WWE Money in the Bank 2017 Review

Money in the Bank 2017
St. Louis, MO
Scottrade Center
Brand: Smackdown
6/18/17

I really haven't paid as much attention to Smackdown since the Backlash show as I have instead spent my Tuesday nights watching America's Got Talent and after reading the recaps I don't see anything that really interests me enough on the blue brand to actually care to go back and watch it. I still feel Smackdown has taken a hit since the shake up and hasn't been able to fully recover since. With that said I still am interested in this show as Money in the Bank is always a fun show to watch, although I wish there was a more exciting title match on this show as the Jinder Mahal vs Randy Orton feud hasn't really done anything for me partly because it's still hard to take Jinder 100% seriously as a champion after he's been a jobber for his entire career and also because Orton has had a really bad year and has been in shitty feud after shitty feud. 

I also feel the women's division has lost a step as Charlotte hasn't been the dominant force on Smackdown yet like she was on Raw and that's because she isn't nowhere near as good being a baby face and needs to go back being heel ASAP. I also am confused as to why Lana is getting cheered when she hasn't done anything to prove herself in the ring and isn't any different than Eva Marie was yet Eva always got booed, now if she really amazes tonight and puts on a good match with Naomi I will change my mind on her.

The tag division is pretty fun as New Day and Breezango are having some pretty entertaining segments and The Usos are great heel foils for them. I do wish American Alpha was back in the mix as they are always a great joy to watch. 

I like majority of the guys in the Money in the Bank Ladder match and this could be one of the better MITB matches there has been in quite a while. I don't like what they are doing with Nakamura as far as character goes as they are completely trying to change him, I don't understand why he needs to be called the artist when he already has a nickname, but that's Vince having to put his hands on everything and completely change it so that he can look back and in his mind think that he is the reason Nakamura became a big star and if the changes don't work and Nakamura's time in WWE is a flop then Vince will say he was never good enough and couldn't hang in the WWE. 

Hopefully this show will be better than the last two main roster shows (Payback & Backlash).

Kick Off Match

The Hype Bros def The Colons via Pinfall

This was nothing too special, but did it's job to warm up the crowd. The Colons worked over the previously injured leg of Zack Ryder until he was able to make the hot tag to Mojo. Mojo hit the Hyperdrive and the running punch in the corner and they finished off The Colons with the Hype Ryder. Rating: **

Match #1

Carmella def Charlotte, Becky Lynch, Naomi & Natalya (Money in the Bank Ladder Match) 

This match failed to reach my expectations as I thought with it being the first women's ladder match they would go all out, but they didn't use the ladders near enough. I felt all the girls were really nervous and this caused them to be a bit sloppy. The highlight of the match didn't even involve a ladder as Charlotte hit another one of her crazy dives to the outside. I really wish Ellsworth would've got slammed on a ladder by Becky  as that was a massive pop they missed out on. The finish was what I expected with Ellsworth getting the briefcase for Carmella. I would play the story that Ellsworth feels Carmella owes him something since he won it for her. Rating: **3/4

Match #2

New Day def The Usos (c) via countout (SmackDown Tag Team Championship)

This was shaping up to be the best tag team title match SmackDown has had in a while, but it ended a bit too soon and even though it made sense to end in a countout as the feud will continue it ended too soon for me. I hope this is the start of getting the blue brand's tag division back to where it needs to be. I liked the spot where one of the Usos had Kofi in the Tequila Sunrise and Big E was doing whatever he could to break it up as he knew Kofi wouldn't last long as he's coming off a leg injury. Really good match and I look forward to the re match next month. Rating: ***1/4

Match #3

Naomi (c) def  Lana (SmackDown Women's Championship) via Submission

First off Lana's gear is definitely not PG. there was no tease with what she was wearing she showed her ass off completely. Lana did a decent job and was better than I was expecting her to do. This was the third match of the night where the main body part worked on was a leg. Right toward the end Carmella comes out and teases a cash in, but decides she'll wait until a better time. This took a bit away from the ending as everyone was more concentrating on Carmella. Decent match but nothing too special. Rating: **

Debut of Mike Bennett & Maria

Definitely didn't expect this tonight and it looks like they are playing it where Maria wears the pants in the marriage and Mike is submissive to her. 

