PROGRESS Chapter 62: Fear No More, Come To Dust Review

PROGRESS Chapter 62: Fear No More, Come To Dust
January 28th, 2018 | Electric Ballroom in Camden, Greater London | Attendance: 700
It’s the second PROGRESS chapter of 2018. They got off to a strong start and this card looks even better on paper. Not to waste too much time, here goes the action.

Jim Smallman started off with a heartfelt standing ovation for a friend who lost their child (I believe, the audio wasn’t too clear for it). With that done, things moved to happier tone as he had some fun with the crowd. Unfortunately, Millie McKenzie suffered an injury and was off the show. Her match with Toni Storm was one of my most anticipated.

Natural Progression Series V First Round: Chris Ridgeway vs. Omari
Ridgeway has been making waves on recent PROGRESS shows, while I’ve seen Omari on a handful of shows. They started on the mat for a bit, but moved to strikes and bigger offense. Their exchanges of strikes and kicks were great. Ridgeway always seemed to have a slight advantage, and his series of German suplexes were great. After some great back and forth, they went into just leveling each other with forearms. It was like something out of a NEVER Title match. In the end, Ridgeway countered a suplex into one of his own, and moved into a modified sleeper to earn the win in 10:00. Really good way to start the show and the tournament. They did a lot, without overdoing things as the opener. Great exchanges, with both strikes and submissions, while maintaining a high level of intensity. [***½]

Pastor William Eaver vs. Roy Johnson
Before Live at the Dome #3, I hadn’t seen Roy Johnson since he got ROASTED on the mic during Super Strong Style 16. Johnson being billed from “SOOOOOOOUUUUUUUUUUUTTTTTTHHHHHHH london" is great. They had some fun in the early goings, especially with the opening handshake. Eaver sent Johnson outside and followed with a plancha that didn’t go well. His feet got caught in the ropes and he crashed hard, wrestling the rest of the way with a huge lump over his eye. Eaver looked out of it after that, and it turns out, he also tore his quad on the spot. Johnson scored the win with Wavy Tonic in 7:46. This was fine and I must commend Eaver for finishing with the injury. [**½]

Chris Brookes w/ Kid Lykos vs. Trent Seven vs. Zack Sabre Jr.
This is quite the combination of wrestlers. Sabre’s growing a beard. Since this show took place on the same day as the Royal Rumble, Seven opened by dumping both guys over the top and celebrating. He even pointed up at Jon Briley like he was the WrestleMania sign. That led to a really long, really fun slugfest involving everyone. Sabre brought a ton of submissions, Seven had some hard strikes, and Brookes did a bit of both. They continued with entertaining bits sprinkled in among the great moves. German suplexes, rapid fire chops, piledrivers, sentons, lariats, back fists, etc. This match had them all. Brookes was knocked outside, and Seven wanted his Seven Star Lariat. Sabre avoided it and used the European Clutch pin to win in 18:06 It got a bit too cute at times, but it was a really fun match that had a lot of action. [***½]

PROGRESS World Championship: Travis Banks [c] vs. TK Cooper
These guys were arguably the best tag team in wrestling in the first half of 2017. Instantly, Banks kicked at TK’s recently repaired leg. It set the tone for a more physical match than you’d expect from two friends. There was a great moment where he changed his mind on doing the spot that he got injured on last year, so Banks was more than happy to go high risk against him. There was also Banks delivering a series of kicks to the back, where he would normally only do one. As if he knew to give a little extra to his tough partner. TK had the champ well scouted, avoiding the Slice of Heaven. He also brought out a chokeslam and super Spanish Fly for near falls. Like the Chris Brookes title match, TK grabbed the title and considered using it. Brookes showed up and snatched it from him. TK applied an Octopus Hold and flipped off Brookes, who pulled out the ref and returned the bird to TK. TK hit him with a dive and lost an exchange with Banks inside, tapping to the Lion Clutch in 15:13. Like the Brookes match, this was very good and played off how well Banks knew his opponent. The story of TK fighting through his previous injury and throwing everything he had at Banks was great.[***¾]

Brookes and Cooper got in each other’s face after the match and started brawling. TK hit Banks as he tried breaking it up, causing them to rumble. Banks and Brookes also went at it, while officials entered the ring to pull them all apart.

After intermission, Jim Smallman got set to do his shout outs. Trent Seven ran out in his gear and a jacket, with his luggage and a neck pillow, saying he was paying his own way to get to the Royal Rumble tonight. A few minutes later, he solemnly returned because he missed his Uber. Classic.

As noted, Jinny was scheduled to get a Women’s Title shot. She got hurt and replaced by Millie McKenzie, who also got hurt. Jinny came out, with her hand in a brace and her arm in a sling. She cut a promo about how today was supposed to be one of the biggest days of her career. Jinny spoke about how hard she has worked to get this opportunity and how much she loves wrestling. She put over Millie in this heartfelt promo, but then turned on a dime, by calling the fans pathetic because they instantly forgot about her once her replacement was announced. Jinny handpicked Toni’s opponent, called Toni a princess (while she’s a queen) and a bitch, and introduced that opponent. Great promo from Jinny. She should get a run with the title, even if it’s a short one. 

PROGRESS Women’s Championship: Toni Storm [c] vs. Chakara
Personally, Chakara hasn’t impressed me much. Jinny remained at ringside. Storm offered a handshake, but Chakara elbowed her instead. Her hot start was cut short by a corner powerbomb from the champion. Chakara tried bringing her hardest hitting, best offense, but Toni would snap off a German suplex and stop her in her tracks. Still, Chakara’s aggression stood out here. She hit a nice hammerlock DDT I hadn’t seen from her before, and threw some vicious kicks at a few points. Toni fought through it and hit the Strong Zero to retain in 7:20. Probably the best work I’ve seen from Chakara, though still the worst Storm title defense. There was effort, but nobody ever believed Chakara had a chance. The finish was flat, too. [**¼]

Jinny came face to face with Toni and kicked her in the chest. She continued to put the boots to her, until Toni kind of fought her off. Jinny went to leave, but Toni was jumped from behind by Nina Samuels. All three women stomped on the Women’s Champion. Samuels handed Jinny the title and held the ropes for her on the way out. Jinny’s got herself a stable. I like it.

