This show kicked off at 3 PM in the United States as it aired live on Peacock from the United Kingdom with the Men's Money in the Bank match between LA Knight, Shinsuke Nakamura, Logan Paul, Butch (who got a rousing "hometown" welcome), Santos Escabar of the Latino World Order, Damien Priest, and Ricochet. Before the match began, LA Knight was described by the commentators as "the people's choice," which was apparent from the crowd response he got but not necessarily something I expected Cole and Barrett to come out and say on commentary. It was 6-on-1 to start, everyone going after Paul before things splintered into brawls on the outside. Anytime Knight was given the spotlight, he received a huge ovation, but the crowd also popped for some of the big spots by Nakamaura, Butch, and Ricochet. Highlights included Damien Priest delivering a perfect spinning forearm into Butch on the floor (and minutes later nailing Logan Paul with an uppercut as he attempted a splash to the outside), Ricochet flying through the legs of the ladder to hit a suicide dive, and Logan Paul executing a Russian Leg Sweep off the ladder before nailing a wild frog splash onto Priest as he lay across a ladder (which the crowd responded to with a "You Still Suck!" chant). One of the craziest spots came when Butch applied a headlock onto Escobar and dragged him into a ladder only for both men to get taken out by a ridiculous 450 (720?) from Ricochet. Considering how much the audience was behind Knight, I was surprised how little he actually shined, with Butch, Rico, and Priest being, to my eyes, the MVPs of the match. The best spot of the match, though, was when Knight knocked Ricochet and Paul into the ropes from a ladder and Ricochet delivered a nasty Spanish Fly on him that sent both men through some tables. Butch looked like he may have had the match won, but Priest tossed him off of one ladder and into another in the corner. This allowed LA Knight, after dispatching Nakamura and Escobar, to make his climb...only for Priest to come back to steal the W. As much as the audience may have been disappointed, I liked the booking here as Priest has had a really good few months and, honestly, LA Knight was underwhelming here. All in all, a very good ladder match, but we get these so often that I doubt anyone will remember it a few months from now. (3.5/5)
The WWE Women's Tag Team Champions, Ronda Rousey and Shayna Baszler, defended the titles against Liv Morgan and Raquel Rodriguez next. As noted on commentary, Morgan and Rodriguez had never actually dropped the titles as they had been forced to vacate them due to a shoulder injury that Liv Morgan sustained. That shoulder came into play as Rousey and Baszler targeted it in the early going. Rousey has undeniably lost a little bit of her star power over the past few years, but her competency and execution has, in turn, gotten better. Its a weird trade-off because the WWE needs both star power and dependable in-ring performers in the division right now, but Rousey can't necessarily deliver both when she's in the midcard working with and against midcard performers. Fortunately, by the end of the match - which was solid - Shayna Baszler had turned on her partner (ignoring the lack of logic here, it was a definite shocker and came out of nowhere to me) and it seems like Rousey and her former best friend will be feuding in the build-up to SummerSlam, a pivot that will hopefully help Rousey regain some of her spark and present Baszler as the killer she was in NXT. Last note: Somebody needs to talk to Rousey about her bizarre and unnecessary make-up. (3/5)
GUNTHER defended his Intercontinental Championship against Matt Riddle in the next match. I really enjoyed seeing a sex creep like Riddle get slapped around and beaten up, but this was no squash. There were some great exchanges here and GUNTHER once again showed why he might be the best in-ring performer in not just the WWE but maybe all of pro-wrestling. Yes, Omega and Ospreay are more agile, more flashy, more capable of pulling off ridiculous spotfests...but for fans of a more "old school" style, GUNTHER is the man and he was terrific here. This one didn't quite hit that "must see" level for me, but got close to it. (3.5/5)
In a wonderful post-match segment, Drew McIntyre returned to the WWE, headbutting GUNTHER and then connecting with a Claymore. I'd have preferred to see McIntyre return as a heel, but a McIntyre/GUNTHER series is bound to be hard-hitting and excellent. Plus, there was no way the UK crowd was going to boo Drew McIntyre. (+1)
