Ratings:
Tara vs. Miss Tessmacher: 3/4*
Robbie E vs. Rob Van Dam vs. AJ Styles: **1/2
Jeff Hardy vs. Rob Terry: 1/2*
Gunner vs. Kris Lewie: 1/2*
Mr. Anderson vs. Bully Ray: **3/4
_________________
Reviews/Thoughts:
Aces and Eights shown rolling into the parking lot on the motorcycles. They finally revealed at the end of last week that Storm likely wasn't behind the Aces and Eights attacks.
Tonight, it's Open Fight Night and Gut Check. Speaking of Gut Check, when will those people that actually WON the TNA contracts actually start wrestling for the damn company?
Sting leads the TNA posse out (faces and heels) to call out Aces and Eights. Fans want Hulk Hogan. Note that Storm still came out separately. Two Aces and Eights members came down and got beat up. One of them unmasked. Initial theory: just a way to get the TNA roster comfortable before the real beatdown begins.
Tessmacher is the champ again and calls out her mentor and best friend, Tara, for Open Fight Night. Taryn Terrell is the ref again and gets her own entrance. Why? And she still gets basically no reaction. Note to the talent: if you don't have a good vertical leap, do NOT do a leapfrog. Tara with a superplex for the win. Nothing of note here, really. Just the whole "master beating the student" deal.
Pope out with a legit broken collarbone (storyline was Aces and Eights taking him out). AJ, RVD, and Robbie E were all supposed to face Pope, so put the three in a three-way BFG Series match. People probably thought Robbie's really there to play third fiddle in all this and make the other two look good. Lots of action here that you'd expect. Good swerve of sorts to let Robbie get the win so his point total doesn't look as crappy. He still plays a big role in who gets into the top 5, so it's a significant win in that regard. And technically, Robbie isn't last (Pope has fewer points and is out of the BFG Series).
Jeff Hardy calls out Rob Terry to get some revenge. Some fans chant "Steroids!" at Rob. Swanton wins it for Hardy in a short match.
So we have the whole paternity test deal to finally kill off this atrocious Claire Lynch storyline for good. The lady portraying Claire quit the company a couple weeks ago. Yes AJ, I hope TNA is sorry for even crafting this storyline. AJ with a face promo before the results. Daniels and Kaz come out for their heel promos. Daniels' reason for Claire not being there for the segment: in a Florida hospital after suffering a placental disruption. Insert a picture of me doing a huge facepalm. Ugh. Big ugh.
Anyway, randomly, a middle-aged woman comes down as attorney for Claire Lynch. Now she was real good in her role. Oh, no surprise here! Claire never was pregnant! Now this whole thing can be forgotten! Things would have been much different had they gotten Julia Reilly (Claire Lynch) for the attorney role instead.
Hogan's back and KOs three Aces and Eights members with Sting's baseball bat. Something about cutting out hearts and feeding it to his dog. And he's grunting like a dog. Wait, he's not a cannibal here right? No bath salts? OK, just wanted to make sure.
Gut Check time. We saw a vignette last week of this possible feel-good story in the making. Guy's name is Kris Lewie. He faces Gunner. Horrible start with what possibly was a botched attempt at a rollup. Match didn't impress me at all. Gunner ends things with his version of the F-5.
Oh, and I'm glad they updated us on Alex Silva, the first "winner" who really was supposed to lose but Flair broke from the script and changed his vote. he's in OVW (the TNA minor leagues) and honing his craft. I'm sure he'll be a solid star, but we'll see when (or if) he gets the opportunity.
Basically, ODB and Eric Young haven't defended their titles because EY is filming his show. ODB keeps asking for fried chicken and probably just wants to get it on with someone. Well, gotta do what you gotta do, I guess?
Anderson comes out and calls out Bully Ray for a BFG Series match. Good and competitive here, some very close near falls. Bubba Bomb (Bully) and senton (Anderson) didn't get it done. Mic check gives Anderson 7 points. Meanwhile, more TNA guys take out Aces and Eights members.
Again, Sting and the TNA posse out for the end of the show. War breaks out. Gradually, we see more Aces and Eights members. It's not completely made obvious, but they just seem to never go away. They manage to take Aries out and injure his right arm. In what was the most obvious previously recorded segment ever, they are shown getting away on their bikes.
At the start of the show, I feared that this would be a show where the A&E faction would get shot down, which if even for one night can have huge consequences on momentum (see Nexus at SummerSlam a couple years back). But A&E got the upper hand, and I really liked how the end segment went. It was not like A&E just showed up with 1,000 members and totally destroyed the roster. It started like TNA would get the upper hand and have the crowd go home happy, but instead rightfully turned into getting to the most powerful person on the active wrestling roster, the world champ Austin Aries. The next few weeks to months should be pretty good.
Saturday, August 25, 2012
8/23/12 Superstars
Ratings:
Damien Sandow vs. Yoshi Tatsu: **
Drew McIntyre vs. Alex Riley: *1/2
Cody Rhodes vs. Justin Gabriel: ***
_________________
Reviews/Thoughts:
Josh Mathews selling his injuries from RAW, so he won't be on Superstars and Smackdown this week.
Sandow faces Yoshi Tatsu this week. Forgot Yoshi was still employed; his screen time has gone way down since last year. Good match here, Yoshi had good offense, but Sandow with his signature moves to end it.
