Reviewing the Golden Era Rumbles: 1988

Hello everyone and welcome back to TNR Presents as I'm now calling it. As you probably noticed, it's been a long time since I put some new content on my blog, and with the new year approaching, I figured that it was long time to start writing some new reviews. Now as you can see from the title, I'll be reviewing all the Rumble matches from 1988-2017 and ending with my review of 2018 royal rumble matches(along with a full review for that show). In other words, I'm essentially doing what my good friend James at WeAreProWrestling did last year cause why the hell not? However, I'll be going more in-depth with my reviews as I talk about the entire match as well as give my final thoughts and final rating. Couple more things here: I won't be talking about the pilot Royal Rumble match the WWF did for a house show in 1987 as it has never been acknowledge by said company. Also, I won't be talking about any other TV Rumbles(ex: The Corporate Rumble from 1999 or the Smackdown Royal Rumble from 2004) Perhaps I'll look at those some other time. Now that that's out of the way, let's get started.

The 1st Royal Rumble event took place on January 24th, 1988 at the Copps Coliseum in Hamilton, Ontario, Canada. This event was also the 1st and only time that the WWFwould air the Royal Rumble event on free TV as a TV special for the USA Network. The special would become the highest watched wrestling program on cable TV at the time.

Our commentators are Vince McMahon & Jesse Ventura. Basically the TV commentators since I don't think Vince ever did commentary on PPV till the 90s. If I'm wrong, let me know.

Entrant #1: Bret Hart

Entrant #2: Tito Santana

It doesn't surprise me that these two are our 1st two entrants as it's a good way to continue the Hart Foundation/Strike Force feud. Bret takes control at the start, but Santana starts to fire back. Bret takes back control soon after as Vince and Jesse discuss the thought of who #3 could be. Vince also mentions Santana's partner Rick Martel coming down, except he's not in the match. Of course, why he's not in the match and why they bring it up are both good questions, and before you ask, no(to the best of my knowledge) Martel wasn't injured, so you're guess is as good as mine. Bret works to get Santana over the top rope as the countdown starts.

Entrant #3: Butch Reed

Santana fights off Bret and hits the Flying Forearm on Bret as Reed enters, who precedes to beat on Santana. Reed tries to eliminate Santana, but fails and gets his noggin rocked into Bret's for his trouble. Santana starts to mount a comeback, but focuses his attention on Reed and leaves himself open to an attack from Bret as we get the 2-1 double-teaming that you'd probably expect we would. And then...

Entrant #4: Jim Neidhart

To say Tito Santana is 10 stages past fucked at this point would be an understatement. Santana avoids a high knee from Reed that nearly eliminates Bret and tries to fight back, but is eventually taken down and triple-teamed. This includes a spot involving the Hart's backbreaker/elbow smash move and Reed helping Neidhart out and it just looks weird to me. The triple-teaming continues as the 3 try to eliminate Santana when the countdown starts.

Entrant #5: Jake Roberts

Roberts comes out to a big ovation as he quickly dumps Reed to the floor.

Elimination #1: Butch Reed(by Jake Roberts)

Roberts fights off both Hart and Neidhart as the faces take control. Jake sets up Bret for the DDT and it's amazing to remember a time when that move was so over. Of course, Neidhart saves his partner as the heels take back control with Bret giving Santana a piledriver as the countdown starts.

Entrant #6: Harley Race

Race starts dropping elbows on a downed Roberts with assistance from Neidhart. Both men try to eliminate Roberts while at the same time, Santana tries to eliminate Bret, forcing Neidhart to save his partner once again. Roberts knocks Bret down, but falls to a Harley Race falling head-butt as #7 comes out.

Entrant #7: Jim Brunzell

A member of the often overlooked Killer Bees tag-team, Brunzell goes in and immediately goes after the Harts and is actually able to fight them both off well as Roberts is working Race and Santana is taking a breather. He nearly gets Bret out and gets all the faces trying to get him out, but once again, Neidhart saves him. The Faces and Heels start pummeling each other as the countdown starts again.

Entrant #8: Sam Houston

OK, not gonna lie: I actually had to look up who Sam Houston was cause I had forgotten him. Anyway, Houston fight off a tiring Hart Foundation as he enters as we see more face vs heel matchup, which is something I'll talk about in my final thoughts. Mostly pummeling here until The Harts toss Santana.

Elimination #2: Tito Santana(By Bret Hart & Jim Neidhart)

Jesse immediately says "That evens it up." which is also something I'll talk about in my final thoughts. 

Entrant #9: Danny Davis

Easily one of the more over heels at the time(and possibly the biggest heel in this match), Davis comes out to chorus of boos, he squares off with Houston cause they're both jobbers and mostly cause they were feuding at the time. Roberts has Race in this weeble-wobble spot which is kind of interesting, but not much else happens other than your usual Rumble chaos.

Entrant #10: Boris Zhukov

Zhukov joins the fray and goes to work on Houston(anybody starting to notice a pattern?) An interesting moment happens when Race, for a brief moment works on Zhukov, breaking the whole face vs heels thing... before they go right back to it. Almost as if it didn't happen. 

Entrant #11: Don Muraco

Muraco comes out with Nikolai Volkoff right behind him. When they both get to the ring, the refs hold Volkoff back, which allows Muraco to take a cheap shot on Volkoff and enter the ring so that Volkoff can't get to him. Our babyface, ladies and gentlemen. Volkoff continues to argue with the refs as his tag partner Zhukov gets tossed.

