TNA Sacrifice 2008

TNA Sacrifice 2008

Orlando, FL - May 2008

CHAMPIONSHIP RUNDOWN: Coming into this show, the TNA World Champion was Samoa Joe, the TNA Tag Team Championships were vacant, the X-Division Champion was Petey Williams, and the Knockouts Champion was Awesome Kong.

One of the big storylines coming into tonight's show was the Deuces Wild Tournament to find new TNA World Tag Team Champions. The opening contest is one of four quarter finals - Team 3D taking on the odd couple pairing of James Storm and Sting. Storm was a heel and was essentially "big timing" Sting because he was the more experienced tag wrestler. Eventually Sting gets into the match and Storm gives up, opting to drink a beer outside of the ring instead of getting involved. A little bit of fun gaga with Jacqueline too and Brother Ray slapping her on the butt to a big pop. Sting ends up sending Storm through a table and letting Team 3D get the win. Not exactly the "hot opener" that this show - or any show - needs. (1/5)

Christian Cage and Rhino team up against rivals Booker T and Robert Roode next. Another short, forgettable match that just kinda happens. Everyone involved is perfectly capable, but this was nothing really special. After the match, Booker T turns heel by attacking Cage and Rhino. Seems sort of like TNA didn't have much of a plan for Booker T long-term when they brought him in (no surprise there). Slightly better than the opener, but not really by much. Neither team had any real chemistry or did anything remarkable. (1.5/5)

The tournament continues as The LAX (Hernandez and Homicide) take on Kip James and Matt Morgan. Another match that doesn't run long or leave much of an impression aside from how much smaller Homicide looked compared to everyone else. Hernandez is the most impressive performer as he goes toe-to-toe with both Gunn and Morgan and holds his own. It really is no surprise that as the years went on, "SuperMex" became one of the more popular powerhouses on the roster. Unremarkable and too short to even be considered close to good. (1/5)

AJ Styles and Super Eric vs. Awesome Kong and BG James followed in the last match of the tournament. Another skippable, forgettable, unremarkable match that is only salvaged because of how good AJ Styles and Awesome Kong are. This was still too goofy of an idea for me as there was no real chance of Kong winning. At one point, TNA's Tag Team Division was considered to be infinitely stronger than the WWE's, but looking at this tournament, you just don't see any of that. Styles botches the finish and they end things with a roll-up, a decent-enough save but another knock against this sub-par match. (2/5)

A 10-man Terrordome Match to find the new number one contender for the X-Division Championship follows with Consequences Creed, Shark Boy, Curry Man, Alex Shelley, Chris Sabin, Jimmy Rave, Kaz, Sonjay Dutt, and Jay Lethal all taking part. Before the match begins, Jim Cornette announces that the winner of this match will not only become the number one contender for the X-Division Championship, but will take Kurt Angle's spot in the main event. I'll give some credit to TNA for trying to hot-shot someone into a prominent match from this batch of talents - I assume they figured that it would be Lethal who got the rub as he had had some major matches and moments in 2007 - but I'm not sure it wouldn't have been a better story for Cornette to announce that he has found a suitable replacement and then to utilize someone on the roster who was a bit more of a "name" talent like Styles or Sting or even Matt Morgan or Ron Killings (who at least was a former TNA World Champion). Anyway...with Shark Boy, Curry Man, and Super Eric all on this card, it does feel a bit like TNA was veering too far into bad, gimmicky comedy as these characters/gimmicks were all treading on the same or, at best, adjacent grounds. Shelley and Sabin's double-team maneuvers are the highlight, but Creed and Sonjay also have spotlight moments. This was a fun 10-or-so minutes, but the concept of the match didn't lend itself to a great finish and the sheer number of bodies in the ring meant that there was lots of overselling so that certain guys could "get their shit in." (2.5/5)

The Deuces Wild Tournament continues as Team 3D takes on Christian and Rhyno. The commentators don't mention it, but the crowd recognizes that these four have considerable history from their WWE days. I like Christian and Rhyno coming in and selling the damage from Booker T's attack earlier. I wasn't expecting much about this match, but it was fine. Christian has good chemistry with both of the Dudleys and he and Rhyno get to look tough by keeping things relatively even despite the beatdown they suffered earlier in the show. Johnny Devine ends up coming out and helping the heels win after 10 minutes or so. Nothing remarkable, but nothing offensive or bad either. Better than I expected, to be honest. (2.5/5)

The LAX vs. Styles and Super Eric is next in another tournament match. If AJ Styles got to shine in the first outing, this is Super Eric's round to show what he can do. Lots of energy out of Eric from beginning to end. Hernandez looked like a beast here. Some good wrestling throughout, which is unsurprising because all four might be among the best performers in the entire tournament and they knew how to make the most of their minutes. But this needed more time to really be considered better than average. (2.5/5)

Another multi-man follows as we get a Knockout Battle Royal for the #1 Contender's spot where the final two participants will then fight in a ladder match where the loser will have their head shaved. Holy overbooked stipulation match, Batman! The participants are Rhaka Khan (whose entrance music is good enough to give this match at least 1 point by itself), Velvet Sky and Angelina Love (aka the Beautiful People, whose entrance is so lewd, even Attitude Era Vince McMahon would've probably had to loosen his tie watching it), fan favorite ODB, Salinas of the LAX, Christy Hemme, Jacqueline, Traci Brooks, Roxxi Laveaux, and Gail Kim (who has immunity from getting her head shaved because...I'm not really sure). Kim was the heavy favorite anyway so it was always likely she'd end up in the final two - I'm not sure there are two other women in this match who could even work a 3-minute ladder match - but there was at least some chance that the Beautiful People might end up the final two, which could have been interesting. Anyway, the action is not good in the battle royale, but it rarely is for these sorts of things. When the dust settles, Kim and Roxxi are the last two participants, but because Kim has immunity, if Roxxi wins, it will be Angelina Love who will get her head shaved. The Ladder Match portion of this is way, way, way better and more violent than it probably has any need to be. At one point, Kim hits a sunset flip powerbomb from the ladder and it looks like it might have given Roxxi all the concussions. She comes back, though, and nails a spinebuster onto the ladder in return that there was just no easy way for Kim to take. Vicious stuff. Roxxi is bleeded pretty bad from, I think, the side of her head and her hand. The Beautiful People are constantly interfering to try to make sure Kim wins (so that Angelina doesn't have to have her head shaved). Eventually, their efforts bear fruit and Kim wins the match, but because she did it in somewhat heelish fashion (the true babyface thing to do would've been to step aside, let Roxxi win and have her moment, and screw the Beautiful People) the crowd doesn't cheer and instead chants "Fire Russo" and "Bullshit." For how ridiculously overbooked this was, how did they not see that coming? After the match, Kim and Roxxi try to beat up on the heels, but they escape and it is Roxxi who is forced to have her hair cut. I'm not 100% sure, but it at least felt like the entrances and the post-match lasted longer than the battle royale and the match itself. Again, a point awarded to Rhaka Khan's theme music and another point to the incredible effort by Kim and Roxxi. (2/5)

The Deuces Wild Tournament Final was next - LAX vs. Team 3D for the vacant TNA World Tag Team Championships. These two teams had a whole series of matches against each other in 2007 (IIRC), so the chemistry was there. I really loved Homicide kick-starting the match with a ridiculous tope con hilo. Unfortunately, the rest of the match never really reached that peak again - though Hector Guerrero putting Johnny Devine was kinda cool (if very sloppy). Once again, "Super Mex" Hernandez was super impressive with his agility and power. I liked the clean finish off of a Border Toss-into-a-Frogsplash combo too. Nothing really special in this match, but no worse than average. (2.5/5)

Main event time - Scott Steiner and Kaz challenging Samoa Joe for the TNA World Heavyweight Championship. Kurt Angle was supposed to be in this match but was injured in South Korea. Frank Trigg was on commentary for this as he had become Angle's on-screen cornerman/training buddy. Anyway, I was pleasantly surprised with this match. It's not a classic or anything, but Steiner is more game than I believed he'd be by this point. Steiner's work in 2007/2008 is hit or miss, but this match is worked at the right pace for him and all of his big moments are good aside from a really awkward something-or-other that he and Kaz attempt from the top rope. Joe gets the decisive victory with no interference or bullshit - which I was expecting considering that Rhaka Khan and Petey Williams were at ringside - and Kaz got to look like he belonged in the main event (though, this didn't really solidify him as much as I'm sure he and TNA management hoped). (3/5)

With an overall Kwang Rating of 2.05-out-of-5, Sacrifice 2008 isn't the worst TNA PPV I've reviewed, but it's close to the bottom. The Deuces Wild tournament didn't produce a single match that was better than average and could've been booked in such a more creative way than what we got. The TNA World Championship match was the clear match of the night, though the most entertaining 5 minutes could've been the super violent ladder match portion of the TNA Knockouts Battle Royal. Not worth seeking out, but it did have its moments.

FINAL RATING - High Risk Maneuver

AEW Double or Nothing 2024

AEW Double or Nothing 2024

Las Vegas, NV - May 2024

CHAMPIONSHIP RUNDOWN: Coming into this show, the AEW World Champion was Swerve Strickland, the Young Bucks were the AEW Tag Team Champions, the Trios Champions were the Bang Bang Gang (Jay White and the Gunns), Toni Storm was the AEW Women's Champion, Adam Copeland was the TNT Champion, Willow Nightingale was the TBS Champion, the International Champion was Roderick Strong, the Continental Champion was Okada, and Chris Jericho held the FTW Championship (which he had re-christened as the "For The World" Championship). 

