The DIVA DISH is BACK!!! By Wes Kozalla

In this edition:
The Diva's Revolution Truly Begins, Becky Lynch's Search for Identity Heading To Fastlane with The Boss, and the power of NXT

The month of August saw WWE attempt to right many wrongs in their presentation of women in sports entertainment. Charlotte, Sasha Banks and Becky Lynch stormed in to show the world that the Divas mattered in WWE. The matches have been generally very good to excellent, but the storylines have meandered and fans were left wondering why Sasha Banks wasn't being utilized and why they should care about Charlotte anyway.

(The booking of Team B.A.D. was well . . . not good. The alliance will end with a bang as Sasha joins Becky Lynch to take on Tamina and Naomi at Fastlane. Source: WWE.com)

WWE did not give the fans on Raw and Smackdown the opportunity to get to know their new champion or Banks the way they did on NXT. The creative team made a smart move turning Charlotte heel, bringing back elements of the entitled princess who would stop at nothing to win that helped launch the careers of her costars Banks and Lynch, as well as Bayley, now the current NXT champion. Damage control continued after Paige disappeared after challenging Charlotte for the title. Afterward, Becky Lynch was the betrayed bestie looking for revenge and her first taste of WWE gold. This looked like a first chance for Lynch to really be more than the sidekick who kicks ass. Unlike her fellow call ups, she did not have the opportunity to hone her persona more and its hampering her progress now.

(Becky Lynch awaits Charlotte for their match at the 2016 Royal Rumble. Source: WWE Network)

She spent most of her time in NXT as a sidekick. First, she was Bayley's new friend who danced Irish jigs in the ring. Things improved when she turned heel and became Sasha Banks' muscle. She finally broke out on her own when a feud culminated in Lynch fighting in the now-epic NXT Takeover Fatal Four Way match that crowned Sasha Banks NXT women's champion. She went on to fight Banks for the title, debuting her steampunk gear and orange hair. This look had the trappings of market research and trying to find what worked, but it was a good start, but she did not have a chance to continue in NXT and explore her character before getting called up to the main roster. Charlotte was the technical wrestling princess, Sasha was the egomaniacal boss, and Becky was . . . well she was Charlotte's and Paige's sidekick with goggles. She deserves a nod for getting huge pops and drawing the eyes to her beauty and high energy wrestling style in spite of the weak characterization, but now just as she's building organic momentum she's stalling once again.

Around the various dirt sheets on the net, writers and fans are inclined to blame WWE creative, throw around the world "burial," but the unfortunate fact for Becky, is that she's just hitting her stride as Sasha Banks and her appeal can no longer be denied on the pragmatic business end. The same fans who love Lynch for the good-hearted and hard-wrestling Lass Kicker she is have wanted The Boss to come to the forefront even more. That leaves Lynch back in sidekick land as of the February 11th Smackdown - a supporting player in the final battle between The Boss and Team B.A.D. that will end at Fastlane. The possibility of The Boss and the Nature Girl rekindling the epic rivalry they began in NXT at Wrestlemania is nearing certainty. The Lass Kicker can at best hope for a spot in a triple threat for the title. Before Lynch can become a true breakout star and not a player in someone else's legacy, she has to find that elusive last piece beyond the orange locks and steampunk cosplay that will help her carve her own niche apart from Sasha Banks and Charlotte. One plus for Lynch is that this tag team bout with Sasha against Naomi and Tamina will be more satisfying than Charlotte's. The champ is defending her title against Brie Bella to capitalize on the warm fuzzies of Daniel Bryan's retirement. As the main roster moves toward Wrestlemania, NXT's women's division has shown it's been reloading rather than rebuilding.

(The Boss demands a title shot her way after Charlotte's victory over Becky Lynch at the 2016 Royal Rumble. Source: WWE Network)

Ever since Bayley became champion after she and Banks brought down the house at NXT Takeover Brooklyn--and followed it up with their groundbreaking Iron Woman match at Takover: Respect, she has become the heart and soul of NXT's female roster-- and the brand's top babyface.

(Bayley has done what few faces have done in wrestling in the 21st century--forge a strong connection with both adults and kids as she elevates the roster around her. Source: WWE)

The 2/10 edition of NXT was main evented by her match with real life and kayfabe close friend Carmella for the title. Bayley's doing what Charlotte did before her, wear the championship with class, enhance the brand and make her opponents look better even in defeat. Carmella has been a fan favorite since her debut, but has had to work hard to improve in the ring. She showed sparks of solid work intermingled with her charisma and showmanship in prior bouts with Alexa Bliss and Emma, but with Bayley leading the story between the ropes she never looked better. That's what champions need to do in the business and Bayley has also brought the best out of the flourishing heel Alexa Bliss, the green monster heel Nia Jax and even Eva Marie. Bayley leads the charge but she isn't the only one getting the most out of the developmental roster.

