The Shield reunited in last night’s show-closing angle as Seth Rollins and Dean Ambrose stopped Braun Strowman from cashing in on Roman Reigns.
A Universal Championship match between Reigns and Finn Balor headlined the post-SummerSlam episode of Raw. Strowman came out near the end of the match, Reigns retained, and Strowman tried to cash in his Money in the Bank briefcase.
But Strowman cashing in never became official. The Shield’s music hit, Rollins and Ambrose came to the ring, and The Shield ended up hitting Strowman with a triple powerbomb to close the show.
Also on Raw, Triple H returned to hype up his October 6 match against The Undertaker at WWE Super Show-Down, Stephanie McMahon also came back and was put in an armbar by Ronda Rousey, and Stephanie made Baron Corbin the acting general manager of Raw after sending Kurt Angle “on vacation.”
Another big Raw vs. SmackDown match has been confirmed for Survivor Series.
WWE officially announced that The Shield would be facing The New Day in a six-man tag match at Sunday’s pay-per-view. That was set up when New Day’s distraction caused Seth Rollins & Dean Ambrose to lose their tag titles to Cesaro & Sheamus last week, with Roman Reigns returning on Raw tonight as The Shield issued a challenge for Survivor Series.
After Reigns, Rollins & Ambrose defeated The Miz, Cesaro & Sheamus on Raw tonight, Sunday will be the second time all three members of The Shield have teamed together since their reunion. Last month’s TLC PPV was supposed to feature their first match back together until Reigns was forced to miss the show due to a viral infection.
The Toyota Center in Houston, Texas will host Survivor Series on Sunday. Here’s what the card for the show looks like as of now:
Brock Lesnar vs. AJ Styles
Kurt Angle, Braun Strowman, Samoa Joe, Finn Balor & Triple H vs. Shane McMahon, Randy Orton, Bobby Roode, Shinsuke Nakamura & John Cena in an elimination tag match
Alicia Fox, Nia Jax, Asuka, Sasha Banks & Bayley vs. Becky Lynch, Charlotte Flair, Naomi, Carmella & Tamina in an elimination tag match
The Shield (Roman Reigns, Seth Rollins & Dean Ambrose) vs. The New Day (Big E, Kofi Kingston & Xavier Woods)
Alexa Bliss vs. Natalya
The Miz vs. Baron Corbin
Cesaro & Sheamus vs. The Usos
WWE Cruiserweight Champion Enzo Amore defending against Kalisto (pre-show)
The Big Takeaway: HHH is now a member of Team Raw, replacing Jason Jordan. HHH made his first Raw appearance since the WrestleMania go-home show in an apperance that totally destroyed Jason Jordan’s hope for getting over as a babyface, as if it had any left. Earlier, Jordan defeated Bray Wyatt, but Wyatt “injured Jordan’s knee” after Jordan tweaked it during the match. After losing, Wyatt rammed the knee into the post. Angle was about to remove Jordan for fear of his own “son’s” safety when HHH showed up to tell Jordan he was out. How HHH knew that Jordan would hurt his knee before tonight is a question I’ll leave you to answer. HHH gave Jordan a Pedigree, for good measure. Also, the Shield will face the New Day at Survivor Series.
Show Recap:
Stephanie McMahon started things. She said she needed leaders to execute the important decisions she has to make on a daily decisions, which means she needed leaders in the right positions. Stephanie brought out Kurt Angle and asked him how the New Day got into the building last week? Kurt said he didn’t know. Stephanie said at least he was honest. Then Stephanie asked was their actually a raid? Kurt told he was prepared for a raid. Stephanie again asked was there a raid? She said for the 25th anniversary of Raw, she could show a compliation video from the time Shane McMahon leader Under Siege, then Angle leading the entire Raw roster out for a raid of nothing. Then Stephanie asked Kurt who was the 5th member of Team Raw. Angle said Jason Jordan (name was booed louder than hell). Stephanie derided Angle for putting his son on his team. Meanwhile, the 5th member of the SmackDown team is John Cena (mixed response), a 16-time world champion. The last time Stephanie saw Cena, he was on Raw. Stephanie said either Angle chose Jordan over Cena, or Cena decided to join up the SmackDown team because he was embarrassed over Cena’s actions.
