NXT Takeover: WarGames
Houston, TX
Toyota Center
11/18/17
Toyota Center
11/18/17
At first this Takeover was supposed to just be named after the location where it was emanating from, but to everyone's surprise that would soon change as it was announced during the NXT tv taping that for the first time in 17 years (although WWE rounded that up to 20 years) we are getting the return of the WarGames match. I am so excited for this and I'm glad they finally brought the match into the WWE thanks to Mr Paul Levesque. I was a bit bummed that they changed the rules for the match (and decided not to have a roof on the cage) and made the match way more confusing than it needs to be, but at least we're finally getting the match. I really have liked the build up for the match with all three teams just causing chaos week after week and in kayfabe Regal having no other choice but to bring this match back in order to control them and let them finally settle their business with each other once and for all. These nine men should put on a great match with lots of crazy spots.
With all the craziness and excitement over the WarGames match the NXT Champion Drew McIntyre has felt like a bit of an afterthought for me personally, but his opponent for this Takeover event Andrade Cien Almas has been pretty impressive lately with great matches against both Johnny Gargano and Roderick Strong. One thing that has really helped Almas the last couple of months is the addition of his new manager and mouthpiece Zelina Vega, I don't know how or why it took WWE so long to bring Thea Trinidad into WWE, but thank God they did because she is so good on the mic and has been such a benefit to help Almas get on track to where he needs to be. This feud has been ok, but it has centered more around Drew and Zelina rather than Drew and Andrade as she has done all the talking for Almas and all Drew has wanted was for Almas to challenge him face to face. This match will be good, but if I had to put the matches in order in terms of excitement going in this would be next to last.
For the first time since April 1, 2016 we will have an NXT Women's Champion other than Asuka as the vacant championship is on the line in a fatal 4 way match as Nikki Cross, Peyton Royce, Ember Moon, & Kairi Sane battle it out to become the new NXT Women's Champion. This has the potential to be a really great match as all four of these ladies can go in the ring. I want to like Ember Moon as she is really good in the ring and had a great match with Asuka at Takeover Brooklyn, but there is something about her that just isn't clicking with me and that keeps me from being completely on the Ember Moon bandwagon. Kairi Sane is really great in the ring and was so much fun to watch during the Mae Young Classic, I'm sure many NXT and WWE fans will compare her to Asuka, but really the only thing her and Asuka have in common is that they're Japanese. Kairi Sane's offense is more varied and she is more of an underdog rather than an unstoppable ass kicker like Asuka. I have been a huge fan of Nikki Cross ever since she debuted with SaNity as she plays her character so well both in and out of the ring, there is not one moment when she isn't in character. I would be so excited for her to get the win here as she absolutely deserves it. At first I wasn't the biggest fan of the Iconic Duo as I saw them as nothing but a rip off of The Beautiful People or LayCool, but I have to say over the last few months they have won me over and I would be absolutely fine with a Peyton win and have her hold the title until Jan or the Takeover on WrestleMania weekend. I'm really excited for this match and hope these four women steal the show.
If someone had told me that a match between Aleister Black and The Velveteen Dream would have such a great buildup as this match has I would say they were crazier than Alicia Fox. This build up has been awesome and has made Velveteen Dream look like a serious threat rather than a comedy act who is just ripping of Prince. Velveteen is the first to make Aleister looks even the least bit vulnerable when he had him tied in the ropes and repeatedly slapped him across the face wanting Aleister to say his name. Unfortunately for Velveteen the mind games he has been playing most likely won't pay off as I see Aleister putting him away with a Black Mass.
The last match on the card feels like it was just thrown on so we could have five matches as it will be the monster Lars Sullivan taking on Kassius Ohno. I see this match being somewhat quick as Lars will shake off some elbow shots from Ohno and then make quick work of him before putting him away with the Freak Accident.
Overall this seems like the making of another great NXT Takeover card and I can't wait to see if it lives up to all of the other Takeovers and if it will make such an impression that Survivor Series will have a hard time following it on Sunday night.
Lars Sullivan def Kassius Ohno via Pinfall
This match was pretty much exactly what I said it would be as Ohno gave Sullivan all of his best strikes and Sullivan either shook them off or got right back up from them. Ohno did have a bit of a comeback when Sullivan missed a diving headbutt, but it wasn't enough to keep him down as Sullivan counters a discus elbow into the Freak Accident for the win. Rating: **1/4
Aleister Black def The Velveteen Dream via Pinfall
Before the bell even rings Velveteen Dream has created a memorable moment for this show as he took a page out of the legendary Rick Rude's book and had pictures of both himself and Aleister Black air brushed on his tights, but even this wasn't enough to make Aleister lose focus. Before the match starts the crowd is chanting for Velveteen and tells Aleister that they know his name and that Aleister will be saying his name.
This match was the perfect combination of a great athletic contest and sports entertainment at it's best. There were so many call backs to things that happened leading up to this match that unless you watch NXT tv weekly you can't really appreciate. There was a spot where Aleister faked a dive to the outside on Velveteen and instead hit a springboard back flip into a seated position. When Velveteen gets back in the ring he keeps trying to get Aleister's attention (he even does the Rick Rude hip swivel) and wants Aleister to look at him but no matter where he stands Aleister keeps looking the other way, that is until Velveteen sits cross legged right in front of Aleister which stuns Aleister for a second, but he isn't going to let Velveteen win this battle of the mind games so he decides to do the crawl (camera totally missed most of this) that Velveteen does to show that he can play mind games with the best of them. We then get a call back where Velveteen tied Aleister in the ropes and wanted him to say his name, but this time Aleister answers with a knee to the head. Velveteen pulls out this awesome looking complete shot DDT looking move that should definitely be his new finisher as this looked wicked good.
