Chris' Columns
10/5/09
ECW for 5/12/09
Tonight on ECW, Jack Swagger will be Christian's guest on The Peep Show before they face off this Sunday at Judgement Day.
We start in the back with Christian and Jack Swagger in Tiffany's office. She says that no subjects are off limits for The Peep Show but she does not want anything to interfere with their match on Sunday. If either of them touches the other there will be consequences.
Our first match is Mark Henry vs Tommy Dreamer. They lock up and Henry pushes him to the corner, ref breaks it up and Henry gives him a hip toss. Dreamer gets up and hits Henry then goes for an Irish whip but Henry blocks and throws Dreamer out of the ring. Dreamer gets up and pulls Henry's arm over the top rope then gets in the ring and starts to his hit Henry's shoulder. Henry regains control by knocking Dreamer down and then stepping on his chest. Henry whips Dreamer to the corner and takes to long to follow up, he runs in then gets a big boot. Henry gets Dreamer in a bear hug, Dreamer fights his way out but Henry knocks him down again. Henry goes for an elbow drop but Dreamer moves and follows up with a dropkick to Henry while he's still trying to get up. Dreamer puts Henry in the corner and comes in for another dropkick, Dreamer tries for a pin but Henry gets his leg on the bottom rope. Tony Atlas distracts Dreamer, Dreamer turns around tries to roll Henry up from behind but Henry just sits on him. Henry picks him up and hits the The World's Strongest Slam then covers him for the win. Pretty much what you have come to expect from these two. There was nothing really special that stood out but we're probably lucky it wasn't a mess.
Gregory Helms is in the back with Nattie and Tyson Kidd. Tyson says he's ready for Finlay because he was trained in the Hart Dungeon so he knows about fighting. Helms tries to get Nattie to stay and watch in the back with him but she shoots him down.
Finlay vs Tyson Kidd is next. They lock up and Finlay takes him down with a side headlock. They get up and Tyson sends Finlay to the ropes but Finlay uses his shoulder to knock Tyson down and tries for a pin but Tyson kicks out. Finlay elbows him in the face but Tyson manages to get a hold of his leg and turn it into some kind of standing figure four. Finaly gets out and Tyson gets him to the outside. Tyson dropkicks him into the steps as we go to commercial. We're back and Tyson is stretching Finlay's left arm. Finlay keeps to try to fight but Tyson continues to work the arm. Finlay finally gets out and hits Tyson with a series of clotheslines. Finlay picks Tyson up for the Celtic Cross but D.H. Smith runs in and gives Finlay the big boot. Tyson gets disqualified as they double team him. Smith picks him up and they perform the Hart Attack. Matt Striker is now calling him David Hart Smith so I guess that's what he'll be going by now. Nattie comes out and they all celebrate in the ring as we go to commercial. This was a really good match and The New Hart Foundation could be very promising. ECW doesn't really have any tag teams but since when does the draft matter? David Smith looks a lot bigger than I remember but then again that was like 18 months and a suspension ago. He'll do fine in the Jim Neidhart role and Tyson may not be a technical wonder that Bret Hart was but he is a very good high flyer.
Zack Ryder is in Tiffany's office begging for her to let him go to the gym since he's not wrestling. She lets him go as Paul and Katie Burchill come in. He says that he doesn't have a match tonight and would like for that to change. Tiffany says no and he leaves. Katie tells her that when he has too much time on his hands he tends to get into trouble.
Koslov is out for his weekly squash and this week it will be against Chad Collyer. Koslov takes him down and puts him in a headlock but Chad gets to the ropes. Koslov headbutt's him 3 times in the chest then flips him over. Koslov picks him and uses The Iron Curtain to finish him off. Josh Matthews gets in the ring to interview Koslov and he asks what it is that puts him ahead of all the other Superstars. Koslov says it was his training by the Russian military that taught him to be a fighter, then says something about ECW I can't understand and then leaves. There wasn't much to this match and it was pretty much just filler. I really can't stand Koslov but for some reason they keep trying to get him over. It's really not working as the crowd was pretty silent throughout the match.
Christian comes out for The Peep Show and introduces Jack Swagger. Swagger says this is really stupid and doesn't want to talk about Judgement Day. He wants to talk about how he was cheated out of his title at Backlash. Christian says he outsmarted Swagger at Backlash and then shows a video package of Swagger highlighting his lisp. Swagger tells him that once he wins the belt back Christian will have to go back to being a normal guy and will be wishing he never returned. Swagger tells him there is nothing he can do about it since Tiffany told them not to touch each other but Christian punches him anyway. Swagger rolls out of the ring and walks to the back as we sign off with Christian holding the belt over his head.
Overall a pretty mediocre show. Besides The New Hart Foundation and the Finlay/Tyson match there wasn't anything really great. I like the matches that Christian and Jack Swagger are having in this feud but maybe it's time to get Swagger a manager because he is really starting to look bad out there when he's talking. I still can't figure out how Koslov is getting matches every week when someone as over as Evan Bourne doesn't. Zack Ryder might be the worst thing I've seen on television in years and I'm dreading the night he starts wrestling on this show. Match of the night goes to Finlay and Tyson Kidd, worst match goes to Koslov and Chad Collyer.
ECW for 5/5/09
Since I've last watched ECW, Christian has defeated Jack Swagger for the ECW Championship. Jack Swagger will get his rematch at Judgement Day, which is apparently less than two weeks away. Tonight, Christian will face off against Mark Henry because apparently it's still 1999.
We start off with Evan Bourne taking on Tyson Kidd. They lock up and break away from each other. Back and forth until Bourne gets him on the ground in a headlock, Tyson gets up and pushes into the corner but Tyson hits him before they can have a clean break. Tyson gets him down on the ground and puts Bourne in a headlock. Bourne throws him to the ropes, Tyson stops and Bourne runs to the ropes and holds on. Bourne then dropkicks him. Bourne with a headscissors, Tyson goes to the floor as we go to commercial. We're back and Tyson gets thrown to the corner, Bourne goes in but Tyson hits him with a shoulder. Back in the corner and Bourne whips him across again, Tyson moves, Bourne jumps to the second rope but Tyson kicks his legs out and Bourne crashes to the mat. Tyson gets him in a rear chinlock on the ground but Bourne fights his way out. Tyson tries for a belly to back but Bourne flips over and pins Tyson who kicks out at two. Bourne runs in and gets a tilt a whirl backbreaker. Tyson starts to put knees into Bourne's back and then gives him a snap suplex. Bourne starts to kick Tyson, ducks a clothesline and jumps to the second rope then comes off with a kick to the back. Bourne with a jumping elbow and tries for another pin but Tyson kicks out. Bourne runs and gets flipped to the apron, Nattie pulls him off and he hits his head on the way down. Tyson throws him back in and goes to the top rope but Finlay runs out and knocks him off. Bourne climbs the ropes and hits the Shooting Star Press, pins him and gets the three count.
Very good match, fast paced and lots of high flying that we've come to expect from these two. Bourne has consistently looked great in all of his outings since returning from injury and has one of the best looking finishers in the company. Tyson Kidd continues to impress me every time I see him and I hope someone backstage takes notice of him. This is the best feud going on in ECW, if not the whole company and I hope they continue to let these two go at it.
Jack Swagger is out next. Swagger thinks it's unfair that Tommy Dreamer got a championship match last week because he was owed an rematch. He thinks that Christian cheating to win in their match at Backlash was unfair also and Dreamer never deserved the first crack at it. He's glad he ruined Dreamer's chance to win the belt because in five weeks if Dreamer doesn't win the belt, he'll be gone forever. Dreamer comes running out and attacks him. Swagger gets out of the ring and heads to the back.
Tiffany is in the back with Zack Ryder who is now doing a metrosexual or just possibly a stereotypical gay man gimmick. Ryder has a match on Superstars this week but doesn't want his hair to get messed up. Expect a message on WWE's website before the end of the month wishing him the best in all of his future endeavors.
Koslov comes out to face to Jesse Guimette. They lock up and Koslov throws him to the ground. Koslov beats him down and then headbutts him. Koslov with a belly to belly suplex and then picks him up for the Iron Curtain. Koslov covers him and gets the win via pinfall.
Typical squash match that tries to get us to care about Koslov but it doesn't seem to be working. The crowd had the "U-S-A" chant going early but lost interest very quickly. I can't wait for Vince to give up on this guy.
Gregory Helms is in the back with Mark Henry. He says that when he wants something he doesn't ask, he just takes it and tonight Christian will be his victim.
Christian vs Mark Henry in our main-event is next. They lock up and Henry throws him to the mat. Christian gets back up, hits Henry a few times then runs the ropes but Henry gives him a boot to the gut. Henry picks Christian up over his head and then drops him to the mat. Christian gets thrown to the corner but gets his legs up as Henry comes running in. Christian tries for a sunset flip off the second rope but Henry doesn't budge. Christian moves out of the way as Henry comes crashing down. Henry crawls over the ropes and Christian stands on his back as Jack Swagger comes running in to interfere. Dreamer comes out to help Christian. Tiffany comes out and announces that this is now a tag match, Christian and Dreamer vs Henry and Swagger which will start after the commercial break. Back from the break, Christian has Swagger on the ground and tags out to Tommy Dreamer. Dreamer runs into a belly to belly and Swagger tags out to Henry. Henry knocks him down and stands on his chest. Henry tags out to Swagger who puts Dreamer in a guillotine, Dreamer tries to push his way to the corner to tag out but Swagger fights it, Dreamer manages to get out and tag. Swagger tags out to Henry, Christian goes to the second rope for a flying European uppercut. Henry picks him up but Christian gets down and kicks Henry's leg out from under him. Henry knocks him down and tags out Swagger who gives Christian a Vader Bomb. Swagger picks him up and puts him in a bear hug, Christian tries to get out but Swagger tags out to Henry. Henry knocks him down and tags out again. Swagger picks him up over is shoulder, Christian tries to turn it into a sunset flip but Swagger gets out. Christian tries to tag but Swagger holds him back, Christian twists it into a reverse DDT. Dreamer tags in, knocks Swagger down and then dropkicks Henry off the apron. Dreamer whips Swagger to the corner and bounces off the ropes for a bulldog. Dreamer tries for a pin but Swagger kicks out. Dreamer sets Swagger up for the tree of woe, Henry comes running in and Dreamer moves so Henry runs into Swagger. Chrisitan dumps Henry to the outside, Dreamer and Christian both go over the top and take him down. Dreamer gets back in the ring but Swagger has taken the middle turnbuckle off and throws Dreamer headfirst into it. Swagger with the Doctor Bomb and pins him for the win.
Another good match tonight. The first part with Christian and Henry was alright but once Swagger and Dreamer joined in it it got a whole lot better. Swagger looked great, as he does every week and even Dreamer seemed to step it up for once. The ending sequence looked really good, ECW in general has been really good with tag match endings for the past few months but this was one of the better ones.
Overall, not a bad show. Lots of wrestling for a change and besides the Koslov squash they were all good. There was roughly 40 minutes of wrestling on this show which I can't even remember the last time Raw did that. I really can't believe that Judgement Day is less than two weeks away already but going in I will be looking forward to the Christian/Swagger match the most, for the second month in a row. They have really great chemistry and I hope they keep this feud going well into the summer.
ECW for 4/21/09
Coming into this week's ECW, Christian is now the #1 contender to face Jack Swagger for the title at Backlash this Sunday. The only thing advertised for tonight is the contract signing for the title match which should go smoothly as always.
