A few weeks ago I watched SummerSlam 2004 and tweeted about it. The only thing I initally remembered about the show was the main event in which Randy Orton won his first World Heavyweight championship. The rest of the card turned out to be a mostly pleasant experience. Booker T v John Cena, Triple H v Eugene and JBL v The Undertaker were all a bit of fun if you could look past their shortcomings (Cena's ropey wrestling, the offensiveness of the Eugene character, and JBL being in a WWE title match respectively) and the Intercontinental title three-way was good fun. Plus there was fun nonsense on offer from the Diva Dodgeball showdown (featuring a bunch of women you almost certainly don't remember or have never even heard of) and Matt Hardy v Kane for the right to marry Lita. Here's what I thought in tweet form...

With several years of action-packed shows to follow the sixth annual Money in the Bank show faced a tough job this year. It had a good frame of matches to work with in Cena v Owens II, the latest Ambrose v Rollins match and, of course, the Money in the Bank match itself, but it also had Ryback v Big Show and a pre-show which saw R-Truth defeat King Wade Bad News Barrett I. Was it any good? The answer, pleasantly, was a resounding yes.

The main card kicked off with a ten bell salute to 'The American Dream' Dusty Rhodes. His music played afterwards. The audience and some of the wrestlers clapped along. Vince was amongst those who joined in. Randy Orton was amongst those who did not.

That was followed by the typically great video package recapping the build to the highlighted matches. In this case that meant Ambrose v Rollins, Cena v Owens and the Money in the Bank match. The latter kicked off the show. Which surprised me. With there being only one Bank match, and it being guaranteed to be a highlight of the show, I would have thought it would be saved for closer to the top of the card. Then again there was also a ladder match going on last, so spacing them out did make sense.

Randy Orton and Neville both got loud cheers when they entered. Kane got half-hearted boos. Dolph Ziggler got a monster pop, which got even more monstrous when people noticed Lana was present to give him a good luck kiss. Kofi Kingston got huge boos when he skipped to the ring. Sheamus was booed too, but not as much (yeah, New Day has more heat than Shaymo). Roman Reigns, naturally out last, got a mostly positive reaction. The writing team have done a good job turning him around.

The lads.

The match started with everyone except Kofi pairing off and the New Dayer taking the chance to try and sneak up a ladder to grab the case. The rest of the field turned against him, throwing him out of the ring before slipping into a standard issue brawling segment. Sheamus came out of that on top after going wild with a ladder. He was phased out of the match a few minutes later to make way for an all too short exchange between Kofi and Neville, the highlight of which was Nev hitting a monkey flip only for Kingston to land upright and immediately start climbing a ladder.

Reigns put a stop to Neville v Kingston, power bombing Kingston onto a ladder and Neville onto Kofi. The crowd, it's worth noting, ate this up. Kane put a stop to Reigns' attempted briefcase grab with a choke slam before taking an RKO from 'The Viper'. Kofi returned to stop Orty climbing the ladder and took an RKO too. Neville then springboarded back into the ring, over Orton, and shot up the ladder. He was yanked off the ladder and took a mid-air RKO, easily the best of the three.

On Monday 23 February Stephanie McMahon took to Twitter to congratulate Patricia Arquette (1) on striking a blow for women's rights by speaking in favour of equal pay for actresses. It was the sort of thing Steph does from time to time, designed as much to try and capitalise on the latest trending topics on social media as to express any genuine sentiment. It was a non-issue.

When Cody Rhodes transformed into Stardust last summer I thought it was a massive step backwards. It was a knock-off of the near enough two decade old Goldust character and a gimmick it was impossible to envisage WWE taking seriously. In other words it was exactly the sort of thing that was going to keep Cody tethered to the mid-card. He wasn't exactly on the cusp of main events before the change but he was even further away after it.

Cody made the best of a bad situation. Which is hardly surprising as the Stardust character was apparently his idea to begin with. He changed up his entrance and in-ring mannerisms, going out of his way to try and establish Stardust as a distinct entity. Even more impressively he switched up his move set, something WWE performers are generally not encouraged to do. These changes helped to establish Stardust and make the change easier to accept.

What A Good Looking Man

Over the last two weeks former mid-carders have returned to WWE to appear on developmental show NXT. The February 18 episode saw Rhyno decisively beat Elias Sampson in his short comeback match while the February 25 show featured the return of 'The' Brian Kendrick, complete with video package to let anyone not familiar with him know exactly what he's about. Unlike 'The Manbeast' he lost his match, but it was a much more high profile deal, a main event bout with number one contender to the NXT championship Finn Bálor.

