Sara Del Rey vs. Hailey Hatred - JAPW Women's Championship Falls Count Anywhere Match - JAPW Wild Card 6 - 8
The gimmick of this event was that all the champions defended their titles against mystery opponents. A card chock full of quality stuff this really stood out to me as one of the best American women's matches in recent memory and the best female action I've seen period in the last few months save for Manami Toyota & Sakie Hasegawa vs. Kyoko Inoue & Takako Inoue. They brawled all over the crowd and a meandering crowd brawl can be death but I was really suckered into this one. Del Rey was just brutalizing Hailey and that was the ongoing theme. How much could Hatred endure? And, would it end up costing SDR if she kept refusing to put her away to administer more punishment? I can't really express enough how brutal Del Rey was dishing out the colossal ass beat. I hope she can bring at least a quarter of that intensity into the WWE ring with her. There's all sorts of nutty spots in this but four stick out offhand a day or two after screening this a second time: SDR hitting HH with some mark's DVD he just bought off a vendor, so funny seeing the disc fly out and slide under a bleacher and this middle-aged virgin diving to retrieve it and dusting it, then there was something sort of resembling an X Factor by SDR while standing on one of those cheap plastic folding tables that of course collapsed awkwardly, then one of the nastiest, SDR is on her knees and Hatred just drops this enormous wood table right on her skull and that crack is sickening and its clear SDR had her brains rattled as she still clutches her brains post-match, and lastly, my favorite moment, there were these long, like maybe 20ft. rolled up amateur wrestling mats, and they were tiptoeing across them like it was a rickety foot bridge in an adventure flick, and you're thinking, "What could they possibly do on those?", when all of a sudden SDR hooks Hailey and gives her a boss German suplex! Anyhow, I love a captivating brawl that's unpredictable, wild, and brings it and this covered all those bases and more. Sort of sloppy like you'd expect two chicks blasting each other in the face for fifteen minutes to be in a bar parking lot and the viciousness of SDR was tantalizing.
Friday, July 27, 2012
Monday, July 23, 2012
WWE Raw 7/23/12: The 1000th Episode
I’ve been on a bit of a hiatus recently but I have returned and what better way to start back up than with a look at the most pimped Raw in a long, long time, the 1000th episode. To quote LL Cool J “Don’t call it a come back / I’ve been here for years”. Time to throw down!
1) Rey Mysterio, Sin Cara, & Sheamus vs. Chris Jericho, Dolph Ziggler, & Alberto Del Rio – 4
2) Brodus Clay vs. Jack Swagger – 0
3) Intercontinental Title: Christian vs. The Miz – 4
4) Heath Slater vs. Lita – No DQ, No Count Out Match – 1
5) WWE Title: John Cena vs. C.M. Punk – 2
Show started off with a new intro, new graphics, and a new stage with I must admit gives a nice fresh look to the show instead of the old tired graphics and set they’ve used for every show since the HD conversion over four years ago. Speaking of old and tired, hey look, it’s the DX reunion and of course they did the same old schtick with Shawn, Trips, and even bringing back Road Dogg, Billy Gunn, and X-Pac. Wasn’t a big fan of it when Shawn and Trips did it six years ago, and not a fan of it now.
I really liked the teams in the six man tag and having Rey and Sin Cara on the same team is a nice idea. I’d like to see them team up on a regular basis as it might give Sin Cara a nice rub. This was Rey’s second match back and he’s still wrestling in the shirt. I guess that’s his new look or not sure if he was wearing the shirt to possibly hide the fact he put on a bit of a gut while off. Story on the heel team was between Jericho and Ziggler who had an altercation the week previous. The match itself didn’t seem to me like it was really getting any steam behind it and probably could have benefited from a few more minutes to help boost up the score. Finishing sequence with Jericho and Sheamus was pretty good and having Ziggler cost Jericho is a nice way to help further the program. One can hope this is the start of a Ziggler face turn but probably not.
