5 Best Moments From Raw 5/30/16: AJ Styles Goes Heel

Money Night Raw came to us from Green Bay, Wisconsin this week. We’ve still got some time before Money in the Bank and there’s a looming brand split that should shake things up pretty soon. The show started out pretty weak tonight but found some high spots as things progressed.

The intro is pretty brief this time around so let’s dive right into the best moments from Raw…

5. Enzo & Cass Woke The Crowd Up

The show was really slow for a long while. Like, pretty boring. My initial thought was that Green Bay was a weak crowd but considering the show kicked off with a Shane vs. Stephanie dance off I don’t think they were the culprits. WWE did not bring their A game for a good bit of this show. Then, Enzo & Cass’ music hit and they saved the day.

It’s a strong positive in this tag team’s favor that the one catchphrase that everyone loves to chant along with Enzo is at least 30 seconds long. This Raw crowd must’ve been so excited to have a reason to react big to something and that’s what Enzo especially was for them. He and Big Cass went on to face the Dudleyz whom they easily defeated. Not that that’s a huge deal or anything because literally everyone beats The Dudleyz these days. If The Golden Truth get really bummed about being winless right now then they should challenge Bubba Ray and D-Von to a match.

4. Owens & Jericho Should Get A Sitcom

Wisconsin blows and I HATE cheese. https://t.co/JlTlALo8c8

— Chris Jericho (@IAmJericho) May 31, 2016

The backstage conversation between Kevin Owens, Chris Jericho, and Alberto Del Rio was hilarious because of the childish bickering between KO and Y2J. Jericho told both men about how he had problems with them to which Owens confusedly retorted that he actually thought they had a good thing going. Then, when Chris was talking to Alberto he subtly dropped the word “moi” into his conversation. Without a beat, he remarked to his French-Canadian partner this quip…

Jericho: That’s French.
Owens: I know.

The delivery was quick, it was perfect. Before they went out for their tag match Chris offered this stern warning to his cohorts for the night…

Jericho: You Better Watch It.
Owens: Watch What?Jericho: It.

This was all comedy at its best.

3. Trading Lots Of Big Moves

Raw was a pretty weak show from an in-ring standpoint but that main event got it together pretty well. Come to think of it, it was probably because all six of these guys were in this one match instead of being spread across two or three separate matches that prevented anything other than the main event from being above 3 stars.

Still there were plenty of signatures moves and finishers in the final two minutes or so to leave a solid final impression for those of us that try to make it through the entire 3 hours. Some of my favorite moves included when Chris Jericho actually saw Dean Ambrose’s rope rebound coming and gave him a Codebreaker when he shot back to him.

https://twitter.com/MitchNickelson/status/737507203028914176

The finish was great as well. The final moves saw Kevin Owens going for a Popup Powerbomb on Sami Zayn, but he overshot it. Dean Ambrose then moved in quickly at that point to nail his Dirty Deeds for the win.

Also, Green Bay gave us the first every round of “Stupid Idiot” chants towards Chris Jericho which they should be commended for. It was beautiful.

2. John Cena Returned!

https://twitter.com/ilyassking1/status/737468297000681473

John Cena has been out for 5 months due to shoulder surgery and he’s been dearly missed. He came back on this episode of Raw wearing his Ellen shorts and gave a big pro-liberty speech that was tailor-made for this Memorial Day. While most of his speech was serious and patriotic, he did say that he will “not go quietly into the night” and then all I could think about from that moment on was the Bill Pullman speech from Independence Day. And that’s not a bad thing, no sir. Every good American loves the speech from Independence Day.

Cena is truly the superstar of the past decade and the show feels like such a bigger deal with him on it. Just showing up was more than enough to earn a spot on the best moments of this episode of Raw…but he wasn’t done yet. There was even bigger business to tend to and it happened when AJ Styles’ music hit during Cena’s welcome back party…

1. The Club United

I would’ve been just as happy if babyface AJ Styles was offering a friendly challenge to John Cena but Anderson & Gallows interrupted their congenial promo to aid AJ in a full-on heel turn. I was scratching my head initially because didn’t The Club part ways just a week ago? As AJ kept running back in for more and more chances to wail some punches into Cena’s face I realized that their “breakup” seven days ago never came to blows. It was all a ruse and it totally worked on me. I loved this.

The best image to come from this brand new feud is when Styles, Anderson, and Gallows all stood atop Cena, holding up their “Too Sweet” signs while John was lifeless. Cena vs. Styles is definitely one of those dream matchups that’s penciled in for AJ’s WWE run and I’m glad we’re getting it over the summer. If these guys are starting something that carries over to a post-brand split SmackDown then that should easily boost some ratings.

Thanks

I appreciate that you’d take the time to read this. If you’d like to keep up on more wrestling writing from me, give me a follow on Twitter @MitchNickelson so you don’t miss out on anything.

Mitch Nickelson’s WWE Raw Preview 5/30/16

It’s the Memorial Day edition of Raw so it’s only fitting that a certain someone is returning tonight. John Cena will be a huge focus of the show from Green Bay and according to WWE.com‘s official preview, he’s the big selling point to watch. Like usual, WWE’s preview points are bolded below, accompanied by my thoughts on each subject.

One big thing absent from WWE’s preview is the huge upcoming brand split. It’s been a few years since WWE has kept a separate Raw and SmackDown roster. There are many questions about how this new incarnation will play out. I’m not one to normally clamor for McMahon on-screen time but they should at least take a few minutes of programming to give a few details.

What Does John Cena Have Planned For His Return?

The biggest talking point going into Raw is that John Cena will be back after several months out rehabbing a shoulder surgery. In typically superhuman fashion, Cena shaved an astonishing four months off of his recovery time. Either WWE intentially flubs the expected time off in the beginning or the man is from the planet Krypton. Regardless, it’ll be interesting to see what direction he goes upon return.

I might be jumping to conclusions, but the current United States Champion sent out an interesting Tweet on Sunday…

Big day tomorrow at #RAW

— Miro (@ToBeMiro) May 30, 2016

Did Rusev upend Kalisto’s title run to set up a feud with John Cena for the title he made shine in 2015? No complaints from me if that’s the case. It would also explain why Rusev’s career has felt like it’s been in a bit of a resurgence as of late.

Will Former ‘Brothers’ Collide?