Elimination #3: Boris Zhukov(by Jake Roberts(2) & Jim Brunzell)


Vince & Jesse are surprised considering Zhukov came in not too long ago and was eliminated by two men who have been in for quite some time. Brunzell nails his dropkick on Bret. What I find funny is that Vince & Jesse don't seem to get how stupid it is for Volkoff to try to come in early. Houston and Davis continue their battle on the ropes as the countdown appears.


Entrant #12: Nikolai Volkoff

Finally, Volkoff enters. Not too long after that, Muraco clotheslines Race over the top rope.

Elimination #4: Harley Race(by Don Muraco)

Obviously, Race isn't too happy and tries to get back in, but is held back by those pesky officials and everyone else just brawls by the ropes.

Entrant #13: Jim Duggan

HOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!

Now that I got that out of my system, let's continue. Duggan has a brief brawl with Race on the outside before going in and working over Neidhart and soon after Bret.

Entrant #14: Ron Bass

Bass comes in and quickly goes to work on Muraco. Vince gives Bass the 'This guy is made for this match.' which is code for: Midcarder who has no chance of winning... well, then again, everyone in this match is at best a mid-carder(at the time of the match) and this will not be the last time they use that phrase. Back to the Rumble, Volkoff body slams Brunzell over the top to the floor.

Elimination #5: Jim Brunzell(by Nikolai Volkoff)

Duggan finally realizes there's a Russian in the ring and goes to work on him. So after, the countdown starts.

Entrant #15: B. Brian Blair

The 2nd half of the Killer Bees, Commentary points out how unlucky he is since his partner was just eliminated a moment ago. Blair works on Davis and the Harts, with Jesse complaining about Blair going right for Bret. 

Entrant #16: Hillbilly Jim

I must admit, I forgot how tall Hillbilly Jim was. Jim, who might be the highest ranked midcarder at that point, goes in and makes quick work of Neidhart

Elimination #6: Jim Neidhart(by Hillbilly Jim)

Vince is surprised at how quickly Jim eliminated Neidhart and wonders how muck longer Bret can last. Blair is almost eliminated at the hands of Bass while everyone else brawls. 

Entrant #17: Dino Bravo

Earlier in the show, Bravo had a segment where he successfully bench pressed 715 pounds(an at the time record) with a little help from Jesse Ventura and Vince constantly brings it up. Hey, it's more interesting than watching Bravo wrestle, or brawl in this case. More interesting is Houston up on Bass's shoulders and Houston get dumped to the floor.

Elimination #7: Sam Houston(by Ron Bass)

Thankfully, Houston lands on his ass and not his head cause if he had... yeah, I'll let you picture it. More brawling as the countdown starts. Bravo and Muraco start slugging it up in a prelude to their match at Wrestlemania IV.

Entrant #18: The Ultimate Warrior

This is only a couple of months after the Warrior made his WWF debut. As he begins working on Bass, Muraco tosses Bret.

Elimination #8: Bret Hart(by Don Muraco(2))

Vince and Jesse give credit to Bret for staying in as long as he did. Although, I'm surprised they didn't let Bret go coast to coast and let him stay to the 30 min mark, especially since it's in Canada. 

Entrant #19: One Man Gang

Arguably, the closest guy of the 20 here to the main event, Gang trots in and quickly takes care of business by eliminating Blair.

Elimination #9: B. Brian Blair(by One Man Gang)

And then not long after that, Gang eliminates Roberts. 

Elimination #10: Jake Roberts(by One Man Gang(2))

You talk about making a good impression in a Rumble? Well, take notes cause that's how you do it.

Entrant #20: Junkyard Dog

The final entrant in this Rumble(remember, only 20 in this one) JYD flies to the ring as commentary picks who they think will win. Duggan gets Volkoff over his shoulders and sends him to the floor.

Elimination #11: Nikolai Volkoff(by Jim Duggan)

Jim goes after Davis, who somehow is still in there, but Davis starts raking everyone's eyes to survive. This allows the Gang to get Jim over his shoulders and eliminate him

Elimination #12: Hillbilly Jim(by One Man Gang(3))

Jesse says this match is the Gang's type of match and you just know he's screwed when something like that is said. Duggan finally gets Davis and hits the 3-Point Stance Clothesline to eliminate him

Elimination #13: Danny Davis(by Jim Duggan(2))

But what's more surprising is that Gang and Bravo casually toss Warrior out.

Elimination #14: The Ultimate Warrior(by Dino Bravo & One Man Gang(4))

I would've thought it was a no-brainer to give the 1st Rumble to Warrior as they continue to build him up as the next biggest superstar, next to Hogan, but no. He's eliminated and no one bats an eye at it. This wouldn't be the last time Warrior should've won a Rumble, but that's for later. Anyway, we're down to 6, but not for long and Gang rakes JYD's eyes and then Bass comes up from behind and eliminates him.

Elimination #15: Junkyard Dog(by Ron Bass(2))

However, Bass gets a taste of his medicine as Muraco comes up from behind Bass and clotheslines him out.

Elimination #16: Ron Bass(by Don Muraco(3))

And now, we're down to the Final 4: Muraco, Duggan, Bravo and Gang. The heels take control as Gang avalanches Duggan in the corner and Bravo and Gang look to double-team on Muraco. He's able to fight them off for a bit, but thanks to a distraction from Bravo's manager Frenchie Martin(yes, that was his name), Gang and Bravo take back control. They use the heel holds the face allowing the other heel to clothesline him spot that has never worked in the history of ever; except here, it might be the only time ever that it actually did work.

