Championship’s roll call: WWE Champion: John Cena… World Champion: Dolph Ziggler… Intercontinental Champion: Wade Barrett… United States Champion: Dean Ambrose… Tag Team Champions: The Shield… NXT Champion: Bo Dallas… NXT Tag Team Champions: The Wyatt Family… Diva’s Champion: Kaitlyn

They changed the theme for Superstars; it was different last week but I just thought it was something to do with the version I downloaded.

Tensai (w/Brodus Clay & The Funkadactyls) vs. Titus O’Neil (w/Darren Young):   The bell is really weird sounding, probably because this was before Mr. McMahon stole it. They jockey for position early and stalemate on some running shoulderblocks to establish the evenness in power. They start to exchange blows and O’Neil gets the advantage but quickly gets floored with a shoulderblock, with his attention diverted. Tensai hits a splash in the corner; he tries again, cross-corner, but completely misses and Titus scores with a powerslam. He DROPS THE LEG, BROTHER and then hits a submarine shoulder tackle. Sweet T fights back and manages to clothesline O’Neil to the floor as we head off to break. We come back with Tensai hitting a head-butt and wringing the arm. Titus fights back and clotheslines Tensai to the floor. Young applauds in satisfaction as O’Neil retrieves him on the floor and stomps away in the ring. He works a chinlock in the ropes and works a front facelock. Clay and company try to rally Tensai and he responds, reversing a whip into the corner, but Titus FLOATS OVER and hits a big boot. Nice agility for the bigman as he nets two. He continues to pound away and locks in another front facelock. Tensai eventually counters with a back suplex. We head home as Tensai begins the comeback in the corner with strikes and head-butts; the rolling monkey flip sets up a running knee in the corner. Young tries to get involved but Tensai dispatches with him. All sorts of chaos ensues as the referee got involved with Clay on the floor, Young distracts Tensai as he is trying a Vader Bomb, allowing Titus to pull him off the top and get the pinfall.   3.5/10 Not bad for a power matchup; good battle and I’m actually surprised the Players got a win, I guess the WWE is looking to push O’Neil forward.

Here is your winner… Titus O’Neil via pull off the top bomb pinfall

The Wyatt Family is coming and it will be great for any of those who watch NXT, these three, Bray Wyatt, Luke Harper and Erick Rowan, are going to be awesome.

We recap Raw with the Triple H/Mr. McMahon mini storyline involving Curtis Axel. For my full Raw review, click here. We move onto the STELLAR matchup involving Daniel Bryan and Seth Rollins. That match NEEDS to be seen.

Zack Ryder vs. Heath Slater (w/3MB):   This could be a good match. The commentators make dated music references and then discuss the return of CM Punk this Sunday. Slater gets a headlock so Ryder tosses him off but gets planted with a shoulderblock; Ryder comes back with a hiplock and flapjack, for two. Slater pulls Ryder off the second rope and gets two; he then pounds away. AIR GUITAR! Slater settles into a chinlock and maintains for a while. Ryder frees himself but gets nailed with the Whammy Bar leg lariat and keeps on him with pugilistic endeavors. Ryder reverses and tosses Ryder into the corner and reestablishes the chinlock. Ryder blazes the comeback with a faceplant off a backdrop counter. The double knees and missile dropkick scores. Here’s the Broski Boot but both other 3MB members distract allowing Slater the Smash Hit (elevated DDT) to get the pinfall.   3.5/10 Well Ryder is officially the lowest babyface in the company. That’s my brilliant analysis of this match. Note: I parenthesized Slater finisher because he so rarely hits it to win (also a bad sign for Ryder).

Here is your winner… Heath Slater via Smash Hit pinfall

More Wyatt Family vignettes are shown.

We close the show with the confrontation involving John Cena, Ryback, and a bunch of lumberjacks that was much better than I thought it would be.

OVERALL 3/10   The usual from this show. Although, I was actually surprised at who won each match, which is a good thing. Hopefully the WWE is getting a little less predictable.

Please follow Marc Elusive on Twitter or like Marc Elusive on Facebook or check out www.marcelusive.net for reviews and recaps (of current WWE and old WWF PPVs, DVDs and VHS tapes) and a little analysis; more of a play-by-play style, like my reviews here. Thank you for all of your support.

Commentators: Tony Dawson & William Regal

Championship’s roll call: WWE Champion: John Cena… World Champion: Dolph Ziggler… Intercontinental Champion: Wade Barrett… United States Champion: Dean Ambrose… Tag Team Champions: The Shield… NXT Champion: Big E Langston… NXT Tag Team Champions: The Wyatt Family… Diva’s Champion: Kaitlyn

Sami Zayn vs. Antonio Cesaro:   Cesaro, in the rare blue trunks, attacks Zayn before the bell; they tumble to the floor where Cesaro posts Zayn’s chest. Back in the ring, the referee checks on Zayn and then rings the bell. Cesaro charges and NAILS a running Euro uppercut in the corner to get a quick nearfall. He hits a few crossfaces but Zayn fights back; they trade blows but Zayn manages to quell Cesaro’s momentum, springboarding into a leapfrog, and backdropping him. Sami punches away but Cesaro muscles him up into a spinebuster. He hits the chinlock but Zayn fights up and hits a R-Truth-like leg lariat off the ropes, for a one count. Cesaro uses his power again to muscle Zayn into the corner where he roughs him up with some European uppercuts; Zayn fights back the Canadian way: knife-edge chops. Cesaro goes to chops of his own and they keep trading blows until Zayn gets a backslide, for two. Cesaro catches Zayn in midair, off a leapfrog, into a tilt-a-whirl backbreaker. Back from commercial with Zayn rolling into a sunset but Cesaro rolling through that with a double stomp, for two; he tenaciously goes for a few more covers but can’t pin Zayn. Cesaro stomps the FINGERS and works another chinlock. Sami fires up but Cesaro pulls out an old Tully Blanchard move, pulling the trunks to keep the hold. Zayn counters with a Proto-bomb and gets two. The fans try to rally Zayn with an “olé olé olé” chant but Cesaro nails another Euro uppercut to keep him at bay; the deadlift gutwrench gets two more. William Regal puts Cesaro over better than any WWE commentator ever did in this match. Zayn gets shoved into the corner but manages a body scissors, which he switches into a head scissors, to take Cesaro out over the top. Zayn FLIES through the ropes with a somersault plancha. Back in the ring, Zayn heads up top and… leaps right into a European uppercut, which only gets two. Regal is “flabbergasted” that Zayn kicked out. Cesaro lines him up for… another chinlock. Zayn charges and gets one of those sunset flip bombs that the Luchadores usually do and Cesaro sells it perfectly, looked awesome; it only gets two and a half though. We he was the generic Luchadore. Antonio crumples into the corner where Zayn charges… right into a boot in the mouth. Cesaro adjusts the head and tries to power Zayn up in the Neutralizer but he flips over, just like last time, and stacks him up… for two! Cesaro immediately grabs Zayn in a chinlock to prevent anymore surprise O from Zayn and wears him down more. Zayn keeps pushing him off but the tenacious Cesaro keeps grabbing him again. Cesaro quickly segues into the Neutralizer for the pinfall.   8/10 Outstanding match back-and-forth, which also included the clever ending where he kept Zayn close enough to get him in the Neutralizer and pin him. There was something for everyone in this match: highflying, power game, striking, grappling, etc. Great, great match.

Here is your winner… Antonio Cesaro via Neutralizer pinfall

Baron Corbin & Travis Tyler vs. Scott Dawson & Garrett Dylan (w/Sylvester Lefort):   Pre-match, Lefort announces them as the next NXT tag champs. Dawson and Tyler start off and Dawson gets caught in a side headlock. Garrett tosses him off but gets re-caught in the chinlock. Dawson comes back with a punch in the mouth and tags in Dylan for some rapid tagging and stomping/clubbering. Dawson slams Tyler and they hit a tandem head smash; Dylan tags and they continue to sequester Travis in their corner and beat on him relentlessly. Dawson hits a lightening legdrop and sledges away. Dylan comes in and they hit another tandem gut punch into a running boot. Tyler manages a boot to counter backdrop and a clothesline to get Corbin in there. A blind tag is made and Dawson plants Corbin with a spinebuster and nails the second rope seated sledge, called Southern Pride, to garner the pinfall.   4/10 Total domination by the trailer boys; the odd couple tandem (because of the manager) is a good fit and we need some tag teams on this show (and on the main roster) to get the tag title over some more. I also like seeing tag teams with named tandem finishers.

Here are your winners… Scott Dawson & Garrett Dylan via Southern Pride pinfall

Bayley vs. Alicia Fox NXT Women’s Championship tournament, first round:   Alicia Fox is still employed? Bayley acts like she is star struck and hugs Fox at the bell; Alicia shrugs it off and comes right at her and tosses Bayley into the corner a few times. Foxy hits her Northern Lights for two and goes to a chinlock. Bayley tries a comeback but Alicia maintains her hold… for a while. Alicia treats Bayley like a jobber until she battles back with a monkey flip out of the corner. She hits a pair of forearms and a running knee drop, for two. Bayley busts out an Exploder suplex to the glee of William Regal to get two more. Fox rolls to the apron where she goads Bayley in and nails her with a kick; she (barely) hits the scissors kick to get the pinfall and advance to face Paige in the second round.   3/10 Meh match; Fox’s O was boring but Bayley woke everyone up with her offense. Alicia wins to presumably job to Paige in the next round. Dare I say but it seems that the NXT divas are more entertaining in the ring than the WWE divas?

