Watry’s WWE Super Showdown 2019 Review

This is my WWE Super Showdown review. I worked until 4pm on Friday, so I watched on delay. However, it was done 100% spoiler free – just as I do with all my viewing. If you want my full thoughts on WWE running events in Saudi Arabia, that was discussed in Thursday’s 411 Foresight Wrestling Podcast. Worth the listen.

WWE Super Showdown 2019

– Didn’t watch the Kickoff Show. I am sure I will get to it at some point. I rushed home from work, grabbed some food, and went right to the main show. Watch from beginning, yes indeed. Let’s go!

– Smart to open up the live special with the WWE Universal Championship match. There was a WWE Title match still on the card, a 50 man battle royal, and two ‘dream’ bouts, with one having never happened before, so it was fine to spread out the big names. No issues whatsoever with Seth Rollins vs. Baron Corbin happening early. Like I mentioned in the buildup, get the Corbin/Universal Championship shot out of the way. We knew it was coming after WrestleMania 35, so do it here and move on. As for the bell to bell action, it was fine. Nothing to write home about. I thought Corbin came off looking like a goof for arguing with the referee during the BIGGEST MATCH OF HIS LIFE…but that is Corbin I guess. Stay focused next time man. Lose a Money in the Bank briefcase by a distraction and now a top championship because a ref was bothering you. Ugh. Either way, Rollins retaining was the easy call. Like Rock Bottom in December 1998 (The Rock), the Stomping Grounds pay-per-view is pretty much named after the champ (Seth Rollins).

– The Brock Lesnar cash in was…weird. The guy had been advertised to be at Super Showdown for weeks, if not months now, but he was never actually in a feud. I assumed a rematch with Rollins was coming. Instead, we got yet another tease/screwup from Paul Heyman. As WWE commentators scrambled to tell us afterwards, Brock had every intention of cashing in, except Heyman stumbling like a bum and dropped the ball. Or briefcase in this instance, allowing Rollins to recover and even the score. I don’t know. I was cool with it. Despite all the claims about Lesnar, he was at Money in the Bank. He was at RAW the next night. He was there the following week and the week after that. Oh, and look! He was also at Super Showdown. Fairly ‘full-time’ if you ask me. Even if this whole thing as come off as silly, it keeps Rollins as Universal Champion and keeps the year long suspense alive with Brock Lesnar holding the entire company hostage (you too Kofi Kingston) with that pesky MITB briefcase in hand…

– Finn Balor over Andrade to keep his Intercontinental Championship. The Demon was out in full force tonight, as requested by the event’s host. Kinda felt out of place but whatever. These shows always feel out of place if you ask me. They are simply one off spectacles. My biggest takeaway was the ridiculous top rope DDT towards the end and NO Zelina Vega ringside. Read into that what you will.

– Roman Reigns vs. Shane McMahon was up next. Surprised we got this match so soon. Felt as if this was leading to a Summerslam battle. During the 411 Foresight Wrestling Podcast, I predicted a similar ending to their Survivor Series spot a few years back. A Coast to Coast in the air – to a SPEAR! I thought that was pretty cool when it happened, even if it did legitimately knock Shane O’Mac out. Clearly, I was wrong. We all may have groaned when Shane won. However, there is a defense for the outcome. If this is going to drag on for a few more months, it makes more sense to have the heel get a garbage victory. Having Drew McIntyre interference in the right place at the right time allows Roman Reigns to have an ‘out’ and gives Shane more ammo to brag about being the best in the world. First the Crown Jewel tournament win and now this. I imagine all the Shane haters are tired of this nonsense. Me? As long as there is a payoff for the face down the road to put the heel in his place, okay.

– Quickly, I will say that the entire presentation looked awesome. Say what you will about the noise surrounding these events, but there is pyro. There is a cool set up. There is a different stage. There is a totally different feel to it than your average WWE PPV. Don’t lose sight of that.

– Lars competed in a match! Yes, a match. He took on all three members of the Lucha House Party. My prediction was he won in a few minutes and then went on to win the 50 man battle royal later on in the evening. I mean, if you are going to push the guy as a monster, that is pushing the guy as a monster. Instead, we were treated to some weak/cheap disqualification finish that did nobody any favors. After the bell, Lars destroyed them (again). Why didn’t he just do that during the bout? Should have been a clean victory for The Freak, and I say that as a fan of the Lucha House Party.

– Randy Orton vs. Triple H is the one off spectacle I mentioned above. Nothing wrong with having a legends showcase like this. Renew a rivalry for one night and have some fun. The HHH/John Cena bout last April was a lot of fun. No harm, no foul. Does it really disrupt television or cause any problems? No, of course not. Just two buddies having a match for old times’ sake and giving the live crowd two big names on the card. Dug the Randy Orton red colors he wore. Two thumbs up on the fireworks also during his pose. Sweet entrance. Ditto for Triple H even if the super cycle was nothing new. As for the match, it was good. Randy Orton is more full-time between the two, and as a special attraction, who cares who wins? Hoping Mr. RKO has a big summer on the blue brand. Exciting final sequence down the stretch.

– Braun Strowman defeated Bobby Lashley. I feel I should care more about these two locking horns. I just don’t. The best part of this entire feud so far has been their Arm Wrestling Match that grabbed a bunch of YouTube hits. Now all they need is a 24/7 Championship bout in there as well. Both men have too much potential to be in this going nowhere feud.

– Kofi Kingston over Dolph Ziggler. Felt like this was sent home early due to the trust fall on the outside. Bad landing there. Sadly, this was another Kofi title defense that came off flat and rather unimportant. We are getting a rematch in two weeks at WWE Stomping Grounds inside a steel cage, so I guess not all was lost. Maybe the WWE Title will feel more prestigious then. If these two are healthy and get time, they can steal the show and look good doing it. I know it.

– Mansoor! Forget all the smarky comments. Forget all the pointless rants about WWE and Saudi Arabia. Forget all of that noise. This was a special moment. Kids were crying in the crowd, and the adults were just as elated. The right time and the right place for this. Only fitting it came down to the hometown hero and the guy (Elias) who ripped the fans during his entrance. Works out perfectly. The actual battle royal was a mess…but that was expected. Super cool.

– Main event time! Real quick: Bill Goldberg and The Undertaker had a great segment on Smackdown Live. I loved the little buildup between the two and was jacked up all week for this first ever match. Same with their entrances and the entire first time ever set up before the bell rang. WWE does a great job with that stuff. Always. Now to the match…

– Wow. Minus the final 30 seconds, I thought these two men delivered the goods. The live crowd was into it. I was into it. The spears in the beginning were awesome, and the impactful moves all landed. This was going so well. Unfortunately, all people will remember now is the closing. Bill Goldberg has caught crap his entire career, so it sucks he got knocked loopy early on and never recovered. He was covered in blood and obviously out on his feet from then on. Reminded me of The Undertaker vs. Brock Lesnar from WrestleMania XXX. That thing never stood a chance. Oh well. The Undertaker won, sent the fans home happy, and while lots will be said about veterans returning, I will give them a pass here. They deserve better than ridicule. For 90% of the bout, it was just as imagined. Just sucks the finish was a mess, whatever the reason.

SUMMARY: Decent show with a couple of cool highlights. Orton/HHH once again, Mansoor winning the big battle royal, and yes, even Goldberg and Undertaker wrestling for the first time ever was memorable. No major complaints. Just a good wrestling show on the WWE Network.