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| Re: Purpl3's WWE (and Pro-wrestling in general) Discussion And Banter House by 100naira(m): 10:10pm On Dec 20, 2022 |
how Una de my people  Haven't watched wrestling since 2020 and I don't intend to anytime soon  |
| Re: Purpl3's WWE (and Pro-wrestling in general) Discussion And Banter House by pu7pl3(m): 9:50am On Dec 21, 2022 |
WWE NXT REVIEWS RECAPS AND REACTIONS He Shoots... Carmelo Hayes took Axiom lightly. At least initially. After taking Axiom down very early, Melo slapped him in the head a couple times and talked that trash like only he can. What Melo never saw coming was Axiom’s aggressive response, which involved a takedown and a few slaps of his own. That story pretty much ran through the match: No matter what Melo did or how much disrespect he tossed Axiom’s way, the masked man answered. The match really exemplified this the couple times Melo went for the Fade Away and Axiom countered with a dropkick or just moving faster than Melo thought possible. Surprisingly, this match stayed on the mat more than in the air. That’s not a bad thing either, as it showed their versatility and within the story, it illustrated both men realizing that going blow for blow in the air might end in a draw. I always appreciate wrestlers showcasing different styles. Yes, they took high risks, like that test of strength while balancing themselves on the top rope, but we also got submissions and some psychology with Melo going after Axiom’s mask. Ultimately, it came down to Trick Williams, as it usually does. After Axiom delivered a Hurracanrana from the top rope, Trick got physical with Axiom behind the ref’s back. Melo hit a Codebreaker, then finished it off with Nothing But Net. Good match and a good opener at that. Hopefully we see these two go at it one day with more at stake. Axiom, rightly pissed, went after Trick Daddy post match. If that’s a future match, I’m less interested but hopefully both men keep it entertaining. I know styles makes fights, especially when they clash, but Williams and Axiom seem like a conversation between Michael Myers and Freddy Krueger. (He Shoots Again...) If Trick has his hands full with Axiom, that leaves Melo free. Enter Apollo Crews, who showed up for the first time since NXT Deadline. Crews stated his claim on another title shot but one man said “nah.” That man...well, look, you’re reading, so you know it’s Carmelo Hayes. Melo had some choice lines about Apollo’s vision and seeing a title even though he’s at the back of the line. He also said he has no problem adding a hall of famer to the list of names he’s put in the rafters. I’m looking forward to this fight. More importantly, everything that comes after the match because this seems like Melo finally stepping into Bron Breakker’s world. Bron vs. Melo on WrestleMania weekend? Yes, please. Extracurriculars She Scores Zoey Stark defeated Nikkita Lyons. I questioned Lyons’ status within NXT’s hallowed halls a couple weeks ago. While we’re not at a complete answer, we’re hopefully getting closer. Zoey cheated for the W. which means this feud probably isn’t over and Nikkita gets another shot. Taking L in that fashion saves her, so perhaps NXT brass still has big plans for Ms. Lyons. The match itself was okay. Not a lot of time, but a lot of hard hitting moves showcasing just how much these two despise each other. I also give props for Zoey attacking Nikkita on the entryway. The Champs Stay the Champs Triple Threat tag matches run on pure chaos, so that’s what we got this week. Kayden Carter & Katana Chance defended their tag titles against Toxic Attraction and Tatum Paxley & Ivy Nile. Every time got a moment in the sun, which made me happy since I feared the women representing Diamond Mine might get left out. Toxic Attraction and the tag champs have serious beef. We know what those four can do with a championship on the line, but Nile & Paxley are new to that pressure. They wrestled a much more physical match because, well, Ivy is a powerhouse. But Diamond Mine’s representation also meant Jacy Jayne or Gigi Dolin didn’t have to take the pin. What I didn’t expect was Ivy taking the pin. She slapped Kayden in her a Compassionate Release, Kayden reversed it, and the ref counted three with Ivy’s shoulders on the mat. All teams looked strong while the champs narrowly pulled out the W. That bodes well for the division and their reign. Ivy & Tatum spoke on their loss in a later segment with the Bros. Creed at their side. To them, this is just the first step and there’s hope even in defeat. Julius & Brutus beamed with pride, until Sanga & Veer blocked that beam with their presence. Even now with both Creeds at 100 percent, Veer & Sanga still don’t trust their judgement. So next week, we get the Creeds in a match but not with Veer & Sanga. Well, okay then. At this point, we’re just dragging this thing on and I’m not sure why. Hell of a Rub New Day dominated Briggs & Jensen early with speed and cutting the ring in half. Kofi & Xavier showed confidence but perhaps too much confidence. Actually, the word is overconfidence. That overconfidence gave birth to the raw power their opponents exhibited. Briggs entered the match and manhandled both men, which gave Jensen just enough rest for his own power exhibition. Jensen took out both New Day members power moves on the outside and practically breaking them in half using the outside ring canvas as his weapon. That shows the challengers had their chances. Weather overpowering the champs, putting Kofi in their tandem finisher—of which Kofi kicked out, and an incredible moonsault from Briggs. Watch the whole match but make sure you watch that moonsault. That’s a very big man with incredible athleticism. New Day won the match because of course they did and their experience but this is the best match for Briggs & Jensen since stepping into NXT. If New Day’s sole responsibility as the tag champs in this division is elevation, then mission accomplished tonight. Speaking of Terrible Segues... Fallon Henley and Kiana James finally have a match. Kiana paid all the back taxes Fallon’s family owed on their bar and Henley wasn’t happy. So she challenged Kiana to a winner take all match for the bar next week. I like both women in the ring so I’m down but the bar story just isn’t doing it for me. Good Time, Not a Long Time We got an Oro Mensah hype video. Oro, walking through a nightclub, explaining how he blends wrestling and music. Adorable I love Booker T interviewing Roxanne Perez. Their connection made this segment feel authentic and emotional. Roxanne explained her thinking on challenging Mandy Rose last week, attributing it to something Booker told her many moons ago: bet on yourself. It’s a nice story beat that covers the reality behind the scenes. I’m not sure what a Roxanne Perez title reign looks like but I do hope we get more from her other than the girlhood dream backstory. If anyone knows better than to keep playing that note, it’s Shawn Michaels. Goldberg & Bret Grayson Waller wanted his own Roxanne Perez moment. Waller called out Bron Breakker very early this week, and found out Bron wasn't around. In fact, Bron wasn’t even in Florida. Grayson didn’t believe it, and kept searching for Bron all night. But he also said even if Bron’s out of town, it doesn’t matter, because it’s 2022 and he can watch NXT anywhere in the world. Waller told the champ to meet him in the middle of the ring at the end of the show, and sure enough, Waller showed up in the middle of the ring in the closing minutes. Bron pulled up and then actually pulled up. The champ bulldogged his way to the ring and went for a spear. Except he didn’t get up. Much like Bret Hart back in the day, Grayson had armor under his attire, meaning Bron knocked himself out going for that spear. Waller did this for one reason: prove he’s smarter than Bron. While I’m not a fan of reusing the Goldberg/Bret thing from WCW, I do like Waller showing his smarts since that’s truly the only way he has a shot against Bron. He’s not faster and he’s certainly not more powerful, so using his brain is really the only advantage he has. This presents a different challenge for Bron but I’m not sure if it convinces anyone that Waller has a shot at winning. At least it didn’t convince me. A Woman of Her Word Isla Dawn promised a week from hell for Alba Fyre. She wasn’t lying. Isla surprised Alba like a bully on the playground when she spit mist in her face before Alba’s match. The “doctors” cleared Alba for her match against Sol Ruca...only the match never happened because Isla attacked Alba during her entrance. Not just an attack; she beat Alba’s hand with her own bat, possibly breaking it. So, yeah, if you like violence and want more of Alba Fyre vs. Isla Dawn, then this was all you. I do like Isla’s psychotic malevolence here. It Ain’t the Holidays without a Schism Odyssey Jones, Edris Enofe, & Malik Blade tried hitting the town. I say tried because Ava Raine stopped them midway. They invited her to party—possibly at the same club Oro frequents—and she spit a lot of pseudo-spiritual babble about them chasing fleeting feelings etc etc. If you’ve heard one cult speak, you’ve heard them all. The rest of Schism joined her and issued a challenge. So, yeah, this is a thing that’s happening. If it wasn’t draped in the Schism cloak...then maybe it’s a yes. On Behalf of the Don Tony D’Angelo gets his shot at Wes Lee’s title next week. But he wants Dijak firmly on the sidelines and nowhere near that match. He sent Stacks on a mission: Apply pressure on Dijak and keep him out of the Don’s business until after the match. We never saw how that went for Stacks, but we did see him go into Dijak’s locker room after reciting everything he had in mind to tell the big man. I’m guessing it didn’t go well for him though, so maybe his body turns up in the parking lot next week. Hank & Drew We still don’t know why Drew Gulak showed his face in NXT, but we do know Hank wants prime position under his learning tree. Gulak admires Hank’s “zeal” and possibly his spunk, so he invited Hank to wrestling seminar next week. NXT does a lot most weeks, and this is an example of something better left on the cutting room floor, even if it’s a short segment. Cheater, Cheater Elektra Lopez finally got her hands on Indi Hartwell after Indi’s devastating axe kick last week. Short match, not very much chemistry between the two, but Elektra did use brass knucks for the cheap win. I always appreciate a good brass knucks spot. Also, Booker called Elektra a brick house, so yeah. The Commodores would be proud. Whew, this was a packed show. We got a lot of backstage stuff with a few good matches in between and a couple matches that didn’t do much for me. This felt like the show you do before everyone goes home for Christmas break, while laying down as much track as possible before New Year’s Evil. Solid outing, but needed trimming. OH! Before I forget, we got a Chase U segment too. Everyone gave Andre Chase presents, but Duke, schemed someone out of their gift and presented it as his own. So, clearly, he’s not adhering to the Chase U ways as everyone else believes. Grade: B 1 Like |
| Re: Purpl3's WWE (and Pro-wrestling in general) Discussion And Banter House by pu7pl3(m): 8:37am On Dec 24, 2022 |
WWE SMACKDOWN REVIEWS RECAPS AND REACTIONS Knowing this was taped last week, I went into this week’s episode of Friday Night SmackDown with low expectations. After all, there’s only so much you can ask of WWE when they’re trying to give talent the holidays off and have to do a double taping to make that happen. I was pleasantly surprised at what they managed to give us despite this. They opened with a promo from The Bloodline, which featured the usual Paul Heyman promotional talk followed by Roman Reigns paving the road for Sami Zayn to get on the mic and spit nothing but hot fire. This might be one of my favorite promos from Zayn since he’s been in WWE, a passionate defense of his place in The Bloodline but even more than that an emotional message about his place overall. He’s finally found a home with this crew, who genuinely seem to care about him. We know that as a story for many troubled folks — wandering aimlessly until they’re taken in by a bad crowd that looks appealing if only because it offers that sense of family. That’s what Kevin Owens is arguing, essentially, and Zayn finds himself so hopelessly attached at this point that he’s entirely turned on the one person who had his back even when no one else did. They had their issues, of course, but what brothers don’t? Zayn is so far gone, in fact, he’s disgusted at the mere fact that their names are still intertwined. The only way to change that is to do what he’s doing now, which is blindly following Reigns’ lead, and doing his bidding, even if it means going up against not just Owens but the returning John Cena. It’s all part of the vicious cycle of it all — compromised individual looking for camaraderie finds it with group willing to take advantage of them. On and on it goes. We’ll see just how it goes next week. All the rest -Hit Row became top contenders to the tag team titles last week with a win in a triple threat match that was notable for Top Dolla’s leg giving out on a dive. That’s what dominated headlines after, as opposed to their newfound status as top contenders. Well, they were soundly beaten by The Usos this week, as Jimmy & Jey targeted Dolla’s bad leg and had no issue taking them out. It felt very much like a nothing match. Tough scenes for Hit Row. -They used a Gauntlet match to find the next top contender to Ronda Rousey’s SmackDown women’s championship. Really, this was a way to get to booking a title match for the Dec. 30 show that they want to make as big as possible. There’s a real problem with storytelling in the SmackDown