Here is your winner… Alicia Fox via scissors kick pinfall

NXT Heavyweight Championship Big E Langston vs. Bo Dallas:   Langston tosses Dallas around to show off his POWER advantage. Dallas tries a side headlock but that does not last long; Bo tries some fancy footwork involving a leapfrog and dropdown with a dropkick but it does not even faze Big E. Dallas hits the ropes and Langston gets the dropdown and leapfrog into a shoulderblock. Impressive. Dallas manages to sidestep Big E to the floor to the boos of the fans. Langston nods in approval and charges back in; Dallas tries to gets some shots in when he reenters the ring but Langston shrugs him off and tosses him to the floor. Back from commercial, Big E rams Dallas’ back into the apron and tosses him back in. Big E gets FIVE punches in to Dallas’ guts. He continues to pound away and hits a running splash. Bo fights back but Langston shoulderblocks him to the floor again. Langston retrieves him and gets two in the ring. Big E tries another splash but you can’t hit two big moves in one match and it misses. Dallas hits a trio of clotheslines but cannot drop the bigman. The fans relentlessly chant “no more Bo” as he tries to mount some O. Langston continues to fight back but meets a knee in the corner. Bo nails that slingshot bulldog of his but only gets two. Dallas runs at him for the boot but Langston catches him with a belly-to-bely suplex. Langston goes into a clothesline comeback; he hits the FIVE kneelifts. A running Vader Splash sets up… down come the straps. Big E tries the Big Ending but Dallas fights free; he tosses Langston into the turnbuckle, and I just noticed that there is no turnbuckle pad there; Langston tumbles backwards and gets caught in the belly-to-belly suplex finisher and Dallas WINS THE TITLE!   6/10 Pretty good match up here but this is a microcosm of the WWE sometimes: the fans hate Dallas but they put the strap on him regardless. There are thirty wrestlers in the back that could have gotten the title and gotten it over but they chose Dallas. Hell, even his brother, who I pegged to end Langston’s title reign and undefeated NXT streak, Bray Wyatt, would be a far superior choice. I guess they gotta keep the NXT titles on NXT superstars who are going to stay down there for a while. Congrats to Bo for becoming the third NXT Champion in history.

Here is your winner AND NEW NXT Champion… Bo Dallas via belly-to-belly suplex pinfall

OVERALL 7/10   Great show again this week with a NXT title match main event crowing the third NXT Champion… and a show-stealing opening contest with Cesaro and Zayn. The women’s tourney continued with the obvious winner and another tag team continues to build momentum in NXT.

Please follow Marc Elusive on Twitter or like Marc Elusive on Facebook or check out www.marcelusive.net for reviews and recaps (of current WWE and old WWF PPVs, DVDs and VHS tapes) and a little analysis; more of a play-by-play style, like my reviews here. Thank you for all of your support.

Commentators: Josh Matthews & Wade Barrett

Championship’s roll call: WWE Champion: John Cena… World Champion: Dolph Ziggler… Intercontinental Champion: Wade Barrett… United States Champion: Dean Ambrose… Tag Team Champions: The Shield… NXT Champion: Big E Langston… NXT Tag Team Champions The Wyatt Family… Diva’s Champion: Kaitlyn

 The Miz vs. Cody Rhodes:   Rematch from Raw. Miz plays to the crowd so Cody shoulderblocks him and they staredown. Miz clamps on a standing side headlock and then gets his own shoulderblock; Cody tosses him off the ropes and tries some fancy footwork but gets caught in a slingshot into the post. Miz schoolboys him for two and then goes to another headlock for a while; Cody backs him into the corner and uses his head (butt) to take over. Miz comes back with a clothesline and stomps his foot to keep the crowd up. Rhodes tries a slingshot sunset flip but Miz uses the Mysterio Counter and hits a boot to the face. Cody finally takes over mashing Miz’s face into the buckles; he comes right back though countering a backdrop. Cody takes control back with a standing dropkick. He applies a chinlock. Miz kicks free and clubs in the corner; Rhodes tries to come off the second rope but nearly gets caught in the figure-four but he kicks Miz to the floor as we head off to break. We return with Rhodes holding a chinlock. Miz fights free and tosses Rhodes to the floor; they battle there as Miz tosses Cody about ringside. Rhodes takes control shoving Miz’s arm into the post and pulling him to the floor; he thinks countout but Miz reenters at nine. Cody zeros in on the injured arm and wraps it in the ropes. He works an armlock and wrenches back on it. He keeps working on the arm and then hits the release gourdbuster, for two. Cody goes to a figure-four armlock. Miz retreats to the ropes so Cody hits the Hollycost but Miz manages to backdrop him to the floor to create space. Now Cody is getting counted out but he makes it in at eight… right into a Miz comeback. The Awesome Clothesline is countered but Miz scoots back in off the apron in a cradle for two. Now he hits the Awesome Clothesline and top-rope sledge for two. Rhodes comes back with an armwhip and puts Miz back down again. Miz fires back with the neckbreaker combo and tries the Finale but can’t complete the hold due to the injured arm and Rhodes shoves him into the post. Cody scores with the Disaster Kick but it only gets two. He tires a wishbone stomp and almost gets caught in the figure-four… no, wait he does get caught in the figure-four and has to tapout in consecutive shows to Miz.   6/10 Good match but Rhodes matches are getting painful to watch die to him NEVER winning. I’m shocked that they just don’t keep the Rhodes Scholars a permanent team as they are more over that way and actually win matches.

Here is your winner… The Miz via figure-four leglock

Sin Cara vs. Damien Sandow:   Sandow says he’s physically ill because the unwashed masses refuse to be enlightened. He has set the bar too high but he will speak more slowly and use simpler words so we can understand. He will also get his point across physically. You’re welcome. Ugh the Cara lighting which we were speared on Raw. Sandow begins to dominate but Cara kicks his way back as Wade Barrett complains about the “ridiculous lighting” and not being able to read his notes. Cara tries the handspring elbow but Damien avoids it. Cara then lassos him in a ‘rana but Sandow powers free and mauls him in the corner; he goes to a chinlock. He tries a back suplex but it’s flipped out of; Cara hits the top rope twirling armdrag. Sandow retreats to the floor as we head to break. We return with Sandow in control, stomping away. Cara tries a wheelbarrow counter but Sandow puts him on his face and continues to stomp away. He works the legs, which is smart, cut off the speed; I like little nuggets like that. He mauls him more on the apron and gets another chinlock. Cara fights back and hits a shuffle side kick in the corner. Damien takes control back and hits some elbows and the Cubito Aequet for two. Back to the chinlock for Sandow. He whips Cara off the ropes but meets a handspring elbow; Cara then goes through some highflying moves like a springboard crossbody and pendulum kick. Cara tries the top-rope senton but misses and Sandow plants him with the Silencer to get the pinfall.   4/10 Sandow squash match as Cara, who started off as the hottest thing in the WWE, has fallen to jobber in a mask. Sandow is building some momentum but will run into Sheamus at the PPV and kill all of what he has built up to this point.

Here is your winner… Damien Sandow via Silencer pinfall

We recap the John Cena/Ryback from Raw.

Tons of Funk (w/The Funkadactyls) vs. The Usos:   Interesting babyface versus babyface matchup here. The Usos have their facepaint on and are in new red ring gear. Clay and Jimmy open the match and Brodus uses his power to chuck the Uso all over the ring. Jimmy nails Clay with an uppercut but Brodus comes back with a head-butt. Clay mocks the Siva Tau and tags in Sweet T. They lock up and Tensai levels him with an uppercut. The power monkey flip connects and Tensai dances a little bit. Jey applies a side headlock and powers Tensai down with it. Tensai tosses him off but misses a charge and gets clotheslined. Jimmy dances a little too. Clay tags in but misses a splash and Jimmy tags back in. He kicks Clay in the face and nails a running forearm in the corner; he hits the ropes but runs into the rhino head-butt. Clay pounds Jimmy and nails the capture suplex. He nails the Splat but Jey breaks up the pinfall. The match breaks down as Jey nails a Samoan Drop to Tensai. A tag is made as Clay misses an avalanche; the Usos nail a double superkick and nail the Headshrinker Splash to keep their winning ways alive.   5/10 Anytime the Usos win it’s a good thing but they are caught in a weird tweener phase where they are over but face both heels and faces alike. Decent match to close a good edition of Main Event.

Here are your winners… The Usos via Headshrinker Splash pinfall

OVERALL 5.5/10   Good show this week with action packed three matches; they were all pretty much foregone conclusion matches but the rides to lead us there were entertaining.

Commentators: Michael Cole, JBL & Jerry Lawler

Championship’s roll call: WWE Champion: John Cena… World Champion: Dolph Ziggler… Intercontinental Champion: Wade Barrett… United States Champion: Dean Ambrose… Tag Team Champions: The Shield… NXT Champion: Big E Langston… NXT Tag Team Champions: The Wyatt Family… Diva’s Champion: Kaitlyn

Triple H vs. Curtis Axel (w/Paul Heyman):   Fans are hyped as the odd sounding bell rings. HHH attacks in the corner and will not let him go; he nails a vertical suplex for two. He applies a chinlock as Vince McMahon makes his way to the ring (with entrance theme). Axel reverses the hold but gets sent to the floor. Vince makes the timekeeper ring the bell and Vince has HHH disqualified? Um, okay? Vince walks off as Heyman taunts HHH over the loss. Hunter uses his COO Powers to restart the match. Okay, this is getting a little odd. So I guess we have another match so…

Triple H vs. Curtis Axel (w/Paul Heyman):   Hunter applies another chinlock so here’s Vince McMahon again and tells the timekeeper that Axel wins by forfeit ballooning his record to 5-0 in three weeks. Hunter then heads over to poor Justin Roberts to restart the match again in a sixty minute Ironman Match, ok…

Triple H vs. Curtis Axel (w/Paul Heyman) sixty minute Ironman Match:   Vince McMahon struts back to the ring and kicks Axel out of the ring, he won the match twice; McMahon just takes the BELL and ring announcer mic away to prevent any more matches from restarting.   2/10 I’m not sure what that accomplished except to continue the HHH/McMahon angle and give Axel another two wins to his record. Very strange.

