WWE Daniel Bryan - Just Say Yes! Yes! Yes! DVD Review

WWE's Daniel Bryan - Just Say Yes! Yes! Yes! is out now on three-disc DVD and two-disc Blu-Ray, available from www.wwedvd.co.uk and all other good home video stores. The main feature is a documentary looking Bryan's life and career, with a focus on the build up to WrestleMania 30 (originally aired on the WWE Network as Journey to WM30: Daniel Bryan on 8th April 2014) as well as over fifteen matches from Bryan's WWE career, ranging from 2000 to 2015, alongside a new interview with the former WWE World Heavyweight Champion. The set includes matches against the likes of Chris Jericho, CM Punk, Antonio Cesaro, Randy Orton, Brian Kendrick and more.

Disc One

The Journey to WM30: Daniel Bryan documentary is exactly what it says in the title, a look at Daniel Bryan's journey to WrestleMania 30, with a peek at both Bryan's career to that point, as well as a closer look at the week leading up to Bryan's two matches on the biggest show of the year. Whilst brevity can be a plus point in these kinds of documentary, rocking in a just over an hour means the film struggles to cover any real ground when looking at Bryan's career, and anyone who's followed his course, even just his time in WWE, will notice major gaps in the narrative (most notably Bryan's team with Kane). Whilst there's some interesting insights into a number of major points in Bryan's career, including some good stories about Bryan's two bout with Sheamus at WrestleMania's 27 and 28, nothing is focused on long enough to really dig much deeper than what's mostly on the surface anyway.

The look at The Submission Specialist's lead-in to WrestleMania 30 is an interesting look at the life of a WWE superstar during such a busy period. Whilst there's been similar productions for guys like John Cena and Randy Orton over recent years, the focus on Bryan and WrestleMania gives a different kind of look, firstly because of his shy and humble personality and secondly for the sheer magnitude of the event surrounding him. It is at times a little for frustrating when the documentary tries to kayfabe the viewer, with Bryan talking about "if" he will be able to defeat Triple H, whilst previously in the same piece talking about the talent relations meeting where he and Sheamus found out they'd be the pre-show for WrestleMania 27, and whilst this may enhance the viewing experience for younger viewers, for older fans, like myself, it's a big turn off. 

Bryan's title win at WrestleMania 30 is central to the documentary

There's maybe just enough to make the documentary watchable, but it's not a piece which on it's own I'd recommend going out of your way to see.

Disc Two

The second disc heads into the matches, with both this and Disc Three including parts of an interview with Daniel Bryan (as well as appearances from other WWE personalities) which act as lead-ins for the matches, and do a much better job than the previous documentary does at covering Bryan's career.

Years before "YestleMania" Bryan was wrestling in Dark matches before Smackdown tapings

A dark match from a WWF Smackdown! taping (February 2000) kicks things off, pitting Bryan (under the American Dragon moniker and mask) and Shooter Shultz against Brian Kendrick and Lance Cade in what is an intriguing bout for how early it comes in Bryan's career, although it's essentially a "get your shit in" type affair. Bryan (under his real name, Bryan Danielson) shows much improvement in a hard hitting and technical affair with Jamie Noble from WWE Velocity (January 2003). A trip to the original version of NXT (February 2010) gives us a brief encounter between Bryan (accompanied by The Miz) and then World Heavyweight Champion Chris Jericho (with Wade Barrett), that whilst being pretty clunky at points, still features a handful of sequences that show off Bryan's potential well. A clash with The Miz over the United States Championship from Night of Champions (September 2010) is an underrated belter of a match, with some top quality storytelling, with both men putting in fantastic performances in their roles. 

A Smackdown (January 2012) bout with The Big Show over the World Heavyweight Championship is a decent enough TV main event, but doesn't feature much to write home about, other than the start of Bryan's first heel run in WWE. Things really begin to pick up with an outstanding Two out of Three Falls contest with Sheamus over the World Heavyweight Championship from Extreme Rules (April 2012) with the pair working hard to put on the match that they weren't afforded at WrestleMania 28. There's some fantastic selling, and a crowd that is into everything that the two do, even if they aren't inclined to cheer the babyface Sheamus. There's perhaps more sports entertainment elements in a No Disqualification bout with CM Punk over the WWE Championship from Money in the Bank (July 2012) than many would have liked, but there's still more than enough wrestling to keep things interesting. The physical clash features a good mixture of styles, with Bryan and Punk showing that they have a lot more in their arsenal than perhaps they are often given credit for.

The final bout of the disc see's Bryan team with Kane (just before they became Team Hell No) to challenge Kofi Kingston and R-Truth for the WWE Tag Team Championships at Night of Champions (September 2012) in a decent tag bout, with all the focus on Bryan's relationship with Kane.

Bryan's 2/3 Falls bout with Sheamus is one of the highlights of Disc 2

Disc Three

A Gauntlet bout from Monday Night RAW (July 2013) opens Disc Three, and whilst an encounter with Jack Swagger is short, the next bout opposite then Real American, Antonio Cesaro is an absolute cracker. A truly forgotten gem, Bryan and Cesaro have a brutal contest, full of vicious strikes and quality reversal sequences, that builds into something truly special by the end. Whilst the final match of the Gauntlet with Ryback can't compete with the match that goes before it, it still has it's own charm and is far from a bad match. 

From Daniel Bryan and John Cena's entrances for their SummerSlam (August 2013) WWE Championship bout (as well as Special Guest referee Triple H) you get a feeling for what kind of match is in store, with no frills and set pieces, this is all about wrestling. The pair wrestle a heated encounter, that has a hint of a Japanese styling to it, with the underdog Bryan attempting to hang with the ace, Cena. The pace of the collision could easily get swept under the carpet, but it is perhaps the matches strongest element with the two knowing exactly when to build and when to let the match breath. With everything that you'd want from a PPV main event of it's time, there's plenty of near falls, great storytelling and a lively crowd that all contribute to make this one of the best matches of the year. 

