Top Ten Thursday: Survivor Series Elimination Matches

Starting today, I will be bringing you a weekly top ten list based on various different topics. These will be personal top ten lists and not at all what some would call "definitive". If you disagree and have your own lists, please share in the comments section. Down the line, I will be taking requests as well. For starters, with the Survivor Series coming up, I'm going with the ten best traditional Survivor Series matches in the history of the PPV. That would mean that matches like the one from this past Monday on Raw is excluded.

10. The Bodydonnas vs. The Underdogs - 1995

Kicking things off is a match that is honestly overlooked. On a really good Survivor Series event, the show opened with a match that severely lacked star power. On the Bodydonnas team, you had Skip, Zip, Rad freaking Radford and the recently heel turned 1-2-3 Kid, while the Underdogs consisted of Marty Jannetty, Hakushi, Barry Horowitz and Bob Holly. That's not exactly a recipe for a great match. However, they managed to do their best to wow the audience and busted out some pretty impressive high flying moves. The highlight being a top rope powerbomb spot that honestly made me jump out of my seat. Considering the guys involved, it was obvious that the Kid would be the survivor in the end, but that didn't take away from my enjoyment. This is worth a look as a fun way to spend about 20 minutes.

9. The Dream Team vs. The Million Dollar Team - 1990

Not only was this a really good traditional Survivor Series match, but it also happens to be one of the most historic. Ted Dibiase's Million Dollar Team featured himself, Rhythm and Blues and a mystery partner that turned out to be the debuting Undertaker. Having him in this match made it more special because right from the start, he had a presence about him that was unmatched. You could see the reactions of some of the speechless audience members, while Undertaker was nailing each and every mannerism that he had to. The Dream Team was captained by Dusty Rhodes and featured the Hart Foundation and Koko B. Ware. Koko was eliminated quickly by the Undertaker, showing his dominance. Undertaker was gone via countout while attacking Dusty which protected him. The real gem of this match is the final few minutes when it comes down to Bret Hart and Ted Dibiase. Their exchange is pretty fantastic and was my favorite part of the entire Pay-Per-View in 1990.

8. Team Michaels vs. Team Yokozuna - 1995

We go back to 1995 for a match concept that was only executed one time. This was a "Wild Card" match, which meant that the faces and heels were mixed up. Shawn Michaels was partnered with Ahmed Johnson, British Bulldog and Sycho Sid with the latter two being heels. On Team Yokozuna, he had his partner Owen Hart, Dean Douglas and Razor Ramon, who was a face. That certainly made for an intriguing dynamic that we don't see often. Guys that were in feuds, like Razor and Dean, were on teams. It came into play when Dean got eliminated and something similar went down between Michaels and Sid. Sid ate Sweet Chin Music by mistake and Shawn kind of just shrugged. He would be the only guy eliminated from his team as well. There was a funny moment near the end as Bulldog broke up a pin for his team, seemingly forgetting that he was with them and then just celebrated with the win anyway. This was a unique match that turned out to be highly entertaining.

7. Team Foley vs. Team Ziggler - 2012

This match changed more than a few times during the build up and it was even originally set to be Team Foley vs. Team Punk. In the end, Team Ziggler featured Dolph himself, Damien Sandow, David Otunga (replacing an injured Cody Rhodes), Alberto Del Rio and Wade Barrett, while Team Foley had Randy Orton, Miz, Kofi Kingston and Team Hell No. Despite the strange build up and changes, the guys managed to deliver a really good match. The action was fast paced and it all worked well due to their chemistry with each other. In the end, Randy Orton was the last guy remaining for his team, down 2-1. He eliminated Del Rio and it came down to him against Ziggler. Ziggler picked up a big win by pinning Orton, which was the right call since he was Mr. Money in the Bank. The match had a fair amount of talent, everything made sense and it was pretty damn good.

6. Strike Force, the Young Stallions, the Fabulous Rougeaus, the Killer Bees and the British Bulldogs vs. The Hart Foundation, the Islanders, Demolition, the Bolsheviks and the Dream Team - 1987

1987 was the year of the inaugural Survivor Series Pay-Per-View event. The night was headlined by a massive match pitting Team Hulk Hogan against Team Andre the Giant. However, it was an absurdly large 20 man tag earlier in the evening that stole the show. It says something about the state of tag team wrestling in the era that there were ten legit teams that could all compete in one huge match. These weren't just any teams either as a few of these are Hall of Fame caliber. You would expect a match with so many moving parts to be a bit of a clusterfuck but that wasn't the case here. They managed to work a crisp match that went about 37 minutes, but seemed to move along quickly. The surviving teams in the end were the Killer Bees and the Young Stallions. If there is anything that you are going to watch from the first Survivor Series, I'd suggest this (though the entire show is good).

