Monday Night Raw 9-11-06 Review

Monday, September 11th, 2006
Madison Square Garden
New York, New York

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We kick off the show with a moment of silence for the lives lost on 9/11 before introducing some members of the Marines and Lilian Garcia to sing "America The Beautiful". This is a pretty cool moment with it being in Madison Square Garden. 

Ric Flair vs. Umaga

Flair attacks Umaga on his way in, but he just shoves Flair away. Flair hits a chop block on him and then some chops to the chest. Umaga grabs him by the throat, but Flair hits a few low blows behind the ref's back. Flair hits Umaga in the head with a steel chair (ugh) and the match is over. The action continues outside the ring and Umaga hits a Samoan Drop to the floor. Out comes Kane and Umaga hits a belly-to-belly suplex on him before hitting him in the back with the chair. Kane sits up and hits Umaga with the chair and then throws the steel steps at him over the top rope to the floor. Hethen rams the steps into him and Umaga goes over the barricade. 

Match Rating: 1/2*

Vince and Shane are talking about the Walk Of Fame at MSG and he shows off his name. Then I'm stuck listening to Kane's terrible entrance music.

The Highlanders are out with the NYPD Pipes and Drum and then out comes Roddy Piper to a big pop. They all start slapping each other and then are interrupted by the Spirit Squad. They call them a bunch of girls and Piper responds by saying they replaced their testicles with pom-poms. Piper challenges them to a 6 man tag right now. 

Roddy Piper & Highlanders vs. Spirit Squad

We come back from the commercial break and the match is underway. The Squad mostly dominates Robbie here with their vanilla offense. Robbie hits a back body drop and tags in Piper. Piper is only 7 years older than AJ Styles is in 2022. He takes care of most of the Squad and the Highlanders hit the Scott Drop for Piper to pick up the victory. Outside of Piper wrestling in MSG, this wasn't great.

Match Rating: 3/4*

Johnny Nitro is interviewed backstage and he takes offense to Jeff Hardy saying his press conference was like watching paint dry. Jeff Hardy is shown behind him painting. Nitro knocks over the painting, so Nitro throws paint in Nitro's face. 

I didn't mention it earlier, but they are showing Hell In A Cell highlights from previous matches. We are just 6 days from Unforgiven. 

Edge and Lita are here and he says that today marks the final Raw appearance for John Cena. He thinks Cena can go back to his roots on SmackDown and cut some raps. Edge has one of his own for us tonight and makes fun of New York.

Edge, Randy Orton & Johnny Nitro vs. Jeff Hardy, Carlito & John Cena

Nitro is still covered in paint. Somewhat surprisingly, they are letting Carlito and Orton go at it as well as Nitro and Hardy. Edge gets tagged in and eats a hurricanrana by Carlito for a 2 count. Cena tags in and Edge is out of there. Orton hits a vertical suplex and tags in Nitro. Cena's had enough of that and drives him into the corner, tagging in Carlito. Carlos Colon is shown in the crowd. Good to see that youngster. The heels work on Hardy for a little bit until he hits Whisper In The Wind. This all eventually leads to Cena coming in and exploding with some clotheslines. He's going for the Five Knuckle Shuffle, but Orton is behind him. Carlito comes from behind and hits an awkward looking Back Stabber. Cena ends up putting the STFU on Nitro while Edge and Lita head up the ramp. Cena picks up the victory and that's all. Last week's match was more fun, but I won't complain about something like this on Raw. 

Match Rating: **3/4

After showing Anthony Michael Hall, it's time for another Cryme Tyme vignette. 

Vince talks to Shane about this being bigger than anything ever or something. I don't know, I wasn't really listening. I figure if I were talking to him, he probably wouldn't listen to me either.

Chris Masters vs. Super Crazy

We get a rematch of Super Crazy's unannounced debut and upset on Raw last week. The crowd is really dead for this. We kind of get a sloppy back and forth to start until Super Crazy hits a nice missile dropkick. Masters tries to counter a hurricanrana, but Crazy counters that into a pin attempt and picks up a second victory over Masters. 

Match Rating: 3/4*

Mickie James vs. Trish Stratus

This is Trish's last match on Raw ahead of her farewell match at Unforgiven. They are trying their best to wake up the crowd with some solid action. They start going back-and-forth with some right hands and forearms. Out comes Lita on the apron, but Trish uses Lita instead of the ropes for Stratusfaction and picks up the victory in a quick match. I mean why would they give her more than 3 minutes here? After the match Trish and Stratus shake hands and hug. Trish grabs the mic and thanks the fans for joining her on this awesome ride. Lawler then ruins it with a sexist comment.