Occupy Raw was big moment on Bryan's Road to WrestleMania 30

A No Disqualification Match with Randy Orton from Monday Night RAW (March 2014) is a fine TV encounter with plenty of weapon shots, with more than one eye on the upcoming WrestleMania XXX. Bryan's WrestleMania XXX bout with Triple H is disappointingly omitted, although highlights are included as part of the entrances from Bryan's WWE World Heavyweight Championship Triple Threat (April 2014) with Orton and Batista. The three way is chock-full of sports entertainment style shenanigans with a number of twists and turns along the way, this is WWE-style storytelling at it's peak in front of over 75,000 people. It's a spectacular feel good moment, with dramatic near falls and some big spots, plus there's Stephanie McMahon in a silly pair of shorts.

Whilst it might have been a logical place to finish (tying in with the earlier the documentary) the disc continues with Bryan's comeback promo from Monday Night RAW (December 2014) which is an emotional rollercoaster of a speech from someone who apparently struggles on the microphone. The set finishes up with The Yes Man's underrated clash with Roman Reigns from Fastlane (February 2015) in which the pair seem to click early, with their contrasting characters creating an intriguing dynamic throughout. Bryan puts on an unselfish performance making Reigns look like a real superstar heading into the latter's WrestleMania main event.

Finally...

Cast aside the first disc and this is a terrific two-disc set with Bryan (and others) offering a good insight into his career, as well as the matches that follow each interview segment. The matches are for the most part very good, and those that don't quite make the high standard Bryan has set for himself are, at least, significant to his career or rare encounters. It would have been interesting to see how far the set could have gone if all three discs were presented in this fashion.

Whilst omitting Bryan's bout with Triple H might be the strangest decision of the entire set, due to it being the most heavily featured match of the documentary, most Bryan's best WWE matches are included here. There's an argument to be made for Bryan's bout with Punk from Money in the Bank being swapped for their earlier Over the Limit match, but both have their charms and the second one offers a nice contrast with the rest of the set.

On the strength of the second and third discs this should be a must-have for any fan of the modern day WWE product and even more so if you're a die-hard Daniel Bryan fan.

WWE Royal Rumble 2014 DVD Review

WWE Royal Rumble 2014 is out on DVD and Blu-Ray now, available from www.wwedvd.co.uk, priced £12.99 on DVD and £13.99 on Blu-Ray. Broadcast live on Pay-per-View from the Consol Energy Center in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvannia, USA on 26th January 2014, the show is main evented by 2014 Royal Rumble Match, alongside Bray Wyatt taking on Daniel Bryan and Randy Orton defending the WWE World Heavyweight Championship against John Cena, as well as one other match and nine different segments. The special features include one more bout, as well as three extra segments. The commentary is provided by John Bradshaw Layfield, Michael Cole and Jerry Lawler.

After struggling to find form throughout the end of 2013, the first PPV of 2014 seemed to see an up turn in fortunes for WWE. Whilst many bemoaned the finish and result of the Royal Rumble main event, on a second viewing three months removed from the match, it is an enjoyable near hour of action with plenty to keep the viewers attention. To date this match is the final appearance of CM Punk on WWE television, and in line with much of his later work in 2013, it's an average one, with the highlight being a Neckbreaker/DDT combination delivered to Seth Rollins and Damien Sandow early on. Kofi Kingston continues his run of inventive ways to prevent elimination, with two impressive feats here, even if the first is slightly contrived. Roman Reigns and Antonio Cesaro are the stand outs in this bout, with Reigns continuing to be booked as a beast and Cesaro swinging everyone in sight around the ring. A showdown between The Shield and The Wyatt Family is cut short as the camera cuts to Ryback's entrance, which is a shame. We also see the seeds planted for the break-ups of both The Shield and Cody Rhodes & Goldust, as well as the beginning of a feud between CM Punk and Kane all of which have yet to come to fruition. The negative crowd reaction to Rey Mysterio's entry would seem to have been toned down in post-production, although a messy hurracanrana from Mysterio to Punk is still included. The crowd picks a favourite for the final two and unfortunately the other man wins, leading to more negative response for the crowd. Luckily, WWE managed to turn things around in the months heading into WrestleMania, as the booking here was certainly ill-advised, however the bout itself still offers a lot to enjoy.

Elsewhere, Daniel Bryan and Bray Wyatt put on an excellent bout that picked up ATPW's Match of the Month for January. There's plenty of hard-hitting action on display, with Bryan working Wyatt's leg after sending Wyatt clashing into the steps and Wyatt working Bryan's head following a concussion a few weeks prior. Whilst Wyatt's leg injury is forgotten latter on in the bout, a handful of lovely false finishes and Bryan's excellent selling lead to this one ending up a very very good opening contest and most certainly match of the night. 

 

The WWE World Heavyweight Championship contest see's Randy Orton defend against John Cena in a decent bout, with the crowd once again seemingly having their volume turned down as they attempt to show their displeasure. Whilst I agree with the crowd to some degree, they do miss out on a solid title match with plenty of false finishes. There isn't much we haven't seen before, bar a full nelson into a neckbreaker from Cena, but it's still an entertaining battle. 

The other match on the main feature, see's Brock Lesnar take on Big Show. The crowd really couldn't care for Big Show as a babyface at this point, so Lesnar's brutal attack of him doesn't quite pay off as well as it should. However this is probably the best this bout could have been booked in 2014. 

Throughout the show we also get a number of segments to build towards the matches, kicking off with Renee Young conducting an interview with Paul Heyman. Heyman's talk of Lesnar challenging the winner of the WWE World Heavyweight Championship is another story thread that was left hanging on the Road to WrestleMania, but as expected Heyman pulls off a top quality promo. Young also interviews Randy Orton, who has less success with his promo, really not helping to build any excitement to his match with John Cena. To round of the trifeca of interviews Young speaks to Billy Gunn and Road Dogg about winning the Tag Team titles on the Kick-Off show, in a mildy amusing segment, even if the New Age Outlaws continued to act like babyfaces. 