Double Or Nothing 2024 - the 5th anniversary of AEW - kicked off with International Champion Roderick Strong defending his title against Will Ospreay. Loved the start of this match with Ospreay attempting to end things early with a running back elbow while Strong was posing and then taking out Bennett and Taven. The first crazy spot of the night happened moments later when Bennett and Taven attempted a Doomsday Device on the floor and nearly paralyzed Ospreay, who fell awkwardly on his neck. Wardlow came in, attempted to powerbomb Ospreay, but then got caught. Ospreay hit a wild twisting moonsault something-or-other on the whole Undisputed Kingdom to take them out. Ospreay's offense was incredible - a step-up enziguiri, a fisherman suplex - but Roderick Strong's heat segment was awesome too. I loved the sequence in which he tied Ospreay up in the ropes and proceeded to strike him from every angle and his fireman's carry-into-a-backbreaker. Plus, the superplex. The sequences in this match were crisp and flawless without feeling overly choreographed. Unfortunately, like so many of the other matches on this show, they inserted a needless "fighting spirit" strike exchange into it. I liked Don Callis trying to convince Ospreay to use the Tiger Driver to put down Strong and Ospreay feeling conflicted about it and then, because he didn't do it, nearly cost himself the match. The actual finish was great as Ospreay won with a brilliant back elbow (Hidden Blade) and then a Stormbreaker after flipping out of one of Strong's various backbreakers. People may not like it, but Ospreay is doing true "State of the Art" wrestling. It is not for everyone. It is intricate sequences, it is highly athletic maneuvers, it is incredible feats of agility and endurance, and it is nothing like the wrestling of the 80s or most of the 90s. But Ospreay is the vanguard, the guy pushing further than Kenny Omega or Ricochet or Seth Rollins and embodying "the future" more than anyone else in US wrestling. Strong was a great opponent for him here because he could keep up and hold his own, but Ospreay is in a world of his own right now. (4/5)

Adam Cole came out to a relative loud babyface pop - big enough to make me question why they turned him heel in the first place. The injury he suffered really ruined whatever storyline they had set for him and MJF. Anyway, he put down the crowd before MJF made his return to a massive ovation. Really good segment, though I didn't love MJF's line about not needing New Japan or Vince McMahon to get over. Name-checking Vince in 2024 feels like name-checking Jim Crockett in your shoot interview in 94'. The WWE has really gone out of its way to make it clear that there are new bosses in town so going after Vinnie Mac doesn't pack the same punch as it did even 2-3 years ago. The rest of MJF's promo was good, though, and I hope he sticks to his promise of cutting out all the "cheap pop" stuff and returning to his true scumbag persona.

The AEW Six-Man Championships were on the line next as Death Triangle (Rey Fenix, Pentagon Jr., and PAC) took on The Bang Bang Gang (Jay White and the Gunns). This match started out strong, but then seemed like it fell apart a bit when PAC sold a devastating DDT from Jay White like he was really injured. After the close call in the opening match, having PAC work that kind of "reality-bending" spot seemed to take the crowd out of the action and they never really recovered. The match picked up quite a bit for its finishing stretch but this wasn't as good as the six-mans the Death Triangle had against the Elite last year, which were all-out wars with lots and lots of crazy spots. Will Ospreay is always a tough act to follow, even with all the high-flying that the babyfaces are capable of. Not bad, just not all that special or different from what you may get on an episode of Dynamite. Juice Robinsons return was another nice surprise here. (2.5/5)

Toni Storm defended the AEW Women's Championship in the next contest against "The Professor" Serena Deeb. Deeb promised that this match would be the best women's championship match in AEW history, but this didn't click for me. Storm is very over with the crowd, but is a gimmicky performer. They tried to put on a very straight-forward, physical match with lots of action but also inserted some awkward "cutesy" spots that seemed out-of-place for the rest of how serious the match was. I liked the Mariah May/Luther interaction on the outside and thought the finish was tremendous and super-violent (Storm hitting a piledriver from the second rope). (2.5/5)

Orange Cassidy vs. Trent Beretta followed. This also felt a little lackluster to me. I'm not sure why they had a stipulation match on TV and then went with no stipulation here as this feud absolutely deserved to culminate in a big, wild, super-violent match. I'm also going to go on record and say that I like OC's Jefferson Starship entrance more than the Pixies one. Terrific spot where OC pulled Beretta's foot out from under him and he dropped back-first onto the steps. OC ended up winning with a straight-up wrestling pin, which, again, was not exactly the finish I expected for such a personal feud. After the match, Beretta bolted. This felt like a Dynamite match more than a PPV-worthy match. (2/5)

The WTF Championship was on the line next as "The Learning Tree" Chris Jericho defended against Shibata and HOOK. I was in the minority when I reviewed the Jericho/HOOK match from the last PPV and said it was pretty good. This was similar - the kind of match that the Jericho haters will undoubtedly rag on but that had enough goofy-but-hard-hitting hardcore action in it to make it work. Of course, if you're not into things like plastic dice being used as weapons in place of thumbtacks or table spots that are practically designed to fail, a match like this will not rate highly with you. If, on the other hand, you can enjoy the convoluted double-submission spots and the overbooking (this match featured not one, but two run-ins on behalf of Jericho), this will likely entertain you more often than not. Bryan Keith actually doing Bounty Hunter shit and coming in to help Jericho win because he was paid to do so - like a real bounty hunter would - made sense but wasn't exactly the most creative or interesting way to have Jericho retain. Speaking of run-ins, HOOK delivering a T-Bone Suplex onto Big Bill through a table on the floor was a bonkers spot that I can't believe Bill was willing to take. Shibata was the glue holding this match together because, of the three, he's the most technically gifted and the crowd, at one point, got behind him pretty clearly. HOOK seems like he's been exposed a bit and looked lost at one point. Jericho was fine, but I still think he needs to disappear sooner than later. Entertaining for what it was. (3/5)

Jon Moxley vs. Takeshita was next. Takeshita, despite coming out on the losing end of multiple big matches this year, has a great aura...too bad that TK seems dead-set on destroying it. This was an Eliminator Match for a shot at the IWGP Championship, which means that if Takeshita won, he would be able to challenge Mox for the title. Talk about a tremendous match that suffered because of inane booking and presentation issues. Someone needs to tell Takeshita that being the fifteenth guy in the company who comes out with a mask on his face is not going to establish him as a unique entity. Mox came in selling an injured arm as it was wrapped up in bandages. Takeshita went right after his arm from the very beginning and it was excellent - a hammerlock slam, an armbar-pulldown-thing-a-muhjig on the apron, a leaping "bulldog"-type move onto the mat that targeted the shoulder, an insane powerbomb into an armbar - it was all brutal-looking. Mox, to his credit, spent the majority of the match selling and doing a good job of it. All of Mox's offense seemed to come from counters, which made sense as Takeshita was in complete control for so much of the match. I didn't like the unnecessary and already-been-done-to-death strike exchange sequences, but I'll give credit to Takeshita for at least utilizing devastating forearms instead of sticking to more chest chops. Some good false finishes too with Takeshita hitting the Death Rider at one point. The finish came when Takeshita unwisely started tossing chairs into the ring only for the ref to get distracted trying to remove them and missing Mox deliver a Curb Stomp onto one and then his own Death Rider. I'm not sure why Takeshita didn't win here, but I try not to let win/loss decisions affect my rating of a match because the action here was tremendous and even Mox, who I sometimes actively dislike, was good here. A better finish, one in which the right guy won, would've probably had me scoring this higher because the finish just really took away from what was yet another should-be "star-making" performance. (3.5/5)

Adam Copeland vs. Malakai Black in a Barbwire Cage match for the TNT Championship followed. I'm not a massive Copeland fan, but give this guy the opportunity to use a bunch of weapons and do crazy spots and he usually lives up to it - and that's been true since his earliest WWE days. Copeland got his "South of Heaven" entrance, a nice little nod to the Hell in a Cell match he had with Finn Balor which was...different than this one. This was weapon-filled and ultra-violent from minute one. Black got color first as Copeland slammed him face-first into the wire. I liked the spot where Copeland put wire on the turnbuckle, avoided at first, but then ended up dropping face-first onto it when Black kicked his foot out from under him. The crowd was 50/50 at times in the early going, but seemed to have gotten behind Copeland by the end. Black brought in a barbwire bat and ground it against Cope's face but ended up eating a barbwire bat shot into his gut minutes later. Black hit a sunset flip powerbomb off the ropes that sent Copeland through a table in a wild spot. We got a piledriver out of Copeland to make it even more clear that this was not a match the WWE would ever put on. The craziest spot was when Copeland wrapped barbwire around Black's body on a table and then performed a very, very ugly elbow drop from the top of the cage, landing directly on his feet and potentially obliterating his ankles and causing tremendous damage to his knees. Just a horrendous spot. By this point, we'd also seen a bunch of spear and heel kick attempts by both guys. The climax of the match was when Black kicked Copeland through the cell door and we got the arrival of Buddy Murphy and Brody King. For a brief moment it looked like they might actually join Copeland, but they "double-turned" and beat him up instead. This led to Gangrel - yes, Gangrel! - emerging through the ring and taking out Murphy and King before getting dropped by a Malakai Black heel kick. Black ate a spear, though, and then got choked out with a barbwire-assisted STF that was shot so close up that you could see the wire wasn't really slicing into Black's face. This was bloody, violent, and everything that a barbwire cage match should be. (4/5)

Mercedes Mone challenged Willow Nightingale for the TBS Championship in the next match. Mone's pre-match video was incredible and 1000% a heel thing to do, but she continues to get babyface pops no matter how grating her personality is (on-screen, at least). Willow is much easier to love, but I liked how physical and aggressive she was as the champion here; this was not the silly, fun-loving Willow Nightingale and it is this version of her that I would love to see her tap into more. Lots of crazy bumps from Mone, which seemed like her way of saying that she had every intention to continue to work the sometimes-reckless/often-entertaining style that put her on the map so many years ago. It's cool to see her up against a "monster" that actually has the agility and strength to put on a great match-up (which is not something I think we ever saw in her NXT/WWE run). There were some awkward moments and a handful of telegraphed moves that took me out of it a little, but the crowd was hot for the majority of the match (though sometimes got quiet in anticipation for moves rather than really booing/cheering anyone), audibly split 50/50 at times. At one point, Banks was able to lift Nightingale up in a Razor's Edge-type position, which was a feat of strength I had no idea she was capable of. Very impressive. I loved the various Meteoras that she hit. Willow getting the visual pin was a neat touch that I wasn't expecting but gives Nightingale an "out" and a potential way to build her up as a future babyface challenger for Mone once Mercedes finally do goes "all the way" heel. Statlander and Stokely turning heel after the match was interesting, but it all really matters where the storyline goes. Stat is not great on the mic, but Hathaway is gold and I'm all about him toning down the comedy and sinking into a real feud. Willow won't need a mouthpiece as a babyface if she continues to give spirited promos from the heart. Anyway, this was a good match, borderline great, but maybe just a few awkward moments away from being must-see. (3.5/5)

