WWE Smackdown Lowdown - 6/22/2012

WWE Smackdown - June 22nd, 2012

It becomes harder and harder to think in terms of "proper intro" when on a weekly basis we see relatively the same things  John Lauranaitis is gone, and in place of John Cena, we'll see HHH in the main event at Summerslam.  Raw expands to 3 hours on July 23rd - WWE needs to provide a legitimate focus on the young, up and coming talent instead of arbitrarily expanding segments by five minutes each.

We open up Smackdown with Teddy Long greeting the crowd and informing them that John Lauranaitis was fired.  Who's watching Smackdown that doesn't know that, Teddy?  Teddy doesn't seem to be employed in any capacity - He's not the General Manager, but he still dances out in a suit.  The GM of the night will be Mick Foley.  The crowd is happy, until Big Show interrupts the proceedings.  Now first of all, Brodus Clay is not allowed on Raw because of Big Show.  Big Show is now on Smackdown.  Find the disconnect.  I'll chalk this one up to Ace being fired meaning that Ace's rules are no longer valid.  Show reminds us all that he doesn't care about Big Johnny and he doesn't care about the WWE Universe; he only cares about himself.  Show congratulates Cena on his win in the cage match; it only took five of his 'cronies' to help him win.  Big Show says in an actual fight, he'd stomp Cena.  He says that he is moving on from Cena to bigger things; namely, the Money in the Bank ladder match.  Big Show can't be stopped, regardless of how many men are in the match.  Nobody can stop him once he cashes in.  Brodus Clay walks out.  There's no dancing tonight; he's all business.  Clay slides in which allows Big Show to lay boots to him, but Clay fights to his feet and delivers a headbutt to Big Show's chest.  Otunga slides in from out of nowhere and clips Clay in the knee, continuing on from the YouTube pre show match from No Way Out.  Show lands a big kick to Clay's knee and then his ribs.  Brodus fights up to his knees and Big Show delivers the WMD.  Show heads to the back, not at all acknowledging Otunga.  Otunga proceeds to make bad mama jokes and mock Brodus' dancing.

Big Show standing tall over a 'monster' wrestler is good.  Big Show needing help from a mook like David Otunga to do it?  Not so good.  There's not a person watching this show interested in an Otunga/Clay feud, and even outside of a match, Otunga was hit with a more than audible "You can't wrestle" chant.  Until Otunga intervened, this one was looking towards a thumbs up.

Match 1:  Ryback vs Frank Venezia and Jared Wahkler
Winner:  Ryback via pinfall

Once again, the opponents who are trash talking Ryback, knowing they're facing Ryback, are scared when Ryback's music hits.  Ryback ran wild on these poor fellas:  Deadlift slamming them into one another, along with a buckle bomb, dead lifted into a powerbomb on the other and a spinebuster.  The stacked Fisherman Samoan Buster Drop ends the match.  At the PPV, Ryback was asking to be fed three.  I guess they're not quite settled on doing that yet, but Booker does make it a point to ask if Cole and Josh Matthews think Ryback could do that to three guys.  Cole then goes "maybe 4 or 5" because he has no concept of comedic timing.

Mick Foley and Yoshi Tatsu are in the back.  Vickie Guerrero walks in and asks Tatsu if he shouldn't be making sushi or something.  Tasteful as always, WWE.  Tatsu tells Vickie she's ugly on his way out.  Vickie tells Mick that next week she's in charge of both shows (keeping up the theme of past GM's as interims) and if he's not nice, she'll make him her assistant.  Foley suggests a better assistant and Great Khali dances in.  Foley joins in and goes for (and calls) a Dude Love dance move, but they cut away.  Altogether bad use of air time.

Raw 1000 moment with Daniel Bryan:  Marty Jannetty beats Shawn Michaels for the Intercontinental Title.  Imagine that - a guy known for his wrestling has a Raw 1000 memory about wrestling.

Match 2:  Alberto del Rio vs Christian (Intercontinental Champion), non-title
Winner:  Alberto del Rio via submission

This was a good match, with a good pay off and a good ending segment.  It had a bad opening in terms of commentary, with Booker T saying ADR should have taken the title shot, even with the concussion, which would of course put him in danger of ending his career.  Good call, Book.  After a good amount of back and forth action, the match ends with a great sequence:  Christian hits a tornado DDT and goes for the Killswitch, which ADR counters by dropping Christian's arm across his own shoulder, stunner-style.  Del Rio tries for a senton, but comes up empty, which allows Christian to ready for the spear.  Alberto sees this coming and delivers a stiff kick to the chin and tries the Cross Armbreaker, but Christian tries the Killswitch again, only to be blocked again.  Christian ends up mounting the top rope, but Ricardo Rodriguez runs the distraction, allowing ADR to run the ropes and deliver an enzuigiri to Christian on the top, sending him to the mat and allowing him to slap on the Cross Armbreaker for the win.  He actually did it to the opposite arm that he worked all match, but that's a detail to be let go.  Del Rio is happy with this and heads to the back, but Cody Rhodes hits the ring and delivers a clothesline to the back of the head of Christian.  Rhodes locks in a fujiwara armbar and Christian begins to fight to his feet, but Rhodes throws him shoulder first into the ringpost then screams that Christian is stealing his time and that Rhodes IS Smackdown.  Good stuff all around and really the highlight of the night.  This is a rivalry I'm glad to see continue and Rhodes' statements point to a facet of it beyond just the IC title.  Rhodes is absolutely a front runner for the Money in the Bank briefcase this year.

A video package concerning the AJ/Daniel Bryan/CM Punk/Kane situation plays, with a heavy focus on AJ herself.

Match 3:  Kane vs Daniel Bryan, Special Guest Timekeeper:  AJ
Winner:  Kane via pinfall

AJ flashes a big smile for Kane and a frown for Bryan.  A lot of back and forth action in this match, which I wouldn't typically expect between Kane and Bryan.  Bryan's strikes were allowed to hurt Kane, which is a nice change of pace and yet another indication of the confidence that WWE has in him, despite his "not fitting the mold".  Josh Matthews mentions he's not comfortable with everyone's favorite crazy chick AJ sitting at ringside holding a hammer (for the bell, of course!).  Commentator line of the night right there.

Bryan ends up delivering a drop toe hold to Kane, leaving his head on the middle turnbuckle, then kicks the middle rope to throw the turnbuckle into Kane's face.  This is quickly becoming a signature for Bryan on TV and it works incredibly well for him as a heel.  Bryan heads up top for a missile dropkick and in a rare shot, he slips from the top, which makes for Kane lifting him and carrying him to the opposite corner, where Bryan kicks him off and lands the missile dropkick.  As I've said in the past, kudos to the guys that can call the audible on the fly and not just awkwardly climb up and try the exact same spot again; if there's one compliment I can give to Sheamus on the regular, it's this.  Kane ends up taking over, but Bryan backflips over him, hits the ropes and runs into a big boot from Kane.  Bryan dropkicks Kane's leg out from under him and lands an execution kick to the side of the head.  Bryan climbs up top again and seemingly lands a diving headbutt, but Kane has caught him by the neck.  Kane tries a Chokeslam, but Bryan counters into a guillotine.  Kane tries to shake him off, and Bryan ends up going up and over into a sunset flip and transitions into the Labelle Lock.  The bell rings, but Kane has not tapped.  Bryan celebrates, but the ref tells him Kane didn't tap; Kane lands a Chokeslam and pins Bryan.  AJ is shown being a tad bashful, then flashes a crafty little smirk at Kane and skips off.  Kane kind of smiles back.

Once again, AJ shows that she can play her part as well as any of the men on the show, if not better.  Her facials are believable instead of being cartoonish and she doesn't over complicate anything.  This may be some of the best writing the creative team is doing at the moment, and if it ends up benefiting Bryan and/or Punk, all the better.

Mick Foley comes out to address the crowd and throws out his cheap pop of the night for the city.  Heath Slater interrupts, as he now seems wont to do on a regular basis.  Slater is lobbying a protest for what happened to him on Raw with Piper and Cyndi Lauper (See Here!).  He's mad that he was embarrassed by them and Foley says he'll be embarrassed tonight by...Zack Ryder!  Missed being on Long Island by one show...are you serious, bro?

Match 4:  Heath Slater vs Zack Ryder
Winner:  Zack Ryder via pinfall

Nice to see Ryder on TV, but he got about a two minute match.  Ryder hits signature offense, Slater hits his signature neckbreaker, Ryder hits a Rough Ryder and pins him.

Back from a commercial, Foley and Ryder are in the back and are met by Damien Sandow.  Sandow gives them the verbal business.  After giving examples of Ryder's nonsense, Sandow says "no more".  Maybe this could lead to a "real" match for Sandow instead of glorified squashes, which would finally bring him into the normalcy of the roster.  This process seems to take too long for quite a few wrestlers.  I'm to believe that Sandow dispatches of his opponents faster than someone like Antonio Cesaro?  And everytime?  It feels like 5 different people work on this and don't at all communicate with inconsistencies like that.

The WWE Smack of the Night plays, and for once it's actually relevant:  Tyson Kidd's frankensteiner to the outside during No Way Out's four-way tag match, followed by Darren Young landing his gutbuster and winning for his team.

