WHERE CHATTERS GO TO TALK ABOUT OFF TOPIC STUFF!
Presented in match order. KICKOFF SHOW: Smackdown Tag Team Championship Rey and Dominic Mysterio (c) vs. The Usos Match wasn't officially on card until after Smackdown, and honestly? I forgot to add it to the predictions post, so no prediction. Anyway, the Usos are now 5x Smackdown tag team champs, and 7x WWE tag champs overall. The match was rightly part of the kickoff show, but it wasn't bad, and featured multiple good "tag" spots. Wasn't best tag match ever, but it was entertaining. Grade: B+ Women's Money in the Bank Ladder Match Asuka vs. Naomi vs. Alexa Bliss vs. Nikki Cross vs. Liv Morgan vs. Zelina vs. Natalya vs. Tamina Prediction: (Mrs. Dave) Liv Morgan. Prediction: (Dave) Nikki Cross. Based on who was involved, I expected this match to be...better. Of my chief complaints is that most of the spots were 1 v 1. Out of the 8 wrestlers involved in the match, at almost all times, at least 5 of them would be on the outside of the ring, pretending to lay there injured, until their next spot came up in the match choreography. It just didn't flow very well. It wasn't the worst MITB match I have ever seen, but I would probably rank it near the bottom. The only real part I enjoyed the was finish, where they had 3 ladders set up side by side, women on each side of each ladder trying to grab the briefcase, and then Nikki Cross (Nikki A.S.H.) climbed over one of them to grab the briefcase. It was one of the very few spots that had multiple people involved...Based on the crowd reaction, they were quite happy to see the "Almost Super Hero" get her shot. Grade: C- Raw Tag Team Championship AJ Styles and Omos (c) vs. The Viking Raiders Another unannounced match until the last minute, so no prediction on this one either. However, there wasn't really a need for a prediction either. No way in hell AJ Styles and Omos were dropping the belt to those guys...and they didn't. Boring, predictable match. If you decide to watch the PPV on Peacock later, you can skip this match. Grade: C- WWE Championship Bobby Lashley (c) vs. Kofi Kingston Prediction: (Mrs. Dave): Kofi Kingston (Dave): Bobby Lashley This match was basically what I thought it would be: The WWE booking Lashley to look dominant over a former champion to solidify in the fans minds, that Lashley is as strong a champion as Drew McIntyre was. I don't want to say that Lashley basically toyed with Kofi the whole match, I mean, Kofi did get in a little bit of offense, but for the most part? Lashley kinda toyed with Kofi the whole match. Lashley gets the win, in what was essentially a PPV level squash match. Grade: C RAW Women's Championship Rhea Ripley (c) vs. Charlotte Flair Prediction: (Both Dave and Mrs. Dave): Rhea Ripley retains With only two matches left to go after this one, this was easily the best match of the night so far. Rhea Ripley is essentially the dark mirror universe version of Charlotte Flair, and those two have a natural chemistry wrestling each other, not unlike Rey Mysterio/Eddie Guerrero matches used to be. They just work well as opponents. They even got the crowd to chant "this is awesome!" a few times. Which, considering the PPV prior to this match has been very mediocre, says something. However, I should point out, there was a spot where if the crowd HADN'T chanted "This is awesome" or "HOLY SHIT", I'd have been surprised...Charlotte Flair pulled of a moonsault from the top rope to the concrete floor and hit Rhea Ripley on the way down. I am sure that clip is gonna be shown tonight on Raw...Anyway, Charlotte Flair adds another World Championship to her collection. Best guess that she is a transitional champ, because Becky Lynch is coming back, and for her first feud, they want her with someone she inherently trusts in the ring... Grade: A Men's Money in the Bank Ladder Match Ricochet vs. John Morrison vs. Riddle vs. Drew McIntyre vs. Big E vs. Kevin Owens vs. Shinsuke Nakamura vs. Seth Rollins Prediction: (Dave) Seth Rollins Prediction: (Mrs. Dave) either Riddle or Big E I don't really know how to describe this match, beyond it was fun to watch. You had your expected high spots with Richocet, Riddle and Morrison, you had your tough guy spots with McIntyre, Big E, KO and Rollins, and then, for a little while, you had a brief team up between Morrison and Rollins, as they worked together to use ladders as rams to clear the ring out...(Until Rollins turned on Morrison). Compared to the Women's MITB earlier, this one just flowed better, the timing, the pacing of it just...worked where the Women's match didn't. Big E FINALLY gets his chance to challenge for one of the titles...if the WWE books this correctly, when he beats Bobby Lashley for the Raw title, the crowd will erupt....but that's something for the future. Grade: A- Universal Championship Roman Reigns (c) vs. Edge Prediction: We both think Roman Reigns retains, but she is far less confident about the result than I am. Edge isn't as good as he once was...but he's as good, once, as he ever was. And boy, was he good tonight. So was Roman Reigns. I used to believe that the WWE was simply shoving Roman Reigns down our throats, forcing him as champion until we simply accepted it, or at least gave up fighting it...But I have a confession to make...Ever since they teamed Roman Reigns up with Paul Heyman, and turned him fully heel, he's been on a whole new level. After this match, it's time the WWE fandom admit to themselves something that has been obvious for about the past year now: Roman Reigns is actually as good as Vince McMahon thinks he is. The WWE absolutely got their main even right for the first PPV back in front of fans. The show started off slow, and for the first two hours, stayed that way...but they saved their best matches until the end, and Edge/Roman Reigns was a top notch main event. Roman Reigns retains, but who cares? This match was great regardless of who came out on top... Grade: A And that's it for MITB 2021, PPV's over, see you nex.... WHAT? JOHN CENA? Yes. You can't see him, but he came storming down the entrance way! Crowd is going so apeshit, they even forget to break out into split "Let's Go Cena/Cena Sucks!" chants...One "You Can't See Me" hand gesture later, and the PPV closes with the image of John Cena staring down Roman Reigns, in the middle of the ring. Summerslam, anyone?
