Monday Night Raw 5-8-95 Review

Original Airdate: Monday, May 8th, 1995
Omaha Civic Auditorium
Omaha, Nebraska

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We get a recap of Sid/Razor Ramon from last week before the intro. When we go to the arena, Jerry Lawler is ecstatic about getting to wrestle Bret Hart at In Your House (only $14.95). Tonight it's Owen Hart vs. Bart Gunn, Hakushi in action and an interview with Sid.

Jeff Jarrett vs. Doink

This is a non-title match. Jarrett's attire tonight is something I don't think I have ever seen him wear before and probably for good reason. Not that any of his gear was ever really that good. Doink runs into a boot in the corner after having control of the early portion of the match. Jarrett almost runs into Roadie, but while he brags about his intelligence, Doink snaps Roadie's neck on the top rope and almost gets a quick win over Jarrett. Jarrett has Doink in trouble when we go to commercial break and when we come back he is working on the leg. Doink makes a comeback and then Dink bites Jarrett's butt. Roadie takes out Doink's leg and that allows Jarrett to put on the Figure Four and Doink submits. This was a perfectly acceptable TV match. 

Match Rating: *1/2

We get a Body Donnas vignette and then go into a pre-taped interview with an apologetic Bam Bam Bigelow. He talks about his mistake of doing what he did at Royal Rumble, which led to him losing to one of the greatest football players of all time. This whole thing makes him look like a total dweeb. 

We get a Sid/Diesel video for In Your House. 

We now go to an in ring interview with Sid and Ted DiBiase. Ted gives his usual predictable promo and then Sid just starts yelling before going down low and then into more yelling. 

Hakushi vs. Gary Scott

It's Michael's brother, Gary. The crowd is chanting "We want Bret" and just in case you didn't know that Bret has two matches at In Your House, you'll know by the end of this show. They have only mentioned it 16 times already. Hakushi remains undefeated here with an easy pinfall victory, but I suspect it won't last for long. 

Match Rating: 1/4*

It's the final In Your House Report because it's this Sunday. Diesel talks about being a big man or something. For some reason, there is no replay of In Your House. I thought the replay was a standard thing by this time?

Owen Hart vs. Bart Gunn

Bart fights off an early distraction from Mr. Fuji and hits a top rope crossbody for a 2 count. Bart continues on offense until Fuji trips Bart up and now Owen takes advantage of it. We get some more shenanigans after the commercial break and it leads to Billy crotching Owen on the top rope. Bart then is able to roll up Owen and picks up the victory ahead of their rematch at In Your House. It should be noted that Yokozuna was not at ringside for whatever reason. I didn't type much, but this was a good 1995 style WWF match for Raw.

Match Rating: **1/2

They show Todd and Stephanie from Mania giving us a tour of the house. How did we ever think that kitchens that looked like that were nice? Todd is in full annoying trying too hard mode here. 

They show a clip of Bret Hart accepting Jerry Lawler's challenge and then Lawler tells us that he's going to bring his mother to the show. If that doesn't make you want to buy it, I don't know what will.

This was a decent enough show. This era is infamous for its quality, but the shows are well paced and don't usually overstay their welcome.

Overall Rating: 49%

Superstars 5-6-95 Review

Original Airdate: Saturday, May 6th, 1995
Veterans Memorial Auditorium
Des Moines, Iowa

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WWF Tag Team Championship Match
Headshrinkers vs. Owen Hart & Yokozuna

The Headshrinkers are here without both Lou Albano and Afa. I have to think that this is their last TV appearance here? Owen tries to slam Fatu's head on the turnbuckle, but he no sells it and does some dancing before hitting a headbutt to Owen's abdomen. The Headshrinkers are very much not the Headshrinkers any more. Owen tags in Yoko, so Fatu tags in Sione. Sione is able to yank Yoko's hair and slam him on his back. Sione then hits a big boot and knocks Yoko out of the ring and into the commercial break. When we come back, Yoko and Owen have Sione trapped in their corner. Fatu tags in and he suffers from the same luck. Fatu counters Owen and hits a piledriver and both men tag in their partners. Sione ducks a clothesline and hits one of his own. Sione hits a second one, but Yoko is still teetering. Fatu illegally runs in and they hit a double clothesline to knock him down. Owen runs in and Sione takes care of him. Sione hits a big boot and Fatu hits the top rope splash. Owen is not the legal man, but Cornette and Fuji have the ref distracted. Yoko hits a leg drop on Fatu and then throws Fatu over the ropes and he gets his head stuck in between the ropes. Yoko then hits the Banzai Splash and picks up the win for his team. This was a really good match for Superstars and I'm loving this team of Yoko and Owen. 

