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The So-Cal guys definitely bring a different flavor to the stuff we have seen in 2000. This was an all action six man that didn’t take much time to breathe. As a result, the match wasn’t really “great” but it was fun to watch and probably pretty mindblowing in a 2000 context. Rising Son looked good here and I have always had a soft spot for Disco Machine’s gimmick. Super Dragon took more of a beating here than in the Taro match and ends up eating the pin which surprised me. ***1/4 (6.4)

Good match. Hoshikawa is shown as the senior throughout the match but Sugamoto does a good job of taking advantage of the openings afforded to him and using his speed. Hoshikawa really looks for a submission he can clinch on to earn a tap out. For the first part of the match it is the crab but eventually he relies of the Butterfly lock. I like how they showed that going back to the same hold could provide dividends later in the match. I haven't seen Sugamoto before but he was fine here. Not high end Osaka Pro but a good wrestling match nonetheless. *** (6.0)

Here we go with the hate. Villano's get popped coming into the ring but they band together and lay the fucking boots to Pierroth. Biting and hammering on Pierroth leaves him a bloody mess. Scorpio and Bestia come in to help but don't fare much better and Bestia gets pinned on a Hart Attack from the middle turnbuckle. They are so vicious refusing to let the armbar go on Pierroth that they get DQ'd. These are tecnicos I can get behind and their refusal to change their core competencies is so endearing. Violencia and Company try to make the save and Villano IV and V send them back through the entranceway. Ano 2000 comes out and here comes Perro Aquayo and Villano III to send him to the back to huge heat. VIllano and Perro raise each others hands in an excellent visual. With the mayhem in the ring still going on, Pierroth brings in what looks to be an VCR into the ring. Villano grabs that and smashes it into multiple pieces over Pierroth's skull. That draws the DQ and Bestia/Scorpio on the outside do a great celebration while their partner is laid out into the ring. Pierroth is selling this wonderfully compulsing. Welcome back CMLL! ***3/4 (7.5)

Short match but finally a bit of juice seems to be injected back into CMLL. This had the tecnicos all dressed in Felino gear which was an awesome touch and the action was relentless. The finishes were really good here with the powerbomb for the first fall and Fuerza sneaking in the nut shot for the second one. Blink and you will miss this match but it is perfect popcorn wrestling. *** (6.0)

Keep this up, exciting thread.

This felt like a waste of Ki overall. Billy Reil comes out and cuts a promo. He also gets into it with a fan and has the crowd chanting for him. That is all well and good telling the fans to show some respect in an unironic manner but aren't you supposed to be the heel? His "cousin" Mark Reil jumps Ki and they have essentially a squash match as Reil is really green and looks timid and botchy on most of what he tries. Ki dispatches of him and Berk attacks. A good 5-6 minute match here between him and Ki but it should have just been that match proper for 12-15 and presented as Berk being the hired gun for Reil or whatever. Ki is able to move past Berk as well. ** for the whole thing.

A quintessential Toyota match. If you like her style, you will dig this. If not, pass on through. I am pretty tolerable of Toyota overall and did think Sawai brought some bruising offense to the back to try to slow things down when the match called for it. The outdoor setting makes the wind effect be pretty rampant here. That is amplified with Toyota diving off of the stage structure in a nutty spot that really took pin point accuracy. Most of the execution was well done here and there continued to be an underlying issue between Toyota and the outsider factions of JWP and LLPW. A strong title defense overall and probably one of Sawai's last big matches. ***1/2 (7.0)

I really wanted this to be great and it just never got there. The action was consistent and good but the extra gear was never hit. Mosco wasn't too impressive as the lead heel and the main feud consisting of him and Park didn't have as much juice as other stuff inside the match including Silver King and Super Crazy. I thought Dandy was good here but this will never be presented as one of his marquee performances either. A good match but one I was hoping for more from. ***1/4 (6.3)

This was the Cerebro show. He conveys great frustration in the first caida not being tagged in and then is a prick for the remainder of the match. He could be the breakout lucha indie star of the 2000's right up there with someone like Terry Boy. The other guys I am pretty unfamilar with besides Ciclon and they were mostly ok. I thought Millonario had some good sequences while in there and Segura alternated between looking lost and executing some nice spots. Cerebro takes a huge monkey flip getting big air. A really fun trios lucha match. ***1/2 (6.8)

We start with a HHH promo. He is using SmackDown to kind of reiterate the big happenings of Raw. Nothing earth shattering, but nothing awful either. The sledgehammer is being emphasized more. The match proper is fine with the biggest heat spot coming from Steph grabbing Taker's hair and him stalking after her. Angle runs in as a receipt for what happened earlier in the show but he whacks Taker with the sledgehammer making it ambiguous as to who exactly he was aiming for. HHH gets the win. *3/4

