Match 1: Cruiserweight Championship - Open Invitational - Kid Kash (c) vs. Funaki vs. Jamie Noble vs. Nunzio vs. Paul London vs. Gregory Helms
This is an open invitational for any former or current Cruiserweight champions as Gregory Helms enters the match as the only superstar from the Raw brand. Action was good and you get your cool spots here and there to get the crowd going. The SmackDown guys all made sure to take out Helms but the teamwork didn't last long as Helms was able to win the match when he hit a sweet Shining Wizard to Funaki. The ending was predictable but I liked it. Helms plays his role great as a heel and him being a Raw guy makes things more interesting. As for the match, it wasn't the most spectacular thing in the world but it certainly wasn't as bad as people made it out to be. Nice opening match to set the tone for the night.
Winner: Gregory Helms
Rating: **1/2
Match 2: Mickie James vs. Ashley
Before the match, Mickie James confesses her love to Trish Stratus. Oh, and Trish is the special referee for this contest. This is actually one of the only times that a Divas storyline intrigued me. I love how great Mickie James is in her role as the psycho lover to Trish who wants to have no part of this crush. Even during the match, James just looks so psycho, it's amazing how great she is here. Seeing her smile after ramming Ashley into a ring post was just brilliant. James scored the win when she slammed Ashley from the corner of the ring along with a handful of tights. Trish reluctantly made the count as James gave a huge hug to Trish after. The match was pretty horrid but the storyline progression was great.
Winner: Mickie James
Rating: 1/2*
Match 3: The Boogeyman vs. JBL
How the mighty have fallen. JBL went from headlining WrestleMania the previous year to being squashed by The Boogeyman. Boogeyman starts the match by spitting worms onto Jillian Hall before JBL ambushed him from behind. However, Boogeyman ended up scoring the win in less than five minutes. Wow.
Winner: The Boogeyman
Rating: 1/4*
Match 4: 2006 Royal Rumble
So many stories going into this Rumble and that is the exact way this match needs to be. From Shawn Michaels feuding with Vince McMahon, to Rey Mysterio representing Eddie Guerrero with Randy Orton in his way, or to Triple H meeting his former enemies in Ric Flair and The Big Show. They also had the two perfect guys starting the match in Triple H from the Raw brand and Mysterio from the SmackDown brand who is dedicating this match to Guerrero. I love when two big stars open up the match and I especially love when it's two guys from two separate brands. It almost felt like the match centered around these two and personally, I felt like it made the match work. The flow marched to a better beat of the drum and you knew it was going to be one of these two guys to win the match. The entrants kept piling on but it never really felt like there was a serious threat aside from those two and the #30 entrant in Orton. The final four came down to Rob Van Dam, Triple H, Orton and Rey Mysterio before Michaels was eliminated by Shane McMahon when Vince McMahon came out as a distraction. When Van Dam got eliminated, it was down to Triple H, Orton and Mysterio. The odds were definitely against Mysterio but after eliminating Triple H, it was down to Mysterio and Orton. Triple H rammed Mysterio into the steel steps before leaving to the back. All Orton had to do was toss Mysterio out. However, Mysterio defied the odds and flipped the switch on Orton and tossed him out to capture a shot at gold at WrestleMania 22. Aside from the predictability, I loved this Rumble. Great flow, great action, and a fantastic story told with Mysterio overcoming all the adversities. It's a simple story that always works when used correctly.
Winner: Rey Mysterio
Rating: ****1/4
Match 5: WWE Championship - Edge (c) vs. John Cena
It's almost hard to believe that these two would go on to have the biggest feud of their careers just months later after this match. We all know the story here with Edge being the first to ever cash in the Money in the Bank contract against John Cena at New Year's Revolution after the Elimination Chamber match. Considering this match was ten years ago, it's also interesting to see how much Cena has improved in the ring. It almost felt like Edge was leading the pace throughout the match and Cena was just catching up. The chemistry wasn't yet there and while the match was good, it wasn't great when taking into account the matches they would have later in the year. Cena would eventually emerge victorious despite Lita doing her best to help Edge who would submit to the STFU. Edge capturing the gold for the first time in his career was spectacular but it came to a crashing halt to set up the main event for WrestleMania 22.
