Monday Night Raw 11-21-94 Review

Original Airdate: Monday, November 21st, 1994
Fernwood Resort
Bushkill, Pennsylvania

Follow me on Twitter: @WorkTheNetwork2

Razor Ramon is on his way down to the ring to face Diesel and he is attacked by the Teamsters and we go right into a commercial. When we come back Vince McMahon is with Jim Cornette and in front of a green screen. 

Tatanka vs. Chris Kanyon

They finally changed Tatanka's music to just play his intro and then it goes into Ted DiBiase's music. Kanyon tries to spidce the match up and gets a top rope crossbody for a 2 count. He gets a couple other nearfalls, but then gets hit with a clothesline. Tatanka hits the top rope chop and then the End Of Trail for the victory. Kanyon on Superstars is always fun.

Match Rating: 1/4*

Adam Bomb vs. Jason Arndt

Bomb hits a side suplex and Vince and Cornette inform us of Bull Nakano defeating Alundra Blayze at the Egg Dome. Meanwhile, Bomb hits a back body drop and the pump handle slam for the victory. Bomb even has 2 fans in the crowd. 

Match Rating: 1/4*

They show Yokozuna vs. Undertaker on the new Monday Night Raw video game. 

We get a video recap of the Doink/Jerry Lawler feud. Now it's time for the King's Court, he has his Royal Family with him. Doink's team are under the ring and sneak out to secretly squirt them with water guns. Then Doink comes out too and they all start squirting. What a segment. 

Like always, we get a repeat of the IRS vignette from Superstars. 

IRS vs. Matt Hardy

We are getting so close to the end of IRS and I love it. Hardy gets dumped out of the ring and DiBiase shoves some money in his face. Hardy gets a sunset flip for a 2 count, but then gets hit with a double underhook suplex. Remember, no one has more technical skills than IRS. He hits the running clothesline and gets the victory. 

Match Rating: 1/4*

It's time for Survivor Series Report and this ain't another wrasslin' show according to Todd. We get hype videos for the two main events. 

Diesel vs. Razor Ramon

Diesel is out with the entire Teamster team. Razor has his backup here as well. He races to the ring and goes after anyone who gets in his way. These guys have had some really good matches here in the last 6 months or so. Diesel charges at Razor and hits a knee in the midsection to go on the offensive. Diesel slaps on a sleeper hold, but Razor counters with a back suplex. Razor gets sent flying over the top rope as we go into a commercial break. Michaels grabs Razor's leg and that allows Diesel to club him from behind. The two teams start to tease a brawl, but Razor comes out and gets Diesel back in the ring. After some pretty impressive Irish whip bumps by Diesel, he hits another knee into a side suplex for a 2 count. Diesel hits a big boot to the face and Snake Eyes, but Razor gets his foot on the bottom rope to break up the pin attempt. Shawn gets involved again and we get another tease of some action on the outside of the ring. Diesel goes for the Jackknife, but Razor hits a back body drop to counter out of it. Razor hits a knee lift and some right hands. Jarrett gets up on the apron and Razor throws him into the ring. Razor goes for the Razor's Edge, but Owen is on the top rope. Razor throws him off and now we have a big brawl to close out the show. I think we all knew that was the end game here. The match was pretty good, but nowhere near their other matches.

Match Rating: **

This was a pretty good show that, unlike Superstars, actually felt like it was building for Survivor Series. The squash matches were solid enough and the main event delivered enough for this to be a mild recommendation.

Overall Rating: 50%

Superstars 11-19-94 Review

Original Airdate: Saturday, November 19th, 1994
Burlington Memorial Auditorium
Burlington, Vermont

Follow me on Twitter: @WorkTheNetwork2

Jim Neidhart vs. Undertaker

Undertaker takes a boot to the face and then drives him in the corner by his throat. He hits Old School and continues to slog his way through this match as Owen Hart looks on. Neidhart hits a clothesline and knocks him down, but he quickly sits up. He hits another one, but wouldn't ya know it, he sits up again. Neidhart catches him off the ropes and hits a powerslam for a 2 count. Paul Bearer is leaving ringside as Neidhart continues on offense. He hits a vertical suplex, but after the pin attempt, Taker sits up again. Out comes Bearer with the jumbo casket and brings it to ringside. Taker makes his comeback and he ends up kicking Neidhart and he falls into the casket. He freaks out and gets counted out. You have to protect Neidhart since they have such big plans for him. I will say that the match was slightly better than I expected. 

