WWE: 205 Live Review - October 9th, 2020

WWE: 205 Live Review 

October 9th, 2020 

This is the 200th episode of 205 Live. 

1) Ariya Daivari vs. Jake Atlas

WWE: NXT Takeover 31 Review - October 4th, 2020

WWE: NXT Takeover 31 

October 4th, 2020

The 31st NXT Takeover event and the start of a new era as the performance center has been redesigned as the Capitol Wrestling Center. 

1) Damian Priest (c) vs. Johnny Gargano - North American Title Match 

As I said when watching this, this is where Johnny belongs, in hot openers, not hot opener style matches billed as main events. Not to hate too bad bc I like Johnny, I’m just so glad he’s out of the main event picture. Damian Priest is the perfect opponent for him and they proceed to knock this out of the park. Lots of back and forth and big moves. They tease the same stair spot that fucked Priest up at the last Takeover before going into the finish. Priest retains in a great match with a huge victory. 

Match rating - ***3/4

2) KUSHIDA vs. Velveteen Dream 

KUSHIDA is PISSED and I love it. He absolutely tears Velveteen apart here with nothing stopping him. Dream fights back but KUSHIDA is focused and keeps his attack focused on the arm in the most vicious ways. I hope they keep this momentum going for KUSHIDA and don’t let him flop. Flipping hoverboard lock off the top rope. Dream rolls through and Death Valley driver’s  KUSHIDA but KUSHIDA KEEPS IT FUCKING LOCKED IN AND DREAM TAPS. 

Match rating - ***3/4

3) Santos Escobar (c) vs. Isaiah “Swerve” Scott - NXT Cruserweight Title Match 

Wooooooowwww. How in the actual fuck was this so good? I had no backstory to this, but it had me on the edge of my seat for the entire final half of the match. Swerve looked like an absolute STAR, throwing out a ton of high flying moves early and stunning the champion. When it goes into back and forth, we get a run down from Mendoza & Wilde and Swerve hits a damn step up flying rana throwing Escobar onto them. Ashante Adonis runs down for the save and this feels like actual chaos. A couple kick outs later and we are in the midst of one of the best cruserweight title matches of all time. The finish came off a little weak with the camera angle, but this was still so insanely good and better than it had any right to be. This is the best cruserweight title match alongside Rush/Garza from earlier this year and makes me want to tune in to 205 Live if these guys are even still on that?? I hope so because they could really develop some goooood shit off this match, but I won't get my hopes too high.

Match rating - ****1/4 

4) Io Shirai (c) vs. Candice LeRae - NXT Women’s Title Match 

This pretty much ruled. The only thing I disliked was the Johnny Gargano interference. He adds so much unnecessary melodrama to a match that was good on its own without the overbooking, but atleast it’s happening here and not in the main event (hopefully). None the less, this was another great match on an awesome show. Candice hits the god damn curb stomp ala Super Dragon. Shirai hits a insane Spanish fly off the top rope followed by a deep ass moonsault for the pin to retain. 

Match rating - ***3/4 

Post match, Toni Storm is on the screen and says she’s coming back to NXT. THEN Ember Moon returns. The women’s division just got hella re-spiced up. 

5) Finn Balor (c) vs. Kyle O’Reilly - NXT Championship Match 

I was insanely stoked for this. I have been a massive fan of Kyle O’Reilly since his first real rise as a singles competitor in the 2013 Battle of Los Angeles so to see him here getting such a huge main event and opportunity warmed my heart. Everyone surrounding this story from Adam Cole to the commentators hyped this up just as highly as it should have been. Kyle felt like the true underdog finally about to get his moment. I was also excited about this as Finn's first defense because Finn has been better in his NXT return than he was on the main roster, but still not peak Finn level and I felt Kyle could guide him to one of his best matches yet. None the less, this gets going and the vibe is epic to begin with Strong, Fish, & Cole sending O'Reilly out to the ring on his own. Finn comes out and Kyle stares him down from the ring. They work on the mat for a while. Balor throws the first big strike and ends up targeting the mid section about 5-6 minutes in with a super stiff kick to the gut which Kyle sells SO FUCKING WELL. This becomes the story of things. Balor targets the abdomen/liver, Kyle targets the legs of Balor. They scrap and fight and are very stiff from start to finish. Kyle has a bloody mouth and is worked over with abdominal stretches and various strikes to the stomach. So much awesome selling from Kyle. And on the flip, when Kyle would fire back and work the leg, it was even more vicious with the different directions he would have Balor's leg/foot twisted. O'Reilly hits a knee to the jaw in the corner near the end that apparently broke Balor's jaw as we saw blood pouring from the mouth of the champion as he fired back and hit a coupe de grace on the mat and then off the top rope, traditionally, thus ending this war. This wasn't an all timer, but it was a fucking fight and it showed that Finn is tough as nails and deserves this title reign and that Kyle can undoubtedly hang. It was also the best NXT Title main event this year and I'm thankful to be out of the melodramatic shit and back to just pure wrestling. 

Match rating - ****1/4

WWE: NXT Review - September 8th, 2020

WWE NXT

September 8th, 2020

I didn’t watch the Iron Man Match from last week just because the thought of it pained me. They recap it before we head into the opening match of the night which also happens to be the tie breaker from the iron man match between Adam Cole & Finn Balor who both had two falls a piece at the bell. 