Match Rating: *

After a SmackDown Rewind, highlights of Kevin Nash/Triple H in Hell In A Cell and running down the Unforgiven card, they whos Cade and Murdoch attacking Triple H. Shane McMahon and Big Show join in. They slam his head in the limo door and then Vince comes out and says their match is No Holds Barred.

Vince McMahon vs. Triple H

Triple H is bleeding from his ear and comes out with the doctor trying to stop him from fighting. Triple H's balance is off, as he swings wildly and Vince takes advantage. Vince starts choking him with a belt and the crowd is pretty indifferent. Vince hits the Pedigree on Triple H, but he kicks out at 2. Triple H is trying to hulk up as he no sells Vince's offense. He hits the spinebuster and then knocks Shane off the apron. He goes for the Pedigree, but Shane hits Vince from behind. Shawn Michaels comes down and hits an inverted atomic drop on Shane and then Big Show hits a powerbomb on Michaels. Triple pulls out the sledgehammer but Shane knocks him out before he can use it. Shane hits Triple H with a chair shot and then Vince hits Triple H with the sledgehammer. Vince covers Triple H and picks up the victory. Talk about a flat way to end the show. They can try all they want, but pretty much no one cares about this. 

Match Rating: 1/4*

DX/McMahons needs to end. It hasn't been as bad lately, but tonight brought it right back to where no one cares again. The six man tag was decent enough, but nowhere near good enough to save the show or anything. This was a disappointing way to head into Unforgiven, which actually has a pretty solid card.

Overall Rating: 45%

NXT 10-2-14 Review

Original Airdate: Thursday, October 2nd, 2014
Full Sail University
Winter Park, Florida

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NXT Women's Championship Match
Bayley vs. Charlotte

It's safe to say that this episode has a lot of promise. Bayley goes for some nearfalls and gets in some offense before Charlotte rolls out of the ring to regroup. Even after the break, Bayley continues on the offense. Charlotte gets an opening and starts working on Bayley's knee. Bayley makes a nice comeback, but misses in the corner and Charlotte takes out the knee. Charlotte is able to slap on the Figure Four in the middle of the ring. She turns it into the Figure Eight before it was called that for a little bit until Bayley is able to reverse it. The hold gets broken and Charlotte misses her in the corner. Bayley is able to hit a reverse elbow off the second rope. Charlotte hits a neckbreaker though and hits Natural Selection for the victory. This was a solid rematch between these two rising stars. The two of them embrace after the match.

Match Rating: ***1/4

Viktor vs. Hideo Itami

Before the match, Itami is attacked by both Viktor and Konnor attack him. A group of referees try to stop them, but it obviously doesn't work. So we have no match here, as the Ascension head to the back and the medical staff checks on Itami. 

We get more of the Carmella training video with Enzo and Big Cass. This is pretty creepy especially since Enzo ended up being a creep. 

Baron Corbin vs. Troy McClain

It's so weird to hear people chant Baron Corbin's name. This was definitely his best persona, unless you were a fan of the Olive Garden host look. He hits the End Of Days and that is it.

Match Rating: 1/4*

They show a WWE.com interview with Tyson Kidd where he walks away when they ask him if he only got this chance because of his wife. 

The Legionnaires challenge Enzo and Cass to a match next week.

Vaudevillains vs. Jason Jordan & Tye Dillinger

Jordan and Dillinger get an actual entrance here. The Vaudevillains are starting to develop some nice chemistry here. Dillinger rolls down his knee pad and hits English with some knee strikes to the head. English hits the tag to Gotch and puts Jordan in the airplane spin. He follows up with Dillinger in the airplane spin as well. English hits the senton off the second rope and picks up the victory. That was a spirited little tag team match.

Match Rating: *1/4

Titus O'Neil is shown in the crowd and in the first row. 

Hideo Itami is being checked on in the back and Funaki walks in. He tells him he has Itami's back against the Ascension.

Bayley gets interviewed backstage and she says that if she quits, her fans quit. She then is attacked by Sasha Banks. 

NXT Championship Match
Tyson Kidd vs. Adrian Neville

Things start off a little slowly until Neville hits Kidd with a big kick to lay him out on the floor in front of Titus headed into a commercial break. Kidd gets back into control until Neville is able to deadlift Kidd into a powerbomb. Neville gets a burst after that, but it's ended abruptly with a kick to the head. Kidd hits a seated dropkick, but gets hit with a kick to the head while seated on the top turnbuckle. Neville goes for a superplex, but Kidd counters into a sunset flip bomb. Neville lands on his feet and hits a dropkick and a sitdown powerbomb for a 2 count. Neville goes up top, but Kidd goes up and grabs his leg. Neville knocks him off, but Kidd rolls out of the way and Neville rolls through. Kidd counters a Codebreaker and slaps on the Sharpshooter. Neville is able to get to the bottom rope to break the hold, but gets hit with a back elbow. Kidd goes for a dive, but Neville hits a kick to the head instead. Titus then nails Neville outside the ring from his seat. Out comes Sami Zayn and he hits him with a Helluva Kick. Neville is able to break the 10 count, which I'm not really quite sure why Kidd was allowing him to wait that long. Neville hits the Red Arrow and picks up the victory. Another solid match here.

