Wednesday, November 30, 2011

11/30/11 NXT

Ratings:
Percy Watson vs. Tyler Reks: 1/2*

Tyson Kidd & Johnny Curtis vs. Yoshi Tatsu & Trent Barreta: *1/4

Alicia Fox vs. Maxine: 1/4*

Derrick Bateman vs. Titus O'Neil vs. Darren Young: *3/4
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Reviews/Thoughts:
I just noticed Percy Watson still has a twitter handle that uses "NXT" in it. Does this mean he's changing it to a "WWE" handle if he ever makes the RAW or Smackdown roster more full-time (if at all)? Hawkins on commentary as Reks faces Percy. I swear Percy's showmanship reminds me of Koko B. Ware. How the heck does a dropkick win it? Reks came from the top to eat the dropkick, but still yet...good grief.

So Kaitlyn is now eye candy for Johnny Curtis. What the...Mrs. Bateman? That was actually a real good skit. Laughed pretty good on that one. Go get 'er, Mom! Now that's a divas fight I wanna see.

Still no clue how Yoshi has his video game music theme. Give it to Barreta and have him do the robot or something. Good stuff from Barreta here. Nice finisher from Curtis...a suplex into a Michinoku Driver II.

They replayed Piper's Pit from RAW. Really liked the segment overall as Piper keeps pushing Cena's buttons to try and get a more aggressive Cena to come out. Cena resists for now. I'm sure at some point, Cena will snap. It will likely be months down the road (if at all), though.

Maxine gets zero reaction coming out for her match. I wonder if PETA and anti-fur groups will diss Alicia for that "Fox" headgear/hoodie thing she wears to the ring. Alicia appears to go where Melina left off, doing all these splits now. Oh look, it's Bateman and his mom on the ring stage! A flip legdrop wins it? Really?

Finally, the NXT rookies compete -- for a chance to win a match on Smackdown! Oh wow, what a prize! (insert facepalm here) Titus got some hard chops there. Young and Bateman work on Titus, which I liked at the start (but of course, watch the heels turn on one another). Nice Tower of Doom spot. Things were pretty fragmented at the start, but at least gained momentum at the end. Nice win for Bateman, although the finish seemed generally weak.

No Maxine to enjoy the celebration with Bateman. Oops, Maxine left with Johnny Curtis. Bateman's reaction is priceless...at least he has that going for him. But why does Tamina and JTG relay the news? Really? Just have Curtis and Maxine on screen driving off or something -- unless it's all a ruse...

Tuesday, November 29, 2011

11/29/11 Smackdown

Ratings:
Divas Mistletoe on a Pole match: DUD

Justin Gabriel vs. Jinder Mahal: 1/4*

Kofi Kingston vs. Tyson Kidd: *

Randy Orton vs. David Otunga (Street Fight): *3/4

"All I Want for Christmas..." Battle Royal: *1/2

Mark Henry vs. Daniel Bryan (Cage; World Heavyweight Title): **3/4
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Reviews/Thoughts:
We're live tonight on a special holiday Smackdown in Charlotte!

Foley comes out to start the show...as good ol' Saint "Mick." I laughed as Cole came out to the Rudolph reindeer outfit. Josh Mathews was an elf. Booker was, well...Booker Claus. It's finally here, the storyline between Cody Rhodes and Booker T. Booker has wanted one final run, and he's getting it now. This is a great chance to further elevate Cody...that should be the long-term effect of this.

Divas Mistletoe on a Pole match was a mess. Brie used her own sister as a stepladder to get a prize...of being able to kiss anyone between now and Christmas. Just a lame prize and a waste of my time.

Cole keeps dissing DiBiase during the Jinder Mahal match. DiBiase comes down to hand out gifts to the fans. This of course distracts Jinder and Gabriel got the win. Cole called this an athletic competition? So is that what we're calling it now?

I wonder if Hornswoggle spiked the eggnog. Dusty Rhodes with a cameo! ROFL! YES! Goldust! Happy to see him back on TV. Hopefully he's back to wrestling soon after undergoing major surgery earlier this year. Otunga wants to shut the party down. Foley puts him in a street fight against Orton. Ouch.

Rhodes attacks Booker backstage...maybe no match tonight.

Kofi still is recognized as one half of the tag champs as Bourne continues to serve his suspension. Tyson Kidd only gets a mention from Chimel, no separate ring entrance. Kofi takes Cole's reindeer headgear. Flying reindeer! Crossbody ends it. Relatively short match here.

Here we go with the Miracle on 34th Street Fight! Otunga comes out to generic music that just happened to be one of Justin Gabriel's old entrance themes. Oh wow, they decide to take out the Christmas trees at ringside. Looks like Orton at least likes Cole's cookies as he beats down Otunga. They get to the stage...and Otunga takes out more trees and presents. Barrett interferes...hey, he's helping a former Nexus guy! Even with that, no dice for Otunga tonight because it's Orton we're talking about. Pretty much a basic match with a bunch of stuff getting destroyed.

Battle royal gets all of the remaining Smackdown roster a chance to be on TV -- yup, even Hornswoggle. Hornswoggle goes under the ring as everyone else goes after each other. Kidd takes out DiBiase, but Hornswoggle pulls Kidd (hanging from the top rope) to the floor. Ha, that sneaky troll.... Hornswoggle is then dragged into the ring against four heels. Looks like one of those Nexus moments. Enter Sheamus to the rescue. He takes all the heels out, leaving him and Hornswoggle in the ring. And Hornswoggle...wins?! now I've seen everything.

The Hornswoggle "talking" segment was a lot of fun to watch -- especially calling Vickie a grandma.

Nice pre-match Daniel Bryan promo. And dammit, Daniel Bryan, you got a kiss from AJ? That's it, I want to apply to WWE now and become a superstar.

One thing I admire about DB in his matches: he really takes hard and flashy bumps. Not fun getting clotheslined and turned head over heels. Entertaining match with the crowd into it. Anytime you can really get the crowd going in a Mark Henry match...you've done something right. LeBell Lock was nice, but the crowd really got going with the ankle lock! Wait, that made no sense for Henry to start scaling the ropes. Very exciting conclusion here. Nice strong finish to end it.

11/28/11 RAW

Ratings:
The Miz vs. John Morrison (Falls Count Anywhere): *1/4

Kelly Kelly & Alicia Fox vs. Nikki Bella & Brie Bella: DUD

Dolph Ziggler vs. Randy Orton: ***

Zack Ryder vs. Jack Swagger: *1/4

CM Punk vs. Alberto Del Rio (WWE Title): ***1/4
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Reviews/Thoughts:
I loved the opening Piper's Pit segment. Cena was on top of his game as usual. Piper's really getting the seeds planted for Cena to turn heel (or at least bring out a more aggressive Cena), even slapping him in the face.

