The Scottish View : Raw 11/18/13

The Scottish View: Raw (Country) 11/18/13 or 18/11/13



I'm trying to come up with a name for the reviews I do, so for now it's The Scottish View. Tonights Raw is a Country special. I'm gonna make a prediction and say that it'll be offensive to Southern America and that we may get an appearance from the Honky Tonk Man. Let's find out.




We're getting a live performance from a band called the Florida Georgia Line. I've never heard of them. We're also getting an IC Title match between Curtis Axel and Big E. Really hoping that Big E wins that one. And we're also getting the match that I wanted at Survivor Series, a 12 man tag match with CM Punk, Daniel Bryan, The Usos and The Rhodes Brother vs The Shield and The Wyatts.




Triple H and Stephanie come out to tell us that last week's Raw sucked and that the Authority is necessary. The way they were talking you would think that they had been gone for months. If only. Orton comes to the ring and looks pissed off. He blames HHH and Stephanie for his chokeslam through the table. Brad Maddox and Vickie Guerrero come out. Maddox says it was all Vickie's fault in a funny moment. Stephanie announces that Vickie and Brad will be in seperate matches tonight. Oh yippee. Maddox's match is up right now against Orton. It's No DQ. I smell a screwy finish. Well that established nothing except that the Authority are bullies which we already know, and made a couple of matches that don't spark interest.




Randy Orton vs Brad Maddox : No DQ
I was hoping for Orton to be in another show stealing match, but I doubt this'll be it. Maddox did have the support of the crowd. I did enjoy the start of the match with Maddox getting some offense on Orton and even a nearfall. The ref ends the match as Maddox can't continue. I was expecting an interference from Big Show there. So what was the point of the match then? To make Orton look like even more of a dick? 1/4*



Big E Langston vs Curtis Axel
IC Title is on the line. Like I've said before, I do enjoy the ring work of Axel, but he's just not right for the IC Title right now. I think Big E would have had more momentum going into this match had he not tapped within five minutes to Del Rio last week. The match wasn't great, but it was awesome to see Big E win the IC Title. Hopefully he can make it mean something. **


We get some clips to show us the Florida Georgia Line. Great way to build to Survivor Series guys.



Oh Jesus Christ we're getting musical chairs. Lawler says that Cruise by Florida Georgia Line is one of the most downloaded songs on iTunes ever. Bullshit. The reason that musical chairs worked in 2004 is because there was a title shot involved and it featured charismatic guys like Jericho and Flair. Thankfully this turns into a brawl and ends quickly. Completely pointless crap.



Big Show vs Ryback
I guess the rumors on this being a Wrestlemania match were made-up, seeing as Show got a pretty definitive win here. At least Ryback didn't get completely squashed like I thought he would. This match was actually pretty damn good and I was enjoying it. Ryback managed to hit Show with an awesome shellshock, but Show kicked out, and I believe he's the first person to do so. **1/2  Orton comes in and takes a spear from Show.



Backstage Orton is pissed off.



The Real Americans vs Kofi Kingston & The Miz
I'm betting that the Real Americans get a bigger face reaction than Miz and Kingston. Ok I was wrong about that as Kingston got a good reaction. Kofi goes to tag Miz but Miz jumps off the apron. Finally! Miz is a heel again just where he belongs. Thank god for that. Fun match. **




Backstage Vickie pretends to faint to get out of her match. Hopefully it works.



AJ Lee vs Vickie Guerrero
Unfortunately it didn't work and we're getting this match. Won't this match make AJ a face? I hope not because she's great as a heel. Somehow an 'Eddie' chant starts. AJ locks in the black widow and Vickie immediately taps. AJ was awesome here but this was shit. DUD



Dolph Ziggler vs Damien Sandow : Broadway Brawl
Nobody seems to explain the rules of this match, and there are many instruments in the ring, so I have no idea what's going to happen. Looks like they can use the instruments as weapons. That seems like a waste of some nice guitars. I think this is the first time that anyone has ever went through a keyboard. This was fun in a garbage sort of way. When it came down to actually wrestling, it was good. Ziggler pins Sandow to win. ***



Once this show is over, I want them to promise never to do a Country Special again.



