Search the Community

Three way matches usually drag, but this was absolute bonkers from start to finish. These three guys have had quality matches on RAW between each other this year, so I was def. looking forward to this and thought it was good. It was a sub 15 minute pro-wrestling demolition derby. Just three big dudes throwing each other around like madmen. McIntyre's Michinoku Driver is easily one of the most impressive spots of the year and the Claymore Kick counter into a big powerbomb table bump was great. Screwy finish which I don't mind as it allows to build another match with Lashley returning to ringside and tossing McIntyre out of the ring after he had hit Strowman with a Claymore Kick and then taking advantage and hitting Strowman with a spear for the win.

This was a wild heavyweight match with them throwing some wild bombs that felt like two Mack trucks colliding into each other. Strowman countering the Claymore with a big powerbomb and McIntyre's big spinebuster were great, however the highlight has to be the that superplex that looked more like a nasty top second rope brainbuster as McIntyre landed on his neck. That chest punch from Strowman is kind of lame as were the constant camera cuts to MVP and Lashley, but those served their purpose. Pretty good heavyweight main event TV match which I wouldn't mind them running back.

I'm making this thread because, on paper, I actually think this looks like it could be a pretty good show. In addition, I'm also actually watching the Pay-Per-View tonight because I don't have to work & have not watched a lot of wrestling lately. I think the last show I watched was AEW All Out. So I have an itch that needs to be scratched. I also, miraculously, talked my girlfriend into watching with me. She's not watched a show with me since Asuka was still in NXT (she loved Asuka, so her not being used on the main roster is a big deal to her viewing interest). Despite the fact that Seth Rollins is wrestling twice on the show - meanwhile talent like Rusev can't even make a show - is a bit disheartening, but I'm still optimistic. Let's see if this thread can be more active & lively tonight! THE CARD: Universal Champion Seth Rollins vs. Braun Strowman Raw Women’s Champion Becky Lynch vs. Sasha Banks WWE Champion Kofi Kingston vs. Randy Orton Roman Reigns vs. Erick Rowan (No Disqualification Match) SmackDown Women’s Champion Bayley vs. Charlotte Flair Raw Tag Team Champions Seth Rollins & Braun Strowman vs. Dolph Ziggler & Robert Roode WWE Women’s Tag Team Champions Alexa Bliss & Nikki Cross vs. Mandy Rose & Sonya Deville SmackDown Tag Team Champions Big E & Xavier Woods vs. The Revival Intercontinental Champion Shinsuke Nakamura vs. The Miz United States Champion AJ Styles vs. Cedric Alexander WWE Cruiserweight Champion Drew Gulak vs. Humberto Carrillo vs. Lince Dorado ===== ***** ===== I think that Nakamura/Miz will probably disappoint my expectations, as that's how I've felt about Shinsuke's entire WWE run. Styles/Alexander should be good. New Day/Revival will probably be pretty good. Both women's title matches could be good. The Cruiserweight match will probably end up being on the preshow but it could be decent. I do like Gulak. I think Rose/Deville have both improved lately, especially Sonya, but I don't expect anything from that match. I don't care about either Seth matches, especially the tag match which somehow managed to put four of the most boring motherfuckers on the entire goddamn roster into one match. Good lord. Still don't know why WWE ever signed Bobby Roode or re-signed Dolph Ziggler. Two Seth matches on one card is brutal, but it is what it is. I've liked what they've been doing with Rowan lately but I don't think that match will be anything. Just Rowan doing some no DQ stuff with chair/steps & then losing clean to a Spear most likely. The Kofi/Orton match is the biggest question mark to me. I don't know what to expect from that one. This Kofi reign has been boring & forgettable & I'm ready for it to be over. On the other hand, Randy Orton is boring & forgettable & the last thing he needs is another title run. The feud doesn't make sense of why it's even happening. They need to get the belt off of Kofi but they need to start making new guys, especially if they're going to try to hit FOX running when Smackdown moves over there. If they just try to go back to same old shit, Roman, Charlotte, etc. I don't think people are going to care. ...where's Brock?