Match Rating: *

It's the highlight of 1994, IRS at a cemetery. He looks like he's going to fall asleep just delivering his lines. 

Adam Bomb vs. Reno Riggins

Lawler claims that Bomb's career has been downhill since he dropped big time manager Harvey Wippleman. Bomb clotheslines Reno and turns him inside out. Reno is feisty here today with some big right hands. Bomb comes back with a back suplex and then hits the top rope clothesline. He hits the pump handle slam and that's all. It seems like they continue to forget Bomb exists. 

Match Rating: 1/4*

Charlie Minn reminds us that Survivor Series is this Wednesday and shows us clips of their match at Royal Rumble. 

Jeff Jarrett is getting ready in a bathroom looking at himself in the mirror. 

Jeff Jarrett vs. Mike Bell

You could argue that Jarrett looks more like a clown than Doink does with his outfit today. Jarrett hits a dropkick and a suplex, as we find out he will face Fatu on the Action Zone. Bell misses with a top rope leg drop and Jarrett puts on the Figure Four for the victory. 

Match Rating: 1/4*

It's time for the Survivor Series Report with Todd Pettengill. There is nothing left to announce here, so it's no fun. We hear from the Heavenly Bodies to talk about Chuck Norris. We see Tatanka's same one from last week and then an ultra cheesy Diesel one. 

Razor Ramon vs. Nick Barberry 

Razor hits the fall away slam and Lawler compares Barberry's hair to Kramer in a rare timely reference. Razor sets Barberry up on the top rope and hits the super back suplex. He hits the Razor's Edge and that is all. 

Match Rating: 1/4*

It's time for the Heartbreak Hotel and the guests today are British Bulldog and Bret Hart. Shawn cuts off Bret before he can start talking, but then out come Backlund and Owen. Backlund cuts another nutso promo here. Bret says he's going to be carrying the flag for the New Generation.

King Kong Bundy vs. Ben Jordan

Every now and then, you catch lightning in a bottle. King Kong Bundy in 1994 was not one of those times. Bundy hits the running splash in the corner and puts his knee on Jordan and gets the 5 count. I can't wait to see more of this.

Match Rating: 1/4*

Live Event News time again and they show clips of Luna Vachon's wedding at some asylum and everyone dressed up in costumes. They show Gangrel here quite a bit. 

Vince and Lawler are now standing with the casket that will be used at Survivor Series. Vince keeps rubbing it and saying how cool it is. 

They really didn't do a whole lot to build for Survivor Series outside of the Heartbreak Hotel. This one definitely felt like the end of the tapings, as the crowd was pretty dead and it felt like leftover matches. 

Overall Rating: 39%

No Mercy 2006 Review

Sunday, October 8th, 2006
RBC Arena
Raleigh, North Carolina

Follow me on Twitter: @WorkTheNetwork2

Matt Hardy vs. Gregory Helms

Considering where we are here tonight, I'd say that this is about as much of a no brainer to open the show as there is. They start off with a 50/50 beginning here to fit the theme that they are evenly matched. Hardy is able to clothesline Helms over the top rope and follows it up with a dive. Hardy goes up to the second rope, but Helms gets there before he can finish climbing and hits a side Russian leg sweep. Hardy is able to come back with an inverted DDT to slow Helms's momentum down. Hardy hits a bulldog and gets a 2 count. He comes back with the second rope leg drop and tries to follow it up with a Twist Of Fate, but Helms counters with a Vertibreaker. He follows it up with 2 more, but it still is not enough. Hardy comes back with some Side Effects and a moonsault, but Helms gets the knees up. Helms misses with the Shining Wizard, but Hardy ducks and rolls him up for 2. Helms hits the Shining Wizard this time, but Hardy is able to kick out. They battle up top and Hardy is able to headbutt him down. Helms recovers and crotches Hardy on the top rope. Helms climbs up and hits a Shining Wizard from the top but Hardy is able to get his foot on the bottom rope. Hardy is able to sneak in a Twist Of Fate and that is all. On a side note, when I went to the WrestleMania 23 Access, there was a booth where you could be an announcer and this was the match they gave me to call. They were determined to have a good match and they accomplished that here. 

