Vengeance 2005 Review

Sunday, June 26th, 2005
Thomas & Mack Center
Las Vegas, Nevada

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Intercontinental Championship Match
Carlito vs. Shelton Benjamin

For some reason Coach is joining Jim Ross and Jerry Lawler. This of course is a rematch from Monday Night Raw, where Carlito won the title right after being drafted. On a side note, the Las Vegas themed set is simple, but awesome. I know that the crowd is always more into the opening match, but Shelton was finally starting to gain some fan support here. The announcers are really selling Benjamin's mistake from Raw where his leg caught the top rope as he dove to the floor. Shelton gets the best of Carlito for the beginning of the match, so Carlito goes to the cowardly heel well and picks up his title and starts walking to the locker room. Shelton obviously catches up and attacks him from behind. Apparently Carlito didn't bother to look up at the giant TV screen right in front of him. Shelton hits a top rope clothesline on Carlito for a 2 count. A small pocket of fans start chanting "Shelton sucks", which is kind of odd. I have to say I never liked Carlito's ring gear. I think long trunks would have been much better for him. Shelton battles back and hits a reverse elbow, but is unable to capitalize. Both men are battling from their knees. They make it to their feet and Shelton wins the battle and hits a clothesline and back body drop. There is a big vocal group of Carlito fans here surprisingly. Both men are up on the rope and Benjamin hits a hangman on Carlito, but Shelton jumped to the floor to execute it. He crawls back up and hits a springboard bulldog for a 2 count. These guys are winning the crowd over here. Benjamin is attacking Carlito from behind, but Carlito is able to pull off the top turnbuckle while the ref pulls Shelton away. Shelton hits a spinning kick to the jaw, but Carlito avoids the Stinger Splash and Shelton hits the exposed turnbuckle. Carlito gets a hold of the trunks and gets the victory. That was a solid opener despite Carlito's offense looking a little lazy.

Match Rating: **3/4 (out of 5)

Triple H and Ric Flair are shown walking backstage to his locker room.

Victoria vs. Christy Hemme

Christy goes right after Victoria, but Victoria baits her into the ring and stomps her. Christy quickly gets some revenge, but Victoria is able to drop her throat first on the top rope. I like Victoria, but Christy is just so unlikable as a wrestler. Her "acting" just makes her matches so tough to watch. They have an awkward spot where Christy counters the Widow's Peak, but then kind of doesn't. I'm not sure what they were really going for there. Victoria misses a moonsault and Christy throws Victoria around by grabbing her hair. Christy hits a DDT and gets a 2 count. Christy goes for a sunset flip off the top rope, but Victoria sits down to counter it and holds on to the ropes to get the 3 count. It wasn't good, but it was better than I thought.

Match Rating: 1/2*

John Cena is interviewed backstage and gets Todd Grisham to talk about peeing his pants in 10th grade. Yes...really. Cena then says that he is the new kid, so he's a target. He says that Christian was the creepy kid who picked his nose on the bus and Jericho was the rock star who stuffed his shorts. Cena says he'll do anything it takes to keep his title tonight.

Edge vs. Kane

Let's see if these two can improve upon their * match from the Gold Rush Tournament. Kane instantly gets after Edge with a lot of right hands. The crowd provides a lot of Matt Hardy chants early on and Kane clotheslines Edge over the top rope. Kane then goes after Lita, so Edge attempts to catch him from behind but is unsuccessful. To say Lita has legit heat would be an understatement. Edge is able to push Kane into the ring post and then hits a Spear on the outside. Edge gets a little bit offense in, but Kane is back at it and hits a right hand on a leaping Edge. He hits snake eyes and follows it up with a clothesline for a 2 count. Kane goes up top, but Edge hits him with a dropkick while he is in midair. Edge sets up for the Spear, but he eats a big boot instead. Kane signals for a chokeslam, but down comes Snitsky. Kane greets him with a big boot and now Lita is in the ring with a chair. She puts it down and toys with his emotions. Kane grabs her by the throat, but sets her down. He puts a chair around her neck, but Snitsky attacks Kane before he can do anything that would never happen in 2019. Edge gets a 2 count after the Snitsky attack. Snitsky distracts Kane and Edge goes to hit Kane with the briefcase, but Kane ducks and he nails Snitsky. Kane hits the chokeslam and gets the victory. The ending was a lot to handle, but the crowd loved it. This was definitely better than their Raw match by a mile.

Match Rating: **

Shawn Michaels is with Todd Grisham, who tells him that Kurt Angle told him tonight that he guarantees that he will make Michaels tap out tonight. Michaels guarantees that vengeance will be his.

Kurt Angle vs. Shawn Michaels

Their first match is a top 10 match of the pay-per-view era for me. Both guys are so locked in here at this point in their careers. Shawn dishes out two of the harder chops of his career. After some back and forth action, they explode into a nice sequence that ends with Angle being clotheslined to the outside. Angle tries to go for an Angle Slam onto the announce table, but Michaels counters. He tries to run Angle into the ring post, but Angle hits him with a belly-to-back suplex onto the table. Michaels now has a cut under his eye, as Angle follows up with a forearm and a powerbomb into the turnbuckles. Angle hits a German suplex with a release for a close 2 count. Michaels leaps desperately leaps off the second rope, but Angle catches him and hits a belly-to-belly overhead suplex. After a long headlock by Angle, Michaels hits a suplex and both men are down. Michaels nips up and begins his comeback. He heads up top and hits the big elbow drop and is tuning up the band, but Angle drills him with a clothesline. He hits an Angle Slam and Shawn is barely able to get his shoulder up before 3. Michaels tries to roll up Angle, but he puts him in an Ankle Lock. Michaels is able to roll out of it, but accidentally throws Angle into the referee. Angle clotheslines him over the top rope and he falls awkwardly on his knee. Some officials come down to check on him, but Angle throws him back in the ring. Angle ducks a Sweet Chin Music and puts him in the Ankle Lock again. Angle has him in it for a long time, but Michaels is finally able to escape and hit Sweet Chin Music. Both men are down, but Michaels crawls over to make the pinfall attempt that Angle is barely able to get out of. Angle goes up to the top rope, but Michaels hits Sweet Chin Music and gets the victory. They had a huge challenge ahead of them to top their WrestleMania match and while they didn't do that, they still had another really good match. I felt this one lacked the intensity of the previous legendary battle. Michaels limps his way to the back while Angle is still selling the finish.

Match Rating: ****

Coach is back to interview Batista. Batista says that Triple H is going to have to kill him to take his title away. Triple H walks up and tells him that no one beats him at Hell in a Cell. They get into a scuttle and are held back by officials.

Justin Roberts introduces Lilian Garcia. She of course calls Viscera out. She has a song that she wrote for him and performs it for him. She then gets on one knee and proposes to him. He seems hesitant and is then interrupted by Godfather and the Ho Train. Viscera of course picks the Ho Train and Lilian is left crying in the ring. Don't let my lack of words fool you, this segment was way longer than it had any right to be.

Triple Threat Match For The WWE Championship
Chris Jericho vs. Christian vs. John Cena

Jericho slaps Cena, so Cena jumps him. Christian makes the save and he and Jericho go to work on Cena, although they are already fighting over who gets to do it. Jericho and Christian start going at it and this allows Cena to make his comeback. Tomko gets involved and Earl Hebner decides to have him kicked out, which doesn't really make sense in a match that doesn't have disqualifications. What would happen if he came back? Cena goes for a FU on Christian, but he holds onto the ropes, so Cena tosses him over the top rope. Cena turns around and eats a flying elbow from Jericho. Cena rolls out of the way for the Lionsault, but Jericho lands on his feet and baseball slide dropkicks Cena to the outside. Jericho goes for a suplex onto the table, but Cena hits a DDT onto the championship belt. While Cena and Christian are going back and forth, Jericho pulls Cena out and throws him into the steps. Christian hits a baseball slide dropkick on Jericho into the referee and the announcer table. Cena gets knocked off the apron and Christian goes for a small package and almost gets the victory. Jericho is setting up for a superplex on Christian, but Cena interrupts and makes it a powerbomb superplex. That was one of the first, if not the first, one of those I can remember seeing in a WWE ring. Cena hits some clotheslines on Jericho and then a drop toe hold on Christian right on top of Jericho. He hits a double Five Knuckle Shuffle which then leads to a couple of quick pin attempts. These guys are all working really hard here and they definitely have the crowd right where they want them. Cena throws Christian into Jericho and then rolls up Christian for a 2 count. Christian hits an inverted DDT for a 2 count. Christian distracts the ref and in comes Tomko to attack Cena but again he kicks out of the pin. Jericho now has Cena in the Walls of Jericho, but releases to hit a springboard dropkick on Christian. Jericho puts Cena in the hold again, but Christian comes in and rolls up Jericho for a 2 count.. Christian goes for the Unprettier, but Jericho pushes him into Cena and he hits the FU and gets the victory. Well, that was a lot better than I remember it being. All three guys really wrestled a fast paced match and it made for a really entertaining match. This was a nice first pay-per-view match on Raw for Cena.

Match Rating: ****

Hell In A Cell Match For The World Heavyweight Championship
Triple H vs. Batista

This is a match I have been wanting to re-watch for awhile. It seems as if I am way on the low side for this one based on the rating I gave it over 10 years ago. Batista starts out in control until Triple H is able to throw him into the steps. He then pushes him off the apron into the cell and bounced back off the ring. Triple H goes under the ring and pulls a steel chain out of a tool box. After whipping Batista with it, he begins choking him with it and then trying to hang him with it. Batista gains control of the chain and now it's his turn. Batista smashes Triple H into the cell and he is busted open. Triple H is able to hit a desperation spinebuster to shift the momentum and then heads under the ring and this time pulls out a steel chair wrapped in barbed wire. Triple H instantly begins smashing it on Batista's back. Batista explodes for a clothesline and now has the chair and smashes it over Triple H's head. Wow, I did not remember that. Batista then begins shredding it over his face. Batista then goes to the outside and starts shredding Triple H''s face on the cell. Triple H recovers and tries to go for the Pedigree on the chair, but Batista reverses for a back body drop. Batista then hits a powerslam onto the the chair, but Triple H is able to kick out at 2. Triple H then out of nowhere is able to hit a DDT onto the chair and now Batista is busted open. Triple H now goes and pulls out the sledgehammer. Batista is able to kick him before he can use it and then attempts a Batista Bomb, but Triple H counters. Triple H is able to hit him with the sledgehammer, but somehow Batista is able to kick out at 2. Batista is able to save himself by hitting a low blow and now both men are down. Batista grabs the sledgehammer. He charges towards Triple H, but he gets hit by a fist wrapped in a steel chain. Batista then hits Triple H in the throat with the sledgehammer. Batista is now hitting a flurry of right hands and then sends Triple H over the top turnbuckle. Batista steamrolls Triple H with the steps and then he sets up the steps against the turnbuckle. He smashes Triple H into them multiple times and then calls for the Batiata Bomb. Triple H then counters it with a low blow and hits the Pedigree. Batista somehow kicks out to a big pop. Triple H sets the steps in the center of the ring and gets Batista ready for the Pedigree on the steps, but Batista hits a spinebuster on them instead. Batista goes for the Batista Bomb. Triple H has the sledgehammer in his hand, but Batista hits it before Triple H can use it on him. Batista covers him and scores the victory here. Well, I definitely liked it more than last time. This was a Triple H special here with a slower paced brawl that he has done many times over the years. 2005 Batista was certainly not 2000 Mick Foley, but he did have a good showing. I wouldn't call this a classic or anything, but it was a very good ending to a good show.