We're starting off with Finlay coming out to the ring. He says that tonight is Hornswaggle's last night on ECW since he was drafted to Raw. Hornswaggle says he wants to wrestle tonight so Finlay wants Tiffany to put him in a match. Tyson Kidd comes out and says good riddance because now we'll have more time for his matches. Nattie name-drops the Hart family and then says that Bret was a liar when he proclaimed himself the best there ever will be because that title belongs to Tyson. Nattie wants the match so she'll face Hornswaggle.
Nattie keeps trying to lock up but he's too short to reach her. She slaps him across the face and he grabs her by the waist but she gets out. He spears her and tries for a pin but she kicks out. Tyson gets on the apron but Hornswaggle throws his jacket over Tyson's head then Finlay knocks him off. Nattie runs over to check on him and Hornswaggle rolls her up from behind for the pinfall. After the match Finlay brings three kids into the ring to dance.
Nattie goes to the back to talk to Tiffany. Nattie wants Hornswaggle fired but Tiffany says she should be shown respect and is now making a match for Superstars : Nattie and Tyson vs Finlay and Hornswaggle. Both of them sound like they are reading off of a teleprompter. They really need to start sending people to acting classes.
Evan Bourne vs Paul Burchill is next. Burchill dominates and uses a dragon sleeper on Bourne. Bourne tries to escape but Burchill slams him to the mat and then puts him in a rear chin lock. Bourne gets out and Burchill uses a butterfly suplex to toss him across the ring then runs into the corner with both knees. Burchill suplexes him and tries for a pin but Bourne kicks out. Burchill goes back to the rear chin lock but Bourne gets out again. Bourne tries to kick but Burchill catches the leg and tosses him overhead. Burchill goes for the chin lock again and wraps his legs around Bourne's waist but Bourne escapes again then runs to the ropes and gets tosses overhead again. Burchill with another chin lock and Bourne hits him in the gut to get out. Bourne starts to kick him and finally knocks Burchill down. Bourne ducks a clothesline and jumps up with a knee to the face. Bourne with a spinning heel kick and goes for a pin but Burchill kicks out. Bourne tries to run at him in the corner but Burchill catches him and slams him to the mat. Burchill tries for the double knee in the corner again Bourne moves and tries for the Shooting Star Press but Burchill gets up. Burchill puts him in the electric chair. Bourne escapes and gets knocks him out, goes up for the Shooting Star Press and gets the win via pinfall.
Koslov video package for him coming to ECW tonight. He is kicking beer bottles off of a stack of pallets in an alley and speaking Russian.
Koslov comes out to face Franky Sloan. Koslov grabs the mic says that Russian athletes are superior, total domination. Koslov tosses him around and gives him a big boot to the chest. Koslov picks him up and uses a variation of the spine buster for the finish. Koslov wins via pinfall.
Contract signing is last. These are always terrible so why should we break that trend now? Swagger grabs the mic and thinks it's weird that Christian has nothing witty to say. Swagger tells him that can't come back after 3 years and expect to pick up from where he left off. There is a new class of superstars and Swagger is leading them. Swagger tells him that he must have been thinking he had a chance of winning this until they sat down and Christian realized that he couldn't beat someone bigger, faster and stronger. Swagger gets up and Christian finally picks up the microphone. He says that he could make fun of Swagger's suits, haircuts and speech impediment but at the end of the day that's not going to do anything. Christian says Swagger can focus on whatever he wants but he needs to focus on Backlash so he can make Swagger the biggest, fastest and strongest ex-champion. Swagger punches him and then powerbombs him through the table as we go off the air.
Backlash is shaping up to be a pretty shitty show. During our post-Lockdown blog I said that it was the best PPV of April - I had completely forgotten that Backlash was also this month but it doesn't look like I will taking back what I said. By now, everyone has probably heard the story about Swagger being taken off of WrestleMania because Vince didn't like his Royal Rumble and No Way Out matches so I'm expecting him to drop the belt to Christian. Christian is so over on ECW they'd be stupid not to give him the belt at this point. Overall, this was a pretty weak show but I've come to not expect much over the past few weeks. Match of the night goes to Bourne and Burchill. Worst match goes to Nattie and Hornswaggle so congratulations Koslov, you weren't the worst thing on television for once.
ECW for 4/7/09
Coming out of WrestleMania, an event which featured zero point zero ECW matches, we shouldn't be expecting much tonight. The only match announced on WWE's website is a 6 man tag match featuring Carlito, Primo and Evan Bourne against Miz, Morrison and Tyson Kidd. We're also getting an appearance from Jack Swagger, hopefully setting up his next title match.
Josh Matthews is now on commentary so Todd Grisham must be moving to SmackDown.
We start with Teddy Long in the ring. Since Vickie Gurrero is now GM of Raw, Teddy Long will be taking over on SmackDown and some broad named Tiffany is now the interim GM of ECW. As soon as she picks up the mic Jack Swagger comes out. She announces that Mark Henry, Finlay, Tommy Dreamer and Christian will be participating in an elimination chase (?) to face him at Backlash. They will be having a fatal 4 way tonight to start this series.
The 6 man match is next. Miz and Carlito lock up and go into the corner, ref breaks it up and Miz pushes him. Carlito runs to the ropes and does the springboard elbow. Primo tags in and throws Miz to the corner, charges in but Miz ducks, Primo balances himself on the top rope and nails a hurricurana. Carlito tags in and they double dropkick him. Tyson tags in and gets Carlito to the corner then tags in Morrison. Morrison gets Carlito on the ground near the corner, ref gets him off but Miz and Tyson double team him behind the ref's back. Carlito gets to the middle of the ring and Morrison kicks him in the chest, Carlito tries to tag out but Morrison pushes him into the opposite corner and tags Miz. Miz slams Carlito's head into the turnbuckle then tags Tyson. Tyson hits him a few times then tags Morrison who put him in a rear chin lock. Carlito keeps trying to tag and eventually gets the hot tag to Bourne. Bourne runs and gives Morrison a hurricurana over the top rope as we go to break. Back from the break, Morrison has Bourne in a chinlock, Bourne breaks out and Miz tags in. Miz runs into the corner and clotheslines Bourne then tries for a pin but Bourne kicks out and Miz tags Tyson. Tyson gets him on the ground then kicks him in the back. Miz tags back in and stomps Bourne. Miz mounts him and starts to pound him but the ref pulls him off. Miz drags him to the corner and tags Tyson back in. Tyson stomps him then drops a knee, tries for a pin but Bourne kicks out. Miz tags in again and sets Bourne for a slingshot, Morrison tags Miz from behind as he send Bourne flying into into Morrison. Bourne gets across the ring and tags Primo as Morrison tags Tyson. Everyone winds up on the floor but Primo and Tyson. Tyson tries for the springboard elbow drop but Primo moves, gives him the Backcracker then tags Bourne who hits the Shooting Star Press and pins Tyson Kidd.
The fatal 4 way is next. It would help if someone would explain the rules but I guess how it works is whoever gets pinned is eliminated from the chase for the title. Henry tosses Dreamer from the ring. Christian runs into Henry and gets slammed. Matt Striker goes over the rules and what I figured they would be is correct. Henry takes all 3 guys out with punches then nails a flapjack on Christian as we go to break. Back and Henry is standing on Dreamer's chest and the ref breaks it up. All 3 suplex Henry then dropkick him out of the ring. They go to the floor and push him into the steps. Dreamer pushes Finlay into the guardrail then throws him back into the ring. Dreamer sits him on the top rope and starts to climb but Finlay knocks him off. Christian comes in and climbs the ropes but Dreamer puts him in the electric chair, Finlay goes for a Doomsday Device but Christian ducks and turns it into a victory roll but Dreamer kicks out. Finlay tries for the Celtic Cross but Christian turns it into a crucifix pin and Finlay kicks out. Dreamer gets clotheslined by Henry and then Christian comes off the top rope and dropkicks Henry. Christian tries to pin them both but they both kick out. Tony Atlas distracts the ref, Henry puts Dreamer up for The World's Strongest Slam but Finlay hits him with the shillelagh behind the ref's back, Henry drops Dreamer and Finlay gets the pinfall on Henry. Finlay, Dreamer and Christian move on to the next round.
I know the draft is coming next week but WWE has really not given a shit about ECW since No Way Out. This really proves there is way too much wrestling on right now and we have Superstars returning next week. It's going to be a very interesting Raw next week because chances are ECW's bigger names will be leaving for Raw/SmackDown and they'll get stuck with more lower card guys. Match of the night goes to 4 way, not to say the 6 man tag match was bad but we've saw practically the same match last night only now with Bourne and Tyson flying around the ring. This is starting to become the Raw recap show featuring 2 new matches.
Raw for 4/6/09
Last night at WrestleMania, John Cena captured the World Heavyweight Championship and Triple H retained the WWE Championship. I'll save my comments on WrestleMania for the show but I will say that like most others I did not enjoy it. Tonight, we're getting a WrestleMania all star tag match as John Cena, CM Punk, Rey Mysterio, Jeff Hardy and Ricky Steamboat will be facing Edge, Big Show, Kane, Matt Hardy and Chris Jericho.
Randy Orton is making his way out as we start the show. Orton says that Triple H illegally used the sledgehammer and it's sickening that the fans cheered for it. Last night proved nothing because Triple H can't beat Orton on his own and he wants a rematch. He says that he hasn't seen Linda in a while or maybe it's time to visit the McMahon grandchildren. Vince comes out and tells him that he won't be getting a rematch because he doesn't deserve it. Instead there will be a tidal wave coming at Backlash when Randy Orton will be teaming with Ted DiBiase and Cody Rhodes to face Vince, Shane and Triple H. Vince calls him a failure and Orton issues a challenge to Vince for a match tonight and Vince accepts.
Our first match is a lumber jack tag team match for the Unified Tag Titles. Miz and Morrison are getting their rematch from last night's dark match. Morrison starts off against Carlito. Morrison kicks him to the gut and gets him in the corner. Morrison whips him the ropes but Carlito pulls off a springboard elbow. Carlito tags out to Primo, he gets Morrison in the corner and comes charging in, Morrison ducks but Primo balances himself on the top rope with his head and then pulls off a hurricurana. Morrison gets out of the ring but the lumberjacks throw him back in as we go to commercial. We're back, Morrison has Primo in a headlock on the ground. Miz tags in and they give Primo a double flapjack. Miz goes for a pin but Carlito breaks it up. Primo gets up and gives Miz a jawbreaker then tags to Carlito. Carlito hits a neckbreaker then goes for a pin but Miz kicks out. Carlito goes up top but Miz hits him then he climbs up too, they both fall off and all the lumberjacks attack. Morrison gets up on the top rope and nails a shooting star press to the floor on everyone. Miz gets Carlito in the ring and tries to pin him but he kicks out. Primo tries for a hurricurana on Morrison but Morrison blocks and they both go over the top rope. Carlito tries for another springboard, Miz gets under him and puts him in the electric chair, Carlito gets down and hits the Back Cracker. Carlito pins him and gets the three count.
Vince and Shane backstage. Vince tells Shane that he wants Orton all to himself tonight.
Raw vs SmackDown Diva's match. Melina, Mickie, Jillian, Kelly Kelly and Leyla vs Maryse, Nattie, Maria, Eve and Gail Kim. Melina and Gail start, they lock up and Melina gets her to the gound. Gal gets up and takes Melina down. They do a series of near falls with a lot of reversals. Melina gets thrown to the outside and the SmackDown diva's attack her. Nattie tags in and puts Melina in a surfboard, Nattie pulls her hair and has to break the hold. Mickie gets the tag, kicks her a bunch of times and then Nattie takes over, Leyla tries to interfere but Nattie throws her to the outside, all the divas start to brawl on the floor. Mickie does something that I didn't see and pins Nattie.
Shane goes to Triple H's locker room, he wants Triple H to talk some sense into Vince.