WWE shows the fallout from Lesnar/HHH at SummerSlam. Good job to put Lesnar over and have him "leave" with a win. And yes, he will be back. It will be done somehow. Lesnar helps on ratings and media coverage enough for WWE to care.
McIntyre and A-Ry is next. Two very good talents that unfortunately can't break through the glass ceiling. McIntyre still with that cast on his left wrist and hand. Too bad they only got a short match; McIntyre is deceivingly great in longer bouts. A-Ry with a rollup for three here.
Punk and Cena stuff from RAW. Great segment to clearly show Punk's heel character. Promos were all outstanding.
Gabriel and Cody close the show with a lengthy match. Impressive technical wresting from Gabriel this week. Gabriel wears the two forearm sleeves so people won't tell which one was the surgically repaired one, but all anyone has to do is listen to the commentators say it was the left arm. Yeah, gotta love how that makes sense. Blame the announcing? Cody with a great job working on JG's left arm throughout the match. Nice simple counter into the Cross-Rhodes for three.
Damien Sandow vs. Yoshi Tatsu: **
Drew McIntyre vs. Alex Riley: *1/2
Cody Rhodes vs. Justin Gabriel: ***
_________________
Reviews/Thoughts:
Josh Mathews selling his injuries from RAW, so he won't be on Superstars and Smackdown this week.
Sandow faces Yoshi Tatsu this week. Forgot Yoshi was still employed; his screen time has gone way down since last year. Good match here, Yoshi had good offense, but Sandow with his signature moves to end it.
WWE shows the fallout from Lesnar/HHH at SummerSlam. Good job to put Lesnar over and have him "leave" with a win. And yes, he will be back. It will be done somehow. Lesnar helps on ratings and media coverage enough for WWE to care.
McIntyre and A-Ry is next. Two very good talents that unfortunately can't break through the glass ceiling. McIntyre still with that cast on his left wrist and hand. Too bad they only got a short match; McIntyre is deceivingly great in longer bouts. A-Ry with a rollup for three here.
Punk and Cena stuff from RAW. Great segment to clearly show Punk's heel character. Promos were all outstanding.
Gabriel and Cody close the show with a lengthy match. Impressive technical wresting from Gabriel this week. Gabriel wears the two forearm sleeves so people won't tell which one was the surgically repaired one, but all anyone has to do is listen to the commentators say it was the left arm. Yeah, gotta love how that makes sense. Blame the announcing? Cody with a great job working on JG's left arm throughout the match. Nice simple counter into the Cross-Rhodes for three.
8/22/12 NXT
Ratings:
Antonio Cesaro vs. Derrick Bateman: *1/4
Tamina Snuka vs. Sofia Cortez: 3/4*
Kassius Ohno vs. Jake Carter: *1/4
Tyson Kidd & Justin Gabriel vs. Michael McGillicutty & Johnny Curtis: **1/2
_________________
Reviews/Thoughts:
Another extremely busy week for me is the reason for me only getting to watch this week's NXT now.
Cesaro faces Bateman in singles action here. This match was taped before Cesaro captured the U.S. Title. Cesaro with a nice aggressive style. Cesaro with the Neutralizer for the win.
All the WWE Superstars are praising the NXT Title because (1) they're getting paid to do it and (2) it's good buildup for the finals between Rollins and Jinder. I think the belt looks hideous. Whatever happened to the styles that showed up in the 90s? Those looked real good.
Tamina and Sofia in divas action. This was before Sofia's release from the company, reportedly due to a bad attitude (which Sofia denied). Basic stuff here. You can really tell the difference in how the crowd sounds between these events at Full Sail and those arenas that pack thousands of people. Tamina wins via the superfly splash. Post-match, it's Raquel Diaz with the blindside attack. WWE invested well in Diaz despite being green in wrestling skills, so we'll see how that goes.
Ohno with another win this week, as relative unknown Jake Carter jobs here (we've seen him on TV before; he is Vader's son). Ohno with the rolling elbow KO for the win. Richie Steamboat comes out after the match and eventually challenges Ohno to a match. Glad to see all these little feuds starting between the new guys.
Tag match basically ends the wrestling portion of the show. Some young great talent in the ring here. Very good tag wrestling and experienced tag team techniques here. Sure, Kidd and Gabriel in a match can't be bad, but this was still a much better tag match than I anticipated. Tag team Blockbuster (with a bit of Hart Attack setup) gets Kidd/Gabriel the win.
Face-to-face showdown between Rollins and Mahal ends the show. Contrasting styles in more ways than one. Seth comes to the ring all jacked up to hard rock/metal, while Jinder calmly arrives with his Punjabi (Hindi?) music. Rollins may incorporate a risky wrestling style, while Mahal mostly stays with basic effective moves. Mahal with a cheap shot to start the fight. I'd hope Rollins wins this one because it would really show a new crop of talent has arrived. We'll find out next week!
Antonio Cesaro vs. Derrick Bateman: *1/4
Tamina Snuka vs. Sofia Cortez: 3/4*
Kassius Ohno vs. Jake Carter: *1/4
Tyson Kidd & Justin Gabriel vs. Michael McGillicutty & Johnny Curtis: **1/2
_________________
Reviews/Thoughts:
Another extremely busy week for me is the reason for me only getting to watch this week's NXT now.
Cesaro faces Bateman in singles action here. This match was taped before Cesaro captured the U.S. Title. Cesaro with a nice aggressive style. Cesaro with the Neutralizer for the win.
