Monday Night Raw – May 23, 2005: The Three Head Monsters

IMG Credit: WWE

Monday Night Raw
Date: May 23, 2005
Location: Resch Center, Green Bay, Wisconsin
Commentators: Jim Ross, Jerry Lawler

We’re on the way to the next Raw pay per view now that Smackdown’s show is over, but not before a big time show tonight. This week will see Batista defend the World Title against Edge, who has been lit on fire with a now heel Lita and a win in the Gold Rush Tournament. Other than that, it’s time to start the build to Vengeance, which seems a long way off. Let’s get to it.

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

We recap the Gold Rush Tournament finals with Lita turning on Kane to join Edge. I heartily approve of heel Lita, and JR’s line of “the dirty rotten bastard is going to wrestle for the World Title!” is pretty awesome.

Here are Edge and Lita, flanked by a bunch of security guard. Lita tells this room full of saints to go ahead and pass judgment on her. Women use their husbands like she did to Kane all the time, and can you really blame her? Maybe it started with the kidnapping, the forcing her into sex, being pregnant with his baby, the forced marriage and losing her baby? So yeah, she used her husband to get somewhere and all it took was a really gross wet kiss last week.

The fans start a pretty expected chant at her but she says don’t be jealous because she gets more action in a month than the rest of the crowd does in their entire lives. She never loved Kane (well duh) and while he was following her around like a puppy, she fell in love with a real man. Kane couldn’t satisfy her, just like any man she has ever been with. Well save for one, and that is the man she has been seeing behind Kane’s back for months now.

Edge knows everyone is jealous of them for how they look and what they do. He has the girl and tonight he’ll get the gold. Edge won at Wrestlemania, and tonight he claims his destiny by becoming World Heavyweight Champion. Bank on it. Kissing ensues and the fans care a bit. This worked as well as it could with a bad premise. There was no secret to the fact that Lita didn’t want to marry Kane in the first place and never loved him in the first place, so why should I be upset about what happened to him? He was so evil about six months ago and now he deserves sympathy? It doesn’t quite work that way.

Kane is rather….I guess the word is serious in the back.

Eric Bischoff is making funeral arrangements for ECW when Shelton Benjamin comes in. Chris Jericho isn’t here for their tag match so Bischoff turns it into a handicap match instead. They bring up the Draft, with both thinking John Cena would be a good addition. Benjamin thinks Bischoff going to Smackdown would be better. Eh, even if Bischoff goes to Smackdown, I can’t see him lasting that long over there.

Muhammad Hassan/Daivari vs. Shelton Benjamin

Shelton comes up swinging but gets punched down by Hassan. A blind tag brings in Daivari but Shelton sends Hassan outside and armbars Daivari without too much effort. The fans get behind Shelton, only to be cut off as Hassan gets in a trip from the floor. Hassan comes back in for a hard elbow to the face and the chinlock goes on. It’s back to Daivari, who spends too much time shouting and gets suplexed down for his efforts. Shelton faceplants Daivari and nails a running knee lift on Hassan. Daivari tries to bring in a chair and the distraction lets Hassan hit a Downward Spiral for the pin.

Rating: D. Just a quick handicap match here to give Hassan a win over the champ to set up what should be a title match down the line. The match was the usual mess of a short form handicap match and that all but guarantees that it’s going to be terrible. At least they also advanced Jericho’s issues, as a heel turn has seemed to be in the cards for a few weeks now.

Post break Jericho arrives and is told that his match already happened. He’s been busy with the Fozzy tour so he’s got a lot on his mind. Whenever he finds Bischoff, he’ll face anyone tonight because Jericho equals ratings.

Christian and Tomko are in the back when Edge and Lita come in. Edge says Christian is probably staying on Raw so he has an offer: if Christian were to help Edge win the title tonight, Edge might be willing to part with the Money in the Bank briefcase. Christian gets it and says maybe he’ll see Edge later.

Chris Masters vs. Stevie Richards

This is for retribution after Masters broke Richards’ nose. Richards slugs away to start but Masters snaps off a suplex. The ax handle is blocked and Richards explodes with right hands. Masters takes out the knee and it’s the Masterlock for the quick win.

Post match medics come out and check on Richards.

Bischoff sends Todd Grisham to find out how Kane is doing.

Here are some of the women who might be finalists in the Diva Search.

Chris Jericho vs. Sylvain Grenier

Grenier is here on his own. Jericho gets taken into the corner to start and the Walls attempt is broken up. Instead Jericho forearms him in the head and hits the enziguri to the forearm. Grenier gets in a clothesline but Jericho snaps him throat first across the top. The Walls finish in a hurry.

Rating: D+. They were smart to not have Jericho break much of a sweat over Grenier here as Grenier is likely to be on the endangered species list with La Resistance done. The match was short and to the point though and that’s as much as you can expect. Jericho’s teased heel turn is a good idea though as he’s been in limbo for a long time.

Post match here’s Shelton but Jericho drops to the floor and talks about everything he has going on. Sometimes you’re going to have to put up with him being a little late because he’s Chris Jericho. The Jericholics will always be on his side.

Here’s Eric Bischoff for the ECW funeral, complete with a barbed wire wreath. Bischoff gives a rather laugh filled history of ECW, talking about the Bingo hall and how the roster thought they were rebels. Then he crushed ECW and it died, only to have rumors of a reunion pop up again. Therefore, he’ll crush it again, with the help of some Raw volunteers who are going to show up to the Hammerstein Ballroom on June 12. The rant continues but here’s Vince McMahon to interrupt.

Vince is here because he has a vested interest in the future of ECW because he supposed ECW for years (which seems to be news to Bischoff). Vince knew that one day, the ECW stars could become WWE superstars, including Mick Foley, the Dudleys and Steve Austin. Bischoff isn’t pleased but Vince brings up the loans that ECW owed him, totaling nearly $600,000. That’s why he wants the ECW show to be a success, which is why he advertised them himself.

As for tonight, he’s going to present the ECW match that Bischoff canceled last week. See, the only brand that is really dead is WCW and Vince killed it himself. With Bischoff’s legs cut off, here’s Paul Heyman to talk about ECW instead, which gives us the always awesome visual of the three promoters in the same ring at once (I believe for the first time ever). Heyman says Vince may own ECW but Heyman controls it.

That brings him to Bischoff, who gets a rant about everything ECW did, including the cruiserweights and submission style, with Heyman holding up the ECW press pass every time he says everything. We hear about ECW being in your face and hardcore, with Bischoff being invited to see the show in person, with Heyman getting in the date of the show as he always does.

Vince loves the idea of a good old fight so may the best man win. Heyman says Bischoff has started a fire that he can’t put out. The wreath is set on fire and Bischoff looks worried. This just turned into a big deal and that’s a good thing as the show feels special. You could feel the anger that Heyman had for Bischoff here and it must feel great to him to have ECW back instead of WCW.

Steve Austin is in the remake of the Longest Yard.

Chris Benoit vs. Tajiri

ECW Rules so Tajiri jumps him from behind with the kendo stick on the stage. Benoit takes it away but gets the mist to the face so Tajiri can bring in some weapons. Tajiri whips him into a trashcan in the corner but Benoit is right back with the rolling German suplexes. The Crossface with the kendo stick gives Benoit the quick tap. Lawler keeps jumping on ECW and JR defends it, which is completely bizarre to hear.

Ric Flair thanks Batista for the save last week. He even wishes Batista good luck against Kane tonight.

Grisham goes to interview Kane, who talks about all the pain he has gone through over the years. This is the worst ever though and he is so hurt that he starts to cry. Kane doesn’t want this pain and wants it off of him. Instead he wants to give the pain to someone else.

Post break, Kane walks out.

Here’s Maria to interview Viscera, who is rather impressive looking in his suit. Maria invites Lillian into the ring because it’s clear that Viscera likes her. That’s true, though Lillian never showed up last week. He has a surprise for tonight though and asks for lights and music. Maria has to go get him a hot dog (Viscera: “Yeah I got a hot dog for you too baby.”) so Viscera can dance and eat at the same time. Lillian gets into it as the jacket comes off and the tie follows…..but then the pants come down. Cue Coach to demand that this be stopped immediately because Bischoff doesn’t need to deal with a sexual harassment lawsuit. Viscera is ordered to leave so it’s a beatdown for Coach, including the pelvic thrusting on the mat. Lillian gets pulled in for her kiss and she doesn’t seem to be complaining.

Raw World Title: Edge vs. Batista

Edge is challenging and has Lita with him. Batista takes him into the corner to start and powers his way out of a bad comeback attempt. With Edge on the floor, here are Christian and Tomko as we take a break. Back with Edge hammering away and getting in a shot to the ribs to send Batista outside.

They head back inside with Edge staying on the ribs with a bodyscissors. A spinwheel kick gives Edge two and we hit the chinlock, which gets switched into a sleeper. Lawler keeps going on about Lita’s top and JR goes into one of his great rants about how this isn’t about Lita. Batista’s arm drops twice and the comeback is on, only to have Edge nail a dropkick for the stop.

Edge goes up top but gets superplexed right back down and Batista is getting fired up. The referee gets bumped so Christian and Tomko come in for the beatdown. Cue Ric Flair for the save but Edge spears him down. Another spear gives Edge two so Lita slides in the briefcase, only to have Batista catch him with the Batista Bomb to retain.

Rating: C-. Well that happened. We spent three weeks on a tournament and the whole thing is more than likely a way to set up HHH vs. Batista III (Why else would Flair be involved?). Edge loses again, though the briefcase is going to be more than enough to keep him relevant. Not a very good match, but with so much going on, that isn’t exactly surprising.

Post match Batista helps Flair up and hugs him but here’s the returning HHH so Flair can hit Batista low. HHH has the sledgehammer and looks at the title like Edge looked at Lita earlier. The very long beatdown ensues, with Batista being busted open. HHH says they’re doing it again, but this time inside Hell in a Cell. A Pedigree onto the title ends the show.

Overall Rating: D+. The big segment in the middle was good but the rest of it was pretty dull as we need to fill in time before Vengeance with One Night Stand. Now that show sounds very good and is likely to be a blast, but it doesn’t do much good when so much of the roster has nothing to do with it so far. Hopefully things pick up soon because this wasn’t much of a show, including an underwhelming main event.

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:

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Summerslam Count-Up – Summerslam 2006 (2013 Redo): The Forgotten One

IMG Credit: WWE

Summerslam 2006
Date: August 20, 2006
Location: TD Banknorth Garden, Boston, Massachusetts
Attendance: 16,168
Commentators: Jim Ross, Jerry Lawler, Michael Cole, Tazz, Joey Styles, John Bradshaw Layfield

The opening video is about DX taking over the company with their sophomoric jokes. The other matches get some lip service as well.

Rey Mysterio vs. Chavo Guerrero

Chavo puts him on the top rope and tries to powerbomb Rey to the floor but Rey fights out to avoid death. They facejam each other down to the mat and both guys are in trouble. Back up and Rey gets two off a springboard cross body. A hard kick to the head gets the same for Rey before he hurricanranas Chavo into the 619. The seated senton misses and Mysterio hurricanranas both guys out to the floor.

