WWE Roadblock: End of the Line Review

Well, it’s alright, riding around in the breeze… Yeah, I have a feeling Traveling Whilbury’s references won’t go over well with the WWE Universe.

New Day vs. Cesaro/Sheamus – Tag Team Championship

The New Day commemorated their record breaking championship reign with a hilarious promo about confusing Roadblock with… something else. The match was exciting – the New Day pulled their usual trickery but with no luck. There exciting spots such as Cesaro AND Kofi reversing Monkey Flips by landing on their feet. There was one nerve-wracking spot where Big E went for the Big Spear – after Big E landed on his head this summer, I got nervous. Luckily, it didn’t look like he got hurt. New Day showed some clever teamwork when Woods took a Brogue Kick for Kingston. The ending was truly creative. Playing off the odd couple storyline, Cesaro reached for the tag and seemingly faked out Sheamus. Cesaro took a Trouble in Paradise, but the ref couldn’t make the pin. Since Sheamus was still the legal man, he pulled a Brogue Kick and won the tag titles. A combination of playing these characters’ colorful personality, good storytelling and innovative ringwork made this a great spectacle.

Overall rating: 4.25 (Out of 5) stars

Braun Stroman vs. Sami Zayn

The stipulation for this match was that Sami Zay didn’t have to pin Stroman, he only needed to last 10 minutes. This has been a good story so far, with plucky underdog Zayn not only wanting to beat the monstrous Stroman, but now Foley has threatened him with a trade to Smackdown to light his fire. The 10 minute stipulation was added when Stroman boasted that nobody could last two mintues with him.

This match started off okay with Zayn in control, but once it devolved into Stroman beating Zayn up, the match started losing steam. This made sense with Stroman needing to look like a monster, but it felt like Stroman would hit Zayn… then hit him again… and hit him again… However, there was a unique level of suspense with the clock constantly clicking against Zayn. Foley came out and tried to throw in the towel for Zayn but Zayn refused. The action picked up, especially with Stroman crashing through the barricade. Zayn finally gained the upper hand with a Heluva Kick and… the match ended as the clock ran out. Look, I get the story, but the lack of a pinfall/submission really took away the satisfaction of Zayn’s win. There’s a right way to do this sort of this, but this felt off.

Overall rating: 2 stars

Chris Jericho vs. Seth Rollins

This was one of the matches I was really looking forward to. Rollins and Jericho are two of the best in the business (and coincidentally two guys I’ve met). The crowd was a little lukewarm, despite both men clearly being over (there were dueling Jericho and Rollins chants). The match was evenly contended with cool spots such Rollins and Jericho attempting springboard moves at the same time but Jericho landing the dropkick. Other cool spots included Jericho countering the Pedigree into a Walls of Jericho. Another highlight was Rollins attempting the Pedigree with a series of reversals from Jericho and Rollins, that ended in Jericho performing a hurricanrana. Kevin Owens interfered on Jericho’s behalf, but this backfired when the distraction caused Rollins to sneak in a win.

Overall rating: 4 stars

TJ Perkins vs. Rich Swann vs. Brian Kendrick – Cruiserweight Championship

This match was passable but felt pointless. There were some cool spots such as Swann performing a double hurricanrana on Kendrick AND Perkins. The match was alright but lacked drama. Swann won and retained the championship.

The real news was the return of Neville. Neville laid waste to all three men, thus turning heel. It is odd that the fans cheered the new heel laying waste to three fan favorites. Maybe they’re as happy to see him (in a good spot no less) as I am. If Neveille’s heel turn seems odd, remember he was good at playing smug as NXT champion.

Overall rating: 2.75 stars

Sasha Banks vs. Charlotte – Iron (Wo)Man Match for the Women’s Championship

This feud has been maligned for the two women seemingly playing hot potato with the championship. Although I feel the title has changed one/two times too many, the feud has been intense, both women have looked like a million bucks and the championship is looking important. As for the match itself, it was another classic from these two. The two held off any pinfall just long enough to build suspense. The match also worked as a whole – The early parts where the two were pacing themselves were alright and it made things pay off when Charlotte played frustrated that she couldn’t keep Sasha down. These two proved their worth by filling the full 30 minutes with exciting action. (Points for a great Sasha Banks match that didn’t seem like she was gonna kill herself – she appears to doing those outside dives much safer now.)

The tie was a mixed bag – on one hand, how it was performed felt a tad forced. On the other hand it added a ton of drama to this match. The two seemed so desperate for this title that they were just willing themselves to continue. This has been billed as the end of Charlotte and Sasha Banks’s final match, and what a note to go out on.

Overall rating: 4.25 stars

Kevin Owens vs. Roman Reigns – Universal Championship

This was another match I was looking forward to – Reigns and Owens are two of the best brawlers in the company. I was waiting forever for them to feud because I figured their styles would click like peanut butter and jelly. I was… half-right. For the most part, this was a wild brawl. Impressive spots included Owens performing a standing front-flip leg drop, and Owens splashing Reigns through a table. Owens’s mid-match trashtalking was always fun – highlights included Owens asking Reigns “If you’re so tough, why didn’t you put your title on the line?” and mocking Reigns’s trademark taunt. The two kept the flow of the match going, and the crowd was invested.

However, the ending kind of killed it. After the night teased that Jericho and Owens were splitting, Jericho came out and attacked Kevin Owens… only so he’d get disqualified and retain his title. The ending felt like a huge cop out. To be fair, the action after this was exciting with Rollins coming to the rescue. First they double powerbomed Jericho through the German announce table. Then they went up the ramp and bombed Owens through the English announce table. The two demonstrated good team chemistry (which makes sense since they were a stable mates from 2012-14) with just a fist bump saying more than their words could.

Overall, this match had a lot of solid action but had a “This could have happened on Raw” vibe.

Overall rating: 3.75 stars

Roadblock: End of the Line fell into the good but not great category. Comparisons between this and TLC feel inevitable. While Roadblock technically had more good matches, it also had more bad stuff. Also, TLC all around felt more satisfying all around.

WWE Survivor Series 2016 Review

Survivor Series is second only to Wrestlemania in WWE’s oldest PPV… and it’s often the most underwelming. That’s not saying Survivor Series is a bad PPV – events like 1998, 2007 and especially 2002 are examples of how good the November event can be. However, after years the traditional Survivor Series match has began to feel like more of an obligation. There have been moments of true inspiration – see the epic 2014 Team Cena vs. Team Authority (no seriously, see it. It’s good). However, usually it seems like an excuse to put random mid-carders on the show.

This year is different – with the brand split, the company is focusing on a big Smackdown vs. Raw motif. It is an unusual mix as both sides have heels and faces intermingling so we have very few battles of good vs. evil – “heroic” Seth Rollins isn’t gonna conquer the evil Kevin Owens when they’re on the same team. But there is still a dynamic. Can these people who don’t normally like each other function as a team? Now really is the time to do this sort of thing: We’ll probably see drafts in the future so this is the time where we really have guys defined as Raw Smackdown guys. And with the brand split fresh in people’s minds

Plus we have the much ballyhooed (but mostly maligned) return of Goldberg. Also this show has to live in the shadow of the nearly flawless NXT Takeover: Toronto. For the sake of fairness I’m not gonna compare this show to that utter masterpiece.

Team Smackdown (Becky Lynch, Naomi, Natalya, Alexa Bliss, Carmella) vs. Team Raw (Sasha Banks, Bayley, Charlotte, Alicia Fox and Nia Jax)

As recently as two years ago, I would have called a match like this filler or a bathroom break match. With these talented women, this match is anything but filler. Before the match, former team captain Nikki Bella was attacked and replaced by Natalya. Time will tell whether this was all story or if it was to cover a real injury. I wouldn’t have minded Nikki Bella in the match since I think she’s improved and a match with this many women would have covered her, but I do think Natalya’s a trade up.

