It is the night before the biggest event of the year and NXT looks to ignite the flame for the weekend with a card full of big matches and big names. Could Finn Balor successfully defend his NXT Championship against the white hot Samoa Joe?
Match 1: NXT Tag Team Championships - The Revival (c) vs. American Alpha
Opening up the show sees arguably the two hottest tag teams of NXT fighting for the straps. As usual, crowd is absolutely fired up for the show and definitely reminiscent of a Ring of Honor show. Fine match here that sees the two different styles clash in a very fast-paced match with The Revival doing their usual heelish tricks to score the victory by any means. However, Jason Jordan and Chad Gable were able to pull through and hit their Grand Amplitude finish to score the win and secure the NXT Tag Team Championships in a great start to the show.
Winners: American Alpha
Rating: ***1/2
Match 2: Baron Corbin vs. Austin Aries
As he made his anticipated debut to the WWE world, Austin Aries was attacked from behind on his first day by the big Baron Corbin. Always was a huge fan of Aries so seeing him inside of a WWE ring makes me really happy. I can easily recall going to my first Ring of Honor show back in 2010 and seeing this guy do his thing as the champion. Good match here in which Aries really showed how he is able to adapt to whatever style and whatever size his opponent may be. Corbin used his pure strength to get the advantage over Aries as Aries used his cunning abilities to strike back. Corbin almost hit his End of Days finisher but Aries was able to reverse it into a pin to end the match. Great match here and a big win for Aries as he manages to squeak out the win against the bigger opponent.
Winner: Austin Aries
Rating: **3/4
Match 3: Sami Zayn vs. Shinsuke Nakamura
Sami Zayn's return to NXT was trumped by the debut of the legendary Shinsuke Nakamura. The match was quickly made for TakeOver and the internet absolutely blew up. Could it quite possibly live up to the overwhelming hype? I think I need to start off by saying how epic Nakamura's entrance was and how loud the crowd got for him, they welcomed him with one of the biggest pops I have ever heard. Nakamura is certainly one of the best at toying with his opponents and putting the audience in a whirlwind and he did a great job of doing so here. Zayn was also great in his role and almost looked at Nakamura in disbelief of what was happening. But once they finally got the ball rolling, it did not stop. Really physical match here with some great exchanges, incredible reversals and cool spots that took us on a roller coaster of a ride. Crowd was on their feet for the majority of the match and they were absolutely hot for those exchanges and near falls. Nakamura was able to hit his patented Kinshasa to seal the win. What a match, what an atmosphere and what a way for Zayn to leave NXT with Nakamura quickly inserting himself as a big-name player.
Winner: Shinsuke Nakamura
Rating: ****1/2
Match 4: NXT Women's Championship - Bayley (c) vs. Asuka
As much hype the WWE likes to bring to Shinsuke Nakamura, the same can be said for Asuka who is running through the NXT roster and earned her shot here against Bayley. Crowd is obviously still hot and they are hot for the champion in Bayley. Asuka is certainly a legitimate challenge to Bayley and her style is definitely something that is fun to watch and like bringing a legitimate challenge to Bayley, she also brings a certain legitimacy to NXT with her striking abilities. Enjoyed the story they were telling here with Bayley trying to hang with a stronger Asuka and Asuka doing her best to make a statement against the champ. Asuka was able to get Bayley on the ground and choke her out to win the match and the NXT Women's Championship. The crowd was shocked as the referee called for the bell after seeing Bayley fall unconscious. Great match here with a fantastic finish, physical from the start and had the crowd dropping their jaws by the end.
Winner: Asuka
Rating: ***3/4
Match 5: NXT Championship - Finn Balor (c) vs. Samoa Joe
The crowd is absolutely pumped for this one and Finn Balor may have just had the coolest entrance ever. The dude brought out a chainsaw which automatically makes his entrance twice as better. The match started fast and started with a brutal headbutt from Samoa Joe that saw him cut open his own head in the process. He looked like a bloody savage and while the match had to get stopped a couple times because of it, it certainly added a different layer to the match in the process. The headbutt from the beginning was a sign of things to come as they brought the physicality to the show here. Crowd was pretty split between the two but they certainly reacted to everything perfectly like every other match on the card. Balor was able to hit his Coup de Grace but was almost immediately locked into a Coquina Clutch. However, Balor was able to use the turnbuckles and flip the submission into a pin as the referee counted to three. Joe looked on in disbelief as he could not come to terms with the finish. Another great match for the night and a great finish that only means a bigger rematch for the two is in the air.
Winner: Finn Balor
Rating: ****1/4
Overall Show Thoughts and Rating:
What an amazing show and a phenomenal way to kick off WrestleMania weekend for the WWE. It's almost unbelievable how good the talent in NXT is and how great the audience is for these TakeOver shows. What else is there to really say? Great stuff all around and definitely check this out if you haven't already!