Danny Jones and Mark Andrews vs. Jimmy Havoc and Mark Haskins w/ Vicky Haskins
Before the match, Eddie Dennis came out to run down Andrews. He said FSU was Andrews and [insert Welsh friend]. He called the fans sheep and said he could feel them turning on Andrews and realizing he’s right. He joined commentary to keep his promise of following Andrews until he gets his title shot. Havoc and Haskins jumped their opponents as soon as they happened. They brutalized Andrews outside, leaving Jones to fend for himself. They toyed with him as he got isolated. Danny fought hard as Andrews kept getting prevented from being in position for the hot tag. He finally got it and hit Stundog Millionaire, but surprisingly tagged back out rather quickly. The finishing stretch saw everyone get in their signature stuff. A Vicky distraction didn’t amount to much, though Jones came close to winning after it. The next Vicky distraction led to the kiss of death and the Acid Rainmaker/kick combo that ended it after 14:33. This was a good tag match. The formula was well done, as was the story of Andrews not being an entirely reliable partner. Havoc and Haskins continue to be a highlight in the ring, though I wish we got more from their story. [***¼]

Doug Williams vs. Flash Morgan Webster
I thought Flash was leaving after his promo on the last chapter. Both guys came in on losing streaks. This opened with some grappling, where Williams had the upper hand. Flash is at his best when working against bigger guys who can kind of bully him, which is what Doug can do very well. In a lot of Doug’s recent matches, he’s been hitting his signature stuff. Kind of what you expect if a guy is on a farewell tour of sorts. Here, he couldn’t quite hit some of it. The flying knee missed and there was no Chaos Theory. It reached a point where Doug was willing to take a countout win. For some reason, Vicky Haskins came out and distracted the referee, preventing him from counting to ten. Flash got back in and won via Strangler in 12:29. Good stuff with some great elements of story. Doug and Flash were both desperate for a win, and Doug couldn’t hit his best stuff, so he was willing to win by countout. I like it. [***¼]

Vicky applauded Flash, who was upset when he noticed her.

PROGRESS Atlas Championship: WALTER [c] vs. Timothy Thatcher
It’s great to see WALTER getting main event treatment. Interestingly, Thatcher turned down a handshake to start. There was lots of grappling to start, but when WALTER slapped the shit out of Thatcher, you could feel the energy change in the room. That kick started a barrage of brutal chops and kicks. Thatcher’s chest was red and bloody within five minutes. He finally found an opening by slamming WALTER’s hand into the ring post, taking away his best weapon. He added an impressed suplex on the outside, but a belly to belly inside failed and WALTER landed on him. WALTER had to rely on left handed chops, which were still stiff, but nowhere near his right hand ability. When Thatcher gets the armbar applied, WALTER sells it like it’s all over. He scrambled to the ropes and continually fought for his life to escape. Thatcher blocked a chop to the chest, so WALTER just chopped him SQUARE ACROSS THE FACE! He found the will to kick out, before eating a lariat, boot, and powerbomb to stay down after 21:39. An unbelievable match. I wrote about so much and still left out a bunch. This was exactly the kind of hard hitting match it needed to be. You could feel the violence throughout. The work on WALTER’s hand was a fantastic idea and added something extra to this. I loved how there were almost no near falls until late, showing how much they knew it would take to beat the other. I could go on and on, but this was incredible. Possibly the best match in PROGRESS history. [****¾]

Post-match, Thatcher gave WALTER the handshake and they embraced.

Overall: 8/10. Not on the consistent level of Chapter 61, but it had much higher highs. While the Women’s Title match lacked in the ring, the angle came off very well. I can excuse Johnson/Eaver due to the injury. The rest of the show ranged from good to outstanding. The Banks angle continued with another very good match and aftermath, while the Haskins/Havoc team delivered in the ring again. They just need more story advancement. I also dug the opener and the three way match. The main event is absolutely must-see and will probably find its way into my top ten when the year ends.

Top Matches of 2017: #90-81

90. GHC Heavyweight Championship: Katsuhiko Nakajima [c] vs. Brian Cage – NOAH Summer Navigation 7/27/17

Cage always looks massive, but in NOAH, he was basically Godzilla. Nakajima had turned back every challenge as GHC Heavyweight Champion and had to slay the biggest monster yet to retain here. NOAH’s known for slow paced main events (Japan in general tends to be), but Cage was having none of that. He came out the blocks firing and powerbombed the champ into the ring post in the opening minutes. Japanese crowds love monster gaijins, so Korakuen was way into Cage. He has the added bonus of impressive athletic offense mixed in with the power spots. Nakajima had to stick and move, connecting with desperation kicks to slow Cage down. He kicked out at the last possible moment so many times and the fans bought into each near fall. Cage survived the Vertical Spike, leading many to believe the title would switch here. It’d certainly make Cage a big deal in NOAH. Cage busted out a SCARY looking Steiner Screwdriver for a wild near fall. HOW WAS THAT NOT THE FINISH? Not to be outdone, he then no sold a top rope brainbuster, before eating another Vertical Spike to lose in 22:13. Great showing for Cage in his biggest NOAH match. They worked as opponents because Nakajima was a good underdog, while still doing enough to keep the physicality battle going. A bit too much of the fighting spirit stuff and it went too long (I think around 15 minutes would have been ideal) to be upper echelon, but it remains one of the better NOAH matches of 2017. [****]

89. PROGRESS Atlas Championship: WALTER [c] vs. Matt Riddle – PROGRESS: New York City 8/12/17

In their first match at Chapter 46, Riddle retained over WALTER. WALTER dethroned him at Chapter 51 in an even better match (more on that later) and this was the rubber match. They began this with mat work that was fairly even. WALTER took to brutally laying in the chops. Never afraid to give back as much as he takes, Riddle responded with chops of his own. It’s a staple of their matches. In their second outing, WALTER had Riddle well scouted and it led him to victory. This time, Riddle was ready, doing just enough to alter his game and avoid a repeat loss. He started deadlifting WALTER and throwing him around, which is never not impressive. Both guys picked up near falls down the stretch that the fans totally bought into. Riddle’s first senton attempt caught knees, but his second worked. He went into the Bromission, adding a series of chops, to make WALTER submit and become a two-time Atlas Champion after 15:58 of action. Not quite on the level of their second match, but better than the first. They played off their previous outings and the sheer viciousness of their strikes was jaw-dropping. [****]

