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WWE Extreme Rules 2019 Preview/Predictions
Photo courtesy of Wikipedia.
By Nicholas Jason Lopez
The main roster has been in a place of recovery in recent weeks after the announcement of both Paul Heyman and Eric Bischoff as Executive Directors of Raw and SmackDown respectively.
Although Bischoff is expected to begin his role after this event, it has been said that Heyman had his “fingerprints all over” Raw the last two weeks. The first week was complete with Corey Graves swearing on air, a stage explosion/pyro angle and logical storyline developments, a key aspect to Heyman’s creative skills.
This most recent Raw episode felt like more of the same filler we had previously, yet SmackDown was the better show, so who knows if Heyman had his way with the blue brand just prior to Bischoff’s beginning?
Extreme Rules is being looked forward to by many, only because it will mean the end of one era (hopefully the dreadful Wild Card) and the start of a more meaningful one. Enthusiasm is dead with the current main roster product and if anybody knows what to do to rejuvenate it, it might as well be Heyman and Bischoff at this point.
Let the games begin.
WWE Money In The Bank 2019 Preview/Predictions
Photo courtesy of Wikipedia.
By Nicholas Jason Lopez
The poster of this event is a microcosm of the problems that plague the main roster – the illusion that two’s better than one.
In a panicked reaction to low ratings, Vince McMahon introduced (in a half-assed manner, mind you) the “Wild Card Rule,” where four superstars from Raw could appear on SmackDown and vice versa. McMahon messed up the promo to explain it and then managed to break his own made-up rule as five superstars from SmackDown appeared on that very Raw.
Since its forgettable introduction, it has actually made Raw and SmackDown feel like the same show, with Elias, Roman Reigns, Shane McMahon, The Miz and The Usos being most of the “Wild Cards.”
We’ll get into the bigger problems later, but Money In The Bank comes at a time when the main roster needs unpredictability and luckily, the briefcase holders can contribute a bit of that to their respective Title pictures.
WWE WrestleMania 35 Preview/Predictions
Photo courtesy of Wikipedia.
By Nicholas Jason Lopez
NXT TakeOver: New York (or TakeOver: Brooklyn V?) came, conquered and impressed everyone in all its glory.
300-pound Heavyweight Hanson performed a handspring back elbow and a top rope senton to the floor, Velveteen Dream was the GODDAMN STATUE OF LIBERTY and the main event between Johnny Gargano and Adam Cole delivered more wows than a summer blockbuster.
To be frank – WrestleMania will pale in comparison to its NXT counterpart and that’s to put it nicely, despite the fact that Mania will run more than twice the amount of time and contain more than three times as many matches.
Below are our predictions to shape Mania into a halfway decent show. If you’ve followed the Raw side (without falling asleep), the build has been abysmal while SmackDown has held themselves together better thanks to Kofi Kingston’s journey, but there are still some flaws here and there.
Let’s get to it.
Notes In Observance – WWE NXT 3/8/17: Don’t Steal Moves, Steal Moments
By Nicholas Jason Lopez
“Notes In Observance” features random thoughts and analysis on television shows. Quick results can be found at the bottom of the post.
(Aired 3/8/17)
Don’t Steal Moves, Steal Moments
– The opening video hyped Shinsuke Nakamura’s well-awaited return to NXT after he was soundly defeated for the NXT Championship at TakeOver: San Antonio by Bobby Roode. In the thick of it all, he suffered a “knee injury” and was left off television for a few weeks to sell it. Well, he’s back now. Apparently he’s also got an awesome opponent in TJ Perkins. We like that they can just pluck random Cruiserweights into filler spots like these on NXT. Now, if only they were allowed to do that on the main roster. Let’s not get TOO progressive now. Insert thinking face emoji here.
Notes In Observance – WWE NXT 2/8/17: A Stand Against SAnitY
By Nicholas Jason Lopez
“Notes In Observance” features random thoughts and analysis on television shows. Quick results can be found at the bottom of the post.
(Aired 2/8/17)
A Stand Against SAnitY
– Well, nothing quite says “Welcome Back To Full Sail University” like the darkness and haunting realism of SAnitY’s entrance. Look Mom, Mad Max has some new friends. Once they get in the ring, we’re subjected to some subtle hardcore dancing from Alexander Wolfe as we wonder what the hell this group is out for so soon into the show. The silence was broken by upbeat Indian music, as The Bollywood Boyz came out with a cultured toy to raise some fun or something like that. Nah, they’re gonna get their asses kicked. In case you wondered, Eric Young/Nikki (not NXT Women’s Champion) Cross would sit this one out. As the match begins, it’s rather hard to not notice Killian Dain’s rampant back hair. Just imagine a furry bear and translate that to a human being. You’ve met your match. Funnily enough, at that point, the Full Sail faithful break out a “Shave your back!” chant. See, they’re not all that resentful. The bout goes on and it’s basically Dain having his way with the fun-lovers. He powerbombed one on top of the other and hit a senton on both. Just, ouch. On top of it all, he hits that sweet move that transitions from an electric chair to the Michinoku Driver. Wolfe never even tagged in, which goes to show that they accomplished the goal to make Dain look scary, though his back hair already did that. Post-match, Cross screamed for Champion Asuka, because well, she’s crazy. Young bragged about his victory over Tye Dillinger at TakeOver: San Antonio and again claimed that “The Perfect 10” belonged with them and it wasn’t a choice anymore. Right. This is like the friendliest group ever.