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I know, I haven't done one of these since Wrestlemania....why? Because honestly, the last few PPVs sucked, and there was nothing to really get excited over enough to justify writing a preview over.
As I write this, there are only 5 matches confirmed for the card. The WWE has made an effort to shorten PPV lengths a little, I think they realized how ridiculously long they were getting, and are making them more tolerable.... Also, there will be two predictions for each match, as my lovely wife is adding her own predictions... WWE Championship Bobby Lashley (c) vs. Kofi Kingston Sorry to New Day fans, but this match's sole purpose is to give Bobby Lashley another win over a former title holder to help strengthen his hold on the title. Barring interference from Xavier Woods or even Big E, I just can't see Bobby Lashley losing the strap to Kofi. However, Mrs. Dave feels that Kofi is going to be the one that walks out of the arena with the WWE Championship. Her reasoning is that Bobby losing clean to Xavier Woods shook him up a bit, dented his ego...which makes him vulnerable. Basically, his aura of invincibility just got shattered, and he knows he can be beat. Prediction: (Mrs. Dave): Kofi Kingston (Dave): Bobby Lashley Universal Championship Roman Reigns (c) vs. Edge Like the WWE title match, this match's purpose is just to give more rub to the current champ. Edge isn't going to win. Not when the current plan for Summerslam is Roman Reigns vs. a returning (ie, movie to plug) John Cena. It's not that Edge is simply "enhancement talent", but the man came back from a multi-year, injury related retirement, had a few matches, got a long-term injury, and now he is back...NO WAY they trust him as champion. Plus, the Usos are certainly going to interfere. Prediction: We both think Roman Reigns retains, but she is far less confident about the result than I am. RAW Women's Championship Rhea Ripley (c) vs. Charlotte Flair This one, I am not nearly as confident about. I suspect Rhea Ripley retains, as they continue to build her up a a credible champion, but then again, it's Charlotte Flair. Vince McMahon loves Charlotte Flair. Vince McMahon loves putting titles on Charlotte Flair...BUT, my gut tells me not this time...I think they want to see how live crowds react to Ripley before they contemplate taking the belt off of her. My wife is of the opinion that the winner of this match depends on match order of the card. IF the Women's MITB match goes first, AND Nikki wins, then she expects Charlotte to beat Ripley, only to lose to Nikki Cross immediately cashing the briefcase in. But if anyone else wins, or the Women's MITB happens after this match, Rhea likely retains. Prediction: Overall we both think Rhea Ripley retains, but we both have major reservations, and can see multiple reasons they'd give Charlotte the belt too. Call it being 51% confident, lol But, let's be honest...the title matches aren't what makes Money In The Bank PPVs fun...it's the MITB matches themselves...If you aren't familiar, it's basically an 8-person ladder match, with a briefcase suspended above the ring, that contains a "contract" that guarantees the winner of the match a title shot at any title they want, at any time they want, for the next year. MITB matches tend to have all kinds of crazy spots, stunts, things you don't get to see normally...They are the kind of matches the fans love to chant "HOLY SHIT! HOLY SHIT!" during. Men's Money in the Bank Ladder Match Ricochet vs. John Morrison vs. Riddle vs. Drew McIntyre vs. Big E vs. Kevin Owens vs. Shinsuke Nakamura vs. Seth Rollins Where to begin? I think we can eliminate Ricochet, John Morrison, Matt Riddle, Kevin Owens and Shinsuke Nakamura from winning, based on who else is in the match. You could probably make a case for either Owens or Nakamura with different opponents, but in a match that has Drew McIntyre and Seth Rollins? Nope. And there have been rumors for over a year that the WWE was grooming Big E for a possible title run...So, chances are, it's going to be one of those three. My wife on the other hand, thinks a major case can be made to support Riddle winning, based on the potential storyline it allows with Randy Orton. She thinks Seth and Roman is going to happen regardless of whether Rollins wins MITB or not, because, of course it's going to. No need to give it to Rollins at all. Same with Drew McIntyre. He's an established main eventer, and will be part of the title scene no matter who wins this match. Prediction: I am going with the safe pick, Seth Rollins, wife is going with either Riddle or Big E winning it. Women's Money in the Bank Ladder Match Asuka vs. Naomi vs. Alexa Bliss vs. Nikki Cross vs. Liv Morgan vs. Zelina vs. Natalya vs. Tamina Ok, since the WWE went and announced the final contestant Thursday night, I had to completely redo this section...We can automatically eliminate Nattie and Tamina...Asuka won MITB last year, so I think we can eliminate her too. Naomi hasn't gotten ANY kind of push in months, so I think it's safe to rule her out too. Zelina just got back, so not her either...That leaves Alexa Bliss, Nikki Cross, and Liv Morgan. With Alexa's current "Fiendess" character, she doesn't need something like MITB to either get over or to be thrown into a title feud...Giving her the MITB briefcase would be a waste, because she doesn't need it at all...So that leaves Nikki Cross and Liv Morgan. When I write these threads, I frequently go over these predictions with my wife to get her input, and up to the final two participants, we are in total agreement over the winner likely being either Nikki Cross or Liv Morgan...The argument for Liv is that she's gone through this weird cycle of being pushed then buried, pushed then buried, pushed then buried...She more than paid her dues, frankly, the WWE owes Liv Morgan at this point...Nikki Cross's superhero gimmick is too new, and needs to be fleshed out more, so Liv Morgan makes the most sense. The argument for Nikki Cross is that that they have been testing her against established champions in her superhero persona, and they have made her look good teaming with Asuka, and in matches against Rhea Ripley and Charlotte Flair. Nikki Cross is just one good push from exploding in popularity, and I think the WWE is going to give her that push now that they are returning to live audiences. Her superhero gimmick is new, but received overwhelmingly positive reactions on social media. Prediction: (Mrs. Dave) Liv Morgan. Prediction: (Dave) Nikki Cross. In match order
