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Guido as a face should be interesting to watch. We haven’t had near as many ECW fancams in recent months. While I am grateful for that as January became a slog going through them with the same type of matches, this was also a reminder of how fun those type of matches could be. I also think a different type of crowd that we see here helped things with this crowd engaged and willing to play along with the heel/face structure. Finish was a little silly with the referee just allowing Corino to get into the ring to interfere but that backfires and Guido is able to pick up the win. Fun mid card match. ***

We get moments of HHH recruiting his lumberjacks. Then we get to the match proper and like the other SmackDown matches tonight, it is fun without offering too much in the future. I think you can see glimpses of the chemistry these two will have a week later. Benoit hits Jericho with a diving headbutt that gets a nearfall. X-Pac responds with an X-Factor to the Rock. Biig brawl breaks out with Rock and HHH going at it. Rock comes back inside and gets a Rock Bottom but Road Dogg is distracting the ref. HHH slides in and hits Rock with a belt and Jericho wins. This is HHH’s retributions which is a nice contrast to his bad night on Raw. **1/2

With even less time than usual, they really had to go quickly here and they delivered a satisfying match at a quick speed. For three minutes, this is about as good as you can hope for action wise. Angle should be commended for sliding right in with the workrate vets and not feeling out of place. 3 Germans and Benoit goes for the diving headbutt before Big Show shoves him off for a quick DQ. That was cheap. **

Really nice recap to start things off showing HHH’s bad night. No mention of the pin in the main event either so I assume they have seen the errors of their ways in regards to that decision. The timing of the slap sequence between Stephanie and Linda was shockingly good for two ladies who have trouble with execution in front of the camera at times. HHH and Stephanie come out to the ring proper for a promo. Tazz comes out and cuts his best promo we have seen in WWF so far. This sets up a match later on in front of the Philly crowd. Pretty large slut chant for Steph when the action spills to the outside. This match helped showed the strengths of Tazz and he wasn’t completely buried at all. Tazz is able to get an overhead suplex nearfall. Tazz locks in the TazzMission when Steph distracts the ref leading to a lowblow from HHH and a quick pedigree. Tommy Dreamer runs out right then and whacks Tazz with a chair accidently. Tommy eats a pedigree too and HHH pins Tazz to win. **1/4

Big spot for Makabe vs Liger to start things off. I think I will end up liking Shinya more than Togi. Kanemoto and Tanaka have a showcase sequence too that was really engaging. What a flush juniors division NJ has right now. I can see watching this match how frustration would result in regards to Kashin as he was the worst person in here. Taikawa is able to use his power spots against Tanaka. This is a showcase match for sure and a placeholder but everyone gets to do impressive things and the match really chugs along quickly. Finale ends up being Samurai against Makabe/Kanemoto. Samurai is able to get a bit of distance and tags in Kashin. Match breaks down with all eight flying and Makabe ends up getting caught in a flash armbreaker and tapping out. ***1/2

Is this the first legit redacted item in BTS history?

Frantic action that was fun while it lasted but didn't leave a lasting impression. Texano does absolutely paste a referee at one point in a highlight and everyone takes turns doing crazy dives. The rudo trio is fun here and I would like to see them in something long form. **1/2

Our first foray into DDT. This looks way different from the DDT I am used to now but Takagi is still in control here and him and Orihara have a good but basic match with tables mixed in on the outside. The lariat Takagi gives is executed well and this felt like a perfectly fine mid card match on a Japanese indy show. I am looking forward to keeping up with Takagi. Orihara ends up winning with some shady business involving the title. ***

Yu Yu could end up being one of the more fascinating figures of the decade. This match looks like it is taking place in a banquet hall in front of a 100 fans but Yu Yu does a really strong job of getting over the fundamentals of the match and that parlaying into a finishing stretch where things spill outside, more risks are taken, etc. I didn't see much here from Kuragaki but she was competent enough. I know Yu Yu is part of the JWP contingent coming into AJW soon and I really look forward to those matches. ***1/2

Toryumon is back in my good graces. This had a neat set up starting as a trios and then tempers flaring up resulting in the five vs five encounter here. This gave an opportunity for us to look at Yoshiyuki Saito who will become SHISA. Overall, the match was very good but I do miss Mochizuki certainly mixing it up with Fuji and as much of a bad rep as he has, I continue to think the matches take a slight dip when Magnum Tokyo isn't involved because he is a fun foil and pairing for CIMA. Fuji was a star here and really seems to be building a case for a worker that really doesn't historically get talked up enough. This showed with the face side that the depth was growing, a cohesive unit just needed to be formed to go up against the big bads of Crazy Max. ***3/4

Fun six man with again a real frantic pace and a good mix of talent with people getting involved with main eventers like Bradshaw which was unusual in 2000. Farooq gets worked over quite a bit and this DX squad has good heel bully psychology. The weakest part of the match was the finish. HHH in 2000 has been near perfect in my eyes but this was the first finish that made me groan. Jericho has been built so well that seeing him just fall prey here to a pedigree felt like a slight step back from all of the momentum he has been gaining. HHH will be under a heavy microscope because it is HHH but this was the first time I felt he was put over too strongly. **3/4