ECW Title: Big Show vs. Sabu

Sabu finally knocks him through the table off a springboard from the chair but Show pops up and electric chairs Sabu down. A Vader Bomb crushes Sabu and Show brings in two sets of steps. He bridges a table across them but his chokeslam is countered into a DDT through the table. Sabu sets up another table but charges into a chokeslam through it for the pin.

Layla won the Diva Search earlier this week.

We recap Hogan vs. Orton. Hogan is a legend, Orton is the legend killer, I think you can do the math. There was a stupid bit with Orton hitting on Brooke thrown in which went nowhere.

Randy Orton vs. Hulk Hogan

We look at a big party yesterday which is exactly what you would think it was. This was also the announcement for WWE 24/7, which was nowhere near as cool as it sounded.

Ric Flair vs. Mick Foley

Smackdown World Title: Batista vs. King Booker

Post match Batista “destroys” Booker, which translates to him not being able to get him up for a Batista Bomb until Booker clearly pulls himself up. Again, this feud went on for three more months.

Jeff Hardy is coming back tomorrow. Why bother announcing it when you can have a big surprise like that?

D-Generation X vs. Vince McMahon/Shane McMahon

Vince and Shane head back to the entrance and send out the Spirit Squad as the first line of defense. Superkicks, backdrops and Pedigrees abound, getting rid of the Raw Tag Champions (the cheerleaders) in less than fifteen seconds. DX beat the Spirit Squad about five times in this whole thing but never won the tag titles. I never quite got why.

Wrestlemania 23 is in Detroit.

Raw World Title: John Cena vs. Edge

We hit the chinlock for a good while until Cena breaks the hold with pure power. Cena hits a knee to the chest but walks into a big boot for two. Edge goes up top and fights off Cena so he can hit a top rope clothesline for two. Off to a camel clutch but Cena again powers out of it. Both guys are down so Lita sends in a chair. Edge picks it up before throwing it down out of fear in a cute bit. Cena initiates his finishing sequence but the FU is countered into the Impaler for two.

Edge goes up again but has to escape the FU off the ropes into an electric chair but Cena gets two off a victory roll. A middle rope cross body is rolled through into the FU but a Lita distraction makes Cena drop Edge. The champion is sent into his chick and Cena gets a close two off a rollup. A double clothesline puts both guys down until Edge rolls over for two.

Ratings Comparison

Rey Mysterio vs. Chavo Guerrero

Original: C+

Redo: C+

Big Show vs. Sabu

Original: C

Redo: D

Hulk Hogan vs. Randy Orton

Original: B

Redo: D

Mick Foley vs. Ric Flair

Original: B-

Redo: B

Batista vs. King Booker

Original: D

Redo: D

Vince McMahon/Shane McMahon vs. D-Generation X

Original: C-

Redo: B-

Edge vs. John Cena

Original: C+

Redo: B-

Overall Rating

Original: C+

Redo: C

Other than Hogan, not a lot changes here. This show pretty much is what it is.

http://kbwrestlingreviews.com/2011/08/09/history-of-summerslam-count-up-2006-hogan-and-dx-are-in-charge-are-we-in-1998/

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and pick up the paperback edition of KB’s History Of In Your House (also available as an e-book) from Amazon. Check out the information here:

http://kbwrestlingreviews.com/2019/05/31/new-paperback-kbs-history-of-in-your-house/


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


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Summerslam Count-Up – Summerslam 2006 (Original): There’s Something About This Show

IMG Credit: WWE

Summerslam 2006
Date: August 20, 2006
Location: TD Banknorth Garden, Boston, Massachusetts
Attendance: 16,168
Commentators: Jim Ross, Jerry Lawler, Michael Cole, Tazz, Joey Styles, JBL

So a few things have happened since last year, but a lot of the show is the same. DX is back, feuding with the McMahons, Edge has risen to prominence and is the WWE Champion, and Booker is now a British guy. Your main events are Booker vs. Batista and Cena vs. Edge, along with the DX vs. McMahon tag match. The other major difference is the return of ECW, which as usual has one match. This is far different than the ECW you see today, as the title match is Big Show vs. Sabu.

Hogan is here again, this time against Orton, while Flair and Foley are having an I Quit match, which would be Foley’s last big angle as he would leave for awhile very shortly after this, returning in about 9 months for a few appearances here and there before becoming commentator for about a month before leaving for TNA. That’s enough recap from me, so let’s do this. Oh one last thing. Angle would be released 5 days after this show and would debut for TNA about 5 weeks after this.

The opening video is generic to say the least. It’s just promos and clips from the three major feuds. I’m really disappointed in this.

The 6 announcers welcome us to the show which takes a few minutes. Lawler says that he’s the WWE’s original party animal which just amuses me.

Rey Mysterio vs. Chavo Guerrero

Remember how I said I was disappointed? That’s nothing compared to this. This contest is being held because these two have been fighting over who was closer to Eddie. This is nothing short of disgusting to me. Eddie passed away less than a year ago, and this isn’t even the first angle that was because of him. I get that he was a huge star, but you don’t need to use him to further storylines.

Chavo says that Rey is living off of Eddie’s legacy, which in reality he likely was as he got the world title at Mania, but that’s a different argument for a different time. They show video packages of both men’s relationships with Eddie as I feel like I’m in 5th grade. Seriously, this is like two 8 year old girls arguing over who someone’s real best friend is. However, the other friend just happens to be dead. See? No matter how you say that it’s not respectful or paying tribute. IT’S CREEPY.

Also, the whole Dominick storyline is completely omitted. In other words, thanks to the magic of WWE, the whole angle about Eddie trying to destroy Rey’s family and steal his son has been completely forgiven. And people wonder why WWE is criticized so much. Apparently Chavo is retired or something but this is a one night only event. If only that were true. As much as I can’t stand JBL in the ring, he’s pretty good on commentary.

It’s nice to have him out there as he was a wrestler far more recently than Tazz was. Chavo cost Rey the title. Thanks for mentioning that 3 minutes into the match. JBL makes an Arturo Gatti reference which is just weird to hear at this point. Chavo is complaining that Rey is trying to make a name off of Eddie. Yeah, I don’t need to criticize that. JBL calls Chavo’s comeback the biggest one since the resurrection. Again, don’t even need to make fun of that.

JBL goes on to say that these are two of Smackdown’s best. If this is one night only, wouldn’t that mean he’s not on Smackdown at the moment? Rey is having mask issues so we take a short break. Ok I like JBL. He’s actually really good at this. They both stand on the top rope and…just kind of jump off. Yeah that spot looked really stupid. Bradshaw keeps calling him Shavo which is getting annoying.

Yeah JBL is already getting annoying. If he says “He’s a Guerrero!” one more time I’m going to scream. Eddie was a groomsman at JBL’s wedding? How much do they want to break down the walls between reality and kayfabe? 619 but Chavo avoids the senton and they go to the floor. Vickie, now with about another 50 pounds on her and in full annoying mode heads to the ring and goes after Chavo for no apparent reason, slapping him.

The three amigos get Chavo booed out of the building. Cole calls a hurricanrana a headscisscors. Since Chavo got booed out of the building for the triple suplexes, Rey does them as well as everyone is being booed now. Rey goes up for a frog splash and Vickie tries to stop him, resulting him in him getting crotched. Chavo hits a suplex which is called a brainbuster, leading to the frog splash as Vickie screams to win it. Post match, they still won’t shut up about how it’s about family etc.

Rating: C+. The match was fine, but the rating is hurt a lot as this storyline is just flat out horrid. It’s completely disrespectful, and while it got both of the Guerreros jobs, it just wasn’t needed. There were about a dozen other ways to do this that wouldn’t be disrespectful at all, nor would they have ticked off the crowd. I hated this, but the wrestling was ok I guess. It would have been better if I had watched it muted.

Booker and Sharmell are in the back with Booker still being British, which is oddly a far better gimmick for him. He was completely generic as Booker T, but this is quite memorable. Edge and Lita come in and they argue about who the most powerful couple in wrestling is. That would be Vince and Linda.

This would lead to the triple threat challenge at Cyber Sunday which was all three championships on the line at the same time and was ended by Kevin freaking Federline. They make a bet about their title matches that didn’t mean anything at all in the end.

Ad for the best managers DVD. That’s a lost art in wrestling anymore.

It’s time for the ECW title match. The story is pretty simple: Big Show is ECW Champion and Sabu wants to be. Sabu won a ladder match against Van Dam on ECW to get this match, albeit with help from Show. Styles screams that this was VINTAGE ECW. Is this a running joke that we just never caught on to?

ECW Title: Sabu vs. Big Show

This is extreme rules, and for the ECW WORLD Title. Yes it was called a world title back then. For those of you that haven’t seen Sabu before, consider yourself lucky. He’s the epitome of everything that’s wrong with hardcore wrestling as his skills were limited at best and dangerous at worst. However, he was an extreme icon, so it’s all good. The ECW belt looks like a toy on Show. Within 5 seconds of the bell, Sabu has hit Show 4 times with a chair. That’s a good way of foreshadowing the match.

Show steps on it and crushes the chair which looks cool. This is more or less just Sabu using weapons and Show beating him up. It’s a simple formula but it’s working to an extent. The chair shots sounds SICK. If you think Hardy botches moves, he’s Bret Hart compared to Sabu. It’s table time, as Sabu is the guy that made them famous, far more so than the Dudleys who are more known for them.

Sabu gets him through the table which the more I think about it the more I think that it is nowhere near as great of a spot as it’s built up to be. A Vader Bomb pretty much kills the Arabian. Big Show brings in a table and stairs which is a cheap indy show name if I’ve ever heard one. Show sets up a tiny bridge with a table over two sets of stairs.

Sabu climbs on it and of course it falls over, so he sets it again as Show just looks at him. Naturally, he’s booed for it. Chokeslam through the table ends this, even though Sabu is on the table and therefore his shoulders are technically up, but why am I trying to use logic on a match like this?

Rating: C. It was a hardcore match with good chair shots. What are you really expecting here? It was fine for what it was, but it’s nothing special. Sabu as usual was just flat out horrid and Show didn’t have to do much. It was ok, as long as you don’t take it too seriously.

We see Layla winning the Diva Search. Yeah I don’t care either. In the divas locker room, Layla shows off her horrible acting skills while Trish yells at her for saying she doesn’t belong here. Truer words have never been spoken. Three years have passed and Layla still can’t do crap. Of course, in the end Trish is fine with it and everything is cool. They take her into the shower and spray her down with water. Yeah, it’s stupider than it sounds.

A band called the Teddybears did the theme song. Is there a point to these things that I’m missing?

We get a recap of Hogan vs. Orton, which is billed perfectly as legend vs. legend killer. These Hogan highlight packages are always cool. More or less all this happened for was to get Hogan’s reality show pushed and to promote Brooke. Orton hit on her and Hogan stopped him, resulting in Hogan getting RKOed on a car.

We also get highlights of all the legends that Orton hit with the RKO, which is a decent list I guess. We even got a parody complete with impersonators. More or less, this is Orton replacing Shawn, but lower on the card, as it should be.