Match Rating: ***1/2

Well, the last 3 matches all delivered and this a really good show, especially for a brand split show. The crowd was into just about everything they saw tonight. The only really down portion of the show was the Viscera segment, which was way too long for a bottom of the card storyline that should have just been on Raw. The Raw brand has a lot of momentum heading into SummerSlam.

Overall Rating: 80%

NXT 2-27-13 Review

Original Airdate: Wednesday, February 27th, 2013
Full Sail University
Winter Park, Florida

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Dusty Rhodes is talking to Bo Dallas when he is interrupted by Corey Graves. He brings the NXT Championship belt and gives it to Dusty, but says it should be his. He talks about Bo earning his way into the Royal Rumble and then also defeating Wade Barrett. Dusty announces a triple threat match between Graves, Bo and Conor O'Brian to determine the #1 contender.

Justin Gabriel vs. Leo Kruger

Tyson Kidd is ringside with Gabriel. This is one of the rare WWE matches you will see where both competitors are from South Africa. There are some weird edits here towards the beginning. Kruger catches a leaping Gabriel and hits a big spinebuster. Kruger goes to work on the left arm of Gabriel. As much as I don't really care for Kruger's overall presentation, I will say that I do like that he consistently works on specific body parts as part of the gimmick. Gabriel makes his comeback with a springboard crossbody. Kruger recovers and uses the ropes to his advantage to hurt his shoulder. Kruger then hits a huge clothesline, but only gets a 2 count. Gabriel hits a sunset flip powerbomb off the top rope and follows it up for the 450 splash, which allows him to get the pinfall victory. This wasn't a bad little match.

Match Rating: **1/4 (out of 5)

After the match Kruger gets in a quick cheap shot with Kidd's crutch.

Aksana vs. Emma

The announcers make fun of Emma's dancing. She then struggles to pull herself into the ring. What a strange gimmick. Aksana on the other hand, well, yeah. They're a couple of minutes in and it feels like they are halfway through a Broadway. Emma dominates the majority of the match, but Aksana hits a spinebuster and gets the victory. This wasn't good.

Match Rating: 1/4*

They go to the back to Renee Young and she is standing in front of an injured Bo Dallas, who appears to be knocked out while he is being attended to by the medical staff.

#1 Contender Match
Corey Graves vs. Conor O'Brian

Bo Dallas is no longer in the match. The match is pretty uninspired to start here. For being such a big guy, O'Brian doesn't really come close to meeting his potential in that role. This match is tempting me to fall asleep. We get a lot of rest holds, which is everything I hoped for here. The crowd is pretty silent with it being heel vs. heel. They start throwing fists outside the ring. O'Brian finally hits some power moves and then the lights go out. The lights come back on and The Shield are in there attacking both men to as big of a pop that I can remember up to this point in time in NXT. Ambrose grabs a mic and said that this is a reminder to keep your guard up because you can't run from justice. Believe in The Shield. The match was not good at all, so they did us all a huge favor there.

Match Rating: 1/4*

Well, things started out promising and then took a dive off a cliff. The Shield were able to improve the show a little, but not enough to come close to recommending. NXT has been in a little bit of a slump and they need to figure things out here soon.

Overall Rating: 30%

Royal Rumble 2020 Review

Sunday, January 26th, 2020
Minute Maid Park
Houston, Texas

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Falls Count Anywhere Match
Roman Reigns vs. Baron Corbin

Reigns goes right after Corbin before he even gets off this throne. Michael Cole reminds us of how long this feud has been going on. They slowed this one down a little bit quicker than I thought. I expected a big brawl through the crowd to start. Reigns goes for the Superman Punch, but Corbin hits Deep Six. Corbin then hits Reigns in the weirdest way I can remember with the steps. They now make their way through the crowd. Corbin throws Reigns on the announcers table and gets a 2 count. Corbin counters another Superman Punch attempt, this time with a chokeslam through the Spanish announce table and gets another 2 count. They make their way through the crowd again and it feels like forever before they do anything. Reigns hits a Samoan Drop through a table. They would have been smarter to have ended this by now. Reigns hits another Samoan Drop through another table. Corbin crawls his way up some steps, while Reigns is about to hit him with a chair but Robert Roode and Dolph Ziggler attack him from behind. The Usos are now out to even the odds. They are about to throw Jimmy Uso onto a guard rail until Jey Uso comes out of nowhere and saves him. Corbin comes out and interrupts, but then Reigns hits him with two Superman Punches. Reigns throws Corbin into a porta potty and tips it over. They work their way over to the dugout area, which still claims the Astros are the World Series champs. Yeah, about that. Corbin hits Reigns with one of the weaker looking chair shots you will ever see. Reigns battles back with a Superman Punch again and then a Spear on top of the dugout and gets the victory. Who thought that this match should have gone over 20 minutes on a show where two matches are pretty much guaranteed to go 2 hours? They could have had a really good match if you shaved off 5-10 minutes there. Both guys worked hard and it was entertaining enough, but them walking through the crowd took up a lot of the time.

Match Rating: **1/4 (out of 5)

Kevin Owens is in the back with Samoa Joe. Owens says Houston is where he won both the Intercontinental Championship and the Universal Championship. They then of course go over the not being able to work together schtick.

Mandy Rose and Sonya Deville are now here to talk about working together. Sonya says that if they are the last two in the Rumble match that she would throw herself over the rope to let Mandy win and then walks away.

Michael Cole offers the WWE's condolences to Kobe Bryant and his family.

Women's Royal Rumble Match

The first entrants are Alexa Bliss and Bianca Belair, which I think are both solid choices here. Belair gets a few close calls on Alexa and then Mighty Molly Holly is #3. I have to say I wouldn't have predicted that one, but from what I have seen of her, she seems to be one of the genuinely nicest people in the business. Holly hits a crossbody from the top rope on both ladies. Up next is Nikki Cross to help out her BFF. They all hit moves on one another and are all laying down when #5 comes out and it's Lana. She comes down on the mic and says she is going to win for her hot husband, Lashley. Next up is Mercedes Martinez making her official WWE debut. She comes in and suplexes the majority of those in the ring. No one has been eliminated as of yet. #7 is Liv Morgan and she naturally eliminates Lana. Martinez stalks Morgan from behind and almost eliminates her. Liv goes up top and Lana grabs her and throws her off and out, causing them to brawl on the outside. #8 is Mandy Rose. Nikki Cross revs up, but Mandy knocks her right down and slaps her for good measure. Nikki takes off her jacket and hits Mandy with a crossbody and hits her with right hands as #9 Candice LeRae is out and hits a missile dropkick on Martinez. She then hits a moonsault on Nikki. Belair tosses Molly over the top rope. Mandy Rose is thrown over the top rope, but Otis is there and catches her on the floor, saving her. That was amazing and the crowd loves it. #10 is Sonya Deville. Sonya has added a nice spark here and has picked up the pace a little bit. Fire & Desire hit a combo move on Martinez and eliminate her. Up next is Kairi Sane, umbrella and all. She hits a double clothesline on Alexa and Nikki. #12 is Mia Yim. This match has been pretty light on eliminations so far. Someone needs to get that Diesel spot soon. Belair body presses Alexa, but Nikki makes the save. Belair almost eliminates Nikki, but Alexa saves her, but not for long. She picks up Alexa and uses her to knock Nikki off the apron. Alexa is almost eliminated but she grabs Belair's hair. Sonya turns on Mandy and throws her out, but Otis catches her and Sonya is in shock. But then Sonya gets eliminated, which also causes Otis to drop Mandy. Nice storytelling there. #13 is Dana Brooke. Belair body presses LeRae and eliminates her. Boo! There is no woman that is utilized more poorly than LeRae. Sane goes up top, but Alexa knocks her off and eliminates her. #14 is Tamina. Wow, my two favorite wrestlers back to back here. Belair drops one of her kicks and they start swinging at each other. Tamina charges at her, but Belair ducks and eliminates Tamina. Now we have Dakota Kai. #16 is Chelsea Green and she immediately eliminates Dakota Kai, but then she is immediately eliminated. Dana Brooke is eliminated next and we are back to Alexa and Belair again. Alexa goes for Twisted Bliss, but Belair gets her knees up. They are battling up on the apron and Bliss grabs her hair again. Belair pulls her and rams Alexa into the ring post and Belair is by herself after eliminating her 8th competitor. This of course sets up Charlotte Flair to set up. The best part of the Rumble match is that it's a great time to have some teases to fresh matchups and this is a good example. Naomi makes her return here next. Her and Charlotte both go for a dropkick and the hit a double nip up and decide to go after Belair. The pairing don't last long, as Charlotte immediately gets some chops in. Beth Phoenix makes an appearance here next. Naomi hits a springboard leap onto Phoenix and Charlotte. #20 is Toni Storm. Belair goes up top and Charlotte kicks her off the top. Belair got a real nice showcase here tonight. #21 is Kelly Kelly making a return. Kelly Kelly hits the stink face on Storm. Phoenix has Charlotte hanging by the top rope, but she is able to survive. #22 is Sarah Logan who is underrated. Of course, she is almost immediately eliminated by Charlotte. Charlotte then eliminates Kelly Kelly with a forearm. Natalya is now up next. Beth seems to be bleeding from the back of her head. Natalya and Beth hit a double powerbomb on Charlotte. Up next is Xia Li, followed by Zelina Vega. She hits a leaping hurricanrana on the bloody Beth Phoenix. Charlotte escapes near elimination again. Up next is Shotzi Blackheart. Naomi is almost eliminated but she grabs onto the barricade for her annual Kofi spot, which takes away from the annual Kofi spot. #27 is Carmella and she puts Natalya in the Mella-go-round. Naomi is still on the announcers table trying to figure out how to get back in the ring. Beth and Natalya throw Charlotte out, but through the ropes. Here comes Tegan Nox at 28. Beth Phoenix hits a Glam Slam on Nox pretty quickly. #29 is Santina Marella! Did not expect them to go back to this well, but it's always good to see Santino. He's immediately surrounded by Natalya and Beth and he brings out the Cobra! The ladies have none of it and he runs and eliminates himself. Last but not least is Shayna Baszler. Baszler throws out Xia Li and Nox right away. Nox looked to have hit her head on the way out. She then eliminates Blackheart and Vega. Naomi is using a piece of the table as a bridge and successfully returns. Baszler throws out Storm and Naomi. She already has 7 eliminations. Baszler is alone with Natalya and Beth and they hit the Hart Attack on her. Beth then shockingly tosses out Natalya. Baszler is about to dump out Beth, but then Charlotte comes from behind and tries to dump both, but neither are elminated. Phoenix comes back in while Baszler and Charlotte face off. Baszler then eliminates Phoenix. Charlotte skins the cat and eliminates Baszler to win the Rumble! There was a lot of really good storytelling throughout the match. I get why Charlotte won, but I think the time was now to pull the trigger on Baszler and what better way than to have her eliminate Charlotte in the Rumble? The women's division desperately needs someone outside of the norm to get a shot and they had the opportunity here tonight. Will Rousey make a return before WrestleMania perhaps? Props to Beth Phoenix for hanging in there and hopefully she is all good. Winner aside, I enjoyed this one a lot.