I liked the finish of the match where Velveteen goes up for the elbow, but he takes too long and as he jumps Aleister gets his boot up and this sends Velveteen into the ropes where this time he is the one tied up and eats a boot to the face, but is able to retaliate with a superkick which only causes Aleister to rebound with a jumping spinning knee and then once Velveteen gets to his feet after that Aleister hits him with Black Mass to get the win. I wasn't sure if this match could live up to the build it had, but it definitely did as this was an awesome match. After the match Aleister is sitting beside Velveteen who is still groggy and finally says his name which gets a small smile out of Velveteen. If there was still any question as to why Patrick Clark should've won Tough Enough this match put those questions to rest as this was a fantastic performance and I hope to see him on every Takeover show from now on. Rating: ****
This match was the perfect combination of a great athletic contest and sports entertainment at it's best. There were so many call backs to things that happened leading up to this match that unless you watch NXT tv weekly you can't really appreciate. There was a spot where Aleister faked a dive to the outside on Velveteen and instead hit a springboard back flip into a seated position. When Velveteen gets back in the ring he keeps trying to get Aleister's attention (he even does the Rick Rude hip swivel) and wants Aleister to look at him but no matter where he stands Aleister keeps looking the other way, that is until Velveteen sits cross legged right in front of Aleister which stuns Aleister for a second, but he isn't going to let Velveteen win this battle of the mind games so he decides to do the crawl (camera totally missed most of this) that Velveteen does to show that he can play mind games with the best of them. We then get a call back where Velveteen tied Aleister in the ropes and wanted him to say his name, but this time Aleister answers with a knee to the head. Velveteen pulls out this awesome looking complete shot DDT looking move that should definitely be his new finisher as this looked wicked good.
I liked the finish of the match where Velveteen goes up for the elbow, but he takes too long and as he jumps Aleister gets his boot up and this sends Velveteen into the ropes where this time he is the one tied up and eats a boot to the face, but is able to retaliate with a superkick which only causes Aleister to rebound with a jumping spinning knee and then once Velveteen gets to his feet after that Aleister hits him with Black Mass to get the win. I wasn't sure if this match could live up to the build it had, but it definitely did as this was an awesome match. After the match Aleister is sitting beside Velveteen who is still groggy and finally says his name which gets a small smile out of Velveteen. If there was still any question as to why Patrick Clark should've won Tough Enough this match put those questions to rest as this was a fantastic performance and I hope to see him on every Takeover show from now on. Rating: ****
Ember Moon def Nikki Cross, Peyton Royce, & Kairi Sane via Pinfall (NXT Women's Championship - Fatal 4 Way Match)
I really like Nikki Cross's remixed SAnity music. I don't like Kairi Sane's new music as I feel the music she had during the Mae Young Classic suited her much better, but I think they want the crowd to start singing along with it like they do with Nakamura's theme and that's why they changed it. While I found the moment between Billie Kay and Peyton Royce at the top of the ramp touching it didn't make any sense, why would Billie not come to the ring with her and increase Peyton's chances of winning the match since it was no disqualification, did I miss a segment on NXT where Regal told them that Billie was banned from ringside?
As excited as I was for this match I have to say that both the outcome and the match itself were pretty disappointing. Don't get me wrong it was a good match, but there was nothing that made me really jump out of my seat in excitement. I really felt this was the match where you could use both rings to do some cool spots, but they didn't and that's a bit of a shame. I also feel the finish came a bit out of nowhere and the whole match needed a bit more time. Ember was the last person who I thought would or should win this as I feel her time had already passed and if she was going to win the title she should have won it from Asuka during their feud, this was a missed opportunity for a strong heel in Peyton to get the belt and have either Nikki or Kairi chase the title until either the Takeover at Rumble or the Takeover at WrestleMania. It really sucks that the two women who are so committed to their characters can't be awarded with a title win, but the woman who is presented as dark and mysterious yet comes out smiling and happy is made the champion. This was just all around disappointing for me.
I did enjoy at the end where Asuka was the one who presented Ember with the title instead of Regal and at least for that short little moment with them both in the ring I felt good inside about Ember winning, but that feeling didn't last long. Rating: ***
As excited as I was for this match I have to say that both the outcome and the match itself were pretty disappointing. Don't get me wrong it was a good match, but there was nothing that made me really jump out of my seat in excitement. I really felt this was the match where you could use both rings to do some cool spots, but they didn't and that's a bit of a shame. I also feel the finish came a bit out of nowhere and the whole match needed a bit more time. Ember was the last person who I thought would or should win this as I feel her time had already passed and if she was going to win the title she should have won it from Asuka during their feud, this was a missed opportunity for a strong heel in Peyton to get the belt and have either Nikki or Kairi chase the title until either the Takeover at Rumble or the Takeover at WrestleMania. It really sucks that the two women who are so committed to their characters can't be awarded with a title win, but the woman who is presented as dark and mysterious yet comes out smiling and happy is made the champion. This was just all around disappointing for me.
I did enjoy at the end where Asuka was the one who presented Ember with the title instead of Regal and at least for that short little moment with them both in the ring I felt good inside about Ember winning, but that feeling didn't last long. Rating: ***
Andrade Cien Almas w/ Zelina Vega def Drew McIntyre (c) via Pinfall (NXT Championship)
I enjoyed this match a lot more than I thought I would going into it, both men put on a great performance and really got me invested. I was rooting for Drew going into the match as he is the baby face, but mid way through between the crowd's love for him (especially the si se puede chants) and everything that Zelina was doing at ringside I started rooting for Almas and was hoping he would pull out a win and to pretty much everyone's surprise he actually did. I can't sing the praises of Zelina Vega enough as she brought a lot to this match and without her this match probably wouldn't have been quite as fun to watch. I loved the spot where Zelina tries for the hurricanrana off the apron, but Drew catches her and just casually puts her back up on the apron. Drew hits a pop up Celtic Cross which I didn't even know was a possible thing to do. I liked when Drew had Almas up in the power bomb position on the outside and just the slightest distraction by Zelina allowed Almas to counter into a hurricanrana sending Drew into the ring post. I was on the edge of my seat for the near fall after Zelina hit the face plant rana and then Almas followed up with the hammerlock DDT as I actually thought he was going to win the match there. That final hammerlock DDT that Almas hit when Drew was draped over the rope was sick looking and it turns out that it caused Drew to tear his bicep which could possibly keep him out of action until WrestleMania time.