Match #4

Jinder Mahal (c) def Randy Orton (WWE World Championship)

Did the agents that laid these matches out not talk with each other as every non MITB match had the heels working on the leg of the baby face. This was once again exactly what you would expect from these two. The match picked up when the Singh brothers interfered and Orton begged the ref to send them to the back instead of disqualifying Jinder, the brothers then threatened to attack Bob Orton who was at ringside along with other legends and this caused Orton to go after them. Orton slammed one on the table and sent the other one through the table with an RKO from one table to another. All of this allowed Jinder to recover and when Orton got back in the ring he was kicked in the leg and hit with the Kallos. Better than their Backlash match but that's not saying anything. Rating: ***

Match #5

Breezango def The Ascension

This match was unannounced ahead of this show, but we had a Fashion Files where they two mystery men who attacked Breeze on Smackdown were going to reveal themselves, but don't get too excited it's not any new team or American Alpha with a heel turn alas it's only The Ascension. This was the perfect cool down match as it had a team in it that are over and the fans want to see so it prevents them from leaving to go to the restroom and it was quick enough that it didn't overstay it's welcome. Breezango gets the win after Fandango pins Viktor with a small package. Rating: *1/2

Match #6

Baron Corbin def AJ Styles, Shinsuke Nakamura, Kevin Owens, Sami Zayn, & Dolph Ziggler (Money in the Bank Ladder Match)

This match was incredible and everything you would want out of a Money in the Bank Ladder match. I liked Corbin attacking Nakamura during his entrance as it was a great way of setting up the finish of the match and I liked that they didn't do the usual person who gets taken out ends up winning the match trope that they like to pull out from time to time. Unlike the women's MITB match it didn't feel like there were many instances where someone was going to grab the briefcase and had to wait an insane amount of time before someone grabbed them as soon as someone was right at the top someone was right there to knock them off. There were some really memorable spots during the first half of the match which include the half and half suplex from Zayn onto KO on the apron and the DVD off the apron on the the ladder by AJ onto KO, and the bump AJ took after holding onto the briefcase without a ladder under him. Once Nakamura came back out the match really picked up as he was taking everyone out with the Kinshasa. Then we get AJ and Nakamura squaring off which is one of the matches everyone has wanted to see since Nakamura's debut and these two got the crowd on their feet and didn't even need a ladder to do so as their strike exchange was really great and that was only a small tease to what an amazing match they could put on. It really fit Corbin's character that he would win after knocking two of the IWC's favorites off the ladder. This was truly one of my favorite MITB ladder matches. Rating: ****1/2

This show was really fun to watch and felt like it flew by, it had three matches that were over three stars so that is a good thing. I feel this was the best post WrestleMania PPV show as there was nothing that was absolutely awful to the point where I wanted to turn it off. MITB Grade: B-

Money in the Bank 2017 Match Ranking

7. Breezango vs The Ascension
6. Smackdown Women's Championship
5. The Hype Bros vs The Colons
4. Women's MITB Ladder Match
3. WWE World Championship
2. Smackdown Tag Team Championship
1. Men's MITB Ladder Match

I hope you enjoy my review and feel free to comment or shoot me a message over on twitter @MTW3589. 

If your a fan of reality tv I suggest checking out my new blog I just started over at mythoughtsonrealitytv.blogspot.com I will be covering this season's Big Brother and my first post will be previewing the BB 19 cast and giving my thoughts and first impressions of them.