(Emma uses her guile-- and bff Dana Brooke-- to catch Asuka off guard. Source: WWE.com)

Emma has reinvented herself as a top heel in an alliance with the emerging Dana Brooke and the pair served as antagonists for the Japanese sensation Asuka. When Asuka was signed, expectations were high, and she has not failed to disappoint. Technical mastery and a high energy style along with the manic joy she brings has audiences enthralled. In her feud with Brooke and Emma, she got the best match out of the former to date, helping the former fitness model make significant strides in her ring work. At NXT Takeover: London the arc concluded when she and Emma locked horns.  Her star continues to ascend as a possible title shot was teased as she ran in to save Bayley from Nia Jax and Eva Marie at the end of the 2/10 edition of NXT.

In two weeks the Dish will return and examine the landscape in the final weeks to Wrestlemania for the emerging women of WWE.

Arizona Wrestling Federation - NEW DAWN - A REVIEW

The Arizona Wrestling Federation 

Presents 

NEW DAWN

In truth, on Saturday, January 30, what the AWF Presented was the best event to date in the first month of this year, and the best wrestling event I have witnessed in a long time.

We experienced the return of a major AWF star and former champ, the possible formation of a new tag team, two massive title matches and an epic ladder match that ranks with anything done by the big boys.

Our first match of the night:

LOS FOX STAR VERSUS DANNY GEE
Danny Gee is back! He looks in better shape, a little slimmer and sleeker and just as good as before on his way to victory.

LAWRENCE TYLER VERSUS DANIEL SANCHEZ VERSUS NICK TENDO
Wow! Nick Tendo actually won a match? I think this is the first time I have seen that.

Nice entertaining match with the good Sanchez, the improving Tendo and the always Awesome LT.

Super kicks don’t work on LT. Neither Sanchez nor Tendo could down LT with a super kick, until they did a double super kick! Hell, the ref even got in on it, setting up to try a super kick until LT cut him short.

AWESOME ANDY PALAFAX VERSUS DOM VITALLI
Tonight was the night Andy made his return to faceville. A hard fought match with Vitalli led to a post match attack, with Vitalli getting the upper hand. Danny Gee for the save!

One year ago, Andy turned heel during a title match with Danny Gee, tonight all seems to be forgiven.

SUPER CHAOS VERSUS ALEXANDER HAMMERSTONE
While it lasted this was a good match. Odd, but good. At one point Hammerstone seemed to hurt his shoulder. He would later go for a pump handle slam, drop Chaos and leave the ring. Both the ref and Chaos seemed legit shocked.

Was this a set up for a heel turn, or was Hammerstone actually hurt? Not sure right now.

‘EXCITING’ EVAN DANIELS VERSUS THE PROPHET
Evan Daniels is exactly as promoted, Exciting. This guy has the moves, speed, sleek build and can fly. I have never been a big fan of The Prophet, but he looked very good tonight (better then he looked the previous night at the RWA event).

Good, well-paced match and both guys delivered. In the end #TeamExiciting came out on top.

AWF CHAMPIONSHIP MATCH: THE CHAMPION JOE GRAVES VERSUS ALVARIC REINER
The first time I saw Joe Graves was about two years ago, and he was very green. Today, he is a much different and better wrestler, far more polished and improved and looks more relaxed in the ring.

Alvaric has been around for about a year, wreaking havoc in the AWF. To date he has lost only on match. I am a massive fan of the ‘German’ heel, perhaps his only fan.

The match was set up after Reiner’s post match attack on Graves at the previously event. For Graves this was personal, for Reiner it was about winning the gold.

This match showcased what a title match should be able, participants doing anything to win. Both men pulled out all the stops. Brawling, wrestling, fighting into the crowd. Graves couldn’t get a handle on what Reiner brought to the ring, and Reiner couldn’t quite keep Graves down for the win.

Ref bump! Baton to the Head! One, Two, Three!

YES: NEW CHAMP – ALVARIC REINER!

OUR MAIN EVENT: THE AWF'S FIRST EVER LADDER MATCH FOR THE TAG TEAM TITLES!

The Champions: Adrian Hawking and Aidan Colt, with Spray Boy Roy versus The Bearded Friends Forever (Big Duke and Suede Thompson).

The first thing to notice about this match is that Aidan Colt has grown his beard back! Beard Power. The second thing to notice is Aidan Colt may not be able to reach the belts even with The Big Show’s ladder.

This wasn’t a wrestling match, it wasn’t a car wreck, it wasn’t mayhem and violence. It was all those combined with some post-apocalyptic wasteland war. Tables! Ladders! Stairs! Steel Chairs! Steel Doors!

Yes, Steel Doors! Aidan Colt and Suede Thompson took the fight outside the arena, and returned via the back emergency exit steel door!

There was even collateral damage, as I personally got hit with a set of small plastic stairs that flew into the crowd! Then there was Spray Boy Roy, who, when he tried to get the belts himself, was taking out by Suede and Duke.

In the end Hawkins and Colt preserved and won, when Hawkins was able to pull the titles down (if barely).

Winners and still champions: Adrian Hawkins and Aidan Colt.

I cannot praise this event enough. There was not a bad match, bad moment or bad performance on the card. Freaking Awesome.

FINAL THOUGHTS:
Near Perfect.

RATING: 9.5

Wrestlementary WrapUp Week 6 - 2/7 to 2/13

Big News of the Week

Daniel Bryan shocked the World Mid-Afternoon on Monday (2/8), announcing his retirement from in-ring wrestling. That evening he was on RAW, in his home town (sort of), Seattle, Washington, to talk about his retirement.