I was totally shocked that Almas won as I thought it was clear as day that Drew would retain. I remember seeing Almas at a house show against Nakamura last year and it was a great match and I said that Almas was going to be a star and then he debuts on tv and comes out looking like a male stripper and doesn't do anything special to make people care about him and I was thinking I was wrong about him, but now since he has aligned with Zelina I'm justified in calling him a star as he has been putting on great matches and has given people a reason to care about him. I'm interested to see where they go from here as I would imagine if the plan was to have Almas win all along then the January Takeover match would be a rematch between these two, but with Drew injured that takes that out of the equation. With a heel champion you could put him against Aleister Black or Roderick Strong, or you could turn him baby face and have him feud with Undisputed Era. Rating: ***1/2
I was totally shocked that Almas won as I thought it was clear as day that Drew would retain. I remember seeing Almas at a house show against Nakamura last year and it was a great match and I said that Almas was going to be a star and then he debuts on tv and comes out looking like a male stripper and doesn't do anything special to make people care about him and I was thinking I was wrong about him, but now since he has aligned with Zelina I'm justified in calling him a star as he has been putting on great matches and has given people a reason to care about him. I'm interested to see where they go from here as I would imagine if the plan was to have Almas win all along then the January Takeover match would be a rematch between these two, but with Drew injured that takes that out of the equation. With a heel champion you could put him against Aleister Black or Roderick Strong, or you could turn him baby face and have him feud with Undisputed Era. Rating: ***1/2
The Undisputed Era def The Authors of Pain & Roderick Strong & SAnity via Pinfall (WarGames Match)
I liked the choice of using air raid sirens as the cage lowers instead of the usual cage lowering music. I liked how Adam Cole didn't want to share the same ring with Eric Young when he entered the cage as he wanted all the attention on himself. It's stupid enough to have AOP come out with those dumb net things on their head, but to make Roddy have to fit in and do it as well was just terrible. WWE has to get a discount on both shark cages and tactical vests as both have been used a lot.
This will most likely be the most polarizing match of the weekend among wrestling fans as some will absolutely love it while others will hate that it wasn't more like the classic WarGames matches. I fall in the middle as there were aspects about the match that I enjoyed and some I didn't. I'm glad they made a rule at the last minute where if someone escaped the cage their team would forfeit as that made sure everyone stayed in the cage since it didn't have a roof on it.
I didn't really start getting into this match until AOP entered as that was when everything picked up and started to get fun. I'm surprised O'Reilly wasn't injured as Adam Cole landed right on his head when Akam tossed Cole from one ring into the other one. The spot where AOP had two guys in a tree of woe and then used the other two guys to ram into them was a cool spot. One thing that got lost because of all the chaos that happened after it was when Killian Dain swallowed the key to the cage door. I liked the twist on the Super Collider where they both had a guy up in each ring and as they hit the move they squash Dain who is standing in the middle of the two rings. I usually don't like the tower of doom spots these days as they have become such an overdone trope, but I like how they did two simultaneous ones in each ring and in the end Cole is the one who wasn't harmed in the move.
I think Cole climbed to the top off the cage a bit too soon as he was up there for a long time before the spot came where he was superplexed off the cage by Roddy. That German suplex through the tables by Wolfe looked awesome, but unfortunately it looks like Wolfe was busted open the hard way. We got to see just how athletic Dain is as he hits a coast to coast on O'Reilly and I hope that Shane doesn't do that move at Survivor Series as it would take away how cool it was to see a bigger guy like Dain do that move. The finish comes when Eric Young grabs a chair and looks to use it, but before he can get to his feet Cole hits a superkick into the chair and picks up the win for The Undisputed Era.
This match was a lot of fun and had a ton of cool spots. I won't say this is the greatest WarGames match ever nor will I say it's the worst, but it was definitely a 2017 WWE style WarGames match which is much different than the ones we are used to. One thing I liked about this match that always bugged me about the older WarGames was the fact that the match lasted quite a while after the last person entered the match instead of ending five minutes after the last person entered the match. Also the ending didn't feel like it came out of nowhere like I feel a lot of the ones back in the day did. Everyone in the match was able to shine and get their shit in. The only real negative I have on the match is maybe it lasted a bit too long and could've shaved off 5 or 6 minutes. Rating: ***3/4
Overall this was another great Takeover, but I won't say it was the best ever as there were some things that I didn't like mainly having to do with the women's match. Show Grade: B
This will most likely be the most polarizing match of the weekend among wrestling fans as some will absolutely love it while others will hate that it wasn't more like the classic WarGames matches. I fall in the middle as there were aspects about the match that I enjoyed and some I didn't. I'm glad they made a rule at the last minute where if someone escaped the cage their team would forfeit as that made sure everyone stayed in the cage since it didn't have a roof on it.
I didn't really start getting into this match until AOP entered as that was when everything picked up and started to get fun. I'm surprised O'Reilly wasn't injured as Adam Cole landed right on his head when Akam tossed Cole from one ring into the other one. The spot where AOP had two guys in a tree of woe and then used the other two guys to ram into them was a cool spot. One thing that got lost because of all the chaos that happened after it was when Killian Dain swallowed the key to the cage door. I liked the twist on the Super Collider where they both had a guy up in each ring and as they hit the move they squash Dain who is standing in the middle of the two rings. I usually don't like the tower of doom spots these days as they have become such an overdone trope, but I like how they did two simultaneous ones in each ring and in the end Cole is the one who wasn't harmed in the move.