Hulk Hogan vs. Randy Orton

Wow Hogan goes on third? That’s very surprising. Unless I’m overlooking something, this is Hogan’s last match to date in WWE. He appeared once other than this at the 15th anniversary where he fought off Khali, but other than that he’s been gone. You know it’s a good thing Vince is rich. He has to pay a lot of money for roofs. Hogan of course gets the legendary pop that he deserves. Ross of course mentions that Hogan has a bad knee. Hulk Hogan doesn’t get hurt you idiot.

Hogan definitely is looking smaller here, but he’s still muscular. The reaction for Hogan really is awesome. I love the old school merchandise like the towel and shirts. The entrance goes on forever just like the old school ones did. This is always fun and this is no exception. This is a much better reaction than he got last year and I think it’s because they got the formula right: Hogan vs. evil. That was the problem with Shawn.

He was still a face so why would we want to see Hogan beat him up? The fans didn’t buy it so while it worked, it wasn’t great. It’s weird seeing someone being taller than Orton. In a head scratcher, Hogan gets put in a headlock and goes down to one knee in just a few seconds. Everyone goes a bit blind as the headband goes off. They use an overhand wristlock and it looks decent. I’m quite surprised. Other than shoving Orton at the beginning, it’s been all Orton.

Dang it why is it that every time I say that the comeback begins? Hogan gets on the second rope and punches him, which for some reason surprises JR. It’s not like this is a new thing for him. He hits a clothesline with authority, which is another term that’s never made sense. How can a clothesline have authority? Can it give you an infraction while you try to start a resistance? The bias for Hogan and his rule breaking will never cease to amuse me.

In a weird time, they mention that the fans from the old AWA days remember the times when he refused to obey the rules. Why not just go with the time he was a heel in the far more famous WCW? Maybe there’s something to that theory of WWE never mentioning WCW because they know it’s better. Orton finally goes for the knee which is what makes sense all along, as given away by the massive knee braces on both legs.

They finally mention that Hogan was the main event of Summerslam 90, which I’ve long since theorized. Apparently Orton is craving to be loved. Thank you Sigmund Ross. Orton slides under the big boot just like Shawn did last year and hits the picture perfect dropkick. Screw Bob Holly. Orton’s dropkick is perfect. Now here we have something that makes me change my mind about a lot of the criticisms that Hogan gets.

Randy hits the RKO and covers, and Hogan doesn’t kick out. He puts his foot on the rope. That’s very subtle but when you think about it, that’s a huge show of respect to Orton. Of all of the big finishers that Hogan has been hit with over the years, I’ve never seen him not kick out of it with that big power move. He didn’t power out of the RKO. He had to use the weaker kickout. That’s a huge show of support for the young kid and it makes him look dominant.

The thing is they never mentioned it as a big deal, despite it being one of the biggest rubs that Hogan has ever given anyone. Anyway, Orton celebrates because he thinks that he’s beaten the legend himself and maybe he has a right to, but Hogan’s foot didn’t go unnoticed by the referee despite the announcers being completely oblivious to it.

Hogan staggers to his feet and limps around in a circle shaking his head which is a truly sad sight to see in my eyes as he just doesn’t have the physical strength anymore to do it the way he used to. We all know how this is going to go. Hogan circles Orton, shakes a finger in his face, kicks him in the head and after about 15 seconds, drops the leg for the pin.

I love how nonchalant Hogan is after the legdrop, as if to say yeah I know he’s not getting up for a month. Lawler marks out like an 8 year old for this and I love that. If this were anyone else I’d hate it but in this case it’s fine as this is Hulk Hogan. He’s the greatest ever and he should be treated as such. As Hogan celebrates we see a guy with a tattoo of Hogan all over his entire back. That’s either creepy or awesome.

Rating: B. This is exactly what a modern Hogan match is supposed to be. You have a young guy that is kind of proven but not quite and he just can’t beat Hogan despite getting close. Now some of you again might say that Hogan didn’t give Randy the rub here, but on a closer look he did.

That lack of a kickout of the RKO was in reality was huge. It made Orton look like a monster because it was enough to stop the super kickout from Hogan, which no other move has ever done in history. That’s about as big of a rub as you could give.

We see a big party that was held yesterday announcing the debut of 24/7. Kennedy is there, which amuses me.

Foley is in the back and Melina comes up and hugs him. Now this was a very interesting storyline that I wish had been given more time to develop. Flair had run down Foley in his book and Foley did the same. There was a real life feud between these two but they’ve since patched things up. Melina was a real life friend of Foley who was stuck in the middle of this for some reason. They had agreed to an I Quit match here after having a pretty bad one at Vengeance.

Ric Flair vs. Mick Foley

Sweet goodness Lillian is amazing looking. Foley brings in some weapons with him. It’s weird seeing Foley more or less as the heel and Flair as the face. There is legit animosity between these two which always helps things get better. Foley jumps him and it’s on. Running knee to the face in the first ten seconds from Foley. And then he does it again with the garbage can.

Mandible Claw goes on and Flair is down. This is more or less a squash almost but Foley grabs the mic and says make it easy on yourself and say it’s over. Naturally it’s not over and Foley gets barbed wire. On his alternate commentary from his DVD, Foley says he felt he didn’t have aggression here and he felt bad about it. Flair wraps barbed wire around his hand and CHOPS FOLEY. This left a HUGE scar on his chest that he shows on the DVD and it’s awful looking.

Barbed wire board is rammed into the face of Flair and he slides under the ring to blade I think. Oh yeah he’s busted open. The fans want tables. Something I’d like to do here is time how long between that chant starting and the amount of time before they’re introduced. Teasing them like that is a great idea as we have to wait for awhile instead of instant gratification.

Barbed wire board dropped on Flair results in him shouting obscenities to Foley. Foley busts out the tacks as there hasn’t been much of anything from Flair here. Flair is slammed onto the tacks for the second time in about two weeks after Show did it to him on ECW recently. Dang there are a ton of tacks in Flair’s arms.

Time for the barbed wire bat here. Flair is bleeding like crazy at this point. And now Flair sends him into the post and beats his arm with the bat. Foley is apparently wearing a Japanese Cactus Jack t-shirt. BIG bump as Foley is on the apron and Flair gets a running start with the bat and sends Foley to the floor and he bangs his head on the concrete. Cue Melina down to the ring to check on Foley who is out and the referee stops it.

Ok never mind as Flair decides that’s not enough so we’re going to keep going. Flair says he didn’t say I Quit so we keep going. He beats on Foley even more until Melina throws the towel in for him and says he quits. Foley still didn’t say I Quit so I don’t get why Flair would accept that either. Oh ok he didn’t. Foley quits seconds later I think after Flair threatens to hit Melina.

Rating: B-. On Foley’s DVD he does commentary for this match and he says that it wasn’t a very good match despite having a massive scar on his chest from the barb wire spot. He said that he never really took this as far as he could have to make it a truly bloody classic, but he thought it was ok. I would have to disagree with him to an extent though as it was at least decent.

Having Melina play into the equation at the end was a great move, despite her turning on Foley and having him fired less than a week later. I also really like the false ending as it makes you wonder how far they’re going to take this one.

Vince and Shane are in the back with Estrada. They more or less say that Umaga will be backing them up tonight. JBL gets in one of the best secretive lines you’ll ever hear as he calls him Armando Ali Baba Estrada. Back in OVW, Estrada played an Iranian character named Osama. That’s a very nice little inside joke.

Smackdown World Title: Booker T vs. Batista

There’s no buildup here other than Booker is champion and Batista never actually lost the title but had to drop it due to injury. Booker’s wife just does nothing but shout “All hail King Booker!” over and over. JBL’s sucking up is quite humorous. She’s at 11 times already. After 15 of them, we finally get Booker’s entrance. Isn’t that in essence a jobber entrance? He’s already in the ring when his announcement is made. Yep, Booker gets no respect.

Batista gets a solid pop but nothing mind blowing. This was one of three consecutive Smackdown PPV main events involving these two, so you really don’t have to think that hard about why there were jokes about how repetitive these shows were. If I remember right these two had a legit fight backstage at some point and Booker beat up Batista with relative ease.

They botch a spinkick spot but I’m not sure who is to blame. Booker throws the kick but Batista wasn’t there so they had to have him keep spinning. It didn’t look that good. We get a loud and long boring chant as the first 2-3 minutes of this is primarily Booker having Batista in a chinlock. Batista is quite rusty here which is certainly playing a role here. Booker hits him with the scepter on the floor, which means Batista is moving even slower than he was before and that’s saying a lot.

Back in to an arm hold, which is the same thing as a chinlock in essence. The crowd chants she’s got herpes at Sharmell. This is just amusing. Booker gets crotched by missing a kick, so Batista, ever the strategist and in ring general, picks him up and drops him the same way over another rope. What’s the point of that? Couldn’t he do something more original than that?

Booker hits a missile dropkick which used to be his finishing move in WCW, yet here is just a run of the mill move and the same thing happens with the Book End. JBL makes a bowling analogy which makes me shake my head. Batista hits a jackhammer which Booker pops up from. I love how neither of these guys have an original move to save their life.

Batista hits a bad full nelson slam to set up the power bomb. Sharmell runs in and slaps Batista for the DQ. Yes that’s actually the finish they went with. Post match Batista beats up Booker and BADLY botches the Batista Bomb. He barely got him up and it looked like he was trying to use it on Khali.

Rating: D. For the second year in a row Batista has the worst match of the night. It was barely over 10 minutes long, it was about 4 and a half minutes of rest holds, and the finish was completely stupid. Batista botches so much out there that it was just horrid. If you want to know where the stigma of Batista sucks comes from, I present to you Exhibit A. This was just flat out awful all around and felt like it belonged on Smackdown.

Jeff Hardy is coming to Raw.

DX is talking to someone who we can’t see and they tell him that Vince said Umaga is the biggest monster in the company.

Recap of DX vs. the McMahons and the feud that Satan is afraid of. This feud went on ALL summer and produced only a handful of decently funny moments. It was way too long and was stupid, primarily as it was DX vs. the Spirit Squad, who were tag champions at the time.

Despite beating them about 5 times, DX never won the tag titles. Why that’s the case is beyond me. It might be because they couldn’t have two major stars as champions. That couldn’t happen. We need our male cheerleaders blast it!

Vince McMahon/Shane McMahon vs. DX

In case you’ve forgotten it, Shawn made his Summerslam debut in a 6 man tag in 1989. Just thought I’d remind you because JR has only said it at the last three Summerslams. We get the traditionally way too long DX intro. Good night Lillian looks great. HHH says that we need to get ready to suck it. Shawn says if you’re not down with that, they’re going to tell you to suck it. Well I’m glad we’ve got so many choices to pick from.

To say JR doesn’t like Vince is an understatement. Apparently one day Vince will run a hostile takeover of the afterlife. Spirit Squad runs out and uses their trampoline to come in. Two backdrops, a toss over the ropes, Sweet Chin Music and a Pedigree later they’re gone and HHH has a new sweatband. Finlay, Regal and Kennedy run out to beat on DX. The McMahons haven’t even left the stage yet in case you were wondering.

While the club from Finlay would usually drop Khali, since it’s used on DX, it has little effect at all. Big Show is here now and as they try to fight him, we finally have some logic as the other EIGHT GUYS that DX beat up finally wake up and help out, so it’s 9 on 2 here with the McMahons still to come. See, this is the first time ever that I can recall where Vince finally had a brain and realized he owned an army of guys to beat up whomever he was feuding with at the time.