This was a pretty solid match. They did the thing where the women on both teams didn’t always get along. One highlight was when Nia Jax laid waste to Naomi outside the ring and let her just get counted out. What put this moment over the top was the way Jax just stood there, gloating over what she did. I was surprised to see how early Banks was eliminated, but also grateful that she didn’t do anything to shorten her career. The final moments came down to Becky needing to defend herself against Charlotte and Bayley – probably the best choices for survivors. Even in defeat, Lynch looked amazing (in more ways than one) as she fended off both women before being defeated by Bayley. Charlotte and Bayley celebrated before Charlotte beat up Bayley. This works as it makes Bayley look good by being the one who wins the match but setting up a feud between her and Charlotte

Overall rating: 3.5 stars (Out of 5)

Sami Zayn vs. The Miz – Intercontinental Championship

This was another good match. It kind of lacked drama because it didn’t quite have the drama of the previous Ziggler/Miz matches. There was a fun blend of Zayn’s more indie style with Miz’s more traditional style. This match was also fun because there was an atmosphere where man could have won. Both men also showed off their in-ring trash talking: Zayn taunted Maryse while Miz mocked Daniel Bryan’s taunts. I was worried we’d see Montreal rehash #9,823 in wrestling. But instead we saw a repeat of Austin/Undertaker from Cold Day in Hell ’97. Maryse wrang the bell while Zayn had Miz in a submission hold, tricking Zayn into thinking he won, only for Miz to sneak in a dirty pin. I disliked this at first, but the more I think about it, the more I liked Miz’s chicanery.

Overall rating: 4 stars

Team Raw (The New Day, Sheamus/Cesaro, Enzo and Big Cass, The Shining Stars, The Club) vs. Team Smackdown (Rhyno/Slater, The Hype Bros., American Alpha, Breezeango, The Usos)

Before the match, The New Day and Enzo/Cass did their usual promos. I bring this up because Big Cass claimed that he was running on Tim Horton’s coffee so he wouldn’t run out of energy. I’ve had Tim Horton’s coffee, and I can honestly say that’s not energizing anyone.

I was happy to see Breezeango in a high profile match. The match began with them playing fashion police – with hats, shades and tickets. Then they were almost immediately eliminated. So much for those two being treated like a big deal… Then the New Day was eliminated! On one hand, I kinda disliked that these guys who have been losing a lot (plus I’m a fan) were beaten so quickly, but I did like the “this can happen to anyone” vibe this match created.

This match had some insane action. Pretty much every team (that wasn’t eliminated early) got their big moves/spots in. This match would have earned high praises if just for that, but the last few minutes put this over the top. The last teams were Cesaro/Sheamus and the Usos. These last few minutes were an absolute nail-biter where it felt like either team could have taken it home. Cesaro pulled a big swing on Jey Uso that went on for an almost comical amount of time. There were dozens of moments where I thought one of these guys had it but their partner made the save or they just narrowly made a kickout. Cesaro won it for Team Raw with a sharpshooter. Cesaro and Sheamus have been doing an alright odd couple story, but have retreading Miz/Sandow with both asking for cheers and Sheamus receiving boos.

Overall rating: 4.5 stars

Brian Kendrick vs. Kalisto – Cruiserweight Championship

The story going into this match is that if Kaliston won, he would not only win the Cruiserweight championship, but the entire division would be moved to Smackdown. The match was pretty with both men gaining their finishers. Sadly, the crowd was inexplicably disrespectful during this match. The most noteworthy spot was when Kalisto performed a Spanish Fly of the apron. It looked amazing, but I hope he never e-e-ever does that again.

The match ended when Baron Corbin interfered and attacked both men. Hmmm, ruining a good match to make things about himself? Corbin apparently played the role of the crowd. I was ticked because I dislike seeing inconclusive matches at PPVs, but I’m hoping this leads to bigger things for Corbin. I feel like the man has a good look, good gimmick and is decent in the ring, but hasn’t gotten over because he’s directionless.

Overall rating: 3 stars

Team Smackdown (AJ Styles, Dean Ambrose, Bray Wyatt, Randy Orton, Shane McMahon) vs. Team Raw (Roman Reigns, Seth Rollins, Chris Jericho, Kevin Owens, Braun Stroman)

If a match is going to go on for nearly an hour, people are going to expect something special. Did this match deliver? And how! It should be no surprise that a match with this much talent delivered. Shane and Stroman seem like the outliers, but Shane can do some crazy stuff (as we’ll find out) and a multi-man match like this can hide Stroman’s limitations. This match got off on the right foot – normally in long matches, guys would have to pace themselves in the beginning – which makes sense, they wouldn’t want to tire themselves out late in the match. However, with all these men being able to take turns, the action started off fast.

This match was filled to the brim with great spots. Owens eliminated everyone with a top rope cannonball. Shane performed the elbow drop on Stroman to the announce table. Stroman’s elimination was one of the most entertaining. He tried to re-enter the ring only to get caught by James Ellsworth – for a comedy spot in a big match, that was well-done. One of the best and most worrisome spots was when Roman countered Shane’s coast-to-coast into a spear. That was awesome. Less awesome was that Shane seemed legit injured. There was an awkward moment where Roman had Shane pinned but the ref stopped the count and Shane was declared eliminated.

Dean Ambrose was the first guy eliminated. I have to credit that they did this without making him look weak. Ambrose was caught up in fighting with Styles. This distraction allowed Stroman to pin Ambrose. Dean didn’t look like a loser, he just looked hot-headed. This opened the door later for Ambrose to return and form a mini-Shield reunion when he, Reigns and Rollins performed the triple powerbomb on Styles. This lead to the elimination of Styles – again, taking one of the top stars out of the match without making him look like a loser.

I have to hand out a demerit here and there for a few things. There was a moment where Owens got himself DQ’d for using the list of Jericho as a weapon. It seemed absurd for the Universal Champion to get eliminated in what felt like a glorified comedy spot. Jericho was eliminated almost immediately after because he was torn up at seeing his life work destroyed. This match showed the right way to do comedy spots and how to have big names eliminated – this was definitely the wrong way to do that. There were some laspses in logic, such as the way people seemed to be out of the ring for an eternity without getting counted out, but I’m willing to put on my suspension of disbelief glasses for that sort of thing.

The end of the match was exciting when Orton took Reigns’s spear for Bray Wyatt so Wyatt could get the win for team Smackdown. This match was just a perfect storm of great wrestling and great drama with nary a dull moment to be found.

Overall rating: 4.75 stars

Goldberg vs. Brock Lesnar

So here it is, after years of speculation, after their notoriously disappointing Wrestlemania match, after a month of buildup, these two finally meet. And it ends after a two spears and a jackhammer.

I admit I was upset at first, but the more I thought about it, the more I realized how clever this was. First of all, I must admit I HATE the idea of any PPV ending with a squash match, but this kind of worked. First of all, Goldberg was known for squashing people in micro-matches: That was his thing. Second, I was honestly dreading this match. In his prime, Goldberg was exciting, but the man was not the best worker in his hayday and the man is not a spring chicken anymore. Combine that with Lesnar’s growing apathy (more on that later), and this match was looking to be a disaster. So yeah, by making this a short squash, at least it didn’t have time to get boring. Lastly, it was kind of satisfying. George Carlin once said he wanted to see a big climatic fight where the guy just got beaten up, and there was something cool about seeing someone go in, crush the other and leave.

Some may wonder if this is gonna make Lesnar look bad. I don’t think it makes him look bad from a kayfabe story – He’s been a monster for so long and if booked right, he could be an even bigger monster. However, I don’t think this is gonna improve his reputation of being lazy. I heard through the grapevine it was his idea to get crushed by Goldberg to make him look good. I’m sure the prospect of making bookoo money without really doing anything swayed his opinion.