Here is your winner… Curtis Axel via DQ and forfeit

In the back, Triple H is with Stephanie McMahon; Hunter is pissed that Vince McMahon embarrassed him. Steph is worried that HHH is gonna kill her father because he’s so mad. He tells Steph to talk to him because it won’t end well if he does.

Kane vs. Dean Ambrose (w/The Shield):   Rollins and Reigns return to the back making this one-on-one. No bell rings but the match begins; Ambrose attacks Kane in the corner but runs into a big boot for a one count. He hits the low-angle dropkick and pounds away in the corner; Ambrose reverses and hits some shoulderblocks. Kane counters a crossbody with a backbreaker. He adds a knee to the back continues the beating with an uppercut in the corner and a backbreaker stretch as another referee brings another bell to the ringside. Kane tosses Ambrose to the floor and continues the assault on the floor; Dean counters but leaps into an uppercut off the steps. Back from commercial with Ambrose holding a chinlock; he switches into a Dragon Sleeper. Kane fights back but Ambrose pummels in the ropes. Ambrose works the legs as Randy Orton and Daniel Bryan talks in the back (exclusive on the WWE App). Kane breaks the leglock and catches Ambrose on the top with a goozle. He tosses him off the top and begins the comeback with some uppercuts and a tilt-a-whirl slam, for a close two count. Ambrose tries a sunset flip but Kane uses his counter to prop Dean on his feet. A sideslam follows, for two. Kane heads up top on the opposite side of the ring but Ambrose catches up with him. They battle up top and Ambrose loses that battle and gets floored with the diving lariat. Kane sets up the goozle but Reigns and Rollins reappear for the DQ. Post-match, Bryan and Orton make the save as a mêlée breaks out.   4.5/10 Pretty good bigman/little man matchup before the DQ. Ambrose is pretty good in the ring and is probably the guy the WWE is ticketing him as the first breakout singles star.

Here is your winner… Kane via DQ

Jerry Lawler is in the ring to announce a WWE App poll: Daniel Bryan versus Seth Rollins and Randy Orton versus Roman Reigns. Elsewhere, Orton and Bryan are arguing and Kane is the voice of reason. Kane with the passionate promo here. The arguments continue as Vickie Guerrero arrives and makes some matches: Randy and Bryan and Orton get tag title matches… and then Kane gets a US title match too. Which makes him happy and he HUGS Vickie.

The Miz vs. Cody Rhodes:   Wade Barrett is on commentary as they announce Fandango getting a concussion and is out of the IC match at the PPV. Miz hits a knee and a running boot; the Awesome Clothesline connects in the corner but misses the top-rope sledge. Cody clips the leg and takes over with stomps and kicks to the legs. He muscles up Miz with a release gourdbuster and then goes to a standing Indian Deathlock. Miz fires back so Cody goes back to the injured knee and works another leglock. He tries a shinbreaker but Miz sunsets into the figure-four leglock to tap Cody Rhodes clean. Post-match, Paul Heyman meanders out onto the stage to announce Curtis Axel is replacing Fandango in the IC title match at the PPV. Axel says his winning the title will be the PERFECT ending to the match.   2/10 Squash match, which is painful to watch; they announce Axel as the replacement for Fandango. Interesting as Axel will probably get that title, getting the same title his father held as one of the greatest IC Champs ever.

Here is your winner… The Miz via figure-four leglock submission

We recap the entire beginning of Raw segueing into Stephanie McMahon trying to talk to Vince McMahon. Vince is mad that Triple H made Steph cry; she tries to tell her that business comes first over family. He tells her to keep Hunter away from him. Both men are upset with each other… TENSION.

Here’s Chris Jericho to welcome us to Raw is Jericho. He says he’s face some of the greatest competitors in the WWE but the man who takes him to the limit (and makes him a better performer) is CM Punk. Y2J notes that Punk is good because he believes it; Jericho does the same for himself. They won’t settle for less than the best. He says this is the third in an excellent string of matches. Jericho NEEDS to beat him at Payback. Regardless of out outcome neither will be the same again. Enter Dolph Ziggler and family as Dolph makes his TRIUMPHANT RETURN to Raw. Dolph says that the title was almost taken from him from the concussion; he says that no one wanted to see him as champion, but he busted his ass to become champion. He says at the PPV Alberto Del Rio is not taking the title from him. Jericho blahs him and wants to have a match with him right now! Ziggler gives him a match… against Big E Langston.

Chris Jericho vs. Big E Langston (w/AJ Lee):   Well at least he’s not facing Alberto Del Rio again; we join the match in progress with Jericho limping around the ringside. Apparently, he injured his knee during the break. Langston with a neck crank; Jericho fights back and sidesteps Big E tumbling him to the floor. He nails a baseball slide, knocking Langston on his ass. Langston powers back and tosses Jericho into the ring steps. Back into the ring, Langston gets two; he hits some shoulderblocks in the corner and continues to sledge away. Eventually, Langston misses the charge in the corner but keeps the advantage with a shoulderblock. Langston with a Vulcan Nerve Pinch until Jericho fires up with chops and a forearm. He nails an enziguri and gets two. Chris tries a crossbody but gets caught in a pair of backbreakers, for two. Langston is holding his own here with Jericho; his corner charge is blocked with a boot and top-rope crossbody for a nearfall. Dolph Ziggler returns to provide a distraction and Langston takes back over again. The straps are down and Big E thinks Big Ending but Del Rio shows up and attacks Ziggler allowing Jericho to surprise Langston with the Codebreaker for the pinfall.   4/10 Pretty decent match there and Langston looked good in the loss; it continued the pair of storylines here and get someone else for Big E to face.

Here is your winner… Chris Jericho via Codebreaker pinfall

Sin Cara vs. Antonio Cesaro:   Zeb Colter is at the announce table to rip on Sin Cara because he’s Mexican. Cesaro has lost the beret and glasses for some reason. Cesaro tosses Cara to the floor as Colter supports Cesaro because he entered the country legally, which is an odd change of pace for his character. Cara makes a comeback with a nice springboard ‘rana but gets the step-up the ropes armdrag countered. Cesaro stomps away on his face; he nails the power gutwrench going into the chinlock. He nails an awkward looking standing powerslam. Cesaro hits a double stomp as Colter talks conspiracy regarding Jack Swagger’s injury and continues on the government eavesdropping on his phone calls. Cesaro hits a chinlock until Cara makes a comeback with a ridiculous head scissors takeover and sunset bomb for two. Cara hits a nice pendulum kick but gets caught in a backbreaker off the top. The Neutralizer quickly finished the match.   5/10 Odd match considering Colter’s presence ripping Cara the whole match and then Cesaro wins (usually the heel loses allowing the babyface to stare at his enemy). At least Cesaro wins the match. Also not sure if they are tweaking Cesaro’s character yet again.

Here is your winner… Antonio Cesaro via Neutralizer pinfall

The Wyatt Family is coming, which will be awesome.

In the back, Vince McMahon bullies Vickie Guerrero and Brad Maddox into allowing all of the lumberjacks at ringside for the main event promo.

Randy Orton (w/Daniel Bryan) vs. Roman Reigns (w/Seth Rollins):   They lock up and Reigns powers Orton in the corner; this may be Reigns’ first singles match in the WWE. Randy dropkicks him to quell the momentum and stomp away. The Orton Stomp follows along with the floating knee drop for two. Reigns goes to the floor where the battle continues in front of Rollins. He then back suplexes Reigns onto the ring barricade. Back into the ring, Orton gets two; back to the stomps for Randy. He misses the knee drop this time and Reigns comes back with his own stomps. He adds some head-butts as he methodically pounds away. Orton begins a comeback out of nowhere with a Thesz Press and a ten punch in the corner. He adds a head-butt of his own. Reigns is Samoan, shouldn’t that not affect him? They fight on the ropes until Reigns knocks Orton all of the way to the floor with a straight punch to the face. Back from break with Reigns holding a chinlock (for a while); Orton fights back but gets caught in a Stungun and a reverse forearm, for two. Back to the chinlock as the fans attempt to rally Orton, who eventually frees himself with a back suplex. Randy shakes off the cobwebs and begins the usual comeback; the powerslam connects as does the stretch backbreaker. Reigns tumbles onto the apron where Orton hits the Viper DDT. The RKO is next so Rollins attacks Bryan on the floor and then tries Orton but gets tossed to the floor. Bryan torpedoes into the Shield with a topé as the bell rings for a no-contest. We segue right into this match next… 3/10 Not too bad there. Orton and Reigns had a decent match here; lots of chinlocks here as Reigns is the greenest of all three members of the Shield.

