Monday Night Raw 5-8-06 Review

Monday, May 8th, 2006
Arrowhead Pond
Anaheim, California

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After a really lengthy intro about the whole Spirit Squad show last week, we get Jim Ross back at the announce table. Out comes Triple H and he wants his WWE Championship, so he calls out John Cena. Cena tells him that we all know what Triple H has done, but it's about what you've done lately. He reminds Triple H that lately he's both pinned him and made him tap out. Cena's ready to go right now, but out comes Vince to say it's not happening. Vince ends up saying Triple H will get his rematch, but he has the night off tonight. Vince then announces that Cena and Shawn Michaels will take on the Spirit Squad. Vince then introduces the Fatal 4 Way match. Rob Van Dam comes out first and he and Cena give a little to tease to what is going to happen. RVD grabs a mic and calls what happened to Joey Styles a bunch of crap. He said he agrees with everything Joey said and tries to get the crowd to chant for ECW. 

Fatal 4 Way For The Intercontinental Championship

Rob Van Dam vs. Charlie Haas vs. Chris Masters vs. Shelton Benjamin

Did you know that this is a huge disadvantage for the champion? If not, you will of course be reminded of it 55 times. After the long opening segment, of course they are going to interrupt this one right away with a commercial break. RVD is able to hit Rolling Thunder while Shelton dumps Haas out of the ring. Shelton hits a big kick on Haas, but RVD breaks up the pin. Masters comes out of nowhere and takes Shelton out of the match. He puts the Master Lock on Haas, but Van Dam comes from off the top rope with a sunset flip and scores the pin. This was an enjoyable TV match that tried it's best to stay chaotic rather than always having two people laying around. 

Match Rating: **1/2

Carlito vs. Matt Striker

I'm a little surprised they are going from match to match with no background segment. Maybe something was edited out? They go back and forth with big punches until Carlito is able to hit his springboard elbow. Out of nowhere, Eugene comes to the ring and attacks Striker, which allows Striker to win the match by DQ. Carlito attacks Striker, but then also hits the Backstabber on Eugene. This whole thing was rushed and I'm not sure many people cared about it. 

Match Rating: 1/4*

Edge comes out and makes fun of the California fans. Foley comes out and says that he couldn't have a hardcore match without some ECW and says that he's adding Tommy Dreamer to the match.

Triple Threat Hardcore Match

Edge vs. Mick Foley vs. Tommy Dreamer

They keep warning us about how violent this is going to be. Foley hits Dreamer in the back with his barbed wire baseball bat and then hands it to Edge. Lawler is trying his best to sell this, but the crowd seems a little bit confused. Edge and Foley start working together and Dreamer is gushing. Foley puts Mr. Socko on Dreamer and Edge hits him with a Spear for the victory. They give the victory to Foley and he and Edge shake hands after the match. I don't think this played as well as they hoped for. 

Match Rating: 1/4*

Mickie James vs. Maria

Trish is in Maria's corner. Mickie dominates the entire match and hits her variation of the DDT for the easy victory. After the match, Mickie invites Trish into the ring. Mickie hits a cheap shot on Maria, so Trish tries to save her with one arm and Mickie takes advantage of it. Out comes a blonde woman to attack Mickie and she is restrained by WWE officials. This of course is Beth Phoenix in her debut. 

Match Rating: 1/4*

Kevin Martenson & Tommy Wilson vs. Umaga

Umaga gets two opponents this week, which is always fun. This is obviously Umaga just destroying these two ham and eggers He hits the Samoan Spike and that is all. This was exactly what it needed to be, as Umaga slowly continues to get over a little more every week. 

Match Rating: 1/4*

Kane vs. Big Show

Ah, yes. I remember this match like it was yesterday. This is the match where these two decided to do a mat wrestling match. We get a drop toe hold from Big Show and then they decided to do a test of strength. They keep going with it and kind of just feels like a slow motion version of a 1993 Bob Backlund match. Kane starts to climb the ropes and the lights go out and a Kane mask shows up on the screen, saying "May 19th". Kane grabs a chair and unleashes on Big Show and he walks away as his music plays. They don't make any announcement, but I am guessing Big Show wins by DQ. 

Match Rating: 1/4*

The Spirit Squad are backstage getting pumped up for their match. 

Spirit Squad vs. Shawn Michaels & John Cena

Cena and Michaels throw Kenny over the top rope and take out the entire Squad into the commercial break. Cena gets Johnny up for the FU, but his teammates save him and Johnny hits him with his kick for a 2 count. The crowd has finally woken up for this match. The Spirit Squad continues to use their numbers advantage to work on Cena. Cena finally makes the hot tag and he fires right hands at all five opponents. Meanwhile, they throw Cena into the steps. Behind the referee's back, they hit Michaels with one of their Tag Team Championship belts to the face and score the cheap victory. After the match, they hit the referee and steal his belt to start whipping Michaels with it. Cue the "government mule" line. Out comes Triple H and Cena comes in to start tossing guys out of the ring. Triple H hits the Pedigree on Cena and gives him multiple crotch chops. This was your typical cheap match that we have all seen a million times. Nothing more, nothing less. 

Match Rating: **

This was another middle of the road show for the red brand. They really don't have much to build to, so they seem to just be treading water and throwing the Spirit Squad out there every opportunity they get. The only thing notable about this show was the lack of backstage segments. There were very few on this show and instead had a couple more matches than normal.

Overall Rating: 50%

Extreme Rules 2021 Review

Sunday, September 26th
Nationwide Arena
Columbus, Ohio

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New Day vs. AJ Styles, Omos & Bobby Lashley

This one was just added to the card today, which is not normally how you book your champion on a pay-per-view. It really is pretty amazing that New Day is still a thing in 2021. It just goes to show how much being genuine can work. After a little bit of start and stop with AJ, Lashley and Big E go at it. We get some action on the outside and it allows Lashley to take advantage of Kofi and toss him across the ring. They single out Kofi for awhile and Lashley does a nice job of making sure Kofi doesn't make the hot tag to Big E. Lashley gets him up for the Dominator, but Kofi is able to slip out of it. We finally get a hot tag to Woods and he hits a tornado DDT for a nearfall. Woods hits a missile dropkick and Big E is back up on the apron. He gets the tag and suplexes Styles all over the ring. We get a really nice segment between E and AJ. Kofi makes a blind tag and it leads to a top rope stomp off the shoulders of Big E, but Lashley is in to break up the pin attempt. Lashley misses with a Spear and ends up outside. AJ comes in and he gets launched outside. Big E then sends Kofi over the top, but Omos is there to make the save. Lashley is upset when AJ tags himself in. Lashley tags in himself and it leads to Lashley accidentally hitting the Spear on AJ and Big E hits the Big Ending and gets the pinfall on Lashley. For a match that wasn't on the card, they sure got a lot of time and rightfully so. I have been saying since they went back to the brand split that they need to do more matches like this with the champion to keep things fresher. This was a good example of one, although I'm not sure I love that Lashley got pinned here.  