I still would’ve liked a Seth Rollins babyface run but who am I to complain about him challenging Roman Reigns at Money In The Bank for the title that he never lost? These two were in a feud together last fall when Seth freakishly hurt his knee in a match with Kane at a house show, so there’s plenty of unfinished business to settle.

There are no matches for Seth Rollins advertised before the big match on June 19th but I am curious to know if he’ll have much of an in-ring presence beforehand. His wrestling return on Raw should be a treated as a big deal so they should advertise that well in advance. As for this night, Rollins and Reigns should have some heated conversations as long as the physicality is kept to a minimum.

Can The Showoff Out-Grapple The Lone Wolf?

This is a bit of an odd feud by this point. First of all, Baron Corbin won their last match together at Extreme Rules. He did happen to use a low blow but since it was a NO DQ match he technically did nothing wrong.

Ouch.

Last week on Raw, Dolph Ziggler challenged Baron to this upcoming technical wrestling match and then told him to watch his match later in the show…which he lost. I like Baron Corbin and Dolph is definitely the guy to make him look good in-ring on the main roster but this is a feud that’s dragged on a tad too long. I’m sure they’ll put on a decent match together but I’m more than ready for Baron to get his final win then move on to whatever his next step is.

What’s Going Through Charlotte’s Mind?

Charlotte kicked her dear daddy to the curb last week because she’s an ungrateful millennial or something. Ric Flair might not be by her side anymore but Dana Brooke now is. Anybody who reads my stuff will know that I’m all in with Dana but there’s something lacking here. WWE is promoting that we might get more of an explanation as to why the daddy/daughter love is gone but I’m more interested in knowing just why the two ladies are now allies. Also, is Natalya still challenging for the Women’s Championship? The Flair family drama from last week makes me question just who’s currently vying for that belt.

Is Dudleyville “S.A.W.F.T.”?

The Enzo Amore concussion suffered during the Tag Team Tournament about a month ago sort of put his and Big Cass’ rivalry with The Dudleyz on the shelf. Enzo’s well again so it looks like everything’s a go with plenty of smack talk for everyone in Dudleyville. Bubba Ray & D-Von are definitely legends of the tag team division but they’ve been on the wrong end of the win-loss record during this current WWE run. I’ll be happy when Enzo & Cass get put over by The Dudleyz but didn’t Colin handle them pretty easy by himself at Extreme Rules? It won’t feel like as big of deal as WWE hopes it will when they finally win this feud. Bubba Ray and D-Von need to put these guys through a couple of tables so they look like more of a threat.

Who Will Emerge As The Final Money In The Bank Ladder Match Participant?

Alberto Del Rio was added as the sixth wrestler to the MITB Ladder Match on SmackDown last week joining Chris Jericho, Kevin Owens, Sami Zayn, Dean Ambrose, and Cesaro. That’s a really strong class of competitors. I’d be happy if any of these guys won it although I’m feeling ADR the least at the moment. The last spot could easily go to John Cena since he’s not really doing anything at this point on the upcoming PPV. It could also go to Randy Orton since he’s due to return very soon as well. I do think this question will get answered on Monday night but if they wanted to save this spot all the way up until the event itself then it could end up being a cool surprise if it’s the right person.

Thanks

Thanks for reading. Follow me on Twitter @MitchNickelson.

5 Best Moments Of Raw 5/23/16: Enzo Returns!

It’s the day after WWE Extreme Rules and it’s time to shift focus to the next special event, Money in the Bank. Raw was filled with qualifying matches to see which competitors would take 5 out of 7 of the spots in the popular briefcase ladder match.

Seth Rollins made his Raw return after returning at the end of Sunday’s Pay-Per-View. The ovation he got was great and I was more than willing to place the appearance on this edition of this article…but then he went heel. Don’t get me wrong, he’s a fine heel and did well in turning the crowd against him. But it all felt too soon. I don’t really want to boo him any more than the majority of crowds want to cheer for Roman Reigns. Maybe I’m being too harsh, but the miscast here didn’t set well with me.

That’s enough of the negativity from me. Even if I don’t like the roles they’re in, Reigns vs. Rollins is still a match that excites me. They should put on something special and I’m glad it was announced as the MITB headliner. As for the rest of Raw, here are the 5 moments that I identified as the best of the night.

5. An Independent Woman

Not all of this felt like a total winner of a segment, but I did appreciate Charlotte’s ability to get the heat from the crowd. I guess having to win her match at Extreme Rules without Daddy nearby reminded her of the 30 years of her life that he wasn’t there anyways, so she decided to give him the boot on this night.

The WWE Women’s Champion told The Nature Boy that he abandoned her as tears poured down his face. The crowd viciously jeered her to which she turned it all back onto Ric, saying that he might be immortal to them but he was dead to her. Ouch. Some of those Flair waterworks might’ve been authentic after those comments.

It’s hard to figure out how Dana Brooke factors into whatever’s the next direction for Charlotte. I was hoping in the moment that she might defend Ric’s honor and turn on his daughter but that obviously didn’t happen. Still, if she’s allied with her now then certainly there will be a turn at some point in the future. I’ll cross my fingers that I don’t have to wait forever to get to that point.

4. No Longer Brothers

"If we didn't drop everyone who mocked your haircut @AJStylesOrg you wouldn't be here," – @LukeGallowsWWE #RAWTonight

— WWE Creative Humor (a sub of TKO Creative Humor) (@WWECreative_ish) May 24, 2016

Before AJ Styles competed in the ring, he grabbed a mic and tried to explain his loss at Extreme Rules. He did put over Roman as one of the best talents he’s ever wrestled but also put some blame on the involvement of The Usos as well as his own buddies, Gallows & Anderson. This prompted an appearance by the Good Brothers.

Both Luke & Karl took offense to the AJ blame. The allegiance between these three came to a close during this time in the ring. The falling out ended with Anderson saying that not only are they not brothers anymore, but they’re not friends either.

I expected Gallows & Anderson to come out a little later in the night and cost AJ his match, but that didn’t happen. That’s probably for the better because there’s no real hurry to rush the next steps in the dissolution of The Club – especially if the next step is the appearance of Finn Balor. They can wait until after his cage match against Samoa Joe to make that happen.

3. Owens’ Brilliant Banter

The main event Money in the Bank qualifier between Kevin Owens and AJ Styles was a fine TV contest and easily the best match of the night, but that’s not what I’m wanting to highlight here. Kevin Owens knows how to be funny as well as snarky and brought those factors several times during this contest. There are technically 3 moments in this entry, but I’ll cheat a little and group them all together.