He didn’t exactly do that though. Yes, he elaborated on his reasons for retirement. The multiple concussions, his brain not being as healthy as he thought, his family to think of. All very good reasons. I personally think he made the right choice. I have no inside track of his true medical diagnosis (no internet person does), but this is the brain we are talking about.

No, what Bryan Danielson “The American Dragon” talked about was his love of wrestling, and of life.

To be honest, Bryan look awkward out there, uneasy talking on the mic, as he always did. It wasn’t just this one, massively important, time. Anytime Bryan was in a ring and not wrestling he looked awkward and unsure.

In his farewell address he looked awkward, unsure of himself, bared himself and came off RAW and REAL.

Thanks, Bryan Danielson.

WRESMENTARY

Onto the comments for RAW

I wrote about it above, so I won’t comment much on it from a show standpoint. But we opened up the show with a video package on Bryan. The night was filled with them, as they should have been.

We open up the action in ring with a contract signing? At the beginning of the show? Wow.

Stephanie is in ring, trying to talk about her husband when Ambrose interrupts, then Reigns. When Stephanie seems to have control again, Heyman and Brock interrupt. Just as Heyman is about to go into his normal spiel, Stephanie cuts him down, and the bitch takes charge.

She makes it short and sweet and has everyone sign. It’s straight to the point. She grabs the contact, says her job is done and bails. Smart lady.

Ambrose not so much. A face to face with Lesnar gets Ambrose and Reigns laid out with a F5 and a table. Brock wins.

Ziggler and KO’s feud continues, with Ziggler again one-upping KO, using the ropes to gain a pin fall victory. This feud is on the verge of popping big time. They need a match at Fastlane, and build it up to a blow off at Mania.

Good Divas Match are a rare thing, and we weren’t given any on tonight’s show.

The MIZ. Jericho. Together. On the Mic. MIZ TV and HIGHLIGHTREEL? YES.

The MIZ-REEL segment was awesome. MIZ and Jericho are great on the mic, tore the place down with their chemistry and really did something special, once more putting AJ Styles over big time. AJ himself would eventually make his way down and clear the ring, putting himself over.

On Smackdown Ryback avoided destruction, tonight not so. Ryback feel to Bray.

The New Day cut a promo polishing a table in prepping for their main event tables match with the Usos and Dudleys. They play it up, but get upset with Renee when she asked if they have found a partner.

Big take away from this promo is this, the calculator Woods turned upside down and handed to Renee had 800835 (BOOBES). Seriously, check it out again and look at her reaction.

The Radical Mongoose (Adam Rose) beat the Florida Gator as Titus O’Neal fell prey to the Social Outcasts! Yea Outcasts! Best part of this, was a Rikki Tikki Tavi mention by Cole.

Dean Ambrose called out Brock Lesnar, only to get his ass handed to him. An appearance by Reigns distracted Lesnar long enough for Ambrose to down Lesnar with a low blow and make his escape side-by-side with Reigns. If this was Ambrose’s revenge, it was best left NOT DONE.

Sin Cara is back, just in time for the Lucha Dragons to lose to ADR and Rusev on RAW. ADR pinned Kalisto rather easily. Is this a sign that the US Title is coming home at Fastlane?

The Diva’s are slipping again, and badly. Proof of this, Tamina actually wrestled and won. She beat Becky in a terrible match and poor segment to further the Team Bed versus Banks/Lynch feud.

MAIN EVENT TIME: The Usos and the Dudley’s versus The New Day and their surprise partner Mark Henry! Great, if odd, choice.

The match was okay, but it wasn’t the story here. Dudley’s and Usos won the match after Mark Henry walked off. Henry walked off, upset that The New Day tried telling him what to do. Henry as their partner was odd since he’s been a face lately. Was this a turn for him?

Speaking of turns, after the match, Usos through tables! Dudley Boys put the Usos through the tables. Epic heel turn that is far overdue and that no one saw coming!

After this was DB, which I talked about above.

LOW POINT OF THE NIGHT: Becky Lynch versus Tamina
MATCH OF THE NIGHT: KO versus Dolph Ziggler
WRESTLER OF THE NIGHT: Dolph Ziggler
IMPACT OF THE NIGHT: Daniel Bryan’s retirement.

FINAL THOUGHTS:
Overall an average show.

RATING: 6

SMACKDOWN

As usual, Smackdown was the best wrestling show of the week. Which is odd because, outside of Styles and Jericho, this was just an above average broadcast of Smackdown. Only three things of note come out of the show, and one of those things was the Retirement of Daniel Bryan.

Yes, Daniel Bryan – without him even on the show – was still a focal point of Smackdown.

The other two things to take away from this show are that Styles and Jericho are awesome and the Dudley’s have gone off the table.

Yes, the Dudley’s cut a promo, telling people that they are the baddest tag team, that THEY won the titles, not the Tables. All people seem to want though are the tables. So, according to Bubba, after tonight, we will never see the tables again.

Personally, I love that and think it is long overdue.

