Monday Night Raw 4-18-94 Review

Original Airdate: Monday, April 18th, 1994
Memorial Auditorium
Utica, New York

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They replay Jerry Lawler falling from last week to kick off the show. It's Vince McMahon and Randy Savage again this week. This week, Jerry Lawler is interviewing Alundra Blayze. Remember her? Plus it's Bret Hart against Superstars main eventer, Kwang.

Bret Hart vs. Kwang

Kwang is already in the ring, getting the jobber treatment. Kwang attacks Bret as he enters the ring after putting his sunglasses on a youngster. Kwang then misses in the corner and Bret goes to work on the arm. Being the babyface that he is, Bret spits at Harvey Wippleman. The action spills outside and Kwang misses a kick and hits the ring post. He no sells it as we go into the commercial break. When we come back, we are joined by Owen on the phone. Did you know that he beat Bret at WrestleMania? Meanwhile, Vince can't help himself and counts the "1...2..." while Owen is talking not once, but twice. Bret just seems like he's had enough and decides to put on the Sharpshooter sort of out of nowhere for the victory. This wasn't anything special, but Bret rarely has a bad match. 

Match Rating: **

Jeff Jarrett vs. PJ Walker

Jarrett obviously dominates the beginning here, but Walker gets in some offense for a little bit. Walker misses in the corner, but then Jarrett hits a bouncing suplex and a knee off the second rope. Jarrett plants him with the DDT and that is all. 

Match Rating: 1/4*

Captain Lou Albano wants a decision from Jack Tunney on the Headshrinkers getting a title shot. 

Steiner Brothers vs. Mike Khoury & Barry Hardy

I honestly had no idea that the Steiners were on TV this far into 1994. Vince teases them splitting up and compares it to Billy Joel and Christie Brinkley. They then make fun of Nancy Kerrigan, just to date this a little bit more. Vince then "sings" "Mustang Sally" and it reminds me of George Steinbrenner on Seinfeld. Rick hits a nice superplex from the corner and decides that this match needs to go a little longer. Scott hits a Samoan drop from the second rope and that's still not good enough for the Steiners. Scott hits suplex into a piledriver for the victory. I'm not really sure why that was over 5 minutes, but I guess they can do whatever they want. 

Match Rating: 1/4*

Duke Droese is shown picking up the garbage and high fiving garbage lids with his co-worker. 

Jerry Lawler is in the ring for the King's Court. Lawler rips on Alundra's looks and she calls his show a rip off of Piper's Pit. Lawler wonders where her belt is and she thinks that he stole it. Lawler brings out Luna Vachon. They get into it and Alundra walks off. This was pretty lame and extremely dated. 

Next week it's Razor Ramon vs. Jeff Jarrett for the first of their best of 99 match series. 

Earthquake vs. Mike Bell

Earthquake hits a couple of dropkicks and a belly-to-belly suplex. He hits the big splash and that is all. We are already nearing the end of this run for Tenta.

Match Rating: 1/4*

We then get the entire recap of the IRS attack on Tatanka. 

IRS vs. Major Yates

IRS is lulling me to sleep with a chinlock on a jobber. Yates makes IRS have to do an actual move with a vertical suplex. He puts him in a STF, which he calls the Penalty. Thankfully that's over. 

Match Rating: 1/4*

Next week it's Bam Bam Bigelow, 1-2-3 Kid, Owen Hart and the aforementioned Razor vs. Jarrett. 

This was a breezy show to get through, even if the Alundra segment aged poorly. Ending with IRS was a sour note, but it's always nice to see Bret in action. Yes, even if it's against Kwang. 

Overall Rating: 49%

Superstars 4-16-94 Review

Original Airdate: Saturday, April 16th, 1994
Lowell Auditorium
Lowell, Massachusetts

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Jerry Lawler and Vince McMahon are here and most definitely 100% not in front of a green screen. 

Lex Luger vs. George South

Luger still looks pretty motivated here, so maybe he still was being made promises here. Anyway, he hits a few moves and puts him in the Torture Rack for the victory. After the match, Jerry Lawler uses his Magistrator to draw foreign things on Luger and then Vince erases it all. I guarantee this wasn't funny in 1994 either.

Match Rating: 1/4*

Yet another IRS with more tax tips. 

Kwang vs. Tatanka

Kwang is quickly becoming a staple of Superstars. Tatanka fights off some early offense and hits a crossbody off the top rope for a 2 count. Kwang is back with a chop to the throat and slows things down. Out comes IRS to make this extra bad. Kwang just sucks the life out of this match and IRS begins to grab the headdress. As Tatanka charges at Kwang, he sprays him in the face with the green mist and we have a disqualification. In comes IRS and he attacks him and ties him up in the ropes. IRS puts on the headdress and mocks Native Americans, then rips off the feathers and shoves them in his mouth. He tells him all he had to do was pay his taxes. Out comes Chief Jay Strongbow, who is, you know, Italian. He slows down IRS for a bit, but IRS takes him down and continues to rip up the headdress. The officials come down to finally stop IRS and Tatanka checks on Strongbow. Despite the racially insensitive stuff, this actually did get some heat from the usually mellow Superstars crowd. The match itself was garbage.

Match Rating: 1/2*

Men On A Mission vs. Black Phantom & Joey Stallings

Poor Phantom gets beat down to start things off and eats a leg drop from Mabel. Stallings gets his chance though and he takes the pinfall after a spin kick from Mabel. Pretty standard stuff.

Match Rating: 1/4*

Bam Bam Bigelow vs. Mike Freeman

Bam Bam tosses Freeman around for a few minutes. He finishes it off with his reverse crossbody, not quite moonsault off the top rope for the victory. On his way back, he calls out Alundra Blayze for Luna. Remember her? They continue to do nothing with her.

Match Rating: 1/4*

We get the debut of the vignettes for Duke Droese. 

We then check in to the Heartbreak Hotel. His guest is Owen Hart and all he wants to do is to take the WWF Championship away from Bret. 

Earthquake vs. Eric Cody

They actually have a semi-decent fan announcer this week. Anyway, Quake obviously dominates this one and hits all of his signatures here. This was a quick one. 

Match Rating: 1/4*

Next week, Razor Ramon takes on Superstars main eventer, Adam Bomb.