So the WWE decided that this week, they're gonna put together close to two hours of just real good solid wrestling and what a shock, it was awesome! Seth and Roman start the match, getting some good exchanges going with Roman really bringing the tightness and stiffness to the match. Roman's timing and character work really is something else. Something as simple as standing up to a charging Rollins says so much and really creates a very heated moment that ups the intensity of the match. Exciting and hot finishing stretch that protects both guys but does a lot to help out Seth Rollins. Seth takes on John Cena next. Seth jumps Cena to start forcing Cena to work the opening minutes in his neon green shirt. Cena comes with methodical heel-esque Cena. I like this iteration of Cena personally. The guy's been on top for over a decade and he shows it. He saves energy by really picking his spots against Rollins and even taunting Rollins, giving Rollins a good heel character to play off of. They show a lot of chemistry in the finishing stretch as they exchange big moves and let Rollins get a clean win on Cena. The crowd is all the way behind Rollins at this point. Elias rushes in to charge Rollins and goes after the bad leg allowing him to pick up the pretty quick win over Rollins. At around this point, the match starts to dip as we get some in picture simultaneous promos to the competitors who've just finished. I didn't mind it so much as it was a nice way to fill the time as the highlights of the match were pretty much done. Balor comes in and him and Elias have some decent exhanges. Elias is just a very good wrestler with his basics. Snug strikes and good energy. Here's hoping he goes a long way. Balor able to get to the win until Miz comes out and picks the bones and uses The Miztourage to get the win. Miz with some amazing facial reactions when he realizes Strowman is last and then we get the Braun Strowman Murder Hour. Always a good time. That standing dropkick is ridiculous. This was just very good television all the way through with two incredibly great matches to open and an all-time performance by Seth Rollins. ****1/2

This match had no right to be as fun as it actually was. From Braun and Brock being unprofessional with each other to a barrage of non-stop bombs. Kane was there, true, but considering how quickly Lesnar gasses, his presence is kind of a breather and necessary, even if he is almost useless from a wrestling perspective at this point.

BRAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUN. Sheer spectacle. That's what this was and I loved it. I really did. Braun has been on a tear in 2017 and he just keeps making the absolute most of every single opportunity that he's been given. He went out there tonight and just showed why he is an absolute monster. The dominance of putting Brock through two tables and throwing an office chair in the faces of both Reigns and Joe. Add to that one of Lesnar's best sell jobs bumping like a nut for Braun and selling his ass off for Reigns. Sure, Joe was just a bit of an afterthought and that's a shame, but man when this match was on it was ON. I'm honestly unsure how to rate this right now. The first few moments with Braun killing everyone dead was five star material easily. Things do slow down once Lesnar comes back from his stretcher spot but even then you get great moments like Braun kicking out and shoving Reigns to his feet and Lesnar eating three Superman Punches.This is a shade under five for me, because the second half just doesn't maintain the momentum but what a showcase for these guys. ****3/4

Really fun and concise hoss battle with them smartly using the 5 minutes they had. I'm not the biggest proponent of sound effect strikes but they can work just like anything else and Strowman's were similar to Reigns' and Harper's who do them well too, the WSS weight shift was a smart counter you don't see often since there aren't a lot of wrestlers bigger than Henry that'd make that spot make sense. Henry catchin Strowman's arm when he went for the clubbing blow is something I could see annoying an all knowing WWE binge watcher if the "go for the move again once you've executed it correctly only to get it countered" pattern is super prominent in WWE (I'm not convinced of that, I think they vary things enough to that it isn't really an issue in general, only when someone telegraphs it) but Henry made it look so cool by milking the arm catch and following it up with a great fired up comeback. ***