The AEW World Champion, Swerve Strickland, defended his title against Christian in the next match. This was what it was. Nobody expected Christian to win this match and interference from his Family was all-but-guaranteed, so the real question was whether the content of the match would be good and interesting enough to carry 20-minutes. Unlike most of the other matches on the show, specifically the major singles titles matches, you also didn't have a wild stipulation (Copeland/Black) or featuring two of the most athletically-gifted and talents in the world right now (Ospreay/Strong) to rely on. Christian is one of my all-time favorites, but at his age, he's got to rely on a bag of tricks that has been condensed over time, plus Nick Wayne and Killswitch aren't exactly heat magnets the way, say, a Dom Mysterio. This match was carried by a handful of really good spots, mostly out of Strickland. I loved the stomp on the announce table and the spear-into-a-Blackout kick, though I was less into Christian having to position himself (and remain in that position) to take Swerve's final double stomp from the top. I've seen others compare this match to the Logan Paul/Cody Rhodes match from earlier in the weekend as the finish was never really in question and the match had to rely more the character work and the entertainment value they could pump into it. To me, they were equally successful in delivering a match worthy of being on a PPV but didn't necessarily surpass expectations. (3/5)

Main event time - Anarchy in the Arena: The Young Bucks, Okada, and "The Scapegoat" Jack Perry vs. Bryan Danielson, FTR, and Darby Allin. The term "madcap" comes to mind when describing this match. It was violent, but there were also comedic elements. There were stunts and weapons and set pieces. Darby Allin was the clear MVP and star of this match and, at this point, it might be argued he has become "Mr. AEW," the "Go-To" if not the GOAT of the company. Danielson and FTR were fine, but it was Allin - getting hit by a truck, delivering a Coffin Drop off a balcony, busting out a flamethrower, and ultimately getting suspended by his feet for minutes on end (causing the crowd to chant "Please Help Darby") - who captivated the audience. On the heel side of things, this was Young Bucks' party all the way. The Bucks' style is not for everyone and their taste level in wrestling has long been questionable. Is it too "wink wink"? Is it too over-the-top when they deliver dozens of superkicks in one match? When they eschew realism for the sake of entertainment and cheap laughs? I'm not a huge big Bucks fan, but this is the environment in which their act works best for me. Putting thumbtacks on their Reeboks before superkicking Darby, delivering the TK Driver on a stack of oversized poker chips, stealing FTR's finisher and then destroying Dax Hardwood with an exploding chair shot, all the theme music stuff in the first part of the match, it all got huge reactions and was executed perfectly. For an act known for their "cringe" elements, it was almost surprising how little "cringe" there was, even when the Jacksons were mugging for and speaking directly into the camera. This was a ton of a fun, but I wouldn't call it an all-time great match or essential viewing. (3.5/5)

With a Kwang Score of 3.15-out-of-5, AEW once again delivered an excellent PPV/PLE. While Dynasty in April featured a Match of the Year contender in Ospreay/Danielson, a better World Championship match, and an excellent Tag Team Titles contest, this show was a touch more consistent. Mone/Willow, Copeland/Black, Ospreay/Strong, and Anarchy in the Arena were all great matches and thoroughly entertaining. The World Championship was fine considering the outcome was never in question while Takeshita/Moxley was on the way to being one of the best matches of the year before it fell into a trap of needless strike exchanges and an unfortunate finish that negated Takeshita's incredible performance. This show could've used a bit of an editor, though, as the Six-Man, Women's Championship match, and Orange Cassidy/Trent Beretta matches all came off a bit like TV main events rather than PLE-worthy fights. 

FINAL RATING - Watch It...With Remote in Hand

WWE King and Queen of the Ring

WWE King and Queen of the Ring

Jeddah, Saudi Arabia - May 2024

CHAMPIONSHIP RUNDOWN: Coming into this show, the WWE Universal Champion was Cody Rhodes, the World Heavyweight Champion was Damien Priest, the RAW Women's Champion was Becky Lynch, the SmackDown Women's Champion was Bayley, the Intercontinental Champion was Sami Zayn, Logan Paul was the US Champion, the RAW Tag Team Champions were The Miz and R-Truth, the SmackDown Tag Team Champions were Austin Theory and Grayson Waller, and the Women's Tag Team Champions were Bianca Belair and Jade Cargill (who retained in the pre-show). 

The first King and Queen of the Ring show began with Becky Lynch defending her WWE Women's Championship against Liv Morgan. I wasn't super into this. It wasn't that it was bad, but it was lacking some oomph. I understand why they decided to turn Liv Morgan heel, but she's just not nearly as good in the role as she was as a plucky underdog babyface. They got plenty of time, but they didn't tell any kind of story that I picked up on. If Morgan is a heel, she should be trying to cheat more. If Becky is the cocky, cool champion, she should be rubbing Morgan's face in the dirt a little bit more to me. It was a back-and-forth match between two wrestlers that aren't particularly great technicians or high-flyers or even brawlers but have gotten over on their characters. Unfortunately, I didn't see enough of that character clash shine through and felt like this match really only picked up once Dom Mysterio showed up (and, even then, I thought the execution of the finishing sequence was wobbly and telegraphed). (2/5)

The Intercontinental Champion, Sami Zayn, defended his title against Chad Gable and Bronson Reed in a triple threat in the next bout. Some really good stuff here, especially seeing Gable hit a double German Suplex on both Reed and Zayn at one point, plus an intriguing finish that saw Otis accidentally clobber Gable with a clothesline. The Gable/Otis storyline is over, but still feels a bit too comedy-based for me. For all the Gable/Angle comparisons, I can't fully get over Gable's whiny voice and the fact that he's my height (and I'm not a tall man). The folks over at Cagematch loved this, which is to be expected because it was non-stop action from beginning to end, but I went into it with 100% confidence that Zayn would retain and never really questioned that outcome. Each guy gave a good performance, but I'd like to see Zayn pushed away from the Gable/Otis stuff and given his own fresh storyline to sink his teeth into. Bronson is a monster who doesn't get to have enough dominant monster victories for me to take him seriously as a major threat. A good match, but nothing I'd go out of the way to watch. I also didn't necessarily love the logic - or lack thereof - with Gable not having Otis interfere more frequently and earlier in the match as it was a no DQ match. Why wait till the end? Also, Otis didn't seem conflicted in attacking Bronson Reed when the internal conflict of interfering was the sole reason Otis wouldn't have interfered earlier. Whatever. (3/5)

The Queen of the Ring Finals was next - Nia Jax vs. Lyra Valkyria. Lyra was basically an unknown coming into this, at least to me and most fans who don't follow NXT. I liked her Raven get-up. Nia was the favorite and showed off her power throughout the match. Lyra had to bring the energy here as Nia is and has always been a slow-moving "monster" worker with a limited moveset. We get the obligatory "My hole!/"That hurt!"" spot from Jax. The fact that those have become perfunctory in every one of her matches is grating. The match was fine, but the finish was EXCELLENT as Jax absolutely crushed Valkyria with her Annihilator/Bonzai Drop in the corner as Lyra was attempting a powerbomb. Triple H showed up for the coronation, though it wasn't mentioned that he was a former King of the Ring winner himself. (2.5/5)

Next up - The Men's King of the Ring final: GUNTHER vs. Randy Orton. The stakes for this were high as the winner would be given a World Championship match at SummerSlam (though it was unclear whether that meant they'd be challenging Cody Rhodes or Damien Priest). Orton got an extended entrance, the crowd singing along to every word of his theme. Great old school start with a collar-and-elbow tie-up, the crowd hotter for this than any match before it. The pacing and simplicity of the early minutes was terrific and the crowd was popping for the most basic of moves - headlock takedowns, shoulder tackles, chest chops. Note too how much fight Gunther put into escaping the headlock and how tight Orton's side headlock was - this was not a resthold, this was a struggle. After both attempting their finishers, Gunther took control with some big strikes to the kidneys and lower back. After wearing him down with a abdombinal stretch, Gunther hit a backbreaker for 2 and then a bodyslam, taking his time to dissect his opponent. Gunther went for a vertical suplex, but Orton countered with one of his own and then hit a big clothesline, but Gunther regained control and attacked Orton's knee (which Orton had been subtly selling for the previous few minutes). Orton hit a powerslam but didn't get all of it and Gunther rolled to the ropes. Orton hit the draping DDT but couldn't capitalize, selling damage to the lower back. The Viper called for the RKO, but Gunther shoved him away and hit a bodyslam and then a sloppy-but-still-decent splash off the ropes. Gunther went for another, but this time, Orton rolled out of the way and hit the RKO! Orton couldn't make the cover, though, and Gunther got to the floor. Orton hit his trademark sideslam on the announce table and then did it again before breaking the count (though I'm not sure how a match like this could end on a double countout). Gunther ate a back body drop on the floor and then hit a third sideslam on the table! Orton rolled Gunther into the ring but struggled to get into the ring himself. As he was climbing back through the ropes, Gunther hit him with a big boot to the knee and then applied a half-crab. Orton kicked him off but Gunther stomped on his knee and re-applied it. Orton was able to kick him off and hit the RKO, but Gunther struck him in his bad knee and rolled him up for 3! Talk about "outta nowhere" - I was not expecting that finish one bit. The replay showed that one of Orton's shoulders wasn't necessarily down - it'll be interesting to see if they use that as an "out" to lead to another match. This wasn't a Match of the Year contender, necessarily, but it was very, very good and, hopefully, means that we will see these two tear it up again because they have excellent chemistry. Terrific match. (4/5)

