Tuesday, April 23, 2013
ROH Showdown in the Sun - Day #1 Review
Match 1: Proving Ground - The Briscoes vs. Mikey Nicholls & Shane Haste
We kick off the big weekend with The Briscoes! They face a team of Australians who earned their spot a couple months back at Rise + Prove. They come off as a very generic tag team but they were definitely able to impress with their huge array of moves. The crowd was impressed but they were basically a glorified punching bag for The Briscoes. Some cool spots here and there when ultimately, The Briscoes put a cap on them.
Winners: The Briscoes
Rating: **½
Match 2: Adam Pearce vs. Adam Cole
Jim Cornette is out to interview Adam Pearce for whatever reason. NWA had a show last night where Pearce retained his championship against Adam Cole. Cole then interrupts Pearce and we now have an impromptu contest. Good action from the two with Cole getting a cool win after Pearce was going for a piledriver until the referee stopped it. Good win for Cole for the weekend.
Winner: Adam Cole
Rating: *¾
Match 3: Tornado - The Young Bucks vs. The All Night Express
This is their first of two matches for the weekend with tomorrow’s being a Street Fight. It seemed as if they wanted to save their energy and creativity for tomorrow. While this match did excite at some levels and some moments, it just fell short and came off as very underwhelming. The All Night Express get the first win after a very abrupt finish. Afterwards, The Bucks take out Rhett Titus and his injured knee. Decent affair that never got out of that first gear and suffered from the lack of time.
Winners: The All Night Express
Rating: ***
Match 4: ROH World Television Championship - Jay Lethal © vs. Kyle O’Reilly
I’ve been a bit critical of both these guys in the past for the fact that I feel that most of their matches come off as being recycled. However, this was a great opportunity for them to prove me wrong. Good match with excellent pacing but the attention was more drawn over to Ciampa who was standing out ringside. Another good match that suffered from lack of time as Lethal gets the clean win over the heel O’Reilly. Definitely expected more from the two but considering the position they were in, it was understandable. They most likely will have a better rematch down the line.
Winner: Jay Lethal
Rating: ***
Match 5: Wrestling’s Greatest Tag Team vs. Caprice Coleman & Cedric Alexander
One of my first few times watching Coleman & Alexander as they face up against Haas & Benjamin. Not much to say about this match, decent action that never really got out of the first gear. Both Haas & Benjamin are very entertaining in their heel roles and the crowd really reacted well to them. Good match, just take it for what it’s worth. A match to get these guys on the card and show off the heel WGGT on iPPV.
Winners: Wrestling’s Greatest Tag Team
Rating: **¼
Match 6: Mike Bennett vs. Lance Storm
For those who don’t know, Lance Storm is a legend of the business who never really had any much charisma to break through that glass ceiling. Bennett isn’t necessarily the most technically sound wrestler but hopefully, he can pull out some unexpected stuff against Storm. Wrestling was heavy here and while Storm did show some rust in the ring, he still looked really good and very much in shape. Bennett was no slouch, he hung in there with Storm and both men really made the match lots of fun. Bennett picks up the strong win and drops him one more time after the match. Bennett is becoming a strong heel and big things should definitely be in his horizon.
Winner: Mike Bennett
Rating: ***¼
Match 7: Last Man Standing - El Generico vs. Kevin Steen
This is another match in their feud that will seemingly never end. Even still, it is a much anticipated match for the weekend and you can assure that they will put up one hell of a fight. However, knowing the severity of these types of matches, my interest is not as high as it was back in 2010. The action was not over the top but there were still times in which I had no choice but to cringe. They made every move count and you could simply feel the hatred and animosity between the two. It’s certainly a task that wrestlers have a hard time capturing these days. Jimmy Jacobs comes in at the end of the contest and decks El Generico in the face with a steel chair to help Steen secure the victory. The feud between Jim Cornette and Kevin Steen turns up a notch as Steen takes out his nemesis in El Generico. I’m glad that the action did not cross the line and remained within the borders of safe, albeit the table and chair spots. Steen is hot right now and his road to facing Davey Richards is becoming more clear and more exciting. Great match for the weekend a great way to further the storyline.