Elimination #17: Don Muraco(by Dino Bravo(2) & One Man Gang(5))

And now, Duggan is screwed. Not like how Santana was earlier, but he's still screwed nonetheless. Like Muraco, he's able to hold them off for a moment, but is eventually double-teamed. They repeat the clothesline spot, but this time it goes the way it always does with Gang 'accidentally on purpose' eliminating Bravo.

Elimination #18: Dino Bravo(by One Man Gang(6))

I use the phrase 'accidentally on purpose' because Gang hit Bravo, but Bravo doesn’t go over the ropes. Gang then blatantly shoves Bravo over, hence the phrase 'accidentally on purpose'. What's even funnier is that Gang immediately goes into an act of “Oh no! I did not mean to clothesline you over!”. If you look at it as a botch, it's pretty funny, but from a kayfabe standpoint, Gang is just being an asshole and fakes innocence to save face and that is just hilarious. 

Anyway, we're down to our Final 2 with Gang spending almost all of it beating down on Duggan until he low bridges a charging Gang and eliminates him!

Elimination #19: One Man Gang(by Jim Duggan(3))

WINNER: JIM DUGGAN!

Stats:

Royal Rumble Ironman: Bret Hart(25:42)(Record)

Shortest Time: Junkyard Dog(2:30)(Record)

Most: Eliminations: One Man Gang(6)(Record)

Final Thoughts:

To put it simply, without this match, we wouldn't have the other 30 years of Royal Rumble events, so you have to give it some appreciation and it does have some historical value, but beyond that, this Rumble is one of the worst Rumbles of all-time. This was truly a case of 'Throwing things at the wall and see what sticks' and to be fair, some things did stick, but a lot of others didn't. The biggest problem this Rumble has going for it is that it's trapped by the status quo of the WWF(at the time) of ALWAYS having faces vs heels. Even though they say at the begining that it's "Every man for himself", it quickly deteriorates into a typical faces vs heels match. Hell, a couple of times during the match, Jesse would say things like "It’s 3 on 3 right now!" or "That evens it up" when there are three heels and three faces in the ring, even though they hadn’t squared off as anything resembling two separate units. Other problems include the match itself having 20 participants instead of 30(especially since I'm pretty sure the WWF had a roster to support a 30 man match), the lack of a prize or reward to the winner and even the logo not being the classic Royal Rumble logo that we all know and love. Instead, they give it a regal look and I just roll my eyes thinking whoever designed that logo took the Royal Rumble name too seriously. Also, Jim Duggan being the 1st winner of the Royal Rumble match was just... meh to me. At least his will forever live in Pro Wrestling Immortality by winning. Thankfully, the WWF would fix the kinks and made this a fan-favorite match, but as for this one, if you haven't seen it, do so, but unless you like to binge-watch all the Rumble Matches like I do, there's really no reason to watch it again.

Final Rating:

3.5 out of 10

I want to hear your opinions, guys. What did you think of the 1988 Rumble Match? Let me know in the comments below or hit me up on Twitter https://twitter.com/ThenWoReviewer and while you're there, be sure to follow me cause I have more reviews on the way. Until then, I have one thing left to say...

WWE Extreme Rules 2015 Review

WWE Extreme Rules 2015 Review

Pre-Show Match
Neville def. Bad News Barrett(10:36)
Thoughts: Originally, Barrett was supposed to face Daniel Bryan for the Intercontinental Championship, but D-Bry was taken off the card for health concerns, so they decided to pair Barrett with the newcomer, Neville and truth be told, we got a match that would probably be as good as D-Bry/Barrett might have been. Now I'm not saying that Neville is the next Daniel Bryan, since they're two different types of wrestlers with two different styles, but as long as D-Bry remains on the shelf, the more we'll being seeing of Neville. Anyway, this was a very good match, especially for a pre-show match. It told a nice big man vs little man story and it also showcased the amazing high flying ability of Neville, which is always a plus and while the chin locks were a little tedious, the final stretch was hot stuff.
Rating: ***1/2(Not counted towards Final Rating)

Chicago Street Fight
Dean Ambrose def. Luke Harper(56:10)
Thoughts: Is there anyway better to start the show? Dean Ambrose is going to get the crowd excited and it's a freaking Chicago street fight, who native of Chicago wouldn't love that. As the match went on, it was turning out really good...and then, they went to the back where Harper got in a SUV and straight up bolted with Ambrose hoping in the back. They're still having the match, but they have to move on with the show, but for the sake of convenience and because I don't want to repeat myself later, let's talk about the ending. They finally comeback two matches later, only this time, it's Harper in the back seat and Ambrose is driving. How in the love of fuck did that happen? Harper heads for the ring, but Ambrose takes and shortcut and flies at him in the aisle. Ambrose and Harper fill the ring with steel chairs and begin dueling in the middle of the ring. Harper powerbomb Ambrose onto a pile of chairs but only gets a two count. Harper buries Ambrose under a pile of chairs and heads up top, but Ambrose springs up and launches Harper onto the pile of chairs. Ambrose hits Dirty Deeds onto the chairs and gets the three count. I'll give it this; it certainly was creative, but I’m just annoyed that every Ambrose match has to revolve around him being a cartoon-ish lunatic instead of being a psychotic badass that got him over in the first place. I was loving the match before they left for an hour, but I really just wanted this to be a stiff, hardcore brawl. This was a major disappointment and the match was sacrificed for the sake of doing something cute for the show. Also, couldn't they do film something with them fighting in the streets of Chicago, like how about the two fighting in Wrigley Field? That would've been awesome!
Rating: ***(Would've been higher had it not been for the intermission) 