He’d always send one at a time. You own the company Vince. Send out 10 guys at once or something to beat the other dude up. See how effective it can be? I really feel sorry for Styles and Tazz as they’ve been sitting there all night doing nothing after calling a single match. That’s just stupid. Why not have them sit up near the entrance so they can at least go sit in the back after their match? HHH goes through the ECW table as Vince and Shane finally are in the ring.

JR is really getting annoying with this running Vince down. We finally have a bell. It’s Vince against Shawn to start. Ross calls the heels the money maniacs. That’s like the main event of Summerslam 88 from my nightmares. HHH is still on the floor from the chokeslam through the table. HHH tries to get up but Shane hits a baseball slide to knock him onto JR and King. Ross flips HHH over as he’s ticked off about being covered by a big sweaty man.

The way it looked was just quite funny. Demolition Decapitator or whatever that move was called lands on Shawn. The McMahons hit a Hart Attack which is just appropriate being used on HBK. This is followed up by a Doomsday Device. This is actually kind of cool. Of course HBK kicks out though and this isn’t even surprising to the announcers. You have to love the power of kayfabe don’t you? Shawn finally gets a tag and HHH looks perfectly fresh.

Even Hulk Hogan thinks a comeback like this is stupid. JR says it’s adrenaline. I say it’s nonsense. As if 9 run ins weren’t enough, we make it a perfect ten as Umaga comes out. Oh wait it’s 11 since Estrada is with him. We now have 15 people in this match, not counting the referee and 4 announcers, all of which have been involved in this match. Counting Lillian, that’s 21 people that have been at ringside that we know the names of and have been involved in this match somehow.

Anyone else think that’s a lot? It turns out that the person DX was talking to was Kane who chases Umaga off to start their feud which, shockingly enough, Kane jobbed in. Shane sets up for Coast to Coast but Shawn…knees him in the leg I guess, to stop it. Of course it’s called Sweet Chin Music. It’s probably good that he did that as Shane would have been about a foot short. Vince takes both finishers to end this mess.

The recaps and celebration goes on for about two and a half minutes just to make sure we know that this was really a huge win for our triumphant heroes. Somewhere around JR’s 8th sports analogy for how amazing DX’s win is, the faces are finally about to leave the arena. Oh wait, we have MORE replays for you. To begin with, they set for their double pose but I think Shawn’s elbow is hurt as he can’t do the double bicep. He was holding it earlier after going ove the top rope with Shane.

They do a very good job of changing the camera angle for the Shane kick as it’s from behind Shawn now and therefore looks like he actually got the kick. That’s very smart and well done so points for that. Some big fat guy comes out about a foot and Shawn sort of acknowledges him, which I’d assume is someone saying to wrap this up as it’s over. I don’t think he was supposed to be on camera.

Rating: C-. This was a very hard one to grade as it’s just a mess. With more than ten people running in that aren’t involved in the match at all, it’s a hard one to grade. However, I’ll give them credit for FINALLY getting the idea behind Vince as the evil owner right. However, at the end of the day, there was too much going on here for it to be taken seriously. The flaw with this feud is simple: DX are former world champions, and Vince and Shane are businessmen.

There’s no reason to believe that the McMahons would have a chance at all here. Granted they got the theory correct by adding in a lot of people that know what they’re doing to make the feud more interesting. It was better than I’m making it sound, but it wasn’t great.

Kane actually helped out a lot here as he took away some of the ridiculous odds for DX. JR needs to shut up though, as for about 20 minutes he did nothing but talk about how great DX was and how evil the McMahons were. It’s one thing to mention it a few times, but he must have cracked the 20s in times he complained about it. It was completely annoying and WAY overdone.

Wrestlemania 23 is in Detroit.

Time for the final recap of the night as we look at Cena vs. Edge. They tried as hard as they could to make this an epic feud and they got as close as possible without actually getting there. Edge won MITB in 2005 and shocked the world by stealing the title in January after an Elimination Chamber win by Cena. I remember watching that match and texting a former friend of mine that was a diehard Cena mark. I told her the next day that Cena lost the title to Edge and she almost fell over.

The reaction was great. Cena got the title back soon enough but Edge won it from RVD on Raw in July. Edge beat up Cena’s father 6 days prior to this, and Cena is the hometown boy here. We cut to the theme song of the show to get more clips from this feud, including the live sex celebration that as I’ve said a dozen times, was nothing special. It truly wasn’t. It was them moving around under a blanket and nothing more. Big freaking deal.

Raw World Title: Edge vs. John Cena

Apparently if Edge gets disqualified he loses the title. Cena gets a VERY mixed reaction. The main selling point here is Cena’s father, which makes a lot of sense actually. Lita needs to freaking cut her bangs. You have a hot face. Show it off. She’s Women’s Champion here which was her final reign I believe. Correction it’s her next to last reign as she would lose to Trish next month in Toronto so Trish could retire as champion.

Lita was gone in November, leaving the whole division completely destroyed, the issues of which are still being felt to this day. This is more or less standard stuff with Edge getting close to a bunch of count out wins. On one of these, Edge knocks Cena to the floor and Cena’s eyes are just hilarious. They’re bugged out all over the place as he looks like he just remembered that Christmas is tomorrow or some other cliché from a bad movie.

For some reason I have My Immortal by Evanescence stuck in my head. As you can tell, this match isn’t holding my attention that well. Fans are solidly behind Edge it would seem. You have to love that in Cena’s hometown he’s still not popular. This was the era that Cena was beginning to be truly despised by a lot of fans in, as he was just constantly shoved down our throats, and it would only get worse as the year long title reign was coming.

However, I think those criticisms are unfair for one simple reason: who else was the title going to go on? HHH would be injured in just a few months, HBK lost to Cena at Mania before feuding with Orton and would leave for knee surgery (which had to be legit. It’s an HBK knee injury after all), and Cena was feuding with Edge right here. In short, who was there left to put the belt on, Umaga? See what I mean? There were no other choices other than for Cena to hold the title.

We get a Cena chant that is a lot stronger than I think it actually was if that makes sense. Cena starts his huge comeback of all his standard stuff, complete with an STFU. Lita sets up with the belt to hit Cena but Edge says no as it would cost him the title. She slips him some brass knucks after he makes the ropes though. FU is countered and Edge nails him in the back of the head with the brass which sounds awesome to end it and the show.

Rating: C+. This was fine, but just fine. It’s nothing epic at all despite what the announcers would like you to believe. There really wasn’t a solid main event this year and it showed bad. This would probably be the best choice for it though, as there’s not a lot that would have topped this.

Either way, the match was just ok, but it felt like the title should have changed here. It would change the next month in Toronto as Cena was booed out of the building, so why wait? Why not have Cena get the big win here in his own hometown? Either way, this was ok but nothing great.

Overall Rating: C+. This show is the epitome of slightly above average. Everything on it is just ok. There isn’t a big moment or a big match that makes it jump off the page at you, as Flair and Foley or Cena/Edge is probably the match of the night by pure default. It’s an ok show and watchable, but it’s nothing great at all.

DX vs. McMahons was ok, but just ok. That’s the only thing I can think of to describe any of the matches on here: ok, but just ok. It’s nothing special at all and because of that, it’s right in the middle of recommended and not recommended. Some might like it but others will be bored out of their minds.

 

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and pick up the paperback edition of KB’s History Of In Your House (also available as an e-book) from Amazon. Check out the information here:

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Thought Of The Day (It’s Been Awhile): Double Major In Chemistry

You know what’s impressive about Steve Austin?A question I’ve been asked before is what is something I’ve learned in my time reviewing wrestling.  One of the biggest is just how incredible of a talent Steve Austin really was.  He is one of the few total packages in wrestling, but something about him doesn’t get the credit it deserves.

There is little denying that Austin and the Rock may have the best main event chemistry of all time (it’s certainly in the top handful).  However, how many people can say they have that kind of chemistry with two people?  Austin and Rock have some incredible chemistry, but Austin’s chemistry with Vince McMahon might be even better.

Off the top of my head, I can’t think of anyone ever who meshed with two people at such a high level as Austin.  That’s one of the more impressive feats you can have and Austin made it look easy.




Monday Night Raw – January 29, 2001: Even The Contract Signings Are Cool

IMG Credit: WWE

Monday Night Raw
Date: January 29, 2001
Location: Mellon Arena, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
Attendance: 13,449
Commentators: Jim Ross, Jerry Lawler

So I just did the Smackdown from the week before so now we’ll see the followup for the sake of continuity. We’re coming off the Royal Rumble and on the way to No Way Out, meaning Steve Austin vs. HHH/Vince McMahon is currently the top story. That’s not the worst place in the world to be and this is a pretty strong time for the company. Let’s get to it.

Opening sequence.

Here’s hometown hero and WWF Champion Kurt Angle to open things up. Angle brags about being the most valuable sperm donor in town, Angle shows us a clip from last year where he declared himself Pittsburgh’s hometown hero in this very arena. He even told Mario Lemieux to come back to the Pittsburgh Penguins, which Lemieux did in the year in between. You can imagine the gloating off that one, but Angle would rather talk about tonight’s fatal four way for a title shot this week on Smackdown.

Angle omits the Rock from the list of participants so here’s Rock to interrupt. Rock didn’t like being left out so he’s here to set things straight. First of all, Rock doesn’t quite agree with Angle taking credit for Lemieux return, leading to a string of various swearing and insults. With the mean things out of the way, Rock has some footage of his own, which suggests that Angle likes….pizza. Angle freaks out and Rock shows us a local pizza ad from a few years ago with Angle watching pizza toppings wrestle. Ok yeah it’s goofy, but Rock was in a series of Chef Boyardee commercials in 1999 with the jingle Gettin Cheffy With It.

Back in the arena, Rock asks about Angle saying it doesn’t matter who is in the four way, setting up the IT DOESN’T MATTER what doesn’t matter line. Rock promises to win tonight and then take the title on Thursday but here’s Big Show (also in the four way) to jump Rock from behind. Angle is very pleased as Show hits a big clothesline, but a point from Show makes the nerves go right back up.

The XFL is coming in five days. On my birthday no less.

Tag Team Titles: Dudley Boyz vs. Edge and Christian

The Dudleys are defending but Edge and Christian come out in street clothes. As I try to figure out what street they could possibly be from, Christian says Edge is sick with food poisoning he got last week at Smackdown. He even has a note from a “real professional doctor.” They have replacements though.

Tag Team Titles: Dudley Boyz vs. Kaientai

The Dudleys are still defending and Kaientai promise to win by the power of Grayskull. Edge and Christian sit in on commentary (JR: “Oh goody. Hot dog.) as D-Von sends Funaki face first into the top turnbuckle. Bubba punches Taka in the face as we look at commentary for a rather annoying trope. D-Von drops his good looking legdrop for two on Funaki as Edge and Christian insist that they are NOT scared of the Dudleys.