We were treated to AJ and Jericho twice tonight on Smackdown. Their second match was to kick off the show, but an interruption by the Social Outcasts led to a tag match: Styles/Jericho versus Axel/Rose. This was a nice match that saw Styles pin Rose in a games of one up-man-ship between Styles and Jericho.

Jericho and Styles went on to main event the show in a match of the year candidate. Styles/Jericho II far surpassed their first match. Can we have Styles/Jericho III at Mania please?

Everything else on the show was just filler.

FINAL THOUGHTS:
Weak at points, and above average at best, saved by Styles and Jericho.

LOW POINT OF THE NIGHT: Neville and Lucha Dragons versus The Cosmic Wasteland.
MATCH OF THE NIGHT: AJ Styles versus Chris Jericho II
WRESTLER OF THE NIGHT: TIE AJ Styles and Chris Jericho
IMPACT OF THE NIGHT: Somehow the impact of the night was still Daniel Bryan’s retirement.

RATING: 6.5

TNA WRESTLING

IMPACT

Matt Hardy Brand (Matt, Reby, Tyrus and Maxil) opened the show with a terrible promo. Basically it came down to this, Hardy demands an audience with Dixie and demands she fires EC3. Hardy needs to lose the title and fast. This is old already.

I like Bram and EY, but they are idiots. Bram has Lashley beat, but instead of the win, he and EY planned to hit Lashley with the KOTM Title Belt. Bad move. Lashley ducked, speared EY then won the match.

No Raquel in sight.

Kurt Angel had promo time in the ring, and out came Mike Bennett and Maria for the interruption. Mike proceeded to put himself over and insult everyone. Angel took Bennett out with a clothesline, telling Bennett he doesn’t respect him.

Backstage, Beer Money plans on cashing in and becoming new Tag Champs.

Tigre Uno received his rematch for the X-Division Title, only to lose thanks to interference from Helms. Trevor Lee retained in an excellent match.

Beer Money hit the ring, calling out the Champs, but out came Decay. A match ensued that ended in a DQ with Beer Money down, and Janice in Abyss’s hand. The Wolves rush to the ring and make the save, armed with chairs.

The Wolves want their titles back, Decay want the titles. Next week they will battle over the titles in a Monster’s Ball match. Should be good.

NO!! Why is Grado on my TV? Why? He claims he was screwed by TNA and has proof. Thank you Eli Drake for running Grado off. Is Grado’s proof going to have something to do with Eli switching cases?

Ever since the Doll House debuted and became a center piece of the ladies of TNA, the Knockout Division has become the WWE Divas. Piss poor. The match between Jade and Madison just proved that the Doll House can’t hang.

It’s only going to get worse with Awesome Kong released.

Wow, what a Main Event. Kurt versus Drew saved this lackluster show.

Tonight Drew finally arrived with this match and a tap out win over Kurt. This is easily another early match of the year candidate.









Any good will the Main Event generated was sucked out of the Arena by an overlong segment with Matt Hardy demanding Dixie fire EC3. Matt Hardy got uncomfortable close to Dixie and out came . . . SPUD for the save.

SPUD stood up to Matt until Tyrus took him down.

CUE EC3. EC3 took out Tryus and Matt’s security, but Matt cowered away behind his wife.

The MAN is back.

LOW POINT OF THE NIGHT: TIE: Mike Bennett and The Doll House
MATCH OF THE NIGHT: Kurt Angle and Drew Galloway
WRESTLER OF THE NIGHT: Drew Galloway
IMPACT OF THE NIGHT: RETURN OF EC3

FINAL THOUGHTS:
Very Lackluster show, with a couple of good moments.

RATING: 5

FOR THE WEEK:
THOUGHTS:
An average week for the shows. Not bad, not good, just average.

However, we did get two early match of the year candidates.

LOW POINT OF THE WEEK: Mike Bennett and The Doll House
MATCH OF THE WEEK: AJ Styles and Chris Jericho II
WRESTLER OF THE WEEK: Drew Galloway
IMPACT OF THE WEEK: Daniel Bryan’s Retirement.

RockStar Wrestling Alliance - A REVIEW

RockStar Wrestling Alliance

1/29/2016

At the Crescent Ballroom
Phoenix, AZ

Two weeks ago (2 years to the date I survived my brain anyeusm) Dave Parrish and I attended a RockStar Wrestling Alliance event at the Crescent Ballroom in downtown Phoenix. Neither of us had heard of this promotion, and as it turn out this was their one year anniversary show.

We thought it was a good sign that we knew most of the wrestlers on the card, even though they never listed any matches.

The number 3 comes up a lot in life.
There is a myth that woman know within 3 seconds if they will sleep with a guy or not.
The Holy Trinity is 3.
One can win or lose a wrestling match by a 3 count.
Bad things happens in three.
Such as: Dave and I finding out about this event, getting tickets, and attending this event.
One more thing in 3, the main words to describe this wrestling show: Terrible, Atrocious and Negative.

TERRIBLE
This venue is a small music hall, whose set up is terrible for wrestling. The ring takes up almost the entire floor, ring side seats are literally ringside. There is no room for the wrestlers to do anything outside. The ceiling is so low that a 6’ tall wrestler can almost touch the rafters and equipment for the stage with his head.