BIG LADS WRESTLING. This was awesome - them busting out some chain wrestling & kip ups in the beginning was great - then the match transitioned into Braun working on top while Show fought from underneath & both parties played their parts very well. Really fun stuff from start to finish. ***1/2

First of all, I really liked Angle coming out with The Shield gear on. A wonderful character touch since Angle used to do goofy shit like that all the time during his first WWE run. Then the actual match - it was such a cluster, but I really loved it. Ambrose & Rollins were on fire from start to finish - super strong performances by them, The Miz played his role to absolute perfection & the rest of the guys did their parts very well too. I liked all the twists & turns - Angle getting out of the match after getting destroyed by Braun was great & his eventual comeback with his own music was a goosebumps worthy moment - him just throwing all the bad guys around w/ his signature Suplexes & Angle Slams ruled. The Braun/Kane angle was also executed really well & made Braun look badass as usual. I feel like this match could've been even better had Reigns been able to compete, but goddamn, I still had such a blast watching this. Super enjoyable stuff. ****

This match was dumb. By far the most interesting about it coming in was how they were going to reconcile protecting Braun with the likely result of him not winning the title, and they ended up with a solution that accomplished nothing. Braun overpowered Lesnar early on, which was his one advantage over Lesnar (as is over everyone), but we've seen Lesnar in that position a bunch of times already. As soon as Lesnar grabbed the arm on the Double Wristlock and started spamming Germans the idea Strowman was just another challenge for him to overcome started clearing up, and that's exactly what happened. Lesnar's back being "injured" was dumb-an attempt to put over Strowman as causing damage only made the match look more ridiculous, as an injured Lesnar suplexed Strowman numerous times after not being able to do so forever, then did the same thing with the F5 (which he also couldn't hit earlier on). Strowman got his finisher efficency ruined and lost clean in a match where the most memorable thing was Lesnar taking a bump to the outside through the ropes. Blarh. The exhaustion selling after the match is analogous to a cheating spuse promising change-"See! He's tired! Look what it took for him to beat him! We know what we're doing! This is fine! Wait to see where it leads to! It will get better!" **1/2

THE BIG LADS DO IT AGAIN. Another great match between these two. Just really fun, great hoss action from start to finish w/ absolutely epic big spots. ****

This Raw monster division has really been something else this year, and it looks like it might be getting even crazier going into Summerslam. I wish we got this without the commercial breaks, but still, I really enjoyed it. Both Roman and Joe are wonderful at looking like huge, incredibly dangerous monsters while selling for each other's monster-ness. Roman does it with an "I don't know how I'm gonna continue" look; Joe looks more angry than anything, but it works for both of them. In addition to their usual spots we get a Roman trying to put his shoe through Joe's face and Joe cutting off a Drive By with a great clothesline. But this isn't actually just a Reigns/Joe match, as BRAUN comes through to wreck shit and we don't just get a regular beatdown, but the start of a three way thing. It makes sense that Braun comes out on top, because the Samoans have been beating the shit out of each other, but both Joe and Reigns get shots in, and Joe even has him on his way down in the Coquina before Reigns goes for the Superman Punch and interrupts. I love it all. ****

YES. Just yes? I'm sorry, that's all there is. Rough, stiff violence from both guys. They constantly upped the intensity and made believable transitions that got you to buy into Roman potentially winning. You had the classic ringpost transition which works particularly well after the Tag Title match early in the night. Roman Reigns sells his ass off (again) but really, did we expect anything else? Then you had monster among men Braun Strowman putting in a fairly decent sell job on his arm...before turning it around into one of the greatest heel comebacks possible. The violence on the stage area was stiff, going through the screen was a wonderful visual. Then, that glorious post-match angle. i don't care if it's a double turn or what it is. It's fucking awesome. Best ambulance match ever? Easy MOTYC and another amazing chapter in what's turning out to be a classic feud. ****1/2

