Money in the Bank Predictions

Why is this match happening? Seriously, does anyone know? They are just straight up getting lazy with the Kickoff Show now. As much as they like to job out Barrett, this is one that he should win.

Winner: King Barrett

You have no idea how happy it makes me to see Big E and Xavier Woods team up here. I enjoy Kofi Kingston in the team, but these two have been the MVPs of New Day in my eyes. It's also a pairing we don't see often, so I appreciate that. The last few Pay-Per-Views, I've been right in saying they wouldn't drop the belts because of how good they've been in their roles. I didn't see them losing to Tyson Kidd and Cesaro or the Lucha Dragons, so I definitely don't see them losing to the Prime Time Players. They has barely been any build. Maybe down the road they can win it, but not here.

Winners: The New Day

I am very happy that Naomi is out of the title picture. Nikki Bella and Paige have better chemistry together than pretty much any other Divas on the main roster. They have had a match on Raw and one on Main Event that I would consider the best main roster Divas matches this year. I assume this will be the best Divas PPV match since WrestleMania, though that isn't saying much. I suspect Nikki retains through "Twin Magic" or something like that. I see her breaking AJ Lee's record reign before Charlotte debuts and dethrones her.

Winner: Nikki Bella

Who let Big Show back into the company? And who the hell put him in a title match? Granted, this should absolutely be here so Ryback can Shell Shock Big Show and keep the title, but still. This was the World Heavyweight Title match we should have gotten at WrestleMania 29. I know that on paper, this looks like it will be pretty bad, but I actually saw these two work a singles match at NXT in Columbus. Guess what? It was solid. They hit each other hard and Ryback Shell Shocking him was a sight to see. Ryback retains because that's what needs to happen.

Winner: Ryback

The match that everyone is looking forward to the most. Kevin Owens and John Cena had the best singles match on the main roster all year at Elimination Chamber. Owens beating Cena clean was fantastic. However, if he just loses here and loses the potential rematches, it's all for naught. I think the best move is for Owens to win again here, cementing himself as a new top guy, especially since it looks like he'll be dropping the NXT Title on the 4th of July in Tokyo. Owens NEEDS to win here. But, I've said that before about Cena feuds with Bray Wyatt, Rusev, Wade Barrett, etc. I know that some people high up feel that Owens should win, but until I'm proven wrong, I'm going with Cena. I absolutely hope I'm wrong though.

Winner: John Cena

I have to admit, this is probably one of the weaker Money in the Bank fields in history. What I mean by that, is there isn't a lot of potential when it comes to winners. Dolph Ziggler, Kane and Randy Orton aren't winning one again. Kofi Kingston has no shot. I would like to see Neville, but I think he's here to steal the show with his aerial ability before moving onto a midcard title possibly. Sheamus is a small possibility, but Roman Reigns is pretty much the obvious choice. The match should be relatively fun despite the rather obvious outcome.

Winner: Roman Reigns

Since WrestleMania, this has been the hardest title match to figure out. You see, I don't really think Seth Rollins' run as Champion should end soon, but I also have seen the way he's been booked lately and it hasn't been good. On the other hand, I don't think they are ready to give Dean Ambrose a real run with the top title, but I sense they may go the the shocking route. He wins and Roman Reigns, who wins Money in the Bank, cashes in on him. I'm not sure if they're ready to turn Reigns heel either but I'm going with the fun prediction.

Winner: Dean Ambrose, then Roman Reigns cashes in successfully

2015 Prediction Record: 27-17
2014 Prediction Record: 22-18 (Only five PPVs)

NXT Columbus Report

Time for news from NXT Columbus. First things first, this arena actually had air conditioning, though it seemed like it was turned off after intermission.

We had another ten bell salute for Dusty Rhodes before going into a very similar card.

Enzo and Cass, this time with Carmella, took on the Vaudevillains. They worked a similar match to the night before but changed it up. Instead of a chicken fight, they worked an impromptu boxing fight between Aiden English and Enzo Amore. Enzo and Cass won in the same fashion as Cleveland. Also, before the show we were given "Gotch Dollars" to throw when Simon Gotch posed. It was fake money with Simon Gotch in a weird hat on it.

Bull Dempsey defeated Jason Jordan in another match similar to the night before in Cleveland. They added a few different spots where Jordan challenged Bull to do push ups and sit ups. Nothing special again. This actually kind of killed the crowd as they were quieter than usual until intermission after being red hot during the opener.

Third, Blake and Murphy again defended the Tag Team Titles against Mojo Rawley and Zack Ryder. Again, this was very similar to Cleveland with a few different spots. Zack ate the pin after Blake and Murphy's finisher. Mojo got to kiss Alexa again, prompting a "No means no" chant. When she slapped him for it, it got a huge pop. BAMF's pink and black attire was excellent.

Our final match before intermission featured Sasha Banks defending the Women's Title against Charlotte. It was basically the same thing as the night before. The fans were kind of dead but woke up for Charlotte's excellent ring apron figure four spot. Sasha retained in another great match. These two don't have bad matches.

After intermission, we got a tag team match pitting Bayley and Carmella against Dana Brooke and Emma. Emma was way over. She got chants during her entrance and everything. Bayley is still an absolute joy to watch. I might have enjoyed it this time around more than at Cleveland. Tons of fun.

Here is where the card changed. We had no Rhyno this time so Baron Corbin instead took on Tyler Breeze. Corbin got more heat than anyone else on the show, while Breeze was very over. Corbin looked good working as the monster heel. Breeze was in top form as usual. There were "not the face" chants when he got hit there. Breeze won with the Beauty Shot in a fun match. Some little kid got into an argument with a fan and basically cut a promo on him. It was kind of funny.

Our main event was a Triple Threat match where Kevin Owens defended the NXT Title against Samoa Joe and Finn Balor. All three guys were super over and delivered in the ring. Owens did Cena's five moves of doom again and there was a fair amount of action involving Balor and Joe. Surprisingly, Joe ate the pin after Owens hit the popup powerbomb. Another excellent main event.

NXT Cleveland Report

NXT ran their second show in Cleveland, and I had the pleasure of attending both. Here are some notes from the show.

The Agora Theater was much more organized this time around. Last time was a mess but they seem to have corrected that. The biggest issue was the lack of air conditioning.