Main event time - "The Maverick" (and reigning US Champion) Logan Paul challenging Cody Rhodes for the Undisputed WWE Universal Championship. Paul and Rhodes started things off with some old school wrestling - not dissimilar to what occurred in the previous match (as Graves noted on commentary). Rhodes delivered a gourdbuster that didn't make much sense at that point in the match and was barely sold before Paul hit a crossbody to the outside and then drove Cody into the steps. After hitting Cody with some body shots in the corner, Paul hit what he calls an "Overbomb" (a reverse powerbomb) and then a gut wrench slam for 2. Rhodes got some offense in with a Disaster Kick and then took the fight to the floor. This proved costly as Logan Paul was handed a pair of brass knucks and caught Cody Rhodes in the stomach when he attempted a splash off the steps. Michael Cole called Paul out on it and this distracted Paul long enough for Cody to recover and take over the match, delivering a splash, a powerslam out of the corner, the Bionic Elbow, and applying a figure four. Cody got 2 off the Cody Cutter but had his attempt at a Vertebreaker reversed into a Cross Rhodes. Paul got 2 and then went to the top rope to attempt a frog splash. Cody was on his feet early, though, and Paul hopped down to eat a twisting suplex. Paul regained control, though, and dumped Rhodes to the floor. After slamming Rhodes onto the announce table a couple times, Paul set him up for a pedigree on top of the announce table only for Rhodes to hit him with a Cody Cutter on - but not through - the table. Cody had the match won by countout but stopped the ref's count. Logan Paul recovered as Rhodes went to clear off the second announce table and hit Cody with a huge right hand on the floor. Rhodes sold it like a baseball bat to the head and Paul posed on the top rope. Paul hit a HUGE splash through the Arabic announce table that looked incredible. Paul hit a Frog Splash back in the ring...but Rhodes kicked out at 2! We got a ref bump before Cody hit the Vertebreaker and got the visual pin. Logan Paul hit Cody with a low blow and then put the knucks back on, but got stopped by the guest ring announcer, a famous Saudi Arabian comedian. Rhodes hit THREE Cross Rhodes and got the W to end the match. Not an all-time great finish and not an all-time great match either, but above-average. The finish was never really in doubt despite all the little swerves and false finishes and, though it could be because I don't follow the weekly TV, I didn't really get the "big fight feel" or personal animosity. (3.5/5)

With a strong 3-out-of-5 Kwang Score, this show was solid from beginning-to-end, featured at least one could-be Top 10 WWE Matches of the Year, and also had offered a nice surprise finish in the opener. Valkyria/Jax was the weakest match on the card but even that one didn't overstay its welcome. "Mileage may vary" on the main event depending on how you rate Logan Paul - I thought this was actually one of his less entertaining/interesting performances - but the King of the Ring finals was incredible.

FINAL RATING - Watch It...With Remote in Hand

WWE: In Your House #6 - Rage in the Cage

WWE In Your House #6 - Rage in the Cage

Louisville, KY - February 1996

CHAMPIONSHIP RUNDOWN: Coming into this show, Bret Hart was the WWE World Champion, the Intercontinental Champion was Goldust, and the WWE Tag Team Championships were vacant due to an injury to Billy Gunn of The Smoking Gunns.

The last In Your House before WrestleMania XII kicks off with a somewhat infamous match - Razor Ramon vs. 1-2-3 Kid in a Crybaby match where the loser will be infantilized after the match is over. I'm not sure if that was actually part of the stipulation, but it was expected coming in based on the promos (if I remember correctly). I was a bit disappointed by the commentary on this as Vince and Lawler, not a pair I enjoy listening to too much these days as I'm generally averse to sexual assaulters/rapists, as they didn't really play up the history of these two. Maybe they thought it'd be beating a dead horse by this point? I thought the action delivered, though, and the crowd was into things. Hall was never the most dynamic worker, but what he could do in the ring was tell a story and do "the little things" so well that they got a reaction (his right hands are still among the best ever). The worst part was Kid's reliance on the sleeper, which felt like it was done to fill up time, and Hall's selling wasn't very convincing. Unlike in modern WWE (or AEW or really anywhere in 2024), you rarely saw a much smaller opponent control a match against a larger Superstar in the WWE so while Waltman's offense is sharp, hard-hitting, and well-executed, he has to rely on restholds to wear down Razor that slow things down at times. Ramon eventually gets the win with not one, but two Razor's Edge powerbombs - a nifty false finish I didn't see coming. (3/5)

Next up - Hunter Hearst Helmsley vs. Duke "The Dumpster" Droese. I remember this feud vaguely, but not too much about it. The future Triple H, who was doing a rich Blue Blood gimmick, was frequently paired against hillbillies (Henry O. Godwinn) and "blue collar" workers like Droese at this point in his career. This match would've been decent if it had shaved off 4-5 minutes and just been a squash. Droese isn't terrible, but his mannerisms do come off as a bit arrogant and unlikeable, which is something that other reviewers have noted on Cagematch. Its almost like he thinks he has the crowd behind him, but doesn't? Shlocky finish as Droese, the babyface, grabs a weapon for no apparent reason and gets outsmarted by the heel. Not good, but not as bad as one might think - just kinda awkward because the crowd wasn't really behind the babyface and the match was structured with an extended babyface "shine" that made him look like a cocky asshole instead of a fan favorite. If anything, Triple H showing resilience and craftiness made him come off as the hero. (2/5)

Freshly-turned babyface Yokozuna took on former stablemate The British Bulldog in the next match. This turned into more of an angle than anything. Yoko was HUUUUUUUGE by this point and Bulldog had no momentum coming into (or out of) this match, which is a shame because he could've used the clean W to get him heated up for the post-Mania feud with Shawn Michaels. Anyway...not very good and we don't even get what should've been an obligatory bodyslam spot. Yoko's offense looked good, but he was incapable of doing a real 10-minute bout. The interference finish after just 5 minutes leads to Vader showing up and the heels handcuffing Yoko and beating down on him until refs show up to stop it. I would've liked the commentary team mentioning that, because Yoko was a rulebreaking, dominant villain for so long, nobody is going to come out and help him, but neither Lawler or Vince explain that. (1.5/5)

After a video package detailing their feud - but mostly focused on Shawn Michaels' tragedies and triumphs over the previous few months - it's time for the Heartbreak Kid to take on Owen Hart in a match where his number one contendership (a word that may or may not a word) is on the line. There was little doubt that Michaels would win here as Michaels was in the midst of a massive push. Before the match, Michaels dances on top of the In Your House house and then swings down from it like Tarzan. I was shocked to see this match get 4-stars from Dave Meltzer, but, then again, it was rather slim pickings in WWE and WCW when it came to quality main events so this was probably considered "great" for the time but wouldn't be today. Maybe its because I just re-watched Owen/Bret from WrestleMania X not too long ago, but this match didn't "click" with me (no pun intended). Shawn comes out with some fire, launching himself onto Owen on the outside within the first few minutes, but then it feels like "The Owen Show" and Shawn spends a ton of the match selling a variety of submissions - none of which target Shawn's head, which was the major injury that their feud was based on. There's a great spot where Shawn tries another crossbody off the apron and Owen catches him with a powerslam, but a not-so-great spot later on where Shawn attempts a vertical suplex to the floor and Owen lands awkwardly on his feet. Owen finally hits an enziguiri that sends Shawn to the outside, but then arrogantly brings him back inside the ring for a pin (eventhough a count-out win would be sufficient in getting a title shot at WrestleMania). I know heels are supposed to be cocky and greedy, but Owen was also never above taking a DQ or count-out victory so I didn't love the psychology there. Shawn kicks out and goes into his babyface finishing stretch - yawn. I'm not knocking Shawn here because every main event guy in WWE history had this sort of comeback series in their arsenal since it got over when Hogan did it, but it's still kinda blatant. Shawn misses his first Sweet Chin Music attempt but catches Owen with the second and this one is over. Also, if you've seen any Shawn match from this babyface run, you'll know that Vince's lavish praise for him is really, really hard to listen to after awhile. No wonder the older adult male audience turned on him by the end of his title reign as there was only so much fans could take of listening to Vince's over-the-top reactions to every little thing "Mr. Charisma" did (that nickname didn't take). (3.5/5)

Before the next bout, Interim WWE President "Rowdy" Roddy Piper comes out and announces that Shawn Michaels is officially the number one contender for the WWE Championship and will challenge the winner of tonight's main event at WrestleMania XII. He then turns his attention onto the Yokozuna/Vader feud, which draws out Jim Cornette. I understand why Vader himself doesn't show up; if you have him go face-to-face with Piper, who won't back down and will obliterate him on the mic, but not viciously attack him, Vader looks like he's been "tamed." On the other hand, if you have Vader come out and attack Piper, you're basically setting the stage for a match that I don't think Vince was interested in booking in the short or longterm. Anyway, Piper is solid in this segment, lots of energy, and he gets in a good line about Michael Jackson. 

Main event time - Diesel challenging Bret Hart for the WWE World Championship in a cage match. This match is not nearly as good as some of the ones they had before it. Its a battle between two unmotivated, disinterested veterans and it shows. Bret saw the writing on the wall - it was impossible to miss - that Shawn Michaels was going to be winning the World Championship at Mania and was, as he wrote in his book, not necessarily sure about his future in the WWF (he had landed an acting gig on the Lonesome Dove TV series) and seemingly didn't feel like delivering anything creative here. Nash also had one foot out the door or at least eyeing it (he would jump ship to WCW in the summer and kickstart the hottest boom period in wrestling since Hulkamania as a founding member of the nWo). The crowd is not into this at all, which is surprising. Diesel is working as a heel, but gets cheered at times. Bret gets almost no reactions for anything he's doing, though, to be fair, him targeting Diesel's knees and legs doesn't really make for the most riveting action. The most famous part of this match is the finish, which see The Undertaker show up, climbing through the mat to pull Diesel away from the cage door as he's crawling out. It's a great visual and the saving grace of the match, though I'm sure Bret wasn't happy that he essentially "lost" the match because Taker's interference was the direct reason Diesel didn't escape. Overall, though, Bret and Diesel had plenty of time to put forth a great match that could've helped elevate and solidify Hart's reign while still delivering that finish, but they didn't. A disappointing match to me because I'm a huge Bret fan, but this was not good. (2/5)

If the main event had actually delivered something even close to the previous matches that Hart and Nash had put on, this might be one of the best In Your House events ever. The opener is good, Helmsley/Droese isn't too bad, and even Yoko/Bulldog can be excused for being a storyline-pushing angle more than a match. While I didn't love Owen/Shawn, there are plenty who do and the crowd is undeniably hot for it. But the dull World Championship match makes this show impossible to recommend. With a Kwang Rating of 2.4-out-of-5, this one lands in the territory of...