All the WWE Superstars are praising the NXT Title because (1) they're getting paid to do it and (2) it's good buildup for the finals between Rollins and Jinder. I think the belt looks hideous. Whatever happened to the styles that showed up in the 90s? Those looked real good.
Tamina and Sofia in divas action. This was before Sofia's release from the company, reportedly due to a bad attitude (which Sofia denied). Basic stuff here. You can really tell the difference in how the crowd sounds between these events at Full Sail and those arenas that pack thousands of people. Tamina wins via the superfly splash. Post-match, it's Raquel Diaz with the blindside attack. WWE invested well in Diaz despite being green in wrestling skills, so we'll see how that goes.
Ohno with another win this week, as relative unknown Jake Carter jobs here (we've seen him on TV before; he is Vader's son). Ohno with the rolling elbow KO for the win. Richie Steamboat comes out after the match and eventually challenges Ohno to a match. Glad to see all these little feuds starting between the new guys.
Tag match basically ends the wrestling portion of the show. Some young great talent in the ring here. Very good tag wrestling and experienced tag team techniques here. Sure, Kidd and Gabriel in a match can't be bad, but this was still a much better tag match than I anticipated. Tag team Blockbuster (with a bit of Hart Attack setup) gets Kidd/Gabriel the win.
Face-to-face showdown between Rollins and Mahal ends the show. Contrasting styles in more ways than one. Seth comes to the ring all jacked up to hard rock/metal, while Jinder calmly arrives with his Punjabi (Hindi?) music. Rollins may incorporate a risky wrestling style, while Mahal mostly stays with basic effective moves. Mahal with a cheap shot to start the fight. I'd hope Rollins wins this one because it would really show a new crop of talent has arrived. We'll find out next week!
Tuesday, August 21, 2012
8/20/12 RAW
Ratings:
Kofi Kingston, R-Truth, & Sin Cara vs. Darren Young, Titus O'Neil, & Cody Rhodes: **
Ryback vs. Mike Skinner & Andy Takarez: N/A
Randy Orton vs. Alberto Del Rio: **1/4
Damien Sandow vs. Brodus Clay: *
Big Show vs. David Otunga: N/A (squash)
Kane & Zack Ryder vs. Daniel Bryan & Miz: *1/2
Divas Battle Royal: DUD
Dolph Ziggler vs. Chris Jericho: **3/4
_________________
Reviews/Thoughts:
We're at Fresno State University for the RAW after SummerSlam. I wish my college campus held RAWs and Smackdowns....
Lesnar and Heyman start the show. Nice mention from Heyman to reference HHH finishing matches with torn quads but having to tap out to a broken arm. Scott Armstrong moment was intentionally awkward. Heyman with more praise for Lesnar. Master of the Brocktagon? Ha, nice one.
Khloe Kardashian is tweeting throughout the show. Not the Kardashians again...dammit.
So now Cole is all happy Kofi and Truth are playing with the brawling buddies. New shirts for PTPs. Cody obsessed with unmasking Sin Cara costs him. Good for what it was worth.
Otunga is back without the facial hair. He says the word "crazy" to AJ and so he gets a match. Punk gets to pick his next #1 contender, but AJ has to approve.
Ryback faces two jobbers again?! Not sure on the jobbers' names, but that's what I heard. Jinder with the interference at the end, but Ryback still overcomes that. Well, at least the two of them got a feud.
Del Rio gets to rant in the ring next. He wants a title rematch against Sheamus now. AJ gives him Orton instead. WWE considered adding Orton to the World Title match, but ultimately felt the match already had good star power. Sheamus still at ringside on commentary. Solid match between ADR and Orton here. Good chemistry and nice counters. Sheamus alerts ref that Orton's foot was on the ropes -- and NO Michael Cole that was NOT what Sheamus did last night. RKO from Orton gets three. Possible triple threat at next PPV?
WWE continues to push Tout, as now they use it to show Cesaro and Aksana celebrating in the ring right after the U.S. Title match ended on the SummerSlam preshow.
Brodus faces Sandow this week after Damien took Clay's knee out two weeks ago. Annoying Cole commentary, not surprising. Sandow wins with the tights in a basic match. Clay squashes Sandow like a bug afterward so the kids can dance in the ring.
Great emotional HBK promo via satellite. Reaffirms the friendship between HBK and HHH, showcases HHH's legendary career, and puts Lesnar over. No matter what the situation, I think it serves as a great narration for the true end of HHH's career.
Oh, so who was Otunga's opponent? A pissed Big Show. Nice knowing ya, counsel. Cringed at those Big Show slaps.
Tag match next. In another case of strange bedfellows, Ryder and Kane on the same team. DB with a nice job taunting Kane. Lots of kicks from DB. DB and Miz get out of there, so Kane chokeslams Ryder and goes bonkers. Timekeeper takes a good bump. Sounds normal.
Punk picks Cena as his next opponent for the title -- on one condition to be determined later. I'm sure respect falls in there somewhere. Hustle and loyalty anywhere to be found?
In yet another example of Divas not getting good airtime, there's another #1 contender's battle royal as Layla sits at ringside. Crowd largely didn't care. Honestly didn't expect Kaitlyn to win that one. But really, does it matter? Listen to the crowd. Or don't listen. You can hear a freakin' pin drop.
Lesnar uses Tout to say he's leaving and not coming back. That's obviously BS...he'll be back in a few months.
Ziggler and Jericho next. If Ziggler wins, Jericho's contract is up. If Jericho wins, he gets Ziggler's MITB briefcase. Doesn't take a genius to figure out this was the way to get Jericho off TV so he can tour with his band. Another solid match that I wish had more time. Jericho gets one more parting shot before leaving.