Next match went all of maybe 30 seconds and ended with a big Brodus splash. Damn it must suck to be Jack Swagger these days. I should note that by this point it was nearly 45 minutes into the show and we’ve had basically one and a half matches scattered throughout lots of filler.
Top of the hour now and the next 30 minutes was spent with the Daniel Bryan/A.J. wedding and then the follow up with A.J. being named Raw General Manager, which I might add was barely spoken of again during the show, and then Rock coming down after the whole mess and announcing he’s getting a random title match at Royal Rumble and then Rock Bottoming Daniel Bryan.
Finally another match and it’s for the IC Title. I like Miz’s new hair cut as the faux-hawk just looked ridiculous on a grown man. Plus, I can take him somewhat seriously as really, how can you think someone walking around sporting a faux-hawk is tough? I mean, really? Christian was good here and I like how he kept selling the knee on defense after a wild dive over the ringpost. One little tendency of Christian’s I haven’t liked since his comeback is that he stops and stars clapping randomly to try to get the crowd into it. I feel it takes away a bit from the actual competiton. Nice to see Miz win the title clean and here’s hoping he can have a nice good run with it. Match of the night honors here.
Last two bouts were all story as Heath Slater, or Wendy as my wife likes to call him, gets killed by most of the legends. Match only gets a point for the sick Clothesline from Hell he took from JBL. Lita’s moonsault was nearly perfect. Main event time, and it’s John Cena cashing in the Money in the Bank briefcase. I liked where this was going with the even exchanges during the first five minutes and these two having the beginning of a nice, well worked match. However, the ref bump and the DQ finish completely ruined this. The one saving grace was the big Punk turn with him giving Rock a sick GTS. Overall, not exactly what I expected from the 1000th Raw as I was hoping for less angles and more wrestling.
1) Rey Mysterio, Sin Cara, & Sheamus vs. Chris Jericho, Dolph Ziggler, & Alberto Del Rio – 4
2) Brodus Clay vs. Jack Swagger – 0
3) Intercontinental Title: Christian vs. The Miz – 4
4) Heath Slater vs. Lita – No DQ, No Count Out Match – 1
5) WWE Title: John Cena vs. C.M. Punk – 2
Show started off with a new intro, new graphics, and a new stage with I must admit gives a nice fresh look to the show instead of the old tired graphics and set they’ve used for every show since the HD conversion over four years ago. Speaking of old and tired, hey look, it’s the DX reunion and of course they did the same old schtick with Shawn, Trips, and even bringing back Road Dogg, Billy Gunn, and X-Pac. Wasn’t a big fan of it when Shawn and Trips did it six years ago, and not a fan of it now.
I really liked the teams in the six man tag and having Rey and Sin Cara on the same team is a nice idea. I’d like to see them team up on a regular basis as it might give Sin Cara a nice rub. This was Rey’s second match back and he’s still wrestling in the shirt. I guess that’s his new look or not sure if he was wearing the shirt to possibly hide the fact he put on a bit of a gut while off. Story on the heel team was between Jericho and Ziggler who had an altercation the week previous. The match itself didn’t seem to me like it was really getting any steam behind it and probably could have benefited from a few more minutes to help boost up the score. Finishing sequence with Jericho and Sheamus was pretty good and having Ziggler cost Jericho is a nice way to help further the program. One can hope this is the start of a Ziggler face turn but probably not.
Next match went all of maybe 30 seconds and ended with a big Brodus splash. Damn it must suck to be Jack Swagger these days. I should note that by this point it was nearly 45 minutes into the show and we’ve had basically one and a half matches scattered throughout lots of filler.
Top of the hour now and the next 30 minutes was spent with the Daniel Bryan/A.J. wedding and then the follow up with A.J. being named Raw General Manager, which I might add was barely spoken of again during the show, and then Rock coming down after the whole mess and announcing he’s getting a random title match at Royal Rumble and then Rock Bottoming Daniel Bryan.
