Tuesday, August 31, 2010

8/31/10 NXT (Season 2 Finale)

Alex Riley vs. Kaval vs. Michael McGillicutty: **1/4
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Here are the final official NXT finalist rookie's records as of 8/31/10:
Michael McGillicutty: 6-4
Alex Riley: 5-4
Kaval: 3-6

Alex Riley was eliminated halfway through the episode. Great promo going out.

McGillicutty and Kaval had about a minute to tell the other why the speaker will be the winner of NXT. Both went over time. Kaval appeared to do much better than McGillicutty on this, in my book. Of course, heel Cole complained that Alex Riley was eliminated and had to listen to McGillicutty.

Then it was time to reveal the winner of Season 2:

Congratulations to KAVAL for winning NXT Season 2 and becoming the WWE's next breakout star! He will get a championship match at a PPV of his choosing in the future.

I thought the beatdown from all the other Season 2 rookies was interesting, since it had similarities to Nexus' beatdown of John Cena and others. Wonder if Nexus could gain some new members....
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NXT Season 3 debuts next week! An all-Rookie Divas version!
Kelly Kelly (pro) --> Naomi Knight (rookie)
Alicia Fox (pro) --> Maxine (rookie)
Goldust (pro) --> Aksana (rookie)
Bella Twins (pro) --> Jamie Keyes (rookie)
Primo(pro) --> A.J. Lee (rookie)
Vickie Guerrero (pro) --> Aloisia (rookie)

And yes, Aloisia is the much-talked-about 6'9" Diva WWE signed. Looking forward to seeing this.

Aksana is from Lithuania and, in several photos online, looks very similar to Trish Stratus.

Monday, August 30, 2010

8/30/10 RAW (Episode #900)

The Miz & Alex Riley vs. Kofi Kingston & Michael McGillicutty vs. Daniel Bryan & Kaval: *

Melina & Eve Torres vs. Michelle McCool & Layla: DUD

John Morrison & R-Truth vs. Cody Rhodes & Drew McIntyre: N/A

Bret Hart vs. The Undertaker: N/A

Jack Swagger vs. Evan Bourne: 1/4*

Wade Barrett, Heath Slater, Justin Gabriel, David Otunga, & Michael Tarver vs. John Cena, Randy Orton, Edge, Sheamus, & Chris Jericho (Elimination): *1/2

Friday, August 27, 2010

8/27/10 Smackdown

Kane vs. Rey Mysterio (No DQ): **

CM Punk vs. JTG: N/A (squash)

Dolph Ziggler vs. Kofi Kingston (IC Title): **1/2

Jack Swagger vs. MVP (Amateur Wrestling Rules): N/A

Alberto Del Rio vs. Carlos Sanchez: N/A (squash)

The Big Show vs. Luke Gallows: N/A (squash)

8/26/10 Superstars

William Regal vs. Goldust: *3/4

Trent Barreta & Caylen Croft vs. Curt Hawkins & Vance Archer: *1/2

Drew McIntyre vs. Chris Masters: **1/2

Thursday, August 26, 2010

8/26/10 Impact

Samoa Joe vs. Orlando Jordan: 1/2*

Kevin Nash vs. Jeff Jarrett: -*

James Storm & Robert Roode vs. Little Guido & Tony Luke: 1/4*

Chris Sabin & Alex Shelley vs. Max Buck & Jeremy Buck: ***

Kurt Angle, D'Angelo Dinero, Jeff Hardy, & Mr. Anderson vs. AJ Styles, Matt Morgan, Kazarian, & Douglas Williams: **3/4

Tuesday, August 24, 2010

8/24/10 NXT

Cody Rhodes vs. MVP: **

This match was nice and long, but the problem was it felt long. The crowd was barely into it at all. They do deserve props for lasting that long, at least.
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Here are the official NXT rookie's records as of 8/24/10:
Michael McGillicutty: 6-3
Alex Riley: 3-4
Kaval: 3-5
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Trivia challenge:
Kaval won the Trivia Challenge with 700 points. Michael McGillicutty was second with 500 points, while Alex Riley got 200 points. For winning, Kaval gets a feature on WWE.com when the WWE Universe decides who should be the winner of NXT next week.

As a note, I didn't know a couple of those, otherwise, they were fairly easy for WWE pro wrestling fans.

Next week, we find out who wins Season 2 of NXT. Who will be the WWE's next breakout star?