Here is your winner… No Contest

Daniel Bryan (w/Randy Orton) vs. Seth Rollins (w/Roman Reigns):   This should be good we get the two ROH alums in a match. Fans voted for this. Bryan flips off the top right off the bat and nails a running clothesline. Fans are SOLIDLY behind Bryan as he Yes Kicks away. He kicks him about fifty times and also adds some elbows to the side of the head. Bryan sets up the rocking surfboard but Rollins crabs his way to the ropes so Bryan double stomps his knees to break the hold. Rollins heads to the floor off a dropkick and hits a one-foot baseball slide and the running knee off the apron. He eyeballs Reigns to prevent an attack and heads into the ring with another kick and a nearfall. Rollins backs Bryan into the corner and hits some shoulderblocks. Bryan fights back though but Rollins takes the advantage back with the Turnbuckle Flatliner, for two. Rollins mimics Bryan with the rocking surfboard. He gets the hold applied but it’s reversed by Bryan and he goes for his own surfboard! He turns it into a version of Cattle Mutilation in a painful looking surfboard hold. Back from commercial with Rollins holding Bryan in a chinlock. Bryan sledges free but Rollins keeps him down with a leaping forearm; Rollins then reapplies the chinlock. Bryan frees himself again and we have yes/no punch battle; Rollins tries to end it with the Pelé enziguri but Bryan catches the boot in midair and turns it into a half crab. Beautiful counter. Rollins makes the ropes. He goes into the No Kicks in the corner followed by a low running dropkick, for two. The kicks continue in the center of the ring; Rollins ducks the roundhouse one and nails the enziguri, for two. Rollins now turns the tables on Bryan with his own series of kicks. They fight over a German and Bryan flips free and tries a ‘rana but Rollins turns it into a nasty looking Buckle Bomb for another nearfall. Rollins cannot believe that did not elicit a three count. He kicks the crap out of him in the corner and trues the running one-foot dropkick but gets backdropped to the floor. Bryan thinks topé again but Rollins nails him coming through the ropes with a forearm. Rollins to the top but he misses Bryan and they counter reverse rolls until Bryan comes up with a release German suplex; he nails the buzzsaw kick but gets two only. Great match. Bryan to the top now but Rollins blocks and they fight atop the buckles. Bryan slips free and crotches Rollins; he tries a top-rope back superplex but Rollins shifts his weight and squashes Bryan with a crossbody. Reigns tries to get involved but Orton pulls him off the apron; Rollins misses a Stinger Splash and Bryan cradles him for three. Post-match, Rollins tries to attack but gets planted with an RKO   8.5/10 Great, great television match as I predicted. They let these two go all out and had one hell of a battle. This will get rave reviews for weeks as Bryan is on another level since he went on this “weakest link” tirade; I’m not sure if the WWE wants to go the heel route with him but they’d be crazy to since he’s probably the most over guy on the roster.

Here is your winner… Daniel Bryan via inside cradle pinfall

Kaitlyn is in the ring waiting for the secret admirer. Big E Langston comes out with a bouquet of flowers proving it was all an AJ Lee setup. Kaitlyn with her sixth grade acting… “Big E, it’s you?” Langston plays along and says that he cares about her. He continues on about that she is all he can think of; he drops the mic and goes to kiss her… and drops her on her ass. Here’s AJ. Kaitlyn is crying as AJ taints her; she asks if she feels abandoned just like AJ did when Kaitlyn ditched her. AJ says she was broken by man men, John Cena, CM Punk and Daniel Bryan, to name a few… and where was her “best friend”? Chasing the divas title. Kaitlyn thinks she’s nuts; AJ notes that she can beat her in the ring but AJ can always win mentally. She calls her trash and no one cares. Kaitlyn cries some more; AJ says that she is winning the title this Sunday (I guess there is a title match at Payback) and continues to run her mouth until Kaitlyn slaps her and a catfight erupts. AJ scampers away leaving Kaitlyn in the ring. 1.5/10 Terrible segment; this was the WWE’s chance to make an interesting angle involving the divas but it got flushed down Crapper 3:16.

More Wyatt Family stuff is shown. They are going to be SUCH stars.

R-Truth vs. Damien Sandow:   Pre-match, he notes his “battle of wits” between he and Sheamus, a battle he won. At Payback PRESHOW, he will defeat Sheamus, physically. You’re welcome. Truth dances, Sandow charges, meets elbow; Damien comes right back ripping Truth’s head off with a clothesline. He chucks Truth to the floor and rams his back into the apron. He drapes Truth on the apron and pounds away; stomping follows. Damien is busting out all his “roughhouse moves” because his opponent at the PPV is Sheamus, another brawler. Sandow with a chinlock. Truth fights out but runs into the Cubito Aequet, for a one count. Back to the chinlock. Truth comes back with a leg lariat off the ropes and some clotheslines; a head scissors takeover and the Truth Conviction follows, for two. He hits the ropes but Sandow clips the leg and nails the Silencer for the pinfall. Post-match, Sheamus comes out to sell their match at the PPV. He’s gonna kick “Dam-o’s” head off at the PPV.   6/10 I scored it high because Sandow won a squash over a very protected Truth; he rarely loses via pinfall.

Here is your winner… Damien Sandow via Silencer pinfall

Stephanie McMahon tells a ring hand to find Vince McMahon to meet his daughter in her office, it is business. She heads to a different ring hand and asks him to find Triple H, his wife is looking for him and it’s personal. After two commercials they are all in Steph’s office. Vince and HHH get into an argument until Steph SCREAMS at them and tells them to work it out. They each plead their case; Vince calls HHH an icon and a legend… that is far above Curtis Axel. Hunter gets it but does not apologize; Vince plays “the bigger man” and gives him his match against Axel. HHH says that Vince is right and does not want the match. They are about to argue again but Steph wants to hug it out. Vince had a problem hugging another man; Hunter is insulted that he won’t hug back. They do share the hug and leave.

The lumberjacks are surrounding the ring to prevent the face to face main event promo between John Cena and Ryback from getting out of control. The champ hits the ring first and Ryback follows in his ambulance. Ryback hangs back on the stage; John is a bit confused and explains to Ryback what face to face means. Vickie Guerrero and Brad Maddox are at ringside too; Cena explains the rules of the lumberjack match first. Ryback says that he could tear right through Cena, the thirty lumberjacks and the entire audience without blinking an eye; he’s hanging on the stage for John’s benefit. Ryback says he deserves to be the champ, three times over. He believes that John thought Ryback is a threat popularity-wise so he went on damage control. They scream at each other for a while until Cena out screams him and rants about Ryback’s whining and crying. Cena finishes with he’s keeping his title at Payback. Ryback says his eyes are open and he can see him and the legend of Cena ends at the PPV when he wins the title. At Payback, Ryback takes Cena’s spot. Cena says at the PPV Payback is a bitch, he charges out of the ring but the lumberjacks keep pulling him back in. Ryback runs in the ring and a huge brawl erupts as the entire locker room hold them back as the show ends.   5.5/10 Actually, a pretty good closing promo to head to the PPV, not what I was expecting here.

OVERALL 5.5/10   Average show except for anything involving Team Hell No and the Shield; we have a possible TV MOTY candidate here involving Bryan and Rollins. Everything else was status quo; they finally put a bow on that odd Triple H/Vince McMahon storyline, which somehow was supposed to put Curtis Axel over.

Championship’s roll call: WWE Champion: John Cena… World Champion: Dolph Ziggler… Intercontinental Champion: Wade Barrett… United States Champion: Dean Ambrose… Tag Team Champions: The Shield… NXT Champion: Big E Langston… NXT Tag Team Champions: The Wyatt Family… Diva’s Champion: Kaitlyn

Tons of Funk (w/The Funkadactyls) vs. Primo & Epico:   Clay and Primo opens the contest and Primo tries a sleeper right off the bat but Clay backs him in the corner and gives him the André treatment followed by a delayed slam. Primo fires back with a headlock but gets caught in another bodyslam. Tensai tags and they hit tandem chops on Primo. He works the arm but Primo flips free and reverses; it does not last long as Sweet T uses his power to counter a monkey flip in the corner and reverses into his own. The delayed butterfly suplex hypes the crowd up and eventually lands for a one count. Primo retreats to the floor with his cousin as we segue into a break. We return with Clay dropping an elbow to Epico. He hits the Funky Avalanche but a blind tag allows the Colóns to take over. They quick tag on Clay and Epico hits a Hilo for two. Brodus tries to fight back but eats a dropkick; they team up to suplex the bigman but Primo misses the follow up top-rope splash. Tensai gets the hot tag and Sweet T’s all over everyone. He takes out Epico with the Cannonball in the corner but Primo breaks up the pinfall. Clay comes in and they hit a tandem suplex/neckbreaker and a running senton from Tensai gets the pin.   3.5/10 Essentially a squash match for Funk with the Colóns getting basically zero O in in defeat. I hadn’t seen them in a while and was wondering if they’d been released.

Here are your winners… Tons of Funk via running senton pinfall

The first set of Raw highlights is all about the Shield defeating Randy Orton and Team Hell No.

Natalya Neidhart vs. Tamina Snuka:   Tamina works the arm; Nattie flips free. She tries the Sharpshooter as the commentators discuss the upcoming Father’s Day and Jimmy Snuka and Jim Neidhart. They head to the floor where Tamina takes over showing Nattie in to the ring apron and the lassos her in a chinlock back in the ring. Tamina hits a running knee in the corner and then goes to a double armlock. This goes on for a while. Nattie frees herself but Tamina keeps the advantage with a legdrop. She makes another comeback, this time with palm strikes, and clotheslines. A backdrop is counters but Tamina manages a neckbreaker, for two. Nattie counters the Samoan drop into the Sharpshooter and gets the submission.   3/10 Sort and bland; all Tamina did was a few chinlocks. I actually am pretty surprised at the outcome since the WWE likes to protect Tamina, for some reason. I like Neidhart and is probably my favorite diva on the main roster.

Here is your winner… Natalya Neidhart via Sharpshooter submission

The show ends with John Cena and Curtis Axel from Raw where Ryback interfered.

OVERALL 3/10   A tag squash and a boring divas match leads to a pretty humdrum episode of Superstars.

Please follow Marc Elusive on Twitter or like Marc Elusive on Facebook or check out www.marcelusive.net for reviews and recaps (of current WWE and old WWF PPVs, DVDs and VHS tapes) and a little analysis; more of a play-by-play style, like my reviews here. Thank you for all of your support.