We also get two segments featuring the Kick Off Show panel of Josh Matthews, "Hacksaw" Jim Duggan, "The Nature Boy" Ric Flair and "Mr. WrestleMania" Shawn Michaels, both of which are rather strange. The first discusses Bryan vs. Wyatt and Show vs. Lesnar with Michaels putting over Bryan strong despite having cost him the WWE Championship only three months prior. The second see's Duggan, Flair and Michaels pick their winners for the Royal Rumble, with Flair going completely crazy, when the crowd doesn't share his support for Batista. 

The Shield cut a fantastic build up promo for the Rumble, teasing tension between Ambrose and Reigns. A tribute to the recently passed Mae Young is beautifully moving, with a lovely voice over from Stephanie McMahon. There's also a package with a number of promos from entrants in the Royal Rumble, with Fandango putting in the best performance, whilst Batista's makes you wonder why WWE decided to push him as a babyface upon his return.

The Special Features presents the Kick-Off Match seeing Goldust and Cody Rhodes against Billy Gunn and Road Dogg in a bout which has it's moments, but could have done with an extra five minutes to really get going. A segment seeing Vickie Guerrero and Brad Maddox hand wrestlers their Royal Rumble numbers is a dull piece of backstage action with the only bit that made me laugh being the video cutting short before The Great Khali could draw his number. Randy Orton being interviewed by Renee Young after his match is too short for anything of note to occur, whilst Young catching up with Batista only serves to illustrates how blown up Batista is after being in the Royal Rumble for just twelve minutes. 

Overall, I enjoyed this PPV a lot more than I did at the time. Daniel Bryan and Bray Wyatt steal the show with their effort, whilst both the Royal Rumble match and John Cena vs. Randy Orton benefit from being watched three months removed from the actual event. The DVD extras aren't great, and whilst the tag team bout is entertaining, all three segments don't offer much new.

Content Listing

Segment 1: Intro Package

Match 1: Daniel Bryan vs. Bray Wyatt with Luke Harper & Erick Rowan

Segment 2: Renee Young interviews Paul Heyman

Segment 3: Kick-Off Panel talks Daniel Bryan vs. Bray Wyatt and Big Show vs. Brock Lesnar

Match 2: Big Show vs. Brock Lesnar with Paul Heyman

Segment 4: The Shield discuss The Royal Rumble Match

Segment 5: Renee Young interviews Randy Orton

Match 3: John Cena vs. Randy Orton (C) for the WWE World Heavyweight Championship.

Segment 6: Mae Young Tribute

Segment 7: Renee Young interviews Billy Gunn & Road Dogg

Segment 8: Royal Rumble Promos

Segment 9: Kick-Off Panel Select their Royal Rumble favourites

Match 4: CM Punk vs. Seth Rollins vs. Damien Sandow vs. Cody Rhodes vs. Kane vs. Alexander Rusev vs. Jack Swagger with Zeb Colter vs. Kofi Kingston vs. Jimmy Uso vs. Goldust vs. United States Champion Dean Ambrose vs. Dolph Ziggler vs. R-Truth vs. Kevin Nash vs. Roman Reigns vs. The Great Khali vs. Sheamus vs. The Miz vs. Fandango vs. El Torito with Los Matadores vs. Antonio Cesaro with Zeb Colter vs. Luke Harper vs. Jey Uso vs. JBL vs. Erick Rowan vs. Ryback vs. Alberto Del Rio vs. Batista vs. Intercontinental Champion Big E Langston vs. Rey Mysterio in the 2014 Royal Rumble Match

DVD Extras

Match 5: Road Dogg & Billy Gunn vs. Goldust & Cody Rhodes © for the WWE Tag Team Championships.

Segment 10: WWE Superstars Draw Their Numbers for the Rumble

Segment 11: Randy Orton Coomments on The Wyatt Family controversy

Segment 12: An Exclusive Interview with Batista

WWE Straight to the Top: The Money in the Bank Ladder Match Anthology DVD Review

WWE's Straight to the Top: The Money in the Bank Ladder Match Anthology is out now on DVD and Blu Ray, available from www.wwedvd.co.uk, currently priced at £19.99 for DVD and £22.99 for Blu Ray. The three disc set, chronicles each and every Money in the Bank Ladder match in history, starting at Wrestlemania 21 and going up to 2013's Money in the Bank PPV, expect appearances from some of WWE's top names over that period including Chris Jericho, Edge, CM Punk, Daniel Bryan and Antonio Cesaro. 

Match Listing

*DISC 1*

A Revolutionary Concept

Money in the Bank Ladder Match

Chris Jericho vs. Chris Benoit vs. Shelton Benjamin vs. Edge vs. Christian vs. Kane

WWE WrestleMania 21, April 3, 2005

Money in the Bank Ladder Match

Ric Flair vs. Rob Van Dam vs. Shelton Benjamin vs. Matt Hardy vs. Finlay vs. Bobby Lashley

WWE WrestleMania 22 "Big Time", April 2, 2006

Ladder to Success

Money in the Bank Ladder Match

Jeff Hardy vs. King Booker vs. Finlay vs. CM Punk vs. Mr. Kennedy vs. Matt Hardy vs. Randy Orton vs. Edge

WWE WrestleMania 23 - "All Grown Up", April 1, 2007

Ultimate Opportunist

Money in the Bank Ladder Match

Chris Jericho vs. Shelton Benjamin vs. John Morrison vs. Carlito vs. CM Punk vs. MVP vs. Mr. Kennedy

WWE WrestleMania 24, March 30, 2008

Avoiding Obstacles

Money in the Bank Ladder Match

CM Punk vs. Kofi Kingston vs. MVP vs. Finlay vs. Christian vs. Kane vs. Shelton Benjamin vs. Mark Henry

WWE WrestleMania 25, April 5, 2009

*DISC 2*

New Stars on the Horizon

Money in the Bank Ladder Match

Kane vs. Christian vs. Kofi Kingston vs. MVP vs. Matt Hardy vs. Shelton Benjamin vs. Evan Bourne vs. Drew McIntyre vs. Jack Swagger vs. Dolph Ziggler

