PWG Battle of Los Angeles Stage Two
September 3rd, 2016 | Reseda, California
Night one of this tournament was a good, solid show. Night two last year was the one that was widely considered to be an all-time great show and it seems like that is the case this time around too. This show also features the PWG debut of Cody Rhodes, which is something I’m really looking forward to.
First Round Match
Dalton Castle w/ The Boys def. Tommaso Ciampa in 13:27
This is certainly an interesting clash of styles. Jack Gallagher got scratched from the show and Ciampa was his replacement. Castle had his usual boys with him this time. We got some comedy stuff early as Ciampa just wanted a hug. He made quick work of the boys shortly after and they moved into the actual match. Even then though, there were still a lot of comedy moments. It worked within the PWG confines, but doesn’t always make for the best match. Ciampa did some WWE spots, like a superman punch and Pedigree. In a continuing trend on these shows, the back half of the match picked up. Castle came close after dead lifting Ciampa from the apron into a German suplex. Ciampa bled from the mouth, spit in his hand and chopped Castle, making for a great visual. From out of nowhere, Castle hit Bang-a-Rang and won. Good opener but nowhere near the level of the night one opener. Like I said, it fit for the PWG crowd so it worked in that sense. ***
Tommaso Ciampa got “thank you Ciampa” chants before leaving.
First Round Match
Mark Andrews def. Pete Dunne in 18:14
Pete Dunn is making his PWG debut. He is known as the “bruiserweight” which is an awesome idea for a cruiserweight gimmick. Behind Cody Rhodes, he’s the second most intriguing BOLA debut this year. Andrews was a good choice for an opponent because he is a prototypical cruiserweight and it allowed new audiences to see how different Dunne is. While he flew around, Dunne just bullied him. I enjoyed when Dunne did a Go to Europe, which is a GTS into a European uppercut. Andrews did a moonsault into a tornado DDT that didn’t come off quite as well as I’d hoped. His second attempt saw Dunne block and hit a tombstone on the floor. He beat the count and inside, he took another tombstone that Dunne held on to, got up and nailed a jumping tombstone yet that only got two. Undertaker is pissed somewhere. Dunne continued to toss him around but Andrews just kicked out of everything. Andrews eventually won with an SSP. I think this was good but it could have been so much more. You had the perfect story of bruiserweight vs. cruiserweight and instead, this turned into one of those kick out fests. Like, he took a beating but it never really felt like Andrews was battling from underneath. Too many kick outs, not enough drama and too long of a match to be truly great. ***¼
First Round Match
Cody Rhodes def. Sami Callihan in 11:34
I was so excited for Cody Rhodes to be in this tournament and then he got booked against Callihan, who has been so unbelievably uninteresting and mostly lackluster since returning after his Solomon Crowe run. Cody’s ring introduction was done by his wife, Brandi Rhodes and featured lines like “grandson of a plumber” and “the star that left them in the dust.” He looked genuinely happy to be there. They worked at a physical, fast pace, which is when Callihan is at his best. Callihan beat him up around the ring until Cody hit an enziguri off the apron. Once inside, Sami hit a DVD into the corner and it looked bad for Cody. We got some PWG goofiness when Sami got a cat mask from outside. It was bested when Cody got his old “undashing” mask to combat it. I loved that gimmick so I enjoyed this. Like Andrews, Cody kicked out of a tombstone and won with Cross Rhodes. I thought this was harmless fun that didn’t overstay its welcome. ***
Fenix and Pentagon Jr. def. Heroes Eventually Die (Chris Hero and Tommy End) in 18:22
In real life, Fenix and Pentagon Jr. are brothers. Teaming up here, they wore masks that fused the Pentagon and Fenix looks together. It was awesome. Things began with some even back and forth between Fenix and End. Pentagon called Hero a “puto” and demanded he come in. Their AAW match was really good. Pentagon did a spot here he launched Fenix up onto his shoulders and then Fenix moonsaulted off onto End and Hero outside. It was insane. After that though, HED took over as the bigger, brute tag team. Fenix took most of the heat and just got his ass handed to him. Pentagon got the hot tag but Hero and End quickly stopped his momentum. Fenix and Pentagon started in with their double team moves to the crowd’s liking. There were just some insane moments throughout this. Too many to list in fact. It came down to Fenix and End, who just went at it. Fenix snapped off a big super rana and won with a springboard 450 splash. This was the second best tag team match I’ve seen this year. The entire match is pure insanity, with all four men going balls to the wall. Honestly, you have to go out of your way to see this. Heroes Eventually Die played great brutes, while Penty and Fenix were awesome as the team with fire doing some incredible things. ****½
First Round Match
Trevor Lee def. Kamaitachi in 11:28
To get heat, Lee gets introduced as a “TNA superstar”. He instantly started with a huge double stomp on Kamaitachi. Lee just abused Kamaitachi, including a sickening backdrop driver onto the ring apron. I legitimately though Kamaitachi was hurt. Sticking with the TNA stuff, Lee hit a Twist of Fate after yelling “DELETE”, getting “broken Trevor” chants. Kamaitachi made his comeback and the match evened out. HE DID THE DEAL but only got two. Kamaitachi seemed to go all out and busted out several dangerous spots. When he got close to winning they did the lame dive off the top into your opponent’s foot spot. That led to Lee winning with a small package driver. The second best match of the night so far. Both guys held nothing back and fit a lot into the time given without seemingly overdoing it. It was compact, hard hitting, crazy and fun. ***¾
First Round Match
Mark Haskins def. Cedric Alexander in 14:37
Props to commentary for putting over Cedric’s breakout match with Kota Ibushi in the CWC. This was one of the more serious matches in the tournament. No dancing, comedy or BS. They just went out and wrestled, like the last match, which I liked. Though that was more action packed and this was more methodical at places. Haskins targeted Alexander’s left arm and sprinkled in some hard strikes. He wore down Cedric, who came back with some hope spots. Included in there was the best Michinoku Driver I’ve ever seen. At one point, Haskins transitioned from a body scissors into a sharpshooter, which I’ve never seen before. The final stretch was great and saw Haskins put Cedric away with an armbar. Another really good match on a show full of them. Their offense was crisp, the match made sense and had some really cool moments throughout. ***½
First Round Match
Kyle O’Reilly def. Matt Riddle in 16:14
It’s crazy how good Riddle is considering how short his time in the business has been. I was more interested in this matchup than any other in the tournament. Early on, we were treated to a very even battle of mat work and striking. Neither man could gain an advantage, showcasing how even they are. Riddle was first to go outside of the box with a baseball slide and springboard. Kyle started to get in the driver’s seat with some vicious kicks. There was a “broly shit” chant after Riddle hit a fisherman buster for two. They battled through submissions in the final stretch with both guys still struggling for an advantage. Kyle did the brainbuster near fall into the armbar spot but Riddle countered into a submission. Kyle leaned back on him to steal the three count. This was going very well and had match of the tournament potential until the finish. I understood what they were going for but it wasn’t the best of finishes. Just shy of being great. ***¾
Matt Sydal, Ricochet and Will Ospreay def. Adam Cole and the PWG Tag Team Champions The Young Bucks in 20:04
So here it is. The first ever Dave Meltzer approved five star match in PWG history. I’m sure it has nothing to do with him being in attendance or the fact that he’s become a Bucks mark ever since they named a move after him. I want to preface this by saying that I only like two of the guys in this match (Ospreay and Ricochet. Sometimes Cole), but I’m gonna give it a fair chance to impress. Everyone involved outside of Sydal has at least one four star rating given out by me in history.
