My Thoughts on WrestleMania

What the fuck?

If I had to describe my reaction to WrestleMania 32 in one phrase, that would be it. I've never felt this way after a show. I'm not even sure how to explain it. Dejected? Maybe. Disappointed? Sure. Upset? A bit. Hell, maybe I even feel a little numb. Instead of doing a traditional review, I'm going to try and dissect my thoughts on the show.

Starting with the Kickoff Show, I actually came away pleasantly surprised with this section. I thought that Ryback and Kalisto had a pretty good David vs. Goliath match and got things off to a good start despite the lack of a full crowd in attendance. I had no issues with that. The Total Divas tag team match proved to be better than expected as well. They weren't given too much time that it overstayed its welcome, everyone got a chance to shine and I'd say that Emma was damn near the MVP. Lana's ass would be her competition. Brie Bella winning with a fantastic Yes Lock was very fitting and again, I enjoyed this for the most part. Even the Dudley Boyz vs. The Usos was about what I expected though I felt the Dudley Boyz should have won since they've taken plenty of losses since they came back. Perfeclty acceptable Kickoff show.

Then the main card started. The Intercontinental Title Ladder match reminded me on last year's. Lots of guys involved, tons of chaos and some huge spots. I liked that they put some emphasis on the Sami Zayn/Kevin Owens feud. Stardust and Sin Cara did the big ladder spot and Stardust's polka dot ladder was a nice touch. My issue with the match was the ending. Zack Ryder won. Look, I'm happy for the guy. He deserved something nice after he got ruined in early 2012. However, this screamed "we're gonna do something shocking for the sake of doing something shocking." The man makes the belt, not the other way around. You can't book a guy to be completely irrelevant for four year, give him two weeks of "build" and then put the title on him and expect it to work. I expect him to drop the title on Raw to someone debuting. It was just so strange, which turned out to be a theme for the night.

One of the things I looked forward to most coming into WrestleMania was AJ Styles making his Mania debut. He had new attire and the match got off to a really good start. It was missing something though. It felt like they tried to have an epic match but it fell rather flat. Don't get me wrong, it was still good, but like most of their matches, it missed something to make it great. Also, bad booking reared its ugly head again. Jericho won. Why? Someone find me a good reason for this. They go to 2-2, so maybe we get a fifth, tiebreaking match but I don't want that. The feud fizzled out weeks ago. Even if they want to make Jericho the top contender for the World Title coming out of this, he could still win a shot on Raw. AJ Styles came in as a big deal and is reportedly moving merchandise well. If you look at the top merch movers, they don't suffer from the awful 50/50 booking that plagues most of the WWE. With recent losses to Owens and Jericho, I could AJ going that route. Jericho gained nothing from this and again, I sat here baffled.

I don't have much to say about the New Day vs. League of Nations. New Day's entrance was fun and the match was lackluster. The post match stuff with Shawn Michaels, Mick Foley and Steve Austin felt like a desperate plea to get legends on the show. It also could have been accomplished with a New Day win, which I think should have happened to reward them for their great year. Moving on, Dean Ambrose and Brock Lesnar produced a disappointment. Their match was solid but fell way short of what it needed to be. I'm totally okay with Lesnar winning. I fully expect his next clean loss to come at the hands of Roman Reigns. However, this should have been a star making performance for Dean. He talked about being "unbreakable" so he should have taken everything Brock had and then some. He could have lost in a valiant effort and been made in a similar fashion to Steve Austin at WrestleMania 13. Instead, he never brought "Barbie" into play and lost to one F5 on steel chairs. It was anti-climactic and did nothing for Ambrose. He came off looking like he wasn't anywhere the level of guys like Reigns, Cena and HHH, who took more of a beating from Brock.

This is where I lost all hope for the show. Lita introduced a new Women's Championship on the Kickoff show to usher in a new era. The Triple Threat match was treated like a big deal. Charlotte wore a robe made from her dad's WrestleMania 24 while Sasha had Eddie Guerrero inspired gear and had Snoop Dogg play her to the ring. They had a few slip ups during the match but ultimately stole the show. My heart was pounding as I desperately wanted Sasha to win. Hell, before the match started I said "the only bad decision would be Charlotte retaining and judging by the show so far, she probably will". And guess what happened? She retained. This was the absolute dumbest fucking move I could imagine. You've built Charlotte as a heel champion, that's fine. You've protected Sasha to the point where she's never been pinned on the main roster. Becky has come close several times. This should have been where either Becky or Sasha beats Charlotte and leads the way for the future of the division. Instead, Charlotte made Becky tap out while Ric held Sasha back. This was such a horrible decision. I can't stress that enough. It actually took me out of the show. I spent the rest of the night shaking my head and face palming more than I ever have at a wrestling show. How could you let such a golden opportunity go to waste?

Shane McMahon and the Undertaker had their Hell in a Cell match. It was there. It felt like a cool down after the women's match, which nobody expected. It was slow, plodding and did nothing for me. I'll admit that it picked up down the stretch and of course, we got the massive Shane elbow from the top of the cell. However, it felt like they were killing time to get to that point. They just did stuff until we got to the massive spot and then Undertaker won. So Shane was only brought in to hype the show. Cool, we get another Undertaker Mania match that I won't care about and the Authority gets to continue to open Raw with long winded promos. Oh joy. They did the Andre the Giant Battle Royal next. The Shaq surprise was fun and the right guy won in Baron Corbin. He's been nailing his gimmick as of late and hopefully he gets some shine coming out of this. I was fine with that even though the match was blah.

Then we got the awful Rock segment. Oh my god, this was so bad on so many levels. He wasted a ton of time, with the show already nearing 11PM. His entrance was longer than the Undertaker's. Think about that. He took long to simply announce that they broke their own attendance record (though not the actual indoor record set by the NBA a few years back). Then the Wyatts interrupted and I let out a loud groan. Bray isn't taken seriously anymore. Rock shit on them and showed that he was in gear. He challenged them to a match and beat Erick Rowan in six seconds. I promise I'm not making this up. Then the Wyatts decided to surround the ring and attack, leading to John Cena's return. Rock and Cena sent the Wyatts packing because they are a useless stable. They might as well repackage Bray. He nails his character but nothing he does matters and he can't do anything against major stars.

Finally, it was time for the main event. Stephanie McMahon looked hot as she talked shit to the audience to try and get them to cheer Reigns. It didn't work. The crowd reaction might have been worse this year than last year. Also, Reigns/Brock last year was great. Reigns/HHH this time was bad. After trying to kill each other weeks ago, they went out and had a match that had little to no animosity. Also, whoever booked it to go 27 minutes is an idiot. The show already ran long and the outcome was inevitable. Reigns speared Stephanie and the crowd popped but went back to booing when he kicked out of the Pedigree. He finally ended this shit match and won. It was the culminating moment they'd been building towards. You know, if we forget that he won the belt in November. And again in January.

In the end, this felt like such a hollow WrestleMania. The workers tried for the most part. I saw serious effort in a lot of the matches but the booking decisions were baffling. Outside of the lackluster Hell in a Cell and main event, nothing felt resolved. This show was hollow. They were more interested in "WrestleMania Moments" (legends vs. LON, Shane's spot, Rock & Cena), than booking a competent wrestling show. I'm gonna watch Raw tonight and that's it. If it doesn't hook me, I'm gonna take a break from the product. I'll also leave you with my star ratings if you all care.