Punk promo to determine the #1 contender. More golden stuff worthy of the pipebombs he dropped last year. Cena gets the title shot if he admits Punk is the best in the world. Cena refuses, but cuts one hell of a promo in doing so. Nice reference to Cena's 380-day reign from a while back. I'd call it one of the best promos Cena's ever cut. Punk ends it all with a kick to Lawler's head, just to add more heel heat to the fire. Yup, I love this stuff.
Kofi Kingston, R-Truth, & Sin Cara vs. Darren Young, Titus O'Neil, & Cody Rhodes: **
Ryback vs. Mike Skinner & Andy Takarez: N/A
Randy Orton vs. Alberto Del Rio: **1/4
Damien Sandow vs. Brodus Clay: *
Big Show vs. David Otunga: N/A (squash)
Kane & Zack Ryder vs. Daniel Bryan & Miz: *1/2
Divas Battle Royal: DUD
Dolph Ziggler vs. Chris Jericho: **3/4
_________________
Reviews/Thoughts:
We're at Fresno State University for the RAW after SummerSlam. I wish my college campus held RAWs and Smackdowns....
Lesnar and Heyman start the show. Nice mention from Heyman to reference HHH finishing matches with torn quads but having to tap out to a broken arm. Scott Armstrong moment was intentionally awkward. Heyman with more praise for Lesnar. Master of the Brocktagon? Ha, nice one.
Khloe Kardashian is tweeting throughout the show. Not the Kardashians again...dammit.
So now Cole is all happy Kofi and Truth are playing with the brawling buddies. New shirts for PTPs. Cody obsessed with unmasking Sin Cara costs him. Good for what it was worth.
Otunga is back without the facial hair. He says the word "crazy" to AJ and so he gets a match. Punk gets to pick his next #1 contender, but AJ has to approve.
Ryback faces two jobbers again?! Not sure on the jobbers' names, but that's what I heard. Jinder with the interference at the end, but Ryback still overcomes that. Well, at least the two of them got a feud.
Del Rio gets to rant in the ring next. He wants a title rematch against Sheamus now. AJ gives him Orton instead. WWE considered adding Orton to the World Title match, but ultimately felt the match already had good star power. Sheamus still at ringside on commentary. Solid match between ADR and Orton here. Good chemistry and nice counters. Sheamus alerts ref that Orton's foot was on the ropes -- and NO Michael Cole that was NOT what Sheamus did last night. RKO from Orton gets three. Possible triple threat at next PPV?
WWE continues to push Tout, as now they use it to show Cesaro and Aksana celebrating in the ring right after the U.S. Title match ended on the SummerSlam preshow.
Brodus faces Sandow this week after Damien took Clay's knee out two weeks ago. Annoying Cole commentary, not surprising. Sandow wins with the tights in a basic match. Clay squashes Sandow like a bug afterward so the kids can dance in the ring.
Great emotional HBK promo via satellite. Reaffirms the friendship between HBK and HHH, showcases HHH's legendary career, and puts Lesnar over. No matter what the situation, I think it serves as a great narration for the true end of HHH's career.
Oh, so who was Otunga's opponent? A pissed Big Show. Nice knowing ya, counsel. Cringed at those Big Show slaps.
Tag match next. In another case of strange bedfellows, Ryder and Kane on the same team. DB with a nice job taunting Kane. Lots of kicks from DB. DB and Miz get out of there, so Kane chokeslams Ryder and goes bonkers. Timekeeper takes a good bump. Sounds normal.
Punk picks Cena as his next opponent for the title -- on one condition to be determined later. I'm sure respect falls in there somewhere. Hustle and loyalty anywhere to be found?
In yet another example of Divas not getting good airtime, there's another #1 contender's battle royal as Layla sits at ringside. Crowd largely didn't care. Honestly didn't expect Kaitlyn to win that one. But really, does it matter? Listen to the crowd. Or don't listen. You can hear a freakin' pin drop.
Lesnar uses Tout to say he's leaving and not coming back. That's obviously BS...he'll be back in a few months.
Ziggler and Jericho next. If Ziggler wins, Jericho's contract is up. If Jericho wins, he gets Ziggler's MITB briefcase. Doesn't take a genius to figure out this was the way to get Jericho off TV so he can tour with his band. Another solid match that I wish had more time. Jericho gets one more parting shot before leaving.
Punk promo to determine the #1 contender. More golden stuff worthy of the pipebombs he dropped last year. Cena gets the title shot if he admits Punk is the best in the world. Cena refuses, but cuts one hell of a promo in doing so. Nice reference to Cena's 380-day reign from a while back. I'd call it one of the best promos Cena's ever cut. Punk ends it all with a kick to Lawler's head, just to add more heel heat to the fire. Yup, I love this stuff.
Monday, August 20, 2012
8/19/12 SummerSlam
Ratings:
Antonio Cesaro vs. Santino Marella (U.S. Title): N/A (preshow match, did not watch)
Chris Jericho vs. Dolph Ziggler: ***3/4
Daniel Bryan vs. Kane: **1/2
Miz vs. Rey Mysterio (IC Title): ***
Sheamus vs. Alberto Del Rio (World Heavyweight Title): ***1/2
Titus O'Neil & Darren Young vs. Kofi Kingston & R-Truth (Tag Team Titles): **1/4
CM Punk vs. John Cena vs. Big Show (WWE Title): ***1/2
Brock Lesnar vs. Triple H (Street Fight): ***1/2
_________________
Reviews/Thoughts:
As expected, Antonio Cesaro beat Santino Marella to win the U.S. Title. Didn't watch that preshow match.