Kiss Me Arse Match
Dolph Ziggler def. Sheamus(9:16)
Thoughts: I'm not sure why, but everyone seemed to be thinking that Sheamus would win this match and it makes sense why; he had just returned, turned heel and this was him match stipulation. However, I was one of the few who thought Dolph would win. Why? Because this is the type of match where the heel must lose. And guess what? I was right as Ziggler managed to steal a 3-count. It was funny seeing Sheamus freaking out after the match and trying to find a way out of getting out of the stipulation. He finally gets on his knees, but instead of kissing Dolph's ass, he goes low on him!!! Brogue Kick to Ziggler and Sheamus says he promised the world Ziggler would kiss his arse. He shoves Ziggler’s face into his ass and stands tall. Overall, a good, albeit short match. Sheamus got a chance to show off his aggressive new attitude while Ziggler was game enought to take a beating for him. With more time, this could have been really good. But they have another PPV match coming.
Rating: ***

WWE Tag Team Championship
The New Day(Kofi Kingston & Big E) def. Tyson Kidd & Cesaro(c)(9:47)
Thoughts: As I said in my Wrestlemania XXXI Review, I came out of the Tag Title match really liking Kofi & Big E has a tag team and so did WWE I guess, since they gave them a title shot. However, they also made The New Day a heel group, which was a great decision. It's kind of a thing that(to the best of my knowledge) Bo Dallas started: a heel who thinks he's a face. However, New Day do that much better. They're so annoying in their positivity that it grates on everyone, but they don't see that; they think they're bringing inspiration to everyone and that's what has made New Day actually fun to watch the last couple of months. Despite that, I still didn't expect them to win here...and yet they did! It makes sense in hindsight since Cesaro & Kidd have gotten over as faces, so they need a heel team. Without a doubt, this is the best showing I have seen from the New Day, as the heel turn seems to have breathed new life into the act. Even with the time constraints, they didn’t even have a heat segment, so we had a hot and wild tag match that the crowd was really into. Another match on the show that could have used more time, but they did great with the limited time they had to work with.
Rating: ***1/4

Ru

Russian Chain Match:
WWE United States Championship
John Cena(c) def. Ruzev(13:35)
Thoughts: To his credit, John Cena has made the US Title interesting for the 1st time in a long time, all thanks to his US Championship open challenges he has on RAW. However, he still has to deal with Ruzev, so he are. They playing with 4 corners rules: 1st to touch all 4 corners in succession with halting progress wins. Personally, that killed the match for me. They should've just let them go at it with regular pinfall/submission fules, but attached to each other with the chain. In fact, by doing that, we got a nonsensical finish. Both Cena and Ruzev touch three corners and succession and they meet in the middle of the ring and realize they have to touch that same final corner to win. Of course Cena AA's Ruzev and wins. Technically, the ref should have reset the boards since both Cena and Ruzev didn't make any forward progress when they were in the middle before they went for the final corner, but whatever, it's WWE Logic. Of all their matches, this is my least favorite, but that doesn't mean it's bad. They both did their best to work around the limitations and did some good spots, but this still lacked the intensity that both the previous 2 matches had.
Rating: **3/4

WWE Divas Championship
Nikki Bella(c) def. Naomi(7:18)
Thoughts: Naomi's got some new music and sporting these electric, color-changing boots. How on earth did Chris Jericho never think of this? Anyway, this was a pretty solid outing. They actually got the dead crowd to get into the near falls towards the finish. I was a big fan of Naomi’s work here and her new aggressive heel edge is going to do wonders for her, especially when she does win the Divas Title.
Rating: **1/4

Last Man Standing Match
Roman Reigns def. The Big Show(19:46)
Thoughts: To WWE's credits, this was really the only match they could give to this two that would make the fans give a damn about this match. Nobody has given a fuck about the Reigns/Show feud, but at least it ended(I hope) on one hell of a match. I loved how in the beginning, Show was teasing the fans by putting away weapons whenever Reigns got them out and even breaking a table at one point. They put in some great spots, but it did end cheap with Reigns buring Show by using the announce table. Still, contrived spots and some plodding moments aside, these two guys took some spectacular bumps, particularly Reigns and had a pretty awesome brawl. Reigns showed awesome fire and resilience here and is working his ass off, so performances like these will help him in his rebuilding process. Reigns is quietly having an excellent in ring year, having the best match of the night on 3 straight PPVs.
Rating: ***3/4

Steel Cage Match:
WWE World Heavyweight Championship
Seth Rollins(c) def. Randy Orton(21:02)
Thoughts: The RKO is banned from this match and Kane is the gatekeeper. This begs the question of who's the keymaster, but whatever. My favorite part of the match was when Orton wanted to go for the RKO, but remembered he can't, so what does he do? He steals Triple H's finisher instead. This calls back to Orton/Michaels from Survivor Series 2007 where Shawn's Sweet Chin Music was banned. As you probably guess, Kane eventually gets involved, though only because Rollins kicked the door right into Kane’s face. He chokeslammes J&J and then chokeslammes both Orton and Rollins, but puts Rollins over Orton, but that only gets 2. Kane goes to Tombstone him, but Orton counters into an RKO on Kane. Rollins RKOs Orton and that gives Rollins enough time to escape the cage. Of course, this begged the question was the RKO banned for both guys, but really, it's not important. Overall, this was a decent cage match. It was really slow early, but picked up prior to all the overbooking and I love Rollins acting like a weasel and trying to escape at every turn while Orton found unique ways to punish Rollins without going to the RKO. What I find frustrating though, is that the focus of this match was primarily on Kane and the stuff involving him at the end was just too much and when Kane's the focus of the major storyline, you know that WWE is just killing time till they get to Summerslam
Rating: ***1/4