Overall rating: 2 stars (Look, it was satisfying, but it was still a squash match)

Overall, Survivor Series was a great show. There were two match of the year candidates. There were some weak moments – but the end of Kendrick/Kalisto was hardly a dealbreaker and Goldberg/Lesnar was satisfying in its own way. Survivor Series may now be neck-and-neck with Royal Rumble as best (non-NXT) PPV of the year. Between this and Takeover: Toronto, WWE may have presented the most entertaining weekend of wrestling one could ask for.

Hell in a Cell 2016 Review

Hell in a Cell as a PPV has rightfully been criticized for watering down the match that used to be THE feud-ender. So many other wrestling columnists – including yours truly – have written/griped about this that I feel bringing it up is redundant. However, I will say this: Even if most of these matches could have been done as regular no-DQ matches without the cell, WWE has at least been TRYING to make these matches feel important. I also brought this up because I didn’t want to bring this criticism up in EVERY cell match I review.

Rusev vs. Roman Reigns – Hell in a Cell for the U.S. Championship

I hate to say this, but in hindsight I may have been a tad generous in my star scores for Clash of Champions. I say this because this match (and to save time, yes I feel this way about Rollins vs. Owens) being awesome made me realize how… I don’t wanna say bad… but this watch I wanted from these two. The no-dq stipulation gave these two the chance to just beat the stuffing out of each other. Reigns and Rusev are both talented, but brutal brawl-type matches suit their styles more than attempting a catch-as-catch-can style. There were some wicked spots such as Rusev blocking the Drive-by with a clothesline, and Rusev performing the Accolade on the steps with a chain – whether or not it was, it sure as hell LOOKED painful. Rusev – as always – played the monster heel to a tee with great spots such as tying Roman into the ropes and whaling on him with a kendo stick. As good as this match was it, it was not perfect. First of all, it took a bit to gain momentum. Also, the ending was a tad anticlimactic. Rusev performed the Accolade TWICE – including the aforementioned chain Accolade with putting Roman down. Meanwhile, Roman performs a single spear and Rusev went down for the count. Rusev still looked tough even in loss, but a false finish or two may have put us more on edge.

Overall rating: 4 stars (Out of 5)

Bayley vs. Dana Brooke

This match was alright, but it was too short for these otherwise talented women to really get going. Also, this match relied a little too much on Dana beating up Bayley. These women are talented enough to make the most of this situation, but you get what you get.

Overall rating: 2.75 stars

The Club vs. Enzo and Cass

This match was kind of similar to the last one – good but still felt like filler. Comparing it to the last match, I felt it worked a little better simply because it was more back and forth so even though I accurately predicted the Club would win, there felt like a chance either team could win. However, it also suffered from lack of drama. The two teams seemed to be fighting just because… The match was solid but kinda short.

Overall rating: 3 stars

Kevin Owens vs. Seth Rollins – Hell in a Cell for the Universal Championship

After a pretty epic Reigns/Rusev match at the top of the show, I was wondering how these two would match/top the previous one. These two definitely delivered. I have a similar criticism with that match where it took a bit to really get going. But once it did, these two had another terrific match. It started off as a one-on-one match, but turned into a glorified handicap match when Jericho used an injured ref as an excuse to interfere. There were some cool spots such as Owens performing the cannonball into the cell corner. Rollins powerbowed Jericho into the cell – which after Balor and Sting, admittedly made me wince. Rollins suplexed Owens onto the apron (a spot which makes me nervous even if I’m not sure if it’s as dangerous as the announcers play up) and Rollins powerebombed Owens through two tables. This was the one cell match that had a satisfying finish when Owens powerbombed Rollins through two chairs.

Overall rating: 4.25 stars

Brian Kendrick vs. TJ Perkins – Cruiserweight Championship

How do I describe this match? It was like a good match in slow motion. TJ showed off some insane offense, but the match moved kind of slowly – at least for what these guys can do. Sadly the crowd was dead – except for one guy who yelled at Kendrick “Get a f—ing haircut, hippie” (That was kinda funny). The match ended with Kendrick suckering Perkins into a trap and using the Captain’s Hook. What put this match over was the drama of Kendrick “needing” to win, even asking Perkins to lay down for him. A little story goes a long way.

Overall rating: 3.5 stars.

Cesaro/Sheamus vs. the New Day – Tag Team Championship

Cesaro and Sheamus are naturally doing the Odd Couple storyline – contrived, but it kind of works. This match was actually pretty good, which is no surprise considering the talent. However, for the second PPV in a row, a match with Sheamus and Cesaro has a shaggy dog ending. Admittedly, it was a little clever. Cesaro had Woods in a Sharpshooter, but the outside fighting led to Cesaro/Sheamus winning the match by DQ. If this were Raw, that may have been fine, but at a PPV, it feels underwelming. I’ll say one thing: At least with New Day matches we usually get a funny promo at some point.

Overall rating: 3 stars

Charlotte vs. Sasha Banks – Hell in a Cell for the Women’s Championship

Putting a women’s match on a PPV sounds like a gamble – as recently as a few years ago, this would have sounded absurd. However the women’s division has improved by leaps and bounds. So if there’s anyone who could pull it off, it’s these two – probably others, but Charlotte and Sasha were the right choices for the first women to be in a Cell match. Both women were treated like heroes before their entrance, with Sasha coming out in a car and Charlotte being treated like a literal queen.

The match began with Charlotte powerbombing Sasha onto a table and thus luring us into believing Sasha was too injured to continue, even rising to the occasion just as Jojo was about to award the women’s championship to Charlotte by forfeit. This felt a little too similar to two years ago when Rollins and Ambrose got off their stretchers to duke it out, but felt a little bit its own. This match was brutal… and honestly almost hard to watch. The story of this match was largely about Charlotte trying to injure Sasha’s back. Much like their Summerslam match, this match had me wondering if Charlotte was trying to legitimately injure Sasha. I was waiting for Jojo to come out and say “Sasha has to forfeit due to injury. For reals this time.” The one that made me cringe was when Charlotte monkey-flipped Sasha into the cell, causing Sasha to land on her head. Still, the match is engaging, which is unsurprising for two of the most talented women in WWE. Also I felt the ending was a tad anticlimactic. Natural Selection is a cool-looking move, but after everything that happened, I just didn’t buy it as the end of a match this epic.

Overall rating: 3.75 stars

Overall Hell in a Cell was quite good. There were some bumps in the road. Even with filler matches, the filler was mostly good. There were also a handful of head scratching decision. This was a huge a huge improvement over Clash of Champions and an overall great PPV.

WWE Raw Review: 26.09.2016

So Clash of Champions happened and, well, it didn’t really do much to help solve the mediocreness of the Raw product recently. As usual, the matches were all well and good but the end result was lacking as the finishes were questionable at best. Now this week’s Raw had the biggest competition it has ever come against. Not only was it up against Monday Night Raw but they were also against the US Presidential debate which had a supposed audience size of 80 million people. So could Raw do its best John Cena impression and overcome the odds that it was up against? No of course not you’d have to be high to think that.

Ignoring the events that took place in the real world, let us dive back into the glorious world of wrestling and digest the show we got this week. Raw opened with the rematch from last night between newly crowned US Champion Roman Reigns and former champion Rusev. To sum the match up in a few words it would be same old shit. Seriously how many times have we seen this exact match up not only on Raw but on PPVs too. It’s just too much and if the ending of the match is any indication of the future it looks like we might be seeing plenty more of this match to come. Also Reigns no selling the chair shots is ridiculous. I mean sure the Super Reigns train has clearly been derailed somewhat but he’s still doing a lot of the superman shit he did back when he was being pushed to the moon.