88. NXT Women’s Championship: Asuka [c] vs. Ember Moon – NXT TakeOver: Brooklyn III 8/19/17

Over three months prior, Ember Moon came closer to dethroning Asuka than anyone else. Watching this live, I gave it ***¼, and people weren’t pleased. Looking back, I don’t know why I couldn’t get into it, because I thought it was great on the second viewing. Asuka’s special. I’ll come into a match thinking I’m okay with her losing and then I see her entrance and am like, “KILL ASUKA KILL!” Onto the match, Ember felt she had Asuka’s number and dropkicked her instantly, not letting the champ get out of the gate. Even when Asuka managed to take control, Ember fought valiantly and it felt like her life depended on winning this match. Asuka wisely targeted Ember’s shoulder, which she injured in between the two matches. In their first meeting, Asuka shoved the referee to the ropes to avoid the Eclipse. This time, Ember hit it and the crowd bought it as the end of Asuka’s run. The reaction to Asuka kicking out was insane. At a loss, Ember went for it again and Asuka used a slight referee distraction to get an opening. She survived a superkick, frustrating Ember more, and then retained via Asuka Lock at 14:46. Way better than I remembered. [****]

87. Hiromu Takahashi vs. Jushin Thunder Liger – NJPW Best of the Super Juniors 5/18/17

Jushin Thunder Liger declared that the 2017 would be his final Best of the Super Juniors. The now 53-yeard old legend came in tied for the most tourney wins with 3. On this, the second night, he met the new ace of the juniors division and IWGP Jr. Heavyweight Champion, Hiromu Takahashi. After a night one loss, Liger didn’t want to lose his final Korakuen BOTSJ match, so he came out firing and hit a brainbuster in the aisle in the opening minutes, leading to a countout tease. That set the tone for a wild sprint that was 8:05 of pure action. Liger threw everything in his arsenal at the champion. Unfortunately, it was never quite enough. The beauty of this lied in the pin at the end. After Hiromu hit Time Bomb, he got the three count, but you could see Liger kicking his feet and desperately trying to kick out. He wanted nothing more than to continue, he just didn’t have it in him to do so. Depending on how much longer he wrestles, this very well could be the final great match of Liger’s career. [****]

86. EVIL vs. Kazuchika Okada – NJPW G1 Climax 8/5/17

362 days. Coming into this match, that’s how long it had been since Kazuchika Okada was last pinned in singles competition. This was the fourteenth night of the G1 Climax and Okada was 5-0, while EVIL was 4-2. With Okada seemingly running away with the block, EVIL needed to win to stay alive. For the first time in a long time, it felt like Okada wasn’t in control of a match. Instead of his usual cross body over the guardrail spot, EVIL beat on him with chairs. He wasn’t allowing Okada to get going. Okada was forced to fight from behind because EVIL always had an answer for him. There was quite the big spot where Okada took Darkness Falls onto a pile of chairs in the crowd. It had to suck for him. When he beat the countout, it set up the traditional Okada closing stretch. High energy, great action and the usual Rainmaker stuff. After hitting one from out of nowhere, he subtlety positioned himself to land on his back so he could do his wrist hold stuff that everyone goes nuts for. I usually hate it, but liked it here because he was in serious trouble and because it finally backfired. EVIL ducked a third Rainmaker (like everyone else after eating two), but won the exchange by avoiding it again and hitting the STO to win at 22:47. Biggest win of EVIL’s career. Though the rematch for the Heavyweight Title disappointed, this was awesome and cemented EVIL as the MVP for the B Block of the G1. [****]

85. Open The Twin Gate Championship: CIMA and Dragon Kid (c) vs. Masato Yoshino and Naruki Doi – Dragon Gate Kobe Pro Wrestling Festival 7/23/17

Naruki Doi and Masato Yoshino were formerly known as DoiYoshi or Speed Muscle. They were one of the most exciting tag teams I’ve ever seen, but they hadn’t teamed regularly in a few years, at least from what I could gather. For Dragon Gate’s biggest show of the year, they got a shot at the Twin Gate Titles against two other company mainstays, CIMA and Dragon Kid. When I was first introduced to Dragon Gate eleven years ago, these were four men who stood out. This was a beautiful match. They moved at an absurd pace, yet everything was precise and expertly executed. It takes true brilliance to do what these guys did and make it look as easy as they did. Not everyone loves the Dragon Gate style of tag matches, and that’s understandable, but this was something I think everyone could enjoy. After 21:37 of wild action, Dragon Kid busted out the Dragonrana, which we don’t see often anymore, to retain the titles. I disagree with the decision, since CIMA and Dragon Kid have had a lackluster reign. Lackluster outside of this match though, which was tremendous. [****¼]

84. Evolve Championship: Timothy Thatcher [c] vs. Zack Sabre Jr. – Evolve 79 2/25/17

Timothy Thatcher’s Evolve Title reign was kind of a train wreck. His rise to the top and early title matches were great. In 2015, he killed it against the likes of Johnny Gargano and Zack Sabre Jr. However, his 2016 was atrocious, with his style hampering him and leading to far too many shit matches. Due to that, the crowd turned on him and were very pro Sabre on this night. They came out with stiff strikes and submissions attempts, playing to their strengths. Thatcher got his leg trapped in a brutal looking submission on the ropes, so Sabre went right after that leg with his usual vigor. The heat from the crowd added so much. They hated everything Thatcher did. Down the stretch of this 18:47 bout, there were tons of counters and exchanges of submissions. Sabre applied a sick octopus hold, complete with elbow strikes, extra wrench on the arms and stomps to Thatcher’s head, to finally end his reign of terror. The pop for the Sabre win was incredible. This was easily the best Thatcher match since 2015. He nailed the mannerisms and everything he had to in order to play to the crowd. Great stuff. [****¼]

83. IWGP United States Heavyweight Championship Tournament Quarterfinals: Tetsuya Naito vs. Tomohiro Ishii – NJPW G1 Special in USA 7/1/17

AJ Styles is my pick for the best wrestler in the world, but these guys are #2 and #3. Their chemistry together is killer. I’ve never given them less than ****, which is rare. They came into this with totally different mindsets. Ishii always leaves everything out there and gives his all, while Naito said if he won the US Title, he’d throw it in the trash. Naito was his disrespectful self, slapping Ishii around, stopping to taunt and laughing while getting hit. Though Naito didn’t care about the title, you could tell he still wanted to win, maybe even just to throw it in NJPW’s face. There were several moments where we got a glimpse at how well they know each other. Ishii countering Naito’s signature rebound attack with a headbutt was a highlight. There was a spot I hated, though. Naito failed on his tornado DDT twice and instead of changing it up, Ishii had to stand there while Naito went for it a third time. As it neared the 15:51 finish, they had some great exchanges. Ishii’s neck was worked on throughout, and he sold it expertly, as always. Ishii had Destino well scouted, before winning with the Brainbuster to advance. I liked this more on a second viewing. On NJPW’s first show in the States, it was the first match to stand out and fit the NJPW style. [****¼]