Crush vs. Tony Roy

They show Nikolai Volkoff again in the crowd. Make it stop. Roy must have won the drawing backstage on which jobber gets to get in 10 seconds of offense on this episode. Crush hits a kick and then a press slam. Crush hits the old Heart Punch for the victory. There is no better finisher. 

Match Rating: 1/4*

They show the Bushwhackers at the White House again. 

Next week it's Owen Hart, the Quebecers and Mr. Perfect on the Heartbreak Hotel. 

This show was all about one thing, the terrible IRS/Tatanka angle. I am by no means an IRS fan, but I do give him credit on this and making the best of a stupid story. The rest of the show was just normal Superstars, but the quick paced version has still stuck around. 

Overall Rating: 40%

SummerSlam 2021 Review

Saturday, August 21st, 2021
Allegiant Stadium
Paradise, Nevada

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WWE Raw Tag Team Championship Match

RK-Bro vs. AJ Styles & Omos

Orton and Styles kick things off. The stadium looks impressive for wrestling and is giving it that WrestleMania feel. After getting the best of Styles, in comes Omos. He toys around with Riddle and then Styles is back in to carry the load. Riddle makes a comeback, but Styles is able to stop him before he gets to Orton. Riddle hits a knee and makes the hot tag. Orton hits the draped DDT and signals for the RKO. Omos is able to pull AJ out of the ring and then chokeslams Riddle onto the apron. Riddle is able to push Omos into the ring post, but then gets hit with a moonsault DDT from Styles. Styles goes for the Phenomenal Forearm, but it gets blocked. Orton hits the RKO and we have new champions. This was really short and felt like a TV match. Not a terrible opener or anything, but just underwhelming. 

Match Rating: **1/4

Eva Marie vs. Alexa Bliss

I'm not really sure how this match got on the show. I'm also not sure how Eva Marie got back on the roster. Eva gets in some offense and starts slapping the doll. She then uses it to slap Alexa in the face. Alexa snaps and takes over. Alexa goes to check on her doll and then hits a drop toe hold on Eva into the turnbuckle. She misses with Twisted Bliss and Eva gets a 2 count out of it. Alexa hits a DDT and ends it to put Eva out of her misery. After the match, Doudrop grabs a mic and announces Eva Marie as the loser of the match. There's no reason that the first two matches at a football stadium show should feel like a mediocre episode of Raw. 

Match Rating: 1/4*

Mario Lopez is here and is sporting a Hart Foundation shirt. He is here with RK-Bro and Riddle says he has a surprise for Orton on Raw. 

United States Championship Match

Damian Priest vs. Sheamus

They really didn't capitalize as much off the Bad Bunny stuff with Priest, but I guess that's not a surprise. Priest dominates the early going and hits his springboard somersault dive to the floor, which he only kind of hits. Sheamus catches a spin kick and tosses Priest into the ring post. Priest is able to counter a powerbomb into a hurricanrana, but Sheamus recovers and stays on offense. Sheamus does the clubbing blows on Priest's chest, but stops short of the 10th one to make the crowd mad. Priest hits a tornado DDT and then hits a couple of clotheslines. Priest hits a spin kick off the top rope for a 2 count. Priest grabs Sheamus by the throat when he's on the top rope, but Sheamus counters and slams Priest's neck on the top rope. Sheamus hits an Alabama Slam, but Priest kicks out. I think it's worth noting that the combined age of these two is 81 years. Priest hits a kick before Sheamus hits the Brogue Kick and hits South of Heaven for a nearfall. Sheamus hits a Brogue Kick on Priest coming off the top rope, but Priest kicks out. Sheamus puts on a heel hook in the middle of the ring, but Priest rips off the mask of Sheamus and breaks the hold. Priest hits a spin kick and then Reckoning and we have yet another new champion. This was entertaining, but they felt to be moving a little slower paced than they normally do.

Match Rating: ***

SmackDown Tag Team Championship Match

Rey & Dominik Mysterio vs. The Usos

It's pretty cool that it was exactly 16 years to the day that the Dominick storyline came to a close at SummerSlam 2005. The Mysterios start off quick and continue to be among the best things in modern day WWE. Dominick goes up top, but Jey shoves him to the floor. The Usos work on Dominik and hit him with a big right hand to the jaw. Dominik finally fights back and hits a reverse neckbreaker, but is in the opposite end of the ring. Rey gets the hot tag and hits a tornado DDT for a 2 count. Rey eats a superkick, but is able to kick out of the pin attempt. Rey goes for a springboard crossbody, but gets hit with a superkick. Jey hits a splash off the top rope, but Mysterio is able to kick out again. Dominick starts fighting with Jey, but he dumps Dominik on the apron. Rey sets up Jimmy for the 619 and hits it. Rey goes for the Frog Splash, but Jimmy gets the knees up. They hit a double superkick and Jey hits the splash to retain the titles. This was again a pretty entertaining match, but also felt like it didn't hit it's potential. I'm not really sure where the Usos go from here. 

Match Rating: ***1/4

Tiffany Haddish is here to interview Damian Priest and he says he hates bullies. 

Rick Boogs is in the ring shredding, Man Mountain Rock style. He plays out King Nakamura and Pat McAfee dances on the announce table. That's it. 

SmackDown Women's Championship 

Bianca Belair vs. Sasha Banks Carmella Becky Lynch

So after showing a highlight package before the match, they announce that Sasha Banks is unable to wrestle tonight. Bianca's new opponent is instead Carmella. Bianca is very disappointed as Carmella struts around. Bianca grabs the mic and she tells Sasha that sooner or later it will be the two of them in the ring. She said she's going to take out her frustration on Carmella here tonight. Becky Lynch's music then hits and the crowd erupts. This all just feels so odd. I'm not sure this is how I would have booked Lynch's return up against a babyface Bianca. Becky starts attacking Carmella and takes her out. Her and Bianca are face-to-face and Becky grabs the microphone to ask for a match tonight. The bell rings and she hits a Manhandle Slam and we have a new champion? Really? I get that they will count this as a fluke and maybe this leads to a heel turn for Bianca? I don't know, this just doesn't make a lot of sense to me. 

Match Rating: 1/4*

They announce another Crown Jewel event and then bring out Tamyra Mensah-Stock and Gable Steveson, both gold medal award winners at the Olympics. 