I think Cole climbed to the top off the cage a bit too soon as he was up there for a long time before the spot came where he was superplexed off the cage by Roddy. That German suplex through the tables by Wolfe looked awesome, but unfortunately it looks like Wolfe was busted open the hard way. We got to see just how athletic Dain is as he hits a coast to coast on O'Reilly and I hope that Shane doesn't do that move at Survivor Series as it would take away how cool it was to see a bigger guy like Dain do that move. The finish comes when Eric Young grabs a chair and looks to use it, but before he can get to his feet Cole hits a superkick into the chair and picks up the win for The Undisputed Era.
This match was a lot of fun and had a ton of cool spots. I won't say this is the greatest WarGames match ever nor will I say it's the worst, but it was definitely a 2017 WWE style WarGames match which is much different than the ones we are used to. One thing I liked about this match that always bugged me about the older WarGames was the fact that the match lasted quite a while after the last person entered the match instead of ending five minutes after the last person entered the match. Also the ending didn't feel like it came out of nowhere like I feel a lot of the ones back in the day did. Everyone in the match was able to shine and get their shit in. The only real negative I have on the match is maybe it lasted a bit too long and could've shaved off 5 or 6 minutes. Rating: ***3/4
Overall this was another great Takeover, but I won't say it was the best ever as there were some things that I didn't like mainly having to do with the women's match. Show Grade: B
WWE Survivor Series 2017
Houston, TX
Toyota Center
11/19/17
11/19/17
I don't think there has ever been a crazier and more predictable month heading into a PPV as there was so much stuff happening on the tv shows going into this that it would take forever to explain so since I'm sure WWE will explain it with video packages over and over again I'm not going to bother as the review for the actual show will be long enough.
Kick Off Match #1
Elias def Matt Hardy via Pinfall
Elias def Matt Hardy via Pinfall
If the eight matches scheduled for this six hour show wasn't enough it was announced a few hours before the show this match as well as another match that I will get to later were added to the Kick Off show. While Survivor Series is the only time of the year when Smackdown and Raw go head to head that doesn't pertain to the Kick Off show as all three of these matches were guys from the same brand fighting each other. I still think the better solution was to add another 10 man elimination tag match. Before I get to reviewing this match I have to mention there was a segment on the Kick Off show where Alexa Bliss and Charlotte cut a promo back and forth on each other and I can't believe I'm saying this, but Charlotte was getting the best of Alexa in this as Alexa was speechless and had no comebacks for anything Charlotte was saying to her.
This was a pretty basic match with the story being Elias working over the arm and shoulder of Hardy, this included hitting a double underhook shoulder breaker. Hardy makes a comeback hitting a side effect on the apron, but he is only working with one arm at this point. Hardy tries for the Twist of Fate, but grabs Elias with the injured arm and is unable to hit it which allows Elias to shove Hardy into the turnbuckle shoulder first and hit the Drift Away for the win. Nice opener, but nothing too special. Rating: *3/4
Kick Off Match #2
Enzo Amore (c) def Kalisto via Pinfall (WWE Cruiserweight Championship)
Enzo Amore (c) def Kalisto via Pinfall (WWE Cruiserweight Championship)
Poor Kalisto if the fact that the fans couldn't care less about him wasn't enough the poor guy botched his entrance as he didn't get enough height on his trampoline bounce and kind of drapes over the top rope and has to flip himself over into the ring lol.
This was another match that was good, but nothing too spectacular and I found myself losing interest in it at times. Kalisto did hit a beautiful springboard code red which for me was the highlight of the match. There isn't anything else I really have to say about this match. Rating: **
Kick Off Match #3
Kevin Owens & Sami Zayn def Breezango via Pinfall
Before the match KO and Sami Zayn cut a promo on Breezango as well as venting their frustrations with Shane McMahon.
This was pretty much your typical tag match with KO and Zayn working over Breeze and taking control for most of the match. Breeze finally gets the hot tag to Fandango and he comes in a house of fire until he goes up top and is distracted by KO which causes him to miss the Last Dance diving leg drop and this allows KO to hit the pop up powerbomb for the win. Rating: **
Kevin Owens & Sami Zayn def Breezango via Pinfall
Before the match KO and Sami Zayn cut a promo on Breezango as well as venting their frustrations with Shane McMahon.
This was pretty much your typical tag match with KO and Zayn working over Breeze and taking control for most of the match. Breeze finally gets the hot tag to Fandango and he comes in a house of fire until he goes up top and is distracted by KO which causes him to miss the Last Dance diving leg drop and this allows KO to hit the pop up powerbomb for the win. Rating: **
Match #1
The Shield def The New Day via Pinfall
The Shield def The New Day via Pinfall
I liked the New Day's promo where they talk about how The Shield talk about brotherhood, but come WrestleMania season they would have no problem turning on each other where as The New Day are a true brotherhood who stick together no matter what.
As good as The Shield are I think The New Day are even better as they are able to make all of their matches different and in every one of their matches you see something new, for a team to still be able to do that after being together as long as they have (three years is eternity for a team in WWE) is quite the accomplishment. I liked how when Dean was getting worked over in the corner by New Day instead of waiting on Dean to get out of the corner The Shield drop off the apron and go over to New Day's corner and attack them so Dean can get a breather. There was a spot where Xavier was trying to superplex Dean off the top, but it gets blocked and Dean throws Xavier off the top and instead of going up and trying to hit it again Xavier instead tags in Big E to see if he can do a better job and just a little moment like this makes New Day great.
We get a cool triple team spot where Big E snake eyes Dean and at the same time Xavier and Kofi hit him with kicks to the head. We get a new twist to the spot where Xavier lifts Big E on his shoulders where before Xavier drops Big E on Dean we get Kofi coming off the top and leapfrogging over Big E and landing on Dean and then Big E splashes Dean from atop Xavier's shoulders. Big E then puts both Dean and Seth over his shoulder and we get a double Midnight Hour and I actually thought for a second that New Day would pick up a win, but it was broken up by Roman spearing Big E and they both land on top of the pin. There is a point where all six men get to their feet and we have a stare down and then we get a brawl between all six men. For the finish both Dean and Seth hit their finishers on Xavier and Big E on the outside and Roman spears Kofi. We then get a super triple powerbomb which I can't recall if we have ever seen that before as it was a great way to finish the match.