FINAL RATING - High Risk Maneuver

WrestleMania X

WWE WrestleMania X

New York, NY - March 1994

CHAMPIONSHIP RUNDOWN: Coming into this show, Yokozuna was the WWE World Champion, the Intercontinental Champion was Razor Ramon (though, Shawn Michaels claimed to also be the champion), the WWE Tag Team Championships were held by The Quebecers, and Alundra Blayze was the WWE Women's Champion.

WrestleMania X kicks off with Little Richard singing "America The Beautiful." Not at the same level as Aretha Franklin or Ray Charles, but not bad. Check out the dude sporting a replica Shawn Michaels leather jacket!

Owen Hart vs. Bret Hart is the opening contest and is every bit as good as most people remember it. Widely regarded as among the best WrestleMania matches ever, this one holds up. Everything both guys do is extra crispy. There's great mirror work when both guys take great bumps into the turnbuckles. I love Owen's heat segment and how he works on Bret's knee. While this may not be Bret's best ever match - he has too many all-time classics to not leave that open for debate - it is undoubtedly Owen's crown achievement in the WWE and it really can't be understated how important this victory was for him as it essentially propelled him into an upper midcard role that he'd occupy for years and years despite never really winning another feud or another major match in his entire career. I love Bret's character work after the finish, which is up there with the best ever done. Owen wins cleanly but not decisively and Bret is left to nurse his wounds and move on after being bested. I love the little things in this match like the urgency Owen shows from the very beginning, bending the rules but also make meaningful pin attempts at every opportunity while Bret wants to grind it out and teach his little brother a bit of a lesson. Wonderful transitions with both guys getting in their best offense without it ever veering into "you're turn/my turn" territory because of the selling and the way the match ebbs-and-flows. My only real complaint is the commentary as I'm not a big Lawler fan and Vince's cheerleading of the Hitman also gets to be a bit much. Great nearfalls throughout, especially the multiple times Owen kicks out at 2.9. Like a classic novel or movie, this is a match where you're splitting hairs when you rate it because it's either among the top 10 WWE matches of all time, the top 20, the top 50, or the top 75. In 1994, it may have even been in the top 5, but it's been 30 years and countless excellent matches have occurred since. Still, in terms of Brother vs. Brother matches or even all-time best pay-per-view openers, this is probably still number one. It is just that good. (5/5)

Doink and Dink vs. Bam Bam Bigelow and Luna Vachon in a special Mixed Tag Team match follows because, well, you need something of a palate cleanser after a masterpiece like the match that came before it. This is a sloppy mess. Matt Borne (aka "Big Josh" aka Matt Osborne) was no longer under the make-up and that meant a lesser wrestler was working here, either Ray Licamelli or Steve "The Brooklyn Brawler" Lombardi. It doesn't really matter because the majority of the match seems layed out for Vachon and Dink to provide comic relief. Vachon looks the best out of everyone as the Bammer looks completely unmotivated here (unsurprising considering he had main evented the previous Mania and the first King of the Ring less than a year before this). There are some noticeable miscues and the finish/post-match moments are particularly botchy. Not good at all. (.5/5)

We get another not-so-great match next as Randy Savage takes on Crush in a Falls Count Anywhere match. This is an example of the WWE taking a gimmick that worked wonders in the 80s and ripping it to shreds so that it could be more family-friendly and in-line with the WWE's brand rather than just letting Savage and Crush have a standard match that couldn't have been any worse. Instead of being your typical Falls Count Anywhere, the rules here are that you have to pin your opponent and return to the ring while your opponent tries to get to the ring within 60 seconds. Crush gets the first pinfall within the first 3 minutes, dropping Savage neck-first into the guardrail. This then leads to 60 seconds of inaction as Savage sells the damage before crawling into the ring (after taking some additional punishment from Mr. Fuji on the outside). And so a Falls Count Anywhere match then becomes fought in the ring, which means that if someone were to get a cover, it'd be meaningless because their opponent is already in the ring. Whew. Savage realizes this after hitting his Elbow Drop, rolling Crush out of the ring where he sells like he's fallen into a coma. I get that the Elbow Drop should be protected but needed to be revived from it by your manager splashing water on you? The fight continues and Savage drags Crush to the back, beating him down and then tying him up so that he can't return to the ring after he gets pinned. Not good at all. I used to think that Crush should've won this match because Savage was, ultimately, on his way out and Crush needed some big victories to maintain his credibility but having seen more Brian Adams matches over the years, I'm going to go ahead and say that Vince made the right decision having him lose here. The guy was just not good. (1/5)

Alundra Blayze (aka Madusa) took on Leilani Kai in the next bout for Blayze's Women's Championship. Not much of a match here as it goes under 4 minutes and they don't seem to have much chemistry. I wasn't expecting much out of this match, but it still under-delivered. (0/5)

The WWE World Tag Team Champions, The Quebecers, defended their titles against The Men on a Mission in a surprisingly strong, better-than-you'd-expect match that went under 8 minutes but still felt action-packed and smartly worked. It's remarkable how much better Jacques Rougeau was as a tag team wrestler compared to his generally boring work in singles as The Mountie. His partner is Pierre Ouellett, aka PCO, aka Jean-Paul Lafitte. Loved their double-team work here and Ouellett's awesome somersault splash to the outside. Way ahead of its time for the WWE and still impressive 30 years later. Men on a Mission aren't great workers, but they bring the energy that's needed and are good foils for the 'becers. Because this exceeded my expectations, I'd consider it above-average. (3/5)

The first of two WWE World Championship matches followed as Lex Luger challenged Yokozuna. This one started out great as Luger showed a ton of fire. Nothing super technical on display, but the back-and-forth was good and the crowd was hot. Unfortunately, things went dead once Yokozuna applied a nerve hold...and then another nerve hold...and the action grinds to a halt until Luger makes his comeback. Yokozuna having to work twice in one night was Vince booking himself into a corner as, even at his slimmest, Yoko did not have the stamina or the versatility to perform even a single 15+ minute match let alone two. When Luger makes his comeback, the crowd is with him, but he gets screwed by Mr. Perfect. As others have pointed out, Luger getting screwed by Perfect would've made more sense had it actually led to a Perfect/Luger feud (Perfect disappeared after this) or if they had really played up Perfect as being impartial in the build-up to the match (I don't believe it was even revealed that he would be the referee until he came out that night). Had those two elements been at play, I think this would've come off a bit better, but I thought the execution was good and effective because, at the end of the day, the crowd was chanting "bullshit" for the next several minutes (giving them even more of a reason to get behind Bret later on). Not the worst match on the show - there are too many other terrible matches on this card to make that a fact - but still bad stuff. (1.5/5)

Earthquake squashed Adam Bomb in near-record time. I'm not going to "rate" this match because it is way too brief. Like Savage getting the W over Crush (who, again, absolutely sucks), it seems odd that Vince wouldn't properly push the "next generation" of Superstars in these matches by giving them some spotlight wins on the biggest show of the year over guys that were winding down their careers. 

One of the most famous and influential matches of all time follows as Shawn Michaels challenges Razor Ramon for the Intercontinental Championship in what was billed as (but wasn't technically) the company's first-ever ladder match. This match has been written about countless times, but like the opener, there's a reason for it. This match is the blueprint for everything that came after it, but its not some weak, not-yet-perfected recipe. This match rules. This is also the first match that I recall - or that I've reviewed - where Shawn Michaels has clearly gone from being a very good midcard worker to clearly being a main event-worthy talent. He bumps like crazy but also delivers some hard-hitting, quality offense. I've heard people say that this match was "Shawn vs. a Ladder," but its far from it. Razor was never a guy that did a bunch of dazzling moves, but he's no slouch. His right hands are some of the best ever, he nails a sick chokeslam early, and he takes a hell of a beating in this match. The finish is one of the most memorable ever, but don't sleep on the expert timing of Shawn Michaels' struggles in the ropes. Violent, full of great spots and bumping, the crowd electric for all of it, the all-timer finish - another match that is as top-shelf as it gets, even if I'm not the world's biggest Shawn or Razor fan. (5/5)

A 10-man tag is supposed to happen next, but I'm guessing due to timing issues, it never happens. Instead, we get a video package hyping the main event - Yokozuna vs. Bret Hart for the WWE Championship. Burt Reynolds and Jennie Garth make their way down the aisle (I forgot to note that Donnie Wahlberg appeared on the broadcast earlier) to a decent applause before it is revealed that the mystery guest referee is none other than "Rowdy" Roddy Piper, who comes out to a much bigger pop. Bret comes out, limping, and Yoko goes right after him. Yoko hits a body slam, but Bret starts to fight back and connects with a dropkick before the kayfabe ex-sumo dodges another and regains control. Yoko chokes Hart on the ropes but Piper gets in his face, drawing another big reaction from the crowd. Bret goes for a headbutt but - in classic wrestling fashion - ends up taking more punishment than he's given because of Yoko is actually Samoan. Ha. Compared to the Owen match earlier, this match is being worked at a glacial pace and with much less finesse and technical wrestling, but the crowd is into it and I really think Piper is a huge asset here, his interactions with Corny and Yoko getting big reactions. The fact is, you need the bells-and-whistles to carry this match because Yoko was limited and had already worked a match earlier on the show. Yoko goes for a big splash in the corner, but Bret steps aside and then hits a huge bulldog from the top rope for a great nearfall. Bret hits the second-rope elbow for a less-than-great nearfall (its obvious Piper "pulls" the count before Yoko gets a shoulder up). Bret hits a flying clothesline and again Yoko looks to be down and out but gets the shoulder up a third time. Bret looks to land another splash but Yoko catches him for a belly-to-belly. Great spot there! I wasn't sure Yoko had the strength left in him, but he executed that very well. Yoko drags Bret to the corner for the Bonzai Drop but slips on a banana peel and takes a back bump off the ropes. Bret covers to get the pin. Not a very good finish there as it makes no sense that Yoko would lose his balance delivering his patented finishing move. For a guy known for so many all-time great match-enders, even knowing that it would've been unlikely for Bret to lock in the Sharpshooter, this match would've been much better with a more definitive finish that actually made it clear that Bret beat Yoko and Yoko didn't beat himself. (2.5/5)

A two-match show, but if there ever was a two-match show worth watching, this might be it. The opener and the Intercontinental Championship match are all-timers and arguably two of the top 10 matches the company had ever had up till this point. Though its Kwang Score of 2.31-out-of-5 might not seem super impressive, WrestleMania X is a mostly-watchable show in which the lesser matches are kept short and the great matches are given plenty of time. 