Sephanie asked Angle what was the first thing he was going to do at Survivor Series. Angle said he was going to break Shane McMahon’s ankle. Stephanie wondered if Angle still thinks this is the 1990s? Stephanie said Shane was too smart to go one-on-one with Angle and said she didn’t think Angle was capable of breaking anyone’s ankle anymore. She said she think she’s made a mistake making Angle team captain. Stephanie said Shane is trying to make Raw irrelevant. She said she wanted her brother’s head on a platter (why was she at the SmackDown in September when Kevin Owens laid Vince McMahon out?). She started to fire Angle when Roman Reigns, Dean Ambrose and Seth Rollins came out through the crowd.
Stephanie wondered if the fans were going to chant for the Shield. Ambrose said they’ve seen leaders come and go and no one does it better than Angle. Ambrose said at TLC, Angle proved he’s still got it, which led to an obvious chant. Stephanie said Angle may still have it, but the Shield lost the tag team titles because of Angle. She wondered if the Shield even has a tag team match at Survivor Series. She said Angle made them look like fools. She asked Reigns where has she been? Reigns asked where has Stephanie been? Rollins had a blank look on his face. Reigns said they don’t do what Stephanie tells us to do, they do what they want to do. Reigns said they want to fight the New Day. So if the New Day has any balls, they will be booked for Survivor Series. Reigns said Angle will lead Team Raw to victory and the Shield would whip the New Day’s asses.
Bayley pinned Mickie James in a three-way match that also included Dana Brooke to become the 5th member of the Raw Women’s Team (7:32)
Bayley pinned Mickie James with a Bayley-to-belly. James knocked Dana Brooke out of the ring. Asuka (who was a ringside with the rest of the Raw Women’s team, Alicia Fox, Sasha Banks and Nia Jax) checked on Brooke, but Brooke gave her a forearm. Asuka chased Brooke around the ring and gave her a spin kick to the floor. Asuka got her biggest reaction since making the move to Raw. Highlight was James giving Bayley a great hangman’s neckbreaker that sent her out of the ring, leading to the Asuka spot.
Enzo Amore and Drew Gulak did some comedy prematch dialogue. Gulak’s new gimmick is he’s trying to stop fans from chanting. He’s basically doing a bitter old man gimmick. Amore finished his usual introduction by asking “How you doin?” and Gulak answered him at length. “I’m doing, well, thanks for asking…” That was actually a takeoff of a beer commercial from the 90s.
Enzo Amore and Drew Gulak defeated Akira Tozawa and Kalisto (7:47)
Enzo pinned Akira Tozawa after a Jordanzo. Tozawa had Enzo set up for the senton bomb, but Gulak started to pull Enzo out of the ring. Kalisto stopped Gulak with a somersault bodyblock off the apron. Enzo recovered to pull Tozawa into Kalisto, which knocked Kalisto off the apron. Tozawa dove through Kalisto’s legs through the ropes to deliver a tope on Amore, who didn’t make a very good catch. Kalisto hit Gulak with a somersault tope. Someone may have been shaken up because it took everyone a while to get up.
They showed tweets from the New Day where they accepted the Shield’s challenge.
Angle was backstage with Samoa Joe, Braun Strowman, Finn Balor and Jordan. Angle said he needed proof that Balor and Joe could work together as a team, so he’s pairing them in a match against Karl Anderson and Luke Gallows. Angle told Jordan the only reason why he’s on Team Raw is because he’s Angle son. So to prove he isn’t playing favorites, Angle is putting him in a match against Bray Wyatt tonight. Before Angle could say anything, Strowman said he wanted Kane. Angle made the match.