Match Rating: ***1/4

We go to Todd Pettengill for the In Your House Report. He compliments Yoko and Owen on their teamwork before hyping up the show's value. He hypes up that Bret Hart will now have double duty, facing both Hakushi and Jerry Lawler.

Adam Bomb vs. Rock Warner

You're looking at your next King Of The Ring, I assure you. There's no way they'd be dumb enough to let Mabel even qualify, let alone win it, right? Bomb hits the top rope clothesline and easily disposes of Warner. He then tosses out some footballs to the Bomb Squad. 

Match Rating: 1/4*

Next week, it's Diesel vs. Henry Godwinn on Superstars. Yes, please.

Bertha Faye vs. Jessica Rivera

Faye has some peppy music here, as I guess her and Harvey aren't quite in love just yet. Rivera does a nice job of bumping around and then even hits a top rope clothesline to knock Bertha down. Bertha recovers and crushes her with a clothesline in the corner. She blows Harvey a kiss and then skips over to hit a sit down powerbomb and a victory. Bertha was pretty impressive here and at least breathes a little bit of life into a dead division.

Match Rating: 1/2*

They show highlights of the Bob Holly/Jeff Jarrett storyline on Action Zone.

Hunter Hearst Helmsley vs. Sonny Rogers

This is his debut here, as he now will be appearing on both of my timelines that I am covering. Helmsley hits a spin kick, which I don't think I've ever seen him hit before. He debuts the Pedigree and that's all for Mr. Rogers.

Match Rating: 1/4*

We go back to Todd in the studio and he shows highlights of Sid's rise to #1 contender. 

Tatanka vs. Kevin Krueger

Freddy's cousin taking on Tatanka here. Krueger hits a crossbody and gets a 2 count. Tatanka tries a back body drop, but Krueger hits a sunset flip for another nearfall. Tatanka actually hits a back body drop this time in retaliation and then hits the End Of The Trail for the victory.

Match Rating: 1/4*

We go to Sunny and Skip making fun of people watching their Zony TV. 

Dave Sigfrid vs. Undertaker

Sigfrid tries to attack Taker and it doesn't work. Taker hits him with the Tombstone and this one is over in close to a minute here. After the match, Paul Bearer pulls out the body bag, which is something we haven't seen in a long time. They don't even show him finishing up putting him in. 

Match Rating: 1/4*

Henry Godwinn says that he knows what the outcome of his match next week is going to be. 

This was a fun episode with a really rock solid feature match. The rest of it flew by and I thought Bertha and Helmsley both looked good here. We're getting closer to the whirlwind of Sunny in her prime arriving and the downfall of pay per view wrestling with monthly shows. There's a lot going on without there actually being a lot going on, if that makes sense.

Overall Rating: 58%

Off The Grid, Volume 39: Saturday Night's Main Event XVII Review

Original Airdate: Saturday, October 29th, 1988
Baltimore Arena
Baltimore, Maryland

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Off The Grid, Volume 39:

As usual, we start with the standard SNME promos to kick off the show. Jake Roberts and wife Cheryl are first and then we go to a zoomed in face of Cheryl on Rick Rude's tights. Slick and Big Boss Man talk officer talk before going onto Hart Foundation talking about reconstuction that goes into Demolition, who is with Jimmy Hart and Mr. Fuji. Hulk Hogan then tells Haku that he's been sitting on his throne long enough and then brings in Miss Elizabeth to help knock him off his throne. 

After the intro music, we head to Vince McMahon and Jesse Ventura to run down the card. The first match is Jake Roberts/Rick Rude and they show the clips of the feud. All I hope is that it's better than their match at WrestleMania IV. We then go to Mean Gene Okerlund who is now with Rick Rude and Bobby Heenan. They do a pretty cheesy bit here about a snakecharmer before yelling about a Rude Awakening. Mean Gene is then with Jake and Cheryl. 