Understated red jacket on Kendrick there.

While neither Kendrick nor Rhyno have signed new contracts with WWE both have had profiles added to NXT's website roster section. Neither man wrestled more than the one match lready mentioned at the most recent set of tapings so this indicates that they're going to be involved with the show long-term. Without a contract they remain free to accept bookings elsewhere, essentially making NXT another indy on their schedule. Which benefits them as they remain free agents with their profiles being raised with the NXT appearances. It should see them get more non-WWE work. Meanwhile it benefits WWE because they get two guys who appeal to NXT's target audience of "smart" fans and gives the relatively inexperienced roster two well-travelled lads to work with and learn from.

I have so much other better shit I should be doing with my time than watching RAW for three hours.  Not exactly, better, mind you, but responsibilities which I am putting off to bring YOU this RAW recap so that YOU can save three hours of your time.  It’d be nice to throw me a few bucks via PayPal on jasonrivera@gmail.com – that’d be cool of you.  Some other personal hardships are arising in my life as of late but I’ll save discussion of those things for later in the week on Asked or something along those lines.  Anyway, it’s time for a RAW recap while I try to figure out the best way to multitask so that I’m feeling like I’m slacking on other things which need to be handled or accomplished.

Dad Made Ribs.

Seth Rollins is out here probably because for some reason WWE is running some kind of Seth Rollins/Jon Stewart crossover which people like me don’t give a shit about.  This started with promos, then Seth Rollins appearing on the Daily Show, and now Jon Stewart is going to appear on RAW.  And I’m going to appear in the bathroom. 

Justin Gabriel's out. 'Darewolf' PJ Black is in.

Pointing to the sky shows you mean business.

It's not exactly breaking news that the artist formerly known as Justin Gabriel has been released by WWE. Apparently frustrated with his lack of direction and the nonchalant way his TV appearances were being handled Gabriel left the January 19 RAW and informed the company he wanted to be released from his contract. His status as a free agent was confirmed on January 25 when WWE announced he'd been released. 

 

Time for that RAW recapping thing I do.  Once NCIS ends.

Somebody died.  Cool.  Sometimes I randomly catch myself wondering if Abby from NCIS does anal sex.  Last week the face of Wrestlemania was changed when Daniel Bryan was inserted due to public fan opinion.  WWE brass cares more than I do.  I’d have kept my Reigns-Lesnar plans and not given a shit to show the people “you can’t always get what you want.”  Currently the idea is somehow Bryan and Reigns won’t get resolved at Fast Lane and the main event of Wrestlemania will be a Triple Threat for the WWE World Heavyweight Championship anyway.  I hope Reigns wins on principle.

NXT "takes over" Canvas 2 Canvas as artist Rob Schamberger shows off his latest piece celebrating the rising stars who will show up at NXT TakeOver: Rival on the WWE Network on Wednesday.

Want to own a piece of WWE art? Visit http://auction.wwe.com/ or http://shop.wwe.com/. 

Also be sure to check Rob out on YouTube - https://www.youtube.com/user/robscham...

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We found out on the studio-bound post-Royal Rumble episode of RAW that Fast Lane will feature the first ever (televised) match between John Cena and Rusev. It was unexpected. Despite the two men having a bit of a shout at one another the previous evening on the Rumble fallout show nobody had expected their match to occur until WrestleMania 31. Because a man with a year-long unpinned and unsubmitted streak seemed like the perfect person to throw up against the mighty Cena at the biggest WWE event of the year.

The decision to bring the match forward to Fast Lane is probably designed to make that show seem more worthwhile, encouraging Network subscriptions and pay-per-view purchases. To a lesser extent it might be about making the first edition of what is likely to become an annual event memorable. And it should work. Cena v Rusev is a WrestleMania-level match, a big addition to a B level card.

Fast Lane's a definite for Rusev and Cena. I'll think they'll go to 'Mania too.

 

Another Takeover special has snuck up on us. Pretty easy when it’s a month earlier than expected. This was what’s come to be known as a “go home” episode. That’s a term I loathe, for the record. I don’t think it will ever appear on this blog again.