Match Rating: ***1/4

This show felt like a mini TakeOver, with two big time title matches that both mostly delivered. Neither were classics, but they didn't need to be, as they furthered along the stories they were trying to tell. This was a very strong episode overall.

Overall Rating: 70%

Off The Grid, Volume 25: SummerSlam 1989 Review

Monday, August 28th, 1989
Meadowlands Arena
East Rutherford, New Jersey

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Off The Grid, Volume 25: 

This one starts off so odd in the sense that we have Tony Schiavone as an announcer (definitely not a bad thing, although Gorilla is my favorite) and this is still the Royal Rumble music to kick things off in the intro. 

Hart Foundation vs. Brain Busters

The original Hart Foundation music was always 100 times better than the Bret Hart solo version. The Busters having no music is so on brand too. This being a non-title match will always stand out as a terrible booking decision. In an era where there were only 4 pay-per-views, why would they not want this to be a championship match? Even Schiavone agrees and asks it out loud. No wonder he was gone soon. I can't even pretend to be a novice when it comes to 1980s NWA/Crockett, but I have a really strong appreciation for how good Tully Blanchard is. As you would expect, this match starts off with a hot crowd and some great wrestling. I'm not sure anyone throws a better working punch than Bret Hart. I typically try to recap a little bit of the action as I write these, but this one just has me sucked in wanting to watch the action. The Busters are eventually able to single out Neidhart for a little bit, but he collides with Anderson in the center of the ring. Anderson is able to get up first, but gets hit with an illegal kick to the back by Bret when he runs the ropes. In comes Tully, but Bret gets a tag too. Bret's able to take care of both opponents and hits an elbow off the second rope. Bret also hits one of the nicest vertical suplexes in the business. All four men are in the ring and Bret hits a clothesline on Tully. Neidhart goes out of the ring after Anderson and Bret hits an inverted atomic drop on Tully. The Harts hit the slingshot from the apron. Heenan is up on the apron while Neidhart powerslams Bret onto Tully. Neidhart gets distracted and Anderson hits a double ax handle off the top. Tully rolls him over and picks up the victory. The ending was a little sluggish, but other than that, this was top notch. Absolutely two of the best tag teams of all time in their primes. What else could you ask for? 

Match Rating: ****

Dusty Rhodes is with Mean Gene wearing a police hat and Gene is trying his hardest not to crack up. 

Honky Tonk Man vs. Dusty Rhodes

Honky Tonk Man is like an actor from a TV show where they are so good in their role, but once it's over, they can't find anything as special because they are so associated with that role. He was so good as being the crappy Intercontinental Champion, that he was never able to recreate that magic. Dusty messes up Honky's hair and hits an atomic drop. Jimmy Hart trips up Dusty and it leads to Honky hitting him with the megaphone in the midsection behind the referee's back. Honky puts on a rest hold and we get a lengthy struggle by Dusty. Finally Dusty gets out of it and here comes the shenanigans. Jimmy goes for a guitar shot, but Dusty ducks and he hits Honky. A big elbow and that is all for Honky. After the match, Sean Mooney interviews Honky in the aisle and he does a cartoonish concussion spot. The rest hold was way too long here and the rest was pretty standard. 

Match Rating: *1/2

Demolition and Jim Duggan give a fun interview with Mean Gene backstage. 

Mr. Perfect vs. Red Rooster

Two of the newcomers facing off here, but Perfect is rightfully portrayed as the favorite here. Schiavone tries to give us the impression that Rooster is over with the fans, but his entrance is about 10 levels lower than Dusty's. Perfect hits a standing dropkick and Jesse claims that he was the first one to ever do that move. Rooster appears to hurt his knee and it leads to a quick victory via the Perfect Plex. That was too short to really matter much.

Match Rating: *1/4

Rick Rude cuts a good promo on the Warrior before their highly anticipated rematch.

Rockers & Tito Santana vs. Fabulous Rougeaus & Rick Martel

These are 6 of my favorites from this era. The Rockers and Santana are flying all over the ring and the Rougeaus and Martel go outside the ring to regroup with Slick and Jimmy. This is another match that is sucking me into the action. The crowd almost loses it for a Tito nearfall off a sunset flip. Tito is just so good at that underdog babyface role, which is one of the hardest roles to play. He finally is able to make the hot tag to Shawn Michaels and the place is unglued. After a suplex, Michaels goes up top and hits the fist. In comes Marty and he drops him on Martel and then Jacques comes in and hits Martel on accident. All 6 men are in and Tito hits an awesome flying forearm, knocking Martel out of the ring. Jimmy Hart gets involved again, leading to Martel interfering and getting the pin on Marty. This match was fantastic action. Seriously, this match ruled. 