Jinder Mahal vs. Drew McIntyre

McIntyre immediately drives Mahal into the turnbuckle and we are underway. Even though this match had a build up, it still doesn't feel like a SummerSlam match. Jinder catches Drew with a kick to the jaw and gets a 2 count. Mahal already goes to a rest hold, which allows McIntyre to make his comeback and toss Mahal around. McIntyre hits the Future Shock and hits the Claymore Kick for the easy win. I mean I guess this was a way to show that McIntyre is still a player with a story. Mahal's goons come into the ring, so McIntyre grabs a sword and they scurry. This was a snorefest, but at least it was short. 

Match Rating: 3/4*

Triple Threat Match For The Raw Women's Championship

Nikki A.S.H. vs. Rhea Ripley vs. Charlotte Flair

Nikki tries to go with some old school babyface offense, but the live crowd isn't really buying it. Charlotte takes her turn and tosses Nikki into Ripley and then goes to work on Ripley. In comes Nikki, who hits a crossbody, but Charlotte scoops her up and slams her onto Ripley. Charlotte climbs to the top rope and goes for the moonsault, but Ripley gets her feet up. We get a little bit of a sloppy spot that leads to Charlotte hitting a big boot to Ripley. Charlotte clears the ring, but then eats a tornado DDT from Nikki. Charlotte has Nikki up for a body slam, but Ripley hits a German suplex that takes out both opponents. Ripley hits a missile dropkick and gets a 2 count. The crowd seems to not have a horse in the race here. Either that or they realize they still have two hours left. Ripley and Charlotte battle on the outside and Nikki takes them both out with a top rope crossbody. Nikki and Ripley team up and go for a double suplex, but Charlotte counters it into a double DDT. Charlotte hits a top rope corkscrew moonsault to the floor and she legit looks to crush Nikki. Normally Charlotte whiffs on those top rope moves, but that was definitely not the case here. Charlotte puts the Figure Eight on Ripley, but Nikki leaps off the top rope and breaks the hold. Nikki hits the Cross Rhodes and then another DDT on Charlotte. Nikki misses with a crossbody off the top rope and Charlotte slaps on the Figure Eight  on Nikki now. Nikki tries to crawl to the bottom rope, but she caves and taps for yet another new champion. Did Vince Russo book this show? The match was pretty good, but nothing super memorable. 

Match Rating: ***

Seth Rollins vs. Edge

Edge comes out to the Brood music and then we get the standard entrance from there. Rollins gets frustrated quickly and slams Edge's head into the step multiple times. They are really keeping the pacing slow to start things off here. Rollins hits a springboard knee and gets the first 2 count. Edge sneaks in a backslide and then hits a flapjack. Rollins knocks Edge off the turnbuckle and hits a frog splash with some major elevation for a nearfall. They battle up again and Edge hits a swinging neckbreaker off the top rope. Edge hits the Edgecution and gets another 2 count, as the pace begins to build. Rollins hits a superplex and rolls through into a Falcon Arrow, but Edge kicks out. Rollins is just so smooth. Edge misses with the Stomp and Edge counters with the Glam Slam, but Rollins kicks out. Rollins again goes for the Stomp, but Edge slams him into the ring post. Edge then hits a Spear to the outside Big E-style. He rams Rollins' head into the LED board and turns it off. Edge goes for a Spear in the ring, but Rollins counters it into a Pedigree. That was pretty clever. Rollins climbs up to the top rope and goes for a corkscrew moonsault. He misses, but rolls through and Edge hits him with a Spear, but Rollins kicks out. Rollins is able to kick Edge in the back of the head and again goes for the Stomp and doesn't hit it. Edge grabs his leg and puts on the Edgecator. He moves it over to the crossface and then starts repeatedly slamming his head into the mat. He then puts him in the sleeper hold and Rollins taps. That ending was a little flat for me. There was some good stuff in here, but I definitely was expecting a little bit more here. I also personally think that Rollins should have gone over here and let Edge win the rematch. 

Match Rating: ***1/2

Miz and Morrison are here and they introduce the Dripstick 2000. They forget to bring it and argue about it. Xavier Woods walks through the crowd wearing the Driptstick 2000. The echo is really heavy on the mics here. After doing a Scott Hall survey, Woods squirts both of them down with the water gun and that's the skit. I love these guys, but that was weak. 

WWE Championship Match

Bobby Lashley vs. Goldberg

Goldberg is able to knock Lashley off his feet early and hits a few body slams. He hits a couple of weak looking clotheslines. He goes for the Jackhammer, but Lashley counters it. Lashley goes up top, but Goldberg is there to powerslam him off. Goldberg goes for the Spear, but MVP pulls Lashley out of the ring to a big pop. Goldberg comes out of the ring and hits the Spear. MVP gets in another distraction by hitting him with his cane in the back of his leg and then Lashley hits a chop block. Lashley goes for the Hurt Lock, but Goldberg is able to get out before he locks his fingers. Lashley rams Goldberg into the ring post two times and gloats to the crowd. Goldberg is selling his knee and the ref rings the bell. God, the booking on this show sucks. That was a momentum killer for Lashley, as he hardly even got a chance to look impressive here. After the match, Lashley takes out Goldberg's knee with a chair and then continues to attack it. Goldberg's son Gage gets in the ring and Lashley quickly takes care of him. MVP gets on the mic and says that there was no way to know that it was Goldberg's son and then announces Lashley as the victor. This was really, really bad. 

Match Rating: 1/4*

Universal Championship Match

John Cena vs. Roman Reigns

Well, after four days, I have finally made it to the end of SummerSlam. We get the usual big match beginning that WWE always likes to do. After dominating the early portion, Reigns stands on the steel steps and poses with the belt. Cena gets a small package for a 2 count when he walks in, but then Reigns steamrolls him after. Cena gets Reigns up for an AA, but Reigns counters it into a DDT. After a sleeper attempt by Reigns, it's Cena time. But not for long. Reigns puts Cena in the guillotine and then hits the Superman Punch. Cena is back and hits the Five Knuckle Shuffle and hits the Attitude Adjustment, but Reigns kicks out. Cena goes out of the ring and is then greeted by a drive-by. Cena comes back with an Attitude Adjustment through the table. Cena hustles to roll Reigns back in the ring, but Reigns kicks out again. Cena goes off the top rope, but Reigns catches him for the powerbomb. We're in the big move portion of the match and Cena is able to sidestep a Spear, causing Reigns to hit his shoulder on the post. Cena then hits a super AA and again Reigns kicks out. After they trade right hands, Reigns hits another Superman Punch and follows it up with a Spear for the victory. I really was hoping to love this match, but ended up just liking it. It followed the blueprint that we have seen so many times and didn't deviate enough for my taste. Both guys looked good and hopefully we'll see Cena again. 