Commentators: Tom Phillips & Brad Maddox

Championship’s roll call: WWE Champion: John Cena… World Champion: Dolph Ziggler… Intercontinental Champion: Wade Barrett… United States Champion: Dean Ambrose… Tag Team Champions: The Shield… NXT Champion: Big E Langston… NXT Tag Team Champions: The Wyatt Family… Diva’s Champion: Kaitlyn

Jim Ross comes out to open the show for the contract signing between Bo Dallas and Big E Langston for next week’s title match. Ross notes the successes the NXT champions… all two of them. Seth Rollins and Langston himself; Dallas hits the ring first and Langston comes out next. We have a table set up in the ring. Langston signs first. Dallas grabs the mic before he signs. The fans are all over him with a “no more Bo” chant; nonplus, Dallas goes into his promo, saying that he is not a joke. He says that Langston is up in the WWE, buddies with Dolph Ziggler, and it’s all because Langston’s the champ. Dallas says that he does not want the NXT title, he needs the title. Bo continues saying that all he needs is three seconds to make history. Fans chant “five” at him. Langston says that he does not feel that Dallas is a joke; he did face Big Show… but got knocked out. Langston calls himself the biggest baddest person NXT has seen; Langston makes fun of his possibility of living home and smiling too much. Langston says he will crush Dallas’ dreams… in FIVE. Dallas signs and brushes by Langston as he exits the ring. RJR closes, wishing everyone luck next week in the main event.   6/10 Wow, an actual good contract signing where nothing went wrong. Good promo from Dallas as well as he made his point and was not rattled by the fans. Langston looked a little nervous, which is surprising since he appears right at home in the WWE and cuts decent stuff, when he’s allowed. NXT does everything well.

Renee Young is with Corey Graves; she notes the attack from the Wyatt Family. He says that he has a tag title match with the Family tonight. He says Bray plays mind games and Corey does not play games. Renee discusses Kassius Ohno as his partner. Graves dislikes Ohno but the tag titles are bigger than his dislike for Ohno. He plans on dismantling he Wyatt Family’s house brick by brick.

Paige vs. Tamina Snuka:   NXT Women’s Championship tournament, first round:   Gee, I wonder who is winning here… The NXT title is much nicer than the Divas title. They lock up and Snuka powers Paige into the ropes and then gets tossed around. Tamina charges into a kick and tries a head-butt. Bad move! No effect. Snuka takes over with a leaping Superfly head-butt to knock Paige on her ass. She tosses her around by the hair. Tom Phillips says he spoke with Tamina’s father Jimmy Snuka who says that it is time for a Snuka to be a champion in the WWE again. Call me crazy, but I don’t think the Superfly EVER won any titles in the WWE. My mind does not recall before 1984 and I’m not using Wikipedia, just the ol’ noggin, so I’m sure someone will tell me if I’m wrong. Snuka with a snap-suplex for two. She keeps tossing Paige around and goes to a chinlock; Paige frees herself but gets nailed with double chops and a knee drop, for two. Snuka goes back to the chinlock. She keeps pulling her down when Paige tries to power up. A slam keeps Paige down and gets a nearfall as well. Tamina with a top wristlock; Paige finally powers back and forces Snuka into the corner. Tamina KILLS her with a superkick to quell the momentum. Snuka to the top but the Superfly meets knees and Paige rolls Tamina up to get the pinfall.   4/10 I really thought that was a weak win for Paige who should have gone over strong in the first round. Granted the WWE protects Tamina a little but Paige, who is the CLEAR CUT favorite to win, should advance strong, especially in the opening round.

Here is your winner… Paige via schoolgirl rollup pinfall

Now Renee Young is with Kassius Ohno; Kassius promises destruction. Tonight Ohno dives into the wall of the Family to get gold. We turn to Corey Graves but Ohno deflects possible tension and says it’s all about the gold.

Mason Ryan vs. Colin Cassady:   Ryan looks so different with long hair. They lock up and Ryan powers Colin into the corner and pummels him. Cassady gets an elbow up in the corner and punches his way back. He clubs the big back of Ryan but gets clobbered with a big boot. Mason keeps head-butting the poor kid in the corner and then some Batista Shoulders in the opposite corner. He steamrolls Cassady with a lariat and then hits a Torture Rack neckbreaker for the pinfall.   3/10 El squasho for Ryan; I think this guy has NXT gold in his future he does not get shot back into the WWE after a few months of seasoning in NXT.

Here is your winner… Mason Ryan via Torture Rack neckbreaker pinfall

Renee Young is with Sami Zayn who is his usual giddy self. He is excited to defeat two former WWE champions in one night (in his debut). Antonio Cesaro comes out and calls Sami’s win against him, cheap. Cesaro says he is ticked off and challenges him to a rematch. Zayn has no problem with this rematch but is more interested in his man-purse. Cesaro SLAPS him in the face for a pull-apart brawl.

Alex Riley vs. “The Ascension” Conor O’Brian:   Riley charges and gets run over by some shoulderblocks; O’Brian then goes into the rolling headlock takeovers. He holds the chinlock briefly; Riley comes back with a chop and diving shoulderblock. He ascends to the top with a diving lariat for a one count. He tries a tip-over in the corner but gets caught with a hotshot off the top rope and a running splash in the corner. A flapjack sets Riley up for O’Brian’s new submission hold called the Stockade (grounded Octopus stretch) and gets the tapout.   5/10 Dominating squash for O’Brian as he busts out a new submission hold. I like NXT developing all of these submission holds for different superstars, making them much better-rounded.

Here is your winner… Conor O’Brian via Stockade submission

NXT Tag Team Championship The Wyatt Family (w/Bray Wyatt) vs. Corey Graves & Kassius Ohno:   Oddly enough, the Family caused both of the face turns for both heels (actually maybe the Shield may had more to do with Graves’ face turn). Pre-match, Wyatt reintroduces himself as the eater of worlds; his “brothers” want to give a little intro of their own. Rowan and Ohno start the match; they lock up and Erick has the clear power advantage. Kassius tries some standing side headlocks and a cravat; he knocks Ohno down but he pops right back up with chops and a headlock. Graves tags in and works his own chinlock. Rowan quickly knees his way free and tags in Harper. Corey tries to use his speed with a lightening quick running crossbody but gets caught in midair. He slips free of Harper’s grip and tries a slingshot sunset but gets caught in a Kane Counter. Harper tries to launch Graves but he gets a reverse shoulder straddle for two. Luke hits a lunging head-butt to the gut and tries a hiplock but Graves turns it into an armdrag. Ohno tags in and hits a sledge off the second rope; Harper takes over with a solid punch to the face and tags in Rowan. After the commercial break, we have Ohno entrapped in an armtrap headlock. Ohno stomps the feet to break but Harper tags in and hits some European uppercuts for two more. The Family sequesters Kassius in their corner and beat him up until Rowan fumbles the ball and Graves is in. He quickly gets Rowan down for the Fuller Lock but Harper distracts. Rowan backdrops Graves onto the apron where Harper is lying in the weeds and trips Graves up onto his face; Harper gets a tag and hits an elbow to the face. An elbow drop nets two more. The Family beat up Graves in their corner for a while as well and hits a driving knee in the corner. A pump-handle backbreaker from Rowan nets two more for the Family. Erick goes for the Canadian Backbreaker submission hold; Graves slips free but keeps getting clubbered. The Bushwhacker Battering Ram into the top turnbuckle knocks Graves for a loop; Harper tags and Graves wakes up all of a sudden and counters a powerbomb with a backdrop. Ohno gets the hot tag and clotheslines abound for the Family. Harper is the sacrificial lamb and gets the running strike in the corner. He boots Rowan, who was entering the ring, to the floor and squishes Harper with a running senton, for two. We get our first shot of Bray Wyatt stirring in his rocking chair, almost forgot he was out there. Ohno preps for the roaring elbow but Wyatt distracts. Kassius manages to duck the running clothesline from Harper and hit a roaring head-butt. Rowan breaks up that pin attempt; Graves takes out Rowan and inadvertently distracts the referee. Bray nails Ohno from behind and Graves takes him out with a pescado leaving Ohno alone with Harper and fells to a running clothesline to retain the titles for the Family.   6.5/10 Very good main event this week. The hard-hitting striking challengers were a good challenge for the skyscraper tag champions; the Family has earned their call-up and I figured they’d lose those tag straps but judging by Big E Langston’s success, I don’t think those titles are moving from them for a while… although there are a few teams who could benefit from them, even WWE tag teams like the Usos or the Colóns perhaps.

Here are your winners… The Wyatt Family via running clothesline pinfall

OVERALL 7/10   Overall it was a great show this week, so don’t complain that none of the matches broke 6.5 and the total was a 7, the overall score is my entertainment for the show as a whole. We got an actual good contract signing and the beginning of the NXT Women’s championship tourney as well. A few squashes thrown in and a great tag title main event. Good show this week.

Please follow Marc Elusive on Twitter or like Marc Elusive on Facebook or check out www.marcelusive.net for reviews and recaps (of current WWE and old WWF PPVs, DVDs and VHS tapes) and a little analysis; more of a play-by-play style, like my reviews here. Thank you for all of your support.