82. AJ Styles vs. Finn Balor – WWE TLC 10/22/17

Throughout the summer and fall, Finn Balor was mired in a completely garbage feud with Bray Wyatt. With the “Demon vs. Sister Abigail” billed for TLC, we were probably in for the worst of it. Then, viral meningitis happened and Bray couldn’t compete. To replace him, Raw borrowed AJ Styles to set up a battle of the first two Bullet Club leaders. They worked this first-time ever match like an NJPW main event. It was deliberately slow in the early stages, before building to the bigger spots. The atmosphere was tremendous. The crowd was into every little thing these guys did. Often, Finn doesn’t do enough to make the “Demon” different from his regular self. Here, he added small mannerisms and showed a more aggressive side at times, which was appreciated. For example, to break the Calf Crusher, he brutally smashed AJ’s head into the mat. We got to see them both do Pele kicks, which was cool, though I wish they both did Bloody Sundays. In the end, AJ missed the springboard 450, setting up Finn to use a flurry of offense to win. He capped it with the best Coup de Grace I can remember at 18:16. It was mostly two guys getting their signature stuff in, but that’s fine. They did this on short notice and delivered a high-quality match in front of a raucous crowd. I love that they didn’t go into a finisher kickout fest either. As good as this was, it felt like they had better in them, maybe with a story and AJ not being jetlagged. [****¼]

81. Bobby Fish vs. Jay Lethal – ROH 15th Anniversary Show 3/10/17

What do you do when you have two top of the card guys without much to do at a PPV? You book them in a “top contender’s match,” which is what this was. These two met in a very good TV Title match in 2015, but this had World Title implications. Lethal wanted to get back to the top, while Fish wanted to reach there at least once. This opened with mat exchanges, but quickly got aggressive when Fish kicked the shit out of Lethal, sending him outside. Lethal then sent Fish outside to hammer home how evenly matched they were. When Fish sidestepped a tope suicida, Lethal crashed chest first, and that chest became Fish’s target. Lethal fought back and only tried another tope suicida when Fish was by the aisle and not a guardrail. Simple, yet smart. The intensity picked up down the stretch. The strikes got harder and Fish dropped Lethal on his head at one point. Fish had the Lethal Injection well scouted before countering it into the Fish Hook. The fans went nuts for that spot. Jay survived and finally hit the Lethal Injection to win in 15:07. Awesome stuff. They worked a smart, layered match where everything felt like it mattered. They had each other scouted, upped the intensity late, had great selling and a clean finish. [****¼]

NJPW The New Beginning in Sapporo Night Two Review

NJPW The New Beginning in Sapporo
January 28th, 2018 | Hokkaido Sports Center in Hokkaido, Sapporo | Attendance: 5,140
NJPW’s set of shows running alongside Royal Rumble weekend continues. NXT handily won night one, but NJPW has two high profile matches here, instead of just one like yesterday. The Jr. Tag Titles (okay, maybe not so high profile) and US Titles are on the line.

Katsuya Kitamura 7-Match Trial Series: Juice Robinson vs. Katsuya Kitamura
Young Lion Cup Winner Kitamura is 0-2 on this series so far (I expect an 0-7 or 1-6 finish), losing to Jay White and Michael Elgin. Last night was a power based battle, but Kitamura had the clear advantage in that category here. Juice had to use his quickness, explosiveness, and strikes to combat it all. Kitamura came close once or twice, while showing the ability to survive some of Juice’s best shots. Unfortunately for him, he couldn’t kick out of Pulp Friction, losing in 9:16. About as good as the Elgin outing. Kitamura continues to look a bit more competitive each time, while Juice gains some momentum before the New Japan Cup. [**¾]

Juice helped Kitamura up after the match in a show of respect.

Jushin Thunder Liger, Ryusuke Taguchi, Shota Umino, and Tiger Mask IV vs. Suzuki-Gun (El Desperado, Taichi, TAKA Michinoku, and Yoshinobu Kanemaru)
Taguchi hugged on Taichi’s woman, which triggered the traditional Suzuki-Gun jumping to start a match. Liger went a bit Shotei crazy after, making up for the lame start. Suzuki-Gun still used their usual underhanded tactics. They spent their time trying to unmask their opponents and cheating. Liger was game and Umino brought a fair amount of energy to this. He nearly beat Taichi with La Magistral. That would’ve been cool, but we know how the Young Lion life is. Taichi bested him with a superkick in 8:32. Better than your usual SG tag. There was more energy than usual. [**¼]

Post-match, Suzuki-Gun unmasked Tiger Mask IV. Taguchi got the mic stand shoved up his ass, then he told commentary he broke his ass.

HIKULEO and Yujiro Takahashi vs. Tomohiro Ishii and Toru Yano
HIKULEO is the former Leo Tonga, going back to the name his father gave him. This went the way you’d expect. Yano provided us with his usual antics, while continuing to be scared of Haku’s kids. Ishii was the highlight anytime he was in the ring. Duh. HIKULEO ran into one of Yano’s exposed turnbuckle, got hit with a low blow and an Ishii lariat, allowing Yano to roll him up to win in 6:16. Your standard tag involving these guys. It was short and to the point, getting Yano and Ishii another win. [**]

The Bullet Club (Chase Owens and NEVER Openweight Six Man Tag Team Champions Bad Luck Fale and The Guerrillas of Destiny) vs. Hiroyoshi Tenzan, Manabu Nakanishi, Togi Makabe, and Tomoyuki Oka
Nakanishi is replacing the injured Kojima, while Oka is replacing Henare, who moved up in the card due to Tanahashi’s injury. The faces got worked over for the most part, including Owens beating up Oka in the crowd. Loa now wears normal trunks, so he doesn’t match with his brother. Old man Nakanishi took the heat and Makabe got the hot tag. He and Fale threw it back to their Tokyo Dome match a few years ago. The next tag went to Oka, who threw Owens around with ease. Owens turned things around and won with a Package Piledriver in 9:04. About what I expected. Everyone did just as well as I thought. Decent action, nothing more. [*¾]

Henare and Michael Elgin vs. IWGP Intercontinental Champion Minoru Suzuki and Takashi Iizuka w/ Suzuki-Gun
Commentary noted how Henare apparently looked up to Minoru. Now, he gets to be beat up by him. How fun. Iizuka took care of Elgin on the outside, leaving Henare to get abused by Minoru and the rest of Suzuki-Gun. Elgin eventually came in and did some hot tag stuff, though none of it really clicked. Suzuki-Gun kept Elgin away, so Suzuki could beat Henare with a knee bar in 8:18. I wasn’t a fan of this. I understood the Suzuki-Gun interference and Henare sold it well, but Elgin was kind of just there and Iizuka adds nothing to a match. Minoru murdering Henare for ten or so minutes would’ve been much better. [*½]

Post-match, Suzuki-Gun went to jump Henare, but Togi Makabe made the save. Minoru backed away, but it seems like that’s a match we’ll get soon.