ATROCITIOUS
The execution for this event was atrocious. It started way late for beginners. The ring announcer seemed to be barely conscious and had no life to announcements. Plus, he would announce the wrestler, music would play, and it would be two minutes before the guy(s) would appear!

There was a live commentary in the house. Yes, someone was on the house mic doing a terrible job at commentary during the show. This I have never experienced before. How terrible was it? A wrestler named KRUGER, came into the ring and the commentator stated, “Don’t touch Kruger, you’ll get Demon Aids.” He later mentioned that two of the wrestlers were such good friend that they even spoon. Nice.

The main event was particularly pathetic, basically used to set up the next event. It was cut short because two refs were taking out, the only two ref the promotion has.

Then the was the real low point, almost forty-five minutes of pathetic cover band, that made me long for my stay in the hospital.

NEGATIVE
Overall, this was a terribly negative experience. It was the first, and last RockStar Wrestling Alliance events I will ever attend. I believe my fellow Wrestlementary Crew member Dave feels the same way.
What really made this a truly negative event is that we have seen many of these wrestlers numerous times before, and know they are much better then what this event showcased.

FINAL THOUGHTS:
We both agreed, this was the worst wrestling event we ever attended together or not. Piss poor with a terrible cover band. It was so bad we also agreed on something else, it doesn’t even deserve a rating. Even a 0 rating would be too high.

We could only hope that the AWF show the next night would save us from this horror.

RATING: DOES NOT RATE.

WRESTLEMENTARY WRAPUP WEEK 5

his is a day late, but I am caught up now.

Ace.

RAW

Well, I liked RAW this week. The action stayed in the ring and the promos were limited, which is how good wrestling shows should be.

Even the opening promo was limited, a little over ten minutes and it did a good job of setting the stage for the Fastlane PPV.

The show started with Heyman and Brock in the ring. Brock did his normal routine, dancing around looking menacing. Heyman went through his spiel about what Brock is going to do at Fastlane . . . Cue . . .

Dean Ambrose! Ambrose tells Brock he doesn’t want to fight him, but he will. He’ll do anything to win the title. There was no physical confrontation, which was refreshing.

Limited, straight to the point and did its job. Good segment, with no Roman Reigns in sight.

They continue to build up Kalisto with a count out victory over Rusev. With ADR ringside, this was basically used as a set up for Kalisto and ADR’s Fastlane match.

Ambrose and Reigns had a brief confrontation with Steph in her ‘office,’ who had the World Title on a podium. She tired her best to put a wedge between them, even invoking Marty Jeanetty, and put them into a main event match with the New Day.

Grammy winners the Usos were announced to face Curtis Axel and Heath Slater with Adam Rose, but instead faced Adam Rose and Curtis Axel, with Heath Slater. Bo Rida is off dropping tracks in the Studios.

This was a nice match that put over the Social Outcasts as they dominated the match, but lost in the end to the Usos.

MIZ TV. It was all about AJ Styles. As it should have been. Miz did a great job of putting over the Phenomenal One. He listed all of AJ’s accomplishments then said AJ needed the Miz to make it in the WWE. AJ snapped and beat the hell out of Miz.

Great segment to put over AJ.

Big Show beats Luke Harper handily, and destroys the Wyatt’s during the match. Afterwards, was a different matter, as the Wyatt laid waste to the Big Show. Where was Roman? Show saved him on Smackdown.

Dolph Ziggler finally gains a sliver of vengeance in a pin fall victory over KO.

Before her match with Becky Lynch, Sasha Banks officially announces she is on her own. So you know, despite claims to the opposite that it wouldn’t end well with Banks and Team BAD. It didn’t. The singles match ended up with Sasha and Becky fighting off Sasha’s former Team BAD teammates.

MAIN EVENT TIME
NEW DAY rocks!
So does this RAW!
So did this main event.

The main event delivered, from NEW DAY promo to the match itself that saw Ambrose and Reigns gain the pin.

Brock rocks Ambrose!

FINAL THOUGHTS:
Best RAW of the year to date. Did a great job of setting up Fastlane. It felt like a go home show.


MATCH OF THE NIGHT: Dolph Ziggler versus KO
IMPACT OF THE NIGHT: MIZ TV
WRESTLER OF THE NIGHT: Dolph Ziggler
LOW POINT OF THE NIGHT: N/A

RATING: 8

SMACKDOWN

My entire thoughts and comments on Smackdown can be summed up by a text from Dave Parrish: SMACKDOWN WAS EXCELLENT THIS WEEK.

How far has Rusev fallen? Once undefeated, now used as fodder for both Kalisto and Reigns here tonight.

Rusev lost to Reigns by DQ when his fellow members of The League of Nations attacked. Ambrose for the save. Eventually Ambrose and Reigns fight off the League, but only after the seeds are planted for a betrayal.

The Feud isn’t over yet between KO and Ziggler. Ziggler was on commentary for KO’s match against Kalisto, and he received Kalisto powerbombed into him for the effort! Kalisto still somehow won the match as KO left licking his wounds.