Rick Rude vs. Jake Roberts

I can't believe they can't just figure out a way to pay for Rick Rude's real music. Jake goes right after Rude and then hits him with a knee lift. Jake goes for an early DDT attempt, but Rude counters and is on offense. Rude loses focus on Jake and shifts to dancing for Cheryl, which allows Jake to make a comeback. Jake holds Rude down and Cheryl gets to slap him in the face. This really is a great upper midcard storyline. When we come back from commercial break, Rude drives Jake's shoulder into the ring post. Jake gets back into the ring and hits him with some fists and a back body drop. For some reason, Ventura is talking like he's announcing golf. Jake signals for the DDT, but Rude counters with a back body drop. Rude then hits a knee drop from the top rope and gets a 2 count. We get kind of a neat segment where Rude ducks a punch and Jake hits a DDT on him. Jake rips off his tights instead of going for the pin with Heenan signaling to the back. Heenan runs in and kicks Jake to cause the DQ and then out comes Andre The Giant. This I guess all sets up their absolutely horrific WrestleMania V match. Andre and Heenan are checking on Rude and then out comes Damien. Andre is afraid and yelling for Heenan to help him. Jake throws him onto Andre and let me tell you, there's not a chance that this would happen now. Andre then passes out from fright as Damien slithers all over him. I wouldn't want to mess with that snake after that whole schtick. I'm not really a huge fan of how this big storyline just kind of went onto set up something else. Was all of the payoff from the Rude feud just done on the house show circuit? Heenan is pounding on Andre's chest and freaking out. The match itsel was fine. 

Match Rating: **

It's the Hart Foundation's turn with Mean Gene. They talk about how sick of Jimmy Hart they are and they blame him for losing their titles. Neidhart says that the only way Jimmy can hurt someone is to manage them. The whole Andre thing is still going on. I mean we are 24 minutes into this show and they're still cleaning up from the first match. 

We go to Jesse and he's with Demolition, Mr. Fuji and Jimmy Hart. Jimmy has aligned with Demolition and Fuji to prove that the Hart Foundation is nothing without him. 

WWF Tag Team Championship Match
Hart Foundation vs. Demlolition

After the Harts have the hot start, we get the signature Bret being thrown into the turnbuckle sternum first. They are working at a pretty frantic pace for 1988, which tells me they aren't getting as much time as they probably should be. Bret ducks a clothesline from Smash and hits him with a leaping one. Bret makes the hot tag to Neidhart and takes care of both opponents with some dropkicks to the midsection. Neidhart hits a running powerslam, but Ax breaks up the pin attempt. Out come the Rougeau Brothers to check in on the action. The referee has lost control and it leads to the Rougeaus helping Demolition use the megaphone and retain their titles. The action was good here, but they definitely could have easily gone another 5 more minutes. 

Match Rating: **3/4

We get a clip of the former king, Harley Race, falling on the table on Saturday Night's Main Event against Hulk Hogan. We then go to Bobby Heenan and King Haku, who trick Mean Gene into bowing before Haku.

Hulk Hogan talks about whatever. Honestly, I wasn't really listening. 

King Haku vs. Hulk Hogan

Haku attacks Hogan right away and bites his nose. Hogan of course battles back, breaking the rules and leading to an argument over who is breaking the rules more. Hogan tricks Heenan and it leads to him getting injured and he's heading to the back into the commercial break. Hogan prances around with the crown while this is going on. We come back and Hogan basically just destroys him while Ventura tries to convince us that this wouldn't happen if Heenan was there. This one was never in doubt and I don't think anyone bought for a second that Haku was a threat. After the match, Elizabeth celebrates with Hogan and he hoists her on his shoulder. 

Match Rating: *1/4

We go to Dino Bravo and Frenchy Martin, who claim that Olympians and Ken Patera are cheaters.

Ken Patera says that he would rather die than dishonor his country while looking like the biggest dork possible.  

Dino Bravo vs. Ken Patera

These two are easily two of the worst wrestlers of the late 80s WWF roster. Bravo has to regroup out of the ring after being dominated in the early going. He comes in and throws his slow and unimpressive kicks. Some stuff happens and then Bravo hits the side suplex for the win. This stunk up the joint as you would expect.

Match Rating: 1/4*

Slick and Big Boss Man are here and man, do I love listening to Slick. I don't even care what he's talking about, he's just good.

Big Boss Man vs. Jim Powers

Powers is the only guy to not get an interview, so that tells you all you would need to know about this match. Boss Man destroys him and hits the Boss Man Slam for the quick win.