WWE WrestleMania 26, March 28, 2010

Inaugural Event

SmackDown Money in the Bank Ladder Match

Big Show vs. Kane vs. Kofi Kingston vs. Christian vs. Matt Hardy vs. Drew McIntyre vs. Dolph Ziggler vs. Cody Rhodes

WWE Money in the Bank, July 18, 2010

Raw Money in the Bank Ladder Match

Randy Orton vs. John Morrison vs. Evan Bourne vs. Mark Henry vs. Edge vs. Chris Jericho vs. The Miz vs. Ted DiBiase

WWE Money in the Bank, July 18, 2010

Era of Awesome

SmackDown Money in the Bank Ladder Match

Kane vs. Sin Cara vs. Daniel Bryan vs. Sheamus vs. Wade Barrett vs. Cody Rhodes vs. Justin Gabriel vs. Heath Slater

WWE Money in the Bank, July 17, 2011 

*DISC 3*

Caution in the Wind

Raw Money in the Bank Ladder Match

Rey Mysterio vs. Kofi Kingston vs. Alex Riley vs. Evan Bourne vs. Alberto Del Rio vs. The Miz vs. R-Truth vs. Jack Swagger

WWE Money in the Bank, July 17, 2011

Money in the Bank Ladder Match for a World Heavyweight Championship Contract

Christian vs. Sin Cara vs. Santino Marella vs. Tyson Kidd vs. Cody Rhodes vs. Dolph Ziggler vs. Tensai vs. Damien Sandow

WWE Money in the Bank, July 15, 2012

Long Awaited Return

Money in the Bank Ladder Match for a WWE Championship Contract

John Cena vs. Kane vs. Big Show vs. Chris Jericho vs. The Miz

WWE Money in the Bank, July 15, 2012

Money in the Bank Ladder Match for a World Heavyweight Championship Contract

Cody Rhodes vs. Dean Ambrose vs. Wade Barrett vs. Damien Sandow vs. Jack Swagger vs. Antonio Cesaro vs. Fandango

WWE Money in the Bank, July 14, 2013 

Money in the Bank Ladder Match for a WWE Championship Contract 

CM Punk vs. Sheamus vs. Daniel Bryan vs. Randy Orton vs. Christian vs. Rob Van Dam

WWE Money in the Bank, July 14, 2013

Review

          The Money in the Bank Ladder match has been one of WWE's success stories over the last ten years or so. Alongside the Elimination Chamber the match has developed a life of it's own, and there's a reason that it's spawned it's own pay-per-view and say the Punjabi Prison match hasn't. That reason is that all of these matches have more than enough moments that make you sit up and take notice.

The earlier matches on the set seem to focused on creating the "Wrestlemania Moment" with many of the competitors wanting to leave a lasting impression on the night's events. Moments like Shelton Benjamin running up the ladder to knock off Edge at Wrestlemania 21, Jeff Hardy's leg drop off the top of the ladder to Edge who was lying on a ladder straddling the ring and the barricade at Wrestlemania 23, John Morrison's moonsault to the outside whilst holding at Ladder at Wrestlemania 24 and Benjamin's ridiculous ladder leap at Wrestlemania 25 standing out in this reviewers memory. 

As the bout transferred to it's own PPV, the bout is given noticeably longer and the pacing is changed to reflect that, as the matches slow down to a certain degree, but that doesn't mean there's a lot to enjoy here. Kofi Kingston's Boom Drop off a ladder putting Drew McIntyre through announce table in 2010, Evan Bourne's shooting star press off a ladder in 2011, Tensai's sick powerbomb on Sin Cara in 2012 and CM Punk's brutal beating at the hands of Paul Heyman being particular highlights. It's a shame that a number of spots get recycled at this point, with of course the commentary team pretending it's completely new, I'm talking Big Show's special Ladder and covering Show in a sea of ladders which both see at least two outings. 

Former Money in the Bank Winner The Miz (Did you know he headlined Wrestlemania?) is our host for this one and for the most part "The Awesome One" does a decent job of leading us from one ladder match to another, filling us in on details of cash-ins and developments within the WWE at the time. He manages to keep his smarmy ways to a minimum, until it's time to talk about his involvement in the matches, at which point he becomes rather tedious and a frustrating watch. If I had wanted to hear about how good The Miz is, I probably would have brought his DVD (He doesn't have one).

As with any of WWE's match type anthology sets, this one needs a number of sittings to work your way and I think I would have enjoyed it a lot more if I was picking and choosing which matches I wanted to see, rather than sitting and watching match after match as I did for this review. This is for the simple reason that after watching a number of these matches, it becomes very easy to notice patterns in the action and become desensitised to the highspots. Something that might have made you sit up and take notice in the first match, probably won't have the same effect if you see it again in a few matches time. Therefore, I'd recommend picking a few matches at time from this set, rather than attempting an all night cram session!

It's a shame that all of the cash-ins were saved for the Blu-Ray set, as it would have been nice to see some included here, even in a cut-down format. Another nice addition could have been more insight from competitors who made their name in these type of matches, people like Shelton Benjamin or Kofi Kingston, perhaps in place of every single entrance, which one again probably isn't needed on DVD when quick introduction would suffice.

As much as I don't like dwelling on such thing, it would be a miss if I didn't mention Chris Benoit's inclusion in this set. Of course, Benoit is present in the very first Money in the Bank Ladder match and is very involved in the conclusion of that match. All commentary about Benoit is cut, as well as some interesting camera angle edits for the finish, which will be more than notable for anyone who has seen this match in the past. There was something almost perverse about watching Benoit squirm in pain on the mat, complete with screams, with no commentary to cover it, I would have felt much more comfortable with the original commentary still in place. The camera angle change as well felt unnecessary, as it almost glorifies Benoit's actions, because it looks so strange that it makes the viewer question why it has been done in the first place. I know it's been done with all good intentions, but if WWE are going to include Chris Benoit matches on DVD sets in the future, they might be better off just leaving them on in full.