Match Rating: ***1/2

SmackDown Tag Team Championship Match

Street Profits vs. Usos

It seems like an odd choice to put both tag team matches to kick off the show. Montez has his ribs taped up and this leads to the Usos kicking him in the ribs as he is running the ropes. They continue to work on the ribs and rip off the ace bandage. Dawkins is finally tagged in and is able to catch one Uso on a suicide dive and hit a suplex. He catches the other Uso with a fist when he goes for one. Ford hits a Blockbuster off the top rope, but Jimmy is able to kick out. Ford goes for the big Frog Splash off the top rope, but they get their knees up on the injured ribs. Jimmy is able to counter out of another electric chair due to Montez climbing slowly. Dawkins is able to kick out of an Uso Splash. They throw Dawkins into the barricade, but then out comes Ford out of nowhere with a somersault dive over the ring post. He hits the Frog Splash, but the Usos break up the pin. Just an FYI, I will never be able to tell the difference between the Usos. Ford gets hit with a double superkick and then hit the double Uso Splash for the victory. This one was just okay for me. They seemed to be moving a little bit slower than normal and just didn't click. 

Match Rating: **1/2

Lashley is backstage upset and he wants Big E tomorrow. He also uses the s-word here. At what point does WWE lose their TV-PG rating? 

Raw Women's Championship Match

Alexa Bliss vs. Charlotte Flair

The hype video for this match has me absolutely not wanting to watch this match and I like both of these ladies as in ring performers. Alexa is getting a nice hometown pop for everything she does here. This match just feels very disjointed so far. Alexa gets her boots up on the moonsault and hits the Canadian Destroyer, but Charlotte kicks out. Charlotte is able to move out of the way of Twisted Bliss and goes for the Figure Four, but Alexa rolls her up for a 2 count. Charlotte hits a running boot to the face and hits Natural Selection for the victory. They didn't get a whole lot of time there and the match was just kind of weird to me. It lacked a flow and felt more like a TV match. Charlotte attacks Alexa after the match and then starts ripping up the stupid doll. Bliss comes back in the ring and attacks Charlotte. Charlotte is able to fight her off and throw her into the table. 

Match Rating: *3/4

Paul Heyman is backstage on the phone, but won't let us know who it is. 

Triple Threat Match For The United States Championship

Jeff Hardy vs. Sheamus vs. Damian Priest

As soon as the bell rings, Sheamus drills Hardy and he's out of the ring right away. Priest and Sheamus are brawling outside and out comes Hardy leaping out of nowhere. Priest hits a somersault dive over the top onto Hardy. Priest looks to lose his footing and falls off the apron. He recovers about as well as you could and starts hitting the clubbing blows on Sheamus. Hardy hits a Whisper In The Wind on both men and gets a 2 count on Sheamus. Sheamus hits an Alabama Slam and slaps on the Texas Cloverleaf. Hardy gets to the ropes, but he doesn't have to break the hold. Priest makes the save and hits Sheamus with a kick to the injured nose. Sheamus hits White Noise, but Hardy breaks up the pin attempt. He hits the Twist Of Fate. He goes up top, but Sheamus is able to knock him off. He goes up top and does an awkwardly funny mockery of Hardy and then hits Priest with a knee. Hardy hits a Swanton on top of both men while Priest is making a pin attempt. Hardy is the most over man in the match with the live crowd. We get the usual frantic finish with lots of nearfalls and Priest is able to roll up Sheamus for the victory. It had some nice moments, but it also had some sloppy spots. 

Match Rating: **3/4

Big E is backstage and says that he will face Lashley tomorrow night at 8:00 pm sharp. 

SmackDown Women's Championship Match

Bianca Belair vs. Becky Lynch

We get some dueling chants for both women. I've reached the point of the night where it takes everything I have to stay up. Becky dominates most of the beginning parts of the match. Bianca hits her nice vertical suplex. They tart having a tug of war with Bianca's hair, which Bianca wins and hits a spinebuster. We get a nice sequence of the going at it with counters after Bianca lifts Becky off the top rope. It ends with the Disarm-her being put on and Bianca getting her feet to the rope. Becky drives Bianca into the steel steps and heads up to the top again and hits a leg drop for a 2 count. Becky hits a nice guillotine leg drop as well. They once again start battling over the Disarm-her and Bianca gets a nearfall. This is one of those weird matches where the crowd is kind of quiet because they like both women. They are popping for the big moves though. Bianca has Becky up for the KOD, but in comes Sasha and she attacks Bianca. After that, Sasha starts attacking Becky and then hits the Backstabber on Bianca. She gives one to Becky for good measure. This was a pretty solid match that felt like it was heading for some sort of screwy ending, but at least it was something that makes the dynamic more interesting. 

Match Rating: ***1/4

Extreme Rules Match For The WWE Championship

Roman Reigns vs. Finn Balor

Balor is the Demon character for the first time in a long time here tonight. For a show called Extreme Rules, it took until 10:32 for a weapon to be pulled out and it's a kendo stick. Balor has 4 kendo sticks, so he wins and starts lashing Roman in the back. Balor starts pulling out a table, which pops the crowd more than just about anything all night. Roman attacks him and tells the crowd that there will be no tables tonight. Reigns starts using a chair and attacks Balor with it. Balor is able to fight back and stomps onto the chair on Roman's chest. Balor tries to get the table in the ring and Roman hits him with a Drive By kick. They start battling in the crowd and Balor gets thrown onto the Kickoff Show table. I love that Roman put a mask on as he went into the crowd.  Balor hits a crossbody off the table and puts Roman through another table. Balor sets up the table in the ring, but Roman ends up throwing him through it. Roman hits a Spear, but Finn kicks out and hits him with a low blow. That was a nice touch. Balor hits a senton over the top rope and hits the Coup de Grace, but the Usos come out and interfere. Balor hits a powerbomb on Jey through the announce table. Roman then comes and hits a Spear through the barricade. They really need to stop using that spot like every single show. Balor's music starts playing and it's supposed to be his heartbeat and he is up and okay now. He starts unloading on Reigns with a chair and hits a dropkick that sends Roman through the table as the music is still playing. Balor goes up top and the turnbuckle collapses out of nowhere. Roman hits the Spear and picks up the victory. This was all very strange, as the Demon seems to now have joined the Bray Wyatt universe. Roman sells how confused he is by looking up to the sky before celebrating. They went the non-Brock ending, which I didn't expect. That ending wasn't up my alley, but it was oddly entertaining to me. I didn't think this was a classic or anything, but it was an entertaining match overall. It was nice to see Balor booked strongly here against Roman. 

Match Rating: ***1/2

This was kind of a middle of the road show for me. It was bookended by good matches, but the rest was a little all over the place for me. There just weren't many interesting stories told here tonight and just felt like a good episode of Raw or SmackDown.

Overall Rating: 60%

NXT 4-24-14 Review

Original Airdate: Thursday, April 24th, 2014
Full Sail University
Winter Park, Florida

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JBL approaches Paige backstage and tells her that it's not fair that she's the NXT Champion with her being the Divas Champion now. JBL is being all babyface during this, but Paige isn't happy. She reluctantly relinquishes it and there will be a tournament to crown the next champ. 

Alexander Rusev vs. Travis Tyler

Tyler hits a dropkick, but Rusev just squashes him anyways. He hits the high knees to the ribs and then a modified Samoan Drop. He slaps on the Accolade and that's all for poor Tyler. The presentation for Rusev and Lana was always really good. Meanwhile, the announcers make a bunch of lame jokes. 

Match Rating: 1/4*

Adam Rose is backstage and calls Camacho a party pooper and boring. 