Match Rating: 1/4*

They show clips of Boss Man attacking Hulk Hogan. We get another Hogan interview and he talks about juries and stuff. I don't know, I wasn't really paying attention. 

We go to Jesse Ventura in the locker room with Andre The Giant and Heenan. Ventura tries to get it out of him that Andre is afraid of snakes. Andre does a pretty good job here as far as Andre promos go. 

Don't forget about Survivor Series and that's all.

This was just an average episode this time around. Nothing really grasped me like some of the other shows that I have watched from this era. It certainly wasn't bad, but nothing really noteworthy happened.

Overall Rating: 59%

SmackDown 2-16-07 Review

Original Airdate: Friday, February 16th, 2007
KeyArena
Seattle, Washington

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We have a big double main event with John Cena and Shawn Michaels taking on MVP and Mr. Kennedy, while Batista and Undertaker will take on Rated RKO.

Boogeyman vs. Finlay

Finlay sneak attacks Boogeyman and throws him into the steel steps. Finlay tries to take off the turnbuckle, but the ref stops him. He then tries to go for his usual grab the shillelagh, but this time the ref is wise to it. However, this allows Hornswoggle to come in and try to attack, but now the Mini Boogeyman is out and that distraction allows Boogeyman to use his staff on Finlay and pick up the victory. That was what you would expect from a Boogeyman match. 

Match Rating: 1/2*

We get a Raw recap of the garbage Vince McMahon/Donald Trump segment. They cut out 90% of it and it still sucks. 

Deuce vs. Brian Kendrick

They announce the switch in the card where Deuce 'N Domino will get the title shot instead of the ladder rematch we were told about. Deuce uses his physical punch and kick style early on until Kendrick quickens the pace. We get some distraction from the partners and it allows for Domino to throw Kendrick off the top rope (seemingly right in front of the ref) and he is able to once again steal a victory from the champs. This was a little too quick to really be much of anything.

Match Rating: 3/4*

We get a recap of the main event from Raw and then go to Shawn Michaels and John Cena in the locker room. Shawn tells Cena that his only goal right now is to make sure nothing happens to John Cena. We then see Mr. Kennedy and MVP headed to the ring.

Shawn Michaels & John Cena vs. MVP & Mr. Kennedy

Shawn and Mr. Kennedy feel each other out until Michaels ends up hitting a dive over the top rope onto both Kennedy and MVP. After the commercial break, Michaels is still in control and they double team him. We get a weird spot with the referee and then it all leads into MVP and Mr. Kennedy illegally working on Shawn while Cena accidentally distracts the referee. They cut the ring in half and continue to work on Michaels. Kennedy misses with the Kenton and Michaels is able to tag in Cena. Kennedy comes in and tries to use a steel chair, but he's stopped by Sweet Chin Music. Cena hits the FU on MVP and they pick up the win here on SmackDown. They are having these two look like a strong team ahead of their main event at No Way Out. The match was pretty good, but they are capable of more. 

Match Rating: **1/2

We go to Teddy Long and he's with Kristal and Jillian. Jillian starts "singing" and then leaves, with Kristal saying that she has no talent. Kristal then tells Teddy that she has a secret talent and then starts undressing into the commercial. 

We see the Dusty Rhodes Hall Of Fame vignette again.

Kristal is topless in Teddy's office and in walks Bobby Lashley. Mr. Kennedy comes in upset about what happened in his match. Kennedy says that he has beaten everyone on SmackDown, including Lashley. Kennedy says that maybe he should beat him again and that it's ridiculous that the future of sports entertainment isn't competing at No Way Out. Teddy says that he'll talk to ECW officials to see what he can do and Lashley tells him to make it happen. 

Out comes Ashley and she debuts the cover of her Playboy issue. Do these ever get the reaction that they are hoping for? 

We get more Trump and Vince garbage.

Gregory Helms vs. Scotty 2 Hotty

Here's your reminder that Scotty is still on the roster. Helms attacks him while he's still doing his entrance  and is showing off an aggressive side. Helms misses a splash in the corner and gets hit with a bulldog. Scotty starts going for the Worm, but then he's attacked by Daivari. In comes Funaki, followed by Jamie Noble and Shannon Moore, leading to Helms attacking Moore. Then Jimmy Wang Yang is out and attacks Helms before hitting a moonsault. Obviously we're getting a thrown together Cruiserweight Championship match at No Way Out.