Winner: Kevin Steen
Rating: ****
Match 8: ROH World Championship - Davey Richards © vs. Eddie Edwards vs. Roderick Strong
While the intensity of the rivalries has seemingly been cooled down between all three guys, this match is easily one of the most anticipated ones of the weekend. It reminds me of Cena vs. Triple H vs. Orton a few years back in 2008. The company’s top dogs going after the top prize. The big fight feel is present as the three guys go at it with elimination rules. Fantastic wrestling from the first half and especially from Richards. Richards is wrestling this match at a different rate from usual and adjusting to the added opponent nicely. That does not mean that Strong or Edwards or slouching, they both brought their top notch game and we had a match going as if we were on a swing. A very balanced out amount of exchanges from all competitors with Truth Martini & Michael Elgin causing a distraction which allowed Strong to roll up Edwards for the first elimination. Afterwards, Richards took out Strong after a huge kick to Martini to retain the title. Elgin then rushes the ring and destroys Richards as he challenges Richards the next day. As I stated earlier, very reminiscent to the WrestleMania XXIV triple threat and in a sense, ROH’s Big Bang main event back in 2010. The wrestling, the action, the crowd, the drama was all fantastic and the match didn’t overstay its welcome. A fine main event to close out the first show of the weekend.
Winner: Davey Richards
Rating: ****¼
Overall Show Thoughts and Rating:
ROH normally pulls out some great shows during these big weekends and this show is no exception. Fine wrestling from start to finish with a fantastic main event that sets up tomorrow’s main event with Richards vs. Elgin. While not as strong as last year, the show to kick off the weekend was a fun watch!
Rating: 8/10
Sunday, April 14, 2013
WWE WrestleMania XXVIII Review
Match 1: World Heavyweight Championship - Daniel Bryan © vs. Sheamus
The opening match for the big show is once again for the World Heavyweight Championship. Sheamus kicks Bryan and gets the win in 18 seconds. This was a glorified squash match and it was just ridiculous. Was definitely hoping for a really good match between two really good wrestlers. However, I can’t say I’m surprised. Here’s hoping for a better future after this for Bryan.
Winner: Sheamus
Rating: n/a
Match 2: Randy Orton vs. Kane
Before I get into this match, it should be noted that Kane gets the victory! It was really cool to see WWE’s most underrated guy get a win over Orton on the biggest stage. Anyway, this was a pretty good match at best and Orton put up a very serious effort against the bigger and stronger Kane. Kane reminds me of the San Antonio Spurs basketball team, he isn’t the most entertaining guy to watch but he gets the job done efficiently and is the veteran that doesn’t get the attention he so rightfully deserves. Good back and fourth contest to come off the opening match with an awesome finish!
Winner: Kane
Rating: **¾
Match 3: Intercontinental Championship - Cody Rhodes © vs. The Big Show
Pretty cool story going into this match about Cody teasing Show for never having a big moment at WrestleMania. Couldn’t help but feel throughout the course of this match that this was a complete filler and maybe having the Money in the Bank match would have helped miles more. Alas, the match was decent for what it was with Show pulling out the big win to capture gold and capture a cool moment. Pretty interesting to see Kane & Show go over in consecutive matches over two former Legacy members.
Winner: The Big Show
Rating: *¼
Match 4: Kelly Kelly & Maria Menounos vs. Beth Phoenix & Eve
This match will always be remembered for the stain that was on Menounos’ pants because this match was a dud. Your typical Divas match that just brought nothing to the table which is a shame considering they had a few good past matches.