The rest of the show was a mixed bag, to be honest, we get a lot of the fallout from Clash of Champions, including the resolution to the best of 7 series which as some predicted resulted in the duo of Cesaro and Sheamus now forming a tag team after Mick Foley gave yet another passionate speech about the two of them bringing out the best in each other. Now I have to stay on our beloved GM for a moment and I can definitively say that he is the worst thing about Raw at the moment. This GM role is just an absolute career low for the hardcore legend. Now I love Mick, he’s a great guy and a great wrestler but this character at the moment is just not working. All he does is get bitched out by Stephanie and all the other times he starts rambling passionately talking about how he was brought to tears by this or how he had faith in that. It’s embarrassing.

The fallout continues as we deal with the other titles on the show. Gallows and Anderson continue to be booked like utter crap in the tag team division (I don’t hate New Day at all but I have begrudgingly come to accept they will break Demolitions reign record). Charlotte is still the only woman in the Women’s division who feels like she has an actual character. I am seriously questioning why Sasha Banks is getting all these opportunities. What has she done?

Meanwhile, the cruiserweight division is still getting started but of all the title pictures it looks the most promising despite Brian Kendrick receiving a title shot for no reason like Banks. Not to sound like a hypocrite the reason I think this works for the cruiserweights is that the division is only getting off the ground so it needs to establish the major players like THE Brian Kendrick, therefore it makes sense for him to be TJ Perkins’ challenger for a while.

As for the Universal Championship, this week a whole lot of nothing happened, with Seth Rollins not being medically cleared tonight, so therefore he could not get into any fights with Kevin Owens or Chris Jericho. Though a confrontation was teased during the highlight reel, where Seth Rollins came down to the ring and threatened to attack the Universal Champion, though he was stopped by the backstage agents/security before he could get there. This lead to tonight’ main event, a Summerslam rematch between JeriKO and Enzo and Cass, and of course the team of JeriKO win. As the champion should be, I just wish Enzo and Cass could be involved in actually winning for a change.

This week’s Raw just felt messy. I get that a lot of what took place tonight was necessary to further storylines but there is a distinct lack of storytelling in many places. Why should I really be invested in Cesaro and Sheamus going after the titles? Sure they are both good wrestlers but why are these titles important to these guys in particular? This is why I and many others are just finding it so hard to get engrossed in Raw at the moment. Simply said there is really no reason to.

That being said there were some good moments in tonight’s episode. The cruiserweights once again put on a great show, Perkins vs Nese was the match of the night, and while Perkins hasn’t been able to show off much character yet he is showing charisma in the ring and is just a joy to watch. Also, we got to see other cruiserweights show off their stuff with the arrival of  Drew Gulak and Lince Dorado and seeing Enzo and Cass do something other than wrestle The Shining  Stars was a nice change of pace. Despite this lack of direction going forward, many of the talents are still able to drag their material kicking and screaming into something watchable. Obviously, people like Jericho and Owens are known for their charisma, but someone who has really impressed me as of late is Charlotte who has become the star of this Raw Women’s Division.

However, until Raw gets more focused and starts to head in a clear direction with its story it will continue to lag behind the blue brand in terms of quality and this week it will probably be in terms of viewers as well. This week gets a 5.5/10.

FINAL NOTES

• Tonight’s MVP – Charlotte
• Match of the Night – TJ Perkins vs Tony Nese
• Moment of the Night – Charlotte is killing her promos
• Man, I was legit concerned for Kofi during the match. I spotted the cut straight away but his face went from 0-100 real fast
• Cedric Alexander continues to impress me in ring
• I feel like I could really get behind the Cesaro – Sheamus tag team if Mick Foley wasn’t doing all the talking in the feud
• Now I’m not an idiot for still thinking Roman is the heel in the feud, right? He ruined their wedding ceremony, attacked Rusev’s wife and has repeatedly come out to interrupt his matches

WWE Raw Review: 19.09.2016

Raw has a serious problem. It has had this problem for a long time, but it has been more noticeable since the brand split started up again and almost every single week Smackdown puts on the better show. The question really is, what is that problem? It’s something that wrestling forums have been trying to pin down for weeks now. Why is Raw so inferior to Smackdown? It can’t be the talent as people like Seth Rollins and Kevin Owens are ultra-talented and clearly among the best wrestlers in the world. After thinking about this question the most obvious answer (aside from that dreadful 3^rd hour) is that Raw is stuck in the same old routine it was, where nothing matters. And when nothing matters why should anyone care? I am definitely not the first to come to this conclusion as I have seen many claims that Raw feels unimportant half the time and that everything is cookie cutter boring.

This week’s Raw doesn’t fare much better than the previous episodes. We start off the episode with the Big Dog Roman Reigns coming down to deal with the events of last week. However, after repeatedly being interrupted by authority figures our GM Mick Foley decides that the best way to deal with the Rusev issue is to give Roman Reigns a US title match. I was gonna joke about that being the most original response ever but the more I think about it the more I realise how ridiculous of a response that is. What has Roman done to deserve a rematch, despite being attacked? Nothing because nothing matters.

The rest of the show doesn’t fare too much better than the opening. We get a good match from Seth and Rusev, and I have to say I think the future of Raw really rests on the shoulders of The Man Seth Rollins. His current role as a tweener is fun to watch and he is clearly heading into the role of the top babyface. We really need someone we can cheer. The rest of the matches are mostly solid, despite the necessary squash matches and that fucking random 10 man tag.

The women’s match was standard but unfortunately, it is beginning to feel as if Bayley and Sasha are background characters in the upcoming Dana/Charlotte feud. Is Brooke really the one they want to push to the top of the division? After the double pin last week and Bayley and Banks’ win this week it is revealed that the Women’s title match at CoC is now a triple threat.

Another important result is that this week Cesaro was able to tie up the best of seven series against Sheamus. Do they expect us to be shocked that the guy who was 3-0 up lost the lead? The deciding match of the series will take place at CoC which should make the match feel important at least. While Ii will criticise the predictability of this series I am not able to say a bad word about the competitors involved.

Sheamus and Cesaro have been able to put on a good match every chance they get and having been at the live event in the UK where Cesaro was able to grab his first win, they have put on a good show for the crowd every single time they get that opportunity. This match was my second favourite match tonight, the best being the arrival of the Cruiserweights.

Though it was not the main event, the arrival of the Cruiserweights was the main attraction for many of us tonight as we have been enraptured with the Cruiserweight Classic recently. Though we strangely had no appearance from the new Cruiserweight Champion TJ Perkins, we did have a fatal 4 way from some of the Classics biggest stars to decide Perkins’ opponent at Clash of Champions. The Superstars in the fatal 4 way are WWE veteran THE Brian Kendrick, the CWC runner-up Gran Metalik, the rising star Cedric Alexander and my personal favourite (just over Alexander) Rich Swann.

The match was great, and though the crowd were clearly unfamiliar with the CWC guys they quickly warmed up to the guys and each of the 4 were able to display their talents. Metalik impressed the crowd with his high impact moveset, Swann was his charismatic self, Cedric showed why he became the most over guy in the tournament (this guy will be huge, mark my words) and lastly the victor Brian Kendrick showed his teeth and his potential to be the first big heel of the division. Here’s hoping the Cruiserweight division helps solve the problems of WWE Raw.

Now to the main event of the show, the cage match between the champion Kevin Owens and Roman Reigns. The involvement of the cage was enough to peek my interest when it was announced at the beginning of the show. Swerves like this are a good start in making the show feel fresh, but this week it was not enough as the main event was lacking in my opinion. The main reason for this was that escaping from the door is just a ridiculous way to win the cage match. Every time someone went near that door and it opened t just killed the tension of the match. Climbing over the cage should be the only way you can win a cage match. Any other type of victory takes away from the match.