NIGHT 1 WWE Championship: Bobby Lashley (c) vs. Drew McIntyre This match started off Saturday night, as the WWE wanted to start the festivities off with a bang...Only that bang wasn't exactly like seeing the fireworks in New York City on Independence Day, it was like the fireworks being run by your local town. This match didn't suck, but it wasn't exactly Savage/Steamboat either. Winner: Bobby Lashley Grade: B Tag Team Turmoil Match: Lana & Naomi vs. Mandy Rose & Dana Brooke vs. Liv Morgan & Ruby Riott vs. Natalya & Tamina vs. Billie Kay & Carmella This was a gauntlet style match, with two teams starting the match out, and a new team comes in as soon as one of the teams gets eliminated. Only thing I am going to say about this match, is that I completely don't understand the way it was booked. It was lazy. having the last team to enter win is the easy way to book, requires no creativity at all. This match felt like a Smackdown filler match, not a major PPV one. Winner of Tag Team Turmoil match: Natalya and Tamina Grade: D Cesaro vs. Seth Rollins Can it be? Has the WWE FINALLY figured out that Cesaro is a damn good wrestler, who has been underutilized for years? It's possible...Not only did Cesaro debut a brand new move (a hands-free airplane spin called the UFO, you really have to see it to believe it), but he followed that up with a 23-rotation big swing...And in one of the most pleasant surprises of the entire PPV, gets the win! This match was just damn fun to watch. Winner: Cesaro Grade: A Raw Tag Team Championship: The New Day (c) AJ Styles & Omos The way this was booked, expect for AJ Styles and Omos to hold the Tag Team straps at least until Summerslam. Omos was dominant in his debut. Entire match was AJ getting his ass kicked, trying to make the tag to Omos, and New Day constantly cutting him off...as soon as AJ got that tag, the match was effectively over, as New Day had no answer for the size and strength of Omos. Winners: AJ Styles & Omos Grade: B+ Shane McMahon vs. Braun Strowman (Steel Cage Match) I made no prediction for this match, because I knew there would be shenanigans involved, and there were. Not only did Elias and Ryker try to interfere by climbing into the cage, but somehow, Braun managed to just rip the mesh out of one of the panels to the cage...I don't really know how I feel about this match. It was a lot better than it should have been, and that is really the problem. It made a non-wrestler in his mid 50s look like he was a legitimate threat to beat this huge monster of a man...if Braun Strowman struggles to beat Shane McMahon, why would I expect him to be real threat to the upper level guys that are actually wrestlers? Winner: Braun Strowman Grade: B- (match itself is a B+, but deducting a full grade for how it absolutely weakened Strowman's mystique.) Bad Bunny & Damian Priest vs. The Miz & John Morrison And this is where I appear to be a total hypocrite, by praising the booking of having Miz and Morrison make a non-wrestler look good...But Miz and Morrison aren't Braun Strowman, and their entire gimmick isn't built on being an unstoppable giant...And to Bad Bunny's credit, he has been training in the WWE for months getting ready for this match. He wasn't just a random celebrity faking his way through a match, he had been put through the paces already at the WWE Performance Center...Green? Absolutely. But not incompetent in the ring. The wrestlers who got Bad Bunny ready for this match deserve credit, they did a great job getting him ready for this match. Winner: Bad Bunny and Damian Priest Grade: A- SmackDown Women's Championship: Sasha Banks (c) vs. Bianca Belair This was the final match of Wrestlemania Night 1. and I don't really know how to describe this match, outside of "HOLY SHIT" chants. Sasha and Bianca beat the crap out of each other, to the point where Sasha might end up with a permanent scar on her waist/side from Bianca using her hair extension as a tail whip, and not only was it loud, but it was crystal clear she really nailed Sasha Banks with it...Sasha literally got whipped by that. OUCH. This was not only the best match of night 1, this was the best match of Wrestlemania 37, period. Winner: Bianca Belair Grade: A+ NIGHT 2 "The Fiend" Bray Wyatt vs. Randy Orton This match was just weird. Bray Wyatt came out in a giant jack in the box that Alexa Bliss wound the crank of, ok...that was kind of a cool entrance...so far so good. Mandible claws, attempted RKOs, as expected...and then, as Bray was gonna finish Orton with Sister Abigail, the ring posts launch fire (like during a Kane entrance), and you see Alexa Bliss sitting on top of the jack in the box right at ringside, her face covered with this black tar/goo type substance...Bray is distracted, Orton hits the RKO, gets the pin...lights go off, both Bray and Bliss have disappeared. So...was Bliss really helping Orton? Is she the real Fiend now? I have no idea what just happened, other than they just had their