women’s division, and matches like this showcase that but maybe they deserve a pass because they just wanted to make next week’s show bigger? I don’t know, but it seems odd to rush into Rodriguez’s title shot after protecting her as much as they have for as long as they have. Then again, she’s also been positioned as the overcoming underdog with the arm injury she battled through to win this match. Surely it will play a part in next week’s finish. -Bray Wyatt is clearly not Uncle Howdy, he says. He wanted an apology from LA Knight but before he could really get into anything he lost his train of thought and randomly assaulted a cameraman. It appears to be a new favorite thing in WWE to have a wrestler lose control and Adam Pearce and a bunch of other WWE officials rush the ring to put a stop to it. I guess this is simply Wyatt losing himself more and more as time goes on. -Angel Garza got back on WWE television on this show, working a singles match with Rey Mysterio. Of course, he was there to do the job but as a fan of Garza’s I feel the need to say WWE should give him more to do! Meanwhile, Karrion Kross & Scarlet stood in the crowd with a spotlight on them the entire match, watching everything play out. Kross is a big burly son of a gun, but he’s no dummy. That man was out there scouting his opponent. What he saw was Mysterio win with the 619 into a springboard DDT (that looked and sounded brutal). Fun match! -A pissed off Emma slapped the trash out of Scarlett! “You have no idea what you’ve just done,” Kross responded. This short backstage interaction was enough to get me hyped for a match between these two. The latest Lacey Evans vignette told us she will be commencing her mission to destroy everyone in WWE next week. Oh boy. -The Miracle on 34th Street Fight, now a staple of the holiday in WWE, was its usual silly fun. This one included a random ballerina in a box followed by The New Day in a box dressed as nutcrackers low blowing Imperium while wearing the NXT tag team titles. They saluted Braun Strowman on his way to running a train all around the ring. They also had Strowman hold mistletoe over Ricochet’s head so the ring announcer, his real life girlfriend Samantha Irvin, could give him a kiss to bring him back to life. The babyface team ended up winning in the end, because that’s always how these matches go. It was all in good fun. This was a surprisingly good show! Grade: B+ 1 Like |
| Re: Purpl3's WWE (and Pro-wrestling in general) Discussion And Banter House by pu7pl3(m): 3:07pm On Dec 25, 2022 |
Merry Christmas guys https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BsRqeMHgyKE Atleast Dom knows he won't survive in jail 1 Like |
| Re: Purpl3's WWE (and Pro-wrestling in general) Discussion And Banter House by pu7pl3(m): 8:03am On Dec 28, 2022 |
WWE NXT REVIEWS RECAPS AND REACTIONS Prediction? Pain Tony D’Angelo wanted more than just the NXT North American Championship. The Don wanted Wes Lee’s blood, and he spent most of their match dishing out punishment. Tony attacked Wes’ knee through dropping him on the commentary table, body blows to the leg, and even tried “sweeping” the leg after Stacks’ patented ‘80s advice. Tony knew he stood no chance wrestling Wes’ style or letting Wes get high. Just no way in hell he wins that match. And, for a good portion of the match, Wes obliged the Don. Wes slowed everything down with headlocks and submission holds, either as cover for a knee injury or out of pure pride. Either option is acceptable considering Lee’s 2022 and his mindset. Based on all of that, I started typing Wes’ championship obituary. Even when Wes went after Tony’s rehabilitated knee with a couple leg snaps, he eased up. Almost like he went out his way to prove he’s not the guy Tony says he is after their last match put the Don on the shelf for months. I’m not sure if that was their intention, but that’s how I read it and it worked for me. Tony had no such qualms, and targeted that knee every time he needed an advantage. In fact, one might say that hindered him in the match’s final moments. After that suplex to the table, Lee hobbled back into the ring and nailed a desperation DDT. Tony D went for the knee again, and then set his sights squarely on it the limb. D’Angelo went to the top rope ready to jump directly on Wes’ knee and not just finish the match, but possibly Wes’ career. Eye for an eye and all that. Along came Dijak, who attacked Stacks and caught Tony D’s attention. Wes capitalized on the distraction and finished the match with the W and a great cap for his ‘22. For those of you with bad memories, Stacks ran up on Dijak last week for a closed-door meeting. We don’t know what happened behind said door, but Stacks told us earlier in the show that everything was peace. He told us he handled Dijak and that brand of justice won’t be a problem. Another solid match that capped a pretty entertaining night for the black and gold brand. I’m still down on Dijak but I remain open to new possibilities in the new year. Where does Wes go from here? It looks like Tony D and Dijak have business before Dijak maybe kinda gets to Wes. So what does the champ do in the meantime? We shall see, but he needs a New Year’s Evil dance partner. Extracurriculars She is the Bar Not going to bury the lede: Fallon Henley now owns her family bar, in full, and owes no debt. Wish someone did this for my student loans. I dug this match between she and Kiana James. Both women went for big moves in hopes of finishing the match early, which made sense. James started the match outsmarting Fallon with a fakeout and then beat her down with clubs to the body. That’s key because Kiana’s “smarts” played a big role in the finish. After exchanging blows and submission holds, the match ended when Kina tripped over Fallon. Yup, she tripped. Kiana went to the ropes and Fallon hit the mat. Kiana tripped over Fallon, hurting her ankle in the process, and Kiana finished with a running dropkick. The intrigue, if you call it that, was Brooks Jensen’s allegiance. Earlier in the show, he clearly waffled when asked about his support. And during the match, he looked torn cheering for Fallon and even thought about interfering on Kiana’s behalf. Part of me wishes they played that beat more with so much on the line for Fallon, but letting the two women duke it out for their story without male interference seems like the better move contextually. Julius Shows and Proves I love Julius Creed’s offense. The man exudes violence with every clothesline and every suplex, For me, the winning combatant between he and JD McDonagh was, to paraphrase Ja Rule, not even a question. Creed had more on the line and without a W, Sanga & Veer don’t grant the Brothers Creed that tag team match at New Year’s Evil. But the story is how Creed earned that W. JD dominated early, dissecting Creed and working on those arms. No arms? No suplexes. No arms? No clothesline. JD’s strategy made sense but, as he often does, JD underestimated his opponent. Julius nailed a Hail Mary suplex, which evened everything out. After going back and forth, JD missed on a moonsault, which gave Julius the massive window he needed. Julius fought through the pain for one final suplex and a clothesline for the W. Sanga & Veer hit the ring, gave their approval, and finally announced their New Year’s Evil clash. Within context of the story, I wanted more struggle from Julius. Grant it, they only had 15 minutes—if that—but I wanted more JD on top, which makes Julius’ eventual comeback and W sweeter. Nap Time If I have one criticism of Wendy Choo’s match against Cora Jade, it’s that it slowed down! Wendy rushed to the ring as soon as her music hit and threw hands. Which makes complete sense as Cora represents every bully she ever faced. I wanted a fight but they turned it into a wrestling match. A solid wrestling match, yes, but Wendy’s emotions and motivations called for a brawl with a tad more violence. Wendy got the W and showed that emotion as she walked to the locker room, yelling that Cora got what she deserved. Very true, but I’m not sure if this ends their story. If only because as someone rooting for Wendy, it felt a bit anticlimactic and I wanted more suffering on Cora’s part. That lights out match between Wendy and Tiffany Stratton is the type of flavor I needed. Still, solid match, but just missed that extra gear. Possibly saving this for New Year’s Evil and adding a stipulation fits the story better. Writing Time Reggie Scrypts confuses me. Not his ability, but his character. I really dug his match with Ikemen Jiro this week. Jiro went in with some aggression, so he set the tempo with strong style. But Scrypts...flipped the script and made Jiro wrestle on his terms. We got a lot of flips, high risk moves, and everything that makes Scrypts look strong. Jiro proved the perfect partner not only for his selling ability, but the fact he matched Scrypts’ offense with some of his own. Scrypts got the win, which I get. But then he returned Jiro’s jacket. Well, he draped it over Jiro’s motionless body. Scrypts’ offense makes him exciting in the ring but they gotta work on the characterization. Alba Fyred Up (Get it? I’m sick, cut me some slack.) Alba challenged Isla Dawn. She wants her next week in what sounds like an extreme rules match, which makes complete sense based on the fact Isla tried blinding Alba and tried breaking her hand. That feels reasonable. Isla is down for an “extreme resolution” as this is just another “step” in her twisted plan for Alba. Peace to the Vikings Lyra Valkyrie’s second match took a different complexion than her first. She wrestled Lash Legend this week, and Legend showed flashes. Legend always shows flashes, but she’s still learning. The two messed up a couple exchanges, including Lyra countering whatever Legend planned with a DDT. Vic Joseph, phenomenal at his job by the way, noted the DDT wasn’t pretty but it was effective. That’s a great call on his part as a commentator but yeah, both women need more reps. BUT, and this is a big but, both women showed a lot and Lash proved with more time, she might stand tall as an effective heel. Lyra got the W, which isn’t a shock, but unlike last week, they made her work for it. Well, That’s One Way... Mandy Rose’s absence spoke volumes the last time NXT came into our world. Mostly because they kinda didn’t acknowledge it. This week, we got Jacy Jayne and Gigi Dolin in a pre-recorded segment not saying Mandy’s name but talking about their greatness and lamenting their failures. They built an empire and now they’re going after the people who brought that empire to its knees. They showed Mandy’s loss to Roxanne Perez, so that person might be her. The women’s NXT tag champs might also be the targets. Or maybe all three. They really miss Mandy’s presence. It’s not Jacy or Gigi’s fault, and maybe they’ll figure it out over time, but this package just showed how valuable Mandy was to the whole Toxic Attraction thing. If you ask me, and you probably didn’t but I’m writing, they need a replacement. It’s probably stunt casting, but Nikkita Lyons fits seamlessly into that role in terms of presence and charisma. But, hey, let’s give them a chance. Four Roots... Three things stood out in the six-man tag between the Schism and Edris Enofe, Malik Blade, & Odyssey Jones. One, Odyssey Jones is a problem. He’s an agile big man who uses his body effectively, and knows the meaning of a hot tag. Two, Ava Raine yelling at Booker T mid-match that Schism is the definition of living your best life. Which, yeah, creepy and weird. Thirdly, the storytelling. The tag match remained even until Schism focused on the big man after finally realizing they stood no chance against his power and quickness. With Jones out of the ring, Schism took turns with suicide dives, each man trying in vain because the big man didn’t go down. In fact, he swatted the first couple attempts like they were flies at a cookout. But, eventually, it was too much for even Odyssey, and he went down. From that point, Schism took care of Enofe & Blade with a dual Doomsday Device, followed by a trip to the Upside Down. Odyssey felt like he let down his team, but Enofe & Blade gotta hold their own. A very fun match that delivered on its promise, while further establishing Schism. Shoutout to the cat rocking a Maximum Carnage era Spider-Man tee while sitting behind Booker T. I’m not a fan of that era in the least bit, but Todd McFarlane’s art remains beautiful. Melo Trick Gang Trick Williams and Carmelo Hayes stood by for a backstage interview. As always, Trick entertained with a rhyme and said his size 15 will kick Axiom back to Comic Con. Melo called his shot for winning the NXT championship in ‘23, but only after dealing with Apollo Crews next week. Looking forward to both matches. Poor Bron Bron Breakker recovered from from last week’s Bret Hart maneuver. In fact, he made it clear he wanted Grayson Waller this week. Unfortunately, Grayson wasn’t there but he sent Bron an obnoxious video from Australia. Grayson acknowledged he can’t compete with Bron physically on any level, but he’s smarter than the champ. And next week, we get a contract signing on a very special Grayson Waller Effect. Oh, and Bron destroyed the television that coincidentally appeared in his locker room right when McKenzie threw to Grayson’s video. Lucky, right? I’m curious how Grayson plays up his smarts in the next couple weeks, and how Bron counters that with some intelligence of his own. Gulak Hype Drew Gulak held his invitational with Hank playing the background. Drew illustrated holds on his three students. Everything went pretty smoothly until Drew got to Myles Borne, who Drew noted is one of his best pupils. Drew clearly took that progression personally because when he slapped on the Gu-Lock and didn’t let go after Borne tapped. Hank intervened and Drew eventually broke the hold but with a crazed look in his eye. In comes Dempsey, who says he wants to make an example with one of Drew’s students. Me thinks that student might be Hank. Speaking of Hype... Roxanne Perez got a backstage interview where she referenced the target on her back. She’s ready for all comers but knows it won’t be easy. This is fine for now but I do hope we get more from Perez than the generic babyface character and promos as her reign continues. A very sound and solid show closing out 2022. Even as someone pretty sick, this kept my attention and helped me forget that I feel like crap! That’s the best compliment for any show. A lot of setup for next week and New Year’s Evil. so we got a little intrigue as well as stories that don’t seem quite over yet. Grade: B |