5. Team Raw vs. Team Smackdown - 2005

Following the brand split in 2002, we would go on to see plenty of incarnations of Raw vs. Smackdown tag matches. Not all took place at the Survivor Series (some being at the short lived Bragging Rights event), but this one did and it may be my favorite. Representing Raw was Shawn Michaels, Big Show, Kane, Chris Masters and Carlito while Smackdown was led by Randy Orton, Rey Mysterio, Bobby Lashley, JBL and World Champion Batista. Similar to the Wild Card match in 1995, this allowed for heels and faces to partner up, making for some interesting moments. The match was well executed where teams like Kane and Big Show worked together, we got a face to face between Masters and Lashley and it all came down to HBK. This made sense considering Michaels had a heroic comeback like performance two years earlier being down 3-1. This wasn't on the level of that night, but it followed a similar trend where Michaels eliminated two men and was left with Orton. A distraction from the already eliminated JBL allowed Orton to hit the RKO and win it for Smackdown. The most memorable thing is the Undertaker's return after the match, which is a shame because the match was really goo.

4. British Bulldog, Owen Hart and the New Rockers vs. Doug Furnas, Phil Lafon and the Godwins - 1996

Honestly, I can't recall many people talking about this when they mention the best traditional Survivor Series matches but I love this. Survivor Series 1996 is my second favorite Survivor Series event, behind only 2002. It starts with this match that I didn't have high expectations for. Doug Furnas and Phil Lafon were good but were void of personality, while Owen Hart and the British Bulldog were great. The other four guys were definite question marks. The Godwins might have had their best performance here, Leif Cassidy played his role of starting to heel it up well and Marty Jannetty did a goo job of selling and doing his part. After their efforts, the match really gets going. Furnas and Lafon go head to head with the Tag Team Champions and come out looking like stars. They busted out moves that wowed the New York crowd and survived against the champions. It never amounted to a Tag Team Title run for them, but for one night at least, a team was put over huge in the world's most famous arena.

3. Team Authority vs. Team Cena - 2014

The stakes were very high coming into this main event match. The Survivor Series 2014 card seemed to lack and didn't have many matches booked. Part of the reasons was that the company was missing some top guys. Randy Orton, Roman Reigns and Sheamus were all on the shelf, while Bray Wyatt and Dean Ambrose had a singles match. That set up some strange teams. The Authority were led by Mr. Money in the Bank Seth Rollins, Kane, Mark Henry, the US Champion Rusev and a late addition, Luke Harper. John Cena struggled to find teammates because he's a terrible friend in kayfabe terms. However, he managed to get Big Show, Dolph Ziggler, Ryback and late addition Erick Rowan. Going in, I didn't expect the match to be great but dammit it was. This was overbooking done incredibly well. Big Show turned heel for the hundredth time and knocked out Cena, leading to him getting eliminated. Show then walked out, leaving Ziggler of all people in a three on one deficit. Ziggler channeled his inner Shawn Michaels in a heroic rally that saw him eliminate two men, leaving him with Seth Rollins. Triple H and J&J Security got involved, only for Sting to make his WWE debut and save the day. That was something I never expected to see, which made this match all the more special. Ziggler would pin Seth and vanquish the Authority...for about a month.

2. Team Austin vs. Team Bischoff - 2003

On Team Bischoff, you have Randy Orton, Chris Jericho, Christian, Scott Steiner and Mark Henry. On Team Austin, it's Shawn Michaels, Rob Van Dam, Booker T and the Dudley Boyz. Early on, this match followed the formula that we've come to expect from a traditional Survivor Series match most of the time. The guys that were getting eliminated early, (Scott Steiner, Mark Henry, Booker T and RVD) were given a chance to get in their stuff before going home. When it gets down to a three on on three match, the heels used shady tactics to send the Dudley Boyz home and leave Michaels alone. What happened next is how you expertly book the heroic comeback. Shawn takes a beating and does one of the better blade jobs I can remember. When he makes his comeback, it's not done in superhuman fashion. He doesn't just shrug off the damage and start taking people out. He hits Sweet Chin Music from out of nowhere and takes out Christian before using a fluke pin to get rid of Jericho. It's a desperate man on his last legs. The finish involves all kinds of shenanigans from Bischoff, Austin and then an appearance by Batista who ends up costing Shawn the match. The crowd was 100% into this and when Shawn finally can't get up in the end, the air is basically let out of the building. Extra props to Jim Ross and Jerry Lawler for their performance during all of this. It's all so well done and is one of the best Survivor Series matches of all-time.