best Undertaker replacement character take the L in his first match back...Bizarre. Winner: Randy Orton Grade: C+ Women's Tag Team Championship: Nia Jax & Shayna Baszler (c) vs. Tag Team Turmoil winner As soon as Tamina and Nattie got the win on Saturday night, it became obvious that this was just gonna be Smackdown-quality match. If you watch the replay of Wrestlemania, you can skip this match, you won't miss much. Winner of Tag Team title match: Nia Jax & Shayna Baszler Grade: C- Kevin Owens vs. Sami Zayn The only real highlight of this match was seeing Logan Paul (Sami Zayn's ringside guest or something) take the stunner from Owens. I make no bones about the fact that I couldn't care less about either of these guys, but, in all honesty, this match didn't totally suck. Winner: Kevin Owens Grade: B United States Championship: Riddle (c) vs. Sheamus I am thrilled that Sheamus got the win, as I hate Riddle with a passion, that entire "surfer bro" gimmick might have worked in 1991, but in 2021, it just makes me want to see him get punched...however, I am surprised that they used Sheamus to strip the belt from him. Not that Sheamus isn't capable, but Riddle is one of their rising stars, I would think they would wait until they could hand the belt to another rising star who needs the rub...Sheamus doesn't need titles to be over, he just needs to kick people's asses... Winner: Sheamus Grade: B- (this would be a B, but there were a few botched spots that were hard to ignore) Intercontinental Championship: Big E (c) vs. Apollo Crews This was basically a hardcore match, so no DQs, no count-outs...but no DQs also means interference is allowed...like, Dabba Kato. If you saw the RAW underground segments from this fall, Dabba Kato was that ENORMOUS dude who beat the shit out of everyone at Shane McMahon's behest. Dude is bigger than Strowman...he takes out Big E, Crews gets the win, and the title. By having Kato take Big E out, Apollo Crews STILL feels like just a guy, and an undeserving champion who hadn't been built up at all. I fully expect Big E to regain this belt. Winner: Apollo Crews Grade: B- Raw Women's Championship: Asuka (c) vs. Rhea Ripley How do I phrase this...this would have been an excellent title match, if it hadn't come AFTER the Sasha Banks/Bianca Belair match the night before. It wasn't a bad match by any means, and on most PPVs, probably would have gotten an A or A- rating from me...but, not only was it not one of Asuka's best performances, but when compared to the other Women's title match, this was clearly 2nd fiddle. If this match had closed out night 1, and Banks/Belair were the night 2 match, I probably would have graded it as an A-. But, with Banks/Belair already on the books to compare it to, this was...lacking. Winner: Rhea Ripley Grade: B+ Universal Championship: Roman Reigns (c) vs. Edge vs. Daniel Bryan Maybe I am being a bit unfair here, because this match was actually really good...but, the ending was not just predictable, but inevitable...at least to me. There was never any doubt in my mind that Roman was going to retain the title, so why this was the main event of night 2, and the final match of the entire PPV, is beyond me. Why make that the final image fans have of the event? The thing is, they had a BRILLIANT finish to the match they could have used...at one point, both Edge and Daniel Bryan had Roman Reigns in submission moves...simultaneously. Have Reigns tap out, without knowing WHO he tapped out to...Massive storyline branches out from that simple outcome...You could even make MITB, the next PPV, be for the title, instead of just for the briefcase. I mean, you could basically pull a Jack Tunney Hogan/Andre/DiBiase kind of move...Roman Reigns taps, he is therefore NOT the champion. However, because the referees could not determine which submission move Reigns tapped out to, neither Daniel Bryan nor Edge could be considered the champion either...boom! The title gets vacated, and you put the 3 of them, along with 5 others in the MITB, with the title on the line! That would have closed out night 2 with a "HOLY SHIT" moment to match Bianca Belair's victory on night 1... But, nope. Instead, we got Jey Uso interfering to give Reigns the win. Again. Just like on every Smackdown. Yay. Bookers come up with a fantastic false finish that could have led to all kinds of future interest, and instead, they go with the same ol', same ol' finish they have booked for Roman Reigns matches for the past 6 months...BORING. Winner: Roman Reigns. Grade: B+ (A- for the match, B for the predictability/lack of suspense) Night 1 Grade: B+ Night 2 Grade: B- Overall Grade: B Final thoughts This will not be remembered as one of the all-time great Wrestlemanias. It had a few highs, hit a few lows...but for the most part, I found it rather...average. And part of that, is the match order. Even a simple change, like swapping the nights, so that Night 2 finishes with Sasha Banks and Bianca Belair instead of Reigns/Edge/Daniel Bryan, could have changed the entire perspective by giving the fans a really huge feel good moment to close the PPV out...Vince loves MOMENTS... and he had a perfect moment to close out Wrestlemania with...except he blew it by having it close night 1 instead. So, essentially, the best moment of the entire event, occurred halfway through it, guaranteeing that night 2 had to be a letdown...Which it was. Night 1 was much stronger overall than Night 2 was, as a fan, I would rather have had the weakest matches on Saturday, and then be blown away on Sunday, culminating in the best match of the entire event to close the whole thing out... I am going to do both nights in one preview, as cards are always subject to change, and so are air dates...So bear with me, this could get a bit long.
