WWE Monday Night RAW #1253 Review (29th May 2017)

On 29th May, WWE aired the 1253rd episode of Monday Night RAW live on the USA Network from the Bon Secours Wellness Center in Greenville, North Carolina. The show featured Samoa Joe, Finn Balor and Bray Wyatt in a Triple Threat match, former Shield buddies Roman Reigns and Seth Rollins facing off for the first time in nearly a year, Cruiserweight Champion Neville tagging with TJP against his #1 Contender Austin Aries and Gentleman Jack Gallagher as well as The Hardy Boyz, The Miz, Cesaro and Intercontinental Champion Dean Ambrose. But was it any good? Let's take a look.

• Michael Cole and Corey Graves welcomed us to the show on Memorial Day in the US, reminding us that Bray Wyatt, Finn Balor and Samoa Joe will face off in a triple threat and Roman Reigns will battle Seth Rollins tonight. 

Ambrose & Hardy Boyz interrupt Miz TV with Cesaro & Sheamus

A strong opening segment, with a number of different faces getting the opportunity to open the show. The Miz continued to be an utter head magnet as he opened the episode, easily working the Greenville crowd by saying "Don't cheer him" after mentioning WWE Intercontinental Champion Dean Ambrose, leading to the crowd chanting even louder. The interview with Cesaro & Sheamus saw some lovely work by both sides as they bounced off each other and feed each other even more heat, with the tag team duo benefiting from sharing mic time with a man who can get the crowd going nuts by just putting his hand in the air. The rest of the segment was paint-by-numbers stuff, but done well, as Ambrose came out to interrupt, playing it as if it's so unstable he's ready to fight three on one, with Miz taking the bait telling Ambrose to "do the math" (sic), only for RAW Tag Team Champions The Hardy Boyz music to hit and the crowd to go nuts. We close the heels getting chucked out of the ring to send us to break. Lovely stuff. 

Ambrose & Hardy Boyz def. Miz, Cesaro & Sheamus

This was heading towards being a very strong opening match, with some well-paced trios action, until an awkward finish took some of the shine away. Miz and Matt Hardy's closing exchanged looked like neither man was quite sure what they were supposed to be doing as they randomly touched each other before Miz took a Twist of Fate like a swinging neckbreaker. There was however a lot of good work from both sides earlier on in the match as Matt and Ambrose both had spells as the face in peril and Cesaro & Sheamus continued to develop their interesting take on the bruising heel tag team. I particularly liked Ambrose's hot tag, that saw the villains try a number of underhanded tactics to take control only for them to backfire, like Cesaro attempting to stop an Ambrose suicide dive onto Sheamus, only for Jeff Hardy to come flying in with a baseball slide. The build to a hot tag to Jeff was the strongest part of the bout with Cesaro getting a lot of heat for booting Hardy off the apron, meaning Matt's tag had to go to Ambrose. However when it eventually came I don't think it lived up to the work that had been done previously and left the conclusion feeling a little flat, obviously this wasn't helped by the aforementioned exchange between Matt and Miz. 

• Corey Graves showed General Manager Kurt Angle something on his phone that could "ruin" Angle...mysterious. 

Samson def. Evans 

Elias Samson picked up his first pinfall win on RAW, picking up a squash victory over a lad called Zac Evans with a snap swinging neckbreaker. Samson brutalised Evans, bouncing him off the apron, wrapping him around the ringpost before delivering a running knee, a couple of forearms and finishing off with the neckbreaker. Considering Evans got absolutely no offence in this bout was surprisingly long and not only made Samson look credible but also like a complete jeb end for the amount of unnecessary punishment he dished. By the end of the match Samson was getting over with the Greenville crowd who seemed to be initially uninterested in him. The most thought-provoking part of the segment though was Samson's pre-match song in which he made reference to his match with Dean Ambrose last week, signalling that he owes Miz a favour for causing the DQ, which will almost certainly lead to Samson costing Ambrose the Intercontinental Championship at Extreme Rules on Sunday. 

• Bray Wyatt hacked the feed as Samoa Joe was giving an interview with Charly Caruso, saying a series of weird words about angels and demons and things. 

