Monday, November 13th, 2006
Manchester Evening News Arena
Manchester, England
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DX is out to kick off the show. They do an extended version of their schtick for the British crowd. They show highlights of Big Dick Johnson and Eric Bischoff from last weeks awful episode. Eventually, Jonathan Coachman comes out to finally interrupt. He announces that he has issued a bounty out on them and Triple H makes fun of him being too cheap to do more than $10,000. He then says that they have 4 opponents to fight right now.
Handicap Match
DX vs. Lance Cade, Trevor Murdoch, Viscera & Charlie Haas
That opening segment was about 15% of the show and led us to this match. This is obviously just a way to give the UK crowd a DX match without giving away anything. I mean, we've seen this same match like 30 times since they came back. They get beat up for a little bit, they get the hot tag, make their opponents look like idiots and pick up the victory. The crowd liked it, so that's good.
Match Rating: 3/4*
The Spirit Squad plan to attack DX and it leads to DX making them look like cartoon characters.
Highlanders vs. Spirit Squad
When you're watching this at 5:30 am on a Saturday morning, you start to question what you're doing with your life. This is Kenny and Johnny if you care. Robbie gets the hot tag and they hit some double dropkicks. They go for the Scot Drop, but Johnny catches Kenny and he gets the inside cradle for the victory. After the match, Johnny doesn't like that Kenny pushed him out of the way. No one cares.
Match Rating: 1/2*
They show clips of Jerry Lawler getting the Master Lock from Chris Masters last week. He lets us know that he's going to accept the Master Lock Challenge tonight as his music is playing. He's dressed and heading to the ring as we go to commercial.
They show Detroit fans waiting in line for WrestleMania 23 tickets.
We're back with the Master Lock Challenge. Masters locks it in and the crowd is very much into this. Lawler starts hitting elbows to the head, but Masters still has it locked in. Lawler tries his best, but eventually gives up.
Eugene knocks on DX's door and says that he's here for the bounty. They hand him a roll of paper towel. Eugene keeps knocking and says that's not what he meant. They open the door and move out of the way and Eugene crashes onto a table.
After showing Lita beating Mickie James with one arm tied behind her back, Lita says that she will beat Mickie anywhere, including Survivor Series.
Back to DX and Triple H needs to take a dump. He opens the bathroom and Chris Masters is standing on the toilet. The door closes and we hear noises. When Triple H opens the door, Masters is laying on the ground and Michaels tells him he crapped out a masterpiece.
Umaga vs. John Cena
If you were even a little skeptical that this match wasn't going to be a true main event, putting it on during the middle of the show should give you your final clue. Cena hits a modified bulldog, but Umaga no sells it and attacks Cena. Umaga hits the Samoan drop and then puts on a nerve hold. As bad as some of the Raw stuff has been lately, I'm only about two months away from their classic at Royal Rumble, so I've got that going for me. Cena battles back and hits a shoulder tackle, which ends with Umaga getting tied up in the ropes. Cena attacks until Armando Alejandro Estrada jumps on the apron. Cena tosses him in the ring but then out comes Big Show and he attacks. Show and Umaga double team Cena and Umaga eventually hits the Samoan Spike. This was hardly a match.
Match Rating: 3/4*
DX recaps the cartoony shenanigans that have occurred tonight.
Intercontinental Championship Match
Jeff Hardy vs. Johnny Nitro
We get a nice little opening bit that ends with Hardy hitting a kick over the top rope. He hits a mule kick in the corner and goes up top. Nitro rolls out of the ring and Hardy hits a dropkick through the ropes and we head into a commercial break. Hardy hits an inverted atomic drop into a double leg drop to the midsection for a 2 count. Nitro comes back with a springboard enzuigiri and he picks up a 2 count. Todd Grisham is announcing in place of Lawler now and I have to say, he's not very good. Hardy starts to fight back, but comes up empty with his Whisper In The Wind attempt. Hardy does catch Nitro off the second rope and hits a sit down powerbomb for a nearfall. Hardy goes up top and hits the Swanton, but Melina has the referee distracted. Nitro jumps over the top rope and snaps Hardy's neck on it. He follows it up with a neckbreaker and hits a corkscrew moonsault. Hardy reverses the pin attempt and we have a new Intercontinental Championship for the second week in a row. That moonsault was a thing of beauty. After the match, Nitro hits a DDT on our new champion and pulls out a ladder from under the ring. He throws it in the face of Hardy and then slams it on him from the second rope. This was a good match between these two, as Hardy seems to be finding his groove again. Nitro continues to be one of the best performers right now.
Match Rating: **3/4
DX is out of the arena and approach some scalpers, who happen to be Cryme Tyme. It ends with them using some of the bounty to get back into the arena.
Torrie and two women from the Star approach Carlito. Torrie asks if Carlito wants to join her out to a club with some other Divas. Carlito says his hotel is on the other side of town and he has an early flight. Torrie offers up her hotel for him.
JR and Grisham run down the Survivor Series card, which looks very weak. 2006 really ends with a whimper thanks to pay-per-view overkill.
Back to DX at the DX merch stand. They buy all the shirts with the rest of the bounty and start throwing them out to the crowd.
Lita vs. Mickie James
Lita gets on the mic and says that this time Mickie has to wrestle with both legs tied together. DX are in the front row leading chants about Lita. She goes out to confront them and shoves Triple H. He squirts mustard in her face and Mickie hits her with a sausage. She hits the spike DDT and picks up the victory. What a time to be alive.
Match Rating: 1/4*
Coach is trying to call for security to eject DX. They finally come out and two of them are Sheamus and Wade Barrett. That's pretty cool.
World Tag Team Championship Match
Rated RKO vs. Ric Flair & Roddy Piper
Rated RKO surround Piper during his entrance and attack. Out comes Flair to make the save, but Edge is still able to hit the safest looking One Man Con-chair-to you will ever see. I can't blame him. The ref rings for the bell and it's basically a handicap match as a doctor checks in on Piper. This match is the definition of filler. Flair goes for the Figure Four and Edge hits the Spear for the victory. That's our second title change on this awful episode. The celebration is short lived, as DX comes out and security chases them. Sheamus eats a Pedigree and Rated RKO exits the ring. This was pointless.
Match Rating: 1/2*
This was another absolute dreadful episode of Raw. Only the Hardy/Nitro match was worth watching here. Don't waste your time.
Overall Rating: 27%
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