The all star tag match is next. After about 10 minutes of entrances we go to commercial. We come back and the match is already in progress. Matt is in with Rey, Rey tags out to Jeff and Matt tags Edge. They lock up and Edge knees him in the stomach. Jeff goes to the corner, Edge whips him across to the other corner, Jeff gives him a hurricurana and tags Cena. Edge pushes him to the corner, hits him a few times and then Cena bulldogs him. Steamboat tags in and kicks Edge then goes for a pin but Edge kicks out. Steamboat hits a running splash as the crowd chants "You've still got it!" Kane tags in and Steamboat chops him and then hits an ax handle from the top rope. Kane tags Jericho who hits Steamboat in the face then tags Big Show. Big Show comes in and chops Steamboat. Jericho tags back in, clotheslines Steamboat and tries to pin him. Steamboat kicks out but Jericho puts on a sleeper hold. Steamboat gets out, hits Jericho then gets caught in the Wall of Jericho. Steamboat twists his way out and rolls him up but Jericho gets out. Steamboat tags to Punk. Punk hits the flying knee and then bulldog. Punk knocks Matt and Edge off the apron, he turns around and Kane hits him. Jericho tries to pin him but Punk kicks out, Kane tags in as we go to break. Back from the break, Punk if hitting Kane, runs to the ropes and Kane gets the leg up for a big boot. Big Show tags in and headbutts Punk. He brings him to the corner and chops him then tags Edge in. Edge kicks him then tags in Kane. Kane puts him on the top rope, Punk hits him and knocks him off then jumps off the top but gets caught. Kane tries for a chokeslam but Punk turns it into a DDT then tags Jeff. Jeff goes up and hits the whisper in the wind. Matt comes up from behind and dumps Jeff over but Jeff tags Cena as he goes over. Big Show comes in and and picks Cena up but Cena tags Rey while in the air. Cena and Big Show go to the floor as Rey gets the 619 on both Edge and Jericho. Rey and Steamboat both go up and hit top rope splashes, Rey pins Edge and gets the win. The faces leave the ring and give Steamboat a standing ovation on the ramp as he celebrates in the ring.
Triple H goes into Vince's office. Vince tells him he doesn't want to hear it. Triple H tells him he's a stubborn SOB but he's proud of him. He tells Vince to finish this tonight.
Vickie Guerrero comes out to announce that she must choose between being GM of either Raw or SmackDown and she's made up her mind. She's picking Raw and her first decision is to let Edge have his rematch at Backlash in a last man standing match. The 6 man match will now be a WWE Championship title match, if Triple H's team wins he retains. If Randy Orton's team wins then he becomes champ.
Santina Marella comes out to give an acceptance speech for Miss WrestleMania. Beth and Rosa come out. Beth tells him that he's embarrassing himself and she wants a match tonight. Santina tells her to stop being jealous and accepts the challenge. A ref comes running out as we go to break. Beth chops her and puts her in the corner, then hits her a bunch of times. Beth lifts her up for a bodyslam but Santina grabs the top rope, Beth falls and Santina lands on top her and gets the pin.
Vince vs Orton is next. Orton basically beats the crap out of him, RKO's him then goes for the punt but Shane runs down and tackles him. Rhodes and DiBiase come running out followed by Triple H. The Legacy are beating all 3 of them down until Batista's music hits and he comes out to clean house. Vince announces that he won't be making it to Backlash and Batista is taking his spot on Triple H's team.
With the exception of Santina this was a pretty shitty show. The 6 man match at Backlash is something TNA tried last year and I never understood it. Why would DiBiase or Rhodes care about helping this match since they can't win the belt? Why would Shane and Batista care about helping Triple H if he's only going to retain if they win? The last man standing match with Cena and Edge is probably one of the few gimmick matches they have yet to do with these guys so it's something new I guess. They might as well unify the Women's belts now that the Raw and SmackDown diva's are fighting each other. They was nothing involving Shawn Michaels or Undertaker tonight but that might be saved for SmackDown. Lastly, Steamboat was so incredibly over with the crowd and it was nice to see him get the standing ovation at the end of the match but that should tell them something if he's getting the biggest pop of the night.
ECW for 3/31/09
We're now 5 days away from WrestleMania and guess what? We don't have an ECW match for the biggest show of the year. It doesn't look like that's going to change because the only thing announced for tonight is a Money in the Bank tag match featuring Christian and Finlay vs Mark Henry and Kane. Once again we're being robbed of the all Diva's edition of ECW we were promised 2 weeks ago. You can't see it but I'm shaking my fist really hard at the screen right now.
We're starting off with tag match. Christian and Kane start off, Christian hits him a few times and tries to whip him but can't seem to move Kane. Kane throws him into the corner but Christian moves before Kane can get there. Christian tags out and Finlay locks up with Kane. Kane pushes him to the corner and gives him a knee to the gut. Finlay gets whipped to the ropes but kicks Kane on his way back, Finlay tags to Christian as we go to commercial. We're back, Finlay is back in with Kane who tags out Mark Henry. Henry knocks Finlay down and starts to work Finlay's back. Finlay crawls to the corner and Henry puts his boot on Finlay's neck, Henry tries to pin him but Finlay kicks out. Kane tags back in and gives Finlay a big boot, tries for a pin but Finlay kicks out again. Kane puts him in a chinlock, Finlay tries to break free but Henry tags and bodyslams Finlay after Kane releases him. Henry throws him back in the corner and tags Kane back in. Kane whips him to the corner but Finlay gets a foot up as Kane comes running in, Finlay gets to the corner and tags Christian in. Christian starts hitting Kane and he tags out to Henry, Christian gets Henry down on one knee and Finlay comes in and they give him a double dropkick. They double clothesline Kane out of the ring. They both turn around and Henry clotheslines them both. Christian gets up and climbs up to the top rope, he jumps but Henry catches him and turns it into the World's Strongest Slam. Henry pins and gets the win. After the match Henry attacks Kane.
Brie Bella will be facing Nikki Bella later on.
Recap of the HBK/Undertaker feud.
Recap of the Edge/Cena/Big Show feud.
WrestleMania 23 highlights featuring Trump and McMahon.
Recap of the Triple H/Orton feud.
We've had about 30 minutes of recaps by now.
It's 9:50pm and still nothing.
9:54 and Nikki makes her way to the ring. Brie finally comes out and we're under way with about 4 minutes left in the broadcast. Brie rolls her up from behind but doesn't even get a 1 count. Brie spears her and the ref breaks it up. Nikki hits her a few times and Brie flips her over. Nikki elbows her in the face then Brie flips her again. Nikki suplexes her and tries for a pin but Brie kicks out. Brie clotheslines her then follows up with a dropkick. Miz and Morrison distract the ref, Nikki rolls Brie up from behind and gets the pinfall and that's the end of the show.
There isn't much to talk about for this show, it was mostly just recaps of all of the big feuds going into WrestleMania. Match of the night is MitB tag and the worst is Bella's which was pretty sloppy. Enjoy WrestleMania everyone!
Raw for 3/30/09
We made it! We're in the home stretch for what is surely going to be the worst WrestleMania in almost a decade. For our big WrestleMania preview we will be getting John Cena vs Big Show as the main-event. Yes that's right, a match that was featured as the opening contest of WrestleMania 20 is our main-event for the go home edition of Raw before the biggest show of the year. In our other 5 star match tonight, we get Chris Jericho against Jerry Lawler. If you haven't decided if you want to spend $55 on Sunday's show yet this will surely put you over the top.
We're opening with a hearse backing into the arena with Undertaker's song playing. Apparently, Undertaker is going to be holding a funeral for Shawn Michaels.
Our first match of the night is an 18 diva tag match. Mickie and Jillian lock up, Jillian has her in an arm bar but Mickie gets out. Mickie with a Thesz press and tags out to Kelly Kelly. Kelly gets a beatdown and Beth tags in. Beth whips her to the corner and runs in after her but Kelly gets an elbow up. Katie Lea tags in and kicks Kelly while she's on the ground. Kelly rolls her up and that's the end of the match... seriously. Santino comes out in a bathrobe to announce he went to the top to try to get into the Diva battle royal at WrestleMania - he went to see WWE president Jack Tunney and found out and passed away 7 years ago, but Santino is fighting for equal rights and wants to take part in a swimsuit competition because he wants to be Miss WrestleMania. He takes off his bathrobe to reveal a Borat style bikini. Beth gets upset and the Diva's all attack him.
Lawler vs Jerico is up next. They lock up and push each back and forth. Lawler hits a flurry of punches and kicks. Jericho starts to unloads with the same back on Lawler. Jericho whips him and elbows Lawler in the face. Jericho headbutts him and whips him to the corner, Lawler reverses but Jericho gets the elbow up. Jericho goes up to the middle rope but Lawler hits him in the stomach in mid-air. Lawler with more punches while Jericho is on the ground, Jericho hits him in the stomach and locks in the Walls of Jericho. Lawler taps out. After the match, Jericho picks him up but Lawler punches him in the face. Jericho grabs the microphone and says that he already beat Lawler so he doesn't have to come back. On his way back up the ramp, he promises to win on Sunday; it's not a matter of him beating The Legends but just how badly he'll beat them.
Todd Grisham is backstage with John Cena. Edge walks in and says that Cena's chances of winning on Sunday are non-exisitant. Edge says they can change those odds if they put aside their differences and take out Big Show first. Cena says it makes sense but he doesn't care because he doesn't trust Edge. He'd rather lose on his own then win with Edge.
Michael Cole talks to Cody Rhodes and Ted DiBiase backstage about Randy Orton's WrestleMania address tonight. They say this is isn't just about Triple H, it's going to change everything about the WWE Universe.
The hearse is shown again and a coffin in the back opens and Shawn Michaels pops up.
Lawler comes running out to ringside as Rey Mysterio makes his way to the ring. Why does Rey give his new mask to a kid already wearing one? I never saw Bret Hart put sunglasses on a kid that already had a pair on. Anyway, JBL comes out so I guess these two are having a match? This makes perfect sense. JBL says he asked for this match so he can beat Rey within an inch of his life, and so that in 6 days he can do it again on a bigger stage. It's non-title also. They lock up and JBL starts to pound on Rey. JBL whips him to the ropes but Rey holds on and kicks him in the face. Rey nails a hurricurana and runs to the the ropes but JBL takes him down as we go to break. Back from the break, Rey ducks a clothesline but gets caught in a fall away slam. Rey rolls out of the ring and JBL follows and tosses him back in. JBL goes for a cover but Rey kicks out at 2. JBL punches him in the face, gets him in the corner and punches him again, the ref pulls him off. JBL puts Rey up on top and Rey starts to fight back, he jumps off the top with a senton, sets up the 619 and gets the splash off the top rope. Rey pins him and picks up the victory.
WrestleMania XI highlights featuring Bam Bam Bigelow vs Lawrence Taylor.
John Cena is out for his match against Big Show. Big Show punches him and he falls down quickly. Big Show continues to pound on him and then stands on him while he's down. Big Show ties him up in the ropes and pulls on his back then punches him as the ref tells him to back off. Cena tries to fight back and goes for a shoulder block but Big Show doesn't move. Big Show headbutts him and then whips him to the corner, Cena moves as Big Show comes in for a Stinger Splash. Big Show knocks him down again and goes for a Vader Bomb but Cena rolls out of the way, Cena climbs up and hits a leg-drop from the top. Cena goes for the STF but Big Show gets away and knocks Cena out of the ring as we go to commercial. We're back and Big Show has Cena in a modified Camel Clutch. Cena tries to break out but Big Show jumps on his back. Big Show signals for the Choke Slam but Cena turns it into a DDT and tries for the STF but he can't lock it in due to Big Show's size (Cole and Lawler discuss how the laws of physics prevent this move on Big Show so we all know that Cena will now win the title by making Big Show tap out at Mania), Big Show tries for the punch, Cena ducks and tries for the FU but can't life him, Big Show grabs him and gives him a chokeslam. Big Show wins by pinfall. Edge comes out through the crowd and starts to pound on Cena, Big Show stands in the corner watching as the ref's pull Edge off.