1) Adam Cole vs. Finn Balor - NXT Championship Match 

Now this was good. Not amazing, but good none the less. It’s hard for me to have any sort of reaction to almost anything Cole does anymore because it all seems so robotic and formulaic however Finn has been spiced up since coming back to NXT as I’ve said in previous reviews so his fire here combined with the backstory of this being between the two longest reigning champions and both men having a history in Bullet Club kept me into it from bell to bell. Things start slow and pick up nicely down the stretch. The finish is bonkers with Balor hitting a 1968 off the top turnbuckle to become a 2x NXT Champion. He deserves this and I am stoked on it. 

Match rating - ***1/2 

Rhea Ripley pre-taped promo heading into her “battle of the badasses” cage match with Mercedes Martinez later

Throughout the night we get a series of vignettes with Johnny Gargano & Candice LeRae inviting Tegan Nox over for dinner to talk through their issues. 

Backstage, Adam Cole too sweets Finn Balor and shakes his hand as does Triple H. Finn says this is why he came back to NXT — to be champion. 

Io Shorai is in the middle of a photo shoot when Aliyah accidentally knocks into her brawling with Shotzi Blackheart. Io chases Aliyah to the ring. Io & Shotzi take out Aliyah. Robert Stone comes down and gets taken out by the women also. Io & Shotzi look to be working well together until Shotzi is hesitant to give Io the title back. Io says “don’t make me hurt you” OMG that fucking ruled. 

Big Tim Thatcher hosts a film study on Damian Priest. He challenges Priest for the North American Title next week. Excited for that match. 

2) Velveteen Dream vs. Ashante Adonis

Squash. Also big thumbs down for Dream still being featured prominently on this show. 

Post match KUSHIDA viciously attacks Dream and it absolutely god damn rules. I haven’t seen KUSHIDA this intense since he came to NXT but I hope it continues because this pull apart/attack made me want this match super bad and I hope it delivers. 

Tyler Breeze & Fandango and Imperium exchange words in a pre-taped promo to hype their match next week. Imperium says next week they get their titles back and end the shortest NXT tag title reign of all time. I kinda like seeing two guys like Breeze & Dango get this tag title run considering they are veterans of the NXT brand. 

3) Bronson Reed vs. Austin Theory 

This was solid. Best I’ve seen Reed look in a singles match and Theory nailed his role also. I really think Theory could be something special considering he’s only 22 years old. 

Match rating - **1/2 

Adam Cole backstage says Finn was the better man tonight, but he won’t be next time. 

Mercedes Martinez says when the cage door shuts she won’t stop until there is nothing left of Rhea Ripley. 

4) Roderick Strong (w/ Bobby Fish) vs. Killian Dain 

Roddy wins this off a distraction from Fish. The match is ok, but very forgettable and didn’t last long enough to develop into much. 

Match rating - ** 

Post match Drake Maverick runs down to save Dain from an attack from Roddy & Fish. Drake ends up taking a beating himself before Dain makes the save. Drake asks for a handshake but Dain elbows him in the face. 

Back at the Gargano house, Johnny leaves Candice & Tegan alone. They appear to have mended their friendship until Candice says she will be the next NXT Champ in a toast. Tegan challenges this and Candice throws salad at her. Little food fight breaks out and Candice accidentally throws something through Johnny’s tv. She chases Tegan out of the house as Johnny mourns the loss of the television. You could tell Tegan was holding back laughing during the entire food fight portion. 

Damian Priest vows to re arrange Tim Thatcher’s face next week. 

5) Rhea Ripley vs. Mercedes Martinez - Steel Cage Match 

I hate the “battle of the badasses” tag line but this match was awesome. They brought some weapons into play like a chair and a kendo stick, but also worked the stip well and did a number of sick spots off the top rope and using the cage. It felt like a good classic grudge match and didn’t go into overkill at all either. Fantastic job by Ripley & Martinez here. Ripley wins after planting Martinez through a table. 

Match rating - ***3/4 

Final thoughts: Pretty solid episode of NXT this week. First one I’ve been interested enough to make it all the way through in a month or two so hell yeah. They should keep NXT on Tuesday nights, tbh.  

WWE: SummerSlam 2020 Review

WWE: SummerSlam 2020 Review

August 23rd, 2020

1) Bayley (c) vs. Asuka - Smackdown Women’s Title Match 

Tuned in around half way into this so my analysis may not be too accurate. It seemed to be going pretty solid and then they do the whole distraction thing and Bayley gets the win with a roll up to retain. This sets up for even more fire for Asuka later in her match with Sasha. 

Match rating - **1/2

2) Street Profits (c) vs. Andrade & Angel Garza - Raw Tag Team Title Match 

This is actually a match I fantasy booked to happen at SummerSlam bc of how bad I wanted to see Andrade & Garza team up. So I was pretty excited to see it go down and it honestly rocked. Street Profits continue to impress and Andrade & Garza were great heels for them to work against. Good back and forth tag with several cool moves/moments. Streets Profits retain. 

Match rating - **3/4 

3) Sonya Deville vs. Mandy Rose - No Disqualification Loser Leaves WWE Match 

This was a very good blowoff for this feud. They had tables and chairs involved and delivered a pretty competitive match that I enjoyed way more than I expected. Deville loses and apparently is “leaving WWE” per the stipulation. 

