WWE Smackdown Live January 16, 2018 Results and Review The Biggest Dumpster Fire Ever

The Glow Kick - Smackdown Live - Source WWE dot com

This was perhaps the worst Smackdown Live that has been put through in a long time. The crowd was nearly dead for a lot of it, there were only 4 matches, and more than 30 minutes of the time slot was given to Jinder Mahal. I kid you not. Jinder Mahal, the modern day Maharaja was the main focal point. Love him or hate him, Jinder Mahal was a big part of the night’s events, and well, let’s break down how it all went down.

WWE Smackdown Live January 16, 2018 Results and Review

The show opened up with Xavier Woods talking on the mic before calling out Jinder Mahal for their United States Title tournament match.

Jinder Mahal defeated Xavier Woods

This was a second round match in the tournament, and Woods put on a good show. He did most of his spots, and Mahal was slowed down for a good portion of this match. However, Mahal found creative ways to block or revert Woods’ offense to the point where Woods would get tripped up and eventually planted for the three count. Mahal would move on in the tournament.

Bobby Roode defeated Mojo Rawley

Bobby Roode took a beating from Mojo Rawley in this match. He was getting a serious beat down before he would reverse things and hit his DDT for the big win. Rawley is no joke here, he was definitely shining and was able to keep up with Roode’s offense and over powered him in a lot of different moments in this match. I loved the presentation, but Roode’s win was telegraphed.

After this match, the Singh Brothers attacked Roode and Mahal would laugh at him. Their championship match would be moved to later on in the night when Daniel Bryan came out and caught Jinder talking smack.

The Riott Squad defeated Charlotte Flair, Naomi, and Becky Lynch

Trading wins back and forth is the worst kind of booking you can do for wrestling. No one ever seems dominant, and it’s just not fun to watch sometimes. The Riott Squad was getting manhandled by Charlotte and her friends, if you ask me. They barely squeaked out a victory here, after getting a lot of brawling done. The Riott Squad would get a win, but this was a standard six man tag match, and well, it wasn’t fun to watch, again.

Bobby Roode defeated Jinder Mahal for the United States Championship

This match was not that good. Roode was winded, and Mahal was just trying to keep up with the veteran. He would put in some good moments here and there, and I’m glad that Bobby Roode get the win, but wow, way to bury Jinder Mahal after being champion, failing to recapture, and then failing to win the United States Championship. Is this the end of Jinder Mahal’s run? Roode wins, and that’s the end of the show.

During the show, there were vignettes of the Royal Rumble participants and it was awful. It lacked emotion and character that you used to get with the older Royal Rumble focused promos, but hey, it’s something, right?

This was a bad night of wrestling, if you can call it that. It had some ok moments, but where were half of the roster? Seriously, there was so much missing, including Zayn, Owens, The Usos (interview and beat down doesn’t count), and many others were just not on the show. Not a great match, but hey, if you love Jinder Mahal, you got him for more than 30 minutes of the show.

WWE Monday Night Raw January 16, 2018 Results and Review The Curb Stomp Returns

The Curb Stomp Returns - SOURCE WWE dot com 

And another week, another Raw is in the books. But guess what? I saw the HULU edition instead. I ended up watching the HULU edition and that was enough for me. Here we go, the night that was, and well, it wasn’t all that bad at times, at times, mind you.

WWE Monday Night Raw January 16, 2018 Results and Review

The first thing that occurred was Kurt Angle firing Braun Strowman. Strowman would go on a tear and would even toss over a truck. That’s right a truck. Sigh. He lifted a truck and tossed it over. This was smart, making him look strong, but remember the last time that Strowman faced off against Lesnar? Well, Lesnar beat him with 1 F5, and will most likely do it again.

Titus Worldwide defeated Cesaro and Sheamus

This was a squash match. I love seeing Dana Brooke though, she’s hot. This was a throwaway match that was slow moving and somewhat boring. Cesaro and Sheamus just jobbed here, and that was that.

Kurt Angle came out and rehired Braun Strowman

Yep.

Asuka defeated Nia Jax via match stoppage

This was a hard hitting match, with Jax getting a lot of the offense. However, what ended up happening was simple, Asuka ended up slapping on a knee bar and causing Jax to get injured. Jax was NOT really injured, and it was funny to see her fall over pretending that she was hurt. She fell over, and then Asuka was awarded the win via match stoppage.