The Miz, Bo Dallas and Curtis Axel (wearing a neckbrace) came out for MizTV. Miz cut a promo on Baron Corbin, who has a match against Sin Cara for the U.S. Title tomorrow on SmackDown. Miz said Corbin blows opportunity after opportunity, talking about how Corbin lost his Money in the Bank briefcase and wasn’t even on SmackDown last week. Miz said he doesn’t blow opportunities, and when he isn’t given opportunities, he creates them. That actually got a crowd pop. He introduced Sheamus and Cesaro, the new Raw Tag Team Champions. The Bar will wrestle the Usos at Survivor Series.
Miz congratulated Sheamus and Cesaro on their victory last week. Sheamus said they kept their eyes on the price and they weren’t distracted by the New Day. Cesaro, who speaks with a lisp as a gimmick now, said they were 3-time tag team champions. Sheamus said the Usos won their championships on the B-show SmackDown. Crowd started chanting “You look stupid” at Sheamus. Miz did his raise the hand routine to get more heat. Sheamus said they were the A-team tag team champions, they were the flagship show tag team champions, the Raw tag team champions. Cesaro said they were going to jailbreak the Usso penitentiary. Miz said they would be taking on the original Shield for the first time in three years tonight. Reigns got more cheers because he played football at Georgia Tech in the mid-00s. Miz said the Shield had to set aside the years of fighting each other just for the honor of fighting them. Miz said this was their opportunity, their time and their victory. The Bar did their catchphrase.
Jason Jordan defeated Bray Wyatt (7:12)
Jordan pinned Wyatt after a schoolboy cradle when Wyatt attempted Sister Abigail. No word on Sister Abigail as Wyatt’s alterego, by the way. Jordan sold a knee injury after he jumped off the second rope. Following his loss, Wyatt jumped Jordan from behind to mass cheers from the crowd. Angle watched on in horror backstage as Wyatt rammed Jordan’s leg into the post. Crowd booed the hell out of Jordan and chanted “hey, hey, hey, goodbye” as he limped up the ramp.
Angle told Jordan he wasn’t 100% to compete at Survivor Series. Jordan said this was the opportunity he’s waited for his entire life. You could hear the crown groan as Jordan limped away.
Lesnar came out with Paul Heyman. Heyman explained the top five selling points of purchasing the WWE Network for this Sunday: 1. This was the Universal Champion would face the WWE Champion in history. It was the first time Lesnar would face Styles. It may be the only time Lesnar faces Styles. 2. Heyman said he wants to see Lesnar vs. Styles because no one knows Lesnar better than he does. He said Styles is elusive, his defensive is evasive, his offensive is effusive, and Styles has a speed advantage. Before he got to selling point #3, apparently a fan proposed during Heyman’s promo. The crowd starting chanting “She said yes.” Heyman said she only said yes because she’s never been up close with a beast like Brock Lesnar. He said interrupting his promo is like stepping in the ring with Brock Lesnar and said “you ain’t got a chance.” Heyman said the third point was Styles was the single most talented in-ring performer of this generation. Heyman said some would say Finn Balor, but Styles is the ultimate opponent for Lesnar. No one had more momentum in the WWE than Styles. The only thing is Styles has to come from behind and be the ultimate underdog because he has to step into the ring with Lesnar, a Georgia Bulldog eating carnivore. Heyman said Lesnar is the #1 champion in the WWE then, now and forever.
The fourth point was if you want to see a Rocky movie come to life, I give you Styles. Crowd started chanting Styles. Heyman said Styles is the ultimate underdog because he’s beaten Cena, Shane, and Jinder Mahal this year. Except selling point F-5, this is no Rocky movie. This is the Survivor Series because Styles can’t survive the F-5. Heyman looks forward to seeing Styles this Sunday and get beaten, victimized and conquered by Lesnar.
