Retro Review // WWE Judgment Day 2004

May 2004 – The Frankie/Eamon debacle was dominating the music charts, Friends aired its last ever episode and WWE's SmackDown brand was promoting Judgment Day. The show was promoted around three singles matches, with a lot of big name talent...and Rene Dupree. Dupree was set to challenge John Cena for his newly won United States Championship, whilst Booker T went head to head with The Undertaker and the newly rechristened John “Bradshaw” Layfield found himself with an opportunity for Eddie Guerrero's WWE title. Whilst the undercard didn't appear to offer all that much, there was potential for a good PPV if the top matches could deliver...but did they? Lets take a look. 

So, yeah, the show begins with the traditional video package...but this one takes on a much darker tone in retrospect and actually becomes a little hard to watch as it focuses on the theme of Judgement (because it's Judgment Day obvs). You're probably wondering what makes this dark, that would be the heavy focus on Eddie Guerrero as the voice over says “Is there actually life after death? Or are the memories we create here the only true after life?” In May 2004, this wouldn't have meant all that much (although I still feel it would've felt unnecessarily over-the-top), but considering Guerrero passed away less than a year and half later, watching the footage in May 2018 is a little uncomfortable. The open also included John “Bradshaw” Layfield, Booker T, The Undertaker, Rene Dupree and John Cena.

Our commentary team of Michael Cole & Tazz welcomed us to the Staples Center in Los Angeles, California, after some pyro and what have you. Hugo Savinivich & Carlos Cabrera were there to provide Spanish commentary, good lads. 

Tag Team Match - Rey Mysterio & Rob Van Dam vs. The Dudley Boyz (Bubba Ray & D-Von)

This was a fun, well-booked opener, that played to it's strengths and despite going a little too long in this reviewer's opinion, managed to keep the Staples Center hot and behind the ultra babyface duo of Rey Mysterio & Rob Van Dam throughout. The Dudley Boyz dominated the majority with plenty of intensity and heely tactics, with Bubba Ray in particular shining as he repeatedly distracted the ref to do something dastardly. Bubba's character work was on point here, as he showed glimpses of what would become his Bully Ray character in TNA many years later and it was clear from this that he had the most potential for a singles run. Mysterio & RVD are a fun team and the brief flashes of offence from them provide just enough to buoy the bout at the right times, whilst also both selling the beating they take from the Dudleyz well. There's a couple of instances of awkardness, like a poorly conceived monkey flip from RVD to Bubba Ray and an overall lack of cohesion from the Dudley Boyz, who appear to operate as two singles wrestlers rather than the well-oiled machine that you'd expect at this point. However, the finishing stretch features a couple of nice near falls and the highlight of the match as RVD pops Mysterio straight up into a frankensteiner to D-Von. Probably not quite good enough to go out of your way to check out on it's own, but it works as the curtain jerker and the Staples Center loved everything Mysterio & RVD had to offer.

Next Pay-Per-View – At Great American Bash on 27th June, Rey Mysterio defended the Cruiserweight Championship (which he won on the 17th June SmackDown) against Chavo Guerrero, Rob Van Dam got a shot at John Cena's United States Championship in a Fatal Four-way, whilst The Dudley Boyz battled The Undertaker in the one and only Concrete Crypt match as the main event. 

A very young and oddly dressed Josh Mathews hosted a weird interview in Booker T's lockeroom, that for some reason was filled with candles, concluding with Booker revealing that a mysterious pouch will help him beat the Undertaker in their match later on the show. Booker's performance actually wasn't all that bad, but the gimmick is stupid and has very little to do with anything that he said.

Some shots of the outside of the Staples Center, which was bathed in sunlight on what looks like a lovely afternoon all round.

This show continues to get weirder as SmackDown General Manager Kurt Angle arrived in what I can only describe as a contraption, pushed out by Luther Reigns, with Angle rising up into the air whilst sitting in a wheelchair with a French flag on the back. Angle proceeded to cut a cheap heat promo on Los Angeles, ending by wishing an earthquake on the city, before calling out Torrie Wilson and telling her if she lost her match with Dawn Marie she'd be fired...this was apparently because Angle had blamed Wilson for the injury he'd suffered at the hands of the Big Show. I'm not familiar with the angle, but it sounded pretty lame. 

Singles Match – Torrie Wilson vs. Dawn Marie

This match is trash, pure and utter trash. Apart from swathes of sloppy strikes and awkward reversals, the “highlight” of the match was Wilson attempting to hold the tights on pinfall (despite being a babyface) and “accidentally” revealing Marie's arse to the Staples Center. This gets a massive pop. Despite their being a clear storyline to be told, with Wilson being thrown straight into a career-threatening match against a woman who had previously shagged her Dad to death, the only thing that garners a reaction is the sight of woman's (almost) bare backside. Someone should let this crowd know about the internet or indeed actual women. If you ever want to show someone an example of how far women's wrestling has come in WWE over the last 15 years, this is probably a good place to start. 

Next PPV – The Great American Bash would see Torrie Wilson's momentum halted as she lost to Sable, whilst Dawn Marie wouldn't return to PPV until October's No Mercy where she'd tag with The Dudley Boyz in a losing effort against Charlie Haas, Miss Jackie & Rico. 

Whilst surrounded bottles of champagne, John “Bradshaw” Layfield cut a promo on America, with strong xenophobic overtones, before ending by claiming that he will be victorious over Eddie Guerrero later on. 

Singles Match – Mordecai vs. Scotty 2 Hotty

The ludicrously dressed Mordecai's first of just three broadcast WWE bouts saw the 6 foot 3 Memphian squash former WWF Light Heavyweight Champion Scotty 2 Hotty. If this had been on an episode of SmackDown it would've been a decent introduction to Mordecai as he looks pretty impressive at points, showing good intensity and has a couple of inventive spots like a sneaky submission hold around the ring post. But this is PPV and a match like this really has not place on an event that people are paying for. The highlight was a short Scotty comeback that got a massive pop from the crowd as he hit a superkick that busted open Mordecai's lip. The Crucifix powerbomb that Modercai wins with is a lame choice as finisher and nowhere near the best incarnation of the move. 

