Jee-S’ NXT And Main Event Review 05/23/13
Sami Zayn defeats Curt Hawkins with an amazingly executed Tornado DDT.
Thoughts: Very good match that ended way too quickly! I’ve always been a fan of Curt Hawkins’ work and I’m disappointed that he doesn’t get his chance in the midcard. One thing is for sure: he was the ideal guy to book against Sami Zayn for his debut. The former El Generico looked fantastic in the ring and I guess it’s no surprise. I was very excited for Zayn’s debut and it lived up to the expectations. I can obviously see him do great things in the WWE, I mean, can’t we all?
Antonio Cesaro squashes Yoshi Tatsu in a minute-match and cuts a promo putting himself over, saying he’s lacking competition. Enters Sami Zayn again to set up a match between both.
Thoughts: This squash made a lot more sense after the bell when Zayn came back. It was a great surprise to see him again right after his match and it’s even better that he’s having a match against Cesaro. This should be REALLY good!
Sami Zayn beats Antonio Cesaro with a roll-up out of nowhere. Cesaro beats up Zayn after the bell.
Thoughts: What an awesome match! These two men have wrestled multiple times against each other in the indies and they can now say they brought the house down in NXT! For me, this has possibly outdone all the matches from the past NXT episodes in 2013. I would love for this rivalry to develop (preferably on RAW but I’ll take it on NXT) so we could see more matches from them; this finish lets us believe that it will indeed happen and I can’t wait to see it unfold! Also, as a Montrealer and a hardcore wrestling fan, I’m proud of my hometown boy Sami Zayn tonight and I’m really happy he got both wins!
Interview with Emma and Audrey Marie building a rivalry between them. Emma plays dumb and Audrey Marie is fed up.
Thoughts: I really liked Audrey Marie, she was a good prospect and it sucks that she had to go, but business is business. I really like the buzz Emma is creating with her dance and her gimmick but she really needs to improve her microphone and interview skills. Nice segment to promote the NXT divas.
Mason Ryan defeats Enzo Amore with a torture rack to neckbreaker finisher.
Thoughts: Squash match here to put Mason Ryan over. The reports say that the Welsh powerhouse has been making progress: I see it right away. He brought a ring psychology to this match that he didn’t have before; he tried to connect with the crowd and talked a lot of smack during the bout. He also looks quicker in the ring which is something he lacked in the past; therefore, he looks a lot better than at anytime he has in his career. I’m excited to see what lies ahead for him. Enzo Amore cut a nice little promo before the match; hopefully sometime soon he’ll get more offense in his matches so we can see his in-ring skills.
Bray Wyatt defeats Corey Graves with the Sister Abigail after interference from the Wyatt Family. Kassius Ohno comes after to fight but Wyatt, Harper and Rowan beat him down.
Thoughts: And the main event delivers! I’m a fan of both Graves and Wyatt; I see them doing wonders on the main roster soon (hopefully). The finish doesn’t hurt Corey Graves seeing as he lost because of the interference and it’s perfect. Ohno coming back was nice; I’m excited to see what this face turn has in store for him. A rivalry with Bray Wyatt sounds like a great idea to start!
Overall, this was a highly entertaining episode of NXT! We had very good wrestling (besides the squash) and the storylines keep on being developed as usual: this all makes me a satisfied writer and critic!
WWE MAIN EVENT
Alberto Del Rio defeats Big E Langston with an enzuigiri to the back of the head followed by a roll up.
Thoughts: Solid match. Big E Langston continues to impress with his natural strength and his considerable and consistent improvement in the ring since beginning on NXT. The fact that he gave a serious world title contender a run for his money definitely makes Langston a threat, especially after his shady victory over Del Rio on RAW. The Mexican hero looked great in the ring as usual. Overall, very good match!
Recap portion of the show.
Thoughts: No comment. But...for what it’s worth, RAW was pretty good this week!
The Usos defeat 3MB (Drew McIntyre & Jinder Mahal) with a superkick/Superfly splash combination. Ryback came towards the end in an ambulance in which he threw Heath Slater before leaving.
Thoughts: I think this was a really good way to end the show! The tag team match was good with all these very talented performers! I’m glad we’ve seen the WWE use The Usos more these past weeks and I’m crossing my fingers that it keeps on happening. I really like the idea of booking lower midcard to midcard talent to close Main Event episodes; it pays off because of good matches like these among other good Main Event closing bouts. The idea of Ryback attacking also hypes the WWE Title picture, which is awesome.