First, there was the dropkick attempt from AJ that missed. Kevin Owens simply clapped at his opponents’ misstep, giving him a sarcastic bravo. Check that one out above in .gif form.

Second, Styles was outside of the ring when Owens got a running start off of the ropes. The announcers gasped at the thought of Kevin possibly performing a tope or a suicide dive, but Kevin had a different attack in mind. He simply rolled under the run and gave AJ a clothesline.

Finally, there was this glorious line: “Shut up Cole, I can hear you from here!” THAT’S why Kevin Owens is a hero to so many.

2. An Owens Upset

Is it fair to call Kevin Owens’ win over AJ Styles an upset? It might not be a huge upset, but AJ did just come off of two months of feuding with the WWE World Heavyweight Champion. He was at least a little bit higher up the card than KO. This was the best match of the night, highlighted with a 45o Splash by Styles and a Powerbomb onto steel steps by Owens. They both brought their A game and it was a match more than worth going back and seeing if you missed the show.

When looking at all of the qualifiers (so far) for the MITB ladder match in a few weeks, the talent pool is deep. Owens joins Sami Zayn, Cesaro, Chris Jericho, and Dean Ambrose in the battle for the briefcase. I’d be happy with any of those guys winning it. There are still two more spots left in the match and I can only hope that it’s a talent as exciting as what’s already involved in this contest.

1. Enzo Amore Returned!

Colin Cassady began making his entrance, then signaled that he wasn’t alone. Enzo Amore came out to join him to a huge pop and oh boy was he wired! While in the ring he recited a slew of wise cracks that I didn’t completely follow but still found myself entertained by. His energy was through the roof. Like, Robin Williams in the 1980s through the roof.

The funniest moment of the bit was when Big Cass talked about how he was going to kick off a Dudley head into a swimming pool. When he said that he was not going to miss, Enzo went ballistic reciting “not gonna miss” over and over. Seriously, he came across as psychotic here and it was great.

WWE has tested the waters with a Big Cass singles run and you know that Vince is more than ready to push him hard. It’s good that they’re not pulling that trigger just yet because there’s still so much potential in this tag team.

Thanks

Thanks for reading. Follow me on Twitter @MitchNickelson so you don’t miss the many postings of wrestling content I offer for a variety of websites each week.

5 Best WWE SmackDown Moments 5/19/16: The Bloodline vs. The Club

Extreme Rules is in just a few days and I hope you haven’t begun looking for predictions articles just yet because we’ve still got SmackDown to go over. You didn’t forget about SmackDown, did you? It’s okay if you did. Looking at the ratings, many of you routinely forget about WWE’s Thursday night weekly. It’s nothing to be ashamed of.

If you did miss this week, here are the best moments from the broadcast. These are the things most worth your time to try and look up. One honorable mention goes to Big E for this…

https://twitter.com/DeathToAllMarks/status/733287629177901056

5. Owens Wins, Laughs At His Foes

Sami Zayn got a little lost in the shuffle on commentary, but who could blame him? Not only is it regularly a three-person team as a base, both The Miz & Maryse were also mic’d up along with Sami. When The Miz and his lady tried to distract the in-ring competition, Zayn decided to put down the headseat and head into the ring. Inadvertently, Zayn’s involvement caused Cesaro to lose because Kevin Owens capitalized on the distraction for a roll-up pin. As the brawling continued after the match, KO exited back up the ramp while laughing.

All four of these guys bring something of value to this IC Title feud and I’m very pumped for their match at Extreme Rules. I don’t feel like Owens’ win here gives him any significant momentum considering the outside involvement and the cheap roll-up, but it was still a good ending to solid opening match.

(This would normally be the part where I find a Twitter link relevant to this particular topic to break up the text, but I’ll go slightly off topic to show a bit of banter that Owens had during SmackDown’s broadcast with a restaurant that sucked…)

https://twitter.com/FightOwensFight/status/733448497911857153

4. The Man That Humbled Kalisto

Doesn’t The Iron Sheik always talk about breaking people’s backs and making them humble? Well, our boy Rusev has at least borrowed some of that phrase. In a backstage interview with Renee Young he and Lana proclaimed that his aggressive Accolade to Kalisto on Raw was an act of humbling. Lana called her man the greatest U.S. Champion of all time while Rusev said that people will soon be chanting “Machka, machka” instead of “Lucha, lucha.” Can that please catch on, if only for a night?

In this business you can either make money or friends. I don't want friends I have @LanaWWE you dem right I wanted to hurt @KalistoWWE $$$$

— Miro (@ToBeMiro) May 18, 2016

Since WWE has allowed Rusev and Lana to return closer to what’s worked for them in the past, Rusev has stepped it up as far as being his own mouthpiece. Lana can still vouch for the Bulgarian Brute but he can more than speak for himself. He’s very comfortable with his own voice and that’s why I picked this brief interview segment as one of the best moments of the show. The man deserves praise for his promo skills.

3. More Of Dana Brooke’s Winning Ways

With Becky Lynch on commentary, Dana Brooke scored yet another win in only her second week on the main roster. She defeated Paige, putting her overall SmackDown and Raw record up to an impressive 3-0. She’s not beating scrubs, either. Paige just pinned WWE Women’s Champion Charlotte on Raw less than two weeks ago.

Dana made sure to bad mouth Becky after she won, so it looks like that will be her rivalry for the time being. It’s a shame that Emma and (presumably) Sasha Banks aren’t along for this ride as well, but I won’t complain about a singles feud between these two.

2. A Clever Disguise

Chris Jericho entered the Ambrose Asylum before the cage and all of the different weaponry that accompanied it lowered over top of him. Y2J talked about how he’s been in every match that WWE has ever offered except for this new Dean-specific variation of a cage match. Chris also said he would make his opponent on Sunday spend 40 days in the hospital thanks to what he’ll do to him in this coming match. Chris said all of this without noticing the hairy stage guy in the cage walking behind him.

When you're drinking in the gift of @IamJericho and @TheDeanAmbrose sneaks up behind you… #SmackDown pic.twitter.com/AVIMRlzdGA

— WWE Universe (@WWEUniverse) May 20, 2016

The disguise wasn’t the best thing ever, but I found it amusing to watch Ambrose remove his fake facial hair behind a posing Jericho. It had a comical tinge to it, which WWE has been guilty of doing too much of to Dean in the past. This didn’t feel like too much cartoony stuff to me, it was just a goofy reveal before the assault. Ambrose then procured a kendo stick and wailed on Jericho repeatedly before he could escape the cage.