Cena comes out with a sling around his left arm. He tells us that he has the determination to beat Del Rio and stay World Champ. Nothing new then. Del Rio comes out. Turns out Cena was faking with the sling and is fine. Well that was pretty dull.



The Rhinestone Cowboys vs R-Truth & Xavier Woods
When was Xavier called up to the main roster. I figured that he was dead in the water when JBL had no idea who he was on live television. Oh yeah, the Cowboys are 3MB. I kinda like their gimmick of changing their style depending on where they are. Ok match I guess but it didn't really mean anything. *



HHH says there will be no interference in the WWE Title match at Survivor Series. Yeah right.



Florida Georgia Line performs. I can't tell you anything about it as I fast forwarded through it.


It's time for the Main Event! Finally.



Daniel Bryan / CM Punk / The Usos / The Rhodes Brothers vs The Shield & The Wyatt Family
I would have absolutely loved to have seen this as a Survivor Series elimination match, but I'm completely happy to be seeing it here. This should be one hell of a contest. The Shield and Wyatt's can't even shake hands before the match. The match did seem to be more about the tension between the Shield and the Wyatt's, but it was fun to watch. And speaking of fun to watch, this match was amazingly fun. ***3/4


The Real Americans come out to attack, and REY MYSTERIO! makes his return! Awesome ending to the night.




This was a much better Raw than I thought it would be, even with the silly country theme. Watch for the IC Title change, Miz turning heel, a good Ziggler/Sandow match, and the main event. Roll on Survivor Series!

No Mercy 2006 Review

No Mercy 2006 Review


I found this one quite cheaply in a shop, so I thought I'd give it a watch. I've heard it was one of the better PPVs that year and one of the better single-brand PPVs overall. Does it hold up today if that's true? Let's find out.




Matt Hardy vs Gregory Helms
On paper, this looked like a filler match, but who would've known that they would almost steal the whole damn show! The feud seemed to be built on both guys hitting each other in the balls on Smackdown, but luckily it's the in-ring work that was more memorable. A great opener with some nice nearfalls and some good counter-wrestling. Find this one if you can, it's worth a look. ***1/2


Backstage, King Booker wants William Regal to help him out. Booker was pretty good at putting his opponents over here.



Paul London & Brian Kendrick vs KC James & Idol Stevens
The Tag Titles are on the line. Idol Stevens is also known as the Intellectual Saviour, Damien Sandow. It's strange seeing him without his majestic beard. Just a standard tag match here with nothing really standing out, except for the amazing athleticism of London and Kendrick. It was still pretty damn entertaining too. **1/2



Backstage, Regal gets covered in food.



The Miz is out to celebrate his birthday. I think if somebody during this time met a time traveller that told them that Miz would be WWE Champion, they would have vomited on the spot. This is a pointless segment except for a very sexy looking Layla. I can see why people hated the Miz at this point. He was fucking annoying. And of course, Big Dick Johnson comes out to embarrass Miz. Couldn't they have just added five minutes to the opener?



MVP vs Marty Garner
This is MVP's debut match. Since it's a show people are paying for, they could have at least gave MVP someone from the actual roster to fight. The crowd does turn on the match quite quickly. Just a total squash here. DUD


Backstage, Regal runs into more shenanigans. Teddy Long puts Regal in a match later on.



Undertaker vs Mr Kennedy
This was during Kennedy's run of beating former World Champs. It was a great way of making him look good, and a good idea in general, but the fact that some wrestlers didn't like working with him and that he kept hurting himself led to his firing in 2009. This feud would continue to December. Solid match that started pretty boring but got more entertaining as it went on. Always nice to see a classic piledriver. Even if it looks pretty dangerous. The DQ finish ruins it a bit, but it was still quite good. **3/4



Rey Mysterio vs Chavo Guerrero : Falls Count Anywhere
The fan sign in the crowd put it best 'Let Eddie RIP'. Yes after almost a year they were still milking all that they could out of Eddie Guerrero's tragic death. This would be Rey's last PPV match until Summerslam 2007, ten months later. These guys have great chemistry, so this was almost guaranteed to be good. They made good use of the stipulation, as they were barely in the ring at all. Fun little match here. ***