| Re: Purpl3's WWE (and Pro-wrestling in general) Discussion And Banter House by pu7pl3(m): 8:20am On Dec 31, 2022 |
RAW REVIEWS RECAPS AND REACTIONS Early on during this week’s episode of Friday Night SmackDown, they starting laying the groundwork for Roman Reigns being unhappy about Sami Zayn shining a little too bright while in the ring with him, referencing the Honorary Uce getting loud chants last week. It’s just bad optics, as Paul Heyman put it. Reigns played it off to Zayn like it wasn’t a problem but it absolutely felt like something to take note of for down the line, if there would be a down the line. After all, there was a match later with the two teaming against Kevin Owens and the returning legend himself, John Cena. That match had a feel to it, man. It genuinely felt like something important, with a great atmosphere from the live crowd in Tampa, the kind of feeling we don’t get enough of in pro wrestling anymore. They put together a fun match too, doing a great job building to the hot tag to Cena, who the crowd was absolutely begging for. Unfortunately, they seemed rushed for time by then, as you could hear the referee telling them to take it home and giving them a countdown as they hurried to the finish. It didn’t take away anything for me, just left me wondering how much better this would have been if they had more time to work with. Ultimately Owens — who got his eye busted open pretty bad — scored the pinfall on Zayn. Gee, I wonder how Reigns is going to react to that next week. This was great. I wish it had more time, but it was still great, and it set up the future well too. First, let’s shout out Raquel Rodriguez here. She was put in a bit of an unenviable position on this show, going in knowing she wasn’t going to be winning the SmackDown women’s championship and then ultimately, despite the way she was protected in her loss, being completely overshadowed by a major return that led to a title change right after. Rodriguez got a pretty damn good match out of Rousey, all things considered, and deserves a lot of credit for what she did here. Charlotte Flair, though, is inevitable. Flair has been out since May, having taken time off so she could get married and go on her honeymoon and generally enjoy living a life away from pro wrestling. It was only a matter of time before she came back. It was also only a matter of time before she won the title again. I just didn’t expect those two things to happen so close together. Flair quite literally won the title within minutes of her return, challenging Rousey to a match right then and there and rolling her up to take back the title she lost earlier this year. I guess they did want to make this a big show, huh? I couldn’t be happier Flair is back. This division needed her. Is that? Could it be? He’s a couple inches shorter, which tracks. I can buy that it’s his build. Yep, I’m prepared to say it. Uncle Howdy is Bo Dallas. Please let Uncle Howdy be Bo Dallas. We got another appearance from ol’ Unc during this show, this time appearing after Bray Wyatt and LA Knight agreed to a match at Royal Rumble. Howdy took his sweet time getting to the ring, staring down both men, and then, just as it seemed he took Wyatt’s side, he hit him with Sister Abigail. The message seemed obvious enough — Wyatt wasn’t giving in to his more violent urges, having offered an apology to the cameraman he assaulted last week and then remaining relatively calm while accepting Knight’s challenge for a match. If he’s not going to “revel in what you are,” as Howdy has repeatedly demanded, he’s going to pay the price for it. As he did here. I think. Knight was incredible during all of this, playing the deeply confused guy who just wants to be done with all this weirdness. He seems to get more and more comfortable as his old self every week and each one of us are better off for it. But we’re also getting honest to goodness movement in this story, and it’s a welcome sight indeed. Business is about to pick up, and I gotta admit I’m here for it. Especially if Howdy is Dallas. Come on! All the rest -Solo Sikoa defeated Sheamus in a singles match that featured plenty of interference from both The Bloodline and The Brawling Brutes. It was still a fun match and Sikoa was made to look strong. He was on the verge of taking Sheamus out completely when Drew McIntyre made his return after a few weeks away and cleared the ring. This didn’t feel like a resolution between these two sides and indeed they announced later in the show McIntyre & Sheamus will get the title match they missed out on against The Usos next week. -I quite enjoyed the entire locker room making fun of Top Dolla for his inability to jump over the top rope a couple weeks ago. I also enjoyed that he responded to this by getting good and pissed off and ready to fight people over it. Hey, it’s some actual character building, something they’ve done none of with Hit Row since they came back. I’m all for it. -Imperium and Braun Strowman had themselves a confrontation that was mostly just a brief bit of fisticuffs that saw neither side really look much stronger than the other. When Strowman was going to be overwhelmed, Ricochet showed up to help him and ran everyone off (unfortunately nailing GUNTHER with a chair shot to the head in what one can only assume was an accident). Not much to this but done to set up the announcement of GUNTHER vs. Strowman for the Intercontinental championship in two weeks. This was a damn good show. Grade: A- |
| Re: Purpl3's WWE (and Pro-wrestling in general) Discussion And Banter House by badinfluence: 7:37pm On Dec 31, 2022 |
The fact that Charlotte can choose to take a break and come back knowing there's a title waiting for her is annoying sha. She's now boring.. well she's been boring for a while.. |
| Re: Purpl3's WWE (and Pro-wrestling in general) Discussion And Banter House by Debroslink: 1:11am On Jan 01, 2023 |
badinfluence: Honestly, I thought we've gone past the Vince era, but some stuffs remain the same. This also means that once Roman loses the title, he can get it back without sweat at any freaking time he wants. |
| Re: Purpl3's WWE (and Pro-wrestling in general) Discussion And Banter House by pu7pl3(m): 1:55pm On Jan 03, 2023 |
HAPPY NEW YEAR! WWE RAW REVIEWS RECAPS AND REACTIONS What the Bloodclot Alexa Bliss and Bianca Belair got a lot of time as Raw’s opening match, which I didn’t expect. Not because either woman doesn’t deserve the minutes because they definitely do, but Raw started so freaking chaotically that all bets were off. But I also wondered about the outcome more than the match itself. Everyone reading this knows how talented these two are, so just a decent wrestling match was in the cards like a couple of Aces. So the intrigue lied in the destination, not the journey. That said, we got an ending I dug that raised good questions and created more intrigue. Alexa and Bianca wrestled a very physical match. Alexa tried countering Bianca’s power early but found very little success. I mean, seriously, have you seen Bianca? Alexa used her cunning and experience but only slightly evened the odds by bringing back some of the old Alexa Bliss. By that, I mean she got aggressive. She went for body blows, she took it outside the ring, and she talked her trash. But then she saw a couple cats in the crowd rocking Uncle Howdy masks. The sight of the masks shook Alexa, and she slowed down her attack. Bray Wyatt’s symbol flashed on screen, then Alexa finally lost it. Bliss attacked the referee with a Lou Thesz Press, which basically DQ’d her right then and there. Then she attacked Bianca with the same move, pounding on the champion pretty damn mercilessly. Oh but wait, there’s more. Alexa dragged Bianca outside the ring, tossed her into the ring posts, into the ring apron, and then engineered a meeting between the ring steps and Bianca’s face. Rather than leave well enough alone, Alexa DDT’d Bianca on said ring steps not once but twice. Alexa seemed more obsessed with demolishing Bianca than winning the championship, illustrated through the devilish grin she flashed as blood dripped from Bianca’s mouth. It was a pretty cool image. Alexa walked back to the ring and the stretcher gang came out for Bianca, but the champ walked out on he own power with her husband’s help. I hope this represents a change for Alexa as she’s done the Dr. Jekyl Ms. Hyde thing for a while now. The DQ finish and Bianca’s post match rage at Alexa indicates she’s not finished, and I think a stipulation match at Royal Rumble is the perfect place for this story’s next chapter. As an aside, this ties into the larger mystery involving Bray and Uncle Howdy. Howdy seems obsessed with reminding Bray and Alexa who they truly are, while the rest of us want to know who the hell he is. Questions, questions, questions. Extracurriculars Tambourine Solo Sikoa and Elias’ Music City Street Fight came as a result of the Bloodline running roughshod during Raw’s opening minutes. Elias begged for Solo, and Adam Pearce played the role of a genie. This was anarchy because it was two guys hitting each other with instruments, which included an electric piano, a tambourine, a guitar (courtesy of Hardy), and a drum. But the best moment was a Spinning Solo onto a piano. Yes, an actual piano. Elias is a G for taking that bump because that wood is unforgiving. The wild thing here is how dominant Solo looks. I like the guy a lot but damn he survived a guitar shot to the back, along with everything else Elias threw at him. It’s especially weird allowing the celebrity interference and still giving Solo the win. Maybe it’s because I like Elias too, but it’s always weird to me when the heel overcomes that many odds in a no DQ match filled with shenanigans. Solo can take the L there without any hit to his stock. Ruff Ryders Anthem Elias wanted Solo, while the Street Profits & Kevin Owens wanted all the smoke with Sami Zayn & The Usos. The Profits & KO hit the ring hard and got busy before the bell rang. The ref restored some order and the match played out like most of the Bloodline matches in that the faces rocked them early until they found their footing later. Oh, and they were just a tad underhanded. The most interesting part of the match for me was Montez Ford. Tez started very hot and around the middle, he clearly lost focus while thinking about his wife. KO begged him for a tag but Tez looked out of it. He looked down at the ring mat, looked down at Angelo Dawkins, and never reached for KO’s hand. Eventually, Tez got his head in the game, no doubt after envisioning Bianca telling him to give it all he’s got, and the tables finally turned. But then came Solo, who, once again, enforced! I mean, he’s the enforcer. Solo attacked KO outside the ring and threw off all the momentum the good guys carefully cultivated. Montez tossed Sami back into the ring but left him just a little too much time and found himself on the wrong end of a Helluva Kick. Bloodline wins again. But wait, there’s more! Drew McIntyre and Sheamus showed up out of nowhere and saved KO from a post match beatdown. IF/WHEN we get the eventual Bloodline downfall, this feels like more seeds planted for that story. These dudes have targets on their backs the size of watermelons, and everyone wants them out of commission. No group, not even this one, can withstand that type of pressure. The problem for me is I wasn’t that into the match because knew the outcome. Solo winning against Elias foreshadowed this W. So, yeah, that’s not a knock to anyone involved but just the reality. Worked Business Seth Rollins and Austin Theory don’t have bad or even meh matches. These two gave it all in a ferocious main event that, hopefully, closes the door on this feud. Seth needs to move on to bigger and better things, while Austin finds his footing and another gear for his character. They protected Seth a lot here: He hurt his knee early in the match, Austin threatened a walk out and nailed Seth with the belt, the ref bump, and, finally, Austin’s low blow that sealed the deal. Effective for what it was and Austin loses nothing winning in that fashion since he’s a heel and he’ll sell it like he beat Seth clean in the middle of the ring with the world watching. HURT BUSINESS We got a Hurt Business sighting as Damage CTRL walked to the ring. Cedric Alexander, Shelton Benjamin, and MVP chatted with Adam Pearce in a background shot. I’m excited. Minimal Damage Becky Lynch confronted Damage CTRL and actually took on the tag champs by herself in a two-on-one match. And I’m glad she got help because the tag champs getting beat by one person rubbed me the wrong way. Michin showed up because she still has beef with Bayley’s crew. This was definitely a bit chaotic but thankfully, the right team won. Becky took her eyes off the match the minute Bayley interfered and that caused Michin’s downfall. She took the pin while Becky looked like someone stole her lunch. Locked Up Dominik cut a promo from...some white room. Dom told us all how hard he is now that he did real time behind bars, and he’ll see mami soon. Hilarious. After the rough night Monday was for other sports-related reasons, that was the lone thing that made me smile. Psycho Dance Dexter Lumis defeated Chad Gable and I’m still not sure if they’re using Dexter correctly. The win is great for him but I question the direction. And why this match on this show when everything else was part of a larger more consequential story? Meh. Going to be honest here and say Raw felt inconsequential tonight but I still enjoyed what WWE did this week. Raw was all gas at 100 mph from the opening moments until the final credits minus one match, which truly felt like it took up space. If I have one big critique, I vote for extending the Bloodline story for the whole night rather than simply ending with the United States championship match. The Bloodline kicked off the show as the main story and that main story ended before we even got to the third hour. Grade: B+ |