Next PPV – Mordecai took on Hardcore Holly at The Great American Bash, whilst Scotty 2 Hotty wouldn't be back on PPV until January as he took part in the 2005 Royal Rumble, with this bout being his final PPV singles match.

Jacqueline presented Chavo Guerrero with some underwear backstage, whilst Chavo Classic was seen with his trousers around his ankles for some reason. 

WWE Tag Team Championship Match – Rico & Charlie Haas © (w/ Miss Jackie) vs. Hardcore Holly & Billy Gunn

This really was a match of two halves, beginning with some dated homophobic comedy and concluding with a rather good closing sequence. The first six minutes of the match was bad comedy, which with 2018 vision is not a lot of fun to watch, as everyone seems afraid of the effeminate Rico, who constantly feels up his opponents. Basically, Rico was rehashing the Goldust gimmick and not doing so all that brilliantly, but it has to be said that the Staples Center seemed to lap up all the various sexual positions that the competitors fell into. 2004 was a world away in more ways than one it seems. Also why was Billy Gunn so afraid of Rico now? It's like Billy & Chuck has been retconned. The beginning is made all the more frustrating by the fact that the finish features some of the best work on the show so far, with all four men delivering high quality back and forth action, as the momentum changes repeatedly, before Rico nails Holly with a superkick just before Holly can hit an Alabama Slam on Haas. If the company had been more focused on putting on good wrestling than telling a bad joke, then this could have been a very satisfying ten minutes. 

Next PPV – After dropping the Tag Team titles to the Dudley Boyz on 17th June SmackDown, Charlie Haas would compete in a singles match with Luther Reigns at The Great American Bash, whilst Rico would wait until No Mercy in October for the aforementioned six person tag match, which would turn out to be his final PPV match with WWE. Billy Gunn and Hardcore Holly would both compete in singles matches at Great American Bash, against Kenzo Suzuki (Gunn's last ever one on one match on a WWE PPV) and Mordecai respectively. 

A quick backstage promo from The Undertaker and Paul Bearer that really offered up nothing of note.

The commentary team discussed how much “voodoo” Booker T would have to bring in order to defeat The Undertaker later on. Fuck off. 

Highlights of Chavo Classic beating Jacqueline on SmackDown and Jacqueline pulling Classic's trousers down after the match. Fuck off. 

WWE Cruiserweight Championship Match – Chavo Guerrero (w/ Chavo Classic) vs. Jacqueline (C) 

This was lame. I hated pretty much everything that happened here, from the counterproductive gimmick of Guerrero having one arm tied behind his back to the presentation of Jacqueline to the multiple interference spots from Classic in the finish. No one came out looking good, no one got any extra heat, the Cruiserweight title looked like a joke and I wanted to scratch my eyes out with a rusty spoon. I don't want to talk anymore about it. 

After the match, Chavo Guerrero cut a short promo about something, before Chavo Classic kicked Jacqueline in the gut. Brilliant. Well done.

Next PPV – Chavo Guerrero would drop the Cruiserweight title to Chavo Classic on the SmackDown following this PPV (in a three way that also included Spike Dudley), with Classic later dropping the belt to Rey Mysterio. At The Great American Bash, Guerrero received a shot at Mysterio's title. Jacqueline would be released by WWE the following month, eventually resurfacing in TNA in November, facing Trinity at Victory Road.  Jacqueline would make her WWE PPV return 14 years later at the 2018 Royal Rumble. 

A quick package lets us know that Rene Dupree and John Cena are feuding because Dupree hates the United States and also for some reason, Torrie Wilson. The highlight of their feud seemed to be Dupree powerbombing Cena through the announce table. 

John Cena got to do a little rap before his match, which was not great and pretty much buried Dupree, but was over with the LA crowd. 

WWE United States Championship Match - John Cena © vs. Rene Dupree

Not a classic at all here, as Rene Dupree showed us why this was his one and only one on one WWE PPV match. The French Phenom looked sloppy when taking and receiving offence for pretty much the whole bout, whilst the early exchanges were particularly poor as Dupree struggled to get over the top rope on a clothesline spot, before taking a weird looking bump into the turnbuckle off an Irish whip. Whilst Dupree would later hit a number of big moves, including a spinebuster, DDT and a clunky neckbreaker, the Frenchman either didn't cover Cena or was slow to the cover, which made the then 20 year old grappler come out of the match looking like a bit of chump. Whether this was purposefully done to help John Cena, I'm not sure, but it certainly didn't help the match. For his part, Cena looked competent, but it would be stretch to say that the Massacusettsan appeared to have anywhere near the star potential that he'd develop in coming months and years, although he was notably over with the LA audience (although they appear to be happy with what has been a pretty awful PPV so far, so lets not trust their reactions anymore). The highlight was a big spot that saw Dupree dodge a crossbody while on the apron, sending Cena over the top and to the floor and even this didn't make a whole load of sense if you thought about it for more than half a second. It looked cool though, so there's that.

Next PPV – Both Cena and Dupree would be involved in a Four-way match for Cena's US title at The Great American Bash. 

Kenzo Suzuki is coming to SmackDown and he tells us so in Japanese, I imagine. 

The package for The Undertaker vs. Booker T showed once again how inept the SmackDown creative department was at the time as whilst the storyline appeared to initially be run of the mill as Booker attempted to establish himself after jumping from RAW to SD, it quickly devolved into Booker enlisting the help of a voodoo priestess and putting dirt from a graveyard into a bag. Why? 

Singles Match – The Undertaker (w/ Paul Bearer) vs. Booker T

This would be a poor match if anyone was involved, but considering you have two top level talents in here, it makes for an even more painful watch. The gimmick that Booker has a bag of dirt that he keeps rubbing on himself for somekind of advantage is bad enough, but when you consider that it gives Booker absolutely no help, even when he resorts to lobbing the dirt into the Deadman's eyes it produces some of the most mind-numbing action either man has ever been involved in. It's clear that neither guy gives a shit about the match, with The Undertaker in particular half-arsing his performance, no-selling his leg after Booker spent some time on it, whilst also struggling with his ring positioning on a number of occasions. Both men do shit looking version of their signature holds for the finish of what must be considered some of the least inspired work of either man's career.