Chris Benoit vs William Regal
Quite the impromptu match here. If they were smart they would have advertised this match, as it would have gotten pure wrestling fans excited for it. This was Benoit's return match. Two stiff workers going at it. Regal was busted open after a nasty headbutt from Benoit. The only thing I didn't like about this match was the amount of time it got. Take away the pointless Miz segment, the MVP squash, give the time to this match and you have a classic. Very stiff technical bout. It's not often that an impromptu match is the best of the night, although Armageddon would do the same two months later. ***1/2



King Booker vs Finlay vs Bobby Lashley vs Batista
World Heavyweight Title is on the line. To be honest, the only challenger that looked to have a chance of winning the Title was Batista, but that didn't stop it from being a fun match. I do wish Batista had won this, so that we wouldn't have to see their bad match at Survivor Series. This was very entertaining, with every guy getting an opportunity to look good, and they took it. Great fatal four way. ***1/2



7.5/10. Very good show here as there wasn't a lot of garbage apart from the pointless Miz segment and the MVP squash, but those didn't last long anyway. You have three great matches, an entertaining Falls Count Anywhere match and a solid Taker/Kennedy match. Watch this one if you get the chance.

Royal Rumble 2002 Review

Royal Rumble 2002 Review


This is the original DVD version, so no blurring for me! Let's begin.



The Dudley Boyz vs Tazz & Spike Dudley
Tag Titles are on the line. I never even knew that Tazz and Spike were ever a team, nevermind Tag Champs. I think the Dudleys are meant to be heels, but they received quite a loud cheer from the crowd when they entered. As usual Spike was great in his face in peril role. This was really short, but it was a lot of fun while it lasted. It got the crowd in the wrestling mood anyway. **



Edge vs William Regal
IC Title is on the line. If they knew that Wrestlemania was in Toronto that year, then why didn't they keep Edge as the champ to give him a proper match at Mania, instead of a random feud with Booker T? Who knows. This wasn't as good as I thought it might have been, and it was quite slow at times. It did get quite exciting by the end though. Regal is the new IC Champ. **



Trish Stratus vs Jazz
Jacqueline is the referee for this Women's Title match. I can't tell why she is the champ as it wasn't really explained. Trish's hand is all taped up after Jazz closed a box lid on it. This was a good match and I wish it had been longer because I was enjoying it. Jacqueline didn't do much as the ref except for pissing off Jazz. Solid, short match here. *1/2


The next review is from my McMahon DVD Review:  http://prowrestlingtvreviews.blogspot.co.uk/2013/05/mcmahon-dvd-review.html



Vince McMahon vs Ric Flair : Street Fight
This was never going to be a technical classic, but I'm sure both guys were trying their best to give us the most entertaining match they could. At the time, Ric was part owner of the WWE, and obviously that pissed off Vince. Ric also wasn't an active wrestler here. Didn't take long for Flair to blade. And yes this was a fun match. Not the best, but enjoyable. Vince is the master of making a bad-looking match highly entertaining.  **1/2



The Rock vs Chris Jericho
The Undisputed Title is on the line. These two have tremendous chemistry together, and this match definitely proves that point. Their No Mercy match was better, but this was still awesome. The run-ins don't hurt the match, but they do make Jericho look a little weak. A brilliant back and forth match between two of the all time greats, and easily the match of the night. ****



The Royal Rumble Match
I find it quite hard to rate a rumble match as a whole. I think the most memorable part of this match was Maven eliminating the Undertaker. It would have made him look quite good if Taker didn't immediately kick his ass afterwards. It was still pretty damn awesome though. Seeing Mr Perfect return was a nice moment too, and he hadn't changed a bit. That's about it for memorable moments. It wasn't the worst rumble ever (that goes to the 1999 atrocity), but it certainly wasn't the best either. I'll go with  ***



6/10. A solid PPV here. There was nothing bad about the undercard, but it was just unmemorable, except for the entertaining Street Fight. The Undisputed Championship match was awesome and the highlight of the night, and the Rumble was pretty enjoyable.

Summerslam 2013 Re-Do Review

Summerslam 2013 Re-Do Review


It has been three months since this PPV took place. So now that the dust has settled, is it still a fantastic show and one of the best Summerslam events ever? Let's find out.


I was gonna review the kickoff match since I missed it the first time around, but it turns out that the Blu Ray Exclusive match is only five minutes long and starts at what looks like ten minutes into it, so that's pissed me off already.