Rating: 9.5/10
Tuesday, January 23, 2018
Monday, January 22, 2018
My Two Favorite Moments in 25 Years of Monday Night Raw (Part 2)
It's official, today is the day we have longed for. Today is Raw 25 and nobody is intrigued of what will be going down more than I am. And like many, I decided to look back at my favorite moments in the show's history and I had two that came to mind. Of course, you already know what one of them is since you read it in my last article... right? Well, the other favorite moment in Raw's 25 years was another easy pick for me. This one was about an honest man taking his actions just a little too far in order to right the wrongs of another man.
I think you know what I'm getting at here. June 9, 2008. Episode #785. Monday Night Raw was live in Oakland, California. The crowd was hot all show and the biggest story going into the night was Mr. McMahon giving out a million dollars every show. No, that last part isn't a joke. But by the end of the night, nobody was talking about that. By the end of the night, everybody was simply talking about Chris Jericho's biggest and baddest heel turn of his career.
Jericho and Michaels had been teasing a serious feud for weeks prior to this. One of the PPV they were featured in saw Michaels fake a knee injury against Batista as Jericho watched on as the guest referee. Let's not forget to mention that Michaels denied faking the injury which triggered Jericho. Jericho just could not understand how the audience can be lied to in their faces and still cheer for Michaels. In his words, "It seems like our fans, even the ones here, would rather boo an honest man and cheer for you."
Michaels had the perfect expression throughout all of this, almost as if he knew he was in the wrong. Jericho was also perfect in his role, sounding frustrated that the crowd would not stop cheering Michaels as they would even boo Jericho at times. Finally, Jericho said enough was enough. No more nice guy because he was ready to make sure Michaels was going to pay for his actions.
Jericho's tone went from frustrated to downright dark, "My question is this. How does Shawn Michaels, HBK, one of the greatest performers of all time and one of the most highly decorated superstars in the history of this business turn into such a lying, cheating, pathetic little worm of a human being?"
Bam.
Jericho attacks Michaels quickly after and while Michaels did his best to withstand the attack, a low blow stopped Michaels dead in his tracks. The look of a helpless Michaels breathing profusely was a sad sight as Jericho grabbed him and said, "The worst is yet to come." Jericho then slammed Michaels right through his famous Jeritron. Almost reminiscent of Michaels throwing Marty Jannetty through the glass window. The sound of Michaels' face cracking against the screen was almost disheartening to watch. After this segment, you knew that these two had something big in the works.
This is easily the biggest moment of Jericho's career and perhaps the said can be said for Michaels. It would catapult them into having the best feud of the year. But that is irrelevant for the moment. This is a moment where time stood still. Maybe it was obvious that Jericho was eventually going to turn heel but nobody (and I mean nobody) had no idea that it would come in such a brutal fashion.
25 years of Monday Night Raw and I think it's pretty obvious what my two favorite moments are. What are yours?
- Ray
I think you know what I'm getting at here. June 9, 2008. Episode #785. Monday Night Raw was live in Oakland, California. The crowd was hot all show and the biggest story going into the night was Mr. McMahon giving out a million dollars every show. No, that last part isn't a joke. But by the end of the night, nobody was talking about that. By the end of the night, everybody was simply talking about Chris Jericho's biggest and baddest heel turn of his career.
Jericho and Michaels had been teasing a serious feud for weeks prior to this. One of the PPV they were featured in saw Michaels fake a knee injury against Batista as Jericho watched on as the guest referee. Let's not forget to mention that Michaels denied faking the injury which triggered Jericho. Jericho just could not understand how the audience can be lied to in their faces and still cheer for Michaels. In his words, "It seems like our fans, even the ones here, would rather boo an honest man and cheer for you."
Michaels had the perfect expression throughout all of this, almost as if he knew he was in the wrong. Jericho was also perfect in his role, sounding frustrated that the crowd would not stop cheering Michaels as they would even boo Jericho at times. Finally, Jericho said enough was enough. No more nice guy because he was ready to make sure Michaels was going to pay for his actions.
Jericho's tone went from frustrated to downright dark, "My question is this. How does Shawn Michaels, HBK, one of the greatest performers of all time and one of the most highly decorated superstars in the history of this business turn into such a lying, cheating, pathetic little worm of a human being?"
Bam.
Jericho attacks Michaels quickly after and while Michaels did his best to withstand the attack, a low blow stopped Michaels dead in his tracks. The look of a helpless Michaels breathing profusely was a sad sight as Jericho grabbed him and said, "The worst is yet to come." Jericho then slammed Michaels right through his famous Jeritron. Almost reminiscent of Michaels throwing Marty Jannetty through the glass window. The sound of Michaels' face cracking against the screen was almost disheartening to watch. After this segment, you knew that these two had something big in the works.