Match Rating: ***1/2

King Booker and Queen Sharmell are with William Regal backstage and he wants him to get Finlay to be his ally tonight. 

WWE Tag Team Championship Match
KC James & Idol Stevens vs. Paul London & Brian Kendrick

The champions start out with the early advantage and are able to slow down the challengers early attempts to get something going. James and Stevens go out of the ring to regroup and get hit with stereo dives on opposite sides of the ring. London is climbing the ropes, but Michelle McCool distracts him and London is thrown all the way to the floor. The challengers isolate London for a little bit and when London gets his chance, Stevens pulls Kendrick off the apron so that he's unable to get the tag. London comes back with a kick and rolls under Stevens to make the tag. Kendrick has the hot tag and hits a series of dropkicks. James stops Kendrick, but London runs and takes care of Stevens. James hits a superplex on Kendrick and gets a nearfall. James misses Kendrick in the corner and Stevens ends up hitting James. We get some shenanigans and Stevens hits Kendrick illegally from behind, but Kendrick is still able to kick out. McCool again gets involved and seeminly has a wardrobe malfunction and Ashley is over to attack her. Kendrick hits Sliced Bread #2 and London hits a moonsault off of Kendrick's back for the victory. This felt kind of like a good TV match, as the challengers still need some work. Unfortunately, they never really got the opportunity to do so. 

Match Rating: ***

William Regal is looking for Finlay and runs into Vito jump roping. He pulls up his dress to wipe his face, which disgusts Regal and he runs into a condiment cart, getting ketchup and mustard all over him. 

Teddy Long is out in the ring with a big birthday present in the ring. It's Miz's birthday and he's brought out and JBL still hates him. Gosh, I wonder what it could be. Teddy says that Miz has been making advances towards Layla and brings her out here. Miz plays the role of every stupid rich suburban kid at a strip club and says his one birthday wish is him. She grabs a chair and sets him down and starts dancing. She starts stripping down and then blindfolds him. The big present opens and wouldn't you know it, it's Big Dick Johnson. Layla takes off the blindfold and Miz is disgusted. I'd say this was for an audience of one, but Michael Cole is legit laughing. Layla dances with him afterwards. This was on pay-per-view, folks. 

MVP vs. Marty Garner

After MVP gets his big entrance with the inflatable entrance, he grabs the mic and talks about how he is the MVP of SmackDown. The crowd is chanting "Power Ranger" at his ring attire. He brings out his opponent and it's good old Marty Garner. MVP slaps him and the ref calls for the bell. The crowd isn't really quite getting what they are going for here, but I appreciate it. I'm just not sure I would have put this right after the Miz segment. Garner leaps over MVP, but MVP hits a big clothesline and slams his head into the mat. He hits the Playmaker and that's all. It's still one of the worst finishers there is, but I appreciate the character development here. 

Match Rating: 1/4*

Back to William Regal in the locker room in a towel. He sees Vito and asks him if his father was a donkey. Regal's towel falls down on his way out and is running through the hallway. Teddy catches him and tells him that he better get dressed because he has a match tonight. 

Mr. Kennedy vs. Undertaker

Kennedy is a little feisty on the mic tonight, yelling at the crowd. Kennedy comes out swinging, but gets hit with a big boot by Taker. Kennedy tries to get away and rolls out of the ring, but it quickly backfires as Taker slams his hand on the steel steps. Taker continues to target the left arm and goes up for Old School, but Kennedy leaps on the second rope and arm drags him down to the mat. It doesn't last long and he hits Old School this time and follows it up with a flatliner. Behind the referee's back, Kennedy unties the top turnbuckle, but Taker hits a clothesline for a 2 count. Taker goes for a boot and misses and Kennedy is able to knock him off the apron into the barricade. Kennedy leaps off the apron, but Taker catches him and rams him into the ring post. Kennedy is able to catch him and lower the rope to dump him back out of the ring and this time finally gets a chance to get in some consistent offense. Since Taker is the Triple H of SmackDown, he's able to come back and hit a guillotine leg drop. Back in the ring, Kennedy hits a scary looking piledriver. Yeah, they shouldn't have allowed him to do that one. After a rest hold, they trade right hands until Taker explodes for a leaping clothesline. He comes back and hits Snake Eyes and a leg drop for another 2 count. Taker goes for the chokeslam, but Kennedy grabs the referee to get out of it. He hits a swinging neckbreaker, but that's not enough. Taker tries it again and this time he hits it. Kennedy escapes the Last Ride and hits Taker in the face with the exposed turnbuckle. Kennedy hits a clothesline and goes up top. He hits the Kenton Bomb, but Taker is able to kick out. Kennedy goes out and grabs the United States Championship. He and the referee battle over it until Taker is able to knock it out of his hand. Taker grabs it and hits him in the face for the ridiculously stupid finish. After the match, Taker hits the Tombstone and then hits one on Charles Robinson. Taker looked like he had no interest in putting Kennedy here, but Kennedy did look pretty good in my opinion. 