Joe def. Balor and Wyatt

A fun triple threat here that used it's mix of competitors well, told a decent story and worked as a good advert for the 4th June five-way. The structure was paint-by-numbers stuff, but there's a reason the layout has been used so many times. Joe and Wyatt initially both tried to get the other to fight Balor, however when this didn't work and we saw Balor hit a tope conhilo onto both heading into the break and when we came back Joe and Wyatt were working together an in control. You could see where things were heading, but when it arrived at that point, it wasn't any the less enjoyable for it's familiarity. Wyatt turned on Joe, hitting a lariat and pretty soon after, Finn launched into a comeback, that including sending both opponents into the barricade with front dropkicks and the crowd coming unglued. After the comeback came some of the best action of the bout between Joe and Balor, including Finn escaping the Coquina Clutch by running up the turnbuckles and hitting a double stomp, as well as Joe turning a Slingblade into an overhead belly to belly. 

The finish set up something that can be worked with at the PPV as Balor hit Coup de Grace on Wyatt, only for Joe to send Finn into the post and pick up the pin Bray. The finish got over the first fall to the finish idea that will be in play at Extreme Rules, showing how being in the right place at the right time can lead to the victory. This could be use to protect other competitors in the match for a future match with Brock Lesnar down the line and would also make for an effective false finish. The win gives Joe a much needed momentum boost, after two losses to Seth Rollins in the last month and also gives him another string to his bow after mostly winning via submission. Balor looked great through so didn't really need to take the victory here, whilst Wyatt has been protected well since jumping to RAW and has the ability to dust himself off from big losses because of his character and mic ability. 

• Seth Rollins was interviewed by Mike Rome, with a relatively bland promo about his history with Roman Reigns ahead of their match later on. 

Swann def. Dar

Not much to this Cruiserweight match with most of the work for the Mixed Tag Match at Extreme Rules with Sasha Banks joining Rich Swann and Alicia Fox joining Noam Dar already having being done. The two kept things simple with Dar working the arm with a couple of different holds, before a short Swann comeback. Having Banks get involved and knock an interfering Fox off the apron was probably the last touch the feud needed heading into the PPV and anything more would have been overkill and result meant that we saw Banks and Swann could make an effective team. Dar and Swann have potential to produce a great match together, but this wasn't really the time and neither did they have the time for it here. I'm not quite sure how I feel about Banks' ability as a dancer, but it's definitely something that happened.

• Charly Caruso interviewed The Revival, asking them about Enzo Amore's attack last week, bringing up footage of Scott Dawson & Dash Wilder (supposedly out injured) in the building last week...the mystery deepens. 

• They showed highlights of the brilliant Street Fight between Akira Tozawa and The Brian Kendrick on last week's 205 Live, before Big Cass confronted Corey Graves following Graves' insinuating Cass had something to do with Enzo Amore's attack...the mystery deepens. 

• Titus O'Neil picked up a quick victory over Kalisto, winning with a handful of tights as Apollo Crews looked on. 

Bayley: This Is Your Life with Alexa Bliss

Where to even begin with this segment. Bayley: This Is Your Life was absolute car wreck from start to finish. Bless Alexa Bliss for trying to make it entertaining, but it was poorly scripted and unnatural that it was almost physically painful to watch. Bliss is not an actress, so trying to get her to perform an acting segment solo with a couple of extra was a terrible idea on paper and a terrible idea in practice. Bliss looked uncomfortable with the lines she was reading and appeared to be desperately trying to make them fit her character, as she spoke to Mrs. Flapper ("Bayley's former teacher"), as well as "Bayley's ex best friend" and "Bayley's first boyfriend" about how much of a dweeb Bayley was. I'm not sure if in kayfabe these people were actually who Bliss said they were or if they were actors, nothing was ever quite made clear. After ten minutes of Bliss ripping into her for liking wrestling and being a "Daddy's girl", Bayley finally came out and then ended up getting beaten down anyway. Why on earth wouldn't Bayley come out straight away? Was she on the toilet? Well, that's where this segment belonged anyway. 

• Enzo Amore was found unconscious backstage again, with Big Cass furiously telling Kurt Angle it was The Revival and vowing to stay by Amore's side going forward...the mystery deepens. 

Aries & Gallagher def. TJP & Neville 

This bout was all about it's finish, as Cruiserweight Champion Neville tapped out to #1 Contender Austin Aries' Last Chancery just six days before the Greatest Man Who Ever Lived challenges for the King of the Cruiserweights' title at Extreme Rules. Following an Aries hot tag, that included some lovely overhand chops, the two worked a nice sequence of near misses as Neville dodged a missile dropkick and then Aries rolled out of the way of a middle rope Phoenix Splash and slid straight into the submission. The commentators hammered home the meaning of the tap out and the implications for the PPV title bout. Overall though the bout was needlessly long with Jack Gallagher working the face-in-peril role, being mostly worked over by TJP and nothing much of note happening. Take five minutes off this and you've got a much more exciting match that would've made the Cruiserweights stand out from the rest of the roster. The Cruisers need to feel different and at the moment there's nothing distinctive other than the lads being a bit smaller (or in Finn Balor's case the same size) than the main eventers.