Match rating - ***

4) Seth Rollins (w/ Buddy Murphy) vs. Dominick (w/ Rey Mysterio) - Street Fight 

Okay fuck yeah. The eye for an eye stuff was a mixed bag with great action and a story but a terrible stip. This however has had an awesome build and the street fight stipulation is perfect. It’s taken a lot for me to want to care about this in recent weeks, but as soon as the bell rang, they pulled me in. The action, the tidbits with Rey & Angie, the emotion - it all ruled. Dominick looked fantastic in his debut match and not out of place at all. Rollins nails Dom with a curb stomp while Rey is handcuffed to the ropes and forced to watch. 

Match rating - ***3/4 

5) Sasha Banks (c) vs. Asuka - Raw Women’s Title Match 

Wow this was fucking awesome. Asuka eats shit on a power bomb off the apron early that made me wince. The premise of Asuka losing earlier due to Sasha and this being her second match of the night made you want to see her win that much more on top of the normal face/heel dynamic. They really went all out here with some sick back and forth action that had me on the edge of my seat up to the finish with Asuka knocking Bayley off the apron, getting caught in a submission by Sasha only to overcome again and hit a badass reversal forcing Sasha to tap. Asuka is the new Raw Women’s Champion. 

Match rating - ****

6) Drew McIntyre (c) vs. Randy Orton - WWE Championship Match 

I never expected to enjoy this or for it to turn out how it did but holy shit these two were stiff as heck and had me invested for the entire stretch. Drew has really settled into this main event role and feels like a perfect top of the card talent, not at all out of place in there with Orton, and honestly pulling the best Orton match (aside from the second Edge match) out of him in a good year or so. Orton and McIntyre seemingly both get cut the hard way from some stiff exchanges and it adds a lot to the match. Orton goes for the punt, McIntyre catches him in an insane power bomb. And they do a few finisher reversals before Drew catches Orton in a backslide for the pin. Great match. Drew is killing it as champion and with how this ended, I sense a rematch and I’m alllll for it. 

Match rating - ****1/4

7) Braun Strowman (c) vs. Bray Wyatt - WWE Universal Championship Match 

The trend of the night continues with this being shockingly solid. No dumb frills or gimmicks. Just a brawl between two bosses with personal issues. They brawl around ringside and backstage. Braun’s head gets skinned open and bleeds a little. They get back towards the ring and Braun rips the mat up with a box cutter exposing the wood. They trade moves on the wood before Wyatt puns Strowman after two sister abigails to win the title. 

Match rating - ***1/2 

Post match, ROMAN REIGNS attacks Bray Wyatt and Strowman both. Reigns wants his title back. Absolute shocker of a return considering the pandemic is still going on, but it was well done and with how solid of a show tonight was, I am a little stoked on the prospect of Bray’s title run and the return of Reigns - two things I never thought I would say in 2020. 

Kudos, WWE. You let your talents work a wrestling show with little to no excessive/over produced garbage and it was a super enjoyable watch. Let’s hope Raw continues the trend tomorrow with the debut of Keith Lee and the aftermath of SummerSlam! 

WWE Money in the Bank 2020 Review - May 10th, 2020

WWE: Money in the Bank
May 10th, 2020
Orlando, FL ///// Hartford, CT

What an interesting night we are in for. The two ladder matches are gonna be held in WWE's corporate office in Connecticut as the superstars will have to climb each floor and get to the roof where there will be a ring, ladders and the briefcases.

1) The New Day (Big E & Kofi Kingston) (c) vs. Lucha House Party (Gran Metallik & Lince Dorado) vs. John Morrison & The Miz vs. The Forgotten Sons - WWE Tag Team Title Match

Absolute barnburner to kick off the show. The New Day are the greatest team of the modern era so should we be surprised? Lots of action and spots. Some good near falls/teases that made you think this could go either way at any given moment. The Smackdown tag division hasn't slowed down or failed to deliver one bit amidst this crisis that has forced all shows to be held in an empty arena. New Day retains when all is said and done.

Match rating - ***3/4

2) R-Truth vs. Bobby Lashley

Truth was supposed to be facing MVP, but he gets squashed by Lashley instead.

Match rating - *

3) Bayley (c) (w/ Sasha Banks) vs. Tamina - Smackdown Women's Title Match

This wasn't as rough as I expected. Tamina managed to somewhat hang with Bayley, at least in my opinion. It still wasn't much, but good effort from both. Bayley retains.

Match rating - **

4) Braun Strowman (c) vs. Bray Wyatt - WWE Universal Title Match

Alright so anyone who knows me knows I have no real good feelings towards either of these two. But I will say this, Bray has won me over a good bit this year. Between the awesome match with Daniel Bryan at Royal Rumble and the fun house spectacle with Cena, Wyatt and his booking has been far from bad in 2020. I can't say the same for Braun who I've grown sick of. The story here is sorta cool though, given the history with Strowman being in the Wyatt Family in the past which I forgot about. The action here is good and they kept me interested the whole time. Strowman teasing becoming the black sheep again was cool also. So hell yeah. Harmless and pretty solid match here. Strowman retains unfortunately and that's the worst thing about it imo. I'd be so down for a Wyatt/Fiend title run at this point and that is something I never thought I would say.