Match Rating: ***

Falls Count Anywhere Match
Chavo Guerrero vs. Rey Mysterio

This one starts quickly, as you would expect from a bitter feud. After a little bit of standard action in the ring, they make their way to the entrance ramp. Rey is able to grab onto the steel arch over the entrance and uses it to hit a headscissors onto the steel and gets a 2 count. Chavo uses the hockey boards around the arena and drops Mysterio on them. Rey uses a steel guardrail and hits a guillotine leg drop for a 2 count. Chavo picks up Rey in a wheelbarrow position and starts swinging him into chairs and the hockey boards. They're into the arena seats now, but Rey is able to kick Chavo back down the steps. He hits the seated senton back into the floor section. Chavo throws Rey into a rail, but Rey is able to swing around the rail and hit a 619. Rey climbs up top of the rail to the steps and hits a dive to the floor. Chavo lands sort of awkwardly, which takes away from the pin attempt, especially since this is the finish. After the match, Rey continues to stomp on Chavo. Vickie gets in there and starts yelling at Rey to get out of here. This one was pretty good, but they didn't get a lot of time and it felt more like a TV main event. 

Match Rating: ***

William Regal vs. Chris Benoit

Everybody just kind of assumed that it would be Vito here, but then Benoit's music hits. They talk about Benoit wanting to take a sabbatical and to get off the road. This is going to get harder and harder, isn't it? The problem with this match is that Regal is continually portrayed as a joke no matter how much respect the announcers always show him. It's a shame he wasn't given a better run. We start off with some mat wrestling to start and in doing so, they have completely killed the crowd. I'm not saying I don't appreciate it, just saying that the buzz from the return is now gone here. Benoit wakes them up with some hard chops to the chest and a German suplex. Benoit hits the diving headbutt and Regal kicks out at 2. Benoit goes for a German off the apron, but Regal holds on and sends Benoit to the floor. Regal hits a running knee and gets a couple of 2 counts from it. We get some more submission wrestling until Benoit is able to hit a full nelson suplex. He gets him into the Crippler Crossface and that's all. I know a lot of it is due to the fact that it is Benoit, but I didn't enjoy this. It was nice not having to review matches of his for awhile. I have enjoyed some along the way, but it's getting closer to the inevitable and it's going to be a little bit of a rough ride. 

Match Rating: **

King Booker confronts Regal and asks if he accomplished his mission. Booker yells at him despite the fact that he's bloodied and fatigured. Finlay walks up and tells him that he came here to fight and take his World Heavyweight Championship. Booker blames Regal for this and slaps him in the face. Regal comes back and slugs him with a left hand. Booker is beside himself. 

Bobby Lashley and Batista are talking to each other about it being every man for themselves tonight. 

Fatal 4-Way For The World Heavyweight Championship
Finlay vs. Bobby Lashley vs. Batista vs. King Booker