• The Goldust and R-Truth feud continued with two rather good promos coming back to back. Both brought the intensity to their movie-themed monologues, getting over their distaste for each other, whilst remaining thoroughly entertaining throughout.

Reigns def. Rollins

An excellent TV main event here as Roman Reigns put away old friend and rival Seth Rollins in a match that may have been better than their PPV effort at Money in the Bank last year. The two kept a great pace throughout their near 20 minute bout, starting with a hot back and forth sequence, that included a standing moonsault from Rollins, before beginning to tell a story that worked to the strengths of both men. The Kingslayer quickly became the babyface of the match, taking a Drive-by that sent him into the ringpost and injured his midriff, whilst Reigns zoned in on the injury and at times came across as a bit of a bully when in control of the match. Rollins sold the injury well throughout, with some strong psychology after being unable to suplex the Big Dog and then later only getting two off a Frog splash after grabbing the ribs. The other thread was Reigns almost constantly attempting to hit the spear, which, of course tied in nicely with Rollins ribs injury, trying it at the start of the match, offering up a nice near fall for Rollins who turned on attempt into a school boy roll-up, ending up crashing into the steps, as well as having one blocked just before the finish. 

The finish was a nice series of near misses and reversal done at pace and concluded with Reigns' finally hitting the spear after dodging Rollins' rainmaker high knee. The pacing of the final few minutes of the bout was great stuff and concluded the episode with a heap of energy heading into the PPV. Reigns victory and his previous win over Finn Balor would seem to point to him not winning the Fatal Five-Way match, as he's been rightfully protected heading in and doesn't particularly need the win. I'd expect he'll have a programme with Brock Lesnar at some point and these victories keep him in a position to challenge for the Universal title. I was pleasantly surprised we didn't see any inference or post-match shenanigans with a cliche show-closing brawl and with the triple threat earlier in the show and the work that all five have done over the past three or four weeks there wasn't really any need for it.  

Finally...

ATPW Scale Rating - 4.78/10

Two quality matches to build the Fatal Five-Way couldn't save this from getting a below average rating. This was mostly caused by the God-awful This Is Your Life segment which I'm still trying to get my head around, as well as the length of Elias Samson squash match and the nothing match between Rich Swann and Noam Dar. Considering we're heading into a PPV I'm not sure this show did enough to make anyone who wasn't going to watch Extreme Rules anyway, watch Extreme Rules on Sunday. There was a number of strong story beats, like Aries tapping out Neville, but for the most part the episode felt complacent and phoned in, in regards to both creative and handful of the performers.

WWE Monday Night RAW #1252 (22nd May 2017) Review

On 22nd May, WWE aired the 1252nd episode of Monday Night RAW live from Van Andel Arena in Grand Rapids, Michigan, with Bray Wyatt vs. Roman Reigns getting Teddy Longed into Wyatt & Samoa Joe vs. Reigns & Seth Rollins and Matt Hardy taking on Sheamus with the opportunity to choose the RAW Tag Team Championship match stipulation for Extreme Rules on the line, as well as appearances from The Miz, Kurt Angle, WWE Intercontinental Champion Dean Ambrose, Paul Heyman and Sasha Banks. But was it any good? Let's take a look.

• The show began with a recap of Kurt Angle making a Fatal Five-Way bout with Roman Reigns, Samoa Joe, Seth Rollins, Bray Wyatt and Finn Balor for Extreme Rules. 

Reigns def. Wyatt via Disqualification 

After a cool moment of Bray Wyatt's signature effect breaking through the recap package and moving straight into Wyatt's entrance at the Van Andel Arena, Wyatt provided our first promo of the night. You can always rely on Bray to bring complete commitment and tonnes of energy to his work on the mic, so it makes sense to utilise him at the top of the show to grab the live crowd and draw the home audience in. I could give or take the content of the promo, which saw Wyatt addressing Universal Champion Brock Lesnar, claiming that the crowd were slaves of the beast and it was Wyatt who would set them free. A Wyatt v Lesnar programme has potential and I guess all five Fatal Five-Way competitors have to set something up with Lesnar "in case they win" at Extreme Rules, but without Lesnar present it's difficult to get particularly into anyone's words at the moment. When Wyatt shifted onto old rival Roman Reigns things got more interesting and the word painting more vivid with Bray professing "What is one silly little yard mean to a man who owns the world?". Reigns quickly answered Wyatt's words and after a short dialogue, RAW General Manager Kurt Angle arrived to book the match to happen next.