The funeral for Shawn Michaels is set up in the ring as he makes his way to the ring. Undertaker's music plays in the background as HBK says that this isn't a funeral for him but for Undertaker's streak. Undertaker has never beaten Shawn so it won't be any different this time. Shawn opens the empty casket and carries on about how there will be no retribution come this Sunday. He's insulted that Undertaker doesn't think he can end the streak and the past 24 WrestleMania's will pale in comparison to the ending of this match. The lights go out and Undertaker is in the ring when they come back on but HBK is gone and the casket is closed. Undertaker tears the set apart and opens the casket but it's empty. Shawn comes out from underneath it and superkicks Undertaker then walks up the ramp as Undertaker tries to get up.
Money in the Bank battle royal is next. Just like the ECW one a few weeks back I'll just name them in the order they are eliminated since these things move so fast; Finlay, Mark Henry, MVP, Shelton, Kofi, Punk, Christian. Kane wins.
Ted DiBiase and Cody Rhodes with a bunch of security guards knock on Orton's door and they all march to the ring Goldberg style.
Orton actually comes out by himself. He says that winning his first title was the greatest moment of his career but it was short lived because of Triple H. Triple H ruined his life back in 2004 so Orton has been waiting for almost 5 years to ruin his. Orton admits he knew what he was doing the whole time when he beat up the McMahon family. The fans in the arena start giving him the "WHAT?" chant and Orton screams at them but most of it gets censored. Triple H will never be able to look at Orton the same way after he kissed Stephanie after DDTing her last week. Orton announces that Vickie Guerrero has changed the rules of the match; the title can now change on DQ or count out and if Triple H brings a sledgehammer to the ring he is automatically disqualified and Orton will become champ without having to even fight him. A limo pulls into the parking lot and Orton calls Ted and Cody to the ring with security. Security sets up a barricade on the ramp as Ted and Cody get into the ring with Orton. The camera shows the limo is now empty and Vince McMahon's music starts. He takes off his jacket and rolls up his sleeves as Shane comes out and finally Triple H joins them. Lawler yells; "Can you believe your eyes?" and I know I can't because they are rolling pretty far into the back of my head. Vince, Shane and Triple H take out security and then head to the ring, The Legacy meets them half-way and they all fight. Triple H spears Orton in the ring and they are rolling around punching each other as we go off the air.
This was a pretty bad way to end Raw going into WrestleMania but then again we still have 3 more hours of TV before the big show. None of the storylines really progressed this week but they must know that by now they either have your money or they don't for the PPV. I wasn't impressed by anything on this show and the few matches we had seemed to be very short and basic since no one wants to get hurt this close to their big payday. Forced to choose, I'd say the Rey/JBL match was the best of the night but that was all Rey. The worst would be the women's match where most of the Diva's don't even get tagged in. I hope by now you've made up your mind about ordering this or not because this shit will not help you make a decision.
Ring of Honor on HDNet
By now the results are all over the internet so you can look them up for yourself, there is no point in me typing them up for you but this will still contain spoilers.
I may have mentioned this on the show but by 2001, I had completely stopped watching wrestling. The InVasion had completely turned me off and with the exception of occasionally checking in on Raw, I didn't watch regularly until 2005. By 2006 I was already growing restless with WWE again and started to search for something else. I tried TNA, but at this point they were on FSN at 2am and then they disappeared for a while until the Spike TV deal. I had started to hear about ROH on the internet, particularly Bryan Danielson, who was champ at this point. CM Punk was talked about everywhere but he left for WWE by now and Danielson was on a roll with title matches against Nigel McGuinness, Colt Cabana and KENTA. I picked up a copy of ROH's first show "The Era of Honor Begins" mostly because it featured Danielson, Christopher Daniels and Low Ki in the main-event and I was familiar with the last two from TNA. I was immediately blown away by Danielson and I went to my first live show shortly after; "Battle of the Icons". I was living in an apartment less than five minutes away and the opportunity to see Samoa Joe, Homicide and Christopher Daniels was what interested me the most. It was not the best show but getting to see guys like Austin Aries, Delirious, Jack Evans and Davey Richards was a great way to get to see what ROH was all about. Since then, I've been to probably 20 shows and I've gotten to see some of the best matches in recent memory in person. I was at the first pay-per-view, "Respect is Earned" in the Manhattan Center and it was really no different from any of the other shows I had been to, but going into the debut tapings for HDNet I was very skeptical.
ROH getting on pay-per-view, although a huge step for the company, wasn't really a big deal to me. The shows are the same length when you go to any live show and the few matches that are taped but not aired on PPV are still put on the DVD. There was really nothing groundbreaking about this since they are taped months in advance and until this year I wasn't able to order the PPV's so I had to go see them live or wait for DVD's. But the transition to weekly television was a huge step for ROH. They have always had the freedom to basically do whatever they wanted on their shows. They could have hour long draws on a regular basis or bring in Japanese talent that really only hardcore Puro fans will appreciate. Now they have 1 hour a week to show fans what they are all about.
In many ways, ROH has long been compared to the original ECW and I never got the comparison until now. I was one of the lucky minority to have been able to watch ECW before almost anyone had ever even heard about it. I lived in a town that was basically halfway between Manhattan and Philadelphia so I was surrounded by wrestling. I stumbled across Hardcore TV sometime in early 1996 when it was on public access and one of the first guys I was exposed to was Chris Jericho. I was amazed at the stuff he was doing in the ring and although many of my fellow panel members on The Wrestling Roundtable have grown tired of him, Jericho has a free pass for life from me. I was able to follow most of his North American career from ECW to WCW to WWF/WWE, and if I was forced to make a list of my top 5 wrestlers ever, he's #2 behind Bret Hart. Getting to see someone like Chris Jericho evolve over the years and knowing that I believed in him when he was wrestling Sabu in the ECW Arena, then getting to see him last year at WrestleMania 24 in the Money in the Bank match with thousands of others in the Citrus Bowl just gave me a rare special feeling I don't get from wrestling anymore. Besides Jericho, I was able to see Raven, The Dudleys, Taz and (one of my other top 5 guys) Rob Van Dam tearing up the place before just about everyone else. ECW grew over the years and I was there to watch it all from the first PPV to the TNN show. Here's where the comparisons to ROH are going to come in. ECW and ROH both have passionate cult following *but* will that translate to television viewers? The answer in ECW's case was 'sort-of.' They did decent numbers on TNN but the show was not what it once was. Paul Heyman had to try to please both the old fans, new fans and the network. We all know what happened next so I won't bother going into details but ROH now has the same dilemma on it's hands.
I went into the ROH tapings with a pessimistic attitude. ROH has had it's shares of ups and downs over the past few months and I didn't believe that they could pull off an ROH show in what will amount to about 44 minutes a week after commercials. I was wrong. The spirit of ROH was there the whole time. The entire roster delivered for that first night, from the young guys like Rhett Titus and Dark City Fight Club to the veterans like Jay Briscoe and Bryan Danielson. Every single wrestler gave 150% and even if the show fails in the ratings they can say they tried their hardest. From the moment this show starts and you see Jerry Lynn taking on Delirious, Lynn is a familiar face to most of the casual crowd and Delirious is one of the best guys on the roster. Lynn may have made his name elsewhere but this is still an ROH show with ROH wrestlers and ROH fans that is easy for anyone to get into. In many ways this is the show that Paul Heyman couldn't do. ROH is showing us exactly who they are without having to change the majority of the product. The only real difference that I saw was the matches were shorter than what we have grown accustomed to in ROH but perhaps this for the better if guys aren't killing themselves in the ring every night for long periods of time. Every week will feature four matches and the interviews/promo's will be taped backstage. The live audience won't be able to see them until they are broadcast on TV.
If you've enjoyed TNA's Knockouts division then you will probably like the women of ROH. Daizee Haze and Sara Del Rey had one of the best womens matches you're going to see on free TV this year. I've seen these two lock-up many, many times but I still enjoy seeing them go out there and work their hardest to win over one of the toughest wrestling crowds anywhere. ROH won't be able to get by on these two alone so I'm assuming they will be bringing in more of Shimmer's talent, which is just fine with me.
I did have a few complaints about the show but my biggest one was that Necro Butcher lost to Chris Hero. Though I'm not a Chris Hero fan at all, this is not my biased opinion coming into play. Necro Butcher got the loudest reaction of anyone the entire night. He had just been in the movie "The Wrestler" and he was name-dropped 6 days before at The Academy Awards by Seth Rogen and James Franco. The crowd even chanted; "Where's His Oscar?" But Hero cheated to win in what I think was the biggest mistake of the night. ROH should be pushing Necro to the moon right now with all the recognition he is receiving for his role in "The Wrestler" and I hope they fix this immediately. Another complaint is the first main-event which features Tyler Black facing his old tag team partner Jimmy Jacobs. For new fans turning in they may not remember these two from WSX as D.I.F.H. and Jimmy Jacobs is one of the smallest guys I've ever seen get in the ring. I think this might not look that great when you're trying to win over new fans. You don't need guys the size of Batista in the ring but you only get 1 chance to make a first impression. The match itself is fine so maybe ROH is going to let the wrestling speak for itself and not the characters but I would not have let this be the first main-event had I booked the show. My last complaint - Nigel McGuinness is ROH's world champ, he's had the belt for almost 18 months and he didn't wrestle until the second episode. The champ should have headlined the first show and he should have put the belt on the line, which he did not when he faced Jay Briscoe. It would have been something a little more special for the live crowd to see a title match and the fans at home will get to see a preview of what they can expect should they order a PPV.
The third main-event was my absolute favorite match of the night. Austin Aries faced Bryan Danielson in a great match. These two have had a series of excellent matches over the past year and a half, their match from "Take No Prisoners 2008" was my pick for match of the year. The friendly rivalry they had from fall 2007 through spring 2008 produced 4 great matches and in between those they were teaming up in tag matches that were also spectacular. If you want to see one ROH match, make this the one to watch. Danielson is a master of his craft and Austin Aries will prove that he is much more than TNA's Austin Starr. Danielson has a variety of different finishers and he used a triangle choke to submit Aries in a back and forth battle. You will hear the crowd chant "Best in the World" during every one of his matches and you better believe it is true. After the match Danielson thanked us all for making the past 7 years so great for him and he put over the entire roster as the best it's ever been. On the show we've talked about him having one of the best entrances in all of wrestling and we were treated to "The Final Countdown" one last time now that the band Fucked Up has donated a song for him to use. To bring this full circle with ECW, I just want to say this; I see in Bryan Danielson the same exact thing that I saw in Chris Jericho 13 years ago, and even though it would hurt ROH if he were to leave, I'm looking forward to the day that I see him get his match at WrestleMania should he choose to go to WWE down the line.
Lastly, I just want to say congratulations to everyone in ROH - the wrestlers and everyone behind the scenes that keeps it running. After 7 years you've made it to television and I wish you nothing but success. I especially need to congratulate a friend of our show, Alex "Sugarfoot" Payne. He has sat in our panel for some of our discussions and now you will get to see him take on Claudio Castognoli in the second edition of ROH on HDNet. It was a great match and I hope all of you reading this will take the time to watch it. Unfortunately not everyone is going to be able to get HDNet on their cable/satellite but for those of you who do at the very least set your DVR's and give ROH a chance. These are 3 great shows and you are not going to see anything else like it on free TV. For more on ROH, visit rohwrestling.com
ECW for 5/12/09
Tonight on ECW, Jack Swagger will be Christian's guest on The Peep Show before they face off this Sunday at Judgement Day.