This was a really fun match especially thanks to New Day who as I said before are always innovating. The Shield were good as well but it feels like we see a lot of the same stuff from them in all of their matches, but with that said great job by all 6 men and this match lived up to what I thought it would be. Rating: ****1/4
As good as The Shield are I think The New Day are even better as they are able to make all of their matches different and in every one of their matches you see something new, for a team to still be able to do that after being together as long as they have (three years is eternity for a team in WWE) is quite the accomplishment. I liked how when Dean was getting worked over in the corner by New Day instead of waiting on Dean to get out of the corner The Shield drop off the apron and go over to New Day's corner and attack them so Dean can get a breather. There was a spot where Xavier was trying to superplex Dean off the top, but it gets blocked and Dean throws Xavier off the top and instead of going up and trying to hit it again Xavier instead tags in Big E to see if he can do a better job and just a little moment like this makes New Day great.
We get a cool triple team spot where Big E snake eyes Dean and at the same time Xavier and Kofi hit him with kicks to the head. We get a new twist to the spot where Xavier lifts Big E on his shoulders where before Xavier drops Big E on Dean we get Kofi coming off the top and leapfrogging over Big E and landing on Dean and then Big E splashes Dean from atop Xavier's shoulders. Big E then puts both Dean and Seth over his shoulder and we get a double Midnight Hour and I actually thought for a second that New Day would pick up a win, but it was broken up by Roman spearing Big E and they both land on top of the pin. There is a point where all six men get to their feet and we have a stare down and then we get a brawl between all six men. For the finish both Dean and Seth hit their finishers on Xavier and Big E on the outside and Roman spears Kofi. We then get a super triple powerbomb which I can't recall if we have ever seen that before as it was a great way to finish the match.
This was a really fun match especially thanks to New Day who as I said before are always innovating. The Shield were good as well but it feels like we see a lot of the same stuff from them in all of their matches, but with that said great job by all 6 men and this match lived up to what I thought it would be. Rating: ****1/4
Match #2
Team Raw (Alicia Fox, Asuka, Bayley, Nia Jax, & Sasha Banks)
def
Team Smackdown (Becky Lynch, Carmella, Naomi, Natalya, & Tamina)
Soul Survivor: Asuka
def
Team Smackdown (Becky Lynch, Carmella, Naomi, Natalya, & Tamina)
Soul Survivor: Asuka
Before this match we get a backstage segment with Stephanie giving the Raw Women's team a pep talk and on the scale of Stephanie cringe worthy promos this one was somewhat tolerable as she didn't really cut anyone's lady balls off during this. I didn't like that Nia was back to overdoing it with the makeup as I liked the more natural look she came out with a few weeks ago. I don't know what kind of hat that Alicia Fox had on, but it rivals anything you would see at the Kentucky Derby. I also have to say that while I don't mind the brand warfare thing I wish they didn't think that we're so dumb that we can't remember what show people are on that they have to wear their brand shirt throughout the match.
We start the match out with the two captains and Alicia telling Becky to play nice when Alicia is the one who is being the aggressor which is something only Fox could pull off. While these two are going at it I swear Natalya (oh yes by the way Natalya was the big mystery fifth member that they had to wait several days to tell us about) has a mic on her as you can hear her over the rest of the SD women in that nails on the chalk board cringe worthy voice of hers.
Becky was the first to be eliminated within the first few minutes as she was rolled up by Bayley who had made a blind tag which Becky wasn't aware of, so the ultimate baby face for the Raw team earns an elimination by using somewhat heel tactics. Bayley is eliminated next as she fights out of the corner of SD she turns around into a superkick from Carmella and is then hit with a Superfly Splash from Tamina. That means within a few minutes of each other 2/3 of the Horsewomen in this match have been eliminated.
We then get the highly anticipated battle of the Samoans as Tamina and Nia trade headbutts and then Nia rolls over Tamina with a cannonball. Tamina fails to pick Nia up for the Samoan drop, but Nia does pick up Tamina until Lana gets on the apron and distracts her so Nia knocks her off before turning around into a couple of superkicks from Tamina which sends Nia to the outside. Naomi dives on top of Nia and then Tamina comes out and hits another superkick followed by a Superfly Splash off the steps and Nia is counted out thus Tamina surprisingly wins the battle of the Samoans.
Foxy comes in and starts yelling at Nia only to get rolled up by Naomi which is only a near fall this time. Naomi hits an enziguri in the corner on Foxy who is in a split position on the top rope. Naomi goes for the split legged moonsault, but you can tell immediately that Foxy is moving which she does. There is a spot where Naomi is suppose to transition a roll up into her submission hold, but Foxy doesn't get her shoulders up so the ref counts like it was a shoot and eliminates Alicia by pinfall instead of the submission which it was suppose to be. The whole pairing here of Alicia and Naomi looked really bad. Before Naomi can even get to her feet Sasha jumps in and locks in the Bank Statement to eliminate Naomi by submission.
Asuka comes in and kicks the shit out of Carmella and hits with a hip attack which only gets two and then Carmella makes a comeback and gets Asuka in the corner firing away with punches and Corey Graves says that Carmella's Staten Island is showing as she has an attitude right now. Carmella celebrates early by moon walking and mocking Sasha. Carmella slaps Asuka a couple of times which is not smart at all and Asuka responds with a knee to the face and then a nasty sounding kick that obviously knocks Carmella out so Asuka can pin her and eliminate her.
At this point we are down to Asuka and Sasha for Raw and Natalya and Tamina for Smackdown. Asuka and Sasha hit a double suplex on Natalya, then Sasha and Natalya trade slaps. Natalya hits a nice looking discus clothesline. Sasha locks in the Bank Statement, but Tamina breaks it up. Natalya sends Sasha face first into the middle turnbuckle before locking in the Sharpshooter which Sasha taps out to and Asuka is now in a 2 on 1 situation.