The bout didn't last long at all, before Samoa Joe attacked Reigns leading to the disqualification. The few minutes of wrestling was relatively stereotypical fare for the two, featuring plenty of clubbering and big lad strikes. The five minute bout could very well have been a portion of any match the two had during their feud during the second half of 2015 and as someone who enjoyed their matches, I appreciated watching these two chuck each other about for a little while. The DQ finish with Joe walking down the ramp and then locking Reigns in the Coquina Clutch was a little lame, but we've got a Five Way to push so was to be expected. To push the unpredictability (and ironically in quite a predicable fashion) Joe also locked Wyatt in his submission. The crowd was pretty hot for Seth Rollins making the save and getting into it with Joe and we close with Rollins and Reigns looking awkward with each other in the ring as Joe and Wyatt retreated. 

• Kurt Angle did a delayed Teddy Long, telling Reigns and Rollins backstage that they'd face Wyatt & Joe later on tonight in a TAG TEAM MATCH, before putting Elias Samson in a match with Dean Ambrose after The Drifter did some drifting.

• Akira Tozawa picked up a swift victory of Ariya Daivari with a stunning diving senton. They did strange thing of having Michael Cole interview The Brian Kendrick mid-match, with Kendrick staying backstage instead of joining the commentary team.

• Alicia Fox and Noam Dar interrupted Sasha Banks during an interview with Charly Caruso.

Samson def. Ambrose via Disqualification 

After Elias Samson had manged to get a decent bit of heat with his guitar playing hipster act, his debut match with WWE Intercontinental Champion Dean Ambrose was a tepid affair. Samson controlled most the match, with brawling offence and wear-down holds, leaving very little to get excited about. A knee on the apron and Ambrose diving off the top rope into a jumping knee from Samson were the highlights and even those didn't look particularly impressive. The bouts strongest assets were Ambrose's selling, as he looked good when scrapping from underneath against the newcomer, as well as part of The Miz's commentary when he wasn't getting verbally bumped into by Michael Cole. This was the second high profile bout in a row with a DQ finish as Miz came down to the ring after an awkward Lunatic Lariat spot and put the boots to Samson. I'm not behind the gimmick for Miz v Ambrose at Extreme Rules, which will see Ambrose lose the title if he's DQ, so seeing them build it like this (especially after the early DQ) made me groan. It terms of quality this wasn't a great debut match from Samson, but he was booked strong, dominating the Intercontinental Champion and then jumping him from behind post-match.

• Big Cass found Enzo Amore unconscious backstage, before Kurt Angle promised that he'd "get to the bottom of this" as Amore was carried away by paramedic. 

Heyman Confronted Balor 

Moments before Finn Balor's bout with Karl Anderson, Balor found himself face to face with Paul Heyman in a curious segment. Heyman initially interrupted a promo from Balor, by listing the four other members of the Extreme Rules main event and listing the ways in which Brock Lesnar would make them his victim. It was a deliberately placed promo as Heyman slowly walked to the ring, whilst Balor stood listening inside it, holding the interest because I couldn't work out exactly where it was heading or why it was happening. That was until Heyman began to heavily put over Balor and I mean put over as Paul laid it on thick calling Balor "the best in-ring talent in WWE today". It was certainly an interesting way of putting Balor over and having Heyman push him as the only potential threat to Lesnar's title will do the Irishmen no harm. The live crowd seemed to lap it up, especially at any mentions of the "Balor Club", but for me the segment felt a little ham-fisted as it hit us over the head with it's aims and more or less signposted that Finn won't be winning at Extreme Rules.

Balor def. Anderson 

If Heyman's promo was all about pushing Finn Balor, this bout was the physical continuation of that promo. The bout wasn't exactly a squash, as Anderson looked competitive and got a decent near fall off a Spinebuster, but it was clear that with The Club not really doing anything at the moment that this bout was all about making Balor look great. In that aim alone the bout did it's job, as the final flurry with Finn nailing a tope conhilo onto Anderson and Luke Gallows, a slingblade, running front dropkick and Coup de Grace, made Balor look like a world beater, especially because Anderson had previously been presented so strongly. The rest of the bout featured a couple of slick back and forth sequences that showed the pairs familiarity (alongside their BULLET CLUB days, they've also had a run together on the recent European tour) and I got the feeling that under different circumstances Balor and Anderson could've put together something special. There's a parallels to be drawn between this bout and how The Club's mini-feud with Roman Reigns back in February was handled, with this style of match being much more effective in making someone look exceptional, as opposed to the Two-on-One Handicap bouts with DQ endings that the Big Dog got.