| Re: Purpl3's WWE (and Pro-wrestling in general) Discussion And Banter House by EmmanuelScott1(m): 2:09pm On Jan 03, 2023 |
Debroslink: Woooooooo |
| Re: Purpl3's WWE (and Pro-wrestling in general) Discussion And Banter House by ValeeLove(m): 11:12am On Jan 05, 2023 |
100naira:try AEW. |
| Re: Purpl3's WWE (and Pro-wrestling in general) Discussion And Banter House by ValeeLove(m): 11:14am On Jan 05, 2023 |
Debroslink:I got called names on Facebook when I complained about that. Recall that there wasn't any official announcement for the match. No Adam Pearce, nothing. |
| Re: Purpl3's WWE (and Pro-wrestling in general) Discussion And Banter House by 100naira(m): 6:49pm On Jan 05, 2023 |
ValeeLove:not interested as well |
| Re: Purpl3's WWE (and Pro-wrestling in general) Discussion And Banter House by ValeeLove(m): 12:29am On Jan 06, 2023 |
100naira:how will you know it if you don't try it. |
| Re: Purpl3's WWE (and Pro-wrestling in general) Discussion And Banter House by 100naira(m): 12:30am On Jan 06, 2023 |
ValeeLove:I have completely lost interest in wrestling for the foreseeable future |
| Re: Purpl3's WWE (and Pro-wrestling in general) Discussion And Banter House by ValeeLove(m): 7:55am On Jan 06, 2023 |
100naira:alright. I understand. People like us only watch cos we still have hope, but the truth is no wrestling company in the world gives a proper and good product anymore. I believe excess stories, gimmicks, unnecessary scripts and choreography ruined the sport. 1 Like |
| Re: Purpl3's WWE (and Pro-wrestling in general) Discussion And Banter House by ValeeLove(m): 7:56am On Jan 06, 2023 |
Vince wants to return and sell WWE by the way. E shock me too. |
| Re: Purpl3's WWE (and Pro-wrestling in general) Discussion And Banter House by pu7pl3(m): 11:13pm On Jan 07, 2023 |
I just returned from vacation and couldn't post any recaps today guys. I'll watch the show later. |
| Re: Purpl3's WWE (and Pro-wrestling in general) Discussion And Banter House by pu7pl3(m): 2:19pm On Jan 10, 2023 |
WWE RAW REVIEWS RECAPS AND REACTIONS HURT BUSINESS PT. 2! Bobby Lashley returned this week. In fact, he did it during a promo between Seth Rollins and Austin Theory where both men formally entered the Royal Rumble. Lashley bypassed Rollins because of Rollins’ bum knee, but he decimated Theory then made his Rumble intentions clearer than white crystal. Cool. Right? Not really. The coolest thing happened later. Byron Paxton tried interviewing Lashley but MVP interrupted and stated the two men have “business” to discuss. Now, for those who missed it, we’ve gotten several Hurt Business teases in the past few weeks. The group reforming seems inevitable. But WWE is, thankfully, putting an actual story together for this thing rather than just putting the four men together again in their best suits. MVP and Bobby chopped it up like men. MVP apologized for his transgressions, told Lashley that he convinced Adam Pearce to bring back Lashley, and also mended fences with Cedric Alexander & Shelton Benjamin. MVP says that “this thing” works best when they’re all on the same page. But Lashley, while thankful for MVP intervening on his behalf, isn’t ready to forget everything. At least not yet. And that makes sense! MVP and Omos made Lashley’s life a living hell for several months. MVP called Lashley everything but a child of God and betrayed their brotherhood all out of jealousy. That’s a lot. Years of friendship thrown away over limelight don’t just come back because of one solid favor. Lashley will eventually get there and I look forward to the plot machinations that get him to the point where he’s ready to handle his business differently, but this is the right call for now. It acknowledges continuity, it creates build, and puts emotional investment into a story. The one reason anything related to the Bloodline works so well for me is because they’re all treated like human beings with human emotions. If WWE gives everyone involved in this Hurt Business reprisal the same treatment, we’re in for a treat. Extracurriculars More Blood Kevin Owens is me right now. Face down, dejected, and wondering why he’s listening to Baron Corbin in 2023. Of course, Baron’s purpose here was heating up KO as the Canadian preps for his match with Roman Reigns at the Royal Rumble. Owens getting the win was academic with that in mind, so the true story was the aftermath. While Owens celebrated, Jey Uso emerged from the crowd, signaling a Bloodline attack. It’s great that KO got the best of them here, beating back the Usos and Solo Sikoa with a steel chair. Adam Pearce, still the worst person at his job, put a stop to all the shenanigans but clearly has a problem with maintaining any type of order when it comes to the Bloodline. Sure, he sent Jimmy & Jey home for the night, and issued a strict warning to KO, but I need an authority figure with a bit more teeth. Seriously, even when he told them to leave, they showed up and celebrated with Solo after he defeated Dolph Ziggler! The man has about as much authority as a kid on a big wheel. The match aside, which was fine but Baron just doesn’t do anything for me, this was another fun start to Raw. Do You Feel in Charge? Alexa Bliss? Meet Uncle Howdy. I like this kernel of Alexa’s story where she’s fighting for agency and recognition while someone else, most probably a man, tries wrestling it away from her. Not literally. At least not yet. After the commentary team told us Bianca Belair is home recuperating after what Alexa did to her face the last time Raw was a thing, Ms. Bliss grabbed a microphone. Alexa said this is the best she’s felt in years because while Bianca might be the champ, she’s the one standing. She used a couple Bray-isms, like saying she has the whole world in her hands, and called herself the face of evil. This isn’t about Bray or Howdy; this is about her and she’s in control. At this point, Howdy showed up on the big screen, interspersed with old footage of Alexa as the Harley Quinn to Bray Wyatt’s Joker, and some eerie footage of playgrounds. Seriously, ever since Are You Afraid of the Dark, empty playgrounds with slow swinging swing sets always gets a 100 on the 1-10 creepy scale. The weirdest part of the segment came at the end: Howdy showed up at the entrance with Alexa standing in the ring...and then we go to commercial. I know the mystery is part of the thing here, but it’s bugged out when something like that happens and not only do we go to commercial, but no one acknowledges it when the show resumes. That said, I hope we get something interesting and empowering here with Alexa taking back her narrative. Out on Bail Fresh Out of Jail California Dreaming... Look...nothing I type does justice to this week’s Miz TV featuring Dominik Mysterio and the Judgment Day. Nothing. Dom is killing it right now and this was no different. Just watch it and prepare to chuckle. Prison Grit That Miz TV segment led right into the Tag Team Turmoil main event. Recapping the whole thing is moot but I’ll cover the important parts. First off, Damian Priest handled his business. Dude wrestled for about an hour, so give him a standing ovation. Secondly, the Judgment Day carried the last hour, as they were clearly the center of attraction for the turmoil main event. They went through The O.C. (Caaaaliforniaaaaa), the Alpha Academy, and, finally, the Street Profits. Each match had its own flavor, with the Street Profits match topping my list as the pinnacle. Why? Well, besides the fact we got the Profits, we also got Dom showcasing some prison grit. Finn Balor went out with a rib injury after using Chad Gable as a human shield during Otis’ Vader Bomb. Adam Pearce gave Damian two options: Forfeit the match as a result of Finn’s injury, or Dom takes his place. Dom, fresh out of prison and still stinging from his time getting three hots and a cot, said he wasn’t ready. But he reluctantly took one for the team. Dom also got the W for his team as well, with a lot of help from Rhea, as he pinned Montez Ford while Rhea held Dom’s legs and applied some extra leverage. The Usos, still not listening to Pearce, showed up at the end of the show and confronted their new challengers. While I love the Profits, giving the Judgment Day the W is the right move here. They’re hot, Dom is killing it, and his whole act is bringing out different flavors from everyone in the crew. Giving them the Raw tag team titles or at least putting them in this position only means good things. Watch the entire main event, it’s worth your time. (Almost) Flawless Victory About that Solo Sikoa victory I mentioned earlier. Dolph made Solo look like a stud and almost got the victory. Of all Solo’s matches, Dolph came closest to giving the Street Champ his first L. Dolph took a lot of punishment in a match he wanted just for revenge. Solo and the rest of the Bloodline went on a warpath a few weeks ago and Dolph was in the way. Ziggler declined a spot in this week’s tag team turmoil match with Mustafa Ali by his side all because he wanted payback. He almost got it too, but made one fatal mistake when he went for a Famouser. After finally staging a comeback, Dolph almost pinned Solo twice. He then used Solo’s momentum against him and dodged a turnbuckle attack, then followed it with a kick to the knees. That’s when Dolph went for the Famouser and found himself in a precarious position. Solo caught Dolph and put him in a powerbomb position. But rather than drop him, he tossed him off his shoulders and nailed Dolph with the Samoan Spike as Ziggler fell back to Earth. It was an incredible sight. Even if you don’t watch the whole match in its entirety, please watch that. Dedicated to Becky Bayley wrestled Michin—that’s her name this week—and dedicated the match to Becky Lynch. Bayley knows Becky’s out there watching and lurking, but also knows she’s jealous of the fact Bayley has friends. Becky doesn’t have her own Damage CTRL, so, yeah, she’s mad. At least that’s how Bayley sees it. Michin stood in as one of Becky’s “friends,” which meant Bayley made an example of her. And by that, I mean she cheated for the W. Another solid match that I wish got a bit more build, or at least got a surprise appearance from Becky. That actually played itself out later, as Michim confronted Bayley backstage for cheating. Bayley did the typical heel thing and said nobody likes a whiner, called in her girls, and beat up Michim with IYO SKY & Dakota Kai’s help. Bayley then offered Michim advice that gives the whole situation more gravity and intrigue: Don’t step up for someone who won’t be there for you. That’s real and throws some complications in the relationship between Becky and Michim. Poor Pixie Candice LeRae challenged Rhea Ripley because mami interrupted her backstage interview. This also served as some Royal Rumble prep, as both women declared they want a piece of the women’s Rumble. It went as you expected. Rhea dominated for the most part and I gotta say, it didn’t do much for me. I like both women a lot but seeing Rhea dominate so thoroughly bores me at this point. Finally...Answers Remember Bronson Reed helped Miz defeat Dexter Lumis? Well, we finally know why. Bronson showed up on Raw and essentially said they’re not friends. If Miz wants his help, then it’s all about that CREAM. Miz took offense to that because he believes they’re friends. Yeah, well, you’re not, bruv. More Nightmare We got part two of Cody’s comeback video this week. I predict he’ll announce his return during the final part of these videos. The main event rocked and the show kept it moving for the most part. This was a fun night with possibly some official Royal Rumble entries, and the Usos finally have new challengers. It wasn’t a flawless show, but it was pretty good. Grade: B+ |
| Re: Purpl3's WWE (and Pro-wrestling in general) Discussion And Banter House by pu7pl3(m): 8:35am On Jan 11, 2023 |