1. The Expected Bloodline/Club Brawl

Sure, having these six guys in the same location has historically proven that there will be a melee, but since it’s pretty much always great then the predictability is fine by me. Also, this stable vs. stable fight followed a fresh match-up of Roman Reigns vs. Luke Gallows – and it turned out to be a pretty worthy main event.

#ThePowerhouse @WWERomanReigns will need EVERYTHING he has to POWER out of @LukeGallowsWWE's grip! #SmackDown pic.twitter.com/OCTMjYmIN5

— WWE Universe (@WWEUniverse) May 20, 2016

For whatever hesitance Styles has had about embracing the heelish peer pressure of his buddies, he’s well beyond that at this point. It was AJ’s leg grab of Roman while the match was still going on that prompted all of the periphery players to get involved. The match didn’t technically end until AJ ordered Gallows and Anderson into the ring to administer the Boot of Doom to Roman. Styles looked ready to go even more ruthless when he cleared off the announce table. That move backfired against him and it was Roman who slammed AJ off of the table.

So, are all three members of The Club fully on the same page? As of the SmackDown main event, it would appear so. But, perhaps that’s precisely what I’m supposed to be thinking just to throw me off before Anderson & Gallows turn on AJ which will then be followed by the formation of the Balor Club on Raw the next night! Pardon the fantasy booking but I’ve been very into what WWE has been offering with this feud. I’m expecting some satisfying plot development/resolution to be given at Extreme Rules.

Oh wait, there’s also a YouTube video of more brawling after the show went off the air. Here’s a .gif of AJ missing another Styles Clash on a chair…

https://twitter.com/MitchNickelson/status/733515849596698625

Follow Me

I’m on Twitter @MitchNickelson. Give me a follow. Thanks for reading.

5 Best WWE Raw Moments 5/16/16: New Day-Lorean

Raw came to us from Greensboro, North Carolina on the last stop to WWE Extreme Rules. The show was the typically 3 hour marathon of highs and lows, with nothing going much lower than the Shining Star tag team (re) debut. The crowd was super quiet for that match.

That’s enough of the negativity from me because this is an article about the best moments of the night. There was plenty to be excited about and I didn’t even have room for Big Cass’ win. Oh well, maybe next time. Here are my 5 best moments as I see it…

5. The Total Diva Wins Again

When Dana Brooke debuted on Raw last week, I was ecstatic. Her arrogant persona is more than refined so she’d be a natural heel opposite of the likable Becky Lynch. But with the terrible news of injury for her pal Emma (and I hope she recovers fully) I was concerned that Brooke’s main roster plans might get derailed. Thankfully for her, her momentum continued on Raw.

https://twitter.com/WAManeuver/status/732356044421136384

Brooke pinned Lynch for a second time (she also defeated her on last week’s SmackDown), making me question at this point if there’s even a need for the two to square off in a match at Extreme Rules. If I had to guess though, they’ll scuffle again in some capacity on this week’s SmackDown to set up something for at least the pre-show on Sunday. Lynch can finally take the W then, but her head will have been thoroughly patted by that point.

4. That Golden Truth Highlight Video

https://twitter.com/mauroranallo/status/732383151641788416

I’m definitely a sucker for a little bit of cheese in my wrestling programming and the video package prior to the official debut of The Golden Truth was in no short supply of it. They pulled clips from seemingly every interaction the two had over the past few months and backed it all up with a Wonder Years-style soundtrack. If you needed a Kleenex to dry your eyes after riding that emotional roller coaster, you’d get no hate from me. It seemed like the two FINALLY were ready for their arrival…only they weren’t.

It was a little surprising that Goldust & R-Truth fell to BreezeDango after Truth nailed his partner directly in the face off of a mistimed kick. It’s also a little surprising that Fandango & R-Truth aren’t packaged under the name FaBreeze – that seemed like the most obvious choice for a winner of a team name. That’s not complaining, though. I’ll take BreezeDango over nothing.

Somebody tell this guy to hush…

Breezedango is a terrible name #RAW

— La Benny The Demon (@BENFRANKFOREVER) May 17, 2016

The four interacted again post-match to set up the reason why this never-ending angle must still go on. Apparently Golden Truth are the heroic defenders of the previous era while BreezeDango are the dastardly young heels of the New Era. Wait, I thought this New Era was supposed to be a good thing? The booking’s a little wonky here but I did genuinely get a kick out of the pre-match video.

3. “He’s The Worst One!”

Everything about the Intercontinental Championship feud is great but one of the shiniest stars (not from Puerto Rico, that is) of this division is whenever Kevin Owens opens his mouth. WWE wisely put him and The Miz BOTH on commentary during a supposed Sami Zayn vs. Cesaro match that never got going. When anarchy stopped the contest, a couple of McMahons came out to Teddy Long the action into a tag match.

The line in my heading was my favorite bit of banter from Owens on this night. When it was first announced that he’d be tagging alongside Miz, he offered up that condescending remark. Then, his partner was switched to his arch-nemesis Sami Zayn which was even better.

I didn't know it until tonight but I want Sami Zayn and Kevin Owens to be the tag champs #Raw

— John Chidley-Hill (@jchidleyhill) May 17, 2016

The match was one of the highlights of the show and I’m expecting some great things from this 4way IC Title Match on Sunday. There’s too much talent for it not to be a show stealer.

2. Styles Clash On A Chair

Roman Reigns defends his WWE World Heavyweight Championship at Extreme Rules against AJ Styles in a match with an eponymous stipulation. They both were at ringside for a tag bout between The Usos and Gallows & Anderson and you just knew that everyone would get involved at some point. It was a little surprising to see Styles’ buddies take the fall so cleanly, but the action after the match made it seem like not as big of a deal.

Everyone in each faction battled it out, leading to a Reigns vs. Styles sequence with a chair inside the ring. Styles was the final man to get his hands on the steel, using it to lay Roman out. Then, he nailed Roman with his signature Styles Clash on top of the metallic seat.