This Miz/Morrison match was not nearly as good as their MOTY candidate on the first RAW of 2011, but still had lots of physicality. And so ends Morrison's run in WWE. Such a depressing sight there. Good promo from Miz post-match.

Chances are extremely high that Morrison (and even Melina) will re-surface in TNA within 90 days. It's rumored that TNA will bring them in as a couple. It'd be a big boost to TNA. Morrison can work the X-Division style well, and perhaps get pushed to main event status. Melina has talent and could vie for the Knockouts gold.

Beth and Natalya making their presence felt during the divas tag match, if only doing some sort of jogging/cardio. Oh yeah, and some tag match occurred.

Have I mentioned just how much CM Punk rules? Great jabs taken at Laurinaitis, Alberto, and Otunga. Laurinaitis said if Punk gets intentionally DQ'd tonight, Punk loses the title. Typical heel (interim) GM.

Barrett on commentary during Orton/Ziggler. Crowd was going nuts in this one, with several "RKO" chants. Nice win for Ziggler to continue his roll -- albeit with Barrett-ference.

Daniel Bryan and Cole in a war of words in the ring. Excellent segment. DB showing off his great promo skills there. I doubt DB wins the belt on the live Smackdown later tonight (probably some more controversy, if anything), but the main thing is he's not a featured star on Smackdown, complete with his MITB briefcase. And let's face it, anyone going against Michael Cole will get cheered, no matter who it is.

Ryder's push continues! Talk about being very over with the crowd....

Foley (as Santa) cuts a nice rhyming promo, complete with a cheap pop! Good stuff.

I wonder if Punk's words "Kiss my ass" trended on Twitter. #kissmyass

Great WWE title match. "Del Rio" "Sucks" chants (separate chants) throughout the arena was pretty funny. Even more classic was the Eddie Guerrero "lie, cheat, steal" spot with the steel chair. I laughed pretty good on that one.

Really liked this week's episode. Keep 'em coming!

Friday, November 25, 2011

11/25/11 Smackdown

Ratings:
Hunico vs. Justin Gabriel: *

AJ & Kaitlyn vs. Natalya & Beth Phoenix: N/A

Sheamus & Zack Ryder vs. Dolph Ziggler & Jack Swagger: **1/2

Ted DiBiase vs. Heath Slater: *

Daniel Bryan vs. Randy Orton vs. Cody Rhodes vs. Wade Barrett: ***
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Reviews/Thoughts:
I didn't think they'd find a crutch sturdy enough to hold Henry up as he hobbled down to ringside. And Henry refuses to keep his mouth shut as he calls Show a loser. Now why in the world would you do that? Cole, you are seriously a moron.

The Daniel Bryan fake world title win was the biggest tease I've seen for a MITB. It did serve a nice purpose to get Mark Henry more heel heat as a heel that escaped on a technicality, but it also makes me want to punch Cole in the face even more.

OK stuff between Gabriel and Hunico. They had time for some spots, but they needed at least five more minutes...at least.

AJ got some new music here. Unfortunately, it was merely a squash. Kaitlyn is getting prepped for a heel turn, it seems. But seriously, I'd rather have Kaitlyn kick someone's ass than just stand on the apron like a clueless diva.

Good  tag match. Ryder's insanely over right now, and I really hope they continue to push him.

I personally have no clue what WWE has planned for DiBiase. He has the pedigree and the talent. I haven't seen him do well on the mic, so perhaps that's what's holding him back in the long run. In the meantime, I can only hope he's used better. As for Slater, I was unaware the guy was still employed. Yeah, basically not caring.

Good fatal four way here. Since the winner challenges Henry next week, one could deduce before the match starts that Orton or Bryan would win. Leave it to Bryan to take a bunch of the cool-looking spots (at DB's expense). He took that Doomsday Device and the huge Boss Man slam, for starters. A little awkward moment when all four guys were basically woozy. I have to admit, though, that was a lot of fun.

11/24/11 Impact

Ratings:
Matt Morgan & Crimson vs. Hernandez & Anarquia (Tag Team Titles): 1/2*

Velvet Sky, Tara, & Miss Tessmacher vs. Angelina Love, Winter, & Madison Rayne: *1/2

Eric Young vs. Robbie E: N/A (I refuse to rate this thing)

Mr. Anderson, AJ Styles, Jeff Hardy, & Rob Van Dam vs. Bobby Roode, Christopher Daniels, Bully Ray, & Jeff Jarrett (Elimination): **1/4
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Reviews/Thoughts:
TNA bleeps "ass" in Angle's promo...and then in Storm's promo? Give me a break. They've left worse words uncensored in the past. That was one HARD punch from Storm to Angle. Damn.

Tag title rematch starts off the wrestling portion of the show. Well, that was no contest. Bigger picture is the competitive nature between Morgan and Crimson.

I'm liking this mega-push of Gail Kim. See, at least one promotion was able to make her look good. Earl Hebner has the best job ever reffing this Knockouts Lingerie six-person tag match. Good job, Hebner, for not doing a damn thing when all six were in the ring. Faces with the win due to Mickie-terference. Not bad, really.

Jeff Jarrett comes out posing as Hardy. Leads to Hardy coming out and beating the snot outta JJ. Immortal to the rescue, but again, Anderson and company come out to save the day. OK...next!

Robbie E. beating up a stuffed turkey toy...really? No other comment, other than this was one of the weirdest segments of the year.

Finally, a REAL eight-man tag match, elimination style. Well, actually seven since Hardy was taken out before the match. Roode hangs out at the announce table and comes down to score the first fall, heel style, before blatantly getting DQ'd himself. It basically gets down to only Styles left on the faces side. All four guys down and Hardy enters! He quickly gets Daniels and Jarrett again. Good finish here. Roode gets the last laugh for now.

Thursday, November 24, 2011

11/24/11 Superstars

Ratings:
Ted DiBiase vs. Drew McIntyre: **1/2

Alex Riley vs. Michael McGillicutty: *1/4

Jinder Mahal vs. Trent Barreta: *

Ezekiel Jackson vs. Tyson Kidd: *
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Reviews/Thoughts:
So since when is DiBiase from Mississippi (instead of West Palm Beach, FL)? Fairly lengthy match here between him and McIntyre. Good back-and-forth action.

A-Ry and McGillicutty had an OK match here. Abrupt finish hurt this, in my eyes.

Does Barreta's twitter account say "trendylocks"? Barreta's arm taken out early, so Mahal worked on that. Trent got to fly anyway, which livened the crowd up. Camel Clutch for a finisher? Could be nice if worked into the match more seamlessly.