This is easily the biggest moment of Jericho's career and perhaps the said can be said for Michaels. It would catapult them into having the best feud of the year. But that is irrelevant for the moment. This is a moment where time stood still. Maybe it was obvious that Jericho was eventually going to turn heel but nobody (and I mean nobody) had no idea that it would come in such a brutal fashion.
25 years of Monday Night Raw and I think it's pretty obvious what my two favorite moments are. What are yours?
- Ray
Sunday, January 21, 2018
My Two Favorite Moments in 25 Years of Monday Night Raw (Part 1)
So in honor of Raw celebrating 25 years, I figured I would look back at my favorite moment in its history. Unfortunately, there were so many moments that came to mind and choosing just one would almost be a crime to so many other moments. But there were two segments that came to mind when I considered this and I thought I would post a couple articles that would detail these two favorites along with why they were so meaningful to me.
I will be the first to admit that I am not, not was ever really the biggest John Cena fan in the world. Did I hate the man? Absolutely not. Did I ever call him my favorite at some point? I don't even recall that. But I will not deny that there were so many times that his promos and matches made me feel inspired. And on the flip side, there were also so many times that his promos and matches had me cringing. So many of his promos can be forgettable and so many can be pretty basic, almost as if they were even recycled every week. But there was certainly one promo that he cut that I will always remember, one promo that always stands out as not only my favorite moment in John Cena's career, but one of my two favorite moments in the history of Raw. Before you roll your eyes at me or comment how ridiculous I am sounding, give this a quick read...
The date was November 24, 2008, just a day after Survivor Series was held in John Cena's hometown of Boston, Massachusetts. Episode #809 for anyone keeping score. Monday Night Raw was live and emanating from Providence, Rhode Island. The main story behind this episode was who would be Cena's next challenger for his coveted World Heavyweight Championship. A triple threat match saw Chris Jericho beat out both Batista and Randy Orton to score another crack at the gold. But that wasn't the main event of the night. The main event was a segment that saw Chris Jericho come out to once again put down the audience and John Cena before declaring that by the end of 2008, nothing will have changed because he was ready to recapture the World Heavyweight Championship.
Jericho's long rant continued until John Cena appeared with the audience and began putting over the audience before making his way to the ring to meet Jericho. If there is ever a promo for anyone to remember Cena by when his career is all said and done, this is the one. Can we quickly remember what the fall of 2008 meant in the real world? It meant struggle, it meant doubt and at times, it meant not knowing where the next paycheck would come from. The country was stuck in a recession, the worst of its kind since The Great Depression. But for us professional wrestling fans, one thing that always stood still was tuning in every Monday night to watch our favorite wrestlers not only entertain us, but also take us away from reality. Those two hours represented putting aside any real-life problems we had to focus on something positive. Whether it be spent by ourselves, with our friends or with our families, whatever problem that anyone was facing would have to wait until the show was over.
So what made Cena's promo so special here? It wasn't the basic "never give up" or "anything is possible" speech we have become so accustomed to hearing. Cena went on to discuss how we doesn't even remember how many championships he has won or lost. He went on to talk about how the WWE is only as powerful as its audience. Corny? Sure, but this was something everybody in this time frame needed to hear because it certainly offered a glimmer of hope in such bleak times.
What else did it represent? Well, get ready to hate me even more for this one. But he talked about the different types of people who were apart of the audience. You got kids, you got women and you got men. So what does that mean? It means that there is absolutely nothing wrong with the WWE becoming a PG program. There is nothing wrong with being able to sit down with your family and being able to enjoy the show together. It also means that professional wrestling has no prejudices and has no discrimination against any race or gender. No pun intended, but professional wrestling is universal and without having each other, we have nothing.
While it is more than possible that I took more out of this segment than probably anyone else on the planet, I definitely will always stand by what I just wrote. This wasn't just a prototypical promo we get from Cena, it was one that sounded and felt as genuine as you could imagine. I highly doubt many of you reading this will even remember this moment but without sounding like an advertisement for the WWE, it is convenient more so now than ever to relive it on The Network.
"And I know that every time that we come to an arena... These good people, these good families spend their hard-earned money so they can stand up and cheer... So they can boo, so they can get rowdy, so they can stand up and make some noise."
It's a moment that is an odd pick to be one of someone's favorite moments, but I will always hold this special to my heart.
- Ray
I will be the first to admit that I am not, not was ever really the biggest John Cena fan in the world. Did I hate the man? Absolutely not. Did I ever call him my favorite at some point? I don't even recall that. But I will not deny that there were so many times that his promos and matches made me feel inspired. And on the flip side, there were also so many times that his promos and matches had me cringing. So many of his promos can be forgettable and so many can be pretty basic, almost as if they were even recycled every week. But there was certainly one promo that he cut that I will always remember, one promo that always stands out as not only my favorite moment in John Cena's career, but one of my two favorite moments in the history of Raw. Before you roll your eyes at me or comment how ridiculous I am sounding, give this a quick read...