Banks def. Fox

It appeared that Sasha Banks had the difficulty set to "Easy" as she managed to defeat Alicia Fox using a signature move in minutes. The match was going fine up until the point Banks won with her diving double knee drop with Fox trapped in the turnbuckle, with The Boss opening things off hot as she locked in the Banks Statement. Noam Dar providing the distraction for Fox to take control looked like it could drive the rest of the bout and we might finally get to see these women go longer than three minutes, but then it was done. The post-match angle with Banks slapping Dar before Fox attacked her rival, finishing up with an Ax Kick would've felt cooler if we hadn't already seen the pair wrestle sub-three minute bouts three weeks in a row on TV. Fox and Dar kissing over a broken Banks (who sold the Ax Kick like a gun-shot) was a nice moment and with the right treatment, there's potential for Fox and Dar to get over huge as more than just a cult thing.

• Kalisto and Apollo Crews had an awkward chat backstage, before Titus O'Neil turned up and booked a match between the two, because he has those powers now.

• Goldust cut a funky promo about lights and gold, after his attack on R-Truth last week, although some of the impact was lessened by WWE having Goldie's theme playing throughout the whole thing. 

• Alexa Bliss continued her hot streak of promos during an interview with Charly Caruso, refusing to feel bad for her Kendo Stick attack to Bayley a week earlier, seemingly relishing in describing the moment.

• A replay of Roman Reigns attacking Braun Strowman two weeks ago, supposedly to keep Strowman in the fans minds until he returns. 

• Kalisto defeated Apollo Crews after Crews' got distracted by Titus O'Neil hamming it up at ringside. The bout did very little for anyone, as The Titus Brand thing continues to feel directionless, although the finish was sweet as Kalisto was able to hit Salida del Sol from a seated position.

Matt Hardy def. Sheamus to choose the stipulation for the RAW Tag Team Title Match at Extreme Rules

After taking a while to get going, Matt Hardy's victory over Sheamus became a decent TV bout, as The Hardy Boyz remained undefeated since their return. The two seemed to struggle to finding their footing early doors, looking to be half a step or so off the pace needed, but were received well, most likely because this was Hardy's first bout in Grand Rapids for seven years. The pair built a simple story of Hardy looking to hit the Twist of Fate multiple times, only for Sheamus to escape, meaning that when Sheamus walked into the move after being distracted by Jeff Hardy jumping off the apron onto Cesaro, it was satisfying for the viewer at home and got a big reaction from the crowd. Whether having The Hardy Boyz almost constantly getting one over Sheamus & Cesaro has been a questionable choice, but if the Extreme Rules bout is handled correctly then it could pay off. Talking of that match, Matt chose a Steel Cage bout for the PPV, which Sheamus & Cesaro sold like it was the end of the world. These four men in a cage has a lot of potential, for both storytelling and highspots, with memories of the Hardyz stepping into the cage with Edge & Christian (Unforgiven 2000) and the Dudley Boyz (Survivor Series 2001) coming to mind.

• ICYMI - The conclusion of Bray Wyatt vs. Roman Reigns was replayed. 

Aries def. Nese 

On it's own, Austin Aries victory over Tony Nese wasn't much, nothing technically wrong, but not a whole lot to show about either. However, when taken as part of the wider story being told between Aries and Cruiserweight Champion Neville, it featured some nice narrative advancement, which can be few and far between when a rivalry has gone as deep as this one. The story of the bout with Aries looking to overcome the knee injury inflicted by Neville last week, initially struggling to lock in the Last Chancery, didn't get fleshed out too much, but it did what it needed to do and laid some building blocks for the Submission match between Aries and the champion at Extreme Rules. I got a kick out of the finish with Aries quickly transitioning from a guillotine choke into a Last Chancery, as after Nese lasted for sometime in the choke, he tapped almost immediately in the chancery. Neville jumping Nese post-match and locking in the Rings of Saturn added more fuel to the fire, as both champion and challenger continued to build momentum towards their blow off match. 