Finally another match and it’s for the IC Title. I like Miz’s new hair cut as the faux-hawk just looked ridiculous on a grown man. Plus, I can take him somewhat seriously as really, how can you think someone walking around sporting a faux-hawk is tough? I mean, really? Christian was good here and I like how he kept selling the knee on defense after a wild dive over the ringpost. One little tendency of Christian’s I haven’t liked since his comeback is that he stops and stars clapping randomly to try to get the crowd into it. I feel it takes away a bit from the actual competiton. Nice to see Miz win the title clean and here’s hoping he can have a nice good run with it. Match of the night honors here.
Last two bouts were all story as Heath Slater, or Wendy as my wife likes to call him, gets killed by most of the legends. Match only gets a point for the sick Clothesline from Hell he took from JBL. Lita’s moonsault was nearly perfect. Main event time, and it’s John Cena cashing in the Money in the Bank briefcase. I liked where this was going with the even exchanges during the first five minutes and these two having the beginning of a nice, well worked match. However, the ref bump and the DQ finish completely ruined this. The one saving grace was the big Punk turn with him giving Rock a sick GTS. Overall, not exactly what I expected from the 1000th Raw as I was hoping for less angles and more wrestling.
Sunday, July 22, 2012
Night of the Living Judoka
UFC 149: Faber vs. Barao
Preliminary Card (Facebook)
1. Anton Kuivanen vs. Mitch Clarke - 5
2. Antonio Carvalho vs. Daniel Pineda - 6
Preliminary Card (FX)
3. Bryan Caraway vs. Mitch Gagnon - 5
4. Ryan Jimmo vs. Anthony Perosh - 9
5. Francisco Rivera vs. Roland Delorme - 7
6. Nick Ring vs. Court McGee - 3
Main Card (PPV)
7. Matthew Riddle vs. Chris Clements - 6
8. James Head vs. Brian Ebersole - 4
9. Cheick Kongo vs. Shawn Jordan - 2
10. Tim Boetsch vs. Hector Lombard - 3
11. Interim UFC Bantamweight Championship: Renan Barao vs. Urijah Faber - 5
Preliminary Card (Facebook)
1. Anton Kuivanen vs. Mitch Clarke - 5
2. Antonio Carvalho vs. Daniel Pineda - 6
Preliminary Card (FX)
3. Bryan Caraway vs. Mitch Gagnon - 5
4. Ryan Jimmo vs. Anthony Perosh - 9
5. Francisco Rivera vs. Roland Delorme - 7
6. Nick Ring vs. Court McGee - 3
Main Card (PPV)
7. Matthew Riddle vs. Chris Clements - 6
8. James Head vs. Brian Ebersole - 4
9. Cheick Kongo vs. Shawn Jordan - 2
10. Tim Boetsch vs. Hector Lombard - 3
11. Interim UFC Bantamweight Championship: Renan Barao vs. Urijah Faber - 5
Wednesday, July 18, 2012
How Will I Know If He Really Shoves Me?
Week in review, bitches!