WWE NXT NEW YEARS EVIL REVIEWS RECAPS AND REACTIONS Of All the Things I Saw This Week, This is One of Them Well, that was lame as hell. The NXT championship match between Bron Breakker and Grayson Waller ended terribly. I’m not giving it many words because I’ll just spiral into an angry diatribe. But here’s the skinny. Early in the match, the middle rope detached itself from the ring after Bron collided into it. Grayson and Bron wrestled around it while the refs and the ring crew put it back in place. I didn’t think anything of it at the time other than they overbooked the match. Fast forward to the end and that middle rope came into play again. This time, Grayson tried capitalizing on an incredible high knee. Bron kicked out at two, sure, but he was down. Grayson climbed the middle rope, it collapsed again, and he fell out of the ring. And no, it wasn’t real because the ref started counting. To make a ridiculous story short, Grayson lost the match due to countout. That’s a lot to protect Grayson and a terrible ending for a championship match. Bron looked dissatisfied, and Waller was furious. This was piss poor at best. Before the closing credits, Shawn Michaels announced a cage match between both men at NXT Vengenace, which does pique my interest quite a bit. That’s great for several weeks from now but awful for this moment. The most hilarious thing is Booker T calling it an “anomaly that happens quite often.” The fact that it's an anomaly means it can’t happen quite often but I guess WWE is redefining words now since it happened twice in one match. Toxic Tie Going to try something different here and just jot some thoughts while I’m watching. Rumbles are pure chaos so this is an easier way to write: Cora Jade is the first to go Sol Ruca pulls a Kofi with a handstand outside the ring and shows incredible athleticism. if she can put it together in the ring, her moveset and those natural gifts will take her a long way. I’m looking forward to her match with Alba Fyre next week. That match, combined with her being one of the final five shows NXT is high on her. Toxic Attraction eliminated Indi Hartwell, which hopefully has implications down the line. Elektra Lopez is petty. She got eliminated then ensured Wendy Choo got eliminated after Wendy landed on her pillow. Zoey Stark eliminated Nikkita Lyons, which tracks and I appreciate the continuity. The final four? Alba Fyre, Toxic Attraction, and Valkyrie. Cora, came back to eliminate Valkyrie, and Toxic Attraction eliminated Alba. And with every woman for themselves, it meant Gigi Dolin and Jacy Jayne faced the unthinkable: fighting each other. At first, Jacy fronted like she would do her friend a favor. She almost exited the ring but Gigi yelled for her to stop. Jacy responded with a swift kick to Gigi’s stomach, and the two duked it out. That is until they both fell out of the ring simultaneously. After looking at the instant replay, the refs declared it a tie. Therefore, both women won. Of course, they foreshadowed this earlier in the night during an interview with McKenzie, so it wasn’t much of a surprise. The good thing? We get a triple threat match where Roxanne will play mind games against both women and play them off of each other. Extracurriculars Loyalty is Expensive My feelings on Dijak are pretty clear. For those who don’t know, he’s a big meh. Maybe that’s why the most compelling thing in his match with Tony D’Angelo was, well, Tony D’Angelo. Early in the match, Stacks took a hit for The Don which gave Tony an opening on which he capitalized. Dijak, realizing Stacks presented a problem, handcuffed Tony’s righthand man to the turnbuckle where he stayed for most of the match. But after watching Tony take a lot of punishment, Stacks did what any loyal member of the family does: He begged his boss to let him take another hit for his boss. That’s when Tony grabbed Stacks and told him he’s not his boss; he’s family. Tony kissed Stacks on his forehead, pushed him out of the way, and took the oncoming onslaught from Dijak for the L. That’s quite the evolution for Tony D and some nice character work. The match wasn’t awful either, but it does mean Dijak now faces Wes Lee while the much more interesting character does not. Disappointed I really looked forward to Indus Sher vs. the Brothers Creed. Almost as much as Booker T. So consider me crestfallen that Veer didn’t show up and instead we got Jinder Mahal surprising the Creeds with a sneak attack. And that was that. No match. This thing they built for weeks just didn’t happen. I will survive but I’m in my feelings right now. Follow-Up Julius Creed wanted a match with Jinder to avenge the beatdown and his brother. Unfortunately for him, that wasn’t in the cards. Taking an L to a former WWE champ is never a terrible thing for anyone in NXT. Also in Julius’ favor is the fact he was less than 100 percent. This was a good match, with Julius being extra aggressive out the chute, but just couldn’t beat Jinder in his current state. No, Boy Well, Pretty Deadly failed the gauntlet test. Things started poorly when their first opponents were The Rockers. No, not Shawn and Marty, but Flyin’ Bryan Williams & Slammin’ Jammin’ Jimmy Jackson. That was an easy W for Pretty Deadly, and New Day called them out on their BS. New Day brought out a real challenge in the form of Malik Blade & Edris Enofe. Malik & Edris gave the former tag champs some competition but it wasn’t enough. Briggs & Jensen were next...until they weren’t. Their music hit but the camera saw them beaten down backstage. So, of course, their assailants took their place. Gallus is back. Pretty Deadly wanted no static with Gallus and promptly caught those hands and took an L. NXT seemingly set up a match between Gallus and New Day, even though that was never the stated stipulation. A little more clarity at the end would help but at least we got one solid tag match out of this gauntlet. As a whole, I’m down on this match as a whole. Gallus vs. New Day might be really fun though. Stratusfaction Tiffany Stratton is back! She was the obvious person behind those Happy New countdowns but obvious isn’t a bad thing in this case. Her promo was a little rough. I’m not sure if she forgot her lines, was thrown by the crowd, or it was planned that way, but she seemed a bit lost in the middle of it. Following her appearance, we got a weird paparazzi-style segment in the parking lot. Some cat holding a camera congratulated Katana Chance & Kayden Carter on being the longest reigning Women’s NXT tag champs. While those two entered the building, Tiffany left the building. The paparazzo tried asking her a question as she went to her car, but she refused to answer. Sooo, yeah, that felt rather pointless. Good Try Hank Walker gave his best but Charlie Dempsey defeated him. As he should. Hank continues to look promising, while Dempsey is ferocious. Big Strong Comeback Tyler Bate returns next week! The Him Diner Carmelo Hayes found himself a diner and a notebook. He parodied Apollo’s gimmick and while it was definitely insulting, it didn’t go as far as I wanted to truly make it funny. Even with Trick Williams rocking a luchador mask to see the world through Axiom’s eyes, it felt off for two guys who normally kill everything they do. Like most of New Year’s Evil, it wasn’t a complete miss by any means but it was simply average. Later on, Axiom and Apollo discussed joining forces. Which, obviously, is the right move. This wasn’t an awful show but it wasn’t great either. It was just there in the background. The rumble was fun because rumbles are usually always fun, but there wasn’t much on the show that excited me. Or distracted me from all the ugliness going on behind the scenes with WWE. It was an average show that left me wanting in a lot of spots, with a few bright moments scattered throughout. Grade: C |
| Re: Purpl3's WWE (and Pro-wrestling in general) Discussion And Banter House by Icekeeng(m): 4:13pm On Jan 11, 2023 |
Debroslink: I dislike Reigns's reign as champ, worse off he's got both belts. I think he's slow, his promos aren't even that convincing, too much babysitting from the bloodline and overall Roman reigns is boring. I mean the Miz is way more charismatic than he is, not to talk of the likes of Cena, Lesnar, HHH even Seth Rollins and Randy Orton who are picture perfect champs for the WWE. |
| Re: Purpl3's WWE (and Pro-wrestling in general) Discussion And Banter House by Icekeeng(m): 4:14pm On Jan 11, 2023 |
Wrestling is basically boring these days. |
| Re: Purpl3's WWE (and Pro-wrestling in general) Discussion And Banter House by pu7pl3(m): 8:32am On Jan 14, 2023 |
WWE SMACKDOWN REVIEWS RECAPS AND REACTIONS No triumph for Sami Sami Zayn was tasked with taking out Kevin Owens on this week’s episode of Friday Night SmackDown, an order given straight from Roman Reigns himself. He found out shortly into the show, from none other than Paul Heyman, that he would be going it alone, as the rest of The Bloodline wasn’t even in the building. And so he went it alone, and he certainly appeared to be giving it his all, and his all was sure looking like it was going to deliver a victory. But right when he was setting up for the Helluva Kick, the dogs were unleashed, with Jimmy, Jey, and Solo Sikoa hitting the ring to force a disqualification going after Owens. Zayn seemed confused and a bit displeased. Again, it felt very much like he was eager to prove himself. My read on this is that this was just another example of The Bloodline not actually accepting Zayn in the way he wants. They could have trusted him to get things done himself, and they didn’t. Instead, he feels more like a pawn here, the guy they sent in to get beat up to weaken Owens so they could run in and pick at the scraps right at the end. There’s no triumph for Sami here. They lift him up, and then they tear him down just so they can lift him back up again. He is in the cycle of manipulation and perhaps this was the night he finally started to see it for himself, after hearing Owens try to explain it to him multiple times now. There’s still room to wiggle, though, and it seems clear they aren’t quite ready for the breakup just yet. But this was another good story beat. I’m for damn sure staying tuned. Eater of worlds I’m giving this its own space because sometimes I really do enjoy when Bray Wyatt is given the chance to just get in the ring and speak like only Bray Wyatt can. The throwbacks to the Wyatt we used to know really hit home for me, for reasons I’m not even entirely sure of or could explain. I miss when Wyatt was twisting tales with his tongue and telling us to “RUN” before blowing out electric lanterns. That guy felt so special, like a transcendent talent whose potential just needed to be unlocked. Maybe part of our fascination with Wyatt is that it’s long felt that potential has gone unrealized. There’s just something to this guy, and I want to experience it fully. This felt like getting back to that in some way. Here’s to hoping the future holds more like this. All the rest -This show kicked off with Braun Strowman challenging GUNTHER for the Intercontinental championship. They had a decent match but it was fairly standard considering the participants and it certainly didn’t feel like they gave everything they had to it. GUNTHER beat Strowman clean — there was some Imperium interference during the match, but it didn’t seem to affect the outcome — and left little room for a rematch. Perhaps this is over already? It definitely doesn’t feel like they need to go back to it. -Rey Mysterio is good and fed up with Dominik’s shit but instead of letting his own son instigate him, he’s moving forward by entering the Royal Rumble and trying to go big and win the damn thing. Naturally, Karrion Kross interrupted to call him a bad father and then choke him out when Rey responded with violence. This is doing a fantastic job of making me feel really bad for poor Rey. The guy is a legend, he deserves better than this, right?!? -Liv Morgan slapped the taste out of Raquel Rodriguez’s mouth. Like, holy shit, dude! That was brutal! But it was also great because it showed us a new side to Rodriguez, who ditched the smiling happy go lucky attitude in favor of getting good and pissed off and eager to remind everyone she’s the biggest and baddest woman on the roster. She showed that by beating Morgan in a singles match later in the evening, though she was right back to cheesing after doing it. Still, they showed it’s there and that’s some progress. -Tegan Nox defeated Xia Li in a standard singles match. Li has been getting on TV a bit more lately but they’re doing absolutely nothing with her. -They announced a tag team tournament will start next week to determine the next top contenders to The Usos’ SmackDown tag team titles (yes, they specified). Sheamus & Drew McIntyre will get The Viking Raiders in the first round, based on the latter attacking the former after last week’s show. They’re doing a lot of cinematic work to make Erik & Ivar cool but even with Valhalla, I’m just not feeling it. Your mileage may vary. -Sonya Deville wants her rematch with Charlotte Flair, so she campaigned for it to Adam Pearce — who indicated she’ll need to win the Royal Rumble for all that — and when that didn’t work she just straight up brawled with her backstage. It was a pretty damn good pull apart. We’ll see if it ends up with Deville getting another shot or if she does indeed have tow in the Rumble. This was a solid show. Grade: C+ |
| Re: Purpl3's WWE (and Pro-wrestling in general) Discussion And Banter House by pu7pl3(m): 10:52am On Jan 17, 2023 |