Bliss def. James

A quick victory for Bliss here, in front of a crowd that didn't seem all that interested in what the ladies had to offer. The pair killed the audience from the beginning doing a weird exchange of waist locks that was utterly unconvincing. From then until the finish there was very little to get into, with James' characterisation being all over the place. A forearm and a snap DDT got Bliss the win in the best action of the match. The post-match angle did manage to rouse the crowd as Bayley came out to make the save after Bliss nailed James with a kendo stick. Bayley still being unable to get any revenge on the attack from Bliss last week is a nice thread for the women to pull through to their Kendo Stick on a Pole match at Extreme Rules. I'm still not sure why it has to be on a pole, but it is.

Wyatt & Joe def. Rollins & Reigns 

After a lacklustre show, the main event provided a much needed boost as four top tier talents put on a bloody good tag bout to close the show. The foursome stuck to your basic tag team structure, with a Rollins face shine, Reigns slotting into the Big Dog in peril role, with Wyatt and Joe grounding him and being big bruising bastards, into a wicked hot tag sequence to Rollins, before some miscommunication allowed Joe to lock in the Coquina Clutch and send the Kingslayer to sleep. There was nothing groundbreaking, but all four guys knew what story they were telling and told it bloody well. The narrative of The Destroyers of Worlds (my new cute name for Joe & Wyatt) being able to put their differences aside and work as a team, whilst Reigns and Rollins competed as two separate entities was made clear from the start as Rollins refused to let Reigns start the match to scrap with Wyatt, whilst the heels attacking as a pack was the start of all their periods of dominance. 

The finish riffed off the bouts story, with Joe dodging a Superman Punch leading to Reigns clattering into Rollins and whilst the former WWE Tag Team Champions argued, Wyatt pulled Reigns to the outside, with Joe stalking Rollins before locking in the victory clinching Coquina Clutch. It wasn't clever or flashy, it was just the logical conclusion. The victory gives Joe & Wyatt some momentum that they needed heading into Extreme Rules, whilst Reigns and Rollins have their miscommunication and mutual dislike as a get out clause for the loss. It'll be interesting to see if Wyatt and Joe's partnership is used in the Five-Way as the two joining forces to kick some arse for a bit, before throwing bombs at each other, has the potential to drive such a match. The show closed with Kurt Angle watching at an angle and interruption from Finn Balor resulting in Balor getting a triple threat with Joe and Wyatt next week, as well as a Reigns v Rollins match getting booked. Can't complain with those two bouts on the go-home show for Extreme Rules! 

Finally... 

ATPW Scale Rating - 4.31/10 

There seems to be a lot going on RAW at the moment, but the majority of it isn't getting the time to breath and that was the main problem with this episode for me. The opening segment, Matt Hardy v Sheamus and the main event were the only portions of the show that grabbed me and it's not surprise that these were the three longest segments on the episode. Both Women's matches were poor, with both feeling rushed, whilst Elias Samson v Dean Ambrose didn't do a whole lot for me either. Almost every story that isn't the Extreme Rules main event feels samey, under supported and has a general feel that there's a lack of effort, mainly from creative but from some of the talent also. The Braun Strowman injury has obviously caused issues with creative plans and cannibalising two feuds in Balor v Wyatt and Joe v Rollins to give Reigns something to do (despite those segments being the strongest on the show) has left RAW lacking depth as the post-WrestleMania holding pattern has well and truly taken hold.

WWE NXT #242 Review (Aired - 5th April 2017)

On the 6th of April, WWE aired the 242nd episode of NXT, taped at the Amway Centre in Orlando, Florida on 1st April. This week's episode featured matches filmed before the Takeover special that same night and was main evented by the former CZW Heavyweight Champion Oney Lorcan (née Biff Busick) taking on a mysterious opponent (Spooky). With matches featuring Peyton Royce, Aaliyah, Heavy Machinery and the Bollywood Boyz aswell as Behind the Scenes footage and interviews from the recent Takeover, could it defeat the curse of the Post-Takeover NXT and be anything other than filler? Let's find out...

Match 1:

 Peyton Royce (w/Billie Kay)

def.