Tag Team Turmoil Match: Lana & Naomi vs. Mandy Rose & Dana Brooke vs. Liv Morgan & Ruby Riott vs. Natalya & Tamina vs. Billie Kay & Carmella Women's Tag Team Championship: Nia Jax & Shayna Baszler (c) vs. Tag Team Turmoil winner Putting these two matches together, as they relate to each other. The Tag Team Turmoil match is a guarantee to be on Saturday, as the winners of this match have a match on Sunday against the Women's Tag Team Champions, Nia Jax and Shayna Baszler. Looking at these teams, and what the WWE has done in this division for the last 6 months, as ridiculous as this match is likely going to be, one team looks to be the clear cut winner: Winner (of both the Tag Team Turmoil match AND Tag Team title matches): Lana and Naomi. Look, this is simple. After all of the bullying Jax and Baszler have done to Lana, the payout has to be Lana holding up tag team gold. I get it, she sucks...but if they don't win the belts, then what the hell was the point of spending months and months having Lana get bullied by Jax and Baszler? Kevin Owens vs. Sami Zayn Nobody cares. Ok, maybe it's just me that doesn't care. I hate both of these knobheads, so have NO vested interest at all in whoever wins or loses. Winner: Everyone who spends the air time in the kitchen making snacks for the matches that mean something, or are taking a dump in the bathroom to avoid watching it. Bad Bunny & Damian Priest vs. The Miz & John Morrison Celebrities at Wrestlemania ALWAYS win. No point in even having this storyline if Miz and Morrison come away with the victory. Plus, this is the WWE's chance to make the main roster fans who don't watch NXT care about Damian Priest by making him look strong. Winner: Bad Bunny and Damian Priest. Cesaro vs. Seth Rollins As much as we all love the Swiss Superman, Seth Rollins is the star here. Cesaro is never going to be anything more than a highly talented, but underappreciated mid-carder...and now that Rollins has returned after spending a few months off to be with Becky Lynch and their newborn baby, he needs to get back in the swing of things to become a main eventer/title challenger over the summer. Winner: Seth Rollins. Shane McMahon vs. Braun Strowman (Steel Cage Match) This one, I honestly have no opinion on. On paper, Braun Strowman should destroy Shane McMahon...but the WWE knows that too, which makes me think there will be major shenanigans in the match...Shane McMahon is very smart, and has to have found a way to even the odds a little here. I suspect a swerve of some kind, but not strongly enough to actually call the match for Shane O'Mac...This just seems like a trap for Braun. Winner: No prediction. "The Fiend" Bray Wyatt vs. Randy Orton Randy Orton has been my WWE MVP this past year, the man has been simply beyond brilliant...but it's hard to see them booking Bray Wyatt to lose his first match back, especially when it's at Wrestlemania. If they do that, it will prematurely destroy any momentum they want him to have for his return...Basically, he would just become another guy. If Orton wins here, the Fiend mystique goes away, and I don't think he would ever recover it. Winner: Bray Wyatt, with or without the help of Alexa Bliss United States Championship: Riddle (c) vs. Sheamus I hate Matt Riddle. I loathe Matt Riddle. I despise Matt Riddle. That whole surfer bro gimmick he has just makes me want to see Sheamus just beat him down...but, Sheamus is mostly a glorified jobber now, and Riddle, as much of a tool as he is, is part of the future of the company. The WWE will try to solidify Riddle's place by giving him the win. Winner: Matt Riddle. Intercontinental Championship: Big E (c) vs. Apollo Crews They just gave Big E the belt, no way they take it from him this soon, and certainly not to a guy they haven't even tried to build up as a legitimate threat... Winner: Big E. Raw Tag Team Championship: The New Day (c) AJ Styles & Omos I am gonna call the upset here. If it proves to be a mistake, they can simply have New Day regain the belts at Backlash or Money In the Bank in a rematch, but for now? Going with my gut, we are going to see new Raw Tag Team Champions crowned. Winners: AJ Styles & Omos SmackDown Women's Championship: Sasha Banks (c) vs. Bianca Belair The complaint is, that there aren't enough legit contenders for either of the Women's singles titles, that it's always the same women passing the belts on to each other, over and over and over again. If you only watch Raw or Smackdown, you might not understand just how damn good Bianca Belair is. But, those of you who watched NXT over the last few years, you know...Bianca is going to officially join the ranks of the elite female wrestlers in WWE at Wrestlemania by beating Sasha Banks for the belt. Winner: Bianca Belair. Raw Women's Championship: Asuka (c) vs. Rhea Ripley First, you guys all know how much I love Asuka. She is bar none, my favorite female wrestler, and might actually be my favorite wrestler on the entire WWE roster. With that said though, the WWE has been wasting her title reign. She hasn't been doing anything meaningful with the belt at all, because the WWE has no idea how to book her. As such, much with the Smackdown Women's Championship, I think we will see a new champion crowned. Much like Bianca Belair, I expect to see Rhea Ripley get the nod and join the ranks of the elite female wrestlers in the WWE too. Winner: Rhea Ripley Universal Championship: Roman Reigns (c) vs. Edge vs. Daniel Bryan This, along with the WWE Championship, will likely be one of the two nightly main events. I am going to be perfectly honest here, I think having Edge win the Royal Rumble was a huge mistake. He has looked every bit his age since then. If Edge walks out of Wrestlemania with the gold around his waist, don't expect him to hold on to it as a long term champion. It will be off him within a month or two. Edge is a mere shell of the wrestler he used to be. Meanwhile, Daniel Bryan acknowledged back in October already, that he was in his last run, that his career was drawing to a close. His contract also expires shortly after Wrestlemania. It's even possible that this weekend is the last time we ever see Daniel Bryan in a WWE match. That leaves only one real logical choice here. Roman Reigns is going to retain. He has to. Winner: Roman Reigns. WWE Championship: Bobby Lashley (c) vs. Drew McIntyre This, along with the Universal Championship, will likely be one of the two nightly main events. Folks, this is real simple. Drew McIntyre is going to win the belt, and this time, have a Wrestlemania crowd there to cheer the victory. Were it not for COVID, Raymond James Stadium would have been jam packed last year, and McIntyre would have gotten a massive ovation after winning the title. This is a bit of a do-over for that missed moment. I kind of feel bad for Bobby Lashley, because it means his title run is going to be short lived, but the WWE can have him and McIntyre feud over the belt during the summer. Winner: Drew McIntyre. It's Godzilla vs. Kong! I just finished watching this on HBO Max, after getting caught up in the "Monsterverse" over the past few days, watching the three Godzilla/Kong movies that precede it in continuity (Godzilla 2014, Kong: Skull Island and Godzilla: King of Monsters). Ummm...how to I start this review...oh, I know. The plot? It's utter rubbish. Even taking into account the previous three films, the plot to this one makes absolutely no sense whatsoever. It's like the makers of this film acknowledge that when you have a film franchise as absolutely preposterous as this, nobody really gives a rip about the plot, because anyone watching this film who is even halfway familiar with the source material isn't exactly coming into it expecting to watch a future nominee for Best Picture at the Oscars. I mean, it's GODZILLA vs. KONG, not The English Patient...If you don't know what to expect just from the title alone, you probably don't have any business watching this movie. So...if we can throw away the plot entirely (because you can), what does that leave us, as far as a movie goes? Well...some of you might remember an old game for the SNES called King of Monsters... The game is relatively simple: It's a fighting/beat-em up game that uses generic versions of kaiju (Basically, giant monsters), with destructible city backgrounds. This movie is basically like that....so, pretty much what you fully expect to see in a movie called Godzilla vs. Kong. Which brings me to the point, really. WHO GIVES A CRAP IF THERE IS NO PLOT??? Seriously, this movie was highly entertaining to watch, preciously because of the reasons you'd expect it to be highly entertaining to watch, even without a cohesive story...Godzilla, Kong (and a mystery 3rd contender) in a battle royal that causes countless amount of damage to CGI Hong Kong...What more do you need?
