4-30-12 Raw results and thoughts

        Coverage and thoughts on the April 30, 2012 episode of Raw

They start the show with still shots of the John Cena-Brock Lesnar match from Extreme Rules last night.

Also they showed a “Monday Night Raw Starring Brock Lesnar” graphic at the opening.

The actual show starts with Johnny Ace coming out and says that in one he revolutionized WWE for the fans and “People Power.” He says that the fans should thank him for bringing Lesnar in. He says that Lesnar gave Cena a major beating and showed that Cena is mortal. Then Ace says that Brock brought legitimacy back to WWE. Then he introduces Lesnar. Lesnar comes to the ring and he says that last night the world saw him bring the pain first hand. He says that he did what he said he was going to do. Ace says that is why he the face of WWE. Then Triple H’s music plays and he comes out. Johnny then says that Hunter is probably out there to congratulate the new face of WWE. Hunter says that he is out here to do what Ace doesn’t have the guts to do. Then Hunter tells Brock that his days of holding WWE are through. He says that the private jet and limo will no longer be provided for free. He says that Lesnar won’t be getting special treatment. Then he says that the name of the will always be Monday Night Raw. Hunter says no one is bigger than WWE. Then he says that Brock will get everything he wants in the contract that Hunter himself approved and not what the demands that Brock named last week. Johnny says that it isn’t right they go back on their word. Hunter tears the “contract” up. Then he says that Brock won’t be getting any of his demands. Hunter says he wants Brock in WWE and the fans do too. He says they might not all like Brock but they want to see him in a rematch with Cena. They want to see him face Punk, Orton, or Sheamus. Then Hunter says that if Brock doesn’t want to resign that’s ok. He says that if Brock wants to take his ball and go home he’s ok with it. Then he asks Brock what it’s gonna be. Ace says that it isn’t fair to put Brock in this position. Hunter says this is between him & Brock. Hunter says that the original terms were more than fair. Ace says that Hunter isn’t being reasonable and Hunter tells him to shut up. Hunter tells Brock he wants him here. Then Ace says Hunter’s being disrespectful and will have to take this up with the board of directors. Then as Hunter turns to Ace Lesnar attacks Triple H. Triple H fights back but Lesnar gets the arm lock on him. Then Kofi, Truth, Sheamus & Show comes and Brock leaves the ring. Brock is all pissed and he throws down the steel steps. Medics check on Triple H and he says his arm might be broken. The faces help Triple H up as Lesnar walks up the ramp. Then Show and the other guys help Triple H out of the ring. I wasn’t really into this segment. I really hope to God we’re not getting Triple H vs. Brock Lesnar. The whole segment made no sense to me. We’re supposed to forget that Johnny managed to get Triple H de throwned as GM last summer? It looks like they also want us to forget that Triple H & Sheamus had a rivalry 2 years ago. Logic once again takes a back seat in WWE booking.

They show Hunter being checked out by medics backstage. He says he can’t move his elbow.  

Eve Torres comes out and says that the number one contender of the WWE Title will be decided in a beat the clock challenge. There will be 5 matches and the guy who wins their match the shortest will face CM Punk for the WWE Title at Over The Limit. Then she says that the first match is now. Eve is terrible as the executive. Now she’s got glasses and ripping off the Traci Brooks bit.

U.S. Champion Santino Marella vs. The Miz in a beat the clock match. Miz gets the pin in 4:18. This was a decent match. No way is Miz gonna be the guy who gets the Title match though.

Divas Champion Layla El vs. Nikki Bella vs. Brie Bella for the Title. Layla gets the pin. This was meaningless. The Bellas argued at the bell and Layla got the pin. I believe that’s it for the Bella Twins as their deal ends tonight.

The lights go out and it’s time for Chris Jericho’s beat the clock challenge match.

Big Show vs. Chris Jericho in a beat the clock match. Jericho won by count out but not before the clock ran out. However the referee says that Jericho did beat the clock. They’re going to review this.

Back from commercial and Michael Cole says that Jericho didn’t make it. So the Miz still has the time to beat.

Brodus Clay time. I can’t stand this gimmick! JTG will be his victim tonight.

Brodus Clay vs. JTG. Brodus gets the pin. This was the typical Brodus squash. Are they gonna anything more with this guy then have him squash jobbers? He had a few kids come in the ring to do his bit with him.

They reshow the still shots from Cena-Lesnar and Cena’s post match promo.

Eve tells Teddy Long that his presence is upsetting Johnny Ace and she kicks him out. Eve talks about what happened at the start of the show. Then Eve says that Ace needs to make a decision as to what kind of leader he will be. She asks who Cena’s next opponent will be. Ace says that he knows and that Cena won’t like it. This was lame.

Randy Orton vs. Jack Swagger in a beat the clock match. Orton gets the pin in 4:16. This was a good match. Orton now has the time to beat.

Kofi Kingston & R-Truth vs. WWE Tag Team Champions Primo & Epico for the Titles. Kofi & Truth win to become the new Champions when Kofi pins Epico. This was a good match too. I had a feeling Kofi & Truth were going to win the Titles.

Backstage Primo & Epico argue about losing the Titles and then A.W. comes in. He says that if he had been managing them they wouldn’t have lost the Titles. He says more but the cut away and to the ring for Khali vs. Kane. Great way to emphasize that these guys don’t mean anything!

Great Khali vs. Kane in a Beat the Clock match. The clock runs out and the match goes to a draw. Afterwards Kane choke slams Khali. This sucked and was really tough to sit through.

Jerry Lawler vs. Daniel Bryan in a Beat The Clock match. Daniel wins by submission with 1:56 left on the clock. Then CM Punk’s music hits and he comes out on the stage. Ha applauds Daniel. Punk holds the title over his head while Daniel chants “Yes.” This was good. The match was decent and I liked Punk coming out on the stage. Him holding the title while Daniel chanted yes was cool. So Daniel Bryan will face CM Punk for the WWE Title. That works for me.

John Cena comes out with his arm in a sling. He still manages to be all smiles and the camera that he made it and is there. He gets the mic and talks about Triple H’s arm being broken. Then he mentions that his arm was broken too but he will be ok. He says that the X-Rays showed no breaks. He says that there’s a difference between being injured and hurt. Being injured is when you get sent home while being hurt means you might ache a bit but still get to be on the show. He says that he is here. Then Johnny Ace comes out. Cena is his usual cartoon super hero self. UGH! Ace says that when he said Brock was the new face of WWE he was trying to motivate Cena. Cena says that Ace hired someone to try to take him out. Ace says that Cena should be thanking him. Cena thanks him for being a cooperate jackass and other typical Cena talk. Johnny says that he can make Cena’s life easy or difficult. Cena says that he survived a match with Lesnar. Then he rags about the “People Power.” Ace brings up Over the Limit. Then he brings out his opponent of the next PPV. Out comes Lord Tensai. Tensai gets in the ring and Ace hits Cena in the back of the head with the mic. Then Ace says that Cena will face Johnny at Over the Limit. Then Tensai sentons him and Ace yanks off Cena’s sling. Then he kicks his injured arm and then Tensai holds Cena’s arm while Ace stomps on it. Then Johnny gets a chair and smashes it over Cena’s arm. Johnny does the you can’t see me gesture and walks out. Cena sells the arm injury as Ace walks up the ramp to end the show. This was idiotic! Cena, broken arm and all is STILL being the dumb cartoon hero! He has a broken and he says that he is hurt and NOT injured? HEH! The rest of this was crap too. Cena vs. Ace at Over The Limit? I thought it was gonna be Tensai but they’re trying to do another version of Austin-Vince and it ain’t gonna work!

I thought this was a mediocre show overall. I wasn’t into the opening segment with Triple H & Brock Lesnar. I thought Hunter & Johnny both talked too much. Lesnar “breaking” Triple H’s arm was good though. However I don’t wanna see Triple H vs. Lesnar. The end was crap! Cena was his typical cartoon self despite having a “broken arm”. The rest of the show wasn’t too memorable. I like that we’ll be getting Punk vs. Bryan at the next PPV. The Beat The Clock Challenge was hit and miss. Orton-Swagger was the best match out of that. Khali-Kane of course was the worst. Big Show-Jericho was ok too. Santino-Miz was ok for what it was. Lawler-Bryan was decent too. The tag title match was good and I figured they would have Kofi & Truth win the belts. The backstage bit with Primo, Epico, Rosa & A.W. wasn’t much. It meant so little that they cut away from it. The 3 way Divas match was WAY too short to be anything really. The Bellas are done with WWE now. Brodus Clay’s gimmick continues to be awful too. On the whole I thought this was a middle of the road show.