Good choice to have Ziggler and Jericho start the actual PPV. Jericho with the taped-up ribs. Hot crowd for the opener. Ziggler worked on the ribs through most of the match. Jericho's still got the big moves as Y2J. Check out that top-rope hurricanrana. Zigzag didn't finish Jericho, Codebreaker out of desperation. Lion Tamer wins it. Didn't think they'd have Jericho go over if he really was leaving to go touring with Fozzy, but seems like they could always have Ziggler take Jericho out later to do an injury storyline. Vickie looked like someone stole her prized poodle or something after Ziggler lost.
Cole and Lawler say HBK is not at SummerSlam, but is tweeting instead. Must be pretty good to tweet with one good arm.
So it's the Goat Face...er...Daniel Bryan and Kane next. "YES! NO!" Love how that's gotten over. Just look at the crowd when DB goes to the top rope for the headbutt. Crowd's just going berserk. Great spot from the headbutt to the chokeslam, since DB had to launch himself perfectly into that one. DB wins by countering the tombstone into an inside cradle for three. Not the smoothest finish, but passable. Yup, got that one wrong too. Don't worry, doing pro wrestling predictions isn't my day job anyway.
As if Kane wasn't mentally unstable enough, there you go. Another rampage in the back. Poor Josh Mathews goes flying. GM AJ Lee says she will deal with Kane on RAW.
IC Title match next between Miz and Mysterio. Miz now gets the "Awesome" bubble letters on his ring entrance. Mysterio has a Batman-like mask. Has Miz really evolved his game a lot? Maybe slightly, but not significantly like Undertaker has. Look to Taker for how he has lasted so long. Nice counters here, another solid match. So indeed, it was a fun match that made Miz look good. SCF wins it for Miz.
Punk and AJ with the whole awkward exchange in the back. Vintage trance-like state for AJ!
No bandage on Sheamus' left arm despite all the "damage" ADR's done to it. Hard kicks from ADR for most of the match. Steel turnbuckle ring exposed in the match, so that should play a factor. Sheamus showed great power deadlifting ADR to counter the armbreaker. Sheamus into the exposed turnbuckle and that didn't work, either.
The finish was interesting. ADR went bonkers on Ricardo in frustration. Sheamus used Ricardo's shoe. Ref missed ADR's foot on the ropes. Sheamus knocked ADR's foot off the ropes. Finally, the crowd appeared to boo Sheamus (but many were still cheering). I thought possible double-turn here, but not the case. ADR also tried to tell the ref he got hit with the shoe, but hopefully it was only to get the match restarted or something. DQ win doesn't help you, Alberto. At first, I also thought the ref failed to count to three, but replays showed he did. Either way, ADR gets screwed again. That part could be predictable, but hard to predict Sheamus using the shoe.
HHH tells Scott Armstrong earlier in the day that his match with Lesnar is basically a street fight again, no countouts and no DQs.
No mention of AW as Primetime Players come down for their tag title match. Understandable. Above-average tag match here with a nice ending. Again, I woulda bet the farm PTPs would have won the titles had AW still been with them. Alas, still got that prediction wrong. Seriously now? Kofi and Truth don't even need the titles, get it off them already.
Triple threat WWE Title match next, so again, no main event slot for Punk. Cena out first to mostly boos. At least the fans didn't throw the hat back. Show out second. Punk out last and he still gets the cheers. Punk's lengthy title reign again mentioned. Amazed Cole actually said Punk's last match in the main event slot (last match on the card) was December -- and Punk's been champ the entire time.
Slower pace for a significant portion of the match. Show got a lot of offense in. Cena and Punk had their spots to show strength on Show. Good job putting in spots where Punk could have lost the title without being a factor in the actual pin or submission. Show actually hit one of those Vader Bombs for a change.
I marked seeing Punk use the Koji Clutch on Show. The double submission and "who really won?" spot was a good idea. WWE did a heck of a job booking Show so strongly, even if many smarks knew he wouldn't win. Punk retaining by taking advantage of Cena's work was the right call.
I knew I said Cena would win in my prediction video, but after recording the segment, I could see why having Punk retain still could keep him a more heelish champ. Also, he doesn't have to go full-on bad guy. It's all about two things: (1) Punk needs the title more than Cena, and (2) Punk's title reign should keep going so announcers can keep talking about how it stands up in WWE history. Chances are Punk keeps the title until the Rumble, where he likely loses to Rock. Punk can then set the rematch for WrestleMania. This means the Royal Rumble winner would face the World Heavyweight champ, whomever that may be.
Celebs in the crowd. Fred Durst flips the bird. Classy. David Arquette with the World Title! Or was it his WCW Title. Sorry, I want to keep looking at Maria Menounos.
Footage of the ending to Cesaro's U.S. Title win. Aksana got involved, as one would have expected. Yes, Cesaro personifies greatness.
Since there's no divas match, Kevin Rudolf (who did the all-divas NXT season 3 theme song) and his band performs. Divas all come out to dance. Well, at least it's entertainment filler before the street fight brutality.
Cole mentions UFC by name as Lesnar comes out in his UFC-style gear (but with black boots on as well). Main event intros different this time; lights only on to spotlight Lesnar and HHH (otherwise the other lights remain off).