The Revival beat Jobbers

This was NOT on HULU

Roman Reigns defeated The Miztourage

Again, Roman Reigns beat the Miztourage, and that was that. Nothing too grand here. It was dumb if you ask me, showing that Reigns is capable of burying all talent, including the Miz’s guys.

Sonya Deville defeated Sasha Banks

This was NOT on HULU

Matt Hardy defeated Heath Slater

This was not shown on HULU

Seth Rollins defeated Finn Balor

This was a good match, with a lot of back and forth. Seth Rollins would eventually get the upper hand, and the big win with the curb stomp. No, you’re not reading that wrong. Finn Balor hit a lot of his moves, but it was Jason Jordan on the outside that would give Rollins the win here. The Club Sandwhich guys didn’t really do much, and it was lame. Rollins gets the win, and Balor is left crying. There was a little controversy because the ref seemed to hit a 3 count, but said it was 2, and there was no instant replay rule like on Smackdown. Lame.

Overall, Raw wasn’t that good, with the exception of that last match. Rollins and Balor put on a good match, and I loved to see the curb stomp return!

Paige Is Done As In Ring Worker For WWE

Paige Is Done - Source WWE Dot Com

Paige is now officially done with WWE. 

PWINSIDER, NODQ, and others are reporting from sources within the WWE that Paige is done with the WWE as an in ring performer.

Paige is only 25 years old. 

Paige has been previously injured, on drugs, and once again injured again. 

The news is stating that she may have the same kind of negative clearance that Edge had, which means she's no longer going to be a wrestler in ring. She's done. 

Paige is done. 

Paige is not fired, but she's done. 

WWE Smackdown Live January 9, 2018 Results and Review

Kevin Owens Hits Randy Orton with a chair - Source WWE dot com

I know I’m late, so I’m going to go ahead and talk about this, and then talk about something bigger after. Here we go, the Smackdown show that was better than Raw.

WWE Smackdown January 9, 2018 Results and Review

Shane McMahon and Daniel Bryan were having tension yet again. Boring.

Becky Lynch defeated Ruby Riott

Once again, the invading team gets beaten, so why are they so tough? When the NWO invaded WCW, they didn’t just show up and start mounting losses. They were dominant. That’s how you build a feud, not by losing every week. Riott did ok here, but Lynch was able to get the win with her submission, and that’s the end.

The Bludgeon Brothers defeated The Ascension

The Ascension got buried.

Mojo Rawley defeated Zack Ryder

Another burial folks, Rawley had most of the offense here. Not a great match.

Shelton Benjamin and Chad Gable demanded Justice, and got a 2 out of 3 falls match for Ruble instead

Ok. Sure.

Breezango defeated Rusev and Aiden English

This was a fast moving match, and English got pinned. This was not half bad. I didn’t like it, but hey it happens.

Aj Styles, Shinsuke Nakamura, and Randy Orton defeated Kevin Owens and Sami Zayn

This match kept getting restarted. Once for count out, and once for disqualification, and each time Shane McMahon came out and stopped things, then restarted them. It’s hilariously bad, and well they lose.

At the end of the day, all of this is awful. Smackdown should have better matches, but they kept having random talking segments, and boredom. Oh well.

WWE Monday Night Raw January 8, 2018 Results and Review Dumpster Fires Keep Burning

The Best Part of Raw - SOURCE wwe dot com 

Well, well, another Raw was in the books, and honestly, I didn’t really want to talk about it. However, it is Thursday and I decided that it was time to look into Raw as I watched it on HULU, and well, I’m surprised that I didn’t just give up on the writing of this review. Here’s the reviews overall.

The Balor Club confronted The New Shield

This was dumb. I’m tired of the shows starting with all talking. This was just boring to see, and while it ended fine, it was just stupid. The Balor Club is nothing more than a bunch of jobbers.

Sasha Banks and Bayley defeated Mandy Rose and Sonya Deville

By having the good guys going over on both shows, why are these new factions a threat? They have won nothing big, they aren’t proving to be much of a threat, and well, it’s the absolutely worst thing. This is something that is NOT like the NOW invasion, and it’s sad. This match was fine, but it was hilarious to see the bad guys lose yet again.