Aaliyah

(2:48)

Aaliyah has new entrance music, it's an odd piece of glitchy-pop that at least affirms she is a face now. Nigel McGuinness is to the Iconic Duo what Graves was to Eva Marie by which I mean one step away from dropping to the floor, tearing off his immaculate suit and professing his worship to his Khaleesi(s). Early on Aaliyah controls the action with a combination of some nice clean kicks and decent grappling. Billie and Peyton use the numbers game to gain advantage, Peyton works over Aaliyah nicely showing off her improved heelish mannerisms and a rather pretty rope-drench submission adaptation of her entrance pose. Aaliyah gets a babyface comeback that nearly elicits a reaction from the Orlando crowd, Royce cuts her off again with a big kick and a lovely bridging Suplex for the pin. Not revolutionary stuff but had enough flashes of interest to suggest these two could something much better if given even a full three minutes.

• We're promised exclusive footage from Nakamura v Roode II. Oh joy of joys.

• Asuka has a backstage interview which reveals that she won and is real smug about it. Then she walks off. I get trying to limit her promos to play off her threat and not try to push her second language too far but, really.

• We see some exclusive footage from Almas' instagram. He's hanging out with some women in a bar. Lad.

Match 2:

 Heavy Machinery (Otis Dozovic & Tucker Knight)

Def.

The Bollywood Boys (Harv & Gurv Sihra)

(3:21)

So I think Bollywood Boys have turned heel, or they've just got leather jackets, I'm not sure.

Harv Sihra starts off trying to control the action against big Tucker Knight, he goes off the top rope into a big bear hug from Knight, tag to to Dozovic, they throw the former GFW Tag Team Champion from one Bearhug to another followed a lovely German Suplex from Otis. The crowd are starting to get into this one, then Harv and Gurv start working over Otis in the corner and they go dead again.The Boyz go for double team suplex only for Dozovic to reverse it into a Double suplex, Tucker gets a 'hot' tag, he murders the boys, gives out a little Tugboat "woo woo" splashes both Boyz in the corner before a tag to Dozovic and a finisher which looks like Dozovic does a World's Strongest Slam while Knight does a pile-on like a big lad. The very definition of Tag Team Face Win formula. While Heavy Machinery are surprisingly over already, I really hope we aren't building to Authors of Pain vs Heavy Machinery any time soon.

• Oney Lorcan is interviewed and we find out he doesn't know who his opponent is but he thinks he's going to beat them. Good on ye, lad.

• Paul Ellering flanked by his big slabs of nihilistic meat pledges to create a tag team dynasty. Expect a run-in from Joan Collins to cost them the title at their next defense.

• The Roode-Nakkers II package is very well made but ut turns out that exclusive footage was mostly just Roode walking to the curtains for his entrance.

• Roode is interviewed, he says he did what he said he would and beat Nakamura twice. He promises this is only the beginning, mentions that we're on a glorious ride but no evidence to suggest it's the ultimate thrill ride.

• Drew McIntyre (nee Galloway) is talking backstage about how he's won a big ol' pile of titles all over the world now he's in NXT because he's never won that title. Next week he has a match. Groundbreaking stuff, I know.

Match 3:

Oney Lorcan

def.

 El Vagabondo

(3:40)

Lorcan's mystery opponent turns out to be El Vagabondo, a masked wrestler who'se definitely not Elias 'The Drifeter Samson' despite dressing the same, moving the same and playing the same shitty guitar. Vagabondo is immediately the most over thing on the show, he even gets a pop for his song which Elias Samson never could though I don't know why I'm comparing two such different talents. Lorcan stops his song by putting his hand on the guitar and gets immediate heat, he says everyone knows Vagabondo is the Drifter, the crowd refuse to stop playing along, Lorcan now has Elias Samson heat. Vagabondo, from the off, starts controlling the match using his size and power advantage over Lorcan. After coming back from an advert break that seems to last longer than Royce V Aaliyah, Lorcan manages to break out and spring together a half decent comeback sequence showcasing some decent fire. The match end comes when Lorcan climbing on Vagabondo's back pulls off his mask to reveal it was Samson! It was Samson all alooong! Running Blockbuster from Lorcan in the confusion for the pin. Once again, solid but forgettable work. Credit to McGuinness for selling the match story like a champ in the commentary booth.

• After the match, Elias Samson is dragged out of the arena by a blonde female security guard. I haven't checked the tapes but I have to assume it's the same security who tried to prevent The Gronk climbing the guard rail at 'Mania. If it is, someone sign her for a developmental contract already.

Finally...

In answer to the question I asked at the beginning... no.The post-Takeover show is always filler, something to tide you over until they can actually tape more episodes. That said, even by those low standards, there was a supreme feeling of 'who cares?' to all the events of tonight, with even the backstage interviews giving no new information. All the performers worked hard considering their time but seemingly the only ones capable of getting a reaction out of the 'Mania weekend crowd were Lorcan & Vagabondo and they got the wrong reactions. This is an episode for Elias Samson completists only.