Winners: Kelly Kelly & Maria Menounos
Rating: ¼*
Match 5: Hell in a Cell - The Undertaker vs. Triple H
The epilogue after the series of matches between The Undertaker and Shawn Michaels continues here as Triple H gets another opportunity at conquering The Undertaker and The Streak. With Shawn Michaels as the guest referee and the contest being battled inside Hell in a Cell, this is easily one of the most anticipated matches of all time. Just the matches between Michaels and Undertaker, I don’t know where to begin with this one. Just a definite masterpiece in its own right. The ambiance, the production, the lowering of the cage, everything was done masterfully and the match already had its pace set before the bell even rang. Good action from the first few minutes before Hunter seemingly had his grasp on the match. He began to take The Undertaker out with a series of nasty chair shots to the dismay of Shawn who tried to stop the match to Undertaker’s refusal. Hunter calls back to WrestleMania XXVI by telling Undertaker to stay down. Shawn tries to get himself involved until Undertaker takes him out before being saved by Triple H. Good psychology and smart wrestling from the first half until the second half takes off with The Undertaker getting back into the thick of things and gives Triple H chair shots. Plenty of great spacing, kicking out, and spots from the match so far with Michaels dropping Undertaker with Sweet Chin Music in revenge. However, Triple H can’t capitalize and that even after bringing out the sledgehammer, The Undertaker and his streak is safe. After a grueling battle, Triple H tries to hit The Undertaker with one last shot through the sledgehammer to which The Undertaker catches the shot and caps off the match with a Tombstone. Everything worked, this match had so much hype that I didn’t think it would live up to it. However, I was wrong. Amazing action, Shawn was great in his role, and the whole match consisted of smart wrestling psychology. One for the ages. A definite end of an era.
Winner: The Undertaker
Rating: *****
Match 6: Booker T, The Great Khali, R-Truth, Santino Marella, Kofi Kingston, & Zack Ryder vs. Jack Swagger, Drew McIntyre, David Otunga, Mark Henry, Dolph Ziggler, & The Miz
It’s Team Johnny vs. Team Teddy with the winner taking over both brands. This match feels like a complete filler but a much needed one at that to both give all these guys a spot on the card and to also ease the mood after the crazy match before this. Basic big tag team match with everyone getting their share of action and a few cool moves here and there. Ultimately, The Miz finishes off Zack Ryder and Team Teddy after Eve distracted Ryder. Eve then gave a low blow to Ryder afterwards.
Winners: Jack Swagger, Drew McIntyre, David Otunga, Mark Henry, Dolph Ziggler, & The Miz
Rating: **½
Match 7: WWE Championship - CM Punk © vs. Chris Jericho
The WWE Championship has only changed hands twice on this grand stage since 2004. Before the match, John Laurinaitis declares that Punk will drop the title to Jericho if he gets disqualified. This has been a sensational and personal feud surrounding Jericho mocking Punk for his dysfunctional family and their addictions. With this, Jericho tries to get himself disqualified early on until realizing Punk won’t fall for his tricks. Jericho takes control of the match early on until the momentum quickly turns into a swing. Fantastic fundamental wrestling from the two, a breath of fresh air from what we’ve been watching tonight. However, considering that the feud is a very personal one, I was hoping that they would amp up the action just a bit. Even still, the reversals and submissions were just a joy to watch as Punk manages to make Jericho to submit using the Anaconda Vice. A cool showing from both men who manage to change the pace of the show with something different. The crowd may have not been reacting greatly to it, but they definitely showed their respect and attention to it.
Winner: CM Punk
Rating: ***¾
Match 8: John Cena vs. The Rock
It is not time for the main event, the second WrestleMania main event without a world title on the line in the past three years. A match that is being billed as once in a lifetime, John Cena vs. The Rock. It’s a clash of two different generations as both men come out to special entrances under the night sky of Miami, Florida. This is one of the rare cases in pro wrestling where the hype was more than the match itself. The action in the ring wasn’t anything particularly special in the first half. They played things smart and used the crowd as a way to build anticipation and suspense for the latter half. It seemed as if they were trying to recreate The Rock’s showdown with Hulk Hogan. Although The Rock looked to be drained after the first half of the match, his will help kept him moving forward and the crowd was hot in turn. Great exchanges and close calls with both men hitting their main finishers. Sometimes, wrestlers milk this opportunity and make every pin come off as predictable and less exciting than the last. However, the spacing from both men was tremendous and while both men did not go for submission victories or pins constantly, it helped make each one special. In their case, less was more. After The Rock kicked out of an Attitude Adjustment by Cena, Cena tried capping off the match by mockingly doing a People’s Elbow on The Rock. Rock then hit a Rock Bottom to pick up the victory in front of his hometown. Great main event and a memorable contest to finish a memorable show. Rock winning only allows for a future rematch. Some may see this as an odd choice, but it makes sense in a financial standpoint. WWE took a look at the bigger picture and helped shape the future.