"Of course, the one day I don't wear my chest protector," – @WWERomanReigns #RAWTonight

— WWE Creative Humor (a sub of TKO Creative Humor) (@WWECreative_ish) May 17, 2016

AJ is looking like the man on top going into Extreme Rules, which likely signals that he’s taking the loss. That’s not unexpected. Even if he loses as clean as can be on Sunday I can say that this rivalry has been exceptional. Especially for as much flak as Roman gets as the champ, it’s really turned him around in my eyes. His character seems far less forced as of late.

1. New Day-Lorean

New Day have been one of the most entertaining acts in WWE for a long time. It’s got to be tiring to keep thinking up new shticks to continue being so funny but they really outdid themselves in Greensboro. Behind a sheet in the middle of the ring was an Xavier Woods invention straight out of Gallifrey: a time machine.

Big E called Woods out and said it was nothing more than an empty refrigerator box, but Xavier would have none of that. Big E also asked why the keyboard was sticky and Xavier changed the subject. The humor was on point here.

They initially traveled through time to 2009 when Kofi still had his Jamaican accent, then went all the way back to that bygone era that The Vaudevillains keep referring to. Back then, Booty-O’s were Derriere Squares, smartphones were old-timey regular phones, and video games didn’t exist. New Day deemed that that era sucked. They were then attacked by Aiden English & Simon Gotch and the beautiful New Day-Lorean was destroyed in the brawl, which was a shame.

I could see some people being a little tired of New Day’s humor but in mind this was one of the best skits they’ve done. Bravo guys, you three continue to be the standard of what entertaining is.

Plugs

Follow me on Twitter @MitchNickelson.

Thanks for reading.

Mitch Nickelson’s WWE Raw Preview 5/15/16

Serving as the go-home show for next weekend’s Payback event, Monday Night Raw hails from Greensboro, North Carolina this week. That’s Ric Flair country, so expect plenty of Wooo’s whether or not he’s there.

Going off of WWE.com‘s official preview, I’ve taken their  bullet points (the bolded stuff) and added my thoughts on each of these issues. Let’s get to it…

It’s Club-ering Time

Get it? The pun is that they’re calling themselves The Club. GET IT?

We called them The Club because it turns out nWo Japan was taken. #Kayfabe

— WWE Creative Humor (a sub of TKO Creative Humor) (@WWECreative_ish) May 13, 2016

Despite WWE’s inability to give these guys a name that comes across even a quarter as cool as Bullet Club, this Roman Reigns vs. AJ Styles feud has been absolute money. Last week, the two had an awesome exchange over a chair that wasn’t even used that had the crowd going bananas. Since this is the final Raw before their WWE Heavyweight Championship Match at Extreme Rules, I think AJ Styles will get the upper hand in whatever exchange these guys have. Roman will almost certainly retain his title on Sunday so his opponent needs to look strong prior to their match.

The only reservations that I have toward their interactions is the fact that AJ suffered some injuries since last week’s Raw. WWE and Styles are acting like any setbacks are only temporary but that is an issue to be mindful of.

For those of you who were expecting to see AJ Styles this weekend, I apologize. Banged my ankle up pretty good, but I'll be ready for RAW.

— AJ Styles (@AJStylesOrg) May 14, 2016

As far as The Usos and Anderson & Gallows are concerned, I think there will be a setup for a tag team match between these guys. There isn’t anything official set up for Extreme Rules at this point and it would be odd if this match doesn’t happen. Maybe this one will be a Tables Match. It could go on without a stipulation but I think it would be better if they attach one to it.

New Day Rocked

The Vaudevillains became the Number One Contender by default when their tournament final match at Payback was stopped due to an Enzo Amore injury. Since then, they’ve come across as way more of a formidable opponent to the WWE Tag Team Champions New Day. Seriously, their big vocabularies and annoyance for childish antics have made them perfect foils for New Day.

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by Matt Rehwoldt (@dramakingmatt)

I’m not sure if it’s time for New Day to drop their belts or not so I won’t guess who might get any advantages on Raw. As long as both teams get plenty of mic time then I’m happy with all of this.

The ‘EnD’ Is Here

Wait, wait, wait….the team name for Emma and Dana Brooke spells “End?” I literally just figured that out while putting together this preview article. That should make a good t-shirt that I’ll consider purchasing. Dana Brooke is perhaps the best female talker in WWE so I’m more than ecstatic that she rejoined Emma on the main roster. Besides, there are WAY too many heads that need patting right now.

https://twitter.com/MadelineSlays/status/730916900205514752

Emma is in need of a tag team partner to even the odds a little and it just so happens that Sasha Banks isn’t doing anything right now. There are a bunch of other women not doing anything that could also join her but Sasha would be the best.

Lights Out

Chris Jericho destroyed Dean Ambrose’s potted plant Mitch. Dean Ambrose ripped Chris Jericho’s obscenely expensive light up jacket to shreds. There was also a straitjacket and some Colin Cassady action mixed in with all of this. Jericho and Ambrose seem to be heading towards a Straitjacket Match at Extreme Rules but the Big Cass factor might change that up somewhat.

Even @TheDeanAmbrose wanted to try on @IAmJericho's $15,000 jacket… that is, BEFORE he destroyed it! #RAW pic.twitter.com/GjkCB3K0E2

— WWE (@WWE) May 15, 2016

Every time these guys cross paths some sort of property damage occurs. My guess for Raw is that whatever gets vandalized and destroyed this time around will valued at a minimum of $25,000.

Caribbean Cool

Oh crap, I forgot that these guys are going to be debuting. I try not to be too negative so I guess I’ll hold out judgement until they actually do something in the ring. It’s a re-re-re-debut and unless these guys are actual travel agents trying to get people to vacation in Puerto Rico then those video packages truly were worthless.

Plugs

Check out my exclusive articles to WhatCulture.com. I’m the weekly Most Insane Spots guy over there, so there’s tons of fun visuals.

Follow me on Twitter @MitchNickelson. Thanks for reading.

5 Best WWE SmackDown Moments 5/12/16: Welcome To The Club

After a Raw that saw an obscenely expensive jacket get ripped to shreds by a man who has no business carrying a pair of scissors, SmackDown has arrived. While there wasn’t any further jacket destruction, Chris Jericho did introduce a new jacket that will likely play into a Pay-Per-View stipulation. That moment was one of the best of the night.

Moments that didn’t make the cut but were still notable included Big E getting scolded for repeated attempts at using risque speech, Lana throwing water into Kalisto’s face, and Bob Backlund being a crazy old guy who made Darren Young do 200 squats for using his phone to check the time. Old people are confused and senile and it’s hilarious!

