Eivion Posted July 19, 2023 Posted July 19, 2023 Los Lotharios vs. Frazer/Dragon was fucking great. So much awesome action and just neat tag work from Los Lotharios. Really hope they don't actually follow through with the pos tmatch breakup angle. They are way too damn good together. Gigi/Kiana was alright. Wasn't big on the finish. Thea/Elektra was quick and more about setting up the rematch with Stratton post match. Thought that was a solid segment. Thorpe/Mensah was decent. Dug the weird finishing stretch using a despondent Dar as a prop to throw off the ref. Meta-Four are wonderfully ridiculous. The Roxanne/Blair segment was ok. Felt like it was approaching the same direction Roxanne's interview with Toxic Attraction for a while. Not sure it was the best move to not actually have it go there as it felt like Blair need an ass kicking after all of that trash talk. Dom/Wes had its moments, but felt off compared to what either guy has delivered in singles the past few months. Can't help but wonder if Wes got knocked a little loopy at one point with how he was moving late in. He was also clearly bleeding in the final shot of him. Dom winning the title was unexpected. I kind of like it though I wish it had been a stronger match given how good Lee's reign has been and how fun Dom's matches have been for months now.
The Natural Posted July 19, 2023 Posted July 19, 2023 https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=A3dz3Mq_bAA Dominik Mysterio promo. 1
Eivion Posted July 22, 2023 Posted July 22, 2023 The 4-way was the usal with its fun moments but nothing great. Noty fond of Rey winning. He was the second most boring choice here and its just feel weird for Knight to keep coming up short with this stuff. At this point either Vince is holding him back or HHH has a weird thing for delayed gratification. Feels like they will miss their chance if they don't do something push Knight forward soon. Charlotte/Io was a nice surprise. The two were a little loose but worked generally well together. More than that it was interesting seeing Charlotte go more into her athletic side. Dug how much Io got in and how the crowd got behind her at times. Only thing I didn't like was the finish. Why Charlotte still uses that terrible Natural Selection move I have no idea. Santos/Theory was pretty solid and a nice boonfor Santos. Crowd was into him by the end and he even got the win. Dom/Butch was another surprise. Match was generally solid, and I dug it more than Dom/Wes from Tuesday. I wish the finish was better executed. Final segment with the Bloodline was decent and another nice moment for Jey. Felt weird seeing many NXT people and even some PC talent appear all over though I guess it makes sense given where Smackdown took place. 1
Iron Moose Posted July 22, 2023 Posted July 22, 2023 (edited) Of interest on Level Up: Quincy still exists. Dani Palmer (in weirdly clashing gear - top and trunks clearly from different sets, and top combining her black vinyl/guitar hero set leopard print accents) defeating a debuting Izzi Dame (tall, played volleyball, seems mean) with a frog splash crossbody that might be called the Leap of Faith. Nothing too fancy, but a few nice touches of execution (Palmer being caught into a bear hug; arching high on a sunset flip attempt to make the hairpull counter less implausible. ) Tiffany Stratton - Kiana James dark match from SD: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ax6F1fl1g5o Edited July 22, 2023 by Iron Moose
For Great Justice Posted July 22, 2023 Posted July 22, 2023 The “booking vs. star the fans want” feud / push (Daniel Bryan, Becky, Kofi) isn’t nearly as fun when it’s transparent that the promotion is obviously doing it, which is what they’re doing here with LA Knight. You can see the strings on this one. Hope it doesn’t backfire.
Ramo2653 Posted July 22, 2023 Posted July 22, 2023 6 hours ago, Eivion said: The 4-way was the usual with its fun moments but nothing great. Not fond of Rey winning. He was the second most boring choice here and its just feel weird for Knight to keep coming up short with this stuff. At this point either Vince is holding him back or HHH has a weird thing for delayed gratification. Feels like they will miss their chance if they don't do something push Knight forward soon. While I'm intrigued by Escobar/Rey I gotta agree. Also it's been interesting to see what things HHH kept from being under Vince for so long with booking. It seems like WWE loves to do this in general. Iyo and Charlotte have a banger in their future if they work again. It was a really good match that could be a great one if they smooth off the rough edges. And lets get Charlotte a secondary finisher that isn't Natural Selection. Dom and Rhea just being cheating SOBs is hilarious. 1
Peck Posted July 23, 2023 Posted July 23, 2023 10 hours ago, Iron Moose said: defeating a debuting Izzi Dame (tall, played volleyball, seems mean) I'll give Izzi a chance but she seems like Generic Mean Girl #512. The Paiges pull that off way better in the NWA. Should just bring either or both of them in.
John E. Dynamite Posted July 23, 2023 Posted July 23, 2023 On 7/22/2023 at 1:26 PM, For Great Justice said: The “booking vs. star the fans want” feud / push (Daniel Bryan, Becky, Kofi) isn’t nearly as fun when it’s transparent that the promotion is obviously doing it, which is what they’re doing here with LA Knight. You can see the strings on this one. Hope it doesn’t backfire. They gotta bring back some end-stage Vince schlock for Knight to push through if they really want to sell it. I am totally here for plucking Santino Marella away from IMPACT just so he can call him "Louisiana Knight".
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