The reverse inverted DDT slam gets two on Taka and it’s off to Bubba to clean house, despite the team being firmly in control before the tag. What’s Up hits Funaki and it’s an electric chair drop into a neckbreaker (that’s a new one) to Taka. That’s enough to draw Edge in for a spear on D-Von and the Canadians bail. Funaki gets the least intriguing near fall in a long time and it’s the 3D to retain the titles.

Rating: D. Well they tried, though it wasn’t the most thrilling match any way you looked at it. There is only so much you can do to make me believe that Kaientai is a real threat to the Dudleys and the titles so this was about as good as it was going to get. If nothing else, Edge and Christian vs. the Dudleys will be great, as always.

Vince promises a match tonight for the #1 contendership when HHH and Stephanie storm in with an attorney named Brian Gerwitz (ha). HHH is worried about the contract signing but Vince has it covered.

Rock left the medic’s room earlier after refusing treatment.

Billy Gunn is worried about Chyna but wants her to get better and move forward with everything else going on in her life.

Val Venis vs. Steve Blackman

The Right To Censor is trying to get rid of Steve’s weapons. Therefore, Blackman has a full bag of them. Blackman strikes away to start until a belly to back suplex gets Venis out of trouble. Steven Richards gets in a few cheap shots on the floor because that’s what he’s supposed to do in a match.

There’s a whip into the steps to make it worse for Blackman as this is almost one sided so far. Back in and we hit the chinlock with Ivory shouting that violence is unacceptable. Blackman fights up and kicks him in the ribs, setting up a snap suplex for a breather. The comeback is shortlived though as Richards gets in a cheap shot from the floor, allowing Venis to get a rollup for the pin.

Rating: D. There’s an idea to the Right To Censor but at the same time there was only so much that could be done when their biggest star was either the Goodfather or Venis. Struggling to beat Steve Blackman isn’t a good sign either and the lack of a top star was a reason why the team never went anywhere. That and the fact that they weren’t supposed to.

Post match Blackman clotheslines Venis and beats up Richards. Bull Buchanan runs in for the save but Hardcore Holly makes the real save with some weapons. He throws Blackman some nunchucks and the beatdown is on in a hurry. Holly and Blackman tease a fight but agree to settle it over a warm cup of tea instead.

Tough Enough video submissions, including Josh Lomberger (Matthews).

Vince is on the phone with someone who is recovering and suggests massages. William Regal comes in with a cup of tea because it can relieve Vince’s stress. Vince seems pleasantly surprised.

Video on HHH vs. Steve Austin. HHH was revealed as the mastermind behind Austin being run over by a car back in 1999 and then cost him the WWF Title. Austin cost him the title at the Royal Rumble and then won the Rumble later in the night. They need one more match, and they’ll do that at No Way Out.

HHH rants about how he can’t trust anyone in this.

Austin says he’ll sign and he’ll even do it first.

Here’s Vince to emcee the contract signing. Vince talks about the hatred between the two and says the stipulations for the match are to be determined. However, there can be no violence between the two of them until No Way Out, unless it is in a sanctioned match. If HHH attacks Austin, he is suspended for six months. If Austin attacks HHH, he loses his WWF Title match at Wrestlemania.

HHH (with Stephanie and attorney) and Austin both come out and sit down as the fans are rather mean to Stephanie. Hold on though as Austin needs some beer. They stare each other down and Austin signs without saying anything. HHH’s attorney has to read the contract again and there’s something that HHH doesn’t like. We pause for some reading and Austin isn’t happy.

HHH signs….and hits Austin in the head with the metal briefcase. The beatdown is on as everyone is freaking out about the suspension. The Pedigree lays Austin out and Vince tells HHH that he’s been suspended for six months. Actually that’s not true…..because HHH didn’t actually sign. NOW he signs and gets in a gem with “Paragraph 3:16 says you can’t touch me.” I’ve always liked this segment.

The XFL is coming in five days.

Post break, here’s what you just saw before the break.

HHH and Stephanie left during the break but did make sure to pop out of the sunroof for some bragging.

APA vs. Hardy Boyz vs. Right To Censor

The winners get a title shot on Smackdown and that would be Buchanan and Goodfather for the RTC. It’s a brawl to start before the RTC even gets here with Jacqueline and Lita fighting on the ramp. With that broken up, the RTC comes in and it’s Buchanan attacking Matt to start. Everything breaks down in a hurry with Jeff missing the Whisper in the Wind. Bradshaw Clotheslines Buchanan with Goodfather making a save. That’s enough to allow Jeff to drop the Swanton for the pin and the title shot in a hurry.

Rock confirms that he will be in the four way because all Show did was tick him off. Payback is guaranteed.

Big Show laughs.

Hardcore Title: Raven vs. Crash

Crash is challenging and has Molly Holly in his corner. Raven brings his shopping cart full of weapons and uses it to knock Crash off the ramp. A tricycle toss misses Crash and they’re already in the crowd. Crash dives off the balcony with an ax handle and catapults Raven into a sign. They head into the concourse with JR and King using the time to plug the XFL. Raven throws a mop bucket at him and gets sent into a wall for his efforts.

Some kind of cart crushes Raven against the wall and Crash dives through the cart to take him down again. They head outside for a bulldog onto a park bench but Raven kicks Molly away before she can crotch him against a tree. Crash does it on his own but a masked woman jumps out of a car and saves Raven. Molly goes after her and gets thrown down, allowing the masked woman to hit Crash in the back so Raven can steal the pin.

Rating: C. This was pretty entertaining for a hardcore match as they were trying out there. You can only get so far in a match like this if you just hit each other with stuff so going out of the ring and trying something new is the way to go. The tree part was funny and the kind of thing you need some creativity to do and it worked out well here.

Raven and the woman (never revealed but I believe it was going to be Tori) drive off.

Chris Benoit isn’t worried about the four way.

Undertaker vs. Haku

Kane and Rikishi are here as seconds. They waste no time in slugging it out with Undertaker hitting a big boot into the legdrop for two. Old School already connects but Undertaker goes outside to beat up Rikishi. The distraction lets Haku get in a few shots and “slam” Undertaker down by the head (Haku seemed to lose the grip and Undertaker fell by himself). Back up and the jumping clothesline puts Haku down again and the jumping DDT has more effect than you might expect. Rikishi and Kane get in a fight on the floor to break up the Tombstone….so Undertaker hits a chokeslam to win a few seconds later instead.

Rating: D. Just a bunch of hitting each other until the finish here, which isn’t the most thrilling match in the world. Then again, the Brothers of Destruction against Rikishi and Haku isn’t the most interesting match either. Rikishi isn’t an imposing main eventer and Undertaker just beat Haku in four minutes. Where is the threat here?

Post match Rikishi chairs Undertaker in the head to bust him open but he’s right back up to clear the ring with Kane’s help.

Post break Undertaker thinks there is too much talking going on so now it’s time to fight. Let’s have a First Blood match on Smackdown. Undertaker: “I like to bleed. It turns me on!”

Dean Malenko, a real ladies’ man, is at WWF New York and can’t stand being away from Lita much longer. They’ll be back together real soon and the Hardys won’t come between them again.

Lita vs. Jacqueline

Ivory is on commentary as the winner faces her on Smackdown. They start fast with a Cactus Clothesline putting them both on the floor as Ivory accuses JR of fantasizing about him. Apparently big JR fans, Jacqueline and Lita dive onto Ivory and the match is thrown out in a hurry. Lita’s music plays but she didn’t seem to win.

We look at the contract signing again, with HHH apparently only signing one H before attacking Austin. That might be stretching the legal definition of not signing. One thing I always appreciate: they keep saying February 25 as the date of the show. Not “four weeks from now” or “at No Way Out”. It’s a definitive date so you know when the show is taking place. Why is that so much to ask?

Chris Jericho vs. Chris Benoit vs. Big Show vs. The Rock

Benoit breaks up the cover but Show is right there to beat up everyone else. Jericho’s high crossbody is pulled out of the air but Benoit comes in to cut Show down. Rock comes back in for his clotheslines and Show gets tossed outside. That’s fine with Benoit, who snaps off a German suplex to Rock. The Swan Dive only hits mat and Rock’s Samoan drop gets two.

Show comes back in and gets DDTed but Rock has to go outside to deal with Jericho. Rock comes back in to break up the Crossface and the Lionsault hits Benoit for two. Jericho tries the Walls on Rock but Show grabs him by the throat. Benoit kicks Show low and the Canadians send Show outside, leaving Rock to Rock Bottom Benoit for the pin and the title shot.

Rating: B. That was a very fast match but they packed a lot into it and didn’t bother wasting time. Why bother doing anything more than exactly what the fans want to see here? There’s no need to build it up as anything more than what it was: four people giving it all they had to become the #1 contender, which is what you should be trying to do almost all the time.

Angle tells Rock to bring it to end the show.

Overall Rating: C+. It continues to amaze me how much easier these old shows are to watch. There’s an energy to them and they get through things so quickly without having the show drag. That and there’s not a ton of comedy to them. Not everything needs to have some kind of a joke included and they realized that here. It’s an entertaining show that made me want to see more, with the contract signing even having a good twist included. Well done, and it wasn’t even that great of a show.

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Smackdown – January 25, 2001: Speed It Up A Little

IMG Credit: WWE

Smackdown
Date: January 25, 2001
Location: Mobile Civic Center, Mobile, Alabama
Commentators: Michael Cole, Jerry Lawler

This is the first of two shows that someone asked me to review in a row and since I’ve gone nuts covering stuff in advance this week, I might as well get to the first of them. We’re just past the Royal Rumble and coming up on No Way Out, meaning Wrestlemania is just around the corner. Things are getting awesome again and hopefully that’s the case here. Let’s get to it.

We open with a look back at last week, where Steve Austin cost HHH the WWF Title. HHH was ready to blast Austin with the sledgehammer but WWF Champion Kurt Angle came out to say he cost HHH the title. A fight was teased with Angle calling him monkey boy. Trish Stratus came out and challenged Stephanie McMahon for a bonus. After some, ahem, convincing from Trish, Vince agreed to make a mixed tag. Stephanie and Trish beat each other up until HHH Pedigreed Trish to give Stephanie the pin. Austin came out and beat up HHH to end the show. And now you’re caught up on the main event, which you never get today.

Opening sequence.

Undertaker vs. Rikishi

Ah the days of main event heel Rikishi. The brawl starts on the floor with Undertaker sending Rikishi head first into the steps but stopping to glare at the referee. They get in for the first time with a running clothesline in the corner rocking Rikishi again. Old School connects but Rikishi runs him over and drops a big leg. Undertaker is right back up with the jumping clothesline for two of his own before it’s back to the right hands. There’s the running DDT but Haku (Rikishi’s partner) comes in for the DQ.

Post match the beatdown is on with a double headbutt dropping Undertaker. Rikishi sits on his chest but here’s Kane for the save. Undertaker isn’t sure what to think of Kane before raising his hand.

A ticked off Vince arrives in the limo and yells at the driver for making him 20 minutes later. That’s early around here. Vince fires the driver anyway.

Here’s Vince in the arena to blow off some steam. Notice something here: we’re about 20 minutes into the show and we’ve had a long recap (longer than necessary but fine) and a match. We didn’t spent fifteen minutes settling into the show and kill the buzz right off the bat. Why is that so complicated? Anyway Vince complains about the driver again and says that believe it or not, there is intelligent life here in Mobile.