Lesnar focused on that left arm he "broke" a few months back, but he also showed he hasn't lost any technical wrestling skills. Fairly slow pace, yet very effective moves and a ton of physicality. HHH got to Lesnar's stomach, and we all know the diverticulitis he had a few years back. I'm not a huge fan of having people kick out of finishers barely after the two-count. Lesnar practically no-sold the second Pedigree, then "re-broke" HHH's arm in the Kimura again for the tapout win. HHH refused any medical help. "You tapped out!" chants at the end, but hey, given the spot they planned, HHH had to do it.
Torn on whether it was good to put the spotlight on HHH to close the show. Probably so, since Lesnar won't need to do any more appearances for a long time. Could be a scripted reason for HHH to end his in-ring career, but I'm sure there will be a future match somehow.
Two reasons why I'm happy with Lesnar/HHH. First, Lesnar won, something he desperately needed. Don't want two straight PPV losses in official matches. Second, they really kept it a weapon-free fight. Sure, they sent each other into announce tables, ringposts, and the steps, but we didn't see the kendo sticks, chairs, tables, and other stuff WWE matches may use. This was as physical a fight without weapons as it really could have been.
Overall, I'm very happy with the PPV. A solid showing from top to bottom. ***3/4
Antonio Cesaro vs. Santino Marella (U.S. Title): N/A (preshow match, did not watch)
Chris Jericho vs. Dolph Ziggler: ***3/4
Daniel Bryan vs. Kane: **1/2
Miz vs. Rey Mysterio (IC Title): ***
Sheamus vs. Alberto Del Rio (World Heavyweight Title): ***1/2
Titus O'Neil & Darren Young vs. Kofi Kingston & R-Truth (Tag Team Titles): **1/4
CM Punk vs. John Cena vs. Big Show (WWE Title): ***1/2
Brock Lesnar vs. Triple H (Street Fight): ***1/2
_________________
Reviews/Thoughts:
As expected, Antonio Cesaro beat Santino Marella to win the U.S. Title. Didn't watch that preshow match.
Good choice to have Ziggler and Jericho start the actual PPV. Jericho with the taped-up ribs. Hot crowd for the opener. Ziggler worked on the ribs through most of the match. Jericho's still got the big moves as Y2J. Check out that top-rope hurricanrana. Zigzag didn't finish Jericho, Codebreaker out of desperation. Lion Tamer wins it. Didn't think they'd have Jericho go over if he really was leaving to go touring with Fozzy, but seems like they could always have Ziggler take Jericho out later to do an injury storyline. Vickie looked like someone stole her prized poodle or something after Ziggler lost.
Cole and Lawler say HBK is not at SummerSlam, but is tweeting instead. Must be pretty good to tweet with one good arm.
So it's the Goat Face...er...Daniel Bryan and Kane next. "YES! NO!" Love how that's gotten over. Just look at the crowd when DB goes to the top rope for the headbutt. Crowd's just going berserk. Great spot from the headbutt to the chokeslam, since DB had to launch himself perfectly into that one. DB wins by countering the tombstone into an inside cradle for three. Not the smoothest finish, but passable. Yup, got that one wrong too. Don't worry, doing pro wrestling predictions isn't my day job anyway.
As if Kane wasn't mentally unstable enough, there you go. Another rampage in the back. Poor Josh Mathews goes flying. GM AJ Lee says she will deal with Kane on RAW.
IC Title match next between Miz and Mysterio. Miz now gets the "Awesome" bubble letters on his ring entrance. Mysterio has a Batman-like mask. Has Miz really evolved his game a lot? Maybe slightly, but not significantly like Undertaker has. Look to Taker for how he has lasted so long. Nice counters here, another solid match. So indeed, it was a fun match that made Miz look good. SCF wins it for Miz.
Punk and AJ with the whole awkward exchange in the back. Vintage trance-like state for AJ!
No bandage on Sheamus' left arm despite all the "damage" ADR's done to it. Hard kicks from ADR for most of the match. Steel turnbuckle ring exposed in the match, so that should play a factor. Sheamus showed great power deadlifting ADR to counter the armbreaker. Sheamus into the exposed turnbuckle and that didn't work, either.
The finish was interesting. ADR went bonkers on Ricardo in frustration. Sheamus used Ricardo's shoe. Ref missed ADR's foot on the ropes. Sheamus knocked ADR's foot off the ropes. Finally, the crowd appeared to boo Sheamus (but many were still cheering). I thought possible double-turn here, but not the case. ADR also tried to tell the ref he got hit with the shoe, but hopefully it was only to get the match restarted or something. DQ win doesn't help you, Alberto. At first, I also thought the ref failed to count to three, but replays showed he did. Either way, ADR gets screwed again. That part could be predictable, but hard to predict Sheamus using the shoe.
HHH tells Scott Armstrong earlier in the day that his match with Lesnar is basically a street fight again, no countouts and no DQs.
No mention of AW as Primetime Players come down for their tag title match. Understandable. Above-average tag match here with a nice ending. Again, I woulda bet the farm PTPs would have won the titles had AW still been with them. Alas, still got that prediction wrong. Seriously now? Kofi and Truth don't even need the titles, get it off them already.
Triple threat WWE Title match next, so again, no main event slot for Punk. Cena out first to mostly boos. At least the fans didn't throw the hat back. Show out second. Punk out last and he still gets the cheers. Punk's lengthy title reign again mentioned. Amazed Cole actually said Punk's last match in the main event slot (last match on the card) was December -- and Punk's been champ the entire time.