The Shield defeated The Miz and the Bar (15:05)
Reignspinned Miz after the Triple Power Bomb. Reigns gave Miz a spear, Ambrose gave Miz Dirty Deeds and Rollins did a springboard knee. Miz made a blind tag from Cesaro, who Reigns tried to pin after a Superman punch. Miz immediately tried to pin Reigns with a schoolboy cradle while holding the trunks, but got only two. Very good match. Cesaro attempted the Gotch Neutralizer after hitting a springboard uppercut, but Rollins jumped in to block it. Ambrose appeared to injure his elbow following a tope on Sheamus. Earlier, the Shield sent Miz running to the back when Sheamus and Cesaro were down. During the Shield’s ring entrance, a fan got roughed up by security when he snuck through and nearly got to Reigns from behind.
Kane did a promo backstage saying even someone as sick and depraved as he is can smile when he could hear the sound of the garbage truck crushing Strowman’s body. Tonight, he would show Strowman there are worse things in life than death, and that’s him.
Angle was back out. He said earlier, Stephanie said that being the Raw GM meant making tough decisions and this was one of those times. Earlier tonight, Jordan suffered a knee injury against Wyatt and now he needed to make an announcement regarding the Raw team. Jordan limped out urging Angle not to replace him. The crowd booed the hell out of him again. Angle said Jordan had his whole career ahead of him and the Survivor Series wasn’t worth it. Jordan said he emulated his father and his father had won the gold medal while injured (he even did it in Atlanta, which he didn’t mention). Poor Jordan was dying out there as he said he knew that Angle didn’t pick him because he was his son, he picked him because of his ability. Stephanie came out and said “give me a break. Either Kurt tells him or she will.” Kurt started to make an announcement.
Then HHH’s music hit and HHH came out to a massive pop. HHH got in Angle’s face and said either Angle will tell Jordan or he will. HHH announced the 5th man on Team Raw would be him. Then Jordan looked on helplessly, watching his career pass in front of him, waiting on the inevitable. Sure enough, HHH glared at him, said something to Angle and gave Jordan the Pedigree, putting himself in the usual position of being the biggest babyface and the biggest heel, all at once.
Finn Balor and Samoa Joe defeated Karl Anderson and Luke Gallows (12:54)
Balor pinned Anderson after the Coupe de Grace after Joe delivered a uranage. Joe and Balor did the partners who don’t get along deal. It’s an improvement because last year, it felt like the entire buildup of the Survivor Series was nothing but teams not getting along with each other. Joe shoved Balor down before the match. Joe did a elbow suicidia on Gallows at the finish. Joe stormed to the back immediately after Balor got the pin, showing he didn’t want to be partners with Balor any longer than he had to. Balor worked most of the match and Joe was only in for the hot tag sequence.
Charly Caruso did an interview with Alexa Bliss about facing either Natalia or Charlotte at Survivor Series. She teased being in Charlotte and interfering. She said SmackDown started being the B show when she left it, called herself the Goddess and said regardless of who she was facing at Survivor Series, she would prevail.
Kane and Strowman made their ring entrances. For whatever reason, even though they stared each other down in the middle of the ring, the referee never called for the bell. So their “match” was simply a brawl around ringside. Kane used some chair shots to Strowman’s back, then set up a table that was never broken. At one point, the two fought on the top rope and Strowman teased giving Kane a superplex to the floor through the table. It ended with Strowman delivering the running powerslam to Kane, and the slam put a hole in the ring. Neither man emerged from the hole.
After being delayed due to Roman Reigns being out of action with a viral infection, The Shield’s in-ring reunion will take place on Raw tonight.
WWE announced today that Reigns, Seth Rollins & Dean Ambrose would be teaming against The Miz, Cesaro & Sheamus in a six-man tag match on tonight’s show. The Shield were originally supposed to face Miz, Cesaro, Sheamus, Braun Strowman & Kane at last month’s TLC pay-per-view before Kurt Angle had to replace Reigns on short notice.
Reigns is returning to television for the first time since October 16th tonight. He was also absent from WWE’s European tour as he waited to be cleared to return from the illness.
Cesaro & Sheamus won the Raw Tag Team Championship from Rollins & Ambrose in Manchester last week, with a distraction from The New Day playing a part as they faked another SmackDown invasion of Raw. WWE will follow up on that tonight and on SmackDown tomorrow, likely setting up a Shield vs. New Day match for Sunday’s Survivor Series PPV.