Kalisto/Ryback - **3/4
Total Divas tag - **1/2
Dudleys/Usos - **
Ladder match - ****
Styles/Jericho - ***1/4
New Day/LON - **1/4
Brock/Dean - ***
Women's match - ****
Shane/Taker - **1/2
Battle Royal - *
Reigns/HHH - *3/4

WrestleMania 32 Predictions

Considering that guys I expected to be in this match (like Zack Ryder, Ryback and Sin Cara) are in other matches, I honestly wonder if they will be able to fit twenty or so guys in it. For the past few months, I've picked Braun Strowman to win this thing. However, there hasn't been any word of the Wyatt Family being in it. That makes it tough to pick him. Of the people that have been highlighted, I could see Kane winning it. It doesn't mean anything in the long run and could just be another accomplishment for him. Cesaro, if he returns early, is another possibility. You know what? Screw it. I'm gonna pick Strowman. The first step in his run to a big SummerSlam match.

Winner: Braun Strowman

The fact that this isn't Usos/Dudleys/New Day is so strange. This feels like a match we pretty much had to get when the Dudley Boyz returned but it certainly doesn't feel like a WrestleMania match. The Dudley Boyz and their return hasn't been the best but it has improved since the heel turn. Sometimes, WrestleMania feels like the culmination of an angle but this feels more like the start of one. I can see the Dudley Boyz win here and the Usos win a rematch down the line or something.

Winners: The Dudley Boyz

Who cares? I watch Total Divas but even I don't give a damn about any of this. There are girls in the match that I like (Emma, Summer and Paige mainly), but for the most part, this will most likely be one of the lesser matches on the card. I could see Eva Marie turning on Team Total Divas and giving the win to BAD and Blonde, but the WWE loves to have the Total Divas teams win these matches. Eh, maybe Eva does turn and they use it for a Total Divas storyline.

Winners: Team BAD and Blonde

I feel mixed about this. On one hand, I'm excited because it's the WrestleMania debut of my favorite wrestler, but they kind of hurt this by giving it to us three times already. It's a classic case of the WWE blowing their load and doing so many rematches. This could have been much more special if they had been a tag team, Jericho turned and this was their first or second match. While Jericho's heel turn was good, the distract each other portion of the rivalry down the stretch was lame. Like the rest of their matches, I expect this to deliver. Hell, it might be the best they've had so far. There is zero reason for Jericho to win here.

Winner: AJ Styles

I know this is a handicap match but the New Day should be defending their titles. Even more reason why the League of Nations should be in the Andre the Giant Memorial Battle Royal and New Day should be in a Triple Threat Tag Team Title match. Anyway, this program has been pretty lackluster. New Day has done most of the heavy lifting and really carried it on social media. League of Nations (outside of the amazing Rusev) is a very uninteresting stable. Part of me sees League of Nations winning since the titles aren't on the line, but the New Day deserves the win here for their work throughout the past year. Also, get ready for what should be a great entrance by the champions.

Winners: The New Day

Why the US Title match is a singles match and the Intercontinental Title gets the multi-man clusterfuck treatment is beyond me. Like a lot of this card, I find this to be a tough call. That's actually been the case with Kalisto as champion period. On one hand, they could have Ryback run through him en route to another push attempt. On the other, Kalisto could be the David to Ryback's Goliath and overcome the odds. As much as I want Kalisto to retain, I get the sense that it's time for yet another Ryback run.

Winner: Ryback

There are actually some people that are picking Zack Ryder to win this. He truly doesn't belong here and neither does Sin Cara. While Stardust is awesome, he's done nothing of note since the summer. Dolph Ziggler is a has been that was pretty bad throughout most of 2015 and the Miz (while he is a fantastic heel and super undervalued by many) isn't winning either. It comes down to Kevin Owens and Sami Zayn. The two men with a built in story and loaded history. Most would say Sami should win here. As a big Sami fan, I'd like it but I think there's a better route. Sami's main roster reactions haven't been the best so far. I say Owens should retain here and then they could spend the next few months explaining the Owens/Zayn story to the fans and make them cheer for Sami before he dethrones Owens down the line.

Winner: Kevin Owens

Outside of Ambrose/Lesnar, there is no match that I'm more excited for. I've watched these three have plenty of good matches over the past year. Charlotte can deliver in the ring but her heel character and over reliance on her father is atrocious. Becky Lynch is easily the most likable woman on the WWE roster. Sasha Banks is the best woman I've ever seen signed to the WWE. Given the right amount of time, this could potentially steal the show. From a storyline perspective, Becky taking home the win and the belt kind of makes the most sense and would be a feel good story. However, Sasha has yet to be pinned since getting called up and she's insanely over. Sasha for the win here and lead the way for the new re-branded women's division.

Winner: Sasha Banks

This has absolutely had the best build of any WrestleMania match. Brock Lesnar and Dean Ambrose is a match I've wanted for a long time now. Brock working new guys (no Cena, Undertaker, etc.) is exactly what I wanted. They've handled Dean nearly perfectly in the build. Ambrose shows no fear when it comes to Brock and continues to challenge him like the lunatic that he is. Considering the way they've handled Brock, it's hard to buy people as legit threats. Making this a Street Fight was the absolute only way to do this. Ambrose gets to use a ton of weapons and go nuts to do what is necessary to end the Beast. It's another tough call here. I could see the Wyatts costing Brock the match but on the other hand, I sense they're saving Brock's next loss for Roman.

Winner: Brock Lesnar

Talk about a poorly told story. However, Shane McMahon is back so I don't give a fuck and I'm just enjoying the ride. None of the angle has made any real sense but this should be a blast. it was the only program to have a great final go home segment and I fully expect Shane to die for our sins this Sunday. He's going to do everything in his power to save a very disappointing WrestleMania card. The match itself sounds like a blast but who are the fans supposed to cheer for? If Shane wins, Undertaker will never compete again, so the fans will be sad. If Undertaker wins, the Authority sticks around and I expect that to be incredibly dull. In the end, somebody helps Shane or Undertaker sacrifices himself to save the company.

Winner: Shane McMahon

It's the most obvious result on the show. Since the moment he showed up with the Shield, it's been very clear that Roman Reigns was going to be a megastar whether we liked it or not. Don't take this as me badmouthing Roman. He has plenty of problems cutting promos, but I like his work in the ring. He had some great matches last year. However, it's all felt so very forced. You can't manufacture this but they're going to anyway. Reigns will win and it won't feel special since it'll be his third WWE Title win in the past four or so months.