Update on Triple H’s condition which ends up being a simple recap of RAW.
Thoughts: A recap? Shocker. Seriously though, this was supposed to be an update and all we know is that he can’t compete until he passes some tests...I think this is an insult to our intelligence seeing as it’s something we obviously guessed. Nice work, WWE.
Overall, it was an above average show, very good wrestling and useless recaps, you know, the usual. Thank you for reading!
WWE Smackdown Analysis 05/24/13 by Joe Thunder
Fandango is on MizTV with Summer Rae. Miz shows Fandango dancing during his tag team match on Raw Monday where Wade Barrett was his tag team partner. Fandango says he will dance all over someone’s face if they get near Summer Rae again. Their words get heated and Miz compares Fandango dancing to a bag of skittles. Then Wade Barrett interrupts them. He is angry at Fandango for costing them the match on Monday. Miz reminds Wade Barrett that they have a title match tonight. Barrett attacks Miz and they brawl until they’re broken up.
^I enjoyed this opening segment. Fandango is fun to listen to, and his chemistry with Miz in their conversation was good. I could see Barrett turning face eventually with his words towards Fandango.
The Miz defeats Wade Barrett by DQ when Fandango interferes. Fandango is on commentary and also dances with Summer Rae during the match. Fandango and Barrett beat down the Miz. Barrett then gives Fandango the bullhammer elbow before leaving.
^Good back and forth action as usual from Barrett and Miz, and a disappointing finish to Miz’s title shot. I’m guessing you’ll see these three in a triple threat at payback, or even a one on one match with Fandango and Barrett. Anyone else find themselves watching Summer Rae more than Fandango during this?
Kane tries to talk sense into Dbry but all he wants to do is say he isn’t the weak link in the tag team. They argue.
^And the breakup is still in the works. After the entertainment they’ve provided us as Team Hell No, I’m curious to see what WWE does with both of these men.
Daniel Bryan defeats Jack Swagger with the no-lock. Kane is at ringside for support during the match. Dbry doesn’t want to let go of the hold right away after the match and applies it on Swagger a second time until Kane stops him.
^This wasn’t an amazing match, but I mostly blame that on Swagger looking clumsy. Dbry’s aggression makes him fun to watch in the ring, and his promo work has always been good. I’m excited to see what happens for him in the remainder of 2013.
Damien Sandow does a segment in the ring with Matt Striker regarding his ability to undo a gordian knot. Sheamus comes down and attempts it, but Sandow stops it. Sheamus goes to brogue kick Sandow but he moves and gets out of the ring. Sheamus ends up throwing Striker to the outside where he lands on Sandow.
^I read that someone found this segment weak, but I liked it alot. Sandow was great on the mic as usual, and Sheamus came out looking strong by the time it was over. How could one complain about these two having more matches?
Chris Jericho defeats the Big Show by count out after nailing a codebreaker on the outside and knocking him over the barricade. They brawl post match.
^I’m guessing the aftermath means we’re going to have an actual feud between the former members of JeriShow. What does this do for either man? Probably nothing, but at least they’ll be relevant and give us good matches!
Paul Heyman comes out with Curtis Axel and brags about him. Axel then defeats Sin Cara with the swinging neckbreaker(done with one hand).
^Good words again by Heyman about Axel, but it was essentially the same as the stuff he said Monday Night. The match with Sin Cara was solid, but I’d like to see a match where Axel has more offense. Sin Cara definitely got in too much offense. Speaking of Sin Cara, what’s WWE’s plan with him? His booking seems rather sporadic and unpredictable(not that unpredictability is always a bad thing).
Kofi Kingston goes one on one with Dean Ambrose for the US Title. The Shield gets involved and the match ends by DQ. Randy Orton and Sheamus come down for the save. Teddy Long comes out makes it a six man tag match. Ambrose pins Kofi to win the match and the Shield celebrates to end the show.
^Not happy to see Kofi take another pinfall, but the six man tag was very good! Fantastic ending to a solid wrestling show! Believe in the Shield! They have some of the best booking going right now(and not because they rarely, but more because the logic is sound that their age and speed make them unstoppable as a trio); if only the rest of the roster was booked so well!
Five(sorta six) solid matches made for a very good episode of Smackdown! The promos were good and all the talking segments kept me thoroughly entertained! I hope this trend of quality shows continues into Raw next week! Until next time, you’ve been ThunderStruck!
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