Emanating from the Giant Center in Hershey, PA

Handicap Tables Match for the World Tag Team Championship: La Resistance (champs) and Rob Conway vs. The Dudley Boyz

handicap match and Stone Cold added that it would now be for the titles. All team members must go through a table for the other team to win. We kick things off with a slugfest between Dupree and D-Von. Now Bubba wears out Conway. Bubba sends all the heels to the corner and then splashes all of them. Conway nails Bubba from the apron to stop his momentum. The heels now begin to make quick tags to work over Bubba. Bubba delivers a back suplex to Conway and then tags D-Von. He comes in and cleans house. Now Bubba joins him to double-team the heels. The Dudleyz get a table and set it up in the ring. La Resistance blindside the Dudleyz and then whip D-Von through a table set up in the corner. As Conway and Dupree set a table up outside, Bubba blocks a suplex and then suplexes Grenier through a table. Dupree and Conway attempt to flapjack Bubba through a table, but D-Von moves it out of the way. (Even if you’re put through a table, you can remain in the match). Heel miscommunication leads to Dupree nailing Conway. The Dudleyz then do the same spot to Conway that La Resistance used on Spike and he nearly hits his head on the edge of a table as well. I think it’s time we retire that spot. Conway did go through at least one table though, which means either Bubba or Dupree have to be sent through a table for their team to win. Dupree clotheslines both Dudleyz, but they recover and 3-D him through a table. New champs!

Bottom Line: I’m not sure I get the need for a title change here, especially since it was just made a title match right before the show began. I guess they felt they needed to punish La Resistance for the Spike botch. Too bad the Dudleyz did the same thing in this match. Conway nearly cracking his head on the table was sadly the highlight of this pedestrian affair. It seems like there hasn’t been an innovative table spot in years. Maybe it’s because the Dudleyz and/or the bookers can’t go two months without a tables match. But hey, as long as the live crowd continues to eat them up, I’m sure there’ll be no change forthcoming. ** ¼

As the Steiner/Test war waged on, Test outsmarted Steiner (no surprise) and won back Stacy Keibler’s managieral services. Now these two will fight once more and if Steiner wins, Stacy will be free of Test. However, if Test wins, Steiner becomes Test’s “property”. As Steiner lets Stacy out of the ring, Test blindsides him. Steiner comes back with a slam and gets 2. Test bails to the floor and uses Stacy as a shield. However, she slaps him to get free. Test recovers and attacks Steiner on the floor. A full nelson slam by Test gets 2. With Steiner down, Test does some push-ups to mock him. Test locks on a sleeper. Steiner escapes, but then gets elbowed. Test attempts a move off the top rope, but Steiner catches him and gives him a belly-to-belly suplex. Steiner begins his comeback by wearing out Test in the corner. Another belly-to belly suplex gives Steiner a nearfall. Test uses the referee as a shield and then thumbs Steiner in the eye. Steiner escapes a pump handle slam attempt and hits a tiger bomb. That gets 2. Test lowblows Steiner behind the referee and then tries to pin him with his feet on the ropes. However, Stacy shoves him off. Test pulls Stacy onto the apron, but she drops him across the top rope. Steiner then hits him with a reverse DDT and gets 2 ¾. Test shoves Steiner to the corner and then gives him the pump handle slam. As he sets up for the big boot, Stacy gets on the apron and wiggles her ass. The distraction allows Steiner to roll Test up for 2. Test chases after Stacy, who runs into the ring and bumps into Steiner. That allows Test to hit him with the big boot. Somehow Steiner kicks out at 2. Frustrated, Test removes a turnbuckle pad. As the referee goes to put it back on, Test grabs a chair. Stacy takes the chair from him and swings, but accidentally nails Steiner. Test then gives him another big boot and pins him for 3.

BL: Well, let’s see…I got to see Steiner’s teeth knocked in twice, Stacy wiggling her ass and Steiner becoming someone’s property. That all sounds like a winner to me. Plus, they kept the action going throughout, which is another plus. This is no classic, but considering the participants, I was entertained. It’s a shame Steiner left and we never got to see the slave angle play out. Oh well, they probably would have ruined it anyways. ***