Matt Hardy defeated Curt Hawkins

Hawkins loses again. Nothing to write home about here.

Cedric Alexander defeated Enzo Amore via Countout

This was a lousy match, and wow, just terrible. Alexander did do a great deal of moves, and legitimately cut Enzo open over his eye. Amore then seemed to get an ankle injury and got himself counted out. This wasn’t a terrible match, but it was far from good, that’s for sure.

Titus Worldwide defeated Cesaro and Sheamus

This was not shown on HULU

Braun Strowman Attacked Lesnar and Kane

This was after Heyman came out and cut his old promo. I’ve heard it so much, I am tired of hearing it. Braun Strowman came out after Kane and Lesnar fought to the back, and threw a grappling hook onto a set and dropped it on top of Lesnar and Kane. It was hella fake, but hey, it’s WWE, right?

Samoa Joe defeated Rhyno

This was a burial, and well, Joe may have hurt his foot.

Nia Jax attacked Asuka

It is what it is, not a match.

The Balor Club defeated The New Shield

I didn’t really pay attention to this match, but it went ok. The Balor Club won, and that was that.

I get it, this is a weak review. It was a weak Raw, what can I say? There wasn’t much in terms of wrestling, with few matches, and a lot of talking. The roster is huge, and yet we see the same things over and over again. The story lines are lazy, the show is dragging, and it feels like this is 9 hours long. Oh well.

NJPW Wrestle Kingdom 12 Results and Review

NJPW Wrestle Kingdom 12 - Tokyo Dome - January 4, 2018 

The biggest show that wasn’t WWE happened yesterday and it was Wrestle Kingdom 12 from New Japan Pro Wrestling. I happened to get a handle on it, and well here is my review, as it was 5 hours and 30 minutes long, so here are my thoughts, just straight up. I’m not a follower of New Japan, but the Jericho match had me getting this, so here it is.

The Young Bucks defeated Roppongi 3K for the IWGP Junior Heavyweight Tag Team Championships

I saw the Young Bucks back when they were just Slick Nick and Mr. Instant Replay at the Viking Hall in Culver City, California. Then I saw them wrestle in FCW in Los Angeles. However, they have come a long way since then, and are very good at what they do. The duo of brothers took on Roppongi 3K and put on a show. This match was everything you’d expect from cruiserweights. They were flying across the ring, dropping kicks, doing everything that Rey Mysterio Jr used to do in WCW and then some. This was not one sided either, The Bucks were not getting an easy win here, they got put through the ringer, and the crowd ate it up, as they were getting close to tapping out, and getting pinned many times. I found this match to be fun, and well worked, with a fast pace you’d expect from the USOS. I’d love to see the Young Bucks versus The Usos, that’s for sure. Great action here, and solid back and forth. The Bucks would win after getting the Meltzer Driver and then a sharpshooter, and that was that. The new champions, and a serious battle.

Chaos (Beretta, Tomohiro Ishii and Toru Yano) defeated Bullet Club (Bad Luck Fale, Tama Tonga and Tanga Loa), Michael Elgin and War Machine (Hanson and Raymond Rowe), Suzuki-gun (Taichi, Takashi Iizuka and Zack Sabre Jr.) (with El Desperado, Taka Michinoku and Yoshinobu Kanemaru) and Taguchi Japan (Juice Robinson, Ryusuke Taguchi and Togi Makabe) Gauntlet match for the NEVER Openweight 6-Man Tag Team Championship

This was an ongoing battle from all levels. I haven’t seen such a train wreck of a beat down in a long time. I am not sure who the guys are, as I haven’t seen every one of these guys, but wow, there’s a lot of back and forth. I have seen a few, don’t get me wrong, but there are some guys I haven’t seen before. I really like Zack Sabre Jr. but everyone else, it seemed like I didn’t really know. Overall, however, this was a great overall back and forth, gauntlet of teams fighting for the 6-man championship. It was entertaining, as it was crazy, and well, I don’t know what I can say, other than there’s a lot going on in this match. Zack Sabre Jr. was my favorite part of this match, that’s for sure. Watch out for the counters, and high spots, including one hell of a Diamond Cutter on Beretta. Beretta won with one of the most insane moves I’ve ever seen, and well, the Dude Buster was swift, and won this for his team. Hell of a match.