With that aside, if you haven't got the PPV's that these matches come from (and I'd reccomend going and getting a copy of Money in the Bank 2011 anyway), then I'd highly reccomend this set to you, as there's hours of good quality spot-heavy action, with some of WWE's biggest names and a few surprises along the way (Tensai was in a Money in the Bank Ladder match?)

Top Three Matches From This Set

1. Money in the Bank Ladder Match

Chris Jericho vs. Chris Benoit vs. Shelton Benjamin vs. Edge vs. Christian vs. Kane

WWE WrestleMania 21, April 3, 2005

2. SmackDown Money in the Bank Ladder Match

Kane vs. Sin Cara vs. Daniel Bryan vs. Sheamus vs. Wade Barrett vs. Cody Rhodes vs. Justin Gabriel vs. Heath Slater

WWE Money in the Bank, July 17, 2011 

3. Money in the Bank Ladder Match

Chris Jericho vs. Shelton Benjamin vs. John Morrison vs. Carlito vs. CM Punk vs. MVP vs. Mr. Kennedy

WWE WrestleMania 24, March 30, 2008

Why I didn't write a Survivor Series 2013 Review!

Okay, I've been thinking about this one for a few days, and I even started to write up a review of this year's WWE Survivor Series, but then I thought against it. This article will hopefully got some way to explaining why this is the first PPV I haven't reviewed since this year's Wrestlemania.

Firstly, I'd like to say that I don't think this PPV was as bad as many people have been saying, with the highlight being the opening bout pitting Goldust, Cody Rhodes, The Usos & Rey Mysterio against The Shield and The Real Americans in a Traditional Survivor Series match, and neither did I think the main event was the worst thing I've seen this year, it told a story and did the best it could do with what is was given. My problem with this PPV was the distinct lack of effort that was put in across the board, from WWE Creative and some members of the roster, in both the build up and execution of the PPV and if there's no effort being put into the product, why should I put the effort into writing a 4000 word review? I'm happy to review a terrible PPV, if there's at least some effort going into it, but not this.

At no point during the build up was I made to believe that Alberto Del Rio could defeat John Cena for the World Heavyweight Championship, with the same being able to be said about Big Show going after Randy Orton's WWE Championship, these were stop gap matches until something else came along, and whilst from time to time that may happen within the WWE, it should never feel that way when watching the programming. It's the job of the booking staff or “writers”, alongside the on screen talent, to make me believe that either man could head out of the PPV with holding the championship belt. However, after Cena defeated Del Rio on the previous PPV with an injured arm, how was I meant to buy into the possibility that Del Rio could defeat a Cena with a slightly less injured arm? Meanwhile, the focus on television had clearly shifted off Big Show and on to Randy Orton's relationship with The Authority, which is weird considering the focus had been on Big Show for months without Show featuring on a PPV!

The whole PPV seemed to focus and build towards the final moments, where John Cena came out to stare down Randy Orton with Triple H and Stephanie McMahon looking on. It was a big moment and the crowd certainly reacted to it, (although I think they were expected a match between the two straight away) but there was one problem...it wasn't advertised! It did nothing to help towards PPV buys, and whilst it could have contributed to a rise in the ratings for Raw this week, the PPV buyers should always come first, in my opinion, especially seeing as it's a much more direct form of revenue for the company.

The rest of the PPV was a mainly bland affair, with CM Punk & Daniel Bryan's bout with The Wyatt Family's Erick Rowan and Luke Harper being the only stand out in the middle of the pack, a dull Intercontentinal Championship match between Big E Langston and Curtis Axel that was only ever going to go one way and Mark Henry answering Ryback's open challenge both failing to produce anything of warrant, beyond the ill fate of both former Paul Heyman guys. The Diva's Tag Match wasn't as bad as I imagined it would be, and there were some nice moments in the match, but it was clear that most of the women weren't ready for a match like this one.

Okay, in explaining why I haven't written a review for this PPV, I kind of ended up writing a review of this PPV, although that was inevitable, I guess. I'm hoping that WWE begins to pick up it's game again soon and returns to the excitement of it's run of PPV early in the Summer (Payback/Money in the Bank/SummerSlam), especially as we get closer to WrestleMania. The Authority angle is quickly dying a death, as WWE botches another major angle, it can still be rescued, just about, and I'll be talking about that in this week's Across The Pond Wrestling LIVE

WWE Main Event 11th September 2013 Review

This week's main event seemed like a return to form for the show, with a strong card of matches, with enough variety to keep me interested throughout the hour. Antonio Cesaro continues to leave WWE fans scratching their heads wondering why the organisation doesn't seem to notice the talent they have, with a top notch bout with Kofi Kingston, but I've chosen to focus this week's review on another match, and I'll explain why...

R-Truth 

vs. 

Big E Langston

The reason this match is in the main slot for this review, is because I was really intrigued by Big E Langston appearance on the show. We haven't seen Langston for a fair amount of time on television after Langston lost to Dolph Ziggler in the blow off match of their feud on the 20^th August edition of Smackdown, and I was half expecting for Langston to take some time off television, before returning as a face, with a couple of matches against Damien Sandow at house shows recently, pointing towards that. So I was quite surprised to see him lined up to face R-Truth here. Truth has really been struggling to hold my attention with a stale gimmick and some so-so performance.

The match itself was decent enough to keep my attention and entertain me to some degree, but really lacked any proper structure or flow which let it down. Langston looked impressive when incontrol of Truth and his signature moves such as the Big Splash he did, looked very impressive. R-Truth's offense were mainly limited to strikes, but they came at such random moments, that when Truth launched into what should have been his comeback, it didn't really have much of an impact as Langston had spent to much time on top. What could have been the big spot that helped this match, was unfortunately botched, with Truth cannon-balling over the top rope on Langston on the outside and landing awkwardly on his, this was mainly down to Langston being in the wrong position and not being able to properly catch Truth, so the fault has to lie with the big man on this one.

