Elimination Chamber 2020 Review

Sunday, March 8th, 2020
Wachovia Center
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania

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Daniel Bryan vs. Drew Gulak

Yes, there is a pay-per-view tonight. I am very curious to know what the buyrate of this show would have been pre-WWE Network. I do love that Bryan apparently has enough pull to get this match made and put on a pay-per-view. If you watched the Cruiserweight Classic, it was pretty obvious that he was a big fan of Gulak. Early on, it's Gulak getting the best of Bryan. Bryan rolls out of the ring to take a moment to slow it down, which is a nice touch. Bryan gets back in the ring and gets Gulak in a submission hold, but again Gulak counters out of it and gets him in a surfboard. Bryan gets out of it and strikes him with a kick and is visually showing his frustration. Michael Cole and Corey Graves are nailing the point home that Gulak has an answer for everything here in true WWE fashion. Gulak starts working on Bryan's neck. Bryan counters a suplex, which ends up sending both men over the top rope in a cool spot. They both trade suplexes into pin attempts for nearfalls. Gulak hits a suplex and Bryan lands right on his head in a spot that I absolutely hate to see. He rolls out of the ring and barely beats the 10 count. Bryan makes a comeback and hits a running elbow/clothesline. Bryan sets up Gulak in the corner, but Gulak slips under and hits a face-first superplex and then puts him in the Gulock. Bryan gets out and beats Gulak into the Yes Lock. Gulak doesn't respond to the ref and he calls the match. What a really good match that was, but I did not like seeing Bryan land on that suplex. It seems as if he is okay, but that was scary. These guys are both really, really good and I'm glad they got some time to tell a story.

Match Rating: **** (out of 5)

Dolph Ziggler and Robert Roode dedicate the match to Mandy Rose or something.

United States Championship Match
Andrade vs. Humberto Carrillo

Andrade goes right after Carrillo with a charging reverse elbow and almost gets the quick victory. Carrillo comes back and clotheslines Andrade over the top rope and he takes a big spill, bouncing into the barricade. Carrillo makes up for a misfire on a crossbody off the top rope with a beautiful springboard arm drag. Andrade strikes again with an elbow and heads outside the ring. He starts to try and rip off the padding outside the ring, but Carrillo comes at him. Andrade takes care of him by slamming him into the ring post. He throws him into the barricade and Carrillo barely beats the 10 count. Back in the ring, Carrillo dumps a charging Andrade over the top rope. Carrillo hits a spin kick and a tilt-a-whirl backbreaker. Andrade is able to move out of the way of Carrillo and slam him into the turnbuckle. Carrillo gets a boot up at a charging Andrade now. Carrillo kicks Andrade as he's climbing the ropes and goes for a superplex. Andrade counters with a chop. Carrillo chops back and then hits a super hurricanrana, but Andrade kicks out. Andrade moves out of the way for a moonsault and then hits him with double knees in the corner, but Carrillo kicks out. A frustrated Zelina moves the padding on the outside and Andrade dumps Carrillo outside. Carrillo counters the double underhook DDT with a back body drop. Carrillo hits a senton over the top rope and over the official. Carrillo hits a crossbody off the top rope, but Andrade rolls through for a 2 count. We get multiple nearfalls and it leads to Andrade to holding the tights and gets the victory. I don't watch Raw hardly at all, so this was a fresh matchup for me and I absolutely loved this. What a great start to the show.

Match Rating: ****

AJ Styles makes fun of Aleister Black and then says that if anyone is getting disqualified, it's him.