Match rating - **3/4

5) Drew McIntyre (c) vs. Seth Rollins - WWE Championship Match

Fuck yeah, this was sick. To me, Drew & Rollins both work a similar style when it comes to big matches and they clicked super well with it here and hit a home run. I wish this would've had a crowd because it was so well worked. Rollins debuted new theme music that I didn't really care for, but that was the last thing on my mind when this match was over. Awesome back and forth contest with Drew slinging Rollins inside out across the ring with a release german off the ropes. Lots of cool moments here and big exchanges. Drew kicks out of the curbstomp and manages to hit the claymour kick finally and put Rollins down for the count to retain the title in his first defense. This was so much better than I ever expected it to be and picked up heavy down the stretch. Rollins reluctantly shakes McIntyre's hand post match as the champion thanks him. Who's next for McIntyre? I really hope it's Jinder.

Match rating - ****

6) Money in the Bank Ladder Matches 
Daniel Bryan vs. AJ Styles vs. Rey Mysterio vs. Aleister Black vs. Baron Corbin vs. Otis - Men's MITB Match
Asuka vs. Carmella vs. Dana Brooke vs. Nia Jax vs. Lacey Evans vs. Shayna Baszler - Women's MITB Match

Well. These matches happened. Simultaneously. It was entertaining, but also a little more on the side of 'what the fuck is going on here' type stuff. Funny moments like AJ & Bryan getting kicked out of Vince's office, Paul Heyman eating and both the men & women ruining that by starting a food fight, and my favorite moment - Corbin's trash talking to AJ Styles as he entered. On the women's side, Asuka really shined here yet again. From the jump she was the star as she was hiding on a platform as all the other women lined up during the introductions and dove down onto them and made a run for the elevators. This was something to behold and I didn't really like it as much as the Boneyard match or even Firefly Fun House, but it happened. The winners of each match were pretty shocking. SUPER happy for Asuka, no one deserves it more considering the effort she's been putting in lately. Otis is an interesting call. The mark/fantasy booker in me wanted AJ Styles to win, but I can't complain about a wildcard choice, I just can't help but feel Otis will be an afterthought in two years.

Final thoughts: Over by 9:30, a great WWE Title match, a spotty tag title opener, and an interesting main event held in WWE Headquarters. I can't complain about much about this show although there's only one thing on it I'll watch again, I'm sure the two main events will be talked about forever as it will probably never happen again so I'd say this is worth a look. Curious to see what's next for everyone with Backlash coming up on June 14th! STOKED to see Backlash being a thing again.

WWE NXT Review - May 6th, 2020

WWE NXT
May 6th
Orlando, FL

Commentators - Mauro Ranallo, Beth Phoenix, & Tom Phillips

1) Johnny Gargano vs. Dominik Dijakovic

I love heel Candice, but Gargano is still meh to me. Dijakovic does shit a big man shouldn't do and that's his biggest draw and it can be fun so this was alright. Candice came down to tease interference. This also being a TV match didn't allow Gargano to go into melo-drama mode so that also helped the case. Very fun back and forth match. Gargano wins when all is said and done and the self proclaimed king & queen of NXT continue their quest.

Match rating - ***1/4

Replay of Imperium attacking Riddle & Thatcher last week. They stake their claim for the NXT Tag Team Championship. I AM READY.

Io Shorai is warming up backstage for her title match with Charlotte. Queeeeeen.

2) Akira Tozawa vs. Jack Gallagher - Cruserweight Title Tournament Match

Fresh off another week of being squashed on Raw, Tozawa is expected to be taken serious by the majority. Poor Tozawa :( but he actually looked really good here. He & Jack seem to have some chemistry and things start out strong. However, as you'd expect, it ends before it can really turn into anything. Tozawa gets the win after an apron bump and a senton off the top rope.

Match rating - **1/2

Post-match, Tozawa sends a simple message to Fantasma - "I will beat you"

TONIGHT: Cole defends the NXT Title against Velveteen Dream

Charlotte preps for her first title defense since WrestleMania

3) Xia Li vs. Chelsea Green (w/ Robert Stone)

Green charges Li at the bell and this is intense from the jump. Alliyah runs down for the interference and it looks like the Li/Alliyah feud is continuing which I don't mind. This ends up giving Green the assist and Robert Stone puts his hand out for her post-match, teasing adding her to his fold with Green.

Match rating - **1/2

4) Karrion Kross (w/ Scarlett) vs. Leon Ruff

Good debut for Kross. Tom Phillips nailed it with the line "Karrion Kross is the damn devil. What the hell did NXT just let in it's doors?" A lot of people hated on their entrance with Scarlett lip syncing the words etc but I didn't HATE it. It fits the very cinematic vibe WWE has been doing with a lot of stuff lately. Kross destroys Ruff in a minute or so.

Match rating - **1/2

5) Charlotte (c) vs. Io Shorai - NXT Women's Title Match

I hate giving almost every match on this show the same rating, but when the action is fun, and it also accomplishes something or continues a story in a timely manner, I can't think of a better rating than a solid **1/2 - same thing here. Sure, you don't like to see title matches end in a DQ, but this whole thing was good. Up until the DQ, in the DQ, and after the DQ. It protects Shorai and keeps her in title picture, brings out Rhea Ripley, and causes a lot of mayhem in the women's division. So, yeah, Charlotte got disqualified for using a kendo stick after 8-9 mins. Rhea attacks Charlotte post match. Io is pissed at her for getting involved, I guess and argues her backstage.

Match rating - **1/2

Pull apart brawl between Io Shorai and Rhea Ripley backstage. GIMME THAT MATCH.