Final Rating:

2.84 out of 5 

WWE Wrestlemania XXXI Review

Pre-Show Match #1
Fatal 4-Way Match: WWE Tag Team Championship
Tyson Kidd & Cesaro(c) def. The New Day, Los Matadores and The Usos(9:58)
Thoughts: I normally don't bother with pre-show stuff, since it doesn't amount to my Final Rating for the show, but since it's Wrestlemania, I'll take a look. One thing that I don't understand is why this wasn't moved to the main card when the Andre the Giant Memorial Battle Royal got moved to the Pre-Show, but whatever. This was a pretty good way to get the crowd energized. This felt like one of those old ROH scramble tag matches where there were some moments of sloppiness and chaos, but everything was fun and the action was captivating and non-stop. Cesaro and Kidd retaining was not really surprising. What was surprising to me is that I left this really liking Kofi and Big E as a tag team. Don't get me wrong: I HATE the New Day gimmick, but I think these two make a good team; perhaps they'll get a run with the belts one day. Overall, this was a good warm up for the crowd.
Rating: ***1/4(Not counted towards Final Rating)

Pre-Show Match #2
Andre the Giant Memorial Battle Royal
Big Show def. 29 other competitors; last eliminating Damien Mizdow(18:05)
Thoughts: First off, to those who actually thought Curtis Axel was going to win this, I laugh at you. Now then, this was pretty much at the same level of last year’s battle royal. This also got a ton of time(making me thankful that this was moved to the Pre-Show and not rushed out on the main card)and there were some interesting moments during the match. Mizdow got the spotlight shined on him here and the crowd was dying for him to win. However, I do understand why they gave Show the win, since he never won a battle royal(at least not it WWE) before and this gives him another accomplishment, but this really should have ended with Mizdow dumping Miz for the win.
Rating: **1/2(Not counted towards Final Rating)

Ladder Match: WWE Intercontinental Championship
Daniel Bryan def. Bad News Barrett(c), Dolph Ziggler, Dean Ambrose, Luke Harper, Stardust and R-Truth(13:47)
Thoughts: This was a really fun match and a great way to kick off the show; it ended up being what I thought it could be and what it needed to be. Sure, there were some sloppy points here and there, but the parade of dives at the beginning was great and after the superplex spot, the match got gradually more and more exciting. It ended with a great finish sequence between Ziggler and Bryan. It did make me wonder something: How would the crowd react if Ziggler won? I mean D-Bry is so over that if Ziggler had won, the crowd might've booed him and WWE would've been forced to turn him back to a heel. Thankfully, that didn't happen. D-Bry is going to be a great IC Champion and I can’t wait for D-Bry and Ziggler to continue their feud over the coming months.
Rating: ****

Randy Orton def. Seth Rollins(13:15)
Thoughts: I liked that they played up the "Former face of WWE vs the new face of WWE" quite well for this match. Now I know you all want me to talk about the finish, so let's get to it. Orton countered the asai DDT from Rollin into the RKO, but Rollins kicks out at 2. J&J returned late and each eats an RKO to protect Rollins, who then hit the curb stomp, but Orton kicked out at 2. Following a roll through on the Phoenix splash try, Rollins went for another curb stomp but Orton pressed up and then caught him with perhaps the sickest RKO EVAR!... and scored the win.
I think I speak for everyone when I say that that was one of the best RKO’s I’ve ever seen. This was a pretty damn good match, Rollins continues to work his ass off and make every single big opportunity he gets counts. Orton brought his A-game too and the results was a captivating back and forth contest and J&J continue to be a great act and add to the drama of Rollins’ matches.
Rating: ***3/4

No DQ Match
Triple H def. Sting(18:30)
Thoughts: Sting got a pretty cool entrance with a Japanese inspired theme music and drummers wearing Sting masks. Triple H had the better entrance though with a Terminator theme and Arnold Schwarzenegger giving him an intro and any Terminator fan should know that Cyberdyne was based in San Fran. Early in the match, it felt very much like a Sting/Flair match and considering that Trips idolized Flair and Flair is the man that gave Sting his best matches, it makes sense. After several minutes of solid action, Sting is about to put Trips in the Scorpion Death Lock, but DX(X-Pac, Billy Gunn and Road Dogg) runs down and Sting takes them out before they could get in the ring. He then goes up top and hits a dive onto the pile of bodies. Sting would later kick out of the pedigree and then as Triple H gets his trusty sledgehammer, the nWo (Hogan, Hall and Nash)appears. It feels like everything they wanted to do back in 2001. Now for those wondering why would the nWo help Sting out after feuding with him for so long...well, he was a member of nWo Wolfpac(granted it was stupid, but he was a member) and nWo looks after there own, so that's why they help Sting. The nWo lays out DX and Sting hits a Scorpion Death Drop for 2, which is followed by the SDL and Hogan takes the sledgehammer of the picture, but is taken out by X-Pac as he slams him into the post. DX and nWo take each other out as Trips finally makes the ropes. Sting goes for the SDL again but Shawn Michaels appears and kicks Sting's head off! HHH covers for 2! Gunn hands HHH the sledgehammer while Hall gives Sting the baseball bat! Sting nails HHH in the midsection with the bat and he fucking broke the sledgehammer in half! How strong is that fucking bat?! Sting works over HHH in the corner and he hits the Stinger Splash. He goes for a second one, but HHH nails him with the sledgehammer right to the face for the 3! We all knew that Sting would be limited, so they needed some smoke and mirrors to help this match out and I gotta say, I loved the way then went about doing it. Bringing in DX and the nWo and going the more fun rout made fans feel nostalgic all over again. The wrestling was pedestrian, but god damn did I have a blast watching this. Although I thought Sting was going to win, Triple H winning doesn't bother me at all and if this is Sting’s swan song, this was a fun way to go out.
Rating: ***1/2