UFC on Fuel TV: Munoz vs. Weidman 7/11/12
Preliminary Card
1. Raphael Assunção vs. Issei Tamura - 5
2. Marcelo Guimaraes vs. Dan Stittgen - 2
3. Andrew Craig vs. Rafael Natal - 6
4. Chris Cariaso vs. Josh Ferguson - 4
5. Alex Caceres vs. Damacio Page - 5
Main Card
6. Rafael dos Anjos vs. Anthony Njokuani - 4
7. T.J. Dillashaw vs. Vaughan Lee - 5
8. Francis Carmont vs. Karlos Vemola - 6
9. Aaron Simpson vs. Kenny Robertson - 4
10. James Te-Huna vs. Joey Beltran - 7
11. Chris Weidman vs. Mark Muñoz - 7
WWE Money in the Bank 2012 7/15/12
1. Pre-Show Match: Kofi Kingston and R-Truth vs. Hunico and Camacho - 3
2. Dolph Ziggler vs. Sin Cara vs. Santino Marella vs. Christian vs. Damien Sandow vs. Tensai vs. Cody Rhodes vs. Tyson Kidd - Money in the Bank Ladder Match - 7
3. World Heavyweight Championship: Sheamus vs. Alberto Del Rio - 5
4. Primo and Epico vs. Prime Time Players - 3
5. WWE Championship: CM Punk vs. Daniel Bryan - No DQ Match - 7
6. Ryback vs. Tyler Reks and Curt Hawkins – 2
7. Layla, Tamina and Kaitlyn vs. Beth Phoenix, Natalya, and Eve Torres - 3
8. John Cena vs. The Miz vs. Chris Jericho vs. Big Show vs. Kane - Money in the Bank Ladder Match - 5
Strikeforce: Rockhold vs. Kennedy 7/14/12
Preliminary Card
1. Jordan Mein vs. Tyler Stinson - 5
2. Jorge Masvidal vs. Justin Wilcox - 5
3. Ryan Couture vs. Joe Duarte - 4
4. Pat Healy vs. Mizuto Hirota - 5
Main Card
5. Robbie Lawler vs. Lorenz Larkin - 6
6. Keith Jardine vs. Roger Gracie - 3
7. Welterweight Championship: Nate Marquardt vs. Tyron Woodley - 7
8. Middleweight Championship: Luke Rockhold vs. Tim Kennedy - 5
WWE Raw 7/16/12
1. Kofi Kingston and R-Truth vs. Prime Time Players - 3
2. Alberto Del Rio vs. Zach Ryder – 2
3. Rikishi vs. Heath Slater – 2
4. AJ and Daniel Bryan vs. Eve Torres and The Miz – 2
5. Brodus Clay vs. JTG – 2
6. CM Punk vs. Big Show - 4
UFC on Fuel TV: Munoz vs. Weidman 7/11/12
Preliminary Card
1. Raphael Assunção vs. Issei Tamura - 5
2. Marcelo Guimaraes vs. Dan Stittgen - 2
3. Andrew Craig vs. Rafael Natal - 6
4. Chris Cariaso vs. Josh Ferguson - 4
5. Alex Caceres vs. Damacio Page - 5
Main Card
6. Rafael dos Anjos vs. Anthony Njokuani - 4
7. T.J. Dillashaw vs. Vaughan Lee - 5
8. Francis Carmont vs. Karlos Vemola - 6
9. Aaron Simpson vs. Kenny Robertson - 4
10. James Te-Huna vs. Joey Beltran - 7
11. Chris Weidman vs. Mark Muñoz - 7
WWE Money in the Bank 2012 7/15/12
1. Pre-Show Match: Kofi Kingston and R-Truth vs. Hunico and Camacho - 3
2. Dolph Ziggler vs. Sin Cara vs. Santino Marella vs. Christian vs. Damien Sandow vs. Tensai vs. Cody Rhodes vs. Tyson Kidd - Money in the Bank Ladder Match - 7
3. World Heavyweight Championship: Sheamus vs. Alberto Del Rio - 5
4. Primo and Epico vs. Prime Time Players - 3
5. WWE Championship: CM Punk vs. Daniel Bryan - No DQ Match - 7
6. Ryback vs. Tyler Reks and Curt Hawkins – 2
7. Layla, Tamina and Kaitlyn vs. Beth Phoenix, Natalya, and Eve Torres - 3
8. John Cena vs. The Miz vs. Chris Jericho vs. Big Show vs. Kane - Money in the Bank Ladder Match - 5
Strikeforce: Rockhold vs. Kennedy 7/14/12
Preliminary Card
1. Jordan Mein vs. Tyler Stinson - 5
2. Jorge Masvidal vs. Justin Wilcox - 5
3. Ryan Couture vs. Joe Duarte - 4
4. Pat Healy vs. Mizuto Hirota - 5
Main Card
5. Robbie Lawler vs. Lorenz Larkin - 6
6. Keith Jardine vs. Roger Gracie - 3
7. Welterweight Championship: Nate Marquardt vs. Tyron Woodley - 7
8. Middleweight Championship: Luke Rockhold vs. Tim Kennedy - 5
WWE Raw 7/16/12
1. Kofi Kingston and R-Truth vs. Prime Time Players - 3
2. Alberto Del Rio vs. Zach Ryder – 2
3. Rikishi vs. Heath Slater – 2
4. AJ and Daniel Bryan vs. Eve Torres and The Miz – 2
5. Brodus Clay vs. JTG – 2
6. CM Punk vs. Big Show - 4
Sunday, July 8, 2012
Great Muta vs. Brian Adams
Great Muta vs. Brian Adams - WCW Worldwide 8/12/00 - 4