WWE RAW REVIEWS RECAPS AND REACTIONS My Friends Can be Your Friends MVP showed up with Omos this week and I initially rolled my eyes. Besides the fact that Omos is fetch and they keep trying to make fetch happen, I found myself puzzled. Why would Bobby Lashley re-enter the Hurt Business with MVP if he still manages Omos? I mean, Omos and Lashley aren’t exactly friends. They’re not even associates. It felt like a haphazard story decision until Raw’s closing moments. The Six Pack challenge between Lashley, Seth Rollins, Finn Balor, Baron Corbin, Dolph Ziggler, and Miz for a United States championship match with Austin Theory was a lot of fun. Matches like this are always charmingly chaotic, filled with big spots and some storytelling foreshadowing. This match in particular was just chaotic. Seth and Lashley always looked like the main challengers to Theory’s championship, made more obvious with Theory ringside and Seth throwing an incredible amount of disrespect in his direction. Miz hit the showers first, followed by Dolph, then Finn, and finally, Corbin. Seth eliminated the first three, while Lashley told the “wrestling god” to go home. But before Lashley eliminated Corbin, MVP and Omos walked to the ring. Lashley looked stunned and clearly voiced his displeasure with P. But Omos actually helped Lashley win this match, whether he likes it or not. Omos leveled Seth, caused more commotion, and allowed Bobby to take advantage by pinning Corbin. That commotion also allowed him to get the pin on Seth, ending the match and sending him to Raw is Bleep with a championship match on his schedule. MVP catching strays for Lashley, along with using his hired muscle to help The Almighty, is an interesting wrinkle. I’m not saying Lashley is going for, and I can see a big clash happening between Omos and Bobby as a result, but it forces this confrontation sooner rather than later. It’s also really relatable. MVP isn’t the first friend told to leave well enough alone but can’t help but stick his nose where it doesn’t belong all in the name of helping. MVP has good intentions. Sure, the road to hell is paved with those types of things, but it’s easily understandable. It also makes sense why Lashley might flip because he told P not to do a thing and he did that thing. Made worse, Lashley wants to do things on his own, so anyone helping him even in the slightest just throws him off his axis. Last week, I wrote that the more human WWE makes its wrestlers, the better for the stories. This Hurt Business thing might be finding its groove at the perfect time of year by making the components shockingly relatable. Everyone Acknowledge! The Bloodline kicked off Raw. Apparently, Adam Pearce has no real authority. They had words for KO but also announced ever generation of the Bloodline present at Raw is Bleep (Yes, this is how I’m always writing it now because it’s fantastic) for an “Acknowledgement Ceremony.” Two guesses on who crashes that party. The Judgment Day hit the ring and took offense with the idea that the Bloodline run Raw. This was the usual back and forth before a big title match but Dom, as usual, shined the brightest. Finn called him Ex-con Dom, which I love it. Dom took shots at Solo Sikota, which of course meant Rhea stepped to have her man’s back. Rhea vs. Solo? Love it and want it right now. While Rhea and Solo stood toe to toe for what felt like 5 minutes, Dom snuffed Solo with an elbow to the jaw. The Street Champ barely moved and a brawl ensued. This was fun if only for the Bloodline news and, of course, Dom. Plus I really hope we get some payoff to Rhea and Solo, although the side of me that knows we can’t have nice things says it ain’t happening. Extracurriculars Why, Adam Pearce? Mustapha Ali started this one with a sneak attack. That was about the only time Ali had an advantage in this match. What makes Solo compelling in the ring is his pure physicality. This cat is pure violence and his matches bear that out. It helps when he has great dance partners, like Ali, who sell that violence better than most. At one moment, Solo caught Ali on the ring apron and launched him into the ring post. It made me hurt and I’m nowhere near this week’s Raw nor am I, ya know, wrestling. But that’s not the story here (although Ali is, once again, an afterthought to someone else’s story) as this thing between KO and the Bloodline continued. Jimmy & Jey made their way back to the ring, which signaled KO. Owens didn’t want to help Ali but wanted vengeance for the last SmackDown episode. He made a beeline towards the Usos and fought them off to Solo’s dismay. Ali tried taking advantage of a distracted Solo, again, but yeah, no dice. A Samoan Spike crushed Ali’s hope and ended the match. That gave KO the green light to go after the Street Champ. Owens went ballistic on Solo and truly lost his cool. WWE officials, along with Adam Pearce for some reason, hit the ring and separated all parties. While advancing the KO beef is great, I really need more from the Pearce portion. Every week he reprimands the Bloodline and every week they say “nah.” He tells them to leave and they say nah. He tells them to cut out the madness and they say nah. That part of this story feels half-baked. That combined with the match being a wash overall made for a very average opening match. Ali, apparently also upset about being cogs in other people’s stories, approached Dolph Ziggler later during Raw. While Ziggler got prepped for his Six Pack challenge match, Ali lamented the fact that Ziggler just gets handed opportunities. Clearly not over Dolph declining an invitation to last week’s tag team gauntlet match, Ali refused to back down even when Ziggler told him none of this was personal. Ali attacked Ziggler, which I’m sure means a match between the two is coming and hopefully means Ali is going over. Hopefully. Nightmares Become Dreams Cody Rhodes made his intentions clear. His latest video package ended with Cody announcing he’s back at the Royal Rumble and commentary clarified that he’s entering the Rumble match. The weird part to all of this is the inconsistency with Rumble entrants. Commentary tells us nine other men declared their Rumble entries. Cool. But right after Cody’s announcement, we got Byron Saxton telling us that everyone is in and out of Pearce’s office making their case for a spot in the Royal Rumble. Now, as someone who covers this thing, I completely get the very real fact that cats like Bobby Lashley and Cody Rhodes need to tell the world they’re in the Rumble. They’re big names and we want the big names. But as a television show that’s supposed to run on some type of internal logic—even if it’s internal logic which I disagree—I need a narrative reason why some just declare they’re in and they get a spot while others go to Adam Pearce with hat in hand doing their best Keith Sweat impression. For those who don’t speak 1990s R&B, that means begging. No Business Shelton Benjamin & Cedric Alexander took on the Street Profits in a crisp, smooth, if only a tad too short tag match. But, like the first match tonight, the match itself wasn’t the story. MVP walked to the ring during the match and made his presence known. He pulled Cedric out of harms way just a tad late during Angelo Dawkins’ patented turnbuckle attack, but distracted the ref long enough for Shelton & Cedric to hit a very dope tandem move. Cedric, still the legal man, went for the pin but Dawkins reversed it and got the win. The Profits celebrated while Cedric & Shelton had several words with their former manager. For those keeping score at home, MVP’s efforts in reinstating the Hurt Business clearly isn’t going well. And I like that. Like I said last week, this shouldn't be easy on a count of all the bad history between these four men. Make them all work for the reunion and show that they all truly need it. Raw is Bleep in a Cage Get your heads out of the gutter. Becky Lynch and Bayley went blow for blow on the microphone this week. They finally got to Bayley’s true beef with Becky: She believes Becky took her spot all those years ago when three of the four horsewomen graduated to the main roster while Bayley stayed behind in NXT. Becky remembers it differently, bringing up the fact Bayley wanted more time in NXT to help the people behind her and lead that locker room. Becky asked if all that was true or is Bayley full of crap like she always thought. That served as part of her goading Bayley into a cage match at next week’s Raw is Bleep. That might be the cherry on top of a very stacked sundae. Word? Still? MVP wants to bring back the Hurt Business. But he’s also still managing Omos. Apparently, this is all part of MVP’s plan, as Omos showed his value. But, if you’re reading this far, you already know how. Speaking of that man, he destroyed Elias in a match that did nothing for me. It only served as prep for Omos’ Royal Rumble performance as MVP formerly threw the big man’s very large hat into the ring. Meh. Ex-Con Dom Alpha Academy wanted a little payback for that L they took at the hands of The Judgment Day last week. I love these two teams together, whether it’s Finn Balor or Dominik at Damian Priest’s side. They give Chad Gable & Otis great foils and push their goofy sides out to play. That positions them as good guys during the match, which is where Otis shines. Plus, it lets Judgment Day lean fully into Dom’s schtick right now, which is the stuff of legend. Gable hit an incredible diving headbutt from the other side of the ring, which might be the move of the night for sheer athleticism. It also created momentum for the Alpha boys. Otis hit the caterpillar, Chad hit Chaos Theory on Priest, Dom found himself on the wrong end of an ankle lock, and yet, Judgment Day still won! Priest snuck up behind Gable, hit the South of Heaven, and Dom got the pin fall for his team and represented his cell block with pride. This was the right call. Judgment Day needed the W heading into their tag team championship match, and of course they did it nefariously. I’m curious how they use the numbers game against the Usos at Raw is Bleep and how Rhea inserts herself. Clearly, she wants smoke with Solo, but does that affect the tag match with all the gold on the line? Ate the Feet I really want longer women’s matches. Michin defeated IYO SKY in a match that felt like it barely started. We’re getting a lot of setup tonight and this felt like that. Why? Because Candice LeRae had Michin’s back this week. LeRae fought Dakota Kai, Michin got the W, and Candice saved Michin from the traditional post match beatdown. A big tag title match at the Rumble sound appetizing. Say Uncle Bianca Belair returned tonight and called out Alexa Bliss. Alexa, with new theme music, hit the ring. The long and short of their back and forth? Bianca vs. Alexa for the Raw Women’s championship at Royal Rumble. Dope! Let’s do it. Of course, Bianca wanted static now rather than waiting until they get to San Antonio. The two women brawled on the floor and into the crowd, which led to Alexa slapping a DDT on Bianca on the floor, with Uncle Howdy standing in the smokey shadows of a doorway. I really hope this comes to a close at the Rumble because this rubber band doesn’t have much elasticity left for me. Alexa and Bianca brawling in the crowd? Great. Howdy appearing one more time with still no answers? Boring. So, About that Rumble Spot... Akira Tozazwa wants a spot in the Rumble. Adam Pearce gave him a match with said spot on the line. Well, yeah, Bronson Reed showed up at his opponent and you can guess how this went. I can do without three matches like this on the same show. Ones where the dominant big man overpowers the smaller guy and dominates without even one sweat bead dropping. Kinda shocking they did three of these in one night but hey, here we are. A lot happened during this show in terms of setting up matches for Raw is Bleep. But it still felt like a very unexciting show. Perhaps they’re saving everything for next week, which I completely understand, even if I don’t like it. Before Raw is Bleep, Raw is merely fine. Some questionable matches and one true moment that didn’t move me at all, but a fine show nonetheless. Grade: ¯\_(ツ)_/¯ That’s my grade and I’m sticking to it. Your turn |
| Re: Purpl3's WWE (and Pro-wrestling in general) Discussion And Banter House by pu7pl3(m): 9:33am On Jan 18, 2023 |
WWE NXT REVIEWS RECAPS AND REACTIONS Chemical Waste Toxic Attraction cut a promo this week that didn’t do much for me. The words were there but the delivery didn’t connect. They’re still finding their voice without Mandy Rose, at least on the microphone. But let’s get to what they said not how they said it: There’s no animosity between them and it was all part of the plan to tie in the Women’s rumble last week. The Toxic Attraction vengeance tour is full steam ahead and headed for Roxanne Perez in Charlotte, NC. Well, Lyra Valkyria had thoughts. Lyra admonished both women for not being woman enough to handle Roxanne on their own and if it weren’t for Cora Jade, the title match at NXT Vengeance would look a lot different. Jacy Jayne and Gigi Dolin didn’t like that one bit, so the beatdown ensued. Roxanne ran in for the save and we got the setup for our main event: Lyra & Roxanne vs. Toxic Attraction. Roxanne & Lyra started a little slow because, well, this is their first tag match together. To say nothing of the fact their opponents are former tag team champions. But they eventually found their groove, which feeds into the story that Gigi and Jacy aren’t as tight as they want us to think. The turning point came when Ms. Jade showed up and pushed Lyra off the top rope behind the ref’s back. An incensed Lyra attacked Cora and the two brawled into the locker room, leaving Roxanne all alone with former tag champs. Also good storytelling because Cora clearly wants beef with Lyra, so sticking it to her and her former best friend at the same time makes all the sense in the world. Plus, it’s not like Lyra doesn’t want Roxanne’s title, so she feels no true loyalty to her. Their partnership was merely one of convenience. But oh, Toxic Attraction, how you fail at being on the same page. Jacy & Gigi had Roxanne right where they wanted her but miscommunication caused Jacy to Russian Leg Sweep Gigi and not the champ. Roxanne capitalized with a Pop Rox on Gigi, and skated out of the building with the W and her title in hand. Toxic Attraction argued in the ring, clearly coming a part at the seams. I liked the storytelling here a lot in this match. We got intersecting stories, sowed some seeds for the upcoming title match, while showing more cracks in Toxic Attraction’s foundation. It’s standard fare for a triple threat match where two of the wrestlers are part of a team, but I like the execution. Gigi and Jacy’s issues resonate more within the larger context of Mandy’s exit and Roxanne’s reign. I do wonder if Roxanne comes at Lyra for ditching her, but that also doesn’t seem within character. That said, if/when they get to that feud, there’s already something there for which the champ can chew. Solid main event