Charlotte & Sasha Banks vs. Emma & Paige

Emma gets off to a hot start and hits a monkey flip on Charlotte. Her and Paige hit a double suplex, but Charlotte comes back and works on the ankle of Paige. Charlotte does the Flair fall and then is tossed around the ring. After a blind tag, Sasha unleashes some anger and then Charlotte shows off her leg strength. Emma is able to make a hot tag to Paige, but Charlotte slows down her momentum with a low dropkick. Charlotte hits Natural Selection and she pins the Divas Champion. This was a pretty good little tag team match. It was pretty clear that Charlotte was the focus of this match. 

Match Rating: **1/4

Tyson Kidd vs. Mason Ryan

Ryan methodically starts off the match until Kidd catches him with a kick to the head. Kidd hits a nice guillotine legdrop by leaping over the top rope to the floor. Ryan grabs him before he can hit a springboard and drops him face-first. Kidd hits a top rope somersault neckbreaker and gets a fairly easy win over Vince's failure of this era. After the match, Renee Young interviews him on the ramp and Kidd lets us know that this is his rebirth. I'm surprised that this was basically a squash, but they had already given up on Ryan at this point. 

Match Rating: 3/4*

Angelo Dawkins vs. Tyler Breeze

Dawkins apparently has a new look with a backpack and glasses. File that under things I had no clue existed. Dawkins gets in a little bit of offense, but this is basically a Superstars squash. Breeze hits the Beauty Shot and that's all. They were finally getting serious about pushing Breeze here. 

Match Rating: 1/2*

Corey Graves & Ascension vs. Sami Zayn & Usos

This is an interesting main event. Things start off nicely and I'm enjoying this enough to where I don't feel like typing about it. After the commercial break, Graves finally gets in and immediately goes to a rest hold. Jey Uso is the one singled out and is finally able to throw Konnor through the ropes and makes the hot tag to Jimmy. Graves gets a kick to the head and then Zayn hits a top rope crossbody for a nearfall. Zayn hits the Blue Thunder Bomb, but the Ascension makes the save. Zayn and one of Jimmy double clothesline them out of the ring. Zayn hits the Yakuza Kick and then a double dive to the outside. Jey hits the top rope splash and picks up the victory. This was a nice main event here for NXT, as the Usos were down here to have a good match. 

Match Rating: ***

This is the type of show that NXT was supposed to be in this era. They featured a few of their better talents and then had an enjoyable main event. They even gave the women's match a few more minutes than usual. I'll definitely take more episodes like this. 

Overall Rating: 68%

Monday Night Raw 5-2-94 Review

Original Airdate: Monday, May 2nd, 1994
Green Mountain State
Burlington, Vermont

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WWE Tag Team Championship Match

Quebecers vs. Headshrinkers

I've been really looking forward to this one. This one starts off as most Quebecers matches do, with them being cowardly heels. The Quebecers already head to the back, which leads to Earl Hebner making up his own rules. If the Quebecers don't get back in the ring by the count of 10, they lose their titles. They are rightfully furious and get back to the ring as we head into a commercial break. The Headshrinkers are in control when we come back until Pierre hits a big clothesline. Quebecers hit some of their double teams and we head into another commercial break. Samu gets tied up in the ropes by his neck, which slows down their attempted comeback. Jacques shows off some strength with a delayed piledriver, but then miss with the somersault double team. Meanwhile on the outside, Lou Albano holds Johnny Polo so that Afa can take a shot at him. Then out of nowhere, Pierre hits Jacques on purpose? The Headshrinkers hit a double Skull Crushing Finale and then Fatu hits the top rope splash to crown new champions. The crowd is loving it and they even get some cheapo fireworks. In an era where title changes were pretty rare on TV, we got two of them in three days between this and Diesel. Three kayfabe days that is. This was another fun match, although the commercial breaks kind of hurt the flow of the match here. 

Match Rating: ***

It's time for the King Of The Ring Report with Todd Pettengill. He announces another qualifying match between Razor Ramon and Kwang. Todd announces Art Donovan will be on hand. I wonder how that will turn out? 

Tatanka vs. Derrick Domino

Chief Jay Strongbow is interviewed real quick and is about as charismatic as an eggplant. IRS joins us on the phone and he can't wait to face Tatanka. Tatanka is easily taking care of Domino, who looks like some random guy from a bar. Why are his squashes always about four times longer than they need to be. Domino gets in a few seconds of offense so Tatanka can do his hulk up and then hits the Samoan Drop for the finish. This was way too long for what they were hoping to accomplish. 

Match Rating: 1/4*

Jerry Lawler is out for a King's Court and starts ripping on Roddy Piper. Diesel is the guest here and it's surprising that Nash isn't a little more natural here. I'm not sure what his accent is here, but it just sounds off. Diesel then announces that he wants the WWF Championship now, so I guess that's how the build began for King Of The Ring. 

Now it's time for another Undertaker sighting. Hopefully they don't do this for another 4 months. 

Handicap Match

Yokozuna vs. Scott Taylor & Mike Davis

This is your average Yokozuna match here, but, you know, with two opponents instead of one. It's pretty clear they don't have much of a plan for him now, so I guess this is just a reminder that he's a force to be reckoned with. He then stacks up his opponents and hits a double Banzai for the win. After the match he hits another one on Davis. He then goes over to the other corner and hits one on Taylor. Out comes Earthquake to make the save and Yoko retreats. 

Match Rating: 1/4*

Vince and Macho are with Earthquake after the commercial. He challenges Yokozuna with a lot of yelling. Vince and Savage high five as we go off the air. 

This was another entertaining episode, as 1994 continues to be a little bit more consistent than 1993. The title switch was well done and was a compelling way to begin the show. The rest was nothing special, but it flew by quickly enough. 

Overall Rating: 59%

Superstars 4-30-94 Review

Original Airdate: Saturday, April 30th, 1994
War Memorial Auditorium
Rochester, New York

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We get highlights of the Shawn Michaels/Diesel/Razor Ramon story, which has been very good. Today, Diesel gets his shot at the Intercontinental Championship with about as big of a match as you're going to get on Superstars. 

Mabel vs. Jim Messenger

We get no entrances here, as they continue to focus more on going right to the action. After an awkward looking move from Mable he jumps on Messenger's arm. Mabel hits his spin kick and a DDT to finish things off. This was short, as it should have been. Only about 16 months until Mabel headlines SummerSlam.

Match Rating: 1/4*

Intercontinental Championship Match

Diesel vs. Razor Ramon

Razor goes right after Diesel and we are underway. Shawn is wearing a weird tank top with his logo on it. I'm not sure I've ever seen that. After a series of right hands, it sends Diesel out of the ring. On the way back in, Diesel is able to snap Razor's neck on the top rope. Diesel hits a side suplex and Snake Eyes. I still can't get over how good Razor was during this era and I'm enjoying all of it. I also don't quite understand how Diesel went from here to challenging Bret Hart at King Of The Ring. Razor makes a comeback and hits his leaping second rope bulldog. Shawn eats a right hand from Razor that sends him flying, but allows Diesel to regain control. Razor throws Diesel into Shawn, sending him soaring once again. Diesel hits the Jackknife and we have a new Intercontinental Champion. This was a fantastic sprint of a match between two guys with Shawn bumping all over the place. After the match, Shawn and Diesel celebrate to the back, as Razor sells the effects of the Jackknife. This was really a flawless 5 minute match. 