Elimination Chamber Match For The SmackDown Tag Team Championships
John Morrison & The Miz vs. Robert Roode & Dolph Ziggler vs. Lucha House Party vs. Heavy Machinery vs. New Day vs. The Usos

The Usos and New Day start the match off, which is the natural choice. I can't help but wonder if Big E is ever going to get his big singles run. He is 100% deserving of one. While I'm glad for the safety of the wrestlers that there is padding on the outside of the ring, it does take away from the aura of the match. The next team in is the Lucha House Party. They go for dual springboard moves and neither seems to go as planned. Dorado hits a springboard Stunner and then Metalik stands on Dorado's shoulders for a splah for a nearfall. Dorado hits a moonsault and almost eliminates the Usos. Big E tosses both Dorado and Metalik over the top rope. Big E then launches Kofi onto both of them. Lucha House Party avoids a Kofi splash and then a charging Big E. Dorado jumps onto the chamber and I think accidentally hits himself on the midrail and falls down. He pulls himself back up and is on top of one of the pods. Kofi and Metalik join him. They knock Kofi off and Dorado hits a crossbody onto the Usos and then Metalik hits a somersault dive on the New Day. The next team in is Miz and Morrison, as we are now up to 8 men in the ring. They come in and take advantage of the carnage that preceded them entering. Metalik ends up on the top of a pod again and Morrison is trying to get up there again. Metalik leaps and hits a hurricanrana off the top rope. That one was a little telegraphed, but still a cool visual for future highlight packages. Kofi comes out of nowhere and starts taking care of Miz. He misses with Trouble In Paradise and Morrison hits him with a kick. Big E hits an overhead belly-to-belly suplex on Morrison and then Big E picks Miz up and Kofi hits flying knees off the top rope. Heavy Machinery are in next, as we still have no eliminations. They come in and clean house and repeatedly squash the Usos into the chamber by bouncing off the ropes. Dorado is on top of a pod again and we get an awkward moment where they just kind of show Heavy Machinery. They then squash Big E and Otis hits the caterpillar elbow drop. Their pin attempt is broken up and then Lince Dorado comes off the top top of the structure onto all of the competitor with a shooting star press. That was pretty insane and much better than the similar move attempted a few years back. Heavy Machinery then eliminates Lucha House Party quickly after. Roode and Ziggler are next and Heavy Machinery is waiting for them. They try to keep their pod closed, but Miz and Morrison come and attack Heavy Machinery. Roode and Ziggler come out and go after them as well. Heavy Machinery turns the tables and now Otis is chasing after Dolph, who climbs to the top of a pod. Tucker is there behind him and slams him into the plexiglass on the top. He throws Dolph to Otis, who catches him and throws him on top of the ropes. Tucker then comes off the other end with a somersault onto a cluster of the other competitors. Otis charges at Dolph and misses, causing him to go through not just the first wall, but the one that leads to out of the chamber as well. The medical staff is checking on Otis, as Tucker is now enraged. He goes after Roode and Ziggler, but they are able to take advantage of the handicap and eliminate him to a loud chorus of boos from the Philly crowd. Kofi comes in and hits Trouble In Paradise on Dolph and Big E hits the Big Ending on Roode. The Usos then hits stereo splashes off the pods to eliminate them and we are down to the three favorites in the match. The Usos and New Day knock out the champs, but then go after each other. Kofi misses off the top of the pod and Miz and Morrison are in there for a double pin, eliminating New Day. Miz and Morrison both go for springboards, but both Usos counter with kind of superkicks. Shelton and Shawn that was not. The Usos hit a double splash, but Miz got his knees up, so we had a double pin situation, but both men kick out. Miz hits the Skull Crushing Finale. Jimmy Uso kicks out, but Miz goes right into the Figure Four. Morrison goes up top and hits Starship Pain onto Jimmy, but Jey makes the save. Jey hits two superkicks, but Morrison kicks out. Miz and Morrison use a double pin with Miz's feet on the ropes and get the victory. As a whole, I enjoyed this match quite a bit, but I have a lot of nitpicks with certain spots. It also felt like Kofi, Big E and Otis were all a little off. On the bright side, it was nice to see Tucker get to show what he could do and it was fun to see the Lucha House Party leap all over the place. There were a lot of memorable moments, but also a lot of chaotic confusion due to the amount of guys in there at the same time.