Looks like Zeke is back on TV. Obvious contrasts in styles here. Kidd did get to do some moves, but it was all about Zeke getting a strong win.

11/23/11 NXT

Ratings:
Yoshi Tatsu vs. Johnny Curtis: *

Jimmy Uso vs. JTG: *1/2

Tyler Reks & Darren Young vs. Percy Watson & Titus O'Neil: **
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Reviews/Thoughts:
This whole "Curtis went on one date with Maxine" deal is just ridiculous to me. A bunch of Yoshi's chops weren't really on the money this time. He must have had a little off-night. Finish was pretty abrupt to me.

Oh, apparently Bateman and Maxine will be on Smackdown? Oh, lovely.

Usos play homage to their brethren Samoans that came before them. Hey, Umaga got a shoutout! Yes! So now Tamina is against the Usos after being alongside them for the first few months they were on TV. Not impressed with her mic work, honestly. Decent crowd reaction here, OK match.

Good main event here. Percy again showed his agility. I'm damn jealous of his vertical leap. Young on a bit of a roll here, taking out Titus for the second straight week.

Monday, November 21, 2011

11/21/11 RAW

Ratings:
Alberto Del Rio vs. Zack Ryder: *

Sheamus vs. Jack Swagger: *1/4

Cody Rhodes vs. Santino Marella: N/A

CM Punk vs. Dolph Ziggler: ***3/4

Wade Barrett vs. Kofi Kingston: **
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Reviews/Thoughts:
The opening promo was outstanding, as usual. More Zack Ryder chants! Yes! I'm also glad they showed the post-Survivor Series stuff.

HAHA, Ryder takes the mic from Ricardo! Ryder is the man. But dammit, Zack loses? Sad panda.

I like Sheamus' physicality in his matches. A couple of good spots here.

Hey, it's Nash! Nice reference to when Kliq broke kayfabe.

Cody promo was good, and I guess Santino was again thrown to the wolves tonight. That didn't take long. Here we go! Cody with the opening salvo in this one against Booker T! Cole is the most annoying commentator in history. Congratulations, Cole. You've turned your character into one where everyone wants to hang you from a building and and take swings at you like you're some sort of pinata.

Punk vs. Ziggler was exactly what I wanted to watch. Impressive array of moves and counters. Strong finish. Wish we could get more of this quality on free TV.

Orton with the mind games on Barrett. Good match between Barrett and Kofi. Liked the end to make a statement right back at Orton.

Cena cuts his usual shtick on the mic. Thank you, Awesome Truth for making it entertaining. "Little Jimmy" chants at the end! Awesome Truth got some troubles now, thanks to Cena....

In other news, John Morrison's contract with WWE expired, but he signed an extension to work through the end of November. From what I've gathered, WWE may not re-sign him. It'd really be a shame if so. TNA would scoop him up in 90 days, no doubt.

Sunday, November 20, 2011

11/20/11 Survivor Series

Ratings:
Dolph Ziggler vs. John Morrison (U.S. Title): ***

Beth Phoenix vs. Eve Torres (Lumberjill; Divas Title): *1/2

Wade Barrett, Cody Rhodes, Jack Swagger, Dolph Ziggler, & Hunico vs. Randy Orton, Sheamus, Kofi Kingston, Sin Cara, & Mason Ryan: ***1/2

Mark Henry vs. Big Show (World Heavyweight Title): **

CM Punk vs. Alberto Del Rio (WWE Title): ****

The Rock & John Cena vs. The Miz & R-Truth: ***
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Analysis/Review:
Great opening match -- and the proper one here. Ziggler once again proves he's a workhorse. HUGE "We Want Ryder!" chants. Just an awesome counter from Ziggler into the sleeper. Vickie got caught red-handed and was ejected. Counter after counter ends in a rocker dropper for two. Strong finish for three. Ziggler with a thank you speech. Ryder comes out with a HUGE pop. Ziggler pounds away but a Rough Ryder! NY crowd is awesome.

Divas title next. Again, Beth in her home state, so she gets a little pop herself. Lumberjill match here so the divas can all get airtime. Nice counter of the Glam Slam into an Eve submission. Super Glam Slam from the top ends it. Very nice finish to an otherwise-average match.

Rock promo. Ha, they censored/muted Rock saying "WWF" when mentioning Rocky Johnson's title defense. Ha, Rock mentions his debut, hideous outfit, and haircut. I love NY crowds. This was an amazing promo as usual. Rock got a "Lady Parts" chant going. Now THAT is epic.

Ziggler rests barely half an hour before going out there again for the 5-on-5. I finally realized Cody's wearing kneepads now. Ziggler even started the match against Kofi. Well, Ziggler ate an RKO, and it was totally understandable for Dolph to get eliminated first. Kofi and Sin Cara with double helos. Sin Cara's hurt...looks like a knee injury. Didn't look very violent of an injury, though but Joey Styles said Sin Cara's out 6-9 months (ruptured patella). Orton and Cody resume things. Big pin for Cody pinning Mason Ryan. Big "Cody!" chants in NY. Cole mentions HBK, the 1997 Montreal Screwjob, and the 2002 Elimination Chamber match (HBK wins world title). Very impressive stuff from Kofi, jumping all over the place, pendulum kicks. But Barrett puts Kofi away. Down to just Sheamus and Orton for the faces. Hunico with the suicide dive on Orton, nice. Sheamus gets DQ'd so it's down to 4-on-1. Wow. Brogue Kick to Swagger anyway, and Orton trims it to 1-on-3. Orton goes bonkers on Cody, Hunico tags in and springboards into an RKO. Down to 1-on-2. Cody eats an RKO, but numbers game. Barrett with Wasteland, and Barrett and Cody survive.

World title match time. This match was (obviously) a pure power match. I think the crowd was chanting for Undertaker. Crowd otherwise couldn't care less. Agonizingly slow at the start. ROFL, "Sexual Chocolate" chants! Then it picked up. Henry charged Show on the outside and taking down the barricade. Superplex time! Oh, never mind. Superkick! "HBK" chants now! Whoa, WTF. Big Show to the top?!?! HOLY CRAP A SAVAGE ELBOW! That was actually super cool. "Randy Savage" chants! WMD ducked, and Henry low-blows to escape with the DQ loss and the title. Henry misses the Vader Bomb and WMD from Show. "Daniel Bryan" chants! Oh crap. Show with the chair. Legdrop on the chair! Henry in pain. Henry says the leg's broken. Aw, no Daniel Bryan.

Awesome Truth promo. I liked this; really liking this pairing.