Winner: The Rock
Rating: ***¾
Overall Show Thoughts and Rating:
Very reminiscent show to that of WrestleMania 24 with the atmosphere and matches themselves resembling each other. With that said, the show was very good and definitely lived up to the WrestleMania lineage. Things started off pretty slow until the three main matches came in to save the day and make this show something to remember. From a ratings standpoint, the show didn’t set the world on fire. However, the show managed to capture memorable moments for different reasons.
Rating: 7.75/10
The opening match for the big show is once again for the World Heavyweight Championship. Sheamus kicks Bryan and gets the win in 18 seconds. This was a glorified squash match and it was just ridiculous. Was definitely hoping for a really good match between two really good wrestlers. However, I can’t say I’m surprised. Here’s hoping for a better future after this for Bryan.
Winner: Sheamus
Rating: n/a
Match 2: Randy Orton vs. Kane
Before I get into this match, it should be noted that Kane gets the victory! It was really cool to see WWE’s most underrated guy get a win over Orton on the biggest stage. Anyway, this was a pretty good match at best and Orton put up a very serious effort against the bigger and stronger Kane. Kane reminds me of the San Antonio Spurs basketball team, he isn’t the most entertaining guy to watch but he gets the job done efficiently and is the veteran that doesn’t get the attention he so rightfully deserves. Good back and fourth contest to come off the opening match with an awesome finish!
Winner: Kane
Rating: **¾
Match 3: Intercontinental Championship - Cody Rhodes © vs. The Big Show
Pretty cool story going into this match about Cody teasing Show for never having a big moment at WrestleMania. Couldn’t help but feel throughout the course of this match that this was a complete filler and maybe having the Money in the Bank match would have helped miles more. Alas, the match was decent for what it was with Show pulling out the big win to capture gold and capture a cool moment. Pretty interesting to see Kane & Show go over in consecutive matches over two former Legacy members.
Winner: The Big Show
Rating: *¼
Match 4: Kelly Kelly & Maria Menounos vs. Beth Phoenix & Eve
This match will always be remembered for the stain that was on Menounos’ pants because this match was a dud. Your typical Divas match that just brought nothing to the table which is a shame considering they had a few good past matches.
Winners: Kelly Kelly & Maria Menounos
Rating: ¼*
Match 5: Hell in a Cell - The Undertaker vs. Triple H
The epilogue after the series of matches between The Undertaker and Shawn Michaels continues here as Triple H gets another opportunity at conquering The Undertaker and The Streak. With Shawn Michaels as the guest referee and the contest being battled inside Hell in a Cell, this is easily one of the most anticipated matches of all time. Just the matches between Michaels and Undertaker, I don’t know where to begin with this one. Just a definite masterpiece in its own right. The ambiance, the production, the lowering of the cage, everything was done masterfully and the match already had its pace set before the bell even rang. Good action from the first few minutes before Hunter seemingly had his grasp on the match. He began to take The Undertaker out with a series of nasty chair shots to the dismay of Shawn who tried to stop the match to Undertaker’s refusal. Hunter calls back to WrestleMania XXVI by telling Undertaker to stay down. Shawn tries to get himself involved until Undertaker takes him out before being saved by Triple H. Good psychology and smart wrestling from the first half until the second half takes off with The Undertaker getting back into the thick of things and gives Triple H chair shots. Plenty of great spacing, kicking out, and spots from the match so far with Michaels dropping Undertaker with Sweet Chin Music in revenge. However, Triple H can’t capitalize and that even after bringing out the sledgehammer, The Undertaker and his streak is safe. After a grueling battle, Triple H tries to hit The Undertaker with one last shot through the sledgehammer to which The Undertaker catches the shot and caps off the match with a Tombstone. Everything worked, this match had so much hype that I didn’t think it would live up to it. However, I was wrong. Amazing action, Shawn was great in his role, and the whole match consisted of smart wrestling psychology. One for the ages. A definite end of an era.