Bullet Club (Cody, Hangman Page, and Marty Scurll) vs. David Finlay, Kota Ibushi, and KUSHIDA
Look familiar? We had the same match yesterday, but Juice Robinson was swapped for KUSHIDA. The juniors opened against one another, providing us with some good exchanges. Their matches last year were very good. Following a Hangman apron SSP, Finlay became the face in peril. Considering his partners, that was expected. The Bullet Club guys worked like a well-oiled machine. It’s clear they’re comfortable with one another. Ibushi’s hot tag saw him be his amazing self. He ended up facing all three guys and nearly got hit with the apron Cross Rhodes again. KUSHIDA saved him and put Page in the Hoverboard Lock. Cody interrupted and hit Cross Rhodes. Page got another win with the Rite of Passage in 10:30. This was good. Everyone worked well together and the closing stretch was strong. It was a bit too much of the same from the night before, though. [***]

CHAOS (Gedo, NEVER Openweight Champion Hirooki Goto, IWGP Heavyweight Champion Kazuchika Okada, IWGP Jr. Heavyweight Champion Will Ospreay, and YOSHI-HASHI) vs. Los Ingobernables de Japon (BUSHI, Hiromu Takahashi, Tetsuya Naito, and IWGP Tag Team Champions EVIL and SANADA)
This is all to build to singles matches. SANADA/Okada, Naito/HASHI, Goto/EVIL, BUSHI/Gedo, and Hiromu/Ospreay are all on tap next month. CHAOS did the pre-match attack, turning the tables. Almost every interaction in this match was fun. YOSHI-HASHI took the heat for a bit, before tagging in Ospreay. He came out firing on Hiromu. Their speed battle led to a hard hitting back and forth between the NEVER Title participants. Eventually, we got SANADA against Okada. Again, Okada seemed to toy with SANADA, out to trigger something in the future star. We got the offensive barrage from everyone down the stretch, which is always fun. SANADA made Gedo tap to the Skull End at 12:19. Very good sprint. It was better than everything on night one outside of the main event. The chemistry between these units never fails to impress. The singles matches on 2/10 should all be good. [***½]

After the match, HASHI went after Naito but was held back. SANADA said he’ll say all he has to say on 2/10, which angered Okada.

IWGP Jr. Heavyweight Tag Team Championship: The Young Bucks [c] vs. Roppongi 3K w/ Rocky Romero
The Bucks took the titles from RPG 3K at Wrestle Kingdom in a good match. The challengers basically got squashed with ease in the six man tag yesterday. The Bucks were in control early, and chased Rocky Romero to the back, looking to powerbomb him on the aisle like at WK. Roppongi 3K interrupted and it set up a Matt somersault off the apron onto everyone. That move hurt Matt, who had his back give out a bit later. He and YOH, who got powerbombed on the apron) both sold their backs well. As the match progressed, you got the sense that Roppongi 3K were putting it all together. They hit their finish on Nick on the apron and looked more aggressive than ever. Matt survived a lot with the bad back, including the old Young Lion Crab. He fired up at times, but was left as the mercy of his opponents. It positioned the Bucks as the underdog babyfaces, which was weird. He survived enough for Nick to get the hot tag. The Bucks came close to retaining on several occasions following that. Matt using a Sharpshooter while selling his back made for some quality drama that’s usually missing from Jr. tag matches. His back gave out, but he went for it again. YOH was ready and rolled him up to regain the titles in 22:34. That was the best Jr. Tag Title match since the reDRagon/Time Splitter days. The Bucks have moved away from their overly spotty style recently and it has made for better performances. The stories of Roppongi 3K getting more aggressive to regain the titles and of Matt’s back injury were very well told. This played off the WK12 match and the finish provided shades of the WK11 finish. [****]

The booking of the division continues to be a joke. The Bucks have seven reigns and just 9 defenses, while never making the titles mean anything. This is something to build upon, but if history is an indication, Gedo won’t capitalize.

IWGP United States Heavyweight Championship: Kenny Omega [c] w/ Nick Jackson vs. Jay White
Another high profile title match for “Switchblade.” These two actually met in a very good match back when White was a young boy. White showed no fear, slapping Kenny in retaliation for a playful one he got moments prior. Omega proceeded to batter White with tons of offense. He hit a bunch of V-Triggers, the Kotaro Krusher, Aoi Shoudou, and a powerbomb onto a chair. And yet, White seemed to be enjoying the punishment he took. White literally just stopped and laughed as Kenny unloaded V-Triggers at one point. It was easily the best bit of character work for Jay since coming back. He’s gaining more confidence in the gimmick. White gave back his fair share of offense too, including a bunch of big suplexes, highlighted by one on the exposed floor outside. From almost out of nowhere, White hit the Blade Runner for a near fall. They went back and forth again, with Kenny countering one. He had the One Winged Angel countered into another Blade Runner, giving White the victory in 29:54. A much better outing for White than at WK. He’s growing in the role and played things very well here. He knew he would take a beating, enjoyed it, gave it right back, and pulled off the unthinkable. It did go long and the fans still aren’t fully into Jay, though this is a great step in the right direction. [***¾]

After the match, Hangman Page came out to challenge Jay White. Kenny Omega stepped in and snatched the US Title. He handed it over to White, who left with it. Cody Rhodes came out, as he and Page got in Kenny’s face. Cody said he lost and should be done, with it being Page’s turn. The Bucks and Marty joined in to calm things down. Out of frustration, Kenny shoved Matt Jackson, causing the Bucks to leave. Things seemed fine, but then Cody planted Kenny with the Cross Rhodes. Page returned, seemingly ready to help Cody, while Marty didn’t want to do it. Before Cody could use a chair, Kota Ibushi ran in to make the save. The Bullet Club scrambled, leaving Kenny and Kota to huge it out and reunite with confetti falling around them.