WWE Title match. Ricardo introduces Alberto, so...Fink's here to introduce Punk! Fink's getting chants from the crowd! Crowd with huge "CM Punk" chants. Was that a "Colt Cabana" chant as well?! Nice kicks from Punk. Suicide dive! Ricardo got involved and Punk looks like he wants to do some boots to asses here. Physical match here...and yes, we got a nice pro wrestling match! Kicks and Mongolian chops! This was a great showing. Kudos here. I don't think I've heard and seen so many kicks land in a WWE match. Kicks again! Savage elbow for another two! Randy Savage chants start again. This rules. Armbreaker! Punk struggles and gets to the ropes! Punk kicks Ricardo off the apron. ADR with the rollup and we see Punk's ass. Only two! Huge kick! Two! Anaconda Vice! ADR rakes the eyes...he taps! Fink announces Punk as champ as Punk celebrates in the crowd. Excellent match.

That Stone Cold DVD set looks so cool. Might think of getting it.

Great main event video package. Awesome Truth comes out to a rap. Then "Cena Sucks" chants...mixed response for John as usual. Rock comes out to a nice pop. Rock starts with Miz. Rock with arm drags...great sequence. "You still got it!" Truth wants in now. Cena comes in to interfere as Rock gets Truth in a fisherman's suplex. Nice to build the tension, I guess. "Fruity Pebbles" chants! Miz wants Cena now. NY on Cena saying he can't wrestle. Whoa, Cena did a monkey flip and a dropkick?! ROFL, "you still suck!" chants. Tension again between Rock and Cena allows Awesome Truth to get the upper hand. Action really slowed down here. Cena with the AA on Truth, but Miz blocks the tag. Truth takes Rock out on the outside. Truth misses a legdrop...tag to Rock, here we go! Sharpshooter to Miz! Truth breaks it up, but Cena takes out Truth. Spinebuster to Truth! People's Elbow! Oh yeah! Three count!

Cena wants Rock to have the spotlight. Rock wants the music off and tells Cena to join him. Dueling gestures to the crowd, and of course, Rocky's winning the crowd over more. And Rock with the opening shot! Rock Bottom to Cena! Nice way to end the PPV, although I would have preferred back-and-forth punches. A solid show here with a great WWE title match. ***1/2

Friday, November 18, 2011

11/18/11 Smackdown

Ratings:
Dolph Ziggler vs. Sin Cara: *3/4

Mason Ryan vs. Jack Swagger: *1/4

Ted DiBiase vs. Derrick Bateman: *

Kofi Kingston vs. Hunico: *1/2

Beth Phoenix & Natalya vs. AJ & Kaitlyn: 1/4*

Randy Orton & Sheamus vs. Wade Barrett & Cody Rhodes: **1/4
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Reviews/Thoughts:
So the first thing we get treated to...Daniel Bryan getting beat up by Mark Henry. Really? Sad panda. But you know, as I found out later in the show, it's not all bad. AJ got to be by his side.

Kudos that Dolph's working twice at Survivor Series. The guy's a workhorse. Pretty good showing here with Sin Cara, given the time constraints and shady finish. Holy crap, Ziggler went airborne thanks to Mason Ryan. Mason Ryan remains on a nice roll.

Woohoo Zack Ryder getting more people to sign the petition!

Christian really hobbling now thanks to his (legit) ankle injury. It's a shame because he really is a great entertainer -- and he can wrestle.

Whoa, wait, Derrick Bateman is on Smackdown? I'll give Cole credit, Maxine is attractive. But Cole's still annoying.

Note to Jinder Mahal...say things nice in a foreign language so you don't piss Big Show off.

OK match between Kofi and Hunico. Wish they got more time.

So in Cole's view, basically heels can talk trash, but if a face does it, it's an insult. Sounds about right. Holy crap, AJ got contorted in that sharpshooter at the end -- while Kaitlyn just stands on the apron looking like an idiot for not breaking the submission up. Even at the end, I sensed Kaitlyn would have jumped AJ or something. I'm not sure that was intended, but it might have been bad acting there.

Cody has new music (actually a remix of Smoke and Mirrors), a new entrance video, and no mask. Just when I was really into that whole "disfigured Cody" deal. But hey, I give the guy credit. He's really become a main-event-caliber star, and he's real cut now (lots of muscle definition). DQ finish thanks to Christian-terference. Good momentum for the faces as we head to Survivor Series.

11/17/11 Impact

Ratings:
Robbie E vs. Devon (TV Title): DUD

Brian Kendrick & Jesse Sorensen vs. Austin Aries & Kid Kash: *1/2

10-Knockout Gauntlet: *1/4

Matt Morgan & Crimson vs. Hernandez & Anarquia (Tag Team Titles): ?

Garrett Bischoff vs. Gunner: 1/4*
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Reviews/Thoughts:
Looks like we may have some possible feuds between Roode and members of Fortune. Heck, Daniels is also probably still involved with feuding with Fortune in some way as well. Having talented guys feud with each other seems like a good idea to me. Roode getting into it with Dixie Carter just adds more fuel to Roode's heel turn.

I love the Final Resolution match Sting made. 30-minute Iron Man match between Styles and Roode. I'd pay to see that.

What the hell kind of match was that TV title bout? Oh, right, it's free TV and TNA.

Sting's doing a heck of a job in his new role. I liked him making that tag match and praising Garrett Bischoff.

X-Division tag match was fine. Sorensen continues to show his agility. Aries showing his "smarts" or cowardice in not tagging in until he can get the upper hand. Guess we'll be seeing Kash and Aries going at it real soon.

Gauntlet match was a bunch of fairly quick mini-matches. Something tells me Tessmacher shouldn't do the stinkface anymore. Mickie v. Tara was the best of these mini-matches. Nice submission moves and counters. ODB looked like she hit the weights a little more and cut down slightly...looks good. Of course, Madison Rayne got the final draw, likely thanks to Karen Jarrett. Oh, and I wonder if Sarita is training for another bodybuilding competition. She's also majorly cut too -- especially noticeable when shooting the Mexican America backstage promo.

Speaking of Karen, she had a segment with Jeff Hardy. Not sure what to really think about this feud yet, but so far, so good for Hardy.

Tag match was quite predictable. Sarita and Rosita get involved (is there a tag match where they were NOT involved in some way?!) but to preserve Crimson's streak, it's a nice time for a tag title run.

You can tell Garrett is still green in the ring. But over time, he'll learn more to hone his craft. Gunner had to carry most (if not virtually all) of the match here, along with some help from Eric and Sting to keep the (short) match flowing as smoothly as possible. DDT was not the cleanest ever.

Good end segment. The TNA roster is deceivingly stacked. And with Angle back to feud with Storm, it'll be that much stronger.

