WWE Fastlane
March 5th, 2017 | BMO Harris Center in Milwaukee, Wisconsin
Akira Tozawa and Rich Swann def. The Brian Kendrick and Noam Dar w/ Alicia Fox in 9:23
As usual, the cruiserweights got the Kickoff show treatment. The main focus here was the rivalry between Kendrick and Tozawa. Tozawa took an early heat before tagging Swann. That just led to a heat segment on Swann and Tozawa getting the true hot tag. The crowd reacts to him, which gives him a leg up on most cruiserweights. After some dives, Swann hit a superkick and Tozawa took out Kendrick with the snap German. A Phoenix splash on Dar ended things. This was a fine tag match and something I’d expect to see on 205 Live. It was every other cruiserweight tag in that it was solid fun but wildly unspectacular. **¾
Samoa Joe def. Sami Zayn in 9:47
Starting the main show was the most interesting match on the card. They had two great matches in NXT last year but this wasn’t meant to be that. This was here to establish Joe as a serious threat and it accomplished the goal. He dominated from the start and Sami is the best at playing the sympathetic babyface role. Sami got in the hope spots he needed to, like the blue thunder bomb, but the outcome was never in doubt. Joe avoided the Helluva kick with an STJoe and won with the Coquina Clutch. Mostly one-sided but it did what it had to. ***
Originally, this is where I cut the show off. The card was that uninteresting to me. I only went back to watch the matches for the sake of doing a review.
WWE Raw Tag Team Championship: Karl Anderson and Luke Gallows (c) def. Enzo Amore and Big Cass in 8:52
The challengers sent the champions packing early and Cass tossed Enzo onto them. One issue about Enzo and Cass matches is that Enzo always has to take the heat, which can get repetitive. I know other teams have been in a similar situation but for some reason I don’t love it with them. After a few hope spots were cut off, Enzo made the tag and Cass did his thing. They hit a weak rocket launcher but Gallows broke up the pin. The Boot of Doom finished Enzo and his foot was knocked off the rope. Standard tag stuff. Anderson and Gallows have been largely average at best in their WWE run. This was another in a string of ho-hum matches. **¼
Sasha Banks def. Nia Jax in 8:13
Their match at the Royal Rumble told the right story, but that didn’t stop it from being boring. This got more time but Sasha wasn’t hobbled by a knee injury and could do more. They played the size disadvantage situation you’d expect from these two. Sasha brought fire but Nia would just shove her back and destroy her. Nia tossed her around the ring and, like Samoa Joe earlier, dominated this. Sasha found some openings and hit a tornado DDT into the Bank Statement. Nia powered out with a spinebuster but Sasha countered a Samoan drop into a rollup to steal it. Better than the Rumble outing though the finish was kind of clear with how the match was laid out. The crowd being invested helped. **
Cesaro def. Jinder Mahal in 8:01
This wasn’t announced beforehand. Mahal and Rusev wanted to prove themselves as singles guys so Foley told them to go out there. They argued and brawled over how got to compete first, with Mahal getting the chance. I have no clue why they brought Mahal back. He’s just as bland and boring as before, except he now looks like he’s trying to get to Scott Steiner levels of steroid use. For the first time in forever, I was completely bored during a Cesaro match. That shouldn’t be possible. Cesaro won with a big uppercut. This was just not good. *½
Big Show def. Rusev w/ Lana in 8:55
Big Show came out to face Rusev. They had a surprisingly decent match back in 2014. For some reason, this was given a lot of time. Rusev had a wise game plan, working the knee to cut Show down to size. Show ignored it at times and got his stuff in. Rusev clipped the knee and hit some superkicks for two. Show escaped the Accolade, hit three chokeslams and the WMD to win. Why? Show shouldn’t be going over guys like Rusev at this point. Rusev is consistently one of the best things on Raw and he gets treated like crap. ¼*
WWE Cruiserweight Championship: Neville (c) def. Jack Gallagher in 12:21
Along with Joe/Zayn, this was the most interesting thing on the card. Neville tried to get in Gallagher’s head but Jack turned the tables. His corner headstand seemed to bother Neville. The champ did take control, making sure to stop, gloat and talk smack in between his work. Part of Gallagher’s rally saw him use Neville’s superplex for a near fall. He took a nasty bump on a German but kicked out of Neville’s middle rope Phoenix splash. By the way, Neville doing that kills Swann’s version earlier. Gallagher hit headbutts for a near fall. They sounded brutal. He fought off a superplex with some headbutts. Neville looked out of it but sent him to the mat. He reached deep into his bag of tricks and won with the Red Arrow, which he hasn’t used in months. Easily the best thing on the show. A lot of cruiserweight matches don’t stand out because they’re similar to everything else. Here, this was different from the rest of the card and that helped. There was a great intensity and it was one of the best Cruiserweight Title matches so far. ***½
Roman Reigns def. Braun Strowman in 17:13
Braun did Braun things. He threw Roman around like he was nothing. You know, between Braun, Joe and Nia (not to mention guys like Show and Rusev), there are a lot of big brutes on Raw. This suffered from a similar fate to previous matches on the show. The first two-thirds or so were largely uninteresting. It wasn’t until the home stretch where things picked up. After Braun had control for most of the match, they started trading big blows and Braun survived some of Roman’s best shots. He kicked out of a spear and survived multiple Superman punches. Of course, he missed a splash and took the loss. With Roman set for the Undertaker, you knew he’d win here. This went too long. Braun has been good lately but he’s not ready to work 15+ minutes and Roman’s good, but not at a level where he can carry this. I feel like they had good ideas but I was disappointed overall. **¾
WWE Raw Women’s Championship: Bayley (c) def. Charlotte in 16:47
So, I’ll rant a bit here but I want to touch on the match itself quickly. Charlotte came out with Dana Brooke but sent her back so it could be one on one. That was a great idea if the match stayed that way. This was similar to their Rumble match. It felt like they were going through the motions a bit. Like, I’ve seen them do better. It came across like they were just killing time to get to the run-in stuff near the end. They had several awkward spots where Bayley tried getting in her corner elbow. As Charlotte went for a moonsault outside, Sasha ran down. They brawled, which somehow didn’t cause a DQ. Charlotte took care of her and got hit with a Bayley to Belly outside. She tried a rollup with a handful of tights but Sasha showed the referee. Another Bayley to Belly ended things. What a shit finish. They built up Charlotte’s PPV streak (at the expense of any Sasha Banks momentum by the way) and should have made it ending a big deal. Instead, it ends on a fart because the faces basically screwed her here. Also, they’ve badly mishandled Bayley. This whole angle is falling flat and I’d much rather we get a straight babyface (with none of this cheating nonsense) Bayley against a heel Sasha at Mania. The match was blah. **½ for the match, DUD for the booking.