With Roman Reigns still not cleared to return to the ring, another makeshift version of The Shield teamed together as WWE’s European tour began in Glasgow, Scotland tonight.
Triple H joined Seth Rollins & Dean Ambrose as they faced Cesaro, Sheamus & Bray Wyatt in the main event of the house show, with the match also being the first time Wyatt has wrestled since being off the road in recent weeks due to a viral infection.
Trying to explain the logic of teaming with Triple H when they were last seen on television having a heated feud, Rollins cut a promo before the match saying that he made a call he never thought he would make, that desperate times call for desperate measures, and he’s learned that you always need to have a plan B.
Triple H then came out and took a vest from Rollins, working the match in Shield gear like Kurt Angle did at TLC. For the finish, Triple H, Rollins, and Ambrose hit a triple powerbomb on Cesaro before Triple H got the pin.
It was announced last week that Triple H would be working Raw’s first five house shows on the European tour. He’ll be wrestling in Brighton, London, Minehead, and Cardiff over the next few days. Reigns, Rollins & Ambrose teaming together was originally scheduled to headline the shows until it was known that Reigns wouldn’t be cleared in time.
While the match may never be mentioned on TV, WWE has already posted an article about it on their website and uploaded a clip of it to their YouTube channel. That video is available to watch below:
The Shield picked up right where they left off as they reunited on last night’s episode of Raw.
After a Miz TV segment with Cesaro and Sheamus opened the show, Roman Reigns, Dean Ambrose, and Seth Rollins joined forces again to lay them out. They later gave Braun Strowman a powerbomb through the announce table, and it will be The Shield vs. The Miz, Cesaro, Sheamus & Strowman in a tables, ladders, and chairs match in the main event of TLC later this month.
Also on last night’s show, a fatal five-way match decided who will be facing Asuka at TLC, Sister Abigail made another appearance to send a message to Finn Balor, and Enzo Amore put his Cruiserweight Championship on the line in a lumberjack match.
The Shield’s first match as a reunited trio is officially set after the group joined forces again on Raw tonight.
Kurt Angle first announced that Roman Reigns, Dean Ambrose & Seth Rollins would be taking on The Miz, Cesaro & Sheamus in a tables, ladders, and chairs match in the main event of the TLC pay-per-view later this month. It was later changed to a three-on-four match, with Braun Strowman joining Miz, Cesaro & Sheamus after The Shield powerbombed him through the announce table.
Their reunion came after Miz TV with Cesaro and Sheamus opened Raw tonight. The Miz gave out some “Mizzie Awards” during the segment, including a best supporting actor one to Cesaro and Sheamus for their help in attacking Reigns last week. Miz tried to give himself an award for proving that he’s the real Big Dog of WWE, which brought out Reigns and then Ambrose and Rollins.
TLC will take place at the Target Center in Minneapolis, Minnesota on October 22nd. Alexa Bliss defending her Raw Women’s Championship against Mickie James was previously announced for the PPV, with Asuka also set to make her main roster debut on the show.
The Big Takeaway: It was a night where the Shield was back with a vegenace. First, they laid out Miz, Sheamus, Cesaro and Curtis Axel in the opening segment. Later, they gave Braun Strowman the Shield Bomb through the commentator’s table. This led to Angle making the main event of TLC the Shield vs. Miz, Sheamus, and Cesaro. Later, Strowman was added to the match. Asuka will face Emma at TLC on her first Raw roster match. The story of Sister Abigail was told by Bray Wyatt, who is indeed Sister Abigail just as Finn Balor is the Demon. Kalisto captured the cruiserweight championship in the main event over Enzo Amore.