8/23/10 ROH

Jay Briscoe & Mark Briscoe vs. Bobby Shields & Alex Anthony: *

Kevin Steen vs. Jerry Lynn: **3/4

Necro Butcher, Erick Stevens, Shawn Daivari, & Ernesto Osiris vs. Rasche Brown, Jon Davis, Korey Chavis, & Grizzly Redwood: **1/2

Monday, August 23, 2010

8/23/10 RAW

Edge vs. R-Truth: *1/2

Chris Jericho vs. The Great Khali: 1/2*

Melina vs. Jillian Hall (Divas Title): 1/2*

The Miz vs. John Cena: ***

Santino Marella & Vladimir Kozlov vs. Jimmy Uso & Jey Uso: 3/4*

Randy Orton vs. John Morrison vs. Ted DiBiase: *3/4

Sheamus vs. Zack Ryder (WWE Title): N/A
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Michael Cole has been heelish in complaining about R-Truth's "Whassup?" entrance theme week after week. Wonder if this will lead to R-Truth getting new music?

Friday, August 20, 2010

8/20/10 Smackdown

Dolph Ziggler vs. Kofi Kingston (IC Title): *1/4

Luke Gallows & Serena vs. The Big Show & Kelly Kelly: 1/2*

Christian vs. Drew McIntyre: **1/2

Alberto Del Rio vs. Rey Mysterio: **1/4
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I must say, Alberto's "personal ring announcer" is pretty good.

8/19/10 Impact

Jeff Hardy vs. Rob Terry: *

Mr. Anderson vs. Lay Lethal: *1/4

Angelina Love vs. Madison Rayne: 1/2*

Kurt Angle vs. Douglas Williams: **1/2

D'Angelo Dinero vs. Matt Morgan: *1/4

AJ Styles vs. Tommy Dreamer: *3/4

8/19/10 Superstars

Yoshi Tatsu vs. Primo: *1/2

Vance Archer vs. MVP: 1/2*

Vance Archer & Curt Hawkins vs. MVP & JTG: *1/4

Jack Swagger vs. Chris Masters: *3/4

8/16/10 ROH

Jerry Lynn vs. Rhett Titus: *1/4

El Generico vs. Erick Stevens: *

Josh Raymond & Christian Able vs. Mike Sydal & Aiden Chambers: 1/4*

Roderick Strong vs. Davey Richards: **3/4

Tuesday, August 17, 2010

8/17/10 NXT

Zack Ryder vs. Michael McGillicutty: *

Kaval vs. Husky Harris: *1/2

Kofi Kingston vs. Alex Riley: 3/4*
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Here are the official NXT rookie's records as of 8/17/10:
Michael McGillicutty: 6-3
Husky Harris: 4-4
Percy Watson: 3-3
Alex Riley: 3-4
Kaval: 3-5

NOTE: Alex Riley won the "Power of the Punch" challenge last week. Apparently he did get his appearance on RAW -- he got to help Miz lay out Daniel Bryan and put Miz over as a great pro.
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Talking challenge:
Percy Watson (3-D): Basically, he stole Kurt Angle's "3 Is." Not too original at all. C

Alex Riley (Alex Riley): I thought he did the best here. Great promo, but again, the only complaint is that he went over time. I think Riley is the best talker left in NXT, with McGillicutty a close second. B

Michael McGillicutty (His competition): Also pretty good, although I think he really bordered on what not to do (why he should not be eliminated). He basically said why he should win NXT. B-

Kaval (Behind every great man is a great woman): Nice rhyming, and the way he put over LayCool was great. I marked when he finished with "Total Nonstop Action." That was just awesome, and I can't believe WWE let him get away with that. Unfortunately, his bass voice hurts him here because it affects how passionate he is in promos. B-

Husky Harris (Cowboy boots): That really did not make much sense. D
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Results of the third NXT Poll:
No actual poll; Percy Watson was eliminated. He's athletic and should be given props for running with his gimmick. In the end, it just was not meant to be. He showed class in going out.
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Results of the fourth NXT Poll:
No actual poll; Husky Harris was eliminated. I was pretty shocked with this elimination, although it's clear the WWE Universe played a huge part in this.Of course, we needed to have that brawl at the end as Husky goes out a sore loser.

So the final three is Alex Riley, Michael McGillicutty, and Kaval. Who will win NXT Season 2 and be the WWE's next breakout star?

Monday, August 16, 2010

8/16/10 RAW

Wade Barrett vs. Chris Jericho: *3/4

Michael Tarver vs. Daniel Bryan: 1/2*

Justin Gabriel vs. Randy Orton: 1/4*

Skip Sheffield & David Otunga vs. John Morrison & R-Truth: *

Alicia Fox, Maryse, & Jillian vs. Melina, Eve Torres, & Gail Kim: *

Heath Slater vs. Edge: 3/4*

John Cena vs. Darren Young: **
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Vintage heel Cole when Daniel Bryan comes out! DB got the generic theme music; that should hopefully change in a few months.