1. Team WCW vs. Team WWF - 2001

Considering how the entire Invasion angle was booked, I didn't expect this to be as great as it was. Granted, the talent was there. You had The Rock, Chris Jericho, Kane, Undertaker and Big Show on Team WWF, while Team WCW had Steve Austin, Kurt Angle, Booker T, Rob Van Dam and Shane McMahon. Okay, so not everyone there is among the best workers, but they all lent something to the match that made almost every part of it feel unique. From the finisher barrage that sent Big Show home, to Undertaker and Kane being complete badasses to Jericho attacking the Rock after he was eliminated because he's selfish to Angle turning back on WCW, this had a lot of cool moments. It was tough for me to remember this fondly due to the booking before and after, but as a standalone match, it's fantastic. The final battle between Rock and Austin was great to see and was the last we'd really get until WrestleMania XIX. Team WWF would win, obviously, in a match that made 45 minutes fly by.

G1 Climax 24 Day Seven Review

G1 Climax 24 Day Seven
August 1st, 2014 | Tokyo, Japan

Man, this tournament has been phenomenal. Looking at the card, I see a match that was picked as the 2014 Match of the Year by the Wrestling Observer Newsletter. Despite my excitement for that, it looks like Hiroshi Tanahashi and Kazuchika Okada both have the night off, which is surprising considering the venue. This will be the first show that I watch using NJPW World, which I have to use on my PC. Therefore I won’t be writing the review as I watch and instead jotting down notes during it and writing up something after. Should be interesting.

Block A
Satoshi Kojima (4) vs. Shelton X Benjamin (8)
They started with a fun little back and forth. It featured both guys trying out wrestle each other, out power each other and then when they both got the upper hand, they taunted to the crowd. It was a fun game of one upping each other. Instead of doing the typical guardrail spot, Shelton back suplexed Kojima on it, which looked brutal. Shelton took on control until Satoshi busted out the big chop sequence. However, Shelton was able to cut off his big offense. They fought outside again, where Kojima hit a DDT out there. I preferred that much more to the apron DDT. It looked so much better. Back inside, Kojima hit a lariat to the back and went for another but ran into a superkick, which was cool. The finish comes from a lariat by Kojima.

Winner: Satoshi Kojima (6) in 10:11
I felt like this was a solid choice to open the show. The crowd was really hot, which would be the trend for the show. Their back and forth was fun throughout. My biggest gripe was that the finish kind of came out of nowhere and felt a bit anti-climactic. ***¼

Block B
Lance Archer (4) vs. Toru Yano (6)
Right from the start, Toru Yano and his trademark antics were in full effect. He ran around the ring and Archer gave chase, but it backfired on the big man and he was nearly counted out. Yano’s exposed buckle spot actually led to both guys getting hit by it. Archer stole Yano’s “RVD” taunt and the crowd was so into everything that they even chanted “LANCE AR-CHER” with it. Yano did his best Eddie Guerrero when he threw a chair to Archer to make it seem like he was going to cheat. It fails when Archer punched it into his face and hit his finisher.

Winner: Lance Archer (6) in 4:38
They kept this short, which really helped it. It was the usual Toru Yano fun and nothing more. Enjoyable but not what I would consider a top notch match. It was as good as I expected.**¼

Block B
Karl Anderson (4) vs. Yujiro Takahashi (4)
With both guys being in the Bullet Club, they “too sweet” each other. After an exchange, they go for it again but Takahashi heels it up by getting in a cheap shot. He wants another one but this time it was Anderson who got in a cheap shot. Fun stuff. The fans got behind Anderson partially because he’s really good, but probably also because Takahashi hasn’t been. They ended up in the corner and had a decent series of counters before Anderson ended up winning with the Gun Stun.

Winner: Karl Anderson (6) in 7:45
Decent little match here. It wasn’t as fun as the Yano fun, but still had its moments. Despite the match not being great, I got hints that there is a potentially good face somewhere in Karl Anderson. **½

Block A
Davey Boy Smith (4) vs. Doc Gallows (4)
IT’S DAVID HART SMITH VS. LUKE GALLOWS! Lots of matchups featuring people close to or tied in points. Throughout this tournament so far, Davey Boy Smith has been consistently solid while Doc Gallows has been consistently one of the lesser performers so far. They tried to battle power before Smith busted out an excellent stalling vertical suplex, complete with a flex. That is impressive considering the size of Gallows. When Gallows took over, it moved to a slower pace. The Gallows Pole only earned Doc a two count, before Smith picked up the win with the Sharpshooter.