Long story short, it's just a damn fun movie, as long as you aren't expecting Oscar-worthy dialogue... Elimination Chamber match (winner faces Roman Reigns)
King Corbin vs. Kevin Owens vs. Cesaro vs. Daniel Bryan vs. Sami Zayn vs Jey Uso Daniel Bryan and Cesaro started out the match, and Daniel Bryan ended up winning the match. Not much really to say about this match, knowing it's entire purpose was just to set up a different match on the card...but, shout out to Cesaro, who reminded everyone why he is known as the Swiss Superman...dude is ridiculously athletic and strong. He didn't win, but Cesaro was the best part of the match. Universal Championship Match Roman Reigns (c) vs. Smackdown Elimination Chamber match winner This Elimination Chamber match kicked off the PPV, so you'd expect that Daniel Bryan would have time to rest up a little before having his title match with Roman Reigns, right? WRONG. No sooner did the match end, then the Chamber raised, Roman Reigns comes out, and the title match begins. Well, obviously Roman Reigns is at a huge advantage, having not just wrestled 5 other dudes in a steel cage...Reigns wins in a fairly short match and....SPEAR! Edge pops out of nowhere, and just nails Reigns...thereby sealing his choice as to which of the two heavyweight titles he will be pursuing at Wrestlemania... United States Championship Bobby Lashley (c) vs. Keith Lee vs. Matt Riddle (if match even happens) This match did end up happening, with John Morrison taking the place of the absent Keith Lee. Riddle came out wearing this ridiculous Evel Knievel inspired thing, because today's younger wrestling fans ALL KNOW who Evel Knievel was, amirite??? Anyway, apparently, this was a no DQ match, despite never being announced as such, as Matt Riddle hit Bobby Lashley twice with a crutch, inside the ring, with the ref looking right at him, without a decision...I guess for a triple threat match that kind of makes sense...anyway, after getting hit twice by a crutch, Lashley rolls out the ring, Riddle gets the pin on Morrison to become the new US Champ, without Lashley ever taking the fall or being made to look weak. That will come into play in a bit... Women's Tag Team Championship Nia Jax & Shayna Baszler (c) vs. Sasha Banks &Bianca Belair This match wasn't announced until the Kickoff show, so I didn't have it in my preview thread. Not sure what the point of this match was. There was no way they were going to give Banks and Belair the straps, knowing that they are going to have Belair challenge Banks for the Smackdown Women's Title at Wrestlemania, but then, they didn't really do anything to introduce discord between the two to help set that match up, either...Without booking the start of driving the wedge between Banks and Belair, this match literally served no purpose. There are other female tag teams that could have been given this spot instead of Banks and Belair. Elimination Chamber match for WWE Championship Drew McIntyre (c) vs. Randy Orton vs. AJ Styles vs. Jeff Hardy vs. Sheamus vs. Kofi Kingston Jeff Hardy and Randy Orton start out the match. Next out is the champ Drew McIntyre, and then Kofi Kingston, who gets a quick pin on Randy Orton...this led to an interesting situation: AJ Styles' bodyguard Omos rips off the BACK of the pod Styles was in (it's just plexiglass), so AJ Styles is on the outside of the chamber...as the ref opens the door to allow the eliminated Orton out, AJ Styles runs into the Chamber, well ahead of it being his official time to enter...Anyway, Drew McIntyre ends up winning and retaining his title...the Chamber raises up, and Drew is celebrating his win in the middle of the ring... Suddenly, he gets viciously attacked by Bobby Lashley, and is just laying there on the ground, helpless. In the words of Jim Ross, he just got beat like a government mule...Remember earlier, how they managed to get the US title off of Lashley, without making him look weak at all, by not having him participate in the actual fall? Well...this is why. The plan is clearly for Bobby Lashley to challenge Drew McIntyre for the WWE Championship at Wrestl...WAIT! OUT COMES THE MIZ! He's actually cashing in the MITB briefcase, like, for REAL this time! WWE Championship match (Money In The Bank Cash In) Drew McIntyre (c) vs. Mike "the Miz" Mizanian Miz hits a basement DDT, 1...2...Drew kicks out. Does the champ still have any fight left in him? The Miz follows up with a Skull Crushing Finale... 