Next PPV – At Great American Bash, The Undertaker would face The Dudley Boyz in the main event, the first ever and indeed only, Concrete Crypt match, whilst Booker T would be involved in the four-way bout for the United States Championship. 

John “Bradshaw” Layfield's rise up the card was the main thrust of the promo package for the main event, until the despicable angle that saw Eddie Guerrero's mother “suffer a heart attack” at a live event after being confronted by JBL. Fuck off. Who is booking this shit? SmackDown was a pile of shit at this point and I'm glad I'm only watching this PPV and not sitting through what looks like a terrible time to be a fan of the blue brand.

JBL proceeded to cut a promo about Mexico being a shithole and wanting to put Eddie Guerrero on a raft back home (despite Guerrero being from El Paso, Texas), whilst also offering Guerrero's mother a job as his maid. Eugh. This doesn't make me hate the character or want to see him get his comeuppance, it just makes me cringe and want to watch anything else. 

Singles Match for WWE Championship – John “Bradshaw” Layfield vs. Eddie Guerrero © 

Okay, so this match is remembered for one thing and one thing only. Which is, of course, JBL nailing one of the dirtiest chair shots in WWE history and Eddie Guerrero slicing his head to fuck in a horrendous bladejob. More on that in a moment, lets skim over the rest of the bout first, even if it is pretty inconsequential stuff. There was some firey brawling early on and a botched spot in the mid-way point that leads to some awkwardness as the two, quite surprisingly, struggle to improvise their way back to where they need to be. That botch adds a lot of time that the match really doesn't need, as I feel a quicker match that escalated quickly to the chair shot would have been more fitting to the rivalry that had been built around JBL hating Mexico and almost killing Eddie's Mom, rather than JBL whacking on about six chinlocks. I guess the reason this had to go so long is that neither of the other featured matches went much over ten minutes and the pair were forced to kill time.

Let's talk about that blood baybeeeeeee. Because it is fucking horrific and super uncomfortable to watch at various times, meaning that this match is not one for anyone a little squeamish. That's without mentioning some of the nastiest chairshots that the WWE has ever seen being thrown by both men. The blood however does create some wonderful visuals, improve the strength of any near fall that JBL has on Latino Heat and make Guerrero's comeback an absolute experience to witness. Seriously though, Guerrero hulking up after kicking out of a Clothesline from Hell and a JBL bomb, whilst covered in, and dripping, blood is a moment that is so ridiculous that somehow it works. The crowd goes absolutely nuts for their hero as he refuses to lie down for a men who has criticised his heritage and people. Therefore, it's difficult not to say that the finish of the bout itself comes across as more than a little lame, as after multiple ref bumps, Guerrero nails JBL in the goolies and then clobbers him with the WWE title belt for a DQ finish. It makes logical sense that Guerrero couldn't see another way out, but couldn't bare to lose to JBL, but the fact that Eddie would never manage a victory over the man that basically caused his Mom a heart attack really doesn't sit right. 

The post-match attack makes up for the crappy finish somewhat as Guerrero went mad on JBL, with a pair of brutal unprotected chair shots and a Frog Splash, before the two are eventually separated by a number of WWE officials, including Fit Finlay, Arn Anderson, Dean Malenko and Steve Keirn.

Next PPV – Layfield would get a second chance at the WWE Championship as he got a rematch with Guerrero at the Great American Bash, this time in a Texas Bullrope match. 

This is not a good PPV, not a good PPV in the slightest. The only match I'd recommend going and checking out is the main event, because I think there's more merit to that bout than simply seeing the chair shot and brutal bladejob in a YouTube clip. There's moments in both the opening tag and the Tag title bout, but outside of that there's nothing on this show, as two of the top three matches fall flat, especially The Undertaker vs. Booker T clash. However, match quality isn't my biggest problem with this show. My biggest problem is that beyond the opening match, every single match on the card has an element of sexism, racism, homophobia or xenophobia, that (according to the crowd reactions from LA in 2004) has not aged very well at all. It feels like the only way the creative team knew how to get heat was to alienate elements of their own fanbase and the only way they knew how to get a reaction was to use lazy poorly conceived stereotypes. There's stuff on this show made me cringe and will I'm sure make others feel even more uncomfortable. Don't waste your time with Judgment Day 2004, lads. 

For an alternative look at this event, check out our good pal Marc Pearson's review from his 10 Years Ago series. 

Next time - WCW Slamboree 1993 

WWE 24: WrestleMania Monday Blu-Ray Review

THE GREAT HOME VIDEO CATCH-UP CONTINUES! 

WWE 24: WrestleMania Monday has been out in the UK since the start of April from all the usual outlets and has the WWE 24 episode, WrestleMania Monday as it's main feature. Having aired on the WWE Network on 27th March, this is the first time that an episode of WWE 24 (which has previously looked at behind the scene details of each WrestleMania since 30, Roman Reigns, Daniel Bryan's retirement amongst other topics) has been released, so it will be interesting to see how the set does and how this effects future releases. Alongside hour-long special, the Blu-Ray edition has twenty one matches and moments from the RAW after WrestleMania including the likes of John Cena, CM Punk, Chris Jericho, Shawn Michaels, Edge and more.

But is it any good? Let's take a look. 

24: WrestleMania Monday Documentary

If you've got the WWE Network, the chances are pretty high that you've watched a WWE 24 since the series debuted in January 2015, so you should know the formula by now, with this episode being no different. The show covers the day leading up to Monday Night RAW at the American Airlines Center in Dallas, Texas, immediately following WrestleMania 32, focusing on the journey's of Enzo & Cass, Apollo Crews, AJ Styles, Cesaro, Zack Ryder and Maryse as well covering Karl Anderson & Luke Gallows backstage contract signing. All four of the main stories offer interesting tales, each compelling and engaging on their own levels, delving into what brought those names to that point in their career and their motivations. Each story carries it's screen time well, with perhaps their even being an argument for the Cesaro and Ryder stories deserving more focus, but overall the mix of faces and narratives creates a vibrant and busy documentary. The time spent on the origin of the super hyper RAW after Mania crowds and a handful of moments ties the whole package together well, with the likes of Daniel Bryan, Fandango, Paige, Goldberg and Dolph Ziggler providing a nice insight into their memorable time's on various post-Mania RAW's. 