that really got me invested in the characters and their drama. Amazing how wrestling works when you keep it simple. Extracurriculars Violence That headline is all you need for a Gallus match. Their return match in NXT against Briggs & Jensen was very on point. I love tag matches that fit the personas and styles of the combatants. Briggs & Jensen love a good bar fight almost as much as the Gallus boys, so why not let them get physical? Early in the match, Gallus removed the mat from part of the entrance, revealing the concrete floor. That came into play later and definitely affected the match’s outcome. Gallus worked on Brooks’ lower back throughout the match. Brooks tried lifting Coffey but that back just couldn’t take it. So, when Brooks found himself outside the ring, no surprise when Gallus hit him with a back body drop on the concrete. This left Josh all by himself, and it was academic at that point. Kiana James rushed to check on Brooks, which of course rubbed Fallon Henley the wrong way. While sitting in the “medical area,” Fallon rushed in with questions and accusations. She believes Kiana is up to no good and only using Briggs to which Briggs made the great point: Using him for what? She has her bar, so what exactly is Kiana trying to get from him? Later on, Fallon showed some legitimate growth! She asked for a tag match next week with Kiana James as her partner. The rubber will hit the road and we’ll truly find out if Kiana’s feelings are true or if Fallon’s first instincts were correct. They Missed Carmelo Hayes & Trick Williams shot and missed. That’s the headline coming out of their tag team match against Axiom & Apollo Crews. The four went about 15 minutes, with Trick and Axiom starting since both men wanted to rip each other apart. Axiom sliding out of Trick’s wrist lock with that much quickness is really cool. It’s subtle but a great illustration of his agility in contrast with the power Trick showed soon after. We don’t get a lot of Trick in the ring but this is his best showing so far. Melo did most of the heavy lifting later on but Trick held his own in the early moments and looked like a powerhouse against the smaller Axiom. Trick often functions as comic relief but giving him more moments like him shoulder tackling Axiom anytime Axiom tried attacking him go a long way in adding another layer to his persona. Apollo picked up the W by catching Melo off guard. Melo went to the top to hit Nothing but Net, but Apollo blocked it and turned it into a pinning combination. In essence, it looks like they stole the win but it’s just Crews exerting that veteran intelligence over someone who still has a lot to learn. Good match that sets the stage for more down the line, while giving Trick some work. The Coat of Arms? Look, I have no idea what my family’s coat of arms looks like. In fact, I doubt my family has a coat of arms, so maybe I have no room to say what I’m about to say: Tony D’Angelo’s coat of arms looks tacky as all hell. It’s like the Eagle Fang Karate logo only less cool. Tony presented a leather jacket to Stacks, his newly minted underboss. And on the back of said jacket was the family’s coat of arms. I’d keep the promotion but burn the jacket because whew. Anyway, the main takeaway here is Stacks is no longer a goon; he’s an underboss in the family, which follows up on the finish between Tony D and Dijak last week. Tony loves Stacks and sees him as family and an equal. Fyre Fighter Alba Fyre dominated this match. Like she was completely on top of Sol Ruca. She displayed a newfound aggression clearly brought about from her ongoing feud with Isla Dawn. Well, right on cue, Isla appeared in the sky high position in the Performance Center. Alba lost focus and paid the price when Sol caught her in a beautiful Sol Snatcher. This was a great way to capitalize on Sol’s performance in the last week’s rumble, continue this story between Alba and Isla, and put over Sol’s finishing move in a big way against her biggest opponent to date. As for Alba, she took out her frustration on a referee only for Katana Chance and Kayden Carter to stop her from making a huge mistake. Rather than thank the tag champs, Alba challenged them to a tag team championship match next week. And, AND, she says she doesn’t need a partner. Alba is tired of losing, and I like this for her. I’m pretty sure Isla Dawn ends up being her partner next week though, even if it's reluctantly. Right? I mean that’s where we’re going or am I wrong? Not Your Locker Indi Hartwell took issue with Tiffany Stratton’s comments last week. So much so that she kicked Stratton out of her own dressing room. Apparently, Indi speaks for all the women in NXT, but she’s the first one who gets a crack at Stratton next week. Ivy is So Over This... Ivy Nile is done with whatever macho BS identity crisis the Creed Bros. are going through. She told them to grow a set and get back to what they do best rather than engaging in petty nonsense with Jinder Mahal. Both brothers agreed, so we’ll see how this plays out. More from Stevie... Stevie Turner retuned this week, breaking down the Women’s rumble and Stratton’s return. She made note that Elektra Lopez helped Valentina Feroz during the rumble and asked why. It’s every woman for herself after all, so what gives? Well... Cheaters Never Prosper Thea Hail got her first W in NXT! She defeated Valentina Feroz after Valentina refused to use the brass knuckles Elektra Lopez handed her. It was a quick match with a little intrigue: Why is Elektra taking an interest in Valentina? And what’s happening with Chase U? Before the match, Andre Chase showed some footage, courtesy of NXT Anonymous, that didn’t put Duke Hudson in the best light. Anonymous caught Hudson talking to another Chase U student about everything he believes Andre Chase does wrong. Chase backpedaled quicker than a cornerback in man coverage, but Chase wasn’t completely convinced. When will the implosion happen? Sometime soon I suppose because this underlying tension has brewed for long enough. Elektra visited Valentina in the locker room and tried talking some sense into her. I like this for both of them because it gives them something to do while providing Feroz some needed character. New Day Violence New Day came to the ring dressed in their Sunday best. They celebrated being completely done with Pretty Deadly and moving on to Gallus. Pretty Deadly said “nah” to all of that. They believe they’re the rightful #1 contenders. Of course, logic says nah because they failed that test last week. Gallus hit the ring, got on the mic, and Xavier said no one understood a word they said but clearly they want to fight and New Day is ready to fight. Pretty Deadly for some reason, thought jumping these four men was a good idea. That didn’t go so well for them and the segment finished with a nice brawl. New Day vs. Gallus intrigues me because the styles are so different. Truthfully, I don’t want Pretty Deadly involved because I believe Gallus vs. New Day straight up is the more interesting match. But, hey, we’re getting a triple threat at Vengeance. Big Strong Boy vs. Big Body Javi Part of me feels like going from Bron Breakker and JD McDonagh to Javier Bernal is a step down for Tyler Bate. Another part of me knows Big Body is entertaining as hell. But I’m also not sure the crowd hates him. I think most of them are just as entertained as I am, which means seeing Tyler beat up on him in his first match back isn’t that fulfilling. That doesn’t mean they did anything wrong! They put on a fine match without much time to truly get busy, but seeing Javi get beat up just isn’t doing it for me anymore. Even if his music is still awful. This was a show with so much going on. But they actually found a really good rhythm and pacing throughout most of it, and told some interesting stories. We got solid wrestling with a fantastic tag match in the middle, and a lot of set up for NXT Vengeance. I didn’t even mention the sit-down interviews with Bron and Grayson Waller! That’s how packed this two hours truly was. That said, the interviews just teed up the upcoming steel cage match, and the fact that Grayson might have Bron’s number and be champ if not for the faulty rope. Solid storytelling again. Grade: B+ |
| Re: Purpl3's WWE (and Pro-wrestling in general) Discussion And Banter House by pu7pl3(m): 9:37am On Jan 21, 2023 |
WWE SMACKDOWN REVIEWS RECAPS AND REACTIONS Roman Reigns arrived to Friday Night SmackDown this week terribly unhappy with Sami Zayn’s response to last week and the way it played out. Zayn, for his part, admitted to being upset that he was going to do the job himself — that job being “take out Kevin Owens” — but the rest of The Bloodline interrupted. Reigns was even more unhappy when Zayn went to him to bridge the gap, with Sami admitting he didn’t like not knowing the plan. This, of course, enraged Reigns, who feels no obligation to make an honorary member of the team aware of his decision making process. That lead to Zayn’s dismissal, with a future uncertain. That was until The Wiseman, Paul Heyman, suggested a more tactical, less emotional approach. “Perhaps it would be better to have him inside the castle pissing out than outside the castle pissing in.” Hard to argue with that. Reigns responded by taking his advice, and settling up with Zayn by talking it out. He came off eminently reasonable, dare I say genuine in his words. But, per his previous chat with Heyman, we know he is doing the very thing Zayn fears, the same thing Owens has been saying all along. Reigns is using him. Zayn still doesn’t want to believe it, though. He seems so impossibly happy any time he gets The Tribal Chief’s approval. It makes me think The Bloodline should turn on him, instead of Zayn going off on his own accord. Either way, they settled up and Reigns sent Zayn off to do some menial tasks while he went out with Solo Sikoa for the contract signing with Owens. Said signing wasn’t much of one — KO surprised everyone, attacked from behind, and hit Reigns with a Stunner and then a pop up powerbomb. He got the better of everyone in The Bloodline before Zayn hit the scene and watched him run away. You can only imagine how this goes over with Reigns. The entire crew is scheduled for RAW Bleep in just a couple days. Tick tock. I really liked that WWE actually utilized each of the tag teams they have on the blue brand to put together a full eight-team tournament to fill out a bracket. It eliminates the biggest problem I’ve always had with how Triple H likes to find new title contenders — a single multi-person match rewards those who have done nothing to earn their place. That isn’t the case with a tournament, where entry equates only to an opportunity to prove yourself worthy. You have to win a series of matches, heating you up for the eventual shot at the titles. You can’t always do a tournament, but it works really well when you can. I also like that they decided to do the entirety of the first round in one show. It put an added emphasis on the tournament itself, and therefore the prestige of the SmackDown tag team titles, something they’re going to have to work to do if they separate them as it appears they plan to. Well done all around on the decision making here. On to the matches: --Drew McIntyre & Sheamus defeated The Viking Raiders in a damn good hoss fight. Everybody looked good here. --Hit Row, consistent with their recent heel turn, cheated to defeat Los Lotharios in a nothing match. There’s no reason to think they’ll be anything but fodder for McIntyre & Sheamus, who they’ll face in the semifinals. --Imperium defeated The Brawling Brutes while looking relatively impressive in the process. That brainbuster Giovanni Vinci hit BUTCH with on the outside was incredible. --Legado del Fantasma absolutely ran through Maximum Male Models, which, let’s be real, they absolutely should have. This sets up The Banger Bros vs. Hit Row and Imperium vs. Legado del Fantasma in the semifinals. It seems obvious what the final will be but I still greatly appreciate taking this route to get us there. All the rest The way they’re talking up Raquel Rodriguez, including making sure to note she’ll have 30 family members in the building to see her first Royal Rumble appearance, it kinda sounds like they have a big plan for her, huh? How would we feel about that? LET ME TALK TO YA! LA Knight rules so very hard. This man cut a 45 second promo that talked me right into the building for a match against Bray Wyatt. That is not an easy thing to do, folks. It is my sincere hope that whatever happens with this feud, Knight comes out of it okay. He deserves that much and a whole lot more. Meanwhile, the Firefly Fun House made a return on this show. Wyatt and all his dolls were back to do what they do. Uncle Howdy made an appearance via video and said “I told you so … all you needed was a little push.” Wyatt said he hoped he was happy, though he was talking to Knight. Everything that comes next is on his head. Perhaps The Fiend comes next. At that point, we will have come full circle. Again, at this point I just want Knight to make it out of this without his name being tarnished. Braun Strowman declared for the Royal Rumble with a standard backstage promo. Not much to it, but it’s reasonable to expect the start of yet another push for him there. Charlotte Flair is a great heel but how well will she work as a babyface? They’ve given her a program with Sonya Deville, who is outstanding as an arrogant, power hungry mid-card act desperate to regain her position higher up on the ladder. Here, Flair attempted to be the fighting champion she promised to be but Deville played her, then cheap shotted her, and bailed off. It’s going to take some work to make Flair a sympathetic character, and that was clear by the end of this. But fans do still seem to want to cheer for her. We’ll see how things evolve. More vignettes for Lacey Evans, who I’m not sure is ever going to actually show up again. Shayna Baszler will be in the Royal Rumble, making sure to tell us she’ll injure some folks before eliminating them. Should be fun! This was a damn good show. |