Match Rating: ***3/4

Charlotte is interviewed after her victory and she said that tonight she reminded everyone that this is her division.

Baron Corbin claims that Roman Reigns made a mockery of their match by relying on the Usos. He says that he is going to throw Baron out and go on to main event WrestleMania.

SmackDown Women's Championship Match
Bayley vs. Lacey Evans

It's tough for any match to follow a good Rumble match, but this one seems like a poor choice to do so. It seems as if Lacey is doing well as a face, but I can't help but look at her and think of her as a heel. Having Lacey's daughter here for this particular feud is a nice touch though. After withstanding an early flurry from Lacey, she hits a flying elbow and gets the first 2 count of the match. Lacey is a Vince McMahon dream come true though with her background, which means we have to hear about her background every single match. Bayley drills Lacey with a running clothesline and again gets a 2 count. Evans tries to leap over the top rope, but Bayley side steps her and threw her into the barricade in front of her family. Back in the ring, Evans hits a standing moonsault and then attempts a springboard moonsault, but Bayley gets her knees up. Bayley goes for a pin and holds her tights and gets the victory. I hate seeing Bayley like this, but that wasn't a very good match. They weren't put in a good spot by the company and they didn't win over the crowd there.

Match Rating: *1/2

Strap Match For The Universal Championship 
Daniel Bryan vs. The Fiend

I like 1992 Nailz more than I like the Fiend. I can't believe I just typed that. But seriously, get him off my TV. I a curious to see how they book this match though. From the little of the pre-show I saw you had legendary commentators David Otunga and Sam Roberts saying Bryan is an idiot for doing this. Wyatt hits a powerbomb and then hits him with the strap. Bryan hits Wyatt outside and goes for a suicide dive, but Wyatt pushes him into the barricade. Bryan then gets thrown into the ring post. Wyatt props Bryan on the top rope and starts whipping him in the back. He now has him in the tree of woe and continues to whip him. Bryan finally gets some offense after a kick and running knee. Bryan has that natural instinct that Shawn Michaels has where he knows exactly when to make his comebacks. Bryan knocks Wyatt out of the ring and then Bryan goes off the top rope to the floor and starts pounding on Wyatt. But Wyatt recovers and throws him into the steps. Wyatt throws Bryan under the bottom rope, so Bryan pulls the strap and repeatedly pulls Wyatt into the ring post. Bryan hits a running knee off the apron and Wyatt no sells it and hits him with a clothesline. Wyatt now has Bryan on the table, but Bryan hits him with a bunch of low blows and then a DDT onto the table. Bryan now gets his turn to whip Wyatt. Back in the ring, Bryan hits a missile dropkick. Bryan is trading Yes Kicks and whippings with the strap. The Fiend asks for more, so Bryan obliges. Bryan then repeatedly stomps Wyatt right in the face. Bryan is the miracle worker who can get a good match out of this stupid character. Bryan has the crowd chanting and charges at Wyatt. He counters and hits Sister Abigail, but Bryan is able to kick out. Bryan sits up on the top rope, but Wyatt runs in with the Mandible Claw. Bryan tries to get out with a leg scissors but Wyatt pulls him back in the ring. Bryan slips out and puts him in the Lebell Lock and uses the strap across his face. Wyatt is able to break loose because he's magic. Wyatt then starts whipping him again because he already is out of ideas. Wyatt goes for Sister Abigail again, but Bryan rolls him up for a 2 count. Bryan follows it up for a running knee and almost gets the victory. Bryan is trying to will his way back up, but Wyatt pops right back up. Bryan is whipping him with no effect and Wyatt puts the Mandible Claw back in. Wyatt slams him down and pins him with the Mandible Claw still in. People used to say that Ric Flair could wrestle a broomstick to a good match, well Daniel Bryan just wrestled a near 300 pound broomstick to probably the best match he will ever have in this insult of a character.

Match Rating: ***1/4

The Fiend disappears and Bryan tries to walk to the back to a cheer from the crowd.

They announce an attendance of 42,715 for tonight's event, beating out Taylor Swift.

Raw Women's Championship Match
Asuka vs. Becky Lynch

They do a nice back and forth sequence and I have to say it's so good to see Asuka in this spot again. Lynch is still over, but man is it nowhere near where it once was. Asuka hits a reverse neckbreaker onto the second rope from the apron. These two had a really good match at last year's Rumble (***3/4), but also had the blessing of going on first. 5 hours in and the crowd is showing signs of exhaustion. Becky makes her comeback with a running bulldog and a dropkick. Becky goes for the Becksploder off the apron and then Asuka tries for a suplex. Becky blocks it and suplexes her face-first to the floor. Becky hits the Becksploder into the barricade. They are back on the apron again and Asuka hits a hip attack on Becky, causing her to bump into the ring post. Becky has Asuka kind of awkwardly standing on the second rope and she hits a Rock Bottom off the ropes. They keep playing up Asuka as the woman that Becky can't defeat. Asuka hits a Codebreaker on a leaping Becky. Asuka locks in the arm bar and switches to the Asuka Lock after a counter from Becky. Asuka hits a German suplex and then hits multiple kicks to the head. The ref pulls Asuka off to check on Becky to boos from the crowd. The ref is about to ring the bell, but Becky grabs her leg to stop him. They go into a fast and furious pace with multiple counters leading to a real nearfall for Becky. Both women are down. They pull each other up and Asuka accidentally pushes Becky into the ref. Becky bumps into Asuka, causing her to spit the green mist up in the air instead of her face. Becky locks in Disarm Her and gets the victory. So this was definitely not as good as last year, but it was still a good one. The crowd hurt it a little bit, but they both worked hard.

Match Rating: ***1/4

The Street Profits are backstage, where they seemingly are stuck in this role. They start going through competitors in the Royal Rumble by beat boxing their entrance music.