We start in the back with Christian and Jack Swagger in Tiffany's office. She says that no subjects are off limits for The Peep Show but she does not want anything to interfere with their match on Sunday. If either of them touches the other there will be consequences.
Our first match is Mark Henry vs Tommy Dreamer. They lock up and Henry pushes him to the corner, ref breaks it up and Henry gives him a hip toss. Dreamer gets up and hits Henry then goes for an Irish whip but Henry blocks and throws Dreamer out of the ring. Dreamer gets up and pulls Henry's arm over the top rope then gets in the ring and starts to his hit Henry's shoulder. Henry regains control by knocking Dreamer down and then stepping on his chest. Henry whips Dreamer to the corner and takes to long to follow up, he runs in then gets a big boot. Henry gets Dreamer in a bear hug, Dreamer fights his way out but Henry knocks him down again. Henry goes for an elbow drop but Dreamer moves and follows up with a dropkick to Henry while he's still trying to get up. Dreamer puts Henry in the corner and comes in for another dropkick, Dreamer tries for a pin but Henry gets his leg on the bottom rope. Tony Atlas distracts Dreamer, Dreamer turns around tries to roll Henry up from behind but Henry just sits on him. Henry picks him up and hits the The World's Strongest Slam then covers him for the win. Pretty much what you have come to expect from these two. There was nothing really special that stood out but we're probably lucky it wasn't a mess.
Gregory Helms is in the back with Nattie and Tyson Kidd. Tyson says he's ready for Finlay because he was trained in the Hart Dungeon so he knows about fighting. Helms tries to get Nattie to stay and watch in the back with him but she shoots him down.
Finlay vs Tyson Kidd is next. They lock up and Finlay takes him down with a side headlock. They get up and Tyson sends Finlay to the ropes but Finlay uses his shoulder to knock Tyson down and tries for a pin but Tyson kicks out. Finlay elbows him in the face but Tyson manages to get a hold of his leg and turn it into some kind of standing figure four. Finaly gets out and Tyson gets him to the outside. Tyson dropkicks him into the steps as we go to commercial. We're back and Tyson is stretching Finlay's left arm. Finlay keeps to try to fight but Tyson continues to work the arm. Finlay finally gets out and hits Tyson with a series of clotheslines. Finlay picks Tyson up for the Celtic Cross but D.H. Smith runs in and gives Finlay the big boot. Tyson gets disqualified as they double team him. Smith picks him up and they perform the Hart Attack. Matt Striker is now calling him David Hart Smith so I guess that's what he'll be going by now. Nattie comes out and they all celebrate in the ring as we go to commercial. This was a really good match and The New Hart Foundation could be very promising. ECW doesn't really have any tag teams but since when does the draft matter? David Smith looks a lot bigger than I remember but then again that was like 18 months and a suspension ago. He'll do fine in the Jim Neidhart role and Tyson may not be a technical wonder that Bret Hart was but he is a very good high flyer.
Zack Ryder is in Tiffany's office begging for her to let him go to the gym since he's not wrestling. She lets him go as Paul and Katie Burchill come in. He says that he doesn't have a match tonight and would like for that to change. Tiffany says no and he leaves. Katie tells her that when he has too much time on his hands he tends to get into trouble.
Koslov is out for his weekly squash and this week it will be against Chad Collyer. Koslov takes him down and puts him in a headlock but Chad gets to the ropes. Koslov headbutt's him 3 times in the chest then flips him over. Koslov picks him and uses The Iron Curtain to finish him off. Josh Matthews gets in the ring to interview Koslov and he asks what it is that puts him ahead of all the other Superstars. Koslov says it was his training by the Russian military that taught him to be a fighter, then says something about ECW I can't understand and then leaves. There wasn't much to this match and it was pretty much just filler. I really can't stand Koslov but for some reason they keep trying to get him over. It's really not working as the crowd was pretty silent throughout the match.
Christian comes out for The Peep Show and introduces Jack Swagger. Swagger says this is really stupid and doesn't want to talk about Judgement Day. He wants to talk about how he was cheated out of his title at Backlash. Christian says he outsmarted Swagger at Backlash and then shows a video package of Swagger highlighting his lisp. Swagger tells him that once he wins the belt back Christian will have to go back to being a normal guy and will be wishing he never returned. Swagger tells him there is nothing he can do about it since Tiffany told them not to touch each other but Christian punches him anyway. Swagger rolls out of the ring and walks to the back as we sign off with Christian holding the belt over his head.
Overall a pretty mediocre show. Besides The New Hart Foundation and the Finlay/Tyson match there wasn't anything really great. I like the matches that Christian and Jack Swagger are having in this feud but maybe it's time to get Swagger a manager because he is really starting to look bad out there when he's talking. I still can't figure out how Koslov is getting matches every week when someone as over as Evan Bourne doesn't. Zack Ryder might be the worst thing I've seen on television in years and I'm dreading the night he starts wrestling on this show. Match of the night goes to Finlay and Tyson Kidd, worst match goes to Koslov and Chad Collyer.
ECW for 5/5/09
Since I've last watched ECW, Christian has defeated Jack Swagger for the ECW Championship. Jack Swagger will get his rematch at Judgement Day, which is apparently less than two weeks away. Tonight, Christian will face off against Mark Henry because apparently it's still 1999.
We start off with Evan Bourne taking on Tyson Kidd. They lock up and break away from each other. Back and forth until Bourne gets him on the ground in a headlock, Tyson gets up and pushes into the corner but Tyson hits him before they can have a clean break. Tyson gets him down on the ground and puts Bourne in a headlock. Bourne throws him to the ropes, Tyson stops and Bourne runs to the ropes and holds on. Bourne then dropkicks him. Bourne with a headscissors, Tyson goes to the floor as we go to commercial. We're back and Tyson gets thrown to the corner, Bourne goes in but Tyson hits him with a shoulder. Back in the corner and Bourne whips him across again, Tyson moves, Bourne jumps to the second rope but Tyson kicks his legs out and Bourne crashes to the mat. Tyson gets him in a rear chinlock on the ground but Bourne fights his way out. Tyson tries for a belly to back but Bourne flips over and pins Tyson who kicks out at two. Bourne runs in and gets a tilt a whirl backbreaker. Tyson starts to put knees into Bourne's back and then gives him a snap suplex. Bourne starts to kick Tyson, ducks a clothesline and jumps to the second rope then comes off with a kick to the back. Bourne with a jumping elbow and tries for another pin but Tyson kicks out. Bourne runs and gets flipped to the apron, Nattie pulls him off and he hits his head on the way down. Tyson throws him back in and goes to the top rope but Finlay runs out and knocks him off. Bourne climbs the ropes and hits the Shooting Star Press, pins him and gets the three count.
Very good match, fast paced and lots of high flying that we've come to expect from these two. Bourne has consistently looked great in all of his outings since returning from injury and has one of the best looking finishers in the company. Tyson Kidd continues to impress me every time I see him and I hope someone backstage takes notice of him. This is the best feud going on in ECW, if not the whole company and I hope they continue to let these two go at it.
Jack Swagger is out next. Swagger thinks it's unfair that Tommy Dreamer got a championship match last week because he was owed an rematch. He thinks that Christian cheating to win in their match at Backlash was unfair also and Dreamer never deserved the first crack at it. He's glad he ruined Dreamer's chance to win the belt because in five weeks if Dreamer doesn't win the belt, he'll be gone forever. Dreamer comes running out and attacks him. Swagger gets out of the ring and heads to the back.
Tiffany is in the back with Zack Ryder who is now doing a metrosexual or just possibly a stereotypical gay man gimmick. Ryder has a match on Superstars this week but doesn't want his hair to get messed up. Expect a message on WWE's website before the end of the month wishing him the best in all of his future endeavors.
Koslov comes out to face to Jesse Guimette. They lock up and Koslov throws him to the ground. Koslov beats him down and then headbutts him. Koslov with a belly to belly suplex and then picks him up for the Iron Curtain. Koslov covers him and gets the win via pinfall.
Typical squash match that tries to get us to care about Koslov but it doesn't seem to be working. The crowd had the "U-S-A" chant going early but lost interest very quickly. I can't wait for Vince to give up on this guy.
Gregory Helms is in the back with Mark Henry. He says that when he wants something he doesn't ask, he just takes it and tonight Christian will be his victim.
Christian vs Mark Henry in our main-event is next. They lock up and Henry throws him to the mat. Christian gets back up, hits Henry a few times then runs the ropes but Henry gives him a boot to the gut. Henry picks Christian up over his head and then drops him to the mat. Christian gets thrown to the corner but gets his legs up as Henry comes running in. Christian tries for a sunset flip off the second rope but Henry doesn't budge. Christian moves out of the way as Henry comes crashing down. Henry crawls over the ropes and Christian stands on his back as Jack Swagger comes running in to interfere. Dreamer comes out to help Christian. Tiffany comes out and announces that this is now a tag match, Christian and Dreamer vs Henry and Swagger which will start after the commercial break. Back from the break, Christian has Swagger on the ground and tags out to Tommy Dreamer. Dreamer runs into a belly to belly and Swagger tags out to Henry. Henry knocks him down and stands on his chest. Henry tags out to Swagger who puts Dreamer in a guillotine, Dreamer tries to push his way to the corner to tag out but Swagger fights it, Dreamer manages to get out and tag. Swagger tags out to Henry, Christian goes to the second rope for a flying European uppercut. Henry picks him up but Christian gets down and kicks Henry's leg out from under him. Henry knocks him down and tags out Swagger who gives Christian a Vader Bomb. Swagger picks him up and puts him in a bear hug, Christian tries to get out but Swagger tags out to Henry. Henry knocks him down and tags out again. Swagger picks him up over is shoulder, Christian tries to turn it into a sunset flip but Swagger gets out. Christian tries to tag but Swagger holds him back, Christian twists it into a reverse DDT. Dreamer tags in, knocks Swagger down and then dropkicks Henry off the apron. Dreamer whips Swagger to the corner and bounces off the ropes for a bulldog. Dreamer tries for a pin but Swagger kicks out. Dreamer sets Swagger up for the tree of woe, Henry comes running in and Dreamer moves so Henry runs into Swagger. Chrisitan dumps Henry to the outside, Dreamer and Christian both go over the top and take him down. Dreamer gets back in the ring but Swagger has taken the middle turnbuckle off and throws Dreamer headfirst into it. Swagger with the Doctor Bomb and pins him for the win.
Another good match tonight. The first part with Christian and Henry was alright but once Swagger and Dreamer joined in it it got a whole lot better. Swagger looked great, as he does every week and even Dreamer seemed to step it up for once. The ending sequence looked really good, ECW in general has been really good with tag match endings for the past few months but this was one of the better ones.
Overall, not a bad show. Lots of wrestling for a change and besides the Koslov squash they were all good. There was roughly 40 minutes of wrestling on this show which I can't even remember the last time Raw did that. I really can't believe that Judgement Day is less than two weeks away already but going in I will be looking forward to the Christian/Swagger match the most, for the second month in a row. They have really great chemistry and I hope they keep this feud going well into the summer.
ECW for 4/21/09
Coming into this week's ECW, Christian is now the #1 contender to face Jack Swagger for the title at Backlash this Sunday. The only thing advertised for tonight is the contract signing for the title match which should go smoothly as always.
We're starting off with Finlay coming out to the ring. He says that tonight is Hornswaggle's last night on ECW since he was drafted to Raw. Hornswaggle says he wants to wrestle tonight so Finlay wants Tiffany to put him in a match. Tyson Kidd comes out and says good riddance because now we'll have more time for his matches. Nattie name-drops the Hart family and then says that Bret was a liar when he proclaimed himself the best there ever will be because that title belongs to Tyson. Nattie wants the match so she'll face Hornswaggle.