The hour-long episode on it's own is well worth checking out if your interested into what goes into making a show like the one at American Airlines Center.

The Matches 

We begin in 1995 with a massively physical WWF World Women's Championship match as Alundra Blayze and Bull Nakano (in her last match with WWF), throw big moves at each other, before Bertha Faye [Rhonda Singh] makes her debut. From the same episode, a segment with Sycho Sid turning on Shawn Michaels during a Vince McMahon interview is bizarrely cut off in the middle of the break, meaning that majority of the footage is then shown windowed the following week's RAW, with Diesel making the save. Mankind [Mick Foley]'s WWF debut in 1996 in quick squash with Bob Holly [Hardcore Holly] is an odd watch as the new character hadn't quite settled. Jumping to '98 and we have a red-hot "Stone Cold" Steve Austin, coming straight off taking the WWF World Heavyweight title from Shawn Michaels, interview with Vince McMahon, which inevitably ends with a Stone Cold stunner and the Syracuse crowd losing all of their shits. From the same episode is X-Pac's WWF return, as he's introduced as a new member of D-Generation X by Triple H, leading to a big ol' shoot on Eric Bischoff, Hulk Hogan and WCW. 

Into the new millennium and we have a European title bout between Chris Jericho and Eddie Guerrero, which is notable for Chyna's turning on Y2J, but isn't on the same level matches in WCW three years earlier. '02 provides a wonderful segment with Hollywood Hulk Hogan and The Rock basking in the glory of their night the match earlier, both controlling a rowdy crowd and giving them exactly what they wanted. Kevin Nash and Scott Hall's reply isn't quite as fun and Hall especially seems a little lost, but once Rocky and the Hulkster starting turning their shooters on their new rivals it's golden. Brock Lesnar's debut, alongside with Paul Heyman, interrupting a Hardcore title match between Maven and Al Snow, that had already been interrupted by Spike Dudley, is a cool moment that makes Brock look like a beast straight off the bat. From the next year we have Steve Austin getting fired by Eric Bischoff, to storyline signal Austin's in-ring retirement, which in comparison to later retirements of Ric Flair and Shawn Michaels is, at best, uncomfortable to watch. Kane and Rob Van Dam winning the WWE World Tag Team titles from Lance Storm & Chief Morley [Val Venis] in a Three Way Elimination match with The Dudley Boyz is a decent jaunt, with a cool story and the Seattle crowd being super into Kane & RVD as a team. Completing a trifeca of '03 efforts, Goldberg debuts by spearing the shit out The Rock, as both men are booked perfectly and excel in their roles. 

There's no space for the brilliant 2004 segment with Christian and Trish Stratus, so we're onto '05 where we have ignore that Chris Benoit and Edge had a barn-burner and watch a solid and energetic Intercontinental Championship three-way with Shelton Benjamin defending against Chris Jericho and Christian. It's then a brilliant promo from Shawn Michaels as he interrupts John Cena in 2007, and whilst they tease a potential title rematch, Jonathan Coachman, the bastard that he is, makes them defend their WWE World Tag Team titles in a battle royal instead. Both battle royals from that show are included, with the first seeing Cena & Michaels take on Chris Masters & Kenny Dykstra, Cryme Tyme, Deuce N' Domino, The New Breed's Elijah Burke & Matt Striker, Eugene & Jim Duggan, The King's Court's King Booker & Finlay, ECW Original's Rob Van Dam & Sabu and The Highlanders in a generic brawly battle royal, with a cool finish. The second match includes Brian Kendrick & Paul London, Chavo Guerrero & Gregory Helms, Dave Taylor & William Regal, The Hardy Boyz, Johnny Nitro & The Miz, The New Breed's Kevin Thorn & Marcus Cor Von, Lance Cade & Trevor Murdoch, ECW Originals' The Sandman & Tommy Dreamer and Val Venis & Viscera for another 2007 nostalgia mid and lower card buzz, featuring confusing booking for Michaels and Cena and an awkward finish.  

Ric Flair's retirement speech from 2008 is wonderful, even with the slightly tainting factor of the fact he'd go on to face the likes of Frankie Kazarian, James Storm and Matt Morgan for TNA a few short years later. It's difficult to not be touch by how touched Flair is as Triple H brings a procession the likes of John Cena, Chris Jericho, Batista, the future Charlotte Flair and Ricky "The Dragon" Steamboat out to send Ric's tear ducts into overdrive, although having past adversaries like Sting, Roddy Piper, Dusty Rhodes, Randy Savage or Hulk Hogan would've made it even better. A decent '09 Lumberjack match between Carlito & Primo and The Miz & John Morrison over the Unified WWE Tag Team Championship is probably the best bout to set on that point, although the most fun probably comes from working out who some of the Lumberjacks are. John Cena and The Rock are superb opposite each other, as they set-up their WrestleMania XXVIII bout a year early, in front of hotter than hot Atlanta crowd in '11. Whilst both kill it on the mic, throwing barbs back and forth, the conclusion with them fending off an attack from The Corre (Wade Barrett, Justin Gabriel, Heath Slater & Ezekiel Jackson) is unnecessary here. Flash forward a year and John Cena has just lost to The Rock, enter Brock Lesnar, add the feeling that RAW after Mania is becoming a "thing" and you've got a magic slice of TV. 