6) KUSHIDA vs. Jake Atlas - Cruserweight Title Tournament Match

This was the shortest of all the tourney matches so far. They seem to be getting less and less time. KUSHIDA catches Atlas in mid-air in the armbar and Atlas taps immediately.

Match rating - *3/4

Finn Balor seems to think a newcomer attacked him two weeks ago. Balor says they won't get the push they want when the bell rings, it will be a squash.

7) Cameron Grimes vs. Denzel Dejournette 

Squash. Trevor Lee with a cowboy hat wins. Post-match, Grimes says he wishes someone else wouldn't have beaten him to the punch on attacking Finn Balor. This brings out Balor who dares Grimes to slap him. It breaks down and Balor takes him out. Balor says he will find the snake that's hiding in the NXT locker room.

8) Adam Cole (c) vs. Velveteen Dream - NXT Championship Match

This was like a compact version of the NXT Title 'epics' we normally get on Takeover's so I was pretty unphased. Buncha moves then Undisputed Era runs down only for Dexter Lumis to slide from under the ring. He throws Roddy into the ref by accident. This allows Cole to get the advantage and inevitably pin Dream to retain the title.

Match rating - **1/4

Full thoughts: First half of the show was solid, but the second half sorta fell off for me and was a little harder to sit through. Still looking forward to next week though to see what's next for Finn Balor and also the Charlotte/Io/Ripley stuff PLUS Imperium/Thatcher & Riddle hell yeah!

WWE NXT Review - April 29th, 2020

WWE NXT
April 29th, 2020

TONIGHT: Keith Lee defends the North American Title against Damian Priest

1) El Hijo Del Fantasma vs. Isaiah "Swerve" Scott - Cruserweight Title Tournament Match

This was pretty run of the mill and it sucks this tournament is falling into that trend, but I guess it should be expected. I always get too excited and am let down, but how can you not be stoked for what would have been a dream match on the indies? None the less, this happened and it's ok for what it is, but doesn't get the chance to build into much. Scott wins with a pinning combo pretty abruptly.

Match rating - **1/2

Donovan Dijakovic pre-taped promo essentially challenging Gargano next week and mentions the millions of Takeover's he's headlined thanks to the company. I love that. Can't wait for this match, could be really good.

During the break, the masked men tried to attack Fantasma again, but he fought them off.

2) Candice LeRae (w/ Johnny Gargano) vs. Kacy Catanzaro

WWE NXT Review - April 22nd, 2020

WWE NXT

April 22nd, 2020 

Apparently something happened and Finn Balor can't compete tonight. This leaves Velveteen Dream without an opponent tonight. Velveteen is on the turnbuckle doing his best Finn impression mocking the demon for standing him up. This brings out NXT Champion Adam Cole whom Velveteen has been wanting face to face for weeks. Cole has no clue what happened to Balor, but knows exactly what is gonna happen to Velveteen. Cue Roderick Strong & Bobby Fish on the attack. 3 on 1 assault is broken up by Keith Lee who cleans the whole damn house. 

TONIGHT: 3 CRUSERWEIGHT TOURNEY MATCHES plus Johnny Gargano (mehhh) and CANDICE LERAE LIVE YESS

1) Shotzi Blackheart & Tegan Nox vs. Dakota Kai & Raquel Gonzalez 

God this ruled. I wish it would've went longer and wasn't just a glorified squash bc the urgency and fire in this stemming from last week was real and these ladies knocked it out of the park. Such a fun, crisp and perfect few minutes. Gonzalez pins Shotzi with a crazy chokeslam. 

Match rating - ***

Later tonight: Adam Cole & Roderick Strong vs. Velveteen Dream & Keith Lee 

2) Drake Maverick vs. Jake Atlas - Cruserweight Title Tournament 

Great video package to hype up and introduce Jake Atlas. They also show a clip of Maverick's emotional video on Twitter that he posted soon after he found out he would be unemployed after this tournament. It makes the stakes for this seem super high, but that drama doesn't transcend to the match. It's a solid debut for Atlas though and they showed some good struggle to build off the Drake stuff which was accuenated by some verbal exchanges. Atlas busted out a few crazy things including the finish as he nailed a flawless cartwheel ddt off the top rope for the victory. I hoped for a lot more from this, but you can't really expect an epic this early in a WWE booked tournament.

Match rating - **3/4

Damian Priest/Keith Lee video package. Priest brings it back to when he defeated Keith Lee in his debut main event match on NXT and says he will do it again and become North American Champion. 

3) KUSHIDA vs. Tony Nese - Cruserweight Title Tournament 

Nese is determined to show KUSHIDA how it feels to compete in a "real cruserweight tournament" and starts out real aggressive but KUSHIDA fires back in kind. Nese hits a 630 for a two count. KUSHIDA threw shots at the left arm throughout the match which helped him in the finish as he did the flying/flipping cross arm breaker on Nese for the win. That finish was sick. 

Match rating - ***

Backstage, it's Matt Riddle and BIG TIM THATCHER. Riddle says he misses Pete and gets weird and calls Tim beautiful. Next week he will show the world how beautiful Tim really is. 

Johnny Gargano and Candice LeRae are sharing a candlelit dinner at home. Amid refusing to watch the recent Gargano/Ciampa stuff out of exhaustion, I forgot Gargano was a heel now. They propose the idea of taking over NXT as a couple, destroying it and rebuilding it the way it should be because the 'good guys' always win. Candice has fully committed to this heel role and she really shined here. I love it. Candice forever. 