Before the match starts we see Angle backstage with Steph. He gets a hug and then quickly pushes off when HHH emerges. HHH is pissed as Angle makes his entrance. His pyro scaring him is humorous. The match is nothing much but did see Angle trying to go after the legs of Kane and do other stuff to make it interesting for the four minute duration. HHH runs down and sends Angle into the steps really kickstarting what will be the SummerSlam angle. HHH sends Angle back into the ring where Kane is able to hit the chokeslam for the pin. *1/2

This is a neat feud that has continued to progress the Rock vs Benoit feud and made Eddy and Chyna look prominent as well. The match is mainly Eddy vs Benoit and pretty fantastic. Even the spots Chyna is involved with are well timed and get a big reaction. Both men are passed out when Shane O Mac makes his way to ringside. Shane attacks Chyna and gets a baseball slide from Eddy into the table. Benoit locks in the crossface which has really quickly been positioned as a top move. Eddy makes the ropes but Benoit fails to break. Hebner also gets locked into the crossface. Rock comes in to break it up and we finally have our Fully Loaded title match made official with a Rock promo backstage with Kevin Kelly. Benoit comes in and attacks Rock locking him in the crossface backstage. Great stuff developing the issue between Benoit and Rock. **1/4

It is tough to pinpoint the legend status of Takagi. He is the owner of DDT which naturally will create some goodwill amongst fans of the promotion. However, in the greater puro universe, with DDT being labeled as a comedy promotion, that kind of leaves the reputation of Takagi as a worker in somewhat muddled waters. I don't see it as entirely different as how people treat Quack as a worker and Chikara as a promotion. Quack did have the benefit of being in ROH, IWA-MS, and CZW. Here we have a match that had 0 comedy, was worked for the first 15 minutes on the mat and had a unique approach where the barbed wire wasn't necessarily used as a weapon but rather as a physical boundary that allowed neither man to escape from the other. The wrestling was really engaging and while I cam in expecting a bloodfest spectacle, I instead got a very thought provoking death match with logical mat work. The finishing stretch really changes that dynamic with Takagi taking three powerbombs from Onita right on his neck and kicking out of the first two to the delight of the DDT fans. This really felt like a local hero going up against a legend and seeing what his worth was on the overall pecking order. **** (8.0)

This felt like a perfect G1 block match. A few moments of really engaging opening matwork and then a nice, well built finishing stretch. Nothing felt overdone but the viewer also didn't feel cheated. Busa showed good restraint here and didn't over reach in the ring with Tenryu which was refreshing. Tenryu going for his dive to the outside gets a great reaction from Korakuen. Overall, this was a pairing where I wasn't sure how they would match up together, but it worked and left the viewer wanting to see more. ***1/2 (7.1)

Two young guys going out there and having a killer match. The strikes here were insane with loud thuds and snaps to them with no thigh slapping and other shortcuts. Mochizuki in particular is such a bruiser. Ishii is someone with a ton of hype in current day and he still had some of the same stuff down in this time as he is beloved for today. I can't wait to track him throughout the 2000's. Mochi seems to have the match in hand for the most part of the match and Ishii works good at getting his spots in to create intrigue. Mochi is able to put him away. Humorous moment post match as Mochi cuts a promo and spikes the microphone and it bounces right into Ishii's hands. I say if you like either of these guys now, this is a piece of history in their career that certainly holds up. ***3/4 (7.6)

I had high hopes for this based on the beginning. The hate felt real and the match revolved around big punches and weapons with malice instead of stunt show and walk brawling. Then they spill out to the parking lot where the camera can't follow them and we lose a bit as when they return Blaze is in control and the walk brawling is pretty prevalent. Back inside the ring, things continue to be a bit of a sludge as the interference from the outside happens constantly for Blaze. Corp is a good underneath seller but this is really gratuitous. Match also falls into the IWA-MS death match trap of being about five minutes too long. Referee bump happens and this is a 2-1 match culminating in Corp going through a light tube cluster in between chairs and getting pinned. A ho hum end to the night. **1/4

Another good match in the cannon of Hero out of the gate. Kid also worked well here. Hero isn't all the way there but he is perfectly capable of having good enough indie highlight style matches around this time that do involve some sort of story. I appreciated the dive to the outside and it looked like Hero was supposed to take a rana but the weight of Kid took Hero down. Good improv as Kid just stops punching Hero quickly. For 2000 showcase indie wrestling this was good even if the crowd was silent. Ian comes out post match and rags on the crowd in great fashion for not cheering harder during the match. He then gives a bevy of threats that this is the last show here "unless a lot of concessions is ate during intermission". I don't know about berating your actual paying customers but Ian is going to Ian I guess. He does put over Hero well and its clear they see something in Hero already. *** (5.8)

This was a neat match. It is a squash for Kickboxer right up until the finish. His strikes and MMA are really strong here and I wish he went more that way instead of the highspot oriented style as this holds up a lot better. The finish has some interference from Uncle Honkey which puts Kickboxer out and Hy-Zaya to get the win after getting decimated for the entire match. **3/4