Winner: The Undertaker
Rating: *****
Match 6: Booker T, The Great Khali, R-Truth, Santino Marella, Kofi Kingston, & Zack Ryder vs. Jack Swagger, Drew McIntyre, David Otunga, Mark Henry, Dolph Ziggler, & The Miz
It’s Team Johnny vs. Team Teddy with the winner taking over both brands. This match feels like a complete filler but a much needed one at that to both give all these guys a spot on the card and to also ease the mood after the crazy match before this. Basic big tag team match with everyone getting their share of action and a few cool moves here and there. Ultimately, The Miz finishes off Zack Ryder and Team Teddy after Eve distracted Ryder. Eve then gave a low blow to Ryder afterwards.
Winners: Jack Swagger, Drew McIntyre, David Otunga, Mark Henry, Dolph Ziggler, & The Miz
Rating: **½
Match 7: WWE Championship - CM Punk © vs. Chris Jericho
The WWE Championship has only changed hands twice on this grand stage since 2004. Before the match, John Laurinaitis declares that Punk will drop the title to Jericho if he gets disqualified. This has been a sensational and personal feud surrounding Jericho mocking Punk for his dysfunctional family and their addictions. With this, Jericho tries to get himself disqualified early on until realizing Punk won’t fall for his tricks. Jericho takes control of the match early on until the momentum quickly turns into a swing. Fantastic fundamental wrestling from the two, a breath of fresh air from what we’ve been watching tonight. However, considering that the feud is a very personal one, I was hoping that they would amp up the action just a bit. Even still, the reversals and submissions were just a joy to watch as Punk manages to make Jericho to submit using the Anaconda Vice. A cool showing from both men who manage to change the pace of the show with something different. The crowd may have not been reacting greatly to it, but they definitely showed their respect and attention to it.
Winner: CM Punk
Rating: ***¾
Match 8: John Cena vs. The Rock
It is not time for the main event, the second WrestleMania main event without a world title on the line in the past three years. A match that is being billed as once in a lifetime, John Cena vs. The Rock. It’s a clash of two different generations as both men come out to special entrances under the night sky of Miami, Florida. This is one of the rare cases in pro wrestling where the hype was more than the match itself. The action in the ring wasn’t anything particularly special in the first half. They played things smart and used the crowd as a way to build anticipation and suspense for the latter half. It seemed as if they were trying to recreate The Rock’s showdown with Hulk Hogan. Although The Rock looked to be drained after the first half of the match, his will help kept him moving forward and the crowd was hot in turn. Great exchanges and close calls with both men hitting their main finishers. Sometimes, wrestlers milk this opportunity and make every pin come off as predictable and less exciting than the last. However, the spacing from both men was tremendous and while both men did not go for submission victories or pins constantly, it helped make each one special. In their case, less was more. After The Rock kicked out of an Attitude Adjustment by Cena, Cena tried capping off the match by mockingly doing a People’s Elbow on The Rock. Rock then hit a Rock Bottom to pick up the victory in front of his hometown. Great main event and a memorable contest to finish a memorable show. Rock winning only allows for a future rematch. Some may see this as an odd choice, but it makes sense in a financial standpoint. WWE took a look at the bigger picture and helped shape the future.
Winner: The Rock
Rating: ***¾
Overall Show Thoughts and Rating:
Very reminiscent show to that of WrestleMania 24 with the atmosphere and matches themselves resembling each other. With that said, the show was very good and definitely lived up to the WrestleMania lineage. Things started off pretty slow until the three main matches came in to save the day and make this show something to remember. From a ratings standpoint, the show didn’t set the world on fire. However, the show managed to capture memorable moments for different reasons.
Rating: 7.75/10
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