I forgot they eventually filmed WorldWide outside of the studios and in arenas as this appears to be before a Thunder show. Muta dropkick looked labored. Adams looked like an idiot going for a pin after a gut buster while GM was practically tied in the ropes. Muta has some real bed head here. The "Professor" Tenay says he's unaware of there being any significance to the different colors of mist. Wrong! I loved the cartwheel>handspring>back elbow trademark spot being countered into a full-nelson slam by BA. Brian drops the straps a la Bret or Lawler and shows rare fire. Adams gets a face full of green mist mid-chokeslam and rolled up for a loss. For a Saturday morning syndicated show this was a pretty tasty main and almost a fleshed out enough match to earn a "5" but just shy.
Friday, July 6, 2012
WWE Superstars - 05/10/12
1- Ezekiel Jackson v. Drew McIntyre- 3
Zeke looks infinitely older now with his new look; like he could have been a walkon role as Cliff’s brother on the Cosby Show back in the day. Drew’s got disdain all over his face and I’m sure it’s not hard to fake; He’s taking the brunt of the punishment but still leading the match. Zeke doesn’t seem capable of making anything look good in this even the usually brutal Future Shock
2- Natalya v. Alicia Fox – 4
Enjoyed this, may have even bumped it up if not for Alicia totally blowing the setup for the fin by jumping in the air like she was about to hit a slip and slide. But these women didn’t shy away from a stiff slap or bump. So cosmically dug Alicia’s bridging Northern Lights
3- Tyson Kidd v. Hunico – 6
If this match had happened in the 90’s on a Raw, these two would start getting a push. Both men pushed it, both men sold and were selling the whole time, their pain and anguish mover missing big moves, lots of innovative stuff being thrown out, some interesting near falls, I just dug the hell out of this
4- Zach Ryder/ Santino v. Curt Hawkins/ Tyler Reks – 3
Interesting seeing Zach and Curt start off since they were former partners; not good, just interesting. Reks seems really confident, not something I’d expect while it looks like Hawkins has developed a popcorn addiction. I was rather hoping we’d see a Santino beatdown but good call, he’s much more fun as the comeback babyface even if Zach is playing it up really well. Match moved along fine, had an old school layout to it and the fans were always into this.
Zeke looks infinitely older now with his new look; like he could have been a walkon role as Cliff’s brother on the Cosby Show back in the day. Drew’s got disdain all over his face and I’m sure it’s not hard to fake; He’s taking the brunt of the punishment but still leading the match. Zeke doesn’t seem capable of making anything look good in this even the usually brutal Future Shock
2- Natalya v. Alicia Fox – 4
Enjoyed this, may have even bumped it up if not for Alicia totally blowing the setup for the fin by jumping in the air like she was about to hit a slip and slide. But these women didn’t shy away from a stiff slap or bump. So cosmically dug Alicia’s bridging Northern Lights
3- Tyson Kidd v. Hunico – 6
If this match had happened in the 90’s on a Raw, these two would start getting a push. Both men pushed it, both men sold and were selling the whole time, their pain and anguish mover missing big moves, lots of innovative stuff being thrown out, some interesting near falls, I just dug the hell out of this
4- Zach Ryder/ Santino v. Curt Hawkins/ Tyler Reks – 3
Interesting seeing Zach and Curt start off since they were former partners; not good, just interesting. Reks seems really confident, not something I’d expect while it looks like Hawkins has developed a popcorn addiction. I was rather hoping we’d see a Santino beatdown but good call, he’s much more fun as the comeback babyface even if Zach is playing it up really well. Match moved along fine, had an old school layout to it and the fans were always into this.