Show Recap:
MizTV kicked things off. Once again, Miz did the gimmick of an awards show for “The Destruction of Roman Reigns.” It was the “Mizzies.” He presented an award to Curtis Axel, who dedicated his award to Bo Dallas. Michael Cole said Dallas was under the weather. Then came the Best Supporting Actor, which was a tie between Sheamus and Cesaro. Sheamus thanked Reigns, who got booed. Sheamus said watching Reigns gasping for air laying in the ring just wanted to make him beat Reigns some more. Sheamus said “Yo, we did it” like he was Rocky Balboa at the end of Rocky 2. Cesaro thanked Ambrose and Rollins for knocking the teeth out of his mouth for giving them the inspiration to beat up the tag team champions.
Miz said the Shield didn’t want any of Miz, Sheamus and Cesaro. There was a greater, revolutionary force standing in the ring. They did something that Brock Lesnar, John Cena and the Undertaker could never do: they destroyed Reigns. Miz introduced the final Mizzie, the man who proved himself to be the big dog of the WWE. After a drumroll, Miz said his name was the Miz. Corey Graves said “We like him! We really like him!” like Sally Field accepting an Oscar in the late 1980s. Crowd chanted “You deserve it.” Miz started to dedicate the Mizzie to his unborn child when Reigns came out, selling nothing. He got a mixed response.
Reigns gave everyone in the ring one chance to get out of his ring. Miz said he thought Reigns’ was about action and that talk was cheap. Crowd started to chant for the Shield. Miz told Reigns to go back to the locker room and get Rollins and Ambrose, because rumors of the Sheild’s reformation are nothing but hype. Reigns said “Who said anything about rumors?” Then Ambrose came out to his music. Rollins walked out to his music and there was a huge pop as they walked down the ramp together.
The Shield surrounded the ring like they used to. Rollins jumped in the ring first to battle with Sheamus. Ambrose fought with Cesaro. Reigns took care of Axel while Miz ran for cover. Reigns gave Sheamus and Cesaro Superman punches. Miz found himself surrounded, ran in the ring only to receive dirty deeds from Ambrose. Then Reigns gave Miz the patented Shield triple bomb. Reigns, Ambrose and Rollins then did their fist pose to a big pop.
Jason Jordan defeated Karl Anderson (8:28)
Jason Jordan won with the hoist hangman’s neckbreker after Karl Anderson tried to pin Jordan with a schoolboy cradle with a handful of trunks. Luke Gallows jumped up on the apron late, but Jordan kicked him off. Just a match.
Miz was being treated for an injured neck. He sold like a comedy character. Kurt Angle walked in and told Miz he would be competing in the main event of TLC. It would be Miz, Sheamus and Cesaro vs. the Shield in a TLC match.
Elias was in the ring and said Apollo Crews was getting embarassing. He said Crews was driving the Titus Worldwide car in the Indianapolis 500, he was going around in circles and no one cares. He started to sing but a banjo was playing instead of his guitar. Titus O’Neil walked out playing the banjo and asked the crowd “Who wants to walk with Titus Worldwide?” Titus told the crowd to get ready to follow Apollo. Titus had a song for Elias “Elias, tonight on Monday Night Raw, you’re about to lose. Right here in Indianapolis, to a man by the name of Apollo Crews.”
Elias defeated Apollo Crews (3:14)
Elias won with drift away after pulling Crews into the ropes. Crews did a moonsault off the apron and a standing moonsault in the ring. Cole told a story that Slash from Guns n’ Roses befriended Elias when he was young and told him the world wanted to hear his music.
Enzo Amore came out. Even as a heel, the crowd cheers him like a star. He’s playing a self-indugent champion. Enzo said he had a good relationship with Angle over the no-contact clause in his contract. Enzo said Kalisto assaulted him, yet Angle gave Kalisto a title shot at TLC. Enzo said he was the realest champ in the room and he knows Angle is doing nothing important right now. So he asked Angle to come out for the Zo Show.
Angle came down. Enzo said Angle had been sucking on the udders of a cash cow, right here. Enzo pulled out his no-contact contract and wondered why Kalisto is getting the title shot. Angle said it only pertained to a cruiserweight who signed the contract before he signed that clause. Kalisto was assigned to the cruiserweight division after he signed that clause. Enzo said he was Angle’s biggest superstar in the locker room. Angle should start worrying about what makes him happy. Angle said he does want to make Enzo happy. So he wouldn’t be facing Kalisto at TLC. He would be facing Kalisto tonight. Enzo had a blank look on his face, said “touche.” He said he would defend the championship under one condition: if the match is in the main event. Angle walked up the ramp and told Enzo’s match would be a lumberjack match with cruiserweights surrounding the ring.