Match Rating: ****

After a lengthy recap of their feud, Warrior and his very neon face paint, cuts a typical nutso promo.

Intercontinental Championship Match
Rick Rude vs. Ultimate Warrior

These two have the crowd in the palm of their hands and they are milking it for all that it's worth. Warrior is able to get his hands on Rude and he gorilla presses him to the floor in a pretty impressive bump there from Rude. Warrior goes out to the ring and hits Rude in the back with the Intercontinental belt. Ventura is rightfully going nuts as to how that isn't a disqualification and the only thing Schiavone can come up with is that it's outside the ring. Warrior throws him back in the ring and climbs to the top and hits a double ax handle. I'm surprised that Savage was okay with him using that. Warrior mocks Rude and goes up top again, but this time Rude is able to crotch him before he can make the leap. Rude goes to work on the back of Warrior and goes for the Rude Awakening. Warrior is able to muscle out of it, but he's able to jump on his back and apply the sleeper. Warrior is able to get out of it and they then collide, which also knocks out the referee. Both men are up and Warrior is getting the better of the exchange, but the ref is still out. Warrior hits a piledriver and the referee wakes up. Warrior goes for the pin, but Rude gets his foot on the bottom rope. Warrior hits a running powerslam, but Rude gets his knees up for the big splash. Rude hits a really dangerous looking piledriver/powerbomb and then Warrior kicks out at 2. Rude goes off the top and hits a top rope fist. Out comes Roddy Piper to a big pop. Rude gets distracted by Piper and Warrior hits him with a German suplex. Warrior hits the gorilla press and splash and we have a new Intercontinental Champion. This was so much better than the WrestleMania match and a lot better than I had remembered too. They did keep Rude strong with the distraction finish too. 

Match Rating: ***1/2

Sean Mooney is in the crowd and really doesn't accomplish much. 

Mr. Perfect is with Mean Gene to talk about his victory over Red Rooster. Roddy Piper is next to join the party and he does his thing. Ronnie Garvin is next and he's wearing a tuxedo. He says that he has a special assignment and then an angry Bobby Heenan comes in and is hot. Rude says he had the Warrior beat until Piper came out.

Mean Gene welcomes us back from intermission and we get a recap of the main event feud. 

Andre The Giant & Twin Towers vs. Jim Duggan & Demolition

Andre the Giant coming out to "Jive Soul Bro" is a pretty interesting little nugget of history. It's always been so strange to me that there were two 6 man tag matches on this show back in a time that it seemed like there weren't many on pay-per-views. The faces are able to single out Akeem in the early going and then move onto Boss Man. In comes Andre and the tide has officially shifted. Smash gets tagged in and hits body slams on both Akeem and Boss Man, but again Andre shifts the momentum. The match breaks down and Duggan hits Akeem in the back with the 2x4 and Smash is able to pick up the victory. That was quicker than I thought. The heels hardly got any offense in there at all. 

Match Rating: **

Ted DiBiase cuts one of his typical promos about Jimmy Snuka.

Ronnie Garvin is announced as the ring announcer for the next match. He throws some pretty weak insults at Greg Valentine that still infuriate Valentine. 

Hercules vs. Greg Valentine

The distraction allows Hercules to attack Valentine and gets a couple of nearfalls. Valentine tries to go off the top rope, but Herc hits him in the midsection. Hercules makes the usual mistake of going for a back body drop, but then is able to counter the vertical suplex into one of his own. We then get a little bit of a sloppy finish where Valentine gets a cheap pin by putting his feet on the ropes. Garvin comes in and announces that the winner in his mind is Hercules. He then says Hercules won by DQ and Valentine attacks him. Valentine and Hercules start going at it until Garvin gets back in and gets Valentine out of there. Ventura then makes sure that we know that Valentine actually did win. I'm not sure why the match was so short again, they don't seem to be running short on time. 

Match Rating: *

We now get the famous Randy Savage, Sherri and Zeus cauldron of madness promo. Savage calling Beefcake the weak link is about as honest as a promo gets in 1989. 