Now it’s time to complain about the dental situation but Vince stops to listen to the fans booing. With that out of the way, Vince talks about the mixed tag from Monday and isn’t happy about Angle manhandling Stephanie. Then to make it worse, Trish was driven CHEST FIRST into the mat by a Pedigree, all followed by Austin interfering again. To make sure that doesn’t happen again, Austin and HHH have the night off. Instead they’ll face off at No Way Out with the contract signing taking place on Monday.

As for tonight though, Angle needs to get out here RIGHT NOW. Angle comes out and talks about how much he respects him and even throws in a salute. We get an official apology for what happened to Stephanie and Trish but that’s not good enough. That’s why tonight, Angle is defending against Kane. And they’re out without some big explanation. Keep this stuff moving.

Jeff Hardy/Bradshaw vs. Matt Hardy/Faarooq

Well ok then. This is fallout from the Hardys brawling in the Rumble so they start against each other here. Jeff punches him to the floor but misses a dive as Lita and Jacqueline are watching in the back. Back in and Jeff jumps over Matt in the corner and dropkicks him in the back to take over. Jeff gets shoved off the top to set up the screaming legdrop and there go the shirts. The jawbreaker takes Matt down so it’s off to Bradshaw who gets two off a slam….with Faarooq making the save.

Now it’s the battle of the APA (King: “We’re about to experience Bar Wars!”) with Faarooq nailing the powerslam. They fight to the floor and Bradshaw gets sent into the steps. The ref has to take a chair away from Faarooq so it’s a spinebuster to drop Bradshaw instead. There’s no cover though, allowing Bradshaw to hit the Clothesline for a double knockdown. Jeff tags himself in and the Hardys double team Faarooq, with Matt hitting the Twist of Fate into the Swanton for the pin. King: “Are the Hardys drunk?”

Rating: D. Well that’s a thing that happened and actually it made me want to see the APA have a one off hoss fight. It’s likely to be more entertaining than the various Hardys matches over the years. The ending at least made sense as the Hardys are going to be more about each other than themselves so everything is fine. Well not the match but everything else.

Tough Enough video auditions in the days before digital cameras. Included: Justin Roberts.

Vince is on the phone with someone (presumably Trish) and tells her to just stay in bed and get better. Linda’s doctor calls in and Vince tells him to double her medication. Vince sees HHH arrive and gets off the phone.

Post break Vince wants to know why HHH is here. HHH thinks Austin will be here because things happen. Like what happened to a certain lady on Raw. HHH wants to know which lady Vince is more worried about. Vince throws him out.

We look at the still incredible Chris Benoit vs. Chris Jericho ladder match from the Rumble.

Here’s the Rock to do commentary on the next match.

Intercontinental Title: Chris Jericho vs. Big Show

Jericho is defending while being very banged up after winning the title on Sunday. It’s weird seeing Show slim after his stint in OVW where he lost a ton of weight. Jericho charges in to start and is gorilla pressed onto his face for a crash. Show goes after him and gets his throat snapped across the top rope to give Jericho an opening.

A ribs first ram into the post keeps Jericho down as the fans chant for Rock. The bearhug goes on (well duh) for a bit until Jericho slips out and goes for the knee in a smart move. A Walls attempt is easily blocked by a hand around the throat and the Final Cut (Eye of the Hurricane)….draws in Chris Benoit to go after Show for the DQ.

Rating: D+. This didn’t have time to go anywhere and Jericho couldn’t do much against someone that big. What we got wasn’t too bad though and they could have done something better with the right amount of time. That being said, Jericho wasn’t about to lose the title so soon after winning it in such a great match just a few days earlier.

Post match Show gets rid of Benoit and goes after Rock, who hits him in the head with the title. Jericho’s forearm off the apron sets up the Rock Bottom on the floor to leave Show laying.

Austin is here. I’m shocked too.

HHH looks around the room where Austin just was but no one has seen him. Threats ensue.

K-Kwik vs. Tazz

That would be R-Truth, who is basically the same person he would be about eighteen years later (minus the insanity). Kwik starts fast (quickly you might say) and kicks Tazz in the face, followed by a missile dropkick for two. Tazz is right back with a t-bone Tazplex for two of his own, followed by a hard clothesline. Some slaps (called punches) have Tazz in trouble and there’s a powerslam, but here’s Kaientai for the overdubbed voices (those still make me laugh). They’re impressed by Kwik’s funky hair and the distraction lets Tazz grab the Tazmission for the win.

Post match Kaientai admits that they distracted Kwik on purpose, due to reasons of EVIL.

We look at Drew Carey’s time at and in the Royal Rumble. Still one of the best celebrity cameos ever.

Austin is outside drinking beer.

Post break HHH goes to find him but there’s no Austin. The beer cans are still there though.

European Title: Test vs. Christian

Test is defending. Before the match, Christian says Edge is out with a stomach ache after eating the food here in Mobile (which he pronounces incorrectly). Since Alabama is stupid, Christian gives us a quiz: Test is either A, a Reekazoid, B, has more teeth than everyone in this city or C, is about to become the shortest reigning European Champion of all time. It’s D, all of the above (it always is).

Christian jumps him at the bell and bumps the referee, allowing him to miss a belt shot. Test gets in a shot to put him on the floor and there’s the full nelson slam but the ref is still down. Now the belt shot can connect for a slow two and frustration is upon up. Test’s always cool looking tilt-a-whirl slam sets up a faceplant for two more as they’re certainly moving out there. The pumphandle powerslam is broken up so Christian heads up, only to get backdropped down. Test’s big boot retains the title.

Rating: C. This was another short one (more on that later) but rather entertaining as I really liked Test at this point. He had the look, the power game and the athleticism to make himself something entertaining but after last year, there wasn’t anything else for him to do. This was as good as he was going to get and that’s not the worst place to be.

HHH sees Austin having a beer with Kaientai. Since there is no Austin after the break, HHH beats both of them up. Since they’re EVIL, does that make HHH a hero?

We look at Chyna injuring her neck in a match against Ivory at the Royal Rumble. That earned her a stretcher job and a ride in an ambulance. She currently has bone fragments in her neck, which have to be removed.

Hollys vs. Right To Censor

That would be the same Right To Censor (Goodfather/Bull Buchanan for the team here) who were very pleased with what happened to Chyna. The hometown Hollys have Molly with them to counter Steven Richards and Ivory. Crash gets taken into the wrong corner to start and the beating is on in a hurry. A powerslam takes him down again and Buchanan does his awesome rope walk clothesline (unfortunately that was the only thing he could do).

Some forearms are cut off by Goodfather’s elbow as King worries about Angle facing Kane tonight. The Ho train misses and it’s off to Hardcore for the house cleaning. The hanging kick between the legs (to the stomach of course) keeps Buchanan in trouble and Richards gets taken down. Buchanan is right back with a DDT on Hardcore but Ivory’s Women’s Title hits Buchanan by mistake, allowing Hardcore to get in the dropkick for the pin.

Rating: C-. See, now why is that so much to ask? The hometown guys get a win to make the fans happy and it’s a protected loss for the RTC as they have something going on. This is the kind of thing that can be done without ticking the fans off and it’s not like anyone outside of the live audience is going to remember this in a week.

HHH has been ordered to Vince’s office.

We recap the night, which seems a bit like filler.

HHH comes up to Vince, who didn’t send for him. They figure out that Austin is waiting in the office so Vince keeps talking as HHH looks behind those see thru screens that serve no purpose. Now given that they are see thru, Austin would be able to see HHH motioning for Vince to keep talking, but that’s beside the point, mainly because Austin followed them in. HHH accidentally hits Vince with a metal tray and Austin beats both of them up.

And now, here’s the same thing again.

WWF Title: Kurt Angle vs. Kane

Kane is challenging and Angle is scared to death. Before the match, Angle calls Kane out for his short title reign back in 1998. If Kane thinks he’s winning it back, his brain is more burned than his face. Angle insists that it is NOT a knock against burn victims, because he has a lot of fans who are burn victims! Angle’s belt shot misses (there have been a lot of those tonight) and the fight starts on the floor before the bell.

Kane throws him halfway inside for the bell and some elbows to the chest keep the champ in trouble. The threat of a chokeslam sends Angle to the ropes but we cut to the back to see Haku and Rikishi beating Undertaker down. Back in the arena, Kane doesn’t notice and hits a clothesline. Some suplexes just make Kane sit up a few times and a clothesline does the same. A backdrop sends Angle flying as he can’t do anything with the monster. Angle finally goes with a front facelock to slow him down but that doesn’t work either.

Instead Angle grabs a chair, which Kane kicks straight back into his face. There’s the side slam top drop Angle again and the top rope clothesline connects. Cue Haku and Rikishi though with the referee somehow not calling for the DQ. With the referee yelling at Rikishi, Haku chairs Kane twice and superkicks him down so Angle can retain.

Rating: C+. Not bad at all here and they even covered why Undertaker wasn’t out there. This was another protected loss and that’s the right move with someone as hot as Kane was coming off the Royal Rumble. Angle escapes with the title, which fits him perfectly, and the match was fine enough. It was well booked instead of being great, which is an acceptable way to go.

Post match Kane gets beaten down so here’s a beaten up Undertaker for the save. Another beatdown lets Rikishi and Haku stand tall to end the show.

Overall Rating: B. So why did this work so well? A lot of it would be how fast they kept things, which yes, does mean they kept the matches short. It’s ok to have a long match every now and then but when you’re having multiple fifteen minute matches every week, the fans aren’t going to keep paying attention. This show moved around very well and the big stories held it together. Of course the talent helped, but they kept thing flowing and that’s almost as important. Very fun show here and the followup should be good too.

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and pick up the paperback edition of KB’s Complete 2000 Monday Nitro and Thunder Reviews Part 1 (also available as an e-book) from Amazon. Check out the information here:

http://kbwrestlingreviews.com/2019/02/22/new-book-kbs-monday-nitro-thunder-reviews-volume-vii-january-june-2000/


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


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




Main Event – May 9, 2019: The 20% Solution

IMG Credit: WWE

Main Event
Date: May 9, 2019
Location: US Bank Arena, Cincinnati, Ohio
Commentators: Byron Saxton, Renee Young

Just when you think you know what is going on with this show, they throw you a curve ball of three matches last week instead of the regular two. That being said, after this week’s shows, WWE might be better off showing a bowling tournament here instead of the highlights. Let’s get to it.

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

Opening sequence.

Just two announcers this week, with Renee rocking a Miss Elizabeth shirt.

EC3 vs. Cedric Alexander

Cedric starts fast and takes EC3 down with a drop toehold, followed by the signature anklescissors. EC3 gets in a running clothesline in the corner and we hit the chinlock to slow things down. With that not working, EC3 hammers away at the head and goes with a seated full nelson to keep Alexander in trouble. The EC3 Elbow connects but the 1%er is escaped. Alexander’s springboard Downward Spiral gets two but he walks into the forward DDT for the same. That’s about it for EC3 though as it’s the Neuralizer into the Lumbar Check to give Alexander the pin at 5:23.