4-27-12 Smackdown Results and thoughts

Coverage and thoughts on the April 27, 2012 episode of Smackdown

They start off the show showing Michael Cole and Booker T on commentary. Josh Mathews is out selling the Lesnar attack from Monday. They reshow Lesnar throwing Josh.

Then they talk the Cena-Lesnar “Extreme Confrontation” from Raw and will talk about that later.

Daniel Bryan comes to the ring and he says that he got rid of AJ. Then he says that there is still something that is bothering him and he came out to set the record straight. He says that him losing the World Title in 18 seconds to Sheamus at WrestleMania does not count. He says that loss should go on AJ’s record and not his because she lost that match. Then Daniel says that Sheamus has been walking around with his Title as if he actually won something. He says that he plans to rectify that at Extreme Rules and says that Sheamus can’t beat him in a 2 out of 3 falls match. Then he says that when Johnny Ace had him be the referee for the Shamus-Mark Henry match Monday on Raw he promised himself that he would call it right down the middle. Then he says that there are some people who have accused him of fast counting Sheamus. Then he says that the footage speaks for itself. Then they reshow the match from Monday and they show Daniel making the 3 count in slow motion. Then Daniel says that there was absolutely nothing wrong with that count. Then he says that Sheamus lost his cool and that he had to defend himself. They show Daniel getting the “Yes” lock on Sheamus. Daniel has the clip paused. He says that is a beautiful picture. Then he says that it is question and answer time with Daniel Bryan. He asks if Mark Henry beat Sheamus Monday. He answers yes. Then he asks if he made Sheamus tap out in front the fans. He answers yes to that too. Then he asks if Sheamus’ World Title run is a fluke because he took advantage of a confused and not too intelligent woman. He gives that a yes also. Then Daniel asks if he will regain his title at Extreme Rules. Then he does his “Yes” chant. Then Alberto Del Rio comes out and he asks that if Daniel has been making excuses since he lost the World Title. Ricardo answers, “Si.” Then he asks if the winner of the Sheamus-Daniel match will eventually lose to him. Ricardo again answers, “Si.” Then Alberto gets in the ring and asks will Daniel Bryan be forgotten when Alberto becomes the next World Champion. Ricardo then does a, “Si” chant. Then Alberto asks if we’re watching the next World Champion. Then Big Show’s music plays and he comes out and asks if it’s yes or si. Then Big Show does a back and forth of both. Then he goes after them but they bail out of the ring. Then Ricardo goes to bail too but Big Show gets him. He tells Ricardo to calm down. He holds Ricardo by the collar and asks him if it’s yes or si. Then Ricardo says no in a terrified tone of voice. Then Big Show says si and he choke slams Ricardo. Big Show vs. Alberto will be next. This was a good opening segment. Daniel & Alberto both cut good promos. Big Show’s bit was kinda funny too. Of course Ricardo was going to get flattened by Big Show.

Intercontinental Champion Big Show vs. Alberto Del Rio.  Big Show wins by DQ when Cody Rhodes comes in. Afterward Del Rio kicks Show in the head. Then Cody goes under the ring and gets out a kendo stick and a chair. Cody gets back in the ring and hits Big Show with the stick but Big Show no sells. Then Cody gets the chair but Show punches it out of his hands. Then Cody takes his belt off but Show gives him a big boot. Then Big Show picks up Cody’s belt and hits him with it. Then Cody heads up the ramp while Big Show has this intense look on his face. The match was more about furthering the Big Show-Cody Rhodes angle then a match. The post match stuff from Big Show & Cody was decent.

The show Johnny Ace & Eve backstage and Ace tells her that she needs to look at things on a different level. He says that he & David Otunga are very happy that she’s on board as their executive. He says that he knows she will do great things. He wants her to feel comfortable on Smackdown and she can make any changes that she thinks need to be made. Then Eve says that she always sees the crew people but doesn’t know their names. She says that they should all have name tags. Johnny likes the idea. Then Johnny sees Teddy Long. Long says he overheard their conversation. He says that if Eve is his executive administrator where does that leave him. Johnny says that Long is his employee. Then Johnny says that going forward Long will report directly to Eve. Then Eve tells Long to get himself a name tag. Long walks off and Johnny praises Eve. This was terrible! I’m really tired of the Johnny Ace character!

They reshow Nikki Bella winning the Divas title from Monday. They also talk about how Beth injured her ankle (which was part of the storyline but Beth did a great job in making it look legit).         

They show the Bellas backstage as they head to the ring for Nikki’s match with Alicia Fox.

They have another Damien Sandow vignette. He talks about enlightenment and says that the age of enlightenment was an intellectual and social movement in the 19^th century whose soul purpose was to reform society by advancement of knowledge. He talks about how Voltaire and Newton understood the importance of sharing their knowledge to the masses. He says that these men set a golden standard for others to aspire to. He says that it is a standard that fallen by the wayside. Then he talks about how WWE is filled with catch phrases and bad theme music. Then he says that salvation in 1 week away. Soon WWE will bear witness to a new age of enlightenment. This was a good promo. I like this character and hopefully will have a good debut match next week.

Alicia Fox vs. Divas Champion Nikki Bella. While the referee isn’t watching Brie comes in and gets the pin. Twin magic strikes again. This wasn’t much of a match.

They show Yoshi Tatsu backstage doing some squats and then Daren Young & Titus O’Neil come by. Titus tells Yoshi that he & Daren 2 of the fastest rising stars in WWE. Then they both do the Japanese bow. Then Titus asks Yoshi who his partner will be tonight. Then they both ask him very slowly with Japanese accents. Daren asks Yoshi if he knows what Titus is saying. Then Ezekiel Jackson shows up and says that he will be Yoshi’s partner. Then they taunt Zeke and walk off. Then Zeke tells Yoshi that after the match Daren & Titus won’t be joking. This was kinda odd.

They show Teddy Long in Johnny Ace’s office. He has on a name tag and a cleaning apron and is cleaning the office with a feather duster. Then Aksana’s music plays and her lights come on. Then she comes in and Long that it’s good to see her. He then says that working for Johnny the past few weeks have been unbearable. He talks about his grandsons’ college funds being safe and her being by his side has pulled him through. Then Aksana says that when he was GM she didn’t know that he was old enough to have grandchildren. Then Johnny Ace & Eve come in and tells Aksana that they will do the favor that she asked for. Then Ace tells Long that they’re giving Aksana’s friend Antonio Cesaro a try out match tonight. Then he says that if he likes what he sees he will hire him. Then Johnny mentions that Antonio was a rugby player from Askana’s past. Then he says that Eve has another idea. Aksana will be the guest ring announcer for Antonio’s match. Aksana acts all thrilled and then she walks out. Eve asks if she can tell Long something. Johnny says to tell him. Eve tells Long that tonight he will have his own ringside commentary table. Then she says that since Josh Mathews was taken out they could the extra voice on commentary. Then she says that he will be calling all of the action and will start next. Johnny then says that he doesn’t want Teddy to be nervous because Johnny will be talking to him inside the headset. Then he says that Long won’t say anything unless he instructs it. Then he gives Long a “People Power” t-shirt. Long walks off. Then Johnny tells Eve what a great idea that was. He then says that Long will do a good job. This was painful! I’m really tired of Johnny Ace & Eve. They both bore me. They’ve also made Teddy Long look like a bigger idiot than before. I’m also tired of Aksana and that idiotic music and lighting!

Teddy Long is sitting at his announce table and Michael Cole gives him crap.

Yoshi Tatsu & Ezekiel Jackson vs. Daren Young & Titus O’Neil. Daren & Titus win when Titus pins Yoshi. This was a short match. The commentary took from what little there was of this. Having Teddy Long out there saying whatever Johnny wanted him to say was idiotic.

