411’s WWE 365: Ricochet Report

411’s WWE 365: Ricochet Report

-Air Date: 07.05.20
-Run Time: 54:51

-WWE 365 is back and this time Ricochet is the one having he WWE cameras following him around for a full year. Like all their documentaries this one has a history of being very good as the previous ones on AJ Styles and Kevin Owens set a high bar. So, let’s get to it!

-Ricochet says the first time he had the thought he wanted to do this was watching WrestleMania XV: Rock vs Austin. Michael Rapaport is the narrator and he tells us Trevor Mann pursued that dream at the age of 14 years old. They show some great footage of a young Ricochet at some backyard events. This documentary will follow the first year of this rising talent in the WWE. It will cover the highs (Goldberg tells us Ricochet is the man) and the lows. This is WWE 365.

-Ricochet on a beach talking about what he has learned about himself his first 365 days. He has taken adversity and hardship and can flip it into positives. This is his dream job and the coolest thing to ever happen to him (outside of his son being born.)

-Day 1: RAW, LaFayette, LA: Feb 2019: Ricochet makes his debut on RAW. We see him meeting the boys backstage and Balor tells him he is going to change the game. Ricochet jokes that he was supposed to have off today, but he gets the call up along with Aleister Black, Gargano, and Ciampa. He was told two days ago that he was going to be part of the RAW or SmackDown brand going forward. He was blown away as he was at the PC just a few days ago. The joy on his face is infectious and it’s so cool seeing someone realize their dream. It was 15 years of hard work finally paying off. He had performed in crowds before, but this was different as it was Monday Night RAW. Before walking out all he could think is that he is about to be a RAW Superstar. He makes his debut by saving Balor from Lio Rush and Lashley. That leads to a tag match and Ricochet looks like a superhero and immediately gets over with the RAW crowd. Ricochet pins Rush to get the win for his team. After the match, Ricochet thanks Shane and Vince McMahon as they congratulate him. He then shakes hands with Paul Heyman as he talks about how he excited he was.

-The next day he is on SmackDown in New Orleans and forms a team with Aleister Black. He has 11 matches in 11 days in 11 different cities as the team is part of all 3 brands as they are heading towards WrestleMania.

-Day 47: NXT Takeover: New York: This is the biggest weekend of his career as he closes his NXT run and makes his Mania debut. This is the culmination of a journey that began when he was 14. We get more of the backyard wrestling footage. He got to a point where he almost went back to working his factory job because it was paying so well. He continued to plug away on the Independent scene and finally got the call from NXT.

-We flash back to his NXT debut and his run there. He had found a home in the company and after just over a year it was time to say goodbye. Ricochet calls the moment bittersweet as he loves the guys and what they are building in NXT. All he can do in a moment like this is breath. He says his goodbyes to everyone from the commentators to the people working in production. Black talks about their relationship and how this is a place where they matured. HHH tells Ricochet to take a moment out there after this is over if he wants to. They open the show and tear the house day on what might be the greatest pure wrestling card of all time. That show was just insane on every level. The War Raiders win and Black/Ricochet get the big send off from the fans. Ricochet sheds some tears as the fans chant “you deserve it.” Ricochet says everything they did in NXT was important. They get a standing ovation coming back through the curtain and Shawn Michaels is the first one to greet them. HHH is next to greet them and tells them NXT will always be their home. Great moment!

-Day 49: WrestleMania 35: Ricochet arrives at MetLife Stadium and talks about his nerves. “Dreams come true today.” This is biggest stadium he has ever performed by far. Previously it was Tokyo Dome, but this is easily bigger. We see him go through his entrance and he is just in awe of what he is seeing. Again, stuff like this is fantastic to see as these people are living out their dreams and the little kid and fan in them comes out.

-He tells us that right now he is okay and trying to soak everything in until he gets out there. There are some nerves, but they didn’t hit him until he walked out through the curtain. He tells Black he isn’t worried about the match, but everything around it. Edge was sitting near him and told him that when he walks out there to remember that moment. He told him you only get one first WrestleMania and remember this is what you worked for. Again, this is great and is giving me chills watching it.

-The 8 men involved have a fun Fatal 4 Way that was short, but they worked it well and delivered non stop action. The Usos get the pin on Sheamus to retain their championship. Ricochet is beaming as he talks to the camera in the back. Shawn Michaels hugs him and tells him he is so proud of him. He knows he will have plenty more moments like this. He marks out over Shawn giving him props. He had his brother there and calls the night just wild.

-Day 57: RAW: Montreal: 04.05.19: Ricochet becomes official property of Monday Night RAW. Black got sent to SmackDown and that ended the team. The same day of the shake up he got news that his mom’s house had burned down the previous night. He discusses growing up in Kentucky and how they were poor. The house was warmed with kerosene since it was cheapest and that caused the fire when his mom had gone out to the movies. His mom was devastated by the memories and keepsakes that were claimed by the fire.

-Money in The Bank 2019: The guys kill themselves including Ricochet taking an insane bump only for Brock to show up and win the briefcase (though not shown). Ricochet says he wants to show everyone he is Main Event material and belongs here.

-Day 126: Ricochet gets a US Title Shot against Samoa Joe at Stomping Ground. He talks about the history of the US Title and all the guys he watched that won the title (Goldberg, Booker, Cena). He calls it a big match and wants to show everyone what he is capable of doing. Joe playing the bully against smaller guys is always great and makes for a fun story. Ricochet hits the 630 and wins the United States Championship. He gets a standing ovation coming through the curtain with Seth Rollins being the first one to greet him. Otis yelling “I love you Ricky” is amazing and has me laughing and smiling.