Rating: C-. Cedric is talented but the fact that he lost in his Raw debut and has been on Main Event since then isn’t a good sign for his future. It’s way too early to call him a failure or a lost cause or anything close to that, but this isn’t looking good so far. Hopefully he gets a chance, because he really is a talented performer.

From Raw.

Here’s Vince McMahon to get things going. Vince introduces himself but here’s Roman Reigns to cut him off. Cole: “Reigns is here on Monday Night Yard!” Vince threatens to have the Cincinnati police take care of Reigns if he tries another Superman Punch. Reigns talks about watching Vince’s spoiled kids ruining Raw while he was gone and now they’re doing it even though he’s back. He doesn’t take orders from Vince and his kids because he takes orders from the people.

If the people keep cheering him, he’ll show up every Monday. Vince says that can’t happen because it would be anarchy….and here’s Daniel Bryan for the first time since Wrestlemania. Bryan says he was robbed of the title at Wrestlemania and spent the last month in solitude. He’s been searching for answers….and here’s Kofi Kingston to interrupt. Vince shakes his head as Kofi talks about Bryan just wanting a title shot.

All he had to do was ask and an argument ensues, but Vince cuts them off. He sees all these people coming here and decides we need something called the Wild Card Rule. From now on, three people can come and go to both shows as they like (specifics aren’t given). Kofi thinks that’s what Vince had in mind from the first place but since Reigns is here, he figured he would come out here too. Bryan gets back to the point of wanting his title shot, but here’s Drew McIntyre to cut him off.

Drew says this isn’t Smackdown presents Raw and calls out Reigns for going to Smackdown to duck him. Reigns is an egomaniac who punches his boss in the face so it’s a Claymore for him right now. Reigns: “It didn’t work out for you at Wrestlemania.” Vince says hang on again and makes Reigns vs. McIntyre and Kofi vs. Bryan for the title. Vince: “I’M BRILLIANT!”

And from Raw again.

Roman Reigns vs. Drew McIntyre

Wrestlemania rematch. Reigns starts fast with the right hands in the corner but Drew clotheslines him down. A rather impressive dead life suplex sets up the chinlock to keep Reigns down. Back up and Reigns gets planted again, meaning it’s time to go to the floor for a posting. A big boot cuts off Reigns’ comeback and it’s the reverse Alabama Slam onto the apron.

We take a break and come back with Drew countering the Superman Punch into a spinebuster for two. The Glasgow Kiss gets two but Reigns comes back with a hard DDT for two of his own. They head outside with Drew sending him into the steps and hitting a swinging sitout Rock Bottom for two back inside. McIntyre goes up but gets Superman Punched out of the air to give Reigns his own near fall, setting up the spear. Cue Shane McMahon and Elias for the DQ at 14:27.

Rating: B-. Good match until the bad ending, but we had to get Shane involved somehow. It makes sense for the story, assuming you don’t mind Shane being in two feuds at the same time. These two had a heck of a fight though and that’s a good sign for McIntyre, who didn’t take the pin. That being said, what does it say when a guy like McIntyre is treated better than the champions?

Post match Miz comes in for the save and chases Shane off with a chair. Shane gets to his limo in the back but Miz is waiting on him with the chair. Shane fights back and gets away in the limo.

And hey it’s from Raw again.

Smackdown World Title: Kofi Kingston vs. Daniel Bryan

Kofi is defending and Bryan is back in the dark red gear. An early clothesline puts Bryan on the floor for the big dive over the top. Back with Kofi hitting a Vader Bomb from the middle of the ropes but getting kicked in the chest. Kofi fires off right hands in the corner but charges into a kick to the ribs to cut him off again.

The spinning kick to the head out of the corner doesn’t quite work and Bryan double underhooks him into an armbreaker. That’s broken up as well and a collision takes us to another break. Back again with Kofi being backdropped over the top and banging his head on the floor. He’s fine enough to avoid a whip into the steps and hit a spinning crossbody off the top to the floor for a double knockdown.

They get back in with the LeBell Lock going on until Kofi gets his feet in the ropes. Kofi slugs away and stomps Bryan in the corner, followed by a jumping clothesline. The Boom Drop connects but Trouble in Paradise is countered with a dropkick. Bryan gets two off a German suplex but can’t get the LeBell Lock. Instead it’s Trouble in Paradise to finish Bryan at 17:27.

Rating: B. These guys work well together and I’m a bit surprised by the clean ending with Kofi retaining. I’m glad that he did as I’m interested in seeing how long he can hold the title, but this should wrap up Bryan’s time chasing the belt. That opens up some fresh doors, and I’m glad they covered this instead of waiting around forever to get there. Good main event too.

It’s time for the Firefly Fun House where Mercy the Buzzard has something in a box. The witch wants to know what’s in there….and it’s the decapitated Rambling Rabbit. Bray declares this Mercy expressing himself as a bunch of kids, who aren’t laughing or smiling and look like they’re in a trance, sit by watching. That’s all the time we have for this week. It’s also probably the last time we’ll see a good one of these as you can see the complaints coming from here.

Peyton Royce vs. Nikki Cross

Nikki doesn’t seem impressed by Peyton to start and trips her down for a low dropkick. An armbar has Royce in trouble and a sleeper on her back makes things even worse. Peyton gets out and kicks her in the face as we take a break. Back with Royce posing on the apron, which gets a rather nice reaction.

Rating: C-. Not much to see here, other than Peyton of course. Cross losing against doesn’t look great for her future but given the promo she put up on YouTube, she might be in for a gimmick change anyway. I mean, why have something unique and different when you can have something already done and the same?

We look at the last few seconds of Daniel Bryan and Rowan winning the Smackdown Tag Team Titles.

Money in the Bank rundown.

From Smackdown to wrap things up.

Smackdown World Title: Kofi Kingston vs. AJ Styles vs. Sami Zayn

Kofi is defending and the fans tell Sami to take a shower. Sami gets knocked down to start and it’s an early middle rope Vader Bomb for two. AJ hits a gutbuster on Kofi and chops at Sami in the corner but Kofi is back with a rollup for two. With AJ staggered, Kofi goes up for the top rope splash to the back and the referee makes sure to check on him. A pair of clotheslines drop Sami and Kofi adds his jumping chop to Styles. There’s the Boom Drop to keep Styles down but Sami breaks up Trouble in Paradise.

We take a break and come back with Kofi chopping his way up but getting powerbombed by Sami. AJ comes back in and hammers on Sami in the corner until a rake to the face slows him down. The tornado DDT gives Sami two of his own and a heck of a top rope superplex gets the same on the champ. AJ catches Sami on top with a hurricanrana and a fireman’s carry backbreaker drops Kofi again. The moonsault DDT looks to drop Sami but Kofi grabs the SOS on AJ, who reverse DDTs Sami at the same time in a cool spot.

Rating: B. This was a bit longer than it needed to be but they had me on a few of those near falls from the Blue Thunder Bomb (all the more impressive given how rarely that gets a pin). Kofi is getting some collateral out of these wins and that’s a good idea for someone who isn’t considered the strongest champion in the first place. Good stuff here, and Kofi vs. Owens is getting a little stronger.

Overall Rating: C+. The original wrestling here was nothing as usual but the highlights made the five hours of nonsense from this week a lot easier to watch. The Wild Card Rule already seems to be crumbling before our eyes and that’s the best thing for everyone involved. It was a really bad week for WWE, but when you cut out about 80% of the content, it’s a lot easier to watch.

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and pick up the paperback edition of KB’s Complete 2000 Monday Nitro and Thunder Reviews Part 1 (also available as an e-book) from Amazon. Check out the information here:

http://kbwrestlingreviews.com/2019/02/22/new-book-kbs-monday-nitro-thunder-reviews-volume-vii-january-june-2000/


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


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




New Column: May-Be It’s Time To Change

I love punny titles like that one.

https://wrestlingrumors.net/tommyhall/kbs-review-may-be-its-time-to-change/




Monday Night Raw – May 6, 2019: The Quick Fix Is In

IMG Credit: WWE

Monday Night Raw
Date: May 6, 2019
Location: US Bank Arena, Cincinnati, Ohio
Commentators: Michael Cole, Corey Graves, Renee Young

WWE seems to already be hitting the panic switch as the shows are hitting some pretty low numbers. Therefore, Roman Reigns is back tonight to settle some unfinished and unspecified business. Normally it would make sense to advertise this more than a few days in advance and on television instead of online but WWE has never been one to plan ahead. Let’s get to it.

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

Here’s Vince McMahon to get things going. Vince introduces himself but here’s Roman Reigns to cut him off. Cole: “Reigns is here on Monday Night Yard!” Vince threatens to have the Cincinnati police take care of Reigns if he tries another Superman Punch. Reigns talks about watching Vince’s spoiled kids ruining Raw while he was gone and now they’re doing it even though he’s back. He doesn’t take orders from Vince and his kids because he takes orders from the people.

If the people keep cheering him, he’ll show up every Monday. Vince says that can’t happen because it would be anarchy….and here’s Daniel Bryan for the first time since Wrestlemania. Bryan says he was robbed of the title at Wrestlemania and spent the last month in solitude. He’s been searching for answers….and here’s Kofi Kingston to interrupt. Vince shakes his head as Kofi talks about Bryan just wanting a title shot.

All he had to do was ask and an argument ensues, but Vince cuts them off. He sees all these people coming here and decides we need something called the Wild Card Rule. From now on, three people can come and go to both shows as they like (specifics aren’t given). Kofi thinks that’s what Vince had in mind from the first place but since Reigns is here, he figured he would come out here too. Bryan gets back to the point of wanting his title shot, but here’s Drew McIntyre to cut him off.

Drew says this isn’t Smackdown presents Raw and calls out Reigns for going to Smackdown to duck him. Reigns is an egomaniac who punches his boss in the face so it’s a Claymore for him right now. Reigns: “It didn’t work out for you at Wrestlemania.” Vince says hang on again and makes Reigns vs. McIntyre and Kofi vs. Bryan for the title. Vince: “I’M BRILLIANT!” Hang on again though as here’s AJ Styles to interrupt as well.

Post break Styles and McMahon are alone in the ring with AJ talking about how he was on Smackdown for years and as soon as he comes here and goes after Seth Rollins, Reigns is back. Styles threatens to go to Smackdown and bring some friends, but Vince explains the Wild Card Rule again (clarifying that it could be three different stars on either show every week).

This brings out Rollins, who promises that AJ will never be one step ahead of him again. Seth points out that Smackdown was fine before AJ got there and it’s fine now that he’s gone. This is his show (Vince: “Actually it’s my show.”) but AJ says he knows exactly what he did last week. AJ promises to hit the Phenomenal Forearm and win the title at Money in the Bank. Seth is ready to fight right now but Vince says they’re teaming up tonight instead. Vince heads to the back to get a team ready.

Oh yeah the Brand Split is dying right before our eyes and that’s not the worst thing in the world. This is going to be a good short term fix but if they don’t address the bigger issues (champions losing, stupid stories designed to entertain Vince and the writers, stories that go on forever and pushing people that the fans don’t care about), none of this is going to matter in the long term. It stops the bleeding a bit, but doesn’t build anything back up.