This show featured the semi-final matches in the NXT number on contenders tournament. Adrian Neville faced Baron Corbin and Finn Bálor clashed with Hideo Itami. Both matches were worth a watch. Bálor v Neville in the finals should be excellent, as should Owens versus NXT champion Sami Zayn.

Basically, this episode was more proof that NXT is WWE’s best show.

Intro

Tweet 1: NXTreat.

Tweet 2: Something about the credits first. I like that they flash up the names of the major wrestlers on the show. Makes it easier to get into.

Carmella v Emma

Tweet 3: Enzo. With a nose ring.

Tweet 4: Carmella's still being presented as a face. She's still less over than enhancement talent Blue Pants.
Tweet 5: Also, Carmella is a worse dancer than both Enzo and Cass.

Hot as hell. Allegedly.

 

One of the few consistent stories WWE’s told over the last few months has been the one concerning the marital problems of Tyson Kidd and Natalya. It’s been a prominent part of Total Divas and has been a regular, if minor, aspect of the pair’s appearances both on the main roster TV shows and NXT. All the signs indicate that it’s not something that’s going to come to much outside of Total Divas, which is a waste because WWE could do something memorable with it if they wanted to.

Note Tyson's complete lack of interest.

It’s been pretty well established that part of the problem is Tyson having a problem with Natalya getting the spotlight when he doesn’t. There have been times where he’s posed in front of her after she’s gotten a victory and he’s frequently not bothered going to ringside for her matches, while she accompanies him for all of his (unless a storyline reason prevents her from doing so). There’s also been the more highlighted stuff with Tyson being “overly friendly” with Nikki Bella when she’s been competing against his wife.

Why does ‘Stone Cold’ Steve Austin not have a greater presence on the WWE Network?

Roman Reigns on the screen there. Keeping him strong.

To a certain demographic Austin is still a very appealing figure. That demographic forms a large part of the WWE Network’s subscriber numbers1. There are people that would pay to listen to hear him talk. Maybe not $9.99 a month, but it could certainly be a contributing factor. He’s a good communicator, is passionate about the business in general and WWE in particular, and his status as one of the company’s biggest ever stars gives him all the credibility he could ever need.

Would Itami get as much time on RAW?

In 2014 NXT gained a reputation for being WWE’s best weekly show. RAW was too long and burdened with filler material, SmackDown was mostly inconsequential, and Main Event and Superstars were entirely skippable. This rep must have been great news for the separate roster that competes on NXT. But at the same time you do have to wonder why something categorised within WWE as a developmental programme, somewhere for people to learn their craft, is so routinely thought of as being better than a show that features the likes of Seth Rollins, Dean Ambrose, Bray Wyatt and John Cena, the supposed A-listers of the wrestling world.

Heyman trying to telepathically communicate with Lesnar.

It’s looking like Brock Lesnar may soon be losing the WWE championship. Whether he loses the prize to Roman Reigns in the WrestleMania main event, to a Money in the Bank contract cash-in from Seth Rollins or via some other, as yet unknown, means, the likelihood is that he won’t be champion come Tuesday March 31. In fact that day may see him start preparing for his return to MMA. Which would put an end to his relationship with advocate extraordinaire, Paul Heyman.

Time for RAW – there was no recap last week because I felt like recapping snowed-in promos just wasn’t going to cut it.  Following all the backlash from Roman Reigns’ general existence, WWE is looking to try to right some wrongs tonight and have been hyping that HHH has a big announcement tonight.

HAIL HITLER.

For most people extreme snowstorms are life-threatening ordeals. I imagine WWE management felt differently on Monday night. The severe weather that hit the north-eastern United States caused the governor of Connecticut to announce a travel ban, effectively cancelling RAW. That effectively granted WWE a reprieve, something they were much in need of after the hostile evening they’d experienced at Royal Rumble the night before.

They made the most of the opportunity, doing some expert damage control on the standing of Rumble victor Roman Reigns. The show was constructed around five sit-down interview segments and a couple of announcements for Fast Lane. They were interspersed with links from Michael Cole, JBL and Booker T. It was a smart approach that made the most of what the company had at its disposal. If only that were true of their booking approach in general.

Slightly more questionably the decision was also made to air the two biggest matches from the previous night’s Rumble. That means that people tuning into RAW were treated to the triple threat WWE championship match and the Rumble itself for free. Monday saw WWE finally hit their goal of one million subscribers for the WWE Network so I’m sure they’re pleased with the decision to air those matches. The likelihood is that they convinced a number of people that the Network was worth a look. But it wasn’t the greatest idea with regard to customer satisfaction: everyone else had had to pay $9.99 for the event. Or £9.99 if in Britain. Or a staggering $54.99 to watch on regular pay-per-view. I’m sure refund requests have been sailing WWE’s way since Monday night.