Winner: Roman Reigns

2016 Prediction Record: 10-3
2015 Prediction Record: 60-35

TakeOver: Dallas Review

NXT Tag Team Championship: The Revival (c) vs. American Alpha

American Alpha have black, silver and blue attire for the night. Gable starts with Dawson and they lock up. Crowd chants for “Gable”. Clean break in the corner before Dawson slaps Gable three times, annoying the challenger. Dueling “which one’s Dawson/which one’s Dash” chants. Gable takes Dawson down and of course, has the upper hand on the mat. With that advantage, he slaps Dawson three times and the teams nearly come to blows. Dawson works a wristlock before some shoulder block takedowns. He wins a hip toss battle and taunts towards Jordan. Arm drags from Gable and a tag to Jordan. He hits a gorgeous dropkick. The champions regroup outside. With a Dash distraction, Dawson rakes Jordan in the eyes. Legal tag to Dash and they get taken down by clotheslines from Jordan. The challengers hit stereo back body drops for two. Gable is back in but ends up in trouble in the corner. Dawson fires off a chop and sets Gable up top. Fable fights him off back to the mat and gets two on a rollup. He nails a springboard cross body for a near fall and delivers some more great arm drags. A dropkick on Dawson connects. Dash comes in and avoids one. They try a double suplex but Jordan gets past the referee to save Gable and they hit double dropkicks. They follow with stereo Germans and the crowd is molten. Blind tag by the champs turn things around. Dash lays Gable out with a clothesline outside. Inside, Dawson hits a back elbow for two. Dash applies a modified cobra clutch. Gable tries to roll out of it but can’t. Dawson comes in and kicks Gable for two. Dawson now applies the good old Gory special, really wearing down Gable. Gable comes back with a double DDT to open the door for a tag. He gets close but Dash sneaks under the ring and comes out to pull Jordan off the apron. The champions botch a double team move that nearly injures Gable. Dash covers but the referee stops him because he’s not the legal man. A “botchamania” chant starts. Dash gets the legal tag and misses a corner attack. Dawson stops the tag but Gable rolls through and under him to make it. Jordan comes in hot. Dropkick, flapjack and suplexes galore. THE STRAPS ARE DOWN! Corner shoulder thrust on Dash and another suplex for Dawson gets two. Jordan sets Dawson up top but is knocked off. Dawson covers and Dash assists on the pin but it’s still not enough. Dawson tries a slingshot suplex but Jordan counters and rolls him up for two. He gets sent into a Dash uppercut but Gable breaks up the pin. The champions look for a double team but Jordan flips over Dawson. Gable dropkick brings him over for a pin for two. Big belly to belly by Jordan but Dash saves him from more damage. Dawson rolls up Gable with a handful of tights for two. Each guy rolls the other up for two. Gable counters a slam into a pin for two again. He does another victory roll for two again. Jordan gets blind tagged. He hits a shoulder thrust and they nail their double team finish for the win.

Winners and New NXT Tag Team Champions: American Alpha in 15:11

I don’t know if it’s just NXT but these matches always have my heart pounding. The crowd was red hot for all of this, the action was tag formula done right with a ton of excitement and the right team won the gold. There were a few missteps that kept it from being truly great but it was damn good. ****

Bayley is shown earlier today posing with kids. Asuka is shown training by kicking a dude holding pads.

Austin Aries vs. Baron Corbin

Aries goes right after Corbin with corner shots. Corbin grabs him by the throat and sends him back. Aries comes back with shots in the corner. Dueling chants for both men. Aries rolls hunder a clothesline and dropkicks Baron in the knee. He gets on his back but Corbin slams him over. Aries sends Corbin outside and goes up top. He comes off with a chop. Continued shots around the ring, not giving Corbin a chance to breathe. Phillips mentions Aries ending a 645 day title reign of Samoa Joe’s in the past. Corbin uses the middle rope to stop Aries in his tracks and stomps away. He wears down Aries with chokes and various strikes and kicks. Corbin goes to the Yokozuna Special, the nerve hold. He does hit some sweet elbows in the corner for two. It’s a very arrogant cover. Even though he doesn’t win, he shouts for the timekeeper to ring the bell. Corgin talks smack to teh fans while wearing down Aries. Aries reels off some overhand chops to get free, avoids an Irish whip and levels Corbin. He drives his knee into Corbin’s spine and, with Corbin in the ropes, fires away with shots. He goes over the top with a double axe handle. With Corbin on the second rope, he hits a neckbreaker, landing on the apron. Aries goes up, coming off with a missile dropkick. Corbin regroups outside where Aries greets him with the awesome heat seeking missile. He makes a mistake of running into Corbin’s Deep Six on the floor. Corbin desperately looks for the countout victory. Aries beats the count at nine and asks Corbin for more. Corbin hammers away on him. He picks up a lifeless Aries for End of Days but Aries flips out of it and rolls up Corbin to win.

Winner: Austin Aries in 10:43

While the opener was fun and frantic, this was methodical and kind of boring at times. I understood the story, which was well told for the most part. It just wasn’t meant to be exciting. **1/4

Sami Zayn vs. Shinsuke Nakamura

The crowd hums along with all of Sami’s theme. Huge reaction for Nakamura. “Holy shit” chants. His theme is amazing and the atmosphere for this match is unbelievable. They go to lock up but Nakamura ducks it and does his usual mannerisms. The lockup happens and they go to the ropes where Namakura releases and does more of his typical stuff. He takes a charging Sami down and goes for hard kicks but Sami avoids them. Sami works an arm wringer as the crowd is still unreal. Nakamura cartwheels out and applies his own. Sami gets free and takes Shinsuke down. Arm drags form Sami, three in a row, and Nakamura takes a corner breather. Sami signals for him to come here, which Shinsuke did to him after the break earlier. Nakamura smiles at this. He fakes a test of strength and kicks Sami in the leg. He follows with a knee drop for a near fall. Serie of go behinds that Nakamura wins and takes it to the mat. Sami gets to his feet and elbows out. Off the ropes he comes but into a knee. Sami eats an enziguri and Shinsuke goes for his signature corner taunt. Sami catches his foot but takes another enziguri. Sami comes back with a suplex for two. Leg lariat from Sami for another close two. He fires off forearms in the corner but Nakamura hits one of his own. Nakamura goes to the second rope but a shot sends him over and outside. Sami grabs Nakamura on the apron, but eats a kick. With Sami draped over the apron, Shinsuke connects on a running knee and one falling onto Sami. Back inside, Now we get teh Shinsuke corner taunt. He misses a charge but puts Sami on the top, rolls backwards and hits another knee for two. Sami escapes a suplex and uses Nakamura’s momentum against him to fall over the top. Sami goes after him with his front flip senton. Inside, he hits a cross body off the top for two. Shinsuke blocks a suplex and starts in with the aggressive knee strikes. He runs into a Michinoku Driver from Sami and both men are down. As they get up, they trade blows and both guys get cheers. This goes on for a long time. Nakamura’s nose is busted open. The fans give them a standing ovation as the competitors get exhausted. Big shots form Nakamura, including one final one that sends himf to the ropes. nakamura checks his bloody nose before delivering more knees and kicks on the ropes. Nakamura comes off the ropes but gets turned inside out on a Sami clothesline. He hits a second but sets too early on a back drop. Nakamura kicks him and catches him in his awesome armbar. Sami clasps his hands together to block it, so Nakamura changes it to a triangle choke. Sami breaks it with kicks to the face. Sami hits a huge straight right hand and continues in with strikes and kicks, which we’ve never seen from Sami before. Sami avoids a shot and catches Nakamura in the Koji Clutch! Nakamura counters into a pin for two. As he gets up, he nails another enziguri. A “fight forever” chant breaks out. Nakamura is up first and tries a suplex that Sami elbows out of it. He nails a running kick that sends Sami to the corner. he goes to the opposite corner and avoids the Helluva Kick. Inverted exploder by Shinsuke and he tries Boma Ye. Sami avoids it and hits the Blue Thunder Bomb for an incredibly close near fall. Standing ovation from the crowd.Nakamura rolls outside and Sami goes for his signature tornado DDT through the trunbuckle, but Shinsuke greets him with a kick to the skull. Inside, Shinsuke climbs to the top where Sami meets him. He tries a suplex but Shinsuke blocks and sends him down. He nearly runs into the corner exploder but Shinsuke fights out of it with vicious elbows to the back of Sami’s neck. Shinsuke goes to teh second rope and nails a knee to the back of the head. As Sami slowly gets up, he takes Boma Ye and that’s all. It seems to have been renamed.