Ryback would succeed where Big Show failed Monday. He would beat Rowan, then get away before being destroyed.

Am I the only one who remembers Sasha and Becky teamed up in NXT? Maybe. Either way, tonight they agreed to work together again against a common enemy: Team BAD.

Jericho would be on commentary for AJ Styles versus The Miz. AJ Styles looked great against the MIZ. Honesty, MIZ looked great too.

After a really good match, AJ would win with a rarely seen submission: The Calf Killer.

Post-Match, Jericho challenged Styles to a rematch for next week’s Smackdown (should be Fastlane).



New Day Rocks. Social Outcast Trend. I loved it!

Just like on RAW, the Main Event on Smackdown delivered. Roman Reign and Ambrose survived again, winning the match. But are they on thin ice? More seeds were planted for friction between the two.

FINAL THOUGHTS:
Excellent.

MATCH OF THE NIGHT: AJ STYLES VERSUS THE MIZ
IMPACT OF THE NIGHT: CHRIS JERICHO VERSUS AJ STYLES REMATH ANNOUNCED
WRESTLER OF THE NIGHT: AJ Styles
LOW POINT OF THE NIGHT: N/A

RATING: 8

TNA WRESTLING

IMPACT

Well, Impact wasn’t as good as like weeks and in some ways furthered last week’s events, in other way ruined them.

Matt Hardy and crew opened the show. Eric Young came down and set his sights on the World Title. Kurt Angle came down and . . . received a World Title Shot? Tonight’s Main Event.

After this they spent the rest of the evening acting as if Eric Young was in cahoots with Matt, which made no sense.

Then came Beer Money. Then Crazy Steve/Abyss. Then The Wolves. Hardy was safely outside. We now have an 8-man hardcore war match set for later.

TNA needs an Authority figure, the wrestlers can’t keep making the matches like this.

Bobby Lashley beat Aidan O’Shea and had another confrontation with the mystery woman, Raquel.

Maria Kinales Bennett cut a promo about the knockouts I didn’t quite understand. Is she stepping back into the ring, or is she going to bring in new talent? She did set herself up as believing she is above all the knockouts, even Gail Kim.

Hardcore War was a good match with a shocking ending. Crazy Steve pinned Davey Richards for the win? Yes, that happened. Steve/Abyss and Eric/Bram beat Beer Money and The Wolves.

Drew Galloway and Tyrus would have had the match if the night if it wasn’t for Mike Bennett interfering and laying out Drew with his feast or fired briefcase.

In a very odd swerve, instead of facing Helms like everyone thought, Tigre Un would lose the X Title to Trevor Lee? Who saw that coming?

Once again EC3 is the shining light, he gave a revealing interview, bared himself to the world and promised to bring Hell down on Matt Hardy.

The main event match between Hardy and Angle should have been a much bigger deal. I understand they had to blow it off quick because of Angle’s contract and pending retirement, but this match would have benefitted from a longer build up.

It was good, but it lacked the emotion and punch it could have had.

FINAL THOUGHT:
A step back from last week.

MATCH OF THE NIGHT: Hardcore War
IMPACT OF THE NIGHT: EC3
LOW POINT OF THE NIGHT: Maria’s Promo
WRESTLER OF THE NIGHT: Drew Galloway


WEEKLY FINAL THOUGHTS:

WWE went full bore, TNA slipped a little.

LOW POINT OF THE WEEK: Maria’s Promo
MATCH OF THE WEEK: Dolph Ziggler versus KO
WRESTER OF THE WEEK: AJ STYLES
IMPACT OF THE WEEK: EC3

WRESTLEMENTARY WRAPUP WEEK 4 For the week of 1/24 to 1/30

This is a week late due to a very busy and active weekend last weekend, and the fact that I have been very sick this week. So, I didn’t do much in the way of writing. Last weekend’s schedule also included two Indie Wrestling Event (Friday, Rockstar Wrestling Alliance and Saturday, AWF). I will review those two events separately in the next coming days.

As I may have done last year, I am not simply skipping this Wrestlementary piece, just putting it up a few days late. Because of the lateness, I will try to be brief in my commentary.

I will also try to have this past week WrapUp up tomorrow (Monday)

Let’s start with the WWE and the

Straight up the Royal Rumble was Royally Epic. Except for a few lows, this was the best broadcast the WWE has put out across the board in a long time. This includes RAW, SMACKDOWN and all PPVs. The best part is that everyone stood up and delivered. There was not a bad match on the card, which includes the Kick Off Show triple threat tag match.

Owens and Ambrose put on a great Last Man Standing Match. The New Day and The Usos made good with an excellent tag team championship match. Becky and Charlotte put on one of the best Divas matches in a long while.

I didn’t even have a problem with Del Rio losing the US Title to Kalisto (again). He’ll win it back soon anyway.

The Rumble Match itself was good. Even if it was the mixed bag, as it always is. That’s because the premise of the match doesn’t allowing for any particular style or pacing to take over. Sometimes it can be very fast paced and exciting, other times slow and boring. Some times within minutes.

The low point for this match, and the PPV itself, was The League of Nation (without Barrett) and Vince coming to the ring, dragging Roman out and beating him up to the point he had to go to the back for medical attention.