Michael Cole is in the ring and mentions that Johnny has granted him an exclusive interview with Randy Orton. Cole mentions that Orton’s rivalry with Kane has become personal over the past few weeks. Then he says that it will be settled at Extreme Rules in a Falls Count Anywhere match. Then Michael Cole introduces Randy Orton. Orton comes to the ring. Cole says that despite what happened with Brock & Josh on Monday they can handle this as 2 civil people. Then Cole mentions that Johnny has a new rule in place. That being if a wrestler touches an announcer they will be immediately suspended. Orton asks Cole if that was a question. Then Randy says that he knows about that. Then he says that when he is pushed just right he doesn’t act rationally. Then they show a video package recapping the Kane-Orton feud. Then Cole says that Kane mentioned that since he beat Randy at WrestleMania Kane became the monster he used to be. Cole asks Orton how he feels knowing that he is going into this match Sunday against a monster that was reborn because of Randy losing to him at WrestleMania. Randy says that people say what happens at WrestleMania goes down in history. He says when the fans think about their rivalry they think about that match (I’m not too sure about that). He says that at Extreme Rules he plans on doing more than pinning Kane. He says that Extreme Rules is just the beginning. He says that Sunday there are no rules and no stopping him from making Kane suffer like he can never imagine. Then Jinder Mahal comes out for some reason. He says that he believes that Kane & Randy Orton will take each other down and when they do a new bread of superstars will emerge. He tells Randy that his time at the top is over. Then Jinder says that he is younger than Randy, and is also smarter, richer & hungrier. Then Jinder says that he will be waiting for Randy on the other side. Then Randy asks Jinder if he is an announcer. Jinder says he is the fastest rising athlete. Then Orton cuts him off. Then Randy mentions that announcers are off limits. Then Randy gives Jinder the RKO. I wasn’t really into this. I haven’t been a big fan of the Kane-Orton feud. I’m not sure why they had Jinder come out during this.

Aksana is in the ring and is the ring announcer for the next match.

Tyson Kidd vs. Antonio Cesaro. Antonio gets the pin. This was a decent but short match. Tyson Kidd is the guy who has the good short matches and loses. He’s the designated job guy. Afterwards Johnny tells Long to do something that he doesn’t want to but then he takes his headset off and gets in the ring. Then he raises Antonio’s hand. Then Antonio & Aksana kiss and long almost cries. Then Long walks up the ramp. This was terrible! I’m not sure what they’ll do with Antonio going forward. I still think having him be with Aksana is a crappy move.

They show Cody backstage headed to the ring for his match with Khali next.

Great Khali vs. Cody Rhodes. Khali gets the pin. This was mostly a squash. Cody got in some offense before getting pinned. I’m not sure why they had Cody lose to Khali.

They show Abraham Washington backstage with Primo, Epico & Rosa. A.W. is complaining that the tag champs weren’t on WrestleMania and says that they aren’t booked for Extreme Rules. Then he says that need him to be their manager. He then says that they’re talented and they need to be utilized. Then he says that he likes what Rosa does too but she needs to speak more. Then she speaks in Spanish. A.W. then says that he wants a decision by Monday. Then Ryback walks by and stares down the champions. A.W. tries to talk to him but he walks off. Then A.W. follows him.

Time for the “Ryback squashes a guy while the jobbers watch backstage” bit. The Usos are watching this time.

Jacob Kaye gets the mic and says that he’s been watching Smackdown each week and that every week a no name guy has been given a chance for superstardom and they flop. He says that tonight that is all going to change. He says that all his life he has been looking to escape Grand Rapids, MI. Then he says that he will be the first guy to get a win over Ryback. Then Ryback comes out.

Ryback vs. Jacob Kaye. Ryback gets the pin. This was a Ryback squash. I’m getting tired of them doing this bit with him every week.

They reshow Daniel Bryan dumping AJ from last week, followed by AJ flipping out on Natalya.

Matt Striker interviews AJ backstage and asks for an update on her bizarre relationship with Daniel Bryan. AJ doesn’t respond. Then Striker asks for a prediction on his match with Sheamus at Extreme Rules. AJ again doesn’t say anything. Then Striker says that she had a nervous breakdown last week. Then Kaitlyn walks by and says that AJ is in a bad place and doesn’t need to be answering these questions right now. Striker walks off. Then Kaitlyn tells AJ that she knows what she’s going through is hard but this is a good thing. Then she says that Daniel is a jerk. Kaitlyn then says that Daniel never respected AJ or even love her. Then she says that Daniel did nothing for AJ. Then AJ slaps Kaitlyn. Then she has the “What’ve I done” look. Kaitlyn looks at her for a bit and then walks off while AJ has this really upset look on her face. I think the flipping out bit could be good for AJ. It would certainly be a different side of her character.

World Champion Sheamus vs. Mark Henry. Sheamus gets the pin. This was a good match. Afterwards Daniel Bryan comes out on the stage and sarcastically applauds Sheamus. Then Sheamus gets the mic and invites Daniel to come to the ring. Then Sheamus asks if he’s afraid now that he can’t hide behind a referee shirt. Then Sheamus asks if Daniel is afraid that Sheamus can kick his head off in 18 seconds. Then Sheamus says that Daniel got off easy at WrestleMania but come Sunday in their 2/3 falls match Daniel won’t get away that easily. Then he says that it won’t be a fluke and that Daniel can’t blame AJ. Then Sheamus says that the question is will he kick Daniel’s “arse” to remain World Champion. Sheamus says that the answer is yes. Then Sheamus does Daniel’s “Yes” chant to end the show. This was good too. I thought they did a good job here. This should be good match if they book it right.

I thought that this was a mixed bag show overall. I liked the Sheamus-Mark Henry match and the post match promo from Sheamus. The end was the best part of the show. AJ continuing to flip out is good too. I think she’s been doing a good job at playing this new role. I wasn’t into most of the rest of the show. The Teddy Long-Johnny Ace stuff is idiotic. Having Long do commentary was stupid. I also think that having Antonio Cesaro as part of this is a waste of his talent. He & Tyson Kidd had a decent match but there wasn’t much to that. I wasn’t really into Randy Orton’s promo either. This feud with him & Kane hasn’t worked for me. Hopefully they’ll end that Sunday. I’m not sure why they had Jinder come out and Randy RKO him either. Zeke & Yoshi vs. Daren & Titus was decent but short. I liked Damien Sandow's promo too and hopefully he will have a good match next week. Daniel Bryan’s promo at the start was good and I liked Alberto Del Rio’s promo too. I found the “Yes/Si” chant kinda funny. Big Show was funny with that too. Big Show & Alberto wasn’t much of a match. This was more of continuing the Big Show-Cody Rhodes storyline. Khali squashing Cody made no sense to me. Why have Cody lose? I’m also tired of the Ryback squash fest. That whole bit where he squashes a guy while a few low level talent watch backstage to be really idiotic. On the whole I thought this was a mediocre show.

4-26-12 Impact results and thoughts

Coverage and thoughts on the April 19, 2012 episode of Impact

The show starts with Hulk Hogan backstage with all the TNA Champions (except for Eric Young & ODB). He says that his champions will fight. Gail Kim says it’s ridiculous and Hulk says it isn’t. Then he says that he knows all his champions can deliver and says to Roode & Gail how they feel. He says that Aries is in a league of his own and that Magnus & Joe are tough guys. Then he says that Magnus & Joe will be defending the belts. Hulk says that they deserve to face the best. He says it could be the machine guns, Anderson & Hardy. It might even be Eric Young & ODB or Daniels & Kazarian. Then he says “Let the fight night begin brother.” This was ok but a little bit too long.

Apparently the Open Fight Night ruling is that anyone on the TNA roster can challenge for that month’s title. It sounds like the gut check challenge will be where we see guys “outside” the company.

Devon comes to the ring and talks about how any of the champions might be called out on Impact once a month. Then he says that the TV Title is being defended on Impact every week. He then calls Bully Ray out. Ray & Flair come to the ring. The whole roster seems to be at ringside. Ray gets the mic and says that Devon is stupid. He asks Devon what makes him think he would want to be in a ring with him. He says that he had to carry him for 15 years and it made him sick. Then he says that Devon wouldn’t have the chance to be TV Champion if it weren’t for him. Then he says that he won’t make Devon look like a star. Then he says that the fans would love to see Devon get his hands on Ray but Devon isn’t going to get that chance. Then Ray tells Devon where to go. Then Devon goes after Ray and pounds him outside the ring.

TV Champion Devon vs. Bully Ray for the Title. Devon gets the pin. This was a solid match. It was cool to see the former Dudley Boys in the ring facing each other.

Austin Aries is backstage and says that Ray can’t win without cheating. Then he says that he might get a chance to leave a good impression.

Ric Flair talks about throwing a party of Eric Bischoff all night long. Flair says that Eric is the greatest promoter ever. Whatever. This was idiotic! I’m so tired of Ric Flair. Also when Flair said Bischoff is wasn’t bleeped out this week.

Christopher Daniels & Frankie Kazarian come into Kurt Angle’s dressing room and Kazarian talks about how they helped him beat AJ. Then Angle says that if they get involved in his matches again they will see a side of Kurt Angle they don’t want to see.