Kota Ibushi defeated Cody Rhodes

I remember Ibushi in the Cruiserweight Classic, and honestly, I haven’t seen much of him after the fact. Cody came out with his wife, and his hair dyed completely blonde, in a tribute to his father, which looked great. Cody is one of the biggest independent stars, and from what I heard, he’s pulling more money now than when he was in WWE. Good for him! The two worked well together, and honestly, it was fast paced, hard style, and worked very well for a singles match. I would say that this is the best match I’ve seen Cody work in a long time. Ibushi and Cody worked very well, and wow, what aback and forth match here. I thought this was a longer match than it was, but honestly, it’s not half bad. Rhodes did drill Ibushi with cross-Rhodes on the floor! That was awesome. Ibushi would get the win, with one hell of a finisher, which I don’t know, but it involved a lot of flipping and landing with serious power on Cody. Cody loses, and that’s that. I guess that’s the end of that.

Los Ingobernables de Japon (Evil and Sanada) defeated Killer Elite Squad for the IWGP Tag Team Championship

I’m not familiar with these teams, as I don’t watch New Japan often, but it’s an interesting little showcase. This tag team match was hard hitting, and very interesting. One team was more hard style, while the other team was less so. I did recognize Davey Boy Smith Jr, and he was out wearing his father’s getup, and it was a good thing to see him fight in that garb. This was a great overall match, good back and forth, lots of hard hitting action, and tag team moves. Not much else to say here, it’s a long one, but back and forth, lots of action, and no wasted moments if you ask me.

Hirooki Goto defeated Minoru Suzuki in a Hair vs. Hair Match For the NEVER Openweight Championship

An example of a Japanese hard style match, if I were to find one is this one. Goto and Suzuki put on a show here with head butts, and hard style punches, and elbows. These guys really put the bricks to each other in a show that was much like the UK title matches in WWE. I was impressed with how tough these guys are, and well, I don’t know what else to say about it. Goto practically killed Suzuki to get the pin, and it looked like he was dead afterwards. I was impressed, just wow, he won with a serious beat down.

Will Ospreay defeated Marty Scurll, Hiromu Takahashi and Kushida in a Four-way match for the IWGP Junior Heavyweight Championship

I’ve seen a lot of entrances, but wow, Marty Scurll once again proves to be one hell of a talent. He came out with full wings and his complete garb. I liked him in ROH, and now, wow, this is an interesting focal point. He’s great, WWE should look into this, it’s an incredible focus. As far a four way goes, this was an interesting match up with a lot of smart moments. If you like high spots, cruiserweight action, and incredible athleticism, wow. This is an interesting option with a lot of hard hitting moments, and lots of back and forth. This match is as good if not better than 205 live, and I was absolutely floored by how they moved. It reminded me of early Lucha Stuff that I would see as a young kid. Ospreay is perhaps one of the greatest high flyers of all time, he’s so athletic and energetic, with some incredible timing. Scurll, Takahashi, and Kushida are also incredible talents, and had some great moments. This was a good match, and I can say it was the best up to this point in the card.

Hiroshi Tanahashi defeated Jay White in the IWGP Intercontinental Championship Match

Another excellent matchup, with Jay White throwing down a lot of action against Tanahashi. I was impressed, both guys worked a fast paced, hard hitting match. Back and forth the two hit each other with everything they had, but honestly, the best part of this was the closing elements, which featured some of the hardest hits and nice overall moves to end. Tanahashi slapped the hell out of white towards the end, which was crazy. Good match leading into the main events.

Kenny Omega defeated Chris Jericho in a NO DQ Match for the IWGP United States Heavyweight Championship

Here we go, the big one. The only reason I’m covering a New Japan Pro Wrestling show is because Chris Jericho was involved, and the hype was so big, I couldn’t resist. Mind you, this is 3 hours and 26 minutes into the show, if you’re looking at maybe getting a download of Wrestle Kingdom 12 or the DVD or whatever. It’s a long show, but here’s the big match up. Jericho came out with a jacket that had lights, which was really cool. Omega came out like the Terminator, which is cool, but I couldn’t help but wish this was something that we saw in WWE, featuring Omega in the Rumble, but I don’t think that’s going to happen.