The finish saw R-Truth miss his Corkscrew Scissors Kick, allowing Langston to hit a clothesline, before pulling down the straps and hitting The Big Ending to pick up the pinfall victory. The finish was simple, but effective using both men's signature moves well, it's just a shame that what preceded it hadn't quite flowed so well. It makes sense to give Langston the win here, as he is someone WWE does seem to have some sort of plan for, even if they aren't quite sure what it is yet, but it does make Truth's victory over World Heavyweight Championship Money in the Bank holder Damien Sandow even more random and perplexing. It certainly wasn't the strongest performance I've seen from either man in a WWE ring.

So, what should WWE do with Big E Langston? I've been saying this for quite some time...turn him face! Simply do replays of what Langston did in NXT, running over heels opponents, whilst asking for a five count instead of a three count. It got him over on NXT, and I'm pretty certain it would get him over on Raw. He's certainly most comfortable as a face, and is entertain enough on the mic to really get some fan support behind him. From there give the guy a run with the United States Championship with an entertaining rivalry, with any of a number of WWE's heels, and then see how it goes. As for R-Truth, I'm struggling to see what he offers WWE in 2013, although I'm beginning to wonder if they could partner him up with someone and give him a run in the tag team division, which could be an interesting move for Truth, maybe someone like NXT's Xavier Woods could work with Truth.

Best of the Rest

Elsewhere on the show, Kofi Kingston and The Real American's Antonio Cesaro particpated in the match of the night, and arguably the best match to ever grave and episode of Main Event. Cesaro spent much of the match in control, which is a role that suits him down to the ground, as we saw in his battles with Sami Zayn from NXT. Kingston worked well fighting underneath and the two built a good foundation of solid technical wrestling, with a few highflying moves from Kingston thrown in as well. There were also a number of exciting spots that really lifted the match and got the fans to sit up and take notice, including Kingston using the steel steps in a similar spot from this week's Raw, although the cannonball certainly looked by than the forearm strike used on Monday, and of course Cesaro's extra long Giant Swing, which would seem to be becoming a regular part of his offence going forward.

The finish saw Cesaro go for a Neutralizer, with Kingston reversing in a roll up for a near fall, that saw Cesaro show off his strength once again bridging out of the pin and going for a backslide, Kingston slipped free and hit Trouble in Paradise to the pinfall victory. I thought this was a strong finish that allowed both me to continue looking good, with Cesaro bridge out of Kingston's pin being an outstanding show of strength, and Kingston's finisher happening so quickly that you could easily make a case for a rematch. It's baffling that either of these competitors has never been pushed strongly by WWE, whilst many have argued that Kingston lacks the mic skills to move past the mid card, Cesaro certainly does.

There was also tag team action on the show, with Prime Time Players taking on Heath Slater & Jinder Mahal of 3MB. Darren Young & Titus O'Neil were in control for most of the match, with O'Neil's power keeping Mahal & Slater in check in the early going. The best section of the match for me was a nice series of reversal between Young and Slater, with the two former Nexus stablemates showing a familiarity, with their section flowing nicely. The finish saw Slater break up a pinfall by O'Neil, with Young and Slater going on to battle on the outside, ending with Slater sending Young crashing hard into the announce table. With O'Neil taking out Slater with a shoulder barge, Mahal attempted a roll up for a near fall, with O'Neil escaping and finishing Mahal off with Clash of the Titus for the pinfall victory. I thought the finish had some good ideas, but a lot of it didn't flow particularly well, but it was good to see The Prime Time Players back on top after last week's defeat to The Wyatt Family.

Finally...

My final thoughts on this week's Main Event.

1. Big E Langston probably still isn't ready for a big push, but seeing him in more matches on television will get him ready quickly.

2. Antonio Cesaro deserves to be higher up the card in WWE. 

3. The Tag Team Turmoil bout on Night of Champions could be a very interesting contest indeed. 

WWE Main Event 28th August 2013 Review

This week's Main Event was helped by two strong supporting matches, after the main attraction didn't quite deliver as I had expected. Main Event continues to be an entertaining hour of WWE television, and in allowing those wrestlers poised for the real main event scene in WWE, such as Cody Rhodes to experiment in these longer matches, they can only end up coming off better than when they entered.

Cody Rhodes

vs.

Intercontinental Champion

Curtis Axel

with Paul Heyman

With a highlight package of Paul Heyman and Curtis Axel's attack on CM Punk on Raw starting the show, the Intercontinental Champion was in action against Cody Rhodes. This was a rematch from last week's Smackdown, where Axel got the victory following some distraction from Paul Heyman, so I was interested to see how this one would go, especially with Axel and Heyman now booked in a Handicap Elimination Match with Punk at Night of Champions. It seemed odd that the commentary team of Josh Matthews and Alex Riley didn't really mention the match they had on Smackdown, which would have allowed them to build up the contest more and make it feel more important for Rhodes to get his victory back, instead they focussed on the build to Night of Champions, making this bout feel pretty inconsequential.

Similar to the match on Smackdown, this one wasn't particularly anything special and I think the extra time it was given actually hurt the match. Rhodes is taking longer to adjust to his current face role, than I originally expected and hasn't quite got the psychology of being a face down yet, a longer period of holding Axel in a chickenwing was not going to help the crowd get behind him! After a nice period of amatuer style wrestling at the beginning, things did look promising for this contest, but it quickly fizzled out. Axel looked good in control, with his slow methodical approach picking Rhodes apart, but what was needed was a pacy comeback from Rhodes, which really would have got me interested in the bout. This however didn't really come, as when the time came for Rhodes' comeback, he was visibly winded, after a good looking Diving Moonsault. It was a shame really that conditioning played apart here, as this match could have worked extremely well. Rhodes is definitely going to need more of these longer matches to build his conditioning for a potential main event push.

The ending of the bout saw Rhodes trying to drag Axel back to the centre of the ring, but Axel holding onto the ring apron. The referee tried to get Rhodes to move away, only for Axel to hit a duo of kicks, one to the gut, one to the face, before jumping to his feet and hitting the Hangman's Facebuster for the pinfall victory and to go 2-0 over Rhodes. It was a bit of an “out of the blue” ending and seemed to come out of nowhere, blink and you'd have missed it. It was good however, to see Axel pick up a victory without having to rely on Heyman, who was pretty much a non-entity at ringside, as that was the main problem with Axel's match with CM Punk on Raw, without Heyman at ringside Axel never seemed like he could win, this will go some way to making Axel look like a more legitimate competitor in his own right.