So who else thought Darren Young would get the boot? I did.

New WWE Tag Team Titles look nice.

8/15/10 SummerSlam

Dolph Ziggler vs. Kofi Kingston (IC Title): Match had a bunch of slow moments. Pace predictably picked up a little after that. Nexus interfering just left me with a sour taste in my mouth. *1/2

Melina vs. Alicia Fox (Divas Title): My God, Melina must have killed Big Bird with that ring attire. Rookie mistake by Alicia to not target Melina's knee; experienced wrestlers would have targeted the injured area in some manner immediately. Anticlimactic win. 1/2*

The Big Show vs. CM Punk, Luke Gallows, & Joseph Mercury: Oh, just kill me. Three-on-one matches generally aren't too good in my book, especially when you have one giant against three others. Pace was very slow and moves were too basic. Big Show looked too strong here, in my book. Punk needs to heal fast and have some real matches. On the plus side, Big Show's slaps are agonizingly awesome. *

Randy Orton vs. Sheamus (WWE Title): This was very good, but far from excellent, in my book. Pace was again very slow. I understand the whole deal with Sheamus never beating Orton, but seriously, DQ wins are stupid. **3/4

Kane vs. Rey Mysterio (World Title): Very good match. Good physicality and excellent storytelling. Looks like Rey goes to the back of the line, and we apparently have a Kane/Taker feud again. ***

John Cena, Bret Hart, Edge, Chris Jericho, John Morrison, R-Truth, & Daniel Bryan vs. Wade Barrett, David Otunga, Michael Tarver, Skip Sheffield, Justin Gabriel, Heath Slater, & Darren Young (Elimination): Come on, you marked when Daniel Bryan was announced and came out to replace Miz. And I'm sure that when Bryan was announced, pretty much everyone knew Nexus was losing.

I thought it was very wise to eliminate the two "weakest" Nexus members (Young and Tarver) early to get the WWE Universe in this. Another great move to have the biggest Nexus member (Sheffield) come in to eliminate two WWE guys to even the match. Furthermore, they kept the Cena vs. Jericho/Edge storyline going. In short here, the back-and-forth eliminations -- and the order people were eliminated -- was top-notch and made sense.

Heel Cole was going full-bore on Daniel Bryan -- another plus because Cole sucks as a regular play-by-play guy. They made Nexus look very good by having Cena get beat down significantly. Daniel Bryan -- with his legion of followers -- got the hot tag...a pleasant sight in my book. Daniel Bryan looked outstanding in this one, and it looks like the Miz/Bryan feud will happen.

Cena came back again. What a surprise. Did not care for the way he came back at all, but I guess, under the circumstances, it works. ****
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MVPs: Daniel Bryan. I marked big time when he came out, and anyone who makes me mark likely will be my MVP.

Overall Rating: The only match that really caught my eye tonight was the 7-on-7 main event, but WWE delivered in a big way. Not only did they shock a lot of people with the Daniel Bryan return, but they managed to make Nexus look decent despite the loss. I still would have preferred Nexus to win here, but I think the secondary point was to make Bryan look great. That was accomplished and then some. Not a mind-blowing PPV by any means, but at least the main event lived up to expectations. **3/4

Friday, August 13, 2010

8/13/10 Smackdown

Kane vs. Kofi Kingston: *1/4

Cody Rhodes vs. Christian: *1/2

The Big Show vs. Derek Werley, Jody Reese, & Fernando Vega: N/A (squash)

Drew McIntyre vs. Matt Hardy: *1/2

MVP vs. Jack Swagger: *1/4

Rey Mysterio vs. Dolph Ziggler: **1/4

8/12/10 Superstars

Jimmy Uso & Jey Uso vs. Yoshi Tatsu & Goldust: *3/4

Chris Masters vs. Chavo Guerrero: **

Michelle McCool vs. Kelly Kelly: *1/4

8/12/10 Impact

("The Whole F'n Show" PPV-Quality Impact)

Kurt Angle vs. AJ Styles: ***

Angelina Love vs. Madison Rayne (Knockouts Title): 1/2*

Mr. Anderson vs. D'Angelo Dinero vs. Matt Morgan: *1/4

Jeff Hardy vs. Shannon Moore: **1/4

Chris Sabin & Alex Shelley vs. James Storm & Robert Roode (2 Out of 3 Falls; Tag Team Titles): ****1/2