-Day 127: RAW: 06.29.19: Ricochet watches as they put his name on the US Title. He talks about how his whole career he has been chasing a dream and goal. Now he has people chasing him and that leads to the program with AJ Styles. He has dreamed about having a program with AJ. They had one match on the independents and they show a little bit of that match courtesy of HOG.

-Day 147: Extreme Rules: Philadelphia, PA: Ricochet now had a budding rivalry with one of his idols and one of the top stars in the WWE. Ricochet talks about the program and how you can’t ask for anything better than this. The Good Brothers help AJ as he hits a Styles Clash from the middle ropes for the win and US Title. That ended Ricochet’s US Title run at 21 days. The New Day give him props after the match and tell him is going to be bounce back. Kofi calls him a tennis ball that is going to bounce back and it dawns on him that he is going to ricochet back because that’s his name and that’s what he does. Kofi is great!

-Day 175: SummerSlam: Toronto, Canada: Although he lost the US Title Ricochet tells us he is still in a great position. The company has trust in him to go out and have a SummerSlam match with AJ Styles. AJ catches a move off the top and turns it into The Styles Clash to retain. Ricochet says that AJ is one of his inspirations and that’s when Goldberg comes up behind him and calls him “The Man.” That’s cool and makes sense as Goldberg has said before that he loved the Cruiserweights in WCW and what they did every night. Ricochet breaks out a huge smile hearing that and then gets props from Woods who doesn’t understand how Ricochet gets his body to do things that shouldn’t be possible.

-The Summer was great, but now Ricochet admits he is starting to experience a lull. It won’t always be the highest of highs as he knows it will be a roller coaster. Everyone in this company is good and there is always someone else needing a push. He admits though that is when your insecurities start popping up. He has gotten help from a lot of guys. He calls The Street Profits life savers on the road, but you also need the people outside the business that know Trevor. He tries to talk to his mom as much as possible. We see photos of him with his son and he says he is the coolest person he knows. He teaches his son lessons and realized he needs to follow his own advice.

-Day 343: Royal Rumble: Houston, TX: He was sitting on the ring before the PPV wearing his Lebron Laker’s jersey and someone ran up to him breaking the news that Kobe Bryant passed away. Oh man! Ricochet isn’t sure why it got to him so much, but he realized this is why you have to tell people you love them and take advantage of every moment. He entered the Rumble at 15 and was in there with Brock and Drew. This was his chance and he knew what they were going to do was going to get a great reaction. Ricochet hits Brock in the balls and a Claymore eliminates Brock to set the crowd on fire. Great moment! Ricochet takes a crazy bump from Drew to end his Rumble. It was a cool moment for him! He talks about the business changing on a dime and this is where his momentum started climbing.

-Day 351:RAW: Salt Lake City, UT: Ricochet vs Seth vs Lashley in a Triple Threat Match to see who faces Brock for the WWE Title at Super Showdown. Ricochet pins Lashley with the 630 to become Brock’s sacrificial lamb. My hope was we would get a match like Balor, AJ, and Bryan got. Ricochet does a good Heyman impression after the match.

-Day 375: WWE Super Showdown: Saudi Arabia: 17 years after his first wrestling match he is in Saudi Arabia wrestling Brock Lesnar for the WWE Title. He tells us he always tries to take a moment to realize what is happening and what he is doing right now. At the same time coming from those small arenas and bingo halls to a place like this makes him question if this is really happening right now. In his mind he has already kind of won. He talks about how everyone was posting that Ricochet was going to get destroyed. In his mind he wasn’t even supposed to be here and is just a scrawny kid from Kentucky. I love his attitude but man it would have been nice to see even a flurry of offense. Instead it’s a slam, Suplex City, F-5 and we’re done. Ricochet says it didn’t happen the way he would have thought and he didn’t get to show what he could do, but he got to this point within his first year in the WWE. He plans to be here for years. Brock at least hooked both legs instead of pinning him like a chump.

-Orlando, FL: Throughout his first 365 days on the job Ricochet navigated things while learning the ropes on the job. It helped him gain valuable perspective while showing him what it takes to be a WWE Superstar. Ricochet says he has 100% accomplished his dreams. He got to work with HHH and Shawn and meet The Rock, Austin, and Rey Mysterio. Now it’s what’s next and it can be to win a championship or Main Event a PPV, but his main goal is to inspire people. That will be his yearly goal in and out of the ring. He wants to show people they can reach their dreams because he is still living his.

-We see Ricochet and Cedric winning tag matches at the PC and playing Uno backstage. We end with Rapaport telling us that Ricochet proved he is “the one and only.”

-As expected this was very good and Ricochet is an amazing person that is just living a dream. It’s refreshing that he can find the positive in anything. I know people are annoyed with how he has been used since the Fall, but the man himself seems to be taking everything in stride. He is still very young and has accomplished a lot more than others have in their first year in the company. I still hold out hope for his WWE run as there is still a lot of time. Again, this production as top notch and as I have said countless times I love all the backstage stuff any of these documentaries provide. There is just something so satisfying in seeing these men and women live out their dreams. This is definitely one to check out when you have a free hour. Thanks for reading!