Next up - Dominik Mysterio vs. Cody Rhodes. Move-for-move, sequence-for-sequence, these two didn't deliver anything we haven't seen before, but in terms of heat, the crowd was super, super into this. My biggest critique would be that we didn't quite get enough Rhea Ripley, but aside from that, this was a crowd-pleasing bout that didn't overstay its welcome and was booked the right way with Cody Rhodes getting the decisive, clean victory without too many shenanigans. Rhodes remains incredibly popular, though I still hold onto the thought that his WrestleMania XXXIX loss was a booking mistake. An average match nudged to above-average territory due to the passion of the crowd. (3/5)
In another shocking return, John Cena showed up in London and may have even stole the show with his appearance and announcement that London *might be* (?) the site of a WrestleMania in the near future. He was interrupted by Grayson Waller, who did more in his few minutes of shine with Cena that Austin Theory did in his entire WrestleMania feud with him. I'm not super familiar with Waller, but if he can go in the ring, he looks like he could be a decent midcard character. It will take more than that, though, to get to the main event as we've seen similar characters in the past - including the aforementioned Theory - and very few have really been able to crack the main event scene. Another huge, awesome surprise on a show that already had quite a few in the Baszler/Rousey split and the return of Drew. (+1)
The Women's Money in the Bank Match followed as Trish Stratus, Zoey Stark, Becky Lynch, Bayley, IYO Sky, and Zelina Vega competed for the prize. I really liked that there were multiple factions involved in the match and that there was plenty of history between the competitors, with only Zelina Vega seeming a touch out of place compared to everyone else (who have all been feuding on-and-off for close to a year now). The Trish and Lynch interactions showed there is still heat to their rivalry (especially with Zoey Stark's involvement). I wasn't a fan of everyone else in the match disappearing so that the Lynch vs. Stratus/Stark sequence could command everyone's attention - why not just have the other women just brawl around the ring? - but it certainly was effective at furthering that story. Moments later, Vega hit a ridiculous Code Red on Stark from atop the ladder that earned a huge and well-deserved pop. IYO Sky climbed atop the ladder next, but Bayley shoved it over, knocking her stablemate to the floor. Bayley nearly won her second briefcase until Lynch caught her and pulled her down. Lynch looked to have the win within her grasp, but in a brilliant move, IYO handcuffed Bayley and Trish to eachother! IYO then climbed over Bayley to retrieve the briefcase in one of the best finishes to a Money in the Bank match I can recall. While this match may not have had as many huge spots as the Men's version, the Code Red spot was arguably crazier than anything the males did and the finish was certainly far more creative and crowd-pleasing. (3/5)
Seth Rollins defended his World Heavyweight Championship against Finn Balor in the next contest. I was expecting Balor to have a bit more support from the UK crowd but, to his credit, he's been a great heel as of late and - to Seth Rollins' credit - Rollins is mega-over with the WWE audience (case in point: the legitimately unreal serenading he received from the crowd before the bell rang). The commentators noted that Rollins was coming into this match with some damage to his ribs, which came into play after Rollins' initial shine once Balor connected with a double stomp to his gut. I liked Balor targeting the ribs throughout the match and wish they would've let Balor control an even longer stretch before Rollins made his comeback (at which point things got a little "your turn/my turn"). Things picked up a little bit once Rollins hit a big buckle bomb. He couldn't hit the frog splash as Balor got his knees, though. This allowed Balor to attempt a Cous De Gras but Rollins rolled out of the way and after a nice exchange of counters, Rollins hit the Pedigree for 2. At that point, Damien Priest showed up with briefcase in hand, distracting the champion. The crowd chanted "Cash It In!" but Priest just took a seat. Balor hit a running dropkick that sent Rollins into the barricade and then hit 2 Coups on the outside. Balor shoved Rollins into the ring and hit him with another awesome dropkick, but this time, when he went for the CDG, Priest got out of his seat, distracting Finn and giving Rollins enough time to recover. Rollins hit a Curb Stomp to finish off the challenger. Good enough, but not remarkable. (2.5/5)
A video played hyping the return of Edge who, if I'm not mistaken, as been off TV since WrestleMania.