Men's Royal Rumble Match

Michael Cole announces that Lashley and Rusev are not going to be in the Rumble after an altercation leaving both men injured. Booker T joins the announce team for the match. The first entrant is of course the already announced Brock Lesnar. Elias is your #2 and he's out with his guitar of course. His song is entitled "Sacrificial Lamb" and Lesnar looks legit annoyed that he has to stand there that long. Lesnar almost falls over as he runs out of the ring to go after Elias. We're about 30 seconds in and we get our first Lesnar suplex. Heyman hands Lesnar the guitar and he strikes Elias over the back with it and he tosses him out. #3 is Erick Rowan and he gets the Bushwacker Luke/Santino spot, getting eliminated in 8 seconds. Out comes Robert Roode next, who is wisely taking his time to the ring. Roode quickly eats a F5 and then tosses him out. Lesnar is now holding up the championship as John Morrison comes out at #5. I have to say that these are two guys I never thought I would see in the ring at the same time. Unfortunately, it wasn't for long as he too gets the quick toss. Well, here's the follow up to their match from the fall, as Kofi Kingston is in next. Kofi goes right at him and the crowd has officially woken up. Brock hits a nasty looking German suplex. Kofi is the first one to make it the "90 seconds" and #7 is Rey Mysterio. Lesnar then double clotheslines both opponents and he is again in control. #8 is Big E and is someone I have always wanted to see take on Brock. All three men go after Brock and he fights them off. Kofi then hits Trouble In Paradise and then Big E hits the Big Ending. Mysterio follows it up with a 619. Mysterio leaps off of Big E's back and Lesnar catches him and tosses him over. He then leaps off of Big E's back and clotheslines Kofi. He tosses Big E next and it's back to him and Kofi, but not for long. He does an F5 over the top rope. #9 is Cesaro. Please let's give him a chance here. Pretty much by the time I stopped typing that, Cesaro has been clotheslined over the top rope. #10 gives us a University of Minnesota reunion with Shelton Benjamin. Shelton embraces Heyman on his way in and they play buddy buddy. They act as if they are waiting for their next opponent but Lesnar obviously turns on him and throws him out. Now it's time for the Intercontinental Champion, Shinsuke Nakamura accompanied by Sami Zayn. Unfortunately Zayn goes to the back. Nakamura suffers the same fate as just about everyone else. #12 is MVP! That's a surprise that I did not see coming. And for the first time ever, I was completely booted out of my WWE Network feed. I am one of the few that has never happened to. MVP gets a move or two in, but he too eats a F5 and is eliminated. I really did not see them going this long with this strategy, but here we are. #13 is Keith Lee. Here we go. Keith hits two shoulder tackles and knocks Lesnar down. The crowd is absolutely eating this up by the way. They hit a double clothesline and both men are down. #14 is Braun Strowman and I guess you can say they are officially starting the Rumble here now. Strowman knocks down both men. Lee rolled outside and he steamrolls him. Lesnar hits a German suplex on both Strowman and Lee not once, but twice. Lee and Strowman now face off and Lesnar comes out and dumps both men out, tying the elimination record. Not a fan of that and here comes Ricochet at #15. Ricochet comes off the top and Lesnar of course catches him and hits him with a backbreaker. Lesnar is starting to show fatigue, but he still hits a German suplex on him. At #16, we get the man who has been rumored to be the one to eliminate Lesnar with Drew McIntyre. I thought McIntyre should have possibly won last year. Ricochet hits a low blow on Lesnar, who is distracted by McIntyre. McIntyre hits a Claymore Kick and eliminates Lesnar to a big pop. Ricochet hits a springboard dropkick and a standing Shooting Star Press, but McIntyre picks Ricochet up and tosses him out. Now it's McIntyre who is all alone in the ring. Miz is in next. McIntyre hits a Claymore Kick on Miz and eliminates him and McIntyre continues to stare down Lesnar, who has not yet made it to the back. I'm not sure why it has taken this long for McIntyre to get a strong endorsement, but they are obviously very committed to it tonight. AJ Styles is in at 18. He gets the Calf Crusher locked in as Dolph Ziggler enters in at 19. Ziggler distracts McIntyre and Styles takes out McIntyre's knee. McIntyre throws Ziggler halfway across the ring. McIntyre almost has AJ eliminated, but out comes Karl Anderson to help him out. All three men are trying to eliminate McIntyre, but then Styles and Anderson go towards Ziggler. For some reason Cole is super pumped about Anderson almost eliminating Ziggler. We then get the biggest surprise of the night with Edge coming down at #20. He had been denying it so much lately, it was starting to feel like it was going to happen. But I also thought with kids, he was good not stepping back in just yet. He hits a series of Spears and crowd is digging it. Edge and Styles face off  and Styles hits a Pele Kick. Edge comes back with a Spear on Styles. If you didn't get your fill of him earlier, you're in luck because #21 is King Corbin. Out of nowhere, Edge throws AJ out and it almost feels like maybe it wasn't supposed to happen. #23 is Matt Riddle, which sucks because the world wants to see him and Lesnar square off. He flips off his flip flops and lets it rip on McIntyre and Corbin. Riddle is going after Edge and McIntyre and Corbin eliminates him to a lot of boos. Luke Gallows is 24. McIntyre eliminates Corbin thankfully. There are some big names still left here and at #25 it's Randy Orton. Orton hits a RKO on both members of the OC and then he and Edge decide to have a Rated RKO reunion and eliminate both Gallows and Anderson. #26 IS THE BIG DAWGGGGGG!!!!! Sorry. He's getting the "he's banged up" story tonight. He Spears Ziggler and dumps him over the top. Here comes Kevin Owens at 27. He hits a couple of cannon balls and a pop up powerbomb on McIntyre. Reigns eats a Stunner and so does Orton. #28 is Aleister Black who I thought would get a better reaction here. McIntyre gets hit with Black Mass. I know that Edge is a big fan of Black, so I would not be surprised if he gets eliminated by him. #29 is Samoa Joe. Joe and Black go at it, which is a match I would love to see. Joe and Owens go at it as #30, Seth Rollins, makes his way down. He is accompanied by Authors of Pain and Buddy Murphy. Joe and Owens run under the ropes and go after all four men. Rollins and Murphy drag Edge out and slam him in the barricade. Authors of Pain tosses Orton over the announcers table, but is not eliminated. Rollins hits a Stomp on Reigns. Black goes for a springboard kick, but Murphy grabs his feet and Rollins eliminates him. Owens hits a Stunner on Rollins and throws him over the top rope, but AoP catch him. Owens is then eliminated. Murphy saves Rollins from Joe and then Joe gets eliminated. We are down to Rollins, Edge, Orton, McIntyre and Reigns. Owens, Black and Joe are all brawling with Seth's crew and Rollins isn't happy about it. All four surround Rollins and he tries to get Reigns on his side. Reigns responds with a Superman Punch. The others take turns and then toss Rollins out and we have our final four. Rated RKO decide to work together again. Edge hits a Spear on McIntyre. For some reason they have missed a couple of Edge's Spears. Edge and Orton hit a double RKO on McIntyre. Orton tries to sneak up on Edge, but Edge sees it coming. Edge then turns his back on Orton and throws him over the top. Of all of the possible matches for Edge at Mania, I really hope that isn't the one we are getting. They never got to do a proper breakup feud due to injury, but still. There are lots of other matches Edge could do. Edge and Reigns are going at it. Edge gets hit with a Superman Punch, which may be the 38th of the night. Edge leaps over a Spear and then hits Roman with a Spear of his own He throws him over, but Roman hangs on the apron. Roman gets Edge on the apron and Roman kicks Edge's arm off and we are down to the final two. Reigns tries to toss McIntyre over, but he catches himself. Claymore Kick by McIntyre and WWE finally pulls the trigger on McIntyre! That was probably the most uniquely structured Rumble match that I can think of off the top of my head. I'm not sure the first half will play well on a second viewing, but it did the job live. The last 10 minutes or so were really well done and featured a lot of the bigger names. Let's see if McIntyre can do something here with the push.

Match Rating: ***3/4

Both Rumble matches delivered and considering that's over half of the show, that means it's a thumbs up. The undercard dealt with an exhausted crowd and it hurt a few of the matches. Daniel Bryan put on a fantastic performance and deserves credit for making a match with The Fiend good. The Royal Rumble is a fun event and delivered an intriguing start to WrestleMania season.

Overall Rating: 81%

Worlds Collide 2020 Review

Saturday, January 25th, 2020
Toyota Center 
Houston, Texas

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Finn Balor vs. Ilja Dragunov

I didn't realize Dragunov was so animated. After a taunt from Dragunov, Balor rolls through a sunset flip and slaps Dragunov right in the face. He follows it up with a dropkick to the outside. We get a little bit of an awkward spot where Dragunov looks like he is going for a springboard move, but he hesitates and kicks Balor and then hits it. Back in the ring, Balor regains control and hits a dropkick to the back of the head. They are working a pace like they are going to go 20+ minutes, but I'm not sure that will be the case. Balor goes for a DDT, but Dragunov hits a suplex instead. Dragunov exposes his knee and hits a knee drop from the top rope. Balor hits a double stomp out of desperation and they then go back and forth with forearms. Balor then hits an elbow to the throat and a Sling Blade. He charges at Dragunov, but eats a boot to the face. Things are picking up here, but it's not quite to second gear yet. Dragunov leaps off the top rope to Balor on the outside, but that came across way too telegraphed. Dragunov then hits a dropkick from the top rope and gets a 2 count. Dragunov goes up top again and goes for a Senton, but Balor gets his knees up. Balor goes up top and hits Coup de Grace and 1916 and gets the victory. They seemed to have some moments where they weren't on the same page, but there were also some really hard hitting moments too. I'm not sure I would have put this on this card and maybe would have put it on the go home show or something like that.

Match Rating: **3/4 (out of 5)

They show Rhea Ripley and Toni Storm backstage. They show the two finalists for the Dusty Rhodes Classic in the crowd. They announce that the winner will take on the NXT Tag Team Champions at NXT TakeOver: Portland. The Grizzled Young Veterans say it's onward and upward for them. Meanwhile, Matt Riddle is dancing at the opportunity.

Fatal 4-Way For The NXT Cruiserweight Championship
Isaiah Scott vs. Jordan Devlin vs. Travis Banks vs. Angel Garza

We get some fun chaos to begin here, which is exactly what this match needs to be. From the little I have seen of him, Devlin is a real nice talent. Scott catches a Devlin moonsault and slams him outside. Garza follows it with a dive over the top rope and Banks hits a double stomp off the apron. Banks gets a chance to showcase his skills by taking out Scott and Garza. He then hits a suicide dive on Devlin. Devlin hits an absolutely beautiful DDT off of a reversal that I can't even describe. Garza is now in control and takes his chaps off. He and Scott hit a combo moves of sorts with Garza holding both Devlin and Banks and Scott coming off the top rope. Devlin then eats a vicious looking Canadian Destroyer from Banks. Devlin hits a double suplex on both Garza and Scott and then eats a Slice of Heaven and a Kiwi Crusher from Banks, but it's only good for a 2 count. I can't even keep up with all of this. Garza hits a dropkick on Banks, who is on Scott's shoulder and then Banks hits a reverse hurricanrana on Scott as he's falling back. That was incredible. Garza hits his finish on Scott, but then Devlin comes in and hits the Devlin Side out of nowhere and we have a new Cruiserweight Champion. They used the familiar multi-man match and spiced it up with some incredible segments and moves that I personally have never seen. Really, really good match.

Match Rating: ****1/4

Keith Lee, Mia Yim and Chelsea Green are shown in the crowd.

Moustache Mountain vs. Team DIY

The announcement of this match alone made this a must see show. Gargano and Bate start things off. They put on a clinic and show why they are two of the most talented men on the WWE roster. They then go ahead and make the tag to their partners, who then get a chance to show off what they can do. Bate is back in and they do a test of strength like it's 1990. DIY gets the first flurry of the match and throws both of their opponents over the announcer tables. They both do the Ciampa pat on the back and clap on the apron in a fun moment. DIY work on Bate, but in comes Seven and he takes out both men. He hits a lariat on Ciampa for a 2 count. Gargano is in and hits a beautiful dropkick on his way in. It's amazing how good DIY looks despite not teaming in quite awhile. They both hit DDTs and Gargano gets a 2 count on Bate. Ciampa hits a big knee to the back as Bate leaps off the top rope. Bate follows up and hits a Tyler Driver 97. These guys have skipped right over second gear and are tearing it up. Bate goes for a standing Shooting Star, but Gargano gets his knees up. Bate reverses Gargano and gets him in the airplane spin, but Gargano reverses that into the Gargano Escape. Ciampa is in and has Seven in a submission, but then they reverse both holds and hit a double airplane spin. Moustache Mountain hits double knockout punches and then hit a leaping knee off the top rope, but somehow Ciampa kicks out. God, these NXT events are just impossible to recap. All four men are now going at it in the center of the ring. They hit a superkick/dropkick combo on a leaping Bate and then hit a superkick/knee combo on Seven and get the victory. These two teams are just so incredibly smooth in everything that they do. Their talent is just off the charts and in a perfect world, they'd be the ones main eventing WrestleMania. I liked that they really took their time and had fun and then slowly built to the balls to the wall finish.

Match Rating: ****

Mercedes Martinez is now shown in the crowd and they then cut to Dakota Kai who is attacked by Tegan Nox. I love the intensity here. Nice work by both.

NXT Women's Championship Match
Toni Storm vs. Rhea Ripley

Storm gets in some offense quickly, but it only infuriates Ripley. Storm quickly recovers though and hits a suplex on Ripley that tosses Ripley neck first into the turnbuckle. Storm slaps on the STF, but Ripley is able to eventually crawl to the ropes to break the hold. Storm hits a strong DDT and gets a 2 count. Storm has a good look and is charismatic, but I'm not sure I think she is quite as good as someone like Ripley or some of the other NXT women. They have a nice segment that ends with a German suplex from Storm. Storm then hits a big headbutt on a charging Ripley. Storm goes up top, but misses with a Frog Splash. Ripley hits the Riptide and gets the pinfall. They were starting to find their groove there, but the ending didn't really work for me.

Match Rating: ***

Bianca Belair and Ripley exchange words. They will face each other in Portland.