| Re: Purpl3's WWE (and Pro-wrestling in general) Discussion And Banter House by pu7pl3(m): 7:42am On Jan 23, 2023 |
It's coming late cos of Nairaland's issues last night but... Happy 40 to Maryse my dream MILF 🔥🔥🎊🎉🎉🎈🎈🎂🎂🎂
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| Re: Purpl3's WWE (and Pro-wrestling in general) Discussion And Banter House by pu7pl3(m): 11:58am On Jan 24, 2023 |
RAW REVIEWS RECAPS AND REACTIONS Let's talk Bleep Judge Chief There aren’t many acts in WWE who can hold down a 30 minute segment with no wrestling at all. Actually, there aren’t many acts in wrestling capable of such a thing. The Bloodline is one of those acts, particularly when Roman Reigns, Sami Zayn, and Paul Heyman get the spotlight. Raw Bleep kicked off with the Trial of Sami Zayn, which sounds a lot like The Trial of the Incredible Hulk but unfortunately for Zayn, he didn’t have Daredevil as his lawyer. Instead, he got the most surprising defense lawyer but easily the most satisfying: Jey Uso. After Paul Heyman presented several exhibits painting Sami as not only a coward, but as Kevin Owens’ co-conspirator, Sami got indignant. He felt betrayed and had no defense. This lack of response shocked The Head of the Table. No, that’s not right; it pissed him off. Seriously, Roman looked madder than me in high school when a friend said Ruff Ryders were better than the Wu Tang Clan. Where they do that at? An incensed Roman beckoned Solo Sikoa for Sami's execution. The Street Champ lined Sami up for the Samoan Spike while Sami sat motionless, fully accepting his fate. But right before Solo’s right thumb came down, Jey stopped his little brother, much to Roman and Heyman’s surprise. That’s a moment. Nothing else after that mattered simply because of Jey and Sami’s history. As Jey pointed out, he didn’t like Sami. He actually hated Sami. For that guy to make this complete 180 and become Sami’s chief defender? For the Right Hand Man to put that status on the line and go against the Tribal Chief’s wishes for someone who isn’t biological blood? To quote Buster Rhymes, that’s monumental sh*t. Stuff like that is why the Bloodline consistently stands apart on any show. And that’s before Jey rolled out his own footage showing Sami helping the Bloodline in so many big spots, cross cut with Sami’s emotional reactions. My former partner in crime tweeted that Sami’s one of the best two performers in wrestling and he’s not number two. I can’t argue with her on that even if I wanted to do so just for fun. Sami sold that initial indignation, that disappointment, and then the adulation that Jey had his back. His emotion crescendoed when Jey said he loves Sami like a brother. After Jey, Jimmy, and the crowd put their 1s in the air for Sami’s continued Bloodline residence, Roman found him not guilty...for now. Sami’s final test comes at Royal Rumble, so Roman doesn’t want to see him or hear about him until then. But future events made that a little hard since Sami and Jey continued what is my favorite storyline in wrestling. During the tag team title bout with the very hot Judgment Day, Jimmy Uso hurt himself. Jimmy dove over the ropes onto an unwitting Damian Priest. But in doing so, yeah, Jimmy hurt his knee. The referee threw up the X to make us think it’s real, and then the world’s worst authority figure, Adam Pearce, showed up with a message: If Jimmy can’t compete then the Usos forfeit the tag titles. You know wrestling and you know simplicity, so of course Sami stepped up to the plate on Jimmy’s behalf. The little things, like the way Jey hugged Sami after Sami volunteered his services, truly make this whole story worth it. And, of course, Jey and Sami walked away with the W after showing some incredible tag team chemistry. They even finished off Judgment Day with the 1D! Perfect, all of it was perfect. I have no idea how this boils over Saturday and what new twists rears its head, but I know I can’t wait to see it. Extracurriculars B-Rock... All of this stuff is subjective so keep that in mind when I say I didn’t like the way the no DQ match between Austin Theory and Bobby Lashley started. Before the match, Lashley noted that nothing he does to Theory is punishable and he relishes that fact. He even told MVP that he didn’t need him and Omos last week and definitely doesn’t need them tonight. No excuses for Theory and nowhere to run. So with that said, why start the match with traditional fists and kicks? Lashley and Theory started this thing like a regular wrestling match. While that makes sense for Theory, Lashley playing it safe after the ding ding bugs me. Eventually we did get the violence. Tables, fire extinguishers, and...Brock Lesnar. This wasn’t much of a match so much as it was a gateway for Lesnar’s return. The minute Lashley put Theory through a table, Lesnar music echoed through the Philadelphia streets. For those who don’t remember, Lesnar cost Lashley the U.S. title months ago. Then the two wrestled at Crown Jewel where Lesnar got the win but Lashley destroyed him during and after the match. Brocks wants his revenge and he picked the perfect time. He F-5’d Lashley, then F-5’d Theory right on top of Lashley for the 1-2-3. Something tells me Lashley might need MVP’s help after all... Execution wise? The whole thing felt rushed. And I’m sure a lot of that has to do with the show being out of sorts post-Bloodline. Raw even ended abruptly, so they were clearly pressed for time. But to that I say lose the Miz and KO segment before this match and give these two some more time. But like Trips said, booking this crap isn’t easy. 19 Years...and That’s it? You know that big cage match between Bayley and Becky Lynch WWE promoted? The one they told us was the first time in 19 years—2004 for the math challenged like myself—and was such a humongous deal? Yeah, it happened with a whimper. Barely a whimper. Bayley hit the ring and then Becky entered. Dakota Kai & IYO SKY attacked, and Damage CTRL locked Becky in the cage while they went to work on the former Women’s champion. WWE officials eventually broke the lock and Damage CTRL did what roaches do when the lights come on, but that was it. Degenerates I will never get tired of D-Generation X. I’m a ‘90s kid and they were important to my formative years, for better or for worse. Well, worse if you ask my middle school teachers, but look at me now! Anyway, they entered the ring accompanied by...Kirk Angel. Or, as people not The Rock call him, Kurt Angle. Once they finally noticed Kurt in the ring with them, that stopped everything in its tracks. But it was all setup for what followed because Imperium’s music hit and business picked up. Now, of course, DX isn’t fighting Imperium. Despite the fact GUNTHER, Ludvig Kaiser, & Giovanni Vinci believe DX makes a mockery of the mat, the degenerates didn’t want the smoke. Triple H stepped up and said he’s retired. Shawn said he’s too old, X-Pac has a mean case of shin splints, and Road Dogg didn’t even front with an excuse. Enter Seth Rollins. But Seth needed partners. Enter the Street Profits. But then we needed an authority figure to sanction the match. Trips says he just books this crap, he doesn’t actually call any major shots. Enter Teddy Long, the king of the tag match, playa. And then from there, DX finally listened to Angle when the olympian revealed a referee shirt underneath his DX shirt. And with all those pieces firmly in place, we got a damn good six-man tag match with Imperium on one side of the ring and the Street Profits & Seth Rollins on the other. This whetted the appetite for a Street Profits vs. Imperium program, and, of course, Seth vs. GUNTHER. The Profits & Seth got the W after Seth hit Vinci with a curb stomp. This was a fun segment that actually worked seamlessly. Why wouldn’t Imperium have beef with DX? Why wouldn’t Seth come out in defense of Triple H? And the Profits always want a fight. Especially when said fight is against a team like Imperium. Kurt always wanting to be in DX is a bit of a stretch but we got three hours and you gotta get the legends on the show somehow. E for effort, T for nice try. A for overall quality. Send the Undertaker to an Undertaker LA Knight said it but I believe that headline in my heart. How dare he interrupt Los Angeles Knight? Taker came in rocking the American Badass gimmick, which makes a lot more sense with him shopping for kicks with Complex and all the other things he’s doing now in retirement. Can’t imagine that man wants to get in that deadman outfit anytime soon. And I ain’t mad at him. But I digress. After Taker showed up and Knight backed out of the ring to fight another day, Bray Wyatt showed up. Caught between a Badass and a grown man who plays with puppets, Knight backtracked into the ring and found himself in the Badass’ grip. But Taker literally passed Knight to Bray, who executed a Sister Abigail on his Royal Rumble opponent. Taker then whispered sweet nothings in Wyatt’s ear and exited the ring. What did he whisper? Backstreet Boys are better than N’Sync?? George Clooney is the best Batman? I’m more than positive we’ll never know but please use the comments to give me your best guesses. The passing of the torch moment did little for me if only because it feels a few years too late. To say nothing of the fact Bray’s win-loss record is quite doo doo in comparison to the Undertaker, so it feels like Taker endorsing a guy who talks a big game but loses even bigger. Which is the exact opposite of Taker, who talked little but won big. Creepy Before I get to the thing Alexa Bliss did that creeped me out, there’s a bit more preamble. Ric Flair showed up and hyped Charlotte Flair. The SmackDown champion entered the arena, hugged her dad, and walked to the ring. She ran down her resume, thanked some of her opponents (though she didn’t think Becky or Bayley), and said Raw is still her show. Well, Bianca Belair had notes. The Raw Women’s champ said this is her show. Which, for basketball reasons, brought out Sonya Deville. Deville bemoaned the fact no one gives her props or the spotlight. And she wants a match. Charlotte said she owes Sonya but the champ should take her...for reasons. So, yeah, we got a match between Sonya and Bianca that was fine but in light of the steel cage match we didn’t get, this feels odd. Bianca won because duh, and then immediately got the mic and had words for Bliss. Alexa showed up, cut a promo in a mirror towards Bianca and reiterated that she is Bianca’s only challenge. Her looking into the mirror while making it look like she’s looking directly at Bianca creeped me out. I don’t know why, but it got me in my soul. Maybe my soul watches too many horror flicks. Unlike the DX segment, this was stifled. You ever hear dialogue in a movie that doesn’t work but it’s clearly the writer trying to connect dots in the plot or give exposition? Yeah, that’s what this was. No need for the match, although I understand doing it since having a big anniversary show with no women’s match is a terrible look. And clearly that steel cage match didn’t happen for a reason, so they called an audible. I’m sympathetic to that but within Raw’s narrative, and the night’s context, it felt like the puzzle piece that just doesn’t fit. Stunned Miz complained about the lack of Miz TV during Raw is Bleep. He wants his 30th anniversary moment. Kevin Owens hit the ring and provided said moment with a couple stunners. KO also informed Roman that his time as champ is up...and KO’s time is now. Did he say those exact words? No. But that’s the gist of it. APA Poker (I barely know her) Clearly WWE had a lot happening this week because Raw was not only Bleep, but packed. They used a couple poker segments to throw in legends like Diamond Dallas Page, Alundra Blayze, Ted Dibiase, IRS, Jimmy Hart, the Godfather, and Ron Simmons. I loved the joke that Simmons renovated the APA Protection offices and really wish we got JBL in the APA gimmick rather than the wrestling god gimmick. But that’s because wrestling nostalgia tickles my fancy. These were fun segments that will either work for you or not simply based on your affection for said alumni. This was a fun and chaotic show. That said, it wasn’t perfect. Several things were clearly rushed, and the lack of cage match hurts. Especially since the only other women’s match on the card felt impromptu and didn’t amount to much. Shows like this often get by on nostalgia so throwing in a go home aspect, along with juggling who gets camera time is a lot. Especially since some people can or can’t make it to the event based on their schedules. What started as a very good show ended up being a good show, with the best moment of the night still being the first one. That’s a high note to match and nothing else came close. Grade: B |
| Re: Purpl3's WWE (and Pro-wrestling in general) Discussion And Banter House by ValeeLove(m): 12:05pm On Jan 24, 2023 |
pu7pl3:make she dey cover body abeg. |
| Re: Purpl3's WWE (and Pro-wrestling in general) Discussion And Banter House by ValeeLove(m): 12:06pm On Jan 24, 2023 |
See as everywhere dry. A pin drop could be heard in this thread. But, immediately WrestleMania happens, this place go full like say them dey throw party. Lol. |
| Re: Purpl3's WWE (and Pro-wrestling in general) Discussion And Banter House by pu7pl3(m): 12:58pm On Jan 24, 2023 |
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| Re: Purpl3's WWE (and Pro-wrestling in general) Discussion And Banter House by QueenSindel(f): 4:29pm On Jan 24, 2023 |
pu7pl3: |
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