Match 5:  The Usos vs Prime Time Players
Winners:  Prime Time Players via pinfall

The Usos take control early with chops and quick tags.  Young eventually makes it to his corner to tag in Titus O'Neil who takes over and settles into a chinlock.  The Uso in the ring fights back and lands the running ass to the face in the corner.  Jey Uso and Darren Young end up tumbling over the top rope to the floor and Jimmy hits a samoan drop on Titus.  Jimmy readies for the Superfly Splash, but Young trips him (after AW runs some classic manager distraction on the ref), allowing Titus to land the Clash of the Titus for the win.

Fun tag match, and it's followed by Young/O'Neil getting jumped by Primo and Epico in the back.  It's nice to see some fire and energy for the tag division.  Seems like every couple of years, WWE gets in a tag division mode and builds it a bit.  Hopefully it holds up a bit and the NXT/Superstars team of Tyson Kidd and Justin Gabriel get used as well.

Santino Marella comes out with a microphone and has the cameramen focus on some signs and comments on them.  He eventually calls an energetic fan into the ring, she plants a kiss on him and he sells it like the WMD.  I love Santino, I really do.  His antics almost always entertain me.  But this is the type of time that can be used for Kidd, Gabriel or a real match for Slater/Ryder.  This served no purpose, nobody had a better time because of it.  Just bad.

A quick "recap" of CM Punk on Jimmy Fallon, focusing mostly on The Roots playing his entrance theme and the actual entrance he made; no content for the actual interview.  More wasted opportunities.

Match 6:  Dolph Ziggler vs Sheamus (World Heavyweight Champion), non-title
Winner:  Sheamus via pinfall

Ziggler opens up in the corner, hanging onto the top rope and doing leg lifts.  A show off shows off.  It's these simple things, just keeping up with your own character, that put Ziggler above so much of the roster.  Sheamus hits his rolling fireman's carry slam very early in the match; this really should be a late match thing, but whatever.  Sheamus ends up hitting a fallaway slam into the barriers outside to lead to a commercial.  Because both guys outside always leads to a commercial.

Ziggler has taken over while WWE paid the bills.  Sheamus fights back and tosses Ziggler to the outside and throws him into the steel steps.  Vickie jaws at Sheamus and he turns to her, allowing Ziggler to vault off the steps and land a huge fameasser outside on the floor.  Awesome spot.  Back in the ring, Ziggler lands offense for near falls:  A neckbreaker, a low dropkick on the apron after putting Sheamus' neck on the middle rope  and another neckbreaker.  Sheamus fights up from a chinlock and goes into his usual comeback routine, but when he tries White Noise, Ziggler shimmies out and lands a jumping DDT (quick becoming a signature for him) for another nearfall.  Sheamus lands a flying shoulder after punching Ziggler out of mid air and finally hits his signature forearms to the chest.  Ziggler elbows out of the Irish Curse and kicks Sheamus' legs out from under him.  He gets a Brough Kick for his troubles.

It's a shame that a match that fun can end with a guy taking kicks to his legs that render him unto his knees, only to turn around seconds later and deliver a jump kick to a guy's face.  It's incredibly lazy.  White Noise or the Celtic Cross could have been used here, but he opted for the one move based entirely on the body part that Ziggler just kicked out from under him.  I don't know if it's lazy thinking in the ring or an active attempt by WWE to "Cena-ify" Sheamus.  Sheamus is a good candidate to be a "next Cena", but having him do the same Superman garbage routine is just going to annoy fans.

I read this back and there's a lot of complaints in there, but don't let that detract from the good, where it's always best to focus:  The tag division is getting proper attention, Ziggler and Rhodes are being showcased (at least in the eyes of WWE) and a storyline that doesn't involve John Cena, that actually focuses on a diva, gets huge focus and time well spent.  A Cena-transformation may end up underway for Sheamus, but for now, he continues to put on solid matches, even if the occasional move selections is...odd.

Tomorrow night is ROH's Best in the World: Hostage Crisis, and I will be attending at the Manhattan Center.  I'll be live tweeting on behalf of Pulse Wrestling and I'd love for you to join in the conversation by following me @sbfantom.  In the weeks coming, I'll be summarizing the weekly TV for ROH for Pulse as well, moving forward.  Join in on the conversation! 

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First Look: Pokemon Conquest

Did anybody else know about Pokemon Conquest? I sure didn't, so when I got wind of it while looking up information on the new Pokemon Black 2 and Pokemon White 2 games, I was quite surprised.

Pokemon Conquest was released on the DS on June 19th 2012, and is a spin-off on the Pokemon franchise. It's based off of Pokemon, with a mix of the Japanese game Nobunaga's Ambition, and all comes together for a turn based strategy game of fighting. It's not a 3DS game, but like any other DS game you can play it on your 3DS with no problems. There aren't any special features for playing on 3DS either, so don't bother looking. At the end of the day, the game doesn't need the 3D features anyway.

Unfortunately, if you live in NY, odds are your local store didn't get this game in until Wednesday due to a shipping error. Most of the Gamestops in my area didn't.

When you load this game for the first time, you're thrown right into the old Pokemon nostalgia of being asked if you're a boy or a girl. I selected being a boy, obviously, and the pokemon joining you is predetermined as Eevee. If you chose the girl, I assume you begin the game with Jigglypuff, as the female character joins you anyway. Unlike other Pokemon games, there are no professors, no overconfident parents, and there is a distinct Risk-style plot outlined already. You begin the game in the kingdom of Aurora, as it's new Warlord. The aim of the game is to conquer other kingdoms, and unite the land, to bring about the legendary pokemon. There will be people trying to do the same, of course, and it won't be easy as the kingdoms do fight back. Have no fear though- you're not in Kanto anymore.

You're thrown into easy battles at first, selecting your team of Pokemon based on your allies. Other pokemon elements take a place in this game, so have your type chart ready as you can do super effective moves as well as have some tough battles ahead of you. You go into battle equipping one item, rather than an entire bag, and the aim of each battle is to ultimately knock out all of the opposing pokemon, but some stages have other goals as well.

Instead of normal 1 on 1 battling, Pokemon Conquest revives a battling system a few people may be familiar with. If you've ever played Vandal Hearts or Fire Emblem, you know what I mean. You have a grid of squares, you move your pokemon throughout your turn, and either make them attack or wait where they are. You can see where each Pokemon, yours and your opponents, is able to move, and if you check the details you can see their range of attack. Each pokemon can move and attack, so you need to plan accordingly. While the battles will be short at first, rest assured they become longer as you progress through the game.

There's no catching pokemon early on, so you'll have to tough it out with Eevee, Jigglypuff, and a few allies for the first few battles. You do get the option roughly 4-5 wins in, so sit tight until then. When you get to that point, the system is set to making links- you go right next to the pokemon, select "link" from the menu choices, and play a timing mini-game very briefly. To recruit pokemon with their trainers, you need to fulfill a certain condition, like beating them within the first 4 turns of the battle, or finishing them with a super-effective move. Additionally, Nintendo and a few other sources have provided passwords (It's not cheating, there is an input option on the main menu) to make certain Pokemon appear for battling, but only one time per password! There's one included in the game for Dratini, as well as a few others on the Pokemon Conquest website, but ultimately you could always visit the reliable Gamefaqs.com for other passwords.

At first glance, this seems like the type of game older Pokemon players would enjoy, as the levels require far more strategy than your standard Pokemon game. Some pokemon can, and should, attack on-field objects. Some of the attacks deal damage to an adjacent square, while others can target two squares in a direction, while others can target multiple squares. Like the more recent pokemon games, certain pokemon have built-in abilities to aid you, or cause you grief if you're against it. Lastly, this isn't such a narrow game- out of the 600+ Pokemon we know about, it appears that over 200 appear in the game. My "I grew up in the 90s" sense is tingling- I remember being completely in awe at 150 Pokemon. Also, the pokemon come from all 5 generations  of Pokemon gaming (Red/Blue/Yellow, Gold/Silver/Crystal, Ruby/Sapphire/Emerald, Diamond/Pearl/Platinum, and Black/White) so it is a brand-new game concept.

If nothing else, this IS the Pokemon Spin-off that we've been waiting for.  I say give it a shot, you might enjoy it!

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Project M Character Analysis: Link

With the recent release of Project M Demo v2.1, we're going to have a look at a handful more of the characters who have benefitted from the physics changes and the creativity of the Project M team.  We'll revisit Lucario in a more technical sense, as well as some of the other Brawl newcomers in the coming weeks.  The Brawl newcomers are a bit more interesting to look at as the team has taken more creative license with them; the Melee vets were very much treated to a "re-meleeing" process, although some of them have reaped rewards, such as Link.  The Project M team has treated Link very well.  In general, his attacks have gotten buffed; some in speed, some in range, some in power, and some in multiple aspects.  Let's start with him.