WWE Universal Championship: Goldberg def. Kevin Owens (c) in 0:21
Yea, I knew this was gonna happen but it still sucks. Owens stalled outside after the bell rang, but then Michael Cole said it never did. Goldberg looked blown up from his entrance. Owens finally got ready to compete and Chris Jericho came out. The bell rang and the distraction led to the spear and jackhammer. Goldberg wins, we get a shitty Goldberg/Lesnar III match for the title and everything sucked. NR
I’d like to point out that since the brand split, I’ve given seven Smackdown PPV matches at least ****. (Miz/Ziggler at Backlash and No Mercy, Dean/AJ at Backlash and TLC, Dean/Cena/AJ from No Mercy, AJ/Cena at the Rumble and the Elimination Chamber match).
In that span, I’ve given zero **** ratings to anything Raw has produced.
Overall: 3/10. This was easily the worst WWE PPV in quite some time. Right up there with TLC 2014 as the worst of the Network era. A lot of the show felt hollow. I know the last PPV before WrestleMania tends to lack but this truly felt like a bunch of people killing time until the big event. Joe/Zayn was smartly booked and Neville/Gallagher stole the show. The rest of the show is an easy pass thanks to mediocre performance, horrible booking or a combination of both.
I'm still finding it hard to care about the cruiserweights. Kendrick and Tozawa have been rather entertaining, but Noam Dar continues to be an entertainment vacuum. Outside of the way he says Alicia Fox's name, I find no enjoyment in anything he does. The match should be similar to most cruiserweight stuff so far. Fun, fast paced and with little heat or emotion. The faces win to get Tozawa somewhat of a PPV win.
Winners: Akira Tozawa and Rich Swann
I saw this at the Royal Rumble and didn't like any of it. This one has potential to be a bit better since Sasha will have use of both legs but I'm not expecting much. I see it going one of two ways. One, Sasha scores an upset win to gain momentum before Mania. Two, the more likely, Nia wins and it further fuels a Sasha heel turn before Mania. I go with option B.
Winner: Nia Jax
It's a rarity but the Cruiserweight Title match here actually focuses on two rather over wrestlers. Jack Gallagher gets good pops on most nights, while Neville is arguably the most known cruiserweight thanks to his time before the division came around. It has potential to steal the show if the crowd give a damn about it. I can't see Neville dropping the title this soon, despite the hot potato of the title so far.
Winner: Neville
The Raw tag team division is kind of a mess. Though Gallows and Anderson have the titles, they're still kind of a joke. Enzo and Cass did a whole lot of nothing for the past few months before getting this title shot. It's the PPV before Mania so I expect a lot of BS around the card. The champs will either lose via DQ or win by cheating before a multi-team clusterfuck at Mania.
Winner: The Good Brothers
This is my pick for match of the night. Samoa Joe and Sami Zayn had two great matches in NXT last year. The Two out of Three Falls one was the best match Joe had since signing with WWE. Joe is a brute and Sami is the best underdog and best at taking a beating in the company. It's like they were made for each other. Sami has shown that he can take losses and rebound well. Joe has to win in his first big match.
Winner: Samoa Joe
On a brand with talent like Kevin Owens, Sami Zayn, Chris Jericho, Cesaro and many others, the best part of Raw in recent months has been Braun Strowman. Roman Reigns has been one of the lesser parts. He's hot and cold in terms of entertainment and he's been on a cold streak for me lately. I think the best bet would be to have Braun win here. However, I've said it before but there are three people I never bet against. Roman Reigns is one of them. Especially if he has to look strong before a match with the Undertaker.
Winner: Roman Reigns
I cannot stress enough how awful the Women's division is on Raw. A fair amount of talent sure, but horrible booking. Bayley is a great underdog who should've gotten close a few times before getting a big win. Instead, she beat Charlotte in several non-title matches before losing just once at the Royal Rumble and then getting the win. That wouldn't have been that bad but they're running this horrid angle where Bayley won via help from Sasha so she looks like a paper champion who is undeserving. Also, most of us see where this is going. Everything in this division is a vehicle for Charlotte. Charlotte keeps her streak alive here (another person I don't bet against), Bayley looks like a lameduck champ and the division continues to be incredibly boring.
Winner: Charlotte
There's a 95% chance I don't watch this match. Goldberg is gonna win so they can do the shitty Goldberg/Brock III match for the title at Mania. That leaves Kevin Owens, who has worked his ass off for the entire year to not be champion at the biggest show of the year. I understand the use of part-timers and I get their value but they should not hog up the title picture. Goldberg will probably win quickly judging by Owens' promo on Monday. It was awesome but he spoke about making Goldberg work a long match so I doubt it. Whatever.
Winner: Goldberg
2017 Prediction Record: 6-9
2016 Prediction Record: 65-37
Notes from the NXT Cleveland show I attended with my brother and friend.
- It was hell waiting in line for two hours in 20 degree weather. We wait in line because the arena's seats are first come, first serve. Like, you buy ringside but you get first row if you get there early enough. Luckily, we did.