Commentators: Michael Cole, JBL & Jerry Lawler

Championship’s roll call: WWE Champion: John Cena… World Champion: Dolph Ziggler… Intercontinental Champion: Wade Barrett… United States Champion: Dean Ambrose… Tag Team Champions: The Shield… NXT Champion: Big E Langston… NXT Tag Team Champions: The Wyatt Family… Diva’s Champion: Kaitlyn

Stephanie McMahon comes out to open the show. The commentators are a bit perturbed that she is there; Steph says that Triple H faced Brock Lesnar in a cage and then Curtis Axel then next night. Despite HHH being cleared to wrestle tonight, she has made an “executive decision” to not allow Hunter to compete. She won’t let him wrestle Axel tonight because he’s “beneath him.” Fans are not happy. She asks them to not be selfish and here’s Vince McMahon as the WWE is emptying the ratings attempt gun in the first twenty minutes. Vince asks a personal request to not boo Steph. Of course, they boo. He tries to level with them but the fans chant “Triple H.” Vince says that they love HHH more than the fans do. He says under no circumstances will the fans get HHH. They chant again. Vince ponders what more the fans can want of him since he’s given HIS LIFE to them, dammit! He then feels the fans are bloodthirsty, noting the “one more time” chants when Kofi Kingston got put through three tables. Vince starts to get all heelish and says the fans are beneath HHH as well. The Shield heads towards the ring as the fans cheer as they head towards the ring… commercial.

Team Hell No & Randy Orton vs. The Shield:   Apparently, the Shield just had next. The weak link thing with Bryan has made him a MAJOR LEAGUE babyface. He opens with Ambrose and kicks the crap out of him. Kane tags and they hit a tandem chinlock/low dropkick combo. He hits a powerslam and gets one; uppercuts in the corner but Dean escapes and tags in Rollins. Jerry Lawler makes an interesting point with regards to the “smallest guy in the ring” referring to Bryan saying the whale is an endangered species but the ants are doing just fine. Kane pounds on Rollins and brings Bryan back in; a tandem whip into a dropkick, for two. Hell No isolates Rollins and beat him in their corner. Kane hits some corner clotheslines and a sideslam, for two. Kane to the top but Reigns distracts allowing Rollins to drop kick him off the top, for two. Back from commercial with Kane stuck in a chinlock from Rollins; he frees himself but walks into a dropkick and Ambrose tags. The Shield works over the bigman in the corner; Ambrose gets some rapid-fire head-butts. Kane counters a Rollins and Ambrose double suplex with a big double suplex on both of them. Orton finally enters and beats up the Shield with the usual comeback; he plants both Ambrose and Rollins with a double Viper DDT. Fans go nuts as Reigns breaks up the RKO. Randy tries the DDT on him but it’s broken up by a Rollins enziguri to the back of the head and Orton is the second face-in-peril. I’m digging these extended matches on Raw. Ambrose works Orton over with stomps to the groin very similar to the Orton Stomp. Chinlock time. Orton eventually frees himself but runs afoul of a knee to the guts and Rollins tags in. Reigns comes in next and pounds away while making mean noises; he applies a seated full nelson. Eventually Orton fires up but runs into a palm strike to the midsection. Ambrose comes in and continues the assault with shoulderblocks in the corner. The Shield continues to quick tag on Orton and Reigns grabs another chinlock. Orton counters, with separation, and a back suplex. Rollins tags and leaps off the top… right into a dropkick from Randy. Bryan tags in and goes nuts on everyone with a lot of Yes Kicks; he flips off the top and levels Ambrose with a Hart Attack clothesline. He kills him with a Buzzsaw Yes Kick and a Super Frankensteiner to Rollins. He takes Reigns out with a suicide dive driving the crowd crazy; a missile dropkick to Ambrose sets up the No Lock. Reigns and Rollins come in and the match breaks apart. Kane goozles everyone but gets speared by Reigns. Orton nails Rollins with an RKO and tries one to Ambrose but he counters, shoving Randy into Bryan, and finishes with the front DDT to get the pinfall.   7/10 Excellent six man tag match which became the Daniel Bryan show. His new character is supposed to be a heelish move but the fans are SO behind him he could become the next HUGE star in 2013.

Here are your winners… The Shield via front DDT pinfall

In the back Daniel Bryan lambastes his tag partners for the loss. Bryan thinks that both of them feel he is the weak link. Kane says they respect Bryan but he continues on the weak link thing. He wants ONE MATCH to gain everyone’s respect and he is going to have another match tonight and will BEAT the respect out of someone else. Elsewhere, Triple H arrives, rather unhappy. He heads into the office and says he is wrestling tonight. Stephanie McMahon calls him “Paul” and says that Curtis Axel is not worth it. Vince McMahon calls the “Cerebral Assassin” is not being very cerebral. They get into a battle of egos and HHH gets in Vince’s face; Vince tells him not to do something that he won’t regret. He leaves and closes the door which says “Mr. McMahon.”

The Usos vs. The Primetime Players:   Full entrance for the Usos tonight, they also have their faces painted in “Samoan war paint” so they appear less generic (and probably allowing the commentators to tell them apart). The match is JIP with Jimmy pounding on Young and tagging in his brother for some tandem elbow drops. Young pushes him into the corner and O’Neil takes over with a big boot in the corner. He nails a roughhouse backbreaker and Young tags back in; he applies a chinlock. They sequester Jey in the corner and O’Neil hits a reverse Strongest Slam. Now we head to the front facelock. The commentators continue about the “rebirth” of the Usos, perhaps the WWE is going to push them again? The beating continues as Titus applies a side cravat. He eventually misses a running knee in the corner and Jimmy tags in he kicks the crap out of Young and hits a Samoan drop; the Samoan Avalanche follows but Titus breaks it up. They nail both Players with superkick and finish Darren off with the Headshrinker Splash.   3/10 The Usos are “back in the title hunt” apparently. Big win for the Usos who haven’t seemed to win a tag match on Raw since their debut.

Here are your winners… The Usos via Headshrinker Splash pinfall

Alberto Del Rio (w/Ricardo Rodriguez) vs. Big E Langston (w/AJ Lee):   This is almost comical now; I think they faced off five times in a row, thus far?  Big E opens with knees but Del Rio clotheslines him to the floor. He gives chase but Langston steamrolls him on the floor. He launches him into the ring barricade and then, back in the ring, hits a running clothesline, for two. Big E with an armbar-like move; ADR fights back and leaps off the second rope… right into a pair of backbreakers for another nearfall. Broadcasters discuss Triple H as Langston applies another chinlock. Langston misses a charge in the corner and Del Rio tries to kick his way back to dazzle the big guy. He tries the armbreaker but it’s countered; Del Rio hits a low superkick. Del Rio gets the cross-armbreaker again but Langston powers out as he always does. Langston deposits him onto the apron and breaks on four; back in the ring a release German lands. He grabs the armbreaker again Langston won’t tap so Del Rio turns it into a cradle to bewilder Langston for the pinfall.   4.5/10 These two have wrestled enough times to get a good match; the ending was clever, showing Langston’s refusal to tap out and power and Del Rio’s ingenuity.

Here is your winner… Alberto Del Rio via cradle pinfall

Sheamus vs. Cody Rhodes (w/Damien Sandow):   Rhodes tries to stick-and-move but Sheamus pummels him. He tries to use fancy footwork with a float-over in the corner but a clothesline keeps him down. He tries O’Clubbering right off the bat but Rhodes keeps countering and eventually “outthinks” him kicking him off the apron. Cody keeps on him with a knee to the face on the floor and gets a nearfall in the ring. Rhodes applies a side cravat as the commentators argue with Sandow over facial hair; Cody goes to a front facelock but Sheamus tosses him off. Sheamus makes mean faces as he hits Irish Hammers and a Finlay Roll; he heads up top for the Battering Ram and connects. Rhodes counters White Noise with elbows. Sheamus misses the Brogue and gets hung up in the ropes for a neckbreaker, for two. He tries Cross Rhodes but it’s countered; Cody tries a moonsault but completely misses. White Noise! Brogue Kick! We’re out. Post-match, Sheamus approaches Damien and offers a handshake. Sandow pushes it away and gets punched in the face.   2.5/10 Was there any doubt there? Sheamus continues to torture the Rhodes Scholars attempts to get over in the ring.

Here is your winner… Sheamus via Brogue Kick pinfall

In the back, Triple H and Stephanie McMahon are talking… well, more like HHH is mad and leaving “so his kids won’t have to see him beat the crap out of grandpa on live TV.” He leaves but is facing Curtis Axel next week. We get clips of Ryback destroying Kofi Kingston on SmackDown putting him through three tables. Perhaps this will signal Kofi’s return as a heel. Kofi had surgery and will be out for a couple of months. Elsewhere, in the back Daniel Bryan is pouting and bumps into Ryback. Ryback makes little man jokes so Bryan gets all fired up and we have a match. Ryback calls him a weak link but after their match, he will be the missing link. Elsewhere elsewhere, Paul Heyman and Curtis Axel bump into Mr. McMahon; Vince books Axel and John Cena again in a no-DQ match.

The Great Khali (w/Natalya & Hornswoggle) vs. Fandango (w/Summer Rae):   Khali tosses Fandango around and mocks the dance. He hits some chops in the corner. Fandango fights back but Khali keeps shoving him aside. He goes for the Plunge but Fandango dances away. He takes a walk, drawing cheap heat but the Miz blocks his exit; Wade Barrett sneaks up on him with a Bull Hammer… and we have no match.   2/10 Just a tool to promote the following match and for the fans to “Fandango.” The WWE has something here with him but are rapidly losing the heat by going directionless with him. Typical WWE sometimes they have some gold but lose it back into the river.