They then show Gargano being interviewed and then attacked by Finn Balor. Bate and Seven pull Balor off of him.

Undisputed Era vs. Imperium

I love that a straight up eight man tag team match is headlining a show in 2020. I know eventually a break up of some sorts is coming, and likely sooner rather than later, but I am so glad that the Undisputed Era have made it this far. Strong and Fish hit a double team on Wolfe, who appears to be injured. The ref takes Fish off of him and lets him roll outside. Walter leapfrogs a charging Strong and hits a big boot. Walter gets a hot tag and destroys the Undisputed Era. He and O'Reilly are slugging it out. Walter hits a German suplex, but O'Reilly then goes on to get him in the Dragon Sleeper. Walter counters and then hits a suplex on O'Reilly and Strong together. Imperium hit a jumping DDT, but didn't hit it as cleanly as they would have liked. Walter hits a tribute to Earthquake on O'Reilly. Walter then chops O'Reilly harder than Hardcore Holly could ever dream of. Strong gets a hot tag and he gets his fair share of chops in on Walter, but then Walter steamrolls him with a clothesline. Fish suplexes Aichner onto Barthel, which looked painful. Fish, Strong and O'Reilly go three-on-one to go to work on Walter and throw him outside the ring. Walter goes to powerbomb Strong through the table, but O'Reilly makes the save. Walter and O'Reilly are up on top of the table. Strong saves O'Reilly and then hits an Angle Slam through the table. Barthel gets a nice bit of offense in. Cole comes in and interrupts it by hitting a superkick and then a superkick to a leaping Aichner. Strong hits a gutbuster and it's followed by a running knee from Cole, but that only gets a 2 count. O'Reilly hits a knee off the top rope and gets Barthel into a submission. Aichner hits a double springboard moonsault to break up the hold. Walter is back up on the apron and gets the tag. He chops down the Undisputed Era, but Cole hits two superkicks. Walter chops him down and then hits a powerbomb on Strong. He then hits a Frog Splash onto Strong. Cole hits him from behind, but the pin attempt is broken up by Imperium. All seven men are in the ring and are going at it. Fish misses a moonsault on Walter. Walter hits a running dropkick and then a powerbomb and Imperium are the victors despite being a man down. There were a few spots early on that felt a little off and it was definitely a bummer to see Wolfe have to exit the match. With that being said, the rest of the match was filled with good wrestling and some memorable spots. Not quite great, but pretty darn close.

Match Rating: ***3/4

It's not apples to apples, but this variation of Worlds Collide was light years better than last years. This wasn't quite a TakeOver classic level of awesomeness, but it was really good. The cruiserweight match was the highlight for me and it was really great to see DIY back together. The main event was highly entertaining and the other two matches were serviceable. This was a definite recommendation of a show and let's hope that the Royal Rumble is the same.

Overall Rating: 83%

Superstars 12-5-92 Review

Original Airdate: Saturday, December 5th, 1992
Hullman Center
Terre Haute, Indiana

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Sadly, it seems as if this will be the last Superstars episode that I get to review. I had hoped that somewhere along the way they would upload 1993, but I guess it just wasn't to be. I will continue this timeline by jumping into the debut of Monday Night Raw.

Bobby Heenan cuts a promo on Mr. Perfect, which is kind of a shame since Flair leaves less than 2 months from here.

High Energy vs. Barry Horowitz & W.T. Jones

I can truthfully say that I have never heard of another person that goes by W.T. Owen shows of his athleticism and it's pretty easy to see why he eventually found a meaningful place on the WWF roster. Owen holds up Jones and Koko hits the dropkick for the finish. High Energy was a solid team and it showed here even in a short squash.

Match Rating: 1/2* (out of 5)

Yokozuna vs. Mike Morgan

Vince gives a rundown of what he thinks a sumo diet is. "It's just plain heavy" according to Vince. Vince basically insults Virgil by saying that he hasn't been tested yet and that he can't wait to see what happens when he meets the Superstars of WWF. Yoko squashes poor Morgan and that's it.

Match Rating: 1/4*

We're off to Sean Mooney in the Event Center. Crush says Aloha and that he'll keep crushing heads to get to the top. Razor Ramon says he has no education, but he is rocketing to the top of the WWF.

Max Moon vs. Brian Costello

It's your weekly appearance of Doink here. We get a Max Moon promo here and it's as exciting as you would think. He seems a little uninspired here today. He hits a face first vertical suplex and a spinning kick. He hits his reverse cross body for the victory. He celebrates by doing somersaults.

Match Rating: 1/4*

It's Update time with Mean Gene, who is in an empty arena. He builds up how Bret Hart has been defending his championship non-stop. They then cut to a sit down interview between Gene and Ric Flair. He addresses Perfect and Bret. He says he is on his way to a third WWF Championship reign.

Buck Zumhofe vs. Kamala

They are hyping up Kamala as being more aggressive as a result of his loss at Survivor Series. Unfortunately, this is basically the same match he has been doing on Superstars all year. He hits a splash and gets the victory.

Match Rating: 1/4*

Slick gives a preacher promo and says that he was away so he could reflect.

Hacksaw Jim Duggan vs. Dale Wolfe

It's been awhile since we've seen Duggan in the ring here on Superstars. Doink is out towards the ring here. Duggan legit hits two moves and gets the victory, as Doink heads to the back. Duggan never had much direction as a character, but you have to give him credit for always being over.

Match Rating: 1/4*

Nailz is out for an interview with Mean Gene to talk about the Undertaker. He says he was innocent and says that Undertaker isn't tough because he's never been in a prison fight or solitary confinement. He sure moved on from Big Boss Man pretty quickly, despite him never getting revenge on the reason he came to the WWF.

Tatanka vs. Louie Spicolli

Spicolli tries to get something going, but Tatanka is having none of it. Vince lets us know that Tatanka is a big ICOPRO guy. Tatanka hits just about all of his signature moves and finishes it with the Samoan drop. Tatanka is getting pretty stale here.

Match Rating: 1/4*

Back to Sean Mooney again. Bob Backlund is here wearing his dorky jacket and says he loves being an underdog. Damien Demento issues a warning that his opponents will suffer terminal defeat and laughs a lot. The Nasty Boys say they see fear in the eyes of IRS and Ted Dibiase.

Shawn Michaels vs. John Paul

Vince corrects Heenan's grammar, which is classic Vince. Shawn has an awkward spot where he goes for a submission/pin move on the mat, but it just looks off. He hits a clothesline off the top rope and follows it with Sweet Chin Music. He hits his suplex and gets the quick victory. Not Shawn's best squash match here.

Match Rating: 1/4*

We get a Mr. Perfect sports highlight reel, which is about as good of a sendoff for Superstars as I could ask for.

If I had a show to watch, I'd get to see Marty Jannetty, Bam Bam Bigelow, Undertaker and an interview with Bret Hart. They also are going to announce the main event for the Royal Rumble.

Well, I was hoping for a better final episode, but this one was a lot of matches and nothing really happening. That was Superstars in a nutshell in 1992, but it was also to see why the popularity was starting to die down. They were trying to build up with new stars, but the bigger problem was the depth just wasn't there anymore. Regardless, it was still a fun trip down memory lane.

Overall Rating: 34%

SmackDown 6-23-05 Review

Original Airdate: Thursday, June 23rd, 2005
Tucson Convention Center
Tucson, Arizona

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Randy Orton is here to start the show. Orton emphasizes that he is the Legend Killer and names off all of the legends he has taken out. He then goes on to blame an injury sustained during his match at WrestleMania that caused him to not be able to beat the Undertaker. The lights start to flicker and a video is shown of their match at WrestleMania and it repeatedly shows Taker giving the Tombstone to Orton. The lights go out and Taker is in the ring when they come back on. Orton rolls out of the ring and says that he isn't going to do this on Taker's terms. Taker says that "death waits for no one" and a lightning bolt comes down and strikes near Orton. He retreats to the back and we head to commercial.

Joey Mercury vs. Heidenreich

Heidenreich hits all three of his moves on Mercury here. He then goes off the ropes even though he clearly sees Johnny Nitro standing right there and of course Nitro grabs his leg. This allows Mercury to make a comeback with a reverse neckbreaker. Heidenreich later hits an inverted atomic drop and sends Mercury over the top rope. Melina comes on the apron and slaps him. Heidenreich points to the ramp and down comes Michelle McCool. She attacks Melina, but then Nitro interferes and Mercury gets the pinfall victory. This was just filler.

Match Rating: 1/2*(out of 5)

They show a sitdown interview with Rey Mysterio and he talks about hitting Eddie with the chair last week.

MNM are in the back and Melina is furious about Michelle McCool. Melina challenges her to a match next week.

JBL is knocking on Theodore Long's door. JBL asks about a SmackDown Championship and JBL thinks he should be the champion. Long says he will have a big announcement.

Cruiserweight Championship Match
Chavo Guerrero vs. Paul London

London hits a standing hurricanrana after a early flurry from Chavo. He dumps Chavo over the top rope and then all of a sudden three men on a lawnmower are coming down the ramp. It is the infamous debut of the Mexicools. They attack both men, causing the ref to call for the bell. Juvy grabs the mic and runs down some Mexican stereotypes. They refer to the lawnmower as a Mexican limo. He says they are tired for working for us and they say they are going to take over wrestling, America, etc. The match was too short for it to be rated, as this was only on the show to debut the new additions.

Match Rating: N/R

Back from commercial break and JBL is in the ring. He says that he should be the champion of SmackDown. He says that everyone can bow down to the feet of the Wrestling God. Out comes Booker T. Booker says that he and JBL should wrestle tonight and the winner should be named SmackDown Champion. Out comes Benoit and then Big Show. They want it to be a triple threat and a fatal four way, respectively. Now Teddy is back out. He announces a five way match next week and then Muhammad Hassan and Daivari are out. We are nearing the end of his run and I have no idea if they edited out his final angle. He calls his undefeated streak the most prestigious in WWE history. Okay, buddy. He then runs down everyone in the ring with some pretty lame insults. Long adds him to the match next week. JBL pushes Hassan down and then everybody joins in and he's thrown out of the ring. Big Show then catches Daivari and he tosses him to the floor onto Hassan. Teddy then announces that Hassan will take on Big Show. That was a long segment for what they were trying to accomplish and didn't have the right guys to pull it off.