Winner: Shinsuke Nakamura in 20:06

You could not ask for a more perfect debut. Both guys went full tilt and held nothing back. The atmosphere was off the charts, they didn’t mess up anything, had tons of back and forth and worked a perfect battle of seeing who the better man was. It was what we’ve come to expect from Nakamura in big matches, where he tends to always deliver. I don’t give the score often but fuck it. *****

Sami Zayn seems like he won’t show Nakamura post match respect but does and hugs him. Nakamura leaves as Sami gets “thank you Sami” chants and leaves.

NXT Women’s Championship: Bayley (c) vs. Asuka

Asuka has a mask with a design of tears on it and has some cherry blossoms fall from the sky. Bayler is sporting some different colors and has a cool jacket for her entrance. The fans sing to Bayley like this is London. Asuka goes for a quick spin kick but Bayley avoids it. Collar and elbow tie up as “Asuka’s gonna kill you” chants organically turn into “Bayley’s gonna hug you”. They exchange some wristlocks until Asuka sends her back with a strike. Bayley ducks a kick but runs into a shoulder block. Bayley hip tosses her over. Asuka avoids an elbow, runs off the ropes and then Bayley avoids a kick. STANDOFF! Kicks to the leg from Asuka. Bayley with a right hand but eats a forearm. Hip attack from Asuka and she nails a great kick. I just noticed that Asuka has added green to her hair. She misses another hip attack and Bayley levels her. She comes off the second rope with a back elbow for two, Shoulder thrusts from Bayley, sh etaunts and hits a back elbow in the corner. She goes up top and flies off with a cross body for two. Bayley tries a clothesline but Asuka catches her in a Fujiwara armar. Bayley reaches the ropes. Asuka gets set up top and into the tree of woe. Bayley does her little springboard elbow for a near fall. Again, Asuka is up top. Bayley lays into her with right hands and then a top rope rana. She bridges it for two and goes right to the guillotine choke that ended Nia Jax in London. Asuka gets free and applies an ankle lock. Bayley tries to roll out but Asuka keeps hold. Bayley finally is able to roll forward and send Asuka outside. Bayley, despite selling the leg, snaps off a rana on the outside and sends Asuka in for two. Bayley fires off shots but Asuka comes off the ropes with a dropkick. She reels off a series of kicks before coming off the second rope with a dropkick. Daniel Bryan like kicks to the chest and a big one higher. Shining Wizard from Asuka gets two. Bayley rolls her up for two. Asuka comes back with forearms. Bayley catches the hip attack and nails a back suplex. Asuka misses a kick but follows through with it and still manages to hit it after spinning. Both women go for dropkicks and whiff. They exchange shots and Asuka hits a massive slap. Asuka reels off more shots but her kick gets caught into a knee bar! Bayley has one of Asuka’s own submissions locked in. She gets close to the ropes so Bayley releases and slams hte knee into the mat. Asukaa fights for her life but Bayley stops her with a shot to the leg. She follows with a shinbreaker and some dragon screws. Still, Asuka is able to slap on the armbar. Bayley fights but Asuka turns it over. Bayley rolls free and rolsl her up for two. She ducks two big kicks and uses a small package to gain a near fall. She goes to whip Asuka but nearly ends up in the Asuka Lock. Suplex by Bayley, followed by a clothesline for two. Bayley instantly moves into the submission that won her the ironman match back in October. Asuka escapes into a pin, getting two. Bayley to Belly attempt but Asuka blocks it. She catches Bayley with a spin kick and follows with a suplex. Asuka locks in the armbar. Bayley tries to escape but nearly ends up in the Asuka Lock. Bayley reaches for the ropes but that allows Asuka to lock it in. Bayley fights for her life and gets to her feet. However, Asuka never lets go and goes back to the mat. Bayley passes out and it’s over.

Winner and New NXT Women’s Champion: Asuka in 15:22

They had the tough task of following Nakamura/Zayn but did more than enough to stand out. I don’t think it quite ever reached the great level, but I found it to be damn good. Bayley looked like an even match for Asuka and never tapping out added to this. ***3/4

Bobby Roode is shown in the front row. He gets a pop. I forgot to mention it but Funaki, Stephanie McMahon, Scott Hall, X-Pac and KOTA FUCKING IBUSHI are also in the front row.

NXT Championship: Finn Balor (c) vs. Samoa Joe

Finn is wearing blue and red and has a chainsaw. I’m guessing Texas Chainsaw Massacre. Joe is not intimidated. Dueling chants. Joe charges but Finn avoids it and they trade shots. Joe sends him outside but Finn is quickly back in with right hands. Joe throws him out but Finn is right back in. Joe is busted open on the side of his face and Finn flies over the top with a front flip senton. Finn chops Joe as the referee goes to check on him and Joe fires up. He tosses Finn over the guardrail and Finn ends up taking out a security guard. Finn creeps up over the rail and springboards off with a right hand. They continue to trade blows in teh corner, with Joe’s sounding louder. He wallops Finn with a slap and some strikes. Joe kicks him outside and follows with elbow suicida. Fans chant bullshit as Drake Younger checks on Joe’s eye. Joe sends Finn inside and gets pissed as they continue to check on him. Joe angrily allows them to fix him. Inside, Balor is back with shots until he runs into STJoe. He looks for the Coquina Clutch but Balor blocks, so he just chooses to wear him down instead. He sends Balor into the corner and nails an enziguri. Joe’s cut again and the officials again have to stop to patch him up. Joe levels into Finn with more vicious shots. Facewash boot from Joe. Balor comes off the top after fighting Joe off but leaps into an inverted atomic drop. Kick from Joe, followed by two loud strikes and a knee drop gets two. Joe connects on kicks but Balor fires up with a dropkick. As Joe is checked on again, they boo loudly. Balor ducks a clothesline and nails a flying forearm. He hits some corner running chops but Joe gets a boot up on his fourth attempt. Joe goes up but takes a chop and he falls outside. Finn connects on a baseball slide. Apron soccer kick from Finn and the crowd is alive again. Joe comes alive, stopping a slingblade with a belly to belly for two. Split chants from the crowd as Joe gets in shots in the corner. He goes for the facewash again but Finn hits slingblade. Finn tries the corner dropkick but Joe trips him up and nails a senton for two. Powerbomb by Joe. Finn kicks out and of course, Joe transitions into a Boston crab. He turns that into a crossface in the center of the ring. Finn gets free and double stomps Joe. Both men are down. Finn hits a second slingblade and the corner dropkick. He goes up for the Coup de Grace but Joe is up and stops him. Muscle Buster attempt is blocked and Finn fights him off. Joe hits the enziguri and drills Finn with the Muscle Buster. Finn somehow kicks out and Joe is in disbelief. Joe gets in slaps. Finn comes back with his own strikes. Joe hits a big shot and Finn hits the pele. Both guys are down again. Finn yells when he gets up and Joe can’t believe it. Slingblade, corner dropkick and Coup de Grace hits. Finn continues to look possessed, so he tries for Bloody Sunday. Joe counters into the Coquina Clutch. Finn starts to die but fires up and does the old Hart/Austin Survivor Series 1996 finish where he runs up the corner and falls back onto Joe for three.

