Submitted by Mike Omansky from the Prudential Center in Newark, NJ
– The show opened with a Roman Reigns interview talking about winning the title on his daughter’s birthday. He figured his days were numbered in the company. Sheamus came out and congratulated him on holding the title longer than 5:15. Sheamus said he’d be winning it back. Sheamus announced there is an internal investigation going on regarding Reigns and he is not allowed in the building. Reigns told Sheamus to make him leave. Security guards came out to remove him but he destroyed all of them.
– U.S. Champion Alberto Del Rio beat Ryback with the armbar. Good match dominated by Del Rio. Ryback makes the comeback and is about to finish him off, but the full League of Nations comes out. Ryback is distracted; Del Rio takes him down and clamps on thearmbar for the win.
– They did a backstage segment where Tyler Breeze and Summer Rae, the former of which is about to wrestle Titus O’Neil. Goldust walked in, Rae sprayed hair spray in his mouth, and thus, Breeze is feuding with Tyler Breeze.
– Titus O’Neil beat Tyler Breeze. Goldust was out, sat next to Rae, and distracted Breeze by taking selfies with Breeze’s selfie stick.
– Backstage, Dean Ambrose did an interview where he said he’s ready to defend the I-C title against Kevin Owens or anyone.
– Wyatts vignette aired.
– Lucha Dragons beat WWE Tag Team Champions The New Day (Xavier Woods & Kofi Kingston) in a non-title match when Kalisto pinned Kingston.mIt is announced later that there will be a rematch next Tuesday, live on Smackdown, for the tag titles.
– Dolph Ziggler backstage interview, talking about Owens.
– Becky Lynch beat Brie Bella by submission after Charlotte tripped Brie and Becky locked on an armbar submission. Team BAD were also out at ringside.
– Backstage, Becky and Charlotte argued about why Charlotte interfered for her. Becky wants to win on her own.
– Backstage, Owens said he wants his I-C title back.
– Dolph Ziggler beat Kevin Owens via DQ for throwing him into the ring steps. Ambrose made the save and chased Owens off. Ambrose then checked on Ziggler, and Ziggler superkicked him.
Notes:
– In the dark match segment, the League of Nations ran out to attack Ambrose and Ziggler. The Usos race in and get beaten down. Enter Roman Reigns who runs into to clean house. The other faces recover and the heels retreat. This was apparently in lieu of the “massive” 6 man tag main event that had been advertised for weeks.
– WWE will return to the building on May 22nd for Payback. Pre-sale tickets can be had by using ‘Payback’.
Here’s spoilers from the Tuesday, December 8th Jacksonville, FL, Smackdown tapings:
– The Lucha Dragons beat WWE Tag Team Champions The New Day in a non-title match
– Ryback beat The Ascension in a handicap match
– There was a contract signing for the Kevin Owens vs. Dean Ambrose Intercontinental title match. Owens attacked Ambrose, but Ambrose came back, Owens bailed, and then Ambrose signed the contract.
– Dolph Ziggler beat Tyler Breeze
– Becky Lynch beat Paige via submission due to distraction from WWE Divas Champion Charlotte
– Roman Reigns & Dean Ambrose beat WWE Champion Sheamus & Kevin Owens
Air Date: December 3, 2016 (Dec 2 in Canada) – Location: GIANT Center in Hershey, PA
The Big News:
Roman Reigns, by himself, defeated the League of Nations in the main event. Also, they officially announced that New Day would defend their tag titles against the Usos and Lucha Dragons in a ladder match at TLC. As expected, Dean Ambrose will face Kevin Owens for the I.C. Title.
Show Recap:
After a recap of Raw, Smackdown started with Roman Reigns, Dean Ambrose and Jimmy and Jey Uso in the ring as Reigns’ music played. Reigns asked the crowd if anyone was there with their families. Oh god. He said he was there with his family too, calling the Usos his closest cousins out of many, saying they were like his brothers. Reigns called Ambrose his brother too. A light “Hug it out” chant started so Reigns and Ambrose did a quick bro hug to humour them.
Reigns said Sheamus turned to the Authority and the League of Nations, but that won’t help him at TLC because it’ll be one-on-one. Oh really? Reigns didn’t want to wait until then for a fight, so he called out the League (Sheamus, Alberto Del Rio, Rusev and King Barrett). They hesitated but eventually came out to Sheamus’ music.
Sheamus mocked Reigns’ speech and the crowd chanted “You look stupid.” Sheamus said he can’t look stupid as long as he’s the champion. The crowd chanted “U.S.A.” and he said they all have their green cards. Sheamus reminded us, again, that Reigns was champion for 5 minutes and 15 seconds.
Reigns said they don’t want to hear Sheamus tell jokes, they want to see a fight. Sheamus said they just wanted to be friends with him, but since he figured Reigns wouldn’t want that, he spoke with some “WWE officials” and they made a match with the League against Reigns, Ambrose and the Usos for tonight.
New Day came out. They mocked Reigns some more and called him Roman the Ruiner. An Uso told them to shut up and fight. Xavier Woods said they weren’t done talking – they were told by “WWE officials” that Ambrose and the Usos would have to earn their spot on Reigns’ team tonight by defeating New Day first. Big E said if they don’t, Reigns will truly be “one versus all” (mocking his t-shirt slogan). New Day cackled at their own joke forever. That line was funny but this was not a good segment otherwise.