Match Rating: ***1/2

Sparky Plugg vs. Tony DeVito

I can't think of a better way to follow up with that perfection than with a race car driving wrestler. Sparky hits a second rope clothesline and a snap suplex. He hits the top rope knee drop and puts DeVito out of his misery. Another quick squash. 

Match Rating: 1/4*

It's finally time for the first King Of The Ring Report with Todd Pettengill. He announces that Scott Steiner vs. IRS will be the first qualifying match. 

It's time for another Duke Droese vignette. 

Heavenly Bodies vs. PJ Walker & Mike Khoury

The Heavenly Bodies have the angel wings on their jackets this week. Jimmy Del Ray was a genius. Walker gets a hot tag and misses with a top rope reverse crossbody. They hit their awesome finisher and that is all. Why did we not get more of these guys? I say that after every match they have. 

Match Rating: 1/2*

Dink is here for an interview with Jerry Lawler. Doink comes out, even though we were told he is on vacation. I can't wait to see how they stretch this feud all the way to Survivor Series in 7 months. Doink has some pies an squashes them in Dink's face. Doink reveals himself as Jeff Jarrett as poor Dink walks away in shame. 

Bam Bam Bigelow vs. Jason Headings

Some older guy who actually bought a Doink shirt is the guest ring announcer. Headings tries to get something going, but Bam Bam catches him for a slam and then tosses him out of the ring. Luna gets in a few cheap shots and then Bam Bam brings him in the hard way. Headings goes for a sunset flip, but Bam Bam squashes him and gets the victory. 

Match Rating: 1/4*

They show us highlights of the Intercontinental match earlier and then they show them getting into a limo. They stand up through the sunroof as it drives up the ramp out of the arena. 

We get another Undertaker sighting. This time it's a traffic cop. God, these are stupid. Next week we get Owen Hart, 1-2-3 Kid, Jeff Jarrett, Lex Luger, Scott Steiner vs. IRS and Ted DiBiase on the Heartbreak Hotel. 

Any episode of Superstars that has a big moment like this is an automatic thumbs up. The squashes were all short and the Diesel/Razor match was really good. That's about as good as TV gets in 1994.

Overall Rating: 61%

SmackDown 5-5-06 Review

Original Airdate: Friday, May 5th, 2006
US Bank Arena
Cincinnati, Ohio

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After a lengthy recap, they announce that JBL will face Rey Mysterio at Judgment Day and out comes Rey Mysterio to the ring. He naturally is interrupted by JBL, who is wearing an American flag jacket. JBL goes on a rant against Mexicans and this all feels a little dated and probably offensive. JBL announces that Mysterio's opponent will be Mark Henry and he comes out for a staredown into the commercial break. 

Booker T vs. Gunner Scott

This one starts off slowly and is already losing my interest. Gunner gets in a few spots before Booker gets in the way of the referee and allows Sharmell to grab Gunner's leg. From there, Booker attacks him, hits the Scissor Kick and gets the victory. This felt like a house show match. After the match, Booker grabs a mic and stands on the announce table. He continues the tease towards him winning the King of the Ring and ends with the famous "All hail, King Booker". 

Match Rating: 1/2*

WWE Tag Team Championship Match

London & Kendrick vs. MNM

Melina comes out by herself, which allows MNM the chance to attack London and Kendrick before the match. They hit the Snapshot twice. Instead of heading to the back, they hit a third Snapshot. So we're not getting a match here tonight. 

Teddy Long approaches Daivari and in comes Great Khali from behind. Long tells him that Undertaker has challenged Khali for a match at Judgment Day. Khali yells a lot in response. 

King Of The Ring 1st Round Match

Finlay vs. Chris Benoit

We get a lot of mat wrestling to start off, so it's pretty apparent this one is going to get some time. Benoit is bleeding from the top of his head pretty early on here. The winner of this match takes on Lashley, if you're wondering who is going to win this match. Benoit pulls out a German suplex out of nowhere and starts hitting some chops. Finlay's not happy about it, so he starts throwing chairs into the ring and we take a commercial break. Nothing comes of it once we come back and Benoit is hitting a snap suplex. Finlay turns things around when he throws Benoit into the turnbuckle sternum-first. Benoit tries to comeback after a long rest hold, but misses with the headbutt off the top rope. Finlay grabs the shillelagh, but Benoit sends him over the top rope. Benoit picks up the shillelagh and Finlay picks up a chair and jabs it in Benoit's face. He hits the Celtic Cross and picks up the victory. This was pretty disappointing overall. They got a lot of time and didn't do much with it. The finish did fit what they have been doing with Finlay and this is a good victory for him as a character. 

Match Rating: **

Gymini vs. Scotty 2 Hotty & Funaki

I guess Gymini is still a thing. Even though this is all I have typed, I can't believe this match is still happening. Gymini dominates and hits the Crash Diet for the easy victory. 

Match Rating: 1/4*

Lashley is backstage and walks into Booker and Sharmell's locker room. They talk some trash and I have to say, I'm kind of confused why they telegraphed this tournament so much.

#1 Contender Triple Threat Match For The Cruiserweight Championship

Super Crazy vs. Nunzio vs. Kid Kash

The winner's match will take place at Judgment Day. Super Crazy is the only one who gets an entrance here. They attack him to start off and we are underway. Crazy hits a double back body drop out to the floor and then hits a springboard moonsault to both men. Great Khali's music hits and he heads out to the ring. He attacks them all and then heads to the back. So aren't triple threat matches always no disqualification? I'm not sure why this match would be over with. There wasn't much time for the match here.

Match Rating: 3/4*

I certainly didn't remember CM Punk's first WWE music being the theme song for Judgment Day. They run through the card which features Undertaker/Great Khali, Melina/Jillian Hall and JBL/Rey Mysterio. Out comes JBL to join the announce table. 

Mark Henry vs. Rey Mysterio

Rey tries to start off hot, but Henry is too much for him to start off. Mysterio does make a comeback quicker than you would think and plants Henry with a DDT. He hits a dropkick from behind and hits the 619. Henry catches Mysterio and hits the World's Strongest Slam and picks up the pinfall victory? I'm not sure I understand the booking here. Henry tosses Mysterio out of the ring and then drags him by his leg to the set. He tosses him into the set and starts climbing. JBL comes out to stop him and promises Henry that he'll give him the first title defense when he wins at Judgment Day. JBL gets in Rey's face and tells him that next week, he'll have to face Great Khali. JBL picks him up and slaps him in the face. Shouldn't Mark Henry get involved in the match now too? Anyways, they packed in about the same amount of action as Benoit and Finlay did in a match that was 3 times as long at least. 

Match Rating: **1/2

This was a pretty ho hum showing for the blue brand this time. It certainly wasn't bad, but for the most part, it wasn't exciting either. They haven't really done much to make you want to see Judgment Day yet either. 

Overall Rating: 50%

Monday Night Raw 5-1-06 Review

Monday, May 1st, 2006
Nationwide Arena
Columbus, Ohio

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Vince kicks off the show backstage and has the Spirit Squad running Raw. Kenny tonight will be getting a title shot against John Cena. 