Winner and Still NXT Champion: Finn Balor in 16:21

Much better than their London match. Instead of being your standard wrestling contest, this felt like a fight between two guys that hated each other. The doctors constantly getting involved hurt it a bit, but I thought it was awesome overall. If it had a better finish, I think I would have gone higher. ***3/4

NXT TakeOver: Dallas Predictions

I find this to be similar to the Zayn/Nakamura match but on a smaller scale. Austin Aries was a great pickup for NXT, though it hasn't had quite the fanfare that the Nakamura signing did. Baron Corbin is someone that I feel is underrated and gets an unwarranted shaft from a lot of fans. He isn't great but with the right opponents leading, he can deliver some strong matches. A guy like Aries is a good person to lead him. The indy darling vs. indy darling hater is a pretty great angle to go with. Aries wins in his debut and I expect Corbin on the main roster at some point in 2016.

Winner: Austin Aries

The NXT tag team division went from a weakness of the brand in 2014 to one of the top tag divisions in all of wrestling as we hit 2016. However, there's one thing they keep getting wrong. Blake and Murphy won the belts as relative unknowns, pushing the Vaudevillains winning back. Then, the Revival won it as relative unknowns and because of all of that, Enzo Amore and Colin Cassady didn't get the title run they needed. American Alpha needs a title win here. Due to the past year or so though, I see the Revival retaining in what should be a damn good match.

Winners: The Revival

People love Bayley. I totally get that. People don't want to see Bayley's run as champion end. I get that. But it's time. Bayley will have held the title for over seven months at the time of TakeOver: Dallas, which is a great reign for a babyface like her. She's absurdly over and won't be hurt at all by a loss. Asuka is the next big thing of the women's division and could be a great anchor for the division. A third match with Emma for the belt, a showdown against Nia Jax and even her murdering Eva Marie are all title matches I could be intrigued by. It's Asuka's time.

Winner: Asuka

This is the main reason that I'm dying to see TakeOver: Dallas. The whole card is pretty great but this takes the cake. Shinsuke Nakamura in a WWE setting is going to be a sight to see. Sami Zayn is consistently one of the best performers in the WWE and putting them together should produce fantastic results. There's no reason for Nakamura to lose this one. It's his debut and he will presumably be a big star in NXT. Sami is on his way to the main roster and is one of those guys that doesn't actually need many wins to get his character across, so it's a perfect matchup.

Winner: Shinsuke Nakamura

I hope this is better than their London match. I liked it, don't get me wrong, but it kind of just felt like something you'd see in the G1 Climax. Two guys going out and having a good, hard hitting match. That would have been fine if their storyline wasn't about a broken friendship. There needed to be more animosity in the match and I didn't feel it. Hopefully, they got for that time around and produce a great one. Like the American Alpha match, I hope for one thing but predict another. I'd like to see Finn Balor retain but part of me sees Finn losing here so he can debut on the main roster with Gallows and Anderson on the night after WrestleMania.

Winner: Samoa Joe

Top Ten Thursday: Raw After WrestleMania Moments.

With WrestleMania out of the way, the focus turns to the night after. The WrestleMania after Raw has become a staple and seems to get bigger each year. Big angles, major debuts, come backs and so much more would go down on the yearly tradition. Recently, the crowds for the show have become more and more rabid. We're going to look at the best moments from the one night a year where you can almost guarantee something big going down. This is being written before the 2016 night after WrestleMania Raw so nothing from that show makes the list.

10. Mankind Debuts

I was torn on the last spot here. I could have gone with Sid turning on Shawn Michaels after WrestleMania XI, which was the first real big angle to take place on the post WrestleMania Raw, since it kick started babyface HBK for the next two years. Instead, I went with what took place one year later. One night after WrestleMania XII saw Michaels win the WWE Championship in an Ironman match against Bret Hart, Mankind made his debut. With the WWE falling behind WCW in the ratings (and about to get crushed), they looked to past stars like Ultimate Warrior and Jake Roberts to help. It didn’t. However, on this faithful night, the former Cactus Jack made his WWF debut and would prove to be a pivotal player in the WWE eventually besting WCW. He beat Bob Holly in a bit of a typical squash but his real impact came later in the night. He managed to not only attack the Undertaker in his debut, but lay him out like few others had done. It kick started a massive career and the first truly great Undertaker feud that I can recall. Before this feud, good Undertaker matches were few and far between but this was the start of some really good and consistent work. Mankind showing up marked the first massive debut on the post-Mania Raw.

9. The Two Man Power Trip

Unlike the Mankind debut, the ramifications of this event didn’t leave a lasting impact. Still, it was one of the coolest things that I remember watching as a kid. Growing up during the Attitude Era, I was a massive “Stone Cold” Steve Austin fan. With an older brother that would cheer for the heels sometimes, I found myself drawn to heels. So when Austin turned heel at the end of WrestleMania X-Seven, I thought it was cool. Looking back, it wasn’t the best move but I digress. Austin aligned himself with Vince McMahon, who helped him beat the Rock. The Rock wanted a rematch and coerced one out of Vince inside of a Steel Cage. Things seemed like they would be fair. They weren’t. Vince again cheated heavily and they beat up the Rock until Triple H showed up. A monster heel at the time, it seemed to some like Triple H, who had beaten Austin in a classic back in February, may turn face. Instead, he attacked the Rock, forming the Two Man Power Trip with Austin. Bitter rivals turned partners, they destroyed the Rock, writing him off to film the Mummy Returns. Austin and Triple H would go on to hold the WWE, Intercontinental and Tag Team Titles at once. One has to wonder if their impact would have greater had Triple H not tore his quad within the first two months of their run.

8. The “Anti-Diva” Arrives

Okay, I’ll admit that there’s a fair amount of bias involved here. This isn’t quite on the level of importance of the other two moments listed so far but I loved it. While AJ Lee held the Divas Championship for 295 days on the main roster, Paige was making waves as the first ever NXT Women’s Champion. The “Anti-Diva” character had loads of potential and, despite being just 21, she felt like the most ready of the NXT prospects at the time, especially since her rival, Emma, was already up. After AJ retained the title at WrestleMania XXX, she came out and cut a promo about being the Divas division all by herself. The now always molten hot post-WrestleMania Raw crowd erupted as Paige made her surprise debut to congratulate AJ. AJ, being the bitch character that she was, didn’t take too kindly to being interrupted and challenged Paige. Arrogance played a big part as she also put her title on the line. Within about two minutes, Paige nailed the Paige Turner and shocked the world to become the youngest Divas Champion ever. It was a great moment in front of the right crowd and I hoped that it would lead to a great feud between the two. Unfortunately, AJ left for a few months and when she returned, she and Paige never clicked in the ring, giving us a disappointing rivalry. I’ll still always have that debut moment though.