Match Rating: 1/4*

Maryse welcomes us back to SmackDown in a bath tub. Then Big Dick Johnson does the same. 

Rated RKO tell their plan in front of a camera, which is always a good idea. 

Rey Mysterio will be on SmackDown next week since it is in San Diego.

Rated RKO vs. Batista & Undertaker

They show Michaels and Cena watching the match backstage. Taker quickly hits Old School on Edge before tagging in Batista. They double clothesline both opponents over the top and into the commercial break. When we come back, Batista hits a clothesline in the corner on Edge. Batista throws both over the top, but it leads to Orton hitting his variation of the backbreaker on Batista to slow him down. After a pretty brief heat segment, Undertaker gets the hot tag and hits the leaping clothesline. Undertaker accidentally throws Edge into the referee. Taker hits Snake Eyes inside the ring, but on the outside Orton throws Batista into the steel post. Taker kicks Orton off the apron, but Edge hits him with a Spear. Edge grabs two chairs and sets him up for the one man con-chair-to. Taker grabs him by the throat, but then Orton hits him with a low blow. Orton grabs the chair and hits Taker in the head. Why are we still doing this? Orton goes and grabs the referee, but then a new referee comes down, but Taker kicks out at 2. Batista comes in and hits clotheslines on both opponents before hitting a spinebuster on Edge. Batista has Orton up for the Batista Bomb, but then Edge Spears him. Taker then hits a chokeslam on Edge and then gives him a Tombstone for the win. This match had a little bit more energy than the previous one, but had more outside stuff. Right after the match, Cena and Michaels come out and attack them both. They stand tall to end the show.

Match Rating: ***

This was a pretty good go home episode, even if the upcoming show it was promoting feels pretty weak. The main event was good, but there was a lot of fluff here too.

Overall Rating: 49%

Monday Night Raw 2-15-07 Review

Original Airdate: Thursday, February 15th, 2007
Rose Garden
Portland, Oregon

Follow me on Twitter: @WorkTheNetwork2

This was still taped on Monday, but aired on Thursday. What a missed opportunity to call this Thursday Raw Thursday again. Not really.

We have a huge SmackDown and Raw tag team main event plus Roddy Piper is here. 

Vince McMahon is out to kick off the show and he introduces Donald Trump. Ashley and Torrie Wilson come out with him. He's as big of an awkward doofus as he is now. Vince then makes Ashley and Torrie leave. Vince brings up how he dropped money on the crowd and Trump says that they're doing it again tonight. Vince says that this audience isn't deserving. Vince hired security to prevent it from happening tonight. Vince is having to walk Trump through this entire promo. He challenges Vince to a match in WrestleMania. Yes, "in" WrestleMania. Vince says that he's still injured from his last match, which was Hell In A Cell. Vince turns down his offer, but counters with them both finding a representative. Trump says he doesn't like it. He wants to raise the stakes and says that the loser has to have his head shaved. Now we get Trump saying he had an article written about how great he is, but that he wears a hairpiece. He shows his scalp and says he doesn't wear one. This is thrilling. The crowd likes the idea, so Vince declines. Trump says that he always thought Vince had guts and then starts insulting Rosie O'Donnell again. Vince then accepts and thankfully ends this segment. Putting my personal thoughts on Trump to the side, he was absolutely awful here as a performer. Obviously this went on to do huge business, so it didn't matter and that's all the goal is. On a personal level, this angle didn't interest me one bit and at the time, I really didn't have any opinion on Trump because I didn't watch The Apprentice or really follow anything to do with him. The whole Rosie O'Donnell thing was obnoxious and was just a preview of what was to come with him. 

Johnny Nitro & Melina vs. Super Crazy & Mickie James

Melina and Mickie go right at each other and have to be pulled away by their partners. Nitro shoved Crazy into Mickie and she falls off the apron. Crazy hits a headscissors and then Nitro tags in Melina. Mickie has to come in and she slams her by the hair. Mickie hits the Thesz Press and a series of right hands. Crazy catches Nitro with some dropkicks when he tries to interfere. Mickie dumps Melina through the ropes and into the arms of Nitro. Mickie and Crazy hit a double baseball slide and the women go back into the ring. Nitro is able to throw Crazy into the ring post and then Melina throws Mickie's back into her knee and grabs the tight to steal the victory. This was a spirited match that was a good continuation of their stories. 