Match Rating: ***3/4

Natalya says that Beth Phoenix will be okay, but she can't say the same for Randy Orton after Edge gets his hands on him.

No Disqualification Match
AJ Styles vs. Aleister Black

It's been about a year since both Black and Ricochet have debuted and I can't believe they are both in the spots that they are in. It's nice to see them at least try with Black as of late. They've done a nice job with Drew McIntyre in the last month, but for my money, I'd rather see Black in that spot. Luke Gallows' face paint has to be about the most random I can think of. Black starts to get going, but Styles hits a low blow and then starts to work on his knee. Styles goes under the ring and grabs a kendo stick and immediately goes after Black's knee with it. Black avoids a strike and hits him with a kick. Black now has the stick, but Styles hits him with a dropkick, sending Black out of the ring. Styles goes for a Phenomenal Forearm to the outside, but Black hits him with a knee. Black grabs a table, but AJ hits him with a chair to the back. Black starts to mount some offense, but then Styles rolls him into a Calf Crusher in the middle of the ring. Black is able to grab the kendo stick and uses it to get out of the hold. Black now starts attacking Styles with repeated shots and breaks some of it over him. Styles hits a dropkick to the knee and then a Pele kick and both men are down. Styles hits a Phenomenal Forearm, but Black is able to kick out. Styles goes up top, but Black charges him with a kick to the head. Black fights back and then hits a springboard moonsault for a 2 count. Black with a snap German suplex into a bridge gets another 2 count. I'm not really sure why the OC is just kind of standing outside as this is all happening. Styles then hits a shoulder breaker. Black goes for a moonsault, but Styles catches him. Black gets out and then kicks Styles into the corner where a chair was propped between the ropes. They head outside the ring and Styles runs at Black, sending him over the announcer table. Black kicks Styles off the table, who was attempting a suplex. Black hits a Meteora on Styles, sending him through the folding table. I have to say, I did not expect this one to go this long. Gallows and Anderson come in and he takes care of them for a moment, but then all three jump on him and attack. I think we all know what's coming here. Styles is setting up for the Phenomenal Forearm and then the bell rings and the lights go out. Undertaker is standing in the ring with Gallows and Anderson when the lights come back on. He catches Styles and hits a chokeslam. The lights go back out and Taker is gone. Not bad work if you can get it. Black pulls himself up and hits Black Mass for the victory. They worked a very deliberate pace there that I'm sure a lot of old school wrestlers would have loved. However, the ending was predictable and the stipulation was not that important to the match. I love that Black got the win here, but they probably should have shaved at least 5 minutes off. After writing all of that, you would think I hated this match, but I thought it was good, just not as great as it could have been. That Black Mass was one of the better looking ones I have seen.

Match Rating: ***

The Street Profits are backstage saying that they are not one and done. This leads to their entrance.