7. Who’s Next?

The greatest trilogy of matches in WrestleMania history (okay, there are only two but still) saw Steve Austin and the Rock go to war at WrestleMania 15, 17 and 19. While Austin won the first two, he lost the final encounter to his greatest rival at XIX. It turned out to be Austin’s last match as well. Able to brag that he’d beaten Hulk Hogan and Steve Austin at back to back WrestleManias, the Rock closed out Raw the night after WrestleMania XIX to say that he was done. In his words, there was nobody left to beat. Austin, Hogan, Triple H, Angle, Jericho and many others all fell to the Brahma Bull (though not Shawn Michaels or Brock Lesnar). Rock, already delivering a tremendous Hollywood heel character, basically said he was heading to go make movies. Then, a familiar theme played that fans hadn’t heard in about three years. On the Titantron, Bill Goldberg appeared for the first time in the WWE and shit was about to go down. He made it to the ring, told the Rock that he was next and delivered an awesome spear. The biggest homegrown WCW star of all-time was now in the WWE. Like the last two moments listed though, it ended in disappointment as the crowd completely rooted for the Rock in their feud and Goldberg lasted a lackluster year with the company.

6. A New D-Generation X

Shawn Michaels was the leader of D-Generation X when they originally formed. He, Triple H and Chyna took over many segments and were a massive part of the WWE television in late 1997 and early 1998. After dropping the WWE Title to Steve Austin at WrestleMania XIV, Shawn was forced to retire due to serious back injuries. That could have left Triple H in limbo. Instead, he took advantage of the opening and set himself on a course to becoming a massive star. How did he do that you ask? There was no way that the red hot DX faction could just die there so Triple H brought back an old buddy to join him. The former 1-2-3 Kid and Syxx, returned as X-Pac and delivered a scathing promo on WCW, Eric Bischoff and even Hulk Hogan. It not only solidified that DX was still going to be a force to be reckoned with, but they had just as much edge without Shawn Michaels. If that wasn’t enough, the duo would go on to add the New Age Outlaws to the faction later in the night, which would go on to become the longest running variation of DX. It shot everyone involved into another tier of superstardom and was a key moment in Attitude Era history.

5. Ric Flair and Shawn Michaels Say Farewell

Retirement speeches in wrestling can be hard to sit through. Not because they’re bad or anything like that, but because we grow emotionally attached to the performers. Watching Edge and, more recently, Daniel Bryan announce their retirements were two of the hardest moments I’ve witnessed in wrestling. The goodbye speeches of Ric Flair and Shawn Michaels came on a bit of a happier note since they both got to choose when they were finished, unlike Edge and Bryan. Still, their goodbyes were certainly emotional. It was Shawn who beat Ric Flair and led to his retirement. The following night, Flair got the greatest sendoff ever as Triple H, who idolized him, showed up to say goodbye. Then, the floodgates opened as guys from Flair’s past all came out to bid him farewell. Ricky Steamboat, the Four Horsemen, Chris Jericho and many others got to say bye to a legend. Shawn Michaels’ was more relaxed as he waved goodbye to the fans after a speech and hugged Triple H atop the stage to close the show. Both of these moments were huge because it was two of the top five wrestlers in history going out on their terms and with their friends by their side.

4. “You Deserve It”

Again, this is more of a personal sentimental pick than one that would be considered historic. Daniel Bryan’s story of overcoming the odds, not only from a storyline perspective, but from a real life perspective, was incredible. He had to get past a lot of obstacles and it took the persistent fans of the WWE, constantly cheering for him, to get the WWE to change their stubborn ways. Daniel Bryan got a spot in the WrestleMania XXX main event and did the unthinkable. He beat Triple H, Batista and Randy Orton in one night to become the WWE World Heavyweight Champion. Yea, he won the belt at SummerSlam and Night of Champions, but this was the culmination of months of frustration for the fans as well as the crowning moment for Bryan. He opened Raw the following night, in front of a jam packed crowd in New Orleans and was treated to a standing ovation. That would have been enough to be special but the sound of the fans chanting “you deserve it” so much that Bryan couldn’t even speak was indescribable. A guy that I watched in Ring of Honor back in 2006 had not only made it to the top, but did so to a point that the fans gave him a moment like this was something I’ll never forget.

3. The Beast is Back

While the post WrestleMania Raw was usually a time for rather big angles (the year prior to this saw the setup for Rock/Cena “Once in a Lifetime”), it was in 2012 that things seemed to pick up. That night featured an absurdly rabid crowd in Miami that popped for everything from Alberto Del Rio’s return to chanting for Daniel Bryan throughout the night following his 18 second loss. John Cena, fresh off of losing a massive match to the Rock, came out to close the show and wanted to speak to the Rock face to face. He called him out but instead, he got Brock Lesnar. Yes, the Brock Lesnar who dominated the WWE for two years and the Brock Lesnar that hadn’t been seen in eight. The reaction for Brock’s return was magic and having him confront Cena of all people was great. In a monumentally bad move, Cena offered a handshake, which led to him getting F5’ed. Brock had not only returned, but he made an immediate impact. His feud with Cena would be great, though the outcome of their first match was poorly handled (Cena winning was a dumb decision). They managed to fix it as Brock would go on to have the most dominant run in WWE history a few years later.

2. Dolph is Money

In present day, Dolph Ziggler is a very uninteresting midcarder with a strange fetish for dressing like he’s stuck in the 80’s. In 2013 though, he was red hot, coming off of a strong 2012 and held the Money in the Bank briefcase. WrestleMania 29 featured one of the lamest World Heavyweight Title matches in history as Alberto Del Rio retained against Jack Swagger. Even though the crowd liked Del Rio, they badly wanted Dolph. The night after Mania, they did another Del Rio/Swagger match. Del Rio retained again but had his ankle really worked on by Swagger. When “Here to Show the World” hit the speakers, the noise was deafening from the Brooklyn crowd. Dolph, AJ Lee and Big E came out as Dolph prepared to cash in his Money in the Bank briefcase. Despite being a heel, the fans were 100% behind him. After a few minutes, Dolph countered the Cross Armbreaker, hit the Zig Zag and became the World Champion to one of the biggest pops I have ever heard. He got a concussion that ruined his title run and his career pretty much went down the tubes over the next few years but for one night, Dolph was the man and it was special.

1. Austin Chooses the Hard Way

For the second time on this list, I go to the 1998 post-WrestleMania Raw. While the formation of the new D-Generation X was huge, nothing topped this moment. The evil Mr. McMahon character was born at Survivor Series 1997 during the Montreal Screwjob and he had admitted, on screen, that he didn’t want Steve Austin as WWE Champion. Austin had even already given him the stunner. However, it was on this fateful night that the most important rivalry in WWE history was truly born. McMahon brought out Austin to present him with the new WWE Title but also to try and remind Austin that he was boss. He threatened him with a classic “easy way or the hard way” situation. Austin being Austin, clearly chose the hard way and delivered a stunner to Vince. It really set the Austin/McMahon feud off and when they were set to actually wrestle a few weeks later, Raw was able to beat Nitro in the ratings war for the first time in almost two years. The WWE never looked back, Austin was on the road to being the biggest star ever and history was forever changed.