Winner: Davey Boy Smith (6) in 10:08
As I noted, this was a slow paced match so it wasn’t very excited. It was smartly worked though, as they played into the strength of both guys. Gallows was allowed to be in control until Smith picked up the win. I do think it was cool to win with the Sharpshooter too. **½

Block B
Hirooki Goto (6) vs. Hiroyoshi Tenzan (4)
While he hasn’t been bad, I don’t think Hiroyoshi Tenzan has been great outside of the AJ Styles match. This started with just both guys hitting each other hard as they built towards the bigger offense. Tenzan nailed his wheel kick, which looked better than it would in 2015, but still came off weak. It wasn’t Viscera bad but it wasn’t very impressive. As they moved into countering each other, the fans get more into this. In a cool moment, Goto knocked him down and tried to pick him up but he was dead weight. Instead of continuing to try and lift him, Goto tried to pin him, which, while it didn’t work, I thought it was smart. They moved into a fun finishing sequence that surprised me when Tenzan won with the Anaconda Vice.

Winner: Hiroyoshi Tenzan (6) in 11:46
Best match of the night so far. Hiroyoshi Tenzan shut me up and went out and had another really good match. Their counters were well done, the action was hard hitting and they worked to have the crowd way into it. A thoroughly enjoyable match. ***¾

Block A
Bad Luck Fale (6) vs. Tomoaki Honma (0)
As usual, the fans were MOLTEN hot for Tomoaki Honma. This pairing worked well because Bad Lucky Fale got to be his destructive self and Tomoaki Honma had to make the comeback, which played into his strength. At one point, Honma knocked Fale outside and did his headbutt to a standing Fale, which was pretty great. The crowd pretty much bit on every single thing that Honma did, including each near fall. Honma even kicked out of the grenade, which gave the crowd hope, but he fell to the Bad Luck Fall.

Winner: Bad Luck Fale (8) in 6:40
The heat during this match was fantastic and, despite only going under seven minutes, it was damn good. They did a lot in the time and having the crowd be ungodly hot for Tomoaki Honma added to this. Their styles worked very well together. This is one of those matches that was short but didn’t need more time. ***½

Block B
Tetsuya Naito (8) vs. Togi Makabe (4)
I feel like this was an interesting matchup. You had the speed game of Tetsuya Naito against the vicious style of Togi Makabe. After a brief back and forth to start, this turned into Makabe taking control. He just pounded away on Naito, not allowing him to go into the high octane offense that he’s known for. He had Naito well scouted, countering some of his signature moves during his rallies. His corner dropkick and rebound attack were both stopped by Makabe, which I appreciated. Naito was resilient throughout, even trying to fight off the spider suplex. However, Makabe smashed his face into the ring post, which gave a sickening sound. The suplex and knee drop finished Naito off.

Winner: Togi Makabe (6) in 12:02
Honestly, I didn’t expect this to be as good as it ended up being. I wasn’t sure if they would click but they really did. Babyface Naito was so good at being resilient, but I think it would have worked a bit better if the crowd was more into him. They seemed to be behind Togi for the most part, making his comeback attempts kind of fall flat. Still, great work from both guys. ****

Block B
AJ Styles (6) vs. Minoru Suzuki (6)
Going into this, I had high expectations due to the high praise I had heard for this. They started with a face to face stare down that was pretty awesome in itself. They got right into it with AJ hitting his signature dropkick quickly. When they fought outside, I expected the typical guardrail spot, but instead, AJ leapt over and came back with his springboard punch which I appreciate. Suzuki, being the bad dude that he is, took the fight to the crowd and applied an armbar in a chair on AJ. The work he continually does throughout this match on the arm is fantastic and brutal in the best kind of way. When we got a ref bump, I was weary, especially when Taka Michinoku ran in. A few members of the Bullet Club and Suzuki Gun ran in, but they fought to the back, keeping that short. Suzuki is such a badass, that even when he takes AJ’s finger and works it, it looks vicious. Towards the end, they have a fantastic series of counters and strikes. During the strike battle, AJ more than holds his own despite only using his left hand. That is the kind of selling I wanted to see. The match comes to an end after a second Styles Clash.