Jeremy Borash comes to the ring and thanks Hulk Hogan for coming up with Open Fight Night. He says that he that he is taking this time to call out an employee. He says that he has been there longer than anyone in TNA. Then he says that there hasn’t been a bigger to come into TNA then Eric Bischoff. JB says that if this is Eric’s final night with TNA he wants to shove his fist down his throat. JB tells Eric to put down his blackberry and to his ass out there. Then Eric comes out and takes a pic of JB. He talks about Eric’s drunken tweet. Then Eric tells Borash that he hopes he enjoys these 15 minutes of fame Then Eric yaps more and then Bully Ray low blows JB. Then Eric tells a referee to come to the ring and he covers Borash. The referee counts the pin and Eric tweets a pic of Borash lying on the mat. This was terrible! I’m not surprised that they’re making a storyline out of Eric’s drunken tweet but I still hate that they’re doing that. Hopefully we won’t have to see Eric on TV for a while! Also having Flair say that Eric is the greatest promoter ever was beyond stupid. They have had their issues in the past.

Ken Anderson is backstage and says that Eric Bischoff is a douche bag and that douche bag needs to go bye bye. This was lame.

Mexican America come to the ring and Anarquia says there’s no team or man that can beat them. Then Anarquia challenges anyone to face them right now. This leads to Kurt Angle comes out. Then Anarquia says that if Kurt Angle wants to fight then Hernandez will fight him. Angle and Hernandez face off and Anarquia attacks Angle from behind.

Kurt Angle vs. Anarquia. Angle wins by submission. This was a pointless squash. Wasn’t Kurt Angle a heal last week? Why is he a face out of no where?

They show a video package of Alex Silva from OVW talking about how he got in the wrestling business. Al Snow also says that the guy has potential. This was a good video.

Al Snow & Alex Silva come out. Al mentions that he will be the head judge for tonight’s Gut Check. He says that that once a month a young wrestler will get a chance to wrestle on Impact. He says that TNA will give the young hungry talent this opportunity. Then Al has Alex’s opponent come out. He will be facing Robbie E.

Al Snow replaces Mike Tenay on commentary for the match.

Alex Silva vs. Robbie E. Robbie E gets the pin. This was a decent match.

They show Hulk Hogan in his office and Taz says that Hulk will decide who Magnus & Joe will defend the tag titles against next.

They have Dixie Carter talking about how Eric Bischoff lied to her, is a trouble maker and took TNA from her.

Hulk is in his office with the a few tag teams and he says that he will let each team say why they should challenge for the titles. Daniels says that he and Kazarian should be the tea. He says that the Machine Guns lost at Lockdown. Then Sabin says that they deserve the shot. Then Hulk gets to Anderson & Hardy and asks if they can get along. Anderson & acts like he will get along great with Jeff. Then Hulk comes to Eric Young & ODB. Young says they’re the only married team and talks his usual nonsense. Hulk says that he can’t pick a team right now. Hulk then says that because of the knee injuries the Guns are out of the running. This was ok. 

Brooke Tessmacher comes to the ring and says that everyone is talking about how she pinned Gail Kim in the 8 Knockout tag last Thursday. She says that it wasn’t a fluke and that she is a legit threat to Gail’s title. Then she challenges Gail Kim to a match right now. Then Gail Kim comes out.

Brooke Tessmacher vs. Knockouts Champion Gail Kim. Brooke gets the pin. This was a decent match.

Daniels & Kazarian talk about how they’ll be wrestling for the tag titles. Then Kazarian says that if AJ Styles shows up next week they will let the cat out of the bag.

The have a video recapping last week’s 3 way and RVD comments. He says that he’s going be World Champion again. Then Roode says that RVD proved himself and gets to face the champ. He then says that he knows what RVD’s capable of but he hopes that RVD knows what he is capable of. RVD then says that he deserves to be on top. This was decent video.

Al Snow & Alex Silva are backstage and Al tells him that he and the other will see if Alex gets a contract. Then Roode comes in and rags on the guy. Roode says that it took a lot for him to get a TNA contract. Then he tells Alex to be ready for the unexpected and he punches him in the gut. This was a decent backstage bit.

Back to Hulk in his office with the tag teams and he eliminates Eric Young & ODB from the running. Then Hulk tells Daniels & Kazarian and Anderson & Hardy to head to the ring and that he will make his decision next.

They have Garrett ragging on his dad backstage. Then he says that Impact will be a better place without him.

Bully Ray is on his phone and then Joseph Park comes by. He asks Ray if he knows anything about the disappearance of “his brother.” Ray says he hasn’t got any answers but wouldn’t give them to him even if he did. Then he gives Ray his card and Ray tells him to shove it. Ray walks off and Joseph laughs. This was ok too. I’m getting tired of Joseph looking for Chris but Ray was good as usual.

Magnus & Samoa Joe come to the ring. Then Christopher Daniels & Frankie Kazarian come out. Then Ken Anderson & Jeff Hardy come to the ring also. Then Hulk Hogan comes out on the stage. He says that Open Fight Night has been wilder in the back then it’s been in the arena. He says that picking the team to challenge for the titles has been a hard choice. Then he decides to eliminate Daniels & Kazarian. SO Ken Anderson & Jeff Hardy will challenge for the titles.

Tag Team Champions Magnus & Samoa Joe vs. Ken Anderson & Jeff Hardy. Magnus & Joe win when Joe makes Anderson tap. This was a good match. Hardy & Anderson had some friction during and after the match. Then as Magnus & Joe are headed up the ramp Daniels & Kazarian come out from behind and attack the champs.

Immortal apparently is back together again because they come out for the Eric Bischoff “Farewell.” Immortal is made up of Flair, Ray, Gunner, Daniels & Kazarian. This is idiotic. Flair says that tonight they’re there to celebrate and no one alive knows how to do that more then him. He says that Eric Bischoff has been a major “Impact player. No pun intended.” Flair says that the fans are the most rude and out of line people he has ever met. Then he introduces Eric Bischoff. Eric comes to the ring. The fans sing hey hey good bye. Eric sits on the throne. Flair mentions what an honor many people have had to work for him. He says that Dixie should be thanking Eric. Then Flair says that Eric is why Hulk is there. More importantly Eric is why Flair’s there. He thanks Eric and says that Eric has a lot for everyone on the ring. He says that he hopes that the fans appreciate what Eric has done for the industry. Then Gunner takes the mic and says that Eric has been like a father to him and he thanks him. Flair says that in all the excitement he almost forgot. They give Eric a Rolex watch. Ray says that Eric should wear it with pride. Then Ray praises Eric too and hugs him. Then Garrett, Alex Shelly, Chris Sabin, Austin Aries, RVD & Jeremy Borash come out on the stage. Garrett says that if this is Eric’s final night on Impact they wanted to give him a farewell gift too. Then JB says that they got something more symbolic for Eric. JB says that Eric is the first inductee into the shed of shame. A Port-A-Potty is wheeled out. Then a brawl starts and JB & Garrett throw Eric into the Port-A-Potty. Then they shove it off the stage and Eric is covered in crap. Eric is all pissed as Garrett & JB celebrate to end the show. This was crap. Pun intended.

I thought this was a mixed bag show overall. The whole Open Fight Night thing is ok but I’m not sure what it will do for TNA long term. The Gut Check challenge was ok. Alex Silva & Robbie E had a decent match. I hated the Eric Bischoff “farewell.” The whole thing was just beyond idiotic! Magnus & Joe vs. Hardy & Anderson was the best part of the show. They had a good match. I liked that they had Daniels & Kazarian come out afterwards too. It looks like they’ll be having Magnus & Joe vs. Daniels & Kazarian next. The Jeremy Borash-Eric Bischoff bit when JB called Eric out was dumb. I hate when they turn a real life thing like this into a storyline. The opening bit in the back with Hulk Hogan and all the champs was ok but I thought it went a bit long. Brooke Tessmacher & Gail Kim also had a solid match. I guess Brooke will challenging for the Knockouts Title next. The Alex Silva Video package was also a good way to introduce the guy. I thought the RVD video package was good too. He and Roode both had good promos. I’m not sure why Kurt Angle is a face out of nowhere. His match with Anarquia was pointless. I also liked the Devon-Ray match. It was nice to see the former Dudley Boys in the ring. The show wasn’t tremendous but it wasn’t totally horrendous either. Except for the end. Overall I thought this was a mixed bag show.