Cheerleader Tag Team Match

Torrie Wilson & Maria vs. Victoria & Mickie James

The underdogs start off in control, which leads to Torrie hitting the "stinkface" and Maria hitting a Bronco Buster. Torrie then hits a X-Factor. Mickie goes for a suplex on Maria to get her back in the ring and out comes Trish in a sling. She trips up Mickie and Maria steals the victory. That wasn't executed very well, but she does have a bum shoulder. This was as bad as you would think. It's not 1999 any more. 

Match Rating: 1/4*

Spirit Squad vs. Eugene, Goldust & Snitsky

Man, this show is going to be one of those shows, isn't it? They show Vince watching the show and then Candice Michelle brings him a drink and sits in his lap. We are like 20 minutes into the show and the crowd is already dead. Eugene gets singled out and the Spirit Squad uses illegal triple teams behind the referee's back. Eugene hits the Rock Bottom and makes a hot tag to Snitsky. It doesn't last long, as Mikey lowers the top rope and Snitsky falls to the floor. Snitsky tags Eugene back in and he eats a nice spin kick from Johnny for the pinfall victory. Minus the finisher, this wasn't good. 

Match Rating: 1/2*

Apparently during the commercial break, Maria was doing the Kiss Cam and Mickie James came out and attacked her. 

Eugene is backstage and is making fun of Uncle Eric when he is attacked by Matt Striker.

They do a This Week In Wrestling History and it's Vince narrating his victory over Shawn Michaels. This I actually enjoyed. They show Shawn watching it backstage with his longtime buddies Big Show and Charlie Haas. In walk the Spirit Squad to talk trash and tell him that Shawn will be a referee in the match of Kane vs. Rob Conway. They also give him a special referee shirt and it says May 19th all over it. 

Rob Conway vs. Kane

I give them credit for committing to booking a show as terrible as the wrestlers they are claiming did. Shawn checks out Conway's boots and Michaels hits him with a low blow. He takes off the shirt and puts on it on Conway. Kane of course is dominating Conway and Shawn is helping him out. Michaels hands him a trash can and smashes Conway over the head in it. Kane starts to walk away and Michaels gets on the mic and starts yelling "May 19". He comes back and hits the Tombstone for the victory. More garbage here. 

Match Rating: 1/4*

Umaga vs. Rory Fox

Umaga sets him on the second rope and throws Fox over his head. He rams into him in the corner and then hits a top rope splash. He hits the Samoan Spike for the victory. This was the first thing on the show to really have some life to it. 

Match Rating: 1/4*

Vince is back with Candice and he starts kissing her neck. In walks Triple H and Vince says Triple H should be the special referee for the Kenny/Cena match. Triple H says he'd rather just take Kenny's spot. Vince tells him that it'll be a long time before he gets a title opportunity if he doesn't take the referee spot tonight. 

Edge and Lita are out and Edge is ranting about stealing the show last night and then makes fun of Joey Styles calling his match at WrestleMania. He brings out Mick Foley and he cuts a heelish promo and says that he and Edge had maybe the greatest hardcore match in wrestling history. Foley says he wants a rematch here tonight. Edge complains about Foley waiting for him to survive a triple threat match and is battling strep throat. Edge tells Foley, he's on...crack. Edge then says next week he'll take on Foley in any match that he wants. 

Masters is out first and gets on the mic. He says that he dominated Carlito and tells him next time they face off, he won't be spitting apples. He'll be spitting teeth. He then calls out Rob Van Dam for a Master Lock Challenge. He puts the hold on and then Shelton Benjamin comes out to help attack RVD. Out comes Carlito, who hits Masters in the back with a chair. Nicky comes out and announces that they will have a match tonight. 

Chris Masters & Shelton Benjamin vs. Rob Van Dam & Carlito

The match started during the break and then is interrupted by Vince and Candice again. Just in case you thought they didn't care about this match, Joey Styles gets a note and the Spirit Squad want to see him backstage. Anyway, Benjamin works on RVD until he's able to hit the hot tag to Carlito. He hits a springboard back elbow and then a dropkick on Masters. Shelton hits Carlito with a kick, but then RVD comes flying in off the top rope with a kick. Carlito hits the Backstabber on Masters, but the referee gets distracted. Shelton is about to hit him with a chair, but then out comes Charlie Haas and steals the chair. This allows Carlito to score the pinfall victory. This was very rushed and okayish.

Match Rating: *3/4

The Spirit Squad is with Styles and they tell him that he has a lack of spirit. They threaten to make him dress up like a cheerleader if he doesn't call Kenny the new champion here tonight. 

On his way back to the announce table, Lawler starts making fun of Styles. Styles slaps him and Lawler shoves him to the ground. Styles storms to the back furiously. After another commercial, Lawler calls Styles out. Styles cuts his big shoot promo here. Him complaining about not being good enough to call Backlash is funny. It all leads to Styles quitting and Lawler calling him an idiot. 

WWE Championship Match

Kenny vs. John Cena

After a little bit of offense from Cena, Kenny uses the numbers to his advantage. Triple H nonchalantly is counting Kenny's pinfall attempts and Kenny has had enough. He shoves Triple H and Triple H hits him with a right hand. He's about to fight back, but instead walks away and lets the Spirit Squad attack Cena. Out comes Shawn Michaels in his ref outfit and he and Michaels stop up at the ramp. Michaels comes down and makes the count, but stops before 3. Kenny isn't happy, so Shawn hits him with Sweet Chin Music. He and Cena clean house and Cena hits the Five Knuckle Shuffle on Johnny. Cena hits the FU on Kenny and gets the win. This was just more teasing of DX and an over the top match. 

Match Rating: *1/2

With the exception of the Joey Styles promo and the Edge/Foley interaction, this show was very poor. Particularly the first half hour or so was extremely weak. This was not the way I would have wanted to follow up from last night's pay-per-view.

Overall Rating: 47%

NXT 4-17-14 Review

Original Airdate: Thursday, April 17th, 2014
Full Sail University
Winter Park, Florida

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Big Cass vs. Aiden English

It's good to see English again. Cass starts off hot and hits a running knee and a big boot for a 2 count. English ducks a clothesline, but gets caught by Cass. He counters into the Director's Cut, but Cass is able to stop him. Cass gets another boot, but then English counters out of his swinging Rock Bottom. English grabs the tights on the pinfall and gets the victory. That just felt like a weird match and probably should have been a few minutes longer. 

Match Rating: 3/4*

Tyler Breeze is backstage and says that he doesn't have anything to say, but just thought the episode needed to have someone gorgeous on it. 

We get a video package of Paige beating AJ for the Divas Championship. 

Camacho vs. Oliver Grey

This is Grey's big return to action. He gets in a dropkick before eating an elbow to the face from Camacho. Camacho stomps a mudhole and hits a Samoan drop and that is all? Camacho has been a jobber so long, so I'm not sure what that makes Grey here. 

Match Rating: 1/4*

Bo Dallas is backstage and he claims that his Bo-lievers didn't want to do anything illegal and that's why his occupy NXT didn't work out last week. Don't stop Bo-lieving. 

The Ascension vs. Cal Bishop & Wesley Blake

It's kind of weird that Blake is still floundering around on the current day roster. I don't really understand why the Ascension was ever over with the NXT crowd. They hit the Fall Of Man and poor Bishop doesn't even get a chance to be in the match. This was a slower version of their usual match.

Match Rating: 1/4*

Sasha Banks and Charlotte are backstage and Charlotte starts to take the lead of their duo, insulting Sasha and Emma as well. 