The state of your briefcase, mate.

The first of the interviews was with Seth Rollins. He told Michael Cole that he thought his Rumble performance spoke for itself. He felt he deserved to be in match and that he did everything he could to win and become champion. I agree with him. Rollins did deserve to be in the match and he made the most of the opportunity. He took the pinfall but that didn’t matter. ‘The Future’ left the show looking like he belonged at the top.

I typically don’t write articles about wrestling other than my weekly recaps because I don’t want to fill this site with wrestling overkill, which is what would happen if I hosted too many recaps: the wrestling articles would bury the times I write about pretty much anything else.  However, I decided to make an exception due to the lack of a live, ongoing Monday Night RAW for January 26th (snow storms in the northeast have caused RAW to be postponed until Thursday and Smackdown to be canceled for the week), to discuss last night’s Royal Rumble Pay-Per-View because the events that transpired were so out there that they actually got mainstream media coverage.

Last night, Roman Reigns won the 30-Man Royal Rumble match to put him in the main event at Wrestlemania 31 against WWE World Heavyweight Champion Brock Lesnar, but fans were not pleased with the outcome.  They booed, they raged, they blocked arena exits, they protested, and even canceled their monthly subscriptions to the WWE Network.  One year ago, Batista suffered the same reaction for winning the Royal Rumble, and oddly enough the fans were begging Roman Reigns to eliminate Batista and go on to the Royal Rumble.  At the time Reigns was one of the three members of The Shield, a faction consisting of Reigns, Dean Ambrose, and Seth Rollins.
So why is it that now that the Shield has disbanded people despise Reigns?  He still has the same moves, same entrance, and same ring gear.  He’s essentially the only guy who hasn’t actually moved on.  He looks like a man in denial the Shield is done.  Why is it that a year later, the fans want this guy’s head?  Is Reigns really that awful? Let’s look at then, now, and the future and figure out what’s what.

For the last few years WWE has struggled with its Royal Rumble shows. The titular gimmick match, which is always the central attraction no matter what else is on the show, has seemingly become a problem for them. In theory it’s an easy match to get right. You ascertain who the audience wants to see win and you have them win. Or you pick a hot heel that people really don’t want to see win. WWE’s booking crew seem to have forgotten this, which has led to a string of limp, uninspiring matches.

This year was no different. A man neither the live crowd nor the home audience really wanted to see win was the man that won. Not only that but he did so in the most underwhelming, clichéd manner possible. It was a poor end to a poor pay-per-view.

This was not helped by a generic undercard. The show kicked off with The Ascension versus the New Age Outlaws. It wasn’t a bad match, but that in itself made it a slight disappointment. The Outlaws should have been very quickly squashed by Konor and Viktor in an attempt to erase the memory of the Kliq and the APA, all of whom are well into their forties, easily dispatching The Ascension on RAW. Because it’s The Ascension who are going to be of more benefit to WWE in the future, not the stars form the 90s.

FACEPAINT!!!

But we didn’t get that. Instead we got a competent match that ended with Billy Gunn tagging in to take Total Elimina- sorry, I mean The Fall of Man. It was the right result but the wrong route was taken to get to it.

This was one of the best regular episodes of NXT in some time (which is not to downplay the show’s usual high quality). Bálor versus Kidd and Zayn versus Neville both would have been acceptable main events and the women’s match and Bull versus Baron both would have been logical inclusions on the next special. Basically we were spoilt, and this is an excellent episode for people to start out on the show with.

Tyson Kidd v Finn Bálor

Tweet 1:
November
X-ray
Tango
India
Mike
Echo
SHIELD!!
Tweet 2: Roar of the crowd and so forth.
Tweet 3: Charles Robinson looking confused. Great opening shot.
Tweet 4: Calgary, dramatic pause, Alberta, Canada.
Tweet 5: Bálor versus Kidd as the opener. I'm down with this.
Tweet 6: Bálor is wearing trunks made from Christmas wrapping paper.
Tweet 7: A-Ry's changed his tune on Bálor. It's almost like he's been told off for running down a guy clearly going places.

CATS!