AJ Lee and Paige def. The Bella Twins(6:42)
Thoughts: After Sting/HHH, the crowds were drained and as a result, the crowd wasn't all that hot for this one, which is a shame since this was pretty solid. Sure, it was sloppy at certain points, but the 4 worked hard here and while I wish they had gotten more time, this was still above average for a Diva's Wrestlemania match.
Rating: **1/2

WWE United States Championship
John Cena def. Ruzev(c)(14:30)
Thoughts: Ruzev got a really cool entrance(the 3rd of the show) with a Russian federation theme(naturally) and coming out in a tank. Cena got this really awesome America video montage before Cena comes out to a basic entrance. He doesn't even recreate the Apollo Creed entrance from Rocky IV, nor did he wear American Flag themed trunks or shorts I guess would be more fitting. You know, I’m starting to wonder who the real communist is here in this feud. Anyway, the match here was pretty much on par with their match from FastLane, but if I had to pick which is better, I'm going to pick this one for one reason and that would be the springboard stunner, which was awesome! We'll probably never see him do that again, but it was still perfectly executed, so you gotta give Cena credit. The only thing this match is lacking is heat, which the FastLane match did much better and Cena was more vulnerable in that match as well, but this was a well done follow up. Rusev’s performance here was outstanding and I keep liking him more and more with each performance. He played off being more desperate this time around since he didn’t want this match to begin with and his facial expressions when he couldn’t put Cena away were phenomenal. Cena was more focused and pride drove him to victory. A well executed match that I wish the crowd was more into, but the Rocky IV like storyline wasn’t going to click with a more international crowd.
Rating: ***1/2

The Undertaker def. Bray Wyatt(15:15)
Thoughts: Wyatt got cool entrance #4 with scarecrows lifelessly walking with him to the ring. It's really a shame Levi Stadium doesn't have a roof, cause if it did, this entrance would've been better than Triple H's Terminator entrance. Undertaker looked like the American Badass Taker we saw during the early 2000s, which I thought was really cool. Now I'm just gonna say it: This was one of Taker's worse Mania matches. That doesn't mean it was bad, just not as good as it could've been. I don't blame Taker for this since he looked good and he was in far better shape than he was at Wrestlemania 30 and despite Wyatt suffering an ankle injury hours before the show, I can't blame him either. Matter of fact, I tip my hat to him cause I almost forgot about that injury during the match. Really, the problem is just the fact that nothing was really on the line here. The magic of Taker's matches with the Streak on the line is gone and while I accommodate Taker and Wyatt for still giving us a decent match despite everything against them, a part of me just can't help but feel a little disappointed.
Rating: **3/4

Main Event
Triple Threat Match: WWE World Heavyweight Championship
Seth Rollins def. Brock Lesnar(c) and Roman Reigns(16:43)
Thoughts: Before we get to the part everyone wants me to talk about, let talk about the Lesnar/Reigns part of the match, which was amazing. Reigns took the absolute worst beating of his life and Brock delivered one of the greatest lines EVER! This was just one hell of a fight and one of the most realistic matches I've ever seen. But of course, that's not what people will remember this match for. They will remember it for Seth Rollins cashing it his MITB contract during the match, making it a Triple Threat. The IWC bitched about it(as they do with everything) since they screwed Reigns, but that crowd wasn't giving any love to the guy at all, despite the phenomenal performance he put on! With this result, WWE turned Seth Rollins into a huge main event player for years to come, kept Brock Lesnar the unstoppable beast that he is and put Roman Reigns back on the right track to get the fans to like him again, which I think they will at some point. It's obvious that we're going to see either Rollins/Lesnar or Rollins/Lesnar/Reigns at Summerslam and whichever match it is, I'm looking forward to it.
Rating: ****1/2

 Final Rating:

3.50 out of 5

WWE FastLane 2015 Review

Six Man Tag Team Match
The Authority(Seth Rollins, Big Show and Kane) def. Dolph Ziggler, Erick Rowan and Ryback(13:01)
Thoughts: This wass a good choice to open the show. WWE does six-man tags well, they've established this feud and the crowd gets into Ziggler & Rollins big time. The obvious negative is that we have to watch Kane and Big Show. The heels got the heat on Rowan, which was a huge mistake because no one gives a damn about Rowan, at all. I mean, you have Dolph up on the corner and the crowd ALWAYS reacts huge for him. The best plan would be to get the heat of Ziggler and give the hot tag to Ryback. Eventually, Ryback does get the hot tag and lays out everyone. He shell shock's Rollins, but a big splash by Show to Ryback allows Ziggler to tag in and after a few minutes of doing what he does, he eats a jumping KO punch from the Show, which was really impressive, for the three count. Overall, this was a solid outing. The final few minutes were great and action packed but we had to sit through one of the most dull babyface in peril segments I’ve seen in some time with Rowan to get there.
Rating: ***