Ted DiBiase vs. Jimmy Snuka

DiBiase tries to attack him, but Snuka sees it coming and knocks DiBiase out of the ring. DiBiase misses again and this time it knocks Virgil out of the ring. We get an awkward spot with Snuka missing with the reverse leapfrog and actually hitting DiBiase. DiBiase is able to hit the Stun Gun and goes to work. He misses with a second rope reverse elbow and Snuka hits him with a headbutt. Snuka now climbs to the second rope and hits a headbutt. This time he goes up to the top and for some reason the referee keeps checking on DiBiase and Virgil catches the attention of Snuka. This allows DiBiase to throw Snuka into the ring post. We have a countout, which is a terrible finish here. Snuka was already a jobber at this point and going nowhere fast. Snuka attacks Virgil and DiBiase after the match to get his revenge. He hits the Superfly splash on Virgil to end things. 

Match Rating: *1/2

Sean Mooney is up in the cheap seats and tells us that the main event is still left. They then show a kid with a sign that says "Hulk and Burtus (yes, Burtus) Rule!". Then we go to Hogan and Beefcake, who apparently have been "hangin' and bangin'". 

The Genius is here to give us a poem on the main event. 

Randy Savage & Zeus vs. Brutus Beefcake & Hulk Hogan

Kudos to the kid brave enough to dress up like Beefcake Barber. Miss Elizabeth gets her own entrance and a huge pop. All four men start brawling, but Hogan can't budge Zeus. Beefcake tries going off the second rope, but he gets caught and only gets let go of when Hogan hits him from behind. It still doesn't phase him and he locks on a bear hug. Savage hits Hogan in the back while in the hold and then hits a body slam. Let it be clear, Zeus is not good. Especially when you see all of these celebrities come in like Pat McAfee and Bad Bunny and tear the house down, Zeus looks like a 7 year old playing soccer with the high school team. There truly is no worse move in wrestling than a bear hug. Savage is in and snaps Hogan's neck over the top rope and spits at Beefcake. Savage's tights here are underrated. I dig the black and white variation of his classic orange. Hogan's finally able to make a tag, unfortunately it's to Beefcake. I kid. He comes in and hits a clothesline and a high knee for a 2 count. Beefcake slaps on the sleeper, but Savage is able to get out. In comes Zeus, but Beefcake rakes his eyes and jumps on his back to put on the sleeper. Savage comes in from behind and hits him in the head with Sherri's purse. Hogan finally gets the tag in and goes after Savage. Hogan hits the big boot and it sends Savage over the top to the floor. Hogan tries to suplex him back in the ring, but Sherri trips Hogan's leg and Savage gets a nearfall. Savage hits the top rope elbow drop, but Hogan no sells it and hits an atomic drop. Zeus is now in and we have the big showdown. Hogan hits a series of right hands and a clothesline and Zeus is down to one knee. Beefcake throws Savage off the top rope and now Hogan has the purse. Hogan hits Zeus with it and body slams him. He hits the big leg drop and gets the victory before Sherri can break it up. Schiavone is just losing it here. He then advocates for Hogan to hit her in the face and Ventura calls him out on it. He hits an atomic drop and Elizabeth knocks her down. Hogan then threatens to stab Savage and Zeus with the hedge clippers. Beefcake then cuts off part of Sherri's ponytail. The "babyfaces" then celebrate in the ring while the crowd erupts. Once this got past the bearhug portion of the match, this was pretty good. 

Match Rating: **3/4

This was a really good show and so much better than I remembered. It has to be close to a top 5 SummerSlam and if you would have asked me last week, I would have said maybe top 15-20. This was everything that WrestleMania V wasn't. I guess having a crowd full of people who actually want to be there helps out a little bit. 

Overall Rating: 82%

Monday Night Raw 10-10-94 Review

Original Airdate: Monday, October 10th, 1994
Utica Memorial Auditorium
Utica, New York

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Bam Bam Bigelow vs. Lex Luger

I would say this one qualifies as a pay-per-view quality match. Bam Bam is joined by Nikolai Volkoff and Tatanka, along with Ted DiBiase of course. This disgusts Vince McMahon. Bam Bam knocks Luger down with a shoulder tackle and goes to work on the back. Luger quickly fights back with a reverse elbow and then sends him over the top and to the floor. Luger goes to work on the arm for whatever reason. Bam Bam comes back with a powerslam for a 2 count. He heads up to the top rope, but misses with the diving headbutt. Luger fires back at Bam Bam and the corporation and then goes back to the arm. Out comes King Kong Bundy to check things out and it allows Bam Bam to hit the Stun Gun into the commercial break. I'm not really sure why they couldn't have shown that whole move on a TAPED SHOW. When we come back it's Adam Bomb and Mabel out to try to help even the score. Bam Bam puts on the sleeper, but when Luger attempts to come back, Bam Bam sends him right back down. Luger finally explodes with some clotheslines, but DiBiase gets on the apron. Tatanka attempts to interfere, but Bam Bam runs into him and Luger rolls him up for the pin. The Corporation looked like a bunch of goofs and Bomb and Mabel did nothing. The crowd did pop huge for the Luger win though, continuing the trend of me realizing that Luger was more popular than I thought he was. This match was pretty standard, even though they got over a third of the show. 