4-23-12 Raw results and thoughts

Coverage and thoughts on the April 23, 2012 3 hour episode of Raw

The show starts with Teddy Long in the ring and welcoming the fans to the Cena-Lesnar contract signing. Long introduces John Cena and he comes out. Then Long introduces Lesnar. His music hits but Johnny Ace comes out and says that Brock isn’t there yet. He says that the signing will take place on Brock’s terms. Then he tells Long to leave the ring. Long then asks Cena to leave the ring. Then Ace welcomes everyone to Raw. Then Edge’s music hits and he comes out to a pop. He says that in a few days his contract is running out. Then he says that he came to talk to Cena. Not this John Cena because he doesn’t know who this Cena is. Edge says that he came to talk to the Cena who was one of his greatest rivals and he mentions their TLC match from 2006. He says this isn’t that Cena. He says that Cena has to find the old Cena. He says that he and Cena are different in many ways, but they both love wrestling. He mentions that this is something they have always wanted to do. Then he says that Lesnar doesn’t care about wrestling. He says that Brock left for 8 years while they carried the load. Edge than tells Cena to wake up. Because if he doesn’t it is a slap in the face to Shawn Michaels, The Undertaker and to him. Edge tells Cena to WAKE UP! Then Edge says that he isn’t asking him to beat Lesnar, he is telling him to. Then Edge heads up the ramp. This was a good opening segment thanks to Edge. Having him on the show was a nice surprise and his promo was really good.

The lights go out and Chris Jericho’s music hits. He comes to the ring for his match.

Kofi Kingston vs. Chris Jericho. Jericho wins by submission. This was really good back and forth match. Then Jericho gets the mic and says that at Extreme Rules he will become WWE Champion. He says that Punk knows about being extreme. He says that he has an extremely alcoholic dad, an extreme drug abusing sister and an extremely morally challenged mom. He then says that Punk is an extreme failure as a champion and a human. Then he says in from of Punk’s home town Punk will receive an extreme beating from him. Then he says that he (Jericho) is making an extremely nice gesture. He says that he got Punk a gift that will help him cope with the embarrassment of knowing that he lost the Title to Jericho. Jericho says he will show that he is the best in the world at everything he does. Jericho’s promo was good as usual but the whole “Punk’s family is addicts and boozers” bit is getting stale.

They show Brock Lesnar flattening Jeff Hardy from Backlash April 21, 2002. Hard to believe that Lesnar made his debut 10 years ago.

Johnny Ace is on his cell phone talking about the contract signing. Then Eve comes in. Ace says that they are looking for an executive administrator and he thinks she might be interested. Eve takes it. Johnny welcomes her aboard. This was typical Johnny-Eve crap.

They re show the Brock Lesnar video from last Monday.

CM Punk is backstage and Josh Mathews asks him about the gift Jericho got him. Punk says that the gift was an extremely poor case of sarcasm. Then he gets a liquor basket and says that this was the gift. Then he says that he will give Jericho a gift at Extreme Rules. Then he says that he has no use for the basket and gives it to Josh (but not the Jack Daniels bottle). Good promo and Punk giving Josh the basket was funny.

R-Truth vs. Lord Tensai. Tensai gets the pin. This was a squash.

They show Kane backstage making his way to the ring.

Kane comes to the ring. He says that Extreme Rules is his favorite night of the year. He says that there will be bad things for Orton. He then says that Orton found out at WrestleMania that he can’t beat Kane with rules. Then he says that Randy is trying to come to grips with the fact that Kane discovered his true weakness. He says that when he laid out Bob Orton he saw fear in Randy. Then he says that Orton is not the viper. He is nothing more than a scared little boy going to his dad hoping the nightmare ends. Kane says that he is the monster that Randy will never wake up from. Then Randy shows up on the Tron and says that after Kane took his dad out, he had to return the favor. They show Paul Bearer tied to a chair with tape over his mouth. Then Randy pushes him into a freezer. He tells Kane to get back there and have some fun. Kane laughs and says that he could care less what Randy does to Bearer. He says that has no intention of saving him. Kane heads up the ramp but then Randy comes out and attacks Kane. He gets a pipe from under the ring and hits Kane with it. He knocks Kane over the barrier. Kane then bails through the crowd while Randy gets in the ring holding the pipe.  I’m not really into this storyline so I wasn’t into this promo much. I also wasn’t into having Paul Bearer tied and gagged like he was when Edge kidnapped him.

Chris Jericho is walking backstage and Alex Riley stops him. He tells Jericho that Punk kicked him out of the locker room for drinking out of the basket. Jericho asks if this is a set up and he has Alex show him where Punk is. Jericho walks into the room and sees Punk on the phone and having a drink from a red cup with a bottle of Jack Daniels in front of him.

Intercontinental Champion Big Show & Great Khali vs. Cody Rhodes & Alberto Del Rio. Show & Khali win when Show pins Cody. This was ok. Alberto walked out on Cody before the end.

Chris Jericho is with Johnny Ace saying that he saw Punk drink and should be stripped of the title. Eve says Johnny can do that. Jericho says to have cops make him take a sobriety test. Jericho says that afterwards Johnny can the title to Jericho. Then Eve says that when Long was running Smackdown he would look the other way and not abide by the rules. Johnny then tells Long that he will tell Punk he is being stripped of the title. This was crappy. I’m getting tired of the “Punk is drinking” bit and Johnny Ace is boring.

Brock Lesnar is backstage and Josh Mathews asks him where he was at the start of the show. Then Josh asks that Brock loses at Extreme Rules will he still consider himself the face of WWE. Brock roughs up Josh pushing him against the wall. Then as Brock walks out Josh says to himself that he was trying to do his job. Then Lesnar throws him down.

Back from commercial and Josh is being placed on a stretcher.

Before the next match starts Eve comes out and says that since the Bella Twins cheat and the other Divas don’t do anything, Johnny Ace gave her his approval to make this a Lumber Jill match.

Divas Champion Beth Phoenix vs. Nikki Bella for the Title. Nikki gets the pin to win the Title. This really didn’t click. They went to the floor and Brie got in Beth’s face. Then Beth shoved her down and then the divas go at it. Then Nikki & Beth get thrown back into the ring. Beth hurt her ankle and the referee checked on her and then Nikki got the roll up for the pin. Medics check on Beth as the Bella Twins head up the ramp. Why put the belt on Nikki Bella when the Bella Twins deal runs out next Monday. Was this to swerve the internet fans?

Teddy Long tells CM Punk that the sobriety test will be next and Punk flips.

Teddy Long is in the ring with 2 cops and tells CM Punk to come to the ring. Then Chris Jericho’s music hits and he comes out. He says that he is going to make sure that this is done right. He also says that he wants to be in the ring when Long strips Punk of the Title and Long will have to give it to him. Then Long says that if Punk fails the sobriety test that will happen. Then he asks Punk to come out. Punk comes to the ring and says this whole thing is ridiculous and everyone knows it. Then the cop tells Punk to say the alphabet backwards. Punk asks if anyone ever has. Punk acts all drunk and says that no one can recite the alphabet backwards drunk or sober. Punk again says this is stupid. Then the cop asks him to walk the straight red line. Punk asks what line. Jericho tells him to quit stalling. Punk stands on the line on one foot and says that was from Karate Kid. Then Punk says that he can’t concentrate with Jericho there. Punk walks on the ling but stumbles over. Jericho says that no more evidence is needed and tells Long to give Jericho the title. Long asks the cop what he thinks. The cop says Punk is smashed. Jericho thanks the cops for making the right decision. Then Long asks Punk to hand over the Title. Jericho screams at Punk to hand it over. After a few seconds Punk hands the title over to Teddy Long. Then Jericho tells Long to give him the title. Then Punk says to give him one more chance. Jericho asks Punk how many chances does he need. Punk then starts saying the alphabet backwards and walks on the straight line doing “the worst moon walk.” Then he hits Jericho. Jericho tries to get away but Punk attacks him. Jericho heads up the ramp and Punk follows and beats him down some more. Then Long gives Punk the title and Punk holds it over his head. They show Johnny Ace & Eve watching backstage. This was painful!! I have no idea why they booked this crap! This was a really good storyline and WWE of course has to find a way to ruin it. I knew they were going to have Punk make the whole thing a set up but I still couldn’t stand this! The only decent part was when Punk went after Jericho. The rest was idiotic!

They show Brock Lesnar facing Hulk Hogan from Smackdown in August 2002.

Before the next match Justin Roberts says that Johnny Ace has assigned a guest referee. Daniel Bryan’s music plays and he comes out.

World Champion Sheamus vs. Mark Henry. Henry gets the pin when Daniel makes a fast count. This wasn’t much of a match. Daniel taunted Sheamus into hitting him and then Henry clothes lined Sheamus. Afterwards Daniel throws his referee shirt at Sheamus and walks up the ramp. Then Sheamus goes after Daniel. He throws him into the ring barrier and then into the ring. Sheamus went for the Brogue Kick but Daniel got the “Yes” lock on Sheamus. I feel like this is being booked screwy too. The “Yes” chant started out good but now it’s gotten irritating. They’re dropping the ball with this too.

Matt Striker asks Sheamus what his thoughts on Daniel Bryan are. He says that Daniel is a coward who hid behind a referee shirt. This was a good short promo.