Raw Tag Team Championship Match
Street Profits vs. Seth Rollins & Buddy Murphy

Apparently they hand out red Solo cups to the audience now? From the little I have seen of Seth's stable, I like. However, it seems kind of weird to me that they have a tag team in the group and yet they were the ones who were the tag champions. The tag team division in WWE right now is pretty good and for some reason they aren't letting it hit it's potential. The Profits are able to corner Murphy for awhile, but a forearm by Murphy allows him to make the tag to Rollins. Ford shows off his athleticism and takes control again over Murphy. The Profits hit a double dropkick sending both men out. A blind tag allows Rollins to come in from behind and hit Dawkins in the knee from behind. As per usual, the crowd is completely dead for the second half of a WWE show. This should bode well for the 18 hour WrestleMania in 28 days. Dawkins is able to make the tag to Ford and hits a huge crossbody of the top rope. Ford hits a DDT on Murphy and then throws Rollins over the top rope. He hits a standing moonsault on Murphy and gets a nearfall. He puts on the headband and hits a somersault over the top rope onto both opponents. Rollins distracts the ref and that allows Authors of Pain to attack Ford. Out come the Viking Raiders and they begin brawling with AOP. Rollins hits the Falcon Arrow on Ford for a 2 count. Ford finally makes a tag to Dawkins and he hits both men with dropkicks. Rollins is able to get off of Dawkins' shoulder and hits a Sling Blade on Ford. Rollins and Murphy hit a double superkick on Dawkins and then on a leaping Ford. Dawkins counters a Pedigree and hits a slingshot on Murphy. Ford then hits a splash on Rollins, but he got the knees up and gets another nearfall. They still haven't won the crowd over. Rollins hits a Buckle Bomb and Murphy kicks him in midair. Murphy hits a double knee off the top rope. Dawkins catches a leaping Rollins and tosses him on the floor. Murphy is up top, but Ford slows him down with a right hand. Dawkins is in now to help, but Rollins slides in and they hit the tower of doom spot. Kevin Owens is now coming down the stairs in the arena eating a box of popcorn. He leaps over and sits on the Spanish announcer table. Owens throws popcorn at Rollins and Rollins is then blindsided by Dawkins. The Street Profits catch a leaping Murphy and throw him into the barricade. Ford hits a splash off the top rope and the Street Profits retain their championships. This was another match that was kind of spoiled by a predictable ending and the lack of heat hurt it. The work was solid overall, but not quite as good as it could have been. After the match, Rollins is furious at Murphy. Owens comes from behind and hits him with a Stunner and then dumps popcorn on Murphy before walking to the back.

Match Rating: ***1/4

3-On-1 Handicap Match For The Intercontinental Championship
Braun Strowman vs. Shinsuke Nakamura, Cesaro & Sami Zayn

The heels cut a pre-match promo while Strowman is in the ring. Zayn says that tonight is the night he goes toe to toe with Strowman and asks his partners to stand on the apron. Zayn has easily been one of the most entertaining characters on WWE TV in the last few months. Zayn quickly tags to Shinsuke, already going back on his word. Strowman no sells a clothesline from Shinsuke and then clubs him with one of his own. After a distraction, Shinsuke hits a dropkick to Strowman's knees and now Cesaro is working on him. Zayn gets a cheap shot in. He tags in, gets in a few kicks and then tags Shinsuke back in. Zayn is back in for another quick tag to get in some more heat. He's trying his best to wake the crowd up. Zayn tags in yet again and mocks him, before running out and tagging in Shinsuke again. Shinsuke has Strowman in a sleeper hold, but Strowman hits a suplex to get out of the hold. In comes Cesaro, but Strowman starts tossing him around the ring, before dropping him face-first on the mat. Strowman singles to go around the ring, but Zayn attacks him from behind. Zayn escapes and Strowman chases him, allowing him to knock over Cesaro and Shinsuke. He finds Zayn under the ring, which then exposes a TV monitor under the ring that I would imagine for Undertaker. Is that the first time that has been shown? Cesaro and Shinsuke attack him as he's grabbing Zayn. Cesaro goes for the Neutralizer, but Strowman escapes and goes after Zayn again. Cesaro then throws Strowman into the ring post and Shinsuke hits Kinshasa. Cesaro and Shinsuke have a double suplex and Sami hits a Helluva Kick at the same time. Sami Zayn covers him and we have a new Intercontinental Champion! I probably liked this more than I was supposed to, but Zayn is delivering with his heel work. Are we going to get a 5 second squash at WrestleMania? Hopefully somehow Cesaro has a bigger role than just being a manager for that.