I was looking forward to watching that, you DVD making bastards!


Right lets start the re-do. I've not done one of these for a while, so I hope you still know how they work.


                                                                                                                                                                 






The Miz starts the show by welcoming us to Summerslam and is interrupted by Fandango. Unfortunately this would be a pointless running joke throughout the night.


(Unfortunately this would be a pointless feud that did nothing but annoy everybody)



Kane vs Bray Wyatt : Ring of Fire Match
Like an Inferno match except you can't set your opponent on fire because this is the PG era. I thought this was a bad decision for the opener as it was quite dull throughout and the fire was only there to make the match seem more interesting. It didn't do Wyatt any favours either since he looked easily beaten and needed his family to help him win. Not a great start to the night. *


(Kane wouldn't be seen again until the Hell in a Cell PPV, and soon after that he would turn into corporate Kane. Since this match took place, we found out that Wyatt wasn't a very good wrestler, and that it was in fact Luke Harper that was the talented one in the Wyatt family. Bray was beaten quite easily until the family came in, which didn't make him look too good. Not a very good match, but slightly better than I remembered. *1/2)



Cody Rhodes vs Damien Sandow
Now this should have been the opening match. I have to say that I love Sandow's new MITB Briefcase. Suits him well. I'd been looking forward to this match for a while, even if it didn't get heat from the buildup, and I'd say that they delivered here. They have great chemistry together and I'd love to see more from them in the future. My only problem is that it was too short. An extra five minutes or so could have made this a much more memorable bout. As it is, it's still a good match. ***


(I was hoping that these two would have a World Title feud at some point, but now that Sandow has lost the MITB briefcase I doubt it'll happen at all. Cody's face turn would get much better as it went on, thanks to the Authority storyline. Still a good match from these guys and they both looked pretty good coming out of it. ***)




Christian vs Alberto Del Rio
I'm slightly worrying that this could be Christian's last match after the video package. It was like something that would have been made for a Hall of Fame inductee. What was with Del Rio's huge shiner as well? I was worried that the match would be heatless since they had already fought each other a couple of times and the fact that there wasn't much buildup, but they surprised me with a great match. It was back and forth with some nice nearfalls and a great finish. It's a shame that it'll be forgotten thanks to other matches on the show. Worth checking out. ***3/4


(This is currently Christian's last PPV match, as he's been written off of TV thanks to an attack by the authority. Hopefully he'll be back soon. I'd say this is the best match of Del Rio's World Title reign. A great pace was kept throughout the match, and never became boring. The nearfalls were great, and the arm psychology was sound. An incredible championship bout that I need to increase the rating on. ****)



Natalya vs Brie Bella
I wondered if this match would have some heat thanks to the Total Divas show, but it's safe to say that the fans couldn't give a shit about it. They spent their time chanting for Zack Ryder and the commentators. The match was actually not bad thanks to the effort from Natalya, and she got the win which was a great decision because she is arguably the best diva in the WWE. Enough of the 'reality' show please. *


(I can't hate on this match too much, as we did need a cool down after that awesome World Title match. Plus it wasn't all that bad for a divas match. I think this deserves a higher rating, as it was quite the entertaining little match. *1/2)



CM Punk vs Brock Lesnar
The Best vs The Beast. This one had a great buildup thanks to all three guys putting their hearts into it. I had high expectations for this match and it managed to exceed them hugely. Everything about the match was fantastic, from the brawling, to the reversals and to Heyman's involvement. Quite possibly Lesnar's best match ever! The contest made CM Punk look like the best wrestler in the world and made Lesnar look like the biggest monster in the world, which is all you can ask for. I also love how neither guy kicked out of the other's main finisher, which isn't something you see in most big matchups. Match of the Year candidate for sure. *****



(I think we were all expecting a four star match here, but boy did they deliver way more than that. Unfortunately the Punk/Heyman feud would grow stale after this, but at least we got this highlight out of it. The video package beforehand was awesome, but then again the guys that do it have always done an amazing job. This is easily Lesnar's best match and could be Punk's, if not for the MITB match. It makes Brock's previous Summerslam match against HHH look like shit. A match truly worthy of the 'this is awesome' chant. I love how it wasn't the usual 'kick out of the other guy's finisher' that we get with these big matches. Phenomenal stuff here. I might have to change this to my match of the year, but we'll see how I feel about the main event soon enough. *****)