Rob Van Dam vs. Abyss (Stairway to Janice): ***1/4

Tuesday, August 10, 2010

8/10/10 NXT

Kaval, Percy Watson, & Lucky Cannon vs. Alex Riley, Husky Harris, & Michael McGillicutty: *3/4

The Miz vs. John Morrison: **1/2
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Here are the official NXT rookie's records as of 8/10/10:
Michael McGillicutty: 6-2
Husky Harris: 4-3
Alex Riley: 3-3
Percy Watson: 3-3
Lucky Cannon: 3-5
Kaval: 2-5

NOTE: Alex Riley won the "Power of the Punch" challenge and will get an individual appearance on Monday Night RAW next week. The Miz may be a reality TV star, but Alex Riley is a star in reality. I loved that.

The challenge was lame -- predictably so. McGillicutty and Riley were the only two to really do well at all. Did they really have to make it so Kaval would kick the bag to get DQ'd? Lucky Cannon punched like a girl, and Husky Harris nearly whiffed on his try. Unreal.
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Results of the second NXT Poll:
Kaval
Michael McGillicutty
Percy Watson
Husky Harris
Alex Riley
Lucky Cannon (eliminated)

Kaval at #1 because of the fans. Of course, the win this week helped as well.

McGillicutty drops a spot to #2. I think he still is decent, so this is about right.

Percy Watson at #3 probably because of the fans. Great athleticism, so perhaps that impresses the pros.

Husky Harris at #4. He's doing very well, so I agree with this. He could even be a spot higher, in my book.

Alex Riley at #5 surprised me a bit, and is likely due to the fans hating him.

Lucky Cannon was finally eliminated after a 3-5 record. While he had a better win-loss record than Kaval, he was very poor on the mic, and not even a few high-flying moves in the last couple of days could save him. I 100 percent agree with this elimination.

And Matt Striker drops a bombshell...next week is a DOUBLE elimination week! After next week's show, we will have just three rookies left.
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Who I'd like to see in the final three:

Kaval: Easily the most talented of the NXT crop. You really can't go wrong with a Warrior gimmick, right? The fans love him, and if you turn him loose in a match, it will be main-event quality for sure. The only thing holding him back is the mic skills. And if it means more screen time for Laycool, then yes, please.

Husky Harris: He's impressed me on the mic and can move pretty well for a large man. The WWE higher-ups like him, and I can see why. I like the "Built like an Army Tank with a Ferrari Engine" catchphrase.

Alex Riley: He has a great look and a pretty good gimmick of Varsity Villain. He talks well on the mic and shows confidence in everything he does. Definitely has the "it" factor on looks, and only needs to wow me with his moveset.

As for the others...Michael McCillicutty has a great win-loss record on NXT, the pedigree (third-generation star), and a good look, but I just cannot see him going at it alone for the time being. I can't really put my finger on it...it's just not there right now for me.

I must give Percy Watson credit. He's incredibly athletic and is trying his best to make his "Showtime" gimmick work. However, he talks way too fast for me and again, I cannot see him past midcard status at this point.

8/9/10 ROH

Necro Butcher vs. Rasche Brown (Butcher's Rules): 1/2*

Colt Cabana vs. Alex Anthony: N/A (squash)

Tyler Black vs. Christopher Daniels: ****

Monday, August 9, 2010

8/9/10 RAW

The Miz vs. Evan Bourne: *1/2

Melina vs. Alicia Fox: -1/4*

Ted DiBiase vs. Mark Henry: N/A

Husky Harris, Alex Riley, & Michael McGillicutty vs. Kaval, Percy Watson, & Lucky Cannon: *1/2

R-Truth & John Morrison vs. William Regal & Zack Ryder: *

Brie Bella & Nikki Bella vs. Eve Torres & Gail Kim vs. Maryse & Jillian: 3/4*

Wade Barrett vs. The Great Khali: N/A

John Cena & Bret Hart vs. Chris Jericho & Edge: N/A
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I think that was Morrison's best performance in a while. Just a short time in the ring, but he hit everything very well -- including Starship Pain.