Winner: AJ Styles (8) in 16:20
This is now officially my favorite match of the tournament. Everything about this was so good. Yea, there was interference but this was a match featuring the two leaders of two heel stables so it playing a factor made sense and at least it was kept short. The arm work is smart, brutal and they go back to it, with AJ’s selling being top notch. This is just fantastic, top notch pro wrestling. ****¾

Block A
Katsuyori Shibata (8) vs. Yuji Nagata (4)
Both of these guys have been having really good matches and Shibata has been one of my favorite people to watch during this entire thing. As you would expect, this was hard hitting from both guys. They fought outside and did the countout tease, but put a twist on it that other matches didn’t do. They traded massive shots outside until 19 and both barely got back in. Despite his age, Nagata laid into Shibata as hard as he got hit, making for some absolutely brutal exchanges. When Nagata applies the armbar, Shibata broke out and sold the effects well. They ended up in an exchange where Shibata just pounded on Nagata with a bunch of shots, but once Nagata hit him back, he fell instantly. Nagata would pull it out after two back suplexes.

Winner: Yuji Nagata (6) in 13:31
This show just continued to deliver. This was two hard hitting dudes just beating the hell out of each other. It was stiff and violent in the best possible way. Nagata playing the old man who doesn’t back down is great. Another fantastic performance from both guys. ****¼ 

Block A
Shinsuke Nakamura (8) vs. Tomohiro Ishii (6)
They went into a fun exchange early on the in match. When Nakamura gave a clean break, he offered a handshake but ate a slap instead. Both men missed their finishers early and had a bit of a stare down. Nakamura took control and kind of toyed with Ishii, which is obviously a mistake. When Ishii fired back at him, he hit him so hard that Nakamura was coughing like he had the flu. Nakamura went for the Boma Ye a while after but Ishii was ready and stopped it with a dropkick. The near falls that Ishii picked up were all heavily bought into by the fans, including one on a huge lariat. He had one lariat countered into an armbar, which was cool. The finish came when they went into a string of vicious strikes before Nakamura hit Boma Ye, only for Ishii to kick out at 1. That got a huge pop. Nakamura hit another one that ended things.

Winner: Shinsuke Nakamura (10) in 15:14
Another great match on this show, this one fitting as a main event. The hard hitting strikes, the counters, the near falls and the atmosphere all made this a great match. Both guys have consistently been delivering in the tournament and did so again here. Nakamura wins another one and is probably in contention for the MVP of the tournament so far. ****¼ 

Overall: 9/10. The first half of this show was solid but had nothing to go out of you way and see. The second half changed things completely. Everything after intermission was a blast as even the lowest post intermission score went to a really fun, short match. The fact that this show was as excellent as it was without two of the top stars in the company on it is a testament to the talent level in NJPW. There are four must see matches on this show, including the match of the tournament so far. Amazing show.

Block A Standings
Shinsuke Nakamura 10
Katsuyori Shibata 8
Shelton X Benjamin 8
Hiroshi Tanahashi 8
Bad Luck Fale 8
Tomohiro Ishii 6
Satoshi Kojima 6
Yuji Nagata 6
Davey Boy Smith Jr. 6
Doc Gallows 4
Tomoaki Honma 0

Block B Standings
Tetsuya Naito 8
Kazuchika Okada 8
AJ Styles 8
Minoru Suzuki 6
Hiroyoshi Tenzan 6
Hirooki Goto 6
Togi Makabe 6
Lance Archer 6
Toru Yano 6
Karl Anderson 6
Yujiro Takahashi 4

G1 Climax 24 Day Six Review

G1 Climax 24 Day Six
July 31st, 2014 | Shizuoka, Japan

The end of this show will put us at the halfway point of the tournament, which has been a blast so far. On this show, Tomoaki Honma and Tetsuya Naito have the night off. Honma has been a joy to watch each time out, while Naito has really stepped up and had two great matches on the last two shows.

Block A
Bad Luck Fale (6) vs. Doc Gallows (2)
Due to their alliance, the two big men “too sweet” each other at the bell. Gallows is one of the only guys big enough to match power with Fale and they play into that from the start, showing that they are rather even. They brawl outside, leading to a guardrail spot. I swear NJPW does these at least 5 times per show. Gallows hilariously misses a shoulder block in the ring and just crashes. They go back to colliding, with neither guy gaining a full advantage. Gallows hits the Bicycle Kick and surprisingly walks out as the winner.