Here is your winner… The Great Khali via countout

The Miz vs. Wade Barrett:   The match begins right after the commercial; Miz opens pounding away, I guess not showing any ill effects of the Hammer. He charges right into a big boot to take over, though. Wade works Miz with knees in the ropes but Miz low bridges him to the floor to “buy himself some time” to recover. Miz kicks Barrett off the ring barricade and rams him backwards to follow up. Back in the ring, Barrett catches Miz on the ropes; he misses a running knee in the corner and Miz slides into a cradle for two. He thinks figure-four leglock but gets planted with the Winds of Change. Here’s Fandango’s music to distract everyone. Fans now start to “Fandango” as Miz clamps on the figure-four to a distracted Barrett for the submission.   3.5/10 I like Intercontinental title feuds, makes the title seem prestigious. I don’t like the Intercontinental champion jobbing every week, makes the title seem useless.

Here is your winner… The Miz via figure-four leglock submission

Jerry Lawler is in the ring for the official contract signing for CM Punk and Chris Jericho. Paul Heyman is repping Punk tonight. Heyman notes that they could have signed this in the back, but they had to pay homage to Y2J’s “massive ego.” Paul begins to tout Punk’s title reign but Jericho completes the sentences and makes fun of Punk’s tattoos. He calls Paul “Mr. Walrus” which cracks me up for some reason, all Y2J cares about is Punk on June 16. Paul signs. Heyman is getting his pound of verbal flesh tonight and says that in Chicago, the fans will boo the crap out of Jericho, since it is Punk’s partisan biased hometown crowd. Jericho thinks perhaps they should have the match at Summerslam, in LA. Paul says no. Y2J suggests MSG and Hartford to have the match but Paul is steadfast, the match will happen in Chicago. Jericho signs. Chris says that Punk acts like a jackass and will be treated accordingly. Now the decision of where to file the contract is up; he demands Paul to STAND UP RIGHT NOW. Jericho files the contract down Heyman’s pants.   2.5/10 Not as good as their verbal sparring last week; odd to see a contact signing for a non-title match.

Kaitlyn & The Funkadactyls vs. AJ Lee & The Bella Twins:   AJ opens with Kaitlyn; she goes behind and slaps the back of her head. AJ quickly runs away and tags in a Bella. Cameron and Naomi come in for a tandem Rear View into a flipping senton, for two. Nikki fights back, avoiding a crossbody, and Naomi takes a nasty spill bouncing off the ropes. Nikki beats her up and works her arm. Brie tags in and drops a knee onto the arm. They work Naomi over in their corner with an EXTENDED armbar until the hot tag is made to Kaitlyn. She runs over a Bella and nails an inverted DDT, for two. The fans are silent as AJ refuses to tag in with a little tit-for-tat from last week. Kaitlyn spears Brie for the pinfall.   1.5/10 Long and boring match but they are SLOWLY building to the eventual Diva’s title win for AJ; probably when Dolph Ziggler comes back.

Here are your winners… Kaitlyn & the Funkadactyls via spear pinfall

In the back, Kane calls Daniel Bryan crazy for fighting Ryback tonight. Kane gives him a pep talk and says that Bryan has nothing to prove to anyone. Daniel SCREAMS at him to stay in the back because he’s doing it alone. Kane says he’ll do one better, he’s leaving, and to call him when he finds his mind.

More vignettes for the Wyatt Family are shown. They are awesome in NXT and will be awesome in the WWE.

Daniel Bryan vs. Ryback:   Ryback arrives in his ambulance. Daniel goes right at him with a knee to the face. Ryback powers back but Bryan won’t let him get going, keeping him off-balance with kicks and strikes. Ryback eventually ends the flurry with a big boot; he tries a splash but Bryan raises his knees. More kicks come from Bryan as he tries to pick the leg but Ryback flicks him off. He goes into his offense with knee strikes and boots to the guts. The commentators sell the danger of wrestling Ryback in his current mental state. Ryback continues his O until Bryan counters a Thesz Press into a single-leg crab! Bryan busts out a series of submission holds including an Indian Deathlock. Bryan kicks in the corner and flips off the top; he tires the running Hart Attack clothesline but Ryback meets him at the ropes, clotheslining him to the floor. Back from commercial, Ryback is pounding, shoulderblocking, stomping and chinlocking Bryan. He fights back but Ryback ends him with a knee to the guts. He misses a shoulderblock in the corner, giving Bryan the opening; he nails a pair of running dropkicks and a leaping low one, the kickout sends Bryan to the floor. Bryan recovers and nails a top-rope missile dropkick. Bryan then ascends the buckles for the Flying Goat… three quarters across the ring! It gets a nuclear nearfall. Daniel has the crowd all worked up again, they were DEAD following that divas match. The Yes Kicks connect but Ryback catches him with a deadly powerbomb to squelch the momentum dead. Ryback tries for another powerbomb but the tenacious Bryan snags him in the No Lock out of nowhere! Ryback struggles to get to the ropes as the fans will Bryan on. Ryback eventually makes the ropes and rolls to the floor for a breather, which sells the impact of the move. Bryan recovers first and plows into him with a topé… or was it countered as he crashes into the announce table and Ryback recovers first. He posts his back a few times and sends Daniel back into the ring. Ryback heads to the floor for a table. He puts Bryan through it and gets disqualified. Bryan manages to win the match but looks like Ryback is trying to end the career. Post-match, Ryback gets another table and sets it up in the corner on the floor but John Cena comes out to defend. They stand off as Curtis Axel makes his appearance for their upcoming match.   6.5/10 Quite the match there, one of Ryback’s better ones in the WWE but I presume that has something to do with the caliber of opponent. This is rapidly becoming the Daniel Bryan show and everything else, he is clearly the most over person on the roster at this point, and WWE would be insane not to capitalize on it… or even worse turn him heel. This match also segued nicely into the next match.

Here is your winner… Daniel Bryan via DQ

John Cena vs. Curtis Axel (w/Paul Heyman) no DQ:   Axel has ditched the stupid claw trunks for a pair with a pattern very similar to his father’s singlet. The match begins and Heyman trips John off the ropes (no DQ). He leaps off the apron and nails him. Back in the ring, Axel, gets two. He hits a Hennig Snap and gets two more. He works John over with punches but Cena fights back; Curtis quells that with a backbreaker. Paul grabs a chair and tosses it in for Axel; John blocks and nails Axel with it. He tosses him to the floor and comes after him, tossing Axel over the announce table and dismantling it. The referee counts (it’s not a no countout match). Back in the ring, Axel manages to toss Cena to the floor on the other side and grabs the chair. Curtis swings for the fences but it’s just a long foul ball as he hits the steel post. In the ring a staredown ensues with Axel and a chair. Curtis swings wildly and misses twice; Cena knocks him down with a dropkick. Cena gets two. Axel keeps his advantage with a clothesline to the back of the head; he pummels John with chokes and punches in the ropes. A hammer-toss keeps Cena down for a nearfall; he clamps on an armbar like move. Cena tries to power out but Axel keeps him back with kicks and stomps to the head. He tries to toss John into the corner where a chair is wedged but Cena blocks and goes into comeback mode: shoulderblocks, Proto-bomb and the Five-Knuckle Shuffle. Axel grabs the ropes to cut off the AA. Cena charges… right into the chair in the corner, posting his shoulder and tumbling to the floor. Cena makes it back in at nine as I can see the finish a mile away here. Not surprisingly they are focusing on referee Scott Armstrong counting countouts. Curtis continues to pummel Cena and makes mean faces; he retreats to the floor to get the chair and finally is able to hit John with it… for two. He keeps using the chair and Cena keeps kicking out. Axel hits the McGillicutter onto the chair and Cena kicks out of that too. That was McGillicutty’s old finisher, so that character is officially dead. Axel sets the chair up again and goes for a Perfect-plex onto it but Cena counters into the STF. Why doesn’t Heyman run in the ring? He does get an iPad from the announcers and gives it to Axel for the $800 hold break. Cena rolls to the floor where he goes for the AA through a table but Heyman gets in the way. Cena attacks Heyman, shrugs off Axels attack, and finally goes down when Ryback returns.  Axel rolls back into the ring during the mêlée as Ryback puts John through a table on the floor. Cena gets counted out again so Axel wins.    4/10 They booked Axel weak again (for the third week in a row); if you really want to push s new, young star, don’t have him wrestle people you don’t want him jobbing to (i.e. he’s not on their level). They used this match as a tool, just like last week, to put the Cena/Ryback feud over.

Here is your winner… Curtis Axel via countout

OVERALL 5/10   Outside the Daniel Bryan stuff this was a very bland show. They tried the McMahon equals rating theory. We’ll see if that pans out.

Championship’s roll call: WWE Champion: John Cena… World Champion: Dolph Ziggler… Intercontinental Champion: Wade Barrett… United States Champion: Dean Ambrose… Tag Team Champions: The Shield… NXT Champion: Big E Langston… NXT Tag Team Champions: The Wyatt Family… Diva’s Champion: Kaitlyn

R-Truth vs. Antonio Cesaro:   Cesaro has removed the thigh wraps, unless he’s just forgot them. They lock up and Cesaro powers Truth into the corner and gives him a little love tap. Truth slaps him back but that enrages Cesaro and he punches away; Truth catches a boot and nails a hiplock. Cesaro rolls to the apron to avoid the breakdancing legdrop and hotshots Truth’s throat off the top rope. Cesaro hits a clothesline and vertical suplex to get a one count. He chokes Truth in the ropes and nails a European uppercut in the ropes. He argues with the referee allowing Truth a comeback. Cesaro keeps his advantage with a knee to the gut and the deadlift gutwrench. He kicks his boot to the back of Truth’s head but that serves to fire him up and counters a Euro uppercut with a backslide; Cesaro slows him down with a standing chinlock. Truth fights back and hits a leg lariat; he then goes into comeback mode and hits the Truth Conviction, which gets two. He charges in the corner but misses a forearm and Cesaro gets two off a schoolboy. Back to the chinlock but Truth fights off of that pretty quickly. Cesaro misses a charge in the corner and hits the Lie Detector and gets three.  4/10 Decent little match but short. Truth continues to be one of the more protected midcarders but never goes anywhere. Not sure why going over Cesaro, who is (apparently) on the fast track in the WWE, is the better choice if Truth is going to sporadically appear on Superstars.