Match Rating: ***1/4

Out comes Brock Lesnar and his onion haircut. Reigns heads to the back and that's the show. If there was any doubt what the A show is, it's pretty obvious now. Reigns, Cena, Lesnar. 

Was this show bad? No. Was this show good? Meh. This show just didn't really get any emotion out of me. I was really hoping to love the Edge/Rollins and Cena/Reigns matches, but they just didn't hit that next level I was looking for. For the majority of the show, it just felt like an episode of Raw or SmackDown. I'd call this one a disappointment. 

Overall Rating: 58%

Off The Grid, Volume 14: SummerSlam 1991 Review

Sunday, August 26th, 1991
Madison Square Garden
New York City, New York

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Off The Grid, Volume 14:

The scrolling logo here for Vince's introduction is one of the best graphics WWF/E ever came up with. Our announcers tonight are Gorilla Monsoon, Bobby Heenan and Roddy Piper.

Ricky Steamboat, Texas Tornado & British Bulldog vs. Warlord & Power & Glory

There's something about random 6 man tag matches that wins me over. Roma hits a nice dropkick on Steamboat. He gloats too long and Steamboat hits an arm drag off the second rope. The crowd is somehow still hot for the Bulldog/Warlord feud, which admittedly was better than you would expect. Steamboat goes for a monkey flip, but Warlord shoves him off and Roma hits an ax handle off the top rope. Hercules does a weird distraction spot, but it ends up working in his favor. The heels continue to work on Steamboat because he's the master of selling, so it works for me. Warlord goes off the second rope, but Steamboat gets his boots up and gets the hot tag to Tornado. He makes a blind tag to Bulldog, who then gets caught off the second rope. Tornado hits a spinning punch on Warlord and they almost gets the victory. Warlord tags in Roma, but he gets scooped up by Bulldog and he hits the Powerslam, but Roma kicks out. Steamboat comes in off the top rope and gets the victory. The finish seemed a little messed up there, but this was a great time for fans of this era. 

Match Rating: ***

Sean Mooney is with Mr. Perfect and Coach and he cuts a very short, but effective promo. 

Intercontinental Championship Match

Bret Hart vs. Mr. Perfect

The crowd is super into Bret here, which is pretty impressive in New York against Mr. Perfect. We are treated to a lot of good action to start off, with Bret getting the better of Perfect more often than not. Bret clotheslines him over the top rope and Perfect starts to head to the back. Bret grabs him and rips his singlet. Meanwhile, Heenan makes a great joke about Stu and Helen sneaking into the show. Perfect takes control and Piper thinks he looks a little heavier. We get a great spot where Perfect knocks Bret off the apron and into a photographer into the guardrail. The photographer totally no sells it though, which sucks. Hart gets a fantastic roll up for a nearfall and I absolutely love this match. Perfect stays in control, with Bret surviving everything he throws at him. Perfect hits the Perfect Plex and Bret somehow kicks out of it. Bret hits the atomic drop and then throws him across the ring, with Perfect sliding into the ring post crotch-first. Bret hits a beautiful suplex and a backbreaker. After a close call by a Perfect pin attempt, Bret tosses Perfect into the ring post. Bret starts to work on the legs and goes for the Sharpshooter. Coach jumps up on the apron and Bret knocks him off. Perfect kicks the middle rope into the groin of Bret and regains control. Perfect goes for a leg drop to the midsection of Bret, but Bret catches it and flips him over into the Sharpshooter and we have a new Intercontinental Champion. Bret rips off the rest of Perfect's singlet and the crowd loves it. Thirty years later, this is still a masterpiece. 

Match Rating: *****

Alfred Hayes goes to ruin Stu and Helen's moment. Bret comes up them to celebrate and then Stu starts to talk and Alfred cuts him off and says he is speechless. 

It's the hottest ticket in town, it's Hot Ticket. It's all about Hulk Hogan! Coming this October. 

Mean Gene has the honor of being with the Bushwhackers and Andre The Giant. They show Earthquake attacking Andre on Superstars and taking out his knee. This is the weirdest combination. 

Natural Disasters vs. Bushwhackers

We get lots of shenanigans to start things off and they use Earthquake for the Battering Ram on Typhoon. They hit a double clothesline and clear the ring. The Disasters slow things down and go to work on Butch. Quake accidentally hits Typhoon and it allows for the tag to Luke. The referee starts to lose control and Earthquake hits the big splash for the easy victory. I honestly remember this being a lot worse. It probably should have never been on the show, but it was quick and enjoyable enough to earn it's 10 minutes. After the match, the Disasters start to go after Andre, but Legion of Doom comes down to stop them. It kind of ruins them for later in the show in my opinion, but it is what it is.

Match Rating: 3/4*

Bobby Heenan left the match to go interview Hogan and he knocks on Hogan's door to show him the real world's championship belt and gets the door slammed in his face. 

Randy Savage is backstage in tie dye talking on the phone about his big wedding night. 

We then go to Ted DiBiase and Sensatinoal Sherri and we get the video package of the Virgil saga. 

Million Dollar Championship Match

Ted DiBiase vs. Virgil

Virgil attacks DiBiase from behind and clotheslines him over the top rope to the floor. Back in the ring, Virgil hits an atomic drop and that also sends him over the top rope. Heenan is now back to the announce table and is immediately harassed by Piper and Gorilla. Meanwhile, Virgil goes for a dive over the top rope but crashes and burns. I'm not really sure why they felt like Heenan should come out during the match. DiBiase hits a pretty convincing double ax handle off the second rope for a 2 count. Virgil ducks a clothesline and slaps on the Million Dollar Dream. In comes Sherri and she hits him in the back of the head with her purse and Earl Hebner calls for the bell. Howard Finkel gets on the mic and says that Sherri needs to return to her dressing room and that the match will continue. Virgil continues in control until DiBiase reverses an Irish whip and it sends Virgil into Hebner, knocking him out. DiBiase hits some suplexes and a piledriver, but Hebner is still down. DiBiase takes out some anger on Hebner, taunts Piper and then rips off the turnbuckle pad. Virgil counters DiBiase and slams his head into the exposed metal. Both men are down until Virgil starts crawling over and gets the victory and the big pop from the crowd. As a kid watching this live, I was so invested in this storyline and was totally along for the ride here. The match wasn't quite as good as I remembered, but it was still a fantastic moment. 

