s Youtube channel and WWE.com.  The champions have had the belts now for about two and a half months but were actually being used as jobbers on Raw for Big Show earlier this week.  I love the Usos but for the life of me I don’t get why they added in Gabriel and Kidd.  Apparently the team was formed on Superstars with the question from Kidd of “hey, wanna be a team” and a reply of “sure”.  That gets you in the title match at Mania now I guess.

As for a prediction, I’ll go with the champions retaining, but if this gets the title picture moving a bit it’ll be great.

Thoughts/Predictions?

Source

It’s Epico/Primo defending against Gabriel/Kidd vs. The Usos.  I won’t be giving my thoughts on this yet because I’m planning on a major WM Preview later tonight with thoughts on all the matches

Thoughts on this?