- Kayla Braxton looks incredible in person.
- Kassius Ohno opened to a huge pop. He had Team USA basketball inspired gear. Kona Reeves go no reaction. He did okay but flubbed a spot that messed up an Ohno flip. Ohno won in short order.
- Patrick Clarke got a ton of heat. He got into it with some fans at ringside. Aleister Black was his opponent and he got a pop, plus some Tommy End chants. This was a better match. Black was great and Clarke showed a lot of potential.
- No Way Jose is a blast. His promo was cut off by Elias Samson in a mask, calling himself the Wanderer. It was really funny. He cut down Cleveland in a song but then lost to Jose.
- Nikki Cross is great live. She beat Macey Estrella, who I didn't even know existed.
- Almas was awesome but when the crowd saw Nakamura was his opponent, they lost their minds. Nakamura is a spectacle live. This was easily the MOTN up to this point.
- After intermission, DIY wrestled SAnitY. Young was the manager. Dane is massive. DIY and especially Johnny was way over. As usual, DIY had an excellent tag match. They can do no wrong in that environment.
- Asuka beat Liv Morgan to retain her title. Morgan seems VERY green still and struggled. She still needs a ton of work.
- The main event was Roode/Dillinger for the NXT Title. This was a very old school main event. Roode did things like using the rope for leverage, Tye sold the hell out of leg work and Roode did some Flair spots. They wrestled in front of me at one point, which was cool. I loved this match, probably more than their TakeOver one. Tye had it won with his finisher but Eric Young ran out for a distraction. Roode hit a low blow and his finish to win. EY and Roode had a staredown, getting "TNA" chants. They both jumped Tye, bringing out Nakamura for the save.
- Roode is a tremendous old school heel live.
- Tye got on the mic and brought out DIY. He put them over as the future of tag team wrestling and said Nakamura is his favorite wrestler. It sounded like a goodbye of sorts for Tye. They all posed and left.
NJPW New Japan Road
March 1st, 2016 | Korakuen Hall in Tokyo, Japan | Attendance: 1,401
Yujiro Takahashi def. Tomoyuki Oka in 5:18
Oka is an impressive young lion, while Takahashi is among the worst performers in NJPW. At least his gimmick is cool. He doesn’t have his cool theme anymore, which is sad. Oka came out firing and used his power for an early upper hand. Takahashi turned it around and works some generic stuff. It’s really all he’s got. Oka fought back hard and locked in the Boston crab, but Takahashi reached the ropes. Yujiro then hit the pimp juice DDT for his first singles win since 2015. This was standard. Oka brought some fun fire and Yujiro got a win before his upcoming early exit in the New Japan Cup. *¾
CHAOS (Jado, IWGP Jr. Heavyweight Tag Team Champions Roppongi Vice and YOSHI-HASHI) def. Suzuki-Gun (El Desperado, Taichi, TAKA Michinoku and Yoshinobu Kanemaru) in 10:08
Man, CHAOS has beef with everyone huh? Jado and Desperado began, which almost instantly put me to sleep. Jado is so bad. Everybody ended up brawling outside, with Suzuki-Gun using their trademark underhanded tactics. Jado continued to take a beating, even with the ring bell hammer, but I just can’t muster up sympathy for him. He made the tag to Beretta, so RPG Vice came in to save the match. Kanemaru bumped their stuff horribly. YOSHI then got the tag and he came in hot. The match broke down and he was left alone with TAKA. YOSHI made him submit to the butterfly lock. So, Suzuki-Gun returned and has looked like complete losers. I would be more upset but I’d like the Jr. Tag Title picture to move away from the unit. With guys like Sabre and Dragon Lee bolstering the Jr. ranks, there’s no excuse to waste the division on the likes of Taichi. Also, Jado sucks. **
Bullet Club (Bad Luck Fale, The Guerillas of Destiny and Kenny Omega) def. Manabu Nakanishi, TenKoji and Yuji Nagata in 10:20
THE NEW JAPAN DADS! This started quickly, with everyone going at it. Omega sold the Kojima chops, with his shirt over his head, in hilarious fashion. As the match calmed down, Kojima took the heat, including a series of chops from Tonga that kind of mimicked his. He took all sorts of tandem offense. Nagata got the hot tag and ran wild over everyone. Judging by the way he suplexed GOD around, you’d think he had a rivalry with them. Nakanishi got the tag, which the crowd loved. Omega saved his guys and hit Nakanishi with v-trigger, leading Tonga winning with the Gun Stun. I found this to be fun. The New Japan Dads brought energy, while the Bullet Club played their roles well. It was a clear night off for Omega but even had some fun. **¾
CHAOS (NEVER Openweight Champion Hirooki Goto and IWGP Tag Team Champions Tomohiro Ishii and Toru Yano) def. Great Bash Heel and Jushin Thunder Liger in 10:26
This was here to help build to Yano and Ishii vs. GBH for the Tag Titles. Goto and Liger were kind of just there. Surprisingly, Honma hit Kokeshi in the first few minutes and the crowd ate it up. Yano did Yano things for a bit. Honma took a bit of a beating from the three CHAOS members. Ishii no sold some of his chops as they called back their old rivalry. They seemed to tease Goto/Liger, which would be a fun NEVER Title match if we got it. I don’t see it on a big event but still. Liger came close to beating Yano with a rollup before Yano returned the favor and got the three. About on par with the last match. Goto and Liger had fun interactions, while the tag guys did what you’d expect. **¾
Davey Boy Smith Jr. and Minoru Suzuki def. David Finlay and Katsuyori Shibata in 14:37