1...2...3! As Howard Finkel might say, "Here is your winner, and NEWWWWWWWWWWWWWWW DOUBLE YOU DOUBLE YOU EEEE WORLD HEAVYWEIGHT CHAMPION, THE MIZ!!!!!!!!!" Normally, I would post my grades for each match, as I do for most PPVs...however, since it was clear from the very beginning that this PPV was largely just filler, because they had to hold two more PPVs before they get to Wrestlemania (ie, Fastlane is probably going to be more or less a throw-away PPV too), I decided not to judge the matches in the way I normally would, because this Elimination Chamber wasn't really meant to do anything other than tread water. Yeah, there were a few twists, but other than the Miz cashing in, overall, it was largely forgettable. Also, they ended up cancelling the Asuka match entirely, and I am kind of pissed about that. The PPV ended just before 9:30pm EST, it was all of 2 and a half hours. They absolutely had time to squeeze one more match on the card, and simply chose not to. Shoot, they even had time to have an impromptu women's Elimination Chamber match, let alone just a standard match, and chose to just end the show early instead. They found a replacement for Keith Lee in the US title match, but they couldn't find a replacement for Lacey Evans, despite having six full days (in storyline) to replace her? Not even with an open challenge or something simple like that? DAMMIT, WWE... www.yahoo.com/sports/ex-wrestling-stars-take-concussion-lawsuit-with-wwe-to-supreme-court-232105665.html
A lawyer for more than 50 former professional wrestlers suing WWE over brain damage has taken the case to the U.S. Supreme Court. Attorney Konstantine Kyros filed the request on Wednesday after lower courts dismissed the suit as frivolous or beyond the statute of limitations, according to documents obtained by the Associated Press. The plaintiffs listed include star wrestlers from the 1980s and '90s, including Joseph “Animal” Laurinaitis of the Road Warriors, Jimmy “Superfly” Snuka, Paul “Mr. Wonderful” Orndorff, Chris “King Kong Bundy” Pallies and Harry Masayoshi Fujiwara, known in the ring as Mr. Fuji Snuka died in 2017, and Fujiwara died in 2016. Both were diagnosed after their deaths with chronic traumatic encephalopathy (CTE), the disorder commonly associated with repeated head injuries suffered in football. Pallies died in 2019, and Laurinaitis died last year of undisclosed causes. Other plaintiffs have complained of dementia and other illnesses, according to the lawsuit. The suit accuses WWE of knowing the health risks of wrestling without warning participants and argues that WWE is more liable for injuries than sports like football because the organization scripts the matches that result in brain injury. The NFL settled a lawsuit over concussions with former players in 2016 for more than $1 billion. Federal judge Vanessa Bryant ruled in 2018 that there was no evidence that WWE knew at the time that collisions suffered in the wrestling ring would result in CTE. A WWE spokesperson told AP on Thursday that the lawsuit is without merit. It's not yet clear whether or not the Supreme Court will consider the case. Here is the major problem I see with this lawsuit: All the four wrestlers specifically listed, Road Warrior Animal, Jimmy Snuka, King Kong Bundy and Mr. Fuji (and very likely every other wrestler involved too), spent lots of time wrestling outside of the WWE. How do they prove that CTE they may have, was due to their time in a WWF/E ring, and not in the AWA, NWA, USWA, Japan, or other territory? Looking at their histories: Joe Laurinaitis wrestled as Road Warrior Animal for 30 years. He was only in the WWF/E for 11, and for 5 of those 11 years, was used only sporadically, not really as a full active member of the roster. Superfly Jimmy Snuka? In the WWF/E as an active wrestler for 9 years out of a career that spanned 47. King Kong Bundy? 6 WWF/E years out of 26 years as active wrestler. Mr. Fuji? As an active wrestler, he was in the WWWF/WWF/E for 11 years out of 20. He retired from active wrestling in 1985, and did manage in the WWF until he fully retired in 1996. But as a manager, he would not have been subject to the hits he took as an active wrestler, so I am not counting his managerial career. Then, these want to hold the WWE accountable for knowing the risks and not telling them...however, NOBODY knew about CTE in the 1970s-1990s. Not the WWE, not the NFL, nobody...because those level concussion studies just hadn't been done yet. How do they prove the WWE had the knowledge about CTE/concussions, when nobody else did? I mean, for every wrestler involved, wouldn't the WWE just have to produce tape of each wrestler, working for a non-WWE wrestling promotion, taking a chair shot, falling through a table, or performing some other dangerous wrestling related spot, to provide reasonable doubt that the CTE was a result of their time in the WWE? I don't want to sound like a WWE shill here, someone just defending them because they are the WWE...but, honestly, I don't see how these wrestlers can possibly hope to prove their case. If this goes to the Supreme Court, they will absolutely grill the lawyers on both sides, and frankly, the plaintiffs have a massive task ahead, to prove the WWE, and only the WWE, was negligent in warning them about CTE, in a time when nobody understood CTE... It's Elimination Chamber week...Usually, that means we are about a month away from Wrestlemania, but because Wrestlemania won't be until April 10-11, the WWE is squeezing in their Fastlane PPV between Elimination Chamber and Mania on March 21st...BOO....But, it is what it is.