CJ Parker vs. Great Khali

Parker goes on one of his rants before the match and out comes Khali. Khali does the Big Show chops to the chest and then knocks Parker out of the ring. Parker takes out the knee of Khali and gets in a few left hands. Parker goes off the top rope, but Khali hits a chop to the chest. Khali hits a couple of clotheslines and the Punjabi Plunge for the victory. Parker tried here. 

Match Rating: 1/2*

Emma says that she hasn't found her partner yet for her match with Sasha and Charlotte, or has she? 

Sami Zayn talks about his personal issues with Corey Graves. 

Jason Jordan & Tye Dillinger vs. Sawyer Fulton & Baron Corbin

This is quite the hodge podge of competitors here. Dillinger and Jordan are billed as the actual tag team here and show off some good teamwork early on. Corbin hits a big clothesline on Dillinger and gets a 2 count. Corbin continues to dominate until he misses with an elbow drop and Jordan gets the hot tag. Jordan hits a couple of dropkicks and then their variation of the Snapshot for the victory. This was pretty good for what it was. 

Match Rating: *

Brodus Clay vs. Adrian Neville

Neville starts off aggressively, but Brodus is able to throw him off his back. Neville ends up kind of getting caught off the top rope and then suplexed. Clay goes for the powerbomb pretty early on, but Neville is able to crawl away. They keep on trying to hype up this more serious version of Brodus, but it's hard to call any of this impressive. Neville again sneaks out of the powerbomb and takes out Clay's legs with a low dropkick. Clay tries to throw him out of the ring, but Neville hangs on and hits Clay with a kick to the head. Neville hits a leaping forearm and then goes for Red Arrow. Clay rolls out of the way and even though Neville rolls through, he gets crushed by Brodus. The action spills out of the ring. Brodus misses with a splash off the steps and both men are down. Neville rolls back in the ring to beat the count and is the winner. Well that sure was a flat ending to the show. Brodus was the opposite of good here. 

Match Rating: 1/2*

The main event stunk, which is hard to do when Neville is one of the competitors. This was another one of those NXT episodes where they just cram too many matches on the show instead of letting a few of them actually tell a story. It wasn't bad, but just kind of flat. 

Overall Rating: 42%

Monday Night Raw 4-25-94 Review

Original Airdate: Monday, April 25th, 1994
Memorial Auditorium
Utica, New York

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Before the intro, they really hype up Nikolai Volkoff on the King's Court? 

Jeff Jarrett vs. Razor Ramon

Jarrett's sporting teal, purple and black tonight. I'm not sure I've seen him in this get up. After Jarrett works on the arm, Razor catches him and hits the fall away slam. Razor continues the attack and Jarrett retreats to the outside. He trips up Razor and throws him into the steps to regain the advantage. Jarrett hits an awkward looking fist off the second rope and then an awkward commercial break just as Jarrett is slamming Razor face-first into the mat. I should note that this is a non-title match. Jarrett slaps on the sleeper hold and we get the classic raise the arms on third drop. Razor counters out of it and hits a back suplex and gets a 2 count. Razor hits some big right hands, but Jarrett is able to throw Razor out of the ring in desperation. Out comes Shawn Michaels and he gets in the face of Razor. Razor hits him with a right hand and then gets back to Jarrett. He knocks Jarrett out of the ring and then throws Michaels in. He sets up Shawn for the Razor's Edge, but in runs Diesel and makes the save. He hits a big boot to the face and the referee calls for the bell. Diesel hits the Jackknife twice and then stands on his chest to taunt him. Michaels grabs the belt and they throw it on top of him. I thoroughly enjoyed all of this. It made the Intercontinental Championship feel important and the match itself was good. This was just a really nice way to start the show. 

Match Rating: ***

Shawn and Diesel are interviewed backstage and Diesel says that next week on Superstars he will be the next Intercontinental champion.

Bam Bam Bigelow vs. Tony DeVito

While Bam Bam is destroying DeVito, we get a phone call from Jack Tunney. Tunney announces that the Headshrinkers will get their title shot next week on Raw. Bam Bam hits an enzuigiri and a headbutt for the victory. 

Match Rating: 1/4*

We go back to the Quebecers and Johnny Polo, who are complaining that it's not fair. They say that even they're friends, they'll give the Headshrinkers a title shot. 

Heavenly Bodies vs. John Paul & Jason Headings

Apparently last week was the highest rated Raw in history. The Bodies hit a double superkick before it was cool. Vince talks about Mr. Perfect no showing the WrestleMania Revenge Tour and has been suspended indefinitely. The Bodies are pretty legit awesome. Prichard holds up Headings and Del Ray hits a moonsault for the finish. This was a good squash.

Match Rating: 1/2*

Jerry Lawler is here for King's Court and he insults Nikolai Volkoff for being poor. He argues back and I just don't get this storyline. 

1-2-3 Kid vs. Duane Gill

So we have X-Pac vs. Gillberg here tonight. Kid is a little bit more aggressive here and I like it. Gill is always a fun jobber too. Kid hits a spin kick and that's all. Good enough.

Match Rating: 1/4*

We go to a deli and a guy claims that Undertaker came in to order a sandwich and disappeared when he turned to grab him a pickle. Is this a bit of an inside joke with Taker hating cucumbers? This is just weird. 

Owen Hart vs. Rich Myers

I am liking the more aggressive style of the squash matches here tonight, as Owen is in full heel mode here. Savage reminds us that Owen beat Bret at WrestleMania as if anyone could possibly forget when you mention it every 30 seconds. Owen locks in the Sharpshooter and that is all. He looked good here as usual. 

Match Rating: 1/4*

Lou Albano is so excited and then out comes Johnny Polo. Polo gets in his face and calls him a geezer until Savage grabs him and Albano hits him with a right hand. Out come the Quebecers and we go off the air. 

I really enjoyed this episode. The first match is the only thing you have to see, but it takes up almost a quarter of the show and the squashes all felt more important than your typical squash. The Volkoff stuff is mind boggling, but other than that, this was a good episode of Raw. 

Overall Rating: 62%

Superstars 4-23-94 Review

Original Airdate: Saturday, April 23rd, 1994
Lowell Auditorium
Lowell, Massachusetts

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We get highlights from 2 weeks ago with Doink dumping water on Jeff Jarrett. They do a gag at the beginning with Vince's microphone unplugged, so we only get Lawler talking. 

Doink vs. Bert Centeno

Doink dumps a bucket of confetti on Lawler on his way to the ring. Doink pushes Centeno over Dink's back and then hits him with a clothesline. Doink shows off that wrestling skill that we always hear about and then hits the Whoopee Cushion for the victory. 

Match Rating: 1/4*

After we get video proof that Razor Ramon works out with a toothpick in his mouth, it's time for the Heartbreak Hotel. Shawn calls out Razor and reminds him that Diesel wants to challenge him for the Intercontinental Championship. His guest this week is Mr. Perfect. Michaels asks if he still holds a grudge from WrestleMania IX, but Perfect says that if he did, he wouldn't be on the Heartbreak Hotel. He and Michaels shake hands to prove his point. Shawn thinks it's Luger with the grudge and Perfect calls Luger a Yankee Doodle Dandy.