Zack Ryder & U.S. Champion Santino Marella vs. WWE Tag Team Champions Primo & Epico. Ryder & Santino win when Santino pins Primo. This match was ok. I don’t get why they always have the tag champs lose non title matches almost every time!

Kane is backstage and walks by the freezer. He goes in and gets Paul Bearer out. Kane says that he came to save Bearer from him. Then he pushes him back in.

Primo & Epico argue and A.W. comes in and asks why they’re being treated like jokes. He says if they need a little guidance to give him a call. He gives them his card. I don’t know where they’re doing with Abraham Washington. I also have no idea why they call him A.W. rather than saying his name. 

Brodus Clay & Hornswoggle vs. Dolph Ziggler & Jack Swagger. Brodus & Hornswoggle win by DQ when Vickie comes in and slaps Brodus. Then Naomi & Cameron come in the ring. Vickie does the Brodus act and Hornswoggle bites her in the ass. This was idiotic! This Brodus Clay gimmick is so awful. Hornswoggle being in there makes it even worse.

They show Brock Lesnar beating Kurt Angle for the WWE Title at WrestleMania 19 from March 30, 2003.

They show the Brock Lesnar video again. I don’t why they showed this video twice!

Time for the John Cena-Brock Lesnar contract signing.

Johnny Ace comes to the ring. He says that he is looking forward to Extreme Rules. He says that he is excited about having Cena & Lesnar face each other. Then he introduces Brock Lesnar and says he will become the new face of WWE. Lesnar comes out. Then Ace introduces Cena. Cena’s music hits but he doesn’t come out. The fans start the dueling Cena chant. Brock picks up the mic and says tells “Little Johnny” to come on out. Then Lesnar says to Ace that he came to the show for a contract signing and that Cena’s too scared to come out. Lesnar says that’s ok. Then he says that since Cena doesn’t have the b***s to show up he tells Ace to have a seat. Then Lesnar says that since he’s been back he’s not very happy about how things are turning out. Then he says that he wants Ace to change a few things right now. Brock says that he’s not the same naïve farm boy that he was. He says that he is an enterprise and that this company needs Brock Lesnar. He tells Ace that from now on any thought that goes through Ace’s mind he will have to run by Brock. Then he says that when he comes to Raw he gets to ride in Vince’s jet to and from the arena. Then he says that beating people up makes him happy. Then he says that when he showed up he got to beat someone up. He says he doesn’t like people, especially stupid people. Then he says that he will show up on Raw when and how he wants. He says that he won’t be a puppet. Then Brock talks about Ace fining Sheamus and Brock tells Ace that he won’t be fining him. He will be paying him more. He says that until these demands are made there is no match at Extreme Rules. He then says that if he is the face of Monday night then a new name has to be made. It will no longer be Monday Night Raw. It will be Monday Night Raw starring Brock Lesnar. Brock tells Johnny that if he makes him happy then Brock will make him happy by signing the contract. Johnny agrees and they shake hands. Lesnar tells Ace to tell the fans. And Johnny says that he agrees. Then Brock signs the contract. Then John Cena’s music hits again and this time he comes out. He has a chain around his fist. Brock calmly sits waiting for a bit then he stands up. Cena looks at the contract debating if he will sign it. Then Brock asks him what’s wrong and tells him to sign the contract. Brock says that Cena stands there and Brock feels a vibration coming from him. He says he likes it because he can feel that Cena is scared. Then Brock says that he has had Cena frightened. Then Cena signs the contract. Cena knocks the table over and he & Brock stare at each other. Then Brock leaves the ring. Lesnar heads up the ramp as Cena stares him down to end the show. This was decent. I thought Brock cut a good promo. Him making all these demands about him being the star if Raw was good. I liked him saying that Cena is afraid of him too. I also like that Cena didn’t speak. They mostly just intently stared at each other. I thought that was good.

I thought this week’s show really dragged overall. There was a lot of crap on this show. I hated the whole Punk and the sobriety test segment! That was really painful! Johnny Ace backstage making Eve an executive sucked too. Kofi and Jericho had a good match. That was probably the highlight of the show for me. Edge's promo at the start of the show was good too. That was also one of the few good parts of the show. I don't know why they put the Divas Title on Nikki Bella since the Bellas deal end next Monday. Maybe they signed a new one, who knows. I really hope to God that this wasn't done to swerve the internet fans. I also feel like they’re dropping the ball with the Sheamus-Daniel Bryan feud too. I thought that having Daniel be the referee for the Sheamus-Mark Henry match was kinda weak. This storyline and the Jericho-Punk one both started out good and WWE found a way to totally ruin both. On the whole this show was too long and dreadful to watch!

4-20-12 Smackdown Results and thoughts

Coverage and thoughts on the April 20, 2012 episode of Smackdown

The show starts with Daniel Bryan coming to the ring and says “Yes”. He says that Sheamus waited till Daniel was distracted and mentions that he did the same to Del Rio. He also mentions that he did it to him again last week. Then he says that at Extreme Rules he will not be distracted. He says that at Extreme Rules they return to the city where he sent shockwaves around the world when he won Money In The Bank. He says that in Chicago at Extreme Rules he plans on shocking the world once again. Then he says that he will beat Sheamus twice and it won’t a fluke win. He says that it will be undeniable that he should be World Champion. Then he says that he that he will out wrestle Sheamus. He says that Sheamus took the cowards way out and that 2/3 falls are to his (Daniel’s) advantage and that he will become World Champion. Then AJ comes out and Daniel tells her to turn around and go away. AJ asks if they can talk about their problems. Daniel says he got rid of his problem and that was her. Then AJ says that they can work this out and she wishes him luck at Extreme Rules. Then Daniel says that he wishes he never met AJ and he also wishes that she was never even born. Daniel then asks if there is any hope that he would take AJ back and he says no. Then he walks out as AJ cries a bit. This was a really good promo. Daniel Bryan is really amazing at being the jerky heel.

AJ vs. Natalya. Natalya wins by DQ when AJ pounds her in the corner and the referee calls for the bell. Before the match Natalya was trying to comfort AJ and then AJ lost it. This was more about furthering the AJ storyline than it was a match. AJ runs up the ramp all upset. Poor Natalya. I think AJ is good but why have Natalya be in the sacrificial lamb position?

Damien Sandow cuts a promo and does his usual “people are dumber today than they used to be” bit. Then he says that he will bring a new Era to WWE. Good promo. I’m liking this character.

Brodus Clay comes out for his match and tells the funkettes to get his “little brother”. Then Hornswoggle comes out in Brodus gear. This is so idiotic!

Brodus Clay vs. Hunico. Brodus gets the pin. Hornswoggle comes in and does the Brodus juggle and Hunico shoves him down. Camacho got on the apron but Brodus knocked him off. Then he hit the big splash for the pin. Afterward Hornswoggle gives Hunico the Tadpole Splash. This was terrible!

Teddy Long is backstage looking for Aksana and he runs into Darren Young & Titus O’Neil. They taunt him about no longer being GM. Then Johnny Ace comes by. Darren says that the fans want to see them. They taunt Long more and walk off. Then Johnny puts a British Guard Hat on Long’s head and tells him not to speak. This was idiotic!

Matt Striker interviews Randy Orton. Striker brings up Kane attacking Randy and his dad. Then they reshow the clip. Striker asks how Bob is. Randy says that he will be fine in time but he can’t say the same for Kane. Then he says that at Extreme Rules they will be in a Falls Count Anywhere match, He then says that Kane will find out how sick and twisted Randy can be. This was a good promo.

The Usos vs. Titus O’Neil & Darren Young. Titus & Darren win when Titus gets the pin. This was a solid match.

Time for the Raw Rebound. They recap the CM Punk-Chris Jericho storyline.

They show Big Show walking backstage as he heads to the ring for his match next.

Intercontinental Champion Big Show vs. Alberto Del Rio. Alberto gets the pin after Cody Rhodes comes in. This was a solid match too. Afterwards Cody attacks Show for a bit and Show gets out of the ring. Then Show hints at going after Cody and Cody bails through the crowd.

They show Heath Slater and Drew McIntyre backstage about to watch the Ryback squash.

Ryback vs. Danny Lerman. Ryback gets the pin. This was a squash. I don’t get why they have the jobbers watching these squashes backstage. This was dumb the first go round and it still is idiotic!

They show the Brock Lesnar video promo from Monday. Now that I’ve seen this a second time I thought this was a really good video.

They show Teddy Long in the British guard uniform. Then William Regal comes by and taunt Long a bit. Then Aksana’ music hits and she comes in with Antonio Cesaro. She flaunts herself all over Cesaro. They go into Johnny Ace’s office. Then Ace taunts Long again. This was dumb.