This feud has been brewing since June. This probably would have happened at Summerslam, but both got put in the Elimination Chamber, so their one-on-one match had to wait until now. Shawn starts off the match by immediately taking Orton to the mat. Shawn dumps Orton outside, but he skins the cat and clotheslines him. Orton begins to put the boots to Shawn. Orton tries a move from the top rope, but Shawn crotches him on his way down. Now Shawn clotheslines Orton out of the ring and skins the cat himself. Shawn goes up top and hits Orton with a high crossbody on the floor. Shawn brings Orton back into the ring. Orton attempts a German suplex, but Shawn blocks it and delivers one of his own for 2. Orton boots a charging Shawn and attacks him in the corner. Shawn recovers and the two exchange chops. Shawn charges again and this time ends up ramming his shoulder into the post. With the referee distracted, Flair further attacks Shawn’s shoulder. Orton comes out and rams Shawn’s shoulder into the post. Inside, Orton continues to work over Shawn’s arm. An armbar-takedown by Orton gets 2. The two slug it out and then Shawn gets Orton in a small package for 2. Shawn hits the flying forearm and then kips up. Shawn starts to comeback. That promps Flair to get on the apron, but Shawn knocks him off. Shawn dumps Orton outside and then attacks him some more out there. Shawn goes up top and Flair tries to interfere, but Shawn shoves him down again. Shawn then hits Orton with a double ax handle and gets a nearfall. Orton reverses a whip and sends Shawn to the corner where he does his trademark bump. Orton attempts a move from the second rope, but Shawn boots him on his way down. Shawn goes for Sweet Chin Music, but Orton blocks it and hits the RKO. Somehow, Shawn kicks out at 2. Orton goes for a high crossbody, but Shawn avoids it. Now Shawn connects with a big elbow. That gets 2. Shawn then connects with Sweet Chin Music. Shawn covers and the referee counts 3. However, Flair puts Orton’s foot on the bottom rope. After the count, the referee sees Orton’s foot and decides the fall doesn’t count. As Shawn confers with the referee, Flair hands Orton some brass knuckles. Shawn grabs Orton and tries to suplex him back into the ring, but Orton repeatedly punches Shawn in the head with the knux. Shawn is knocked out and Orton easily pins him for 3 to get the official victory.

BL: The majority of this match was straight out of a wrestling textbook. That means it was well worked, but not particularly interesting. Orton doesn’t have the skill and/or experience to work over a body part in an entertaining way. My biggest complaint here is the cop out finish. If you want to push a new star, then go all the way and give him the victory. Giving Shawn a moral victory doesn’t do anybody any favors. *** ¼

- As La Resistance lick their wounds in the back, Chris Jericho comes in and says Stone Cold is to blame for their injuries. He then says he’s going to make sure Austin pays for what he’s done. Uh Chris…try as you might I don’t think you can stop all the beer in the world from being made.

Lita made her return from neck surgery a few weeks ago to help Trish, who’s had her problems with Molly and newcomer Gail Kim lately. The heels jump Trish and Lita from behind, but cannot sustain the offense. Things settle down to Gail and Lita. Props to the fan who held up the “beer match” sign when this match started. As Trish runs to the ropes, Molly pulls them open, causing Trish to fall to the floor. The heels now begin to work over Trish’s back. As Trish goes for a tag, Molly pulls Lita off the apron. Trish works her way over to the corner again and tags Lita, but the referee didn’t see it. Meanwhile, it appears that Lita’s mouth is bloodied, presumably from being yanked off the apron. A backbreaker by Molly gets 2 on Trish. Gail slams Trish and then goes for a high risk move, but misses. Trish makes the hot tag to Lita, who takes it to the heels. Lita powerbombs Gail, but then Molly nails her from behind. Molly goes up top, but Trish comes in and hits her with the handstand ‘rana. Lita connects with a reverse Twist of Fate on Molly and follows it up with a moonsault. That combo is enough for her to score the pinfall.

BL: You had a standard tag match, which gets dropped a few pegs because it involved the women. Lita did nothing to impress me in her big return, yet the finish clearly indicates that they’re already setting her up for a title shot. You just hate to see such a sloppy worker get rewarded when there are more credible choices being overlooked. This did nothing for me, but it wasn’t offensively bad either. * ¼