Jericho did seem to look a little doughy, and well, it also looked like he had surgery to help his pecs not look so bad. Jericho immediately went after Omega, and then came in the Young Bucks to try and stop him, which prompted all the referees and young lions to come and stop things a bit. The two were ready to go at it from the start.

The match was not an all out brawl at first, and had Omega throwing himself at Jericho, to the point here he even flew through the announcer’s table at one point. It looked like a rookie mistake, and since this was a NO DQ match, Jericho was brutal, at one point even pushing the referee and slapping the Young dragons at ringside around, which are just the trainees etc. He was playing up his heel persona, and it was working, while Omega was recovering from some of the spots he was taking. This match started to telegraph that Omega was going to win, that’s for sure.

As far as a wrestling match is concerned, this wasn’t bad. It had a lot of back and forth, had some hardcore elements with tables breaking, and some spots that you would expect from ECW in 1999. It was also the best Jericho has been since before he left WCW for WWE. This harder style was interesting, but there were points where you could tell that Jericho was blown up, and it was painfully obvious he is the older of the two for sure. This was a long match, with lots of fire back and forth, with Jericho popping up to ruin Omega’s offense here and there, and while it was good, you could see that it was a bit too long and wearing thin. Eventually Omega would land his finisher on Jericho onto a chair, and that would be the end. Omega pins Jericho clean, and that’s the end, the Omega is better than the Alpha, and that’s that. Not exactly what I thought would happen, but hey, it’s the right choice I’m sure. Jericho loses, and that’s the end. Omega needs to be in WWE so he can get buried by Roman Reigns, or hell Jinder Mahal.

Kazuchika Okada defeated Tetsuya Naito in the IWGP Heavyweight Championship Match

The finale, the main event, had Okada taking on Naito, and it was one hell of a fight. I say fight, but it’s supposed to be pro wrestilng. This was no doubt a back and forth affair that just had Okada getting more and more frustrated that he couldn’t put away Naito. Naito was impressive here, going through everything that Okada threw at him, and kept kicking out. I was impressed with how hard hitting this match was, even though there was a pause in the middle because it looked like they were legit hurt.

Since I don’t watch enough New Japan, I can’t comment on the past or present of these guys, but I can say that this was a match that was quite compelling overall. I did not know how the two would walk out of this one, and it had an epic feel to it as the camera’s panned away from the match. I liked it, don’t get me wrong, but I wish I was more invested in their stories. The finish came when Okada wins with a rotating tombstone piledriver and one hell of a clothesline. That’s the end, 5 hours and 30 minutes, and the end.

Overall, this was too long a show for my liking. However, it was well wrestled, had some good moments, and really is a great way to start your pro wrestling viewing. It’s better than most of the WWE stuff I’ve seen all of 2017, that’s for sure.

WWE Smackdown Live January 2, 2018 Results and Review The McMahon Hour Continues

Only Image From WWE dot com 

I didn’t want to watch Smackdown. I really didn’t. Why should I? I could have told you everything that was going to happen, and it’s hard to suspend disbelief when the show seems to telegraphed. But you know what, let’s talk about it anyways.

WWE Smackdown Live January 2, 2018 Results and Review

Shane McMahon and Daniel Bryan started the show talking, alongside AJ Styles. That’s it. This was boring to me, but you know what, it’s what I expect now. I just expect being bored by the opening elements. It’s dumb, but it happens, just like Southpark said it would happen.

The Usos defeated Shelton Benjamin and Chad Gable

This was an ok match, but there was a big problem. You see, the problem was that you will find Benjamin and Gable would win the titles midway through this match. However, both USOS were complaining and the referees, for the first time ever, went to instant replay and figured out that the USOS were doing twin magic! I hate it. I hated this, and it’s stupid. The Usos would win, simple as that.

The Bludgeon Brothers vs. Breezango

This didn’t go very well. The Brothers beat them down before the bell rang, and out came The Ascension, only to get buried. The arena was as quiet as can be for a wrestling event not in Japan.

Xavier Woods defeated Aiden English

This was a fun back and forth match, and while it wasn’t going to be Aiden English’s night, it was fun to see him fight Woods. Rusev is way over, but he wasn’t in the tournament. English pulled off the win and Brooks threw down some great moves, including the big elbow off the top which would get him the big win here. English loses, and that’s the end of this.