'13 offers us two moments, firstly Dolph Ziggler's Money in the Bank cash-in on Alberto Del Rio which has lost some of it's magic four years on, but the pop that Here to Show the World gets is still something special. Then it's onto Fandango v Kofi Kingston, which is all about the crowd kicking off the "Fandagoing" Revolution, rather than the match and Chris Jericho's assault on our hero. Ultimate Warrior's return to RAW in '14 and final public appearance provides a spine-tingling promo, less than 24 hours before Warrior passed it's almost prophetic in nature at points.  The same episode has Paige's main roster debut, as she interrupts an entertaining speech from AJ Lee, however their match isn't as strong as it should have been (with the same probably being true for Paige's entire main roster run, now I come to think of it)

Things really pick up in '15 as Daniel Bryan and Dolph Ziggler have a cracking wrestling match, full of strikes, wrestling and near falls in what is currently Bryan's penultimate TV singles match. It battles for match of the night with a stellar United States title match as John Cena defends against Dean Ambrose at the beginning of the Open Challenge gimmick. It's much more of a WWE-style contest with big money moves and false finishes, but just as fun as the previous bout. From the event featured in the documentary, a pair of well-handled promos lead us into Zack Ryder putting his Intercontinental title up against The Miz in an extremely satisfying match. It didn't make any Match of the Year polls, but it builds well to the conclusions as Zack's Dad gets involved and Maryse returns and set the wheels in motions for the wonderful run that Miz is still on to this day. The regular content concludes with the marvellous Fatal Four-Way #1 Contender's match with "The Phenomenal" AJ Styles, Chris Jericho, Kevin Owens and Cesaro, as the four pool their talents to create some breath-taking action in the squared circle. Paced perfectly with everyone on top of their games, both in terms of character work and grappling, this is the best match across the two discs.

Blu-Ray Exclusives 

Our exclusives begin in '98 with Faarooq being removed from the Nation of Domination after The Rock walks out on a curiously booked tag match against "The World's Most Dangerous Man" Ken Shamrock and "The Lethal Weapon" Steve Blackman. The Spirit Squad (Kenny [Dykstra] & Mikey [Mondo]) challenge for The Big Show & Kane's World Tag Team titles in '06 in a short, uninteresting bout. A match billed as a "WrestleMania All-Star" match more than lives up to it's billing in '09 as John Cena, CM Punk, Jeff Hardy, Rey Mysterio & Ricky "The Dragon" Steamboat tag up against Chris Jericho, Edge, Kane, The Big Show and Matt Hardy, bringing together a number of storylines from the previous evening. The obvious standout is the unbelievable performance of the 55 year old Steamboat, as he keeps pace with the likes of Jericho and Edge and gives the match a character and watch-ability that might have been lacking almost ten years on without.

Perhaps surprisingly kept as an Exclusive is Shawn Michaels '10 retirement speech, which is, at least, on par with Ric Flair's two years earlier. Kept much more personal with only an appearance from Triple H on the entrance ramp, Michaels addressing the crowd has probably retained more value than the Nature Boy's monologue and still holds the ability to have an impact as HBK puts over the audience for believing in him, even when he didn't. An Intercontinental Championship match with Wade Barrett and The Miz is really only notable for the crowd's desire to boo a than bizarrely babyface Miz, as even with the title switch it's a nothing match. Alexander Rusev's debut over Zack Ryder in '14 is followed up by Enzo & Cass debuting two years later, with Enzo Amore running throwing bombs at The Dudley Boyz on the microphone in front of a crowd that absolutely adores the act.

Finally...

ATPW Scale Rating - 6.73/10 

A strong release here, that intrigues with it's concept and then delivers by adding to the strong documentary with a good mixture of matches and moments. All the major post-WrestleMania happening are here, as well as a few that might have slipped the memory or initially went underrated in the hustle and bustle of Mania weekend. For such a limiting pool to fish from, the returns are much more hit than miss, whilst those misses mostly have some nostalgia or reason for being included. My only qualm is that I feel more could have been done to enhance the Home Video release of the documentary, with perhaps extra interviews or deleted scenes, that would have validated any potential purchase, when the doc is already on the WWE Network. The same could've been said for individual interviews or special commentary for the matches included, but WWE doesn't seem interested in adding value to their Home Video content at the moment. 

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Blu-Ray Review: WWE TLC: Tables, Ladders and Chairs 2015 (Reigns vs. Sheamus)

WWE TLC: Tables, Ladders and Chairs 2015 is out on DVD and Blu-Ray now in the UK. You can order here at WWEDVD.co.uk and all other reputable Home Video stockists. Broadcast live on PPV (and on the WWE Network) from the TD Garden in Boston, Massachusetts, USA on 13th December 2015. The show features Sheamus defending the WWE World Heavyweight Championship against Roman Reigns in a Tables, Ladders and Chairs match in the main event. The Blu-Ray edition includes either other matches featuring the likes of The Wyatt Family, The Dudley Boyz, The New Day, The Lucha Dragons, Alberto Del Rio, Jack Swagger, Tommy Dreamer, Rhyno and The Usos in prominent bouts. Commentary is provided by John "Bradshaw" Layfield, Michael Cole, Jerry "The King" Lawler, Xavier Woods Byron Saxton, Booker T, Rich Brennan & Kevin Owens.

tlc: tables, ladders and charis 2015 blu-ray match listing

Match 1 – WWE Tag Team ChampionshipTriple Threat Team Ladder – The New Day: Big E & Kofi Kingston © with Xavier Woods vs. The Lucha Dragons: Kalisto & Sin Cara vs. The Usos: Jey Uso & Jimmy Uso

Match 2 – Singles – Rusev with “The Ravishing Russian” Lana vs. Ryback

Match 3 – WWE United States Championship Chairs – Alberto Del Rio © vs. “A Real American” Jack Swagger

Match 4 – Tag Team Tables Elimination – Rhyno, Tommy Dreamer & The Dudley Boyz: Bubba Ray Dudley & D-Von Dudley vs. The Wyatt Family: Braun Strowman, Bray Wyatt, Erick Rowan & Luke Harper

Match 5 – WWE Intercontinental Championship – Kevin Owens © vs. Dean Ambrose 

Match 6 – WWE Diva's Championship – Paige vs. Charlotte © with Ric Flair

Match 7 – WWE World Heavyweight Championship Tables, Ladders and Chairs – Roman Reigns vs. “The Celtic Warrior” Sheamus © 

Match 8 – Singles – Sasha Banks with Team B.A.D.: Naomi & Tamina vs. Becky Lynch (Taken from WWE TLC: Tables, Ladders & Chairs 2016 Kick-Off)

Match 9 – WWE Intercontinental Championship #1 Contender's Men's Triple Threat – Tyler Breeze with Summer Rae vs. Dolph Ziggler vs. Dean Ambrose (Taken from WWE Thursday Night Smackdown #849)

main feature

TLC: Tables, Ladders and Chairs 2015 begins with a brilliant three-way ladder match with The New Day's Big E and Kofi Kingston putting the WWE Tag Team Championships on the line against The Lucha Dragons and The Usos. Whilst one particular moment will get replayed for years and years to come, the whole match is choc-full of world-class spots utilising the toys available to produce car crash of a bout, in the very best sense of the phrase. The only let-down for me is flat finish that doesn't come close to matching any of the action across the previous twenty minutes. 