Thursday, July 5, 2012
WWE Great American Bash '12
I was always a big Great American Bash fan growing up (although to be fair I preferred Bash at the Beach since it always took place in July the month of my birthday) and to this day believe Great American Bash '90 is arguably the best PPV event of all-time. So, when I heard they were bringing GAB back, albeit as a special edition of SmackDown! I figured I'd give this latest incarnation an analysis.
WWE SmackDown! 7/3/12
1. Great Khali and Layla vs. Aksana and Antonio Cesaro - 2
2. Money in the Bank Qualifier: Cody Rhodes vs. Christian - 4
3. Money in the Bank Qualifier: Alex Riley vs. Dolph Ziggler - 3
4. Santino Marella, Sgt. Slaughter, and Jim Duggan vs. Hunico, Camacho, and Drew McIntyre - 2
5. Curt Hawkins vs. Ryback - 1
6. Battle Royal: Alberto Del Rio, Kane, Jack Swagger, John Cena, Heath Slater, Daniel Bryan, CM Punk, Big Show, Great Khali, Brodus Clay, Damien Sandow, Tensai, Ezekiel Jackson, Justin Gabriel, Dolph Ziggler, Kofi Kingston, Zach Ryder, Santino Marella, Cody Rhodes, and Christian - 5
The Alberto Del Rio/Shaemus opening segment/brawl was quite stiff with some good action out on the ramp and floor. Opener was shot but fun while it lasted. Cesaro isn't used to being outsized but did a good job of taking out Khali's base. Layla's offensive burst looked surprisingly good -- I especially dug the little double-hop springboard crossbody spot. Good that Aksana, essentially a non-wrestler, took the fall. Rhodes and Christian came off slightly better then their PPV bout with Cody focusing on the arm with some nasty stuff. I'm in the minority but prefer Christian as a heel (although won't argue his face fun in ECW was perhaps his best). Cody took a move out of the Ray Traylor playbook (Guardian Angel fans represent!). I dig Rhodes still doing an homage to former short-lived partner Bob Holly. Sort of mystifying booking, Christian already had a spot in MitB, and is Intercontinental champion, and put Rhodes over clean via the Cross Rhodes further diminishing that championship. No problem with Rhodes getting the spot but would have put him over Yoshi Tatsu or somebody.
Killer dropkick by Riley to start. Ziggler is really one of the hottest acts in the business even though their booking hasn't done him any favors. They got a decent nearfall out of a roll-up out of the corner by Alex I bit on but Ziggler won in short order with the Zig Zag. Short, fast-paced and MitB is shaping up! More AJ/Daniel Bryan/CM Punk story progression which while eating up a lot of TV time lately has been a fun ride and destroys TNA's big AJ Styles/Dixie prolonged soap opera dead in the water. AJ having an uncomfortably extended make out session with both Punk and Bryan in one segment was more worthy of a "Holy shit!" chant than the life-shortening bumps I saw Ron Mathis take at the last HWA show I attended in hopes of redefining himself as "hardcore". WWE is really squandering Drew's talent. I dig me some Camacho too. I want to read Duggan's book. Match didn't even break 3 minutes but Duggan had a nice clothesline and Camacho did some moderately good selling of his arm after Slaughter manipulated it.