Dolph Ziggler & Kaitlyn vs Big E Langston & AJ Lee
I feel bad for these guys having to be the cool down match for that epic contest, but they did well with it. Ziggler bumped around awesomely as usual, and Big E showed that he has a bright future ahead of him as a very athletic big guy. More time and it could have been much better. **


(I do feel bad for these guys having to follow such an amazing match, but the show must go on. Both the guys and the gals performed well here and managed to make an entertaining match even with a quiet crowd. The crowd did liven up towards the end though. Solid match. **1/4)




John Cena vs Daniel Bryan
Needless to say, expectations for this match were huge. A lot of people, including myself, were annoyed when HHH was announced as the referee, but he did not hinder the match in the slightest. These two went out there and had a balls to the wall main event match that was reminiscent of the MITB 2011 main event. Bryan showed he deserves to be at the top, and Cena showed that he still has what it takes to be a main eventer. Awesome match all the way through and may be the best Summerslam main event ever and possibly the best Summerslam match ever. Now we can officially say that Bryan has held the WWE Championship! *****. My match of the year for 2013 and I doubt it will be topped.


(This match feels a lot like the Punk/Cena match from MITB, as the crowd was firmly behind the underdog champion and against Cena. I love that HHH didn't try to be the centre of attention until the match was over, we also got a very clean finish for Bryan and a new star was made. What more could you ask for? An amazing Match of the Year? Well it has that going for it too. Basically it's perfect. It's easily Bryan's best match and arguably Cena's best too. I can't decide which match I like more: this or the Punk/Lesnar match. Both are absolute classics. This rightfully stays at  *****)



But unfortunately, Bryan's feel-good moment ends with HHH turning heel and delivering a pedigree. Orton cashes in his briefcase and becomes the new WWE Champion.


(It sucks that Bryan lost the Title so quickly, but it made him very sympathetic to the crowd, and turned Orton into a great heel)





9.5/10. Well that's the best PPV of the year so far and quite possibly the best Summerslam of all time. If the two main events had delivered, this would have been a recommended show, but the two main events delivered above and beyond the expectations. Add in a great World Title match, a fun mixed tag match and a good grudge match, and you have an awesome PPV. Get this one now!



(Still 9.5/10 and still one of the best PPVs of the last thirty years. I've finally made my mind up: in my opinion (don't forget that part) this is the best Summerslam ever, and also beats the 2002 edition. You get two five star matches and a four star match, and if that wasn't enough, nothing was truly bad and everything was fun, including a good Rhodes/Sandow match. Pick this one up straight away so that WWE can't blame bad sales on Daniel Bryan!

Monday Night Raw Review 12/11/13

Monday Night Raw Review - 12/11/13 or 11/12/13, depending on where you're from.



We're in Manchester, England for this Raw, and the shows in England are usually quite memorable, so hopefully this will be the same.



Randy Orton comes out to tell us he's in charge, which brings out Brad Maddox to say that he's in charge, that in turn brings out Mr Kane to say that he's in charge. Ultimately it didn't matter as Vickie Guerrero appeared to make Orton face the tag champs. Kind of a pointless segment just to prove that HHH and Stephanie are actually on vacation. At least it set up a match.



Randy Orton vs The Rhodes Brothers
They've kind of pinned themselves into a corner with this one, because they don't want to make Orton lose a match, and they can't let Orton beat the tag champs as that would make the Tag Titles meaningless, and the champs weak. Plus if they go for the usual count-out or DQ finish, then they'll probably piss off the live crowd. The match was pretty good while it lasted with the Tag Champs looking good against the WWE Champion, but it did lead to that inevitable count-out loss. **



But here comes the Big Show and he wants a piece of Orton. Show beats him up around the ring, before giving him a huge chokeslam through the announce table. That got me more interested in seeing their match at Survivor Series. But where the hell was the Shield when all of this was going on?



During the commercial break, Big Show grabs a black cab and goes for a pint with the driver. Sounds like my kind of guy.