Match Rating: ***1/4

We go back to Mean Gene who is with the Mountie and we get highlights of their storyline. Mountie then tells the cops that he wants them to drag him all the way to prison. We then go to Big Boss Man and Sean Mooney. Boss Man says that Mountie needs to be praying to God because he's going to spend a long night in jail. 

Jailhouse Match

Mountie vs. Big Boss Man

Boss Man starts off with a big right hand. Mountie tries some of his own, but Boss Man isn't having it. Boss Man is usually super over, but the crowd seems exhausted already. Boss Man catches Mountie off the second rope and hits a spinebuster. Boss Man goes after Jimmy Hart and Mountie is able to push him into the steel steps. I really forgot how dead the crowd was for this. Younger me was really excited about this match. Mountie bites Boss Man and then goes for a piledriver. Boss Man tries to block it, but he nails it and Jimmy Hart is at least loving it. Mountie signals to Jimmy to distract the ref and he grabs the cattle prod. Boss Man avoids it and knocks it out of his hands. Boss Man hits a right hand and then a Boss Man Slam, but Mountie kicks out. That finally wakes up the crowd a little bit. Mountie goes for another piledriver, but this time Boss Man blocks it and hits an Alabama Slam for the victory. Boss Man immediately drags him out of the ring and calls out the cops to cuff him. They follow along as he heads out of the arena. The police van is headed out and the fun is about to begin. The match itself was pretty mediocre, but everything after is great. 

Match Rating: *1/2

Ted DiBiase and Sherri are livid with Mean Gene. Bret Hart says that today is the greatest day for the Hitman. Back to Mean Gene with Jimmy Hart and the Natural Disasters. Jimmy is freaking out about the Mountie. The Disasters aren't happy with LOD. Sean Mooney gets Big Boss Man and he cuts a dorky promo. Mean Gene walks into Savage's locker room, but he's talking on the phone. 

We get video of the Mountie arriving at the slammer. Jimmy Hart is now with the Nasty Boys and they're going to take care of LOD. LOD disagrees and we get even more amazing Mountie videos. The Triangle of Terror talks about having one more little surprise. We go to Sid Justice and he says that he's a man that stands alone. They show a video of Sid talking to Slaughter, with him trying to get Sid to join him. 

Street Fight For The WWF Tag Team Championships

Nasty Boys vs. Legion Of Doom

LOD comes right out and we have ourselves a brawl. Animal hits a quick powerbomb on Knobbs for a 2 count. Sags sprays something in Hawk's eyes and then hits him with a crate of drinks and ice water. The Nasty's for some reason are still using distractions for some reason, even though there are no rules. Sags hits a top rope elbow drop, but Animal makes the save. The rules make no sense because what is stopping them from not even tagging? Animal gets the hot tag and takes care of both men. Animal ducks a helmet shot, but Sags is able to stop before hitting Knobbs. Hawk knocks the helmet out of the hands of Hart and uses it on both Knobbs and Sags. They hit the Doomsday Device and we have new champions. This wasn't anything special, but it was quick and fun. 

Match Rating: **1/4

More Mountie shenanigans. You're hurting my arm!

IRS vs. Greg Valentine

I love that I refuse to call him I.R.S. I also can't believe they booked this match on SummerSlam. This is the mullet version of IRS. This match is a lot of stalling to start and then your typical boring IRS offense. Meanwhile, Gorilla just can't understand why no one has been grabbing IRS by the tie or suspenders and the crowd is chanting "Boring". IRS goes up top, but Valentine slams him and then hits some chops. Valentine starts working on the legs and signals for the Figure Four. IRS is able to get to the bottom rope to break the hold. Valentine yanks his leg and pulls him back in the middle of the ring. He hits a headbutt below the belt and goes for the Figure Four again. IRS counters it into a small package and that's it. It's pretty incredible that this exact same character lasted as long as it did. 

Match Rating: 1/2*

It's time for Hulk Hogan and Ultimate Warrior. They give you the exact interview you were expecting. 

Sgt. Slaughter, Col. Mustafa & Gen. Adnan vs. Ultimate Warrior & Hulk Hogan

This follows the usual Hogan blueprint, except there is no doubt in anyone's mind who is going to win this thing. Warrior blocks a Mustafa suplex, but he counters and hits one of his own. Mustafa is able to make the tag to Slaughter and he makes sure he hits Hogan and then cheats behind Sid's back. Piper is just yelling out things at this part. Warrior ducks Slaughter and hits a really nice leaping clothesline. Slaughter gets up before Warrior, but for some reason he watches him get up and tag Hogan. Warrior grabs a chair and chases off Adnan and Mustafa to the back. Hogan throws some powder in Slaughter's face behind Sid's back and hits the boot for the victory. They really should have had one more trick up their sleeve to go along with Sid, because this just feels like such an odd main event to an otherwise really strong show. Thanks to Warrior threatening to walk out, Hogan gets to celebrate alone and then calls out Sid to pose with him. I remember being furious that Sid didn't turn on him here. 

Match Rating: *3/4

We go back to the Mountie and they show him in his prison cell. 

We now get a video package of the proposal of Randy Savage and with Vince drooling over the ring. We then get a musical tribute to the couple. The ring actually looks pretty cool for the ceremony, especially for 1991. "Beauty personified". Classic Gorilla. They play this straight all the way through here, which makes it feel pretty uneventful. 

This is a tough show for me to rate. I was at peak fandom here in 1991 and loved all of the big storylines, outside of Hogan/Slaughter. The Intercontinental matches is one of my all time favorites, Virgil winning the Million Dollar Belt was a really great moment and Mountie in jail is still some of the best comedy they ever did. However, ending the show with Valentine/IRS, Hogan and then a wedding where nothing really happened was not the greatest choice. Either way, I think there is more than enough to like here to get a thumbs up, but it was really close to greatness and just barely falls short because of the last hour. 