Thursday, November 17, 2011

11/17/11 Superstars

Ratings:
Alex Riley vs. Drew McIntyre: *1/2

Epico & Primo vs. Jimmy Uso & Jey Uso: *3/4

Tyson Kidd vs. Trent Barreta: **
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Reviews/Thoughts:
The match with A-Ry and McIntyre was average...and then Drew did the figure-four around the ringpost! It may have been for only a couple seconds, but that woke me from my slumber. Drew did a good job of working an "injured" body part. Crowd perked up a bit more after Drew's big boot to A-Ry. But a TKO and it's over.

Epico and Primo are coming out to pretty generic Latino music. Usos coming out to their Polynesian war dance. Great tag moves from Epico/Primo. Good win for the cousins.

Here's a match with potential...Kidd and Barreta. I just realized Kidd has a little hair on his head now (albeit it's still buzzed). Kidd with the brainbuster for the win. Crowd was into it a bit, so gotta give credit for that.

WWE is really pushing Cena and Rock tagging at Survivor Series. These next few months will feature much of the same, me thinks (although it would be Rock vs. Cena on that occasion). The road to WM 28 will really get going after the Royal Rumble. And no, leave the title off Cena. Let guys like Alberto run with the belt for a while. Whatever happened to long title reigns? Oh yeah, that's right...they went the way of the dinosaur.

11/16/11 NXT

Ratings:
Percy Watson vs. Derrick Bateman: *

JTG vs. Yoshi Tatsu: *

Titus O'Neil vs. Tyler Reks: *1/2
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Reviews/Thoughts:
Titus has gotten better on the mic. Bateman continues to get very little, if any, crowd reaction. I really wasn't into the Percy/Bateman match very much. Percy's finisher is OK, but I would have wanted to see a finisher that showcases his agility, not some power move.

Yoshi and JTG was another snoozer. I didn't even notice Tamina was there all that time until the end. *Booker T* "What da HAYELL?!"

I'm not really into this whole love triangle storyline between Curtis, Bateman, and Maxine. Basically, bad acting, audience not caring, and...well...me not caring.

Titus and Reks got a good amount of time for their match, but that doesn't necessarily mean the match was great. Hawkins of course got booted from ringside. A bunch of basic offense and restholds really made this one a letdown.

Oh, well hi, Darren Young. He's back from suspension, and if WWE has any faith in Darren, they'll let him continue to get the upper hand of Titus for the next few weeks. Otherwise, we might as well end the season now, let Titus move on from NXT, and start a new season with new people. Forget the whole "season 5 winner gets a spot in season 6." That's the lamest prize you could really give someone on that show.

Monday, November 14, 2011

11/14/11 RAW

Ratings:
Cody Rhodes & Hunico vs. Kofi Kingston & Sin Cara: **

Mason Ryan vs. Dolph Ziggler: N/A

Sheamus vs. Jack Swagger: *1/4

Kelly Kelly vs. Natalya: N/A

Alberto Del Rio & Mark Henry vs. CM Punk & Big Show: **

Wade Barrett vs. Randy Orton: *1/4
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Reviews/Thoughts:
So JR had to win all three challenges in the Michael Cole Challenge to get his job back. Arm wrestling is first. JR beats Cole in a second. They replay it like five times, which got a pop from the crowd. Oh good God. Dancing is next. I'm so happy I could fast-forward through that stuff. JR's dancing was the funniest thing I've seen in a LONG time. Oh man. And the last challenge...the infamous scale! Who weighs less? Yeah, of course this thing was rigged.

Vintage awesome Punk promo! Anytime anyone takes out Michael Cole, that's an epic win.

OH WTF?! MICK FOLEY? Woohoo!

Good opening tag match. Nice spots from Kofi and Sin Cara. Liked the ending.

Vickie discloses Christian's injury. And enter Mr. Ziggles to replace Christian! Well that match with Mason Ryan took a minute (no rating). Next!

Foley promo time! Yes! This is Your Life! Woohoo! That was actually a real cool video package of Cena. Little League coach with an embarrassing strikeout story. Wow, they brought in Bull Buchanan! Vintage rapping Cena and B-2! As expected, B-2's put on a little more weight. And Cena's father! The look on Cena's face is absolutely priceless. I think John Canton will have a field day with caption time. Rock gives the Rock Bottom to Foley...great way to finish that segment.

Sheamus shown with Justin Bieber. Oh yeah, that just cost him a bunch of cool points with many people. OK match here.

Bellas want to be with Alberto. But yeah! Zack Ryder!  Woo woo woo! You know it!

Divas tag match was over in a minute. What else is new?

I'm liking the new Mark Henry shirt. Nice physicality by Punk going after ADR. Mark Henry's really coming into his own. Finally getting that main event and championship run. He's earned it.

Santino promo! Uh oh, Nash out to kick some ass.

Jonah Hill guest stars next week? Who?

Barrett comes out with his SS team. So does Orton. Who saw the 5-on-5 brawl coming? *raises hand*

What can I say? Vintage amazing main event promo at the end. That's why Rock will never be replaced. Absolute gold.

11/13/11 Turning Point

Ratings:
Robbie E vs. Eric Young (TV Title): *1/2

Hernandez, Anarquia, & Sarita vs. Shannon Moore, Jesse Neal, & Toxxin (Tag Team Titles): **

Austin Aries vs. Kid Kash vs. Jesse Sorensen (X-Division Title): **1/4

Rob Van Dam vs. Christopher Daniels (No DQ): ***

Crimson vs. Matt Morgan: *1/2

Mr. Anderson & Abyss vs. Bully Ray & Scott Steiner: *

Gail Kim vs. Velvet Sky (Knockouts Title): 1/2*

Jeff Hardy vs. Jeff Jarrett: *1/2

Bobby Roode vs. AJ Styles (World Title): ***1/4
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Reviews/Thoughts:
Due to lack of time, I'm going with my usual ratings and thoughts, no big analysis on matches this time.

First off, I was amused that anyone was cheering for Robbie E during that first match, but apparently (at least) one girl was. I also wonder how much gel Robbie uses in his hair. Geez. No comment about EY dropping his pants to reveal more trunks underneath. I will admit, it's amusing. That finish was crappy.

I like the name of the woman accompanying Ink Inc. (Toxxin). Jesse Neal...holy cow man, he looks like a damn NBC peacock now. Sarita's mask is off (and yes, I find her attractive). Earl Hebner seriously counts so much faster than the other refs (at least when not doing the final pin or some post-ref bump pin attempt). Good stuff from Ink Inc. Impressive stuff from Toxxin. Unfortunately, I found the finish to be off on the timing. Toxxin had to keep turning around, so Sarita was obviously late on her cue to cheat. And I seriously didn't need to see Anarquia's ass. Please.