Tyler Breeze (w/Summer Rae) beat Neville via pinfall
Dolph Ziggler, with straight hair and a headband, joined commentary. In an inset promo, Breeze said Ziggler distracted him on Raw and would take out his frustrations on the human troll doll Neville.
Neville mocked Breeze early in the match by laying across the top turnbuckle. He almost went for a dive to the outside but Summer blocked the way. Ziggler said he would’ve done the dive anyway. After a break, Neville finally did hit a big dive followed by a running shooting star for a two count.
Neville came off the top and Breeze tried to counter with a dropkick, but Neville just landed on his feet avoiding it altogether. The crowd laughed, but Breeze was able to come back with a superkick for a near fall. Neville hit a kick and went to the top but Breeze rolled outside. Summer grabbed Neville’s foot with the referee distracted, allowing Breeze to catch him with an Unprettier for the win.
Backstage, Becky Lynch told Jo-Jo that Charlotte is still her best friend and best friends don’t always see eye-to-eye, but she won’t let it get in the way of their friendship. Brie Bella and Alicia Fox joined the frame and called her gullible. Lynch told Brie she should be getting ready to lose to her. Brie spewed some awful dialogue and Charlotte joined the frame to brag about beating Nikki. Brie told her it’s lonely at the top and she’d come crashing down to earth. After Brie and Fox left, Charlotte said she’d be in Lynch’s corner. This was bad, particularly Brie and Charlotte.
Brie Bella (w/Alicia Fox) beat Becky Lynch (w/Charlotte) via DQ
Brie went down early and began faking an ankle injury. Brie laughed and Lynch, so Lynch dropkicked her in the leg. That was funny. Brie came back with Yes kicks, a dropkick and running knee. They cut backstage and Team B.A.D. was playing with a pinata. They never followed up on this.
Lynch came back with a forearm and Exploder suplex. Lynch went for the Disarmer by the ropes, but as Brie pushed her away, Brie accidentally caught Charlotte with an elbow. Lynch was able to apply the Disarmer, but Charlotte jumped in the ring to attack Brie for the DQ. The crowd booed. Brie and Fox left in celebration. Lynch confronted Charlotte who kept yelling “She hit me!” like a damn child. This was awful, even if Charlotte is turning heel.
Backstage, a disappointed Neville bumped into The Miz. Miz made a crack about Neville’s ears. Neville wasn’t in the mood and told Miz to leave. Miz said Neville has all the talent but is missing a personality. Miz claimed that was social media talking, not him. Neville asked Miz why he suddenly cares, and Miz responded that Neville reminds him of someone else he took under his wing – Daniel Bryan. The mere mention of Bryan brought cheers and Yes chants. Miz offered to help and gave Neville a copy of his new movie.
Elsewhere, Renee Young interviewed Lana and Rusev. Lana, wearing a black dress instead of her usual suit, accused Ryback of purposely pushing Rusev into the steel steps to injure her. Rusev called Ryback a coward and would crush him. They kissed.
6-Man Tag Match: The New Day beat The Usos & Dean Ambrose via pinfall
Big E did a snow angel in the ring before the match. As Ambrose stomped away on someone, they cut backstage to Reigns and he acted happy. New Day got the heat on Jey Uso until he made a hot tag to Ambrose who ran wild on Big E. Woods tried to interfere so Ambrose knocked him off the apron and tossed him into the barricade. He also tossed Kingston into the barricade and clotheslined Big E, but the numbers game caught up to him and New Day got the heat again. (There was a perfectly healthy Uso in the other corner as this was happening.)
After a break, New Day worked over Ambrose. They cut backstage to Reigns and he acted concerned. Ambrose hit a rebound clothesline and made a hot tag to Jimmy Uso. Jimmy and Jey hit running hip attacks to Woods and Kingston. Big E tossed out Jey and Ambrose took out Big E with a missile dropkick. Ambrose tried a dive but was caught by Big E, so Jey knocked them both down with a dive.
Jimmy hit a superkick on Woods and went to the top. Kingston tried to interfere, so Jimmy jumped onto the apron, tweaking his previously injured knee. Kingston kicked his leg out of his leg and Woods followed with shining wizard for the win. Huh, New Day basically won clean. Good match, although I’m not a fan of Ambrose being on the losing end of random matches. They cut backstage to Reigns and he acted disappointed.
Bray Wyatt (w/Wyatt Family) beat D-Von Dudley (w/Bubba Ray Dudley & Tommy Dreamer) via pinfall
Bray won with a Sister Abigail. This was one of the matches where the babyface gets a lot in a quick match but loses abruptly. Afterwards, Bray picked up D-Von and threatened to use his finisher again, telling Bubba and Dreamer to stay where they were. They backed off as the Wyatts grabbed a table and set it up in the ring.
Bubba and Dreamer then grabbed Kendo sticks, jumped in the ring and attacked. They seemed to have the advantage but Strowman broke a stick over his knee and took out Bubba with his standing choke. They put Dreamer through a table, piled up the dead bodies and posed over them. Bubba and Dreamer hesitating to get in the ring came off poorly, but this was fine otherwise.
4-on-1 Handicap Match: Roman Reigns beat League of Nations via count out
After LON made their entrances (individually), they cut backstage to Reigns who was joined by Ambrose and the Usos. The Usos blamed themselves for the loss, saying they let him down. Ambrose said they’d be at ringside anyway. Renee Young chose that moment to approach them and break the news that they were banned from ringside, per certain “WWE officials.” Ambrose and the Usos were pissed, because they chose to believe her even though she’s not actually in charge. Reigns said he would be fine.