After dicking around in a nonsensical feud with Eric Bischoff, Shane finally gets at the matter that brought him back onto television; Kane. The build to this feud has been pretty ridiculous and it culiminated in Kane attaching jumped cables to Shane’s nuts and electrocuting him. But on the bright side, the Last Man Standing stipulation should mean some crazy bumping from Shane here. As Kane comes out to ringside, Shane runs out and nails him with a chair. The repeated chair shots keep Kane down for a 5 count only. Now Shane attacks Kane’s knee with the chair and steel post. Outside, Shane repeatedly rams Kane’s head into the steps. That keeps Kane down for 6. Shane tries for a crossbody off the guardrail, but Kane sort of turns it into a powerslam. Kane throws Shane into the steps and then runs the steps in Shane’s face. Shane gets up at 8. Back inside, Kane chokeslams Shane. Shane uses the referee to get to his feet at 7. Kane goes to give Shane a big boot, but accidentally nails the referee instead. Kane grabs the steps and brings them into the ring. Kane then tries to tombstone Shane on the steps, but Shane escapes and bulldogs Kane onto the steps. Now Shane abuses Kane with the steps. With Kane in the corner, Shane places the steps in front of him. Then Shane goes coast-to-coast and dropkicks the steps into Kane’s face. Nice. Kane is down, but there’s no referee to count. The fans begin to chant “one more time”. As Shane approaches Kane, Kane dumps the steps on him. With both men down, the referee gets back up and begins to count. Both men beat the 10 count and head outside to continue their fight. As they fight down the aisle, Kane throws Shane into the Unforgiven sign. He sends him into it a few more times and that keeps him down for 6. Kane picks up Shane and javelin tosses him into the Spanish announce table. Kane clears off the announce table and dumps it off the stage and onto Shane; or so he thought. Shane had moved out of the way and then attacked Kane from behind. Shane attacks Kane onto the stage and begins to punch away on him. When Kane goes for a chokeslam, Shane goes low and then DDTs him. Now Shane wears out Kane with a TV monitor. With Kane down, Shane begins to climb on top of the Titantron. Shane jumps off, trying for an elbow, but Kane moves. Kane is up at 8, but Shane stays down and loses the match.

BL: This was a good long brawl, as it should be. If you’re going to do a Last Man Standing match, however, have someone earn the victory. I was enjoying everything up until the finish. There are two big problems with how the match ended: 1) Nobody should ever win on the error of their opponents. If you want to build Kane as a monster heel then have him do a move that keeps Shane down for 10. 2) If you’re going to do a big spot as your finish, then have it be original. This is now the third time Shane has come off the top of the Titantron to finish a match. By this point, it’s starting to lose its luster. There’s no sense in doing a risky bump if it’s one we’ve already seen before. Aside from the lazy finish, this was a strong brawl. *** ¼

- In the back, Jericho approaches Austin and tells him that what happened to Shane is his fault. Austin tells him if he’s got a problem, then take his best shot. Jericho says he’s got other ways to make him crack than by engaging in a slugfest. Uh Chris…you also can’t prevent Austin from meeting another blond haired beauty to rough up either.

No real build here…just three random mid-carders in need of a match. The match begins with Christian and Jericho double-teaming RVD. RVD recovers and flips Christian to the floor. RVD suplexes Jericho to the outside and then does a moonsault onto both of his opponents. Back inside, RVD gives Christian some rough turnbuckle treatment. Jericho hits RVD with a crossbody and gets 2. Jericho misses another crossbody and then RVD flips onto Jericho for 2. Christian and Jericho go back to double-teaming RVD. RVD avoids a charging Jericho and goes on the attack. Jericho drops him with an enziguri and gets 2. Jericho and Christian put their heads down and RVD DDTs both of them. Jericho whips RVD, who flips over the top rope and lands on Christian, who was taking a breather. With Christian down on the outside, Jericho wears out RVD with a chinlock. RVD escapes and rolls up Jericho for 2. RVD attempts a ‘rana, but Jericho reverses it into the Walls of Jericho. Christian eventually comes in and breaks it up. That causes Christian and Jericho to brawl. Outside, Jericho whips Christian into the steps. A top rope elbow by Jericho gets 2 on Christian. Christian gets a reverse DDT on Jericho and tries to pin him with his feet on the ropes, but Jericho kicks out. Christian goes up top, but gets crotched. Jericho climbs up and gives him a superplex. RVD comes in and covers Christian for 2. A crossbody by RVD on Jericho gets a nearfall. Jericho comes back by giving him his crappy bulldog. RVD avoids the Lionsault and splashes Jericho. As he covers, Christian comes off the top rope. RVD moves so Christian hits Jericho. RVD drop toe holds Christian onto Jericho and then hits both of them with the Five Star Frog Splash. RVD covers Jericho and gets 2. Jericho goes up top, but RVD crotches him. RVD then attempts a top rope electric chair on Jericho, but Christian comes in and powerbombs both of them off the top. Nice spot. Christian then covers RVD and gets a nearfall. He covers Jericho and gets the same result. RVD hits Christian with a spinning heel kick and then dumps Jericho out of the ring. Christian tries to use the belt on RVD, but he grabs him and catapults him into Jericho. RVD then rolls up Christian for 2 ¾. As RVD goes up, Jericho tries to attack him with a chair. RVD kicks him down and goes for the Five Star Frog Splash. However, Christian holds the belt up and RVD crashes into it. Christian rolls over and covers RVD for the 1-2-3.