The date was November 24, 2008, just a day after Survivor Series was held in John Cena's hometown of Boston, Massachusetts. Episode #809 for anyone keeping score. Monday Night Raw was live and emanating from Providence, Rhode Island. The main story behind this episode was who would be Cena's next challenger for his coveted World Heavyweight Championship. A triple threat match saw Chris Jericho beat out both Batista and Randy Orton to score another crack at the gold. But that wasn't the main event of the night. The main event was a segment that saw Chris Jericho come out to once again put down the audience and John Cena before declaring that by the end of 2008, nothing will have changed because he was ready to recapture the World Heavyweight Championship.
Jericho's long rant continued until John Cena appeared with the audience and began putting over the audience before making his way to the ring to meet Jericho. If there is ever a promo for anyone to remember Cena by when his career is all said and done, this is the one. Can we quickly remember what the fall of 2008 meant in the real world? It meant struggle, it meant doubt and at times, it meant not knowing where the next paycheck would come from. The country was stuck in a recession, the worst of its kind since The Great Depression. But for us professional wrestling fans, one thing that always stood still was tuning in every Monday night to watch our favorite wrestlers not only entertain us, but also take us away from reality. Those two hours represented putting aside any real-life problems we had to focus on something positive. Whether it be spent by ourselves, with our friends or with our families, whatever problem that anyone was facing would have to wait until the show was over.
So what made Cena's promo so special here? It wasn't the basic "never give up" or "anything is possible" speech we have become so accustomed to hearing. Cena went on to discuss how we doesn't even remember how many championships he has won or lost. He went on to talk about how the WWE is only as powerful as its audience. Corny? Sure, but this was something everybody in this time frame needed to hear because it certainly offered a glimmer of hope in such bleak times.
What else did it represent? Well, get ready to hate me even more for this one. But he talked about the different types of people who were apart of the audience. You got kids, you got women and you got men. So what does that mean? It means that there is absolutely nothing wrong with the WWE becoming a PG program. There is nothing wrong with being able to sit down with your family and being able to enjoy the show together. It also means that professional wrestling has no prejudices and has no discrimination against any race or gender. No pun intended, but professional wrestling is universal and without having each other, we have nothing.
While it is more than possible that I took more out of this segment than probably anyone else on the planet, I definitely will always stand by what I just wrote. This wasn't just a prototypical promo we get from Cena, it was one that sounded and felt as genuine as you could imagine. I highly doubt many of you reading this will even remember this moment but without sounding like an advertisement for the WWE, it is convenient more so now than ever to relive it on The Network.
"And I know that every time that we come to an arena... These good people, these good families spend their hard-earned money so they can stand up and cheer... So they can boo, so they can get rowdy, so they can stand up and make some noise."
It's a moment that is an odd pick to be one of someone's favorite moments, but I will always hold this special to my heart.
- Ray
Saturday, January 13, 2018
WWE Fastlane 2016 Review
The WWE World Heavyweight Champion in Triple H awaits who he will face at WrestleMania 32 as Brock Lesnar, Dean Ambrose and Roman Reigns face off in a triple threat match for a shot at the gold. The road to WrestleMania stops in Cleveland for Fastlane!
Match 1: Sasha Banks and Becky Lynch vs. Naomi and Tamina
Sasha Banks and Becky Lynch are going to have to coexist as they partner up in the opening contest of the night. Decent match here that saw the two work well together despite Naomi and Tamina not looking too shabby themselves. Good mixture of offense from the two teams with Banks being able to hit a Bank Statement on Tamina while Lynch locked up Naomi in the Disarmer to seal the win. Fine match to open the card, nothing too special but certainly good for the story leading into WrestleMania.
Winners: Sasha Banks and Becky Lynch
Rating: **1/4
Match 2: WWE Intercontinental Championship - Kevin Owens (c) vs. Dolph Ziggler
After winning the Intercontinental Championship on an edition of Monday Night Raw, Kevin Owens must defend it against Cleveland's own Dolph Ziggler. You always know that you will get a quality match whenever these two step in the ring and that is exactly what they gave us here. And credit to Owens for truly becoming a fresh heel in the WWE and being able to transition his style from the independent scene to the big leagues so smoothly.
After the match, Owens goes down to Michael Cole and points at him as he raises his Intercontinental Championship up high.
Winner: Kevin Owens
Rating: ***1/4
Match 3: The Wyatt Family vs. The Big Show, Ryback and Kane
How crazy is it to think that The Big Show and Kane have either been tagging with each other or feuding against each other for more than a decade. They were tag champs together in 2005 and again in 2011. They are once again partners with Ryback added in the mix to face off against Braun Strowman, Erick Rowan and Luke Harper as Bray Wyatt sits on the outside to watch. Decent match here with the crowd having trouble getting into the action, especially when Ryback or Kane were the main guys. Big Show managed to squeak some energy into the match and Ryback hit a Shell Shocked on Harper to seal the win for his team after Kane gave Bray a big boot on the outside. Very surprising to see The Wyatt Family take a big loss here, just a huge shame how the WWE continually booked them to look like chumps after their hot start.
