wrestling / Columns

Wrestling’s 4Rs: The Right, Wrong and Ridiculous of WWE Smackdown & TNA Impact

August 31, 2015 | Posted by Pyro Mitchell

How the 4Rs of wRestling Work!
Here is a quick explanation of the 4R’s. The column will run TWO times a week. We will group our feelings on the shows in various categories: The Right, the wRong and the Ridiculous. The Right is stuff that worked very well: a great promo, a great match and so on. PuRgatoRy is a section between the right and wrong. It shows equal traits from both sides that cannot be ignored and needs discussed. It is not a bad place per say, as things can get remedied or go the wrong way the very next week. The wRong is what it sounds like: bad matches, bad or boring promos and so on. The Ridiculous is stuff that had no right on TV: Stupid angles and so on. And there is always a possibility of a 5th R, which is as bad as they come. This column is supposed to be analytical, and at the right time very critical of the shows, it was the whole reason it was created. This is not a “mark” column, nor a “smark” column, our goal is to analyze the show from many different fronts, reward the good and call out the bad. We will not apologize for our opinions, they are as they are, whether positive or negative.


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By Pyro Mitchell
Impact 8.26.15

THE Right:
The Hardyz/EC3 Opening Segment: The brothers Hardy opened up the show this week, with Jeff Hardy beginning by apologizing for breaking his leg. The talk would then segue into the championship scene, more specifically Matt Hardy’s involvement in it. Jeff would state just how strongly he believes that Matt should get a second chance, before the elder Hardy would have a chance to speak. Matt says that the ‘Matt For Champ’ chants are music to his ears, and then starts talking about how great the support from everyone has been since he returned. Shortly after EC3 would make his way to the ring to spit all the usual heel sayings before giving the Hardy brothers a difficult decision; He would give Matt a second opportunity at the world title, but Jeff had to agree to be his personal assistant should Matt lose. Later on the Hardy brothers would come back out to the stage just to tell us all that he accepted EC3’s challenge. This was a perfectly fine opening segment with both The Hardyz and EC3 playing the face/heel roles brilliantly, without it dragging on like other talking segments tend to do.

DJZ vs. Sonjay Dutt vs. Tigre Uno: The X-Division got to show off a bit this week in a 3 way match for Uno’s X-Division title. The action was fast and furious and featured plenty of high risk moves, at time showing glimpses of the old X-Division. Was the match perfect? No. But was it fun and entertaining? Definitely. The ending came off a very nice Springboard Frog Splash from Tigre, giving him another successful title defense. Not a bad match by any means and, even though the two challengers did nothing to earn their place, it made for one of the high points of the night.

The Wolves vs. The Revolution: Maybe it’s just me, but I thought felt like this match was pretty fresh. The Wolves and The Revolution haven’t really crossed paths all that much, so this match with the titles on the line felt like one that has been a long time coming. And it didn’t disappoint. It featured The Revolution controlling a good chunk of the match, with The Wolves ending it all by showing off their trademark double team attack. James Storm would come down at one point to interfere in the match, but Mahabali Shera would cut him off. Eventually Manik would get spiked down by a Powerbomb right into a Backstabber, and The Wolves walk out the champs once again. This was a very good match that furthered the dissention in the ranks of The Revolution, and kept The Wolves looking like The team to beat.

Mr. Anderson vs. Bobby Roode vs. James Storm vs. Lashley: This was a great main event, and it featured all 4 wrestlers very prominently. Each guy got some time to show off their skill set and hit big moves, and get in some very close near falls. The brief Beer Money reunion was pretty cool, very nostalgic, and showed how in sync Storm and Roode still are. Shortly after that, The It Factor hit a Roode Bomb in order to bring the match to an end, and he will be challenging PJ Black next week for the King of the Mountain title. Fine match but not really sure why any wrestlers would want to be KOTM champ, unless it brings with it a world title shot? Hmm guess we’ll have to see.

puRgatoRy:
GFW Invasion: The invasion has finally happened! Right as Dixie Carter was getting ready to anoint Double J as the new Law, Drew Galloway would make his way to the ring to shed some light on the attacks that have been happening as of late. He says that, while he didn’t see the attackers face, he was able to see the getaway car. The two cars that were used both belonged to Jarrett, but naturally he would deny it. Karen Jarrett would soon reveal herself to be the one who arranged everything, and then Jeff would follow suit shortly after. Then the GFW roster would swarm the ring to attack Galloway, which prompted the TNA locker room to come help. And TNA sent out their very best first including Rockstar Spud, Mandrews, and Robbie E, but not all at once because that would be too much. Shockingly the TNA roster lost the battle and the battle lines have been drawn. Decent way to end the show but TNA is gonna need a little more firepower to make this a compelling brand war.