Nothing categorizes Link in Smash Bros like his projectile game.  With Project M, Link's ranged game is better than ever.  His bow is stronger and charges significantly faster, which will afford the opportunity to move about the stage, short hop and fire off arrows to keep opponents at bay and dole out that oh-so-precious damage.  A charged arrow has effective knockback for a projectile; hitting an opponent who's already off the stage with one could be that little nudge needed to keep them off the edge.  Learn the trajectory, learn the timing for a full charge - you'll learn to love it.  Bombs, while not hugely different, still deal decent damage and can be used to mindgame people into positions advantageous to you.  The unique part of the bomb is its classification as an item.  There are things you can do and games you can play with the bomb that you simply cannot do with a normal projectile.  You can pull one, short hop and drop it to leave a trap or you can litter the sky with them to create an obstacle course, forcing an opponent where you want them to be and to fall into your new and improved up smash.

Boomerang and arrows - keep them flying

Then there's the boomerang.  The gale aspect of it is gone; this is back to the hard-smacking boomerang you know and love.  Down tilted throws for short hop attacks, up tilted ones for fakes and long distance hurls to come back and hit the opponent once you close in and grab or combo them.  I personally feel you should have your boomerang flying around the stage as much as possible, as often as possible.  Though not a projectile, Link's spin attack is back the way you love it - A strong initial strike and a useful way to end combos on the ground.  The end of the spin still gives that semi-spike trajectory, so don't be shy about using it at the edge.  In fact, do so with vim and vigor.

Every bit of damage helps

As for Link's regular attacks, you'll notice a healthy speed increase.  You'll be able to move faster out of some of these attacks, such as the down smash, and some are just outright faster, like forward tilt.  While some of these are minor changes, veteran Link players will notice a huge increase in speed between what they could accomplish in Melee vs what they can do in Project M.  Up smash may be one of the most important changes; the three strikes now combo into one another far more effectively, allowing more damage to rack up and a much better chance of the third strike to send them flying.  Don't be afraid to run at an opponent and go right into up smash; you stand to deal great damage.  This can be all the easier with a boomerang looming...

Ultimately, you've got a character with a good air game, a good distance game and a formidable close range game; put these puzzle pieces together and you can land some great combos.  And let's be honest, it's always fun to toss your boomerang, grab your opponent and just wait for it to come back and bop them one.  Link has long been a fan-favorite among Nintendo fans in general, and with the changes seen in Project M, I see him being a lot more popular amongst smashers as well.

Have a favorite rush down with Link?  Perhaps a combo video or a good match with him?  Let us see in the comments!  Next week, we take a more in depth look at Lucario and his new combo capability.

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WWE Raw Wrapup - 6/18/2012

WWE Raw - June 18th, 2012

Cyndi Lauper will guest host, but Long Island's own, Mrs Foley's baby boy, Mick Foley opens up the show for us.  The crowd goes wild for him, as they always do.  Mick is happy to show up in his "best" suit to help promote the 1000th episode of Raw.  The Board of Directors is reaching out to former General Managers in the interim with Big Johnny on his way out and Mick was one of the first choices, since he's from right there, in Long Island New York (cheap pop!). 

Tonight, Kane and Daniel Bryan will takw on Sheamus and CM Punk in a tag match.  Although Lauranaitis was fired, he will give a farewell address, and he heads to the ring in a sling, neckbrace and on a crutch.  Foley gives Ace a big hug, drawing a grimace from the ex-executive.  John Lauranaitis introduces himself and the crowd gives him the business.  Foley fibs and tells the crowd Ace said "Long Island sucks", which the crowd is upset about.  Ace has had enough and yells at the crowd to shut up, because WWE fans are rude.  Big Johnny will give his farewell address later tonight.  His last act, before he was fired, was tonight's main event - A handicap match pitting John Cena against Big Show, David Otunga and himself.  Ace tells Foley to "have a nice day" and vacates the ring.  Ace finally shows a bit of passion, and all it took was a pink slip.  Before Johnny can even reach the bottom of the entrance ramp, Sheamus makes his entrance.  CM Punk is out next and "kicks sand" on Johnny's shoes, then tells him he's ouuuuuuuta here.  A fun opening with Foley and some former boss mocking, but once again the two major champions jerk the curtain.  Please please please value the belts at some point.

Match 1:  CM Punk (WWE Champion) and Sheamus (World Heavyweight Champion) vs Kane and Daniel Bryan
Winners:  CM Punk and Sheamus via pinfall

The commentators make a huge deal over Foley making this match, but it's the exact same match that opened Smackdown just a few nights ago.  Plus Punk and AJ teamed against Kane and Bryan one week ago.  Sheamus and Bryan start tonight, to an incredibly strong YES chant.  Sheamus opens with the power game, but Bryan dumps him over the top.  Sheamus answers back with an over the top rope shoulder, followed by a big tilt a whirl backbreaker.  Sheamus tags in Punk who flies in with a tope for two.  Strikes from Punk are answered in kind by Bryan who tags in Kane.  Kane lays into Punk in two corners and tries a quick cover for one.  Michael Cole reminds us that Kane is a "strange dude"; thanks.  Punk fights back, but gets frustrated that he can't knock Kane down, leading to him walking into an elbow.  Punk fights out of the opponents' corner, but Kane stops him in his tracks.  Off an irish whip, Punk ducks a clothesline from Kane, gives Bryan a suicide dive and drops Kane throat first on the top rope, but a springboard attempt is countered by a Kane uppercut, leading to a commercial.

Back from break, Kane is still in control and Punk tries for a GTS, but Kane gets his feet down.  Kane tries a Chokeslam, but Punk kicks him in the head, allowing Sheamus to tag in and give Kane a shoulder from the top.  Sheamus goes into his corner attack routine ending in a powerslam for two.  Kane walks into the Irish Curse and Bryan takes a forearm for good measure, followed by the big forearms to the chest.  Kane  hits Bryan by mistake, but manages to drive Sheamus over the top by his throat.  Bryan, already on the floor, hits a low dropkick on Sheamus, drawing the ire of Punk.  Kane rolls Sheamus in and tags Bryan, who lands another low dropkick, followed by kicks in the corner.  The crowd chants "Yes" along with Bryan and after making some distance, Sheamus takes a corner dropkick from Bryan and a two count.  Sheamus fights up out of a chinlock, but takes a knee to the gut and a kick to the chest for a one count.  Kane tags in, and Sheamus fights back up to his feet, only to take a side slam.  Kane heads to the top rope and lands his diving clothesline for two.  Bryan tags back in to keep the pressure on the World Heavyweight Champion.  Bryan readies for another corner dropkick but comes up empty this time.  Punk tags in and nails a leg lariat, a clothesline and a powerslam after a neckbreaker attempt and a GTS attempt.  Punk lands a knee in the corner and a bulldog.

CM Punk ascends the top rope, but Bryan springs to his feet to stop him.  Bryan delivers a top rope superplex, leaving both men down.  AJ's music hits and shes skips out to the ring decked out in a Kane mask and gear, looking very Harley Quinn-like.  After a lap of skipping around the ring, Kane slowly follows her toward the back.  The three men left in the ring are nothing short of flabbergasted.  Sheamus gets a tag, and as Bryan yells after Kane, he takes a GTS, leaving him standing for a Brough Kick.  Ouch.

Courtesy of http://ilovewrestlinggifs.tumblr.com/

Fun match - really solid tag action, an unexpected lap from AJ and a great GTS/Brough Kick combo on Daniel Bryan.  The champions congratulate one another on a job well done.  If nothing else, these matches show why Punk and Bryan, despite not matching the "WWE mold" should be featured superstars.

Tonight, we find out if Brock Lesnar accepts the challenge of HHH for a one on one match.  Good thing we got all those champions out of the way early in the show to make room for that.

Ziggler and Swagger are arguing in the back about who the real star between them is.  Vickie Guerrero interrupts and says she's going to make a choice between them.  Tonight, they settle it in the ring.  Strong Ziggler chants from the vocal crowd.

Big Johnny and David Otunga make bad Muppet jokes and Big Show walks in.  Cena couldn't beat Show by himself, so how will he fare in a handicap match?  Johnny plans for Show to knock Cena out and get the pinfall himself.  Johnny says that the WWE Universe doesn't deserve him, so he's going to leave a lasting impression.

Match 2:  Dolph Ziggler vs Jack Swagger
Winner:  Dolph Ziggler via pinfall

As Ziggler finishes his entrance, he tells the crowd that he delivers every damn time.  Aside from the win/loss record, I agree.  Back from a commercial, Swagger is half way through his entrance.  Doesn't bode well for him.  This match will be for Vickie's services.  Swagger opens with a take down and some pushups; look who's a show off now.  Ziggler grabs a leg and drops Swagger, followed by a strut.  Swagger shoots for the leg, but Ziggler grabs a headlock.  Swagger throws him overhead and Ziggler sells the knee on impact.  A chopblock from Swagger shows us the direction his attack will take and he continues on that path.  Swagger removes the knee pad and drops elbows on the joint.  A leg lock affords Swagger time to scream at Ziggler "I'm better that you!".  Ziggler gets an inside cradle, but Swagger puts him in the Ankle Lock.  Ziggler tries for the ropes but gets dragged back to the center of the ring.  Ziggler rolls inside to kick out, but Swagger flips him back over.  Ziggler finally rolls through and puts Swagger in the ringpost, leaving him open for the Zigzag and the pin.