Nattie keeps trying to lock up but he's too short to reach her. She slaps him across the face and he grabs her by the waist but she gets out. He spears her and tries for a pin but she kicks out. Tyson gets on the apron but Hornswaggle throws his jacket over Tyson's head then Finlay knocks him off. Nattie runs over to check on him and Hornswaggle rolls her up from behind for the pinfall. After the match Finlay brings three kids into the ring to dance.
Nattie goes to the back to talk to Tiffany. Nattie wants Hornswaggle fired but Tiffany says she should be shown respect and is now making a match for Superstars : Nattie and Tyson vs Finlay and Hornswaggle. Both of them sound like they are reading off of a teleprompter. They really need to start sending people to acting classes.
Evan Bourne vs Paul Burchill is next. Burchill dominates and uses a dragon sleeper on Bourne. Bourne tries to escape but Burchill slams him to the mat and then puts him in a rear chin lock. Bourne gets out and Burchill uses a butterfly suplex to toss him across the ring then runs into the corner with both knees. Burchill suplexes him and tries for a pin but Bourne kicks out. Burchill goes back to the rear chin lock but Bourne gets out again. Bourne tries to kick but Burchill catches the leg and tosses him overhead. Burchill goes for the chin lock again and wraps his legs around Bourne's waist but Bourne escapes again then runs to the ropes and gets tosses overhead again. Burchill with another chin lock and Bourne hits him in the gut to get out. Bourne starts to kick him and finally knocks Burchill down. Bourne ducks a clothesline and jumps up with a knee to the face. Bourne with a spinning heel kick and goes for a pin but Burchill kicks out. Bourne tries to run at him in the corner but Burchill catches him and slams him to the mat. Burchill tries for the double knee in the corner again Bourne moves and tries for the Shooting Star Press but Burchill gets up. Burchill puts him in the electric chair. Bourne escapes and gets knocks him out, goes up for the Shooting Star Press and gets the win via pinfall.
Koslov video package for him coming to ECW tonight. He is kicking beer bottles off of a stack of pallets in an alley and speaking Russian.
Koslov comes out to face Franky Sloan. Koslov grabs the mic says that Russian athletes are superior, total domination. Koslov tosses him around and gives him a big boot to the chest. Koslov picks him up and uses a variation of the spine buster for the finish. Koslov wins via pinfall.
Contract signing is last. These are always terrible so why should we break that trend now? Swagger grabs the mic and thinks it's weird that Christian has nothing witty to say. Swagger tells him that can't come back after 3 years and expect to pick up from where he left off. There is a new class of superstars and Swagger is leading them. Swagger tells him that he must have been thinking he had a chance of winning this until they sat down and Christian realized that he couldn't beat someone bigger, faster and stronger. Swagger gets up and Christian finally picks up the microphone. He says that he could make fun of Swagger's suits, haircuts and speech impediment but at the end of the day that's not going to do anything. Christian says Swagger can focus on whatever he wants but he needs to focus on Backlash so he can make Swagger the biggest, fastest and strongest ex-champion. Swagger punches him and then powerbombs him through the table as we go off the air.
Backlash is shaping up to be a pretty shitty show. During our post-Lockdown blog I said that it was the best PPV of April - I had completely forgotten that Backlash was also this month but it doesn't look like I will taking back what I said. By now, everyone has probably heard the story about Swagger being taken off of WrestleMania because Vince didn't like his Royal Rumble and No Way Out matches so I'm expecting him to drop the belt to Christian. Christian is so over on ECW they'd be stupid not to give him the belt at this point. Overall, this was a pretty weak show but I've come to not expect much over the past few weeks. Match of the night goes to Bourne and Burchill. Worst match goes to Nattie and Hornswaggle so congratulations Koslov, you weren't the worst thing on television for once.
ECW for 4/7/09
Coming out of WrestleMania, an event which featured zero point zero ECW matches, we shouldn't be expecting much tonight. The only match announced on WWE's website is a 6 man tag match featuring Carlito, Primo and Evan Bourne against Miz, Morrison and Tyson Kidd. We're also getting an appearance from Jack Swagger, hopefully setting up his next title match.
Josh Matthews is now on commentary so Todd Grisham must be moving to SmackDown.
We start with Teddy Long in the ring. Since Vickie Gurrero is now GM of Raw, Teddy Long will be taking over on SmackDown and some broad named Tiffany is now the interim GM of ECW. As soon as she picks up the mic Jack Swagger comes out. She announces that Mark Henry, Finlay, Tommy Dreamer and Christian will be participating in an elimination chase (?) to face him at Backlash. They will be having a fatal 4 way tonight to start this series.
The 6 man match is next. Miz and Carlito lock up and go into the corner, ref breaks it up and Miz pushes him. Carlito runs to the ropes and does the springboard elbow. Primo tags in and throws Miz to the corner, charges in but Miz ducks, Primo balances himself on the top rope and nails a hurricurana. Carlito tags in and they double dropkick him. Tyson tags in and gets Carlito to the corner then tags in Morrison. Morrison gets Carlito on the ground near the corner, ref gets him off but Miz and Tyson double team him behind the ref's back. Carlito gets to the middle of the ring and Morrison kicks him in the chest, Carlito tries to tag out but Morrison pushes him into the opposite corner and tags Miz. Miz slams Carlito's head into the turnbuckle then tags Tyson. Tyson hits him a few times then tags Morrison who put him in a rear chin lock. Carlito keeps trying to tag and eventually gets the hot tag to Bourne. Bourne runs and gives Morrison a hurricurana over the top rope as we go to break. Back from the break, Morrison has Bourne in a chinlock, Bourne breaks out and Miz tags in. Miz runs into the corner and clotheslines Bourne then tries for a pin but Bourne kicks out and Miz tags Tyson. Tyson gets him on the ground then kicks him in the back. Miz tags back in and stomps Bourne. Miz mounts him and starts to pound him but the ref pulls him off. Miz drags him to the corner and tags Tyson back in. Tyson stomps him then drops a knee, tries for a pin but Bourne kicks out. Miz tags in again and sets Bourne for a slingshot, Morrison tags Miz from behind as he send Bourne flying into into Morrison. Bourne gets across the ring and tags Primo as Morrison tags Tyson. Everyone winds up on the floor but Primo and Tyson. Tyson tries for the springboard elbow drop but Primo moves, gives him the Backcracker then tags Bourne who hits the Shooting Star Press and pins Tyson Kidd.
The fatal 4 way is next. It would help if someone would explain the rules but I guess how it works is whoever gets pinned is eliminated from the chase for the title. Henry tosses Dreamer from the ring. Christian runs into Henry and gets slammed. Matt Striker goes over the rules and what I figured they would be is correct. Henry takes all 3 guys out with punches then nails a flapjack on Christian as we go to break. Back and Henry is standing on Dreamer's chest and the ref breaks it up. All 3 suplex Henry then dropkick him out of the ring. They go to the floor and push him into the steps. Dreamer pushes Finlay into the guardrail then throws him back into the ring. Dreamer sits him on the top rope and starts to climb but Finlay knocks him off. Christian comes in and climbs the ropes but Dreamer puts him in the electric chair, Finlay goes for a Doomsday Device but Christian ducks and turns it into a victory roll but Dreamer kicks out. Finlay tries for the Celtic Cross but Christian turns it into a crucifix pin and Finlay kicks out. Dreamer gets clotheslined by Henry and then Christian comes off the top rope and dropkicks Henry. Christian tries to pin them both but they both kick out. Tony Atlas distracts the ref, Henry puts Dreamer up for The World's Strongest Slam but Finlay hits him with the shillelagh behind the ref's back, Henry drops Dreamer and Finlay gets the pinfall on Henry. Finlay, Dreamer and Christian move on to the next round.
I know the draft is coming next week but WWE has really not given a shit about ECW since No Way Out. This really proves there is way too much wrestling on right now and we have Superstars returning next week. It's going to be a very interesting Raw next week because chances are ECW's bigger names will be leaving for Raw/SmackDown and they'll get stuck with more lower card guys. Match of the night goes to 4 way, not to say the 6 man tag match was bad but we've saw practically the same match last night only now with Bourne and Tyson flying around the ring. This is starting to become the Raw recap show featuring 2 new matches.
Raw for 4/6/09
Last night at WrestleMania, John Cena captured the World Heavyweight Championship and Triple H retained the WWE Championship. I'll save my comments on WrestleMania for the show but I will say that like most others I did not enjoy it. Tonight, we're getting a WrestleMania all star tag match as John Cena, CM Punk, Rey Mysterio, Jeff Hardy and Ricky Steamboat will be facing Edge, Big Show, Kane, Matt Hardy and Chris Jericho.
Randy Orton is making his way out as we start the show. Orton says that Triple H illegally used the sledgehammer and it's sickening that the fans cheered for it. Last night proved nothing because Triple H can't beat Orton on his own and he wants a rematch. He says that he hasn't seen Linda in a while or maybe it's time to visit the McMahon grandchildren. Vince comes out and tells him that he won't be getting a rematch because he doesn't deserve it. Instead there will be a tidal wave coming at Backlash when Randy Orton will be teaming with Ted DiBiase and Cody Rhodes to face Vince, Shane and Triple H. Vince calls him a failure and Orton issues a challenge to Vince for a match tonight and Vince accepts.
Our first match is a lumber jack tag team match for the Unified Tag Titles. Miz and Morrison are getting their rematch from last night's dark match. Morrison starts off against Carlito. Morrison kicks him to the gut and gets him in the corner. Morrison whips him the ropes but Carlito pulls off a springboard elbow. Carlito tags out to Primo, he gets Morrison in the corner and comes charging in, Morrison ducks but Primo balances himself on the top rope with his head and then pulls off a hurricurana. Morrison gets out of the ring but the lumberjacks throw him back in as we go to commercial. We're back, Morrison has Primo in a headlock on the ground. Miz tags in and they give Primo a double flapjack. Miz goes for a pin but Carlito breaks it up. Primo gets up and gives Miz a jawbreaker then tags to Carlito. Carlito hits a neckbreaker then goes for a pin but Miz kicks out. Carlito goes up top but Miz hits him then he climbs up too, they both fall off and all the lumberjacks attack. Morrison gets up on the top rope and nails a shooting star press to the floor on everyone. Miz gets Carlito in the ring and tries to pin him but he kicks out. Primo tries for a hurricurana on Morrison but Morrison blocks and they both go over the top rope. Carlito tries for another springboard, Miz gets under him and puts him in the electric chair, Carlito gets down and hits the Back Cracker. Carlito pins him and gets the three count.
Vince and Shane backstage. Vince tells Shane that he wants Orton all to himself tonight.
Raw vs SmackDown Diva's match. Melina, Mickie, Jillian, Kelly Kelly and Leyla vs Maryse, Nattie, Maria, Eve and Gail Kim. Melina and Gail start, they lock up and Melina gets her to the gound. Gal gets up and takes Melina down. They do a series of near falls with a lot of reversals. Melina gets thrown to the outside and the SmackDown diva's attack her. Nattie tags in and puts Melina in a surfboard, Nattie pulls her hair and has to break the hold. Mickie gets the tag, kicks her a bunch of times and then Nattie takes over, Leyla tries to interfere but Nattie throws her to the outside, all the divas start to brawl on the floor. Mickie does something that I didn't see and pins Nattie.
Shane goes to Triple H's locker room, he wants Triple H to talk some sense into Vince.