Winners: The Big Show, Ryback and Kane
Rating: **1/2
Match 4: WWE Divas Championship - Charlotte Flair (c) vs. Brie Bella
Charlotte Flair continues to run rampant through the entire Divas division as she faces off against Brie Bella here. The story behind this one has Charlotte continuing to rub Brie's personal life in her face with Daniel Bryan retiring and Nikki Bella facing neck surgery. This was actually the last time the Divas Championship was defended on a PPV before being transformed into the WWE Womens Championship at WrestleMania 32. Decent match here that went on a little longer than it needed to be with Flair locking in her Figure Eight to submit Brie. Kind of bothered me that Flair straight up got out of a long submission hold prior to that and did not even sell it a tad bit. Either way, we move on to the rest of the show.
Winner: Charlotte Flair
Rating: **
Match 5: AJ Styles vs. Chris Jericho
After facing off against each other prior to this, AJ Styles was adamant that the two compete against each other once more here at Fastlane. Of course, this is certainly a dream match of sorts and almost that that is hard to believe that actually happened, muss less in a WWE ring. Styles needs to adjust to the WWE style of wrestling and Chris Jericho is the perfect person for him to do so. Great action from the start of the bell to the finish with Styles being able to trap Jericho in his Calf Crusher submission that saw Jericho tap out after struggling to escape. Love the submission finish and love seeing Styles come to the WWE and make an immediate impact. No pun intended. The two certainly had some good chemistry together and while the match did not blow me away by any means, it was still a solid match on the card and certainly one that gives room for a bigger match down the road, especially with an intense show of respect afterwards.
Winner: AJ Styles
Rating: ***1/2
Match 6: Curtis Axel vs. R-Truth
Prior to the match, the guys of Social Outcasts come out to accompany Curtis Axel and cut a cringe-worthy promo about comparing themselves to cars on the road to WrestleMania. Okay. Super quick of a filler match here that saw Goldust come out to corner R-Truth as he took out the guys of Social Outcasts before rolling in Adam Rose in the ring for whatever reason which caused Truth to leap over him as Axel was then able to roll him up for the victory. More of an angle than an actual match as Truth looked angry at an apologetic Goldust. This is a PPV?
Winner: Curtis Axel
Rating: 1/2*
Match 7: Dean Ambrose vs. Roman Reigns vs. Brock Lesnar
Billed as Brother vs. Brother vs. Beast, the winner of tonight's main event takes on Triple H at WrestleMania 32 for the richest prize in the business. As predicted and for good reason, Brock Lesnar starts off the match by steamrolling though the two other guys and suplexes them left and right with no regard for human life. Let's not forget to mention that the crowd was going bonkers for these guys and this could have passed off as a great main event for even a WrestleMania. Dean Ambrose and Roman Reigns worked together to slam Lesnar through two tables to try and leave him out of the equation. They even buried him in the rubble afterwards as they made the match a singles bout between each other. However, Lesnar was able to come back in the right and wreck more havoc as he locked in a Kimura onto Reigns. Ambrose was able to come in with a steel chair as he drilled both Lesnar and Reigns before getting launched out of his boots with a Spear from Reigns. Reigns pins Ambrose and is going to the main event of WrestleMania to face off against Triple H. Reigns celebrates the accomplishment as Triple H then comes out to stare down his opponent. Great main event and great way to set up the main event of WrestleMania long with a match between Lesnar and Ambrose. Shame that only one of these guys was going to be the marquee match at WrestleMania because the pops that both Ambrose and Lesnar received were out of this world.
Winner: Roman Reigns
Rating: ****
Overall Show Thoughts and Rating:
While there was certainly a lot of filler compared to killer, I think the WWE pulled off a passable show leading into WrestleMania with the very slim roster. However, just a good couple matches isn't enough for me to recommend this show to someone to sit down and watch. But if there was really any doubt, nobody comes close to Brock Lesnar during this time. The dude is white hot.
Rating: 6.25/10
Match 1: Sasha Banks and Becky Lynch vs. Naomi and Tamina
Sasha Banks and Becky Lynch are going to have to coexist as they partner up in the opening contest of the night. Decent match here that saw the two work well together despite Naomi and Tamina not looking too shabby themselves. Good mixture of offense from the two teams with Banks being able to hit a Bank Statement on Tamina while Lynch locked up Naomi in the Disarmer to seal the win. Fine match to open the card, nothing too special but certainly good for the story leading into WrestleMania.