They got the heat on Reigns almost immediately after Barrett distracted him. Reigns came back with a clothesline on Sheamus, but was tripped from the outside by Barrett. The referee kicked Barrett out of the match, which I guess he is allowed to do, making it 3-on-1. (It seemed like Reigns was able to make a comeback but they abruptly cut to commercial. This might have only been a mistake on the Canadian broadcast.)
After a break, they worked over Reigns, including Rusev using a nerve hold on Roman’s vest. Rusev tossed Reigns out of the ring and distracted the referee, allowing Sheamus and Del Rio to get in a few shots. They had the heat forever until Reigns hit a Samoan drop on Rusev and made his usual comeback on Del Rio (after Del Rio missed hilariously on a running enziguri).
Rusev tried to interfere but Reigns caught him with a superman punch. Del Rio hit a back cracker and went for the armbar but Reigns slipped out and hit a spear. He had the match won but Sheamus broke up the cover. Reigns ducked a Brogue kick and tossed Sheamus to the outside. Reigns hit an apron dropkick on Rusev and jumping clothesline on Sheamus. Reigns tossed Rusev over the barricade and Del Rio onto the announce table. Reigns jumped back in the ring right before the 10 count and picked up the count out win.
After the match, Barrett made his way down the aisle. Reigns called him into the ring, but Sheamus caught him from the side with a Brogue kick. They attacked Reigns but Ambrose and the Usos ran out to make the save and the League bailed. Reigns miraculously recovered from the Brogue kick and said the title would be his. The crowd was into Reigns’ comeback, although it wasn’t a huge reaction.
Final Thoughts:
This show was was all about getting Roman Reigns over, as most shows will be from now on it seems. The main event was laid out well in that regard, especially the end. Count out wins tend to be dissatisfying, and maybe this was, but Reigns still laid out four guys on his own and won.
Unfortunately, whoever is in charge decided getting Reigns over meant sacrificing seven other guys. You can rightfully complain about the League of Nations losing to one guy on their second night as a team, but we all know they don’t really matter. They exist to get Reigns over. It bothered me more the way Dean Ambrose and the Usos were handled. It’s cool they’re protecting the New Day, but I’d rather they not drag Ambrose down to the mid-card.
More than that, they looked so weak after not only after losing, but listening to orders being delivered by Renee Young, an interviewer/reporter. Not only was the Authority not present, but Renee said they were banned by “WWE officials,” which means nothing to anyone watching. Basically, it felt like nobody was actually in charge. Why would Ambrose and the Usos obey orders handed down by some unknown entity? What are all of these good guys so afraid of?
The show opened with Roman Reigns, Dean Ambrose and the Usos out. Some fans started a “Hug It Out” chant so Reigns and Ambrose hugged for a pop. The League of Nations came out along with The New Day. This built to where Ambrose and The Usos were to wrestle The New Day, and if Ambrose & The Usos didn’t win, then Reigns would have to face the League of Nations in a handicap match by himself.
Tyler Breeze beat Neville due to distraction from Summer Rae. Dolph Ziggler was watching the match.
Becky Lynch did an interview. She doesn’t believe Charlotte is like Paige. Brie Bella then made fun of her for believing that. Charlotte showed up and said she would always be behind Lynch.
Brie Bella beat Becky Lynch via DQ. Brie knocked Charlotte off the apron so she ran in for the DQ, costing Lynch the match. They teased more tension between Charlotte and Lynch.
Miz did an interview for his new program with Neville. He made fun of Neville for having no charisma and funny looking ears. He then gave Neville a DVD of his new movie.
Rusev & Lana vowed to destroy Ryback.
New Day beat Dean Ambrose & Usos when Woods pinned Jey after a shining wizard.
Bray Wyatt beat Devon Dudleys with Sister Abigail. The Wyatts beat down the Dudleys & Tommy Dreamer and put them through a table after.
Roman Reigns beat Sheamus & Barrett & Rusev & Del Rio when Sheamus was counted out. Ambrose and The Usos came out and cleaned house.
Former IWGP Champion A.J. Styles missed another New Japan World Tag League tournament match today in Fukuoka, Japan. His team with Yujiro Takahashi forfeited their second match, this time to Michael Bennett & Matt Taven.
Styles has been out of action since last working on Nov. 24 due to a bulging disc in his lower back.
According to those in Japan, his injury appears to be very serious with the description that he seems to be in great pain with any movement. Styles went into the tour injured, and missed ROH bookings to rest up for the tour. The 38-year-old has not returned home, but he has major matches over the next several weeks. After the tournament concludes on 12/9, he has an ROH title match with Jay Lethal at Final Battle in Philadelphia, as well as his IC title match with Shinsuke Nakamura that is second from the top at the NJPW Wrestle Kingdom Tokyo Dome show on 1/4.
According to what we’ve been told, Styles is resting and rehabbing as best he can at the present time, and New Japan is being patient and not pressuring him to come back early.
******
WWE has announced one of the main matches for the Smackdown tapings tonight will be Bubba Ray Dudley vs. Bray Wyatt in a singles match with both Devon and Tommy Dreamer in Bubba’s corner.
Smackdown will be taped tonight in Hershey, PA. All of the major names that were on Raw last night, including Roman Reigns, Sheamus, Dean Ambrose and The New Day are being advertised as appearing tonight.