WWE Extreme Rules 2017 Review

Extreme Rules
Brand: Raw
Baltimore, MD
Royal Farms Arena
6/4/17

Kickoff Match

Kalisto def Apollo Crews w/ Titus O'Neil via Pinfall
This was a decent opener with Kalisto flying all over the place and being on offense for majority of the match. Apollo has yet to deliver an outstanding performance like I expect him to do and this match was no different as he was just mediocre at best during it. There was two spots on the outside that were really cool the first was Kalisto looked like he was going to springboard off the top rope, but instead he jumps over the top and springboards off the middle and hits a dive to the outside that was something I have never seen before. The other was Kalisto going for a springboard crossbody to the outside, but he gets caught with an enziguri from Crews. After those two spots the highlight of the match was the work Titus O'Neil was doing outside as he was trying to coach Apollo he was great in this role and I actually wouldn't mind seeing him build a stable of guys. The finish comes when Kalisto kicks out after a standing shooting star and Apollo is trying to get advice from Titus on what else he should do and as he is distracted Kalisto is able to come from behind and hit the Salida del Soul for the win. Rating: **1/4

Match #1
The Miz w/ Maryse def Dean Ambrose (c) (WWE Intercontinental Championship)
I haven't enjoyed this feud much at all as I feel both men are in need of new opponents as this feud has essentially been going on since the fall of last year over on Smackdown. This match for the most part was what you would expect from a Dean Ambrose vs Miz match, but the work they did around the stipulation of Ambrose losing the title if he got disqualified was pretty great. The spot where Miz pulled the cover off the turnbuckle without Ambrose knowing and Ambrose almost slamming Miz's head against it was a neat little spot. The finish came when Miz told Maryse to slap him so that it would cause Ambrose to get DQ'd, but instead the referee didn't fall for it and sent Maryse to the back, but as she was going to the back she was arguing with the referee and this allowed Miz to shove Ambrose into the referee to once again try and cause Ambrose to get DQ'd and this time it almost worked as the referee was going over to tell them to ring the bell, but Miz decided for some reason to instead hit the Skull Crushing Finale and get the win via pin. Not sure what the point was of Miz hitting his finisher and pinning Ambrose when he was fixing to win the title anyway. A decent match with a few DQ teases that played up to the stipulation and the crowning of a new Intercontinental Champion is a good way to start off the main card. Rating: ***

Match #2
Rich Swann & Sasha Banks def Noam Dar & Alicia Fox via Pinfall (Mixed Tag Match)

It's still weird seeing Sasha mixing it up with the 205 Live talent and feuding with Foxy, but I have to imagine this feud was suppose to be Sasha vs Emma, but due to injury they had to go to the next person in line since they probably didn't want to do another Sasha vs Nia feud. 

This match was ok, but there was nothing that stuck out as really special as other than Sasha hitting Dar with the double knees off the top this was nothing more than a match you could see on Raw every week. Not sure where Sasha goes from here, maybe they blow off the Bayley vs Alexa feud tonight and she gets put back in the title picture. The only notable thing is that Rich Swann actually got a win in his hometown so congrats to Swann. After the match Swann & Sasha celebrate by dancing and I have to say Sasha has some moves and looks pretty hot when she is getting her groove on. Rating: **

Before the next match we got serenaded by "The Drifter" Elias Samson and he actually got through the entire song without getting interrupted. Not sure the point of that was other than to fill time.

Match #3
Alexa Bliss (c) def Bayley via Pinfall (Raw Women's Championship - Kendo Stick on a Pole Match)

This feud hasn't been the best as Bayley has cooled down a lot since she debuted on Raw and a lot of that has to do with how they portray her, they portray her almost as if she is a child which is not the Bayley character at all, she is someone for children to look up to, but she is not a child herself. It almost feels like they are making her out to be like a female Eugene except she is way better in ring. Alexa is on fire right now and although she was apart of the horrible "Bayley This Is Your Life" segment on Raw I can't blame her for that as that was just completely terrible writing and there was nothing Alexa could do to make it any better. I'm ready to see a Alexa vs Sasha feud and hopefully that's where we go after this match.