The New Japan Cup brackets were released the other day and one of the matches that excites is between Shibata and Suzuki. It’ll be their first singles match since 2004. They had some back and forth at the start before Finlay took on the larger Davey Boy Smith. This went the Suzuki-Gun route you’d expect with outside brawling. Finlay got caught in an armbar over the ropes, while Shibata got destroyed in the crowd. That included having his arm wrenched while wrapped in a chair. That led to Finlay taking a beating from the heels. Shibata’s eventual hot tag still led to him getting put in an arm submission. The fans loved their exchanges. Finlay ended up going against Smith in the end and fell to a sitout powerbomb while Shibata and Suzuki fought outside. Best thing on the show so far. Finlay and Smith looked great out there, while this added to my existing excitement for Shibata/Suzuki. ***¼
Hiroshi Tanahashi, Juice Robinson, KUSHIDA, Michael Elgin and Ryusuke Taguchi def. Los Ingobernables de Japon (NEVER Openweight Six Man Tag Team Champions BUSHI, EVIL and SANADA, IWGP Jr. Heavyweight Champion Hiromu Takahashi and IWGP Intercontinental Champion Tetsuya Naito) in 12:57
This was here to build Takahashi/Taguchi but also now helps set up EVIL/Tanahashi during the New Japan Cup. I’ve seen it a lot in these multi-man tags but the interactions between Naito and KUSHIDA are always awesome. Naito got taken out by a five man dropkick from all his opponents. We also got a preview of a potential KUSHIDA/Takahashi rematch down the line. KUSHIDA took a short heat but then Tanahashi and Elgin got their time to shine. EVIL got his knees up on a double team attempt and Juice got the tag along with BUSHI. Juice brought his usual fire but got hit with tandem offense by LIDJ. The final stretch saw a barrage of everyone getting their stuff in. Tanahashi took out EVIL with a dragon screw, leaving BUSHI alone to lose to Pulp Friction. Another solid win for Juice on the way to the New Japan Cup. This worked to continue the existing feuds and setup some upcoming matches, while being full of action. I continue to say it because it remains true but LIDJ have mastered the multi-man tag. ***½
Tiger Mask IV and Tiger Mask W def. Gedo and IWGP Heavyweight Champion Kazuchika Okada in 17:11
IT’S BRING YOUR KID TO WORK DAY! Seeing Ibushi vs. Okada was admittedly interesting, though not quite as fun as it would be if it weren’t under these circumstances. Their match in 2014 was great. After the Tiger Mask team held serve, the CHAOS buddies went after the masks. Tiger Mask IV took the heat for a while and W kept getting knocked off the apron or thrown outside. He finally got the hot tag and did trademark Ibushi spots. I miss Ibushi. He and Okada exchanged some counters of their signature moves, including W turning a Rainmaker into a great German suplex. They brawled outside, giving us Gedo and IV for a bit. Gedo was rather entertaining here. He took a bit of a beating on a tombstone, dropkicks and head butts. W took out Okada with a moonsault, while IV beat Gedo with a tiger driver. This was a fun main event highlighted by Ibushi vs. Okada with some Gedo entertainment sprinkled in. ***¼
Overall: 6/10. Like most of the smaller NJPW shows, this was filled with tags and mostly entertaining but not blow away. The main event was fun, while the two matches before it were also really good. The show also clocks in at under 2.5 hours, making it a very easy watch.
ROH/NJPW Honor Rising Night Two
February 27th, 2017 | Korakuen Hall in Tokyo, Japan | Attendance: 1,271
After a mediocre at best night one, the ROH/NJPW joint production is back for night two. Admittedly, this card looks better. It features what should be a wild eight-man tag main event and two title matches. This was not a sellout. Apparently, tickets for this show were as expensive as G1 Climax shows in Korakuen, which is laughable considering ROH’s huge lack of star power.
Jado and Silas Young def. David Finlay and KUSHIDA in 8:16
We got another generic “real man” promo from Young about a lack of respect. They got the early jump on their opponents in typical fashion. Jado is just horrible. I continue to watch him and just never find him even remotely entertaining. KUSHIDA surprisingly took the heat for his guys. I’d expect him to be the hot tag guy, but he did fine in drawing sympathy. KUSHIDA hit a handspring double back elbow on his opponents and got the tag to Finlay. His string of offense was fun and went toe to toe with Silas. Silas’ moonsault worked this time around. Young then planted Finlay with Misery and won. Like a lot of night one, this was fine. Silas looked better here and got a round of applause before leaving. **½
Los Ingobernables de Japon (NEVER Openweight Six Man Tag Team Champions BUSHI, EVIL and SANADA, IWGP Jr. Heavyweight Champion Hiromu Takahashi and IWGP Intercontinental Champion Tetsuya Naito) def. Dalton Castle, Delirious, Jushin Thunder Liger, Ryusuke Taguchi and Tiger Mask IV in 10:32
Some of the Young Lions dressed as the Boys tonight. Taguchi did the Castle entrance, complete with peacock cape. Naito and Rocky got into it before the match again. I’d be all for a Rocky/Naito IC Title match on a smaller “Road to” card or something like that. Delirious ran wild early but tagged to Castle, who was rather over. LIDJ took over with their usual tactics. That included Naito tying Delirious’ mask to a railing and beating him up. Tiger Mask got worked over by the heels for a while. Taguchi got the hot tag and worked Takahashi to build their upcoming title match. We usually can’t understand Delirious but as he picked up EVIL, he clearly said “HE’S HEAVY AS HELL”, which made me laugh. He tried using a chair as revenge for night one but got stopped by the official. He fell to the STO shortly after. Fun match where almost everyone brought something to the table and it built towards Taguchi/Takahashi well. ***
After the match, Taguchi and Takahashi continued to brawl. Tiger Mask has his mask removed and had to be covered up.