AJ Styles/Seth Rollins vs. Bobby Lashley/Baron Corbin

I knew it was going to be Corbin, you knew it was going to be Corbin and the world knew it was going to be Corbin. An early shoulder knocks Seth down but he’s right back up with a dropkick to take Corbin down. Styles and Lashley come in with Seth applauding his partner’s headlock.

Everything breaks down and back to back dives have the villains in trouble as we take a break. Back with Rollins being sent outside and Corbin hitting a hard clothesline for two. AJ comes in but gets taken down by Lashley, who even knocks Seth off the apron and rams him into the barricade. We take another break and come back with Lashley getting two off a backdrop.

AJ fights back and brings Seth back in to pick up the pace again, including a suicide dive to Lashley. A double suicide dive takes out both Lashley and Corbin, followed by the Dean Ambrose top rope standing elbow for two on Corbin. AJ dropkicks Lashley through the ropes and Corbin takes the low superkick. Styles gets back on the apron and knocks Corbin into Rollins by mistake, setting up the Phenomenal Forearm to Seth. That’s it for AJ, who walks out on the match. End of Days finishes Rollins at 18:56.

Rating: C. And yet, they still don’t get it. Longer match than anyone was wanting it to be, featuring Baron Corbin, and the champ gets pinned (not clean, but still pinned). Have Seth get knocked to the floor for a countout or something. Why is that such a horrible idea to keep the champ from losing again? The villains are a disaster around here and that’s one of the biggest things holding the shows down. Give us someone we want to hate, not someone who makes us want to change the channel.

We look back at Shane McMahon choking Miz out last week.

Miz sits in front of Shane’s door until he arrives.

Here’s Sami Zayn for a chat. He talks about all the things that the fans are getting tonight and how excited they should be. Those fans are going to be happy with them for a few minutes but then they’re still the same people they’ve always been. Sami fixed himself but that took hard work that no one here is willing to try. The announcers talk over him as Sami calls the fans cowards.

This brings out Braun Strowman, who chases Sami to the back. The cameras follow them and Sami gets caught by a closed door. Sami throws some crates him and tries to escape as the door opens but gets pulled back and tossed in a dumpster. The world’s most convenient garbage truck shows up and dumps Sami inside. So to recap: Sami starts getting over as an uncool heel and literally gets thrown in the trash.

Lucha House Party vs. ???/???/???

A missile dropkick into the Salida Del Sol into the top rope elbow into the shooting star press gives Dorado the pin at 1:07.

We look at McIntyre vs. Reigns from Wrestlemania.

World Wish Day video.

Lacey Evans sends invitations to Natalya and Naomi to be at ringside for her match tonight. Formal ringside attire is required. Oh and the invitations smell like peach cobbler. This was the most painfully scripted segment I’ve seen in a long time, because “Lacey Evans has sent you invitations to her match tonight. You find them pretentious” is too hard for them to do on their own?

Miz is still waiting.

Ricochet vs. Robert Roode

For Ricochet’s Money in the Bank spot. Ricochet starts with his flips and dropkicks Roode away, only to have his springboard broken up. The chinlock goes on for a bit until Ricochet fights up and hits some elbows to the face. Roode’s spinebuster gets two but Roode knocks him off the top, setting up the 630 for the pin at 4:21.

Rating: D+. Remember a few weeks ago when Roode beat Ricochet and then Ricochet was given the MITB spot while Roode wasn’t even on the show? This was meant to correct that, because WWE can’t think these things through that far in advance. At least they didn’t have Ricochet take another loss, which would have been monumentally stupid.

We look back at Rey Mysterio beating Samoa Joe last week. Rey now gets a US Title shot at Money In The Bank.

Rey and Dominick are in the back when Dominic goes to get some water. Samoa Joe stalks him.

Post break, Joe gets in Dominic’s face because he didn’t like Dominick celebrating last week. Where was Dominic when Joe choked Rey out in front of 82,000 people? Joe tells Dominic to tell Rey that he’s looking forward to their title match. There actually isn’t a beatdown.

Lacey Evans vs. Allie Catrina

Alexa Bliss, Natalya, Naomi and Dana Brooke are all at ringside, though not in formal ringside attire. Lacey takes her into the corner for a slingshot Bronco Buster and hits the Woman’s Right for the pin at 40 seconds.

Post match Lacey says she isn’t surprised by the lack of a formal RSVP and warns the four of them about cashing in Money in the Bank on her after she takes away everything Becky has worked for. Cue Becky to beat Lacey up.

Daniel Bryan doesn’t like Kofi’s constant schilling as WWE Champion because it is a threat to our existence. He wants to ruin Kofi for the future of humanity because that’s not a champion. Bryan is here to correct the course of human history and become the planet’s champion again.

The Usos go hunting for the latest way to embarrass the Revival.

Curt Hawkins/Zack Ryder vs. Viking Raiders

Non-title and the champs get a jobber entrance. Hawkins and Ryder take turns beating up Ivar but it’s a seated senton out of the corner to stop Hawkins cold. Erik comes in and runs Hawkins over but a belly to back suplex is escaped. It’s back to Ryder to low bridge Ivar to the floor so Hawkins can clothesline him off the apron. Erik knees Hawkins in the head though and it’s the double knees to Ryder. The Viking Experience finishes Ryder at 2:51. Why they didn’t just do the title change here is beyond me as this is just delaying the inevitable and the crowd reaction doesn’t exactly make it seem like the fans care.

It’s time for the Firefly Fun House where Mercy the Buzzard has something in a box. The witch wants to know what’s in there….and it’s the decapitated Rambling Rabbit. Bray declares this Mercy expressing himself as a bunch of kids, who aren’t laughing or smiling and look like they’re in a trance, sit by watching. That’s all the time we have for this week. It’s also probably the last time we’ll see a good one of these as you can see the complaints coming from here.

Seth Rollins promises to destroy Styles at Money in the Bank.

Roman Reigns vs. Drew McIntyre

Wrestlemania rematch. Reigns starts fast with the right hands in the corner but Drew clotheslines him down. A rather impressive dead life suplex sets up the chinlock to keep Reigns down. Back up and Reigns gets planted again, meaning it’s time to go to the floor for a posting. A big boot cuts off Reigns’ comeback and it’s the reverse Alabama Slam onto the apron.

We take a break and come back with Drew countering the Superman Punch into a spinebuster for two. The Glasgow Kiss gets two but Reigns comes back with a hard DDT for two of his own. They head outside with Drew sending him into the steps and hitting a swinging sitout Rock Bottom for two back inside. McIntyre goes up but gets Superman Punched out of the air to give Reigns his own near fall, setting up the spear. Cue Shane McMahon and Elias for the DQ at 14:27.

Rating: B-. Good match until the bad ending, but we had to get Shane involved somehow. It makes sense for the story, assuming you don’t mind Shane being in two feuds at the same time. These two had a heck of a fight though and that’s a good sign for McIntyre, who didn’t take the pin. That being said, what does it say when a guy like McIntyre is treated better than the champions?

Post match Miz comes in for the save and chases Shane off with a chair. Shane gets to his limo in the back but Miz is waiting on him with the chair. Shane fights back and gets away in the limo.

We look at Sami and Strowman from earlier.

Revival vs. Anderson and Gallows

Hang on though as here are the Usos with a new product: Usoy Hot. Apparently they’ve put it in the Revival’s trunks and things are starting to burn. Revival starts scratching and writing on the mat and floor but run up the ramp to get some water. They pour it on themselves….which makes it worse because it’s sweat activated. You can hear Vince dying with laughter from here, and we’re supposed to want to see these teams fight on a big stage? No match of course.

Kofi promises to prove to Bryan that he’s a real champion.

Lars Sullivan vs. No Way Jose

Lars wrecks both the Conga Line and Jose before the bell. The running powerbomb destroys Jose as there’s no match again.

Naomi received an award from the Boys and Girls Club of America. Nothing wrong with that.

Vince is on the phone and explains that Shane and Elias don’t count towards the Wild Card Rule tonight because of reasons. Lars Sullivan comes in and Vince changes the rule to four. Sullivan leaves without saying a word. They changed the rule in less than three hours.

Smackdown World Title: Kofi Kingston vs. Daniel Bryan

Kofi is defending and Bryan is back in the dark red gear. An early clothesline puts Bryan on the floor for the big dive over the top. Back with Kofi hitting a Vader Bomb from the middle of the ropes but getting kicked in the chest. Kofi fires off right hands in the corner but charges into a kick to the ribs to cut him off again.

The spinning kick to the head out of the corner doesn’t quite work and Bryan double underhooks him into an armbreaker. That’s broken up as well and a collision takes us to another break. Back again with Kofi being backdropped over the top and banging his head on the floor. He’s fine enough to avoid a whip into the steps and hit a spinning crossbody off the top to the floor for a double knockdown.

They get back in with the LeBell Lock going on until Kofi gets his feet in the ropes. Kofi slugs away and stomps Bryan in the corner, followed by a jumping clothesline. The Boom Drop connects but Trouble in Paradise is countered with a dropkick. Bryan gets two off a German suplex but can’t get the LeBell Lock. Instead it’s Trouble in Paradise to finish Bryan at 17:27.

Rating: B. These guys work well together and I’m a bit surprised by the clean ending with Kofi retaining. I’m glad that he did as I’m interested in seeing how long he can hold the title, but this should wrap up Bryan’s time chasing the belt. That opens up some fresh doors, and I’m glad they covered this instead of waiting around forever to get there. Good main event too.

Overall Rating: C-. Yeah this was a nice change of pace after last week’s dismal show but the underlying problems (which I’ve listed far too many times already) are still there and that’s not going to be repaired overnight. It was very, very nice to get away from the same Money in the Bank build that happens every year though and the show didn’t feel long for the most part.

That being said, I don’t care to see most of Money in the Bank’s card and that’s not good with less than two weeks before the show. I liked the extra energy and the feeling that something was actually happening, but there’s a big difference between lowering the bad (which was still around) and giving us something good. Bringing the people in from the other shows is better, but I wouldn’t exactly call it good.

Results

Baron Corbin/Bobby Lashley b. AJ Styles/Seth Rollins – End of Days to Rollins

Lucha House Party b. ???/???/??? – Shooting star press

Ricochet b. Robert Roode – 630

Lacey Evans b. Allie Catrina – Woman’s Right

Viking Raiders b. Curt Hawkins/Zack Ryder – Viking Experience to Ryder

Roman Reigns b. Drew McIntyre via DQ when Shane McMahon and Elias interfered

Kofi Kingston b. Daniel Bryan – Trouble in Paradise

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and pick up the paperback edition of KB’s Complete 2000 Monday Nitro and Thunder Reviews Part 1 (also available as an e-book) from Amazon. Check out the information here:

http://kbwrestlingreviews.com/2019/02/22/new-book-kbs-monday-nitro-thunder-reviews-volume-vii-january-june-2000/


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


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




The Wild Card Rule

It’s their big answer to the ratings issues.Vince opened the show and announced the Wild Card Rule, which means three people from Raw and Smackdown can appear on the other show every week.  Seriously that’s their big solution.  Now how do I know this isn’t going to fix anything?  The match after the opening segment was about 19 minutes long and featured Baron Corbin pinning Seth Rollins.

 

So yeah, this is a bandage on a gaping wound that WWE keeps stabbing even deeper.