This isn’t a comprehensive review of SmackDown but rather my thoughts on what the best moments of the night were. Assume this list is definitive and authoritative…or disagree. You have a right to your opinion.

5. The Golden Truth Sort Of Finally Forms

Is Breezedango an okay name for Tyler Breeze and Fandango? Or maybe we’ll call them The Beautiful Dance? How about Selfie Sticks and Hip Gyrations?  I’m not sure if Breeze and Fandango have officially formed a tag team together but they did join forces after they got fed up with the nonsense of the two guys that were their partners going into this match.

When R-Truth and Goldust found themselves to be the legal men on opposite sides of the ring, they refused to fight each other. They DO love each other! It was a beautiful moment in which the crowd briefly started a “Golden Truth” chant. The chants may have been piped in, but if that’s the case then please don’t message me or comment about it to set me straight. I want to live in a world that for at least a moment was happy that Truth and Goldust were finally coming together.

https://twitter.com/WAManeuver/status/730941580618678272

The moment didn’t last forever because as I already stated in the Breezedango paragraph above, they were attacked by their respective teammates. There will likely be a tag team match to settle the score and kick off The Golden Truth’s run in the near future. I’m hoping that The Forbidden Dance (nailed it!) will at least get an Extreme Rules pre-show match out of this. (Feel free to comment below with your own catchy tag team name suggestions for Tyler Breeze and Fandango below – even though it’d hard to top The Forbidden Dance.)

4. Playtime Is Over

Dana Brooke had her debut match on the main roster against Becky Lynch on SmackDown. It was notable because she scored a win over the superstar who competed for the Women’s Championship at WrestleMania 32, but that’s not the moment I’m choosing to highlight. It was Dana’s promo prior to this big win that impressed me the most.

When interviewed alongside her pal Emma, Brooke explained why she chose to attack Becky from behind on Monday night. She talked about how Emma was at the forefront of the Women’s Division in NXT, but when Lynch came along, people focused on her instead. As she explained her actions while flexing her biceps (she is a bodybuilder, by the way), she seemed like an absolute natural on the microphone.

https://twitter.com/MadelineSlays/status/730916900205514752

Brooke was always a standout talker in NXT. She’s proclaimed herself to be THE Total Diva in the past and has smugly patted those she disliked on the head. Watching this interview on SmackDown, it became clear to me that she might be the most talented female talker that WWE has. She’s so comfortable with her character, and it’s enjoyable to watch. She’s a natural.

3. Two Codebreakers In A Straitjacket

Are Dean Ambrose and Chris Jericho building towards a straitjacket match at Extreme Rules? Judging by the opening of SmackDown, that seems to be the case. Some sort of unique stipulation should be expected but I can’t remember the last time I’ve watched that kind of match so why not?

@IAmJericho what happened to the friendship w/ @TheDeanAmbrose ???? 😞 pic.twitter.com/z7xC2c3JR6

— Maria ⁷ 🔔 (@ARMY_KPOP_97) May 13, 2016

Ambrose was in the middle of the ring, talking about his beef with Y2J when the arena went dark. Jericho’s music hit, yet nothing could be seen. It seemed like the prolonged pitch black was due to Chris’ fancy light up jacket getting destroyed on Raw, but he deviously chose to use the entrance as an opportunity to strike.

Jericho attacked his foe from behind. While Ambrose was loopy, Chris placed him inside of a straitjacket and then beat on him as he came to. Jericho gave him a Codebreaker before a team of refs came out to stop the attack, then gave another in the midst of the black and white stripes. Chris was ruthless as the two march on to a singles match at Extreme Rules.

2. The Club Levels The Usos

The only presence of WWE Champion Roman Reigns and his Extreme Rules challenger AJ Styles was during interview segments with their buddies before this tag team match. Both guys said they’d come out to assist if the either guy shows up, which surprisingly didn’t happen in this contest between Gallows & Anderson and The Usos.

What did happen was a DQ finish that led to a fun brawl on the outside. It felt a little wild and chaotic, something that I haven’t felt like these guys have yet been able to achieve without Roman or AJ involved. It was good that they could do that on their own.

When you can't get past the bouncers at #TheClub….#SmackDown @WWEUsos pic.twitter.com/biBN8UCaip

— WWE Universe (@WWEUniverse) May 13, 2016

Gallows & Anderson finally prevailed when they brought a steel chair into the mix. As both Jey and Jimmy were lying unconscious on the ground, Anderson sat on the chair while Gallows stood tall behind him. They both threw up their Too Sweet hand gestures in celebration.

1. The Miz Stands Tall

Next to the AJ Styles vs. Roman Reigns feud, WWE’s current Intercontinental Championship division is the best thing going. Champion The Miz has Kevin Owens, Cesaro, and Sami Zayn all vying for his belt and that’s a heck of a short list of challengers. On this night, a tag team match main evented with the guys split along heel/face lines.

Owens was the man to score the winning pinfall against Cesaro after he hit him with a Frog Splash, and that’s when the really fun stuff happened.The guys traded blows and specialty moves until Kevin was able to Popup Powerbomb Sami Zayn. The Miz, sneaky as he is, immediately came up behind Owens and dropped him with his Skull Crushing Finale.

The Miz standing tall among his three fallen challengers is how the show went off the air, a visual that made me particularly happy. I love The Miz. This is such a great mix of wrestlers and this SmackDown main event continued to add fuel to everybody’s fire.

Plugs

Thanks for reading my thoughts on SmackDown. If you like this style of review then go back and also read my 5 Best Moments From Raw 5/9/16: Ric Flair Is A Velociraptor. Also, follow me on Twitter @MitchNickelson. Thanks for reading.

5 Best Raw Moments 5/9/16: Ric Flair Is A Velociraptor

Hey, I didn’t regret staying up to watch and write about Raw! I always write the intros last and this week I feel like I’ve viewed some entertaining plot developments and matches from WWE’s flagship show. So here’s my attempt to countdown the 5 best moments from it. It’s a positive article and this was a week where being positive wasn’t too hard.