Batista and Lashley double team Booker as Finlay wisely rolls out of the ring. Lashley is able to catch Booker on his shoulders, but he escapes, so Lashley hits him with a spinebuster instead. Finlay pulls Booker out of the ring to help him out. They double team Lashley outside the ring and drive him into the apron. They turn their attention to Batista know and Booker hits a crescent kick. Finlay quickly turns on Booker as he told him earlier he would. Finlay goes back to Batista and throws him into the steps. He goes back into the ring to work on Booker. Batista and Lashley both make their way back to the ring and Finlay does some submission holds on both. Lashley gets some momentum going, but Hornswoggle hits him with a low blow. That distracts Lashley and Finlay hits him in the head with the shillelagh. He goes for the cover, but Booker breaks it up. Batista hits a Jackhammer on Booker and it's down to Batista and Lashley. Batista charges and hits him with a Spear for a nearfall. They battle a little bit more and Lashley hits a spinebuster. I'm not sure where it happened, but Batista is busted open. Lashley clotheslines him over the top rope and then tosses Finlay out too. Booker hits the Book End from behind, but Lashley kicks out. He sets him up for the Scissor Kick, but Finlay hits him with a clothesline. Lashley throws Finlay into the corner shoulder-first. Batista comes and hits a spinebuster on all 3 opponents. He hits the Batista Bomb on Finlay, but then Lashley hits the Spear on Batista. Booker crawls over and pins Finlay to retain his title. This felt like a good SmackDown main event rather than something you would go out of your way to see. It was solid, but unspectacular. 

Match Rating: ***1/4

On one hand, this is probably a better show than you remember or would think. The problem is, there's a reason no one talks about it. Nothing important really happens and even though the in-ring work is solid throughout the entire night, it just felt like a free episode of SmackDown rather than something you have to pay $30 for. 

Overall Rating: 60%

NXT 11-6-14 Review

Original Airdate: Thursday, November 6th, 2014
Full Sail University
Winter Park, Florida

Follow me on Twitter: @WorkTheNetwork2

NXT Championship #1 Contender Match
Tyler Breeze vs. Sami Zayn

They showed a pre-match video on Zayn and how he hasn't been able to win the big one. After a feeling out process, Breeze is able to snap Zayn's neck on the top rope and then stomps a mudhole in the corner. We get kind of an odd commercial break spot in the middle of Breeze's heat segment. When we come back, Zayn tries to shift the momentum, but a kick to the midsection slows him down. Breeze hits an elbow in the corner and gets a 2 count. Zayn again goes for the comeback, but Breeze hits a nice neckbreaker. They battle up on the top rope and Zayn is able to knock Breeze off. Zayn goes off the top rope and eats a dropkick by Breeze, but Zayn is able to kick out of the pin attempt. We get a bunch of reversals and it leads to a Supermodel Kick by Breeze and the announcers give away the false finish. Zayn comes back and hits the exploder in the turnbuckle. He runs and hits the Helluva Kick and picks up the victory to become the new #1 contender. They made Breeze look strong here, but it was obvious that this was Zayn's story here. Good match.

Match Rating: ***1/4

Renee Young is with Adrian Neville backstage. He says that he will give Zayn a title shot any time, any place and that Zayn can't win the big one. 

Dash Wilder vs. Tyson Kidd

Wilder gets an entrance here and they mention that he's working with Scott Dawson at the Performance Center. Kidd hits a catapult with Dash's head under the turnbuckle. I'm not sure why someone doesn't steal that. After hitting an elbow on a charging Kidd, he catches him for a powerslam and gets a 2 count. Kidd comes back with his neckbreaker and puts on the Sharpshooter for the victory. They tried to make this a little more competitive than the typical squash, but Wilder just didn't get enough offense in. 

Match Rating: 3/4*

They show Marcus Louis backstage in a dark room with a towel over his head talking about how they won't stop making fun of him. 

Renee Young is now with Sami Zayn, who says he feels like the Count Of Monte Cristo. He wants to take on Adrian Neville next week. 

Sasha Banks & Becky Lynch vs. Bayley & Charlotte

Bayley hits a slam and a knee drop on Sasha before tagging into Charlotte. Sasha weasels her way over to the corner to tag Lynch. We get another anti-climatic commercial break. Charlotte forces Lynch into her own corner and tries to get Sasha to tag in. She chases Sasha around the ring and it eventually backfires when Sasha is able to pull her down by her hair behind the back of the referee. They get Bayley in the ring and go to work on the hugger. Bayley is able to hit a suplex on Sasha and throw Becky out of the ring, but that slight distraction allows Sasha to hit a clothesline. Sasha clotheslines Charlotte of the apron, but Bayley rolls up Sasha from behind. Sasha reverses the roll and grabs a little bit of the tights and gets the victory. This was a pretty standard match, but the backstory made it a little more enjoyable. 

