WingedEagle

Cosign the KO love this week. He's been one of the worst acts on Raw for months, but between his performance during last week's angle and the promo tonight he's a completely different character and one that you can very easily take seriously. Its a shame it took this long to get there again, but I"m much more invested in that match at Mania than I was 8 9 days ago.

Very much with you here. They're fun TV matches that feel like ***1/2 efforts that are laid out well enough and features a number of fun bumps or spots (when does that not happen in an AJ match?) that allow it to stand out from your standard TV filler, but there's hardly any depth or psychology that takes it to that next level. Its basically finishers and big moves from the start. I'm not complaining, as if we got matches like this every week the shows would fly by, but there's nothing memorable here.

That's probably true. But stereotypes aren't entirely false, they simply exaggerate it. Much like I saw someone wearing a 2020 reelection shirt in Central Park today. NYC may lean a certain way -- very heavily -- but nothing is 100%.

I agree 100%. Please keep that stuff away from here. Third. Fourth. Although I suppose its always good to be reminded that despite the level of discourse generally found here, there's a reason people stereotype wrestling fans. And its often correct.

Perhaps a silly question, but what are we Yes/No'ing? MOTY? Top 10 MOTY? Top 50?

I was afraid it would be a long night after the opening handicap match and related antics. But it ended up a strong night both creatively and in the ring, with Owens/Jericho a great climax to their angle and and the women's title match. I didn't expect the split until Fastlane or the next night, so this had the surprise factor going for it as well the execution and violence while also drawing it out over the course of the angle. Curious to see how they integrate it into the next PPV but I'm much more invested in their match at Mania than I was 24 hours ago. Charlotte's offense working the back & neck is awesome. Just plays a terrific heel who makes great use of her size advantage over the rest of the division both visually as well as in the style she works. Head & shoulders above any other heel on the roster. Thought they did a nice job teasing and building Bayley's comebacks while giving Charlotte probably 80% or more of the match. Sasha's save after Dana Brooke's interference was incredible predictable. And great. That was one of those moments when telegraphing a spot is absolutely for the best. Great moment to cap a good show. Easy **** match for me. They have worked themselves into a bit of a corner with Charlotte's PPV streak though. Unlike Undertaker, you can't exactly forget about this one most of the year. They need to find a way out sooner rather than later, but have built it up enough that you don't want to simply end it just to move on. But for whom and how do they set that up?

Really refreshing to see the lengths they went to to put Rikishi over as a threat and credible challenger. Even today the interference shenanigans at the end were enough to bring this down for me, but just a touch. A shame we never got fully fleshed out title match here. **3/4

This brought such a smile to my face. Its become easy to overlook how great weekly TV was at this time. Between the stellar mic work and some legit bumps including a sick suplex on the ramp, this was terrific fun and a prototype for successful TV. Of course, it helps to have performers at this level and they don't exactly grow on trees. **3/4

Arena Coliseo is very quickly becoming one of my favorite buildings. Love the look of the place. The initial beatdown on Atlantis was terrific. Perhaps it was too great, as the comeback and ensuing action never clicked with that same intensity. The layout and ideas were all there, but after that frenzied start I didn't feel hatred and violence at a level that others seemed to identify. ***

Solid match that was most notable for CIMA's commitment to working as a heel. Its not something I'm accustomed to seeing played up so strongly in Japan and as a result really stood out here. They seemed conscientious to pick up the action before slowing it down again on a number of occasions while building the match. While appreciated, I'm not quite as high as some others seem to be as it didn't quite seem like they had enough material to fill the time allotted. It still built to a nice finishing stretch with some big action that felt significant down the stretch. ***1/4

Holla, holla, holla! I always get a kick out of Teddy.

That was an outstanding Elimination Chamber. Hate to jump to big conclusions in the moment, but that felt like the best EC I've seen.

Wow. Crowd really had the wind knocked out of it with Cena's elimination.

This match has been laid out just about perfectly thus far, particularly the order of entry and how everyone got an appropriate spotlight.

This isn't the first time its been said, nor will it be the last, but it very much feels like this match in particular would benefit *tremendously* from blood. As it is this has been a really great EC match thus far.

From the look & sound of it they're now using some kind of cushioning/mat that's presumably a lot safer. As AJ takes a sick powerbomb on it.

From the look & sound of it they're now using some kind of cushioning/mat that's presumably a lot safer.

Well they're certainly starting this one the right way. Hyped.

So Nikki and Natalya have a couple of nice looking TV brawls building up the big match, and proceed to go the amateur Randy Orton route on PPV.

Call me crazy but Alpha/Ascension has been the best part of the tag gauntlet thus far.

That may very well be the case. I totally get it with the desire to integrate WWE, Total Divas, the whole promotional deal. It just cuts off an easy opportunity to have a special match at Mania.

By the way, love that. Miz and Maryse have been such a great act. Agree they've been a very fun act. But there's no reason to expect anything special out of that match at Mania. Would've liked something with a bit more substance and potential for Cena to hit a home run.

Latest reports are Cena/Nikki vs. Miz/Maryse. You read that right.

Really looking forward to the Chamber match. Can't see how its anything worse than very good given the talent involved, time allotted and unique wrinkles the cage can add. Curious to see what AJ does in his first appearance here. Cautiously optimistic about Harper/Orton as the former almost always over-delivers and will hopefully overcome Orton's inclination to wrestle his matches in the right lane until its RKO time. Tag Title situation is definitely bathroom/extensive internet/other break time unless AA vs. Usos gets any extended time. Very interested to see how the women do tonight. Becky hasn't looked great in the ring lately and I'm curious to see if that's due to her opposition since the brand split or perhaps some of her own limitations. Natalya/Nikki have had some decent brawls on Smackdown so with the right layout and time that could be fun.

I was really impressed by this match and how effectively and smartly they worked it for this setting. This was a very simple match that opened with headlocks and basic counter action before progressing to Chono attacking the neck while Muto would work the knees with his dragon screws, dropkicks and figure-four offense. The pacing and selling projected very well for the Dome crowd. Chono's execution, viewed in a vacuum, is pretty poor. But they give almost every spot time to matter and register with the crowd and sell it as they build to bigger & bigger offense. The only thing really holding this back for me is that the finish felt a bit sudden. Perhaps that contradicts what a fan I was of Chono's neck work, but even though the STF is Chono's hallmark it seemed we were missing Muto fighting back once more before finally giving in. Still a really fun, old school main event. ***3/4