Before starting, I’ll mention Sami Zayn beating The Miz to get into the IC Title multi-man match as an honorable mention from the night. Trying to stick to a theme of only 5 points will occasionally mean that good stuff gets left out and Sami’s win was definitely good stuff. Now on to the list…

5. An Era Not Kind To New Day

Before their match against The Dudleyz, New Day delivered a clever as usual promo for the Nebraska audience. They recited their usual crowd-favorites, tried to figure out the correct pronunciation of The Vaudevillians, and even sang a beautiful booty-o’s themed rendition of a song from Disney’s Aladdin. However, the real jaw dropper was when Xavier woods talked about a bygone that was not too kind to people like them.

Wait, what?

Obviously, they wanted you to think about times of racial strife in America, but what they were really talking about was a pre-smart phone time in this country. Funny swerve, guys. New Day went on to lose their match against The Dudley’s due to distraction interference by The Vaudevillians.

See even New Day are thankful for unlimited data. #RAW

— Angela (she/her) 🍥 acomicbookgirl on Hive & IG (@acomicbookgirl) May 10, 2016

4. Welcome To Raw, Dana Brooke

THE Total Diva, Dana Brooke, joined her NXT buddy Emma on Raw when she blindsided Becky Lynch during an interview segment. Dana Brooke and Emma were last palling around together as they tried to take out Asuka, but failed. That’s okay though, because they both wrestled some pretty awesome matches against the now-NXT Women’s Champion.

https://twitter.com/WAManeuver/status/729846730305474561

They’ve regrouped and reconnected on the main roster, now with Becky Lynch as their target. Becky was laid out by the two devious ladies on this encounter and I’m looking forward to when she eventually gets her revenge. Will the lass recruit a friend of her own to join in the fight? Sasha hasn’t been doing too much since WrestleMania, hint hint.

3. Ambrose Gets Revenge For Mitch (Not Me)

I was expecting Dean Ambrose to get some sort of revenge for the destruction of his favorite ficus last week. What I didn’t expect was a main event attack during Chris Jericho’s entrance along with a light up jacket shred party. Dean ripping the thing to smithereens and Chris pouting about the loss was the final images of the broadcast, so the show ended on a ‘win’ for a babyface.

That look….#RAW @TheDeanAmbrose pic.twitter.com/Q85OEQPvby

— WWE Universe (@WWEUniverse) May 10, 2016

As an addendum to this point, I also have been liking the shine that Colin Cassady has been getting. He interrupted Jericho in the opening segment and gave him a boot to setup this match. Even though the bell never rang, he still was booked for the main event of Raw and had a role in this final segment. He’s a fresh face with loads of potential who’s getting some opportunity, which is a very good thing.

2. Ric Flair Gets Escorted Away From Ringside

Just like in her upcoming match against Natalya at Extreme Rules, Charlotte’s father was banned from ringside on Raw. He observed his ringside shun like a good boy – that is, until Natalya started sticking her nose into the match between Paige and the WWE Women’s Champion.

Ric nobly came out to keep order outside of the ring, but then Shane McMahon and a team of officials came out to put a stop to The Nature Boy. It was at this point that Ric reconnected with his inner velociraptor, and everyone knew to keep their distance. Come to think of it, Shane was dressed strikingly similar to Chris Pratt in the most recent Jurassic Park movie during this segment. Was the way this played out planned by someone with a dinosaur fetish? I’ll personally Tweet out this theory…

https://twitter.com/MitchNickelson/status/729894335634878464

1. Standoff Over A Chair

The chemistry between AJ Styles and Roman Reigns is undeniable. The two have no trouble making an arena eat out of the palm of their hands and Omaha was no different. The final two competitors in their 6-Man elimination match that included The Family and The Club were predictably the two men in the main event of Extreme Rules, and they delivered with the excitement.

The best of the drama happened after the match was over. Roman was inside of the ring and AJ was on the apron, with a chair on the ground between them. Styles was ready for a Phenomenal Forearm but Roman kicked him the chair. Dude’s got cojones.

AJ kicked the chair back and demanded that he pick up the weapon, which will soon be legal in their upcoming Extreme Rules match. Reigns finally did grab the chair as Styles went to the air for a Phenomenal Forearm. Neither connected, but they didn’t need to.

Mic Drop?
No, #ChairDrop!@WWERomanReigns @AJStylesOrg #RAW pic.twitter.com/RZepXjnfPr

— WWE Universe (@WWEUniverse) May 10, 2016

Every showdown between Styles and Reigns – whether someone goes through a table or both guys simply engage in a stare down like tonight – it ends with even more anticipation for their next big match. If WWE wants to drag this feud another month after Extreme Rules, I’m down for it.

Plugs & Stuff

Find me on Twitter @MitchNickelson. Also, make sure to check out a recent highlight article I did that’s loaded with GIFs of Jim Cornette vs. Cowagumba 8/19/93 . Cornette literally fought a match against a dude in a ninja turtle outfit a long time ago and it’s incredible.

Thanks for reading.

Answering WWE’s 5 Point Raw Preview 5/9/16

Omaha, Nebraska is the lucky town to host Raw this week and at this point I’m unaware of any matches announced for the show. Nevertheless, WWE’s got me covered with some of the things I should be expecting in the form of their weekly WWE.com Preview.

I’ve attempted to offer some analysis to WWE’s own questions for the show. You’ll notice that WWE’s questions are in the form of the bolded headings. My opinions are everything else. Let’s get to this…

Will AJ Styles Embrace His Ruthless Side?

Last week’s Raw ended with AJ Styles getting put through an announce table thanks to a Roman Reigns Powerbomb. It was a fun way to close out the show. Considering the two are building towards an “Extreme Rules” match at the upcoming eponymous event, I expect another hardcore interaction between these guys.

#AndStill #WWE World Heavyweight Champion… @WWERomanReigns! #WWEPayback https://t.co/NdeDIKois4 pic.twitter.com/CapFQo1A4n

— WWE (@WWE) May 2, 2016

I think AJ’s alliances will still be teased as he keeps playing with the emotions of his New Japan buddies. So maybe we don’t get a definitive answer on whether he embraces his ruthless side or not. But if the question was rephrased to include “extreme” in the place of “ruthless,” then yes – I do believe AJ will embrace his extreme side. Maybe Roman will find himself put through an announce table this time around. It is his turn.

Who Deserves To Challenge This Miz?

The three most likely options to this question are Sami Zayn, Cesaro, and Kevin Owens. That’s quite an impressive short list of challengers. Shouldn’t Zack Ryder be on that list as well? Poor guy.