The match is almost instantly full of big spots. Sydal slips on the top rope trying a dive to the outside before Ricochet and Ospreay follow with actual dives that connect. The Bullet Club did triple apron powerbombs before doing the Kenny Omega Terminator build up into suicide dives. Honestly, they all did the stuff you’d expect from them. Lots of flips, superkicks and marking out by the fans. The Bucks accidentally kissed each other at one point and Ospreay hit a handspring moonsault onto them that didn’t come off that well. Everyone went into a big spot barrage in the final few minutes. Ricochet kicked out of an assisted Indytaker to the surprise of many. The babyfaces turned things around, including Sydal and Ricochet doing a shooting star Meltzer Driver, before the three of them won with simultaneous shooting star presses. I understood why this match worked and it made sense for the crowd it was done in front of. However, in no way did this ever come across as a five star match to me. Even as someone who dislikes most things Young Bucks, they and everyone else in this have had far better matches than this. It’s a fun match with some slipups but some impressive athletic moves. No matter how many times Matt and Nick put Dave’s face on their tights, this isn’t even close to sniffing MOTY level. It’s good, it works and everyone did what they do best, making for a fitting main event in front of the Reseda faithful. ***
Overall: 8.5/10. I’m sure people will be displeased with the score I gave the main event. Regardless, this was such a consistently strong show. The lowest ratings for me throughout this went to the opener, Sami/Cody and main event and both clocked in at three stars. The entire show moves along briskly with some really fun matches. A few matches nearly reached four star territory, while the Heroes Eventually Die/Pentagon and Fenix tag was the best thing I’ve seen on these shows by a fair margin.
PWG Battle of Los Angeles Stage One
September 2nd, 2016 | Reseda, California
Last year, I checked out PWG’s annual Battle of Los Angeles tournament for the first ever time. I thought that tournament was good but not great and nowhere near the level of the best tournaments I’ve ever seen (like the G1 Climax 24 for example). However, PWG always brings in some big names and it makes for some interesting matches throughout.
First Round Match
Marty Scurll def. Pentagon Jr. in 13:06
I really like both of these guys, so this is off to a good start. The crowd was molten hot for both men before it even began. Both guys did their trademark heel stuff but the only thing to actually get boos was Scurll going after Pentagon’s mask. Scurll hit two superkicks from the apron, followed by a suicide tornado DDT. Screw the fans though as Scurll flipped them off. Pentagon took advantage of that opening with a tope con hilo. There were more superkicks exchanged inside. The Young Bucks would be proud. Scurll came close to winning with a second, bigger tornado DDT. Pentagon hit a corner exploder that broke the bottom turnbuckle so the rest of the match had a loose bottom rope. Pentagon no sold some clotheslines and insinuated that Scurll wasn’t man enough to knock him down by pointing to his huevos. Somehow, Scurll kicked out of pumphandle driver and the Package Piledriver for an insane near fall. In one of my favorite moments in recent memory, Marty did his finger snap spot but Pentagon just pops them back into place like a badass. Marty countered the Package Piledriver into the cross for the win. Awesome opener featuring two guys that I really like going at it. Pentagon was on another level of badass, but Scurll was just a bit smarter. ***¾
First Round Match
Ricochet def. Jeff Cobb in 13:57
PRINCE PUMA VS. MATANZA CUETO! Chuck Taylor saying that “Mr. Athletic” Jeff Cobb sounds like an 80’s jobber was a highlight. Ricochet was his athletic self and Cobb was a monster. Early on, he shoulder blocked him into oblivion. Cobb blocked the People’s Moonsault by just picking Ricochet up for a powerslam. After getting tossed around for a while, Ricochet showed off his power by picking up Cobb for an impressive exploder. He followed that with a pretty dive to the outside. Still, no matter what Ricochet did, Cobb was almost unfazed and would continue to toss him around. Ricochet finally managed to pull Cobb into a small package and steal it. This was good but not great. I think they had the right idea with the finish but it would have worked better for me if Ricochet played the match a bit less even. Cobb could have done more so that Ricochet’s rollup win would have felt like desperation. I think that would have been a better plan. Still, we got some really good stuff between two very talented individuals.***½
First Round Match
John Hennigan def. Matt Sydal in 14:14
Two guys that hung around the WWE mid-card during a pretty down era for the company. Both have gone on to do well for themselves since then though. Hennigan being billed from Slamtown USA is a top five thing he’s ever done. There was an early ECW chant that made me laugh. This was a strange match. They did some odd comedy stuff that never really caught on with me. Considering the guys involved, this was far slower than I expected it to be. It’s like, they did some cool things but a lot of it seemed to have no point. The crowd was less into this than the previous matches, Hennigan didn’t deliver and Sydal didn’t seem to care. Hennigan won with the Starship Pain. Moving on. **¼
First Round Match
Will Ospreay def. Fenix in 10:28
Two of the best high-fliers on the planet in this one. Ospreay can be really good when he’s on, while Fenix is almost always awesome. They began at a really quick pace, which was expected. Ospreay hit the first big dive to the outside. Fenix did one better with a sick corkscrew plancha right after. Surprisingly, Ospreay took things to the mat and slowed it down a bit. Fenix nailed a sweet springboard rana before he tried a second variation only for Ospreay to land on his feet. They went up top and did the spot everyone talked about from the trailers. Fenix’s Spanish fly off the top saw both men land on their feet and I’ll admit, it was really impressive. Ospreay got his knees up on a springboard 450 before winning with the Oscutter. A really good match that had a bit of a lull in the middle but really picked up near the end. Maybe my expectations were a bit high since I expected more. Really enjoyable and certainly worth a watch. I would have had this go 14 and given the 10 minutes to Sydal and Hennigan.***½