Winner: John Cena
Rating: ***
Match 6: World Heavyweight Championship - Kurt Angle (c) vs. Mark Henry
Take a step back and understand what the main event for this show is. This is Kurt Angle defending his newly won World Heavyweight Championship against Mark Henry. It sounds weird now but Mark Henry's brand new character was hot at the time and this match here against Angle made sense. They built the match around Angle doing everything in his power to take out the bigger monster in Henry. It made sense, but nothing about this screamed main event and in no shape or form should this match be the headliner over the actual Royal Rumble match. What boggled me even more was how Angle won. He exposed a turnbuckle, he hit a low blow and finally hammered the stake with a chair shot to the head. Oh, and he held onto the ropes for leverage as the referee counted the pin. I get that they wanted to protect Henry... but what the hell?! That really didn't help Angle, either. And to think this was the main event of the show. The Undertaker then comes out on a chariot led by a horse and motions his hands around his waist to signify that he wants a shot at the gold. The Undertaker's appearance was cool and really washed the bad taste left in the audience's mouths.
Winner: Kurt Angle
Rating: *3/4
Overall Show Thoughts and Rating:
Can you believe this show was ten freaking years ago?! This is definitely one of WWE's weakest Royal Rumble offerings. The Royal Rumble match itself delivered, aside from the predictability. The undercard was pretty bad and the two championship match offerings fell flat. Regardless, the Rumble match was definitely a memorable one and one everyone should still check out!
Rating: 5.75/10
Tuesday, January 19, 2016
Sunday, January 3, 2016
WWE Live from Madison Square Garden 2015 Review
Match 1: Dolph Ziggler & Randy Orton vs. Rusev & Sheamus
Good choice of opener as we two two feuds intersecting in this tag match. The better part of this match was dominated mainly by the heels as Dolph Ziggler was playing the John Cena kind of role here. Crowd seemed to have trouble getting into the action, probably because we've seen these guys go at it over a billion times. Once Randy Orton got tagged in the match, things definitely picked up a little more. That's when Orton was able to duck a Brogue Kick from Sheamus which led to Ziggler kicking Sheamus in the jaw before Orton nails an RKO for the finish. Afterwards, Rusev puts down Sheamus for the loss before receiving a Brogue Kick. Wait, so is Sheamus a babyface now?
Winners: Dolph Ziggler & Randy Orton
Rating: **3/4
Match 2: Neville vs. Stardust
Is anyone else fed up of Stardust's gimmick as much as I am? Regardless, here he is on the card to take on Neville. It's almost as if the crowd could not care any less for this match. Your typical match you would see on Raw or any other house show. Stardust plays with Neville throughout the match and even wears his cape during one point. Neville gets the last laugh and hits his finisher for the win. What else do you need me to say here? Stardust is dead in the water at this point and needs some sort of career renaissance. Neville gets the win but you can't help but feel like there is no progression with his character.
Winner: Neville
Rating: **1/4
Match 3: Alicia Fox, Brie Bella & Nikki Bella vs. Paige, Becky Lynch & Charlotte
Crowd is on their feet for this one. Not really. Just like the last match, your basic match you would see on Raw or any other house show. Basic, bland, and lots of annoying screams from the Divas. Ending saw Paige try to tag in one of her partners before both Becky Lynch and Charlotte hopped off the apron. Nikki Bella then hit the Rack Attack for the win. Paige then grabbed a microphone and announced her displeasure with her teammates.
Winners: Alicia Fox, Brie Bella & Nikki Bella
Rating: *1/2
Match 4: Intercontinental Championship - Kevin Owens (c) vs. Chris Jericho
This is Chris Jericho's incredible 25th anniversary in the wrestling business and he celebrates it tonight against Kevin Owens for the Intercontinental Championship which he has won on so many occasions. Owens is the perfect opponent for this situation, another Canadian with lots on his shoulders and lots to prove against the seasoned veteran. Before the match, Jericho hypes up his anniversary and introduces the crowd to Lance Storm who is watching. Really cool. Who would have ever thought that we would be seeing Kevin Steen taking on Chris Jericho inside Madison Square Garden. Good action from the two that eventually saw Owens raking Jericho in the eyes and rolling him up for the victory. Owens walks away with the gold as he blows a kiss to Jericho and screams, "Happy anniversary!" Owens is the spoiler. Good stuff.