War Machine def. The Guerillas of Destiny in 9:21
Tama and Rowe started things out. Tama knocked Hanson off the apron, so Rowe did the same to Tonga. GOD took over and busted out some fast paced tandem offense on Rowe. Hanson came in hot and did a bunch of corner clotheslines. Rocky said he did them wrong because he wasn’t screaming “FOREVER.” War Machine hit their popup powerslam for a close near fall. The fans seemed way into War Machine. GOD cut off Fallout and Tama nailed Veleno. Things broke down into a wild brawl with all four men trading offense. The finish came Rowe blocked Gun Stun and hoisted Tama up for Fallout. Easily my favorite Guerillas match besides the one against Ishii and YOSHI. It was hard hitting, had a hot crowd and was intense. War Machine are great in Japan and I do see improvement from GOD. ***½
War Machine cut a short promo saying they want the IWGP Tag Team Titles, regardless of who the champions are.
The Bullet Club (Bad Luck Fale, Hangman Page and Yujiro Takahashi) def. Hiroshi Tanahashi, Jay Lethal and Juice Robinson in 9:10
Fale attacked the ring announcer during his introductions again. After some standard stuff early on, Juice took the beating for his team. Most of it was Fale before he let Page and Yujiro handle it when he got tired. Juice’s tag eventually saw Lethal and Tanahashi do their thing to a healthy pop. An assisted slingblade got two for the babyfaces. With Juice and Tanahashi outside, Page took out Lethal with a big lariat for the win. Considering he’s pinned Jay Briscoe and Lethal in the past six months, ROH should certainly push Page. They could use another star or six. This was as solid as it could be with not much Tanahashi involvement and guys like Yujiro and Fale involved. **
NEVER Openweight Championship: Hirooki Goto (c) def. Punisher Martinez in 10:49
Punisher did a lot of campy villain stuff early. He laughed and taunted to show he wasn’t intimidated. Goto taunted back, showing he wasn’t intimidated either. His size allowed him to go toe to toe with the hard hitting champion. At one point, they just traded forearm strikes before Martinez wiped him out with a big lariat. Knowing he was in trouble, Goto slid outside to avoid his challenge but Martinez met him with a big diver over the top. It was a way less impressive version of Undertaker’s signature dive. He got two on a super spin kick before trying a chokeslam. Goto countered and they traded more strikes before Goto again countered a chokeslam into GTR. This was better than I expected. I’m not sold on Martinez but he looked better here than in the tag on night one. Good, hard hitting back and forth work from both men. ***
ROH World Championship: Adam Cole (c) def. YOSHI-HASHI in 16:27
YOSHI-HASHI had a great 2016 and continues to impress. Adam Cole is just there. YOSHI earned this shot by pinning Cole in a tag at New Year Dash. The crowd seems to enjoy the “BAY BAY” part of Adam Cole’s taunt. YOSHI got a slight advantage, so Cole took things outside and swung the momentum in his favor. Inside, Cole cut off any YOSHI rally attempts. Even when it looked like YOSHI finally got going, Cole slipped free and hit a shining wizard for two. YOSHI countered the next one into a roll up for two. That got him going, getting another near fall on a powerbomb. Cole brought the smack talk, only to get pulled into a butterfly lock. Cole survived the submission and a swanton bomb. He hit the Destroyer but only two, which angered him. He tried Last Shot but YOSHI turned it into another roll up for two. It two some superkicks, shining wizard, another near fall and finally the Last Shot for Cole to retain. Best match of Cole’s two most recent ROH World Title reigns. He looked good early and YOSHI brought a ton of fire. The near falls down the stretch stopped just shy of overdoing it. ***¼
Bullet Club (Cody, Kenny Omega and the Young Bucks) def. The Briscoes, IWGP Heavyweight Champion Kazuchika Okada and Will Ospreay in 20:16
Omega and Okada went to start but Okada wanted Cody instead. The crowd was pro-Kenny, though that’s not surprising as a lot of Okada opponents are more popular. Omega declined, so Okada tagged out himself. Ospreay got the first real shine, overwhelming the Bucks with his athleticism. He got in trouble though and took offense from all four BC members. They did a funny spot where they kept sending Ospreay into their boots in the corner, but it backfired on them eventually. Ospreay nearly got the hot tag but all his partners were pulled off the apron. They kept finding innovative ways to their signature spots, which I appreciate. Ospreay finally broke free with a stunner and tornado DDT and tagged Okada as Cody got tagged in. They traded stuff, while Okada also took out the Bucks. The Briscoes got the tag and came in on fire. Ospreay hit a great dive outside before Cody tried to superplex Okada onto the pile. Okada isn’t taking that kind of bump on a show like this, so Ospreay intervened and took the move instead. This led to the Okada/Omega battle. Omega still couldn’t hit the One Winged Angel. The Bucks broke up their fight with superkicks and Okada took a triple superkick. Everybody got shine in a crazy fast paced stretch near the end. Jay hit a superplex, Mark hit froggy bow and Okada hit his elbow. The Rainmaker pose was met with boos. Omega countered with a knee but got caught with a Spanish fly by Ospreay. Cody and Will became the legal men and after a fun exchange, Cody caught the Oscutter into the Cross Rhodes for the win. Exactly the wild, chaotic match I was hoping for. Each guy brought something to the table. The result was a match that never stopped, had some fun comedy moments, Ospreay taking the heat in front of a hot crowd, teases of Okada/Omega and more. The best thing on these shows. ****
Kenny Omega cut a short promo about them being the elite and that 2017 would be their year. Adam Cole did not come out to celebrate with them.
Overall: 7/10. A much better outing on night two. The main event is genuinely great and an absolute blast. I say this despite not being a fan of a few guys involved. Goto/Martinez is better than expected and I enjoyed Cole/YOSHI. The undercard is mostly enjoyable and accomplishes the goal of building the matches it should. I also really enjoyed War Machine/GOD and am hoping to see more War Machine in NJPW in 2017. I’m still not going back to watching ROH consistently though.
ROH/NJPW Honor Rising Night One
February 26th, 2017 | Korakuen Hall in Tokyo, Japan | Attendance: 1,636
Last year, the two Honor Rising events were solid but didn’t blow me away. Only one match from those shows (Ishii/Strong) made my year-end list. I don’t expect better this time around. ROH is in shambles, losing star after star on a consistent basis. It’s honestly in the worst shape I’ve seen it in. Still, I’m an “expect the worst, but hope for the best” kind of guy and would love to see this shows deliver despite their cards. The shows mark the return of Kenny Omega after missing every show since New Year Dash.