Riott Squad defeated Carmella, Natalya, and Tamina

This was boring to me. The Riott Squad already lost. So why are they cutting promos and winning now? I’m honestly at a loss. Afterwards the women on the roster brawled, and that was that. I don’t see the big deal with them, they aren’t dominant at all.

Sami Zayn defeated Aj Styles

This was a terrible match, if you ask me. Styles always does well, but with Owens on the outside, Bryan on the outside, and McMahon on the outside was not great. It’s sad that this story is so terrible. I do like Bryan going heel, but honestly, Styles isn’t getting any favors losing every week, and he loses here thanks to a distraction, yet again.

Anyways, this is a terrible forward progression, and Smackdown is a B show compared to Raw if you ask me. It’s just dumb. It set up a three way match for the Rumble with Aj Styles versus Zayn and Owens. It’s nothing grand, and that’s the end.

Want to know why Smackdown is the B Show?

Well, on WWE.com, you didn’t get any pictures updated from the show, meanwhile Raw had hundreds of photographs. Funny how that is.

WWE Monday Night Raw January 1, 2018 Results and Review

Asuka Beats Alexa January 1, 2018 - SRC WWE dot com

Instead of joining the New Year with a full 3 hours of Raw, I’m going to be reviewing the HULU edition. Why? Because I read the results, and I don’t want to see 9 hours of Raw. That’s a joke, but if you’re suffering through the full show, then I feel bad for you. It’s a ridiculous amount of talking, and not wrestling. Then again, here’s the 90 minute version and I nearly fell asleep at the end with Paul Heyman and the part time jobber of a champion Brock Lesnar. With that in mind, let’s talk about Monday Night Raw.

WWE Monday Night Raw January 1, 2017 Results and Review

The night opened up with Kurt Angle talking about the Women’s Royal Rumble, and it was basic. I already know the rules. It’s dumb.

Jason Jordan defeated Cesaro

The Bar came out to confront Kurt Angle, and then demanded a title match. He didn’t give them one. Instead, he put in Jason Jordan versus Cesaro, and that wasn’t half bad. It was ok. Jordan is a good wrestler, but I don’t’ want to see him wrestle, let alone defeating Cesaro. This is dumb. It’s lame. Cesaro can’t even defeat Jason Jordan? Wow. Story line wise this is stupid, the match was ok, but wow, the WWE really loves Jason Jordan, and yet I don’t.

Bray Wyatt defeated Apollo Crews

THIS WAS NOT ON HULU.

Asuka defeated Alexa Bliss

This was a clustered match with Asuka beating the champion in a non-championship title match. Alexa Bliss works well with some women, but here, she didn’t work well at all. She seemed a bit confused at times, and the match was clumsy, leading to Asuka winning yet again.

Women’s revolution? Hmm, where were the rest of the women? Sleeping?

Braun Strowman defeated Heath Slater and Rhyno

Strowman buried the tag team, and that’s the end of all of the Nexus guys.

Roman Reigns defeated Samoa Joe

Not a terrible match, mind you, but definitely not a good outing for Samoa Joe, as he loses yet again. He loses here, and Reigns keeps the title. This is not great, because all of this time we’ve been seeing Joe choke out people, and dominate, but now, eh, he’s just talk. He reminds me of Kevin Sullivan’s attempt to beat up Hulk Hogan and Macho Man, only to lose every single time. It’s sad, to be honest.

Cedric Alexander and Goldust defeated Drew Gulak Ariya Daivari

This was not shown on HULU.

Finn Balor, The Club Sandwich Boys defeated Elias and The MIztourage

This wasn’t that bad. However, you knew the Club Sandwich guys were winning, since Finn Balor has been winning against any jobber put against him. Not a bad thing, but not a great thing. You knew who was winning here, and while the match wasn’t that great, it wasn’t terrible either. Elias is so good, and yet he’s not getting wins. Finn is just another Alex Wright clone to me, and well, The Club are just a bunch of, wait for it, NERDS!

Brock Lesnar Earns His Paycheck

Brock Lesnar gets paid 12 million dollars for part time work, and he has to put over Kane here. It’s stupid. It’s just stupid. I’m tired of this.

Raw wasn’t terrible, mind you. But it’s ok. I’ve expected this from Raw, and well, it wasn’t great, but it wasn’t the worst show I’ve ever seen either.