Rusev and Ryback then put together a decent clash, working surprisingly well together in physical outing. Again the bout is hampering by an overly complicated and theatrical finish. A United States Championship defense for Alberto Del Rio against Jack Swagger produces a strong Chairs match in one of ADR's best matches since returning to the company in October. Lots of sweet looking chair shots and some wonderful selling from ADR makes for pleasant viewing, even if the duo fail to keep the entire crowd involved. 

An elimination tables match pitting The Wyatt Family (Braun Strowman, Bray Wyatt, Erick Rowan and Luke Harper) against The Dudley Boyz (Bubba Ray & D-Von), Rhyno & Tommy Dreamer has a few well-timed table spots, but unfortunately ends up being a bit of a drag. Too much mis-communication and a plodding pace mean that it's not exactly a classic. A WWE Intercontinental Championship match between Kevin Owens and Dean Ambrose somehow manages to blend into the background, despite the obvious talent and chemistry of the performers. Perhaps the lack of a gimmick and that it's a least five minutes too short have something to do with that. Charlotte's WWE Diva's Championship defense against Paige is painfully booked at times, but helped from being a complete mess by the talents of the two performers. The duo manage to salvage some good looking moves, and a handful of nice sequences to keep things just about bearable. 

The main event is, of course, the eponymous TLC match with Sheamus putting his WWE World Heavyweight Championship on the line in a great match with Roman Reigns. The two men make good use of all the weapons, pulling off some brutal spots that drive the story of the clash. Despite this however, I'd recommend watching with the sound off as the crowd, for whatever reason, decide they don't want to see the match and set about trying to turn the attention to themselves. Just like the previous month's Survivor Series 2015, the show closes with a major angle that will drive the storylines of the first few PPV's of 2016 and beyond.

special features

Sasha Banks and Becky Lynch combine for a decent match taken from TLC: Tables, Ladders and Chairs 2016 Kick-Off, although obviously the pair have had better matches together elsewhere. The Blu-Ray exclusives begin with a segment featuring The New Day cutting a fun heel promo, taken from Monday Night RAW #1174, although there is a slight lack of direction once The Lucha Dragons and The Usos interrupt. Dean Ambrose, Dolph Ziggler and Tyler Breeze have a fluffy but watchable triple threat with a shot at the WWE Intercontinental Championship on the line from Thursday Night Smackdown #849 in the only Blu-Ray exclusive match. 

Monday Night RAW #1176 brings us a strange edition of Miz TV featuring Charlotte, Ric Flair and Paige in which The Miz becomes the shining light. From the same show we then have the infamous "tater tots" promo from Roman Reigns in a horrendous in-ring segment with Sheamus, that at best will make you cringe yourself inside out. It's particularly painful to watch Reigns struggling to recall words that clearly he doesn't feel comfortable saying. The disc rounds of with a fun twist on the cliched contract signing from Thursday Night Smackdown #851 with Kevin Owens and Dean Ambrose confirming their match for TLC. 

finally...

blu-ray rating - 5.58/10

A couple of off-beat finishes aside, TLC 2015 is a bloody good wrestling show. Book-ended by two great ladder matches, the show manages to close out WWE's 2015 events very well indeed. The WWE Intercontinental Championship and WWE United States Championship matches are also worth checking out. However, the Blu-Ray edition loses part of it's rating for a lacklustre selection of Special Features, with the decision to include the Reigns and Sheamus "tater tots" promo being one that I will never understand. No one should have to see it more than once. 

TV Review: WWE Monday Night RAW #1197 (New Day & Cassady vs. The Vaudevillains & Dudley Boyz)

On 2nd May 2016, WWE aired the 1197th episode of Monday Night RAW live, from Scottrade Center in St. Louis, Missouri, USA, on USA Network. The New Day teamed up with Colin Cassady to take on The Dudley Boyz & The Vaudevillains in eight man tag team action, Kevin Owens faced off with Cesaro for a shot at The Miz's WWE Intercontinental Championship, after the pair had confronted new "Power's" of Monday Night RAW, Shane McMahon and Stephanie McMahon and WWE World Heavyweight Champion Roman Reigns tagged with The Usos to face AJ Styles, Luke Gallows and Karl Anderson...but was it any good? Let's take a look!

monday night raw #1197 match card

Match 1 - WWE Intercontinental Championship #1 Contendership - Kevin Owens vs. Cesaro

Match 2 - Men's Singles - Goldust with Fandango vs. Tyler Breeze with R-Truth 

Match 3 - Eight Man Tag Team - WWE Tag Team Champions The New Day: Big E, Kofi Kingston & Xavier Woods & Colin Cassady vs. WWE Tag Team Championship #1 Contenders The Vaudevillains: Aiden English & Simon Gotch & The Dudley Boyz: Bubba Ray Dudley & D-Von Dudley

Match 4 - Women's Singles - Becky Lynch vs. Emma

Match 5 - WWE United States #1 Contendership Fifteen Man Battle Royal - Alberto Del Rio vs. Bo Dallas vs. Curtis Axel vs. Damien Sandow vs. Darren Young vs. Dolph Ziggler vs. Sin Cara vs. Stardust vs. Rusev vs. Viktor vs. Zack Ryder vs. Titus O'Neil vs. Sheamus vs. Baron Corbin

Match 6 - Six Man Tag Team - WWE World Heavyweight Championship #1 Contender "The Phenomenal" AJ Styles, Luke Gallows & Karl Anderson vs. WWE World Heavyweight Champion Roman Reigns & The Usos: Jey Uso & Jimmy Uso

Commentary: John "Bradshaw" Layfield, Michael Cole, Byron Saxton, WWE Intercontinental Champion The Miz (Owens vs. Cesaro only), Maryse (Owens vs. Cesaro only) & WWE United States Champion Kalisto (WWE United States #1 Contendership Battle Royal only)