We got stuck sitting next to the worst kind of fans. These dudes kept trying to get themselves over in the worst way. They saw ring announcer Dasha and chanted "show your tits" before trying to start a "Chris Benoit" chant later in the show. It got really bad during the Divas tag as there were some EXTREMELY derogatory chants going on, including "Eat Her Pussy". They obviously didn't catch on.

William Regal was out first to a huge pop. He led a ten bell salute for Dusty Rhodes. Dusty tributes were a theme for the night.

The opener was Enzo and Cass vs. The Vaudevillains. This was a blast. From a chicken fight to Cass' Bionic Elbow to the Vaudevillains doing squats in the middle of a move, I laughed a ton during this. Enzo and Cass won. After the match, all four guys hugged it out and did tributes to Dusty. Gotch and English even got in on the S-A-W-F-T stuff.

Next up, Bull Dempsey took on Jason Jordan. The crowd didn't care for either guy. Jordan's tron features his old gimmick and haircut, so it seems like the NXT producers were like "we should probably change that, but who really cares?". Bull played the fat man who couldn't run game again, but surprisingly got the crowd behind him. It was hard to focus on the match when all you could see was a very distracting umm "shape" in Jordan's crotch area. Bull won a pretty dull match.

Rhyno took on Baron Corbin next. It was similar to their match at Unstoppable. Baron got monster heat, which again, he seemed to enjoy. He egged on the chants and just seems way more comfortable as a heel. I really enjoyed it. Baron won with the End of Days. He attacked after the match, only to get Gored to a huge pop. Again, a decent match.

We are told the next match is a Divas tag match. Bayley comes out a huge ovation. My friend Bash was front row in a Bayley shirt and his goal was to get a hug from her. It happened. Dana Brooke came out next to nothing but boos. She did have family in an opera box, who were trying to get the fans to cheer her but it failed. Emma was out next in full heel mode. There was a fan with down syndrome that a lot of people stopped to hug but Emma straight dissed him. #EVILEMMA! She got in the ring and cut a promo about how Bayley has no friends and that this would be 2 on 1. Carmella came out to join Bayley. They did Bionic Elbows and Carmella revealed a Bayley shirt! Much like the opener, this was nothing but fun. All four girls worked hard, though Dana was the worst again. Carmella made Emma tap to her finisher to get the win.

Intermission time. After that, we got three title matches. First, Blake and Murphy, with Alexa Bliss, defended against Mojo Rawley and Zack Ryder. BAMF didn't get much of a reaction, while Ryder was hugely popular and Mojo got booed. Another fun solid match here. Mojo got to kiss Alexa, who sold it like it grossed her out. Maybe it did, who knows? Ryder looked really good, like being with the NXT guys has rejuvenated him. Good to see that he's motivated or at least having fun. Blake and Murphy won with their finisher on Mojo.

The NXT Women's Championship match followed. We all thought Becky Lynch would be involved, but surprisingly, she was absent from the show. Instead, we got the classic Sasha Banks vs. Charlotte match. I had yet to see it one on one live and it delivered. Great stuff as these two simply cannot have a bad match. Sasha was hugely over, especially when she hit some of her signature moves. They got the crowd standing when Charlotte had the Figure Four in, but didn't break it at Sasha reached the ropes. Instead she held on and crawled outside. Basically, she did the ring post figure four, but on the apron instead of the corner. Sasha retained with the Bank Statement. Match of the night so far.

We got the main event from Pittsburgh the night before. Kevin Owens defending the NXT Title against Finn Balor, Samoa Joe and Tyler Breeze in a Fatal Four Way. In order of how popular everyone was goes like this 1) Owens, 2) Balor, 3) Joe, 4) Breeze. There was an "Everybody" chant. The fans sung "John Cena Sucks", so Owens got on the mic and said that soon, we won't see John Cena anymore. He was excellent here, exiting the ring instantly before attacking Joe. This led to them coming to blows to a huge pop. He was hilarious as he got Tyler to team with him. He told Tyler to suplex Joe at the same time that he suplexes Balor. Of course, Joe was too big for Tyler so Owens hit his and then looked at Tyler in disappointment. He shouted "FINE I GUESS I'LL HELP YOU" and they did a double suplex. Tyler didn't want to high five him because he's gross, but Owens made him. As the fans chanted "this is wrestling", Owens looked out and started applying to chinlocks to everyone who entered. He even put Finn and Tyler in a double chinlock. This was fast paced and never missed a beat. The finishing sequence was breathtaking. It would be hard to go into detail but it was ridiculous. Owens retained with a popup powerbomb on Breeze. After the match, Balor and Joe looked like they would fight, but Balor "too sweeted" him and stayed with the fans to close things.

Overall, a really fun show. It only clocked in at just over two hours so it was shorter than I expected. That's probably for the best though considering how hot it was in the arena. Match of the night ended up being the main event.

Check out my Twitter, @the_kevstaaa for more photos.

Smackdown 6/11/15 Review

Smackdown in Lafayette begins with Dean Ambrose coming to the ring carrying the WWE World Heavyweight Title. Of course, he also has Mardi Gras beads around his neck. Seth Rollins interrupts and Dean hands over the title. However, he then reveals that it's just a replica he bought at the concession stand because he lost the real belt somewhere between New Orleans and Lafayette. Classic Ambrose. He says he'll retrace his steps and bring it to Money in the Bank, where he'll win it. He leaves through the crowd before Kane comes out. This leads to Kane and Seth bickering because Kane has to make Seth look like a bitch at every turn. This was your typical opening segment, but it was better than usual due to Seth and Dean's chemistry.

Our first match in a non-title bout between Intercontinental Champion Ryback and the Miz. I still would like to point out that Miz is a fantastic heel still. This goes just over five minutes, with the highlight being a stalling suplex. Ryback wins and then Big Show comes out. I have no interest in this program still. He claims Ryback is no match for him. That's all. Nothing more happens. Next, R-Truth is on commentary as his opponent for Sunday, King Barrett is in action. He goes one on one with Jack Swagger. I feel like I haven't seen Swagger on television in months. Barrett wins in about two minutes, picking up a rare televised win. Lana gets interviewed by Michael Cole but is cut off by Rusev. He yells at her in typical Rusev fashion. I like him as the monster who is also a jaded ex, but it's become the same thing over and over.