Match Rating: **3/4

Elimination Chamber Match To Become #1 Contender For The Raw Women's Championship
Asuka vs. Sarah Logan vs. Liv Morgan vs. Shayna Baszler vs. Ruby Riott vs. Natalya

It's going to have to take a fantastic effort here to overcome the flawed and predictable storyline here. Riott and Natalya are the first two in here. Natalya puts Riott in the Sharpshooter outside the ring, but Riott rolls back and Natalya goes head-first into Liv Morgan's pod. This match is pretty good proof that the WWE has given us such little reason to care about the undercard of the women's division. I say that as someone who likes both Liv Morgan and Sarah Logan, but they hardly can get solid TV time. The next entrant is Logan who sends Natalya once again into Morgan's pod. Riott starts climbing the chamber and Logan is there to follow. They are fighting on top of the pod and Logan hits a pop up headbutt. Natalya pulls Riott off the chains and hits a powerbomb. Logan hits a crossbody off the top of the pod and it looks like she caught Natalya in the face with her knee. Logan goes for a superplex, but Natalya is there for yet another tower of doom spot. These women have literally everything working against them. Baszler is the next woman in and she quickly eliminates Logan. She goes after Riott and makes her tap out immediately as well. Is this what Heyman had in mind when he wanted CM Punk to go over huge in his Elimination Chamber match at December To Dismember? Baszler starts slamming the pod door on Natalya repeatedly. She puts her in the Kirafuda Clutch and Baszler has now made all three women tap out. The Logan one was so quick, she was treated as if she was picked out of the audience. Meanwhile, Baszler taunts Morgan and Asuka as she waits for the countdown. Not surprisingly, Liv Morgan is next and she goes right at Baszler, but it doesn't last long. Baszler swings her into the cage and then into the pod. She shoves Morgan's face into Asuka's pod as Asuka repeatedly is yelling at her. Baszler puts Morgan in the Kirafuda Clutch from the top rope and Morgan is also eliminated. The Brock Lesnar role doesn't work as well in this match and I'm not sure what they are expecting the crowd to do here. Asuka is finally in and we finally have a match. Asuka hits the Hip Attack and a series of kicks. Baszler catches the next attempt and starts hitting kicks of her own. Asuka kind of hits a kick to the chin and then puts Baszler in the Asuka Lock. Baszler is able to roll out of the ring and back on her feet. She then begins to slam Asuka into the chains. Baszler hits Asuka with a kick and puts her in the Kirafuda Clutch and that is all. This is such a tough one to analyze because the booking was pretty much the way it should have been. However, if you knew you were going this route, why would you not book something stronger on the card that could have main evented the show? I get that you want to leave this as a lasting impression of her as a monster, but it just felt off. The other problem here is that no one cared about anyone else in the match and that's a result of bad booking. With that being said, Baszler vs. Lynch is absolutely a WrestleMania-worthy title match and I'm glad they pulled the trigger on it. This is just a great example of doing things both right and wrong at the same time. The match was pretty much terrible though.

Match Rating: 1/2*

Well, that was some show. This was the best and worst of WWE all in one night. I have to say that I love that we can get a Gulak/Bryan 15 minute match on a pay-per-view, because I feel like that is something that wouldn't have happened 10 years ago. Now back to my point. I am one of the fans that completely understands why Goldberg and Lesnar are the champions. However, when you are running a pay-per-view just a month before WrestleMania, that leaves you in a really bad spot. Then on top of it, you can't really book either of your women champions on the show either. So right there you are down four of your top names. Then on top of it, you basically give away the winner of your main event because of the story you have already presented. If you had built your roster up properly, you could have countered that by the monster showing by Baszler coming off as more impressive, but instead she just kind of destroyed a bunch of women that the crowd doesn't care about. Predictable is not always a bad thing in wrestling (example: Kofimania at WrestleMania), but this show had too much of it. Did anyone not expect the Undertaker to show up? Were we really shocked to see Kevin Owens cost Seth Rollins? It was too much and it seemed to be all right in a row. However, the good stuff here was really good. The first three matches were all great stories that were filled with lots of action and the nice thing was each of those matches felt different. I would have liked to have seen the next two matches cut down a few minutes each, but those were both fine even if the crowd was dead. It's hard to recommend this show, but I highly recommend the first hour or so, as they showcased of what the company can do when they want to let guys just do their thing. The rest of the show is a roller coaster that is the WWE in 2020.

Overall Rating: 61%