Smoking Gunns vs. Doug Smith & Gary Steele

We all agree that Bart's mullet > Billy's mullet, right? This one is quick, as the Gunns hit the Sidewinder and that's all. I still don't get why they haven't had more TV time. 

Match Rating: 1/4*

They show the mayor of Stamford, Connecticut to tell us about how much money the WWF donated to the library. He then says that this is only one of the many donations the WWF has done. This is all just barf. This gets followed up by a lame "Unbelievable" commercial.

They once again show the highlights of the IRS attack on Tatanka. 

IRS vs. Burt Stiles

All you had to do was pay the gift tax. He then calls out Nikolai Volkoff and says he needs a new suit. Vince tries to explain something that he clearly has no idea about when he talks about IRS destroying the headdress. Meanwhile, IRS throws Stiles out of the ring. We get a one word interview from Chief Jay Strongbow. IRS puts on an abdominal stretch and grabs the rope against a jobber on Superstars. He locks in the Penalty and that's it. 

Match Rating: 1/4*

We get another Duke Droese vignette and he says business is picking up. 

Adam Bomb vs. Razor Ramon

Bomb attacks Razor as he's taking off the Intercontinental belt. If you're looking to be featured on Superstars, hiring Harvey Wippleman seems like the guy to hire. Bomb hits a powerslam, but misses with an elbow drop. Razor hits a right hand and clotheslines him over the top rope. Bomb pulls him out of the ring and hits him with a clothesline. Back in the ring, Bomb hits a back suplex for a 2 count. Razor then pretty much hits the Razor's Edge out of nowhere for the victory. That was a lot quicker than I was expecting here, but they made the most of their time. 

Match Rating: *3/4

After the match, Jerry Lawler is out to interview Razor. Razor says he'll take on anybody, any time and any place. Lawler pushes him to agree to wrestling Diesel next week. 

Scott Taylor & Ben Jordan vs. Quebecers

Jacques starts off aggressively and then hits a back body drop on Pierre onto Taylor. Captain Lou Albano hypes up Jack Tunney's announcement about the Headshrinkers title shot. Jacques hits a piledriver and they hit their finisher for the easy victory. The Quebecers continue to be one of the highlights of 1994. 

Match Rating: 1/4*

Owen Hart vs. Gary Sabough

Speaking highlights of 1994, we get that followed up with an Owen squash. Every kid in the crowd is chanting "We want Bret" and it makes the atmosphere sound like a Wiggles concert. Apparently Sabough was ranked #213 in the PWI Top 500 this year. Owen hits him with a spinning heel kick and locks in the Sharpshooter for the victory. 

Match Rating: 1/4*

Lawler now interviews Diesel and he reminds us again that he wants an Intercontinental Championship match. Next week, the belt is coming back to where it belongs. 

As always, this show doesn't have a lot going on, but it has been a lot more enjoyable lately. The pacing was good here and the feature match was better than you would expect. I'm looking forward to some King Of The Ring qualifiers. 

Overall Rating: 48%

Backlash 2006 Review

Sunday, April 30th
Rupp Arena
Lexington, Kentucky

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Chris Masters vs. Carlito

I should note that the intro video to the show is another well done video package. They always do such a great job of setting the tone for the evening. Then they have Chris Masters come out. Masters hits Carlito with a right hand and then uses Carlito's shirt to choke him. Masters hits a buckle bomb into the corner while King tries to sell us on the fact that winning this match is a big deal. Masters is dominating the majority of this one, which is a little surprising. Carlito gets a nearfall with a roll up and then hits a springboard reverse elbow. Carlito grabs his apple and tosses it across the ring to distract Masters, then hits him with a dropkick to the legs. Carlito hits the Back Cracker and uses the ropes to score the victory over Masters. This was pretty pedestrian, but far from bad. 

Match Rating: **

We go to Maria and they show a video package of fans being interviewed about who they think will win the main event later. In walks Lita and she makes fun of the fans. 

Umaga vs. Ric Flair

Umaga starts attacking Flair before he gets to the ring. Flair sneaks in a thumb to the eye and a low blow to slow down Umaga. Flair avoids a splash in the corner and then again outside the ring against the ring post and steps. Flair finally gets Umaga down with a chop block, but Umaga kicks out of the Figure Four. He puts Flair in the tree of woe and hits a running headbutt. Umaga hits the Samoan Spike and Flair gets squashed. Kudos to Flair for being game and putting Umaga over big time. The crowd still isn't sure what to think of Umaga, but it's becoming pretty clear that he's a lot more impressive than a lot of the wrestlers who get this type of push. 

Match Rating: *1/2

Vince is backstage telling Shane that there's nothing that God can't do that he can't do. He pours some water on the floor and calls it walking on water. This seemed to go on forever and was making me want to doze off. 

WWE Women's Championship Match

Mickie James vs. Trish Stratus

Trish sticks it to Mickie early on. Trish takes Mickie out of the ring and hits a running Lou Thesz Press onto the floor. Trish goes for some punches in the corner and Mickie pushes her out of the ring. Trish takes a nasty looking spill. Trish gets back in the ring and the referee gives the injured sign. Mickie gets in some pinfall attempts to stall. Mickie starts choking her and the ref calls for the bell. This was the audible they called for Trish, who suffered a dislocated shoulder in that nasty fall. The match was off to a good start. I wish we would have gotten what was going to happen. 

Match Rating: *

Shawn Michaels is with Maria and he says that the lord is with him, as always. 

Winner Takes All Match For The Intercontinental Championship & Money In The Bank Briefcase

Shelton Benjamin vs. Rob Van Dam

This is one of those matches that are booked solely on the fact that they are both unique and amazing athletes. RVD is super over with the live crowd here tonight. Things start off slowly with lots of pauses between moves. RVD gets some offense going and hits a dive to the outside. Not to be outdone, Shelton hits a sunset flip powerbomb from the ring apron. RVD goes for Rolling Thunder, but Shelton counters it into a Samoan drop. That was a nice little move there. Shelton also hits a superplex after leaping up on the top rope. RVD makes his comeback and hits some quick offense. This leads to him finally hitting Rolling Thunder, but Shelton kicks out at 2. He hits a split-legged moonsault, but again Shelton is able to escape before the 3 count. Shelton lands on his feet from a monkey flip, but Van Dam hits a heel kick. He goes upstairs, but Shelton avoids the 5 Star Frog Splash and then hits RVD with a DDT. The ref takes a minor bump and the briefcase gets involved. RVD tosses it and hits a kick into Shelton's face behind the ref's back. He hits the 5 Star Frog Splash and wins the Intercontinental Championship. This was a good match, but not as good as I was hoping for. 

Match Rating: ***1/4

Big Show says that he doesn't care what happened in Kane's life on May 19th, he said it's an eye for an eye. 

Kane vs. Big Show

Lilian Garcia stood outside the ring here for the ring introductions. Kane dominates from the get go and the match itself is not off to a good start. I guess I should start writing about it. Kane goes off the top rope, but Big Show catches him. Big Show gets a few moves in, but when he goes for the chokeslam, Kane counters it into the DDT. The red lights turn on and we all hear the voices in Kane's head. Kane starts slamming his head into the turnbuckles. Big Show then hits him with a chair to the head and shows remorse before walking to the back. So we have no official announcement here and then go back to Vince. The match here was poor. 