The logical question, from many, was asked: why not pull or throw him over the top? Well, that would have made too much sense! But, there were two reasons.

The first being that Roman could make his big return to the match later in the night and still possibly win.

The second being that a very similar situation happened later when the eliminated Wyatt family returned to the ring to gang up on and eliminated Brock Lesnar.

This year is the first time I can ever remember it being mentioned that the Rumble is a no DQ match.

After a great return from Roman Reigns and a near miracle that could lead him to win, HHH came out #30, and won the Rumble. Just as I predicted! (Yeah, I got one right!)

I’ve left the big part of the night for here. Because all the matches, Roman almost winning, HHH winning, all that was overshadowed by one single event, the #3 entrant:

AJ STYLES HAS ARRIVED

FINAL THOUGHTS:
An event worthy of Royalty.

LOW POINT OF THE NIGHT: The League of Nation beating down Roman Reigns.

IMPACT OF THE NIGHT: AJ STYLES!!!!

MATCH OF THE NIGHT: Last Man Standing US Title Match: Dean Ambrose versus Kevin Owens.

WRESTLER OF THE NIGHT: TIE: Chris Jericho and AJ Styles – both had great Royal Rumble Performances.

RATING: 7.5

MONDAY NIGHT RAW

This was a good edition of RAW. Bolstered by great chemistry between AJ Styles and Chris Jericho and a flawless match between the two. Was it a five-star perfect match? Not quite, but flawless.

It really seemed like everyone was riding the high from the Royal Rumble. The show fired on all cylinders, and dealt with the fallout of the events from the Rumble. Specifically the attempt to dismantle Roman Reigns, and HHH winning the title for the 14th time.

The story going forward is this: HHH is champion, he will do anything to keep Roman from the title, including destroy his family (Ambrose) and risk facing The Beast at WrestleMania.

Oh yeah. The Lame One returned. I know I am late to the game with this, with many outlets already reporting on the sexist treatment of Lana by the Rock, but what else do you expect? Look at this man’s history, this is how he made his name. It wasn’t edgy, it was funny and it damn sure what PG.

FINAL THOUGHTS:
The Rock removed, damn good show.

LOW POINT OF THE NIGHT: The Rock’s sexist treatment of Lana and borderline racism toward Bryon Allen.

IMPACT OF THE NIGHT: Announcement of the Triple Threat Match at Fast Lane: Brock Lesnar v Dean Ambrose v Roman Reigns

MATCH OF THE NIGHT: Chris Jericho versus AJ Styles

WRESTLER OF THE NIGHT: TIE: Chris Jericho and AJ Styles. Two nights in a row, never done before.

RATING: 6.75

SMACKDOWN

As usual Smackdown was solid this week, in fact this time a little lower then RAW. When was the last time I considered that?

Also, as usual we get a lot of filler with RAW REWIND stuff, which is redundant now that both are on the same Network (USA) and both are on HULU next day.

Again, as usual, we open up with a promo segments. This time it is the New Day berating The Rock, only to be interrupted by The MIZ, who joins in the berating of The Rock. This lead to a showdown and a match, the New Day and Miz versus the Usos, Ziggler and Titus O’Neal.

Titus O’Neal continues to show why he is grossly underrated.

Kalista and Neville put on an okay high-flying affair.

Chris Jericho’s Highlight Reel . . . with Dean Ambrose! And Roman Reigns. This felt more like a housewarming segment with Ambrose and Reigns bringing gifts for the set. Fortunately, after briefly talking about how the title will not come between then, a home invasion occurs.

The Wyatt family arrives, and there is are main event for the night.

Win or lose the Social Outcasts and killing it.

Unfortunately for them, this was just another night for AJ Styles to prove he should have been here years ago.

I was pleasantly surprised that the Main Event match delivered. Ambrose, Jericho and Reigns versus, The Wyatts.

FINAL THOUGHT:
Solid show.

LOW POINT OF THE NIGHT: I hate writing this, but the low point is Jerry Lawler’s commentary. Since Marua came along, King has been forced downhill.

IMPACT OF THE NIGHT: NONE

MATCH OF THE NIGHT: The Main Event: Ambrose, Jericho and Reigns versus, The Wyatts.

WRESTLER OF THE NIGHT: AJ Styles – again. He looked great against Axel.

RATING: 6.5

TNA WRESTLING

IMPACT

TNA is stepping it up. This is the best broadcast since their return to TV. This broadcast did everything a wrestling show should do: present good matches, decent promos and set up futures matches and feuds.

We started with Jeff Hardy (ugh), who missed last week’s main event while on a trip to the hospital. He is sickened by what Matt did, calls him out and challenges him to a world title match (arrogantly).

Matt doesn’t come alone, Reby and Tyrus are with him. In a true heel move, to ensure no foul play, Tyrus carries baby Maxil to the ring with him. Great career move Tyrus, EC3’s bodyguard to Maxil’s babysitter.

Matt loves Jeff, but Jeff doesn’t understand and Matt grants the match for tonight. Jeff versus Matt in the main event for the World Title.