Vickie gets in the ring to congratulate her man.  Vickie plants a kiss on Ziggler and they head on to the back.  I would have guessed Ziggler won and told the cougar to hit the bricks, but apparently he's happy with a separation from Swagger.  Either way, it's good to see him strike out on his own.  Here's hoping in the coming weeks he has good, competitive matches with WINS.

A recap of HHH's challenge to Brock Lesnar plays and a limo pulls up in the back.

Raw 1000 moment with Jerry Lawler:  1998, Mick Foley brings presents to Vince McMahon in the hospital.  "Stone Cold" Steve Austin strikes and beats the tar out of Vince in his hospital bed.  Seems like all these memories are skits.  It'd be super if some of these guys could "never forget" some wrestling matches or something from 1000 episodes of Raw, but hey, it's not my show.

Brock Lesnar's music hits and Paul Heyman emerges to a warmer welcome than someone in his position should get; New York fans are never scared to let people know who they appreciate.  An audible "ECW" chant begins.  Heyman introduces himself as the advocate for Brock Lesnar.  Lesnar doesn't cater to HHH's whims - Brock Lesnar says "no", he will not drop his lawsuit against WWE.  Heyman won't drop his lawsuit against HHH.  And "no", Brock Lesnar will not fight HHH at Summerslam.  Heyman says "thank you" and readies to leave the ring, greeted by HHH's music.  Heyman stays put as HHH enters.  Hunter drops some ECW-related insults.  Lesnar will fight HHH at Summerslam.  HHH wants to hear it from Brock, not from his advocate.  I'll give Lesnar what he wants - To be the star.  HHH has the production truck put up a mock up of a Summerslam poster with Lesnar's face on it.  Heyman says that you can't play to Lesnar's ego; he doesn't have one.  Hunter says it's all about ego for Lesnar.  If Lesnar doesn't fight, he goes down in the books as the guy that's scared of HHH.  Heyman tells Hunter to stop pretending to be the ass kicker he used to be.  He tells HHH to go home and asks if he's getting mad.  Heyman dares Hunter to hit him.  Lesnar's lackey says he's got something for Stephanie and Hunter grabs him by the neck.  Heyman basically begs for a crack in the jaw, but The Game thinks twice.  Heyman says he's smarter than the cerebral assassin and that he sees what HHH will do a mile away - Then he gets punched out.  "Did you see that coming?"  Hunter expects to see Lesnar at Summerslam, unless he's scared the same thing will happen.

You really can't go wrong with Paul Heyman on live television; it doesn't get much better.  Both men played their roles as they needed to.  Officials tend to Heyman and help him up and out.  Eventually someone will do something that motivates Lesnar to fight HHH; no way that punching Heyman will be that motivation.

A quick recap of last night's Tuxedo Match between Ricardo Rodriguez and Santino Marella; this can only mean one of them is up next.  And there it is - Alberto del Rio takes on Santino Marella next.

Match 3:  Santino Marella (United States Champion) vs Alberto del Rio, non-title
Winner:  Alberto del Rio via submission

Del Rio missed his championship chance by just one night - He should be fuming over that.  His gold pyro was apparently back for one night only a few weeks ago; none tonight.  Del Rio opens up with kicks and aggression.  Del Rio goes right to work on the arm of Marella.  Santino splits to dodge and delivers a hip toss, but comes up empty on a headbutt attempt.  Santino kicks ADR away and reaches for the Cobra, but del Rio lands a big enzuigiri followed by the Cross Armbreaker for the win.  Ricardo drops a recovering Santino with a single arm DDT, delivering payback for last night's Tuxedo Match and joins ADR on the stage.

A video package of Cyndi Lauper's involvement with Wendy Richter way back when plays, preceding her appearance on Raw.

Layla is in the ring to introduce Wendy Richter and Cyndi Lauper.  The crowd doesn't care in any way, shape or form.  The crowd cheers a bit for Richter, but breaks into a "We want Ryder" chant.  Heath Slater interrupts and says that even though they're nowhere near the Long Island Railroad, he's staring at a trainwreck.  Lauper asks who he is.  Lauper also has no concept of how a dialogue works on live television.  Slater says he's going to debut his single.  "We want Ryder" again, and Slater doesn't care what they want.  Slater sings poorly and is interrupted by Roddy Piper.   Now the crowd cares.  Layla steals a kiss from Piper (no, that's not backwards) and Piper greets Lauper and Richter.  Piper tells "Miss Slater" to hit the road.  Piper declares his love for Cyndi Lauper and presents her with a gold record to replace the one he broke over Captain Lou Albano's head.  Slater tells the old folks to shush and kick rocks so that he can repeat his 'single'.  Piper tells Slater that he sings like a vulture and pokes him in the eye, then Lauper cracks him over the head with the golden record.  Slater is sliced open by the glass, which doesn't seem to have been intended.  The first pop in the head was fine, but Lauper hit him again and wrapped it around his head.  Big old waste of time considering we're 3/4 of the way done with the show and three matches in.  This will be a moment for someone to remember in another 1000 episodes that nobody will care about.  A New York wrestling crowd is not the crowd to do this with; they're never shy about booing.

Recap of the fatal four way tag match from last night.  Guess who's next?

Match 4:  Primo and Epico vs The Prime Time Players
Winners:  Primo and Epico via countout

Abraham Washington is now entirely referred to as AW, even on a nameplate.  Ok then.  AW introduces the Prime Time Players.  Epico and O'Neil start out.  Titus uses his power to take control early.  A big scoop slam and tag to Young for the gourdbuster-your-own-partner double team move, followed by two quick covers.  Young pulls at the face of Epico and puts him in a chinlock.  Epico dodges an attack and tags Primo, who comes in and lays into Darren Young.  Primo lands his version of Jeff Hardy's whisper in the wind and Titus and Epico end up outside.  Primo escapes the Gutbuster attempt from Young and lands the Backstabber.  Titus pulls Young out to avoid the pinfall and the Prime Time Players decide that that the Colons don't deserve a real match; they leave and get counted out.  They're the number one contenders, so they see no reason to fight.  Fair enough - If anything, it establishes that AW is doing the thinking for the PTPs.

Chris Jericho returns to Raw next week.

John Lauranaitis is in the ring, and begins to introduce himself, but catches the mistake.  He says Cena cheated at No Way Out, what with the outside interference and such.  Ace says he's not the loser here, nor is Big Show.  Apparently the WWE Universe is the loser, because we no longer have People Power.  He continues on that the folks at home, in the arena, etc are all losers.  Big Johnny continues that the next time we see him will be when he is inducted into the WWE Hall of Fame.  Tonight, Johnny leaves us with the "biggest beatdown of Cena ever".  He then introduces David Otunga.  In the main event.  Of a show that Daniel Bryan, CM Punk and Sheamus opened.  That is so ass backwards it hurts.

Match 5:  John Cena vs Big Show, David Otunga and John Lauranaitis
Winner:  John Cena via submission

Teddy Long joins the boys at commentary and finally discards his giant name tag.  Big Show grabs a microphone and reminds the crowd it took 6 men, including John Cena, to defeat him.  Show thanks Big Johnny for his iron clad contract and bonus.  He continues to thank Johnny for letting him be himself.  Big Show has proven he can beat John Cena on his own; he sees no reason why he should compete tonight.  Big Show tells Ace and Otunga they're on their own.  Cena's music hits and he rushes the ring to greet the crowd.

The Cena Sucks/Let's go Cena chant starts up and Otunga poses.  Cena opens with a scoop slam and elbow drop on Otunga, followed by a whip to the corner and a facebuster.  Otunga reaches for a tag and Ace backs away.  Cena gives Otunga a vertical suplex and Otunga once again reaches for a tag which Ace won't give him.  Cena slaps Otunga in the back and deadlifts him into a side slam.  Cena whips Otunga to the corner and rushes him, but Otunga dodges to take control.  Outside the ring, Otunga throws Cena into the stairs hard enough to move them away from the ring post.  Otunga rolls Cena back in and lays into Cena with forearm clubs.  Otunga whips Cena to the corner and hits an awkward clothesline followed by a running shoulder.  Otunga takes his time and then makes a cover for two.  Otunga drops an elevated elbow drop.  The crowd rolls into a "We Want Ryder/Woo Woo Woo" dueling chant.  With Cena down, Big Johnny asks to be tagged, crutch and all.  Ace throws the crutch out and takes off the sling and neck brace, then lays boots to Cena.  Cena kicks out after one and Ace wants to tag Otunga in for more damage, but Otunga hops off the apron, leaving Ace by himself.  He turns around and Cena begins to lay into him.  Cena rips the shirt off of Lauranaits' back and chops his back.  Cena drops him with a spin out powerbomb, followed by the Five Knuckle Shuffle and an Attitude Adjustment.  Cena picks Lauranaitis up and gives him another Attitude Adjustment.  The crowd begs for one more and Cena obliges.  For good measure, Cena locks in the STF and Big Johnny taps out right away. 

Cena tosses wristbands to the crowd and celebrates.  Teddy Long is all smiles at ringside; he didn't say anything on commentary.