Seth Rollins takes on Dolph Ziggler next, in a match I feel like I've seen 100 times. Despite this, these are two guys who always manage to at least deliver a good match. This was their standard solid stuff and Seth wins by pulling the tights. I still don't get why Seth has to be booked like shit. Paige takes on Alicia Fox in our next match. They surprisingly get nearly five minutes and work decent with it. Fox and Paige are both solid, but this was seemingly just going through the motions. The Prime Time Players get interviewed about their upcoming Tag Team Title shot at Money in the Bank. It's fine stuff and they mock the New Day clap with "Prime...Time Players". I think that match on Sunday should be solid.

With Ziggler already competing, the remaining six MITB participants had a 6 man tag match. Roman Reigns, Randy Orton and Neville took on Kane, Sheamus and Kofi Kingston. This was a fun contest that unfortunately ended via disqualification when New Day got involved. A big brawl erupts and Neville climbs a ladder in the ring. He takes out everyone with a beautiful cross body. The show ends with Neville climbing up and retrieving the briefcase. In the end, this wasn't a good episode of Smackdown. While Seth/Dolph was solid, we've seen it a ton. Besides that, the only things worth it are the Dean/Seth interaction and Neville's close to the show. Let's go with a 3/10.

Raw History: Episode 3

Monday Night Raw “Loser Leaves WWF” [3]

January 25th, 1993 – Manhattan Center in Manhattan, New York

Coming off the Royal Rumble, we have a direction heading into WrestleMania IX as it is time to build towards Bret Hart vs. Yokozuna. Not only that, but we have our first ever big time match in Raw history as Mr. Perfect is set to face Ric Flair in a Loser Leaves WWF match. I'm seriously looking forward to this episode more than the first two combined.

We open to see Sean Mooney outside, awaiting the arrival of Repo Man. Repo Man arrives in the tow truck he left in last week. Tonight, Repo Man takes on the Macho Man! Bobby Heenan is finally on commentary, but we still have to deal with Rob Bartlett, who sucks.

“Macho Man” Randy Savage vs. Repo Man
Macho Man and his flower filled attire comes out before he's even announced and attacks Repo Man. They spill outside and you can see Repo Man's gut clearly. I can see why he wasn't around for much longer than this. They go inside only for Macho Man to hit a running knee that knocks Repo back outside. Repo uses the steel steps to turn the tide as he throws Macho Man into them and the ring post. As we go to commercial Macho Man seems to be rallying but when we return, Repo Man is still in control. He hits a snapmare and leg drop for two. As Repo works in a rest hold, commentary takes to discussing Hilary Clinton and trying to fit in as many pop culture references as possible. Macho Man would soon hit the Elbow Drop to claim victory.

Winner: “Macho Man” Randy Savage in 9:29
Rather dull. Macho Man did his best but Repo Man was not very good. **

A WrestleMania IX promo airs.

The Brooklyn Brawler vs. Kamala w/ Reverend Slick
Our first appearance of one of the WWF's most notorious jobbers, The Brooklyn Brawler. Two matches in and we get two pre-match attacks as Brawler nails Kamala from behind. It doesn't have much effect as Kamala body slams him. The Brawler begs for mercy but eats a side kick. Kamala works over the Brawler as Bartlett calls him fat. That's how you put over the face in the match. They talk about the Giant Gonzalez being near eight feet tall, leading to Heenan saying he's twenty foot ten. Kamala continues to squash Brawler and ends it with a splash. He does roll Brawler over too many times before pinning him, which was funny.

Winner: Kamala in 3:42
Your basic squash but it lasted far too long. *

Vince McMahon gets in the ring to interview the Reverend Slick and Kamala. Slick says a bunch of stuff about this being the rebirth of Kamala and whatnot. He's another guy that I feel isn't around for much longer this year.

Royal Rumble Report time! Mean “BY GAWD” Gene recaps the event from the previous night, hyping Yokozuna vs. Bret Hart mainly.

Loser Leaves WWF
Mr. Perfect vs. Ric Flair
Oh man, I'm excited for this one. It starts with basic wrestling sequences until Flair sells a slap in the face like he got shot. Perfect mocks Flair's hair slick as Flair steps outside to catch a breather and get consultation from Heenan. Back inside, they trade chops leading to the Flair flop, which leaves Bartlett and his lack of knowledge utterly befuddled. Flair threatens to use a chair as we got commercial but it doesn't happen. Flair continues to fire away with chops and short punches on Perfect's cheat. It must have happened during the break but Perfect is busted open. He goes for a hip toss but Perfect counters for a backslide that is stopped. He hits a backslide so Flair begs for mercy to no avail. Perfect hits punches in the corner along with the count of the crowd until Flair hits an inverted atomic drop for two. Perfect chops Flair and hits a floatover suplex for two, bringing Flair in from the apron. Bobby Heenan is frantic on commentary and it's beautiful. Flair has been watching Roddy Piper tapes as he applies a sleeper hold. They do the arm drop spot and of course Perfect hangs on before his arm drops a third time. He rallies and sends Flair into the turnbuckle. They both a weird spot just as Vince says they could go off the air before the match ends. Gee I'd be pissed as a fan! Perfect puts on a sleeper of his own but Flair reverses with a back suplex. Both men are tired as Flair locks in the Figure Four. He uses the ropes for leverage, because he's Ric Flair. Perfect turns the move over to break the hold so Flair decides to go up top. As always, he just gets slammed from the top as we go to our second break during this bout. Returning, Flair pulls out brass knuckles from his knee pad and lays out Perfect. He covers but ring presence is something he forgets about as Perfect gets his foot on the ropes. Flair lays into Perfect's forehead gash. He puts Perfect in the corner and chops him but Perfect Hulks Up! His adrenaline is pumping as he gets fired up and chops Flair a bunch in the corner, followed by a back body drop. He gets a near fall but you can feel that the end is near. Flair sends Perfect off the ropes and ducks for a back body drop but Perfect stops and nails the Perfect Plex to win!

Winner: Mr. Perfect in 17:47
The first great match in Raw history. Both men gave it their all, Bobby Heenan was classic on commentary and this was an early candidate for Match of the Year. ****

Bobby Heenan freaks out and curses on commentary as he exits with Ric Flair. Vince McMahon tells us that next week, we will see Doink vs. Typhoon!