Drake Maverick is on the steps backstage crying and says everyone in this tournament is facing their opponent but he is facing his opponents and himself. "Maybe everyone was right about me.." :-/

4) Mia Yim vs. Jessi Kamea

I love Mia and I've never seen Jesse but her theme music and entrance is cool. This is a squash for Mia. Post match, NXT Women's Champion Charlotte comes out to ask Mia about the opportunity she laid out for her. Mia says it would be an honor to face her. Charlotte says she's gonna make Mia a star next week. 

5) Jack Gallagher vs. El Hijo Del Fantasmo - Cruserweight Title Tournament Match 

Maybe I'm being short sighted but this was my least favorite of the tourney matches tonight. And that sucks bc I was stoked on Fantasmo's debut. But to me, it didn't give him the display he deserves. A cool move here or there but ultimately it was super routine. Gallagher is a newly focused man and wants to shut down Fantasmo in his debut. Tasmo fights from under and wins with a driver variation.

Match rating - **1/2 

NEXT WEEK: Charlotte vs. Mia Yim + Keith Lee vs. Damian Priest - both are title matches 

6) Velveteen Dream & Dexter Lumis vs. Adam Cole & Roderick Strong 

Okay so what the fuck? First off, Finn got mysteriously taken off the show because "something happened" to him in the locker room. So we get this tag, and Keith Lee gets attacked by Damian Priest before the bell and can't compete. So Velveteen goes it alone and randomly Dexter . .. Lumis... Shows up on the apron. "this night just keeps getting weirder and weirder" says Byron Saxton and he is correct. BUT Dexter looks AWESOME here. Giving it to Cole & Strong then diving onto Fish on the floor allowing Velveteen to scoop the pin on Cole for the win. 

Match rating - **1/2

Final thoughts: No standout matches or must see stuff this week, but it still passed very quickly and kept my attention pretty much the whole time and has me locked in to tune in next week because of so many unanswered questions and well built matches already announced. NXT has been producing simple, good week to week TV lately and the roster seems to have so much depth right now. I'm into it. 

WWE: 205 Live Review - March 20th, 2020

WWE 205 Live Review 

March 20th, 2020 

Last week, Team NXT Cruserweights defeated the 205 Live Originals in a 10 man elimination match. What's next? 

1) Danny Burch vs. Joquain Wilde 

Burch was eliminated first last week so he's a little disgruntled. Side note: I love his theme music. ANYWAY these two put in a pretty decent showing here. Cool spot with Wilde diving off the railing in the "crowd" onto Burch. Other than that, this was pretty routine. Burch gets a singles win which is surprising but I guess it was needed coming off being eliminated first last week. 

Match rating - **1/4

They take a look back at the 5 on 5 elimination match from last week and run down what all happened. And then cut to the tech truck where JOHN CENA was watching live last week!! Epic. 

2) Isaiah Swerve Scott vs. Oney Lorcan 

Between these two, they hold claim to four of the eliminations last week so this almost a clash of the alphas. Lorcan took a different approach than normal and tried to wear down & ground Swerve with holds, particularly targeting the leg. Swerve fought from underneath and was finally able to get a break with an insane lariat that turned Lorcan inside out. This allowed Swerve to start flying around and doing what he does best and it ends up leading him to victory. This wasn't bad but had no real fire behind it. It was almost like the most basic run through of how to work this style of match. Swerves double stomp at the end looked great though. 

Match rating - ** 

WWE: 205 Live Review - March 13th, 2020

WWE 205 Live 

March 13th, 2020 

Orlando, FL 

205 Live Originals vs. NXT Cruserweights 

1) Tony Nese, Brian Kendrick, Jack Gallagher, Ariya Davari, & Mike Kanellis vs. KUSHIDA, Tyler Breeze, Oney Lorcan, Danny Burch & Isaiah Swerve Scott 

This entire show is devoted to a story that could have been so much bigger if it had been promoted on a larger platform. Recently, William Regal decided to spread the Cruiserweight Title to NXT thus adding outsiders to the originally 205 Live exclusive division which leads us to this. A match where the 205 Live Originals fight for their supremacy against the new NXT Cruserweights. Tony Nese and Lio Rush are the team captains, but Jack Gallagher took out Lio Rush in an attack so Team NXT has a hole to fill. The other four men come out and their mystery partner is .. ... KUSHIDAAAAAAA. Awesome surprise. This is real fun from the jump. Danny Burch is first out after shit breaks down into an all out brawl and the Singh Brothers toss Nese a camera and he hits him with it behind the refs back for the pin. Next out is Tyler Breeze via a pinning combination by Jack Gallagher. Team NXT is down 2 until 205 team leader Tony Nese gets eliminated thanks to dissension between he & Jack Gallagher. This also costs them the elimination of Mike Kanellis as Gallagher head-butted his own partner Nese AND Kanellis out of frustration. It's now 3 on 3 with Kendrick/Davari/Gallagher against KUSHIDA/Lorcan/Swerve. Swerve gets tagged in and manages to eliminate both Kendrick & Davari with a roll up. They assault KUSHIDA and Lorcan before leaving to try to help Gallagher who is now left on his own. He goes ape shit and throws Swerve over the announce table and eliminates Lorcan with a stiff elbow shot to the jaw. However, the numbers are too much and KUSHIDA & Swerve team up and take Gallagher down. Fucking great finish with Swerve popping Gallagher's arm and throwing him into KUSHIDA's signature arm bar which Gallagher taps to immediately. This was real solid despite having no audience. KUSHIDA and Swerve stare down to close the show as they know they will have to clash eventually. 