Match Rating: *1/2

We get a recap of last weeks match between Shawn Michaels, Edge and Randy Orton. 

Eugene vs. Great Khali

I do love that Eugene still uses the jacket and boots with the DX paint on it. Eugene tries to give Khali his Ric Flair bear, but he slaps it into the crowd. Khali obviously just manhandles Eugene here. He hits him with a chop and then the double handed slam for the squash.

Match Rating: 1/4*

Shawn Michaels is with Maria, but on the phone with Triple H. He plugs the new DX DVD and then runs down his 4 previous WrestleMania main events. 

We go to Ric Flair and Todd Grisham. They show the highlight of him scolding Carlito and when we come back, Carlito is there to confront him. Carlito says he'll show Flair he has passion and he'll do it by challenging him to a match tonight. 

Jeff Hardy vs. Chris Masters

Masters goes right after Hardy and we're under way. Hardy is super over here tonight. Hardy goes up top, but Masters crotches him and puts Hardy in the Master Lock. If Masters wins the match, he gets a title shot. Hardy goes for the Bret Hart finish, but can't make it happen. Hardy is able to make his way to the ropes and breaks the hold. Masters argues with the ref and Hardy rolls him up for the victory. I honestly kind of forgot Masters still worked here in 2007, so I'm thinking this story didn't do much for him.

Match Rating: *

Jerry Lawler comes out and introduces Roddy Piper, fresh off beating cancer. He comes out and then introduces Dusty Rhodes as the first inductee for the 2007 WWE Hall Of Fame. Dusty is cutting a promo and then out comes Umaga and Armando Alejandro Estrada. Roddy gets out of the ring, but Dusty decides to see what he's got. It doesn't end well. Roddy tries to help, but that doesn't end well either. 

Carlito vs. Ric Flair

So when they book an angle like this, do the agents tell Carlito to wrestle like he normally does, but with passion? We get the usual rushed TV match here to start. Lots of chops until Flair gets thrown sternum first into the turnbuckle. Carlito dropkicks Flair into the corner and then goes for the Backstabber. Flair blocks it and then looks to try to use the ropes for pin, but mus have been too far away so he just pins him normally for the win. After the match Carlito shakes Flair's hand and walks out back. 

Match Rating: 3/4*

Johnny Nitro and Melina are in the interview area and wondering where everyone is. Melina says she has a huge announcement that she will be facing Mickie James next week on Raw. She wonders who would be more important than her and they go to Ashley who is with Todd. She's going to unveil the cover on SmackDown but she's here tonight to give fans a sneak peak. We get a quick video package of the photo shoot. Ron Simmons interrupts the interview and does his thing after checking Ashley out. 

Mr. Kennedy and MVP are in the locker room and approached by Randy Orton and Edge. They welcome them to the A show. They take offense to it, but Edge rallies the troops by saying that anything can happen between now and WrestleMania and encourages them to injure their opponents. 

They recap the Vince/Trump segment and then hype up No Way Out.

Batista, Undertaker, Shawn Michaels & John Cena vs. Mr. Kennedy, MVP, Randy Orton & Edge

I do have a soft spot for these types of matches. Even though they are usually each guy hitting their big moves, it's a fun way to get a bunch of big names involved. For the most part, the faces get the better of the heels here in the first segment. After the commercial break, Cena hits the 5 Knuckle Shuffle on Edge. He goes for the FU, but Orton helps him escape and tags in. After a heat segment, Undertaker gets the hot tag. He goes for a double chokeslam, but Orton and MVP kick out. He hits them with a double clothesline and Michaels tags himself in to hit the top rope elbow drop. Everything breaks down and all 8  men are in. Michaels goes for Sweet Chin Music, but Orton ducks and almost hits Undertaker, but he blocks it. We get some tension and Orton shoves Michaels into Undertaker. Michaels hits Sweet Chin Music on Orton and that's all. As soon as the match is over, Taker hits a chokeslam on Michaels. Cena comes in and attacks him, but Batista comes to his side. Taker hits a big boot on Cena and then Batista hits the Batista Bomb. Like I said, I love these matches. The crowd is usually hyped for them and you get small doses of top performers. I wish the heels would have gotten a little bit more love here, but it is what it is.

Match Rating: ***1/4

The Trump/Vince segment was death and I still can't believe it even drew a dime, let alone as much as it did. Everything else was pretty standard Raw until the main event, which delivered a good go home segment for the otherwise meh pay per view coming up on Sunday.