Overall Rating: 83%

SmackDown 4-28-06 Review

Original Airdate: Friday, April 28th, 2006
Wembley Arena
London, England

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JBL is here first and says that he is going to defend the greatest championship in all of sports entertainment. Naturally, he's playing up the US as the greatest here. He tries to get the crowd to chant "U-S-A", but William Regal is here to play hometown hero. Regal sucker punches him and I guess we're starting a match here.

United States Championship Match

JBL vs. William Regal

Regal dominates the early going of the match and knocks him out of the ring into the commercial break. JBL gains control and has a boring heat segment. Regal tries a comeback, but JBL gets his boot up. He goes for the Clothesline From Hell, but Regal counters with a T bone suplex. Regal gets JBL into a lazy looking submission hold and JBL teases passing out. JBL gets out of it and hits the Clothesline From Hell for the victory. It should be noted that Regal was bleeding from his ear. This was pretty disappointing. 

Match Rating: *

Sharmell and Booker T are backstage for an interview. He's then interrupted by Gunner Scott, who reminds him that he beat him. Hilarity ensues.

They show highlights of Kurt Angle beating The Rock at No Mercy 2000. 

They show a vignette about Native American's for Tatanka. 

MNM & Gregory Helms vs. Paul London, Brian Kendrick & Super Crazy

This is a match I can get behind. I'm sure it will be 2 minutes long. All six men start off brawling and it leads to a double suicide dive by London and Kendrick on MNM and then a dive from Super Crazy on Helms. Melina gets involved and knocks Kendrick off the top rope behind the referee's back. They work on Kendrick until he's able to make the hot tag to London. He hits a double dropsault and then all six men get involved again. London is able to get a small package on Helms and they steal the victory. Super Crazy really didn't get any time to shine here, which is a shame. After the match, Melina is very disappointed. This was pretty good, but not as memorable as I hoped it would be. 

Match Rating: **

They show Kurt Angle winning the title from Steve Austin at Unforgiven 2001. 

Melina is backstage complaining that they have lost to London and Kendrick four weeks in a row. Jillian Hall gets involved for some reason and they start using cosmetics on each other, causing a brawl. Who asked for this? 

Lashley is shown getting ready for his match and does a backstage interview without an interviewer. 

They show Kurt Angle defeating Big Show at Armageddon 2002 for his third championship.

King Of The Ring First Round Match

Mark Henry vs. Bobby Lashley

Things start off a little slowly with Henry in control. Lashley explodes for a clothesline, but it doesn't knock Henry down. Lashley goes off the ropes and Henry destroys him with a clothesline. Lashley comes back and hits three clotheslines before finally knocking him down. He hits a body slam and then goes for the Dominator, but Henry counters into a back body drop. Lashley knocks Henry out of the ring and he gets counted out? Really? What a terrible finish to a match that probably shouldn't have been booked if that was the best ending you could come up with. After the match, Lashley is celebrating and Henry attacks him. 

Match Rating: 3/4*

Rey Mysterio is with Kristal Marshall backstage. He says that if tonight is his last night as champion, it was all worth it. 

They show Kurt Angle beating Big Show and Brock Lesnar at Vengeance 2003. 

Booker T and Sharmell are here and then out comes Gunner Scott. Booker T fakes a cold and says that his opponent tonight is Finlay.

Gunner Scott vs. Finlay

Finlay starts off hot with his unique offense. He uses the ring apron to trap Gunner and attacks him. I can't believe a generic babyface named Gunner Scott didn't work out. Gunner hits an overhead belly-to-belly suplex. Booker T hits a kick to the jaw behind the referee's back and Finlay hits the Celtic Cross for the victory. After the match, Booker and Finlay attack Gunner until Chris Benoit makes the save. The match was pretty short and didn't really show much for Gunner. 

Match Rating: 3/4*

Out comes the Great Khali for an in-ring interview with Kristal. He claims that Undertaker is afraid of him and makes a bunch of loud noises. 

We see how Kurt Angle most recently won the championship on SmackDown in January. 

World Heavyweight Championship Match

Kurt Angle vs. Rey Mysterio

Early on, Angle hits a belly-to-belly suplex over the top rope and to the floor. He must have stolen that from Gunner Scott. Rey makes some counters and it leads to Rey hitting a kick to the head of Angle and both men are down. Mysterio gets Angle set up for a 619, but Angle drills him with a back elbow. Angle goes for an Angle Slam, but Mysterio counters it into a DDT for a 2 count. Rey goes up top, but there's Angle to run up the ropes and hit a top rope suplex for a close call. Angle ends up hitting a German suplex with a release. He goes for the Angle Slam, but Mysterio counters and hits the 619. Angle catches him on the seated senton and puts him in the Ankle Lock. Out comes Mark Henry and he attacks Angle. The ref rings the bell and Henry throws both men out of the ring. He crushes Angle into the ring post just as he did Lashley earlier on tonight. Henry pulls out a table and sets up Angle on it. He gets up on the apron and hits a splash on Angle through the table. This was the first 2/3rds of a great match that was interrupted by a run in. Entertaining stuff, but it was just getting to great before the garbage finish. 

Match Rating: ***1/4

This wasn't necessarily a classic show, but it was significantly better than the terrible episode of Raw this week. It's interesting that SmackDown is really finding it's groove here in 2006. 

Overall Rating: 61%

Monday Night Raw 4-24-06 Review

Monday, April 24th, 2006
Wembley Arena
London, England

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Edge is out first and he complains a little until Triple H interrupts. Triple H continues to revert more and more back into his DX character and well, I think we all know where this is headed. He will go through anyone to get what he wants and wouldn't you know, John Cena just happens to be waiting for a cue like that and he is out for his turn. He and Triple H begin brawling and Edge heads out of there. Out come the Spirit Squad now and they let the three main eventers know that they are going to have to team together tonight to take on the entire Spirit Squad in a handicap match. 

Chris Masters, Matt Striker & Shelton Benjamin vs. Carlito, Charlie Haas & Rob Van Dam

RVD hits a hurricanrana and then a heel kick to Benjamin, sending him out of the ring. He and Haas team up and knock Striker and Masters out as well and RVD hits a somersault dive over the top rope. During the break, RVD got thrown into the steel steps and lucky for us, we come back in the middle of a bear hug. Haas gets a hot tag and then Carlito hits a Backstabber. Masters puts on the Master Lock, but Haas makes the save with a suplex. Shelton hits a T-Bone suplex and then gets hit with a top rope kick from RVD. He hits Rolling Thunder and the Five Star Frog Splash for the victory. That was an enjoyable house show type match. 