First Round Match
PWG Champion Zack Sabre Jr. def. Tommy End in 16:40
Zack Sabre Jr. won the PWG Championship with the title shot that he earned by winning this tournament in 2015. Tommy End was wrapping up some indy dates before starting with the WWE. In 2015, all of the buzz was positive about Sabre. 2016 has been less kind to him. He got booed in both Evolve and RevPro, while his run through the Cruiserweight Classic left a lot to be desired. The issue a lot of people have with him was evident here. He’s like, a spot monkey of technical moves. Sometimes he does them for the sake of doing them instead of with any purpose to the match. The early portions of this match were kind of just there. The second half of the match picked up and I loved watching End lay in the strikes. Sabre was good at returning the favor and I liked his focus on the arm. After some excellent strike exchanges, Sabre won with an octopus hold variation. Like I said, this was really weak early on, but got really awesome near the end. Cut out some of that opening stuff and this could have been really strong. ***¼
First Round Match
Chris Hero def. Jushin Thunder Liger in 14:59
Yea, this was one of, if not the most exciting matchup on the card. Liger is 51 and still rules. Hero is fat and still rules. Excalibur noted that Liger made his wrestling debut before 8 of the guys competing in the tournament tonight were even born. We were treated to the disrespectful Hero, which was fun. This had a different pace than most of the matches on this show. It felt like both men knew the other was someone legitimate enough to not take any chances with. Hero just continued to talk smack throughout, calling Liger the oldest young boy as he kicked him. He dared Liger to show him something, so he got slapped up and ate a rolling kick. Liger managed to pull out a brainbuster and the Liger Bomb, but Hero was too tough. Hero did his own Liger Bomb but the 51-year-old kicked out at one! He fired up only to fall to a ripcord elbow. Really good match that felt like a special one. Hero as the asshole who disrespects the legend worked well to add something to this. I would have liked to see Liger go on a bit of a run in the tourney. ***½
Adam Cole and the PWG Tag Team Champions The Young Bucks def. Dalton Castle and reDRagon in 19:13
Dalton Castle’s “boys” were played by reDRagon tonight. The Bucks wore gear with Dave Meltzer’s face all over them, getting a “five star gear” chant. Credit to reDRagon for being up for EVERYTHING that the boys do. Dalton used them as steps, they fanned him and did his trademark pose. Taylor calling Cole a fat piece of shit in trunks and mentioning that the “old” boy couldn’t fully arch his back were two hilarious moments. They did a lot of comedy stuff, including the unmasking of Bobby Fish, who promptly put it back on like nothing happened. The teams worked a very even match. Cole and Castle had fun chemistry, while the Bucks and reDRagon have wrestled a million times. reDRagon revealed themselves and put in mouth guards, causing the Bucks to run and leave Cole alone with them. The closing stretch is where this match moved from comedy into more of a frenzy. Eventually, the match ended with a double Meltzer Driver. This was a fine way to send the fans home. It isn’t my exact cup of tea, but some of the comedy moments were fun and the final stretch was enjoyable. **¾
Overall: 7/10. A good way to start the tournament. Nothing on the show was blow away great or a match of the year contender, but nothing was really bad either. The only match that I’d say is worth a skip is Sydal/Hennigan. Ricochet/Cobb, Liger/Hero and Ospreay/Fenix are all fun, while Scurll/Pentagon was the MOTN. Add in the compact two hour runtime and this is a breeze to watch.
The episode starts with Prince Puma in the back. Vampiro comes up to him, continuing something that started on the premiere. He seems to offer help but Puma wants nothing to do with Vampiro, even if Mil Muertes is beating him lifeless. He'd rather die by Mil's hand than live by Vampiro's. Vampiro says that he predicts Mil will die by Puma's hands instead.
Matanza is in the ring for another edition of Dario's Dial of Doom. This week's lucky winner of a title shot is Killshot!
Lucha Underground Championship: Matanza Cueto (c) w/ Dario Cueto def. Killshot in 3:58
I love that Killshot is getting a title shot. He's one of my favorite guys in LU. He still showed effects from the awesome match with Marty Martinez a few weeks ago. Matanza came out quickly and tossed him around the ring. Killshot used the ropes to survive an early pinfall attempt. Matanza went for a top rope Tombstone but Killshot got free and started getting in offense to huge reactions from the crowd. He ripped his bandage off but ran into a big uppercut from the champion. Matanza hit the Wrath of the Gods to retain. Spirited run for Killshot but it was too short and he didn't get in enough hope spots for this to be really good. **3/4
After the match, AR Fox walks to the ring with dog tags around his neck. Killshot says something along the liens of "I thought you were dead." He hugs him bug Fox shoves him off and nails a big kick. He follows up with right hands and stomps. He plans him with a fisherman buster. For those unaware, Fox is playing a partner that Killshot had who he believed died in war. Fox drops the tags on him and says "you left me for dead."
Returning, another white rabbit teaser aired.
The Trios Champions, Fenix, Aerostar and Drago come out. Dario Cueto shows up to announce that in four weeks, we will be treated to Aztec Warfare III! He claims that Matanza has been unstoppable, so to give him a real challenge, he will enter at #1. The three men in the ring are about to get a unique opportunity. They will face each other and the winner earns #20 in Aztec Warfare. However, the two losers won't even be in the match!