Winner: Kevin Owens
Rating: ***
Match 5: WWE Tag Team Championships - The New Day (c) vs. The Dudley Boyz
Like Chris Jericho, The Dudley Boyz look to capture gold again and put themselves in double digits. The only thing standing in the way for The Dudleyz is The New Day. For The Dudleyz, this is everything coming full circle for them. Finally back in the WWE and finally back in New York where they look to win big in the world's most famous arena. Good match here with Xavier Woods playing an vital part to the match. Not only was he great with his trumpet, but his yelling at ringside was just hilarious. He also helped his team retain the gold as The Dudleyz hit their 3D finisher and once they went for the pin, Woods crawled in and broke it up. The New Day beat down The Dudleyz soon after only for The Dudleyz to retaliate and drive Woods through a table with a 3D. Good match that served its purpose and the disqualification finish made sense for a rematch down the line with some sort of stipulation.
Winners: The Dudley Boyz
Rating: **1/2
Match 6: The Big Show vs. Brock Lesnar
Speaking of coming full circle. These two guys met over 13 years ago in a WWE Championship match at Survivor Series in the same exact building. Paul Heyman was at ringside for that match and is here again in 2015. As predicted, this was pretty much a squash match. The Big Show looked to have the advantage early on but nobody bought it and we were all just waiting for Brock Lesnar to land some suplexes and an F5 here and there. Lesnar began tossing the giant left and right to the amusement of the New York crowd. Lesnar finally hits an F5 and gets the finish. He then goes back to the ring after the match to deliver another one for good measure. It's almost unbelievable how much of a star Lesnar is. He literally has his own show devoted for him and seeing him F5 The Big Show is something that will never get old. A sight to behold. This dude is certainly a once in a lifetime superstar.
Winner: Brock Lesnar
Rating: *1/2
Match 7: United States Championship - Steel Cage - John Cena (c) vs. Seth Rollins
My excitement for this match isn't really high when taking into account how many times I've seen these guys face each other. Then again, that could be said for most of tonight's card. They played a bit of hot potato with the United States Championship before settling the score here in a steel cage. John Cena was almost chasing the slimy Seth Rollins around as he did his best to assure that Rollins didn't sneak out of the cage. I always hate when the factor of escaping through the door gets placed into the equation but they played it off nicely here. Rollins wanted to sneak his way through the door while Cena refused to use it as a means of victory. After a low blow from Rollins, Rollins looked to score the big win by climbing the cage this time. Not sure how all this makes sense sometimes. Regardless, Kane comes out and Rollins decides to stay in the cage by going for a Frog Splash on Cena from the top. Cena moves and hits an Attitude Adjustment for the win. Kane then hits a Chokeslam and a Tombstone after as they meet at Hell in a Cell.
Winner: John Cena
Rating: ***3/4
Overall Show Thoughts and Rating:
I love these WWE Network specials. The Beast in the East was awesome and this one was no different. It wasn't necessarily about the action in the ring, it was more so the ambiance the presentation brings. Nobody does this better than the WWE. There were a questionable decisions here and there but overall, the story progression and presentation stood tallest.
Rating: 7/10
Good choice of opener as we two two feuds intersecting in this tag match. The better part of this match was dominated mainly by the heels as Dolph Ziggler was playing the John Cena kind of role here. Crowd seemed to have trouble getting into the action, probably because we've seen these guys go at it over a billion times. Once Randy Orton got tagged in the match, things definitely picked up a little more. That's when Orton was able to duck a Brogue Kick from Sheamus which led to Ziggler kicking Sheamus in the jaw before Orton nails an RKO for the finish. Afterwards, Rusev puts down Sheamus for the loss before receiving a Brogue Kick. Wait, so is Sheamus a babyface now?
Winners: Dolph Ziggler & Randy Orton
Rating: **3/4
Match 2: Neville vs. Stardust
Is anyone else fed up of Stardust's gimmick as much as I am? Regardless, here he is on the card to take on Neville. It's almost as if the crowd could not care any less for this match. Your typical match you would see on Raw or any other house show. Stardust plays with Neville throughout the match and even wears his cape during one point. Neville gets the last laugh and hits his finisher for the win. What else do you need me to say here? Stardust is dead in the water at this point and needs some sort of career renaissance. Neville gets the win but you can't help but feel like there is no progression with his character.