Match Rating: **1/2

We get a backstage Vince McMahon interview saying that last week's strange events were coincidences. He said God isn't here and Shane McMahon will face Shawn Michaels tonight. 

Big Show confronts Kane and he tells him not to keep saying May 19th...or else. Naturally Show says it and gets viciously attacked until he's pulled off by Snitsky, Cade and Murdoch. Show is bleeding as we head into commercial. 

Coach is in the ring to start the Raw bikini contest. It's Candice Michelle, Maria, Victoria and Torrie Wilson. Despite Torrie getting the loudest reaction, Coach declares Candice the winner. Coach then tells her that her prize is to make out with him and then out comes Viscera. Could this segment be any more embarrassing? Viscera hits a Samoan drop and then a squash. Why?

After a Vince/Shawn video package, out comes Vince. He is out to introduce his son. How sweet. 

Shane McMahon vs. Shawn Michaels

They start going at it outside the ring and we are underway. Shane takes the early advantage and goes to work on Shawn's back. After a Torture Rack into a reverse neckbreaker, Shane misses up top with a moonsault. Both men are up and are trading right hands. Michaels explodes off the ropes for the leaping forearm, an inverted atomic drop and some clotheslines. The crowd is not as into this as I'm sure they were hoping for. Shawn hits the top rope elbow drop into the "genetically poisoned heart of Shane McMahon" according to Joey. Shawn starts tuning up the band, but Vince grabs him by his leg and pulls him out of the ring. Shawn fights back and sets Vince up on the announce table. Shane starts climbing the top rope, but Shane is there for the low blow. Vince hits Shane with the ring bell and they set him up on the table now. Shane then hits him with the elbow drop through the table. Vince then gets in his face and tells him that God has abandoned Shawn. So I guess the match is over? Obviously they are saving their best stuff for the pay-per-view, but this wasn't very good. Also, why do they always plan these European shows right before a pay-per-view?

Match Rating: *

After running down the Backlash card, we go backstage to Edge and Cena. Edge tries to make it look like they have to work together for their chances at Backlash, but Cena's not buying it. 

After the commercial break, they show Edge and Lita with no audio.

Umaga vs. Steve Lewington

Lewington is the future DJ Gabriel. Umaga destroys Lewington and then picks him up in a wheelbarrow position and swings him into the ring steps. He hits a leaping headbutt into Lewington, who is in the tree of woe. He hits the Samoan Spike and that is all. Umaga continues to not be over. 

Match Rating: 1/4*

Out comes Ric Flair and he attacks Umaga and actually knocks him out of the ring. 

Lita approaches Triple H. She tries to sell him on the Edge idea of working together. They announce Umaga vs. Flair for Backlash. 

Mickie James is out and she's dressed as Mickie this time. She says she now knows exactly who she is. Out comes Trishie James again. They start doing the talking at the same time joke and then Trish hits her with the Chick Kick. I think people forget that this angle was not very over with the crowd. 

Spirit Squad vs. Edge, Triple H & John Cena

The Spirit Squad approach their opponents one by one and introduce themselves, which actually made me laugh. Edge, Trips and Cena attack them and then act as if they are going to start to brawl. After commercial break, Edge hits a spear in the corner. The numbers game catches up and the Spirit Squad start using quick tags on Edge. Edge avoids a dive in the corner and "tags" in Triple H. Triple H gives us a crotch chop and then Cena tags himself in by slapping Triple H's back. Cena gets thrown over the top rope and to the floor and is attacked by the other four members on the outside. Cena makes his comeback and Triple H gets a hot blind tag. It all leads to Cena hitting the FU at the same time as Triple H hits the Pedigree. Triple H and Cena start going at it, while Edge and Lita head out of the ring. We go off the air with them brawling and so we have another match with no finish? 

Match Rating: *1/2

Outside of the enjoyable six man tag match, this show was terrible. Everything there felt like they forgot they had one more show before Backlash and just threw in a bunch of unnecessary garbage to fill the two hours. Big thumbs down here. 

Overall Rating: 33%

NXT TakeOver: 36 Review

Sunday, August 22nd, 2021
Capitol Wrestling Center
Orlando, Florida

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Million Dollar Championship Match

Cameron Grimes vs. LA Knight

So Grimes apparently has Ted DiBiase in his corner now. Grimes goes for the Million Dollar Dream early on, but Knight is able to escape before he puts it on. The action spills outside and Grimes hits a few kicks, one with an assist from DiBiase. Grimes hits a boot to the face of Knight on the apron. Grimes goes up top, but Knight takes out his leg and he falls to the ground. Grimes tries to make a comeback, but Knight catches him for a powerbomb and a 2 count. Knight takes out the legs with a dropkick of Grimes after another attempted comeback. Knight hits an inverted Attitude Adjustment, but Grimes is able to kick out. We get some nice back-and-forth between the two and it leads to Knight leaping up to the top rope and hitting a super German suplex with Grimes being flipped over with the release. After a kick out, Grimes is able to slap on the Million Dollar Dream. They go for the WrestleMania VIII Bret Hart/Roddy Piper finish, but Grimes is able to kick out and still hold onto the hold. Knight is able to drive him into the turnbuckle to break the hold and then heads outside to grab his title belt. The referee tries to get him to drop it, but Grimes hits him with a kick to the head. DiBiase hits him with a right hand on the outside and then puts on the Million Dollar Dream. Grimes hits the Cave-In and is the new Million Dollar Champion. This was a lot longer than I was anticipating, but they delivered a strong match. Grimes is really just an enjoyable talent. 

Match Rating: ***1/2

NXT Women's Championship Match

Dakota Kai vs. Raquel Gonzalez

Raquel has really improved in the ring, but she just lacks the personality to be a top tier character. Gonzalez starts off hot with lots of tossing the smaller Kai around. Kai tries a high crossbody off the top rope and Gonzalez catches her and rolls through and throws her on the top turnbuckle. She then hits another fall away slam. Gonzalez runs up the turnbuckles, but Kai trips her up and hits the Yakuza Kick. Gonzalez is knocked out, but she's out of the ring. I'm not really digging Dakota Kai's new look. I feel like her old look really defined her. Kai's offense doesn't last long and Gonzalez hits the Vader Bomb for a nearfall. Gonzalez hits a pretty vicious looking sit down powerbomb, but Kai is able to kick out. Gonzalez drops Kai onto the top rope and she falls onto the elevated entrance ramp. Kai is able to hit a top rope double stomp, but we're in full blown kick out of everything mode here. They battle up in the turnbuckles and Kai hits a nice kick to an upside down Gonzalez. Gonzalez hits a chokeslam off the second rope and gets the pinfall victory. This was actually quite a bit better than I expected. I wasn't sure what exactly to expect, but this was a nice match. 