Here is your winner… R-Truth via Lie Detector pinfall

We go through Raw highlights including: Paul Heyman on Chris Jericho’s Highlight Reel. Team Hell No versus the Shield. A video package for the Wyatt Family, which is AWESOME; so looking forward to seeing what the WWE does with Bray, Harper and Rowan, odd to see Luke Harper (and Erick Rowan for that matter) talk, since he never spoke in NXT. For my full Raw review click here.

Sin Cara & Justin Gabriel vs. The Primetime Players:   I could get into this team of Cara and Gabriel while their normal tag partners recover. Young and Cara open and Darren back him into the corner for a referee break; Cara comes back with a pair of ‘ranas to send Young to the floor for a timeout. Cara baseball slides into him to break the conference on the floor. Back in the ring, Cara tags in Gabriel for a pair of running kicks, to get two. Gabriel works an armbar and keeps the Players off-balance with rapid tagging. Cara hits a springboard clothesline; Gabriel with a snap-suplex into a chinlock. Young escapes but eats a dropkick from his former Nexus brethren. Darren to the floor again as we head off to commercial. We return with Young finally tagging O’Neil in to pummel Cara. He upends him with a big European uppercut and a back suplex, which is countered (I think) into a kick. The double jump armdrag is countered into a pair of backbreakers. O’Neil brings Young back in for some stomping and a short clothesline; he goes to a chinlock with added crossfaces. Titus tags and press-slams Cara; more quick tags follow as Young settles into a chinlock again. Cara counters a back suplex with a flip and enziguris into a tag. Gabriel springboards into action and spin kicks away on Young; he plats Young with a tornado DDT. Cara wipes O’Neil and then leaps off the top to the floor with a crossbody. Gabriel pins Young after a 450 Splash.   5.5/10 Fun match; I’m not sure if the Cara/Gabriel team is permanent but it sure could work since neither of them is really doing anything.

Here are your winners… Sin Cara and Justin Gabriel via 450 Splash pinfall

The show ends with the John Cena/Curtis Axel match which was interrupted by Ryback, costing John the win.

OVERALL 5/10   Not too bad this week; average show. They are starting to get a little more creative with the matchups on this show instead of total squash matches all of the time. The continued push/non-push of R-Truth continues to puzzle me.

Please follow Marc Elusive on Twitter or like Marc Elusive on Facebook or check out www.marcelusive.net for reviews and recaps (of current WWE and old WWF PPVs, DVDs and VHS tapes) and a little analysis; more of a play-by-play style, like my reviews here. Thank you for all of your support.

Commentators: Tom Phillips & Brad Maddox

Championship’s roll call: WWE Champion: John Cena… World Champion: Dolph Ziggler… Intercontinental Champion: Wade Barrett… United States Champion: Dean Ambrose… Tag Team Champions: The Shield… NXT Champion: Big E Langston… NXT Tag Team Champions: The Wyatt Family… Diva’s Champion: Kaitlyn

Sawyer Fulton & Travis Tyler vs. The Wyatt Family:   Tyler and Harper open the contest and gets pounded down. He chops away on Travis and brings in Rowan for a trio of big slams. He head butts the kid and clubs him down some more. Harper tags in and they quick tag on him and take him apart. Tyler escapes and tags in Fulton who runs right into a big boot. Harper splashes him in the corner and the discus lariat finished Fulton post-haste.   2.5/10 Total domination and short squash for Harper and Rowan. There was a video package for them and Bray on Raw this past week, I guess they got the call up.

Here are your winners… The Wyatt Family via discus lariat

Stephanie McMahon appears (in the back) for a historic announcement for NXT. The announcement is that there is a new NXT women’s championship. The belt looks much better than the Diva’s title. The tournament begins next week.

Emma vs. Audrey Marie:   It’s amazing how over Emma is; this matchup is a result from last week’s promo interruption. The match begins but Emma DEMANDS her music start again so she can dance. Marie plows her down with a clothesline and beats her up. Emma come back with a dance and slid under cradle for two. Marie comes back and pounds Emma down; she tries a jackknife cover, Emma does, but Marie bridges up and cradles her for two. Marie gets a gutwrench suplex for two more. Emma tries a backslide and they battle over it until Emma slips free and applies the Dilemma (Tarantula) in the ropes. The dance sets up the running low crossbody in the corner; she snags Marie in the Emma Lock (Muta Lock) for the submission.   4.5/10 Fun match as the NXT fans are really into Emma so she keeps winning, good strategy.

Here is your winner… Emma via Emma Lock submission

Brandon Traven & Jake Carter vs. Scott Dawson & Garrett Dylan (w/Sylvester Lefort):   Dylan and Dawson are like a team of rednecks. Carter and Dawson open the contest; Carter pounds on him in the corner. He tries a suplex but winds up on the apron for Dylan to pull him off. Back in the ring, Dawson hits a reverse elbow and drops a leg. He keeps on Carter and tags in Dylan who pounds away some more. Quick tags abound as they sequester Carter in their corner; Dawson rakes the face and then applies an armtrap chinlock for a while. Lefort, the manager, is sold from Nice, France. Carter finally escapes and tags in Traven. He hits a dropkick but Dylan distracts and Dawson ends the shortest hot tag sequence in WWE history with a clothesline. Dylan tags and a spinebuster sets up a second rope double axe for the pinfall.   4/10 Odd couple (manager-wise) as a new team; NXT needs some tag teams and this team is a good one.

Here are your winners… Scott Dawson & Garrett Dylan via spinebuster/double axe pinfall

Big E Langston vs. Derrick Bateman:   Bateman cut all his hair off. This is, I believe his last WWE match, since he was released earlier last week. Bateman attacks at the bell and nails a dropkick in the corner; he continues to pound away but gets flapjacked. Langston hits a Vader Splash and drops the Big Ending for the pinfall. Post-match, Big E keeps the crowd happy with some more Big Endings for the FIVE count.   3/10 Squash for Langston as we head into the battle royal to determine his next contender.

Here is your winner… Big E Langston via Big Ending pinfall

We get a Raw Rebound which focuses on John Cena and Ryback, plus the ending of Cena versus Curtis Axel. For my full Raw review click here.

Corey Graves, Adrian Neville, Bray Wyatt, Yoshi Tatsu, Kassius Ohno, Bo Dallas, Mason Ryan, Sakamoto, Sami Zayn, Briley Pierce, Curtis Hawkins, Alexander Rusev, Baron Corbin, Conor O’Brian, Knuckles Madsen, Mojo Rawley, Dante Dash & Aiden English number one contender’s 18-man battle royal:   Big E Langston joins for commentary. Big brawl to open the match. Wyatt and Ohno find each other and fight in the ropes. Ohno winds up on the apron and almost goes out a few times. Sakamoto is the first ELIMINATED by someone, I couldn’t see who. I think it was Ryan; speaking of which, he also ELIMINATES Pierce and Hawkins as well. Ryan adds Rusev to his ELIMINATION list next; they better gang up on him quick. Ohno and Wyatt keep at each other’s throats as the rest of the ring does gang up on Ryan; he fends them all off and ELIMINATES Baron Corbin. Mason goes crazy again and ELIMINATES Madsen, Rawley, Tatsu, Dante Dash and Aiden English all in succession to give Ryan TEN eliminations thus far; he’s the only wrestler to eliminate anyone here. Mason then press-slams Zayn onto the pile on the floor ELIMINATING him too. Ryan catches Neville for a powerbomb but Adrian head scissors him to the floor and finally ELIMINATES Ryan to end the streak. Back from break with O’Brian yelling at Wyatt and then trading blows with him. He knocks him through the middle ropes with a boot. O’Brian then turns to Bray’s brother Dallas with a clothesline in the corner and then one for Neville too. He repeats the spot and then tries Graves but he gets a boot up; Ohno adds a kick and they upend O’Brian to ELIMINATE him. Wyatt sneaks up on them and ELIMINATES Ohno and Graves to make the final three: himself, Neville and Dallas. Wyatt goes after his older brother and squishes him in the corner for Sister Abigail. Wyatt heads to Neville who kills him with a twisting enziguri and then surprises me, ELIMINATING Wyatt from the contest. I pegged Wyatt for the win here. So we’re down to the former tag champions (for one match). Dallas charges and gets low bridged to the floor; he hangs on, dangling, to save off elimination. Bo pulls Neville out as well and they both dangle precariously but neither gets eliminated. They exchange boo/yay blows. Neville almost gets backdropped to the floor twice but saves off. He kicks Bo from the apron and then tries the Red Arrow but Dallas gets the knees up to stun him and finally ELIMINATES Neville to become the number one contender.   6.5/10 I normally like battle royals and this one was pretty entertaining. I don’t get why Dallas one as he isn’t over and the fans have turned on him as well, he has become the John Cena of NXT. I guess feeding him to Big E will perhaps give the fans their satisfaction of Dallas getting humbled and squished by Langston.  

Here is your winner… Bo Dallas

OVERALL 5.5/10   Pretty good action-packed show this week with some fun tag matches and a new number one contender. Dallas is the choice as the WWE is insistent on shoving him down our throats, this time they are aware the fans are a bit annoyed with it and are actually turning him heel.

Please follow Marc Elusive on Twitter or like Marc Elusive on Facebook or check out www.marcelusive.net for reviews and recaps (of current WWE and old WWF PPVs, DVDs and VHS tapes) and a little analysis; more of a play-by-play style, like my reviews here. Thank you for all of your support.