Muhammad Hassan vs. Big Show

We join the match already in progress and Big Show is dominating. Hassan is fresh off his 2 minute loss to Cena, which just also happened to be his first official loss. Matt Morgan makes his way to ringside and sits with Tazz and Cole. Yes, he still stutters. Big Show hits a huge suplex on Hassan. Hassan is getting quite the initiation here tonight with multiple open palm slaps to the chest. This is all while Morgan continues to stutter over and over. Daivari gets in the ring and Show throws him around. He then tosses Hassan into the ref. Morgan comes in with a chair, but Big Show takes it and uses it on Morgan. Hassan then uses the chair on Show with a sick thud to the head. He goes off the top rope and causes the chair to hit his throat and gets the victory. This was here to get Hassan a big victory and nothing else.

Match Rating: 3/4*

We get a highlight package of the entire Rey Mysterio/Eddie Guerrero story that has dominated the blue brand for most of the year.

Eddie is in the back taping his wrists. He says there are people who think that he can't beat Mysterio. But they don't know what he is capable of.

Eddie Guerrero vs. Rey Mysterio

They stare each other down to begin, while the crowd chants "Eddie sucks". We get a long feeling out process to start. Rey finally gets a burst in and hits a dive to the outside. Back from the break and it's been all Mysterio. Eddie continues with a lot more submission wrestling. Rey counters Eddie's suplex and hits a hurricanrana. They are really pushing the story that Eddie can't beat Rey. Eddie slams Rey into the announcers table and then into the steps. He hits a powerbomb, but it only gets a 2 count. Rey gets a flurry of offense and hits the seated senton. Eddie catches an elbow, but is able to push Rey into the ring post while he's climbing the ropes. Eddie hits two of the Three Amigos. Rey reverses the third one and goes for 619, but Eddie ducks it and hits the third suplex. Eddie goes up top and misses with the Frog Splash. Rey reverses a powerbomb and then hits a 619. Rey hits a springboard legdrop and that's enough to get the three count. This was all about story and it resulted in a slower paced match that emphasized Eddie's heel turn. Unfortunately, it was not as entertaining of a match that you would expect from these two. I appreciate that they went for something different since they have wrestled each other multiple times this year, but this one just didn't click for me.

Match Rating: **1/2

I would chalk this one up as a disappointment. The draft had been really going pretty well, but Hassan just feels underwhelming. The Orton arrival feels right though and getting him away from Triple H was the right move. The main event was the weakest entry in the otherwise really good feud between Mysterio and Guerrero. It took up about 25% of the show, but didn't deliver the classic I was hoping for. Here's hoping the 6 man match next week doesn't disappoint.

Overall Rating: 47%

Monday Night Raw 6-20-05 Review

Monday, June 20th, 2005
America West Arena
Phoenix, Arizona

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John Cena is here to talk about Chris Jericho turning on him last week. Cena says he wants Jericho and Christian right here, right now. Instead, out comes Muhammad Hassan and Daivari. Hassan says that Cena is a typical American, complaining about things that don't matter. Cena says he came out here for a fight and since Jericho and Christian won't come out, he wants Hassan. Eric Bischoff is out and says Cena will take on Hassan for the title tonight and Batista will take on Kurt Angle for the World Heavyweight Championship. Cena is ready to go now, but Hassan says that he needs time to prepare.

After the commercial, Bischoff is still in the ring and he's going to announce the new draft pick from SmackDown. Bischoff brings out Shelton Benjamin and congratulates him for holding onto the Intercontinental title for longer than anyone the last 10 years. Bischoff says he beat Jericho in a match where he had no idea who he was facing. Before Bischoff can get to where he was going, Shelton says that he knows he'll be facing the draft pick and calls him out. It's none other than Carlito, which from a storyline point of view makes no sense since he just attacked Big Show on SmackDown.

Intercontinental Championship Match
Shelton Benjamin vs. Carlito

They go at it and Carlito retreats outside the ring. Shelton decides to take a leap over the top rope, but his foot hits the top rope and he takes an ugly spill right before the commercial break. Carlito is in control back from the break. Carlito's punches have to be some of the oddest looking that I can think of. They battle up on the turnbuckles and Shelton uses a headbutt to knock Carlito off. He follows it up with a flying clothesline and gets a 2 count. Shelton hits a Samoan Drop and gets another 2 count. The announcers keep selling Shelton's head injury from the dive. Carlito rolls up Shelton and holds onto the 2nd rope and steals the victory and the Intercontinental Championship to go along with it. Pretty standard match there and Carlito didn't seem to be particularly feeling it here.

Match Rating: **(out of 5)

Edge is getting ready for his big night. Billy Graham is then showed in the crowd.

Maria interviews Carlito backstage for a few seconds and walks away to get him an apple while he says he will be the best Intercontinental Champion of all time. He then spits the apple in Maria's face.

Viscera vs. Simon Dean

Dean cuts a promo while Viscera is on his way to the ring about how overweight he is. Viscera quickly starts going at Dean. Dean gets a few kicks in and then flexes his butt at Lilian Garcia. Viscera hits his rolling kick and follows it up with a big splash. He hits the Viscera Driver and gets the victory. Short and to the point.

Match Rating: 1/4*

After the match, Lilian comes in the ring and says that when they're in Vegas Sunday that Vis is going to hit the jackpot.

Chris Jericho is backstage with Todd Grisham. He talks about how he hasn't had a one-on-one title shot in nearly 3 years, so he took matters into his own hands. He says when he's the champ, Fozzy's record sales will go through the roof. Christian is here to interrupt him and says he's tired of being overlooked. Christian tells him that both he and Cena sucks.

Kurt Angle is backstage talking to Eric Bischoff. Angle says that he's going to make Shawn Michaels tap out a second time at Vengeance and dedicate it to Bischoff. They shake hands are all buddy buddy.

It's time for Edge and Lita's wedding. Props to the ring crew for getting the ropes taken off so quickly. Edge comes down with his Money In The Bank briefcase. Lita follows with a trashy looking wedding dress. They show a montage of their relationship. They then begin making out. The minister then says there is a large unusual man who insisted on coming down and it's Snitsky. He then reads a poem that is called...you guessed it..."It's Not My Fault". It ends with a tasteless joke about Lita's miscarriage. Edge starts reading his vows and the crowd starts chanting "Boring". It's kind of crazy because this all would eventually get over. Lita says her trashy vows and then Matt Hardy's music hits to a huge pop, but no one comes out. Lita and Edge laugh and say it was a joke. But then, out of the depths of Hell, it's Kane and he knocks out Edge. Now it's time for Lita, but Edge makes the save and carries her to the back. Kane then destroys the set. I wonder if wrestling Twitter would have been even harder on this than they were for Lashley/Lana? Kane then hits a Tombstone on the priest. This wasn't very good.

Back from the break, Kane says that he's back.

It's time for a Christy Hemme interview and they show the clip of Victoria attacking her 3 weeks ago and then her getting some revenge 2 weeks ago. Christy then cuts one of the worst promos you will ever see until Victoria comes from behind and breaks glass over the back of her head. She is bleeding and Todd Grisham calls for 9-1-1. Let's just say that his acting future is bleak. After the break they show the paramedics assisting Christy.

WWE Championship Match
Muhammad Hassan vs. John Cena

This is the first WWE Championship match on Raw since 2001. Cena goes right after him and quickly clotheslines him over the top rope. Daivari grabs Cena as he is getting back in the ring, which allows Hassan to gain the advantage. Hassan hits a few right hands to the face and follows it up with a suplex. Cena quickly recovers and hits Five Knuckle Shuffle despite Daivari's efforts to distract Cena. Cena hits the FU and gets the victory? Even nearly 15 years later that is pretty surprising. It was obvious that they were all in on Cena, but I can't believe they had Hassan do the job so easily there.

Match Rating: 1/2*

After the match, Jericho attacks Cena on the ramp. Then Christian comes out and joins in. After they lay out Cena, they start arguing a little bit. Jericho picks up the championship as they go to commercial break.

Christian is shown leaving the building and tells Stacy and Candice Michelle that they're looking at the next WWE Championship.

They show a video package of the 8 finalists for the Diva Search.

World Heavyweight Championship Match
Kurt Angle vs. Batista

It's a shame that we never got to see a proper feud between these two. Angle quickly gets Batista in the Ankle Lock, but Batista kicks out of it. He charges towards Angle in the corner, but he dodges it and Batista hits his shoulder on the ring post. Angle goes to work on Batista's shoulder, but again Batsita comes back. He sends Angle out of the ring and slams him into the steel steps. Next, out of nowhere, Triple H and Ric Flair come in and attack Batista, who is the winner by DQ. Bischoff comes out and says that's not how the show is going to end and orders a tag team match. This match was nothing but a set up.

Match Rating: N/R

Kurt Angle & Triple H vs. Batista & Shawn Michaels

We join in progress from the commercial break. Flair quickly gets involved and takes out Michaels
leg. Ross and Lawler are doing a nice job of hyping up the top two matches for Vengeance, while the heels continue to work on his leg. Triple H goes for the Figure Four, but HBK kicks out of it and sends him into the turnbuckle. Hot tag to Batista and he goes right after Triple H. Triple H hits a facebuster, but Batista quickly responds with a spinebuster to both Triple H and Flair. After he hits it on Flair, Triple H hits a Pedigree on Batista and gets the rare victory over Batista here. Triple H grabs the championship and then repeatedly tells Batista "Hell In A Cell". He celebrates as they go off the air. The match was a little on the short side, but it wasn't bad. Triple H winning here gave you that little bit of doubt that Batista may not hold onto the belt at Vengeance.

Match Rating: **

Last week's episode was a really good show, but I can't say the same here. The wedding was your typical wrestling wedding and didn't really make me want to see Kane/Edge. They did do a solid job of building up the three main matches to Vengeance, but not a whole lot more than that.

Overall Rating: 49%

NXT 2-20-13 Review

Original Airdate: Wednesday, February 20th, 2013
Full Sail University
Winter Park, Florida

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Yoshi Tatsu vs. Bray Wyatt

Tatsu tries to hit him with some chops, but it has no effect. They note that this is Bray's first match since August. Wyatt throws Tatsu around and quickly hits Sister Abigail for the easy squash. Not much to see here, especially 7 years later.

Match Rating: 1/4* (out of 5)

After the match, Bray grabs the mic and shows a video of the ending of last week's tag team match. Bray talks to Erick Rowan and tells him his brother Luke cost him the tag titles and he has him hit Luke. He then asks Luke if he is sick of carrying Erick his whole life and then has him hit him. They start throwing punches at each other until Bray breaks it up. My dislike of the current Bray Wyatt has just completely made me sick of every version of his character.

Renee Young is back with Sasha Banks to talk about her secret admirer. She gets another note and as she is reading it, she is attacked by Audrey Marie who says she is the secret admirer.

El Local vs. Xavier Woods

Apparently El Local is Ricardo Rodriguez. They make fun of Local's weight, which is not something I expected. He's actually a little bit better than I expected and gets a lot of offense in here. Woods battles out of a weak looking chin lock, but then he is put in a headlock. Seriously? Woods hits a tornado DDT and that's it. Not much of a feature for Woods there.