Braun Strowman defeated Matt Hardy (6:31)
Braun Strowman won with the running powerslam after two chokeslams. Matt Hardy did the tornado DDT spot, which I think is mandatory for every smaller babyface wrestling a monster heel in this company. Hardy even hit the Twist of Fate, but Strowman got up.
Postmatch, Strowman threw Hardy out of the ring and carried him over his shoulder up the ramp. Then the Shield came out and stopped him. Strowman glared at them as Hardy vanished. Strowman went after Rollins, but Reigns and Ambrose put the boots to him. It was strange, in a way, because Strowman gets cheered like a babyface. That led to a flat reaction, at first. Then Reigns speared Strowman and the place went nuts. Rollins went to the commentator’s table, followed by Ambrose and Reigns. The Shield delievered the Shield Bomb to Strowman on the table for a huge pop. Strowman collapsed to the floor as Ambrose and Rollins got their receipt from last week to get the return of the Shield over strong.
The Shield did an interview backstage with Charly Caruso. Ambrose said they could fight four or five men because they were the most powerful force in the business. Rollins said you could believe that.
James came out and said at first she didn’t feel like she belonged when she first returned to Raw. She wondered if it was her southern accent, the fact she sang country music, her age. But she realized it was Bliss. It has been Bliss that has been burying her behind her back. But when she wanted to face Bliss last week, Bliss hid behind her bodyguard, Nia Jax. She told Bliss to jump out of her booster seat and put on her big girl pants. James said she had more energy in her than Bliss had hair extensions and pink hair dye.
Bliss walked out and said she was sorry. She said James had been treated unfairly. Bliss put together a Mickie James career retrospective because many fans may not realize what she has accomplished. Bliss showed the video, which was in black and white and entitled “Superstars of Yesteryear.” It was created like a newsreel in the 1920s shown at movie theatres and again implied James was old. Bliss laughed and wondered if it was past James’ bedtime. She called James “grandma.” Bliss said she was going to be running circles around James and she would send her a link to the video. Actually, she said she would send James a VHS tape.
James challenged Bliss to come down to the ring. Bliss asked the crowd if the crowd had batteries for James’ hearing aid. Bliss acted like she was going to get in the ring, but said the move was just as old as James herself. James pulled Bliss by the hair into the ring, tried to give her the Mick Kick, but Bliss ran for cover.
Another Asuka vignette aired. They’re putting her over huge. Bayley and Sasha Banks watched the piece with Angle. Bayley said she wanted to wrestle Asuka first at TLC, saying she would love to welcome her with a hug, then a Bayley-to-belly suplex. Banks objected, saying she would face Asuka first. Then Alicia Fox walked in and said she’s been in the company ten years and has had only one t-shirt, so she should face Asuka. Dana Brooks came in and said sometimes she feels invisible and wanted the match. Finally, Emma showed up, leading to words with Fox, who was mad that Emma walked out on her when they were tag team partner last week. Angle ordered a Fatal Five-Way for later tonight with the winner facing Asuka at TLC.
Brian Kendrick and Jack Gallagher defeated Cedric Alexander and Mustafa Ali (3:36)
Brian Kendrick pinned Mustafa Ali with sliced bread #2. Ali looked good the brief time he was in there. Kendrick delievered a drop kick to the top of Ali’s head before the finish.
Miz approached Angle backstage. Angle thought Miz wanted the Shield match cancelled. Miz said to the contrary, since Ambrose said they could fight four or five men, he asked for another partner to be added to his team. Angle reluctantly agreed. Miz said he already found his partner. Then Strowman burst through the door and looked incensed after being power bombed through the table by the Shield.