Winner: Doc Gallows (4) in 8:04
Considering the two guys involved, this was about as good as it could have been, but that isn’t saying much. They smartly played the dueling power game, but it was still pretty dull. Add in the lack of heat since both guys are BC members and you’ve got recipe for arguably the worst match of the G1 so far. **

Block A
Davey Boy Smith Jr. (4) vs. Yuji Nagata (2)
This begins with some chain wrestling before going outside. Smith slams Nagata outside and we get an extremely close countout tease. Like, I thought Nagata was done and we’d have a quick result here. Yuji tries to rally, but Smith is able to just toss him around the ring. In a cool moment, Nagata goes to whip Smith but instead pulls him down and into the armbar. When Smith survives that, Nagata goes off, hitting a big release German and spin kick. He finishes with an exploder.

Winner: Yuji Nagata (4) in 9:39
I’m going to say that it is a good thing that this was longer than the opener, but felt shorter. Davey Boy Smith Jr. continues to just have solid match after solid match. Fun stuff here.***¼

Block B
Togi Makabe (4) vs. Yujiro Takahashi (2)
Struggling to pick up wins in this tournament, Takahashi attacks early and beats up Makabe on the outside. A dropkick out there brings us another countout tease. It seems like Takahashi’s focus is the mouth or jaw of Makabe. Takahashi has a weird lump or something on his leg, which is distracting. Makabe starts to take control but ends up missing the big King Kong knee drop. They trade shots until Takahashi shoves Makabe into the referee. That allows him to hit a low blow, followed by a buckle bomb and Miami Shine. That’s all folks.

Winner: Yujiro Takahashi (4) in 8:16
Not the worst match I’ve seen Yujiro Takahashi have, but this still wasn’t very good. I liked the idea of going after the jaw, as you don’t see that very often, but it just wasn’t that interesting. **½

Block A
Katsuyori Shibata (6) vs. Satoshi Kojima (4)
This should be hard hitting fun. It starts like that before going outside and giving us that good old guardrail spot. Kojima does the apron DDT, which looks better than it has all tournament so far. Kojima lights Shibata up with chops, but Shibata turns it around with strikes until Kojima hits a massive chop. There is a VERY close countout spot after a suplex. I hated how Kojima just shot up to get in. Now inside, they just pound on each other with stiff shots and suplexes. It’s all pretty great. Brainbuster scores two for Kojima. Kojima fires off some shots but Shibata comes back with a spinning back fist. He then hits the GTS and a PK right to the face that looks like it may have killed Kojima.

Winner: Katsuyori Shibata (8) in 10:11
One of the better matches all tournament. I’ve found myself really becoming a fan of Shibata’s style and he delivered another good hard hitting match here. The closing stretch was pretty excellent and had me on the edge of my seat. ****

Block B
Hirooki Goto (6) vs. Karl Anderson (2)
A surprise comes early when Karl Anderson actually gives a clean break. They go outside where we again get a guardrail and false countout spot. If I have one issue with this tournament so far, it’s that I’ve seen this way too many times. Anderson is in firm control, toying with Goto by slapping him around. They do a spot where they can’t knock each other down with lariats until Goto hits the ropes and wipes him out. They fight to the top where Goto connects on his sunset flip bomb for two. There are a few counters next until Goto nails a big neckbreaker for two. He calls for a Brainbuster but it’s blocked and we go to more counters. It’s a fantastic finishing sequence that ends with a Gun Stun.

Winner: Karl Anderson (4) in 11:36
My favorite Karl Anderson match of the G1 24 so far. He was disappointing early but had a good match with Okada and a fun one with Yano. Goto has been consistently good and this just worked well. The counters were fun, the near falls were well done and that finishing sequence was something else. ***¾

Block B
Lance Archer (4) vs. Minoru Suzuki (4)
This should be interesting since they are from the same stable and have both been working very well as heels so far. Guess what happens here guys? Another guardrail spot. Archer has been using his power, but Suzuki uses his brain to go after the leg. He does something different with the guardrail at least, applying a submission on it. He continues to work it until Archer starts making a comeback. He goes for his finish but Suzuki blocks and tries a sleeper. Archer tries a Chokeslam but it is blocked with a high knee. Suzuki applies saka otoshi for the submission win.

Winner: Minoru Suzuki (6) in 9:17
Fun match here. Two relatively bad dudes going at it. The leg work from Suzuki was well done and wise. Nothing must see, but still solid. **¾ 

Block A
Shelton X Benjamin (8) vs. Shinsuke Nakamura (6)
During his trademark entrance pose, Nakamura is attacked by Benjamin. Benjamin seems to be targeting the knee, slamming it into the apron and stretching it on the guardrail. Even as Nakamura attempts to rally, Shelton is ready with kicks to the leg. It’s well done leg work. Shinsuke gets in some of his trademark stuff for a near fall. I like Shinsuke slapping his leg, seemingly trying to get feeling back. It’s a nice little touch. Shelton makes use of the leg work with an ankle lock. When Shinsuke survives that, Shelton hits a superkick and German for two. Nakamura counters Paydirt into an armbar but doesn’t win until two Boma Ye’s connect.