Following Raw, the Wyatt family came back to the ring, and Bray said that he had a sour taste in his mouth, and wasn’t ready to leave town just yet. He called out the Dudleys and Tommy Dreamer. They entered, followed by Kane. Everyone brawled in the ring for a couple of minutes before Bray left the ring. Braun Strowman was kicked out of the ring. Harper ended up eating a DDT from Dreamer, and a 3D from the Dudleys, and Rowan took a chokeslam from Kane to send the handful of people left in the crowd happy. No actual match took place. (Thanks to Joe Kazmer)
– Air Date: November 26, 2015 – Location: Bankers Life Fieldhouse in Indianapolis, IN
The Big News:
Dean Ambrose became number one contender for Kevin Owens’ Intercontinental Title after defeating Tyler Breeze and Dolph Ziggler. They also set up the Dudleys vs. Wyatts for a tables match and Alberto Del Rio vs. Jack Swagger for a chairs match.
Show Recap:
Former WWE Champion Roman Reigns came out to start the show as they recapped the story from Survivor Series and Raw. Reigns entered the ring which had tables and ladders and chairs set up inside already, so I guess he cleared this talking segment with the Authority.
Reigns said he and the Usos used to wrestle all over the house until they were banned from doing so after one Uso broke a coffee table with the other Uso. Reigns said they wrestled all over the yard and dreamt about becoming WWE Champion, but it always felt like just a dream – until Survivor Series when he won the title. The dream got shattered when Sheamus crushed his face (that’s the phrase he used) with a Brogue kick.
Sheamus came out. (They did another bad edit here, like a few weeks ago, where you could hear Sheamus’ entrance start, but on camera the lights didn’t change, and there was no reaction from the crowd or Reigns.) Sheamus told Reigns to get over it because he’s a walking, talking Adele song. He said Reigns has been talking about being champion longer than he actually was champion.
Sheamus made bad jokes about how short Roman’s title reign was and said the title looks better on him anyway. He put over Reigns’ effort in the tournament but Reigns’ moment became Sheamus’ moment, and yelled about how great it felt to become champion. Reigns challenged Sheamus to come to the ring so he could show him what he can really do in under five minutes.
Sheamus acted like he would go to the ring, but he didn’t. He’s the champion and all Reigns has is broken dreams. Reigns said he would break Sheamus’ jaw with a superman punch, break his back with a chair, powerbomb him through a table, climb the ladder and become champion. This wasn’t good. Sheamus in particular came off like a clown.
The Dudley Boyz beat Braun Strowman & Erick Rowan (w/Bray Wyatt & Luke Harper) via DQ
In an inset promo, Bubba said the Wyatts would “taste some Dudley wood.” Tons of piped in booing during the Wyatts’ entrance. An early highlight in the match was Rowan screaming in D-Von’s face and D-Von just smacked him. Wyatts got the heat on Bubba with help from Harper who superkicked his arm with the referee distracted.
D-Von made the hot tag and took out Rowan. It seemed like the Dudleys had the match won but they dumbly went for tables instead. They set one up in the ring but Harper superkicked Bubba for the DQ. Strowman took out D-Von was his standing choke and they put Bubba through the table. Strowman was noticeably bad in this match.
Paige beat Becky Lynch via pinfall
They showed Charlotte watching the match on TV backstage. Her entire body was facing the camera with her face turned to the TV. They always do this but it looked even dumber than usual here. Becky made her comeback which included an Exploder suplex. She went for the Disarmer but Paige bounced her off the ropes and rolled her up for the pinfall win.
Paige tried to get her feet on the rope for leverage but she was too far away. I’m not sure if that was a screw up or not, but Becky basically lost clean. Lawler made sure to mention that Paige tried to use the rope. Match was fine but the crowd didn’t care.
Backstage, Big E, Kofi Kingston, Naomi, Sasha Banks and Tamina were at the “1st Annual New Day Potluck Dinner.” Better trademark that one. Big E said he was thankful for tricep meat. Kofi was thankful for the tag-team titles and Big E chanted “Thanks to us” to the tune of “New Day rocks.” Naomi and Sasha danced along.
Heath Slater joined and brought some Slater Slaw. Big E noticed a bandaid in his dish. They freaked out and pushed Slater aside. Adam Rose gave them rabbit stew and left. Big E freaked again, thinking it was made of The Bunny, and Kofi yelled “We don’t want this!” (That was the highlight of the segment.)
Ascension showed up but they didn’t have any food so they got kicked out. Big E and Kofi said Xavier Woods would be bringing the turkey. The Gobbledy Gooker showed up. It was Woods. They chanted “turkey tail” as Woods shook his tail back and forth.
Non-Title: Jack Swagger beat US Champion Alberto Del Rio (w/Zeb Colter) via DQ
Colter called Swagger ungrateful and said he has blind American loyalty. Del Rio said Swagger would be thankful that he let him walk out of the ring after their match. Lame promo.
With the match barely under way, Swagger clotheslined Del Rio over the barricade into the timekeeper’s area. He began walking toward Zeb, allowing Del Rio to hit him from behind with a chair for the DQ. Del Rio hit him one more time with the chair and tossed him in the ring.
Swagger came back and attacked Del Rio with the chair, getting him about four times in the back. Del Rio ran away, selling his back. This was obviously just an angle to set up a chairs match at TLC. I didn’t really like how little of an effect the chair shots had on both guys. Swagger was fine after getting hit twice and Del Rio walked away on his own and posed with the title on the stage.
Backstage, the Usos said they didn’t want to know what “Slater slaw” was. Woods in his Gobbledy Gooker outfit ran by them. The Usos had an idea.