Winners: Sasha Banks and Becky Lynch
Rating: **1/4
Match 2: WWE Intercontinental Championship - Kevin Owens (c) vs. Dolph Ziggler
After winning the Intercontinental Championship on an edition of Monday Night Raw, Kevin Owens must defend it against Cleveland's own Dolph Ziggler. You always know that you will get a quality match whenever these two step in the ring and that is exactly what they gave us here. And credit to Owens for truly becoming a fresh heel in the WWE and being able to transition his style from the independent scene to the big leagues so smoothly.
After the match, Owens goes down to Michael Cole and points at him as he raises his Intercontinental Championship up high.
Winner: Kevin Owens
Rating: ***1/4
Match 3: The Wyatt Family vs. The Big Show, Ryback and Kane
How crazy is it to think that The Big Show and Kane have either been tagging with each other or feuding against each other for more than a decade. They were tag champs together in 2005 and again in 2011. They are once again partners with Ryback added in the mix to face off against Braun Strowman, Erick Rowan and Luke Harper as Bray Wyatt sits on the outside to watch. Decent match here with the crowd having trouble getting into the action, especially when Ryback or Kane were the main guys. Big Show managed to squeak some energy into the match and Ryback hit a Shell Shocked on Harper to seal the win for his team after Kane gave Bray a big boot on the outside. Very surprising to see The Wyatt Family take a big loss here, just a huge shame how the WWE continually booked them to look like chumps after their hot start.
Winners: The Big Show, Ryback and Kane
Rating: **1/2
Match 4: WWE Divas Championship - Charlotte Flair (c) vs. Brie Bella
Charlotte Flair continues to run rampant through the entire Divas division as she faces off against Brie Bella here. The story behind this one has Charlotte continuing to rub Brie's personal life in her face with Daniel Bryan retiring and Nikki Bella facing neck surgery. This was actually the last time the Divas Championship was defended on a PPV before being transformed into the WWE Womens Championship at WrestleMania 32. Decent match here that went on a little longer than it needed to be with Flair locking in her Figure Eight to submit Brie. Kind of bothered me that Flair straight up got out of a long submission hold prior to that and did not even sell it a tad bit. Either way, we move on to the rest of the show.
Winner: Charlotte Flair
Rating: **
Match 5: AJ Styles vs. Chris Jericho
After facing off against each other prior to this, AJ Styles was adamant that the two compete against each other once more here at Fastlane. Of course, this is certainly a dream match of sorts and almost that that is hard to believe that actually happened, muss less in a WWE ring. Styles needs to adjust to the WWE style of wrestling and Chris Jericho is the perfect person for him to do so. Great action from the start of the bell to the finish with Styles being able to trap Jericho in his Calf Crusher submission that saw Jericho tap out after struggling to escape. Love the submission finish and love seeing Styles come to the WWE and make an immediate impact. No pun intended. The two certainly had some good chemistry together and while the match did not blow me away by any means, it was still a solid match on the card and certainly one that gives room for a bigger match down the road, especially with an intense show of respect afterwards.
Winner: AJ Styles
Rating: ***1/2
Match 6: Curtis Axel vs. R-Truth
Prior to the match, the guys of Social Outcasts come out to accompany Curtis Axel and cut a cringe-worthy promo about comparing themselves to cars on the road to WrestleMania. Okay. Super quick of a filler match here that saw Goldust come out to corner R-Truth as he took out the guys of Social Outcasts before rolling in Adam Rose in the ring for whatever reason which caused Truth to leap over him as Axel was then able to roll him up for the victory. More of an angle than an actual match as Truth looked angry at an apologetic Goldust. This is a PPV?
Winner: Curtis Axel
Rating: 1/2*
Match 7: Dean Ambrose vs. Roman Reigns vs. Brock Lesnar
Billed as Brother vs. Brother vs. Beast, the winner of tonight's main event takes on Triple H at WrestleMania 32 for the richest prize in the business. As predicted and for good reason, Brock Lesnar starts off the match by steamrolling though the two other guys and suplexes them left and right with no regard for human life. Let's not forget to mention that the crowd was going bonkers for these guys and this could have passed off as a great main event for even a WrestleMania. Dean Ambrose and Roman Reigns worked together to slam Lesnar through two tables to try and leave him out of the equation. They even buried him in the rubble afterwards as they made the match a singles bout between each other. However, Lesnar was able to come back in the right and wreck more havoc as he locked in a Kimura onto Reigns. Ambrose was able to come in with a steel chair as he drilled both Lesnar and Reigns before getting launched out of his boots with a Spear from Reigns. Reigns pins Ambrose and is going to the main event of WrestleMania to face off against Triple H. Reigns celebrates the accomplishment as Triple H then comes out to stare down his opponent. Great main event and great way to set up the main event of WrestleMania long with a match between Lesnar and Ambrose. Shame that only one of these guys was going to be the marquee match at WrestleMania because the pops that both Ambrose and Lesnar received were out of this world.