Their Fastlane match disappointed me greatly, but holy shit that is all forgotten now after this instant classic. The look on Braun's face while Reigns was staring him down from the ringside was priceless. LOVED the beginning with Reigns going straight to punch Braun - now that is how you sell a personal feud, Owens & Jericho! That stunned Braun & Reigns got a great shine in. That shine ended quickly as Braun grabbed Reigns while he was going for that drive by apron dropkick. My goodness that was awesome. Braun was now on full control, he destroys Reigns & Reigns displayed that world class selling of his - oh man he is such a phenomenal seller & this might have been his finest selling performance yet. Reigns' big eventual comeback was fantastic - now that is how you do a high energy, hard hitting, badass comeback while still selling your injuries perfectly; hope Rollins took some notes. Braun got the control quickly again & dominated, Reigns got just enough hope spots in, only for him to fall down to the ultimate monster that is BRAUN. What a goddamn match. Gave me some Umaga vs. Cena vibes. Roman Reigns is the fucking man & Braun Strowman is the best monster WWE has had in a looooong time. ****3/4

This was a super awesome little spectacle. The size difference between these two is HUGE to say the least. Kalisto uses his quickness to avoid Braun's total domination - he gets some awesome highflying moves in, but then there are times when Braun is just tossing him around in badass fashion. It's just as good as it sounds on paper. ****

The Zayn that sells is much more interesting than the Zayn that does Half Nelson Chickenwing Suplexes and Michinoku Drivers, his grin before the match when Strowman's music was such a nice touch, Kevin Dunn did well. Strong performances by both men, Strowman's feats of strength were unique, looked great and Zayn bumped great for them, while the DDT counter was hardly the most original spot it was definitely well done as Braun just annihilated Zayn with a Forearm. The match had its limitations due to them adhering to a formula of "Braun dominates-Zayn reaches for a weapon-Braun fights off-repeat" in building the body of the match but it did play to both of their strengths and was definitely a step in the right direction. ***1/4

Saw some gifs on my twitter timeline of Braun throwing Ambrose around from a year ago and I checked that out but saw this in related vids and found it more interesting. Think the biggest growth from Strowman since this time has been how he emits his presence/aura and what to do when he's in control during his beatdowns. Compare this to the Zayn demolition from this Monday and it's night and day with how he moves and how he lays in his shots. I think Reigns' selling is the best part of this along with how he tries to figure out how to get on offense. Strowman taking Reigns' head off on the second apron dropkick ruled, though. Hope they have a program down the line.

Strowman worked a little more vulnerable here too, and I'm not surprised to see him getting it as well, one of the first things that impressed me back when he just debuted was how good he was at selling without pretty much ever bumping and thus putting over his dominance, and the message here is clear-C level talent like Sin Cara and Alicia Fox may be superior to the random local guy they found but they're still not nearly good enough to pose a threat to Strowman and Jax. If that kind of booking continued consistently you'd actuallly get a sense of hierarchy in WWE. Enjoyed him barely selling the suicide dive before going over and the spot where Sin Cara tried some kind of jumping move and Strowman just pushed him down was amazing, also made me think you could counter about 80% of indy offence with it. Fun match.

I don't remember the last time I laughed so much while watching a wrestling match, watching Strowman overwhelm a random goof and throw him around was so much fun. Also enjoy the pre-match interviews they do with the jobbers.

Strowman is awesome and this squash ruled. The jobber was good enough, selling his hand when he punched Strowman and bumping nicely but this was all about Strowman throwing him around and treating him like a punching bag. Less thigh slapping midgets more wrestlers tall enough to play at least a power forward that refuse to bump please.

I kind of love Braun Strowman's gimmick of barely selling and not taking any bumps, I'd tease guys like Ziggler so much if I were him. He doesn't do anything other than basic stuff but his basic stuff looks good, I loved him throwing Ambrose around, mauling him and running over him. Of course Ambrose gets into control by lowering the top rope while the heel runs at him; my least favourite transition and Strowman having to sell for his idiotic offence after the match looked stupid. Average; weird match to end the show with.