FINAL RATING - Watch It...With Remote in Hand

TNA Against All Odds 2008

TNA: Against All Odds 2008

Greenville, SC - February 2008

CHAMPIONSHIP RUNDOWN: Coming into this show, the TNA World Champion was Kurt Angle, Johnny Devine was the recognized X-Division Champion, AJ Styles and Tomko held the TNA Tag Team Titles, and Awesome Kong was the Knockouts Champion.

The pre-show video package is bonkers as it splices Presidential scandals with footage of TNA. I am completely clueless as to the tie-in there, but they also bring out a group of marines to perform the National Anthem so I must be missing something. The commentators make sure to note - multiple times - that the men challenging for the TNA World Tag Team Championships, BG James and his father "Bullet" Bob Armstrong attended Marine boot camp in South Carolina (where this show takes place) to put over how tough they are. The titleholders, AJ Styles and Tomko, are in the midst of a conflict because AJ has sided with Angle and Tomko sided with Christian in their on-going feud. AJ and Tomko put over Armstrong's toughness and BG does most of the work for his team, but this is still a silly match to have for your championships on a PPV (well, I guess technically this was on the pre-show, but still). The right team wins after 8 minutes (it felt like longer). Not as terrible as it could be, but not good. Another example of Styles carrying a bunch of lesser talents to something passable through sheer energy, connection with the crowd, and bumping. (2/5)

Traci Brooks vs. Payton Banks follows in the actual kick-off match of the show. The crowd is hot for this and I'll give Brooks and Banks credit for their effort. This started out very sloppy, but actually got better as it went on - to the point that I may have even been interested in seeing what they could've done with just 1-2 minutes of ring time (the match goes barely 5). Brooks was over with the TNA crowd, but she was not a good worker. Banks is the better worker and would go on to have a very respectable run in the indies over the next decade, but never really got a shot in the WWE for whatever reason. (1.5/5)

Scott Steiner vs. Petey Williams was up next. If the first two matches were a bit underwhelming, this one overdelivered. Scott Steiner may not have have the cardio to keep up with Williams, but his offense still looked vicious and Williams always had great execution, bumping ability, and fluidity to his movements and moves. The crowd is hyped for this too and, at one point, there are loud "Let's Go Petey/Let's Go Steiner" chants. A very fun match where it actually seems like Williams might steal the victory due to Steiner's overconfidence, exhaustion, and some shortcuts along the way (a mule kick to the balls, Steiner getting his head run into a briefcase). Not a "must watch" or even close to it, but this exceeded my expectations and made me care about a Petey Williams match, which is not something that has happened often during my TNA viewing despite his obvious in-ring skills. (3/5)

James Storm vs. Eric Young for Young's "Beer Drinking Championship" followed. Young had a cheap - but somewhat funny - video package before the match. The match was fine, but nothing spectacular. Rhyno made his return to TNA in the end to take out Storm with a Gore. Dependable midcard action seemed like the ceiling for these two at the time as they always delivered a "good enough" match and, at times, exceeded that. (2.5/5)

TNA Knockouts Champion Awesome Kong defended her gold against ODB in the next contest. The crowd was into ODB, but this wasn't on the same level as Kong's matches against Gail Kim. The energy was there, though, and I liked how ODB kept bringing the fight to Kong despite the size difference. Not a bad match, but not long enough to be considered in the "great" range. (2/5)

The next match was dubbed "Barb Wire Massacre" and did not take place in South Carolina, but rather back in Florida due to the "extremeness" of the match stipulation. Abyss had been feuding with Judas Mesias, his kayfabe half-brother, for awhile by this point. The hype around this match would've been hard to live up to, but I'll give credit to both guys for taking some gnarly bumps (especially the shirtless Mesias). The pace was slow, but that makes sense in a match like this because they needed to build up the drama of seeing someone get "massacred." Still, 15 minutes is just a bit too long for either of these guys to work especially against each other. A "spectacle" that was gory and violent, but not very interesting. (3/5)

Booker T was mega over with this crowd and I'm not sure why exactly? He's famously from Houston, but maybe he's got some other connection to Greenville aside from that area being usually considered part of NWA/WCW's "territory." Anyway, they are red hot for him and cheer him on as he comes in and immediately takes over this match against Bobby Roode, who had accidentally slugged Sharmell at the previous show. I like how Booker T dominated the majority of this match even after Payton Banks tried her best to interfere and give her man the advantage. Roode abandoned the match to lead to a double count-out, which seems like a mistake because I really doubt that any future match would be as heated as this one was. (2.5/5)

A hardcore 6-man streetfight for the future of the X-Division followed as Jay Lethal and the Motor City Machine Guns united to take on Team 3-D and Johnny Devine (who was the X-Division Champion). For all the wild plunder and weapon shots, I thought the best moments were the MCMG's speedy double-team offense and a career performance out of Jay Lethal where his execution and timing was just off the charts. Bubba hitting a piledriver on a blow-up doll was goofy, but this match was designed to harken back to their ECW glory days so I wasn't surprised to see a little bit of crowd-popping comedy thrown in. My only real gripe was how much the commentators made this about Lethal overcoming the odds and winning the match 1-on-3 instead of at least giving some credit to the MCMG for all they did in the match. Just felt like they were kinda shitting on them a bit. A good match and maybe even a great match for TNA/WWE in 2008, but nothing I'd strongly recommend or put in "must see" territory. (3/5)

Main event time - Kurt Angle defending the TNA World Championship against Christian. Just like their match at the previous show, a very good match in terms of technicality and execution is marred a bit by being fought between two unlikeable heel characters. Samoa Joe is the Special Guest Enforcer, but does not get super involved until the final few minutes (as one would expect). There are some really good spots in this and these two know exactly how to build a match from beginning to end, with Christian doing a nice job of setting a pace that was not as manic as Angle can sometimes get. The finish was a bit overcooked and when Tomko made his appearance, it was clear that he was going to turn on Christian...which is basically the same exact finish from their previous match at the last PPV. In a sense, it is great to see Christian get his comeuppance after treating AJ and Tomko so terribly when they were part of the Christian Coalition, but its not like you're really cheering for Tomko or for Angle here either. (3/5)

As the old adage goes, it's worse to be boring than to be bad. While Against All Odds earned a decent 2.5-out-of-5 on the Kwang Meter, there is not a single match worth checking out on this card. The main event, six-man, and Barb Wire Massacre matches are good-not great. Scott Steiner vs. Petey Williams is the most interesting bout on the show due to the clash of styles and size difference, but I wouldn't call it "must see" for anyone but the biggest Big Poppa Pump fans.

FINAL RATING - High Risk Maneuver

WWE Judgment Day 2005

WWE Judgment Day 2005

Minneapolis, MN - May 2005

CHAMPIONSHIP RUNDOWN: Coming into this show, the WWE Champion was John Cena (and was still on SmackDown), while Batista held the World Heavyweight Championship on RAW. The United States Champion was Orlando Jordan, the Intercontinental Champion was Shelton Benjamin, the Women's Champion was Trish Stratus, the Cruiserweight Champion was Paul London, the World Tag Team Champions were on RAW and were Rosey & The Hurricane, while SmackDown's WWE Tag Team Champions were MNM (Nitro & Mercury). 

The opening contest is for the WWE World Tag Team Championships as MNM defend against the makeshift team of Charlie Haas and Hardcore Holly. This is a solid opener - nothing special, but not bad at all. Haas looks very good here and has some really strong offense. I liked MNM's heel work too. I wasn't surprised to see on Cagematch that this match got some love from Meltzer in the Observer as it was above-average and entertaining from beginning to end, not overstaying its welcome and featuring hard work from everyone involved, including Holly. (3/5)

Carlito vs. Big Show was next. This goes under 5 minutes and isn't very strong. The "big moment" is when Matt Morgan, who looks like his hair and goatee have been painted using black shoe polish, hits an F-5 on Big Show towards the end to help Carlito win. At this time, many writers and fans believed this was done as a not-so-subtle jab at Brock Lesnar, but, looking back, I don't think it was about Lesnar as much as it was about trying to push the strength of Morgan (and the relative ease of the move aside from actually being able to lift Big Show). Unremarkable, but inoffensive. (1.5/5)

The Cruiserweight Champion, Paul London, defended his gold against Chavo Guerrero in the next contest. They get 10 minutes and they pack it with very good wrestling and, from London, some great dives and high-flying. The crowd isn't super into it, but that's to be expected as the WWE audience never really got behind this division or any other attempt the WWE ever made to showcase light-heavyweights. Solid action, but not really a "hidden gem." (2.5/5)