Slower pace for a significant portion of the match. Show got a lot of offense in. Cena and Punk had their spots to show strength on Show. Good job putting in spots where Punk could have lost the title without being a factor in the actual pin or submission. Show actually hit one of those Vader Bombs for a change.
I marked seeing Punk use the Koji Clutch on Show. The double submission and "who really won?" spot was a good idea. WWE did a heck of a job booking Show so strongly, even if many smarks knew he wouldn't win. Punk retaining by taking advantage of Cena's work was the right call.
I knew I said Cena would win in my prediction video, but after recording the segment, I could see why having Punk retain still could keep him a more heelish champ. Also, he doesn't have to go full-on bad guy. It's all about two things: (1) Punk needs the title more than Cena, and (2) Punk's title reign should keep going so announcers can keep talking about how it stands up in WWE history. Chances are Punk keeps the title until the Rumble, where he likely loses to Rock. Punk can then set the rematch for WrestleMania. This means the Royal Rumble winner would face the World Heavyweight champ, whomever that may be.
Celebs in the crowd. Fred Durst flips the bird. Classy. David Arquette with the World Title! Or was it his WCW Title. Sorry, I want to keep looking at Maria Menounos.
Footage of the ending to Cesaro's U.S. Title win. Aksana got involved, as one would have expected. Yes, Cesaro personifies greatness.
Since there's no divas match, Kevin Rudolf (who did the all-divas NXT season 3 theme song) and his band performs. Divas all come out to dance. Well, at least it's entertainment filler before the street fight brutality.
Cole mentions UFC by name as Lesnar comes out in his UFC-style gear (but with black boots on as well). Main event intros different this time; lights only on to spotlight Lesnar and HHH (otherwise the other lights remain off).
Lesnar focused on that left arm he "broke" a few months back, but he also showed he hasn't lost any technical wrestling skills. Fairly slow pace, yet very effective moves and a ton of physicality. HHH got to Lesnar's stomach, and we all know the diverticulitis he had a few years back. I'm not a huge fan of having people kick out of finishers barely after the two-count. Lesnar practically no-sold the second Pedigree, then "re-broke" HHH's arm in the Kimura again for the tapout win. HHH refused any medical help. "You tapped out!" chants at the end, but hey, given the spot they planned, HHH had to do it.
Torn on whether it was good to put the spotlight on HHH to close the show. Probably so, since Lesnar won't need to do any more appearances for a long time. Could be a scripted reason for HHH to end his in-ring career, but I'm sure there will be a future match somehow.
Two reasons why I'm happy with Lesnar/HHH. First, Lesnar won, something he desperately needed. Don't want two straight PPV losses in official matches. Second, they really kept it a weapon-free fight. Sure, they sent each other into announce tables, ringposts, and the steps, but we didn't see the kendo sticks, chairs, tables, and other stuff WWE matches may use. This was as physical a fight without weapons as it really could have been.
Overall, I'm very happy with the PPV. A solid showing from top to bottom. ***3/4
Sunday, August 19, 2012
8/19/12 SummerSlam Predictions
Since I'm unsure at this point at what my future schedule holds, I decided to start a new webseries on my YouTube channel devoted to talking about pro wrestling. The frequency of these shows is also currently unknown, but will focus on anything in the sports entertainment world. Ideas for the show include PPV predictions, perhaps looking back on the free TV shows from the past week, and/or other noteworthy stories floating around the rumor mills.
The first video focuses on SummerSlam 2012 predictions, which airs at 8 pm ET (preshow match at 7:30 pm). I taped this video Sunday morning (8/19), several hours before showtime, using the scheduled card that was posted on WWE.com at the time.
With that said, here's the video to the first show. Didn't go as smoothly as I had hoped, but I don't think it was too bad for a first show.
The first video focuses on SummerSlam 2012 predictions, which airs at 8 pm ET (preshow match at 7:30 pm). I taped this video Sunday morning (8/19), several hours before showtime, using the scheduled card that was posted on WWE.com at the time.
With that said, here's the video to the first show. Didn't go as smoothly as I had hoped, but I don't think it was too bad for a first show.
Saturday, August 18, 2012
8/17/12 Smackdown
Ratings:
Rey Mysterio & Sin Cara vs. Miz & Cody Rhodes: **
Curt Hawkins & Tyler Reks vs. two unnamed jobbers: N/A (WTF?)
Eve Torres vs. Kaitlyn: 1/2*
Randy Orton vs. Daniel Bryan: **3/4
Antonio Cesaro vs. Zack Ryder: 1/4*
Chris Jericho vs. Alberto Del Rio: **1/2
_________________
Reviews/Thoughts:
We're at the University of Texas for this one. Alberto Del Rio starts the show. Typical "let's hold the show hostage until we get answers" promo. Booker shows up. Alberto spoke to lawyers. Wait, JERICHO?! Typical Y2J face promo. Jericho with a nice Spanish lesson. Jericho and ADR tonight. Good move, Booker.
Mysterio and Sin Cara team up tonight, woohoo! Cody still all obsessed with masks after all these months. Sin Cara still with the lucha stuff. Rey gets the hot tag here. Cody still goes for Sin Cara's mask and it costs him. 619 to Cody, then the splash gets three. Fun match, crowd loved it. Miz tries to get Rey after the match, but gets a 619 as well. I can't see Mysterio with the IC Title, he doesn't need it.