Unique Opportunity Match: Drago def. Aerostar and Fenix in 8:33
Surprisingly, one man stays on the apron, which is odd, especially for the chaotic Lucha Underground. Even with that, things got out of hand quickly and they worked at a very quick pace. A lot of what was going on was hard to keep up with. Fenix got busted open shortly before nailing a superkick. Drago hit Aerostar with a nice powerbomb but Fenix broke up the pin. They all ended up in the corner, where Aerostar got on Fenix's shoulder. Drago climbed up and arm dragged him off, which looked disappointing since it seemed like they were gonna go for something more. They did a cool spot where Fenix had Drago in a submission as Aerostar put one on Fenix. Drago took out Fenix with a rewind rana before beating Aerostar with a blockbuster DDT. Good fun here though it had some sloppy moments. The finish came out of nowhere, which I liked since Fenix seemed like the obvious winner but the move itself that ended it felt lackluster. ***1/4
In the back, Drago is looking in the mirror when Kobra Moon arrives. She tells him that she expects him to win the Lucha Underground Title and bring it back to the tribe. He says that he left the tribe a long time ago and isn't going back. Vinnie, who randomly appeared a few weeks ago, awkwardly shows up eating pizza, saying he thought it was the men's room.
Johnny Mundo is back to see Dario Cueto again. Desperate for a title shot and not wanting to wait until Aztec Warfare, Mundo has the briefcase that he won from Dario back in season one. Of the $100,000, $93,000 are left since Mundo had to pay off someone for something related to internet photos. Dario grants him a shot at Sexy Star and the Gift of the Gods Title next week.
Prince Puma def. Mil Muertes w/ Cartina in 8:44
It's a rematch of the first Ultima Lucha main event. Puma came out firing but Mil Muertes is a beast and turned it around. Puma hit a suicide dive, followed by a dive outside. The crowd was way into this. Muertes came back with a big spear on the outside. They brawled throughout the crowd and Puma leapt off of the bleachers onto Mil in a cool moment. Once back in the ring, we got some good back and forth from these two. Puma hit a kick that sent Mil's head into the ring post before scoring with the 630 and earning a rare win over Muertes. This was just shy of being great. They have good chemistry and worked a really fun match that had some enjoyable spots sprinkled in. They're tied at one now and I sense a bigger match for the tiebreaker. ***3/4
Rey Mysterio Jr. talks to someone in the back about Chavo. It is revealed that he's talking to CHAVO CLASSIC! Chavo Classic wanted to be sure that fighting with Chavo was the only way for Rey to handle this. Rey said that it's CHavo or him, one of them has to go. I'm not excited for a Rey/Chavo feud in 2016.
Overall: 8/10. Possibly the best episode of the season. The opener was a fun little sprint and the AR Fox debut was a nice addition to the Killshot story. The Aztec Warfare announcement was cool and I enjoyed the triple threat. The main event was damn good and I really liked how each match brought something different to the table.
If you do want to check out Lucha Underground, which you absolutely should, and don't get El Rey Network (like me), you can sign up for the streaming service Fubo.TV. It's a great way to support the company and channel while streaming the show online. You can sign up and get Lucha Underground right here with Fubo.tv!
No Mercy 2001
October 21st, 2001 | Savvis Center in St. Louis, Missouri | Attendance: 15,647
This is in the midst of the invasion angle. Steve Austin was running power hungry as the heel leader of the group, feuding with Kurt Angle. They had just met on two straight PPVs, so here, the incredibly popular Rob Van Dam is thrown into the mix, making for on interesting triple threat WWF Championship match. This is the third No Mercy in history (not counting the one in the UK in 1999).
The opening video packages considers Steve Austin as the paranoid man, Kurt Angle as the vengeful man and RVD as the confident man. It even shows RVD holding the WWF Title. Saliva’s “Click Click Boom” is the theme song, and it’s a song that I really like. Our commentary team is the always awesome Jim Ross and Paul Heyman.
WCW Tag Team Championship
The Hardy Boyz (c) w/ Lita vs. The Hurricane and Lane Storm w/ Ivory and Mighty Molly
When the hell did Ivory and Lance Storm become a thing? Hurricane holds the European Championship here. Hurricane starts with Jeff Hardy and it is clear that he completely is in character. That’s why the Hurricane worked so well, Shane Helms threw himself totally into the role. He and Storm hit a nice double team that I didn’t know they had in them. Storm holds Jeff as Hurricane goes to fly but Matt lays him out. Mighty Molly, ever the trusty sidekick, helps Hurricane up and gives him his cape so he can leap out onto them. Paul Heyman adding a “woosh” on commentary is golden. They work over Jeff until Matt gets the tag and comes in hot. The challengers pick up a close near fall after the champs miss Poetry in Motion. They hit a double superkick on Matt but Jeff breaks the pin and sends Storm outside. Molly tries to get involved so Lita spears her. Ivory gets involved too, throwing Lita outside. Jeff takes out Ivory because chivalry is apparently dead. Lita hits her rana on Storm, followed by the Twist of Fate/Swanton Bomb combo from Jeff to retain.
Winners and Still WCW Tag Team Champions: The Hardy Boyz in 7:42
Wow, that was much more fun than I thought it would be. The Hurricane is so good in his role and the oddball tag team with Lance Storm could have gone far. They were entertaining and had a fun, energetic opening contest. ***¼
Backstage, Rob Van Dam arrives and William Regal expects him to apologize for hitting Steve Austin with a Five Star Frog Splash on Smackdown. RVD isn’t going to do that. He promises that he isn’t on Vince’s side, but is on his own side.
Kane vs. Test
I feel like Test had potential to be pretty big in 1999, but not so much at this point. On the other hand, Kane was an absolute beast at this time. JR calls both guys “young studs”, which is kind of funny. In an impressive spot for two guys of this size, Kane gorilla press slams Test to the outside. Right in front of WCW referee Nick Patrick, Test hits Kane with the ring bell. Obviously, there is no DQ called. Inside, Test is in control, nailing a nice stalling vertical suplex. They continue to trade big blows in the ring. Kane gets multiple near falls, but can’t seem to put Test down for good. Test hits the pump handle slam and a diving elbow but that also isn’t enough. Kane gets upset at the referee, and that distraction allows Test to hit a low blow and big boot for the 1-2-3.