Match Rating: ***1/2

Kay Lee Ray's music hits and she stands there as we go into an Applebee's commercial. 

NXT United Kingdom Championship Match

Ilja Dragunov vs. Walter

Walter feels like the one guy on the roster right now that could leave for AEW and not get lost on the roster. I'm definitely lower on Walter than the majority, but he is the type of wrestler you desperately need on your roster. I never got around to watching the original match, so I'm not really sure what to expect. We get lots of mat wrestling to start off, with Dragunov playing the plucky underdog. The action spills outside and Walter hits a powerbomb to the apron. Walter tries to put on a sleeper hold and just ends up to hit a German suplex. Walter puts on the Boston Crab and then switches to the STF. Dragunov is somehow able to hit a back body drop, but Walter fights back with a suplex. Walter hits a big boot, but Dragunov is desperately trying to fight back. He ends up hitting a big knee to the jaw to slow Walter down. Dragunov is snapping and hits a German suplex. Dragunov hits a stomp dropkick off the top rope and then a senton off the top rope. He goes for a running forearm, but Walter catches him with a sleeper hold and into a suplex. Dragunov is back up and hits him with an elbow to the back of the head. That was pretty cool. Dragunov is treating this match like the match of his lifetime. Walter goes up top, but Dragunov hits a superplex. Dragunov is now upstairs and hits a missile dropkick. Walter comes back with a dropkick and then a powerbomb for a 2 count. Walter hits another powerbomb and then hits a top rope splash, but somehow Dragunov kicks out. That probably should have been something that he doesn't kick out of. Dragunov again fights back, but even in this story, it's a little bit too quickly for my taste. He gets on the back of Walter, but Walter climbs the ropes and drops him on his back. Dragunov again puts on the sleeper. Dragunov then hits a series of blows to the back of the neck and then puts on the sleeper again and gets the quick tap out. I did not expect that at all. I know the world is in love with Walter, but this match was mostly Dragunov here. That was one heck of an individual performance, even if I had a few complaints on the selling. Walter's 870 day reign is officially over. Where will he go from here? 

Match Rating: ****

Cameron Grimes cuts an emotional promo and DiBiase gives a babyface response handing out money to Grimes. Grimes then says there will be a million dollar celebration on Tuesday night. 

William Regal walks up to Samoa Joe and tells him that he is biased and is rooting for Joe. 

Two-Out-Of-Three Falls Match

Kyle O'Reilly vs. Adam Cole

The first fall is a standard match and they start things off right away. O'Reilly gets in some high impact blows, but Cole comes back with a leaping knee. O'Reilly hits a spinning clothesline and goes up top. Cole catches him with a superkick on the way down. He goes for Panama Sunrise, but O'Reilly blocks it and reverses it into a pin attempt and gets the early lead at 1-0. Cole is in disbelief, as we are now into street fight rules. O'Reilly puts a trash can on Cole and seats him in a chair. O'Reilly runs off the apron and hits a vicious looking dropkick. That was pretty awesome. Cole is back with a steel chair and rams it into the ribs of O'Reilly. Cole has the kendo stick now and keeps attacking the ribs. He rolls down the knee pad, but O'Reilly sees it coming, so Cole hits him again with the kendo stick again. He hits a backstabber and gets a 2 count. They hit 3 simultaneous boots and both men are down. They start battling on the ramp and O'Reilly throws Cole off the stage and into the barricade cage. Cole sets up two chairs, but O'Reilly is able to counter. Cole though throws O'Reilly on the top of the two chairs to win the second fall. We are now to the steel cage fall, as the medical staff checks on O'Reilly. Cole doesn't even wait for the cages to come down and hits a powerbomb onto the table. Once again the medical staff is checking on him. O'Reilly is fighting back pretty quickly and hits a few running knees into Cole into the cage. He hits a knee to the back of the head and both men are down. Cole comes back with a low blow and starts climbing the cage. Both men are standing on the top rope and O'Reilly gets crotched after a left hand to the jaw. Cole then hits Panama Sunrise, but O'Reilly kicks out. The crowd didn't seem to buy that nearfall. Cole brings out some handcuffs and slaps them on O'Reilly. Somehow O'Reilly puts on the heel hook with one hand and Cole taps out? I'm not sure I love that finish. I get making O'Reilly look like a star, but that seems a little unbelievable even for wrestling. The rest of the match was very enjoyable, but a little less than what I was hoping for. 

Match Rating: ***3/4

Dragunov is backstage and says long live the czar. Legado del Fantasma tells Hit Row that they're going to take care of them Tuesday night. 

NXT Championship Match

Samoa Joe vs. Karrion Kross

I really like Samoa Joe, but with the exception of him just destroying Kross, it's going to take a miracle for me to be heavily invested in this match. Joe starts off quickly to show us he still has it. Kross hits a boot and puts on an ankle lock that must not be that effective because Joe kind of no sells it. Joe hits a dive through the ropes. After Kross has me looking at fantasy football rankings, Samoa Joe has a nice burst of offense. Unfortunately, it's short lived and we're back to Kross again. Joe hits a kick to the head and then the Muscle Buster and we have a new NXT Champion. I didn't really think they would do that, but I think the majority of the fanbase isn't going to be upset with that one. They only gave them 12 minutes also, which I didn't expect. Again, I'm not complaining. This wasn't bad, but just was nowhere near everything else on the card. It feels like they've pretty much given up on Kross though. After how strong they made him look at the last TakeOver, he loses clean and with no smoke and mirrors. Good for Joe. 

Match Rating: **1/4

This was another strong TakeOver, but probably in the bottom half overall. Everything was entertaining up until the main event. It wasn't bad, but it felt like a TV main event. They honestly should have probably just put on Walter last, because there was no way that they were going to be able to follow that or the Cole/O'Reilly match. This was an easy thumbs up for me though and a definite recommendation.

Overall Rating: 83%