So, with Axel heading to Night of Champions already (as you'd expect, him being Intercontinental Champion and all) where does that leave Cody Rhodes. A month ago, Rhodes was closing Smackdown with his Gulf of Mexico segment with Damien Sandow, now it feels like Rhodes is back to treading water. I'd suspect Rhodes will pick up on his feud with Damien Sandow at some point, but if WWE are planning for the two to be feuding over the World Heavyweight Championship, then why are they having both lose these kinds of matches? Yes, Axel needed a big win heading towards Night of Champions, but there are plenty of others that could have been thrown into this bout, that WWE don't seem to have any plans on having in their World Heavyweight title picture anytime soon.

 

Best of the Rest (In The World)

Elsewhere on Main Event, Kofi Kingston was in action against Fandango in what was essentially a rubber match for their series, with the two picking up victories over each other at the start of the month on Raw and Smackdown. This was by far the longest match the two have had on television and they were clearly relishing the opportunity. The match was quick paced from the lock up, but really got going with a nice spot, that saw Kingston land on his feet off a monkey flip from Fandango out of the corner, and go on to land his own version of the move. Both men had spells of control, with a number of quick paced reversals along the way, Fandango looked incredibly comfortable in control and you can see he has improved a lot since his days as Johnny Curtis on NXT.

With Kingston making the comeback that Rhodes' needed to make earlier, hitting a Boom Drop and building for Trouble in Paradise, the match was strangely cut short, when Summer Rae grabbed Kingston's leg and the referee called for the disqualification handing Kingston the victory. It was odd because both Kingston and Fandango continued to wrestle and everyone looked very surprised by what had just happened, it certainly felt very sudden and definitely wasn't the satisfying ending that the bout needed. Hopefully, they'll have a rematch soon, so we actually get to see the ending of the bout. Kingston's comeback from injury has been pretty disapointing, he's quickly been relegated to Main Event and Superstars, and this entertaining match will hopefully remind WWE that he still has something to offer, I'd much rather see Kingston feud with Fandango than The Miz!

There was also tag team action with Prime Time Players taking on Jack Swagger and Antonio Cesaro of The Real Americans. We've seen these two teams have a rivalry of sorts over the last two weeks, with a number of technically sound matches all won by members of the Prime Time Players. This was more of the same, with a basic yet entertaining contest. Cesaro and Swagger looked good working over Darren Young, before the hot tag to Titus O'Neil. O'Neil is great in this role, as he looks really impressive when ploughing threw his opponents. His Fall-Away Slam still impresses me, he seems to do it with ease. The finish saw both Young save O'Neil from being pinned by Swagger, with Cesaro taking out Young with a nasty looking dropkick, before Swagger walked straight into Clash of the Titus and with Cesaro unable to make the save, Prime Time Players picked up the pinfall victory. Hopefully, both teams feature in future plans for the Tag Team Championships, with a tag team scene which is really coming to life lately, although I'd much rather see Cesaro in singles competition.

Finally...

My final thoughts on this week's Main Event.

1. Cody Rhodes needs to be working longer matches and picking up more wins, if WWE expect him to be a convincing main event competitor.

2. Kofi Kingston's return has produced nothing, but a costume change.

3. Alex Riley is actually quite informative on commentary, when he isn't talking about The Miz.

WWE NXT 21st August 2013 Review

Well, where do I start with this weeks NXT? I could talk about the appearances of Dolph Ziggler and Diva's Champion AJ Lee, I could talk about the re-debut of CJ Parker, but no there's only one thing that I can start this blog with...Sami Zayn vs. Antonio Cesaro, Two out of Three Falls.

Two out of Three Falls Match: 

Sami Zayn

 vs. 

Antonio Cesaro

So after months of build up between Sami Zayn and Antonio Cesaro, here we were the rubber match. Now this rivalry has been so incredibly well booked since late May this year, with the two featuring in various match ups also involving NXT Champion Bo Dallas and Leo Kruger, where their rivalry was always made clear during the bouts. Not many WWE rivalries last three months before having their big blow off, but this one certainly did. With the wrestling being so good in their original two contests, expectations were high here and Zayn and Cesaro really had to perform. My intrigue to this one was increased even more when it was made a Two out of Three Falls bout, because of some of the fantastic bouts of this style that we've seen in the past, which usually favour the more technical, scientific wrestler like Zayn and Cesaro. The stipulation present and interesting structure on which to build the story of the match, with the placing of the falls being vital in building the flow correctly.

I didn't for a second doubt that this would be a superb match, and seconds in and we were already into the action with Zayn hitting a front flip plancha onto Cesaro as he headed to the ring, after this Zayn quickly got a pinfall via a school boy roll to go one up on Cesaro. It was an interesting way to start the match and really set a different dynamic going forward. We are used to seeing a quick fall in two out of three falls bouts, but usually it's the second fall to quickly even the score. The bout continued with Cesaro quickly gaining control, and despite Zayn attempting to fight back, he would often get caught in one Cesaro's impressive power moves, including a powerbomb after Cesaro had blocked a kick from Zayn. The theme of the second fall would see Cesaro repeatedly attempt to lock in a Chinlock, with Zayn escaping on occasion for a roll up varation for a near fall. With Cesaro eventually hooking the Chinlock in deep, swinging Zayn around, with Zayn unable to break the hold and on the verge of passing out, he just about managed to tap out, giving Cesaro the second fall and evening the match at one fall a piece. Another interesting move in the bout, which would not usually see a submission until the third fall, if at all. Having Zayn tap out to what is usually seen as a rest hold, only worked here because Cesaro locked it in so convincingly and Zayn sold it so well, don't expect to start seeing this in Great Khali matches anytime soon.