THE wRong:
Eric Young vs. Chris Melendez: This match just shouldn’t have happened. Melendez shouldn’t have challenged EY again, and he certainly shouldn’t have put his leg on the line. But he did both anyway and the match was just not good, capped off by the fact that EY had to cheat to win by putting his feet on the ropes while going for the pin. This was just a bad idea that simply got worse and worse as it wore on.

THE Ridiculous:
Velvet Sky vs. Brooke: Did this match even have to happen? What did Velvet do to deserve a title shot? Beat up Angelina Love? Kinda help in beating up Taryn Terrell? And then it ends in DQ anyway, with The Dollhouse coming out to attack Velvet. And then the newer, stronger Dollhouse is Rebel? REALLY?

The 411:

This week’s edition of Impact was decent, not great but not bad either. The only matches that were really worth watching was the main event and The Wolves. An honorable mention could go to the X-Division, but that’s about it. The ending of the show, with the invasion finally happening, was good but TNA needs some better wrestlers standing up for the brand. OK effort last week, certainly not the level of inspiration that the past two weeks has had, and hopefully they kick back to that gear next week.

Show Rating: 6.3

As a reminder, I will be going by the 411 scale…

0 – 0.9: Torture
1 – 1.9: Extremely Horrendous
2 – 2.9: Very Bad
3 – 3.9: Bad
4 – 4.9: Poor
5 – 5.9: Not So Good
6 – 6.9: Average
7 – 7.9: Good
8 – 8.9:Very Good
9 – 9.9: Amazing
10: Virtually Perfect


Pyro Mitchell
Smackdown 8.27.15

THE Right:
The Wyatt Family Opening Segment: The Wyatt Family opened up the show this week to talk about how strong their bond is, and to formally introduce ‘The New Face of Destruction’ Braun Strowman. Soon enough The Wyatt’s would be interrupted by none other than Roman Reigns and Dean Ambrose, who would come out of the rafters together a la The Shield of old. Roman admits that the Wyatt’s new muscle did get them both on RAW, but was quick to assure Wyatt that it wasn’t the first beating they had taken and it certainly wouldn’t be the last. Then he would say that if he was going down he was going down swinging, which was followed by Ambrose saying “I’ll take the ugly one”. The two former Shield members then stormed the ring, but only for the Wyatt’s to retreat as Bray would leave the ring while saying “I’m already inside”. This was a good opening to the show and, even though it was a routine talking opener, it was nice to see someone other than Rollins open a Smackdown.

The Ascension vs. The Dudley Boyz: WOW! I never thought I’d get to review a Dudley Boyz match, I thought I’d have to be typing Team 3D if anything at all. But the unthinkable has actually happened, The Dudleyz are back, and this was their first WWE match upon returning. And it looked as if they never even left. The brothers from Dudleyville controlled most of the action, showing their lack of ring rust with all their classic double team moves and even a few new ones. The Dudleyz would eventually look to pull out a table but would be cut off, giving The Ascension their first bit of momentum in the match. But it was not to last, however, as the hot tag to D-Von was made. It didn’t take long for Connor to fall victim to The Dudley Death Drop and the boys have a win in their first match back. D-Von would go and get the table that they wanted earlier, but would be cut off by The New Day before they could do anything with it. The New Day came out, not to attack The Dudleyz, but to protest them. Specifically to protest the use of tables, with one sign saying “Save a table, break a Dudley” and another saying “#Give tables a chance”. The Dudleyz would not be deterred though, and Bubba Ray would proceed to lift himself up on the top rope so that D-Von could hoist Victor on his shoulders. That would lead to a classic Dudleyz Powerbomb through the table, and the legendary tag team would then celebrate in the ring. This match was perfect. The Dudleyz needed a win upon returning, but not just over anyone. This win wouldn’t have had the same impact that it did had The Dudleyz been facing some team like Los Matadores. Even though The Ascension aren’t really being used to their potential, a win over them still seems to mean something. So this was a perfect first win for the boys, and it gets them rolling ahead of their inevitable clash with The New Day and The Prime Time Players.