Overall Rating: 52%

ECW 2-13-07 Review

Tuesday, February 13th, 2007
KeyArena
Seattle, Washington

Follow me on Twitter: @WorkTheNetwork2

We get a recap of Hardcore Holly and Snitsky. If that doesn't make you want to watch this show, I don't know what will.

Extreme Rules Match
Bobby Lashley vs. Hardcore Holly

Lashley takes it to Holly early on and hits a belly to belly suplex outside the ring. Lashley goes under the ring and grabs a table. Holly levels him with a clothesline while he's setting up the table. Holly then folds the table back up and slides it back under the ring. Lashley hits a clothesline and then struggles to push Holly over the barricade and it results on Holly falling on his head on the concrete. Lashley throws him back in the ring. Lashley goes for a powerslam, but Holly escapes an uses the top rope to snap Lashley's neck and then crotches him on the ring post. During the commercial, Holly dropped Lashley's neck and head on a steel chair. Lashley is able to throw Holly into a chair propped between the top two ropes and then hits an exploder suplex. Lashley hits the delayed vertical suplex and the crowd is very much into Lashley here tonight. He puts Holly up in a Torture Rack and then slams to his knees for a 2 count. Lashley goes to pull the table back out from under the ring and Holly hits him with a baseball slide. Holly goes for an Alabama Slam on the chair, but Lashley reverses it and hits the running powerslam on the chair for the victory. That was a hard fought match and a good showcase for Lashley here. This was one of the most enthusiastic crowds for Lashley up to this point in his career. 

Match Rating: ***

Extreme Exposé perform for a minute before being interrupted by Kevin Thorn's entrance.

Kevin Thorn & Marcus Cor Von vs. Tommy Dreamer & Sandman

They really couldn't have found someone better than Thorn for this spot? Cor Von is a million times the prospect that Thorn is. This is a brawl right away and Cor Von hits a Pounce on Dreamer quickly and knocks him out of the ring. Thorn and Cor Von isolate Dreamer in their corner until Dreamer is able to get a boot up on Thorn and tag in Sandman. Sandman hits a hurricanrana and then the cane is introduced into the match. Thorn is able to use his cane while the referee is getting rid of Sandman's and that's enough for the victory. This was too quick to be much. 

Match Rating: 3/4*

Teddy Long comes into Lashley's locker room and we get a lovefest. Long invites Lashley to SmackDown and he accepts. 

CM Punk vs. Mike Knox

It feels like these two have fought 38 times on ECW. In other news, I guess Mike Knox is still a thing. I do like Knox better than Thorn, he just has nothing really going for him character wise. Punk leaps and grabs Knox's head with his legs, but Knox slams him face first into the mat in a unique counter. Knox hits a big dropkick and looks to have a little more motivation here. Punk catches him with an enzuigiri before hitting the running knee/bulldog combo. Knox ducks the springboard clothesline, but Punk puts on the Anaconda Vice for the submission win. As soon as the match is over, Snitsky is in the ring and drives him into the corner. He hits him with a clothesline and a boot to the face. Nevermind the Snitsky stuff, this was a spiritied 3 minute match. 

Match Rating: *1/4

We get some more of Lashley's story prior to WWE. They really wanted him to be their next huge star and this was a nice way to approach it. 

Rob Van Dam & Sabu vs. Elijah Burke & Matt Striker

Sabu is able to plant Striker with a DDT and then a somersault leg drop. Striker then tags in Burke, who is reluctant to get in there with RVD. RVD hits him with a monkey flip and some kicks. Striker tags in and he suffers the same fate. The heels are able to use a ref distraction to allow Burke to illegally clothesline Sabu from the apron to finally get things going their way. Striker hits a running kick to the head in the corner on Sabu, but can only get a 2 kick. Sabu is able to hit a hot tag to RVD and he hits the rolling monkey flip on Burke and a kick to the head of Striker. RVD hits the windmill kick on Burke and hits Rolling Thunder. Sabu was looking for the combo, but Striker pulls him to the floor. RVD hits a dive onto Striker. Sabu goes for a springboard move, but Burke kicks the middle rope and Sabu falls. Burke covers him and uses the rope to steal the victory. As they celebrate the victory, Thorn and Cor Von come out to join them. This was another fun match with the veterans putting in a really good effort here.