Winner: Test in 10:08
This was better than I remember it being, but still nothing to write home about. It was a decent big hoss battle and was kind of a rare win for an Alliance member. Maybe I was more pissed about it before because I thought Kane in 2001 should have dominated. **¼
Backstage, Stone Col and Debra have a rather funny segment before Stacy Keibler stops Matt Hardy to ask about her lingerie. He says it’s good before Lita comes up and he manages to avoid an awkward moment.
Lingerie Match
Stacy Keibler vs. Torrie Wilson
Torrie Wilson just wearing a shirt over her lingerie is the hottest thing about this match. Stacy doesn’t remove her robe to start and busts out some cartwheels. She knocks Torrie down and finally does the big reveal. Stacy pulls out a whip and uses it on both Torrie and referee Jack Doane. Torrie wins after using her boyfriend Tajiri’s handspring elbow.
Winner: Torrie Wilson in 3:07
A for effort for these girls. Yea neither one could really wrestle and they were doing it here in lingerie, but dammit they tried their best to make this as good as their skillsets allowed. They accomplished that. *
WWF Intercontinental Championship Ladder Match
Christian (c) vs. Edge
During this feud, Christian joined the Alliance which I never liked. He didn’t need to that and the feud was personal enough without it. The fight begins during Christian’s entrance and they brawl around ringside, hammering home how serious the match is. They haven’t even really been in the ring yet. They do a spot where the ladder is bridged between the steps and the guardrail and Christian gets crotched on it. Ouch. We see our first callback to an old ladder match of theirs when it is catapulted into Edge’s face. Jim Ross has to get in his line of “HOW DO YOU LEARN HOW TO FALL OFF A 20 FOOT LADDER?” He ran that into the ground during this time period. The ladder bumps come faster now, with Edge taking the brunt of a fair amount of them. Christian brings in a second ladder because why the hell not? They climb both and Edge pulls him down with a massive Edge-o-matic. Christian hits the next big move with a reverse DDT off a ladder, calling back to an old match again. Not satisfied, Christian brings chairs into the ring. Edge counters his attempt to use them and splashes him onto a ladder. To try and one up himself, he then calls back to WrestleMania from this year with a big diving Spear, though it is nowhere near the level of that original one. The very cool finish comes as Edge lays Christian across the tops of two ladders and nearly kills him with a one man con-chair-to before retrieving the belt.
Winner and New WWF Intercontinental Champion: Edge in 22:15
While I think the match could have been a big shorter to be better, this was still really good to me. I’ve seen a fair amount of people down on it and I admit the pacing isn’t great, but overall, I think it worked. They built towards the bigger spots, had good callbacks to their past matches and the finish worked beautifully considering their feud and how Christian turned on him originally. ***¾
WWF Tag Team Championship
The Dudley Boyz (c) vs. Big Show and Tajiri
Yes, the WWF team holds the WCW belts and the Alliance team holds the WWF belts. Honestly, throughout his career, I’ve always felt that Big Show worked well in tag teams, but this one with Tajiri is certainly an odd one. Show runs through his opponents but the champions eventually isolate Tajiri. They wisely do the false hot tag spot. Tajiri ends up spitting the mist but catching the official. Show hits a Chokeslam on Bubba Ray but the referee is blind. A wild Rhyno appears and GORES Big Show. Tajiri does his best to fight off the Dudleys but falls victim to a 3D.
Winners and Still WWF Tag Team Champions: The Dudley Boyz in 9:20
Not a bad match here, but it was lacking something. I think the fans, despite being rather loud, never really bought the odd team of Big Show and Tajiri as a legitimate threat. Regardless, they tried but the execution was off. **½
Booker T vs. The Undertaker
As Undertaker is getting off of his motorcycle, Booker T attacks him. He’s going to need to considering how poorly the Alliance had been booked to this point. They brawl around the ring for a while. During the invasion, Undertaker was in pretty much no mood to sell for anyone. Hell, he was in no mood to sell during his early American Badass days period. With that being said, Undertaker is quickly back in control once the match goes inside. They continue to trade the advantage until Booker does the “LEAP FROM THE TOP RIGHT INTO YOUR BOOT” spot, which I detest. Booker actually hits the Scissors Kick but Undertaker gets a foot on the bottom rope. Hey, they’re actually protecting Booker’s finish somewhat. He hits the Last Ride to win.
Winner: The Undertaker in 13:12
WCW’s top guy, Booker T, has now jobbed to Rock on two straight PPVs and loses to the Undertaker here. That tells you how the booking of the Alliance was going. Undertaker sold more for Booker than he did for most others in this era, but that still didn’t make the match very good. *¾
WCW Championship
The Rock (c) vs. Chris Jericho
Look, we have two WWF guys wrestling for the WCW Title. Jim Ross throws a jab at WCW booking as he questions why Jericho never got a shot at the WCW Title while he was there. This is the first in a trilogy of matches between the two that ended at the 2002 Royal Rumble. They tart with some back and forth mat work until Jericho slaps the Rock, kicking up the intensity. Jericho nails his springboard dropkick, looking to pull out all the stops tonight. Jericho is in total control here, dominating in a fashion that I never expected. Rock gets tired of that, hitting a clothesline and belly to belly suplex. Rock starts using his size advantage to swing the momentum. It takes a missile dropkick for Jericho to stop his rally. In an excellent moment, Jericho hits his own Rock Bottom and a Lionsault only for Rock to get the shoulder up. Heyman and Ross argue over whether or not Jericho is a choke artist. Entering this match, Jericho was kind of a tweener, but gets real personal by removing the elbow pad and going for the People’s Elbow. Rock avoid it and puts on his ugly Sharpshooter. Jericho survives but, since the match has progressed to something more physical, the Spanish announce table comes into play. Rock puts Jericho through it with a huge Rock Bottom. Inside, Jericho blocks a Rock Bottom but runs into a spinebuster. However, the crowd comes unglued when Jericho grabs Rock’s leg during the People’s Elbow and locks in the Walls of Jericho! Stephanie McMahon shows up, sliding a chair into the ring. Even though she doesn’t like the Rock, she cheers for him because she hates Jericho. Rock doesn’t care and plants her with a Rock Bottom. While the official looks at Stephanie, Jericho nails the Break Down onto the chair and wins the big one.