Match Rating: **

They show us the Heartbreak Hotel with Bob Backlund from Superstars 2 days ago. 

Mabel vs. Reno Riggins

The always dependable Riggins gets up on the second rope and hits Mabel with some right hands. Mabel hits a body slam, but avoids an elbow drop. What is going on here? Mabel comes back with a back suplex and this time hits the leg drop for the victory. For some reason Oscar is not there, so Mabel raps. 

Match Rating: 1/4*

They show Randy Savage at the Columbus Day parade. 

Next week, it's Jeff Jarrett vs. Doink. Ooooh, baby.

Owen Hart vs. John Crystal

It's starting to feel like they just have no vision for Owen any more. He keeps delivering in squash matches though, as he is definitely in the top tier on the roster. Meanwhile, Vince is failing at humor and rambling on and on. Owen hits a nice suplex and snaps on the Sharpshooter for the victory.

Match Rating: 1/2*

Now we get to see the Undertaker and Paul Bearer interview from 2 days ago.

Mike Khoury vs. King Kong Bundy

Ladies and gentleman, the New Generation. Bundy does the schtick where he could keep pinning Khoury, but lifts him up instead. He hits a splash in the corner and gets a 5 count for the thrilling victory. 

Match Rating: 1/4*

We get highlights of the Jerry Lawler/Doink and Dink shenanigans from 2 days ago. This leads to a King's Court with Lawler making short jokes. This all leads to Lawler introducing us to Queasy. He lets us know that he is going to squash Dink like a bug. 

Headshrinkers vs. Corey Student & JS Storm

This is the cousin Sione version of the team. Student and Storm's ring gear is top tier jobber stuff. Storm runs into a big boot from Sione and that's all. They're all in on Sione now, with Savage calling them the new and improved version. 

Match Rating: 1/4*

Doink and Dink come out with Burger King hats. Doink says he has a little surprise next week. Can't wait.

Raw is not always great, but it is typically easy to digest. This was one of those episodes that I will probably forget I watched tomorrow, but I also enjoyed watching it. 

Overall Rating: 55%

Superstars 10-8-94 Review

Original Airdate: Saturday, October 8th, 1994
Browns County Veterans Memorial Arena
Green Bay, Wisconsin

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Bam Bam Bigelow vs. Duke Droese

Vince is now full blown in his talk louder than is necessary phase of announcing. Duke tries to work on the arm of Bam Bam, but he throws him through the ropes and then knocks him off the apron when he tries to get back in. I know I keep beating a dead horse, but Bam Bam had some momentum and they did nothing with it. Bam Bam hits a couple of shoulder tackles, but on the third attempt Duke hits a body slam. He hits a leg drop for a 2 count and Ted DiBiase is on the apron. Bam Bam tries to attack from behind, but Duke avoids it. Duke hits an Irish whip, but Bam Bam is able to roll up Duke and holds the tights for the victory. This was a match where basically nothing happened and if they were serious about the Million Dollar Corporation, they would have let Bam Bam win big here.

Match Rating: 3/4*

We see Paul Bearer at a video store and then Jim Cornette cuts a promo about Yokozuna's match with Undertaker. 

British Bulldog is shown doing pushups backstage. 

British Bulldog vs. Ben Jordan

Jordan gets a taste of the vertical suplex with the IcoPro banner hanging proudly in the background. The running powerslam isn't far behind and Bulldog picks up the easy victory. It's kind of interesting that it really took them about a year to do anything with Bulldog.

Match Rating: 1/4*

Mr. Bob Backlund is the guest on the Heartbreak Hotel. He talks about how he never lost the WWF Championship and how he has been waiting for his chance since then. He eventually storms off, but this felt pretty long for what it was. 

Jeff Jarrett vs. Billy Joe Eaton

If you ever wanted to hear Vince talk about Stone Temple Pilots, here's your opportunity. Jarrett attacks Eaton from behind and dominates the entire match for once. He slaps on the Figure Four and that's all for Eaton. 

Match Rating: 1/4*

Headshrinkers vs. Barry Horowitz & Ron Higgins

We get Vince talking about how the Headshrinkers having 3 partners. Of course Samu is actually gone and Sione isn't actually here today. This is the usual Headshrinker face squash here and they win with the splash off the top rope. 

Match Rating: 1/4*

Vince lets us know that Arnold Skaaland will be here next week to give his side of the story of throwing the towel in on Backlund.

King Kong Bundy vs. Mitch Bishop

I can already tell you that just by watching this squash, Bundy wasn't going to work out here. He did absolutely nothing extra to make himself stand out. This just felt like a bare minimum squash. 