Natalya and Tamina double team Asuka and hit her with a double suplex, Tamina goes up top and misses a splash and this allows Asuka to lock in a running arm bar to submit Tamina. Natalya comes in and tries to lock in the Sharpshooter, but Asuka counters and turns it into a kneebar which Natalya is able to kick her way out of. Natalya misses a discus clothesline and get kicked in the face by Asuka who then locks in the Asuka lock to get the win for Team Raw.
Wow this match was something else and I don't mean that in a good way as I found this match to be very sloppy at times. This could and should have been a lot better, but for some reason these women elimination matches never live up to the expectations that I have. The elimination order was a bit strange, but I guess made sense in the end as those were the two that would be ok by being beaten by Asuka at the end. This is probably the longest I've seen Tamina in a match in her entire career in WWE. If they plan on continuing the Charlotte vs Natalya feud I hope they play on the fact that the whole time Natalya didn't think Charlotte was good enough to be on Team Smackdown, but in the end Natalya lost the match for her team while Charlotte ended up getting Smackdown a win later in the night. Rating: **3/4
Match #3
Baron Corbin (WWE US Champion) vs The Miz (WWE IC Champion) via Pinfall
Baron Corbin (WWE US Champion) vs The Miz (WWE IC Champion) via Pinfall
As The Miz makes his way to the ring we are surprised to see that Maryse is in attendance and it looks like she has had some of her beautiful blonde hair cut off.
The match prior to this didn't meet my expectations, but this match definitely exceeded them as I really enjoyed this match. These two worked a match where it was non stop movement the whole time and no stopping for rest holds, which is always a great thing in a company who love when their heels use rest holds. I wasn't sure I wanted to see this match going into it, but after I would absolutely be down for another match between these two. There is a point when Corbin is beating up Miz on the outside and he goes up to Maryse and starts trash talking and we then see pissed off Miz as he jumps on Corbin and starts punching away at him.
The Miztourage played a great roll in this match as well with Axel distracting the referee so Bo can chop block Corbin as he is standing on the apron and for a brief moment for the first time in his career I didn't see Bo as this goofy comedy guy. Eventually Corbin gets sick of the Miztourage interfering and takes both of them out. There was a nice counter by Miz as he flips through the End of Days and hits a kick to the leg and then a basement DDT all in one flawless motion, it looked really good. The finish comes out of nowhere as Miz hits two corner dropkicks and goes for a third, but Corbin catches him in the End of Days for the win. It's always a great thing when you don't see the finish coming as it keeps things exciting. After the match Corbin tells The Miz that his hand is going up and The Miz's mouth is going closed (it's supposed to be shut not closed, but good job anyway Corbin). I really enjoyed this match a lot. Rating: ***1/2
Match #4
The Usos (SD Tag Team Champions) def The Bar (Raw Tag Team Champions) via Pinfall
The Usos (SD Tag Team Champions) def The Bar (Raw Tag Team Champions) via Pinfall
It looks like Sheamus has decided to frost the tips of his mohawk just because he wasn't crazy looking enough already.
If there is anyone who doesn't have The Usos as their tag team of the year they are out of their mind as they have been the MVPs of the WWE Tag Division this year and much like The New Day every single one of their matches are different which is why their feud against each other was so great. The Bar is probably the third best team this year behind The Usos and The New Day and I have to say that I have enjoyed Sheamus more as part of this tag team than I have anything else he's done in his entire career.
This match started out good, but it turns great mid way through as one of the Usos hits this back body drop on Cesaro and he has a bad landing in the corner to the point where I thought he may have a concussion as his head hits hard against the mat. The spot of the match is when Cesaro has Jey up in a powerbomb and is waiting for Sheamus to come off the top with a clothesline, but instead Jey fights back and grabs Sheamus from off the top rope while Cesaro still has him up and then he falls back into a Samoan drop. The Usos go to superkick Sheamus, but Cesaro just pushes him out of the way and takes the bullet for his team. They then hit Sheamus with several superkicks and he is down. Jey runs and flies over the top onto Cesaro and while in mid air he tags in Jimmy who comes off the top with a splash to get the win for The Usos. I absolutely loved this match and could watch Uso matches all day as they are so good at what they do and make wrestling so enjoyable. Rating: ****1/2
Match #5
Charlotte (SD Women's Champion) def Alexa Bliss (Raw Women's Champion) via Submission
Charlotte (SD Women's Champion) def Alexa Bliss (Raw Women's Champion) via Submission
We are one a roll here folks as this is the third great match in a row. I knew that a match between Charlotte and Alexa would've been better than a match between Natalya and Alexa, but even I didn't think it would be this good. These two put on one of the best women's matches this year. Everybody knows how good Charlotte is in the ring, but Alexa has improved so much in the last few months and her awesome character helps enhance any match she is in, in fact she much like Nikki Cross in that she is great at playing her character during matches with all the trash talk to both her opponent and to the referee as well as the great facial expressions.
I will say that Alexa held her own in this match and it didn't feel like Charlotte was having to carry her through it. Alexa broke out a guillotine choke which was a nice addition to her arsenal that she should use more, especially against bigger opponents. I like that they let Alexa kick out of the Natural Selection as I thought Charlotte was going to win the match after hitting that. There was a cool spot where Alexa grabbed Charlotte and bent her back for her choke takedown thing she does, but she is talking so much trash that it allows Charlotte to grab her by the throat and stand back up straight and send her to the ropes where she can hit the spear. There was another cool spot where Charlotte goes to grab Alexa by the feet and slingshot her out of the corner, but Alexa lands on her feet and hits her awesome forearm and then is able to hit the DDT and this was when I thought Alexa would win, but Charlotte gets her feet on the ropes. The finish comes when Alexa goes for Twisted Bliss, but Charlotte gets her knees up and then hits Alexa with a big boot and locks in the Figure Eight and Alexa has to tap out. Great match and I would love to see this match again like at a WrestleMania. Rating: ****
Match #6
Brock Lesnar (WWE Universal Champion) def AJ Styles (WWE World Champion) via Pinfall
Brock Lesnar (WWE Universal Champion) def AJ Styles (WWE World Champion) via Pinfall
For the first portion of this match I was starting to get frustrated as I thought they were going to make this another match like the one against John Cena at SummerSlam 2014 where AJ wouldn't get in any offense, but once AJ finally started to come back it became an enjoyable match to watch. The one thing I did like during the Brock domination part was when he dragged AJ across the ring by his hair as it reminded me of some horror movie where the monster would kill someone and then drag them back to their home so they can cut them into little pieces. I love how AJ was fixing to dive onto Brock from the inside to the outside, but before he did it he dropped to one knee to sell the beating he had taken.