WWE NXT TakeOver: San Antonio Reaction
Photo courtesy of Wikipedia.
By Nicholas Jason Lopez
Even though it boasted the same static screen transitions and synth-powered alternative rock theme songs, there was something about this “TakeOver” that didn’t feel like “TakeOver.”
At least headed in.
With what could be considered a lackluster build to a card with throwaway bouts, it’s a testament to NXT and everything it stands for that even with “in-the-middle” shows like this compared to past TakeOvers, they can still spin yards of gold.
We also dug the ambition to continue the tradition of hard-fought contests, excellent teases and above all else, the element of surprise. While on a lesser level, we still got our “TakeOver” money’s worth.
Notes In Observance – WWE NXT 1/25/17: Femme Fatale Four-Way
By Nicholas Jason Lopez
“Notes In Observance” features random thoughts and analysis on recent television shows. Quick results can be found at the bottom of the post.
(Aired 1/25/17)
Femme Fatale Four-Way
– The Ember Moon-Liv Morgan match was set up last week as a friendly competition to see who’d “unofficially” face the NXT Women’s Champion coming out of NXT TakeOver: San Antonio. Moon was still undefeated, yet Morgan was the one to challenge her. The story was there at least. They exchanged some chain wrestling and rolled around in package pin attempts for a good 25 seconds. Morgan seemed to have improved a bit as she hit a huracanrana. Moon applied a crossface, though Morgan fought out of it with a pin attempt that took Moon’s momentum back. Morgan laid on a guillotine, but was taken and dumped over the top rope by Moon. A minute later, Moon Eclipsed Morgan to take the win. It’s obvious how Moon’s in a holding pattern until TO:SA, but it also helped Morgan here. She could use more of a gimmick than “tough Jersey girl.” It was enough to make us want more, but what we got was good. They shared sportsmanship after the bell to keep the friendship going.
Notes In Observance – WWE NXT 1/18/17: The Glorious Shiba Inu
By Nicholas Jason Lopez
“Notes In Observance” features random thoughts and analysis on recent television shows. Quick results can be found at the bottom of the post.
(Aired 1/18/17)
The Glorious Shiba Inu
– The opening video hyped the contact signing segment between NXT Champion Shinsuke Nakamura and Bobby Roode. It pretty much wrote itself. Hopefully they’d so something to make this feud personal.
Notes In Observance – WWE NXT 1/11/17: Chaos And Pain
By Nicholas Jason Lopez
“Notes In Observance” features random thoughts and analysis on recent television shows. Quick results can be found at the bottom of the post.
(Aired 1/11/17)
Chaos And Pain
– The opening video hyped the big NXT Tag Team Championship rematch between Champions #DIY and The Revival. If their TakeOver: Brooklyn II or TakeOver: Toronto bouts were any indications, this should be close to flawless. Tag wrestling about as good as it gets. No complaints.
Notes In Observance – WWE NXT 12/21/16: Glorious Cien 10 Strong
By Nicholas Jason Lopez
“Notes In Observance” features random thoughts and analysis on recent television shows. Quick results can be found at the bottom of the post.
(Aired 12/21/16)
Glorious Cien 10 Strong
– The Billie Kay-Daria Berenato match traced back from when Berenato sought revenge on the Aussie Mean Girls after they abandoned her in tag team action. It was decided that Kay would be the one to take the mixed martial arts/boxer fighter on. The story up to here made sense, so we wondered how they’d fare in the ring. Peyton Royce accompanied Kay to the ring, so that already invited shenanigans. A nice start as Berenato kicked Kay in the spine and made her a makeshift punching bag. Royce began to be a factor as she repeatedly pulled Kay out of the ring and attacked Berenato on the outside, out of the Referee’s view. That led to Kay’s big kick to earn her the win. Didn’t expect Kay to actually go over and we’re concerned about Berenato’s future. She has something interesting there as far as her gimmick and after being set up to lose, now she has lost again, albeit in dirty fashion. They haven’t done much to establish Berenato as an in-ring threat. AMG’s post-match promo was a clear call-out to NXT Women’s Champion Asuka, as they deemed themselves worthy competition. They were met with constant boos that bordered on “go-away heat,” which they should’ve played off of more. The “No one cares” chants had to hurt. That said, the way they’ve built up Kay/Royce is desirable, but how can they take Asuka on when they can’t even beat the likes of Ember Moon, Liv Morgan and Aliyah, two of which are glorified enhancement at this point?
Pro Wrestling Opinion 