Yeah so there was absolutely no reason to make this a kendo stick on a pole match as a no DQ match would have served the purpose for what they wanted to do in this match, the whole point of a on a pole match is the struggle throughout the match to be the first to get the weapon, but this one got retrieved less than 5 minutes into the match. The booking for Bayley in this match made zero sense as you would think they would deliver the payoff of having Bayley hit Alexa with the kendo stick, but she never got one shot in on her with it and was beat clean as a sheet in a very dominant performance by Alexa. Glad to see Alexa retain, but pretty quick and forgettable match. Was it just me or was this crowd booing Bayley? Rating: *1/2

Match #4
Cesaro & Sheamus def The Hardy Boyz (c) (Raw Tag Team Championship - Steel Cage Match)
The rules for this match were in order to win both members of the team had to escape the cage either through the door or over the top with both feet touching the floor, with that rule it makes no sense why you would ever stop both members of a team from climbing out as you would want one of them out so you can double team the other. The first part of the match wasn't that great as it was just a lot of one team trying to stop the other from escaping, this would continue until Jeff was the first one to escape for the Hardy Boyz. Once Jeff falls and Matt is by himself the match gets interesting as you are wondering whether Matt will be able to beat the odds and escape the cage. There is a tug of war at one point between Jeff & Cesaro as they both try to pull Matt to their side of the cage. Jeff tries to help again, but is hit with a Brogue Kick through the cage door. Cesaro & Sheamus then hit an assisted White Noise off the top on Matt and this is enough for Jeff as he climbs back up top and takes down both Cesaro & Sheamus with a Whisper in the Wind off the top of the cage. The finish comes when both teams are in a race to have both of their members to hit the floor first as The Hardyz are going through the door while Sheamus & Cesaro go over the top and in a photo finish Sheamus & Cesaro both hit the floor first and are the new Raw Tag Team Champions. This was a pretty good match once Jeff escaped, but I was still wanting a bit more than what we got. Hopefully losing the titles is enough to make Matt go Broken. Rating: ***1/2

Match #5
Neville (c) def Austin Aries (WWE Cruiserweight Championship - Submission Match)
Best of the Super Juniors this match was not, this was such a slow and boring match and that's not what I want in my cruiserweights. Matches like this give me no reason to want to watch 205 Live as they take all the fun out of what a cruiserweight match should. I will never be able to remember anything about this match other than it was technically decent, oh and I had to restart the match like three times because I kept zoning out. Rating: **1/2

Match #6
Samoa Joe def Roman Reigns, Finn Balor, Seth Rollins, & Bray Wyatt (WWE Universal Championship #1 Contender Match)
This match saved this show from being a really bad show and a waste of 3 hours. This was pretty much everything you would expect from a WWE style match like this. I liked the alliance between Joe & Bray as they looked dominant. From the point where Roman spears Joe and Balor through the barricade all the way until the end of the match was really great stuff. I was kind of surprised that they are going ahead and doing the Brock vs Joe match now as I feel this match should be saved for a later date and for a bigger PPV as that truly is a dream match. Rating: ****

This was pretty much a one match show and everything else is not worth rewatching. I'll give this show a C-

Extreme Rules 2017 Match Rankings
7. Raw Women's Championship
6.  Sasha Banks & Rich Swann vs Noam Dar & Alicia Fox
5. Apollo Crews vs Kalisto
4. WWE Cruiserweight Championship
3. Intercontinental Championship
2. Raw Tag Team Championship
1. Fatal 5 Way

I hope you enjoyed my review of Extreme Rules 2017 you can always comment to me on twitter @MTW3589. 

I'll be back in two weeks to review Smackdown's next PPV Money in the Bank where for the first time the women will be getting to show what they can do in a ladder match.