Match Rating: 1/4*

They show the Bushwhackers at a Chicago sports event. I'm pretty sure that was the only reason they were kept around as long as they were. 

Doink shows up on the video screen and calls out Lawler. While Doink is distracting him, Dink put a pie on his seat. Lawler sits on the pie and acts as if was the worst thing that could have happened to him. 

This was another downer of an episode in a series of them. I just want this show to be fun again, but nothing really ever seems to happen on here any more. 

Overall Rating: 37%

SmackDown 9-8-06 Review

Original Airdate: Friday, September 8th, 2006
Columbus Civic Center
Columbus, Georgia

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Rey Mysterio vs. Finlay

This seems like a pretty good way to kick off a show to me. Finlay tries to get under the skin of Mysterio and he acts accordingly. We get a fairly early commercial break and when come back, Mysterio makes a comeback with a dropkick. He goes up top and Finlay is able to trip him up. Finlay continues to dominate the "distracted" Mysterio. The commentary is 100% focused on the drama between Mysterio and the Guerreros. Finlay slaps in a Boston Crab. Mysterio ducks a charging Finlay and hits him with a kick to the face. Mysterio hits the seated senton for a 2 count. Mysterio goes for a springboard, but slips on the ropes. That was an intentional botch and it leads to Finlay hitting the Celtic Cross and picks up the victory. JBL then tells us that he's going to go talk to Mysterio. JBL then insults Mysterio repeatedly, with Mysterio choosing to walk to the back emotionally rather than retaliate. This was more about Mysterio and his anguish rather than the actual match. 

Match Rating: **1/2

Mr. Kennedy vs. Gia Mondo

Kennedy hypes up his opponent as a 6 time NCAA champion and silver medalist in the Olympics, amongst other things. The only thing is that he actually looks more competent than a typical jobber. Kennedy steamrolls Mondo here, hitting the Green Bay Plunge for the victory. He calls out Teddy Long after the match. Kennedy tells him that if Cena could potentially come to SmackDown, he could potentially go to Raw. Teddy says that there is still a competitor that he hasn't taken on and at No Mercy, he will take on the Undertaker. I certainly didn't remember that this was how the feud started. 

Match Rating: 1/4*

Ashley, Paul London & Brian Kendrick vs. Michelle McCool, KC James & Idol Stevens

The champions get off to a hot start until Stevens lowers the middle rope and London goes flying to the floor. Stevens and James are a little bit sloppy here tonight, just seeming a step off. London fights back and hits the hot tag to Kendrick. Kendrick goes for a dive, but McCool gets in his way. He charges anyway and hits the dive and then Ashley attacks McCool. James tries to get Ashley off McCool and Kendrick hits a sunset flip off the top rope with an assist from London for the victory. They didn't get a ton of time here, but I'm not sure there was much more needed to get to where they wanted to go.

Match Rating: *3/4

Vito is out to join the announce team. William Regal comes down to the ring and says that he was originally supposed to take on Vito, but he threatened to sue for sexual harassment due to Vito's previous actions. 

William Regal vs. Bobby Lashley

So he gets Lashley instead. Vito refers to Regal as Steven multiple times before shaking his butt in his face. Regal is finally able to make a move after tripping Lashley up on the ring steps. Vito does not come across as a guy who has a lot to say. The interaction between him and Cole is just awful. Lashley already makes his comeback and goes for a running powerslam, but Regal counters out. Lashley hits a Spear instead and that's all. Vito congratulates Lashley, but JBL then refuses to shake his hand afterwards. 

Match Rating: 3/4*

Miz vs. Matt Hardy

Michael Cole hypes up Miz as undefeated and JBL refers to him as the new Red Rooster. Keep in mind Miz is a heel. Miz runs up the back of Hardy and leaps over the ropes to snap Hardy's neck. That was actually pretty nice. Hardy comes back with a second rope elbow and the Side Effect for a 2 count. Hardy hits a move to the outside and when he throws Miz back in the ring, he rolls into the referee. Gregory Helms attacks Hardy and Miz is able to get the sneaky victory. Miz is 2-0.

Match Rating: *3/4

Jimmy Wang Yang gets another vignette tackling Asian stereotypes. 

Chavo Guerrero vs. Tatanka

Vickie Guerrero introduces Chavo, as they put over that she is his business manager. Tatanka gets in a good amount of offense here, including get hit with a series of chops. Tatanka goes up to the top rope and hits another chop for a 2 count. Tatanka hits the End Of The Trail, but Chavo gets out of the pin attempt. Chavo hits a Frog Splash and picks up the victory. This wasn't particularly impressive for Chavo. 

Match Rating: *1/4

MVP is backstage and tells Teddy Long that he wants to make a dollar more than John Cena. He then asks for some tickets and Teddy said he better buy some. 