Overall: 8/10; Great. The first episode mainly got an eight because it was solid and historic. This was the first episode to really be great. We got a conclusion to the Savage/Repo Man mini-feud, a squash and a classic match. Mr. Perfect should be moving towards a WWF Title match later in the year because he's on fire.

Raw New Orleans Review

Someone must read what people say, as we actually don't start with an Authority promo. Instead, John Cena comes out and cuts his usual tired promo. Things get good when Kevin Owens interrupts though. His nonchalant attitude whenever Cena says anything is brilliant. It's like nothing Cena says affects him. Both guys want to hold an open challenge, so Owens decides that whoever comes out can choose which title to go after. Neville answers and admits that he was close to beating Cena a few weeks ago, but goes for the NXT Title. They work a good match here, though I've seen them have better. Cena was on commentary and did a good job in putting over the upcoming match at Money in the Bank. Owens retained with the popup powerbomb and I like how they are giving the NXT Title and making it seem important. The show is off to a good start.

The WWE's Instagram account was taken over and filled with photos of Dean Ambrose going around New Orleans with the WWE Title. Seth Rollins was pissed about it but the Authority told him he'll be on his own on Sunday and he can choose his own opponent for tonight. The Divas are next as Nikki Bella beats Summer Rae in a non-title match. This was nothing for two minutes but we do get told that Paige and Nikki are meeting again at Money in the Bank. Next, we got our Money in the Bank promo segment. Roman Reigns talked a bit until Kane interrupted. The rest of the participants, sans Neville, showed up but the highlight was R-Truth. He came out and plugged the match, only to be reminded that he's not in it. It was great comedy as Truth is perfect in this role. He's past his prime as a legit threat to anything, but can still be entertaining. However, the segment itself besides that was still lacking and didn't accomplish much. Randy Orton and Sheamus worked their usual match. This was an original idea five years ago, but they've met so much that it's just there. That includes last week. They worked through a commercial, nothing really happened and it ended via disqualification. This was absolutely just filler. Seth talks to J&J Security backstage, giving us a classic moment. J&J claim that Seth needs them because they are Shield 2.0. Jamie says Joey is an upgraded Roman Reigns and he's a better version of Ambrose. This was hilarious. Seth slaps Jamie, who returns the favor and Seth challenges them for tonight for his warm up match.

We continue the lazy booking of having Money in the Bank participants face each other. Dolph Ziggler takes on Kane, and we all know how this ends. There's a distraction that allows Kane to go over. The distraction is Rusev coming out to talk to Lana, only for her to trip and hurt her ankle. Rusev's split personality of monster heel to emotional teenager angry about his ex is fantastic. MizTV is on next, featuring Ryback and Big Show, who will now meet at Money in the Bank for the Intercontinental Championship. Ryback and Miz had a decent back and forth, as Miz is a great douchebag heel. Show interrupted and they got into it. Ryback hit him with the Shell Shock to end the segment, which got the crowd hype, but I would have saved that for the actual match on Sunday. Seems like a waste to do it here.

More images of Dean Ambrose around New Orleans are shown, telling us that he bought a ticket off a scalper. Luke Harper and Erick Rowan defeated Los Matadores with the 3D. It's not a pretty version of it, but I wonder if they're going to bring back the Dudleys to feud with them for a bit. Big E then defeated Titus O'Neil in a match to build towards their Tag Team Title bout on Sunday. Guess how this one ended? Via a distraction. It's like a Raw staple to have it happen multiple times in a show. We get told that on the Money in the Bank Kickoff show, there will be a completely random match between King Barrett and R-Truth. Why? No clue. Roman Reigns worked Kofi Kingston in the final MITB preview match, and it was better than I expected. However, nothing about it really helped as we've had multiple participants in Money in the Bank lose tonight. Why should they deserve that shot? Dean Ambrose then arrived through the crowd with popcorn to watch the main event. It was strange to see that his theme music hit as if he's supposed to be there and not just a guy who purchased a ticket.

The main event was a handicap match pitting Seth Rollins against J and J Security. Kane is at ringside with J&J. The match was fun as Jamie Noble and Joey Mercury can still go, but Seth looking overmatched against guys that have been established as a joke wasn't good. Then, to make things worse, because of a distraction by Ambrose, J&J actually win. I get that it's supposed to give us doubt that Seth will retain on Sunday, but that was a bad move. In the end, this was a really lazy effort on the part of whoever booked Raw. They just threw the MITB guys together and gave some of them losses. Why not have them win against some of the lower card guys? Why have Seth lose here? Why so many distraction finishes? After the opener and the Truth comedy, everything was pretty bland, dull and didn't build to the Pay-Per-View well. 3.5/10.

Fave Five 6/1/15-6/7/15

1) KUSHIDA: For years now, I've been a huge Alex Shelley fan. I loved the Motor City Machine Guns, but when they left TNA, I kind of lost track of Shelley. When I found out that he was part of the Time Splitters, I had to see them for myself. I've grown to like KUSHIDA, though I admit I haven't seen as much of him as I'd like. He had a breakthrough this week by winning NJPW's Best of the Super Juniors and earning a shot next month against Kenny Omega. Also, while it was pre-recorded, he did win the opener on ROH's first episode to air on Destination America. It's nice to see KUSHIDA getting some solo shine, as this was the most notable week of his career from what I can tell. Hopefully, it continues as I really like the guy.

2) Kevin Owens: Fresh off cleanly defeating John Cena, Kevin Owens continued to shine. He cut a great promo on Raw, which was a highlight of the entire show. Cena came out to interrupt but after mentioning a kid with cancer in the crowd, Owens couldn't really combat that. He wasn't on NXT this week, but on Smackdown, held the NXT Title Open Challenge. The promo he cut beforehand was one of the best in recent memory. Hell, it was probably the best I've seen since CM Punk was around. He is nailing this character perfectly. Zack Ryder answered the challenge and lost. Not only was it a big win for Owens, but it also marked the first time that the NXT Title was defended outside of NXT, making it a rather historic moment as well. It's pretty much Kevin Owens' world right now and we're just living in it. As long as creative doesn't botch it in the coming weeks.

3) Angelico, Ivelisse and Son of Havoc: There is a lot to like about Lucha Underground. However, my favorite thing is the partnership between Angelico, Ivelisse and Son of Havoc. The Trios Champions have so far had my favorite match in Lucha Underground history and continue to deliver each time they are asked to. This week, they defended those titles against Big Ryck, Cage and Delavar Daivari. It wasn't as good as their best stuff this year, but they deserve this nod in a relatively slow week. Do yourself a favor and check these three out because they are phenomenal.