Match Rating: 1/2*

Renee Young is back with a doctor who has been working with Paige. He says they don't have a time table yet for her return. Great interview.

Audrey Marie vs. Sasha Banks

Sasha gets out of a submission and hits a head scissors and a dropkick. However, Marie slams her face first and gets the pinfall. Way too short of a match to be anything.

Match Rating: 1/4*

Renee Young is now with Summer Rae. She gives a terrible promo saying she will be the greatest Diva ever and now wants to be called the first lady of NXT.

Tyson Kidd comes down to the ring on crutches for an interview. He talks about how he hurt his knee at a live event and still fought the next night because he lives to compete. Apparently CM Punk said that Kidd is one of the workhorses of the business and he says he has been that way since he was in the dungeon. Leo Kruger's music hits and he says he is going to end Kidd's career. He kicks out Kidd's knee and is about to attack him, but Justin Gabriel makes the save.

Conor O'Brian vs. Big E Langston

The crowd is chanting "Five" before they lock up. We get a Warrior/Hogan beginning with them trying to knock one another over. Langston clotheslines O'Brian over the top rope to the floor as we go to commercial. O'Brian is working on Big E's shoulder now. O'Brian hits a full nelson slam, which is really the first time Langston has been thrown around here on NXT. Big E battles back with some clotheslines and knees to the midsection. They start throwing some pretty weak punches at one another. The official gets in the middle of them to break them up, but gets thrown down and calls for the bell as a double disqualification. Yeah, that was an uninspired performance by O'Brian there. Then out of nowhere, Corey Graves attacks Big E and steals his title. Big E chases him to the back as the show goes off the air.

Match Rating: 1/2*

To say this show was bad would be an understatement. Weak stories and bad matches can make even a 41 minute wrestling show seem like it's going on forever. This one is a must skip.

Overall Rating: 28%

Superstars 11-28-92 Review

Original Airdate: Saturday, November 28th, 1992
Hullman Center
Terre Haute, Indiana

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Bobby Heenan is all fired up over the Survivor Series and tells Mr. Perfect that Razor Ramon is going to carve him up.

Bam Bam Bigelow vs. Jerry Fox

This is the WWF re-debut of Bam Bam and he shows off why he is such a unique performer, particularly for this time period. He hits a dropkick and then hits his signature headbutt off the top rope and gets the quick victory. Effective debut.

Match Rating: 1/4*

Update time with Mean Gene and he has exclusive footage with Razor and Flair after their Survivor Series match. Razor also says he is going to carve Perfect up. The footage is seriously like 20 seconds long.

The Headshrinkers vs. George Anderson & Kevin Krueger

They do a ritual including bamboo sticks prior to the match. Watching this team back, I'm not quite sure why they didn't have a better run. The Natural Disasters are apparently going to be feuding with them, as they are blaming them for losing the titles. They hit a double powerbomb. One of the jobbers is bleeding from the mouth and surprisingly they zoom into it They hit a double drop toe hold and then Fatu hits the splash from up top and that's all.

Match Rating: 1/4*

Time for Sean Mooney in the Event Center. Mr. Fuji tells some story about how he found Yokozuna. Undertaker and Paul Bearer talk about Nailz because that's the feud the world is wanting.

Reverend Slick is here to give thanks and is apparently back.

Tom Stone vs. Bob Backlund

Backlund has no music and shakes Stone's hand. Backlund's style was goofy even by 1992 standards. Who would have thought that he would win the WWF Championship in less than 2 years from here. He wins a squash match with a roll up into a bridge. Yes, really. He shakes Stone's hand after the match. This was nowhere near as effective as Bam Bam's match.

Match Rating: 1/4*

Harvey Wippleman and Kim Chee says that Kamala from now on is going to do exactly what they tell him to do.

Joey Maggs vs. Damien Demento

Doink is out in the crowd again. Demento is really bad here. Lots of stalling and lots of punching and kicking. He hits a reverse neckbreaker followed by a knee and gets the victory. This was really bad.

Match Rating: 0 Stars

They show a clip of the Barber Shop that featured the Rockers break-up and then the return of Marty last month. Marty is now here for an interview with Mean Gene. Marty says that he isn't back for titles or money, but simply to kick Shawn Michaels' butt.

Gary Jackson vs. Razor Ramon

Razor tells a young Jack Doan that if anything happens to his jewelry, something is going to happen to him. Razor works his typical Superstars match and finishes it with a Razor's Edge.

Match Rating: 1/4*

Crush vs. Red Tyler

Vince announces that WrestleMania will be held in Las Vegas. It's kind of interesting that Crush did not get a match at Survivor Series, but got a decent spot at WrestleMania. Crush hits his power moves and it obviously leads to his terrible finisher for the victory.

Match Rating: 1/4*

It's Event Center time again. Virgil thanks the fans for supporting him and then compliments Bret Hart for winning the title. I can't believe they let this one air. Rick Martel says he is the best looking man in wrestling. High Energy say they're going for #1.

Next week is Yokozuna, Hacksaw Jim Duggan, Shawn Michaels and an interview with Nailz.

This episode was only noteworthy for the re-debuts of Bob Backlund and Bam Bam Bigelow. Other than that, this was a pretty standard show with nothing out of the ordinary.

Overall Rating: 38%

SmackDown 6-16-05 Review

Original Airdate: Thursday, June 16th, 2005
Giant Center
Hershey, Pennsylvania

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JBL and his Cabinet are in the ring to kick off the show. He makes fun of ECW and says their 15 minutes of fame are up. He then talks about how the UPN executives are praying that he doesn't leave for Raw. Chris Benoit's music interrupts him and apparently there is a scheduled match.

Chris Benoit vs. Doug Basham

Basham reverses an Irish whip and sends Benoit sternum first into the turnbuckle. My least favorite thing about watching these old SmackDowns is not knowing which crowd reactions are legit. I mean, I can obviously kind of tell, but sometimes I'm just not paying enough attention to catch it. Benoit bounces back and hits three German suplexes. Danny Basham distracts Benoit, allowing Doug to hit a superplex. Then basically out of nowhere, Benoit gets a rollup and the pinfall victory. That was just an awkward way to end this match. After the match, the Cabinet is about to attack until the lights go out and Undertaker is here. He takes out all of the Cabinet. JBL asks him who he thinks he is and Teddy Long is out to tell him that he's the man he is going to take on tonight in a no DQ match. Undertaker has not wrestled since WrestleMania. The match was nothing.

Match Rating: *

Eddie Guerrero vs. Paul London

Eddie attacks London as he slides into the ring. Eddie eats a dropsault, but is able to counter a London off the top rope. Eddie puts in a Texas Cloverleaf. He torques back and London submits. That was quicker than it should have been. After the match, Rey Mysterio is out and launches a chair at Eddie. He then gets a nasty shot to Eddie's head. Ugh. This was strictly to get Eddie's heel act over here.

Match Rating: *3/4

Back from the commercial and Rey and Eddie are brawling backstage.

JBL is with the Cabinet backstage and JBL says the Bashams are going to go out with him for his match, not Orlando Jordan's. JBL calls one of the Bashams by the wrong name and they tell him that they aren't going out for either match and walk away.

This week Carlito's guests are Booker T and Sharmell. Carlito says that Booker looks more relaxed and asks if it is because Kurt Angle is now on Raw. Booker says he'd rather destroy Kurt instead. Carlito says that the Draft could shatter their marriage and that it would be pretty cool. Booker attacks Carlito and then they start throwing apples at him as he runs to the back.

After the break, Carlito is yelling at Matt Morgan for not being out there to help him. Morgan starts talking, but you can't hear him because Big Show's music hits and that is Morgan's opponent tonight.

Big Show vs. Matt Morgan

The announcers are trying to build up the fact that people have started to say that Morgan is bigger and badder. Show goes right after him and starts chopping Morgan's chest. We are about a minute in and out comes an angry Carlito. He distracts Show and Morgan hits him with a knee to the back and then kicks him out of the ring. This allows Carlito to get a cheap shot in before Morgan scoops Show back in the ring. Then Michael Cole claims that he's never seen anyone manhandle Show like Morgan has. Yeah, okay. Show makes a comeback and knocks Morgan out of the ring after some big fists and a few headbutts. As Show comes out to get him, Morgan throws him into the steel steps. Morgan clears off a table. Show reverses Morgans F5 attempt and is about to go for a chokeslam, but Carlito hits him in the back with a chair causing the DQ. Morgan then goes for the F5 again, but Show gives him a chokeslam through the table anyways. Carlito retreats to the back. The match was nothing.

Match Rating: 1/4*

Orlando Jordan is shown walking in the back looking worried.

Theodore Long is out in the back of the arena looking around for his newest member of SmackDown.

United States Championship Match
Orlando Jordan vs. Hardcore Holly

Jordan tries to get something going, but Holly steamrolls him with a shoulder tackle. Now it's Jordan's turn to get chopped. Jordan hits a drop toe hold, causing Holly's throat to land across the second rope. Jordan follows that up with a spinebuster. Jordan just so often looks uncomfortable in the ring, as if he is always try to think what he is supposed to do next. Holly hits a hurricanrana and then a huge back body drop. Holly gets a close nearfall after a signature dropkick. Holly hits a clothesline off the top rope. Holly goes for the Alabama Slam, but Jordan grabs the top rope. Holly goes for a sunset flip, but Jordan counters it and holds onto the top rope and gets the victory. This was just about every 5 minute Jordan match you have ever seen.

Match Rating: 3/4*

Heidenreich is on his way to the ring with a giant Hersey bar and chocolate all over his face. I've said it before, but it can't be repeated enough. The depth on the WWE roster at this time was really weak. So much of the current roster who currently has nothing to do would be featured on either show here in 2005. Heidenreich reads another Disasterpiece, but is then interrupted by the SmackDown divas. They all make a bunch of terrible innuendos and that brings on MNM. Melina and Michelle McCool get into it and this is awful. Possibly worse than you would even imagine. Heidenreich stands up for them. Melina keeps going and then McCool spears her and they start brawling. MNM and Heidenreich get into it and they hit the Snapshot on Heidenreich.

They announce next week Rey Mysterio will face Eddie Guerrero next week. Sounds good to me.