The contest ends in with a narrow Reigns victory as he is able t drop from the cage just before KO crawls through the door. While the cage did its job of keeping out intruders during the match, afterwards Rusev made his way out leading to him locking himself, KO and Reigns in the cage so that the two former could beat down the latter. In a purposefully ironic twist, it is Reigns’ former SHIELD teammate and arch-rival who comes down to make the save, ending the show by chasing off the two heels. Why did Roman get the win here? Well, we all know why but it was stupid, stop belittling shit just to build up Roman WWE.

So this Raw wasn’t the worst. It did have some legitimately entertaining matches, and many segments in which the talent was able to save it (looking at you Jericho). However this go home show doesn’t really deserve more than an okay, as it had just as many missed opportunities or examples of poor booking such as the wasted main event or the predictable result of the best of seven series. I am also concerned on the MIA status of HHH. I am assuming that he is going to turn up at CoC which will hopefully kick start a major storyline, but until then I am impatiently waiting. I will give this week a 6/10.

FINAL NOTES

• Tonight’s MVP – Brian Kendrick
• Match of the night – Cruiserweight Fatal 4 way
• Moment of the night – Seth to the rescue
• Man Mick Foley is the most dramatic person I have ever seen on TV. The guy belongs in a legit soap opera
• Mick’s attempt at gaining sympathy for Roman failed miserably
• What the fuck is up with Bo?
• Jericho loves his lists and I love him
• I said it earlier but I will say it again. Cedric Alexander will be HUGE. Guarantee he’s on his way to being a main eventer, the guy has IT.
• MATCHKA SOMETHING. MATCHKA SOMETHING

WWE Raw Review: 05.09.2016

OPENER

Before the show starts we get a recap of last week’s events, and the reaction to Kevin Owens’ victory and the shocking Triple H return. Then we kick off with a cold open that shows Stephanie McMahon talking to somebody on the phone about the upcoming celebration for Kevin Owens’ title win. The call is followed by a tense confrontation between her and GM Mick Foley who demands to know if Steph had any about what was planned for last week with her husband Triple H. Stephanie denies any knowledge leading to a heartfelt conversation between the two. It was quite cringy to be honest but I see what they were going for, and it was decent.

CELEBRATION TIME                                                            

Kevin Owens comes out to the ring decked out in a sharp suit to join the authority figures in the ring (no HHH though). Kevin Owens agrees with the overwhelming “you deserve it” chants, but he lashes out at the crowd for trying to take over the show and steal his moment (looking at you Full Sail). This celebration is interrupted by one very pissed off Seth Rollins who comes down to the ring and at first he completely ignores Kevin Owens and instead demands an explanation from Stephanie, who continues to deny any knowledge or involvement. However after some goading by the new Universal Champion he decides to attack Owens leading to Stephanie suspending Seth, a decision that is quickly overturned by Mick who decides that Seth is worthy of a title shot at Clash of Champions as he was screwed out of a win last week. This segment was great, I never knew I wanted a Rollins/Owens feud but now it’s all I want. Face Rollins was intense and awesome while champion KO was as great of a heel as ever.

• Stephanie and Foley talk about what had just happened in the ring and she tells him that it was the right decision to make but if he ever undermined her authority again he would be gone. Kevin Owens arrived to shout at Foley too, followed by Chris Jericho who arrived to back up his best friend (love this by the way), in response two matches are set up, Rollins vs Jericho and Owens vs Sami Zayn.

CHARLOTTE vs BAYLEY

We see that before the match earlier Charlotte gave her apprentice Dana Brooke some advice and told her to take notes during the match with Bayley tonight. The match was pretty good as it involved both wrestlers getting good amounts of offense in, making both Bayley and Charlotte look like a threat. The key focal point in the match became Bayley’s leg as half way through the match Bayley would seemingly botch a corner post dropkick and then pull a muscle in her leg, this leg was then worked by Charlotte throughout the rest of the match. The focus on the leg hints that this was not a real injury and while Bayley was obviously not hurt it the botch itself seemed very real possibly hinting that they decided to focus on it half way through the match, which would be very impressive. With Orton at Summerslam, Zayn last week and now this I have to say that WWE is doing well in working me recently. Bayley ended with the win after Dana’s attempt at distracting the hugger ended up costing Charlotte the match.

• Charlotte slaps Dana backstage

BO DALLAS vs KYLE ROBERTS

This was weird for so many different reasons. Firstly because after the recent Bo Dallas controversy they thought that this was the best time to put Bo back on the show, secondly because of that weird battle poem that Bo recited before the match. Lastly and most importantly, why does Bo Dallas need a squash match? Why him of all people? Bo wins.

• Jericho promises to win his match tonight

SETH ROLLLINS vs CHRIS JERICHO

Another week another good Seth Rollins match, well actually I could change that name to Chris Jericho and it would be just as justifiable. This match was my personal high point of the show as it was a high paced and well worked match between two excellent performers. Seth looked dangerous throughout and as his face turn seems imminent it was no surprise he went over clean. Each of the competitors looked great, especially Rollins who fought with intensity and focus that really sold his current mental state. The use of the pedigree surprised me as I would have assumed he was cutting ties with HHH completely but it was used to send a message here. I wouldn’t be surprised if after the inevitable feud with Haitch he drops it for God’s Last Gift or the Phoenix Splash.

CESARO vs SHEAMUS (BEST OF SEVEN)

Before the next stage of the best of seven series begins we see a video package dedicated to the result of last week’s match, especially focusing on the damage done to Cesaros back, it seems that this damage will play a part in tonight’s contest. Well it did, Cesaro lost handily tonight as Sheamus immediately and precisely targeted the injured back, with this victory it means that Sheamus could wrap the series up on Wednesday in London (WHICH WILL BE ATTENDED BY YOURS TRULY). The only question is whether he will have more tape by then.

• The Shining Stars dare to plug Puerto Rico on Labour Day so they are interrupted by Enzo and Cass who talk smack and then Enzo has a baby. Weirdly I still enjoyed this.

ENZO & CASS vs THE SHINING STARS

The match goes the usual way an Enzo and Cass match does, with Enzo taking a massive beat down and then Big Cass makes his way into the ring with the hot tag to decimate the competition. Look, I love Enzo and Cass but this match formula is beginning to get boring. Let Enzo do something other than getting beaten up all match up. For some odd reason The Shining Stars get the win, even if it was by surprise roll up after a distraction, the decision was a weird one as The Shining Stars have been doing absolutely nothing since the draft.

• In an interview Sami Zayn admits that things haven’t gone his way since his match with Kevin Owens at Battleground, and that he is a little jealous and that KO being champion does affect him. Owens arrives to mock Zayn.

NIA JAX vs ANN ESPOSITO

We find out that Nia Jax’s latest victim is Ann Esposito who is a friend to WWE diva Alicia Fox, though I would not blame you if you forgot Alicia existed. Surprisingly this Ann Esposito actually got some offense in on Nia Jax as she was able to hurt Nia with kicks and then land a choke hold. However eventually Nia was able to put away her competition like she always does.

THIS SEGMENT SUCKED

I’m not going to go in detail about what happened in this segment, The Club came out they brought out a parody of the New Day called the Old Day, then the New Day came out drove off The Club and beat down the Old Day. I think it is more important to go into detail about what the fuck they have done to this feud and to The Club overall. It’s a joke to be honest, they seem to be trying to make Anderson and Gallows look like a new version of DX or something like that but they don’t need to be, how about you make them like the Bullet Club instead? It’s worked before. This feud has become my least favourite part of Raw which really shows the disservice they have done to these teams.