Surprisingly, there was no attempt to sing Big Johnny off - these types of endings usually lead to a "na na na na hey hey hey goodbye" for the departing party.  It's always fun to see Mick Foley since the crowd is always receptive of him, especially in New York.  AJ has hit a new point in her shenanigans and she's obviously helping CM Punk of her own volition; this was an interesting twist.  Apparently Kane will follow similar colors.  Ziggler vs Swagger was a bit imbalanced - Ziggler obviously had to pull the win out here and it's great that he did it clean, but he got whipped all over the ring for 90% of the match.  It's an odd choice to make for a guy that's more than likely heading to Money in the Bank as one of the most favored men to win.

The tag matches were fun and Alberto del Rio makes a dominant come back, but the stuff with Lauper was another indication that the people setting this show up are more interested in what they want to see than what the fans want to see.  There couldn't be a person that paid to attend this show that would rather see that nonsense than just putting Slater into a five to eight minute match with someone the likes of Tyson Kidd or Justin Gabriel.  The show ends with a sendoff for John Lauranaitis - I give it a week or two until he's back on TV in some capacity.  Until then, we'll get guest General Managers which can either turn out really well or really badly.  Here's hoping for "really well" - TNA has nowhere near the market share or influence that WWE has, but looking solely at quality of product, TNA has been far more consistent in the last month or two.

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True Blood Recap: Episode 2 "Authority Always Wins"

"Authority Always Wins"

*Warning Spoilers Ahead*

This week True Blood was a bit better than the premiere. Some things are starting to clean itself up a bit.

Tara's storyline is still a miss for me. I've lost my connection with the character seasons ago, and her vampire storyline isn't helping. We started the episode off with an extremely bizarre vampire Tara. She decided to run around Sookie's house trashing the place. Stupid and slightly amusing. The next night, Tara woke up sane and more pissed than ever. She berated Lafayette and Sookie, then took off. Probably not the best idea for a new vampire.

I loved both Sam and Alcide this episode. Alcide basically told off the werewolf clan and Sam didn't put up with his girlfriends bad attitude. I need them to interact more. Both characters are great and I can't wait for more trouble with the werewolf clan.

Pam flashback? Yes please! Pam has always been a solid character, so the edition of her past with Eric is a great touch. I'm curious to find out more about her early relationship with Eric. The flashback scenes just gave me more reasons to love her, so yes, let us have more.

Terry seems to have some demons. I'm a bit curious about the fires and if there is some sort of supernatural occurrences in play there. This storyline is already cleaning itself up a bit.

Bill and Eric went through some interesting torture by the Authority this episode. Silver in their iv drips was a nice touch. The authority leaders tried to play mind games with the two, but it didn't work. We soon were introduced to the Authority council, and the Guardian. They had a mini ceremony that was similar to a certain communion section of mass in the Catholic Church. Not sure I cared much for it, I feel like they could have done something a bit more original. The Lilith section was interesting. But out of this plot line with the Authority, I honestly only care about them finding and dealing with Russell Edgington. I happened to love him, and I feel like that plot line can really help this season. So I'm anxiously awaiting his full return.

Steve Newlin storyline is probably the most useless one currently. I'm just finding him irritating and wishing the screen time used for the storyline could be giving to something much more interesting.

All in all, I could have lived with about half of the scenes in the episode being cut. I am grateful that the episode was slightly better than the previous disaster.

What did you guys think of the episode? It still holding your interest? Leave some comments.

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Leaked Info on the Xbox 720 Surfaces

Gamers of the world; I bring you good tidings of great joy! We have new info on the Xbox 720, well.. kinda.. - and guys, I have to say that it sounds so much more promising than the Playstation 4, as great as a system as it may be. Is Sony holding out on us? Who knows, but what we do know is that Xbox does have some really great shit in store for us all.

So, how did this news come about? A 56-page document was leaked on the NeoGAF forums that went through Microsoft's plan for XBox that extends though 2015. Sources say that it was a document from a meeting held back in 2010, but if Microsoft goes through with what they are said to have planned, we've got lots of hope.

Before we begin, let's note that this whole thing might be fake. No one really knows since sources refuse to comment, however the link to this document was taken down by Scribd via Covington & Burling LLP, who is a major law firm that represents Microsoft, so it may or may not be true. Use your own discretion.


The alleged design of the 720 according to the leaked paperwork.

So, right now we have some info on what might be up with the Xbox 720. I'm going to throw it out there that until it's confirmed, I'm NOT calling the new Xbox by its codename, which if you don't know, is Durango. The draw up of the 720 is very sleek and slim, almost like a thick laptop.

So here's what we know, whether it's leaked info or not, is going to happen; Kinect. It's going to be better. I remember watching the videos when it was still Project Natal and it had everyone extremely psyched as if it was a new turn in technology as we knew it. While when it was presented it was, it didn't deliver the kind of promise that we hoped for. This time, however, there's going to be improved voice recognition, better motion sensing (shocking, I know), and allegedly able to recognize four people in its camera.

Xbox is going to become more versatile, or so it's said. You'll be able to record TV in the background while playing a game, functioning like DVR. According to the leaked goods, Microsoft is releasing "Project Fortaleza" which is said to be their new augmented reality glasses that are wi-fi enabled, 4G and mobile so you can take it around with you, offering "real time on people, places, and objects."

I'm certainly looking forward to Xbox being able to play blu-ray, that's for sure. A bit late, but definitely better than never (go Sony?). It's also said that it'll be able to support 3D graphics. Not shocking.. actually, I expect it. I expect that the Xbox will be able to do what the Playstation currently can and then some.

How much is this little bundle of joy going to cost? Not that much, so it's said. I highly doubt it, but according to our info, it's saying $299. I can't fathom a new system being that inexpensive. It does make us fans wary of the genuineness of the documents, but again, we're holding on to some of that promise. The NeoGAF forums are blowing up about this document being a fake, and with some good reasons according to what I was reading. The link has been shut down so I can't read the entire 56-page document to decide for myself, but you guys can have a look and see what you think. Yes, the internet is full of trolls as we all know well, but given the bit of information that was dug up, I don't think it's all that out there, really. Only one way to find out... wait til Holiday 2013!

Sources: www.neogaf.com, www.yahoo.com, www.washingtonpost.com

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WWE No Way Out - 6/17/2012

WWE No Way Out - June 17th, 2012

Match 1:  Sheamus (c) vs Dolph Ziggler, World Heavyweight Championship

Winner: Sheamus via pinfall

WHC opens yet another pay per view show.  This does no justice to remind anyone of why they should care about this title or any other.  A tease of the Wrestlemania 28 finish, but Ziggler rolls away from a blind side Brough Kick.  Sheamus takes the early control with a couple of headlock take overs, and this apparently surprises Jerry Lawler, even though they’re a mainstay of Sheamus early on in matches.  More brilliant commentary to set the tone of the night.  Ziggler goes for an early Sleeper attempt, but Sheamus sits him on the top rope, prompting Ziggler to slap him, which leads to Sheamus shoving him over the top to the floor for a nasty bump.  Sheamus takes advantage and throws Ziggler back in to keep the attack up.  Ziggler tries to use his speed advantage, but Sheamus’ power game lets him keep up an onslaught in the early goings of the match.  Both men are on the apron, each on either side of a ringpost and Ziggler shows great ring awareness; he runs Sheamus’ arm into the post and back in the ring, hits a jumping DDT for two.  Ziggler stays aggressive and chokes Sheamus in the ropes.  The challenger continues to keep Sheamus grounded and does his headstand chinlock, which the crowd loves.  

Sheamus begins to fight his way back to his feet and lifts Ziggler into a fireman’s carry for his signature rolling slam, but Ziggler swings it out into  a spike DDT to counter for a VERY close two.  Blows are traded and Ziggler lands a dropkick for one, followed by a chinlock with a body scissors.  Sheamus fights to his feet again and Ziggler goes for an okana roll but ends up in a cradle, using the ropes for leverage, which the ref catches at two.  Sheamus tries a school boy for two and Ziggler lands a neckbreaker for another near fall.  Ziggler pounces and settles into another body scissors and chinlock.  Sheamus fights up to his feet yet again but takes a kick in the face; Sheamus answers with axe handles and his knee lift, which Ziggler dodges, able to lock in the Sleeper.  Sheamus dumps Dolph over the top to counter; Ziggler flies from the top and gets caught awkwardly for the Irish Curse which is awkwardly transitioned to White Noise, which Ziggler squirms out of, landing a fameasser for a believable two.  Vickie loses it at ringside and Ziggler lays in with boots in the corner.  Sheamus kicks Dolph’s knee out from under him and flips from the seated corner to the top.  Ziggler gives chase and lands a top rope X-Factor for another close two.  Ziggler is selling the knee on the mat while Sheamus begins to stir.  Ziggler distances himself, ready to continue the attack.  Ziggler jumps for the Sleeper, but Sheamus spins it around for a big time Irish Curse backbreaker.  Sheamus catches Dolph on the apron and delivers the forearms to the chest, then drags Ziggler in.  Ziggler lands another kick off the ropes and tries the Sleeper one more time; Sheamus swings him out and lands White Noise.  Sheamus heads to the corner to ready himself for the Brough Kick and connects.  It’s good for the win after a 20 minute battle.