To gain a better understanding of the state of ROH, Silas Young was the fourth highest billed ROH guy in the show’s intro. Side note, I watched this show with the English commentary team of Kevin Kelly and Rocky Romero.
David Finlay, Juice Robinson and KUSHIDA def. Gedo, Jado and Silas Young in 9:59
Silas Young’s team came out with shirts that said “REAL MAN” on them. Silas cut a promo before the bell saying the real men like his team have been disrespected. They jumped the faces but ended up taking a powder. Finlay got in trouble, taking the heat. They did a lot of standard heel work on Finlay. KUSHIDA came in hot and did his thing for a bit. Young tried his signature moonsault spot but he didn’t seem to account for the different turnbuckles in Japan and messed it up, falling badly. Juice came in next and got most of the final run. He might’ve broken his nose at one point but still put away Gedo with Pulp Friction. Fine opener. I wish KUSHIDA got to do more but Juice again impressed. He’s been strong in 2017 so far. **½
NEVER Openweight Six Man Tag Team Championship: Los Ingobernables de Japon (c) (BUSHI, EVIL and SANADA) def. Delirious, Jushin Thunder Liger and Tiger Mask IV in 10:34
I appreciate a random NEVER Six Man Tag Title match to spice up an undercard. If only they were booked better. EVIL mostly no sold Delirious’ bell ringing antics. He went nuts as usual and tagged Liger before tagging back in, which got a chuckle from the crowd. LIDJ slowed things down and beat up the challengers in and around the ring. They continued to get heat by going after the masks. Liger took the heat which was kind of a double edged sword. On one hand, he’s the best guy to get sympathy but he’s also the best guy period on his team. The very mild tag went to Tiger Mask before Delirious got a slightly warmer one. He escaped Skull End and got several flash pins for near falls. Delirious took a chair shot behind the referee’s back and Skull End made him tap. Horrible finish. Why protect Delirious? He barely wrestles anymore and LIDJ should’ve ran through these fools (not counting Liger, who rules). **¼
CHAOS (NEVER Openweight Champion Hirooki Goto, IWGP Heavyweight Champion Kazuchika Okada, Will Ospreay and YOSHI-HASHI) def. Bullet Club (Bad Luck Fale, The Guerillas of Destiny and Yujiro Takahashi) in 11:05
I didn’t miss the Bullet Club (except Omega) at all. I definitely didn’t miss the never ending CHAOS/Bullet Club matches. It’s the Bullet Club B-Team. Commentary discussed Okada’s bruised leg after the Suzuki match, which only served to remind me of that debacle. Bullet Club jumped them before the bell and the teams brawled around the ring for a while. Inside, Ospreay took the heat, being the smallest guy on his team. Tanga Loa didn’t curse enough in this match to be entertaining. It was a good idea to let YOSHI-HAHSI be the guy who did his thing down the stretch considering his title match tomorrow. There was a cool spot where Okada launched Ospreay over and out onto Fale. YOSHI pinned Yujiro with Karma. Another fine match. About what I’ve come to expect from CHAOS/Bullet Club matches. YOSHI looked good though. I’d be totally cool with YOSHI beating Cole tomorrow. **½
War Machine def. The Young Bucks in 12:05
I like one of these tag teams. The other are the Young Bucks. Anyway, they hold the ROH Tag Team Titles. War Machine controlled early by throwing the Bucks around. I like it. After taking a beating for a bit more, the Bucks responded with a flurry of offense. Nick hit a rather impressive springboard rana, followed by more high flying offense. More Bang for Your Buck was cut off and Hanson came in, squashing both Bucks in the corner. The Bucks hit two 450 splashes on Hanson but only got two. The Meltzer Drive was cut off, leading to Hanson telling them to SUCK IT! The Bucks survived a popup powerslam, leading to “this is awesome” chants. Nick got in some kicks but was taken out with a splash and powerbomb. Matt was left alone and fought both guys. He showed fire but ate a knee strike and fallout to take the pin. Best match so far, with the Bucks fitting in War Machine’s type of match well. They were less grating than usual, while War Machine continued to impress in Japan. I think they’re the most valuable thing NJPW could use from ROH, since they’ll bolster the dull tag division. ***¼
IWGP Jr. Heavyweight Champion Hiromu Takahashi, Punisher Martinez and IWGP Intercontinental Champion Tetsuya Naito def. Dalton Castle, Hiroshi Tanahashi and Ryusuke Taguchi in 11:46
Tanahashi and Taguchi came out dressed as the “boys’, which was damn funny. Naito spit at Rocky Romero on commentary and they nearly fought. Kelly almost made mention of Cody having strong words for Naito in an interview. Also, Kelly kept calling him “Punishment Martinez.” Martinez refused to join the LIDJ fist bump. Martinez looks like a big Uso. He and Castle started off with some uninteresting back and forth. The entertainment picked up when Tanahashi did Castle like mannerisms against Naito. Naito and Takahashi took over, wearing down Tanahashi and refusing to tag Punisher. Taguchi got the tag and came in hot. They previewed the upcoming Hiromu/Taguchi match. Punisher tagged himself in and it came down to he and Castle. Punisher won with a chokeslam. I’d call this my least favorite Naito worked multi-man tag in a long time. He and Takahashi were fine and the faces had fun but Martinez is just so bland. His win was to give intrigue to his match with Goto tomorrow but I’m not feeling it. **¼
Post-match, Naito flipped off Punisher.