                              4) Roman Reigns: A lot of people still dislike Roman Reigns but he's been impressive. After the Royal Rumble debacle, he's managed to pull out some impressive matches. This week, he wrestled three times on Raw. Had this been January, I would have groaned loudly. Granted, I'd rather not see most guys work three times in a night, but these were fine. He beat Bad News Barrett in a fine match, went over Mark Henry via countout and beat Bray Wyatt. Obviously, he should have pinned Henry clean and not Wyatt, but still. He got to look pretty dominant and is the favorite heading into Money in the Bank. He also worked Sheamus on Smackdown but that was nothing to really write home about. This spot is more based on his performance on Raw.

5) Kyle O'Reilly: Considering who finished first this week, this is a lovely bookend isn't it? Kyle O'Reilly was who KUSHIDA defeated to win the Best of the Super Juniors. While he lost, he was impressive throughout the tournament and maybe this could be parlayed into a singles run. I've been a fan of the guy for a while as he gives me vibes of the next breakout indy guy. This was a big showing for him and his star is on the rise for sure. There were a few guys that could have taken this spot including the Prime Time Players, Jack Evans, Bobby Roode and Austin Aries, but I went with O'Reilly as the Best of the Super Juniors was the biggest news this week.

Raw History: Episode 2

WWF Monday Night Raw Episode 2

January 18th, 1993 – Manhattan Center in New York City, New York

Just six days away from the 1993 Royal Rumble, episode 2 of Raw looks to build on the success that was the first episode. Commentary is once again Macho Man, Vince McMahon and Rob Bartlett. As the show is introduced, Macho Man is attacked from behind by the Repo Man, who then runs off and repossess his signature hat. CONTROVERSY!

Mr. Perfect vs. Terrific Terry Taylor
I've heard, and I'm not sure who accurate this is, that these two were basically a coin flip away from debuting with different gimmicks in the earlier 90's. Curt Hennig as the Red Rooster is a thought that saddens me. As they have a feeling out process, Macho Man returns to commentary because he couldn't find Repo Man. Perfect gets the upper hand and Taylor runs around the ring. The crowd is relatively hot for this. Perfect applies a headlock takeover as Bobby Heenan calls in. He's upset about how he has been replaced by Rob Bartlett of all people. They go to commercial as Perfect has a hammerlock applied. Taylor has the upper hand when they return, hitting a jaw and backbreaker for two. Taylor executes a sweet spine buster and gut wrench powerbomb for two near falls. Perfect rallies with a huge inverted atomic drop, which is the most 90's move you could hit. He hits the neck snap as Ric Flair walks to the ring. He attacks Perfect behind the official's back but once Perfect is rolled back in, he blocks a suplex and counters with the Perfect Plex for three.

Winner: Mr. Perfect in 10:31
Solid opening contest. Continued Mr. Perfect's push and Terry Taylor looked good. All in all, can't ask for much more. **3/4

We get ICOPRO and Slim Jim ads and I love that these are still on the WWE Network. Vince McMahon introduces the WWF Champion, Bret Hart. He discusses Razor Ramon's recent attack on Owen Hart. He is not happy with Razor saying he'd slap Stu Hart, who was going to be 78 in 1993. My goodness. Did it's job, but I wish him or Razor had a match on one of these episodes to promote the match. Bret doesn't get enough credit for his promo work.

Glen Ruth vs. Marty Jannetty
You should see the attires these two guys are sporting. So many colors. Marty Jannetty gets leveled from behind by Glen Ruth but quickly gets back in control. Ruth cowers in the corner but Marty hits him with a deep arm drag. Shawn Michaels dials in to hype his Intercontinental Title match this Sunday. Marty hits a nice suplex as this has gone on longer than expected. I guess it's to give HBK time to talk. Ruth actually does a wrist lock but I wouldn't really consider it offense. This has been filled with arm drags, hammerlocks and wrist locks. So, consistency for arm work I guess. Marty hits the Rocker Dropper to win.

Winner: Marty Jannetty in 5:10
Boring. Too much useless arm work that didn't play into the end and it's like they were killing time. *

An ad airs for the Royal Rumble before we go to a clip from SuperStars where Doink beats up Crush with a fake arm. This actually made it all the way to a WrestleMania match. Think about that. Somehow, Crush suffered a concussion even though he was hit in the back.

Sean Mooney is outside and he interviews Repo Man. Macho Man doesn't even react until he sees that Repo Man has his hat. There are some things you just don't do to a man. To be fair, the hat doesn't even match Macho's jacket like it normally does. Royal Rumble Report time! It airs this Sunday at 4PM! It's more of the same except that The Berzerker is announced for the Rumble, making it an instant must watch.

El Matador vs. Ric Flair
Rob Bartlett commits a cardinal sin of wrestling by bashing Ric Flair's robes. El Matador hits some shoulder blocks to “Tito” chants from the fans before applying a headlock. Flair gets out but eats a clothesline and dropkick. They go to commercial during another headlock. Flair blocks a monkey flip and delivers short punches in the corner. He hits some chops but then gets back body dropped as Bartlett continues to be lame on commentary. Tito hits punches in the corner and the fans not counting in Spanish disappoints me. He slams Flair from the top causing Flair to cower and beg for mercy. El Matador calls for and nails the Flying Jalapeno! He goes for it again but falls outside. Mr. Perfect runs out and brings Flair out to brawl. Surprisingly, no disqualification is called. Sgt. Slaughter, Pat Patterson and officials come out to break it up and pull Mr. Perfect to the back. 

Double Count Out in 8:40
I guess they called a double countout. This wasn't bad. Pretty basic stuff. **

Ric Flair angrily is interviewed by Vince McMahon. He challenges Mr. Perfect to a Loser Leaves WWF match next week, successfully booking the first big match in Raw history. After Flair leaves, Mr. Perfect comes out and accepts the challenge. Lastly, Repo Man is shown outside towing Bartlett's car. 

Overall: 6/10; Average. Another cool little episode. We got a solid bout between Perfect and Taylor and Flair/Matador wasn't bad. The Jannetty match was pretty boring though. Everything did serve a purpose and built towards the Royal Rumble pretty well.