BL: The good news here is that they gave this match plenty of time. The bad news is that these guys didn’t make the most of it. There was nothing really wrong here, it’s just that with the exception of a spot or two, there was nothing really notable about the action. Maybe I’m a little lukewarm on this match because the crowd energy was low after that last match. All I know is that these guys are capable of more than we saw here. ***

- Marc Lloyd interviews Triple H about his upcoming match with Goldberg. HHH tells him that Goldberg is living in a fantasy world and that he is about to get a reality check. From the sounds of things, as long as Goldberg gets any kind of check, he’ll be happy.

As part of Coachman’s heel turn, he began boasting that he was a better announcer than J.R. Soon, his HeAT announcing partner, Snow, joined his cause and challenged the RAW announce team to a match. The stipulation here is that the winning team will become the permanent RAW announce team. The idiot booking team couldn’t think of anyone to fill in, so this match goes on with absolutely no announcers. What a completely moronic move!! Lawler jumps Snow and gets a couple quick nearfalls. Snow recovers and works over Lawler in the corner. After some tepid offense between the two, Lawler hits Snow with a piledriver. Lawler covers, but Snow puts his foot on the ropes. Coachman gets tagged in and he takes it to Lawler. Coachman attempts a Bronco Buster, but misses. Lawler pulls down the strap and goes to work on Coachman. A fist drop by Lawler gets 2. Lawler tags J.R., who lowblows an illegal Snow. J.R. then puts the boots to Coachman. Snow and Lawler brawl on the outside. With the referee distracted by the outside brawl, Jericho runs out and dropkicks J.R. Coachman covers the knocked out J.R. and the referee comes back in to make the 3 count.

Postmatch: Jericho tells Marc Lloyd that he did that because seeing his friend lose his job is what will make Austin snap.

BL: There are so many things wrong with this match, I don’t know where to begin. I already mentioned the no announcer situation, so let’s focus on the fact that the action was awful, as expected. Then to put the shit on top of the sundae, you have Coachman and Snow win. No one believes that they’ll take over announcing RAW. That means you have to come up with some lame angle to undo the stipulation. Certainly there has to be other RAW superstars more suited to have a PPV match than these four. - ***

So the one-on-one match that was supposed to happen last month finally happens now. If HHH gets himself disqualified, he’ll lose the title. However, if Goldberg loses, his career is over. The stakes are pretty high, or so the announcers would like you to believe. Speaking of which, J.R. and the King are back to call their ‘final match’ together. The two lockup to begin, but neither gain an advantage. Goldberg picks up HHH and gorilla press slams him. A slugfest breaks out, which Goldberg wins. Goldberg hits HHH with a back bodydrop, which forces HHH to bail to the outside. HHH blindsides Goldberg and sends him to the floor, but Goldberg quickly recovers. Goldberg goes for the spear, but HHH hits him with a high knee. HHH then clotheslines Goldberg to the floor. As Goldberg tries to reenter, HHH nails him in the back. That gets 2. Another slugfest breaks out and is won by Goldberg. HHH grabs Goldberg’s leg and rams it into the post. HHH now begins to work over Goldberg’s left knee. HHH puts on the figure four and uses the ropes for leverage. Goldberg manages to roll over to break the hold. HHH goes for a knee drop, but Goldberg blocks it and knocks HHH down. A powerslam by Goldberg gets 2. Goldberg whips HHH to the corner and he falls to the floor. On the outside, Goldberg rams HHH into the steps. That has busted HHH open. Back inside, HHH escapes a slam and shoves Goldberg into the referee. HHH then gives Goldberg a lowblow and DDTs him. HHH goes for the Pedigree, but Goldberg backdrops him to the floor. HHH finds his sledge under the ring and nails Goldberg in the jaw with it. HHH goes for another shot, but Goldberg spears him. Goldberg then connects with the Jackhammer. Goldberg covers and the referee gets up to make the 3 count. New champ!

BL: After being champ since last December, it’s nice to see HHH finally lose the title. But if you ask me, if I’m happy to see Goldberg as champ, I wouldn’t say yes. Goldberg hadn’t done much since arriving in the WWE to win me over and this match did nothing to change my mind. There was too much punching and kicking and not enough psychology. Maybe they didn’t bother because they knew that the stips made the outcome obvious. When you have a match where the outcome is a formality, you need to do something special to make it great. They failed to do that here. The end result is a lackluster main event. ** ¼

Final Thoughts: Looking over everything, there’s very little to complain about, outside of the announcer’s match. Yet after the show is over, you don’t get a strong sense of being entertained. You can chalk that up to repetitive action and uninspired finishes. A lot of the show had a “been there, seen that” feeling to it. In the end, the show works well enough based on the RAW roster’s talent. However, it’s very apparent that the writers have no idea how to craft a compelling three hour show. As a result this show draws a strong thumbs in the middle.

Next time, Daddy’s little girl becomes Daddy’s next opponent.