Jericho is over like crazy and goads HHH into making this a world title match. I have liked the use of the Acolytes as insurance policy for hire for the faces to even up the odds. These two have a weird chemistry with each other with some up and down matches but this was worked in a sprint pace that made it very enjoyable. Match has that frantic vibe to it. It is amusing that WCW has a New Blood faction but Jericho clearly feels like the Newest Blood currently being elevated. Ref bump and the Acolytes scatter Shane. Steph rolls the belt in which Jericho uses for a nearfall when Hebner comes out. Knowing how all of this played out, I took notice in the cadence of Hebner’s count right then. HHH shoves Hebner down but walks into a forearm and a lionsault. Hebner gives the quick count and the crowd explodes. HHH goes after Hebner but gets stopped by the Acolytes. Jericho grabs the belt and celebrates as HHH and Steph throw a huge shit fit. Back from commercial we get the lowdown as HHH asks Mike Choida if he thought the count was fast. Mike admits it was. He then tells Hebner to reverse the decision. Hebner reluctantly agrees to it on the condition that as long as he is a referee, no one in HHH’s posse can lay a hand on him. Jericho also has some lines on the ramp and again calls Stephanie a slut. Hebner then reverses the decision and has to put the belt onto HHH’s waist. HHH of course uses his resourcefulness and a loophole to fire Earl and then beat him down before the other officials come in to make the save. Only minor point of critique here is that I have no idea where Jericho run off too and even though he isn’t a traditional babyface, him not coming to Earl’s rescue wasn’t a great look. Overall, a fantastic segment that really seemed to elevate Jericho and was the right kind of bait and switch. I remember calling my buddy with this show going on live and we had a two hour phone conversation watching everything unfold. 17 years later, it is just as engaging. **** for the whole thing.

A spot show for Toryumon with the action being fine but behind almost all of the hot stuff we have seen from the promotion this year. DK looked better here than in the last match but Tiger Mask was fairly sloppy. The main development here was the continued push of Genki Horiguchi who continues to pick up big wins over Crazy Max. **1/2

An up and down match. The opening brawl through the crowd is so trite and I can’t imagine Bischoff/Russo thought they were being edgy by laxing the rules and allowing that but I digress. When the match gets back into the ring, it is fairly solid including a nice powerbomb by Page. Outside is more garbage with Bischoff ominously looking on although I did like Jarrett ripping up pages of Positively Page. Finishing stretch has the crowd rallying behind Page in the figure four and a good nearfall off of a uranagi. Of course, Bischoff interferes and distracts Robinson as Kimberly is on the apron and predictably turns on Page by smashing him with the guitar. The Stroke makes it academic for Jarrett to win the title. Madden screams she is New Blood and Bischoff looks like he is the smartest man in the world. Fuck off WCW. **1/2

Not much of a match but Steiner does look like a star. The main component here was was the finish as we get a ref bump, Vampiro emerges from the ring and “drags Sting to hell” and then Steiner puts him in the Recliner to win the US Championship as Madden cheers on. Yippee. *

Flair is still in his street clothes. Why? Buff comes out and I wonder if he could have had a The Miz type revival if given the chance. Welp, Douglas is back and they have a baseball bat Vince Russo leading them to the ring. The stuff is so contrived that the announcers are left looking like goofs. Everything Russo says about new guys and new opportunities is something Madden has preached but then there is his boy Flair so he is conflicted. Luger cheats to gain the advantage and Tony tries to cover for him but it sounds stupid. Flair gets worked over in his clothes. Shane beats Flair up in the corner and very loudly says FUCK YOU Flair which Tony responds by saying that says it all. Hot tag to Luger and Flair has figure four on Douglas. Buff goes for blockbuster but hits Doublas by accident. Buff pounds the mat instead of breaking up the count. Russo breaks up the count and gets into a shoving match with Nick Patrick. Kronik make their debut without a name and they attack Luger. Russo puts on the referee shirt and counts the fall. Shitty. *3/4