ATPW Scale Rating: 3.33/10

Review: Jozef Raczka

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TV Review: WWE NXT #191 (Crews vs. Samson)

On 6th April 2016, WWE aired the 191st edition of NXT, which had previously been taped on 1st April 2016 at the Kay Bailey Hutchinson Convention Center in Dallas, Texas, USA, on WWE Network. Apollo Crews and Elias Samson looked to settle their differences...but was it any good? Let's find out!

nxt #191 match card

Match 1 - Singles - Apollo Crews vs. Elias Samson 

Commentary: Tom Phillips & Corey Graves

Ring Announcer: Greg Hamilton 

Sponsor: Tapout & JC Penney

fast-forward...Cathy Kelly introduced highlights of American Alpha's NXT Tag Team Championship victory over The Revival, followed up by a brilliantly emotional interview with the new champs...Highlights of Asuka winning the NXT Women's Championship at NXT Takeover: Dallas were next, followed a superbly understated promo from former champ Bayley...Highlights from Austin Aries' win over Baron Corbin on his WWE debut at NXT Takeover: Dallas aired, followed by a top quality promo from Aries...More highlights from NXT Takeover: Dallas followed  showing Finn Balor retaining the NXT Championship over Samoa Joe at NXT Takeover: Dallas was next, followed up by a spot on promo from a knackered looking Balor and Joe refusing to be interviewed...A recap of Elias Samson interrupting Apollo Crews on NXT #190 aired as the pair prepared for their match later in the night...

crews defeats samson

In hindsight, I'm glad this match was put on this show and not included on the NXT Takeover: Dallas live special, for a couple of reasons. Firstly, the match wouldn't have received anywhere near the amount of attention and time it got here, and there's also a strong possibility that had it been on the live special that it would have taken time away from other matches, that were, let's be honest, more interesting that this. I've begin to be turned around on my opinion on Elias Samson over the last couple of weeks and after an impressive performance opposite Johnny Gargano on NXT #189, I feel that Samson upped his game once again. He put together some nice stuff with Apollo Crews, more than holding up his side of the bargain against his more experienced opponent. A couple of little things that he does really drew me into the bout, with his facial expressions in particular standing out. They made him look like an utter bellend and made me want to see Crews hit him in the face. Lovely stuff (not my words, the words of Shakin' Stevens)

Whilst probably won't live long in the memory, what made Crews vs. Samson so enjoyable to watch was just how hot the crowd was for both guys. Samson's pre-match song got him a load of heat with Dallas, allowing Crews to get a big pop on his entrance and the two just ran with it from there. Samson kept being a nob and Crews always had his funky offence to pull out if given the space. Best example of this was Samson trying to fuck off mid-match and Crews saying "Nah m8" and nailing his rival with moonsault. Crews finished things off with a bicycle kick and his Spin-Out Powerbomb to seemingly bring this short feud to a close. With Crews debuting on Monday Night RAW just two days earlier, it will be interesting to see just how much we see of the One Man Nation on NXT going forward, whilst Samson will need some re-building after two straight losses. 

nakamura vs. zayn aftermath

Sami Zayn and Shinsuke Nakamura went to war at NXT Takeover: Dallas and just as the fans shouted "Fight Forever" this show featured the first of what is surely to be many replays of the bout stellar action over the coming weeks, months and years. As usual a great production on the highlight video from WWE, however I still think it's difficult to give the match justice in anything but it's full form. Go and watch it now! Both men gave interviews to close the show. Zayn's underdog character came across nicely as he seemed to suggest that we'd be seeing less of him on NXT, whilst strongly putting over Nakamura. The King of Strong Style had most of the talking done for him by former WWE Crusierweight Champion Funaki, but his closing line set the scene for the weeks to come and summed up his appearance in Dallas. The King of Strong Style has arrived! 

finally...

atpw scale rating - 4.25/10

Obviously with this show being mostly a recap for NXT Takeover: Dallas it had a bit of an impact on the show's rating. With so many highlights packages placed back to back, you'd be forgiven for thinking that this weeks so was completely missable. That being said, Apollo Crews vs. Elias Samson was a very watchable match, that showed both men could own it on a big stage. It was a shame that WWE decided not to tape more action for this week's show, as they have previously done at NXT Takeover: Brooklyn and NXT Takeover: London, just to give the show a bit more beef.