Winner and New WCW Champion: Chris Jericho in 23:43
Excellent stuff from both guys here. I loved how Jericho started the match as a guy feuding with a face, but wasn’t a direct heel yet. As the match progresses, he gets more heel like out of desperation, including mocking Rock’s moves and using the steel chair. Seriously, I just really liked how they built to the physical stuff. My only major gripe with the match is the involvement of Stephanie McMahon. Other than that, this is phenomenal. ****¼
Rock seems like he’s going to hit Chris Jericho after the match, but instead just shakes his hand.
WWF Championship
Steve Austin (c) vs. Kurt Angle vs. Rob Van Dam
The angle between Steve Austin and Rob Van Dam was very well done, even if the role isn’t ideal for Austin. There was the added drama of whether or not RVD was working with Vince McMahon. The match gets off to a hot start as Angle just delivers an array of suplexes on both guys. Paul Heyman makes a solid point that this match has the best wrestler, brawler and high flyer in the world. Austin and RVD tease coming to blows but it doesn’t happen as Angle gets involved again. The match breaks down to the usual triple threat style of one guy being down while the other two duke it out. Angle hits a sweet head and leg suplex before that gorgeous moonsault of his on RVD. Austin tries to steal the pin but it is broken up. With both guys down, RVD misses a big Five Star Frog Splash. The Angle Slam and a split legged moonsault hit, but those pins are broken up protecting those moves. Vince McMahon strolls out to ringside to add drama. Angle leaps to the top and takes out RVD with a super belly to belly suplex. Austin is in and hits Angle with a Stunner but he falls outside. He looks to RVD but Vince levels him with a chair. RVD hits the frog splash but again, Angle is there to break things up. Angle Slam hits but here’s Shane McMahon to pull a Vince and interfere. Vince and Shane now come to blows outside. In the midst of all of this, Austin hits RVD with a Stunner and retains.
Winner and Still WWF Champion: Steve Austin in 15:14
As a main event match, this delivered. The crowd was hot for it and there was just about the right amount of drama. I wasn’t a big fan of all of the McMahon interaction, similar to the WCW Title match. I do like that the match wasn’t filled with a bunch of kickouts as having the pins broken up protected each guy’s finisher, which was well done. ***¾
Overall: 7.5/10; Very good. I liked this show more this time around than I did when I first watched it on the Network. The main event, opener and Intercontinental Title ladder matches are all good, but it’s the WCW Championship match that steals the show here. There’s some good T&A in the lingerie match but everything else is pretty easy to skip. Still, the show never drags and delivers in spades at times. My randomizer has chosen my next “Random Network Review” as Slamboree 1993!
1) Kazuchika Okada: I'm in no way a fan of the guy, but Kazuchika Okada deserves the top spot this week. The first show of the week was NJPW's King of Pro Wrestling, which has had some fantastic Heavyweight Title matches throughout its history. While Okada's defense this week wasn't on par with the incredible 2012 and 2013 main events, it was the third best. He and Naomichi Marufuji told a great story and put on my second favorite IWGP Heavyweight Title match this year (only behind Naito/Ishii). Okada has been one step behind Marufuji since losing to him back on the first night of the G1 Climax. Okada was able to finally get one over on Marufuji and defeated him to retain the title.
2) Katsuyori Shibata: Okada vs. Marufuji was arguably the match of the week but one is neck and neck with it. That would be the NEVER Openweight Title match between Katsuyori Shibata and Kyle O'Reilly. O'Reilly recently moved up to the heavyweight division and this was his first real test there. O'Reilly bested Shibata at ROH's Field of Honor event (the match aired on ROH TV this past week) and was also trying to get some revenge for his partner, Bobby Fish, who lost to Shibata last month. O'Reilly and Shibata had just the kind of match I was hoping for. They played to their strengths and in the end, Shibata was able to retain the title. Outside of a month and a half, he's had a hold on the NEVER Title throughout all of 2016.
3) Chris Hero: Unfortunately, I wasn't able to see any of the shows yet, but Evolve 70 and 71 were this week. Chris Hero has arguably been the MVP of Evolve in 2016 and it seemed to continue here. At Evolve 70, Hero defeated Drew Gulak in a match that has gotten some pretty high praise. On Evolve 71 though, Hero was part of the main event and bested Evolve's hottest star, Matt Riddle, in a match that got even more positive things said about it. Any way you look at it, Chris Hero is not just one of the best performers of 2016, he's one of the best on the planet.
4) Pentagon Dark: Lucha Underground season three has been fun, but has gotten off to a slow, rocky start. One of the things that I haven't liked is that a certain Pentagon Jr. has seemed to be a bit lost so far. They don't really seem to have much planned for him right now. However, he took a big step forward this week. In a triple threat match against Rey Mysterio Jr. and Chavo Guerrero Jr., Pentagon Dark came out on top. Not only that, but he pinned Mysterio to avenge a loss from the season premiere. it made Pentagon only the second man in Lucha Underground to pin Mysterio, joining the champion, Matanza Cueto.
5) The Miz on Randy Orton in November 2010; Raw: When John Morrison and the Miz split, I was in the small group of people that knew Miz was going to be a bigger star and I am happy to say that I was right. In 2010, I was completely in on the Miz train. I loved his work as the United States Champion, as part of Show-Miz and with the briefcase. When he finally cashed in on Raw, it is something I remember clearly. He had talked so much about guaranteeing to become Champion that I was worried he'd cash in and lose, especially when he did so against Randy Orton, who wasn't in as bad shape as some of the other victims of cash ins. But they worked a short match, and Miz was able to win. The booking of his reign was shit, thanks to playing third wheel at WrestleMania and the awful Jerry Lawler, but Miz deserved this moment.
4) Dolph Ziggler on Alberto Del Rio in April 2013; Raw: Again, we got a lackluster run after a great cash in. At the time, I was a big Dolph Ziggler fan and badly wanted him to win the World Title. He had just finished going over John Cena on Pay-Per-View to retain it, but I was upset to see him in a Tag Title match at WrestleMania. 24 hours later, he cashed in on Alberto Del Rio in front of one of the hottest crowds in history. The pop for his arrival and eventual title win is unmatched among cash ins. The short match with Del Rio was good and I loved his counter to the Cross Armbreaker. Special moment and it's unfortunate that his concussion derailed his run.
