WWE Clash of Champions Reax

Read on for my thoughts on last night's Raw special event.

- Kickoff:
- Sasha/Dana:
Good work from Sasha. They could totally have Dana turn face tonight.

- Sheamus promo:
More "winning matches against a tough opponent" "brass ring" "glass ceiling" shit.

I'll be glad when both men move on to feuds based on more than who can win the most matches.

- Zayn promo:

I wish he had more of a character than "guy who wants to beat Kevin Owens." It's stunting his growth.

Zayn being world champion within a year isn't a stretch at all.

- Nia vs. Alicia:
I like Alicia coming out of the gate with all she's got. How else is she going to be able to stop the dominant beast?

Nia just killing her here. It's like a rhinoceros vs. a gazelle (or something).

WE GOT OURSELVES A FLYIN FOX MAGGLE AH LOVE IT. 

Good for what it was. I'm sure they could have a pretty solid match as equals if WWE booked them that way.

- Clash of Champions:
- New Day promo:
Pretty funny other than the "farting" stuff. The fact these guys got Booty-O's and a Who shirt over is testament to how they good they are.

- New Day vs. Club:
The bald guys making a statement early. They should. They really need to get on the map here.

I say these two things a lot, but I love the "isolate one member of the team" tactic and I hope Big E has a bright future as a singles star at some point. The brand split should mean E has a better chance at winning gold by himself.

Anderson and Gallows are definitely a solid team. They just don't have that special something, especially without someone leading them.

NICE spinebuster spot.

Of course, Gallows using a chokeslam is a callback to him briefly being fake Kane.

Solid thrashing of the former NJPW duo. I'd mark out if Anderson and Gallows become Owens' heavies or something to reboot them as people we should take as real threats.

- TJP promo:
I'm already a little underwhelmed with babyface Perkins. He can be really unlikable with his

- TJP vs. Kendrick:
HOLY SHIT TJP'S ENTRANCE. That's pretty cool.

Good start with the back-and-forth mat wrestling.

I'm liking the story of Kendrick using every tactic he can think of to combat TJP's athleticism and agility.

I'm really liking the submissions.

Some of these spots are unnecessarily dangerous for the point of innovation.

NICE of Kendrick to capitalize on the missed splash into the Captain's Hook.

And there's our first underwhelming finisher kickout of the night.

That was pretty good, since it wasn't just a bunch of flying and flashy MOVES.

- Post-match:
Based Kendrick, although how am I supposed to believe a headbutt will keep TJP down after he survived that whole match?

- Cesaro promo:
Not bad. I'd like to see him get something more to sink his teeth into than wins and losses, though.

- Cesaro vs. Sheamus: 
I like both men, but at some point we've seen them face off so much, it's hard to get into it. That leads to a bunch of innovative spots done primarily to be different from past matches.

I love a good fight.

Swiss One Nine! I wonder if there's any heat for using a move of a guy who didn't leave on good terms and works for a rival promotion.

Sheamus working on the back is a good strategy.

OH MY GOD that Razor's Edge into a backbreaker. I mean, DAMN.

Some good counters going on here.

FUCK CESARO WHAT WERE YOU THINKING!?

"One competitor nearly killed himself on the outside? Time to chant THIS IS AWESOME!"

Cesaro had the perfect out to losing to that Brogue Kick.

At some point it's time to go home. Cesaro could have easily won with that Neautralizer. Noth men are tough and really talented, and they're still bringing great action, but it sets a really high bar.

Big move after big move. Crazy tenacity.

Oh, no. They're going to have to do more matches between each other? Just give them both a title match!

- Bayley/Charlotte:
That was OK. I wish Bayley was more "I'm going to be champion" and less "I'm happy to be here this is my dream."

- Zayn vs. Y2J:
Heel Jericho has been so much fun. I'm glad he's slowing things down after the wild match between Cesaro and Sheamus.

I love a methodical beatdown with trash talk.

When every match has crazy flying to the outside, it's no longer a highspot. It's just a spot. It's not as impressive as it should be because we see so many so often.

Nice to avoid the Helluva Kick instead of kicking out of it.

I love a story with submissions and counters.

Wow. CODEBREAKER OUT OF NOWHERE!! I would expect Jericho to move into the title picture due to that win.

- Steph/Foley/Owens:
Mostly good segment. Owens threw some pretty good shade at Rollins. I just hope the authority figures don't overshadow the competitors. 

- Charlotte vs. Sasha vs. Bayley:
The triple dropkick spot was a little cutesy. Other than that, I've liked the action so far.

Bayley hitting a Twist of Fate in the ropes doesn't bode well if she wants to avoid being DELETED.

Clever sequence with the knees to the midsection in the corner.

Chekhov's Gun says Dana needs to get revenge on Sasha for attacking her on the outside to keep the title on Charlotte.

I loved the double moonsault spot.

I'm really liking the rapid-fire finisher attempts and covers.

Good spot with Sasha kicking Dana away to try to win via Banks Statement.

I would have bought the inside cradle winning it. That would have been clever.

WHOA! Charlotte taking out both her top challengers. Who in the world is next? Dana?

- Roman vs. Rusev:
I love a brawl between powerhouses.

Rusev telling the crowd it's about him when they were focused on chanting for/against Roman was great.

This is an out-and-out fight, like it should be.

I liked the kick to counter the Superman punch. 

NICE distraction from Lana.

REALLY nice counter of the Accolade into a close pinfall. That was a really good moment.

This is some awesome back-and-forth.

That was a really solid encounter.

- Rollins/Steph/Foley:

Fine to continue the build to the main event.

- Rollins vs. Owens:

I like Owens trying to avoid Rollins, with Rollins trying to get an aggressive start.

Rollins has a lot of flash and athleticism. He's easy to cheer for those reasons.

Owens going after the knee - and gloating about doing so - is great.

More awesome methodical beating down with trash talking. 

WWE really needs to do an angle where an authority figure fines someone for destroying an announce table. That's got to cost the company money, right?

Vince would run out there and attack both of them if they went through with a package piledriver.

OOOUUUUCCCCCCHHHH that gutbuster.

I almost DIED at Suck It. For once in a wrestling match it actually made sense. 

Lots of frogs doing splashes tonight.

Funny spot leading to a Pedigree. Owens is Attitude Era approved with HHH and Jericho at his side.

NICE counter of the Powerbomb into a Pedigree.

I'd love to see Zayn come out to counter Jericho, but I guess he left or something.

Good ending.

More wrestling coming up.