The show had goofy "party" bits throughout with everyone backstage holding plastic cups, dancing, etc. only noteworthy for some of the divas like Kaitlyn and Alicia Fox looking stunning in bikinis and Eve getting doused by the fruit punch while in the background Derrick Batemen did a dance like one of the kids from A Charlie Brown Christmas. Nice to see Reks and Hawkins' got matching wardrobes (the lime green really pops in HD). Feed Ryback? I know what I'd like to feed him. A foot-long -- and I'm not talking about a chili dog. It's a personal pet peeve but that tic Ryback has where he nods his head to his shitty ring music post-match irks the hell out of me. Battle royal will be truncated as they show a ton of entrances and the TV time remaining keeps dwindling. Brodus takes a laughably slow motion bump out. My eyes immediately gravitate toward Sandow -- guy's got the goods! Winner gets to be GM next week: would you tune into an Ezekiel ran Raw? Nice to see Santino unceremoniously tossed. Big Show's double elimination of Kingston and Rhodes was pretty great stuff. Punk and Daniel are pasting each other in the face. Cena takes a big bump for a Kane chokeslam. What an odd case Tensai has been, coming into the company beating both Cena and Punk, then earlier this week losing to Tyson Kidd in twenty seconds. Christian took a nutty bump as Big Show dropped him from up high and he landed shins-first on the floor. Broski Boot won't make you forget Ohtani. Ryder wins! You know it!
WWE SmackDown! 7/3/12
1. Great Khali and Layla vs. Aksana and Antonio Cesaro - 2
2. Money in the Bank Qualifier: Cody Rhodes vs. Christian - 4
3. Money in the Bank Qualifier: Alex Riley vs. Dolph Ziggler - 3
4. Santino Marella, Sgt. Slaughter, and Jim Duggan vs. Hunico, Camacho, and Drew McIntyre - 2
5. Curt Hawkins vs. Ryback - 1
6. Battle Royal: Alberto Del Rio, Kane, Jack Swagger, John Cena, Heath Slater, Daniel Bryan, CM Punk, Big Show, Great Khali, Brodus Clay, Damien Sandow, Tensai, Ezekiel Jackson, Justin Gabriel, Dolph Ziggler, Kofi Kingston, Zach Ryder, Santino Marella, Cody Rhodes, and Christian - 5
The Alberto Del Rio/Shaemus opening segment/brawl was quite stiff with some good action out on the ramp and floor. Opener was shot but fun while it lasted. Cesaro isn't used to being outsized but did a good job of taking out Khali's base. Layla's offensive burst looked surprisingly good -- I especially dug the little double-hop springboard crossbody spot. Good that Aksana, essentially a non-wrestler, took the fall. Rhodes and Christian came off slightly better then their PPV bout with Cody focusing on the arm with some nasty stuff. I'm in the minority but prefer Christian as a heel (although won't argue his face fun in ECW was perhaps his best). Cody took a move out of the Ray Traylor playbook (Guardian Angel fans represent!). I dig Rhodes still doing an homage to former short-lived partner Bob Holly. Sort of mystifying booking, Christian already had a spot in MitB, and is Intercontinental champion, and put Rhodes over clean via the Cross Rhodes further diminishing that championship. No problem with Rhodes getting the spot but would have put him over Yoshi Tatsu or somebody.
Killer dropkick by Riley to start. Ziggler is really one of the hottest acts in the business even though their booking hasn't done him any favors. They got a decent nearfall out of a roll-up out of the corner by Alex I bit on but Ziggler won in short order with the Zig Zag. Short, fast-paced and MitB is shaping up! More AJ/Daniel Bryan/CM Punk story progression which while eating up a lot of TV time lately has been a fun ride and destroys TNA's big AJ Styles/Dixie prolonged soap opera dead in the water. AJ having an uncomfortably extended make out session with both Punk and Bryan in one segment was more worthy of a "Holy shit!" chant than the life-shortening bumps I saw Ron Mathis take at the last HWA show I attended in hopes of redefining himself as "hardcore". WWE is really squandering Drew's talent. I dig me some Camacho too. I want to read Duggan's book. Match didn't even break 3 minutes but Duggan had a nice clothesline and Camacho did some moderately good selling of his arm after Slaughter manipulated it.