3) CM Punk on Jeff Hardy in June 2009; Extreme Rules: Another personal favorite of mine right here. Based on shock factor, I think I enjoyed his first cash in better. However, it was still stunning that a face CM Punk cashed in on Jeff Hardy after a grueling ladder match. Unlike the previous two cash ins I listed, this one solidified Punk as a top guy. He and Jeff went on to have a great feud over the title. While the WWE still mishandled Punk at different times until he promo in Las Vegas, this changed things for him. It showed that his first win wasn't a fluke and set the stage for heel Punk, which was always my favorite.
2) Seth Rollins on Brock Lesnar in March 2015; WrestleMania: Man, this was very close to topping the list. Cashing in during the main event of WrestleMania is a ballsy move, especially when the two guys at war were Brock Lesnar and Roman Reigns. Seth is another guy that I've been a huge fan of, since his days as Tyler Black in the Age of the Fall and Do It For Her. Seeing him leave WrestleMania with the top belt was an incredible feeling. The cash in was tremendous, perfectly timed and done by the right guy. Again, the WWE hasn't booked his reign perfectly, but it doesn't take away from the cash in.
1) Edge on John Cena in January 2006; New Year's Revolution: Here we have a case of the original being the best. Unfortunately, I missed this moment live. It was at a time when I didn't care to order all 13 or 14 Pay-Per-Views the WWE was producing. I recall asking my friend at school the next day who won at the PPV and he said Edge. It confused me as, at the time, I still expected him to cash in for an actual match instead of when Cena was down. I've gone back and watched this countless times and it never gets old. Edge was the perfect Mr. Money in the Bank. This changed the game and sent the "Ultimate Opportunist" into the next level.
Raw History
Episode #52
February 21st, 1994 | Mid-Hudson Civic Center in Poughkeepsie, New York
We are live, which is always a treat. Macho Man is joining Vince McMahon for commentary.
WWF Tag Team Championship
The Quebecers (c) w/ Johnny Polo vs. 1-2-3 Kid and Razor Ramon
This was scheduled to be Marty Jannetty and Razor Ramon. I’m pretty sure Marty is gone for a while from the company. As has become the norm with Quebecer title matches, their opponents start hot and force them to regroup. Razor gets the crowd behind him as Vince McMahon announces the upcoming ladder match at WrestleMania. Johnny Polo gets involved so Razor, wanting none of that, ends him with a Razor’s Edge on the floor. Razor and Kid work very well together, which is expected due to their real life friendship. They are in control until Diesel shows up in the aisle. Kid starts to play the face in peril, which is exactly how it needs to be. Razor gets the hot tag and hits a second rope back suplex. He ends up incredibly close to winning, only for Shawn Michaels to come in and cause a DQ.
Winners via disqualification: 1-2-3 Kid and Razor Ramon in 16:05
Pretty solid tag team match here. People don’t mention it often, but the Quebecers have been steady performers and some of the best people to watch in recent months. Despite the outcome being very obvious with Diesel out there, I rather liked this. ***
Next week, Macho Man goes for his third WWF Championship as he faced Yokozuna. God, imagine if he would have won and it led to Bret Hart vs. Macho Man?
Jim Cornette is out to tell Macho Man that he has no chance next week. He then introduces Tom Pritchard.
Bret Hart vs. Tom Pritchard w/ Jim Cornette
The two men go through some mat exchanges that Bret always gets the better of, so Pritchard blames hair pulling. Vince McMahon points out Nikolai Volkoff in the front row, leading Randy Savage to straight up call him ugly. He then tells us that Donnie Wahlberg will be at WrestleMania! Pritchard takes control and wears down Bret for a bit. When Bret begins his comeback, Cornette tries to get involved, only for Macho Man to leap up and lay him out. Cheating managers are sure running into trouble this week huh? As Bret lands outside, Owen rolls him inside, saying Bret needs his help. Pritchard is too much of a scrub to take advantage though, and ends up submitting to the Sharpshooter.
Winner: Bret Hart in 12:14
Decent little match here but rather disappointing. Tom Pritchard was always a decent hand but he did nothing not note here. **½
Owen Hart’s reaction to Bret winning is priceless. Bret wants to fight now, but officials keep it separate.
Todd Pettengill and his dumb hat bring us the WrestleMania Report. Less than 4 weeks away! Little Richard, Jennie Garth, Donnie Wahlberg, Bucky and Vinny and Sy Sperling will appear. He runs down the card, starting with the Falls Count Anywhere and Ladder matches. He announces a Women’s Championship match, but no opponent for Alundra Blayze, Bigelow and Luna facing Doink and Dink and Ludvig Borga vs. Earthquake. That last match would not happen.
Jim Cornette brings out Yokozuna to get his racket back from Macho Man. Savage and Yokozuna go to brawl as the show goes off the air, leaving you in suspense for next week.
Overall: 7.5/10. The show only had two matches but both were relatively solid. That’s much better than the usual fare of squash match after squash match. I thought the Tag Title match was good and the Bret Hart match was decent. The show didn’t have too much flak, using the rest of the time to build towards next week’s WWF Title match and WrestleMania.
Raw History
Episode #53
February 28th, 1994 | Fernwood Resort in Bushkill, Pennsylvania
Tonight’s episode is taped. Harvey Wippleman is with Vince on commentary.
WWF Championship
Yokozuna (c) w/ Mr. Fuji vs. “Macho Man” Randy Savage
Yokozuna takes too long to get ready so Savage attacks but it backfires. Yokozuna pounds away on Savage and is already sweating profusely. Savage sends Yokozuna outside with a high knee and takes out Mr. Fuji. He then hits a double axe handle onto Yokozuna outside and the crowd is going nuts as we head to commercial. When we return, Savage is having issues because he can’t bring Yokozuna back in the ring. Yokozuna beats on him there, but Savage hits a cross body inside for two. The crowd buys into every Savage near fall. When Yokozuna gets back in control, Savage looks to be out of it but avoids a leg drop. Jim Cornette is out and distracts the official. Fuji gives Yokozuna a bucket but Savage blocks the shot and levels Yokozuna with it. He only gets two because he took too long to cover. He climbs up and hits the elbow but Crush runs out to ruin things.