Goldust def. Stardust(8:55)
Thoughts: Cody has changed up his look a bit here, dropping the top of the body suit and going partial face paint, which I like. I hoped that he would keep that look, but it doesn't look like he will. Anyway, these two have been working to get this feud and match for the last three years or so and they got it, but unfortunately the crowd was not into this. What resulted was a very boring match. The crowd didn’t care for the storyline and weren’t engaged in Stardust’s antics or cared about Goldust playing face in peril. This ended up being a huge disappointment considering these two have wanted to have their one on one program for years. If I could describe this match in one word, it would be: Letdown.
Rating: *1/2

WWE Tag Team Championship
Tyson Kidd and Cesaro def. The Usos(c)(9:33)
Thoughts: Unlike the previous match, the work in this match was really good. The problem is that the crowd just could not get invested until the final stretch, which is a shame. Now I gotta say, it was a surprise that Kidd and Cesaro won the Tag Titles here since I feel it would be more important if they won them at Wrestlemania...granted, it would've been on the Pre=Show, but it would still be Wrestlemania! Be that as it may, I’m happy Kidd and Cesaro are getting a run with the belts and hopefully they get a long run with them and get a few more matches with the Usos cause I know both teams are capable of greater matches. Not that this was bad, cause it wasn't. It's just I feel both teams can produce something better.
Rating: ***1/4

WWE Divas Championship
Nikki Bella(c) def. Paige(5:34)
Thoughts: There isn't really a whole lot to talk about with this one. Yeah, there was that one screw up with the botched corner roll-up, but other than that, this was actually a solid effort and better than usual Diva’s match. The crowd still could have cared less about this match, but at least the effort was there this time around. Both women looked good here and the major problem here was lack of time, as it normally is for Divas matches. Otherwise, a solid outing here.
Rating: **1/4

WWE Intercontinental Championship
Bad News Barrett(c) def. Dean Ambrose via DQ(7:58)
Thoughts: While it was funny to see how Dean got this match, the build-up wasn't exactly the stuff of legends. But that doesn't really matter; what matters is what these two produce in the ring...and it was a little bit of a letdown. The match was picking up steam before the finish, so chalk this up as another disappointment on this show. I really don’t get what their end game is with Ambrose. Personally, I think that sooner or later, all these crappy finishes are going to kill the poor guy. 
Rating: **1/2

WWE United States Championship
Ruzev(c) def. John Cena(16:45)
Thoughts: I really liked the build to this one and I was really looking forward to this one. Cena always delivers on PPV and going up against Ruzev, you know that John will bring the best out of him and that exactly what we got. The problem with this match was that, once again, the crowd wasn’t all that into the match, which really says something bad about the product. I mean between the USA vs Russia theme and the fact that the crowd always reacts one way or another to Cena, the overall lack of fucks given here is alarming. They eventually got into the finishers and such, but that’s about it. Cena fought forever in the accolade, he was breaking it when Lana got in the ring and the ref took his time to escort her out. With the distraction, Rusev kicked Cena in the balls and then superkicked his head off, reapplied the accolade and Cena passed out. Without a doubt, I can say that this was Ruzev best performance of his career so far. They actually made him look at a monster against one of the few legitimate threats on the roster. I loved they built up to Cena finally landing the AA after multiple attempts and Rusev seeming to know Cena’s offense, having some sort of counter at every turn. While this was missing some big impact moments and some spots that really could have stretched Cena’s vulnerability to put this over the top as something special were missing too, this was still the best thing the show produced at this point.
Rating: ***1/2

Main Event: Number 1 Contender's Match
Roman Reigns def. Daniel Bryan(22:51)
Thoughts: Both men have a legit claim to face Lesnar at Wrestlemania, so he we are. Now let me just say this: If Roman Reigns were up against opponents like D-Bry and NOT BIG SHOW during the build towards Royal Rumble, then I don't think the backlash for him winning the Rumble would be anywhere as severe as it was. Yes, I agree with the majority of you that he has been forced down our throats as the next chosen one, that his promos blow and his matches aren’t organic, but if he had a run of matches like this, with opponents like D-Bry and have strong competitive battles where Reigns proved he was the better man, his run to Wrestlemania probably would've been much stronger. Overall, this was an excellent match and Bryan worked his ass off to make Reigns look strong as he possibly could and a great way to end the show.
Rating: ****

Final Rating:

2.86 out of 5

March to Mania Year 3: WWE Wrestlemania XXVIII Review

March to Mania Year 3: 
WWE Wrestlemania XXVIII Review

World Heavyweight Championship
Sheamus def. Daniel Bryan(c)(0:18)
Thoughts: Given that Edge/Del Rio opened at Mania 27, it makes sense that this match would open Mania 28. Now watching this live, I expected Sheamus to win, but certainly not like the way he did. With that said, I definitely understand the notion that because Bryan has retained the championship in bizarre and fluky ways during his entire reign, it seems only fitting that he should lose it in such a bizarre and fluky way as well. However, while that concept might play out fine on Smackdown or a smaller PPV, I’m not sure I can ever get behind the idea of eighteen second title matches at WrestleMania. Still, to see Sheamus win like that was so epic, so I can't really hate on it and they do get an actual match at the next PPV. So if you want to see a great Sheamus/D-Bry match, check that one out.
Rating: N/A(+5 for Epic Squash)