Match rating - ***1/4 

WWE Main Event Review - March 12th, 2020

WWE Main Event

March 12th, 2020 

Wow. I don't think I've ever reviewed an episode of main event??? But I saw Ricochet on the thumbnail and an advertised Shelton/Humberto match so let's goooo. 

Byron Saxton and... Wow Mickie James on commentary. I think my crush on her continues to last through the years.

1) Ricochet vs. Eric Young 

Eric Young comes out to no reaction. Poor guy.. he's a good base for Ricochet here though who's been reduced to Main Event after getting squashed by Brock at Super Showdown :-/ this is a fun Ricochet exhibition though. He runs through his stuff and gets the win with the 630. 

Match rating - **1/4

Raw replays begin. Becky's promo on Shayna airs. 

A McIntyre/Town clip slash beatdown slash match thing airs from Raw? This format is weird. I'm fast forwarding. 

Humberto Carrillo is out next to face Shelton in the main event of main event? 

2) Shelton Benjamin vs. Humberto Carrillo 

Pretty fun and creative match. Could've been a lot more if it went longer but they still made due with what they had. Carrillo defeats, as Mickie says, the self proclaimed main event champion. 

Match rating - **1/2 

Smackdown replays blah blah. The actual show is over goodbye. 

WWE NXT Review - April 15th, 2020

WWE NXT Review
Orlando, FL
April 15th, 2020

Today has been a crazy day in WWE history, as has this whole week. On top of returning to live, albeit empty arena, shows - WWE began making numerous cuts to their roster due to the Covid-19 Pandemic. Included in those cuts is Drake Maverick, a talent who will be finishing out his WWE run in the round robin cruserweight title tournament that begins tonight. A heartfelt video from him talking about this on Twitter is honestly what led me to want to watch this show live.

1) Finn Balor vs. Fabian Aichner

This stems out of Balor's quest to face NXT UK Champion Walter whom is the leader of the Imperium stable which Archer is a part of. Balor has been so much more intense since returning to NXT, so this was good, even without an audience to boot. Archer gave Balor a hell of a fight, giving some nasty looking marks on his back, but Balor would retaliate with a running dropkick through the railing followed by the Coupe De Grace and the bloody sunday for the win.

Match rating - ***1/4

TONIGHT: Adam Cole and Velveteen Dream confrontation

UP NEXT: NXT Champion Charlotte speaks

Charlotte pre-taped video package airs and she wants MIA YIM as her first challenger. Hell yes ! ! !!

2) Aliyah vs. Xia Li

Li accidentally broke Aliyah's nose in a prior match so here we are. Li starts pounding away but Aliyah won't back down. Valiant effort from Aliyah, but Li puts her down after a few minutes. Both ladies killed it, though. Perfect for what it was!

Match rating - **3/4

REGAL CRUSERWEIGHT TITLE TOURNAMENT VIDEO PACKAGE. FINALLY YES. And kicking it off up next is TOZAWA VS SCOTT. Perfect pairing to match my taste's.

Matt Riddle is on the phone with Pete Dunne trying to get him to tell him who his tag team partner is..

3) Isaiah "Swerve" Scott vs. Akira Tozawa - Cruserweight Title Tournament Match

WWE: Elimination Chamber 2020 Review

WWE Elimination Chamber
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
March 8th, 2020

Taking a break from my Ruthless Aggression Project 2002 reviewing to finish off the most recent WWE PPV offering. 

1) Daniel Bryan vs. Drew Gulak

This is a random match opening a throwaway PPV with very little build and dear god these two destroyed each other. Best WWE match this year next to Bryan/Wyatt from last month. The story is Gulak training Slater and Axel to take down Bryan, but failing despite getting to his head. Bryan challenged Gulak and Gulak accepted bc he knows Bryan's weaknesses because he has watched and studied his whole career pre-WWE and all. These two traded grappling holds and submissions and wrestled each other with a stiffness that isn't often seen in WWE. Bryan made Gulak look like a monster and super strong in defeat as he wrung his neck with the Yes Lock until he passed out. Very aggressive battle that left both men with scrapes, marks, and bloody bruises across their face and body. Bryan continues to be the GOAT.

Match rating - ****

Dolph Ziggler & Bobby Roode are backstage for an interview. That weird static thing popped on the screen during it. Ziggler & Roode hype up their chances in the tag title chamber match later.

2) Andrade (c) vs. Humberto Carrillo - United States Title match 

WWE: 205 Live Review - February 21st, 2020

205 Live

February 21st, 2020 

No clue what led me here but god damn let's get into it. Actually I do know what led me here, I heard the main event between Oney/Burch and Kendrick/Davari was very good and I love two of the parties involved so figured may as well review the whole show.

1) Joaquin Wilde vs. Raul Mendoza 

Wilde is the former Zema Ion. He still has the airhorn in his theme music which I love. This was a lot of fun. Amidst the lukewarm crowd, these two had a solid match modeling the style in great fashion. Simple simple stuff but I enjoyed it. Call back to their last match with Mendoza catching himself before getting hit with Wilde's finisher again and uses the opportunity to hit his own move for the win. 