The one thing I don't like about the current Brock Lesnar is no matter how good the match is and how many near falls his opponent gets you never believe the opponent is going to win because they have booked Brock so strong. I also don't like that Brock's control segments are so long as we got like 7 or 8 minute straight of AJ getting in zero offense and Brock destroying him, I prefer that matches are back and forth the entire time unless it's a squash match. Everything AJ did in this match was great, but I feel if Brock gave a bit more in his matches that this could've been even better. Rating: ****1/4
Match #7
Team Raw (Kurt Angle, Triple H, Braun Strowman, Samoa Joe, & Finn Balor)
def
Team Smackdown (Shane McMahon, John Cena, Randy Orton, Shinsuke Nakamura, & Bobby Roode)
Team Raw (Kurt Angle, Triple H, Braun Strowman, Samoa Joe, & Finn Balor)
def
Team Smackdown (Shane McMahon, John Cena, Randy Orton, Shinsuke Nakamura, & Bobby Roode)
Soul Survivors: Triple H & Braun Strowman
First off Michael Cole STFU and quit calling him "Shin" it sounds stupid. Shane does the dumbest thing he can do to start the match and that's attack Braun from behind, but Braun taught him real quick as he throws Shane across the ring and Shane looks like he may have pissed himself. I really liked the exchange between Balor and Nakamura as well as the one between Triple H and Bobby Roode. I love that even though they had Nakamura be the first man eliminated they let him go on a tear hitting everyone with Kinshasas and even hitting some strikes that daze Strowman before he is eliminated by him. Roode is also quickly eliminated by Strowman right after.
We get some dissension on the red team as Joe and Strowman get in each others face and then Triple H and Angle shove each other and this allows team Smackdown to come in and all chaos has broken out. Cena and Orton are left in the ring with Strowman and the once bitter enemies team up on the monster, at first Strowman is able to fight them off but they finally are able to knock him out of the ring. They try to suplex Strowman through the announce table, but they can't get him up so the other team Smackdown members help them and put Strowman through a table and I was sure this would lead to a count out elimination for Braun, but it wouldn't. Shane looks like he is going to dive on Strowman, but Joe cuts him off and suplexes Shane off the top and then tries to get him in the Coquina clutch, but Shane escapes and tags in Cena. Joe comes in and looks to take out Cena, but Balor tags himself in looking to hit the Coupe de Grace only for Joe to tag himself back in. Cena hits an AA on Joe and then one on Balor and then another one on Joe which eliminates Joe.
We get a rematch from Cena's first ever WWE match as he squares of with Kurt Angle. Cena looks to go for the Five Knuckle Shuffle, but Angle picks the ankle and puts Cena in the Angle lock only for him to get out of it and then is hit with an Angle Slam which Shane breaks up. Balor hits the Coupe de Grace on Cena and then Angle hits an Angle Slam to eliminate Cena. I'm not sure why they really needed Cena in this match as he didn't do that match and was somewhat of an afterthought by the end.
Balor comes in and knocks Shane off the apron and then hits him with a shotgun dropkick into the barricade, Balor hits a slingblade on Orton and then misses the Coupe de Grace and runs right into an RKO and Balor is eliminated.
Kevin Owens and Sami Zayn then come out and attack Shane, but both Shane and Orton fight them off. Strowman tags himself in and hits a powerslam on Orton and eliminates him.
Shane is the only man left on his team against Triple H, Kurt Angle, & Braun Strowman. Shane grabs a chair to try and even the odds, but the referee takes it away from him. Once Shane gets back in the ring Triple H tags himself in and Braun is not pleased at all, but before Triple H and Shane can make contact with each other Angle tags himself in and this leads to Angle and Triple H arguing with each other. Shane advantage of the argument and tries to roll up Angle, but he kicks out. Shane goes on the offense for a few minutes until he misses a clothesline and this allows Angle to hit the Angle Slam and then he locks on the Angle Lock, Shane fights as hard as he can to get to the ropes but Angle pulls him back into the middle of the ring. Triple H then gets in the ring and hits a Pedigree on Angle and lays Shane on top of him and Angle is eliminated.
Triple H acts like he has aligned with Shane as they stand next to each other and Braun looks on confused, out of nowhere Triple H hits the Pedigree on Shane to eliminate him and give Team Raw the win.
After the match Strowman is still confused as he stares at Triple H, but Triple H tries to play it off by raising Strowman's hand. Strowman grabs Triple H by the throat and backs him up into the corner and tells him not to ever cross him again or it will be the last game Triple H ever plays. Strowman goes to walk off and Triple H attacks him from behind and tries for a Pedigree, but Braun blocks that and hits Triple H with the power slam. Triple H looks like he is going to get up so Strowman hits him with another and Strowman stands tall to close the show.