Non-Title: Lucha Dragons beat WWE Tag-Team Champions Kofi Kingston & Big E (w/Gobbledy Gooker) via pinfall
They showed the debut of Gobbledy Gooker in 1990. Lawler made sure to remind everyone that this sucked. Kingston seemed to have the match won on a pinfall attempt with his feet on the rope, but the Gobbledy Gooker pushed him off. Kingston yelled at him and the distraction allowed Kalisto to hit Salida Del Sol for the win.
After the match, Kingston and Big E continued to yell at Gobbledy Gooker, who remained outside the ring. An Uso came out on stage blowing an airhorn to the tune of “New Day sucks” and Xavier Woods was with him – in his boxers, hands and legs tied up, and mouth taped shut. Woods tried to say something, so Uso ripped off the duct tape and blew the air horn in his face. This caused Woods to fall and roll down the ramp.
They cut to the Gobbledy Gooker outside the ring and the commentators tried to act like they didn’t know who it could be. It was the other Uso. The four babyfaces took out the New Day, concluding with an Uso superkicking a helpless Woods and the other Uso finishing him off with a splash. Lawler was happy to see the Gobbledy Gooker finally get over.
They aired a video package for the Undertaker.
Backstage, Renee Young asked Dean Ambrose about his luck potentially changing tonight. Ambrose said he pinned Kevin Owens at Survivor Series and that wasn’t luck. Reigns pinned him and that wasn’t luck either – Reigns was the better man on that night. He said Sheamus cashing in wasn’t luck, it was right place, right time. Luck was winning the lottery, and Ambrose said he never won a buck off a scratch card. Ambrose intimated that if he were a betting man, he would bet on himself over Ziggler and Fuzzy Boots McGee.
I.C. Title #1 Contender’s Triple Threat Match: Dean Ambrose beat Tyler Breeze (w/Summer Rae) & Dolph Ziggler via pinfall
Kevin Owens came out for commentary and faked out a young fan who wanted a high five. Lawler told Owens that Breeze was suing People magazine for naming David Beckham as sexiest man alive. Owens said he almost fell asleep as Lawler said that because he couldn’t care less. As they plugged Raw in Pittsburgh, Ambrose tossed his hoodie at Owens and Owens responded, “I guess he thought he was insulting me, but I’m keeping it, so joke’s on him.”
Booker asked Owens who he matches up with best. Owens said he and Ambrose are both brawlers, he and Breeze are both gorgeous, but he has nothing in common with Ziggler and is proud of that.
Ambrose hit a rebound clothesline on Ziggler and Breeze tried to steal the pin, but Ziggler kicked out. Ambrose followed with a flying elbow on Breeze for a two count. Ziggler and Ambrose did the double running crossbody spot but they sandwiched Breeze who was caught in the middle. That was cool.
Breeze superkicked Ambrose and Ziggler superkicked Breeze for a near fall. Ziggler caught Ambrose with a Zig Zag but Breeze broke up the cover. Breeze hit Ziggler with the Beauty Shot and went for the Unprettier but Ambrose nailed him with Dirty Deeds for the win. Owens seemed displeased. Good match, and Owens was great on commentary.
After the match, Ambrose went out to face off with Owens. Ambrose pushed Owens back into his chair. Owens popped up like he was ready to fight but just walked away.
– Air Date: November 19, 2015 (Nov 18 in Canada) – Location: Thompson-Boling Arena in Knoxville, TN
The Big News:
November 19, 2015. Roman Reigns and Dean Ambrose are still the best of friends.
Show Recap:
R.I.P. Nick Bockwinkel.
After airing a graphic for Bockwinkel, they plugged the WWE Title tournament semi-final matches for Survivor Series and pushed the tag team main event for tonight.
The Miz welcomed everyone to MizTV, and he did that thing where he waits for the crowd to say “MizTV” but only five people do. He was about to introduce his guests but Kevin Owens’ music hit before he could finish.
Miz said he’s supposed to introduce the guests, but Owens said he’s turning this into the Kevin Owens Show. Owens said he would win the WWE Title and would become, as Triple H puts it, the man. Miz was about to say something but Alberto Del Rio and Zeb Colter interrupted.
Colter called Miz a hater and isn’t going to fall for his “gotcha” questioning. Colter said it doesn’t matter what you call MizTV, it’s still crap. Owens thought that was funny, but Colter called Owens a hater too and, “Worse than that, you’re from Canada.” Crowd popped. Colter wondered if Owens snuck across the border by ice skating across Lake Michigan.
Very Tanned Alberto Del Rio told Owens that there would be a place in MexAmerica for people like him, because they need people to clean their pools. Owens responded, “You know who missed you while you were gone, by the way? Nobody.”
Dean Ambrose came out next. Miz was upset, but Ambrose said he was there to help him and told him to sit down. Ambrose (who campaigned against all the talking on Raw) said this was a talk show so he was going to talk. He called Del Rio one tough hombre but will go through him for the title if he has to. He said Owens can give out a beating unlike anyone else, but Ambrose can take a beating unlike anyone else and would win the title.
Miz said there’s someone who might disagree, and smiley-faced Roman Reigns came down through the crowd. Miz was still upset that he kept getting interrupted. Reigns told him we know what happens on MizTV – Miz talks until someone shuts him up.