No Disqualification Match
JBL vs. Undertaker

Orlando Jordan joins JBL. After JBL hits the ring, Benoit's music hits. He and Jordan start fighting and they go all the way to the back. JBL is yelling for Jordan to come back, but that's not happening. JBL starts off with some stiff looking shots. Undertaker reverses, but gets a boot to the face. He quickly hits JBL with a boot to the face and quickly goes for Old School. They brawl outside the ring and JBL throws Taker knees first into the steel steps. JBL hits a shoulder tackle off the top rope for a 2 count. They show the action from during the break, which included them brawling in the crowd and JBL choking Taker with an electrical cord. JBL goes for the Clothesline From Hell, but Taker counters with a boot to the face. Taker looks really motivated here, as does JBL. Taker hits a guillotine leg drop on the end of the apron. JBL goes up to the top rope, but Taker hits him with an elbow and then a huge superplex. Taker follows that up with Snake Eyes and a leg drop, but it only gets a 2 count. Taker hits a chokeslam, but again it is only good for a 2 count. Taker goes for the Last Ride, but JBL hits a low blow, which is obviously legal here. He hits the Clothesline From Hell, but Taker is able to kick out. Taker hits the Last Ride, but JBL kicks out again. Taker goes for the Tombstone, but Randy Orton hits a RKO out of nowhere and Taker is laid out. JBL crawls on Taker and steals the victory. Randy Orton gets on the mic and says that he better get used to this because he is now officially on SmackDown. That was a much better match than you would expect and it was nice that their was no outside interference until the very end. Orton makes a nice arrival on SmackDown and this builds to the big feud for the remainder of 2005.

Match Rating: ***1/4

This is a good example of a show that nothing worthwhile happened until the last half hour. Thankfully, the last match was well worked and had a hot finish. The rest of it can all easily be skipped.

Overall Rating: 49%

Monday Night Raw 6-13-05 Review

Monday, June 13th, 2005
Broome County Arena
Binghamton, New York

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Steve Austin is here to kick off the show. He is here for court and introduces Muhammad Hassan. Austin tells him he doesn't like him, but says he has an unbiased opinion. Hassan says that he still has never been pinned and yet he still gets the shaft. He then shows a video package as part of his proof. Austin calls him a piece of trash, but tells him that he's right and that he has been wronged by the system. He then asks Hassan if he has ever had an Intercontinental Championship match. Hassan tells him no, so Austin tells him that he had a feeling he would make this decision so he has Shelton Benjamin standing out back and he's going to have a match with him tonight. Good on Austin for mentioning that as opposed to Benjamin just randomly being ready for a match.

Intercontinental Championship Match
Muhammad Hassan vs. Shelton Benjamin

We join the match after the commercial break and Shelton is in charge. Hassan drops Shelton face first into the turnbuckle and begins working on Shelton's back. The crowd is really into this. I wonder when the last time Binghamton had a televised show? Shelton was really finding his groove here and seemingly was getting over with the crowd, but he never built a memorable feud with anyone to take him to that next level. Shelton hits a really nice springboard bulldog and then throws Daivari in the ring. That allows Hassan to hit a low blow and he then puts Shelton in a Camel Clutch. Austin comes in and stomps away at Hassan. He then declares Hassan the winner and hits the Stunner with help from a kick to the head from Shelton. That was a good TV opener that gives Shelton a little personality with the rub from Austin. He and Austin drink some Steveweisers after the match.

Match Rating: **1/4 (out of 5)

Eric Bischoff and Jonathan Coachman are backstage. Bischoff never wants to hear about ECW again. Jericho then walks in and is wondering why Christian has been named the #1 contender for John Cena's title at Vengeance. Jericho says he is going to take care of Christian tonight. Triple H then walks in and stares Jericho down. Triple H wants to know who the draft pick is tonight, because he doesn't want that person to screw up his match with Batista.

Chris Masters is out and is saying that he will now be offering $11,000 tonight to anyone in the locker room. Out comes...Sgt. Slaughter. Masters asks him why he thinks he can break the Master Lock and calls him an old man. Sarge then gets out an old school "maggot" response and tells him he doesn't care about the money or the Master Lock challenge. He says he wants to know if Masters can get out of his Cobra Clutch and attacks him and puts him in the hold. Masters is able to get to the ropes and then gives him a low blow, which allows him to put on the Master Lock. Slaughter battles for awhile, but eventually is done. That was surprisingly pretty fun.

JR and Lawler talk about the upcoming Hell In A Cell match and we get a whole highlight package on Batista/Triple H.

Christian and Tomko are walking backstage as we go to commercial.

Christian & Tyson Tomko vs. Chris Jericho & John Cena

Jericho starts off on a mission, going after Christian. This is kind of an odd match for Cena's first Raw match. Not a main event and not really advertised. Cena gets tagged in and dominates Tomko. This arena is kind of strange because there is a TV screen in the corner, which is kind of odd for an arena. Tomko gets clotheslined over the top rope and they then throw Christian on top of him heading into the commercial break. When we come back, Christian is in control. They have a miscue where Christian tries to hit an elbow at the same time that Cena is doing his shoulder tackle. Right after that, Tomko falls too quickly for Jericho's kick. Stuff happens. The heels finally get their heat segment, using illegal double teams along the way. Jericho hits the hot tag to Cena and he hits the Five Knuckle Shuffle followed by the FU on Tomko and picks up the victory. After the match, Jericho attacks Cena from behind. Jericho had been teasing a heel turn, although it was with Shelton, which makes this all feel like this was a last minute decision. That was your typical fun match that you would expect with the guys involved.

Match Rating: **3/4

They show some clips of the Diva Search. This...is...something. We will meet the 8 finalists next week

Jericho runs to Bischoff and asks if he has done enough to convince him. Bischoff says he has earned a spot and in walks Christian. Christian is upset because he thinks Jericho has taken his spot. Bischoff then announces that it will be a triple threat match instead. In comes Cena looking for revenge on Jericho and they have to be pulled apart by some officials. Interestingly, as they are brawling there are some crates that they are in front of that say "ECW". I guess just leftovers from the night before?

Maven vs. Viscera

Talk about your dream matches. Viscera comes out alone, but he then unveils Lilian Garcia. Maven attacks Vis from behind. Maven goes up top and hits a missile dropkick for a 2 count. This is already longer than I expected. Viscera hits a slam and a splash. He hits a weak version of his spinning kick and then follows it up with a variation of a sit down powerbomb for the win. At least it was short.

Match Rating: 1/4*

Flair is pumping up Triple H. Triple H says he needs to send a message that they are calling the shots.

Kane vs. Sylvain Grenier

Interesting order to this show. The beginning was stacked and then you have Viscera and Kane back-to-back. Kane immediately attacks Grenier. Grenier, just like Maven before him, hits a missile dropkick. Also like Maven, it does him no good. Kane hits three chokeslams in a row and gets the victory. Bless this crowd for cheering for everything tonight. Nothing match, as you would expect.

Match Rating: 1/4*

Lita's music hits and interrupts his celebration. She introduces Snitsky and she tells him that she knows it wasn't his fault. She blames it on Kane for putting her in danger and then thanks him and kisses him. This is a terrible storyline. She then introduces her fiance and he kisses her on the forehead, ha. She then announces that next week on Raw, Edge and her are getting married. They make out in celebration.

Out come Triple H and Ric Flair and they are here to greet the new draft pick. After a long pause, we get Kurt Angle now on Raw and away from one of the worst storylines of the decade. Angle tells Triple H that his days of being #1 here are over. He and Flair get into a Woo off. Angle reminds Triple H that the last time he saw him was WrestleMania 21, where he tapped out Shawn Michaels and Triple H lost his title to Batista. Triple H's comeback was that at least he was a champion at WrestleMania 21. He comes back with a stronger one saying how he was getting beat by Sharmell. Angle tells him that he has a thing for other people's wives and brings up making out with Stephanie behind his back. Angle wants Batista the day after Vengeance on Raw. Out comes the champ. Triple H suggests that Angle fights Batista next week and Batista agrees. Now out comes Shawn Michaels, who challenges Angle to a rematch at Vengeance. All five men start brawling and the show ends before really too much happens.

If you take away the awful Lita segment, this was a very good top to bottom Raw. Austin had a good appearance that helped elevate Hassan and Benjamin. Cena's first match on Raw was an entertaining bout. The debut of Kurt Angle was a fun interaction between a bunch of top tier talents that all have history. Vengeance kind of got pushed to the side due to One Night Stand, but they did a nice job of building interest quickly.

Overall Rating: 70%

NXT 2-13-13 Review

Original Airdate: Wednesday, February 13th, 2013
Full Sail University
Winter Park, Florida

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Mike Dalton vs. Axel Keegan

Paige runs down to the ring and goes after Summer Rae. She says she's not leaving until Summer Rae gets in the ring with her and then slaps Keegan. Dusty Rhodes' music hits and tells her that she can't hold NXT hostage. Summer Rae comes out and Paige chases her down. A different start to the show, even if it was not executed that well.

Paige was holding her left shoulder and she is shown in the back having the training staff check it out.

Alex Riley vs. Corey Graves

It's still weird to see Riley on NXT after he was pretty heavily featured prior to this. They wrestle a pretty basic match here. Graves goes after the knee and then slaps on his unnamed submission finisher and gets the win kind of out of nowhere. Match was okay, but forgettable.

Match Rating: *1/4

Summer Rae vs. Paige

During the Graves match, they announced that Dusty made the match official for tonight. Paige has her shoulder wrapped up. Summer Rae instantly goes right for her shoulder. It doesn't last long and Paige tosses her across the ring by her hair. Summer then pulls her arm over the rope from the outside and then follows up with a spin kick and gets the win? Paige continues to sell her shoulder injury while Summer celebrates. Yep.

Match Rating: 1/4*

Sasha Banks gets another letter from her secret admirer.

NXT Tag Team Championship Tournament Final
Adrian Neville & Oliver Grey vs. The Wyatt Family

Bray Wyatt clearly did not have as good of a grasp of what his character was here, as he gives a pretty generic promo on his way to the ring. Grey and Harper start things off. Grey explodes for a dive to the outside and lands right by Wyatt in his rocking chair. As you would expect, the Wyatts quickly make a comeback and slow things down. Bray gets involved and pulls Gray off the apron. Dusty comes down and sends Bray to the back as they go to commercial. After a really long beatdown, Grey finally makes the tag to Neville and he gets more reaction from his wrestling than probably everyone on the roster at this point. He goes for a springboard dropkick, but Harper gets his boot up. Harper goes for the win, but Grey is able to break it up. Neville ducks a Harper forearm and he accidentally knocks Rowan off the apron. Neville goes up top and his the Red Arrow for the victory and they become the first ever NXT Tag Team Champions. I was hoping for the first really good NXT match, but it was simply pretty good.

Match Rating: **1/2

They interview the champs in the ring and they're pretty excited.

Well, this show felt a little different, which is a bonus. We got to see them crown first ever champions, which obviously makes this episode historic as well. I really, really just wanted a great main event and knew that they could do it, but instead it felt like a typical NXT of this era main event.

Overall Rating: 50%