Los Matadores & Santino Marella vs The Union Jacks
I don't know about you, but I'm getting tired of this gimmick. In what world is that one of the best entrances ever? The Union Jacks are actually 3MB, and I'm already wanting them to win.(As a side note, Drew got the biggest pop at the Glasgow show, and they had him lose to the Usos playing heel. Couldn't they give the hometown boy his win, or is it a sign of the Usos turning heel? It still pisses me off). Just a short comendy filler match here. 1/2*


Doplh Ziggler will face Curtis Axel for the IC Title. I smell a title change! At least I hope I do.



Damien Sandow vs Kofi Kingston
The crowd seemed to be behind Sandow in this one. Good, he deserves a push after that MITB match performance. This was just an extended squash for Sandow, as Kofi got very little offense in. Sandow wins with the full nelson slam which he now calls the 'You're Welcome'. 1/2*



Dolph Ziggler vs Curtis Axel
IC Title is on the line, now the reason as to why I'm excited about this one is that the WWE seems to like Title changes when they're in a different country, and the IC Title is sorely needing a new champion. Don't get me wrong, I like Axel, but he's just not the right guy for the Title just now. The crowd was basically dead for Axel's moments of offense which isn't a good sign for him. Axel did look pretty good as he kicked out of a few nearfalls. I guess my prediction was wrong as Axel retains the Championship. Solid match. **1/2



We've got another two handicap matches with John Cena facing the Real Americans, and CM Punk and Daniel Bryan will be taking on the Shield.



Daughter of Jimmy Snuka vs Nikki Bella
I think it was Nikki Bella, althought it might be Brie, I wasn't paying attention. I think Nikki nearly had another nip slip. I love the fans chants of 'We want tables' and I think I may have a sarcastic 'This is awesome' chant. This match sucked. DUD



Oh crap the fans are back to 'Fandangoing'. How long until WWE sucks all the fun out of it again?



Fandango vs Tyson Kidd
Thank god that Kidd gets a singles match. It better get enought time to show his awesome athleticism. Please don't put Tyson in all that reality tv bullshit. Unfortunately it's a short match that Fandango wins. At least Tyson got to show off some moves. 3/4*



John Cena vs The Real Americans
If Cena beats either of these guys cleanly, I will be annoyed. I'm already annoyed that Del Rio is getting a rematch for the World Title at Survivor Series. If Cena doesn't win that match, I'll be the most surprised person on the planet. Cesaro's uppercut to Cena was awesome, and got more of a pop than anything Cena did. Cesaro looked great in this one. Swagger taps to the STF to give Cena the win. Boooo. We didn't even get to see a swing. Fun match though. **3/4


After the match, Del Rio attacks Cena with a chair, and Big E Langston gets the save. That'll probably set up a match.



Ryback vs R-Truth
I didn't realise how fun it was to shout 'What's Up' at a WWE Live show. I know it was stupid but it was fun. Short, unspectacular match that gave R-Truth a fluke win. Ryback has definitely lost a lot of his threat. 1/2*



Big E Langston vs Alberto Del Rio
Another match where they can't really give either superstar a loss. Big E needs to look like a great up-and-comer, and Del Rio needs to look like a World Title contender. Del Rio got no reaction for his entrance. The crowd even starts a wave! Big E taps out to end the match. Well that will have killed his momentum. Just not a good match here. 3/4*



They usually sell us WWE Live in the UK DVDs over here, but unless the main event is awesome, I can't see anyone buying this one.


Cena and Del Rio will have an arm wrestling contest on Smackdown. Are you fucking kidding?



Paul Heyman is back! He basically tells us that Ryback was shit in his role, and blames all of us for his beating at Hell in a Cell. Don't blame me Paul, I didn't even wanna see the match. Heyman will return with a vengeance, and I'm guessing that it's name will be Brock Lesnar. CM Punk comes out, takes out Axel, and Heyman knows he's screwed. Punk hits Paul a few times with the kendo stick and that ends that segment, because it's time for the main event!



CM Punk & Daniel Bryan vs The Shield
I'm guessing that this will end with the Wyatt Family interfering, but I'm just gonna enjoy the journey with what should be a good match. I just realised that this is the first time that Punk has faced the Shield in a match. Thought it was interesting. This was a great match with a hot finish until the Wyatt's turned up (called it). ***1/2


The Wyatt's and the Shield have a showdown! There's a match I wanna see. They make a truce and go after Punk and Bryan. Here comes the Usos and the Tag Champs to even things up! I smell a Survivor Series match.