Winner: Roman Reigns
Rating: ****
Overall Show Thoughts and Rating:
While there was certainly a lot of filler compared to killer, I think the WWE pulled off a passable show leading into WrestleMania with the very slim roster. However, just a good couple matches isn't enough for me to recommend this show to someone to sit down and watch. But if there was really any doubt, nobody comes close to Brock Lesnar during this time. The dude is white hot.
Rating: 6.25/10
Thursday, January 4, 2018
WWE NXT TakeOver: San Antonio 2017 Review
Before the Royal Rumble event, the NXT stars looked to steal some of the spotlight with an array of big matches to kick off the year. Shinsuke Nakamura looks to successfully defend his NXT Championship against a steamrolling Bobby Roode.
Match 1: Tye Dillinger vs. Eric Young
For weeks, Tye Dillinger was being recruited by Eric Young to join his team in Sanity only for Dillinger to reject his offer as the two face off in the opening bout. Of course, the crowd is hot and really into Dillinger as Young makes his usual entrance with his guys cornering him. This was my first time seeing Young wrestle in a WWE ring and can't help but feel so happy for this guy who worked his way from years on end in TNA. Good match here that relied heavily on Alexander Wolfe and Killian Dain being constant distractions that inevitably led to Young hitting his neckbreaker finish to score the win. Good opening match here but am very curious to see who Triple H had more stock in despite the finish.
Winner: Eric Young
Rating: **3/4
Match 2: Andrade Cien Almas vs. Roderick Strong
Much like seeing Eric Young in a WWE ring, it is still strange to see the same in Roderick Strong. But damn, it has certainly been a long time coming. With that being said, an opponent like Andrade Cien Almas should not be overlooked. He plays the role of an arrogant heel with the good looks as good as anyone on the NXT roster. Fine match here with Almas able to display his creative offense while doing his best to not get his back broken by Strong. However, a Sick Kick from Strong was enough for him to score the win over Almas. Good match to follow the opener and good chemistry from the two here, would definitely love to see both guys on the main roster at some point.
Winner: Roderick Strong
Rating: **3/4
Match 3: NXT Tag Team Championships - #DIY (c) vs. The Authors of Pain
Accompanied by the legendary manager Paul Ellering, The Authors of Pain debuted with a bang and won their chance against Tommaso Ciampa and Johnny Gargano of #DIY. I had the opportunity to attend this event in person and it was actually my first time seeing The Authors of Pain. The crowd did not seem to be so interested in the two but I could not help but marvel at how quick they were for their size. This was a great match between the two teams with #DIY (wondering if I should continue to use the hashtag for them) only getting the advantage during the match when they double teamed someone. It was their way of displaying how much of a cohesive unit they were while also letting the audience know how dominant The Authors of Pain truly were. Finish came when The Authors of Pain hit their sweet Super Collider finisher while following it up with their Last Chapter to win the match and put an end to the short reign of #DIY as the NXT Tag Team Champions. There was definitely a huge collective sound of disappointment from the crowd but I think we all knew just how good The Authors of Pain were after this match.
Winners: The Authors of Pain
Rating: ***3/4
Match 4: NXT Women's Championship - Asuka (c) vs. Nikki Cross vs. Billie Kay vs. Peyton Royce
With Nikki Cross being the wild card in the contest, the undefeated NXT Women's Champion in Asuka has her hands full as she must go up against three other competitors for her gold. How cool is it to not have to groan whenever a female steps into the ring these days? These ladies brought it and the action was every bit as intense as from the previous matches. While it was pretty evident that Asuka was not going to lose here, the other competitors certainly put up a great fight and one of the highlights of the entire night came when Billy Kay and Peyton Royce drove Nikki Cross through a table off the announce table. However, back in the ring, they were not able to successfully double team the champion as a tornado of kicks from Asuka is able to put the ladies away as she retains the title. Great match leading into the main event and another great showing for Asuka.
Winner: Asuka
Rating: ***1/2
Match 5: NXT Championship - Shinsuke Nakamura (c) vs. Bobby Roode
Both men come out to some pretty epic entrances as they face off in one of the biggest main events in NXT history. The crowd was absolutely hot for this one. They were pretty loud throughout the entire show but they for sure were a little louder for this one. They certainly embraced the crowd for the first half of the match as they let the rowdy audience take control with dueling chants. However, it almost felt like they could not get out of the first gear and the match became more style than actual substance. Shinsuke Nakamura hit his patented Kinshasa finisher to Bobby Roode but seemingly hurt his leg in the process and was not able to make the cover. The doctors came out and checked on him before Nakamura got back in the ring only to be hit with a Glorious DDT, a submission and another Glorious DDT to eat the biggest loss of his career. Too much emphasis was placed on Nakamura's injury for the second half of the match and it almost took many out of the drama because of how long it was taking. However, Roode is a perfect face to represent NXT and it was glorious to see him as the top dog of the show.