Sponsors: Popeyes (Fried Chicken Fast Food Restaurant), Tapout (Sports Clothing & Accessories), JC Penney (Mid-range Department Store) & Truth (Anti-Tobacco Campaign)

Theme(s) - "The Night (2014 Remix)" by CFO$/Kromestatik and "Denial" by We Are Harlot

fast-forward...A lengthy recap of WWE Payback 2016's McMahon family segment where Mr. McMahon gave Stephanie McMahon and Shane McMahon joint control of Monday Night RAW, as well as Shane and Stephanie's involvement in the shows main event that saw Roman Reigns retain the WWE World Heavyweight Championship over AJ Styles...

cesaro defeats owens via disqualification for the wwe intercontinental championship #1 contendership after miz interference

I was very much glad to see Stephanie McMahon and Shane McMahon's opening exchange cut short by Kevin Owens, as the siblings were pretty much just going over the same ground that they had the night before at Payback 2016. I've got a feeling that the two McMahon's being in control of the show is going to start grinding on me more and more over the next few weeks. Owens was out to tell the McMahon's why he should be given a shot at the WWE Intercontinental Championship, which seeing as he has yet to receive his rematch after losing the belt at WrestleMania 32 was a fairly reasonable demand. On the other hand, you had Cesaro who also had a claim to a shot at belt currently held by The Miz, following making the champ tap out the previous night and with a fairly sizeable beef with Owens also for his involvement in the closing stages of that very same match. Therefore it made perfect sense to have Owens and Cesaro face off once again, in a rematch from Monday Night RAW #1194! 

I think I said about Owens and Cesaro's match from Monday Night RAW #1194 that these two could probably have a good match in their sleep and this was further proof towards the statement. The pair worked hard to produce a stellar television encounter, taking advantage of the various on-going narratives well and complementing them with hard-hitting action. A particular highlight of the bout for me was Owens taking advantage of Cesaro's injured shoulder by pulling it across the top rope and sending The Swiss Superman to floor, before nailing him with a Frog Splash off the apron. It was a mild shame that we didn't get a definitive finish as we did with their encounter three weeks ago, but having The Miz attack Cesaro (following The King of Swing hitting a running uppercut on the Intercontinental Champion, who was on commentary) allowed for their feud to develop further and also allowed Sami Zayn to get involved in order to make the save for Cesaro. With Cesaro having only won by DQ and Zayn ending the segment holding up the strap after Maryse had help Miz escape a Helluva Kick, we're left with a pretty confused field for WWE's second strap, but I'm looking forward to seeing how this plays out over the next two episode's that lead into Extreme Rules 2016.

fast-forward...Stephanie McMahon and Dean Ambrose met backstage, with Stephanie announcing that she'll be Ambrose's guest on the Ambrose Asylum later on...A weird segment with The Gorgeous Truth and FandanGoldust (The Golden Dango makes absolutely no sense) getting all emotional or something...Strong backstage segment in which Roman Reigns confronted AJ Styles, Luke Gallows and Karl Anderson and resulted in a six man tag team match also involving the Usos being made for later on...Tyler Breeze went over Goldust with some shenanigans from R-Truth and Fandango at ringside, literally no one cared...

new day and cassady defeat the vaudevillains and dudley boyz

The segment that would lead to this eight man tag team match was a bit of a weird one. It was pretty obvious that plans had had to be shifted after The Vaudevillains WWE Tag Team Championship Number One Contender's Tournament Final match with Colin Cassady and Enzo Amore on Sunday night was cut short due to Amore suffering a concussion. This meant that The New Day had to awkwardly shift themselves into a match with The Vaudevillains at Extreme Rules 2016 in 20 days times. To be fair to both New Day and The Vaudevillains both groups did a terrific job under the circumstances, with New Day especially owning every second that they were on camera and having the Scottrade Center hanging on their every word. What did stick out like a sore thumb however was The Dudley Boyz coming out to claim they deserved a title shot, despite losing to Cassady & Amore in the Semi-Finals of the #1 Contender's Tournament, whilst also throwing weird barbs about "Downtown Abey" at the team that would go on to be their partners. I'm sure WWE could have put on this match with a whole lot less hassle than what they presented here. 

Once the eight guys got going in the ring, they managed to produce a solid tag team bout that had a number of high points spread throughout. The Vaudevillains were showcased well, with Dudley Boyz, Bubba Ray especially, attempting to show them how to be a successful tag team, whilst Simon Gotch used dastardly methods to stay in control of the match by taking advantage of a distraction and throwing Kofi Kingston into a ringpost, putting a half to Kingston's hot tag moments earlier from Woods. Part of the contest felt a little bit long winded in their execution, but the build towards the face teams second hot tag of the match and Colin Cassady's big moment was done very well indeed. There was a lot of fun to be had in a Big Cass rampage, including a brilliant moment where Cassady hit a big boot to knock Gotch off the apron and straight into a Belly to Booty from Big E. Cassady's integration with New Day guys came to a satisfying conclusion when Kingston saved him from a 3D from Dudley Boyz, which would lead to Big Cass hitting the East River Crossing on D-Von and get the pinfall to cap off an impressive performance.

fast-forward...Recap of Roman Reigns vs. AJ Styles at Payback, followed by replay of the backstage segment with Reigns, Styles, Luke Gallows, Karl Anderson and The Usos earlier on...Recap of Charlotte vs. Natalya at Payback, as well as footage of Charles Robinson wrestling in WCW...

emma defeats lynch

I was pleasantly surprised by the amount of time that Emma and Becky Lynch were afforded in their contest and whilst the two still only got just under 6 minutes to showcase their talents, I felt like both women took the opportunity and put together a fun match that further the storyline between the two nicely. The two flowed well in the ring, whilst also showing signs of their problems between each other with some quality brawling and strong core of action centered around Lynch's hair. I thought the finish was a simple but effective piece of booking, as Emma simply poked Lynch in the eye and hit a Michonoku Driver for the victory, with this acting as a refreshing contrast to the current over-booking surrounding the Natalya vs. Charlotte feud elsewhere on the programming. 