R-Truth came out next and everyone appeared nonplussed. Truth called himself the underdog and a survivor and would win the title at Survivor Series. Miz told him the tournament has been going on for two weeks and Truth was never in it. Truth apologized, wished luck to the babyfaces and left.
Miz complained about his segment going off the rails. Reigns told him to act like a director and started directing. Miz yelled “Action!” like he was on a film set, and Ambrose punched him out. Del Rio and Owens bailed. This segment started well but completely fell apart once Reigns and Truth came out.
After a break, Miz was still in the ring, scheduled for a match. He said he shouldn’t have to compete after being disrespected and wanted his match cancelled. He was interrupted again, this time by Cesaro.
Cesaro beat The Miz via submission
Miz got some offense briefly but Cesaro quickly cut him off and did a tilt-a-whirl into a crossface and Miz tapped. It was short. After the match, Stardust and the Ascension came out as Cesaro walked up the ramp. Stardust and Cesaro faced off before Stardust continued on his way. Rich Brennan was excited about this face off, and he’s the only one.
Neville & The Dudley Boyz beat Stardust & The Ascension via pinfall
Neville ran towards the ropes but Konnor held the ropes open as Viktor distracted the referee, resulting in Neville crashing to the outside. Stardust rammed his head against the table and Bubba encouraged Neville to get up. Then, Konnor gave Neville a big boot. Presumably the referee was distracted again, but he wasn’t in the frame.
Bubba yelled at the referee because of how stupid all of this was. The referee looked like an imbecile here and so did the Dudleys frankly. They just stood there as their partner got double teamed illegally.
After a break, Bubba made a hot tag and took out Viktor and Stardust. They did the diving headbutt spot to Konnor and called for tables. Stardust jumped back in and gave Bubba a disaster kick, but Neville took him out with a missile dropkick. Viktor tossed Neville to the outside, sending him into Konnor. Bubba and D-Von gave Viktor 3D for the win. This was not good, and this was a poor follow-up for Neville after his great match with Owens on Raw.
They aired a video package for Undertaker & Kane vs. the Wyatts. Jerry Lawler hopes Bray Wyatt is in the match. This is not how you promote a PPV match.
Tyler Breeze (w/Summer Rae) beat Zack Ryder via pinfall
Before the match, Breeze said Ryder’s fashion sense reminded him of another uggo, Dolph Ziggler. He said Summer dumped Ziggler because she wanted an upgrade. Breeze said he’s what everyone wanted and he never goes out of style. Breeze said Ziggler would do what he’s done his entire career, and Summer finished his sentence by saying Ziggler would come up short. She motioned with her fingers, intimating that Ziggler has a small penis.
During the match, Ziggler came to ringside. He dumped one of their drinks on the floor. The distraction allowed Ryder to get a nearfall on a school boy, but Breeze won shortly after with the Beauty Shot. After the match, Ziggler superkicked Breeze and left.
The lights went out and the Undertaker’s druids came out in sheep masks. Bray’s music hit and the Wyatts came out. (They promoted this ahead of time so the crowd knew it wasn’t going to be Undertaker.) Bray rambled. He said the demon and the deadman would fail, it was just a question of how.
He said Erick Rowan was cast aside by society and is fueled by vengeance. He said Luke Harper shows no remorse. Strowman spoke for himself, saying he’s dreamt of making great men fall and would shatter their bones to dust. Crowd chanted “What” at Strowman.
Undertaker’s music and pyro went off and he eventually appeared on the big screen. Taker cut a usual Taker promo and said the Brothers of Destruction will reclaim what’s theirs. Kane held up a white sheep mask, which was on fire, and Taker said the Wyatts would rest in peace. Kane did that thing with his arms and his fire explosion went off in the ring and, suddenly, all of the druids were on the floor like corpses. This was wacky.
They showed a replay of Paige’s controversial line on Raw. They referred to this segment as the “Diva Revulsion.”
Non-Title: WWE Divas Champion Charlotte beat Brie Bella (w/Alicia Fox) via submission
Short, back-and-forth match that ended with Charlotte reversing an X-Factor into a spear and Figure Eight for the win. The crowd wasn’t dead, but I’m not sure how much they cared about Charlotte. They sure yelled “woo” a lot.
Backstage, Paige told Renee Young that Charlotte can turn into the Incredible Hulk if she wants but it won’t help her retain the title. Paige called Charlotte immature for the way she acted on Monday, which is pretty funny. Paige said she would cross the line if that’s what it took to regain the title, because that’s what champions do.
Big E (w/Kofi Kingston & Xavier Woods) beat Kalisto (w/Sin Cara) via pinfall
Xavier Woods said there was a conspiracy against them because they weren’t in the tournament. They buried Ryback and Kalisto, making short jokes about the latter. Woods put on a mask and Kofi Kingston exclaimed, “He’s a luchadore! Because he’s wearing a mask!” Big E said he would show Kalisto that size does matter and began swivelling his hips.
Once the match started, Sin Cara took out Woods outside the ring, and Kingston took out Sin Cara. Kalisto hit a dive on Kingston, but was distracted by Woods as he re-entered the ring, allowing Big E to hit a running body block and running splash for an extremely quick win. Terrible follow-up for Kalisto after his big win last week.
After the match, Woods and Kingston held down Kalisto allowing Big E to hit another splash. Ryback ran out to make the save, taking out all three New Day members by himself, including hitting a splash of his own on Big E. He helped Sin Cara and Kalisto to their feet.