X-Division match was one of the matches I was interested in. These three have major talent. Tenay and Taz bring up the whole superstition about not touching the title until you earn it...liked that added commentary. As expected, basically a handicap match against Sorensen. Impressive showing again from Sorensen. Basically, Sorensen got the crap beaten outta him for a while. That suicide dive from Aries to Sorensen looked pretty violent. Sorensen was bleeding from one of his pecs...? That's one unique injury. Clever stuff from Aries to get Sorensen's foot on the ropes. Decent match, but I wish Sorensen had more of a fighting shot to win.

Really liked the Daniels/RVD match. Another fine example of two veterans who know how to put on a nice match. Good use of the weapons...they didn't come into play until later into the match. Of course, we knew that whole "Gentleman's Agreement" wouldn't last the entire time, right? What was that...about 10-11 minutes? Not bad.

Intrigued about how they would handle this Crimson undefeated streak here. Good moves from Crimson here. Crowd unfortunately wasn't going nutso over it -- save for maybe about 10 people. Botched Red Sky from Crimson, so I guess that's why it only got two? That had to be the lamest finish in all of sports entertainment. they go the double DQ route? *facepalm*

Not a bad match from Anderson/Abyss and Bully/Steiner. Seeing Steiner do that Frankensteiner never gets old. Brian Hebner with a good fast count at the end. Abyss being portrayed as a monster getting up from that table bump. Liking that.

On the Knockouts title match, did anyone really expect Karen Jarrett to stay in the back? Yeah, thought not. Madison comes in and delivers a semi-botched finisher of her own. Things didn't really click well throughout. Double interference seals it! OK, moving on. No problem with Gail being a double champ. She's probably one of the best female workers in the company, push her to the moon!

Jeff Hardy came out in something that could have passed for Big Van Vader gear in the early-90s. And in about 5 seconds, the match ends. Yeah, that's a typical Hardy match. Good grief. At least that's more time for the main event. Oh wait, Jarrett wants one more fall. This time, it's actually not bad. They went about 6 more minutes before Hardy beat him again. Then Jarrett snaps, uses the chair, hits the Stroke, tries to pin him again, and Hardy reverses and gets his third pin on Jarrett. Good storyline deal, if anything.

Good pre-match promo from Roode. Of course, the main event got main event intros and was the best match of the night. Good use of the outside ringside area. Nice, physical match. Not sure if AJ botched a springboard or if he intentionally came back over the top onto Roode. Great counter from the Styles Clash to the crossface. Roode with a double low blow! Lame finish, but justified to keep Roode as the clear heel champ.

Not a great PPV, but far from the worst. **1/2

Friday, November 11, 2011

11/11/11 Smackdown

Ratings:
Sheamus vs. Christian: ***

Ted DiBiase vs. Jinder Mahal: N/A

Mark Henry vs. Daniel Bryan: 3/4*

Big Show vs. (three guys): N/A (super squash)

Alicia Fox vs. Tamina: DUD

Hunico & Epico vs. Jimmy Uso & Jey Uso: *1/4

Wade Barrett vs. Randy Orton: **3/4
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Reviews/Thoughts:
Great opening match between Christian and Sheamus. Back-and-forth physical encounter.

I'm envious of Daniel Bryan now. Getting a segment with AJ and Kaitlyn.

Huh? Now Ezekiel Jackson getting a video package?

Aksana does the ol' dumb "brunette" moment. Alicia Fox is now Rihanna! Woohoo!

Michael Cole tries too hard to be funny. Either that, or Cole is getting fed some crappy zingers from Vince. Apparently DiBiase won a short match against Jinder during the time I griped about Cole.

Loving the Daniel Bryan entrance theme. What a spot there. Henry just uses brute strength to get out of that LeBell Lock and suplex DB over. Poor Daniel Bryan gets nuked.

Speaking of nukes. Big Show's next! Oh, he took out three guys in a mega squash. Next!

Divas match didn't keep my attention. At least it was short and someone won.

I'm really liking this alliance between Hunico, Epico, and Primo. Strength in numbers. Brought in the real life family ties between Epico and Primo. Perhaps a tag title run in the future and they can do the Freebird Rule. Good stuff here, given the time constraints. Ooh! Codebreaker-Backstabber-Senton triple finisher!

Barrett's got the scraggly hair going now in the UK! Wade is the next guy to have a nice match with Orton. Even if the finish was a bit dirty, Barrett needed the win more than Orton anyway.

11/10/11 Impact

Ratings:
Crimson vs. D'Angelo Dinero: 3/4*

Garrett Bischoff vs. Gunner: N/A

Jesse Sorensen vs. Zema Ion: *

Gail Kim & Madison Rayne vs. Velvet Sky & Mickie James (Knockouts Tag Team Titles): *

Eric Young & Ronnie vs. Robbie E and Robbie T: *

AJ Styles vs. Christopher Daniels: *1/2

Mr. Anderson, Jeff Hardy, & Abyss vs. Jeff Jarrett, Bully Ray, & Scott Steiner: **

Bobby Roode vs. James Storm (World Title): N/A
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Reviews/Thoughts:
I can't say enough how much I enjoyed the Roode heel turn last week. To me, the turn was done extremely well. These two are talented enough to be singles stars, and what better a starting feud than to face each other? Storm was getting the big pops, so it was clear Roode would be the heel. Sting makes a rematch between the two tonight...prediction is Roode cheats again...unless something is up later on.

Crimson faces Morgan at Turning Point this Sunday. Average match against Pope here.

Seeing Gunner get all this TV time makes me wonder whatever happened to Murphy. Yeah, remember that guy? Thought not. Maybe TNA just didn't see anything in him. Is he at least still part of a "security" team? Garrett Bischoff does literally three moves and the match is over via Flair-terference. No rating here, but at least it's a start for this feud.

As I thought, Storm found laid out in the back. Good use of fake blood, I guess. Wondering who faces Roode now.

X-Division match had impressive spots. Crowd unfortunately probably didn't care or recognize these guys, though. Sorensen basically has a form of the Cross-Rhodes as his finisher. I'd rather have that 450 from Zema Ion. Leave it to Kid Kash to at least get some form of a reaction here. I like that Sorensen is getting a shot here. The guy's got potential. And I love Kash's finisher.

Knockouts tag time. Loving the addition of Gail Kim in the heel role. Perhaps Maryse could wind up there? Could be a bit more of a longshot, though. Average match.