The all star tag match is next. After about 10 minutes of entrances we go to commercial. We come back and the match is already in progress. Matt is in with Rey, Rey tags out to Jeff and Matt tags Edge. They lock up and Edge knees him in the stomach. Jeff goes to the corner, Edge whips him across to the other corner, Jeff gives him a hurricurana and tags Cena. Edge pushes him to the corner, hits him a few times and then Cena bulldogs him. Steamboat tags in and kicks Edge then goes for a pin but Edge kicks out. Steamboat hits a running splash as the crowd chants "You've still got it!" Kane tags in and Steamboat chops him and then hits an ax handle from the top rope. Kane tags Jericho who hits Steamboat in the face then tags Big Show. Big Show comes in and chops Steamboat. Jericho tags back in, clotheslines Steamboat and tries to pin him. Steamboat kicks out but Jericho puts on a sleeper hold. Steamboat gets out, hits Jericho then gets caught in the Wall of Jericho. Steamboat twists his way out and rolls him up but Jericho gets out. Steamboat tags to Punk. Punk hits the flying knee and then bulldog. Punk knocks Matt and Edge off the apron, he turns around and Kane hits him. Jericho tries to pin him but Punk kicks out, Kane tags in as we go to break. Back from the break, Punk if hitting Kane, runs to the ropes and Kane gets the leg up for a big boot. Big Show tags in and headbutts Punk. He brings him to the corner and chops him then tags Edge in. Edge kicks him then tags in Kane. Kane puts him on the top rope, Punk hits him and knocks him off then jumps off the top but gets caught. Kane tries for a chokeslam but Punk turns it into a DDT then tags Jeff. Jeff goes up and hits the whisper in the wind. Matt comes up from behind and dumps Jeff over but Jeff tags Cena as he goes over. Big Show comes in and and picks Cena up but Cena tags Rey while in the air. Cena and Big Show go to the floor as Rey gets the 619 on both Edge and Jericho. Rey and Steamboat both go up and hit top rope splashes, Rey pins Edge and gets the win. The faces leave the ring and give Steamboat a standing ovation on the ramp as he celebrates in the ring.
Triple H goes into Vince's office. Vince tells him he doesn't want to hear it. Triple H tells him he's a stubborn SOB but he's proud of him. He tells Vince to finish this tonight.
Vickie Guerrero comes out to announce that she must choose between being GM of either Raw or SmackDown and she's made up her mind. She's picking Raw and her first decision is to let Edge have his rematch at Backlash in a last man standing match. The 6 man match will now be a WWE Championship title match, if Triple H's team wins he retains. If Randy Orton's team wins then he becomes champ.
Santina Marella comes out to give an acceptance speech for Miss WrestleMania. Beth and Rosa come out. Beth tells him that he's embarrassing himself and she wants a match tonight. Santina tells her to stop being jealous and accepts the challenge. A ref comes running out as we go to break. Beth chops her and puts her in the corner, then hits her a bunch of times. Beth lifts her up for a bodyslam but Santina grabs the top rope, Beth falls and Santina lands on top her and gets the pin.
Vince vs Orton is next. Orton basically beats the crap out of him, RKO's him then goes for the punt but Shane runs down and tackles him. Rhodes and DiBiase come running out followed by Triple H. The Legacy are beating all 3 of them down until Batista's music hits and he comes out to clean house. Vince announces that he won't be making it to Backlash and Batista is taking his spot on Triple H's team.
With the exception of Santina this was a pretty shitty show. The 6 man match at Backlash is something TNA tried last year and I never understood it. Why would DiBiase or Rhodes care about helping this match since they can't win the belt? Why would Shane and Batista care about helping Triple H if he's only going to retain if they win? The last man standing match with Cena and Edge is probably one of the few gimmick matches they have yet to do with these guys so it's something new I guess. They might as well unify the Women's belts now that the Raw and SmackDown diva's are fighting each other. They was nothing involving Shawn Michaels or Undertaker tonight but that might be saved for SmackDown. Lastly, Steamboat was so incredibly over with the crowd and it was nice to see him get the standing ovation at the end of the match but that should tell them something if he's getting the biggest pop of the night.
ECW for 3/31/09
We're now 5 days away from WrestleMania and guess what? We don't have an ECW match for the biggest show of the year. It doesn't look like that's going to change because the only thing announced for tonight is a Money in the Bank tag match featuring Christian and Finlay vs Mark Henry and Kane. Once again we're being robbed of the all Diva's edition of ECW we were promised 2 weeks ago. You can't see it but I'm shaking my fist really hard at the screen right now.
We're starting off with tag match. Christian and Kane start off, Christian hits him a few times and tries to whip him but can't seem to move Kane. Kane throws him into the corner but Christian moves before Kane can get there. Christian tags out and Finlay locks up with Kane. Kane pushes him to the corner and gives him a knee to the gut. Finlay gets whipped to the ropes but kicks Kane on his way back, Finlay tags to Christian as we go to commercial. We're back, Finlay is back in with Kane who tags out Mark Henry. Henry knocks Finlay down and starts to work Finlay's back. Finlay crawls to the corner and Henry puts his boot on Finlay's neck, Henry tries to pin him but Finlay kicks out. Kane tags back in and gives Finlay a big boot, tries for a pin but Finlay kicks out again. Kane puts him in a chinlock, Finlay tries to break free but Henry tags and bodyslams Finlay after Kane releases him. Henry throws him back in the corner and tags Kane back in. Kane whips him to the corner but Finlay gets a foot up as Kane comes running in, Finlay gets to the corner and tags Christian in. Christian starts hitting Kane and he tags out to Henry, Christian gets Henry down on one knee and Finlay comes in and they give him a double dropkick. They double clothesline Kane out of the ring. They both turn around and Henry clotheslines them both. Christian gets up and climbs up to the top rope, he jumps but Henry catches him and turns it into the World's Strongest Slam. Henry pins and gets the win. After the match Henry attacks Kane.
Brie Bella will be facing Nikki Bella later on.
Recap of the HBK/Undertaker feud.
Recap of the Edge/Cena/Big Show feud.
WrestleMania 23 highlights featuring Trump and McMahon.
Recap of the Triple H/Orton feud.
We've had about 30 minutes of recaps by now.
It's 9:50pm and still nothing.
9:54 and Nikki makes her way to the ring. Brie finally comes out and we're under way with about 4 minutes left in the broadcast. Brie rolls her up from behind but doesn't even get a 1 count. Brie spears her and the ref breaks it up. Nikki hits her a few times and Brie flips her over. Nikki elbows her in the face then Brie flips her again. Nikki suplexes her and tries for a pin but Brie kicks out. Brie clotheslines her then follows up with a dropkick. Miz and Morrison distract the ref, Nikki rolls Brie up from behind and gets the pinfall and that's the end of the show.
There isn't much to talk about for this show, it was mostly just recaps of all of the big feuds going into WrestleMania. Match of the night is MitB tag and the worst is Bella's which was pretty sloppy. Enjoy WrestleMania everyone!
Raw for 3/30/09
We made it! We're in the home stretch for what is surely going to be the worst WrestleMania in almost a decade. For our big WrestleMania preview we will be getting John Cena vs Big Show as the main-event. Yes that's right, a match that was featured as the opening contest of WrestleMania 20 is our main-event for the go home edition of Raw before the biggest show of the year. In our other 5 star match tonight, we get Chris Jericho against Jerry Lawler. If you haven't decided if you want to spend $55 on Sunday's show yet this will surely put you over the top.
We're opening with a hearse backing into the arena with Undertaker's song playing. Apparently, Undertaker is going to be holding a funeral for Shawn Michaels.
Our first match of the night is an 18 diva tag match. Mickie and Jillian lock up, Jillian has her in an arm bar but Mickie gets out. Mickie with a Thesz press and tags out to Kelly Kelly. Kelly gets a beatdown and Beth tags in. Beth whips her to the corner and runs in after her but Kelly gets an elbow up. Katie Lea tags in and kicks Kelly while she's on the ground. Kelly rolls her up and that's the end of the match... seriously. Santino comes out in a bathrobe to announce he went to the top to try to get into the Diva battle royal at WrestleMania - he went to see WWE president Jack Tunney and found out and passed away 7 years ago, but Santino is fighting for equal rights and wants to take part in a swimsuit competition because he wants to be Miss WrestleMania. He takes off his bathrobe to reveal a Borat style bikini. Beth gets upset and the Diva's all attack him.
Lawler vs Jerico is up next. They lock up and push each back and forth. Lawler hits a flurry of punches and kicks. Jericho starts to unloads with the same back on Lawler. Jericho whips him and elbows Lawler in the face. Jericho headbutts him and whips him to the corner, Lawler reverses but Jericho gets the elbow up. Jericho goes up to the middle rope but Lawler hits him in the stomach in mid-air. Lawler with more punches while Jericho is on the ground, Jericho hits him in the stomach and locks in the Walls of Jericho. Lawler taps out. After the match, Jericho picks him up but Lawler punches him in the face. Jericho grabs the microphone and says that he already beat Lawler so he doesn't have to come back. On his way back up the ramp, he promises to win on Sunday; it's not a matter of him beating The Legends but just how badly he'll beat them.
Todd Grisham is backstage with John Cena. Edge walks in and says that Cena's chances of winning on Sunday are non-exisitant. Edge says they can change those odds if they put aside their differences and take out Big Show first. Cena says it makes sense but he doesn't care because he doesn't trust Edge. He'd rather lose on his own then win with Edge.
Michael Cole talks to Cody Rhodes and Ted DiBiase backstage about Randy Orton's WrestleMania address tonight. They say this is isn't just about Triple H, it's going to change everything about the WWE Universe.
The hearse is shown again and a coffin in the back opens and Shawn Michaels pops up.
Lawler comes running out to ringside as Rey Mysterio makes his way to the ring. Why does Rey give his new mask to a kid already wearing one? I never saw Bret Hart put sunglasses on a kid that already had a pair on. Anyway, JBL comes out so I guess these two are having a match? This makes perfect sense. JBL says he asked for this match so he can beat Rey within an inch of his life, and so that in 6 days he can do it again on a bigger stage. It's non-title also. They lock up and JBL starts to pound on Rey. JBL whips him to the ropes but Rey holds on and kicks him in the face. Rey nails a hurricurana and runs to the the ropes but JBL takes him down as we go to break. Back from the break, Rey ducks a clothesline but gets caught in a fall away slam. Rey rolls out of the ring and JBL follows and tosses him back in. JBL goes for a cover but Rey kicks out at 2. JBL punches him in the face, gets him in the corner and punches him again, the ref pulls him off. JBL puts Rey up on top and Rey starts to fight back, he jumps off the top with a senton, sets up the 619 and gets the splash off the top rope. Rey pins him and picks up the victory.
WrestleMania XI highlights featuring Bam Bam Bigelow vs Lawrence Taylor.
John Cena is out for his match against Big Show. Big Show punches him and he falls down quickly. Big Show continues to pound on him and then stands on him while he's down. Big Show ties him up in the ropes and pulls on his back then punches him as the ref tells him to back off. Cena tries to fight back and goes for a shoulder block but Big Show doesn't move. Big Show headbutts him and then whips him to the corner, Cena moves as Big Show comes in for a Stinger Splash. Big Show knocks him down again and goes for a Vader Bomb but Cena rolls out of the way, Cena climbs up and hits a leg-drop from the top. Cena goes for the STF but Big Show gets away and knocks Cena out of the ring as we go to commercial. We're back and Big Show has Cena in a modified Camel Clutch. Cena tries to break out but Big Show jumps on his back. Big Show signals for the Choke Slam but Cena turns it into a DDT and tries for the STF but he can't lock it in due to Big Show's size (Cole and Lawler discuss how the laws of physics prevent this move on Big Show so we all know that Cena will now win the title by making Big Show tap out at Mania), Big Show tries for the punch, Cena ducks and tries for the FU but can't life him, Big Show grabs him and gives him a chokeslam. Big Show wins by pinfall. Edge comes out through the crowd and starts to pound on Cena, Big Show stands in the corner watching as the ref's pull Edge off.