Random Network Reviews: The Great American Bash 1997

The Great American Bash 1997
June 15th, 1997 - The MARK of the Quad Cities – Attendance: 9,613

I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again here, 1997 was the best year to be a wrestling fan. Smack dab in the middle of the Monday Night Wars, you had WCW leading the charge ratings wise with the red hot nWo angle, while the WWF was in the midst of the epic Austin/Hart rivalry and an underrated Undertaker run as WWF Champion. We land in the middle of that great year on the WCW side of things with the Great American Bash.

Typical mediocre looking video opens the show and it somehow tries to compare DDP’s career to America. So would that make the nWo an opposing country? Commentary is the Tony Schiavone, Bobby Heenan and Dusty Rhodes. I love how ridiculous these three are together so it should supply some great moments.

Respect Match
Psychosis w/ Sonny Ono vs. Ultimo Dragon
Mike Tenay joins commentary for this, because the regular commentary team didn’t know enough moves and the action was usually too quick for them. This is a respect match because Ono wants Psychosis to teach his former client, Dragon some respect. In the early goings, Dragon gets the better, forcing Psychosis to take breathers outside. The crowd is pretty hot for this. Psychosis spits at Dragon and they get into a bit of an awkward exchange before Psychosis nails him mid leap frog. It’s being hammered home that this is a different side of Psychosis. Dragon does his headstand spot in the corner before kicking Psychosis down and the crowd ERUPTS! Dragon hits a tilt-a-whirl back breaker and targets that part of the body. A snapmare takes Psychosis outside and Dragon goes to follow with a plancha but misses and holds his knee. Psychosis distracts the official, allowing Ono to kick Dragon a few times because apparently, he’s a martial arts expert. He drapes Dragon across the second rope and hits a guillotine leg drop. It’s a cool spot but I hate how phony it looks since Dragon has to literally hold himself in place for it. Outside, Ono goes to kick Dragon some more but gets caught. Dragon goes for a suplex as the crowd gets loud but Psychosis stops him. The rally begins by Dragon with some kicks and a handspring elbow. They do a goofy looking rollup spot but make up for it a bit as Dragon hits an Asai moonsault. Back inside, Dragon hits a Tombstone but only gets two. Psychosis comes back with a flying spinning heel kick and then does a suicide dive OVER THE TURNBUCKLE POST! That is a gangster way to do it. They trade near falls inside before Psychosis tries a top rope moonsault, only to be met with a dropkick! Dragon sets up his opponent on the top and snaps off the top rope hurricanrana. He goes for the Tiger Suplex but gets distracted by Ono. Psychosis no sells and takes forever to get up and dropkick Dragon, who waits for it like a moron. Schiavone gets credit for trying to cover this up. Ono gets on the apron and goes for a spin kick but hits Psychosis by mistake, leading right into the Dragon Sleeper! Somehow the kick doesn’t cause a DQ, and Psychosis taps out.

Winner: Ultimo Dragon in 14:21
Really good opener that had potential to be so much more. They botched a few things and had some awkward moments but the action was good. The lack of a DQ near the end was dumb, but again, both guys worked hard and the red hot crowd helped. ***3/4

Chris Benoit is chatting with fans online, but he’s not typing. There’s a nerdy kid typing what he says but by the sound of it, he’s going way slower than Benoit’s words. Poor fan isn’t getting his money’s worth.

Number One Contender’s Match
Harlem Heat w/ Sister Sherri vs. The Steiner Brothers
On his way to the ring, Booker T says “CAN YOU DIG IT SUCKA?” because some things never change. Also, the Steiners had awful music. Scott Steiner was nearing Big Poppa Pump levels of muscle. The bigger brothers start as Stevie Ray goes toe to toe with Scott. Harlem Heat is forced to rethink strategy outside with Sherri and their new plan is to go after Rick. He get the tag and powerslams Stevie. Booker runs in and eats the STEINERLINE! After more regrouping, Stevie Ray slows things with a full nelson. NOBODY HAS BROKEN THE MASTER LOCK OF STEVEIE RAY. Scott does however, but it leads nowhere. Scott tries to fly but misses so he gets hit with a Harlem sidekick after the SPINAROONIE! This has a strange feel to it since the faces are kind of dominating the heels. Stevie suplexes Rick outside, which Schiavone calls a powerslam. There goes that classic commentary I was talking about earlier. Booker and Rick go at it until Rick catches a kick and slams him. Rick makes the “hot” tag, even though he didn’t really take the beating. Scott comes in fresh and does his thing but a cover after a belly to belly is broken up. Rick and Stevie fight outside as Scott hits the Frankensteiner. Vincent runs in and hits a weak elbow on Booker, causing the disqualification.

Winners via disqualification: Harlem Heat in 12:01
Kind of dull and disappointing. It had a strange vibe to it and felt like the teams were kind of going through the motions. Also, the finish was stupid. So the nWo, who had the Tag Titles, don’t want to face the Steiners, which I get. However, that makes Harlem Heat look like a weak team. **

The Steiner Brothers beat up Vincent after the match. Even though the nWo is something like 800 wrestlers deep at this point, nobody comes to help him.

Hugh Morris vs. Konnan
Your name is Hugh Morris. What? Hugh Morris. What? Is that funny? Is that…humorous? What? As he comes out, he tells the camera “SHUCKY DUCKY” and I’ve come to the conclusion that is where Booker T stole the phrase from. Morris and Konnan start with fists as this is apparently a bitter and personal feud. Morris uses his power advantage in the beginning but Konnan fights back with his rolling clothesline. He goes to a headlock and shouts “VIVA MEXICO!” He gives up on that quickly and goes to a dropkick. Hugh Morris breaks free of a submission and launches Konnan into the steel steps. Something about WCW’s steps don’t sound nearly as rough as the WWE ones. Impressive spinning heel kick from Morris before he goes to a rest hold. Schiavone admits that he was wrong about this being a fight with not many wrestling holds. Morris and Konnan are like FUCK STORYTELLING, because they want to work a wrestling match rather than a fight. They continue to trade submissions with the highlight being Konnan pulling a Doink and uses the Stump Puller. They get into an awkward exchange that Brain tries to cover up by saying they’re exhausted. The crowd that was scoring hot during the opener, is now silent. Morris climbs up for No Laughing Matter but takes FOREVER. So long that Konnan telegraphs that he’s going to move, gets halfway up, lays back down for a few seconds, then gets up and pulls him down. Morris hits the buckle on the way down, which somehow knocks him out. Konnan applies the Tequila Sunrise and wins since Morris is out cold.