stephanie mcmahon cancels the ambrose asylum and brings back the highlight reel

The Ambrose Asylum is no more. It lasted just a few weeks before Stephanie McMahon decided to "cancel" the talk show segment on the talk show segment she was "cancelling" in one of her first acts since being appointed in joint control of Monday Night RAW. Stephanie's interaction with Dean Ambrose was a lot of fun to watch with the pair seeming to understand not just their own characters, but their opposite numbers' and just why each other were either popular or unpopular with the majority of the audience. However, the biggest development of the segment was Chris Jericho's vicious attack on Ambrose, that came after a brief brawl between the two as Jericho headed to the ring to present a reinstated version of the Highlight Reel. Whoever thought that the destruction of a potted plant called Mitch would stir up such emotion. Also a plant to the back of the head looks sick as fuck. If we've learnt anything from this whole Jericho vs. Ambrose feud it's that their needs to be more potted plants throughout the WWE Universe. 

rusev defeats adr, crews, corbin, dallas, axel, sandow, young, ziggler, sheamus, cara, stardust, o'neil, viktor and ryder in a battle royal to become #1 contender to wwe united states championship

A fairly run of the mill battle royal to crown a new #1 Contender to WWE United States Championship, that was made unwatchable at points by some truly horrendous commentary from the champion, Kalisto. I honestly wouldn't be surprised if WWE took the title off of him because of just how bad this performance was, as he stumbled through pretty much everything he had to say and often got cut off by his fellow commentators. Inside the ring, the crumbling of the League of Nations played a major part in the narrative as Alberto Del Rio, Sheamus and Rusev all managed to reach the closing stages of the match, only to further fracture as ADR and Sheamus were sent package and Rusev was left alone with Zack Ryder. A clever use of Ryder here, as he got a big reaction when he managed to get to the final two, and this produced a quality atmosphere for last stretch of the contest. Of course, it was The Bulgarian Brute who would win the match, because he's a tuna melt. With Lana joining him to celebrate, it felt almost like the pair had been sent back in time to 2013! 

charlotte gets robinson to clear up payback 2016 controversy, natalya puts flair in a sharpshooter

I'm getting very tired of the storyline that Charlotte and Natalya have been given and the direction heading out of Payback 2016 has made things worse for me. You've got two very talented ladies here, who are capable of putting on a brilliant and captivating contest, aided by a simple feud. Yet instead what we've got is Charlotte and Ric Flair calling out referee Charles Robinson as a reference to a nickname that the referee had fifteen years prior and using an incident that happened years before even that. It doesn't excite me to see a 33 year old woman put a 67 year old man in a sharpshooter, it doesn't make me want to see anyone get beaten up or win a title or anything like that. The highlight of the whole segment was Natalya pausing for a little too long after saying "Last night you paid a referee to screw me..."!

fast-forward...The commentary team pushes new WWE Network show Camp WWE...Backstage, Stephanie McMahon told Charlotte that she'll defend WWE Women's Championship against Natalya in a Submission Match at Extreme Rules 2016 with Ric Flair banned from ringside...

styles, gallows and anderson defeat reigns and the usos

A rather different six man tag team contest here, as there was a whole lot going on and a number of different relationships between the performers to keep in the back of the mind. For this reason, I'm not sure how well a more casual fan would have reacted to the action. Luckily, I'm not a casual fan, so I actually though it was pretty damn cool to see WWE mixing up the formula. The main thing I noticed whilst watching the various sequences and ins and outs of the contest, was just how well WWE has managed to position Roman Reigns as their WWE World Heavyweight Champion after "failing" so spectacularly in their initial attempts based around his title win against Triple H at WrestleMania 32. It really didn't matter that parts of the crowd would boo Reigns, his character almost seemed to call for it, without ever becoming what anyone would refer a "heel". The dynamic that WWE has decided to go with for AJ Styles, Luke Gallows and Karl Anderson, has only enhanced that, putting the Champ in a feud with a loose group that will appeal to the audience that dislikes Reigns, whilst also presenting a trios that those that have accepted Reigns with open arms will find it easy to dislike, and also managing to keep AJ Styles playing a babyface face at the same, with The Usos also helping to a lesser degree.

After Styles had managed to pick up the win for his team, by pinning Jimmy Uso after a Phenomenal Forearm, we got the most-thought provoking part of the feud so far, as the narrative progressed quickly between the six man. Gallows and Anderson decimated Reigns, but Styles was reluctant to hit Reigns with the steel chair his buddies had provided, Gallows and Anderson just continued beating on the WWE World Heavyweight Champion, but then The Usos blindsided Styles and nailed him with the same chair that Styles had refused to hit their cousin with. Hold on there, The Usos are uber good guys though right? Styles hasn't even really done anything to those Samoan fellas. It was more blurring of the face/heel divide that could have ended up very messy, and it's a shame that it ended up feeling like a little bit of ends to mean by the end. Reigns would see Styles fighting off his cousins with his own chair upon his recovery and therefore see red and bring some sweet, swift Shield-like justice to Styles. The powerbomb that WWE World Heavyweight Champion hit through the announce table look super cool, as Styles got some real height before crashing through the table. A strong conclusion to the show, that urged me to tune in next week to see just where the storyline would go. It's been a brave direction for the company to take so far and one that I hope pays off in the long run, as it will open up a more diverse range of options for WWE to explore with it's storylines elsewhere. 

finally...

atpw scale rating - 5.48/10

Another perfectly acceptable piece of sports entertainment television here by WWE, continuing the post-WrestleMania trend of creating perfectly watchable episodes of Monday Night RAW. The Eight Man Tag Team main event was probably the weakest of the three marquee bouts/segments this time out, but still had plenty of fun moments and managed to make the best out of a bad situation involving Enzo Amore's concussion the night before. The six man tag match and the moments that would close the show were my personal pick for the best bit of telly across the three hours, but I also thought that Cesaro and Kevin Owens' opener was also of a high quality, and you know the two could have done even better if there weren't other plans for both men over the next few weeks! The undercard was propped up by an enjoyable interaction between Dean Ambrose and Stephanie McMahon and Chris Jericho destroying a potted plant, but the segment hat focused on the WWE Women's Championship feud wasn't a lot of fun to watch at all! 

A solid episode here to head out of Payback 2016, but I'd be hoping for improvements to a number of areas to keep things interesting before Extreme Rules 2016 in the second half of the month.