Winner: Shinsuke Nakamura (8) in 9:01
Remember when Shelton X Benjamin had the big lead? As for the match, it was solid while it lasted. The leg work was well done and made sense given Shelton’s multiple ankle lock attempts. I would like to see them work a longer match, which I believe that have in the past. Will be checking that out. ***½

Block B
AJ Styles (4) vs. Hiroyoshi Tenzan (4)
Early on, AJ steals the Mongolian chops but when Tenzan gives him one back, it takes him down. Tenzan, the veteran of the G1, is kind of teaching AJ a lesson through the beginning portions. AJ hits a cool superkick in the crowd before taking over on the inside. His dropkick is always a thing of beauty, even if he’s nearly 40 now. Styles continuously goes for the Styles Clash but Tenzan seems to have this well scouted and blocks or counters it multiple times. Tenzan goes into a series of headbutts, including one from the top that earns him two. He moves straight to the Anaconda Vice but AJ survives. Tenzan misses a moonsault, giving AJ an opening. He hits a springboard punch and looks for Bloody Sunday. Tenzan blocks but eats the Pele before taking the Styles Clash.

Winner: AJ Styles (6) in 14:22
Really fun match here. AJ Styles continues to have nothing but good matches regardless of his opponent. I don’t think he’s had a standout one yet, but this was another in a string of really good performances. I liked how Tenzan had him well scouted, but his ability was able to win out. ***¾

Block B
Kazuchika Okada (6) vs. Toru Yano (6)
Both guys are members of CHAOS. Yano wants his usual BREAK but Okada doesn’t give it and instead does his Rainmaker pose. Yano responds with his trademark shrug which was fun. Outside, Yano goes to use a chair but Gedo stops him. Okada charges and Yano moves, which was supposed to lead to Gedo getting hit but they whiff completely. Yano teases a countout win by throwing Okada way into the crowd. It obviously fails as Okada makes it back. The turnbuckle spot also backfires, allowing Okada to go into his offense. However, his Rainmaker attempt is countered and he’s sent into the exposed corner. The finish has a cool sequence involving a low blow and rollup false finish before the Rainmaker puts Yano down. It sounded impactful too.

Winner: Kazuchika Okada (8) in 9:01
I rather enjoyed it. It wasn’t a great match or anything like that, but it was the typical Yano fun upped a bit by the interactions with Okada, the low blow false finish and the cool finish.***¼ 

Block A
Hiroshi Tanahashi (6) vs. Tomohiro Ishii (6)
The winner of this will tie Benjamin, Shibata and Nakamura for the Block A lead. A fair amount of Tanahashi’s stuff gets no sold as Ishii is looking like a beast. They get into a chop battle, which, if you’ve ever seen Ishii, you know is not a good thing for Tanahashi. Tanahashi goes after the leg with dragon screws and a cloverleaf. It’s cool to see Ishii turn the tables and apply a Sharpshooter. Ishii gets some near falls before they stumble a bit in the middle of the ring, leading to the slingblade. Tanahashi is now the one getting the close calls and looks for High Fly Flow. Ishii gets his knees up and both men are down. Ishii comes close to a win with both a lariat and a running headbutt. The fans are biting on nearly all of these. When Tanahashi hits a few moves, he instantly runs up and nails the High Fly Flow to win.

Winner: Hiroshi Tanahashi (8) in 15:02
Really good match but it had a really abrupt ending. It seemed like they were building to something special and then the finish came out of nowhere and not in a good way. It kind of just fell flat. Outside of that, everything else they did worked very well and was a fitting main event. ***¾

Overall: 8/10. Here we have another show in this tournament chock full of good matches. Unlike some nights, this didn’t many great matches as the only one that stands out as great was Shibata/Kojima, but it’s still an easy watch with tons of good stuff. The main event, Styles/Tenzan, Anderson/Goto and the second half of the this show all delivered. Six for six in good events.