Winner: Neville
Rating: **1/4
Match 3: Alicia Fox, Brie Bella & Nikki Bella vs. Paige, Becky Lynch & Charlotte
Crowd is on their feet for this one. Not really. Just like the last match, your basic match you would see on Raw or any other house show. Basic, bland, and lots of annoying screams from the Divas. Ending saw Paige try to tag in one of her partners before both Becky Lynch and Charlotte hopped off the apron. Nikki Bella then hit the Rack Attack for the win. Paige then grabbed a microphone and announced her displeasure with her teammates.
Winners: Alicia Fox, Brie Bella & Nikki Bella
Rating: *1/2
Match 4: Intercontinental Championship - Kevin Owens (c) vs. Chris Jericho
This is Chris Jericho's incredible 25th anniversary in the wrestling business and he celebrates it tonight against Kevin Owens for the Intercontinental Championship which he has won on so many occasions. Owens is the perfect opponent for this situation, another Canadian with lots on his shoulders and lots to prove against the seasoned veteran. Before the match, Jericho hypes up his anniversary and introduces the crowd to Lance Storm who is watching. Really cool. Who would have ever thought that we would be seeing Kevin Steen taking on Chris Jericho inside Madison Square Garden. Good action from the two that eventually saw Owens raking Jericho in the eyes and rolling him up for the victory. Owens walks away with the gold as he blows a kiss to Jericho and screams, "Happy anniversary!" Owens is the spoiler. Good stuff.
Winner: Kevin Owens
Rating: ***
Match 5: WWE Tag Team Championships - The New Day (c) vs. The Dudley Boyz
Like Chris Jericho, The Dudley Boyz look to capture gold again and put themselves in double digits. The only thing standing in the way for The Dudleyz is The New Day. For The Dudleyz, this is everything coming full circle for them. Finally back in the WWE and finally back in New York where they look to win big in the world's most famous arena. Good match here with Xavier Woods playing an vital part to the match. Not only was he great with his trumpet, but his yelling at ringside was just hilarious. He also helped his team retain the gold as The Dudleyz hit their 3D finisher and once they went for the pin, Woods crawled in and broke it up. The New Day beat down The Dudleyz soon after only for The Dudleyz to retaliate and drive Woods through a table with a 3D. Good match that served its purpose and the disqualification finish made sense for a rematch down the line with some sort of stipulation.
Winners: The Dudley Boyz
Rating: **1/2
Match 6: The Big Show vs. Brock Lesnar
Speaking of coming full circle. These two guys met over 13 years ago in a WWE Championship match at Survivor Series in the same exact building. Paul Heyman was at ringside for that match and is here again in 2015. As predicted, this was pretty much a squash match. The Big Show looked to have the advantage early on but nobody bought it and we were all just waiting for Brock Lesnar to land some suplexes and an F5 here and there. Lesnar began tossing the giant left and right to the amusement of the New York crowd. Lesnar finally hits an F5 and gets the finish. He then goes back to the ring after the match to deliver another one for good measure. It's almost unbelievable how much of a star Lesnar is. He literally has his own show devoted for him and seeing him F5 The Big Show is something that will never get old. A sight to behold. This dude is certainly a once in a lifetime superstar.
Winner: Brock Lesnar
Rating: *1/2
Match 7: United States Championship - Steel Cage - John Cena (c) vs. Seth Rollins
My excitement for this match isn't really high when taking into account how many times I've seen these guys face each other. Then again, that could be said for most of tonight's card. They played a bit of hot potato with the United States Championship before settling the score here in a steel cage. John Cena was almost chasing the slimy Seth Rollins around as he did his best to assure that Rollins didn't sneak out of the cage. I always hate when the factor of escaping through the door gets placed into the equation but they played it off nicely here. Rollins wanted to sneak his way through the door while Cena refused to use it as a means of victory. After a low blow from Rollins, Rollins looked to score the big win by climbing the cage this time. Not sure how all this makes sense sometimes. Regardless, Kane comes out and Rollins decides to stay in the cage by going for a Frog Splash on Cena from the top. Cena moves and hits an Attitude Adjustment for the win. Kane then hits a Chokeslam and a Tombstone after as they meet at Hell in a Cell.
Winner: John Cena
Rating: ***3/4
Overall Show Thoughts and Rating:
I love these WWE Network specials. The Beast in the East was awesome and this one was no different. It wasn't necessarily about the action in the ring, it was more so the ambiance the presentation brings. Nobody does this better than the WWE. There were a questionable decisions here and there but overall, the story progression and presentation stood tallest.
Rating: 7/10
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