Booker T took on Kurt Angle in a grudge match next. The storyline leading up to this match was incredibly off-putting. Angle was obsessed with Booker's wife Sharmell and openly stated that he wanted to sleep with her/sexually assault her. Its really gross stuff that overshadows whatever might've been good or interesting to see from these guys in the ring together. Booker brings the intensity to the match, which makes sense considering the storyline, but the finish is a bit too "wrestling" and I'm not sure they shouldn't have just had Booker eventually snap and destory Angle with a weapon to get the DQ loss but the moral victory. The post-match allows Sharmell to get revenge on Angle by kicking him in the junk. Speaking of junk, this storyline was junk, was criticized widely at the time, and has only aged worse. The match is decent, though. (2.5/5)

Orlando Jordan defended his United States Championship against a babyface Heidenreich in the next match. Yup. This is about as terrible and WrestleCrappy as you might imagine. Heidenreich's babyface gimmick is all sorts of cringe as he seeks out a friend before the match and then recites some poetry. This is almost more offensive than Kurt Angle doing a rape storyline. The match lasts less than 5 minutes but with all the extra garbage, the segment feels like three times that. I guess there is some comedic value in seeing how awkward Heidenreich is here. (0.5/5)

Rey Mysterio vs. Eddie Guerrero in a rematch from WrestleMania 21 follows. At Mania, Guerrero was still ostensibly a babyface, but he'd gone full heel by this point, viciously brainbustering Mysterio on the steel steps in the build for this match. As expected whenever these two are in the ring together, we get an incredible match with lots of lightning-quick sequences and high impact moves. So much good character work out of Eddie here and Rey's offense looks equally as devastating and purposeful at times. This is not Mysterio showing reluctance in battling his one-time friend and tag partner, this is Mysterio trying to hurt Guerrero just as much as Guerrero is trying to hurt him. The difference is that Guerrero will bend every rule to do it and, by the end, doesn't even care about getting the W in the history books - he just wants to cripple Rey. I've read some reviews that are super high on this match and some that are a little low (looking at you, Meltzer), but this is certainly in the "should-watch"/"must watch" category just because the crowd is electric for this, Guerrero and Mysterio are their usual excellent selves, and the finish, which could've been a total letdown, actually works at prolonging the feud. (4/5)

Main event time - JBL challenging John Cena in an "I Quit" Match for the WWE Championship match. Like the previous match, there are some great touches in this match that make it work. Their Mania match was not very good so they course-correct here and decide to just brawl it out after a little bit of requisite "wrestling" in the opening minutes. I love JBL bringing out the non-"spinner" championship because he still feels like he should be the recognized World Champion. Cena's entrance is great too and gives the match a major set piece to use later on. Cena gets busted open and is just pouring blood out of his head at one point, which is gnarly to watch. JBL takes a couple big bumps too, including a back body drop through a table that looks like it hurt like hell. They did some bumps on the hood of the limo, which popped the crowd. I liked JBL's face getting rammed through a TV despite how fake it looked. Lots of choking, which works because Cena - and JBL by the end - were both sporting crimson masks. Very vicious match unlike the much tamer "I Quit" matches that would follow as the WWE grew more and more "PG." I'm not a huge fan of the finish, which saw Cena threaten to impale JBL with part of the truck (the smokestack, or exhaust pipe), as I felt a little bit out-of-nowhere after JBL had withstood so much punishment. "I Quit" matches are always hard to end because you either have to do something with audio fuckery (Mankind vs. The Rock) or negate the stipulation by having the referee or someone else throw in the towel for one guy or you have to utilize submissions (which would be out of a place in a match like this, which was so much more of a weapons-and-set piece brawl). Still, a very good match and worth checking out if you're remotely curious about the early days of John Cena's run as the WWE's top guy. (4/5)

With a pair of great matches in Guerrero/Mysterio and the main event and some solid action in the opener and the Cruiserweight match, Judgment Day 2005 is a solid show that is hindered by a couple of matches that illustrate the weakness of the "brand-only PPV" concept. Orlando Jordan and Heidenreich were barely TV-worthy characters, so them competing on this show was always going to be nothing more than bathroom break fodder. Big Show/Carlito wasn't much of a match either, though, to be fair, it did further a storyline. Booker T/Kurt Angle might be the biggest disappointment, though, only because these two showed some good chemistry and willingness to get their hands dirty with a physical, violent contest. Unfortunately, the story that led to the match is so cringeworthy, it casts a shadow on what is an otherwise good match. With a Kwang Score of 2.57-out-of-5, I'm giving this a...

FINAL RATING - Watch It...With Remote in Hand

WWE Backlash: France

WWE Backlash: France

Lyon, France - May 2024

CHAMPIONSHIP RUNDOWN: Coming into this show, the WWE Universal Champion was Cody Rhodes, the World Heavyweight Champion was Damian Priest, Sami Zayn was the Intercontinental Champion, Logan Paul was the United States Champion, The Awesome Truth held the RAW Tag Team Championships, Theory and Grayson Waller held the SmackDown Tag Team Titles, the RAW Women's Champion was Becky Lynch, the SmackDown Women's Champion was Bayley, and the Kabuki Warriors were the reigning Women's Tag Team Champions. 

For the first time in WWE history, Lyon, France played host to a WWE PLE/PPV - the 2024 edition of Backlash. The show kicked off with French-Canadian Kevin Owens teaming with Randy Orton against the Bloodline's Solo Sikoa and Tama Tonga. Owens and Orton got extended introductions and the crowd was incredibly loud for them, singing along to their entrance themes so loud that it nearly drowned out Cole and Graves on commentary. This one started out red hot with the heels and faces brawling before the match could even begin, clearing the locker room of referees and officials (2 of which ate Stunners from KO) before the SmackDown GM Nick Aldis came out and re-started the match as Anything Goes. The combatants then brawled throughout the arena before eventually finding their way back to the ringside area. Very good brawling here when the faces dominated, but the heel heat segment was a bit "mid" as the kids call it. Orton spent an exorbitant amount of time on the outside so that Owens could get beaten down by kendo sticks and garbage cans. Tama Tonga's brother Tanga Loa made his debut to help the heels gain the upperhand and get the victory following a Solo Sikoa spike to Owens. This match started better than it ended and I have no clue who Tanga Loa is and was surprised to learn that he wrestled as the forgettable Camacho character nearly 10 years ago in the WWE. (3/5)

After a lengthy break, Bayley defended her SmackDown Women's Championship against Tiffany Stratton and Naomi in a triple threat in the next match. Bayley was the most over of the three, but Naomi got a big response for her entrance and Tiffany Stratton definitely had some fans in attendance as well. Stratton had a star-making performance at the Elimination Chamber match a few months back and once again stole the show here. Bayley's sunset flips didn't look too great, but aside from that, this was an excellent match and I loved Bayley's reactions to the crowd's chants (at one point, she could be seen saying "I don't know what you're saying" with a smile after the crowd started chanting "Seulement Deux!" after every 2 count and then figured out moments later). This was the best of Naomi I've seen since her return as she's had some shaky performances. This wasn't "must see" but it was a step up from the previous match and Stratton's Alabama Slams into the announce tables were absolutely brutal to see. I kinda wish they had found a bigger "death blow" to Stratton to lead to the finish, but Bayley using a roll-up on a tired and beaten-down Naomi made logical sense to me (despite some fans criticizing the finish for being a bit "flat"). They got plenty of time and they put on a great match. Very good stuff. (3.5/5)

The World Heavyweight Championship was on the line in the next match as Damien Priest took on Jey Uso. Jey Uso is undeniably over - or at least his catchphrase is - but I still haven't seen him deliver a truly great singles match and this wasn't it either. I liked the story of Priest wanting to win this match on his own but JD McDonough and Finn Balor interfering anyway to help him retain his title. Solid match, but the suspense really only picked up when Balor and JD were involved. Feels like the bells-and-whistles of the Judgment Day story carried this match much more than the actual interactions between Jey and Priest. (2.5/5)

The Kabuki Warriors defended the WWE Women's Tag Team Championships against Bianca Belair and Jade Cargill in the next match. I'm not sure giving these four such a long match was a great idea as the match dragged a bit in the middle. There was an awkward stretch between Cargill and Sane that the crowd picked up on, but they recovered and the finishing stretch was very good. Cargill is a freak talent, no doubt, but she still looks a bit lost and robotic at times. Then again, the same thing can be said about Belair, who has worked with Asuka extensively over the past year but doesn't have the chemistry with her that one would imagine they'd have by this point. (2/5)

Main event time - AJ Styles vs. Cody Rhodes for the Undisputed WWE Universal Championship. Cody mentioned in a promo that this wasn't a "dream match" for him - it was a must win situation. Like every other match on this show, this one got plenty of time, running nearly 30 minutes. Personally, I would've liked this to have more of a story beyond both guys just taking turns dishing out punishment. At one point, Styles took a vicious Irish Whip into the bottom rope, for example, but then was back on offense within 30 seconds. Ditto for the powerbomb into the announce table. By this point, I'd also tired of the French audience and their constant singing. Yes, the energy level was great...but the repetitive chanting and singing got obnoxious. Cody kicking out of Styles' Burning Hammer seemed lifted wholesale from one of those NJPW epics and felt out of place here, almost more of a Hulk Hogan moment. (3.5/5)

With a Kwang Rating of 2.9-out-of-5, Backlash: France was another strong showing from the WWE, though not a single match struck me as "must see." By the end of the show, I was more bothered by the audience than I was delighted. The match of the night was the Women's Championship bout as the main event went a tad too long and didn't have a clear enough story. 

FINAL RATING - Watch It...With Remote in Hand

AEW Dynasty 2024

AEW Dynasty

St. Louis, MO - April 2024

CHAMPIONSHIP RUNDOWN: Coming into tonight's show, Samoa Joe was the reigning AEW World Champion, the International Champion was Roderick Strong, the TNT Champion was Adam Copeland, the FTW Champion was HOOK, the AEW Tag Team Championships were vacant following the retirement of Sting, Julia Hart held the TBS Championship, the Women's Champion was Toni Storm, the Continental Champion was Okada, and the AEW World Trios Champions were Billy Gunn and the Acclaimed (though they'd lose those titles to the Ring of Honor Six-Man Champions Jay White and the Gunns in a title unification match during the Zero Hour pre-show). 