Winner via disqualification: Randy Savage in 10:57
I figured that was going to be the finish but Randy Savage did everything in his power to not only get a good match out of Yokozuna, but to build sympathy and have the fans buy into him winning the title with a few weeks until WrestleMania. That takes something special. ***¼
Bret Hart comes out next to help Macho Man and then Lex Luger shows up as well. They take out the evil duo of Yokozuna and Crush.
Bam Bam Bigelow w/ Luna Vachon vs. Mike Khoury
Bigelow goes on the offensive instantly and just beats on Mike Khoury. Khoury avoids a headbutt and hits a dropkick but Bigelow no sells and slams him. Poor Bigelow is good, but is stuck in this dumb Doink feud. He wins with an enziguri.
Winner: Bam Bam Bigelow in 2:36
Bigelow is hit or miss in his squash matches but this was one of the easier ones to watch. It was short and all Bigelow, which is how I like them. *
Earthquake vs. The Black Phantom
According to Vince, Earthquake’s return was “triumphant”. I mean, he won, but it wasn’t a big deal. Phantom tries to his Quake but it has little to no effect. Vince announces that Borga is injured and we’ll get Earthquake vs. Adam Bomb at WrestleMania. Earthquake hits a damn dropkick, which was shockingly decent. He finishes with the ass splash.
Winner: Earthquake in 1:38
Similar to the last match it was kept short. That’s even better when it’s someone like Earthquake. ¾*
This week’s WrestleMania Report is more of the same old news except that we get told about the Tag Team Title match between the Quebecers and Men on a Mission, as well a ten man tag pitting Sparky Plugg, 1-2-3 Kid, Tatanka and the Smoking Guns against the Headshrinkers, Rick Martel, IRS and Jeff Jarrett. This match would end up not making the card.
Kwang vs. John Crystal
While Kwang goes through his offense, Sy Sperling calls in to talk about giving Howard Finkel a makeover. Kwang brings the green mist this week instead of the red.
Winner: Kwang in 1:32
Hey look at this. Another short squash from another guy who I don’t tend to enjoy. Alright. ½*
Stan Lane as an interviewer goes to interview Shawn Michaels but he’s just in a towel and wants to put something more on. All he does is put the Intercontinental Title over the towel. He is asked about Razor Ramon being the undisputed IC Champ, but Shawn is obviously disputing this. Shawn says that he will take Razor’s belt and give it to Diesel.
Next Monday, Crush and Owen Hart face the Smoking Gunns. I just realized that I’ve been calling them the Smoking Guns with one “n” this whole time.
Men on a Mission w/ Oscar vs. Brooklyn Brawler and Steve Smith
Men on a Mission plod through their awful offense. Mo is somehow more winded than Mabel and looks like he’s dying on the apron. Mabel squashes Smith in the corner and splashes him for the 1-2-3.
Winners: Men on a Mission in 3:13
Vince McMahon’s reactions to Men on a Mission on commentary is far and away the best thing about their matches. That should say something. ½*
Overall: 5.5/10. Not a bad episode. Our big WWF Title match was better than I thought it would be and, while the rest of the show was full of squash matches, at least they were kept short. That made them inoffensive, but still not exactly “must see” television.
Raw History
Episode #54
March 7th, 1994 | Mid-Hudson Civic Center in Poughkeepsie, New York
Another pre-recorded episode tonight. Ted Dibiase is out to join Vince on commentary.
Crush and Owen Hart w/ Mr. Fuji vs. The Smoking Gunns
Owen Hart starts against Bart Gunn and they go through a relatively fast paced exchange. Bart even hits a body press on Crush. It’s bugging me that the Gunns are wearing different shades of blue in their jeans. MATCH DAMMIT! Owen Hart is the key to this, putting on the best performance of anyone included. The Gunns get near victory after a bit but Crush breaks up the pin. He then chop blocks Bart, which Vince believes is like the dirtiest move ever. Owen does the Sharpshooter and Bart gives.
Winners: Owen Hart and Crush in 6:57
Decent little tag team match here. About as good as one could expect from a makeshift team and a duo like the Gunns. **
Time for the WrestleMania Report, where Todd Pettengill confuses people by talking about next Sunday’s “March to WrestleMania” show featuring Bret Hart vs. Crush.
Jeff Jarrett vs. Virgil
I can’t believe Virgil is still employed. He works a hammerlock and that’s about all he does. Well to be fair, he also does a sloppy sunset flip for two. Jarrett hits a DDT to win.
Winner: Jeff Jarrett in 3:45
Too much Virgil offense and too much time in general. Jeff Jarrett has been pretty dull since his debut and this was no exception. ¼*
Doink w/ Dink vs. “Iron” Mike Sharpe
Commentary spends the match explaining the rules of the upcoming mixed tag team match at WrestleMania. Mike Sharpe and his loud selling are again a highlight. Doink wins with the Whoopee Cushion.
Winner: Doink in 2:19
Typical Doink squash made a tad better by Mike Sharpe and his selling. ½*
Vince McMahon now leads a segment with Chief Wahoo McDaniel, Chief Jay Strongbow and another guy that hands Tatanka a ceremonial Indian headdress. He cries a bit and they embrace in a segment wasn’t very good.
IRS vs. Mark Thomas
Oh great. Another IRS squash. I bet you this is boring. He goes through some dull stuff on the jacked jobber. IRS sweats a hell of a lot for a guy who does next to nothing in the ring. Maybe it’s the attire. He wins with the Write Off.
Winner: IRS in 3:38
I was right. IRS puts on another boring performance. ¼*
Vince McMahon interviews Jim Cornette at ringside because Jimmy Del Ray of the Heavenly Bodies will face Lex Luger on the “March to WrestleMania”. He tries to diss things “made in the USA” like Luger, but fudges up the line. He wants Jimmy to busy up Luger before WrestleMania.
Overall: 3/10. After two relatively enjoyable episodes, this one falls back down. The hyped tag match was decent at best and the rest was a bunch of squash matches that nobody cared about and weren’t interesting in the least.