Match Rating: **1/4

Renee Young is with William Regal and announces that Sami Zayn will take on Adrian Neville next week.

The Ascension is out and they say that Hideo Itami just isn't getting the message. They call him out and his music hits. Next, out comes Finn Balor to help him in his fight and making his NXT TV debut. They come to the ring and we have a brawl. They hit double dropkicks in the corner not once, but twice. Finn hits the Coup de Grace off the apron onto Konnor and then the Pele kick on Viktor. Balor then hits a Coup de Grace to the back of Konnor back in the ring. Finn and Itami stand strong to end the show. 

This was a strong episode for NXT. They continued the feud in the women's division, got Sami Zayn where he needed to be and debuted Finn Balor. That's a pretty good way to present your brand in an hour.

Overall Rating: 68%

Monday Night Raw 11-14-94 Review

Original Airdate: Monday, November 14th, 1994
Fernwood Resort
Bushkill, Pennsylvania

Follow me on Twitter: @WorkTheNetwork2

Apparently this episode is shown in the most complete form due to technical difficulties. The show here on Peacock starts with the bell ringing with Bob Backlund having the 1-2-3 Kid in the Cross-Face Chickenwing. So this is great and I'm not seeing this match on YouTube either. Bret Hart makes the save and puts Backlund in the Sharpshooter. He tells Backlund that he will never let him out of the Sharpshooter at the Survivor Series. Well, that sucks.

Mabel vs. Black Phantom

Black Phantom is able to knock Mabel into the corner, but Mabel hits a big Rock Bottom for the victory. Really the biggest victory was us having to listen to Oscar and Mabel rap. 

Match Rating: 1/4*

It's time for the Survivor Series Report. Todd is back with the vest after sporting the Survivor Series shirt on Superstars. 

Jeff Jarrett vs. Gary Sabough

Sabough gets a nearfall with a sunset flip, but then misses with a dropkick that would have hardly hit above the waist. Jarrett goes to work on the leg, but Sabough comes back with a small package for a 2 count. Back to the leg and he slaps on the Figure Four for the victory. 

Match Rating: 1/4*

It's time for the King's Court and his guest is Owen Hart. He assures Bob Backlund that he will not throw in the towel. Out comes British Bulldog to a bunch of pyro. Bulldog must have had some hearing issues from it because I have never heard him yell so much. They just argue about throwing in the towel. 

Aldo Montoya vs. Brooklyn Brawler

This is the long awaited debut. You know, since the guy had no vignettes or hype. Montoya hits a dive to the outside, but Brawler hits a neckbreaker soon after. Brawler hits a backbreaker for a 2 count. Montoya hits a rough looking headscissors and then hits a reverse crossbody off the second rope for the victory. This was nothing too special, which of course means Ted DiBiase is impressed.

Match Rating: 1/2*

DiBiase goes in the ring to talk to Montoya. DiBiase offers him a spot on his team and Montoya responds in Portuguese. DiBiase offers him money instead and then Montoya answers in English and tells him to shove his money in his ear.

After commercial, we now have Alundra Blayze is here and she's dressed like Carmen Sandiego. She's fighting Bull Nakano in Japan since Vince forgot she existed. Next week it's Razor Ramon vs. Diesel.

This is a hard show to rate since I obviously missed the feature match. The rest of the show was pretty dull and for the first time in what feels like a long time, Superstars was better. I'll give my rating, but it's unofficial.

Overall Rating: 38%

Superstars 11-12-94 Review

Original Airdate: Saturday, November 12th, 1994
Burlington Memorial Auditorium
Burlington, Vermont

Follow me on Twitter: @WorkTheNetwork2

Lex Luger vs. Gary Scott

Lex hits a big powerslam and then flexes like a chicken after. He puts on the Torture Rack and then celebrates with the youngster who brought out the American flag for him earlier. Short and to the point, how it should be on Superstars. 

Match Rating: 1/4*

It's more charity softball with Charlie Minn. However, we need to stay tuned for footage of the actual game until later in the show. Don't go anywhere.

They promote the new WWF Magazine, that has Randy Savage on the cover. You know, the guy that doesn't work here any more. 