Overall: 6.5/10. I gave this the same score as night one. While yesterday’s show only had one standout match and this one has two or three, the undercard really lacks here. Nothing before the Ibushi tag is really worth checking out. Everything from there forward is strong, putting on the above average/pretty good scale. They built to the next New Beginning shows well, advanced the Omega/Ibushi stuff very far, and put a big title on Jay White. Good forward movement and they’ve set things up nicely for the next set of shows.

NJPW The New Beginning in Sapporo Night One Review

NJPW The New Beginning in Sapporo
January 27th, 2018 | Hokkaido Sports Center in Hokkaido, Sapporo | Attendance: 4,862
Usually, the New Beginning events come in February, but here we are. NJPW booked them the same weekend as TakeOver: Philadelphia and the Royal Rumble, so it was easy to forget they were even happening. It’s the first major show after Wrestle Kingdom.

Katsuya Kitamura 7-Match Trial: Katsuya Kitamura vs. Michael Elgin
I’m surprised NJPW continues to book Michael Elgin after everything that was revealed about him. The guys played up the power battle right from the start. Kitamura didn’t back down from his successful opponent and matched him in strength. They traded suplexes throughout this, with Kitamura looking like his equal. Kitamura came close a few times, but they went the predictable route and had him fall to the buckle bomb/Elgin Bomb combo in 8:04. This was a solid opener with good action. I’d have thrown in a twist and had Kitamura go over. [**¾]

Hiroyoshi Tenzan, Jushin Thunder Liger, KUSHIDA, Manabu Nakanishi, and Tiger Mask IV vs. Suzuki-Gun (El Desperado, Taichi, TAKA Michinoku, Takashi Iizuka, and Yoshinobu Kanemaru)
This started with the expected Suzuki-Gun pre-match attack. Doesn’t it ever get old, fellas? Even Don Callis called out the faces for not having it scouted. The Suzuki-Gun guys worked their usual stuff. Not much in the way of interesting offense, underhanded tactics, you know the drill. The faces made their comeback, highlighted by a Liger somersault off the apron. KUSHIDA avoided Kanemaru’s whiskey spit and made TAKA tap to the Hoverboard Lock in 8:06. I’m beyond over Suzuki-Gun matches. Break up the group and get rid of Taichi, Iizuka, and Kanemaru. They add nothing of value. This was basic at best. [*¼]

Chase Owens and Yujiro Takahashi vs. Tomohiro Ishii and Toru Yano
Ishii started with Yujiro and kicked his ass. Owens got tagged and hilariously wanted Yano instead. He’s not stupid. Though Yano was Yano, he found himself in trouble. Commentary had an interesting conversation about guys in stables not challenging champions in the group. Like, why doesn’t Ishii go after Okada’s title? Callis said Gedo would probably kick him out, since it’s all about protecting the champion. Ishii ran wild on a hot tag for a bit. A Yano low blow was interrupted, but Yujiro accidentally got hit by Owens. That left Chase alone to fall victim to a Brainbuster in 7:06. The Yano/Ishii pairing is a fun odd couple tandem. This was solid and will most likely set them up for a Tag Title match at some point soon. [**¼]

NEVER Openweight Six Man Tag Team Championship: Bad Luck Fale and the Guerrillas of Destiny [c] vs. Henare, Ryusuke Taguchi, and Togi Makabe
This was quite the interesting trio of challengers. Before the match, Loa broke Taguchi’s sunglasses, which is the most vile thing a Bullet Club member has possibly ever done. The champs took control by isolating Henare and beating up the other guys outside. It eventually set up the Makabe hot tag, which the fans seemed to enjoy. He was working harder than usual. The final stretch was the best part of this match, with some solid exchanges. Tama Tonga got a near fall on a flapjack, before applying a new submission and making Henare tap at 9:15. Solid enough. I didn’t expect much from the participants, but the champs worked well together, Taguchi was fun, Makabe put in effort, and Henare did well in his role. [**½]

Cody, Hangman Page and Marty Scurll vs. David Finlay, Juice Robinson and Kota Ibushi
Finlay and Scurll had a good back and forth to start, before the focus turned to Cody and Ibushi. Of course, Cody avoided a straight up fight with him, allowing Hangman to take the beating for him. Juice ended up in position as the face in peril. It’s a role he excels at, so it made sense. Ibushi got the hot tag and had another showdown with Cody. His interactions with Scurll made me crave a match between them at some point. Ibushi landed on his feet to survive a missile dropkick style Doomsday Device, which was easily the coolest spot. Things broke down from there. Finlay accidentally Speared Juice, and then was beaten with the Rite of Passage in 10:41. Good fun here. The Ibushi stuff against Cody and Scurll was very good, while Juice played his role well. Some of the closing stuff wasn’t too great, though. [***]

Hiromu Takahashi and Tetsuya Naito vs. IWGP Jr. Heavyweight Champion Will Ospreay and YOSHI-HASHI
This was here to build the upcoming singles matches in HASHI/Naito and Ospreay/Hiromu. Nothing against HASHI, but Naito working him feels like a huge step down after the Tokyo Dome. I’ll say it forever, but the wrong guy won at WK12. The pairings brawled around the ring at the start. Ospreay’s momentum was stalled by a dropkick to the knee. Callis noted that Hiromu and Naito could hold every tag title if they wanted. I believe it. Ospreay’s knee was the focal point, though he didn’t sell it too consistently. HASHI’s hot tag stuff was just like everything else he does. Solid, but unspectacular. Near the end, Ospreay and Takahashi had a wild little exchange. Naito used a low blow and jackknife pin to beat the Jr. Champion at 11:19. I liked Naito cheating to beat Will there. It sells him working heel again after the Dome failure and keeps the champ strong. LIDJ/CHAOS continues to deliver. [***¼]

The groups brawled again after the match, with HASHI/Naito being more physical.

BUSHI and IWGP Tag Team Champions EVIL and SANADA vs. NEVER Openweight Champion Hirooki Goto, Gedo and IWGP Heavyweight Champion Kazuchika Okada
Next month, EVIL faces Goto for the NEVER Title, while SANADA gets his first crack at the Heavyweight Title. SANADA’s new hair is still cool. He and Okada played mind games with one another, EVIL and Goto went right after each other, and BUSHI/Gedo was kind of just there. I did get a kick out of Gedo trying to unmask him and BUSHI pulling his beard to prevent it. The match had a fair amount of action, slightly below the previous one in that aspect. The SANADA/Okada exchanges were good, and give me hope that they’ll FINALLY have a great match together. BUSHI was the clear fall guy for his team, and submitted to Okada’s cobra clutch in 11:52. Good match that had a quick pace to it. The Gedo and BUSHI stuff was lighthearted enough to balance things out. [***¼]

Post-match, Okada called out SANADA to speak. SANADA refused, so Okada attacked him in the aisle. He brought him in the ring, hit a Tombstone, stuffed Okada dollars in his mouth, and put on the cobra clutch. Jerk.