Still shaking my head why this whole Jersey Shore thing keeps coming up. I mean, sure Robbie E has that whole gimmick thing, but I'm just not into it at all. Ronnie has more in-ring ability than Jenna Morasca! Eric Young did the Savage elbow drop as well!

Oh yeah, the whole feud with Mexican America and Ink. Inc. Um...yay backstage brawls!

Finally, something I want to see! Daniels and Styles! RVD takes the screwdriver from Daniels and it leads to Styles winning. Cue Daniels' complaining.

Six-man tag match. Who's the mystery partner? Woohoo Abyss...logical there. Still marveling at how huge Steiner is. Heck, even if he's done steroids (not factually proven from any accounts I've read), it's still impressive. Not that I would want to be as huge as that, though. Very good end sequence there folks.

Roode comes out first. Storm's music plays, but he doesn't show up...at first. Then Storm shows up bloody and stumbling worse than if he drank several kegs by himself. Storm basically on adrenaline, I guess. And yup, Storm's basically out. I liked how Roode asked the ref if the match was over -- and the ref hadn't actually called for the bell yet. Roode can obviously use that as an excuse to why he rolled up Storm for the pin. Of course, Fortune, Tenay, and the crowd all hated that.

Thursday, November 10, 2011

11/10/11 Superstars

Ratings:
Justin Gabriel vs. Curt Hawkins: *1/2

Alex Riley vs. Michael McGillicutty: 3/4*

Daniel Bryan vs. William Regal: **1/2
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Reviews/Thoughts:
Not much commentary during Gabriel/Hawkins. Seemed pretty awkward at times. Match had OK spots, though. Hawkins on offense was quite average.

McGillicutty has new entrance music and he now wears a cap backwards. I still think he's being misused and needs to use the Hennig name. If guys like Cody Rhodes and Randy Orton use the surnames of their famous dads, why not McGillicutty? Cool, A-Ry has a tattoo on his back. Crowd wasn't caring too much here. Finish was not very smooth. Does A-Ry even have a name for his TKO finisher? I dunno anymore. Room for improvement here.

Main event...Daniel Bryan vs. William Regal. Can it get much better than that on paper? I just realized DB's music is a remix of "Ride of the Valkyries." Hey, DB gets to face Mark Henry on Smackdown...so he works two matches in the same week! Woohoo!

ROFL! They played the "Real Man's Man" theme when Regal came out! I was rolling on that one -- and even Regal and DB were smiling. Just classic.

Just immaculate chain wrestling here. Great targeting of injured body parts. This was just a nice old-school matchup. Hard-hitting with a good flow. Loved the sportsmanship at the end.

Wednesday, November 9, 2011

11/9/11 NXT

Ratings:
Tyson Kidd vs. Trent Barreta: **1/4

Jimmy Uso vs. JTG: DUD

Johnny Curtis & Derrick Bateman vs. Percy Watson & Titus O'Neil: *1/4
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Reviews/Thoughts:
Johnny Curtis on NXT again? Well, at least he has the NXT ties, so I'm cool with that. He's still very green, and personally, I think Titus and Bateman are both better than Curtis on the mic. Oh, we have a Springer-like or Maury-like moment! Johnny went out with Maxine once! Tag match tonight!

Rock on RAW next Monday. Maybe they'll finally get that extra 0.2 of a ratings point!

Kidd and Barreta was real good. They were more grounded here in the early going, but more high-flying stuff came as the match progressed. Nice brainbuster from Kidd...don't see that too often. I like the half-crab finisher from Kidd. It looks like a variation of Chris Jericho's old Lion Tamer.

No comment on the segment with Bateman, Curtis, and Maxine.

Continuity! The Usos walk in while Tamina and JTG talk! Oh, JTG and Tamina are apparently dating for storyline purposes. Josh Mathews and Matt Striker getting testy on one another during this one. This was one boring match, and the crowd was dead for this one.

Not a bad main event (which basically comprised of four NXT alums, when you really look at it -- and five if you count Maxine). All have improved since I first saw them. Finally, Bateman actually won! But really...a high-low for a team finisher? Snooze.

Monday, November 7, 2011

11/7/11 RAW

Ratings:
John Morrison vs. Dolph Ziggler: **1/2

Mason Ryan vs. JTG: DUD

Alberto Del Rio vs. Kofi Kingston: 3/4*

Jack Swagger vs. Santino Marella: *

The Miz & R-Truth vs. John Cena & Zack Ryder: *3/4
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Reviews/Thoughts:
Rock returns next week on RAW. In the meantime, Cena focuses on tonight in Liverpool! Awesome Truth comes out. Cena basically pegs Ryder as a future WWE Hall of Famer. At least Ryder is getting huge reactions from the crowd.

Ziggler and Morrison was good. Dolph doing the kip-ups now. Ziggler looked like he would do a crossface, but oh, we wouldn't want too many Benoit references now, would we? Whoa, Morrison won! Maybe he'll get a U.S. Title match in a few weeks.

Mason Ryan back in the UK! He even got a video package before the matchup! Guess JTG's jobbing tonight. Mason showed us a Masterlock moment, then finished off JTG with a Full Nelson slam. Sorry, Mason's offense is boring. If he can't even get much reaction in England, then that's really a bad sign.

Cena has over 9 million Facebook followers. Does that even matter?

Oh geez. Michael Cole Challenge put off for another week, and Cole with another lame fake TSA story about JR and BBQ sauce.

I gotta admit, Alberto comes out in some awesome cars. He faces Kofi tonight because Evan Bourne was suspended following his Wellness violation. WWE now using Google Plus? Sure, fine. Average match here...too short for me.

Punk and ADR promo segment. Ricardo basically gets thrown to the wolves again. I like the buildup for this match.

Santino and Swagger in a match. Santino with a nice pop coming out. Is Swagger's eye twitching gonna be part of a gimmick now?

Kelly Kelly in a smokin' dress tonight, and apparently she's gonna be on Maxim magazine. KK says she was just a kid when she came into WWE when she was 19. And frankly, she's still young. Only 24? Geez. Here comes Natalya and Beth. I must admit, Beth's right, there's more to being a WWE diva than being just a pretty face -- although apparently Vince didn't get that memo. Eve and Alicia come to KK's rescue and they unveil the cover. Woohoo.

WWE '12 comes out November 22. Looks good, although I haven't bought anything from the WWE series in ages.

Woohoo! Nash comes out to the nWo music! Nash is growing a full beard out, cool.

Brodus Clay video package. Good stuff there, but now I want to see this guy do more than participate in squash matches.

Time for the main event. R-Truth might have suffered some whiplash after getting thrown to the outside. that double Broski Boot (with Cena doing it to R-Truth) was awesome. Double Five Knuckle Shuffle! And of course, in order for Cena to lose, it has to be controversial. Can Cena just lose clean already dammit? Flat ending to a match that had its entertaining moments.