Owen Hart vs. Tony DeVito

Looks like a stacked show here today if you're into the classic mid-90s jobbers. The crowd looks like it's on hour 13 of 18 here at the taping. Owen hits a variation of the bulldog and then climbs up top to hit his beautiful missile dropkick. He locks in the Sharpshooter and that's all. It should be noted that Jim Neidhart wasn't ringside with him. 

Match Rating: 1/4*

This week IRS is standing with a casket leaning on a pile of dirt. I'm surprised they would put him with something more charismatic than him. 

Yokozuna, Mr. Fuji and Jim Cornette join Vince McMahon in the ring for an interview. Cornette talks about the blemish on Undertaker's record is his loss to Yokozuna. He warns Chuck Norris not to get in the way of Yokozuna. 

Next week, it's Jim Neidhart vs. Undertaker right here on Superstars. 

Bob Holly vs. Roy Raymond

Raymond misses with an elbow drop and Holly hits his signature standing dropkick. He hits a running clothesline that folds Raymond in half. He then hits the top rope crossbody for the victory. Holly couldn't be any cheesier here in his celebration.

Match Rating: 1/4*

It's time for the official Survivor Series Report. Is there an unofficial one? I want that shirt Todd is sporting really badly. Bret Hart has a lot of confidence, but it's not overconfidence. Especially in the Survivor Series. For some reason they think we want Tatanka's opinion on Chuck Norris. Then we get to hear Paul Bearer talk about him. 

Bob Backlund vs. Bert Centeno

Owen is out with Backlund and lets us know that this is scientific wrestling at it's best. I love that they just keep reminding us of how old Backlund is. He quickly puts on the Cross-Face Chickenwing, kind of. That's it? 

Match Rating: 1/4*

We're back to Live Event News in New Jersey. Some of the wrestlers don't even bother to have baseball gloves. They then show Doink chasing Ted DiBiase with a bucket of water and not being able to catch him, so he just throws it and hits no one. 

Bam Bam Bigelow & Tatanka vs. Smoking Gunns

The Gunns hit double missile dropkicks on their way into the ring. Things settle down and Bam Bam goes to work on Billy. Billy is able to tag Bart and he hits a dropkick and a series of left hands in the corner. Bam Bam counters with an inverted atomic drop and tags in Tatanka. The Gunns show off some more teamwork and lots of dropkicks. Out comes King Kong Bundy, Tom Prichard and Jim Cornette. Where's Jimmy Del Ray? Of course that means that Luger, Mabel, Oscar and Adam Bomb have to come out. I can't emphasize enough how dorky Luger's cutoff shirt is here. Bam Bam and Billy collide in the ring and both men are down. Both make tags, but Bart gets the better of Tatanka. They hit a variation of the Sidewinder, but then Bart ends up on the outside after missing a dive. Bundy is in the ring and they're ringing for the bell. Everyone is in the ring and we go off the air. Of course they would during the most exciting part on a taped show. This was about as good of a match that we have had on Superstars.

Match Rating: **1/2

They did things right on this episode. The squashes were short, the feature match was entertaining and watching wrestlers play softball always makes me laugh. 

Overall Rating: 58%

SmackDown 9-6-06 Review

Original Airdate: Friday, October 6th, 2006
Kansas Coliseum
Wichita, Kansas

Follow me on Twitter: @WorkTheNetwork2

King Booker kicks off the show by picking Lashley's poison and it's none other than Batista. Lashley gets his turn and he chooses Finlay.

Rey Mysterio & Matt Hardy vs. Gregory Helms & Chavo Guerrero

The babyfaces get off to a quick start to get the crowd going and just as Chavo and Helms are gaining momentum, Mysterio hits a drop toe hold into the corner. He tags in Hardy and all four men end up in the ring. Chavo knocks Mysterio out of the ring and Hardy dumps out Chavo right after. This gives Helms the opening he needs to take control. They work on Hardy, but as you would expect, Rey gets the hot tag and takes both opponents out. He hits a kick to the head of Chavo, but Helms nails him with a clothesline. Things have broken down and both Chavo and Helms end up on the ropes and get hit with a double 619. Vickie pulls Chavo out of the ring and that leaves Helms to be pinned. This was a little shorter than I expected and I'm surprised Hardy and Mysterio won. Short, but sweet.

Match Rating: **1/2

Maryse welcomes us back to SmackDown.

