Opening Segment
The Miz became the first ever two-time WWE Grand Slam champion, and he's letting the world know about it. MVP comes out and says that Miz's deal requires that because John Morrison cost Lashley his U.S. Title, Miz has to give him a title shot. Miz tries to weasel out of it, but Lashley threatens him to make a decision within one hour. The MVP/Lashley/Miz stuff was sensible and good. I loved it. It's a story that makes Drew McIntyre look insurmountable one on one, Miz look like a little shit, MVP and Lashley look smart.
Miz pleads with Adam Pearce, but it does no good. Miz wants another week, but Braun Strowman is pissed off that he doesn't get his title shot. Shane McMahon comes out and denies Braun's title shot. Braun instead wants to fight Lashley and gets it. If he wins, next week's title shot is a triple threat match. Cool. Lashley attacks Braun.
Riddle defeated John Morrison
7.5/10
Riddle talks with Lucha House Party and scooters to Gorilla. Morrison and Riddle are going at it at a frenetic pace. Kicks, flips, transitions, reversals, high spots. These two work together fantastically. Morrison hits a Spanish Fly out of the corner. Riddle finishes off an insanely paced match with the Bro Derek. This is a must-watch match. I don't think John Morrison has ever been better in the ring than he is now, when he gets to have matches like he just did.
Other Crappenings
- Rhea Ripley is headed to WWE Raw. A good move. The brand needs her. One of the worst booked eras of the singles division the Women's revolution.
- Randy Orton discusses his failures and distractions, and says he's distracted by Alexa Bliss. Randy Orton looks like he drank whatever Bret Hart used to put in his hair. He spits up a bunch of shit.
New Day defeated Retribution (w/ Mustafa Ali, Slapjack and Reckoning)
4.75/10
Kofi Kingston and Xavier Woods flip out over Reckoning being back. This is very one sided. Retribution beat the shit out of Kofi Kingston and hit him with High Justice. Mustafa Ali wants more, but that's greedy. Kofi hits Trouble in Paradise on both and wins. Okay. Mustafa Ali goes off on all of them, even though it was his fault. This was an oddly booked match, but whatever. Retribution are not threats on this show.
Hurt Business defeated Lucha House Party
5.75/10
I like switching it up and seeing a tornado tag team match. You see the differences in leadership on-screen between Mustafa Ali and MVP on this show. Hurt Business dominate the first 80 percent of this match, until the Lucha House Party get a hope spot. MVP is adamant that his team doesn't mess around with LHP. This probably should have been a title match, because why not?
Damian Priest (w/ Bad Bunny) defeated Angel Garza
5.5/10
Bad Bunny is cutting a promo with Damian Priest, and they catch R-Truth plotting to win the 24/7 Title.
I would never have Damian Priest's character get outsmarted or distracted. He has a cool element to him, and being made to look stupid isn't exactly cool. I loved how they had him counter Garza to start the match. I probably wouldn't have him selling a Camel Clutch to someone half his size, either. Boys, Angel Garza hosscatted (?) Damian Priest over the top rope with that clothesline. Hit The Lights gets the win. This was longer than it needed to be for the position that Damian Priest is in here. Garza got preoccupied with Bad Bunny.
They dispose of the 24/7 dorks after the match.
Nia Jax & Shayna Baszler defeated Asuka & Charlotte Flair
5/10
This is the 11th match with some combination of Shayna, Nia, Charlotte and Asuka facing each other since the Summer. WWE have conditioned me to think that Charlotte's matches will end in a DQ, no contest, or some shenanigans. Same thing they did with Keith Lee shortly after his Raw debut.
This match is fine, and the highlight is Asuka/Shayna grappling, and Nia's really good powerbomb. When the match hits a good pace and a peak, they slap on a chinlock. There's a good spot where Nia leg drops Charlotte mid- Figure 8. It looked like Asuka got the shit knocked out of her towards this finish, and got pinned by Nia. Charlotte accidentally hit her, and Asuka wasn't happy about it after the match. Asuka looked roughed up.
Ric Flair tells Charlotte Flair he saw potential in Lacey Evans. Charlotte doesn't care, but doesn't want him doing it on her time. Charlotte Flair hasn't won her last eight matches. If they're heating her up for a title feud, they should probably start now. Charlotte tells Ric to go home, and thanks him for what he's given her.
Sheamus defeated Jeff Hardy
5.25/10
Hard to make me care about a match after they've literally feuded over piss and culminated that feud, but here we are! Sheamus is having a great run in the ring, and Jeff Hardy is having an underrated one from a "work smarter" standpoint. I laughed hard at the short punch Sheamus used to set up the bicycle knee and Brogue Kick, but it was good. Hardy has one win via pinfall since the end of November, so maybe move him on to something else.
Lana & Naomi defeated Dana Brooke & Mandy Rose
N/A (Short)
I'm glad WWE has put a ton of focus on the women's tag team division over the last week. It shouldn't come at the expense of a singles division. The tag titles were created due to the abundance of talent. Naomi and Lana win a quick one here.
AJ Styles (w/ Omos) defeated Ricochet
5.5/10
This is a pretty short, competitive match that AJ Styles wins with a Styles Clash. There was a nasty knee to Ricochet. They've kept AJ Styles pretty well protected in recent months. I'm not sure what they have planned for him, but they're protecting him more than some upcoming challengers for titles. Omos attacks Ricochet after the match
Top Contender Match For Braun Strowman
Bobby Lashley defeated Braun Strowman
6/10
They're going right at it. Braun hits the stairs when Lashley dodges him. Lashley even kicks out of a running powerslam and finishes Braun off with a spear. Braun does the Hogan 3.01 kickout, which was funny. After the match, Lashley beats the living shit out of Strowman and The Miz. This was a great sprint, the way to do this. No funky finish, Lashley going clean as a sheet over a former champion. I loved it.
Rating Guide
10- Perfect, 9- MOTY Territory, 8- Excellent, 7- Great, 6- Good, 5- Average to above average, 4- Slightly below average, 3 or below: Poor
Each match starts at a 5 and slides up and down based on entertainment, execution, time, environment, reaction and stakes. The ratings are in no way an indication of a "star rating," which is a completely different system. A standard, non-offensive "TV match" lands at a 5. The gap between 5.75-6 is generally the largest, with anything reaching 6 being recommended viewing.
These are opinions, and incredibly inconsistent ones that may change upon a second viewing, or sitting on the match for a period of time. Don't take them too seriously, and have (and share) your own!