Great way to open the PPV, even though the World Title should be higher on the card.  If the title wasn't given to Ziggler here or soon, it's got to be either him or Cody Rhodes who nabs the Money in the Bank 

briefcase this year, since that's apparently the only sign of elevating stars in WWE at this point.

Match 2:  Santino Marella (US Champion) vs Ricardo Rodriguez, Tuxedo Match

Winner:  Santino Marella

Santino in a powder blue tux.  Santino offers a handshake and the men show off their tuxes to the crowd.  As expected, the crowd boos Ricardo and cheers Santino.  A shoving match ensues and Ricardo tears a hole in Santino’s tux,and Santino returns the favor.  Santino slaps Ricardo after a couple more tears.  Ricardo whiffs a haymaker and takes an atomic drop, then an inverted one.  Santino plays matador with Ricardo’s jacket.  On the third try, Ricardo ends up diving out to the floor.  Santino hits a drop toe hold and removes a shoe; repeat for the other side.  Santino takes Ricardo for a head bump to each corner as the crowd chants “Boring”.  Ricardo is down to just pants, and hits a jawbuster, but Santino answers with a hiptoss and then puts on the Cobra.   

Ricardo rakes the eyes and tosses the Cobra out and Ricardo gets the shoes and pants off of Santino.  Under Santino’s right sock is another Cobra and Santino does a kip up then hits Ricardo with a foot Cobra and gets his pants off.  Santino wins.  ADR is on Ricardo’s skivvies.   

 

Crowd was not happy with this one, which is bad considering the average crowd loves Santino.  To be fair, considering all the quality comedy wrestling that Santino and Ricardo typically produce, this was sub par.  The United States Champion should really have something better to concern himself with, but on a show where the World Heavyweight Title opens it, nothing more can really be expected.

Striker interviews Punk on the title match and his relationship with AJ.  Punk says there isn’t a relationship and tonight is about the WWE title, not AJ.  Punk is focused, facing a technician and a monster, but he’s happy to try to beat the odds.  AJ shows up to wish Punk luck; Punk says luck is for losers.  AJ scares Striker off.

Match 3:  Cody Rhodes vs Christian (c), Intercontinental Championship
Winner: Christian via pinfall

Christian comes out to a pretty lukewarm reaction; either the crowd isn’t too hot tonight or Santino/Ricardo sucked all the interest right out of them.  Rhodes signals to the crowd he aims to become a 3 time IC champ tonight.  Rhodes opens strong with strikes but Christian shoulders him down thrice to show a neutral reset.  Rhodes shoves Christian and Christian slaps him down.  Rhodes ends up on the apron and Christian drops him face first on it.  Christian baseball slides Rhodes and on the follow up, Rhodes drops Christian face first down onto the apron to take control.  Rhodes drops Christian’s arm across the top rope and begins the systematic arm attack, including a Daniel Bryan-like stomp to the elbow.  Christian whips Rhodes to the corner and slides past him to the outside to trip him.  Christian teases splitting the up rights on the ring post, but Rhodes pulls Christian face first into the post.  Rhodes keeps the aggression up, literally keeping Christian on the ropes.  Rhodes gives Christian an arm wringer and locks the arm, then lifts Christian to the top rope.  Christian fights out and tries for a tornado DDT, but Rhodes shoves him from the top to the outside.  Christian turns Rhodes around and throws him to the steel steps.  Christian runs over the steps and drops Rhodes with a jumping tornado DDT, leaving both men on the floor up to an 8 count.  Back to the ring, Christian starts on a comeback.   

Christian rallies the crowd beinnd him and calls for the Killswitch; Rhodes dodges but gets a drop toe hold onto the ropes for his trouble.  Rhodes dodges Christian’s leaping-outside-slap, but ends up taking a cross body block, which Rhodes rolls through.  Christian tries the springboard sunset flip (which Booker T calls a victory roll), but Rhodes pulls his legs out from under him, dropping him face first.  Rhodes hits the middle rope but takes too long, allowing Christian to run up and hit a frankensteiner for two.  Both men fight to their feet, but Rhodes drops Christian for a near fall.  Christian tries the Killswitch, but Rhodes turns it around and hits the old Bob Holly combo of the boot to the gut while Christian is hung on the ropes and the Alabama Slam for a very close two.  Rhodes tries the Killswitch himself, but Christian drops him with the diving reverse DDT, then calls for the spear, but Rhodes bails out.  Back in the ring, Christian lands a Killswitch, but Rhodes kicks out, prompting an audible “YES” chant from the crowd.  Christian heads to the top, but Rhodes meets him up there.  Christian tosses him to the mat and tries a Frog Splash, but Rhodes gets the knees up.  Rhodes tries for the Beautiful Disaster, which Christian dodges; Rhodes tries again and Christian dodges again, then drops Rhodes with a Spear for the well-earned three.  Rhodes may not have gotten the better of him, but a damn close match and a great showing from both guys.   

Matches like this are why someone as young as Rhodes is obviously a future World or WWE champion; the “audible male” crowd loves to cheer for him and the average fans love to boo him.  Christian and the IC title can be used to start working some of these new stars and stars in the making upward; Rhodes should begin to move onto bigger and better things as soon as possible, maybe starting with MITB.


Match 4: Primo and Epico vs Justin Gabriel and Tyson Kidd vs Prime Time Players vs The Usos, Fatal Four Way tag team match
Winner: Prime Time Players via pinfall

A showing of AW giving the Colons a pep talk earlier tonight; at least these guys didn’t just disappear.  Thrilled to see Gabriel and Kidd on a PPV – both guys are top notch.  Young and O’Neil have grown on me with each passing week.  The crowds always seem to love the Usos; they have a fire and an energy that’s hard to ignore.

O’Neil and an Uso start out, with a quick tag to Young and then to the other Uso.  An early near fall to set the pace as the Usos tag back and forth again to keep Young cornered.  Young stumbles into a corner and Epico tags himself in.  The Usos keep up the quick tags and hit their double team elbow drop, followed by a sitout full nelson buster.  Gabriel tags Epico and gets in.  Uso does the worm and Gabriel does a cartwheel to get back into position.  A headlock takeover to slow things down a bit and a blind tag leads to the double team Samoan drop by the Usos, staying in control.  The Usos take the Colons off the apron and O’Neil tags himself in to take on Gabriel.  

O’Neil powers Gabriel down then tags in Young and gives him a gourdbuster onto Gabriel for two.  Young shows his power and tosses Gabriel overhead onto the ropes, then settles into a chinlock.  Gabriel tries to fight out and flips over Young, following with a big spin kick.  Epico tags Young and lays boots to Gabriel.  Primo tags his cousin and a different team takes over.  A double team dropkick leads to a nearfall and another chinlock on Gabriel.  Gabriel tries to fight out and Epico hits a triple belly to back suplex (that’s new) for a near fall.  Primo tags back in and sweeps the leg out from under Gabriel then hits a leg drop.  A snapmare and face rake precede a kick to the back and a scoop slam.  Primo tries a springboard senton but Gabriel dodges, then dives for the tag to Kidd.  Kidd hits a springboard drop kick on Primo and lands a flurry of kicks for a one count.  Kidd lands a flying leg drop over the top and a top rope blockbuster for two before it’s broken up.  Kidd tries for a springboard elbow drop but the knees are up and after a backstabber, Kidd gets an Uso assisted save.  The Usos, the Prime Time Playerss and Gabriel all end up on the floor after a double dive from the Usos.  In the ring, Darren Young blind tags himself in on Kidd, making he and Primo the legal men.  Kidd gives Primo a frankensteiner to the floor, taking out the entirety of the group; everyone is on the floor and the crowd congratulates them with a “holy shit” chant.  

Young is the first to roll into the ring and AW picks Primo up and rolls him in.  Young hits his fireman’s carry gutbuster and gets the win.  AW slides in and congratulates the Prime Time Players; he has apparently abandoned the Colons.  The Colons get in his face about it and AW tries to settle them.  Epico pops him in the jaw and the Prime Time Players attack from behind.  AW gets up and joins them in laying boots to the Colons.  In the replay, we can see that AW actually stopped Epico from saving Primo from being pinned; definitely a premeditated plan.

It's nice to see any growth or storyline in the tag team division.  It seems that Kidd/Gabriel have settled into being a team, which is great - Both guys deserve more time on TV.
 Money in the Bank will be Sunday July 15th; with the way things are between Raw and Smackdown, we'll see if there are one or two of the ladder matches this year.

A video package of what transpired with HHH and Brock Lesnar, including Paul Heyman’s appearance.  This all leads to HHH heading to the ring for his advertised mid-PPV promo.  HHH says he’s spent half his life in the ring; it’s all he ever wanted to do, and didn’t want a real job.  Now he has a real job.  Haha.  Since Heyman put forth two lawsuits, HHH has had to deal with legal stuff, which he hates, since he’s not really a “corporate” type – he’s a fighter and an ass kicker.  HHH has an idea.  Brock Lesnar wants to fight – he’s a fighter and an ass kicker too.  HHH’s arm is apparently all healed at this point; convenient.  HHH says he’ll be in fighting shape quite soon, right in the middle of summer.  Get rid of the lawyers, the lawsuits and all the legal junk.  Get rid of the fat, balding manager.  Let’s do what we do, Brock:  Let’s fight.  HHH wants to fight Lesnar bad.  HHH vs Lesnar, one on one at Summerslam.  Or Lesnar can be happy with being a quitter; either way.  Exactly what everyone expected:  HHH inserts himself into one of the four major shows of the year, into what will likely be the main event, with no titles involved and ultimately no benefit to any young talent.  Lesnar vs Cena didn’t boost buys; the walking ego that is HHH thinks he can do better.  Sadly, at this point it'd be worse if he DIDN'T pull this stunt; the Lesnar situation needs to be forwarded one way or another and since WWE doesn't seem keen on Lesnar tearing through the roster, this is the best we can hope for.