Winner: Konnan in 10:34
I don’t even know what I just watched. It was supposed to be a fight but ended up just being a boring match. The finish was poorly executed and it completely killed the crowd. DUD

Gene Okerlund pumps the WCW Hotline at 1-900-909-9900, saying that they have juicy news about someone they can’t mention on TV. I never called one of these so I wonder if they ever really had any legit news or if they were just blowing smoke up the fans’ asses. He brings out Public Enemy for an interview. They cut a promo that would have gotten over in ECW but the WCW fans were confused and lost. They did pop at the mention of their city name though. YAY, HE SAID THE QUAD CITIES! THAT’S WHERE WE LIVE!

Glacier vs. Wrath w/ Mortis and James Vandenberg
Oh my goodness, is this seriously on Pay-Per-View? Trying to capitalize on the popularity of Mortal Kombat, WCW came up with Wrath, Mortis and Glacier but it was all ridiculous. WCW reportedly spent a TON of money on Glacier, his entrance and his gear, which turned out to be a giant waste. Mortis is chained to a corner outside, so commentary mentions that if he goes to the corner, things could still be bad. Why not just ban Mortis from ringside? They try and work some karate in with Glacier barely connecting on a dropkick that takes Wrath outside. Tenay is back on commentary even though I don’t think this will have nearly the moves that the opener did. Vandenberg distracts but it leads nowhere as Glacier kicks Wrath. The fight stays outside as Wrath’s whip is countered into the steps. He goes HEADFIRST. Mortis is trying to break the handcuffs while Tenay tries to explain the backstory of Mortis and Glacier. It’s absurd. Inside, Wrath takes control with a sleeper of sorts. Glacier rallies but the crowd doesn’t care and he misses a cross body. Wrath jumps from the apron onto Glacier because he was an impressive big man dammit. I always liked him. He continues with a nice flying clothesline for two. He tries another high risk move but misses. This leads nowhere as Wrath hits a side slam. Schiavone stated earlier that these guys want to pin each other, but now says that Wrath doesn’t to pin Glacier. MAKE UP YOUR MIND MAN! Glacier nails a second rope suplex and Mortis gets on the apron. Glacier knocks him off but walks into a back suplex. Vandenberg throws a chain in the ring but COMPLETELY overshoots Wrath. Glacier picks it up and hits Wrath with it to win.

Winner: Glacier in 12:01
First of all, why did this get twelve minutes? Second, faces cheating is not usually a good thing. Third, despite Wrath’s best efforts, this wasn’t very good. It was nonsensical and Glacier just wasn’t good. *

Mortis gets out of the handcuffs and they gang up on Glacier. He gets handcuffed and tries to attack before magically realizing that he has been cuffed. They literally just jump him because the faces aren’t allowed to stand tall in WCW.

WCW Women’s Championship vs. Career
Akira Hokuto (c) w/ Sonny Ono vs. Madusa
WCW had a Women’s Title? Hokuto attacks instantly and does a hair mare before choking Madusa in the corner. Piledriver from Hokuto before she just blatantly steps on Madusa’s face. She forgets to sell anything that has happened as she connects with two dropkicks. She pulls a Curt Hennig with a running neck snap but Hokuto goes to pulling the hair. The crowd is not hot but they are way more into this than the last two matches. More choking from the champion as Lee Marshall, who joined commentary, mentions that both girls were trained by men. I feel like I haven’t heard Dusty speak in forever. Madusa hits some poor looking kicks and what has to be the fifth or sixth snapmare of the match. Double axe handle from the challenger but she seems to hurt her leg. Hokuto smartly hits a knee breaker, though it looked like crap. Hokuto locks in a surfboard that looks very painful. Despite the bad knee, Madusa hits a variation of Trish Stratus’ handstand hurricanrana, which I had no idea she did first. A powerbomb gets her two but the knee is still giving problems. Hokuto misses a top rope move and eats a German suplex but Ono pulls Madusa’s leg out from under her bridge. Madusa is selling the leg work much better than she was selling stuff earlier. She tries an atomic drop but collapses, so Hokuto drops her on her head and retains.

Winner and Still WCW Women’s Champion: Akira Hokuto in 11:41
That got a lot more time than I expected and was actually my second favorite match of the night. Madusa sold the emotions of her desperation well and the leg work was well done. Impressive. **1/2

Madusa cries in the ring while Bobby Heenan ridicules her. You have to love the Brain. The go to Gene Okerlund who tries to interview Madusa as she’s being helped out by a doctor and referee. He comes off as a total asshole who is like “do you think your knee is out for good? Does that even matter since your career is over?” Madusa slaps the microphone away from him and Gene is somehow surprised at this reaction. The crowd even chants “leave her alone.”

Death Match
Chris Benoit vs. Meng w/ Jimmy Hart
So, I’m curious about what exactly makes this a “death match”. Benoit jumps out and beats on Meng before he even gets into the ring. Once he gets him in the ring, he applies the Cripple Crossface but Meng powers out and nicely sits him atop the turnbuckle. They trade some stuff until Benoit suplexes Meng outside, but it comes off odd and I think Meng got caught on the top rope. Meng is fine as he gets Benoit down and the referee counts Benoit so I guess this is a Last Man Standing match. After a powerbomb from Meng, Benoit is down for about a count of eight. I can’t tell because Nick Patrick isn’t shouting the count and seems to be just waving his arms and not using his fingers. Dragon sleeper by Meng as Ultimo Dragon cries infringement in the back. Chops from Benoit seem to have no effect and Meng hits an impressive splash. He covers, like a dunce so Patrick has to tell him that’s not how you win. Benoit is up, they fight outside for a short while, and once back inside, and Benoit hits a German and bridges it. DO EITHER OF YOU KNOW THE RULES? Meng is up and eats another German. Benoit survives the Tongan Death Grip and the fight goes outside again where both men are just chopping each other. Meng slows things down inside until Benoit locks in the Crossface. Meng reaches the ropes and Benoit is told to break it, but why? This is a “Death Match”. There’s no disqualification. He gets the move back on two more times and the last time, Meng fights hard but fades out. They call for the bell, but I thought this could only end in a 10 count?