Elijah Burke vs. Tatanka

This is a bizarre pairing, as Tatanka remains on the roster. Burke hits a big dropkick and Tatanka shows off his boxing skills. He hits his hangtime elbow drop in the corner, which was always an underrated move. Tatanka battles back and hits End Of Trail. He goes up to the top rope and hits the chop, but Burke kicks out. Tatanka gets distracted by Sylvester Terkay and gets hit with a right hand. Burke hits the Skull Crushing Finale and that's all. After the match, Terkay hits a belly-to-belly suplex on Tatanka. This was actually fairly entertaining. 

Match Rating: *

King Booker, Queen Sharmell, Finlay and William Regal are backstage. Booker asks Finlay to just lie down in their match tonight. Finlay asks Regal if he would lay down for the King. Regal gets squirmish and leaves the area. Finlay says that he didn't make this match, but he won't lay down and Booker is furious. 

King Booker vs. Finlay

They get outside the ring and Booker shows off some aggression on his sometime partner. Finlay fights back with a stiff clothesline and the crowd is liking it. Finlay throws Booker shoulder-first into the ring post and hits some kicks to the head. Booker battles back with a spinebuster for a 2 count. Out comes Hornswoggle to scare off Sharmell with a mouse. With the referee distracted, Finlay hits Booker with the shillelagh and that's enough for the pinfall. That seems like kind of a meaningless loss. This seemed like the perfect opportunity to do a double countout or DQ. 

Match Rating: **

Bobby Lashley vs. Batista

We get lots of lock up attempts to start. They do about as basic of a match as you can get, which is to be expected with 2 faces going at it for no reason. Out comes Finlay and he attacks them. Booker is behind and they all start brawling. Not so fast, as Teddy Long makes his appearance. He changes the main event for No Mercy and it's not a Fatal 4-Way for the World Heavyweight Championship. The match was was nothing other than to set that up.

Match Rating: 1/4*

Booker is furious at Teddy Long backstage and the other 3 competitors join in on the fun. Teddy says that we will have a tag team match between the 4 of them tonight. 

Jimmy Wang Yang vs. Sylvan

We have ourselves a rematch of their epic match last week. After I decide not to type about the majority of the first moments, Sylvan hits a nice spinning slam. Yang battles back after hitting a kick when Sylvan goes off the top rope. We get another screwjob finish with Sylvan seated on Yang and grabbing the second rope to steal the victory. This wasn't bad for what it was, even if I was too lazy to recap it. 

Match Rating: *

They show clips of the No Mercy press conference and actually feature the Matt Hardy/Gregory Helms feud. 

MVP is here and he cuts a promo on the little stage by the entrance ramp. He talks about how great he is and his match at No Mercy.

Mr. Kennedy is in all black and in front of a black backdrop. He mocks Undertaker and his hocus pocus stuff that he uses to intimidate his opponents. 

Ashley vs. Michelle McCool

I get that they are trying to incorporate these two into the feud, but I'm not sure they are really giving them an opportunity to be successful here. Plus, we're stuck listening to JBL trying to be Jerry Lawler here. Anyway, Ashley hits a crossbody and Michelle rolls through and picks up the victory. 

Match Rating: 1/4*

It's the movie premiere of The Marine at a Marine base. In my intense research during my ad on Peacock, the original film is the lowest rated of the entire series over on Letterboxd.

Finlay & King Booker vs. Bobby Lashley & Batista

As you would expect, it doesn't take long for some cheating from the King and he throws Lashley into the steel steps. Lashley blocks a suplex attempt and hits one of his own. Booker is able to tag Finlay and he stops Lashley from making the tag to Batista. Lashley is able to drive Finlay back into his corner and make the tag, but the referee was distracted and he doesn't allow it. Lashley ducks a kick by Booker and hits the Spear. Both men make tags and Batista takes care of both opponents and then William Regal comes in and the ref calls for the bell. In comes Hornswoggle from behind and he gives him a low blow. It only slows him down momentarily and he gives Finlay a spinebuster before celebrating. This was more of a teaser than a match.

Match Rating: *3/4

They built the whole show around the main event of Sunday's pay-per-view, which makes sense. It wasn't necessarily gripping television, but it wasn't bad either. I wouldn't say this was a ho hum show, but it was a very forgettable episode. 

Overall Rating: 51%