Saturday, November 5, 2011

11/4/11 Smackdown

Ratings:
Randy Orton vs. Cody Rhodes (Street Fight): ***1/2

Ted DiBiase vs. Tyson Kidd: 1/2*

Alicia Fox vs. Natalya: 1/4*

Wade Barrett vs. Sheamus: *1/2

Sin Cara vs. Epico: *1/4

Daniel Bryan vs. Mark Henry: *1/4
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Reviews/Thoughts:
Started off the show with the street fight! Woohoo! Crowd was totally into it. Nice use of the baggers and the arena in general. Extremely physical. Tremendous stuff.

DiBiase/Kidd was OK. Problem was they only got like 2-3 minutes. Divas match after that got about the same time. Alicia Fox straightened her hair and is more dolled up now.

Big Show nukes Christian so Sheamus faces Barrett instead. Fitting Christian plays a factor in the outcome. Sheamus brawls with both Barrett and Christian.

Daniel Bryan and Big Show in the back. Big Show hands DB the MITB briefcase and says he may need it because Big Show is in DB's corner. How's that for temptation?

Sin Cara faces Epico here. And if his face looks familar, he should, since he's the cousin of Carlito and Primo. Took Hunico long enough to interfere.

Daniel Bryan is in the main event on Smackdown! Woohoo! And sure enough, Show KOs Henry and tries to get DB to cash in the briefcase. Henry nukes both of them before DB can cash it in. I liked how DB made it look like he was ready to cash it in. Teddy Long makes it official...Show and Henry one more time at Survivor Series!

Friday, November 4, 2011

11/3/11 Impact

Ratings:
Gail Kim & Madison Rayne vs. Tara & Brooke Tessmacher (Knockouts Tag Team Titles): 3/4*

Jesse Sorensen vs. Austin Aries: *

Jeff Jarrett & Bully Ray vs. Jeff Hardy & Mr. Anderson: *1/4

Bobby Roode vs. James Storm (World Title): ***1/2
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Reviews/Thoughts:
I like the name "TNT" for Tara and Tessmacher. Although at times, I still think of the MNM days in WWE. Typical heel cheat tactics to win the titles. It's best for the division. Now we have two strong Knockouts with the tag belts.

So basically, Garrett Bischoff is getting a major push. He does have the look, but he's still green on the mic. Hopefully, Eric will coach him along on this. It's a good first "feud" for Garrett.

Liking the Daniels heel turn. Should give him what he wants: more recognition on Impact Wrestling.

Time for X-Division action. Kid Kash on commentary dissing Sorensen. Match was OK, quite short, though.

The two Robs are in the ring, and Rob Terry has the spiked hair. Ronnie from Jersey Shore is there with Eric Young (never watched this Jersey Shore thing in my life and not about to start). Props to Ronnie for taking those belt shots. Ronnie's gonna wrestle? Hopefully not a debacle....

Tag match was abruptly cut short by Scott Steiner-ference. Woulda loved to see the double Swanton.

And Garrett will wrestle very soon. Should be a short match, I'm assuming. Hopefully not another Shane Sewell moment...yeah, remember him?

Loved the main event because it's clear these are two very talented guys, in a tag team for years, that are now ready for the main event singles push. Main event intros for this one. LOUD chops in  this one. Nice crossface from Roode...and then he turned it into the Rings of Saturn (yup, Perry Saturn woulda loved that one). "This is wrestling!" chants...finally, something nice. Not sure if the Brian Hebner tweaked knee was planned or legit. Looks like Roode is the one going heel here, and I like that too. Storm's been getting the big pops, so Roode's the logical heel here. Oop! Tenay got bleeped for his "bullshit" comment!

11/3/11 Superstars

Ratings:
Justin Gabriel vs. Jinder Mahal: *1/2

Yoshi Tatsu vs. Tyson Kidd: **1/2

Drew McIntyre vs. John Morrison: ***1/4
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Reviews/Thoughts:
Not bad between Gabriel and Mahal. Mahal did fine working on "injured" body parts.

Yoshi still with the video game music? Anyway, I like that this feud is still going on. They've had some nice matches together. But really...a Twitter battle now? Another enjoyable match. I liked that finish. Yoshi got a running start with that kick this time!

I have to admit, Muppets on RAW was entertaining. This from a person who grew up with these guys, so I'm sure others will have different opinions on that.

Drew doing the spot again where he goes under the ring to lure the guy in so he can ram the opponent's shoulder or other body part into the steel structure. You'd think people would learn by now. Also, Morrison using his Moonlight Drive again. Awesome camera shot with the Morrison corkscrew dive spot. Great stuff here as JoMo loses again.....

11/2/11 NXT

Ratings:
Jimmy Uso & Jey Uso vs. Tyson Kidd & Johnny Curtis: *1/2

Kaitlyn vs. Tamina: 1/4*

Percy Watson, Titus O'Neil, & AJ vs. JTG, Derrick Bateman, and Maxine: *1/2
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Reviews/Thoughts:
Good grief, this Bateman/Maxine engagement angle is so cheesy -- just like virtually every single one of these storylines in the past. JTG references the Kim Kardashian 72-day marriage. Beta-Max? Isn't that like the pre-VHS thing? Impressive rock, yes. Now Percy, Titus, and AJ are rockin' some nice clothes. Woohoo Titus with a plug to the WWE Network! Maxine's "dad" is in the house! But really, Titus and Percy evoking more of heelish, taunting tactics? Talk about walking that gray line between "heel roles" and "face roles."

So this is how NXT works now...the rookies get a match, while the midcard WWE roster invades the remaining space.

Hey, Johnny Curtis! Finally, the Season 4 champ gets airtime! I don't mind this opportunity for Curtis. And yeah, R-Truth (his pro) turned heel and aligned with Miz,so no tag title shot for Johnny. Maybe they'll revisit this in the future, but wait, that would be continuity! Good spot near the end with Kidd going for a Liger kick but the usos caught him and tossed him into the barricade. Not a bad match.

Kaitlyn gets zero reaction coming out. Ouch. I'm impressed Tamina can squat 300 pounds...I can't even squat much more than half that.Good grief, this was slow and boring, but at least it wasn't a horrible debacle like what I woulda feared several months back. Kaitlyn has an OK finisher.

Main event was respectable. All those involved (other than JTG, who's been with the company for a while) have come a long way in the last few months. Can't help but feel Bateman is getting buried a bit here. On the other hand, Titus is on a huge roll of wins.

Other reviews will be written when I get back home from my business trip.