Lucha Underground "El Jefe is Back" Review

The opening video package first shows the arrival of Mariposa, Marty Martinez's sister and their issues with the Mack and Sexy Star. Then we see Angelico, Ivelisse and Son of Havoc win back the Trios Titles. Lastly, they focus on Pentagon Jr.'s feud with Mil Muertes and the debut of Matanza Cueto. Dario returned with his brother, who went on win Aztec Warfare and the Lucha Underground Title.

"El Jefe" is in the ring to start the show, saying it's great to be back in the Temple. Starting next week, he'll be starting an all-new Trios Tournament. He also needs a new number one contender for Matanza. He is cut off by Pentagon Jr. to the crowd's liking. Pentagon says Matanza is champion because he wasn't in Aztec Warfare. Dario says he's not championship material. Pentagon grabs Dario by the throat and wants Matanza tonight. Dario shouts no so Pentagon gets set to break his arm, but Dario agrees and gives him a title match. The crowd ate this up.

The Crew def. Johnny Mundo and Taya in 4:39
This was interesting since both teams are heels. Although the Crew did walk out on Chavo two weeks ago so I don't know. Taya started to try and prove herself. She did alright and Mundo continued to play a total dick. He only wanted in after Taya had the upper hand and even tagged her hard in the back. They did build a mild tag for the Crew and in the middle of the match, we heard "I'M A MACHINE!" Cage came down the stairs, one week removed from having a cinder block broken over his head. Mundo backed away, leaving Taya alone. She ate the Crew's finisher, which is the Revival's Shatter Machine. This was a fine enough match that got a win for the Crew and also furthered the Mundo/Cage/Taya angle. **

We get an odd little video that sees Marty Martinez, seemingly at home, dressed like a bit of a snob. He tells a story about the "Moths" and their wealth or money and Aztec Gold. He said the the Moth tribe knew that the other tribes were jealous. Their secret weapon was Mariposa, who was the greatest warrior ever seen. This is intercut with Mariposa pretty much murdering some dudes in lucha masks and suits. The Mariposa mask was passed down over generations and the deadliest Mariposa of all now wears it, which is his sister. She's played by Cheerleader Melissa, so I instantly love her.

Cut to Black Lotus, standing guard outside of Dario's office, which seems to actually be backstage now. Catrina randomly appears. Dario thanks her for keeping the Temple going but he is the rightful owner. Catrina agrees that he might be the rightful owner, but Matanza isn't the rightful owner of the title. Dario says that her brother doesn't fear death. Dario says he has no beef with Catrina and that they have common enemies, so they should work together. Catrina says that when the time is right, Matazna will face death.

Trios Championship Elimination Match: Angelico, Ivelisse and Son of Havoc (c) def. The Disciples of Death w/ Catrina in 9:20
Similar to their match a few weeks ago, this saw the champion work very well together. Their evolution over the course of the history of Lucha Underground has been great. This time around, there were elimination style rules. Ivelisse was great while involved, but a distraction from Catrina saw her get eliminated at 2:30. That was fine since Ivelisse didn't look bad and the faces are usually at their best in these kind of matches with a disadvantage. Trece went out at 4:47. Siniestro nearly killed Angelico with sloppy double knees to eliminate him at 6:39, leaving Son of Havoc alone. He did a great springboard move where he double stomped off one onto another and got rid of Negro at 7:50. Catrina got involved again so Ivelisse came back and kicked her in the head. Havoc followed with back to back suicide dives and a shooting star press allowed them to retian. A fun tag match but I'll be glad to hopefully see the Disciples of Death gone. They aren't very good and new challengers should be fun for the champions. ***

Back to Dario's office. He sure has a lot of booze. He's with Rey Mysterio and says that he's starstruck. Rey says that he's here because of Dragon Azteca. Rey knows that Dragon Azteca is dead and believes Matanza killed him. Dario denies this, which is right since it was Black Lotus that ended him. He wants Rey and Dragon Azteca Jr. to compete in the Temple as long as they leave the past in the past.

Mariposa w/ Marty Martinez def. Sexy Star w/ The Mack in 1:24
I love the Mariposa/Marty pairing. Sexy Star was pretty frightened from the start, though Mack tried to motivate her. Sexy did her best to evade Mariposa but bumped into Marty outside, who rolled her inside. From there, it was pretty much all Mariposa. She did miss a moonsault but got back in control quickly. Mariposa ended her with a damn vertebreaker! They called it the Butterfly Effect. It worked as a squash to establish Mariposa. I wouldn't have used Sexy Star for the first time around though. Mariposa could have squashed Kobra Moon or something. NO RATING.

Post match, Marty and Mariposa also took out the Mack.

Lucha Underground Championship: Matanza (c) w/ Dario Cueto def. Pentagon Jr. in 3:57
It's a little thing but I love that Melissa Santos still announces Pentagon without enthusiasm. I also love the camera angle for his entrance. They hyped this up like it was a massive deal. Hell, it felt like a bigger deal than most of the upcoming WrestleMania card. Pentagon hit Matanza with a lot but he no sold most of it for the most part. He even got right up from a lungblower. The right went outside where Matanza just threw Pentagon around. . Inside, he hit the reverse powerslam, known as Wrath of the Gods, and won rather easily. Great hype and while the match wasn't very good, it sold Matazna so well. **1/2

Vampiro gets up from commentary for the first time this season, to check on Pentagon. He yells for someone to call for medics before Matanza kicks him in the face. He takes Pentagon outside and powerbombs him through the announce table. Pentagon is taken out on a stretcher while the fans chant "Cero Miedo".

Overall: 7/10. I felt like tonight was a good episode that built off of last week's incredible one. They introduced Mariposa in fantastic fashion, produced a fun Trios Championship match and really hammered home the Matanza is an unstoppable beast angle. For the first time ever, Pentagon looked beaten and I assume he'll have a comeback story. As always, Lucha Underground just knows how to tell a good story.

If you do want to check out Lucha Underground, which you absolutely should, and don't get El Rey Network (like me), you can sign up for the streaming service Fubo.TV. It's a great way to support the company and channel while streaming the show online. You can sign up and get Lucha Underground here at Fubo.tv!

Raw 3/29/16 Review

The infamous gong went out and signaled that Raw was starting with the Undertaker. He went out and cut one of his typical basic promos about his yard and Shane McMahon resting in peace. It brought out Shane, who looked much better than when he initially returned. Shane is fighting to win, while Undertaker is fighting not lose according to Shane. Shane showed no fear and got in the ring and in Taker's face, saying that his legacy died two years ago when the streak broke. Cold blooded. They brawled and it led to the outside where Shane leveled Undertaker with monitors. He then climbed up top and put Taker through the table with his leap of faith elbow. It was an awesome moment with a molten hot Brooklyn crowd. They didn't waste a big spot either since you can't do this in the Cell on Sunday. As Shane headed up the ramp, Undertaker sat up and did the throat cut signal. The writing and story for this have been nonsensical but Taker and Shane have made it awesome at times. The opening contest saw Chris Jericho take on Zack Ryder. AJ Styles showed up beforehand to question why Jericho wouldn't accept his challenge for WrestleMania. As Jericho got near a win, Styles did the "Y2Jackass" chant, distracting him and giving Ryder the win. Jericho attacked Ryder instantly and then accepted Styles' challenge. Their feud was good for a while but the last few weeks have just been about distractions. Plus, while I'm excited for Styles' first Mania match, we've seen it three times already. It all just feels really lazy.