Sunday, August 8, 2010

8/8/10 HardCORE Justice

Tracey Smothers, Tony Luke, & Guido vs. Kid Kash, Simon Diamond, & Swinger: Very good. Match had a bunch of nice spots in it, although I would have loved the match more without that "dance-off." **1/2

Too Cold Scorpio vs. C.W. Anderson: Scorpio still has it -- and then some. Very good stuff here as well. Definitely would have wanted them to go longer, but the action was great for what it was. **1/2

Stevie Richards vs. P.J. Polaco: I believe Polaco couldn't use "Justin Credible" because I heard someone else was currently using that name in wrestling. Again, good stuff. Very nice moves. Too short for me to grade high, but they still got it. **1/4

Rhino vs. Al Snow vs. Brother Runt (Elimination): It was entertaining. Brother Runt took a couple of nasty bumps in this one. Didn't like the two falls being so close to one another, but otherwise it was good. **1/4

Brother Ray & Brother Devon vs. Axl Rotten & Kahoneys (Street Fight): Yes, "Kahoneys" is Balls Mahoney. Anyway, this is the type of match I wanted to see. Chaos and more chaos. Some of the loudest weapon shots you'll ever hear. And of course, the fiery table! Excellent. ***3/4

Raven vs. Tommy Dreamer (Street Fight): I loved this match as well. Not only did it have the brutality of the Dudleys vs. Rotten/Mahoney street fight, it featured a long-running ECW rivalry and storyline. I felt the match would have been better without any outside interference, but seeing Beulah on TV was nice. The crossface with the barbed wire was great, and I have no clue how Dreamer got that DDT on Raven while he was handcuffed. ***3/4

Rob Van Dam vs. Sabu: And to end the night, we have another big-time rivalry from the old ECW. Tremendous balance of hardcore wrestling with traditional wrestling. This was my personal match of the night, and a match-of-the-year candidate. ****
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MVPs: Everyone. The old gang still has it -- and never lost it.

Overall Rating: Even though all the originals were not there, it was still nice to see taped cameos from people like Blue Meanie and Francine. The crowd felt like the old ECW -- very hardcore and rowdy. From wrestlers to referees to ring announcers, it was great to bring back the old crew.

I also liked the matches because there were zero rest holds. They were to the point and had great action. There were no bad matches. I feel TNA hit a home run here. ***3/4

Friday, August 6, 2010

8/6/10 Smackdown

Cody Rhodes vs. Matt Hardy: *1/2

Dolph Ziggler vs. Kofi Kingston (IC Title): *1/2

CM Punk, Luke Gallows, & Joseph Mercury vs. MVP, JTG, & Chris Masters: *

Rey Mysterio vs. Drew McIntyre: **3/4

8/5/10 Superstars

Layla vs. Tiffany: *1/4

Curt Hawkins & Vance Archer vs. Trent Barreta & Caylen Croft: **

Evan Bourne vs. Zack Ryder: **1/2

Thursday, August 5, 2010

8/5/10 Impact

Taylor Wilde & Hamada vs. Velvet Sky & Lacey Von Erich (Knockouts Tag Team Titles): 1/4*

AJ Styles vs. Rob Terry (TV Title): *

Chris Sabin & Alex Shelley vs. James Storm & Robert Roode (Ultimate X; Tag Team Titles): ***3/4

D'Angelo Dinero vs. Orlando Jordan: 3/4*

Ric Flair vs. Jay Lethal (Street Fight): *1/2

Rob Van Dam & Tommy Dreamer vs. Abyss & Raven: *1/2

8/2/10 ROH

Jon Davis & Korey Chavis vs. Shawn Daivari & Ernesto Osiris: **

Eddie Edwards vs. Jay Freddie: *1/4

Kenny King vs. Delirious: *3/4

Jay Briscoe vs. Claudio Castagnoli: **1/4

Mark Briscoe vs. Chris Hero: ***

Tuesday, August 3, 2010

8/3/10 NXT

Husky Harris vs. Kaval: 3/4*

Michael McGillicutty vs. Lucky Cannon: DUD

Alex Riley vs. Percy Watson: *1/4

The Miz vs. Michael McGillicutty: *1/2
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Here are the official NXT rookie's records as of 8/3/10:
Michael McGillicutty: 6-1
Husky Harris: 4-2
Alex Riley: 3-2
Eli Cottonwood: 2-2
Percy Watson: 2-3
Lucky Cannon: 2-5
Kaval: 1-5

Thankfully, no elimination challenge this week. The whole "kissing Margarita" segment was ridiculous.

Monday, August 2, 2010

8/2/10 RAW

Edge vs. Wade Barrett: *1/2

Alicia Fox, Jillian, & Tamina vs. Natalya, Eve Torres, & Gail Kim: *

Sheamus vs. Goldust: N/A

John Cena vs. Chris Jericho: **3/4

The Great Khali vs. Ted DiBiase: DUD

Randy Orton vs. The Miz: **3/4