The main event match was supposed to be Sheamus, Randy Orton & Great Khali vs. Daniel Bryan, Cody Rhodes & Mark Henry but Cody Rhodes attacked Khali’s leg. Referees and medics check on Khali. They assist Khali to the back. Then Big Show came out to take Khali’s place.

Sheamus, Randy Orton & Intercontinental Champion Big Show vs. Daniel Bryan, Mark Henry & Cody Rhodes. Sheamus, Randy & Big Show win when Randy pins Henry. This was a good match. The faces celebrate their win to end the show.

I thought this was a mixed bag show overall. Daniel Bryan’s promo at the start was really good. He knows how to be a heel. AJ was good too. Her match with Natalya wasn’t much but I liked that she flipped. I just wish it wasn’t Natalya that was on the receiving end of this. But I think this new gimmick for AJ could be good if they book it right. I liked the main event match too. I thought that they all worked hard. Having Big Show be the guy to take the beating was different since it’s usually the big guy that gets the hot tag and cleans house. I like that it took 3 finishers to beat Mark Henry too. The rest of the show had its ups and downs of course. I wasn’t into Teddy Long being in the British guard uniform and having him be taunted. Ryback had another squash. Not much to say about that. Big Show & Alberto Del Rio had a solid match too. It looks like they’ll be continuing the Big Show-Cody Rhodes angle. The Usos vs. Titus O’Neil & Darren Young was solid too. It’s too bad the Usos have been regulated to being job guys but they had a decent match. Brodus Clay-Hunico was the usual Brodus squash. The bit with Hornswoggle dressed in the Brodus get up was idiotic! Randy Orton’s promo backstage about his match with Kane at Extreme Rules was good too. I thought they the Antonio Cesaro debut wasn’t booked right. He didn’t really say much. Having him & Aksana walk by Teddy Long was stupid. Hopefully they’ll use better going forward. The promo from Damien Sandow was good too and I’m looking forward to seeing his debut. On the whole I thought that this was a mediocre show.

4-19-12 Impact results and thoughts

     Coverage and thoughts on the April 19, 2012 episode of Impact

The show starts with Bobby Roode coming to the ring with short hair. He brags about winning and retaining the World Title at Lockdown. He says that he made a promise that he would beat James Storm at Lockdown in Nashville. He says that he made good on his promise. Then he says that Storm promised to super kick him and he did. Then he says that with that super kick he cost himself the match. Roode says that he beat Storm, AJ, Jeff Hardy & Sting and there are no more heroes left for him to beat. Then Ken Anderson comes out and tells Roode to shut up. Then he says that he will take Roode’s title and says he doesn’t need any weapon to do it. Roode says that while Anderson sat at home in Green Bay he has been the most dominant Champion in TNA. Then he tells Anderson that there are others who deserve a Title match more than him. Then Jeff Hardy comes out and says that Roode’s is champion because of Kurt Angle. He says that Angle is now out of his way and is looking for a title match. Anderson says that he came out first and wants a title match. Anderson & Jeff argue and referees come in to separate them. Then Hulk Hogan shows up on the Tron and says that Roode and all the champions will be in the ring later. Then he says that Jeff Hardy will face Ken Anderson later to determine the number one contender. This was a mixed bag segment. Roode cut a good promo but I wasn’t into the Hardy-Anderson bickering over who gets a title match next. I wasn’t really into Hulk Hogan showing up on the Tron either.

X Division Champion Austin Aries & Matt Morgan vs. Bully Ray & Crimson. Ray & Crimson win when Ray pins Aries. This was a good match.

They show Garrett Bischoff walking backstage.

Jeff Hardy is backstage saying that he deserves a Title match. He says that he beat Kurt Angle out of the way. Then he talks about his match with Anderson and says Anderson also deserves a title match.

Team Garrett (Garrett, RVD, AJ & Anderson) comes out to celebrate their win at Lockdown. Garrett says that Lockdown was one of the biggest nights of his life. He says the stakes were high but they came out on top. He says that they were victorious and they got rid of Eric once and for all. Then he thanks the other guys and says he couldn’t have done it without them. Then AJ Styles says that Garrett took a beating but came back and hit Eric over the head with a guitar. Then Ric Flair comes out on the stage and says that the talent that are in the ring are there because of Eric. They bleeped out the name Bischoff. Flair then calls Garrett a punk and he says that AJ and the others are punks too. Then he says that next week he will host a party in Eric Bischoff’s honor. This was idiotic! I’m so tired of Garrett getting this push and Ric Flair’s promo was stupid too! I’m beyond sick of these guys. Putting Garrett over at the expense of AJ who’s been in TNA since day 1 is mind boggling! I also hated that they bleeped out “Bischoff” every time Flair said his name! Terrible segment!

They show Daniels & Kazarian backstage and Daniels says that the secret that he had over Kazarian wasn’t about him but about AJ. He has a sheet of paper and says that they will reveal the answers tonight. Ok. I’m not sure what they’re doing with this.

They show Devon, Magnus & Samoa Joe backstage talking about all having to be in the ring for Hulk’s announcement.

AJ Styles vs. Kurt Angle. Angle gets the pin. During the match Christopher Daniels & Frankie Kazarian come out. Angle is surprised they’re there. Daniels distracts AJ by giving him the paper. That allows Angle to get the pin. Then Angle tells AJ that he nothing to do with what Daniels & Kazarian were up to. The match was good but the finish was lame.

They show Joseph Park giving somebody his card. Then he runs into Gunner and Gunner tells him to leave him alone. Then Joseph says that he wants answers. He asks where Abyss is. Gunner says to ask Bully Ray. Gunner walks off and Joseph found his second clue. What is this?

All the champions come to the ring. Then they show RVD backstage with Hulk Hogan. Hulk tells RVD that he will make the Hardy-Anderson match a 3 Way and puts RVD in the match. Then Hulk Hogan comes out and he says that once a month Impact will have an “Open Night Fight”. This means that wrestlers outside of TNA can show up and have a match. He says that during these matches he and 3 judges to determine if the wrestler should get a TNA contract. Hulk says that the talent can challenge anybody they want and that TNA talent will face the “outside” wrestler. Then Roode complains and says that this is his show because he is the World Champion. Hulk says he called all the champions out for a reason. He says that the Champions will need to be ready in case they get called out. Gail Kim asks who decide this. Hulk says he decides who defends their Title. Then he says that he wants to hear what the fans want to see. Then Devon says that he agrees with Hogan and says that he will be a fighting Champion. Then Hogan says that the TV Title will be defended on Impact every week from now on. Devon says Testify. Hulk says that everybody fights on open fight night “Brother.” Roode is all pissed and Gail Kim isn’t thrilled either. The other champions were good with this of course. This was a decent segment. The idea of open fight night sounds good but I’m not sure how it will be when they start that. Hulk’s promo was better than usual.

Brooke Tessmacher, Tara, Mickie James & Velvet Sky vs. Madison Rayne, Rosita, Sarita & Knockouts Champion Gail Kim. Brooke, Tara, Mickie & Velvet win when Brooke pins Kim. This was a good match too.

They show Ken Anderson backstage talking about the 3 Way main event.

They show Eric Young & ODB outside somewhere. Then some guy walks by and Young gets freaked out because he thinks the guy’s looking at her. This was dumb.

They show James Storm walking backstage.

TV Champion Devon vs. Gunner for the Title. Devon gets the pin. This also was a good match.

James Storm come to the ring and he hugs Devon. Then Storm makes his way to the ring and it’s time for commercial. Back from commercial and Storm apologizes for losing at Lockdown. He says he feels like he let everyone down. Then he asks if this something that he still wants to do. Then he says that when he got home he had to tell his daughter that he lost at Lockdown when he was tucking her into bed. He says that the next day he saw a man who was beaten. Then he says that Roode might have won the match but he didn’t beat Storm. He says he beat himself. Then he says this is what he loves to do and he thanks the fans for having this life. Then he mentions that maybe Roode was right was he said that Storm’s luck has run out. He was going to say more but he dropped the mic and headed up the ramp. This was a really good emotional promo. Storm was really good here.

Rob Van Dam vs. Jeff Hardy vs. Ken Anderson to determine the number one contender for the World Title. RVD wins when he pins Jeff. This was a good match too. RVD and Jeff hug afterwards. Jeff slaps a few fans’ hands while RVD celebrates in the ring to end the show.