Winner: Chris Benoit in 14:59
Disappointing is the word I’d use for this. Benoit was great and Meng was an underrated tough guy but something about this didn’t click. **3/4

Despite winning, Chris Benoit does the stretcher job and Meng is just knocked out cold. It takes forever, but Meng now also does a stretcher job. As they go to Mean Gene, Meng falls off the stretcher and Gene tells the camera to catch it. Gene is a total dick tonight. He plugs the WCW Hotline again before an advertisement airs for Bash at the Beach. Hulk Hogan and Dennis Rodman will be there!

Kevin Greene vs. Steve “Mongo” McMichael w/ Debra McMichael
I expect this to suck hard. Kevin Greene charges the ring and takes him down before a three point stance leads to a clothesline. Mongo turns the tide and goes after the knee on the outside. He brings Greene over to his mom, who wasn’t mentioned before this and she hits Mongo with her purse. Why isn’t she ejected? Mongo gets right back in control inside the ring though, so there’s that. Every time that Greene gets some offense, Mongo jus turns things around. He puts his finger in Greene’s ear, and I never knew that a wet Willy was an offensive move. After forgetting about it, Mongo goes back to the knee. Green climbs to the top, so I guess his knee is fine, and he hits a diving shoulder block. They fight outside and Debra fakes an ankle injury but Greene doesn’t fall for it so she stops. That’s it. Nothing else comes from this. Inside, Greene misses a splash in the corner and Mongo clubs away on him. Even though he’s in control, Jeff Jarrett runs out with a briefcase and goes to hit Greene, but clocks Mongo instead. Greene covers and wins.

Winner: Kevin Greene in 9:21
So, I commend both guys for trying their best. The thing is, they had no business on a Pay-Per-View and even less business going nearly ten minutes. Neither guy is a true worker and this should have been a tag match with maybe Jeff Jarrett and another actual wrestler to help this. However, it was still better than Konnan/Morris earlier. 3/4*

Jeff Jarrett watches the 1-2-3 happen instead of helping Mongo so Debra comes out and yells at him. She would eventually get over it and manage Jeff in the WWF. Madusa is shown in the back and they talk about how she might need reconstructive surgery, which would keep her out about eight months. SHE IS RETIRED YOU CLOWNS! Tony Schiavone never ceases to amaze me.

WCW World Tag Team Championship
The Outsiders (c) w/ Syxx vs. Ric Flair and Roddy Piper
This was when the Wolfpac was just the Outsiders and Syxx before it became its own thing and ended up being stupid. Ric Flair starts hot and his chops cause the Outsiders to talk strategy with Syxx. Or Syxx and Hall are discussing where to get coke. Bad taste? Maybe. Flair bump in the corner and he walks the apron right into a Nash big boot. Flair gets sent into the ropes and clearly sets himself up to have his foot grabbed by Syxx, yet they still mistime it. Nash gets the tag and does basic Nash stuff like elbows in the corner and a side slam for two. Roddy Piper gets the hot tag and applies the Sleeper Hold that Hall sells TERRIBLY! He picks him up and crotches him on the top rope to break it. Syxx gets in a cheap kick on Piper, so Flair forgets the match and decides to light Syxx up with shots going up the ramp and to the back. Piper fights for his life but Nash just pounds on him. Piper tries to tag but realizes he’s alone. He still trash talks and tries to fight but it is futile. The Outsiders just end him.

Winners and still WCW World Tag Team Champions: The Outsiders in 10:02
Probably went a bit too long for the guys working. Piper was not good at this time and Hall and Nash were in full mail it in mode. Flair leaving was a dumb move too. *

Michael Buffer is out, which pisses me off because he sucks. He informs us that the main event will be contested under Lights Out rules. The lights in the arena go out but comes back on so I’m not sure what this means.

Falls Count Anywhere
DDP w/ Kimberly vs. Macho Man Randy Savage w/ Elizabeth
Kimberly comes out to the stage and while Randy Savage is watching, DDP comes from behind and starts the fight. He goes for the early Diamond Cutter, which I don’t like. Why would someone who wants his hand on Savage try and end this quickly? DDP actually does a plancha outside but his ribs are hurt. For those who don’t know, DDP had taped ribs for like six years. It’s the equivalent to Bob Orton’s arm injury. He even had them as part of his attire in WCW/NWO Revenge. The fight spills inside and out as they move through the crowd. Savage is taking a beating, being thrown into a wall and the rails. Savage turns things around when they get back to ringside, tossing DDP into steps. He throws powder into DDP’s eyes and then hits him with some foreign object. Savage exposes DDP’s ribs, like the tape is protecting it that much as the crowd chants for “Sting.” Savage chooses to lay out the referee and then piledrives him. WCW folks; taking ref bumps to the next level. Another ref comes out and is taken out too. The fight moves to the aisle, where Savage is still beating on Page. They move to a BBQ area, which I have no clue why it exists. It’s not like it was used for a segment earlier. DDP slams Savage through a picnic table and dumps charcoal on him. As they go back to the ring area, Savage goes for a piledriver on the concrete but Nick Patrick stops him. WHY? IT’S NO DQ! Savage agrees and he takes out Patrick. DDP lays him out with a chair while Dusty shouts to pin him so Heenan shouts “THERE IS NO REFEREE DUSTY!” He rolls him in the ring, even though this is falls count anywhere and gets hit with a low blow. Page doesn’t care because he counters a suplex into the Diamond Cutter. Scott Hall comes out but fails as DDP takes him down with a terrible looking and terribly sold atomic drop. Savage nails him with the title and then he eats an Outsider’s Edge. An elbow drop from Savage finishes this off.

Winner: Macho Man Randy Savage in 16:56
This was literally just a brawl and it was fine at being that. But was there a need for Savage to go over? Also, the crowd wanted to see Sting badly but you end the show like this? Not good.**1/2

Overall: 4/10; Weak. A surprising lack of the nWo gave me hope that this show would be good but it disappointed. The only standout match was the opener. Besides that, there was a solid women’s match, an underwhelming “death match” and a not bad main event. However, the ending was anti-climactic, the two tag matches sucked and let’s not even get started on Glacier/Wrath or the incredibly bad Konnan/Morris bout. Up next on “Random Network Reviews” will be No Mercy 2005!