This was a fun match, but I expected way more than what I got as I really enjoyed the booking of both the main event elimination tag matches from last year and in 2014, but this one just didn't do it for me. I'm not one to usually bash Triple H like most people do, but this match felt so much like the Triple H show as I'm sure he was in the ring for the most amount of time and then had the post match stuff with Braun which I didn't mind as it made Braun look strong. The finish where he Pedigrees Angle just to put Shane on top of him didn't really make sense especially if your going to end up beating Shane anyway, why not just let Angle make Shane tap and then attack Angle after the match it just made it feel like Triple H wanted the entire match to be about him. Rating: ***1/2
Overall I really enjoyed this show and had four matches rated at four stars or above, pretty much all the right people won their matches. Show Grade: A
NXT Takeover: WarGames & WWE Survivor Series Match Rankings
We get some dissension on the red team as Joe and Strowman get in each others face and then Triple H and Angle shove each other and this allows team Smackdown to come in and all chaos has broken out. Cena and Orton are left in the ring with Strowman and the once bitter enemies team up on the monster, at first Strowman is able to fight them off but they finally are able to knock him out of the ring. They try to suplex Strowman through the announce table, but they can't get him up so the other team Smackdown members help them and put Strowman through a table and I was sure this would lead to a count out elimination for Braun, but it wouldn't. Shane looks like he is going to dive on Strowman, but Joe cuts him off and suplexes Shane off the top and then tries to get him in the Coquina clutch, but Shane escapes and tags in Cena. Joe comes in and looks to take out Cena, but Balor tags himself in looking to hit the Coupe de Grace only for Joe to tag himself back in. Cena hits an AA on Joe and then one on Balor and then another one on Joe which eliminates Joe.
We get a rematch from Cena's first ever WWE match as he squares of with Kurt Angle. Cena looks to go for the Five Knuckle Shuffle, but Angle picks the ankle and puts Cena in the Angle lock only for him to get out of it and then is hit with an Angle Slam which Shane breaks up. Balor hits the Coupe de Grace on Cena and then Angle hits an Angle Slam to eliminate Cena. I'm not sure why they really needed Cena in this match as he didn't do that match and was somewhat of an afterthought by the end.
Balor comes in and knocks Shane off the apron and then hits him with a shotgun dropkick into the barricade, Balor hits a slingblade on Orton and then misses the Coupe de Grace and runs right into an RKO and Balor is eliminated.
Kevin Owens and Sami Zayn then come out and attack Shane, but both Shane and Orton fight them off. Strowman tags himself in and hits a powerslam on Orton and eliminates him.
Shane is the only man left on his team against Triple H, Kurt Angle, & Braun Strowman. Shane grabs a chair to try and even the odds, but the referee takes it away from him. Once Shane gets back in the ring Triple H tags himself in and Braun is not pleased at all, but before Triple H and Shane can make contact with each other Angle tags himself in and this leads to Angle and Triple H arguing with each other. Shane advantage of the argument and tries to roll up Angle, but he kicks out. Shane goes on the offense for a few minutes until he misses a clothesline and this allows Angle to hit the Angle Slam and then he locks on the Angle Lock, Shane fights as hard as he can to get to the ropes but Angle pulls him back into the middle of the ring. Triple H then gets in the ring and hits a Pedigree on Angle and lays Shane on top of him and Angle is eliminated.
Triple H acts like he has aligned with Shane as they stand next to each other and Braun looks on confused, out of nowhere Triple H hits the Pedigree on Shane to eliminate him and give Team Raw the win.
After the match Strowman is still confused as he stares at Triple H, but Triple H tries to play it off by raising Strowman's hand. Strowman grabs Triple H by the throat and backs him up into the corner and tells him not to ever cross him again or it will be the last game Triple H ever plays. Strowman goes to walk off and Triple H attacks him from behind and tries for a Pedigree, but Braun blocks that and hits Triple H with the power slam. Triple H looks like he is going to get up so Strowman hits him with another and Strowman stands tall to close the show.
This was a fun match, but I expected way more than what I got as I really enjoyed the booking of both the main event elimination tag matches from last year and in 2014, but this one just didn't do it for me. I'm not one to usually bash Triple H like most people do, but this match felt so much like the Triple H show as I'm sure he was in the ring for the most amount of time and then had the post match stuff with Braun which I didn't mind as it made Braun look strong. The finish where he Pedigrees Angle just to put Shane on top of him didn't really make sense especially if your going to end up beating Shane anyway, why not just let Angle make Shane tap and then attack Angle after the match it just made it feel like Triple H wanted the entire match to be about him. Rating: ***1/2
Overall I really enjoyed this show and had four matches rated at four stars or above, pretty much all the right people won their matches. Show Grade: A
NXT Takeover: WarGames & WWE Survivor Series Match Rankings
15. Elias vs Matt Hardy
14. Kevin Owens & Sami Zayn vs Breezango
13. WWE Cruiserweight Championship
12. Lars Sullivan vs Kassius Ohno
11. Raw vs Smackdown Women's Elimination Tag Match
10. NXT Women's Championship
9. NXT Championship
8. Raw vs Smackdown Men's Elimination Tag Match
7. Baron Corbin vs The Miz
6. WarGames Match
5. The Velveteen Dream vs Aleister Black
4. Charlotte vs Alexa Bliss
3. Brock Lesnar vs AJ Styles
2. The Shield vs The New Day
1. The Usos vs The Bar
That's it for my final NXT and WWE PPV weekend I'll be back in a few weeks for the final PPV of the year which will be Smackdown's Clash of Champions.
14. Kevin Owens & Sami Zayn vs Breezango
13. WWE Cruiserweight Championship
12. Lars Sullivan vs Kassius Ohno
11. Raw vs Smackdown Women's Elimination Tag Match
10. NXT Women's Championship
9. NXT Championship
8. Raw vs Smackdown Men's Elimination Tag Match
7. Baron Corbin vs The Miz
6. WarGames Match
5. The Velveteen Dream vs Aleister Black
4. Charlotte vs Alexa Bliss
3. Brock Lesnar vs AJ Styles
2. The Shield vs The New Day
1. The Usos vs The Bar
That's it for my final NXT and WWE PPV weekend I'll be back in a few weeks for the final PPV of the year which will be Smackdown's Clash of Champions.