The only things I remember about this Raw were the opening and closing segments (with the closing being particularly awesome) and the main event. Everything else was forgettable and never really lead to anything except for that dumb arm wrestling contest on Smackdown.


Next up on my review list is the Summerslam 2013 Blu Ray which I'll probably do later today.

Vengeance 2003 Review

Vengeance 2003 Review


Here we have the first Smackdown only PPV. Were they able to put on a good show without Raw? Of course they did! But lets find out how good it is.



Eddie Guerrero vs Chris Benoit
Someone give a medal to the guy that put this as the opener. Great idea that was always gonna end well. This was for the newly (re)made US Title, though sadly it would end up redundant for the next ten years or so. Of course this was a great match, how could it not be with these two in the ring? This is why I watch wrestling, to see two very talented guys trying to prove who's better with a very entertaining match, and that's exactly what we got here, a great, technical bout from the masters of technical wrestling. Eddie cheating towards the end was great too. A classic match. ****1/4



Backstage the McMahon soap opera takes a pointless and boring turn as Vince acts like a dick. What else is new.



Billy Gunn vs Jamie Noble
This is an Indecent Proposal match. The fuck is that? Well I'm glad you asked: Noble was acting a bit rapey towards Torrie Wilson, so Torrie put her body on the line, and put her faith in Billy. Not the best guy to put your faith in. I suppose for every Guerrero/Benoit there's this. This storyline was creepy beyond belief, and didn't Nidia get a say in this? Well she did try to cost Noble the match so there's that. Noble really carried Billy here, and the match wasn't long enough to be too bad. Noble wins and is allowed to screw Torrie. Lucky bastard. *1/2




Backstage there's the APA, Funkaki, some Jack Daniels, and the Easter Bunny. Yes that happened.




The APA Invitational
What does an APA invitational even accomplish? A title shot? Doubt it. Even Brother Love and Doink the Clown make an appearance! This is worth the pointless segment already. A young John Morrison is in there looking like Elvis Presley.This is putting me in the mood for a fourth beer. Just a bar room brawl here, but it was fun to watch. No Rating.



Do you know what this show could use? Another awesome match. I think I hear one coming now.



Rey Mysterio & Billy Kidman vs The World's Greatest Tag Team
Tag Titles on the line. It would have been near impossible to follow the excellent opener, but these guys damn sure tried their best!  Might be the best WWE tag match of the year. Kidman's springboard shooting star press to the outside was freaking insane. Just fantastic action all throughout this match and every guy performed exceptionally well. Overall : awesome! Huge double team move gives Haas the pinfall. WWE needs to sign these guys again. Insanely fun match. ****



Stephanie McMahon vs Sable
Once again I guess the quality had to dip somewhere. This was announced as a catfight. No rules were announced except that there are no countouts. Vince made this match, and, unfortunately, the storyline would continue for another few months. Sable didn't look as good as she did in 1998. The crowd was into it, but it just wasn't good. It wasn't as bad as it should have been, but it was still pretty bad. Albert, I mean Tensai, sorry I mean A-Train interferes to give Sable the win. *



Undertaker vs John Cena
Funny how ten years later this is considered a big dream match for Wrestlemania. Cena would eventually get a win over Taker, but it definitely would have meant more if he had done it on PPV. Well I think the kid has done well for himself, so it didn't affect him too much. Cena did look good against the Deadman, and looked to be a match for him. Very good match. ***1/4



Zach Gowen vs Vince McMahon
Yes Vince McMahon is a dick, we get it. Vince winning this didn't help Zach's momentum. The match was pretty entertaining, as Vince is a natural heel, and Zach was a great underdog. After a chair shot, Vince had a nasty looking cut on his head and was pouring blood. Entertaining while it lasted, even if the wrong man won. **



Brock Lesnar vs Big Show vs Kurt Angle
WWE Championship is on the line. This was Angle's PPV return from his neck surgery that was supposed to keep him out for a year, so the fact that he came back after only a few months is amazing. All three guys were made to look like threats, especially Show, which is something that makes these triple threat matches great. The action was never slow and was never boring. Lesnar's powerbomb to Show was amazing. An awesome triple threat match, and one of the better ones I've seen. ****



9/10. A fantastic show that woukd have been the best of 2003 if not for Wrestlemania XIX. Three matches at four stars or above makes this an easy recommendation, but add in a very good  Taker/Cena match, and you've got one hell of a show. Only a couple of things drag it down, like the Indecent Proposal match and the pointless APA Invitational, but that doesn't stop it from being highly recommended by me.