DARREN YOUNG vs JINDER MAHAL

These two guys compete in a nothing match with Titus O’Neil on commentary trying to discredit Darren Young, Bob Backlund and the entire Make Darren Great Again campaign. Darren wins the match with the Gut Check, then Titus comes down to the ring and the two brawled. No one cared.

• Alicia Fox is waiting for her friend Ann Esposito who is being treated by the medics. Outside the medics room Nia Jax shows up then Alicia goes all crazy diva bitch which really takes me back to the butterfly belt era. Fox seems to be Nia Jax’s first real feud.

BRAUN STROWMAN vs SIN CARA

It seems that Braun Strowman is finally allowed some real competition as he faces off against Sin Cara, who vowed to defend his culture and heritage after Strowman disrespected Americo last week. The match, like Nia’s is slightly different as for once Braun’S opponent is able to get some offense in, however Braun ultimately dominated the match. The contest ended in a count out after Braun was dragged Sin Cara out of the ring and smashed him into the barricade. This was a bit clumsy but I actually like that Braun is getting real opponents.

SASHA BANKS RETURNS

Sasha Banks comes out to the ring and he puts over the new Women’s Revolution, Stephanie McMahon and the heroes of the past (as usual WWE change history to suit their narrative), she buries the butterfly belt and also teases a possible retirement. However the swerve was that she was completely okay and she will be back to take her title at Clash of Champions against Charlotte (and possibly Bayley?). I didn’t like this segment just because there was no reason to resort to the fake retirement angle as it was completely unnecessary.

KEVIN OWENS vs SAMI ZAYN

The match between these two at Battleground was a masterpiece and it was painted as the last time in a while we would see the pair of Owens and Zayn face off, so having them be the main event of tonight’s show was a bit surprising but despite that I am okay with this as the matches they put on are always fantastic. This match was slightly different as KO being the champion presented it as a different fight with Sami being more of an underdog than he had ever been before. The match saw the trademark spots from the two including the senton from Owens and the Blue Thunder Bomb from Zayn. Zayn would lose the match partly due to the ankle injury he suffered at the hands of Rollins last week which gave him an excuse but still allowed Owens to look strong.

After this Roman Reigns would make his entrance and scare Kevin Owens from the ring. Before the situation got out of hand GM Mick Foley made his way out to announce that next week if Reigns can beat Owens then he will be added to the main event at Clash of Champions.

FINAL NOTES & SCORE

• Tonight’s MVP: Kevin Owens
• Match of the Night: Rollins vs Jericho
• Moment of the Night: KO Celebration
• I’m disappointed in a no show from HHH but the anticipation is only growing to see what he will do next.

This week’s show was definitely a mixed bag with some great in ring work and terrible promos, the confusion with some of these promos/matches were mind boggling, but the in ring work does save this weeks raw. 6/10

WWE Raw Review: 29.08.2016

Wow, just wow. That ending right? I know, I know the thing everyone wants to talk about is the main event, but patience, we’ll get to that, first, however, I just have to say that this week’s Raw stepped up big time considering what it has been the last few weeks and the show it has been up against.

OPENER

So we open this week with the four contenders in tonight’s main event being interviewed collectively by Corey Graves. It is not long before Graves gets hijacked by Seth Rollins who decides he wants to take over the segment, and soon the other guys decide they want to too. The other members of tonight’s main event also had something to contribute with Kevin Owens being his usual sarcastic self, Big Cass making a great dick joke on Seth and finally Roman Reigns deciding he didn’t need words just action (please keep him silent as much as possible). Overall this was a great segment as not only did it make the prize of the Universal Championship seem important but it also was short and sweet and by the end, I was still very much engaged (unusual for a Raw opening) as was the crowd who were very much a presence tonight.

• Paul Heyman will be here tonight to address the Brock Lesnar situation
• Tom Phillips interviews Chris Jericho and there isn’t much more to say other than this is some of the great back and forth we have seen in previous weeks with Jericho.

JERICHO vs NEVILLE                    

Though this match really had no stakes to get me emotionally invested into the result it was still a great contest between the two. Jericho and Neville had great in ring chemistry and are obviously both great workers. Apparently, Jericho is rumoured to be cutting to under 205lbs which would make him eligible for the Cruiserweight division, which will obviously feature Neville heavily. The match was back and forth with both hitting big spots including Neville’s standing shooting star press and almost landing the Red Arrow but the highlight was from Jericho who went full Liontamer on the man who gravity forgot to pick up the win. Great match even better finish.

• Bayley is handing out hugs backstage when she runs into the New Day who she is thrilled to see. This happiness is returned as she and the tag team champs bond before being rudely interrupted by Dana Brooke. It seems a mixed tag with Bayley and New Day vs Dana and The Club is set up (also watch Big E specifically in this segment. He cracks me up).

NIA JAX vs HYAN

Same deal different day. Nia squashes the competition in the usual fashion and picks up the win. The only question is, who is she being built up for? Bayley? Sasha?

• The Club continue their PSAs which infuriates me. I want the Club to just kick the shit out of people not be comedy acts. Dana Brooke also joined in, but she just looked like an absolute porn star in her outfit.
• Rollins video package

SAMI ZAYN vs JINDER MAHAL

This wasn’t a squash match but it might have well have been. What was the point of having Sami Zayn win his feud with Kevin Owens to the put him in a nothing match at the biggest show of the summer, then have him compete in more nothing matches like this? Zayn wins.

• We get an update from Sasha Banks about her back injury, in which she calls Charlotte a coward.

NEW DAY & BAYLEY vs THE CLUB & DANA BROOKE

It is kind of refreshing to see a mixed tag match as they happen so rarely but with the WWE rules on mixed gender fighting this basically felt like two separate matches happening in the same ring for the majority of the matchup, the corner dropkick from Bayley to Anderson was the notable exception from this. The match was fairly even as both teams got solid hits in and were allowed to work for a decent amount of time. Bayley ended the match with a Bayley to belly suplex, the crowd was crazy for her all match.

• In an interview, Cesaro claims that he will come back from is a loss at Summerslam tonight.
• Kevin Owens video package

BEST OF 7: SHEAMUS vs CESARO

This was another excellent match between the pair, this best of 7 series seems to have been a great idea as it is giving both guys a chance to showcase their skills. During the early parts of the match, Cesaro showed his game plan by going for the quick pinfall. The match was very stiff as both guys took brutal hits none more so than the brutal cloverleaf to finish the match with a Sheamus win.

• Touching Fuji tribute
• Kevin Owens video package

BRAUN STROWMAN vs AMERICO

Braun Strowman once again squashes his opponent instantly. Two good things, first Strowman has seemingly ditched that terrible reverse chokeslam, secondly, Braun showed some character when he removed the Lucha mask showing great disrespect.

STEPH & PAUL

Stephanie comes out to address the controversial ending to Summerslam with Brock Lesnar but before she can really address anything, the advocate himself makes his way out to confront the commissioner. Paul receives the ECW chants which Stephanie brilliantly counters by claiming that she bought the company years ago, however, this just leads to the Punk chants (that wound is somehow still too fresh). Paul claims he is willing to pay the $500 fine, and he brings out 500 single dollar bills and proceeds to count them. The segment ends with some back and forth threats between the two, I am excited to see where this goes.

• Roman Reigns video package

TITUS O’NEIL vs DARREN YOUNG

Ugh. Not this feud again, it actually pains me to have to write about this, especially after the Titus O’Neil promo last week. Like all Titus matches, this is slow and clumsy as Darren Young is not good enough to save it from the mess of a wrestler that is Titus O’Neil. Darren grabs the win using a roll up but after the match, he is ambushed along with Bob Backlund by Titus,

• Foley apologized to Stephanie for not having her back. Rollins arrived and he told both Steph and our GM that he would bring home the gold tonight then he hugs Steph (I SURE HOPE NOTHING HAPPENS TO HIM TONIGHT).
• Stephanie and Mick Foley are ringside for the main event
• Enzo came out with Cass and hyped up the big man. Cass, Owens, and Seth all got pops from this hot crowd. Roman got booed out of the building despite being better tonight.