The Wolves go on the hunt. They call out Crazy Steve and his mystery partner who attacked them last week. First comes out some wacked out, black and white faced woman who looks like a cross between a Juggalo and a wanna-be Juggalo.

Then comes Crazy Steve with the reveal that his partner is Abyss! (Big Surprise).

Feast or Fired was the focus of the night, and the match itself was good, if short. Eli Drake, Grado (Grado? Grado?!), James Storm and Drew Galloway all grabbed the briefcases.

Instead of waiting for a couple of weeks they set it up for the reveal of the briefcases contents tonight. Just before that could happen though, Mike Bennett burst into the room. After berating all of them for needing to be in this match, Galloway #StandUp. Pending Feud?

Briefcase Reveal:

• Eli Drake first – King of the Mountain Title Shot
• James Storm, With Bobby Roode – Tag Team Title Shot
• Drew Galloway – World Title Shot
• Grado – There is only one briefcase left, Grado thinks he still could have a title shot. He opens the briefcase and “Grado’s TNA dream is over,”: FIRED.

I’m sorry, but YES. Yes. TNA will be far better without Grado around. No offense to the guy, but he looked awkward in the ring, seems to have no idea what to do and his style and gimmick are insulting.

Main Event Time. TNA really delivered here, with only about 10 minutes in the show. Jeff Hardy comes out. Matt, Reby and Tryus come out. Here we . . .

ERIC YOUNG storms out of the back. He is the #1 contender, what has Jeff done to get a title shot? Bram attacks Jeff, Eric joins in on a beat down. Matt and crew leave the ring.

Beer Money for the save! Crazy Steve and Abyss!

Beer Money clears the ring and fight Crazy Steve and Abyss to the back. Jeff is alone, no help. Matt watches, does nothing.

Eric Young jumps off the ring apron with Jeff and pile drives him through a table!

Kurt Angle finally runs out. Matt Hardy downs him with the title belt!

Great Segment!

FINAL THOUGHTS:
Thank you TNA. Can you do more of these please? This is how you should book a show.

They did two revels, furthered feuds and set up a number of possible new feuds.

Drew Galloway versus Mike Bennett?
Wolves versus Crazy/Steve and Abyss? With Beer Money thrown in?
Eric Young chasing the World Title! (YES PLEASE!)
Idiot nut job (Jeff Hardy) versus Crazy Cool nut job (Eric Young)? Yeah!

MATCH OF THE NIGHT: Feast or Fired Match
IMPACT OF THE NIGHT: Eric Young pile driving Jeff Hardy through a table.
WRESTLER OF THE NIGHT: Toss Up
LOW POINT OF THE NIGHT: Maxil brought into the ring.
FAVORITE MOMENT OF THE NIGHT: GRADO FIRED!

RATING: 7

FOR THE WEEK
FINAL THOUGHTS:

Best week of Wrestling from the big boys in a long time.

LOW POINT OF THE WEEK: THE ROCK
IMPACT OF THE WEEK: Eric Young pile driving Jeff Hardy through a table.
MATCH OF THE WEEK: RAW: AJ Styles versus Chris Jericho
WRESTLER OF THE WEEK: AJ STYLES

DAVE'S BATTLE AXE: The De-cension

The WWE has made a lot of bold moves lately with their roster. Injuries and time off for veteran talent have opened the door for new players to rise and shine. With the increasing popularity of NXT and the talent it bolsters, it really is a new day for both the fans and the locker room. But timing is everything when it comes to the biggest stage in sports entertainment and not everyone works out, at first. Even legends like Chris Jericho needed time to adjust to what he *could* get away with and win some belts with the company. In the recent crop, there’s been more hits than misses lately and the misses from before have mostly been able to find a new angle to explore and make it fun for the fans.

That is until you get to The Ascension. 

What started as a faction gimmick in Florida Championship Wrestling, Konnor (Conor O’Brian) and Viktor (Rick Viktor) would eventually become the most dominating tag team in NXT, holding the titles longer than anyone had before. It’s little wonder that when they were called up to the main roster in late 2014, they had a healthy amount of hubris behind them.

But on just their second major appearance on a Monday night in Corpus Christi, they shot themselves in the foot by calling out legendary tag champs Demolition and The Road Warriors in what turned out to be the gaffe of the year.

It’s a hole that the former champs have yet to dig out of as the tag divisions for both brands have been heating up of late. I have long desired a return to real tag team relevance in recent years and that renaissance is blessedly upon us. From the rise of the Uso’s to the return of the legendary Dudley Boyz, watching tag matches is fun again.  But tag magic is not a simple matter.

The Ascension’s gimmick is too reminiscent of the Hall of Famers they mocked and

their in-ring performances to date have run the gamut of embarrassing and meant to be embarrassed. Even a team up with a veteran like Stardust has yielded little buzz. Is it a case of too much too soon for a team that’s only tagged together for a couple of years, bad timing on the gimmick or both? Both wrestlers have had their successes on the indie circuit prior to teaming up but despite being widely loved in NXT, they’re yearlong fail at the next level has been rough to watch.

But not everyone can make it, the question remains for the Ascension is if they should.

- Dave Parrish

EDITOR'S NOTE: Can the Ascension ascend already?