Dynasty 2024 kicked off with Okada vs. PAC. The crowd was a bit quieter for this than I expected, though they did get "liver" as the match wore on. The finish was never really in question as Okada is going to need some signature wins to establish himself and PAC is a great opponent for that aim because of his top-shelf execution and the respect he's earned from the AEW audience. The lack of real heat hurt this match more than anything they did or didn't do. A good match that didn't reach the level of "great" that people probably hoped for despite getting plenty of time to get there. (3/5)

A six-man followed as Mark Briscoe, Adam Copeland, and Eddie Kingston took on The House of Black (Malachi Black, Brody King, and Buddy Matthews). After the match went 20+ minutes, I was shocked that this match got so much time. There were some cool spots, but this match felt like it "peaked" a couple 4-5 minutes before we actually got to the finish and the crowd seemed to be bored with it by the end. It also goes to show that the wrestling that we see on TV every week is at such a high level that a match like this - which, again, had some really cool moments (all three of the babyfaces hitting spears at the same time, a cool front-flip splash from Briscoe) - comes across as just kinda average. (2.5/5)

The TBS Championship was on the line next as Julia Hart defended against Willow Nightingale. I liked this match, though will readily admit it wasn't some all-time great or, as the kids would say, a "banger." Julia Hart has improved over the years and, along with Brody King, makes up the better and more interesting half of House of Black. I really hope that if/when Black and Buddy Murphy make their departure, Hart and Brody are pushed strongly because they have both been doing great work. Good action here and I'm glad they didn't go overboard with multiple false finishes and kickouts. They didn't need to. I wasn't intrigued with the post-match, though, as Mercedes Monee came out and stole Willow's thunder. Didn't we just see this with Danielson and Eddie Kingston a couple months back on Collision? I read after-the-fact that Hart was injured coming into this match, but she didn't half-ass it one bit and really gave her all to give Nightingale a big win despite their feud taking a backseat behind Monee's debut since the former Sasha Banks showed up. (2/5)

Roderick Strong defended his International Championship next against former stablemate Kyle O'Reilly. Compared to Strong's feud with Orange Cassidy building up to his title win, this felt really cold and the crowd was not super into any of it, even the finishing stretch. Kinda like the six-man tag, this one felt like it ran a good 3-5 minutes too long and "peaked" long before it ended. I like O'Reilly, but he needed more high-profile wins to make him seem like a true contender, while Strong could've used a few more high-profile defenses to give the title the same credibility that Orange Cassidy gave it. The action and work was good - with these two, the chemistry is obviously not an issue and they are not at all afraid to hit each other hard (even with KOR coming off an injury) - but this might've had the littlest amount of "heat" of any match on the card. The finish was also confusing as Wardlow made his way out to the ring, didn't really do much, but, on commentary, was referenced as the key factor in Strong's victory. How so? (2.5/5)

I was expecting to loathe the next match: HOOK vs. Jericho for the FTW Championship (because AEW seemingly doesn't have enough singles titles for guys to fight over) in a match fought under "FTW Rules" (no DQ, falls count anywhere). Their match on Dynamite (or was it Collision?) a few weeks back was interesting because HOOK essentially dominated Jericho. Still, this whole storyline has reeked off re-heated leftovers as we've seen Jericho serve as the mentor or tag partner to any number of guys over the years and, in none of the cases, have we really seen the chemistry that Jericho showed in the WWE with guys like Kevin Owens, Big Show, and others. In AEW, we've seen Jericho have extended storylines with MJF, Sammy Guevara, Daniel Garcia, Action Andretti, Adam Cole...and while they have produced some good moments, it's essentially been the same story over and over as Jericho plays the mentor/Superstar and the young up-and-comer has to prove he can hang with the Ocho. The biggest issue, though, is just that Jericho hasn't taken more than a couple weeks or months off here or there since debuting in AEW and the audience, as we heard in this match, is clearly just sick of the guy. Jericho put on one of the best performance he's had in months...and the crowd still basically shit on him, breaking into chants of "Fozzy Sucks!" and "Go Home, Jericho, Go Home" at various points in the match. But, sadly, it wasn't like they were actively cheering HOOK either, who is still noticeably green. I don't like trash can spots - they sound better than they look - but the suplex through the table on the outside was nasty and, at one point, Jericho looked like he might've had his head cracked open when he took a German Suplex on the floor. This match didn't necessarily need 17 minutes, but it didn't feel overlong like the other matches because, even if he has been overexposed and desperately needs to step out of the spotlight, Jericho still has aura and knows how to build a match's suspense. He's a pro's pro in a company with many guys who haven't worked at his level and it shows. I've read a number of reviews that want to shit on this match because of how tired they are of Jericho, which isn't really speaking about the quality of the match itself, which was compelling and had more heat - "go away" or not - than any of the matches that came before it (despite those matches featuring much better technical wrestling and high-flying and high spots and all those things that wrestling fans love). I wouldn't call this a "must see" match, but it was an interesting one to watch unfold and exceeded my expectations due to Jericho's effort and ability. (3/5)

Toni Storm vs. Thunder Rosa for Storm's AEW Women's Championship followed. I'm a big fan of Storm, but have seen less of Rosa's "high end" work. I thought Toni looked great when she's on offense while Rosa looked a little sloppy at times. Toni Storm reminds me of Goldust in 96' at times - a brilliant gimmick that is over and gets great reactions, but when the bell rings, you don't get that same level of "holy cow." Rosa, meanwhile, is someone I want to root for, especially coming off an injury, but I never got the sense that the live crowd - or the fans online - were really behind her. A decent match and one that was better than what you usually get in a TV match, but the AEW Women's division is clearly not at the same level as the WWE's if one would consider this the best they could offer in the spring of 2024. (2/5)

Bryan Danielson vs. Will Ospreay was next up. The crowd was absolutely hype for this and these two did not disappoint, delivering one of the best matches of the year. I'm not sure I'd go as far as Dave Meltzer, who called this one of the best matches in US history, but in terms of modern wrestling, this was as good as anything that has ever been done in that style. Ospreay is an incredible athlete and is able to bust out moves that regularly blow my mind (at one point, he did a backwards flip off of Danielson's chest), but I won't deny that it was the American Dragon who wowed me even more. Danielson's execution of every move, counter, dodge, strike, and bump was not just flawless, it was spirited and emotional. There's no doubt that a guy like Roderick Strong or PAC has the athletic ability to do every move that Danielson can do and more, but Danielson's brilliance is that he does the little things that make these moves pop and feel like he is inflicting serious pain on his opponent. I loved the variety of submissions. I loved the back-and-forth action early and the way both guys made us wait for their big impact moves through cut-offs and counters. Ospreay's Shining Wizard on the outside was gnarly. The final 10 minutes kicked this match up to an even higher degree as we saw insane counters and cut-offs, including Danielson hitting a Busaiku Knee to prevent Ospreay from hitting an off-the-ropes Wizard. I loved the finish too - and, personally, from what I saw (without the benefit of replay), it looked like Danielson took the Tiger Driver 98' perfectly (natch) - as they had built up to it over the course of the match. I wrote a few weeks/months back somewhere that I did not want to see Danielson attempt to take the move and it still made me gasp watching it, especially after 35?+ minutes in the ring, but, man, what else could've put this one to bed? Tremendous match and easily among the top 50-100 I've ever seen, but I'm not sure I'd put it in the top 20. (4.5/5)

The vacant AEW World Tag Team Championships were up for grabs (literally) in a ladder match between FTR and The Young Bucks. These teams were fighting an uphill battle to start as they had to follow an easy MOTY candidate. The Bucks have also become even more controversial as workers and characters over the past 3 months than ever before as many fans have turned on them in the wake of their new EVP storyline. Fortunately, they have great chemistry with FTR and also had the benefit of being able to work this as a wild TLC match, filling it up with a whole bunch of great spots. I'm as tired of convoluted, PG-rated ladder matches as anyone, but this was not that. We got blood. We got big table spots. We got Cash Wheeler dropping groin-first on a ladder. It is in these types of matches that AEW really differentiates itself from the much tamer hardcore matches that the WWE puts on. The Bucks and FTR didn't reinvent the TLC concept here, but they absolutely delivered the goods and made this feel as violent and personal as it needed to be. The finish, which saw the return of Jack Perry, got a huge reaction and didn't feel like too much of a letdown as both teams got to shine and it protected FTR in the loss. Great, great match. (4/5)

Main event time - Swerve Strickland challenging Samoa Joe for the AEW World Championship. Swerve was mega-over with this crowd. Like FTR and the Bucks before them, Joe and Swerve had a tough task. Yes, the crowd was red hot and did not seem fatigued at all by witnessing two back-to-back excellent matches, but anything short of "really good" was likely to be viewed as an underwhelming close to the show. Of course, Samoa Joe can be counted on in these sort of situations, his batting average near 1.000 since joining AEW (honestly, I can't recall him having a bad match, though I'm sure there was at least one at his age). Joe controlled the early going, which is never a bad thing because he is so good at pacing a match and that layout - while nothing revolutionary - added gravitas and made this feel like a real Big Fight Title Bout. Strickland did a good job selling and fighting from underneath, but I do kinda wish he had found a way to integrate some of his heelishness into this match rather than wrestling it as a straight-up underdog babyface against Joe The Monster. While not as good as either of the matches before it, the red hot crowd and spirited, crowd-pleasing finishing stretch pushed this one very close to "must see" territory. (3.5/5)

Earning a strong 3-out-of-5 on the Kwang Meter, the first ever Dynasty PPV was an above-average show featuring at least two potential Top 10 Matches of the Year in the unbelievable Ospreay/Danielson match and the ridiculously fun Tag Team Championship Ladder bout. Though I haven't seen many AEW pay-per-views, I thought this show was a little bit of a step down from Revolution (which earned a 3.17 rating), but still largely entertaining with only a few matches really not clicking, specifically the Women's Championship bouts, the somewhat pedestrian 6-tag, and the undercooked and overlong O'Reilly/Strong matches. 

FINAL RATING - Watch It...With Remote in Hand