Winner: Bobby Roode
Rating: ***1/4
Overall Show Thoughts and Rating:
Another review, another great NXT TakeOver show. Love how the WWE do these shows prior to their biggest PPV events. The crowd was hot and the action delivered despite the main event somewhat being a letdown. However, that is not to say that it should deter you from checking out this edition of TakeOver. Onto the Rumble...
Rating: 7/10
Match 1: Tye Dillinger vs. Eric Young
For weeks, Tye Dillinger was being recruited by Eric Young to join his team in Sanity only for Dillinger to reject his offer as the two face off in the opening bout. Of course, the crowd is hot and really into Dillinger as Young makes his usual entrance with his guys cornering him. This was my first time seeing Young wrestle in a WWE ring and can't help but feel so happy for this guy who worked his way from years on end in TNA. Good match here that relied heavily on Alexander Wolfe and Killian Dain being constant distractions that inevitably led to Young hitting his neckbreaker finish to score the win. Good opening match here but am very curious to see who Triple H had more stock in despite the finish.
Winner: Eric Young
Rating: **3/4
Match 2: Andrade Cien Almas vs. Roderick Strong
Much like seeing Eric Young in a WWE ring, it is still strange to see the same in Roderick Strong. But damn, it has certainly been a long time coming. With that being said, an opponent like Andrade Cien Almas should not be overlooked. He plays the role of an arrogant heel with the good looks as good as anyone on the NXT roster. Fine match here with Almas able to display his creative offense while doing his best to not get his back broken by Strong. However, a Sick Kick from Strong was enough for him to score the win over Almas. Good match to follow the opener and good chemistry from the two here, would definitely love to see both guys on the main roster at some point.
Winner: Roderick Strong
Rating: **3/4
Match 3: NXT Tag Team Championships - #DIY (c) vs. The Authors of Pain
Accompanied by the legendary manager Paul Ellering, The Authors of Pain debuted with a bang and won their chance against Tommaso Ciampa and Johnny Gargano of #DIY. I had the opportunity to attend this event in person and it was actually my first time seeing The Authors of Pain. The crowd did not seem to be so interested in the two but I could not help but marvel at how quick they were for their size. This was a great match between the two teams with #DIY (wondering if I should continue to use the hashtag for them) only getting the advantage during the match when they double teamed someone. It was their way of displaying how much of a cohesive unit they were while also letting the audience know how dominant The Authors of Pain truly were. Finish came when The Authors of Pain hit their sweet Super Collider finisher while following it up with their Last Chapter to win the match and put an end to the short reign of #DIY as the NXT Tag Team Champions. There was definitely a huge collective sound of disappointment from the crowd but I think we all knew just how good The Authors of Pain were after this match.
Winners: The Authors of Pain
Rating: ***3/4
Match 4: NXT Women's Championship - Asuka (c) vs. Nikki Cross vs. Billie Kay vs. Peyton Royce
With Nikki Cross being the wild card in the contest, the undefeated NXT Women's Champion in Asuka has her hands full as she must go up against three other competitors for her gold. How cool is it to not have to groan whenever a female steps into the ring these days? These ladies brought it and the action was every bit as intense as from the previous matches. While it was pretty evident that Asuka was not going to lose here, the other competitors certainly put up a great fight and one of the highlights of the entire night came when Billy Kay and Peyton Royce drove Nikki Cross through a table off the announce table. However, back in the ring, they were not able to successfully double team the champion as a tornado of kicks from Asuka is able to put the ladies away as she retains the title. Great match leading into the main event and another great showing for Asuka.
Winner: Asuka
Rating: ***1/2
Match 5: NXT Championship - Shinsuke Nakamura (c) vs. Bobby Roode
Both men come out to some pretty epic entrances as they face off in one of the biggest main events in NXT history. The crowd was absolutely hot for this one. They were pretty loud throughout the entire show but they for sure were a little louder for this one. They certainly embraced the crowd for the first half of the match as they let the rowdy audience take control with dueling chants. However, it almost felt like they could not get out of the first gear and the match became more style than actual substance. Shinsuke Nakamura hit his patented Kinshasa finisher to Bobby Roode but seemingly hurt his leg in the process and was not able to make the cover. The doctors came out and checked on him before Nakamura got back in the ring only to be hit with a Glorious DDT, a submission and another Glorious DDT to eat the biggest loss of his career. Too much emphasis was placed on Nakamura's injury for the second half of the match and it almost took many out of the drama because of how long it was taking. However, Roode is a perfect face to represent NXT and it was glorious to see him as the top dog of the show.
Winner: Bobby Roode
Rating: ***1/4
Overall Show Thoughts and Rating:
Another review, another great NXT TakeOver show. Love how the WWE do these shows prior to their biggest PPV events. The crowd was hot and the action delivered despite the main event somewhat being a letdown. However, that is not to say that it should deter you from checking out this edition of TakeOver. Onto the Rumble...
Rating: 7/10
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