ROLLINS vs REIGNS vs OWENS vs CASS (WWE UNIVERSAL CHAMPIONSHIP)

So finally onto what we have all been waiting for, the main event for the Universal Championship. Immediately after the bell rings Owens escapes from the ring to chill with the authority figures at ringside. Meanwhile, in the ring the action starts as both Cass and Roman team up on Rollins then we get another tease of a Roman/Cass showdown. The rest of this match was high paced with some great spots. The 4 superstars saw action both inside and outside the ring and looked dangerous at all times. All guys excelled in some way, Big Cass looked like a real threat which helped elevate him to the level of the other guys. Roman and Seth continued to look main event worthy as in ring they were able to control the tempo and finally Kevin Owens’ earlier statements about being a smart fighter proved true. Big Cass was the first to be eliminated after taking a barrage of punishment from the other 3 men.

After this, things got REAL interesting. In the middle of this great match things really couldn’t get much better, you know unless TRIPLE FUCKING H RETURNED! (DICKS OUT FOR HHH BOYS). Amidst the chaos of Roman and Seth struggling HHH takes Roman and gives him a pedigree seemingly paying him back for the loss at Wrestlemania. The COO then hands Seth the pin allowing him to eliminate Roman. So if this crazy shit wasn’t enough when Triple H goes to hand Seth the win against Kevin Owens, HHH turns on The Man and lays him out for KO. WHAT IS HAPPENING? Owens defeats Seth after a pedigree from HHH, and celebrates to a crowd chanting “You deserve it”. As HHH left he stared down Foley and even his wife.

This ending was insane. The transition from Rollins to Owens as HHH’s guy was totally unexpected but felt perfectly natural and the possibilities after this are endless. On youtube after the show, the heartbreak of Seth Rollins can be seen as he is seen talking to a confused Steph. This is definitely setting up a Seth face turn and hopefully, we get a Seth/HHH feud or even a Steph/HHH battle for Raw.

FINAL NOTES & SCORE

• Tonight’s MVP: Kevin Owens
• Match of the Night: Main Event Fatal 4-Way
• Moment of the Night: HHH Return
• Commentary was on point tonight especially the main event
• I pray the stuff with Paul and Stephanie ties into the HHH return. Brock should play a part in this battle as should the entire roster
• Beat that Smackdown

So wow is a fitting word to describe this ending. Nothing could have gotten me more excited than that ending, well maybe a Punk return but other than that this was it for me. The show wasn’t all good, though, there were some noticeable bad parts such as the squash matches, the mixed tag wasn’t great and Titus vs Darren sucked. Overall this show earns an 8/10.

Kevin Owens Your NEW WWE Universal Champion

DAMN!!!

Wow it seems like the WWE has finally got something right. After the inury that forced fan favourite Finn Balor to relinquish the WWE Universal Title moments after winning it, the WWE was in tatters it’s so called planned ‘New Era’ had been derailed.

The WWE was left with a choice do they go back to the Seth Rollins and the Roman Reigns and let them win the vacant title or throw us a curve ball with someone like Big Cass? The writing has been on the wall for Kevin Owens for months now, he has been one of the most consistent and entertaining members on the WWE roster since being called up. I was begging for him to win Money In The Bank but it went to Dean Ambrose who to be honest had quite rightly earned it.

So when Kevin was announced in the fatal four way it was in my eyes a given that he would be the workhorse who would ultimately be screwed out of the title yet again, but no this time was different!

Kevin won, Kevin Owens is your NEW Universal champion. Let that sink in for a minute, the new era is right back on track and I for one am a million times more excited with Kevin at the helm of this rollercoaster than Finn (sorry Finn). Look out WWE fans, if WWE plays this right we’ll have the second coming of Stone Cold if they get it wrong we could end up with a glorified Brooklyn Brawler.

Whatever they decide to go with I for one am damn excited!!!

New Era Train Derailed? Finn Bàlor Relinquished WWE Universal Title On RAW

 

By Daniel Finney

Nature  Boy  Buddy  Rogers,  first WWF World Champion, Pat Patterson   first  WWF  Intercontinental Champion, and now Finn Bàlor.The Demon King ushered in the New Era becoming first WWE Universal Champion. The event was the 29th annual SummerSlam at the Barclay Center in Brooklyn, NY, this past Sunday.  His opponent fellow WWE Superstar, former 2 times WWE World Champion Seth Rollins.

The bar had been set high for Bàlor, when signing to NXT. Living up to that standard, Bàlor became the longest reigning champion there. After losing the NXT Title to Samoa Joe, everyone including Finn Bàlor wondered what was next. His next and final opponent at NXT was none other than Shinsuke Nakamura. After a valiant but losing effort, Bàlor was then drafted 5th overall at the WWE Draft this past July. Being called up to the big show, the brass ring was Bàlor’s for the grasping.

That next week on Raw, Bàlor was trusted into two fatal four way matches to determine a number one contender to face Seth Rollins at SummerSlam.

Bàlor, victorious over Roman Reigns was now headed to SummerSlam to face Rollins for the new WWE Univeral Championship. Fast forwarding this past Sunday, Rollins superiorly confident in his abilities and accomplishments thought Bàlor was just another wrestler. Underestimating Bàlor’s alter ego The Demon King, a deep, dark place Finn goes to take his skill to that next level.

In a grueling back and forth match it was difficult for people to determine who would be victorious. Sequence after sequence of maneuvers it truly came down to a battle of attrition. In the middle of the match, both competitors were outside the ring. In a desperate attempt to finish Bàlor, Rollins relied on one of his signature moves power bombs Bàlor into the barricade. Unbeknownst to the WWE Universe, Bàlor separated his shoulder. With a warrior’s mentality, Bàlor lived up to this warrior’s  code putting it back in place. Enduring on in the match, Bàlor turned perseverance into triumph. After a series of front dropkicks, Bàlor, ascended to the top rope and landing his finisher Coup de Grâce.

Bàlor accomplished the impossible, defeating Stephane McMahons chosen one Seth Rollins. Overcoming all adversity, and silencing the nay- sayers. Finn Bàlor was leading the helm of the WWE. Beginning with an appearance on Good Morning America accompanied with also newly crowned 2x WWE Women’s Champion Charlotte.

The sky was the limit for Bàlor, but unfortunately fate had other plans. Turns out that that shoulder was damaged more than everyone expected. What was thought to be a separated shoulder, MRI showed it to be a torn labrum of the shoulder. With the severity of the injury, Bàlor is required to have surgery to repair the injury. This results in Balor being out of action until early 2017. Devastated, Finn was forced to relinquish the title on this past Monday episode of Raw.  With grace in the middle of the ring Bàlor thanked GM Mick Foley, Commissioner Stephanie McMahon, the WWE Universe, and even Seth Rollins for pushing him to reach his full potential that night.

Handing over the title to Foley then making his exit to the back. In the middle of his walk, Rollin’s theme music comes on. Out comes the cocky self-proclaimed winner of SummerSlam.  Rollins walked into the ring hugging Stephany expecting to be handed the belt. The WWE had other plans, thrusting Rollins into a series of matches ending in a fatal four way next week episode of Raw. The finalist along with Rollins, are Kevin Owens, Big Cass, and Roman Reigns all members of the New Era as well. It’s up in the air will come out victorious, whispers are that Reigns will be “The Guy”. That victory could reopen the feud with Reigns and Rollins for Clash of Champions, Raw’s first PPV.