Man, this was great. Crazy Max may be sort of the good guys in the M2K feud but they are still rudo at heart and dickheads here just wailing on TM and trying to unmask him. Fujii does his sumo nut shot that gets a big pop out of me. I also love the assisted giant swing with CIMA landing a dropkick in the end. This was the perfect mixture of compelling action telling a story and having some comedic elements sprinkled in. The Sasuke drama was a little hard to follow but led to a dramatic finale where the real Great Sasuke stood up and did some amazing dives leading to TM obtaining the submission. Awesome match. **** (8.1)

Main event here for the right to face Booker at the next PPV. Kanyon as the DDP cosplayer is an awful gimmick. Goldberg is essentially a face here and gets the best reaction of anyone. With Goldberg and Steiner facing off, you have your money match. Jarrett dives in and steals the win which is a whiff since him vs Booker isn’t much of a feud with juice. At least he did it without a bevy of interference and they do have a big feud on their hands with Steiner and Goldberg. *1/2

Kidman takes a nasty hiptoss over the top rope onto the floor. Jarrett really loves brawling around the floor around this period and it is discouraging considering the sound technical base he exhibited early in the 90’s in USWA. Kidman has some great highspots in this short match. Torrie comes out and that allows Shane Douglas to interfere and attack Kidman. They seem to be rekindling the Francine/Douglas dynamic. I was happy that Kidman at least was able to kick out of the Jarrett pin attempt and Kidman is getting some decent crowd support. After a minute of action, Jarrett gets the Stroke for the win. **1/4

They start out chronicling what happened at Bash at the Beach. Booker T comes out and gives a heartfelt promo thanking the fans and having the regret that his mom had passed on and couldn’t see him become a champion. With the pleasantries out of the way, Booker calls out Goldberg. Booker calls him a mark for himself and the business. Booker then moves on to thanking his wife who is decidedly not Sharmelle. Sadly, I looked up Booker’s bio and they were divorced around nine months later. Stevie Ray comes out and congrats Booker too. Just then Madaja comes out and cuts a promo allowing Steiner to sneak up from behind with a bat and lay out Stevie and Booker. I guess we have our next PPV challenger for the belt. The main event starts and I have to say that I’m enjoying Awesome in this WCW role more than him in ECW so far. He still isn’t great but has shown he can have some big man matches vs over babyfaces between this and the Hogan match. He feeds into their offense and comebacks and is credible enough when on top. This was overall a stronger match than the Jarrett title win IMO. Awesome’s big splash gets a good nearfall and he then retrieves a table. Awesome ends up going through that with a Booker forearms smash. Booker runs through his big arsenal of moves and wins with the Book End. How refreshing to have a main event end cleanly. Steiner runs in and locks on the Steiner Recliner. Awesome turns face by helping Booker T. I enjoyed this a good deal as a change of pace and showing WCW feeling different again. It is another reboot but at least it had a promising start. ***1/4 (6.3)

Shane and Benoit start Raw with a promo. I like this pairing and I thought Benoit more than held his own when asked to speak. Rock gives a rebuttal but they have put over the crossface well. Chyna and Eddy come out to chase Benoit and Shane out of the ring. Match between Rock and Benoit is only five minutes but they show good chemistry. Hebner gets taken out and Shane has a referee shirt on. Benoit locks in the crossface and when Rock grabs for the ropes, Shane rings the bell. Benoit keeps the crossface in again making the move feel like a threat. A cool visual is Shane and Benoit walking up the aisle and getting pelted with trash. The crowd is invested into this feud and so am I. WWF has done a great job of trying new stuff after KOTR. Hebner recovers and awards the match to Rock. Rock is groggy and gets up and hits a Rock Bottom on Hebner as he is not at full capacity as Benoit/Shane escape. **1/4

We get Steph coming out and saying she liked the kiss with Jericho and she is looking for more. This is so over the top that it of course telegraphs the setup and I was glad Jericho didn't go for it. Backstage, HHH and X-Pac are arguing and it seems like DX is coming unglued. We have seen this before. Road Dogg says he can't watch and leaves. Well I will just say the match worked me. I fully expected the Shawn and HHH bullshit we saw in 1997 but HHH and X-Pac go after each other and it had me wanting to seek out when X-Factor started teaming on cagematch as I assumed this was it for DX. Just then, the action spills to the outside and here comes Jericho and the attack is on as DX has him surrounded. A great beatdown occurs with tons of heat being put on Jericho and everyone including Steph getting their shots in. X-Pac saying the beating was worth it to pull off the ruse was excellent. I love this feud. **

Some more good advancement in the HHH vs Jericho feud. Jericho defeats one of his main lackeys and this is given a decent amount of time showing Road Dogg still had some stuff left in the tank. A good use of using TV to build a PPV money match without sacrificing anything consequential. HHH pitches a fit backstage when Jericho wins. **