My money is going towards Miz defending against all three of those wrestlers at Extreme Rules. I wouldn’t be upset at all if Zayn and Owens did a second PPV singles match in a row, but since there was a clean loss at Payback a multi-man match this time around feels more likely. My official answer to WWE’s question is “all of the above.”

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by Mike "The Miz" Mizanin (@mikethemiz)

As a Miz fan, I hope that he survives this onslaught of challengers. I’m eating up the Hollywood ego-overload between he and Maryse, so keep that coming WWE. I will concede that he might not be the best wrestler in the mix here, but he’s still such a great character. Keep that IC strap on him for a long time.

Where Is Dean Ambrose?

Wait, Dean Ambrose has been missing? Wasn’t he just on Raw last week getting his head hit with a potted plant thanks to Chris Jericho? I guess I don’t recall seeing him on SmackDown, but I wouldn’t automatically think someone was missing simply because they miss Thursday night.

The point of this question is to sell the Mitch the Plant strike by Y2J, which is acceptable. If you bust something off someone else’s head, it should mean a potential injury. Even with WWE teasing that he might not be on the show because apparently nobody has seen Dean since the plant attack, I still expect him to get some sort of revenge on Chris.

With the plant out of commission, Ambrose will have to find another talk show item to whack Jericho with and I don’t think his posterboard sign is going to cut it.

Is Charlotte Running Scared?

Charlotte will be defending her WWE Women’s Championship against Natalya at Extreme Rules in a Submission Match. The reason she might be “running scared” is because her 16-time World Champion of a father is banned at ringside. Ric Flair has gotten involved in his daughter’s favor in the past, so of course Charlotte must be a little scared.

Life was always a matter of waiting for the right moment to act. -PauloCoelho pic.twitter.com/46ptBCCXJq

— Nattie (@NatbyNature) May 6, 2016

Becky Lynch and Sasha Banks have been on the backburner since WrestleMania, which sucks. Don’t get me wrong, I like seeing a talented in-ring performer like Charlotte getting some spotlight, but can’t Sasha be on TV a little more? She’s probably being saved for a SummerSlam title push but surely she’s got unfinished business with Team B.A.D. or something in the meantime.

Will Rusev Devour Kalisto’s ‘Big Heart’?

Rusev won a Battle Royal to determine the new Number One Contender to the U.S. Championship because he looks close enough like Ryback, I assume. Seriously, does Kalisto only fight big, beefy dudes now? I like Rusev, it’s just there’s a specific formula being presented at the moment.

On SmackDown, Kalisto performed a quick but successful strike against The Bulgarian Brute. They could simply do a repeat similar to that angle or maybe Rusev will get the upper hand this time around. Either way, Rusev’s really only in the picture to lose to Kalisto in the end in hopes that he can get the little guy over.

Plugs From Mitch:

Follow me on Twitter @MitchNickelson. Also, here are a few other recent articles from me worth checking out:

Jim Cornette vs. Cowabunga 8/19/93 Highlights (GIFs)
10 Most Insane Wrestling Spots Of The Week (May 8) (More GIFs)

Thanks again for reading.

Jim Cornette vs. Cowabunga 8/19/93 Highlights (GIFs)

Some wrestling finds are exciting. This match sort of can be described as exciting…sort of.

Apparently,  Jim Cornette once booked himself against a Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtle knockoff in Smokey Mountain Wrestling way back in 1993 – I was certain that this would be one of those exciting finds. I had no expectations of a technical masterpiece or anything but surely it would be at least humorous, right?

Before passing too much judgment, here is the original match in its entirety. Watch it for yourself if you’d like. Don’t worry, I’ve compiled the .gifs and written out my comments ahead of time, so I’m good if you want to watch the whole thing. Otherwise, keep on scrolling down.

Did you watch it all? It’s okay if not because holy crap, the whole thing is 18 minutes long. Sure, that includes entrances and post-match stuff, but it somehow feels way longer than 18 minutes. Maybe it’s all the hard to hear banter for the first few minutes.

The wrestling’s fairly boring but I can acknowledge that I’m looking at it from 2016 standards. For a 1993 match and considering that Jim Cornette is one of the wrestlers (no offense to him, it’s just that he made his career not as a wrestler), it probably wouldn’t have been so bad at the time. I would’ve been 11 if I watched this one live so I’ll be honest and admit that I probably would’ve thought this match was fantastic if I saw it in person.

Here are some of the best moments of this gem from 23 years ago, with my own snarky comments to accompany the visuals. Enjoy…

Jim Cornette vs. Cowabunga (August 19th, 1993)

There were lots of shenanigans in the early goings here. The two competitors kept taunting each other and delaying any physical contact, like when Cowabunga tunneled under the referee’s legs to startle Jim. Sneaky, sneaky.

Okay, the following one IS NOT PG at all. Cornette had his green opponent in a simple side headlock. No worries so far, right? Well, Cowabunga then used only his thumb to escape from Jim’s clutches, inserting it into a very specific orifice. He probably needed to wash his turtle fingers after the match was over.

Cornette did exercise some ring awareness in this matchup, like when he performed this leg sweep to Cowabunga. The turtle took the roughest bump of the match here, landing accordion-style on the mat.

You’ve got to at least give some props to Cornette here. He was bumping and throwing hip tosses and made an actual effort to put on a somewhat serious wrestling match. Well, serious in the sense that you still have to ignore the fact that Jim’s in a red full body spandex outfit grappling a dude in a lime green turtle costume. Not enough attention is given to Jim’s getup – why the all red?

He’s hulking up! Cornette, you’ve done messed up!

This is easily the biggest high spot of the contest. Cowabunga walked the ropes while holding Cornette’s arm a la Undertaker’s Old School, then went all luchador on his opponent with a pretty sweet arm drag.

At this point, Cowabunga took a body slam from Jim and found himself…turtled. Because of course he did. He is a turtle, after all. That shell probably helps absorbs chair shots but it isn’t going to help with his mobility.

That Jim Cornette, he’s the type of guy who doesn’t shy away from putting over the younger talent. That green guy better have shook Jim’s hand and thanked him for doing the favors. Something tells me we haven’t seen the last of Cowabunga!

Final Thoughts

The turtle won. That’s pretty much my conclusion because Jim Cornette wrestling a Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtle simply is what it is. It’s a strange thing to witness but wrestling’s a subjective artform…or something.

Follow me on Twitter @MitchNickelson.