So we headed into the final and ultimately strongest fall, with even more power moves from Antonio Cesaro and even more heart shown by Sami Zayn. Cesaro used the spot we've seen him use before when he superplex's an opponent from the apron into the ring, before an attempt to suplex Zayn out of small package attempt was thwarted by Zayn who slipped out of the suplex in a school boy roll up for another near fall. The great thing about this match was that it remembered what had happened before and built upon it, it was essentially variations on a theme in wrestling. Throw in some great set pieces like Zayn flying threw the turnbuckles to hit a tornado DDT onto the floor and you had the perfect recipe for an outstanding wrestling match. The ending once again remembered what had happened else where in the match, with Zayn looking for another tornado DDT, this time using the ropes to springboard into the move, only for Cesaro to show an outstanding feat of strength halting Zayn mid DDT, throwing him onto his shoulder, then up into the air for an awesome European Uppercut, before lifting Zayn up into the Neutralizer to pick up the pinfall victory and his second fall to win the match. After the match had built so well, the ending had to deliver and it did in so many ways, the impressive nature allowed Zayn to come out of the battle still looking strong, whilst keeping Cesaro looking like an absolute beast.

Now, the way Cesaro has been booked on NXT, makes his current situation on the main roster even more upsetting. This week alone we've seen Cesaro lose on Raw in tag team action against The Prime Time Players, before managing Jack Swagger to a loss against The Great Khali on Main Event, and he certainly deserves a lot more. We've seen failed gimmick after failed gimmick head Cesaro's way, from American flag waving Anti-American to Swiss Yodeller to boyfriend of Aksana and Teddy Long love rival, and at the start of The Real American gimmick with Zeb Colter I felt that the tide could be turning for Cesaro, however he now seems to be being punished for Jack Swagger's extra curricular activity and stuck going nowhere once again. He's taken to all his gimmick as well as he could, but they were just never going to get over, if you see a man yodelling you don't do say “I hope this man get's his arse handed to him” you say “I'll probably watch something else for a bit”. This match with Zayn, along with his match against Daniel Bryan a few weeks back on Raw, could be put up against anything WWE has done in the last year and still look great, hopefully WWE realise the talent they have sooner or later. As for Zayn, he was only helped by this series with Cesaro in the eyes of WWE fans, and title bout with Bo Dallas would seem the logical move for the former Generic Luchador.

Best of the Rest (In The World)

Now I can't imagine that when Dolph Ziggler was advertised as appearing on NXT this week, that the first person everyone thought of as an opponent for the former two time World Heavyweight Champion, was Alexander Rusev. We haven't really seen a lot of Rusev since Florida Championship Wrestling morphed into NXT, and he didn't make his television debut until a battle royal at the end of May. Rusev character feels like a bit of a throwback to me, in his unique attire, he does stand out, aided by his size which intrigued me from the outset, how would Ziggler mold with Rusev's style and what kind of story would they have to tell.

I was actually very impressed with Rusev, he works the big foreign heel role very well, with some creative offense, including holding onto the ropes to allow him to deliver some vicious knee strikes to Ziggler's midrift. Continually speak what I imagine is Bulgarian constantly throughout the match, gave him an exotic feel really drawing me into the character, with Ziggler being a great opponent because his selling is so good. Ziggler's speed and precision offense, including a beautiful dropkick, afforded him a way back into the match, eventually allowing him to pick up the victory after Rusev had missed a splash from the top rope, and Ziggler had hit a Zig Zag. It will be interesting to see how Rusev does against someone with less experience and talent as Dolph Ziggler, and if he still looks as impressive as he did here.

The Diva's Championship was also on the line this week in a short but fun bout between Champion AJ Lee and challenger Bayley. Bayley's unique character was a good fit opposite Lee and it was clear that the two had a lot of fun putting on this bout, and that transferred to the viewer. Whilst Bayley has her character nailed on, she still needs work on her in ring work, with a pinfall attempt whilst Lee was under the ropes standing out for me. Following a diving Corkscrew Elbow from Bayley, Lee feigned injury suckering the naïve Bayley in, before hitting a Spin Kick to the gut, and finishing the challenger of with a Shining Wizard for the pinfall victory. The bout was what I expected it to be, telling a good story with the characters meshing together well, although there wasn't a whole lot of wrestling on display, it was still entertaining to see.

CJ Parker continued to appear backstage, photo bombing Tyler Breeze as he got a fan to take a photo of him, it wasn't particularly funny but set up the idea well enough. Parker went onto have his re-debut in NXT later on, against Baron Corbin. Parker has been given a new hippy style gimmick, which is reminscent of Spanky's run as The Brian Kendrick in WWE between 2008 and 2009 in characterisation. The bout ended quickly with Parker picking up the victory with a unique variation of a DDT. The bout was quick and was only really there to serve as a way of showcasing Parker's new gimmick, which looks promising. After the bout, Breeze interupted an interview between Parker and Renee Young, to confront him about the photobomb. It was a bit goofy, but worked for these characters, with Parker eventually going to punch Breeze only for Breeze to quickly escape. I expect more from these two in the coming weeks on NXT.

The Ascension continue to plough through numerous enhancement talent on NXT and this week Conor O'Brian and Rick Victor were in action against Ron Hicks and Michael Zaki. This bout was pretty similar to the contest The Ascension had on 24^th July, as they destroyed Hicks and Zaki with a number of tag team moves used in that bout, including finishing off Hicks with their version of a High Low to allow Victor to get the pinfall victory. It would seem that The Ascension will be getting an NXT Tag Team title shot against Corey Graves & Adrian Neville soon, mainly because they are the only real heel tag team that we've seen on NXT, since The Wyatt Family have left.

Finally...

What did I learn from this weeks NXT?

1. Cesaro and Zayn are two of the best wrestlers in WWE.

2. Alexander Rusev has potential in the Bulgarian Big Man role, if he can perform against opponent not as good as Dolph Ziggler.

3. Alex Riley would be a good commentator, if he didn't constantly keep referring to his storyline with The Miz (It was two years ago Alex)