They showed a pre-taped video interview Maria Menounos did with Paige and The Miz about their upcoming movie. This was basically a commercial, but it was the highlight of the show to this point. They were all in character. Miz tried plugging the movie, but Paige interrupted to bury Menounos, bringing up her failed attempt to become a [wrestler]. Menounos asked her what it was like working with an accomplished actor like The Miz. Paige laughed and eventually blew off the interview because she has more important things to worry about.
They announced Ziggler vs. Breeze for Survivor Series.
Ambrose and Reigns had a meeting backstage. Ambrose expected them both to win their semi-final matches at Survivor Series and Reigns acknowledged that this would put them against each other in the finals. Reigns patted Ambrose on the shoulder, saying he’s come too far and would have to treat Ambrose like everyone else. Ambrose expected nothing less. Basically, they agreed to give it their all and they bumped fists.
Roman Reigns & Dean Ambrose DCO I.C. Champion Kevin Owens & US Champion Alberto Del Rio (w/Zeb Colter)
After a break, the heels took control on Ambrose after Del Rio launched him into the barricade. As Owens beat down on Ambrose, he pointed at Brennan and yelled, “You watching this Rich you idiot?” Del Rio hit an enziguri and back cracker for a two count. Ambrose blocked a superkick, hit a rebound clothesline and made the hot tag to Reigns.
Reigns used a clothesline and apron dropkick on Owens, followed by clotheslines in the corner. Reigns hit a tilt-a-whirl slam on Owens, but Del Rio broke up the cover. Reigns sent Del Rio to the outside, and Owens hit Reigns with a superkick. Ambrose hit a suicide dive on Del Rio and clotheslined him over the announce table.
Owens tried a powerbomb on Ambrose outside the ring, but Reigns hit him with a superman punch. Del Rio tossed Reigns into the steps and gave him a superkick. Around this point, the referee called for a double count out. Lame.
Del Rio tossed Ambrose in the ring but Ambrose hit Dirty Deeds. Ambrose slipped out of a pop-up powerbomb and Reigns hit Owens with a spear. Afterwards, Ambrose and Reigns both went out to look at the WWE Title at ringside and eventually bumped fists again.
Final Thoughts:
This show sucked. Four of the matches were under five minutes, and the main event, which was promoted all night, ended in a double count out. Nothing on this show mattered.
It’s the Sunday edition of the Bryan & Vinny Show and we’ve got so much to talk about including a review of a Smackdown so infuriating that it’s time to boycott the show for a bit, an AWESOME ROH on Sinclair TV show, and two of the top matches, including the main event, of the Tenryu retirement show. A fun show as always so check it out~!
Wrestling Observer Radio with Bryan Alvarez and Dave Meltzer returns today to talk all the news in wrestling and MMA including Raw ratings from Monday, the slow and steady collapse, the WWE Title tournament and Survivor Series, Seth Rollins update, latest tournament brackets, Smackdown spoilers, UFC Saturday with Ronda Rousey vs. Holly Holm, Mirko Crocop retires and then gets popped by USADA, questions and tons more! A fun show as always so check it out~!
– Air Date: November 12, 2015 (Nov 11 in Canada) – Location: Manchester Arena in Manchester, England
The Big News:
Undertaker did not actually appear on Smackdown, but did accept Bray Wyatt’s challenge for a tag team match at Survivor Series. Also, Kalisto beat Ryback clean.
Show Recap:
The show started with a recap of Seth Rollins’ injury and they plugged tonight’s tournament matches.
The Wyatts interrupted and a video recap was shown of the angle with Undertaker and Kane from Raw. They piped in some crowd booing as the Wyatts stood in the ring. Luke Harper said they would sacrifice “dem Uso boys” to honour Bray Wyatt. Erick Rowan said Bray brings sorrow to those who oppose him and they would do the same tonight. Braun Strowman said “Look at my face… and see your annihilation.” Strowman added that he would pile bodies to the sky for Bray.
Bray said Kane and Undertaker may have escaped the pits of hell but they’ll never be the same again. He’s taken pieces of them and now they are apart of him. Bray challenged the Brothers of Destruction to a tag match at Survivor Series against two of his men, and gave them until the end of tonight to accept.
Bray said we would remember Survivor Series as the night Kane and Undertaker were buried forever. Usual lame Wyatt segment. The crowd chanted for Undertaker a few times through the segment. The highlight was the unintentional comedy of Strowman yelling, “Look at my face.”
Braun Strowman (w/Wyatt Family) beat Fandango via submission
Some of the crowd did the Fandango dance and he danced too until he got into the ring, saw the Wyatts and resigned himself to his fate. He started with a dropkick but Strowman tossed him around and won with the head-and-arm choke in less than 2 minutes. Fandango actually tapped instead of merely passing out.
WWE Title Tournament First Round Match: Neville beat King Barrett via pinfall
They showed a clip of Neville from earlier tonight saying Barrett was embarrassed on Raw and he would finish what Wayne Rooney started with a Red Arrow. This was not an inset promo, but rather a clip from what looked like a sit-down interview. This is a much better idea than the usual inset promos.
They did a dangerous spot early in the match where Barrett hung Neville’s feet over the top rope and then just slammed him head first into the mat. Neville rolled to the outside selling his head and Barrett followed him out, slammed his head into the announce table and launched him into the barricade.
After a break, Barrett used a pump handle slam and continued working over Neville. Barrett slid Neville to the outside and he crashed into the barricade. Barrett took some time to tell the announcers that he would be the next champion. Neville ran along the top of the barricade (a la Jeff Hardy) and hit a flip dive on Barrett. He used kicks and a standing shooting star press in the ring for a two count.