I thought this was a decent show overall. There were a lot of good matches on here. I liked Morgan & Aries vs. Ray & Crimson. AJ-Angle was good too but I wasn’t crazy about the finish. This whole story with Daniels & Kazarian having something on AJ is kinda weird. I have no idea where they’re going with that. I like the 8 Knockouts tag match too. I thought they worked hard. Devon-Gunner I thought was good too. I also liked the 3 way main event. I wasn’t really into the opening of the show. Roode cut a good promo but Hardy & Anderson were painful to hear. I wasn’t really into Hogan showing up on the Tron either. I thought the segment where Hulk Hogan had all the champions in the ring was good and I like the idea of doing an “Open Fight Night.” Hopefully they’ll bring in some young guys and put them over but you never know with TNA. The Team Garrett-Ric Flair segment was idiotic! I’m really tired of seeing Flair at this point and Garrett is where he’s at because of who is dad is. That really is a shame for guys like AJ Styles and the other guys who work really hard. For them to be background players to Garrett is stupid. I also hated that they bleeped out the Bischoff name. I found that to be really idiotic. The Eric Young-ODB bit was the typical comedy we get from them but thankfully it was short. I’m also not sure what they’re doing with “Joseph Park” looking for Abyss. This bit is getting old fast. I also liked James Storm’s promo. I thought he showed a lot of emotion and did a good job guy who felt bad that he lost. Overall though I thought this was a decent show this week.

4-16-12 Raw results and thoughts

   Coverage and thoughts on the April 16, 2012 episode of Raw

The show starts with WWE Champion CM Punk vs. Mark Henry in a No DQ, No count out match for the Title. Punk gets the pin to remain Champion. This was a really good back and forth match.

Afterwards Chris Jericho shows up on the tron sitting in a bar and he talks about last week Then Jericho says that Punk will defend the title against him at Extreme Rules in a Chicago Street Fight. Punk says this no longer about him being the best in world, about Punk kicking Jericho’s ass. Punk says he gets to in his hometown. Jericho asks Punk to promise to show up sober at the PPV. Then Jericho shows a clip of Punk goin into a pub. Jericho asks if Punk is drunk right now. Punk tells Jericho to come to the ring and find out for himself. Jericho says that Punk is in denial like his dad. Jericho says that Punk wants to be surrounded by booze. He says that Punk has lost his dignity, honor and personal beliefs. Then he says that at Extreme Rules he will loose the WWE Title. Punk was going to respond but then Jericho went off the Tron. This was good the first week, but it has gotten stale. Both guys cut good promos but they also feel a bit too long. This whole “Punk is going to be a boozer because it’s in his family” bit is getting tiresome!

They show clips of a Brock Lesnar promo. (Note: Brock is not at the show)

They have a backstage bit with R-Truth as Sherlock Holmes. Teddy Long comes in and asks what he’s up to. Truth says that he & “Little Jimmy Watson” are looking to find a new job for Long. What is the point of this?

U.S. Champion Santino Marella vs. David Otunga for the Title. Santino gets the pin. This was a comedy match. Not much to it. Otunga had Santino pinned and the referee counted 3 but saw Santino’s foot on the rope.

Josh Mathews interviews Lord Tensai backstage and Tensai says he knows what the fans should fear.

They show a Brock Lesnar promo/video package. He says that he isn’t an entertainer. He is an ass kicker. He talks about his accomplishments in WWE & UFC. He says that he is here to bring legitimacy back to WWE. Brock then says that Cena wouldn’t have become a star if he hadn’t left WWE. Then he promised to kick Cena’s ass at Extreme Rules. He then says that beating people up is what makes him happy. This was decent video but I’m not really a Lesnar fan.

Zack Ryder vs. Kane. Kane attacks Ryder before the match can start. He throws Ryder into the ring and then he choke slams Ryder. Poor Zack! They tell him to get himself over, he does and then they de push him! Then Kane talks about last week when he laid out Bob & Randy Orton. Kane says that he was surprised to see Randy go down so easily. Then he says like father like son. This was boring. This feud isn’t working for me.

Kofi Kingston is talking to AJ backstage and Daniel Bryan sees this. He gets jealous and then he talks a bit and calls his finisher the “Yes” lock. Then he does his “Yes” bit. This was decent.

John Cena comes to the ring and rags on Johnny Ace. He says that Johnny is using his power to end and replace Cena. Then he says that Johnny brought in Lesnar to legitimize everything. Then he says that Lesnar stands for destruction and doesn’t care about how many people he wins over. Then he says that he is facing a man whose purpose to end Cena. Then he admits that he is scared but he isn’t going to back down. He says that he will fight. Then Johnny Ace comes out and says that Cena will be in an Extreme Rules match tonight. Then he says that next week there will be a contract signing for the Cena-Lesnar match at Extreme Rules. Cena’s promo was ok but Ace’s promo was dull as usual. I don’t get why they keep having Cena being all smiles when he heads to the ring. It makes him look like a moron. His promo was ok and I thought he showed intensity at the end. Johnny Ace’s promo of course was really boring. May I ask, does anyone really believe that this the end of the Cena era!? Why even hint at that? The guy will be around for God knows how long.

Kofi Kingston vs. Daniel Bryan. Bryan wins by submission. Afterwards Daniel relocks Kofi in the “Yes” lock. Then Sheamus comes out and runs Daniel off. They showed AJ watching on a monitor backstage. Kofi & Bryan had a good match. Daniel is really good at playing the weasel like heal.

Time for the Funkasauras. OH NO!!

Brodus Clay vs. Dolph Ziggler. Brodus wins by DQ when Jack Swagger gets involved. Afterwards Brodus tosses Dolph in the air. Then Vickie gets on the apron and Cameron tries to pull Vickie down. Vickie sits on the apron and gets back in the ring. Then Naomi goes after Vickie and she’s surrounded by Naomi & Brodus. Vickie bails and Funkasauras crap continues.

They show Johnny Ace & David Otunga backstage and Eve comes in and says they were supposed to have a talk this week. They agree to talk now. This was the usual crap.

They show a Chief Jay Strongbow tribute video. This was really awesome!

They show “Truth Sherlock” with Teddy Long. Truth says that little Jimmy found a job for him; Smackdown GM. Long says that’s what he was and walks off. Then Truth talks to invisible little jimmy. This was idiotic!

Intercontinental Champion Big Show & Great Khali vs. WWE Tag Team Champions Primo & Epico. Show & Khali win after a double pin. This was terrible. Abraham Washington watched the match from the stage. I have no idea why they had Big Show & Khali team up and beat the tag champions. I hope to God we don’t get a Big Show & Khali tag title run! I also don’t know why A.W. was watching.

They show clips of their show in Moscow and have comments from some of the talent. Good video.

John Cena comes to the ring for his match and is all smiles AGAIN!! Then Johnny Ace & David Otunga come out. Ace wishes Cena luck in his next match and brings out Lord Tensai.

John Cena vs. Lord Tensai in an Extreme Rules match. Tensai gets the pin when he sprays Cena with green mist. Cena had Tensai in a submission and then David Otunga came in the ring. Cena gave him an AA and then Tensai sprayed the mist for the pin. Tensai celebrates while Cena pours water on his face to clean off the mist. This was solid. They had Cena take a beating for most of the match. That’s something we haven’t seen in awhile.     

I liked this show better than last weeks for sure but it still wasn’t that great. I really liked the Punk-Henry match at the start of the show. Nice to start the show with a match. The Punk-Jericho bit was the same old bit and I’m getting tired of it. Their match at Extreme Rules should be good but these promos are getting stale. I thought the Cena-Tensai match was solid. It was different to have Cena be the guy who takes the beating. I wasn’t really into the Brock Lesnar video since I’m not a fan of his. I thought it was well put together but I couldn’t get into it. Cena’s promo earlier in the show was a mixed bag. I don’t know why they feel like he always has to be all smiles no matter what. It makes him look so dumb. The end of his promo was good though. I have no idea why WWE is de pushing Zack Ryder just because he got himself over without “creative’s assistance!” He got the thanks for coming treatment again tonight. Then Kane’s promo was boring too. This whole Orton-Kane storyline isn’t working for me. I liked the Kofi Kingston-Daniel Bryan match. Those 2 guys are really talented. They should be using Kofi more. Daniel is also really good at playing the chicken heal. I have no idea why they had Big Show & Great Khali team and squash the tag champs. I also don’t know what they’re doing with A.W. I guess we’re supposed to forget that Abraham Washington was on WWECW a few years ago. I’m also beyond sick of the Brodus Clay gimmick! The match with Dolph was completely pointless. They should also be using Dolph in a better role than the show off job guy. Santino-Otunga was also stupid. The R-Truth as Sherlock Holmes segments were also idiotic. I’m tired of “Little Jimmy.” Overall I thought the show was better than last week’s but to me it was a mediocre show.