Neville vs. Kevin Owens: This match was a very nice effort that featured two of the brightest up and comers in WWE. Owens controlled the flow of the match early on and maintained momentum throughout most of the match. Neville did eventually get some time to hit a few moves, but he would soon succumb to the Popup Powerbomb for an Owens win. This match was good, had some pretty good wrestling, and actually had a clean finish. Couldn’t really find anything wrong with this one at all.

Seth Rollins Promo: Seth Rollins came down to the ring this week to talk about what happened on RAW, and about how great he is. He says that night was supposed to be the biggest of his life, with the planned unveiling of his own bronze statue, but it was all ruined by Sting. Rollins claims that Sting is jealous of him, saying that he has accomplished more in his career than Sting has in all of his. But he says that gives Sting no right to do what he did, and that Sting should be afraid of him. Then he says that come Night of Champions it will be Seth Rollins going one on one with Sting, right before guaranteeing that he will not only win but “crush your old bones to dust”. This was a fine promo from the champ, actually even seeming more impassioned than he usually does. As long as Sting is on TV leading up to Night of Champions to build up the match, this one should be epic.

Sheamus vs. Dean Ambrose: Wow, we actually have a Smackdown main event that isn’t a tag team match?! These two put on a barnburner of a match, with The Celtic Warrior getting the better of the match for the most part. Sheamus was able to keep that control using big power moves and grueling submission holds, before Ambrose would find his way back. The Lunatic Fringe would keep his opponent on his heels with quick moves and slick counters, capping it all off with a big Suicide Dive to the outside. And then, right as Ambrose looked as though he would pull off a big win, The Wyatt’s would provide a very timely distraction. In the confusion Ambrose would get cracked with a monstrous Brogue Kick, and Sheamus would get the win. The Wyatt’s would then look to ambush The Unstable One, right until Roman Reigns’ music hit. Reigns would come charging down and eventually look to square off with Wyatt’s ‘Black Sheep’. But the massive Strowman would once again show off his power, and soon enough The Roman Empire was laying in a heap on the middle of the ring. Mighty fine closer to the show, the match was good and the attack from The Wyatt’s afterward was very well done.

puRgatoRy:
Charlotte & Becky Lynch vs. The Bella Twins: This was a Bella match through and through that they somehow ended up losing. After controlling the entire match, Brie Bella was done in by Charlotte’s Web. These Divas matches have been pretty good as of late, but this one just missed the mark.

Ryback & Dolph Ziggler vs. Big Show and Rusev: This match was a decent, fairly lengthy matchup that exceeded my expectations (though to be fair those expectations weren’t very high). The heel team really were the featured part of this match, with both the faces getting dominated. The ending to this one is where things went right off the rails, starting with Dolph Ziggler running face first into a Knockout Punch from The Giant. Rusev would tag himself in to inflict more damage on Ziggler, after mocking and taunting The Big Show. Seeing this the big man got in the ring and delivered a second KO Punch, this time to his own partner, and then proceeded to walk out on the match. Ziggler would gain his wits enough to cover The Bulgarian Brute, and the face team walks away with a win. OK tag match here, but nothing special and it didn’t really mean much either.

THE wRong:
NOTHING

THE Ridiculous:
NOTHING

The 411:

This week’s Smackdown was a big step up from last week. We got to see a different opening segment, the return of The Dudley Boyz, and a one on one main event for once. All the stuff in between had all the usual Smackdown feel to it, with one good match mixed in (Neville/Owens). The Divas division has been on fire lately, so it was a shame to see that fire get extinguished like it did this week. But I’m sure they’ll be back on fire in no time, and the sooner the better in my opinion. Good effort this week, it wasn’t amazing but it was certainly better than last week.

Comments or questions? Well I’d love to hear them both, so by all means do comment down below. Or you can email me directly and I shall answer you back asap. Thanks for reading, I’ll see ya next week!

Show Rating: 6.3

As a reminder, I will be going by the 411 scale…

0 – 0.9: Torture
1 – 1.9: Extremely Horrendous
2 – 2.9: Very Bad
3 – 3.9: Bad
4 – 4.9: Poor
5 – 5.9: Not So Good
6 – 6.9: Average
7 – 7.9: Good
8 – 8.9:Very Good
9 – 9.9: Amazing
10: Virtually Perfect

The 1020th edition is over…

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