Survivor Series 2004 Review

Survivor Series 2004 Review


Since Survivor Series 2013 is coming up, I thought it would be appropriate to review my one of my personal favourites of the November PPV. I haven't watched it in years, so is it still good? Let's find out.




Spike Dudley vs Rey Mysterio vs Billy Kidman vs Chavo Guerrero
Cruiserweight Title on the line. Chavo had just returned from injury after a botched shooting star press from Kidman that led to Kidman's heel turn and Chavo's face turn. The face turn didn't last very long. Spike Dudley wasn't a good heel. He's much better at being an underdog. Great opening match that stayed exciting throughout, with Mysterio especially impressing as he was flying all over the place. Great stuff. ***1/2



Shelton Benjamin vs Christian 
IC Title on the line. Trust Shelton Benjamin to go out there and just about steal the show, something he would do quite a few times. It helps that he was in there with a great talent like Christian. They were given enough time to go out and have a great match, and that's exactly what they did. Shelton's amazing athletisicm was very impressive. If only he was good on the mic he could have became something great. Awesome back and forth match that might be the match of the night. ***3/4



Backstage the seeds are sown for Kurt Angle vs Shawn Michaels



Kurt Angle / Luther Reigns / Mark Jindrak / Carlito vs John Cena / Big Show / Rob Van Dam / Eddie Guerrero: Elimination Match
Cena had just returned after being injured by Carlito, so Cena was gunning for Carlito. Straight away Carlito is eliminated from the match, as he leaves the arena to get away from Cena. The match did go into a bit of a lull when Eddie was continually attacked by Team Angle, but it gained a nice pace when Eddie got the tag. The eliminations came quite quickly, but I didn't really mind that. Overall it was a fun match. ***1/4



Backstage, Snitsky attacks Maven to take him out of the elimination match.



Undertaker vs Heidenreich
Heidenreich angered Taker by driving a truck into the hearse that Taker was inside, which is a stupid idea seeing as nothing ever kills the Deadman. Heidenreich didn't move onto much except for another PPV match with Taker, and a member of the Legion of Doom. A lot of people were expecting this match to be awful, but it actually wasn't bad. It wasn't great or very good, but it was enjoyable. The match was mostly carried by Taker. **



Trish Stratus vs Lita
Womens Title on the line. This storyline was based on Trish making fun of Lita's 'miscarriage'. Very sensitive there Trish. More of an angle than a match here, as Lita DQ'd herself about a minute into the match. DUD. After the match, Lita beats the hell out of Trish. At least this would lead to their Raw main event match the next month.


Backstage, Cena is given a US Title match against Carlito on Smackdown.



Booker T vs JBL
WWE Championship on the line. At this point, everyone, especially myself, was becoming sick of JBL as the champ. I was desperate for Booker to win this one, but unfortunately JBL managed to get yet another lucky win to retain the Title. The match was quite entertaining, even if it was dull when JBL was on offense. JBL hits Booker with the title belt to retain. Solid bout. **3/4



Randy Orton / Chris Benoit / Chris Jericho vs Triple H / Batista / Edge / Gene Snitsky: Elimination Match
The great thing about this elimination match is that there was actually something on the line. Each member of the winning team would get to be the General Manager of Raw for one week. These matches are much better when something is on the line, and this is no exception. Benoit was eliminated a bit too quickly for my liking, but I guess that's just the way of it. Maven came back into the match to beat the hell out of Snitsky, and even got a nice crowd reaction. It's a shame they ruined it by turning him heel. Orton is the sole survivor of his team and gets the win. Awesome match that was entertaining all the way through. ****



8/10. Great show here as only the Womens Title match was a DUD and that segment only lasted about five minutes anyway. Even the Taker/Heidenreich match was entertaining and the WWE Title match was solidly good. I'd recommend the cruiserweight match, the IC Title match, and the main event. Overall a great PPV from the WWE, during a year when there wasn't many.