Match Rating: 1/4*

Vince is with Candice Michelle and she has a chest cold. She wants him to heal her and she insists on him grabbing her where the source is. This is among the worst skits you will ever see. 

No Holds Barred Match

Shane McMahon & Vince McMahon vs. God & Shawn Michaels

Vince introduces God and they have a spotlight that walks down the aisle. Vince then announces that this is a No Holds Barred match. Vince tells Shawn that they're going straight to hell, so Shawn slaps him and we're underway. Michaels starts off hot and hits a diving crossbody on Vince and then a diving somersault onto Shane. Shawn and Shane start battling up on the stage and Shane goes for a piledriver off the stage, but Shawn hits a back body drop. Shawn shoves Shane into the Backlash stage and then hits a crossbody onto Vince, which sends them crashing off the stage and into a wooden platform. As Shawn is walking back up the stairs to the stage, Shane nails him with a chair to the face. Shawn is now completely busted open. Shane brings him back to the ring, but misses with a top rope elbow. Vince hits Shawn with a garbage can to the head and then announces that God has left the building. Vince goes for a "superkick", but Shawn catches it and then hits the flying forearm. Shane comes in and goes for a chair shot, but Shawn ducks and he hits Vince. Shawn hits the top rope elbow drop and then hits Sweet Chin Music on both McMahons. Shawn goes under the ring and grabs a couple of tables to bring into the ring. He sets up both McMahons on the tables and then grabs a huge ladder. As he's climbing, the Spirit Squad is out and he instead leaps to the floor to take them out. The Squad recovers and starts destroying Shawn. They drive Shawn through the table and that's enough for the McMahons to get the victory. For what this was, this was entertaining. The first half of the match in particular was a fun garbage brawl. The whole God stuff was lame, but everything else delivered.

Match Rating: ***1/2

John Cena is backstage and he's going to be champion after tonight. 

Matt Striker is out for some reason. He introduces one of the smartest men to ever come out of Kentucky, Eugene. He asks Eugene to spell his name on the board and he writes "loves poop" after Matt Striker's name. Eugene then makes Striker eat his booger and gives him a Stunner. 

Triple Threat Match For The WWE Championship

Edge vs. Triple H vs. John Cena

Edge starts off to the side, trying to outsmart his two opponents. Cena and Triple H pull him in and team up to knock him out of the ring. They one up each other outside the ring by slamming his head into the announce table. Cena goes off the top rope and hits a splash for a 2 count on Edge. Cena goes for the Five Knuckle Shuffle, but Lita pulls down the top rope and Cena goes over the top. Triple H throws him into the steps and goes inside to work on Edge. Cena comes in and tries to hit a double FU, but Edge slips off and hits Cena with a Spear with Triple H on his back. Edge attacks Triple H outside the ring and Triple H is busted open. He then hits an Edgecution on the announce table and of course it doesn't break. I have to say I forgot how bad Triple H bleeds in this one. Edge hits a missile dropkick on Cena for a nearfall. Cena is able to lock in the STFU on Edge, but then Triple H hits Cena in the head with a microphone. Triple H then wails Edge with a chair, sending him into the fans. Cena locks in the STFU now on Triple H. Triple H somehow powers his way to the ropes. Cena goes for the FU, Triple H counters into the Pedigree, but Cena counters that into the STFU again. Edge climbs the ropes, Cena sees him and Cena releases the hold to attack him. Cena has him up for a FU, but Triple H got underneath Cena and we have a tower of doom. The referee got knocked down, which is unnecessary since this is already no disqualifications. Lita gets involved and almost has some really bad luck. Triple H hits her with a spinebuster, but the chair she has in her hands almost took a really unlucky bounce and could have done some damage. Triple H pulls out the sledgehammer, but as he's coming in to use it on Cena, Edge hits a Spear. Cena gets Edge up for the FU, but Triple H hits him with a low blow. Triple H goes for a Pedigree, but Cena counters it into a pinfall and retains his WWE Championship in a fantastic match. I like triple threat matches more than most, but this one was constructed perfectly and was non-stop action. After the match, Triple H takes out Edge, Cena and the ref with the sledgehammer. Triple H's music plays as we go off the air.

Match Rating: ****1/2

Like a lot of the brand exclusive shows, there are portions that just feel like the weekly show. Fortunately, this show did deliver one of of the best main events on a non-big four show here probably of the decade. The McMahon/Michaels stuff was of course ridiculous, but also entertaining. Shelton and RVD also had a good enough match here to anchor the undercard. The rest was for the most part pretty uninspired, but the main event is absolutely worth watching. 

Overall Rating: 69%

NXT 4-10-14 Review

Original Airdate: Thursday, April 10th, 2014
Full Sail University
Winter Park, Florida

Follow me on Twitter: @WorkTheNetwork2

Adam Rose vs. Danny Burch

Rose goofs around and gets the better of Burch. He hits a Bronco Buster and then takes of his elbow pad. He hits an elbow drop off the second turnbuckle and that is all. It's amazing how quickly this got over with the NXT audience. 

Match Rating: 1/4*

They show us highlights of Zayn losing by ref stoppage last week and interview the referee of the match. He said that safety is his number one concern. Gripping. They then show an interview with Graves, who calls a win a win. 

Bayley vs. Sasha Banks

Have these two wrestled each other like 500 times on TV? After a quick pin attempt from Bayley, Sasha takes control. Bayley makes her comeback and hits a reverse elbow off the second rope. Sasha tries to slow her down, but Bayley hits the Bayley-to-Belly suplex for the victory. As usual, another short women's match here on NXT. 

Match Rating: *

Sylvester Lefort vs. Mojo Rawley

It doesn't get any better than this. Mojo shows off his wide range of styles with a splash in the corner, a butt to the face and a splash for a victory. At least it was quick. 

Match Rating: 1/4*

After the match, Brodus Clay comes out and hits a powerbomb on Lefort and then a splash off the second rope. After the powerbomb, the NXT crowd chanted "Better than Batista". Yeah, okay. He calls out Adrian Neville and tells him to face him now like a man. They do some trash talking and then Brodus heads to the back. Hopefully forever. 

Oliver Grey is about to be interviewed and he's interrupted by Camacho. He complains about Adam Rose, which leads to Oliver Grey challenging him to a match. Make sense? 

After a long video package of WWE Access at WrestleMania, they go to Great Khali. Bayley comes up to him and gives him a hug. CJ Parker comes in and hopes that Khali recycles. Bayley translates for Khali and lets CJ know that Khali will see him in the ring next week. 

Bo Dallas is out here now and he says that he's going to occupy NXT. The crowd turns their backs on him and he is beside himself. JBL comes out and makes fun of Bo. He tells him that he's not getting a title match tonight, but he gets Justin Gabriel instead. 

Bo Dallas vs. Justin Gabriel

This match has been going on for at least four minutes and I just can't find anything worth typing about. Gabriel comes back and hits a top rope crossbody for a 2 count. Bo counters an inverted DDT into one of his own. Bo hits a double underhook DDT for the victory. That was probably close to a 10 minute match and nothing interesting happened. Bummer.

Match Rating: 3/4*

To put it nicely, this episode was simply just not good. Bo Dallas, Brodus Clay, Mojo Rawley. Not exactly a stellar group of pro wrestlers. 2014 NXT is pretty much all over the place and this week the spinner landed on garbage. 

Overall Rating: 38%