Reks and Hawkins come out to no music and in street clothes. Random choreographed dance spot and they actually do have ring gear underneath. Just think Brodus Clay-like stuff, really. Those are either wrestling trunks or underwear, but whatever. There's a lot of gyrations from Hawkins. They still have that powerslam-neckbreaker tag finisher, and they get three on two unnamed jobbers. So the dance music is the entrance music. Well played, fellas.
Regal has to be the world's best-dressed janitor when talking with Eve. He's awesome.
Divas match. Eve and Kaitlyn, winner gets to be Booker's assistant. Kaitlyn in her home state of Texas, so my initial guess is that she loses. Still feels weird that Eve's a heel but has such upbeat music...and Eve has a new Titantron where it's no longer heavy on the "executive assistant" clips. As expected, Eve hits a snap swinging neckbreaker-like move and she's the new assistant.
Daniel Bryan is getting such awesome crowd reactions, thanks to the whole "YES" and "NO" stuff. ROFL at DB having the "YES NO" war with a fan. Very physical match here. They work pretty well together. DB worked on Orton's left knee all match. DB gets the NO lock in, then Kane pyros, lights, and music! No Kane. DB gets back in the ring and eats an RKO to end it.
Santino at ringside. #1 contender's match tonight with Antonio and Ryder. Antonio says "loser" in five languages. Short match that we all knew Antonio would win. A pieface and a shove to Santino after the match. Just give Cesaro the title already. Santino's virtually done nothing with the belt.
Main event time with Jericho and Del Rio. Josh Mathews calls Cole "Stephen A. Smith," which is basically an insult to Smith. ADR targets Jericho's ribs. Oh yeah, Ziggler's at ringside too. Walls of Jericho applied to ADR. Jericho kicked off, and low bridge from Ziggler sends Y2J outside. Ziggler tosses Jericho back in. Running enzuigiri basically missed Jericho but still gets three.
ADR with cross armbreaker on Jericho after the match, as Ziggler taunts away. Sheamus to the rescue. Sheamus wants the title match back on, and Booker relents. Perhaps this is how ADR wins the title at the PPV.
Rey Mysterio & Sin Cara vs. Miz & Cody Rhodes: **
Curt Hawkins & Tyler Reks vs. two unnamed jobbers: N/A (WTF?)
Eve Torres vs. Kaitlyn: 1/2*
Randy Orton vs. Daniel Bryan: **3/4
Antonio Cesaro vs. Zack Ryder: 1/4*
Chris Jericho vs. Alberto Del Rio: **1/2
_________________
Reviews/Thoughts:
We're at the University of Texas for this one. Alberto Del Rio starts the show. Typical "let's hold the show hostage until we get answers" promo. Booker shows up. Alberto spoke to lawyers. Wait, JERICHO?! Typical Y2J face promo. Jericho with a nice Spanish lesson. Jericho and ADR tonight. Good move, Booker.
Mysterio and Sin Cara team up tonight, woohoo! Cody still all obsessed with masks after all these months. Sin Cara still with the lucha stuff. Rey gets the hot tag here. Cody still goes for Sin Cara's mask and it costs him. 619 to Cody, then the splash gets three. Fun match, crowd loved it. Miz tries to get Rey after the match, but gets a 619 as well. I can't see Mysterio with the IC Title, he doesn't need it.
Reks and Hawkins come out to no music and in street clothes. Random choreographed dance spot and they actually do have ring gear underneath. Just think Brodus Clay-like stuff, really. Those are either wrestling trunks or underwear, but whatever. There's a lot of gyrations from Hawkins. They still have that powerslam-neckbreaker tag finisher, and they get three on two unnamed jobbers. So the dance music is the entrance music. Well played, fellas.
Regal has to be the world's best-dressed janitor when talking with Eve. He's awesome.
Divas match. Eve and Kaitlyn, winner gets to be Booker's assistant. Kaitlyn in her home state of Texas, so my initial guess is that she loses. Still feels weird that Eve's a heel but has such upbeat music...and Eve has a new Titantron where it's no longer heavy on the "executive assistant" clips. As expected, Eve hits a snap swinging neckbreaker-like move and she's the new assistant.
Daniel Bryan is getting such awesome crowd reactions, thanks to the whole "YES" and "NO" stuff. ROFL at DB having the "YES NO" war with a fan. Very physical match here. They work pretty well together. DB worked on Orton's left knee all match. DB gets the NO lock in, then Kane pyros, lights, and music! No Kane. DB gets back in the ring and eats an RKO to end it.
Santino at ringside. #1 contender's match tonight with Antonio and Ryder. Antonio says "loser" in five languages. Short match that we all knew Antonio would win. A pieface and a shove to Santino after the match. Just give Cesaro the title already. Santino's virtually done nothing with the belt.
Main event time with Jericho and Del Rio. Josh Mathews calls Cole "Stephen A. Smith," which is basically an insult to Smith. ADR targets Jericho's ribs. Oh yeah, Ziggler's at ringside too. Walls of Jericho applied to ADR. Jericho kicked off, and low bridge from Ziggler sends Y2J outside. Ziggler tosses Jericho back in. Running enzuigiri basically missed Jericho but still gets three.
ADR with cross armbreaker on Jericho after the match, as Ziggler taunts away. Sheamus to the rescue. Sheamus wants the title match back on, and Booker relents. Perhaps this is how ADR wins the title at the PPV.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)