As always, cards are subject to change, this review is based on the card, as of Wednesday, 02/17/21. Elimination Chamber match for WWE Championship Drew McIntyre (c) vs. Randy Orton vs. AJ Styles vs. Jeff Hardy vs. Sheamus vs. Kofi Kingston Honestly? This can go a few different ways. The obvious choice here, is to just have Drew McIntyre retain the belt, and set up his Wrestlemania opponent later, at Fastlane (very likely Sheamus). That would be the safe choice here. However, while they appear to be leaning to having Royal Rumble Edge challenge Roman Reigns for the Universal title at Wrestlemania, what happens if Randy Orton emerges from this match, as the WWE Champion? Does Edge's preference of opponent suddenly shift back to the Viper, to have the Wrestlemania match, for the title, to close out their feud permanently? Then, there is Kofi Kingston, who wowed everybody two years ago with his EC performance, before winning the title at Wrestlemania...would the WWE book him to have a repeat performance, but this time with the belt on the line? Prediction: While I personally would book Randy Orton to win, to set up Orton/Edge at Wrestlemania, I think the WWE plays it safe here, and Drew McIntyre retains. Elimination Chamber match (winner faces Roman Reigns) King Corbin vs. Kevin Owens vs. Cesaro vs. Daniel Bryan vs. Sami Zayn vs Jey Uso We can immediately eliminate both Corbin and Zayn from contention here, as it makes no sense to set up a heel vs. heel title match later in the night. Now, that would logically mean the winner is either going to be Kevin Owens or Daniel Bryan, right? Or, could the WWE be planning a swerve here, and have Jay Uso win? Jay Uso is Roman Reign's cousin, and allied to him. If he wins the Elimination Chamber, there are a couple of different ways the WWE could book this. They could play it straight, and have an actual match between Reigns and Uso (possible return of Jimmy Uso/Twin Magic?), or...and this is a just a thought here...what if the entire plan is akin to the "Fingerpoke of doom", where after winning the right to face his cousin for the universal title, Jay Uso just...lays down and lets Roman pin him, to ensure that Reigns keeps the belt? Prediction: While seeing Jay Uso win would provide the most compelling immediate storyline for the title match later, I have a suspicion that the winner will be Kevin Owens, just so they can end that rivalry with a clean win by Reigns before setting up Edge/Reigns for Wrestlemania. Universal Championship Match Roman Reigns (c) vs. Smackdown Elimination Chamber match winner I predicted Kevin Owens wins the actual Elimination Chamber match to be the opponent here...but it doesn't really matter, as the end result will be the same, regardless of who wins. Prediction: Roman Reigns retains. Raw Women's Championship Asuka (c) vs. ??? (If match even happens) This was scheduled to be Asuka vs. Lacey Evans, but, as we found out on RAW Monday night, Lacey Evans is pregnant. (This is very likely using a storyline to explain a real pregnancy) As such, Lacey Evans is out. If this match isn't cancelled entirely (which it very might be), look for them to have Asuka issue an open challenge to any woman in the locker room...queue Also Sprach Zarathustra, and Charlotte Flair. It's only a matter of time before Charlotte goes back to being in the title picture, her and Asuka are no longer the Women's Tag Team Champs, so...why not? My wife also brings up another very intriguing possibility, if it's an open challenge: Rhea Ripley. With her performance at the Royal Rumble, the WWE made it clear she is going back to the main roster soon...(remember, they tried bringing her to the main roster last year, and they completely botched it with horrible booking decisions that buried her). Prediction: Realistically, they will probably just cancel the match, allowing the EC matches to have more time. But, if this match does happen, I like my wife's idea...Rhea Ripley. Not only to be the opponent, but to WIN. United States Championship Bobby Lashley (c) vs. Keith Lee vs. Matt Riddle (if match even happens) Rumor has it that Keith Lee hasn't been cleared to come back yet after contracting COVID, so this could end up being Lashley vs. Riddle, 1 on 1. I gotta think that as long as the Hurt Business is ringside, there is no way in hell Bobby Lashley loses this match, even if Keith Lee participates. Prediction: Bobby Lashley Thoughts? Anyone completely undeserving getting in? Someone very much deserving still being left out?
I have no idea how many of you are watching WandaVision on Disney+. But if you do watch it, and haven't watched the latest episode (Ep5), and don't want to be spoiled, TURN AROUND. GO AWAY. . . . . . . Still here? Ok. Holy shit. Can we talk about that ending for a second, and the implications it represents? Now, things might not be what they seem, and what we see, is all a trick...However, if we take the ending at face value, the MCU just got MASSIVELY bigger, with the utterance of a single question... She recast Pietro? The answer to that question, just changed the entire MCU. Pietro, as you may recall, is Wanda's brother, Pietro Maximoff. You may also remember that as Quicksilver, Pietro was killed in Avengers: Age of Ultron. You may also remember that over at 20th Century Fox, the X-Men franchise had their own Pietro Maximoff/Quicksilver. Because of licensing rights at the time, Marvel could use the character as long as they never mentioned he was a mutant, and Fox could use the character as long as they specifically never mentioned his alignment with the Avengers. Then that licensing problem went away, when Disney purchased Fox Studios, giving Disney and the MCU the movie rights to all of Fox's Marvel characters. The question was though, how would Disney do it? Could Disney even do it? Was there a way to somehow incorporate the X-Men, the Fantastic Four and the other properties owned by Fox into the MCU, and have it make sense? And then we got a clue as to how they might do it, when Spider-Man:Into the Spider-Verse was released, when they introduced the concept of the multiverse. While the main alter-ego of Spider-Man was the Miles Morales version, it also featured Peter Parker and other Spider-Man variations...This is important, as it establishes that the MCU exists as one of a series of alternate universes. That is, if we were to follow that theme and apply to the live action Marvel Universe, it means that Disney's MCU, Fox's X-Men and Fantastic Four franchises, and Sony's version of Spider-Man all exist in alternate universes from each other, but that they are CONNECTED. Tom Holland's Spider-Man connected Disney's MCU with Sony's universe, even on an "loaned character" basis...but with Disney now owning Fox, they can do so much more than that. And they did. Going back to the character of Quicksilver/Pietro Maximoff...who should show up at Wanda's doorstep, than her dear brother? Only it wasn't THAT one. It was this one: It was the Pietro Maximoff...from the X-Men franchise. The one we all liked way better...
The entire plot of WandaVision is based on Scarlet Witch's ability to reshape reality...and Wanda did reshape reality. Not only did she necessarily resurrect Vision (who died in End Game) complete with Infinity Stone on his head, but she just subconsciously brought her brother back...only it was the Pietro from the Fox alternate/multiverse. The X-Men have officially joined Disney's MCU. The next Doctor Strange film is titled Doctor Strange:The Multiverse of Madness. The multiverse. Again. WandaVision was the start, but how much do you want to bet that by the end of Doctor Strange II, the 20th Century Fox Marvel universe will be fully blended in with the Disney MCU? It wouldn't even be hard to explain: When Thanos destroyed the Infinity Gauntlet and the Infinity Stones in End Game, he unknowingly opened up a rift in the space-time continuum that allowed the Fox Marvel universe and the Disney MCU to spill together...Could that be the central plot to the Doctor Strange sequel? That Doctor Strange was able to sense the changes as the MCU and Fox Marvel universe become one? Long story short: Now that Stan Lee is dead, don't be surprised to see his cameos in every Marvel movie replaced by Deadpool... |
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February 2021
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