The funeral for Shawn Michaels is set up in the ring as he makes his way to the ring. Undertaker's music plays in the background as HBK says that this isn't a funeral for him but for Undertaker's streak. Undertaker has never beaten Shawn so it won't be any different this time. Shawn opens the empty casket and carries on about how there will be no retribution come this Sunday. He's insulted that Undertaker doesn't think he can end the streak and the past 24 WrestleMania's will pale in comparison to the ending of this match. The lights go out and Undertaker is in the ring when they come back on but HBK is gone and the casket is closed. Undertaker tears the set apart and opens the casket but it's empty. Shawn comes out from underneath it and superkicks Undertaker then walks up the ramp as Undertaker tries to get up.
Money in the Bank battle royal is next. Just like the ECW one a few weeks back I'll just name them in the order they are eliminated since these things move so fast; Finlay, Mark Henry, MVP, Shelton, Kofi, Punk, Christian. Kane wins.
Ted DiBiase and Cody Rhodes with a bunch of security guards knock on Orton's door and they all march to the ring Goldberg style.
Orton actually comes out by himself. He says that winning his first title was the greatest moment of his career but it was short lived because of Triple H. Triple H ruined his life back in 2004 so Orton has been waiting for almost 5 years to ruin his. Orton admits he knew what he was doing the whole time when he beat up the McMahon family. The fans in the arena start giving him the "WHAT?" chant and Orton screams at them but most of it gets censored. Triple H will never be able to look at Orton the same way after he kissed Stephanie after DDTing her last week. Orton announces that Vickie Guerrero has changed the rules of the match; the title can now change on DQ or count out and if Triple H brings a sledgehammer to the ring he is automatically disqualified and Orton will become champ without having to even fight him. A limo pulls into the parking lot and Orton calls Ted and Cody to the ring with security. Security sets up a barricade on the ramp as Ted and Cody get into the ring with Orton. The camera shows the limo is now empty and Vince McMahon's music starts. He takes off his jacket and rolls up his sleeves as Shane comes out and finally Triple H joins them. Lawler yells; "Can you believe your eyes?" and I know I can't because they are rolling pretty far into the back of my head. Vince, Shane and Triple H take out security and then head to the ring, The Legacy meets them half-way and they all fight. Triple H spears Orton in the ring and they are rolling around punching each other as we go off the air.
This was a pretty bad way to end Raw going into WrestleMania but then again we still have 3 more hours of TV before the big show. None of the storylines really progressed this week but they must know that by now they either have your money or they don't for the PPV. I wasn't impressed by anything on this show and the few matches we had seemed to be very short and basic since no one wants to get hurt this close to their big payday. Forced to choose, I'd say the Rey/JBL match was the best of the night but that was all Rey. The worst would be the women's match where most of the Diva's don't even get tagged in. I hope by now you've made up your mind about ordering this or not because this shit will not help you make a decision.
Ring of Honor on HDNet
By now the results are all over the internet so you can look them up for yourself, there is no point in me typing them up for you but this will still contain spoilers.
I may have mentioned this on the show but by 2001, I had completely stopped watching wrestling. The InVasion had completely turned me off and with the exception of occasionally checking in on Raw, I didn't watch regularly until 2005. By 2006 I was already growing restless with WWE again and started to search for something else. I tried TNA, but at this point they were on FSN at 2am and then they disappeared for a while until the Spike TV deal. I had started to hear about ROH on the internet, particularly Bryan Danielson, who was champ at this point. CM Punk was talked about everywhere but he left for WWE by now and Danielson was on a roll with title matches against Nigel McGuinness, Colt Cabana and KENTA. I picked up a copy of ROH's first show "The Era of Honor Begins" mostly because it featured Danielson, Christopher Daniels and Low Ki in the main-event and I was familiar with the last two from TNA. I was immediately blown away by Danielson and I went to my first live show shortly after; "Battle of the Icons". I was living in an apartment less than five minutes away and the opportunity to see Samoa Joe, Homicide and Christopher Daniels was what interested me the most. It was not the best show but getting to see guys like Austin Aries, Delirious, Jack Evans and Davey Richards was a great way to get to see what ROH was all about. Since then, I've been to probably 20 shows and I've gotten to see some of the best matches in recent memory in person. I was at the first pay-per-view, "Respect is Earned" in the Manhattan Center and it was really no different from any of the other shows I had been to, but going into the debut tapings for HDNet I was very skeptical.
ROH getting on pay-per-view, although a huge step for the company, wasn't really a big deal to me. The shows are the same length when you go to any live show and the few matches that are taped but not aired on PPV are still put on the DVD. There was really nothing groundbreaking about this since they are taped months in advance and until this year I wasn't able to order the PPV's so I had to go see them live or wait for DVD's. But the transition to weekly television was a huge step for ROH. They have always had the freedom to basically do whatever they wanted on their shows. They could have hour long draws on a regular basis or bring in Japanese talent that really only hardcore Puro fans will appreciate. Now they have 1 hour a week to show fans what they are all about.
In many ways, ROH has long been compared to the original ECW and I never got the comparison until now. I was one of the lucky minority to have been able to watch ECW before almost anyone had ever even heard about it. I lived in a town that was basically halfway between Manhattan and Philadelphia so I was surrounded by wrestling. I stumbled across Hardcore TV sometime in early 1996 when it was on public access and one of the first guys I was exposed to was Chris Jericho. I was amazed at the stuff he was doing in the ring and although many of my fellow panel members on The Wrestling Roundtable have grown tired of him, Jericho has a free pass for life from me. I was able to follow most of his North American career from ECW to WCW to WWF/WWE, and if I was forced to make a list of my top 5 wrestlers ever, he's #2 behind Bret Hart. Getting to see someone like Chris Jericho evolve over the years and knowing that I believed in him when he was wrestling Sabu in the ECW Arena, then getting to see him last year at WrestleMania 24 in the Money in the Bank match with thousands of others in the Citrus Bowl just gave me a rare special feeling I don't get from wrestling anymore. Besides Jericho, I was able to see Raven, The Dudleys, Taz and (one of my other top 5 guys) Rob Van Dam tearing up the place before just about everyone else. ECW grew over the years and I was there to watch it all from the first PPV to the TNN show. Here's where the comparisons to ROH are going to come in. ECW and ROH both have passionate cult following *but* will that translate to television viewers? The answer in ECW's case was 'sort-of.' They did decent numbers on TNN but the show was not what it once was. Paul Heyman had to try to please both the old fans, new fans and the network. We all know what happened next so I won't bother going into details but ROH now has the same dilemma on it's hands.
I went into the ROH tapings with a pessimistic attitude. ROH has had it's shares of ups and downs over the past few months and I didn't believe that they could pull off an ROH show in what will amount to about 44 minutes a week after commercials. I was wrong. The spirit of ROH was there the whole time. The entire roster delivered for that first night, from the young guys like Rhett Titus and Dark City Fight Club to the veterans like Jay Briscoe and Bryan Danielson. Every single wrestler gave 150% and even if the show fails in the ratings they can say they tried their hardest. From the moment this show starts and you see Jerry Lynn taking on Delirious, Lynn is a familiar face to most of the casual crowd and Delirious is one of the best guys on the roster. Lynn may have made his name elsewhere but this is still an ROH show with ROH wrestlers and ROH fans that is easy for anyone to get into. In many ways this is the show that Paul Heyman couldn't do. ROH is showing us exactly who they are without having to change the majority of the product. The only real difference that I saw was the matches were shorter than what we have grown accustomed to in ROH but perhaps this for the better if guys aren't killing themselves in the ring every night for long periods of time. Every week will feature four matches and the interviews/promo's will be taped backstage. The live audience won't be able to see them until they are broadcast on TV.
If you've enjoyed TNA's Knockouts division then you will probably like the women of ROH. Daizee Haze and Sara Del Rey had one of the best womens matches you're going to see on free TV this year. I've seen these two lock-up many, many times but I still enjoy seeing them go out there and work their hardest to win over one of the toughest wrestling crowds anywhere. ROH won't be able to get by on these two alone so I'm assuming they will be bringing in more of Shimmer's talent, which is just fine with me.
I did have a few complaints about the show but my biggest one was that Necro Butcher lost to Chris Hero. Though I'm not a Chris Hero fan at all, this is not my biased opinion coming into play. Necro Butcher got the loudest reaction of anyone the entire night. He had just been in the movie "The Wrestler" and he was name-dropped 6 days before at The Academy Awards by Seth Rogen and James Franco. The crowd even chanted; "Where's His Oscar?" But Hero cheated to win in what I think was the biggest mistake of the night. ROH should be pushing Necro to the moon right now with all the recognition he is receiving for his role in "The Wrestler" and I hope they fix this immediately. Another complaint is the first main-event which features Tyler Black facing his old tag team partner Jimmy Jacobs. For new fans turning in they may not remember these two from WSX as D.I.F.H. and Jimmy Jacobs is one of the smallest guys I've ever seen get in the ring. I think this might not look that great when you're trying to win over new fans. You don't need guys the size of Batista in the ring but you only get 1 chance to make a first impression. The match itself is fine so maybe ROH is going to let the wrestling speak for itself and not the characters but I would not have let this be the first main-event had I booked the show. My last complaint - Nigel McGuinness is ROH's world champ, he's had the belt for almost 18 months and he didn't wrestle until the second episode. The champ should have headlined the first show and he should have put the belt on the line, which he did not when he faced Jay Briscoe. It would have been something a little more special for the live crowd to see a title match and the fans at home will get to see a preview of what they can expect should they order a PPV.
The third main-event was my absolute favorite match of the night. Austin Aries faced Bryan Danielson in a great match. These two have had a series of excellent matches over the past year and a half, their match from "Take No Prisoners 2008" was my pick for match of the year. The friendly rivalry they had from fall 2007 through spring 2008 produced 4 great matches and in between those they were teaming up in tag matches that were also spectacular. If you want to see one ROH match, make this the one to watch. Danielson is a master of his craft and Austin Aries will prove that he is much more than TNA's Austin Starr. Danielson has a variety of different finishers and he used a triangle choke to submit Aries in a back and forth battle. You will hear the crowd chant "Best in the World" during every one of his matches and you better believe it is true. After the match Danielson thanked us all for making the past 7 years so great for him and he put over the entire roster as the best it's ever been. On the show we've talked about him having one of the best entrances in all of wrestling and we were treated to "The Final Countdown" one last time now that the band Fucked Up has donated a song for him to use. To bring this full circle with ECW, I just want to say this; I see in Bryan Danielson the same exact thing that I saw in Chris Jericho 13 years ago, and even though it would hurt ROH if he were to leave, I'm looking forward to the day that I see him get his match at WrestleMania should he choose to go to WWE down the line.
Lastly, I just want to say congratulations to everyone in ROH - the wrestlers and everyone behind the scenes that keeps it running. After 7 years you've made it to television and I wish you nothing but success. I especially need to congratulate a friend of our show, Alex "Sugarfoot" Payne. He has sat in our panel for some of our discussions and now you will get to see him take on Claudio Castognoli in the second edition of ROH on HDNet. It was a great match and I hope all of you reading this will take the time to watch it. Unfortunately not everyone is going to be able to get HDNet on their cable/satellite but for those of you who do at the very least set your DVR's and give ROH a chance. These are 3 great shows and you are not going to see anything else like it on free TV. For more on ROH, visit rohwrestling.com