Jay White and Roppongi 3K w/ Rocky Romero vs. IWGP United States Heavyweight Champion Kenny Omega and IWGP Jr. Heavyweight Tag Team Champions The Young Bucks
These are the two title matches on tomorrow’s show. Kenny Omega didn’t take White seriously, turning his back to him during introductions and leaving his shirt on. White attacked him before the bell, showing that he meant business. Following their early battle, a lot of the focus was on the tag teams. White was good at showing how much of a team player he wasn’t. He barely helped his partners and refused to tag at certain points. In the end, his Blade Runner attempt was broken up. That left YOH alone to take a pop-up Indytaker for the finish at 10:53 This was fine. A bit too one-sided for the Bucks and Omega, to be honest. [**¾]

While the Bucks celebrated, White snuck in and dropped Omega with the Blade Runner behind their backs.

IWGP Intercontinental Championship: Hiroshi Tanahashi [c] vs. Minoru Suzuki w/ Suzuki-Gun
I’ve only given out 24 perfect ***** ratings in history. It’s exclusive company. These two had one of those matches back at King of Pro Wrestling 2012. Instead of the typical SG attack, Minoru was content to take things slowly. That put Tanahashi in the driver’s seat first. Suzuki weathered that storm and got violent. He brutally kicked and slapped at Tanahashi, and used a chair. Suzuki toyed with Tanahashi. He put him in various submissions and won strike battles, all the while laughing at Tanahashi’s feeble retaliations. When the champ got going with dragon screws, he added High Fly Flow. However, he landed in a way that caused his knee to give out, giving Minoru another target. He worked a LENGTHY figure four, draining every bit of emotion from the crowd as Tanahashi fought to remain alive. Tanahashi survived, but was basically useless. His vulnerability left him open for the Gotch Piledriver. But, Suzuki didn’t go for a pin. He wanted to destroy Tanahashi, applying the knee bar again. Tanahashi lasted a few more minutes, but once rolled to the center of the ring, Red Shoes had no choice but to call for the bell at 32:28. Suzuki won the title via ref stoppage. This is what I’ve been waiting for from Suzuki. There was no SG bullshit. It took place mostly in the ring and told the story of Suzuki playing the determined Tanahashi like a fiddle. It was a brilliant story. It did go a bit too long (as with most NJPW main events) as they could’ve accomplished the same thing in about 25 minutes. Still, after 27 days (and before TakeOver), this is my current MOTY. [****½]

Overall: 6.5/10. This was a very average show up until the main event. That’s not to say it was bad, because only one match (the Suzuki-Gun tag) was something I’d recommend to avoid. It just featured a lot of basic things that built to the next few New Beginning shows. Other than the main, this screamed “Road to” show. And like those kind of shows, this was good and advanced the stories it needed to. Go out of your way to see Tanahashi/Suzuki.

WWE Royal Rumble Review

WWE Royal Rumble
January 28th, 2018 | Wells Fargo Center in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania | Attendance: 17,629
The last time WWE held a Royal Rumble in Philadelphia was 2015, and it was a travesty. Could 2018 be the improvement we all hope for?

Drew Gulak, Jack Gallagher, and TJP vs. Gran Metalik, Kalisto, and Lince Dorado
As usual with these two hour Kickoff Shows, a match started way earlier than it needed to. By now, they should know to put the focus of the Kickoff matches in hour two, when the crowd has filled in more. These six guys worked hard in front of almost nobody. They got a good amount of time and had a fun little match to start things out. There was a truly funny spot where Gallagher went for a middle rope move and Gulak yelled at him for it. Gallagher assured him it was okay, but missed anyway. TJP took the loss, continuing his struggles, as he fell to a cool Salida Del Sol in 13:13. They don’t have enough cruiserweights, but a Trios Title of sorts would be cool and different for the division. This match showed why. It was very enjoyable. [***]

Karl Anderson and Luke Gallows vs. The Revival
On Raw, the Revival jobbed to the Good Brothers in about three minutes. Not ideal. Here, things were better. The Revival got to showcase a bit of what makes them so good. Karl Anderson played the face (?) in peril, with the Revival being very good at all the little things that make a heat segment work. Gallows’ hot tag lacked fire and was the biggest problem with the match. Anderson became the legal man again and lost to a chop block in 9:09. I didn’t expect that to be the finish. Solid enough thanks to the Revival being good and Anderson’s selling. [**¼]

WWE United States Championship: Bobby Roode [c] vs. Mojo Rawley
Mojo answered Roode’s open challenge. This match was kind of just there. Other than popping for a few things Roode did, the crowd didn’t seem very interested. Mojo had control through the ad break, before Roode fired up. Roode’s babyface fire lacks something. He’s much better as an old school style heel. Roode avoided a forearm and hit the Glorious DDT to retain in a ho-hum 7:37. A nothing match. [*½]

WWE Championship: AJ Styles [c] vs. Kevin Owens and Sami Zayn
The official PPV got started with this match. I was a bit concerned, as KO/AJ was lackluster in 2016 and handicap matches usually suck. However, these are the three best guys on Smackdown and they made it work. Owens and Zayn were great at playing mind games and using the stipulation to their advantage early on. As usual, AJ bumped like a madman for both guys. The superkick/Blue Thunder Bomb near fall worked very well. AJ and Owens had much better back and forth here than most of their singles matches. I also loved how they avoided the overbooking nonsense. Shane’s presence at SummerSlam hurt more than it helped. Here, they just let them do their thing. AJ managed to dump Sami outside and counter a Popup Powerbomb into a pin to retain in 15:51. However, Owens wasn’t really the legal man, so they have reason to continue complaining. The match was laid out excellently. Sami and Kevin came off great, while AJ was great at fighting from behind. [***¾]