Barrett hit a back kick for a two count and argued with the referee that it was a three, accusing him of taking a pay off from Neville. Neville came back with a German suplex but Barrett followed with a swinging side slam. Neville countered Wasteland into a DDT and landed Red Arrow for the win. This was good. It went about 14 minutes and Neville took a beating. They announced Neville vs. Kevin Owens for Raw.
Backstage, the Usos told Renee Young that they have a rivalry with the Wyatts and weren’t about to be sacrificed. Jimmy was taken out by Strowman two months ago and they weren’t going to forgive and forget.
WWE Title Tournament First Round Match: Kalisto beat Ryback via pinfall
Kalisto said he respects Ryback but he shouldn’t be underestimated. He then spouted some cliches about being an underdog. This was another sit-down interview, but the material sucked. Ryback did an inset promo. I’m not really sure what Ryback said, because he spoke quietly as his music played in the background and his fireworks went off. He thinks he’ll be champion, probably.
They shook hands to start but Kalisto quickly began kicking away. He hit Salida Del Sol a minute into the match but Ryback kicked out aggressively at two, sending Kalisto to the outside. After a break, Kalisto used more kicks, but Ryback just picked him up and hit a spinebuster followed by two hard powerbombs. This presumably could have been a finish but Kalisto rolled to the outside. Ryback took control until Kalisto dropkicked him to the outside. Kalisto tried an Asai moonsault but Ryback slammed him into the mat (they messed this up).
Kalisto countered a shell shocked into a rollup for a near fall. Ryback hit a meat hook clothesline but Kalisto got his foot on the rope. Ryback tried a backdrop off the top rope, but Kalisto countered into Salida Del Sol for the pinfall win. Ryback kicked out just after the three count.
The match was good, not great, but Kalisto really got over well here and this might’ve been the highlight of the show. The crowd popped and the commentators put this over as a big upset win. Ryback shook Kalisto’s hand afterwards.
WWE Title Tournament First Round Match: Alberto Del Rio (w/Zeb Colter) beat Stardust via pinfall
Alberto Del Rio and Zeb Colter did a promo on the stage. Colter said the United Kingdom was really the Divided Kingdom because all the countries hate each other. He called the people haters, but him and Del Rio have eradicated hate in MexAmerica. Del Rio said the fans of the two “soccer” teams hate each other but they should be united. Colter said they would unite the MexAmerica Title (U.S. Title) with the World Title. This really sucked. The crowd chanted “What” at Colter and Del Rio was greeted by silence.
Stardust did an inset promo calling himself the dark horse in the tournament and would become champion. Del Rio worked him over a while but he came back with a Side Effect and reverse DDT. Del Rio went for an armbar but Stardust countered with a disaster kick for two. Stardust went to the top, so of course Del Rio knocked his legs out and used a tree of woe double foot stomp for the win. This was uninspiring to say the least.
They showed a replay of the Paige/Charlotte/Becky Lynch angle from Raw.
Backstage, Roman Reigns told Renee that his journey to become WWE Champion has been like climbing Mount Everest. The closer he gets to the top, the harder it gets. On Monday, he meets an avalanche in the form of Cesaro, but Cesaro can’t stop him because “Nothing at this point can stop me now.” They replayed a clip of Triple H’s offer, but Reigns said he wasn’t a sell out and would be standing on top of the mountain as the sole survivor of this tournament. Reigns delivered his lines well but it was heavily scripted and it was hard not to notice.
The Usos beat Luke Harper & Erick Rowan (w/Bray Wyatt & Braun Strowman) via DQ
This was the main event. Harper and Rowan attacked the Usos before the match started. The Usos fought back and one Uso took down the two Wyatts with a dive outside the ring. The Usos jumped back in the ring and challenged Harper and Rowan to get in. Rowan jumped in and the match officially started.
Harper and Rowan worked over Jey until he made a hot tag to Jimmy. He hit an enzuigiri and a crossbody for nearfalls. Rowan took out Jey outside the ring as Jimmy used a Samoan drop and running hip attack on Harper. He tried a dive to the outside but was caught by Rowan, and Harper followed with a superkick.
Back in the ring, Harper hit a sitdown powerbomb but Jey broke up the cover with a splash. Jimmy hit Harper with two superkicks, and both Usos hit Rowan with superkicks, sending both bad guys to the outside. Usos took them out with dives, and Bray had seen enough. All four Wyatts attacked the Usos for the DQ.
Bray mocked Taker’s throat slash as Harper and Rowan gave Jey a double chokeslam. Strowman followed by doing his stupid slam on Jimmy and Bray finished him off with Sister Abigail. Bray was about to do it again but the Undertaker’s dong sounded and the lights went out. Undertaker’s voice played over the speakers. He said the Wyatts would be dragged through the gates of hell and they would rest in peace. So I guess he accepts.
Final Thoughts:
This show felt more important than the usual Smackdown thanks to the title tournament. The first two tournament matches were good and it was refreshing to see Kalisto beat Ryback, even if he is just being set up for Del Rio. The rest of the show was lackluster, as it was laid out very much like Raw. The tournament took up most of the time and the show concluded with an angle for the Undertaker. Except, unlike Raw, he didn’t show up, so it felt pretty flat.
It should also be noted that there was no women’s segment on this show outside of the one Raw replay (unless they add something for the Thursday airing in the U.S.). No match or interview. So there’s that.