World Heavyweight Championship Match
King Booker vs. Batista

Booker tells Batista says that he can bow down and walk away if he chooses to and Batista responds by asking him if he prefers his body buried or cremated. That was a little awkward. Batista hits a vertical suplex for the first nearfall of the match. Booker gets a few shots to the midsection in and hits the Book End for a 2 count before the commercial break. When we come back, they are brawling on the outside. Sharmell distracts Batista and it allows Booker to throw him into the ring post. Booker hits a big kick and gets another close call. Batista fires back with some clotheslines and hits a Jackhammer. He signals for the Batista Bomb, but Booker grabs his trunks and throws him through the ropes to the floor. Batista is shown hitting someone in the crowd and it's William Regal. Sharmell comes in the ring with a chair, which distracts the referee and allows Finlay to hit Batista with the shillelagh and Booker retains his title. These two were famous for not having chemistry, but this was a big step up from their SummerSlam match. After the match, Finlay continues the attack on Batista and he's busted open. Finlay then cracks him over the head with a chair and some more shillelagh shots. Finlay drives his head into the exposed turnbuckle and then tells Batista that he's his worst nightmare. 

Match Rating: **1/2

When it comes to all three shows (Raw, ECW, SmackDown), this was one of the best weeks I can remember in terms of all three shows delivering. None of them were all timers or anything, but they delivered quality matches and storylines that made you want to tune in again next week. Progress. 

Overall Rating: 67%

ECW 9-5-06 Review

Tuesday, September 5th, 2006
Columbus Civic Center
Columbus, Georgia

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We get a DX SummerSlam recap, followed by DX entering the arena and making a bingo hall joke. 

Extreme Rules Tag Team Match
Sabu & Rob Van Dam vs. Test & Mike Knox

It's never a great thing when one team comes out to a big reaction and the other comes out to complete silence. RVD hits a running spin kick on Test in the corner and RVD goes flying over the top rope. He hits a Rolling Thunder/somersault leg drop combo and then a double leg lariat. Test tries for a press slam on Sabu, but RVD hits him with a kick off the top rope. We have a table set up outside the ring now. Test, Knox and RVD are battling on the apron and Sabu dives and sends all four of them through the table into the commercial break. Sabu was going for the triple jump moonsault, but Test trips him up and he goes face-first into the chair. RVD hits a skateboard kick with the chair into the face of Test. I'll give these guys credit here, they are putting in the effort here tonight. Knox hits a superplex on RVD, but then Sabu hits him with a leg drop to the face with a chair. Sabu hits the triple jump moonsault, but Test kicks out at 2. Sabu and RVD bring in a table to the ring and Sabu chucks a table at Knox's face. They knock Test off the apron and Sabu climbs up top. RVD joins him and they hit a double leg drop through the table for the victory. That was a really hard fought match for a weekly TV opener. Kudos to all four guys there, as this was one of the best matches ECW has had since the revival. 

Match Rating: ***1/2

Big Show was shown getting ready in the back. 

Kevin Thorn and Ariel make out.

Matt Striker does his schtick, then Sandman interrupts and does his schtick. 

Balls Mahoney vs. Stevie Richards

Kevin Thorn and Ariel come out first to join the announce team and Ariel gets all up in Joey Style's face. Balls misses a splash in the corner and Richards gets a 2 count out of it. Balls takes controls and starts doing his punch schtick, when Thorn and Ariel get on the apron. He knocks Thorn off the apron, but the referee is still distracted and Thorn hits him with a low blow. Stevie covers him and gets the surprise victory to set up the biggest feud of the fall. This was nothing.

Match Rating: 1/4*

DX is on their way. 

Shannon Moore is still really coming, we promise. CM Punk interrupts him, calls him a poseur and slaps him in the face. 

Extreme Rules Handicap Match
Big Show vs. DX

Paul Heyman comes out before DX's entrance and announces that this will no longer be an Extreme Rules match. Credit where credit is due, DX is doing a good job of Show look like a monster threat here. After getting jacked with an elbow to the jaw, Triple H is able to hit a spinebuster. They knock the security team off the apron and Michaels hits a dive to take them out. Triple H is about to give Big Show a Pedigree and out comes...Hardcore Holly? Michaels takes care of him, but Show shoves Michaels to the ground. Holly, Show and the security goons take the fight to Michaels until Triple H brings in the sledgehammer to clear them out. That was quicker than I expected and I certainly didn't remember Holly being the one to cause the DQ. I'm not sure how that really fits into the storyline, but whatever. 

Match Rating: **

This was a lot better than what we have been accustomed to on Tuesday nights so far. The opener was a very good match and the main event at least felt important. The middle was throw away, but they just don't have the roster yet to make people care about the entire show.

Overall Rating: 60%