Block A Standings
Katsuyori Shibata 8
Shinsuke Nakamura 8
Shelton X Benjamin 8
Hiroshi Tanahashi 8
Bad Luck Fale 6
Tomohiro Ishii 6
Satoshi Kojima 4
Yuji Nagata 4
Davey Boy Smith Jr. 4
Doc Gallows 4
Tomoaki Honma 0

Block B Standings
Tetsuya Naito 8
Kazuchika Okada 8
AJ Styles 6
Toru Yano 6
Hirooki Goto 6
Minoru Suzuki 6
Hiroyoshi Tenzan 4
Karl Anderson 4
Yujiro Takahashi 4
Togi Makabe 4
Lance Archer 4

The Shield Was Only Two Members Raw Review

For those that don't get it, the title is a reference to Dean Ambrose being irrelevant now. With his former Shield brothers in a WWE Title program, he's kind of just there. Speaking of Roman Reigns and Seth Rollins though, they opened Raw. Reigns came out and cut a short promo, which is how it should be. Seth ran him down and Reigns wanted to fight. The Authority showed up and told both men to get teams for the main event as they would have a Survivor Series style match. Cool, so fuck what makes the PPV special because you get it on Raw. The opening contest pit Dolph Ziggler against Kevin Owens. They had a decent outing and Tyler Breeze appeared. Of course they cut to commercial as he came out for dumb reasons. Breeze barely distracted Dolph but it was enough to get the win for Owens. Breeze attacked after an took a selfie with his fallen body. Fine stuff to further push Breeze/Ziggler and get Owens a win.

Backstage, Seth Rollins kissed Kevin Owens' ass to get him on his team. Becky Lynch gets interviewed by Renee Young and is just so adorable. She's better on the mic than given credit for and comes off as more likable than the rest of the faces on the roster. Cesaro wrestled next and defeated the Miz in a match that was kind of just there. At least Cesaro looked impressive. The Cosmic Wasteland was again in the crowd with their Stardust Section signs. Moving on, the Wyatt Family came out and Bray Wyatt cut a promo about taking the bodies of the Undertaker and Kane. He says that what mattered was their souls and how he has their powers. Terrible looking CGI lightning hit the ring and we were to believe that he has mythical powers. I love this kind of thing on Lucha Underground but the WWE likes to call this the reality era and it really seemed out of place here. I'd really like the idea behind it if it wasn't for that or the awful special effects.

Next up, a video package aired to hype up the Lucha Dragons which was pretty random. It was a cool video but wouldn't be needed if they built and developed the team properly. They faced King Barrett and Sheamus in what turned out to be a damn good match. It was a blast, the Lucha Dragons are so much fun and are most likely headed to a Tag Team Title shot. I don't like Sheamus being in a tag team though since Mr. Money in the Bank shouldn't be fussed with a tag team. Backstage, Jack Swagger met up with Zeb Colter and questioned the partnership with Alberto Del Rio. Del Rio made things tense and it ended there but I assume we get a match soon between them. In a rematch from Smackdown, Del Rio then beat R-Truth. The crowd at this point, is beyond dead.

In the back, Seth Rollins bumped into Kofi Kingston and Big E, who wanted to be on Seth's team. He agrees but says they are still down a man. Using the power of unicorns, we hear a trombone and Xavier Woods returns. It was glorious and I've missed Xavier. Brie Bella, Becky Lynch, Paige and Sasha Banks met in a Fatal Four Way match to determine the number one contender for Charlotte's Divas Title. Overall, they worked a good match. It had a few issues in the middle but they worked through them and managed to have a good match. My only real gripe besides a few missteps was Brie doing does Daniel Bryan kicks again. The girl has shown that she is more than capable of having good matches but being a heel and trying to get face reactions is a bad move. As expected, Paige got the win and Becky took the pin. We now get Charlotte vs. Paige at Survivor Series and I suspect some sort of Team Sasha vs. Team Natalya match. Paige gets questioned after the match and calls her opponents losers. She then shouts that it is her house, because that's pretty much the entirety of Paige's vocabulary at this point. Charlotte was interviewed after the match and as usual, was kind of just there on the mic. She's not bad at it but she's not really good either.

With tons of time left on the show, we got our big time Survivor Series main event match. Seth Rollins and his amazing team stood in the ring but we hadn't heard anything about Roman Reigns' team. He chose Ryback, Dean Ambrose and the returning Usos. Outside of a quick elimination of Woods, I thought this was a very well done match. It got about thirty minutes and everything made sense. It came down to the Shield members as Rollins was left along with the men he turned on. last year. Like a classic heel, Seth tried to run but when they failed, he resorted to using a chair to get disqualified. This was an instant where the DQ made a ton of sense. The only post match part that I didn't like was that Reigns ran him off. I think Seth standing tall with a chair would have been a good image. All in all, this was a solid episode of Raw. Nothing was great but nothing was really offensive either. 7/10.