WWE Smackdown Tag Team Championship Two Out of Three Falls Match: The Usos [c] vs. Chad Gable and Shelton Benjamin
The Smackdown tag team division doesn’t get the credit it deserves. The Usos have been the best tag team since early 2017 and it continued here. They continued that trend here. Everything they did felt so crisp. Gable and Benjamin were also strong. The teams built up some very good near falls throughout this. I bought the first fall ending at several points. Specially on a Paydirt and an Uso splash. I thought Gable had it with Chaos Theory, but the Usos cut it off. He ducked a superkick, but ate one from the other Uso. They sandwiched him with superkicks to get the first fall at 12:07. I was surprised it took so long to win the first fall. The second fall was kept short, with Jey rolling Gable up to sweep things at 13:51. Though I like how the sweep keeps these kind of matches from being predictable, the way it was laid out made me feel it probably should’ve just been one fall. Regardless, the action was high quality and they had some good drama late. [***½]

Men’s Royal Rumble Match
Though I enjoyed the 2016 Royal Rumble, they’ve all been very lackluster since 2010. Of course, the one year the match is in the midcard, it delivers in spades. It started with Rusev and Finn Balor, making for one of my favorite pairings to start in history. Both guys lasted over thirty minutes. Baron Corbin (#4) got eliminated surprisingly quickly, and left people lying. There was a funny bit where he attacked Heath Slater (#5) during his entrance, and everyone who followed for a while also got in a shot on poor Heath. Elias (#6) got to sing for the crowd, before NXT Champion Andrade Almas (#7) got to come in and shine. I was so happy he got in. He nearly lasted thirty minutes. Tye Dillinger drew #10 again, but was attacked backstage and replaced by Sami Zayn. Sheamus (#11) was the one to put Heath in the ring, but it backfired when Heat eliminated him in a mere two seconds. There was a fun Kofi Kingston (#16) elimination save, as well as an awesome comedic moment involving the appearance of the Hurricane (#21). Adam Cole (#22) made an appearance, though he didn’t do much. Rey Mysterio (#27) returned and looked great. I was disappointed with Miz’s showing. However, the final six were GREAT. We got a faceoff between the present and past of WWE as Reigns, Balor, and Nakamura stood against Mysterio, Cena, and Orton. It came down to Balor, Nakamura, Cena, and Reigns. They all got to have great interactions together. Finn caught Nakamura with an incredible double stomp, before Cena got rid of him after 57:37. Nakamura then eliminated Cena and was left with Reigns. Their exchange was up there with HBK/Taker and Sheamus/Jericho among the best final two battles ever. Nakamura pulled out the win at 66:02 in one of the best Rumble matches ever. It had a little bit of everything. Reigns is a great choice for one of the last guys in the Rumble, because the crowd is so emotional in wanting him to lose. It made for a great atmosphere. Post-match, Nakamura said he was choosing AJ Styles and the WWE Title at WrestleMania. [****½]

WWE Raw Tag Team Championship: Jason Jordan and Seth Rollins [c] vs. The Bar
The crowd was kind of dead after the Rumble. Putting it on in the middle of the show was tough. It didn’t help that this match wasn’t that exciting. However, it succeeded in telling a very good story. Seth started the match and when he went for his first tag, Jordan was pulled off the apron and attacked. From there, trainers came to check on him, leaving Seth to handle all the work inside. When Jordan finally got up, he tagged in and held his head in pain. It was so much, that he tagged right back out. The exhausted Seth questioned this, but Jordan was too busy selling the injury. Seth did hit the Ripcord Knee, but was leveled with the Brogue Kick to lose in 12:48. As I said, this wasn’t great from an action standpoint, but told a strong story and featured a quality performance by Seth. [**½]

WWE Universal Championship: Brock Lesnar [c] w/ Paul Heyman vs. Braun Strowman vs. Kane
They went to war right from the opening bell, which was the right decision. No need for fluff with guys like this. Just like the fantastic SummerSlam match, Braun stole the show. He dominated at points and made up for a few sloppy moments involving everyone else. There were some random uses of weapons, though the table spots involving Braun and Brock were very good. As was Braun standing up and almost no selling having a table dropped on top of him. Braun nearly had it won, but Kane took him out with chair shots. That left Kane to fall to the F5 at 10:53. About as good as I could’ve expected. It was a bit of a war, though other than taking the pin, Kane didn’t serve much of a purpose. [***]

Women’s Royal Rumble
With the main event slot, this had to be good. And thankfully, it was. They hit on a lot of the right notes, similar to the men’s match. With a smaller roster to work with, a lot of the match relied on surprise entrants and nostalgia pops, which made for a really fun match. Sasha Banks (#1) played the iron woman, lasting 54:46, while Becky Lynch (#2) also got a strong showing. Special appearances from Lita (#5), Kairi Sane (#6), Torrie Wilson (#9), and Kelly Kelly (#19) were fine. The highlights were some of the others. Michelle McCool (#14) threw out five girls and looked great. Vickie Guerrero (#16) had a hilarious appearance. Ember Moon (#23) was a nice surprise, as was the Beth Phoenix (#24) faceoff with Nia Jax (#22). Both Bella Twins appeared to big pops, as did Trish Stratus (#30), who still looked like she could go better than most. We even got a callback to the awesome Trish/Mickie James feud. In the end, Banks threw out Bayley (#29) and Trish out, before turning on Asuka. She was then thrown out by the Bellas, leaving it down to them and Asuka. Nikki eliminated her sister and had a fun little exchange with Asuka at the end. It looked like Nikki was going to win after a forearm, but Asuka kicked her in the knee and got rid of her at 58:59. Everyone worked hard and they laid out the surprises and interactions very well. Most importantly, I had so much fun watching this. Kudos to everyone involved. [***½]

Post-match, Alexa Bliss and Charlotte entered the ring so Asuka could make her choice for WrestleMania. Before she could, “Bad Reputation” hit and out came the debuting Ronda Rousey. She pointed to the WrestleMania sign (and looked awkward while doing it) and wanted a handshake from Asuka. Asuka, being amazing, just kind of slapped her hand away. She exited and shook Stephanie McMahon’s hand (Steph was on commentary) to close the show. I’m glad Rousey wasn’t in the Rumble. I understand why she’s being brought in and it makes sense, I just think doing it here took the focus off Asuka too much.

Overall: 8.5/10. A great start to 2018 for the WWE. Other than lame US Title match, everything was solid at the very least. There’s a good cruiserweight tag and two solid tag team matches from the Raw brand. The Smackdown Tag Team Title match is very good, while the Universal Title match was a fun car crash. I thought the WWE Title match was better than expected, with all three guys delivering the best handicap match I’ve ever seen. This show really succeeded with the two Royal Rumble matches. Recently, most of the Rumble matches were lackluster. But, they delivered two very good Rumble matches this year and the long show didn’t feel very long.