RPW British Heavyweight Champion Katsuyori Shibata and Jay Lethal def. Cody and Hangman Page in 14:06
Lethal wanted Cody for what went down at Final Battle but Cody demanded Shibata. Cody hyped up stuff with Shibata but their interactions here fell way flat. Page took over and Cody only wanted Lethal when he was already down. That led to Lethal taking the heat segment. It was a lengthy segment highlighted by Page’s apron shooting star press. Cody and Shibata tagged in at the same time and Cody met him with a dropkick. Shibata sat up like nothing and brushed it off. He spent the next bit kicking Cody’s ass. Cody applied the American Nightmare submission but Shibata obviously didn’t tap. While Cody went at it with Lethal, Shibata came in with a vicious Penalty Kick. Lethal Injection connected on Page to score the pinfall. I believe they wanted to set up Cody/Shibata but their interactions didn’t do much for me. If anything, I’d more interested in Hangman/Shibata. Lethal was kind of just there too. **¾
ROH World Champion Adam Cole and Kenny Omega def. The Briscoes in 22:00
It’s good to see Kenny Omega back. He had a great 2016 and went from a guy I hated watching as a Jr. Heavyweight, to a highlight on a lot of shows. Cole doesn’t impress me much though. Cole and Mark started, doing a lot of nothing. The fans wanted Kenny and got him within the first two minutes. Things progressed into a brawl outside and through the crowd. Omega hit a moonsault off the guardrail, which was cool. Jay got worked over the Bullet Club for a while. Omega cut off the tag, so Jay had to stay in a bit longer. Mark’s hot tag saw him go redneck wild. The teams traded back and forth for the next portion of the match, with Kenny easily getting the best pop. Both teams teased winning until the Doomsday Device got cut off. Jay slipped free of the One Winged Angel but Omega countered the Doomsday Device with a powerslam. V-Trigger and Last Shot kept Mark down for the count. Pretty good main event that went too long. It felt like they were mostly going through the motions. That might be fine for Kenny, who could still be taking it easy before ramping up for the New Japan Cup, but the ROH guys needed to perform big time and they didn’t. There was no drama and it was kind of just there. **¾
After the match, Kenny Omega got on the mic and said 2017 would be his year. Adam Cole cut him off, saying Omega forgot about him and that it’ll be the year of Cole. Omega backed off, leaving him to celebrate. It sets up Cole leaving the Bullet Club later but I pray Gedo doesn’t plan on wasting Omega on a Cole feud.
Overall: 5/10. About what I expected from this show. ROH is in rough shape and that was clear at times here. Parts of the show were fun (Castle’s boys being a highlight), but only one match got three stars. War Machine/Bucks was good tag wrestling but the two main events lacked. They weren’t technically bad but they were missing something to make them stand out. Like a lot of ROH stuff these days, this was a painfully average event.
Evolve 79
February 25th, 2017 | La Boom in Woodside, New York
Like Evolve 78, Lenny Leonard introduced the show.
ACH def. Jason Kincaid in 7:08
A win for ACH would secure an Evolve Title shot during WrestleMania weekend. Kincaid’s unique style perplexed ACH in the early stages, especially when he stopped to seemingly meditate. The back and forth continued until ACH sent him outside and hit the soccer kick. Kincaid responded with some interesting offense including a double stomp variation over the ropes. He jumped from stage by ringside to the ring with a nice dropkick and got two on a slingshot stunner. Kincaid missed a double stomp, opening the door for ACH to go into a flurry that included lariats and the brainbuster that ended it. Good way to open the show. Kincaid got to shine and show off his skills, continuing to impress. ACH picked up another win. ACH didn’t have a weekend the level of his debut but still accomplished what he needed to here. ***
Chris Dickinson def. Anthony Henry, Austin Theory and Evolve Tag Team Champion Fred Yehi in 8:14
They called this a Four Way Fray. Two Catch Point guys and two guys who are new to Evolve and looking to impress. Yehi and Henry relived their great Style Battle match early on. Priscilla Kelly watched from ringside again. Henry showed off great stuff against Theory until Dickinson ran him over with a lariat. The Catch Point guys worked together on Theory, nearly killing him with a powerbomb/neckbreaker combo. They got into the typical argument in these matches where partners realize only one can get the pin. They did the Catch Point handshake and went at it. Both men threw exploders before Dickinson hit four powerbombs on Henry, only to have the pin broken up. Yehi and Henry went at it again shortly after and Yehi applied the Koji Clutch. Dickinson border tossed Theory over the submission and got the victory. I thought this was a blast. Theory took a beating, Henry impressed me several times and they teased more Catch Point tension between Yehi and Dickinson. Yehi was his great self and Dickinson looked like a monster. ***½
Jeff Cobb def. Jaka in 8:49
Another Cobb match, another HOSS FIGHT! I love these things. These two got into a shoving match on the previous show. Within a minute, they were throwing kick, strikes and headbutts like men. They went up top where Cobb delivered a ridiculous middle rope stalling superplex that looked almost like a brainbuster. Jaka had a less impressive response, German suplexing Cobb. Outside, Jaka hit a tope suicida but had his plancha caught. He escaped and they traded blows. Back inside, they began throwing each other around. Cobb hit an awesome popup gutwrench suplex. Jaka retaliated with kicks until Tour of the Islands ended him. A damn good hoss fight like I wanted. They played it evenly, building the intensity. The crowd was invested, it was hard hitting and that’s all I could ask for. Best thing on the weekend so far. ***¾
Keith Lee def. Evolve Tag Team Champion Tracy Williams in 11:32
“Keith Lee is like a building with feet,” said Lenny Leonard and it’s rather accurate. Tracy came out on the offensive but was quickly overwhelmed by Lee’s size. Lee abused Tracy with shots around the ring. He sat Tracy on the top, but Tracy caught a shot into an armbar on the ropes. Unfortunately for Tracy, he jumped right into a belly to belly suplex. Tracy made the mistake of hitting Lee in the face, leading to him getting more of a beating, including a sitout powerbomb. That continued to be the story throughout. Tracy finally got going, taking down Lee with a lariat for two. Lee went up for a moonsault but Williams nailed a super Angle slam for a close near fall. He tried the armbar but couldn’t get Lee down. Lee countered it into ground zero, getting the 1-2-3. They told a great story here with Williams having to dig down deep but not being able to overcome Lee. They kept harping on Chris Hero telling Lee to find his killer instinct and he may have this weekend. Again, the crowd was hot and Lee showed he’s going to be a big part of Evolve going forward. ***¾
Ethan Page w/ The Gatekeepers def. Darby Allin in 8:47
Darby Allin came out with an Ethan Page photo taped to his face. Page attacked instantly but Allin hit the Coffin Drop on Page and the Gatekeepers. Page responded by press slamming Allin from the stage into the ring post. It looked sick and the crowd reacted perfectly. Page handcuffed Allin but Allin refused to quit. Madman Allin took a back body drop and could’ve broken his wrists. Allin worked the crowd into a frenzy by getting offense in despite the cuffs. He snapped off a rana and dropkicked the Gatekeepers off the apron. Page’s super powerslam wasn’t enough to keep Allin down. Allin spat at Page, who hit RK-Ego and a powerbomb for the win. Not a technical masterpiece but it told a great story. Page was a sick bastard who wanted to hurt Allin, while Allin is the epitome of never say die. Both guys played their roles wonderfully. ***
Ethan Page got on the microphone and brought up beating Allin in all three of their matches. He called Allin trash and put him in a body bag. Page said Allin should thank him for beating him up to the point where fans felt sorry for him. He said Darby’s career is dead and promised to win the Evolve Title, ruining the reams of the roster. They zipped up the bag and took him out. Page was great in this segment.