Match rating - ***

2) Tyler Breeze vs. Samer Singh

The Singh brothers are the heels and Breeze is the babyface. This was.. here. Only lasted a few minutes so it's virtually harmless but it means nothing so why even talk about it. Breeze wins. WOO.

Match rating - *1/4

3) Brian Kendrick & Ariya Daivari vs. Oney Lorcan & Danny Burch - No Disqualification Match

Now this is what I came here for! Super solid main event that played off the story well. Kendrick hit a fucking death valley driver on Lorcan off the apron through a table - a spot that's worth a viewing of this match alone. The finish is creative and extends the story of Davari being guided by Kendrick and unable to get the job done without him as Lorcan & Burch tie Kendrick's leg to the post and finish off Daivari for the win.

Match rating - ***1/2

WWE: NXT Takeover: Portland Review - February 16th, 2020

NXT Takeover: Portland
February 16th, 2020

Commentators - Mauro Ranallo, Beth Pheonix, & Nigel McGuinness

POPPY performs two songs from her latest album to kick off the show. It ruled bc she rules and I've missed good live music performances on WWE programming.

1) Keith Lee (c) vs. Dominik Dijakovic - North American Title Match

Lee's first defense against his greatest rival in/out of the WWE. They've had one prior singles meeting in NXT and their match in PWG's BOLA tournament in 2017 is what put them both on the map, so to have this here is pretty special. They know it and the crowd knows it. Great staredown to start before they go nuts on each other. Starts off a little slow/rocky, but builds into everything you love about both guys. Some new, insane spots like Dijakovic front flipping off the top rope to the floor onto a seated Keith Lee. Great facial expressions to match all the crazy shit and the crowd bit on all of it. Awesome opener and first defense for Lee and a fantastic nother chapter written in their rivalry.

Match rating - ****1/4

2) Tegan Nox vs. Dakota Kai - Street Fight

This is a deep seeded personal rivalry that dates back to last year's War Games and the first ever women's street fight in NXT. Didn't have a lot of expectations for this however it turned out to be pretty fuckin great. Only negative was one slip up on a canadian destroyer spot and the interference near the end could be seen as such, but I thought it gave a strong, what the fuck finish and the spot was YIKES. But yeah. This whole thing had me entertained from bell to bell and not just that - had me into what they were doing and even pulled me to the edge of my seat a couple of times. They somehow followed Lee/Dijakovic's banger and didn't look out of place or a tier below AT ALL. Great stuff from both women, interested to see where this goes in regards to the finish.

Match rating - ****

3) Finn Balor vs. Johnny Gargano

This is the best Finn Balor match since the Brock title match at Royal Rumble over a year ago and that was Finn's best match in another one or two years. Finn had an aggression and look in his eye here that I haven't seen in a very long time. He seemed super motivated and controlled this match AND it got time, so he was able to sink his teeth into it and also not let it become the generic over the top Gargano big match. Balor dissects Gargano, works him over, lots of cut offs and moments to build heat that built up to an awesome finish. I was super impressed with this because I honestly feared for the worst due to the dull formula both these two can fall into -- this was the opposite. Plus, a motivated, aggressive Balor gets the win?? Perfect.

Match rating - ****

4) Rhea Ripley (c) vs. Bianca Belair - NXT Women's Championship 

We needed a cool down after three straight bangers and while this was that in a way, it definitely was still high energy and very back & forth. It felt like a solid NXT TV main event more than a NXT PPV Title Match but I can't really complain with what we got here. Just super fun, competitive title match that gave Ripley a little more solidification in her reign and Belair look like a valid threat. Ripley retains and Charlotte attacks her after the match and wants her at WrestleMania. CRAZY. Charlotte won the Women's Royal Rumble and will challenge for the NXT title at WrestleMania. 

Match rating - ***1/2

5) Kyle O'Reilly & Bobby Fish (c) vs. Matt Riddle & Pete Dunne - NXT Tag Team Championship Match 

Mother of pearl. These four wrestle a super similar style, a hybrid style that I love. And here they got the perfect platform to just do what they do best and it ruled. They isolate Dunne for the Riddle hot tag and shit breaks down. The crowd was into everything and the drama really came into play when Dunne kicked out of Chasing the Dragon. Riddle & Dunne eventually are able to overcome and dethrone the Undisputed Era. It's complicated bc I don't like the pairing two random people together thing but Riddle & Dunne work and booking them like this really solidifies them and also the importance of the Dusty tag tournament. Awesome match. 

Match rating - ****

Later this week - Keith Lee and Mark Henry will be on WWE Backstage. 

6) Adam Cole (c) vs. Tommaso Ciampa - NXT Championship Match

Aye aye aye... This was... Something. After such an awesome show, they just had to end it with a NXT wannabe, overbooked epic. There was some good stuff here, but with every un-needed false finish and interference, my rating trickled down. The post story with continuing Gargano/Ciampa was another breath out of my lungs as far as my opinion on this match goes. Two guys doing stuff with a decent story behind it but it went way too long and was booked way too much like an epic like EVERY stereotypical big NXT title match in the HBK booked era. Which is what makes it NOT an epic. It's like once Gargano/Almas tore the house down they did it again with Gargano/Ciampa and burned it out. Then did it with Gargano/Cole and it was good then they overkilled that. Now they did the same thing here and are bringing us back around to Gargano/Ciampa again and that's just disappointing. 

Match rating - ***