Balor came out for the latest regarding Sister Abigail. Balor said Wyatt was like a poison, a virus that keeps mutating with more games. Balor said Wyatt is desparate to instill fear, to play games. Balor said he’s not afraid of Wyatt and the Demon wasn’t afraid of Wyatt.
Then an empty rocking chair appeared ont he TitanTron. Wyatt sat down and said Balor may not be afraid of him, but Balor will be afraid of her. He said she was young, she was beautiful, and she knew the truth so they feared her. They turned her into some kind of monster and he was there when she took her final breath. She chose him. Together, they promised they would make them all burn. Now, the season of the witch is upon Balor. She’s here. The video transformed and made Wyatt appear to have a shawl over his head. This is the look of Sister Abigail. Wyatt’s voice sounded like it went through a modulator to make it hauntingly feminine. Abigail said “Excuse me. You men are all the same. You just want to control everything. But Bray is different. Bray is special. Bray has much to learn. From a young age, I taught him the world is a very evil place. I taught him secrets. I taught him the darkness is so much stronger than the light. And I promised him that I would always be there by his side. So here I am. Scorned. Scarred and burned to a crisp. Rising from the ashes to fulfill my promise to my little prince. My sweet, innocent Bray. He wouldn’t even harm a fly. But look what you did to him. You hurt him. You lied to him. So I must punish you and your demon. I know all about demons. Call it my specality, if you will. I can turn a demon into a pretty little dandelion. So let me give my advice to you, Finn. You can’t beat me. I’m worse than anything you’ve ever read in your Irish mythology books. I’m worse your world has ever dreamed of. My touch could have dreamed you, Finn. My kiss will burn you to the ground. Run.” Abigail cackled, then Wyatt appeared again and cackled.
Emma won a Five-Way elimination match by pinning Sasha Banks in a bout that also included Alicia Fox, Bayley and Dana Brooke to win the right to face Asuka at TLC (9:40)
God was this a mess. Cole claimed the first person to score a pinfall would win. So Bayley pinned Brooke with a Bayley-to-belly at 2:26. JoJo announced that Brooke had been eliminated and the match continued. Cole had to admit on live TV he got his rules mixed up. Meanwhile, Booker T tried to make some incoherent comparison of the winner of the match facing Asuka as the same thing as Buster Douglas stunning Mike Tyson in 1990 in Tokyo. Booker was stumbling all over his words until Cole cracked up over a live mic and quieted him down. Then Fox pinned Bayley at 3:12 with an ax kick and the crowd was furious. Banks made Fox tap to the Bank Statement at 9:30. Emma immediately ran up at pinned Fox with an Oklahoma Side Roll at 9:40 for the win.
Balor did an interview with Renee Young saying that Wyatt has unleashed something truly evil. He was afraid of the words that Sister Abigail used, but he knows what he must do now.
Next week, Reigns faces Strowman inside of a steel cage.
Kalisto did an interview with Caruso. Kalisto said when he was a child, Rey Mysterio and Eddy Guerrero inspired him to make his dream a reality. Then he saw Enzo become cruiserweight champion, which is a slap in the face to cruiserweights. He wants to make Rey Mysterio and Eddy Guerrero proud (they never mentioned today would be Guerrero’s 50th birthday).
Kalisto defeated WWE Cruiserweight Champion Enzo Amore to win the WWE Cruiserweight Championship (14:27)
Kalisto won with the Salina del Sol off the top rope. Amore hit the Jordanzo, but Ali pulled Amore out of the ring when he had the pin saying that Enzo doesn’t represent them. Enzo clotheslined Ali. Big spot was when Ariya Daivari started arguing with Ali, which led to a brawl between Drew Gulak, Kendrick, Rich Swann, T.J. Perkins, Gallagher, and everyone else. As this was happening on the floor, Kalisto gave Enzo a superplex to the floor on top of the pile. Enzo actually got in the ring before Kalisto, who delievered the move. It was a limited cruiserweight match, as you can imagine with Enzo in there. Crowd reacted to Kalisto much better than his previous pushes.