AJ finds Bryan in the back.  Bryan doesn’t want to hear it from her, but she asks for a moment of his time.  After all they’ve been through, there’s a part of her that hasn’t gotten over Bryan.  She wishes Bryan luck and gives him a kiss on the cheek, the same as Punk.  She seems to be manipulating all three men.

Match 5:  Beth Phoenix vs Layla (c), Diva's Championship
Winner: Layla via pinfall
 

A couple quick go behind reversals before Phoenix blindsides Layla and takes her down.  Beth talks trash, and Layla gives her a boot to the gut and a dropkick to the thigh.  Layla takes Phoenix’s head piece and begins to mock her.  She dances and then runs out of the ring, followed by Phoenix.  Back in, Layla slams her face first.  Layla starts toward a low dropkick on a seated Phoenix, but Phoenix covers up.  Layla stops then feints another, finally landing it on the third.  Layla takes control and then climbs the ropes to attack from the apron.  Phoenix hits the ropes and knocks Layla off, taking control in the process, throwing the champion into the barrier.  She rolls Layla back in for two and settles into a double chickenwing.  Layla stands up and fights out.  Phoenix shoves her to mat and then chokes her in the ropes.  Layla dodges Beth and rolls her up for two.  Phoenix comes back with a pendulum backbreaker and stretches her across her knee.   

Layla fights out and finds herself held for the Glamslam.  Layla kicks off the turnbuckle to counter and rolls Phoenix up, followed by kicks and a springboard crossbody for two.  Layla walks into a powerslam for a close two.  Phoenix lifts Layla into a fireman’s carry and lifts her into a gorilla press, but Layla fights down into a smooth DDT for a very close two count.  Phoenix drives Layla into the corner and drives her shoulder into the midsection.  Layla slips under and hits the Layout neckbreaker for a clean, decisive win.   

The girls got about 7 minutes on the show, and aside from a bit of fun at the beginning were all business.  It’s a shame that Layla will end up following this by wrestling Alicia Fox or someone of that ‘caliber’.  If anything, maybe we'll get Kharma back in soon to beat up the beloved face and set Phoenix on a title chase.  

AJ is in the back, and finds Kane in the stacks.  Kane is pensive to say the least.  AJ can’t explain, but wants to wish Kane good luck; she gives him the cheek kiss.  He holds onto her elbow and kisses her, then walks away.  AJ doesn't seem to know what to make of it.

Match 6:  Hunico vs Sin Cara
Winner:  Sin Cara via pinfall
 

Sin Cara gets the tiniest reaction that could possibly be considered a reaction.  Hunico comes out strong, putting boots to Sin Cara.  Hunico slides under the handspring elbow and keeps control.  Sin Cara lands an elevated snapmare but dives into a leg from Hunico on the outside.  Hunico lands a tope back into the ring and gets a one count.  Hunico puts Cara into the corner and fires off a loud chop.  Back to the corner and another chop.  Hunico vaults from the apron and dropkicks a seated Cara in the corner.  Still only good for a one, so Hunico settles into a chinlock.  Sin Cara begins to fight out, but Hunico keeps him down.  Hunico locks Sin Cara into a Gory Special, but Sin Cara fights out into an arm drag.  He rushes Hunico, but takes a tilt a whirl backbreaker and back into the chinlock.  Hunico gives Sin Cara a schoolboy, then deadlifts him into a sideways powerbomb for a close two and another chinlock; great move.  A “We Want Ryder – Woo Woo Woo” chant breaks out as Hunico tries repeated lateral presses to wear out Sin Cara.  

Sin Cara tries for a hurricanrana, but Hunico sits out into a powerbomb for another nearfall.  Sin Cara lands a headscissors off another whip for a bit of a reset.  Sin Cara hits an enzuigiri from the apron and a springboard hurricanrana and repeated dropkicks.  Sin Cara ducks a clothesline attempt and lands La Mistica for the three.  

Great freaking match – For a moment I actually thought Hunico would get a clean win over Sin Cara on a PPV.  Silly me.  Hunico is just behind Kidd for one of the most under/mis utilized talents on this shallow roster right now.  Everything he does is just incredibly crisp.  A bit of repackaging would do him a world of good.

Video package dating back to Punk vs Bryan for the WWE title at Over the Limit.  Quite a bit of the package focuses on AJ.  Between that and the vignettes/backstage meetings tonight, there’s no way she doesn’t figure into the outcome of this match somehow.  Of note, AJ isn’t in a CM Punk shirt tonight.

Match 7:  Kane vs Daniel Bryan vs CM Punk (c), WWE Championship Triple Threat
Winner: CM Punk via pinfall
 

Kane enters to a tepid reaction, followed by Bryan to a considerably louder one.  One group up in the stands has handed out sheets of paper to the whole section that say “Yes!”; it’s a shame you can’t really make this out on TV.  Punk makes his entrance to the loudest reaction of the night so far.  Punk is in the new “I dig crazy chicks” t-shirt; be odd for them to have printed these and to sell them if AJ ends up with one of the others after this.  AJ hasn’t entered with any of the combatants.  Quote of the night so far from Booker T:   “I’ve got three words for you – Let’s get it on tonight.”  I don’t even.

Kane attacks Punk right away and tosses Bryan off.  Bryan tries leg kicks, but Kane isn’t having it.  He grabs both men and they counter with dueling kicks to Kane – “Yes” from Bryan and “No” from Punk.  They double team dropkick Kane and fight over the cover.  Bryan chops Punk and the champ answers in kind.  Punk keeps the attack up and backdrops Bryan to the outside.  Punk hits the ropes for a dive, but Kane clotheslines the champion for two then lays boots to him.  Bryan jumps from behind with a knee and knocks Kane to the outside.  Bryan hits Kane with a suicide dive, freeing Punk to springboard to the outside with a crossbody on both men.  Punk throws Bryan back to the ring and covers for two.  Punk gives Bryan a backbreaker and again tries for a pin, getting two.  Punk locks in a chinlock and yells “Come on, goatface!”.  Punk is sent to the ropes and Kane pulls him out, slamming him into the barricade.  Bryan lands a baseball slide and tries his apron running knee but Kane uppercuts him out of midair.  Kane drives Punk back first into the ringpost twice then puts him on the apron and pulls Punk into the post for a bow and arrow stretch.  Kane gets in the ring and gives Punk a low dropkick into the post one more time.  Kane covers the champion and he kicks out at two.  Kane lays into Punk in the corner repeatedly.  A snapmare from Kane is followed by a low dropkick for a nearfall.  Kane uses a bodyscissors on Punk and chickenwings his arm back.  Punk elbows out, but Kane stays on the assault.  Punk gets a boot up in the corner and Bryan flies in with a leg lariat on Punk, but runs into a side slam from Kane for two.  Bryan back flips over Kane and hits a forearm, but Kane doesn’t go down.  Bryan gives Kane a drop toe hold into the middle turnbuckle and follows by kicking the rope into Kane’s face and dropkicking him to the floor.  Bryan takes control on a recovering CM Punk and drops repeated knees to the face.  Bryan snaps Punk over with a head and arm suplex, then ascends the top rope.  Punk springs up and stops Bryan on top and sets up for a superplex.  Kane tosses Punk down and uppercuts Bryan.  Kane meets Bryan up top and gets pulled down by Punk – they’re fighting over who gets to suplex Bryan off the top.  Punk and Kane go at it in the middle of the ring and Bryan hits a missile dropkick on both men.  Bryan kicks both men in the chest as they get to their knees.  Bryan continues with an execution kick to the head of Kane; Punk ducks his and rolls the challenger up with a school boy.  Punk hits jumping knees in the corner on both men.  Kane sends Punk out and he clotheslines Bryan, followed by a neckbreaker on Kane.  Bryan fights, but walks into a powerslam from Punk for another nearfall in this match.

