Thursday, April 30, 2015

Fave Five 4/20/15-4/26/15

1) Angelico, Ivelisse and Son of Havoc: Apologies for this being late, but that happens with PPVs. Even with that PPV though, I couldn't go against this choice. Early on in Lucha Underground's run, I enjoyed Ivelisse and Son of Havoc, but felt they were underutilized. Then, Angelico joined the fray and added something to their run. LU brought in their Trios Titles and last week, we saw the first champions crowned. Not only did these three beat King Cuerno, Texano and Cage, but also Big Ryck, the MACK and Killshot. They were then thrown a swerve and forced to face the Crew. What followed was brilliant storytelling and a sick spot from Angelico before they captured the belts. Excellent work from all three performers.

2) Becky Lynch: Again, despite a solid PPV, I stray away from the main roster for this pick. One of my favorite matches all week was the Number One Contender's Triple Threat match between Becky Lynch, Charlotte and Bayley. The women of NXT never fail to deliver and they did so again. All three girls did great work as Charlotte played the dominant Diva, Bayley was the sympathetic babyface and Becky as the ultimate opportunist. After nearly ten minutes of good work, Becky stole the victory. She now earns her first solo crack at the title, gives us a fresh matchup and picks up the biggest win in her career. I fully expect this to lead to a big moment for Becky on the next NXT TakeOver special.

3) The New Day: As a big fan of Tyson Kidd and Cesaro, it certainly pains me to put these three on the list but they deserve it. The Tag Team Title match got moved to the main card and absolutely delivered. Not only was it the match of the night, but all three members of New Day did their part. Big E and Kofi Kingston actually won the gold/bronze, but we can't forget Xavier Woods, who entertained at ringside. Hell, he even sold Natalya's slap minutes later in the back. I don't think it was time for Kidd and Cesaro to drop the titles, but I have to give credit where credit is due. The New Day flopped as faces, but the overly positive heel role has fit them much better, similar to Bo Dallas. This could be fun.

4) Taryn Terrell: TNA's "Night of Knockouts" Impact was headlined by a Knockouts match. Taryn Terrell defended her Knockouts Title against Awesome Kong. Kong always makes for a spectacle of a defense but Taryn shocked everyone when asking for a No DQ match. The match itself was good but brought another twist when the new Dollhouse appeared. Marti Belle and Jade hit Kong with kendo sticks and then they triple powerbombed her through a table. Taryn retained and announced that she was a part of the Dollhouse. It was not only a worthy main event, but swerve that worked well. Not the usual TNA stuff where it was a swerve for swerve's sake. We still don't know the exact reason but Taryn as a heel sounds very refreshing.

5) Roman Reigns: I have to give Roman Reigns credit. The match I was looking forward to the least on Extreme Rules was his Last Man Standing bout against Big Show. However, he and Show managed to surprise many and put on one of the best matches on the card. Reigns was not only able to put on a good match with Show, but he actually won over the Chicago crowd, which is no easy task. while I enjoyed the match, I think the finish could have been better. Still though, Roman Reigns continues to improve week in and week out.