Match Rating: **1/2

This was one of the best episodes in a long time for ECW. All of the matches told a story and everyone really gave nice efforts. The crowd was more into this than usual as well, which always helps. Thumbs up.

Overall Rating: 70%

NXT 4-22-15 Review

Original Airdate: Wednesday, April 22nd, 2015
Full Sail University
Winter Park, Florida

Follow me on Twitter: @WorkTheNetwork2

Finn Balor vs. Tye Dillinger

Dillinger is slowly getting to the gimmick that would help him make a name for himself, but he's still essentially a jobber here. Balor runs through his greatest hits of moves, hitting the Sling Blade and then the running dropkick. He climbs up top and hits the Coup de Grace for the quick win.

Match Rating: 1/2*

Tyler Breeze is then shown backstage saying that he doesn't love Finn Balor. He says that it's about time that he faces someone like himself as Balor watches on the big screen.

Dana Brooke then talks about her debut being the re-birth of the women's division. She cuts a generic heel promo that she never really improved upon in her lengthy run.

Kevin Owens says that he's better than Alex Riley and that's why he's NXT Champion. 

NXT Women's Championship #1 Contender Triple Threat Match
Bayley vs. Becky Lynch vs. Charlotte

Let's see if they actually give the ladies some time here tonight. Charlotte and Bayley take turns on Lynch to start and then get her out of the ring. Charlotte then takes it to Bayley and uses that Figure Four headlock before twisting Bayley around. That is probably my favorite spot that Charlotte does and she should do it more often. Becky is back in and we go to commercial. We're now in the Becky/Bayley portion of the match, with Becky going to work. Becky puts on a submission hold, but in comes Charlotte with Natural Selection. Bayley hits a Doomsday Device with Charlotte holding up Becky in a powerbomb position. Bayley hits a suplex on Charlotte and then the Bayley To Belly on Becky. Charlotte then puts on the Figure Four on Bayley. Bayley grabs the ropes, but there is no rope break. Charlotte lets go for some reason and then slaps it back on, turning it into the Figure Eight. Becky then leans on Bayley while she's in it and picks up the pin victory to Charlotte's chagrin. It's still very clear that they think a lot higher of Charlotte compared to both Bayley and Becky at this point and the finish shows that. They kind of went with a pretty standard match here, which I'm a little surprised with. Beck is the right winner though, as she hasn't gotten her shot yet. 

Match Rating: **

CJ Parker vs. Hideo Itami

Itami hits Parker with a kick, but Parker is able to snap Itami's neck on the top rope to slow him down. It doesn't take too long for Itami to comeback and hits him with a series of kicks. He hits the running corner dropkick to a seated Parker before hitting the Shotgun Kick for the quick victory. Itami looked good as per usual. 

Match Rating: 1/2*

Sasha sarcastically congratulates Becky Lynch before they get into a war of words. 

Rhyno vs. Jesus de Leon

This is the usual hit a move, hit the Gore, go home for Rhyno. The crowd loved it, so why not?

Match Rating: 1/4*

Blake and Murphy serenade Carmella with song before Enzo and Cass come to make them leave. They then criticize her for wearing jewelry they got her. 

Alex Riley vs. Kevin Owens

The first match between these two was much more of a squash than expected. Let's see where they go here. Riley is able to hit an early dropkick and Owens rolls out of the ring for some stalling. Riley misses with a baseball kick and Owens slams him into the steel ramp ahead of the commercial break. Not that I think Riley would have been main eventing pay per views, but I really don't understand why they thought he should be announcing. Riley tries to go up top, but Owens knocks the rope and then gets hit with a clothesline in the corner. Owens hits a cannon ball and then a pop up powerbomb for the victory. Owens steps on him after to celebrate. Riley looked like a complete jobber again here and I'm just not really I understand the story they are trying to tell here. After the match, Owens dumps Riley out of the ring and is looking to do some more damage. Out comes Sami Zayn to make the save and they start brawling. Zayn then hits a senton from the top rope to the floor on top of Owens and a bunch of security in a fun spot. Owens retreats to the back.

Match Rating: 1/2*

This was another disappointing episode of NXT. This one just felt like it could have been more. I don't understand the Alex Riley story and I'm not sure there's going to be much more to it. I have little doubt that NXT will get back on track here soon, as it typically is a very consistent thumbs up.

Overall Rating: 46%