Kidman seems really motivated in this role. Him and Vamp have one of the better Vamp matches he has had. Kidman bumps well for Vamp’s offense and Kidman is a better heel than you would assume. Hogan makes his triumphant run in and Tony tells us this is Hogan coming to kick someone’s ass. Hogan does get a good reaction here coming out. They are still trying to change the visual style of the show with the guardrails all covered with black paper. Hogan and Kidman have a good brawl with Hogan throwing some interesting big man offense including a double chokeslam through the table of Kidman. After all of that, Hogan rolls Kidman back in and Vampiro wins. Tony tries to justify that this shouldn’t be a DQ but that makes no sense to me. Hogan calls Bischoff a SOB and says he is coming after his ass right now. Bischoff and Russo are backstage and we get some “inside” commentary from Russo about how the build still isn’t big enough. Hogan is playing up this adult character at least constantly calling Bischoff a son of a bitch. Hogan finds Bischoff and chokes him out until Russo and the cops come back in. Hogan gets guns pulled on him as the chaotic scene end. **1/2 for that match. Seamlessly we see Terry Taylor talking to Funk and Funk is looking for Norman. Funk breaks into catering where Norman gets made. Into the mens room we go and there is Screaming Norman who lives up to his name by screaming to a big pop. This is your typical comedic WWF/WCW hardcore stuff with props and gimmicks but this one feels more memorable with the kitchen stuff and at least Funk is being positioned in this manner instead of the upper mid card scene with that nonsense match with Dustin Rhodes last month. The brawl to the ring area was pretty weak. A ladder gets introduced and Dustin Rhodes comes in for a run in and wallops Funk with a chair. They try to do this really contrived spot where Dustin falls into the ladder ricocheting into Norman. Funk throws the ladder on top of Norman on the outside and pins him becoming the hardcore champion. Backstage garbage was good, everything after was not. **

Team Package is in shambles. Flair is wrestling in street clothes because why not. We also get the Harris twins inserted because why not. The action revolves around Flair and Luger having to fend off the four guys. Luger gets a pretty decent babyface reaction but the match itself is a mess. *1/2

This played into the trend of the Arsion tag matches earlier in the month where everything was technically fine here but I didn’t get a sense that it kicked into the next gear. This did tell a simple story of the big vs. small with Chigusa and Dynamite being bullies leaving Amano and Oz to result to resourcefulness to take advantage. Overall, not particular great and it didn’t make me exactly look forward to more from the promotion. ***

Interesting Brock that you go with the cage match of Bret vs Owen. Feels like support for that match has been waning.

Lucha cage matches are almost never my thing and this was no exception. Some brawling and bumping but mostly climbing to escape as fast as possible. Oscar continues to be in contention of the most pleasant surprise in 2000 and he is the last of the tecnicos in the cage allowing the rudos to destroy him. Tecnicos decide they are going to have to make the save and this allows the rudos to scurry out and win. Blah. **

More good mini action although now that we have seen these guys quite a bit, the matches are kind of running together. This one had Octagoncito looking impressive and really working in harmony with his big to win the match. Rocky is large for a mini and able to provide a good base. The falls were too short for my liking. **1/2

This starts with an angle of Dan Moreland coming out and saying Quack isn't there. After DOn Montoya gets in a few Rock rip offs, here comes Quack to a big pop. He takes care of Moreland and Quack is back forgetting the retirement from the last show. This is when Quack is wearing special gear that he described on his podcast as being impossible to take off. This is announced as lucha style with no piledrivers and no low blows. Quack does a really good job in these maestro matches making stuff look competitive while still displaying the style and art of wrestling. They mix up holds and stuff is intricately worked with only a minor botch on a floatover. Montoya is good on commentary getting everything across. Santo shows respect for Quack by rallying the fans in the final moments. The 15 minutes really did fly by here. ***1/2

Interesting match for me as I am unsure if I have ever watched it. I remember reading about it in PWI or whatever and being shocked Michaels came back for this. This was a pretty fun garbage brawl. Shawn didn't take any bumps on his back but did a good plunder style gimmick match using ladders for a fist drop, boards, garbage cans, etc. He does get some weapon shots across the back that help build the psychology of the match. Venom isn't a very good worker at all either from bumping or working on top. Match peaks with them going to a upper stage and Venom getting hiptossed onto a table below. The big heat of the match comes after that huge bump which is weird as Shawn gets handcuffed and bloodied up. Shooter Schultz comes in to help Michaels out and him and Venom have an embarrassingly bad sequence where they cant go through a table. Shawn ends up winning the company and the belt back. **3/4

Was Candido done with WCW already? Douglas asks for the mic to start things off but doesn't say anything. XPW announcing is truly atrocious. The action starting out Douglas and Candido is actually pretty damn good. Some annoying stuff like blatant low blows but overall some solid action and Tammy is outside in a role of strict cheerleader for Candido. Candido misses the diving headbutt and bounces off the mat onto his feet which is a great spot. Douglas gets headbutted in the nuts on a leap frog attempt in a clear planned spot. The crowd is too dumb to notice and chants you fucked up. Lacy comes out and this is the guy that is going to "save" XPW. With Lacy distracting everyone, Sabu comes out to a big pop and lays out everyone. Match now breaks down into garbage brawl with the three way but the pace is good at least. Shane gives Candido a piledriver and he bumps like crazy again. They seem to be teasing that Shane and Sabu are working together which makes little sense. Thankfully, Douglas double crosses that alliance. Douglas then however pushes Candido on top of Sabu to win. Yeah that didn't make any sense at all. Douglas tries to cut a promo afterwards about his reasons but it again results in him helping XPW. Way too much stuff about who is saving the company and why wrestlers actions are helping/hurting the company. Go out and win a match instead. The action here was good so this rating is probably the ceiling for XPW given the other nonsense. ***