Or go in a different direction, and Kevin Owens seizing the victory. His feud with Sami Zayn has become legendary in a short time, and the WWE Universe seems enjoy their grudge. There’s the open possibility of a jealousy angle with WWE veteran Chris Jericho, and Owens.  The potentials seem to be high only time will tell. It begins next week on Raw. A new champion will eventually  be crowned.

Is the New Era train derailed, or can the WWE find an alternate route leading them back on track on a destination course to the future with Bàlor conducting the way. For now all we can do is wish him a full speedy recovery.

 

WWE Raw Review: 22.08.2016

Sooooooo…. Summerslam was weird, right? The matches weren’t terrible and there wasn’t a major problem with the results either, but the show was just off in some way. Going into Raw there are some big events that need to be addressed. The ordeal that was the main event, the lack of a US title match and most importantly the Universal Title. The belt may look like trash but my boy Finn Balor ascended to the top of the mountain and has earned his first WWE world championship, let’s pray for a long fruitful reign.

OPENER

Well fuck. The show opens with the announcement that last night Finn Balor injured himself during his match with Seth Rollins. Due to this injury, Finn will be out for 6 months and therefore has to vacate the title. This is fucking terrible news and I am praying Finn gets better ASAP. Balor gives a moving speech announcing that he has to leave but when he comes back he will be back in the hunt for the title. Before the Demon even has the chance to make his way to the back, the herd of challengers make their way into the ring. First Seth Rollins, followed by Zayn, Owens, Jericho, Enzo & Cass, and Roman Reigns. Foley announces a short tournament for the title that will end with a fatal 4 way next week.

SETH ROLLINS vs SAMI ZAYN

Before the rest of the wrestlers were able to make it to the back, Seth decides to ambush Zayn to get the first match of the tournament started. The match went as all the previous Rollins/Zayn matches did, which means it was very good.  Zayn eventually takes a nasty bump on his ankle which looked like a legitimate injury but as it turns out this was a worked spot that completely fooled me. Zayn was almost able to pull off a comeback to grab the win but in the end, a pedigree from Seth was able to seal the deal and made Crossfit Jesus the first man in the finals next week.

KEVIN OWENS vs NEVILLE

Well, we know who is winning this match right? I mean, no offense to Neville but he is far from the main event picture at the moment. Whereas Kevin Owens seems like the next in line for his moment. Despite the predictable outcome, Owens and Neville put on a really great match. Owens worked wonders selling the insane offense of Neville, and despite the unnecessary Jericho involvement the finish worked well as it allowed Neville to look slightly stronger than he would with a clean loss.

• The New Day come down to the ring and discuss their title reign. They celebrate retaining the title to make their reign officially over a year. The club comes down and demands their rematch which they are entitled to as they won the match last night even if it was by DQ. This segment sets up the next match Big E vs Karl Anderson, but honestly… I don’t care. This feud has managed to make what used to be one of the freshest teams feel stale, and weaken the reputation of the Club.

BIG E vs KARL ANDERSON

This was a short pointless match that had no purpose and only made The Club look ridiculous and gave little momentum to the New Day. Most of the action happened outside of the ring with the other members of both respective teams at ringside. Woods and Kingston brawled with Gallows and Big E hit the Big Ending for the win.

• Titus O’Neil delivers one of the worst promos I have ever heard. I mean Jesus Christ this was bad. He stumbled over his words like they were Olympic hurdles and the actual meat of the promo wasn’t anything special to being with. The promo ended with a Titus vs Darren confrontation.

RUSEV vs BIG CASS

Rusev is obviously worse for wear after the events of the previous night with Roman Reigns, which can be seen by the taped up ribs. Throughout the match, Rusev tries to act like his usual bullying self but the injury to his ribs prevents him from doing so. Rusev does a great job of selling the injury to his ribs and the damage done to Rusev obviously impacts his ability to go in the ring. The Bulgarian Brute walks out of the match halfway due to his injuries, meaning that Cass picks up the victory by count out. I feel like this was the right decision as the count out victory does not hurt Rusev too badly and even though he will not win the match, just being involved elevates Cass.

• Tom Phillips interviews JeriKO who as usual make fun of the interviewer and then argue about who will win the title.

CHARLOTTE DOESN’T LIKE HUGS

Fresh off her title win last night Charlotte delivers a promo detailing how she was able to beat Sasha Banks all by herself, without the help of her dad or Dana. Charlotte once again, top of the female division, decides that she is the queen of the WWE roster and tells Sasha that there is no point in her coming back to WWE. As she is about to leave Mick Foley decides to once again get overly involved in women’s wrestling and announce the new signing Raw has made, BAYLEY! The hugger herself has made her way to the main roster finally! Who would have thought that Alexa, Dana, Mojo, American Alpha and Nia Jax would get called up before her? Bayley is her usual babyface self as she hugged  Foley and even stole his cheap pop which made me laugh out loud. Charlotte is furious at this addition to the roster so she decides that Bayley has to make her way through the Women’s division the good ole fashioned way. By wrestling. Foley agrees to this and sets up Dana vs Bayley.  The pop for Bayley was great and her involvement will give the roster a fresh new feel.

BAYLEY vs DANA BROOKE

Bayley vs Dana Brooke was a solid match which is to be expected when you have a great worker vs a not so great worker. The hugger surprisingly had a 50/50 match with Brooke, considering this was her debut I expected her to bury Dana or whoever she would be facing, but it looks like they are committed to this babyface underdog story which is a good choice. Despite Charlotte’s involvement Bayley is able to pick up the win.

• Reigns says he is a big man with a big fist
• Cruiserweights are coming to Raw September 19^th. Excited to see my favourites such as Swann, Alexander, and THE Brian Kendrick.
• The best of 7 series continues next week. Sheamus says Cesaro will fold like New York sports teams (cheap heat).

BRAUN STROWMAN vs GAY RIGHTS

So we see the latest victim of Braun ‘I piss my pants’ Strowman, who is in an interview with Byron Saxton. His reasoning for fighting Braun is that he likes big sweaty men….. Is this the LGBT stories we had been told to expect? I can’t say I am surprised. Obviously, Strowman wins.

DUDLEYZ SAY GOODBYE

The Dudleyz come out to the ring in their hometown of Brooklyn, New York to say their goodbyes. I was certain that we would be seeing a Bubba heel turn on D-Von (come on Reverend D-Von I need you). However, it seems that the teasing we have been getting over the last few weeks will have no payoff. The Dudleyz go through their career bringing up the famed TLC match and their opponents like Edge and Christian and The Hardys (DELETE). The Club come out and they attack the retiring legends, earning the Club some cheap heat and possibly setting up a final match for the Dudleyz at Clash of Champions?

ROMAN REIGNS vs CHRIS JERICHO

This matchup has a rocky first half. The match seemed like it was just going through the motions from spot to spot. Nothing was visibly impressive despite both men being good in the ring (Jericho especially is an all-time great). Y2J played the part of an over cocky heel who really had no reason to be while Roman played the part of a dominating beast, beating down Jericho and hitting big moves. Kevin Owens arrives to help out his pal Chris but while he is able to hit the Samoan Badass with a superkick he is ultimately unsuccessful at securing the win for Jericho as Roman is able to get the W after taking out Owens and hitting Y2J with a spear.

FINAL NOTES AND SCORE

• Tonight’s MVP: Kevin Owens
• Match of the Night: Zayn vs Rollins
• Moment of the Night: Bayley debut
• So the title 4 way next week is Owens vs Reigns vs Rollins vs Cass. My prediction now is Owens to win and for us to get Reigns vs Owens up until Survivor Series.
• Finn you will be missed, I pray for a Demon return at the Rumble.
• The Club needs to be given wins soon, they are quickly becoming a joke.

So this Raw was once again weaker than its blue counterpart, but it wasn’t as bad as last week’s go home show. Good matches that actually meant something saved this Raw earning a 6/10.