After Kevin Owens and Sami Zayn delivered a promo from the crowd and a lengthy, lengthy recap video and a lengthy, lengthy, lengthy entrance from the Tribal Chief, it was main event time - Roman Reigns and Solo Sikoa vs. The Usos in a match that was billed "Bloodline: Civil War," which, if I'm not mistaken, is a portmanteau of a couple Marvel Universe movies, right? There was a nice "Fuck You Roman" chant before the bell rang, the crowd fully behind the Usos. Even after the bell rang, we didn't get much "action" for a couple minutes as Jimmy and Solo took their time to get down to business. Solo got some offense in, but was cut-off by a cheapshot from Jey - I really like that, rather than just becoming 100% pure babyfaces overnight, the Usos pulled out the sorta trick that has helped them be so successful. As soon as it seemed like the Usos were about to gain control, though, Roman called for a tag and we got a cool bit of drama as Solo looked a little hesitant about tagging in the Chief. I couldn't decipher what some of the chants directed at Roman were, but he got a ton of heat throughout the match (I think at one point they were chanting "Tribal Wanker" and, minutes later, they sang a song, "Stand Up If You Hate Roman," that I've never heard before but must be quite popular across the pond). When Roman and Solo took time to regroup outside, Paul Heyman gave a funny pep talk, asking Roman if he wanted his children to be setting at "his table" (referring to Jimmy Uso). I'd hate every match to have this much outright acting and character work, but this has become part of the Bloodline "style" and, if they didn't do it well, it would be a problem. Fortunately, the slower they work, the more they emphasize facial expressions and body language, the more the crowd seems to eat it up. At the pace they worked the first half of this match, it could've gone hours before anyone would've really broken a sweat. Jimmy Uso played the face-in-peril for minutes on end as Solo and Roman pulled out every trick they knew to prevent him from making the hot tag. When Jimmy finally was able to get his brother in, Jey worked like he was shot of a cannon and put on a magnificent show against Solo and Roman, fully living up to his "Main Event" nickname. Jey's luck nearly ran out, though, when Roman hit him with a pair of Superman Punches, but Jimmy prevented him from finishing Jey off with a spear. This led to a break in the action in which all four men were selling exhaustion and then ended up staring each other down before trading blows in and out of the ring. Roman hit Jimmy with a Superman Punch but only got 2 and then attempted a spear but got caught by a Jimmy Uso superkick. Uso went for a splash but ended up in Reign's guillotine submission. It looked like he might pass out, but Jimmy somehow powered his way up to his feet and drove him into the corner. Jimmy made the tag, but in all the chaos, the referee got knocked to the floor. The Usos hit the One-and-Done but there was no referee to make the count! The Usos went to the top, but Solo and Roman caught them with a pair of uranages and then hit Jey with a lethal Spike-and-Spear combo. Solo then stacked the brothers and allowed Roman to make the count, but the Usos kicked out! That was a terrific false finish (and Solo's reaction was terrific). As Roman practically cried in the ring, Solo continued to beatdown on the Usos, sending Jimmy into the steps and then clearing off the table as per Roman's command. Jimmy ended up on the table and Solo launched himself off the barricade, but Jimmy rolled out of the way and Solo ended up eating it. Back in the ring, Jey and Roman exchanged superkicks, punches, and a spear, but could not put each other way as Jey kicked out of Roman's finisher (delivering a lowblow to Roman to do so). After Jimmy knocked Solo off the apron, Jey connected with a splash from the top and got the 1-2-3, giving Roman Reigns his first pinfall loss in 3 years. The post-match scene was a wild scene too as the Usos celebrated and both Solo and Roman sold anguish on the floor. An easy Match of the Year contender that will be tough to beat and almost the anti-thesis of what an AEW spectacular was (in the sense that this match didn't "pick up" until halfway through, but was incredibly heated and riveting from beginning to end). (5/5)
With a very strong Kwang Score of 3.64-out-of-5, making it one of the highest rated pay-per-views/PLE that I've ever reviewed, Money in the Bank 2023 was a tremendous, all-time great show from top to bottom - as good or better than any show in company history. Yes, it was that good. Every match delivered and multiple matches over-delivered, but not necessarily by "going long" or by being overwrought and "epic." What worked on this show was that the pacing made sense, kicking off with a spotfest before going into a more story-driven Women's Tag Team Championship then going to a physical, more technical match between Riddle and GUNTHER and then a one-two entertainment punch of Cody Rhodes/Dominik Mysterio and the Cena surprise appearance. This show ebbed-and-flowed so nicely that its 3+ hour runtime flew by. Oh, and the crowd, like the one in Puerto Rico for Backlash, was hot all night.
FINAL RATING - Curt Hennig Level
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