Kane def. Randy Orton(10:58)
Thoughts: This was a perfectly fine little match, but it really seemed like the same sort of match we see on Smackdown every week. I expect something special from every match at WrestleMania and this match didn’t deliver that. However, the most notable aspect of this match was that fact that Kane picked up the win. I expected Orton to defeat the monster and begin his built to an eventual title match, so having Kane get the pin was definitely a shock. Though to be fair, Kane, at the time, hadn't won a PPV match since...I can't remember the last time actually and after a draw and loss to Cena in the first two 2012 PPV's, he needed a win on PPV badly.
Rating: **3/4 

WWE Intercontinental Championship
The Big Show def. Cody Rhodes(c)(
Thoughts: This certainly wasn't a technical classic, but it did provide a feel-good moment for Show winning both the IC and the Grand Slam Championships and provided a logical finale to his feud with Cody Rhodes. Big Show didn't really need the IC Belt, so thankfully his reign didn't last long.
Rating: **

Maria Menounos and Kelly Kelly def. Beth Phoenix and Eve Torres(6:22)
Thoughts: This action in this match was little more than the standard Divas tag team match fare, but what is definitely remarkable is that Maria Menounos wrestled the match with fractured and/or broken ribs and feet. Many celebrities in her position would have backed out of the match all togethe, and most of the rest would have stood on the apron for the entire match without taking a single bump. To her credit, Maria wrestled a substantial fraction of the match and allowed Beth and Eve to exploit her injuries. She had to be in pain the entire time, and I give her a ton of credit for every bit of effort she put in here. She’s not a wrestler. This isn’t her career. She didn’t need to do this. And yet she did. In my mind, that makes her a true professional, whether or not she ever steps foot in the ring again.
Rating: *1/2
 

'End of an Era' Hell in a Cell Match
The Undertaker def. Triple H(30:47)
Thoughts: I think there are some people who probably say this match went 10 minutes too long, but I say to hell with those people. This was a masterpiece, not in technical wrestling, but in story-telling. It told a story that has been building for decades and it did an absolutely phenomenal job of providing resolution and closure to that story. Despite all the animosity between these three men and despite them all having truly legendary egos, the truth that emerged in Hell in a Cell is that none of them truly wanted to be the one to end an era. When Triple H had the Undertaker beaten, he repeatedly begged Shawn Michaels to call the match. Later in the match, the Undertaker hesitated before finishing Triple H, waiting just a moment to give Triple H the chance to surrender. And through it all, Shawn Michaels proved that all he really wanted to do was the right thing. He never counted fast or slow and he never robbed either man of his dignity by calling the match. Back then, I thought that the perfect way for this match to end would be to have Triple H finally end the streak, but now I can see that this scenario was just as good – if not better. The story that was told after the match was truly beautiful, as years of tension and resentment faded way, leaving only respect and camaraderie. Shawn Michaels and the Undertaker helped Triple H to the top of the ramp and all three men turned to look back on their fans and their careers as they got a standing ovation. They embraced each other and the next phase of their lives before ducking behind the curtain. It probably should've been the final match for both Undertaker and Triple H, but then we would've never seen Taker/Punk from Mania 29 or HHH/D-Bry from Mania 30. But then Brock would never have ended the streak.
Rating: *****
 

10 Man Tag Team Match
Team Johnny(The Miz, David Otunga, Dolph Ziggler, Mark Henry, Jack Swagger and Drew McIntyre) def. Team Teddy(Santino Marella, R-Truth, Kofi Kingston, Zack Ryder, The Great Khali and Booker T)(10:32)
Thoughts: Between active wrestlers, general managers, flag bearers, girlfriends, and Bellas, there were TWENTY people involved in this match. It’s almost impossible to have that many people all play a memorable role in a match, and in trying to do so the end result was a muddled mess. All that really stands out in the end is that Booker T played face-in-peril quite well. In the end, Miz was able to shine at WrestleMania by picking up a key win and Zack Ryder was kicked in the nuts, both physically and metaphorically, in just about every way humanly possible. Why he got de-pushed like that, I'll never understand. I would have loved to see Team Teddy get the win so that Teddy Long could take over Raw and Smackdown, fade into the background and let the in-ring talent shine, but I think we all knew WWE loves evil authority figures too much to pass up the opportunity to let John Laurinaitis run both shows, if only for a brief amount of time.
Rating: ** 

WWE Championship
CM Punk(c) def. Chris Jericho(22:23)
Thoughts: When I first heard they were doing a Punk/Jericho match for this show, I fell in love with the idea and after watching it live and re-watching it a few times, I'm happy to say this delivered in a major way. Heading into the show, I did wonder if the storyline would overshadow the wrestling...and it looked like that for a few minutes, but then things picked up and everything from then on was awesome. It had a great closing sequence to end the match with. Thankfully, these two would get a second PPV match at the following PPV and they would have another great match there as well. 
Rating: ****1/2

Main Event: The Rock def. John Cena(30:34)
Thouhgts: Some didn’t like the mix of old school WWF/Hogan era action on this one, but being I thought it was a lot of fun to watch. They built this match wonderfully and the crowd was with them throughout. This crowd was as crazy as the crowd from Wretlemania 18 where Rock/Hogan took place, but that had a different feel. Cena delivered on the big stage like he always does and The Rock looked pretty great considering his long layoff. I mean, he went 30 minutes after being gone for more than 8 years. Great job by both men...But of course, Once in a Lifetime didn't stay that way for very long.
Rating: ****1/4

Final Rating:

3.86 out of 5