Punk heads up top this time, but Bryan stop him.  Bryan is now trying for a superplex.  Kane puts Bryan in the electric chair and backs away from the corner.  Punk springboards for a doomsday device and clotheslines  Kane out of the ring, pinning Bryan for a close two count.  Punk scoop slams Bryan and climbs up top again – Punk flies and lands the Macho Elbow, but Bryan kicks out.  Punk calls for the GTS and Kane interrupts with a boot to the face.  Kane drives Punk into the corner and whips him to the opposite with strong attacks after each.  Punk lands a kick to Kane’s head from the apron and tries another flying elbow, but Kane dodges.  Now it’s Bryan’s turn up top and he lands a diving headbutt on Punk for a nearfall.  Kane rushes Bryan, but he pulls the top rope down then forearms Kane to the floor.  Punk rolls Bryan up, but Bryan gets to his feet and kicks Punk in the head, followed by the Yes!lock.  Bryan wrenches back very hard, leading into the same spot as last time with Punk getting a nearfall before Bryan lets go.  Punk hits a GTS, but Kane pulls Bryan out to the floor to stop any chance of Punk winning.  Kane’s turn on the top and he flies with a diving lariat to Punk.  Kane signals for the Chokeslam and stalks the champion.  Kane grabs him by the throat, but Punk counters into a DDT for two.  Punk heads up top again and lands the elbow this time, but it’s only good for two.  Punk says “Three times, I don’t care!” before he flies.  Punk want s a GTS on Kane but he can’t get him up and runs into a big boot from Kane.  A Chokeslam on Punk from Kane, but he kicks out just in time.  Kane is flabbergasted and stalks the ref.  Kane is beside himself with anger and signals for the Tombstone.  He scoops Punk, but Punk fights down.  AJ hops up on the apron from out of nowhere and Kane is shoved into her.  She hits the ground hard.  Punk lifts Kane and hits him with the GTS.  Punk wins.  Punk celebrates in the ring and Kane is on the floor, standing over AJ.  The replay shows that Kane was cognizant of what happened.  

 Kane seems distraught as he looks down at AJ on the floor and like earlier in the week, he scoops her off the floor and begins to take her to the back.  She looks to the ring with a sick little grin on her face – happy to be scooped up and away by Kane?  Or perhaps happy that she was able to be a distraction and help out CM Punk?  In any event, this seems to at least eliminate Bryan from the option list, for what that’s worth.  Punk asks an official if she’s ok after seeing the replay on the Titantron and after getting a nod, continues to celebrate.  That was, without a doubt, the best possible match that could have been had between these three men.  AJ was only a factor in the closing seconds and everything went off completely without a hitch.  Punk sees a replay of AJ’s reaction to being carried out and gives a smirk to the Titantron.  Seeing that match, it makes me feel that somebody watched TNA’s Slammiversary a week ago and went “Uh, guys…we need to get serious.”  Could this mean some real competition like the good old days?  No more status quo?  Doubtful.


Match 8: Dan Delaney and Rob Grymes vs Ryback
Winner:  Ryback via pinfall


So it’s become the standard for a surprise Ryback and Sin Cara match on every PPV?  Not good.  Doesn’t show any value in these guys.  In one smooth motion, Ryback gives the highest back body drop ever and a brutal lariat to two men.  Ryback presses Guy1 and drops him into a powerslam.  Guy2 is lifted and dropped face first.  Ryback hops to the middle rope and just falls into a splash on Guy2.  Ryback calls for the end and says “Feed me three” with both men on his shoulders.  I guess that’s what we’ll get for the next month or so.  If he somehow gets three goofs up for that Samoan Fisherman Buster Drop, they’ve got something else in this monster.  If we’re going to get squash matches on the regular, this is what they should be – at the very least, seeing how high he can toss human beings is sincerely entertaining.  That thing I said a second ago about "not good" for surprise Ryback?  Scratch that.

That music we all know at this point plays as the lights flash – The cage is being lowered to cover the ring in a ton of steel for our main event between John Cena and Big Show.  For Big Johnny’s job.  And not a title.  I should be upset, but the WWE title match was incredible and Ryback basically just ate two human beings.  Let’s just get this last bit of business over with.  For some reason, the menu music from WWE’12 is used in the video package for this match; we’ve all spent way too much time listening to this loop of music as the game and community servers failed to load anything.  That doesn’t have any bearing on this PPV, but consider it a mild call out to Cory Ledesma ;)

Match 9: John Cena vs Big Show, if John Cena wins then John Lauranaitis is fired

Winner:  John Cena via cage escape

Ace comes out in a very Vince McMahon-like suit.  It couldn’t possibly be a brighter hue of red without causing him some kind of cancer.  He will sit ringside with Vince, and when and if Show loses, Vince will fire him on the spot.  Big Show enters following Big Johnny, and he’s followed by Mr. McMahon strutting his way to ringside as only he can.  Vince feints a handshake for Lauranaitis.  A brief pause to silence the crowd so that they can react for Cena.  And they do.  

Big Show starts aggressive and shows his power advantage over Cena.  Cena gets tossed head first into the cage early.  Cena sells the two shots he took so far more than Punk sold a Chokeslam before he takes another bounce off the cage.  Show steps on and over Cena’s sternum.  Show tries the WMD with Cena between the ropes and cage, but Cena dodges and Show punches the cage.  Cena tries to clamber up and over but Show pulls him back in.  Show stays in control and lays into Cena.  Show with a frying pan chop to Cena.  Show chokes Cena in the corner with his boot; not a quick pace to his one.  Cena escapes the corner and dropkicks Show, but the giant stays on him.  Show uses his body as a weapon to the lower back of Cena.  Show jaws at the crowd and continues to beat on Cena, tossing him to the cage again.  Show steps on and over Cena again and aggressively attacks the midsection in the corner.  Show tells Cena the crowd doesn’t care about him.  Cena crawls for the cage door, but Show stands on the back of his head.  Show whips Cena to a corner but runs into a boot.  Cena hops to the second rope and jumps with a bulldog for one.  Cena tries to climb the opposite cage wall, but Big Show intercepts.  Cena reaches the top and swings a leg over, but Show pulls him in.  Show ends up crotched on the top rope and Cena hits a jumping shoulder block on Show while he’s stuck.  Cena hits the mat, as he’s taken a ten minute beating.  Cena tries to climb again, but is winded.  Show grabs Cena in a powerbomb and runs him back first into the cage then tosses him overhead in a fallaway bomb (one of Show’s old finishers), followed by a Vader bomb for two.  Show climbs to the top and lifts Cena up to match by the neck.  Show then tosses Cena to the mat.  Big Show looks down at Cena from the top and walks across the ropes, even with Cena.  Show tries for an enormous elbow drop and Cena rolls out of the way.  

Show climbs for the door after his miscalculation, but Cena grabs the leg to stop him.  Big Show gets halfway out, but Cena reels him back in.  Show gets his hands to the floor, but Cena won’t let him tumble out.  Show holds onto the corner of the steel steps, but loses his grip and gets dragged back into the ring.  Cena tries to get out the door this time and counters a chokeslam attempt, throwing Big Show into the cage, followed by a jumping shoulder block.  Cena gets two.  Lauranaitis tosses a ref out of the way and closes the cage door; Vince stops this and Ace shoves him from behind, knocking the cage door into Cena’s head, and he stumbles into a Showstopper chokeslam for a very close two.  Show readies the WMD but Cena ducks and the ref takes the shot.  Cena tries the Attitude Adjustment, but gets a WMD for his troubles.  Show paces around the cage:  Nobody is there to make the count in the ring and Big Johnny took the outside ref out, so technically there’s nobody present to witness Show stepping out of the ring.  

Brodus Clay guards the cage door with a chair; he’s not happy about what the Big Show did to him a couple weeks ago.  Clay motions and A-Ry and Santino hit the cage wall to stop Show from climbing out.  Show shakes them off.  Ryder hits the cage wall next and Big Show punches him off through the cage.  Big Show starts climbing.  Kofi jumps up and meets him at the top.  Kofi with repeated kicks and Big Show falls to the mat.  Brodus Clay leads a “Cena” chant and Cena begins to pull himself toward the cage door to escape and win.  Show comes to and grabs Cena’s foot.  Cena gives Show the Attitude Adjustment; we’ve seen it before but it’s impressive every damn time.  Cena covers Big show, but there’s no ref to make a count.  Lauranaitis is distraught at ringside and the Funkasaurus still guards the cage door.  Cena climbs to the top of the cage and Clay backs Ace off.  He pins the arms of Ace back, inviting Cena to hit him and Cena falls to the floor to win.  All that rigamaroll about the refs being knocked out, but somebody rang the bell anyway as soon as Cena touched the floor; these are the things that make WWE look silly.

  

Cena tells Clay to let Ace go.  Big Johnny swings his crutch at Cena and he ducks, lifting him onto his shoulders.  Vince fires Ace while he’s suspended in midair and Cena gives Lauranaitis the Attitude Adjustment through the announce table.  Vince heads on to the back and Cena takes a lap around the floor to celebrate.  

All in all, a bit better than what WWE has served up to us in recent PPV showings, but nowhere near as solid a show as Slammiversary just one week ago.  The attendance at the show was reportedly low; many a section at the top of the arena tarped off.  Punk and Bryan need to continue this feud, preferably with a bit less Kane.  AJ continues to have the most interesting character on the show and seems to be willing to sacrifice herself to help out Punk; we'll how that continues on Raw and beyond.  The smart money says that Big Johnny is back on TV within two weeks in some silly capacity. Rhodes and Ziggler continue to shine as performers, despite being handed losses and the participants in the four way tag match all deserve kudos - These are the young guys that need to be made stars and need some backing from WWE for more than a month at a time.  We're a month out from Money in the Bank and if Ziggler or Rhodes don't take home a briefcase, I don't know where WWE is going.

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