Matt Riddle def. Drew Galloway in 12:04
The fans treated Riddle like a god. He was the most over guy on this show. This match is months in the making. The crowd bit on Riddle winning with a knee strike in about five seconds. Galloway turned it around, slamming Riddle on the stage and beating him up around the ring. Galloway wisely stomped on Riddle’s toes. PUT SOME DAMN SHOES ON! Riddle brought out a flurry of strikes but Galloway had some scouted and blocked before hitting the sick kick. Riddle countered a suplex into a fisherman buster for two. That helped spark a rally and he got two on the Bro to Sleep. Galloway hit a super air raid crash but it wasn’t enough. Riddle reversed Future Shock into a pin for a near fall but nearly got caught in a tombstone. He slipped out into a submission. Riddle delivered hammer fists to the head and ribs of Galloway, who couldn’t defend himself so the referee called for the bell. Good, intense battle. The best thing about it was the finish. Galloway is allowed to continue to say there’s a conspiracy against him, while it was the perfect end to a Riddle match considering his style. ***½
A furious Drew Galloway jumped Matt Riddle after the match. He was saved by Tracy Williams and Fred Yehi, who ran Galloway off. Larry Dallas came out and brought his own security guard, Earl Cooter. Once in the ring, Dallas announced that Riddle, Williams and Yehi have been entered into the “Battle of the Champions Elimination Match” to crown the first WWN Champion during Mania weekend. They join Drew Galloway. Riddle said the titles would all be his and left. Yehi spoke, calling Riddle selfish because they always have his back but never even get a thank you. Yehi challenged Riddle and Williams tried keeping the pace. Riddle vs. Yehi should rule.
Evolve Championship: Zack Sabre Jr. def. Timothy Thatcher (c) w/ Stokely Hathaway in 18:47
The last time these two met was at Evolve 47 (FloSlam uploaded the match for free on YouTube this week) and I gave that ****½. Crowd was very pro-Sabre. They came out firing uppercuts and forearms. Both guys went for their signature submissions early. The fans chanted “Thatcher’s garbage” several times while these two went to war on the mat. Thatcher stomped on Sabre in the corner, only to get his leg caught in a submission on the ropes. Like s shark smelling blood, Sabre attacked that leg. The heat from the crowd was great here. They hated Thatcher and everything he did. Thatcher had control, wearing down Sabre. The challenger fought back with uppercuts, kicks and chops. They countered each other’s submissions before Sabre hit a running kick and German for two. Thatcher slapped on the armbar after a gutwrench suplex but Sabre reached the ropes. Sabre nearly won with a bridging pin, had it countered into a sleeper and then turned that into another pin for a crazy close near fall. The PK connected and then he applied a triangle choke. Thatcher turned it around, leading to another exchange of submissions. Sabre countered sakatoshi into an octopus hold, complete with elbow strikes. He reached back on both of Thatcher’s arms and stomped on his head while in the submission, finally ending Thatcher’s reign of terror. The pop for Sabre’s win was nuts. This was the best Thatcher title defense since the weekend he worked Sabre and Gargano back in November 2015. It had the intensity and emotion that most Thatcher matches lack. Props to Thatcher for finally doing things to be more interesting, like playing to the crowd and doing the little mannerisms to add to things. Their mat work and strikes were expertly done and the win felt like a huge deal. ****¼
Timothy Thatcher prepared to hand the title to Zack Sabre Jr. Ethan Page ran out and attacked Sabre from behind, ruining a big moment just like he did on Johnny Gargano’s final night. ACH made the save, running Page off. ACH congratulated Sabre and said the match gave him goosebumps. He put over Sabre hard but said Sabre will be handing the title to him on March 30th. The locker room emptied to congratulate the new champion and Zack thanked the fans.
Overall: 8/10. As expected, Evolve bounced back after a lackluster show. This show was great. The worst matches clocked in at three stars. Anytime that happens, a show is going to be easy to watch. Most matches told a story and set things up for the future while delivering here. Riddle/Galloway and the four way were both a lot of fun. I enjoyed the hell out of Williams/Lee and Jaka/Dickinson for different reasons. Then, the main event was the best Evolve Title match in over a year. The moment of Sabre winning is a big one in Evolve history and they set up at least four future title matches for him (a Thatcher rematch, ACH, Page and Lee).