The show had goofy "party" bits throughout with everyone backstage holding plastic cups, dancing, etc. only noteworthy for some of the divas like Kaitlyn and Alicia Fox looking stunning in bikinis and Eve getting doused by the fruit punch while in the background Derrick Batemen did a dance like one of the kids from A Charlie Brown Christmas. Nice to see Reks and Hawkins' got matching wardrobes (the lime green really pops in HD). Feed Ryback? I know what I'd like to feed him. A foot-long -- and I'm not talking about a chili dog. It's a personal pet peeve but that tic Ryback has where he nods his head to his shitty ring music post-match irks the hell out of me. Battle royal will be truncated as they show a ton of entrances and the TV time remaining keeps dwindling. Brodus takes a laughably slow motion bump out. My eyes immediately gravitate toward Sandow -- guy's got the goods! Winner gets to be GM next week: would you tune into an Ezekiel ran Raw? Nice to see Santino unceremoniously tossed. Big Show's double elimination of Kingston and Rhodes was pretty great stuff. Punk and Daniel are pasting each other in the face. Cena takes a big bump for a Kane chokeslam. What an odd case Tensai has been, coming into the company beating both Cena and Punk, then earlier this week losing to Tyson Kidd in twenty seconds. Christian took a nutty bump as Big Show dropped him from up high and he landed shins-first on the floor. Broski Boot won't make you forget Ohtani. Ryder wins! You know it!
Tuesday, July 3, 2012
ROH Wrestling - 04/28/2012
1- Caprice Coleman/ Cedric Alexander v. Briscoe Brothers – 2
God, Caprice looked like shit here, the fakest reactions to the Briscoes piecing him up, you could see him in his head trying to remember his next flurry; I liked Cedric a bit more, seemed to have a better look, more fire, but someone should tell him he looks weak firing off 7 moves in 4 seconds and not doing a bit of damage to Jay. WGTT came out to bully Mark and I miss when his karate stuff was comedy and not just another spot. Just like Assassin’s Creed part 3, I’m not buying this finish either
2- Rhino v. Vinny Marseglio – 1
Old school squash style, ROH doesn’t do a lot of these and glad they didn’t’ go the WWE route and tarnish one of their own, brought in a local dude that had Oliver Queen green pants, bird wings and a thirteen year old Mexican Girls’ hair
3 – Roderick Strong v. Adam Cole – 4
Strong, ever the Tin Man, no heart, just showing absolutely no emotion whatsoever, something he should have picked up by now. Cole came off as really good plucky babyface though; both guys threw a lot of jumping kicks, not a lot landed flush/ They picked it up at the end, with both guys kind of throwing everything at the other, some good near falls and Roderick’s fin was fan-fucking-tastic, not something you can do to everyone but if you have the chance to pull it out, go for it.
God, Caprice looked like shit here, the fakest reactions to the Briscoes piecing him up, you could see him in his head trying to remember his next flurry; I liked Cedric a bit more, seemed to have a better look, more fire, but someone should tell him he looks weak firing off 7 moves in 4 seconds and not doing a bit of damage to Jay. WGTT came out to bully Mark and I miss when his karate stuff was comedy and not just another spot. Just like Assassin’s Creed part 3, I’m not buying this finish either
2- Rhino v. Vinny Marseglio – 1
Old school squash style, ROH doesn’t do a lot of these and glad they didn’t’ go the WWE route and tarnish one of their own, brought in a local dude that had Oliver Queen green pants, bird wings and a thirteen year old Mexican Girls’ hair
3 – Roderick Strong v. Adam Cole – 4
Strong, ever the Tin Man, no heart, just showing absolutely no emotion whatsoever, something he should have picked up by now. Cole came off as really good plucky babyface though; both guys threw a lot of jumping kicks, not a lot landed flush/ They picked it up at the end, with both guys kind of throwing everything at the other, some good near falls and Roderick’s fin was fan-fucking-tastic, not something you can do to everyone but if you have the chance to pull it out, go for it.
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