It was time to hype the Divas Title match. Sasha Banks beat Charlotte on Smackdown but now, it was Becky's turn to get a crack at Charlotte. I never liked this idea because all three girls should look strong heading into the match, not beating each other. Sasha Banks was on commentary. The match was decent and of course, saw Ric Flair cheat to help his daughter win. Ho hum. As promotion for the Andre the Giant Memorial Battle Royal, the Social Outcasts faced Kane and Big Show (aka Local Men). It never really got started and turned into a big brawl as all of the jobbers in the company showed up and joined. Kane and Show laid out Mark Henry and the Outcasts to stand tall. If one of them has to win, I hope it's Kane.

Triple H and Stephanie McMahon came out to cut a promo next and it was a mixed bag. Triple H was mostly fine but Stephanie managed to find a way to shit on the entire roster, saying the rest of the Mania card means nothing. With promotion like that, thank god Mania is part of my WWE Network package. Reigns came out and they did the tired brawl segment before HHH left. Yawn. New Day came out and was over in a way that Reigns has only dreamed about. Kofi Kingston beat Alberto Del Rio in a match that was kind of just there. It wasn't bad but I've seen a combination of these teams go at it countless times so why should I care this time around? Post match, Jonathan Coachman returned, promoted Booty-O's and announced that SportsCenter is coming to Mania.

Joan Lunden is getting the Warrior Award, which was completely misrepresented when they discussed it. Whatever. Backstage, the Dudleys goaded Roman Reigns into a fight, only for HHH to attack him. As with the in ring segment, it was a pro-Triple H crowd. Kalisto faced Konnor next. Not a bad move since Konnor is a big guy, like Ryback, that can take a loss and he also knows how to work with Kalisto from their NXT days. Kalisto won, Ryback came out and just did a lot of "Feed Me More" before leaving. Fine idea for a match, lame way to handle the end. Paul Heyman and Brock Lesnar were out next. Heyman did his usual great build for the match. Dean Ambrose showed up with a wagon of weapons. He went under the ring and found more, putting them in the wagon and leaving. He never made eye contact with Brock. I liked the segment and was glad they didn't brawl since we've been there, done that with a lot of Mania hype.

To follow up a segment involving important people, we went to one that was the opposite. It's harsh but mostly true. Paige took on Emma, though I was extremely happy to see Emma back on Raw. Emma, Summer, Lana and Team BAD are known as Bad and Blonde. Emma won thanks to Lana and the heels had a five on four advantage. Eva Marie showed up to massive boos to become the final member of Team Total Divas. Her partners weren't even happy about it. Considering the Total Divas cast and Nikki Bella's injury as well as Mandy being too new, Eva made the most sense. It just won'y be any good since she remains the worst in the company.

The main event was a six man tag pitting Kevin Owens, Stardust and Miz against Sami Zayn, Dolph Ziggler and Sin Cara. It was a decent match but went far too long and the crowd took a shit on it. I blame the piss poor booking that hasn't given us a reason to care about the match. But hey, why write compelling stories when you can just put a bunch of guys in one match? Zayn pinned Owens to win, wasting the first decision between the two in a match that no one gave a fuck about. The final segment saw the Authority come back out to talk shit. Reigns again interrupted. They brought out the roster and did pull apart brawls. Nobody cared. They only popped for Reigns' big Undertaker like dive outside. Then went back to chanting "you still suck". If it wasn't for the dive, this may have topped last year's Brock/Roman tug of war over the belt.

I found last year's go home to Mania show (outside of the tug of war) to be pretty good. That wasn't the case here. Somehow, this build to Mania managed to be worse than last year's. The opening segment was dope enough to overcome the bad writing. The rest of the show sucked ass, managing to even make a usually loud Brooklyn crowd sit on their hands. Also, giving Reigns & Triple H three segments was a bad move. 4/10.

Fave Five 3/21/16-3/27/16

1) Matanza Cueto: This is one of the easiest choices I've ever made around here. In a relatively slow week, one thing stood above all and that was Lucha Underground's Aztec Warfare II. Like the first Aztec Warfare, this was a really fun match that took up the entire episode. After all twenty entrants came out, Dario Cueto showed up and took back his Temple. How did he do that? By debuting the monster that is his brother, Matanza Cueto. And boy was he a monster. He came in and immediately eliminated the reigning champion, Fenix. Matanza followed that up by dominating the rest of the way and eliminating everyone left, from Chavo Guerrero to Texano and finally to Rey Mysterio. Matanza is the new Lucha Underground Champion and did so in the most badass way possible.

2) Rey Mysterio: Another big moment to come during the fantastic Aztec Warfare match came right at the start. After Fenix entered at number one, Rey Mysterio was introduced as the second participant and the roof of the Temple nearly blew off. We as viewers have seen Msyterio in several scenes, but the believers in the Temple didn't. Seeing Rey was a total surprise and the pop for his arrival was incredible. Mysterio went on to eliminate a fair amount of people and last all the way until the end of Aztec Warfare before falling to Matanza. Rey not only lasted the entirety but he looked better than he did in the last few years of his WWE run even. Hopefully, Mysterio has a big season for Lucha Underground.

3) Los Ingobernables de Japon: Outside of Lucha Underground, it was indeed a slow week. In third place is the group of Tetsuya Naito, EVIL and BUSHI. They took on Chaos (Kazuchika Okada, Hirooki Goto and YOSHI-HASHi) in the main event of NJPW's Road to Invasion Attack in Korakuen Hall. As usual, Los Ingobernables was incredibly entertaining throughout and won a strong main event. They hyped Naito vs. Okada well and each guy played their part. BUSHI spitting the mist at Okada, incapacitating him so Naito can pin YOSHI-HASHI was crucial. Naito needs to win the belt at Invasion Attack. Personally, if he doesn't, it'll be the most disappointed I am in the outcome of a match since HHH beat CM Punk at Night of Champions 2011.

            4) Jeff Hardy: It's not often that I put TNA competitors on this list but sometimes they actually do deserve it. Granted it was a week that didn't feature tons of accomplishments, but still. This week on Impact, Jeff Hardy won a gauntlet match to earn a shot at the TNA Heavyweight Championship. I'm glad Matt isn't champion anymore because I was never a big fan of Jeff vs. Matt matches. Hardy vs. Drew Galloway sounds like it could be a somewhat fun TNA Title match. I don't see Jeff winning the belt again (although TNA has done dumber things) but a win over Jeff just months after beating Kurt Angle and now being champion could do wonders for Drew Galloway.

5) Asuka and Sasha Banks: I went with the rare tie for the final spot this week. First, Asuka won the main event of NXT this week, defeating Emma in a solid match. It wasn't quite on the level of their TakeOver: London match but still mostly delivered. On Smackdown, Sasha Banks bested Charlotte in a decent match. While it wasn't as good as Asuka/Emma, she joined a relatively small list of WWE Divas to pin Charlotte since she got called up to the main roster, gaining some momentum heading into her first ever WrestleMania.