Opinion: Match & Show Ratings for October 18 to October 24

Welcome to TPWW’s Emperor Smeat’s Match and Show Ratings for the week of October 18th to October 24th.

Match and show star ratings (out of 5):

WWE

WWE RAW (October 19)
* Retribution (Slapjack, Mace, T-Bar, & Mustafa Ali) vs. Hurt Business (Cedric Alexaner, Shelton Benjamin, MVP, & Bobby Lashley) – 2.5
* AJ Styles vs. Matt Riddle – 2.5
* RAW Women’s Championship – Lana vs. Asuka (c) – 1.5 (Squash)
* Fatal 4-way match – Nia Jax & Shayna Baszler vs. Dana Brooke & Mandy Rose vs. Lacey Evans & Peyton Royce vs. Riott Squad – 2.0
* Kofi Kingston vs. Sheamus – 3.0
* Miz & John Morrison vs. Tucker & El Gran Gordo – 2.0
* Braun Strowman vs. Keith Lee – 1.5
Overall – 2.0
Best – El Gran Gordo’s appearance.
Worst – RAW Women’s Championship match and post-match stuff with Nia Jax & Shayna Baszler.
Show Notes – RAW’s new opening theme was an odd choice. Opening segment, being dominated for most of the match, and Fiend’s post-match destruction makes Retribution look even more like a big joke as a group. The RAW Underground bouncer being with Styles is interesting. Ending to Styles vs. Riddle was lame. McIntyre’s promo segment was okay. Jax and Baszler pre-match promo was bland. Elias’ musical concert segment was great. Kingston vs. Sheamus was pretty good. Ali’s promo was fine. Otis being disguised as El Gran Gordo was hilarious. Firefly Fun House segment was nothing special. WWE’s booking of Lee since his call-up has been atrocious. Orton’s promo was decent. This week’s episode was somewhat decent but very weak as a go-home show for Hell in the Cell.

NXT (October 21)
* Triple Threat match – KUSHIDA vs. Velveteen Dream vs. Tommaso Ciampa – 3.5
* Jessi Kamea vs. Ember Moon – 1.5 (Squash)
* Austin Theory vs. Bronson Reed – 2.0 (Squash)
* Austin Theory vs. Bronson Reed – 1.0 (Squash)
* Ashante “Thee” Adonis, Isaiah “Swerve” Scott, & Jake Atlas vs. Legado Del Fantasma – 3.5
* Ever-Rise vs. Drake Maverick & Killian Dain – 1.5
* Kacy Catanzaro vs. Xia Li – 2.0
* Anthony vs. Timothy Thatcher – 1.0 (Squash)
* NXT Tag Team Championship – Danny Burch & Oney Lorcan vs. Breezango (c) – 3.0
Overall – 3.5
Best – KUSHIDA vs. Velveteen Dream vs. Tommaso Ciampa match.
Worst – Ever-Rise vs. Drake Maverick & Killian Dain match.
Show Notes – Opening Triple Threat match was very good. Undisputed Era promo segment was okay but laughed at Adam Cole showing up via tablet. Bobby Fish getting attacked backstage was interesting. Lia and Catanzaro interview segment was decent. 6-man tag match was very good. Gargano Family segment was decent. Roderick Strong getting attacked backstage was also interesting. Cameron Grimes interview segment with creepy Dexter Lumis in the background was great. Thatch-as-Thatch-Can segment was okay. Damian Priest vignette was decent. NXT Tag title match was pretty good although not a fan of the rushed title change and Burch & Lorcan abrupt heel turn. Pat McAfee being the mystery attacker was interesting. This week’s episode was very enjoyable overall.

Friday Night SmackDown (October 23)
* Kevin Owens, Daniel Bryan, & Street Profits vs. Robert Roode, Dolph Ziggler, Cesaro, & Shinsuke Nakamura – 3.5
* Bianca Belair vs. Zelina Vega – 1.5 (Squash)
* Shorty G vs. Lars Sullivan – 1.5 (Squash)
* Seth Rollins vs. Murphy – 3.0
Overall – 3.0
Best – Law & Otis segments.
Worst – The never-ending abysmal Rollins vs. Mysterio Family storyline.
Show Notes – Opening Kevin Owens Show segment and tag team brawl was decent. 8-man tag match was very good despite some poor quality camera work. Shorty G “quitting” SmackDown was interesting. Rollins promo segment was okay. Shorty G going back to his old Chad Gable persona was great. Bayley and Sasha Banks contract segment was pretty good. Law & Otis comedic segments were wonderful despite the lame ending. Rollins vs. Murphy was pretty good. The Murphy & Aalyah side story stuff for the Rollins vs. Mysterio Family feud has been terrible. Roman Reigns and Usos segment and match stip of Usos getting kicked out of the Anoa’i family was very good. This week’s episode was enjoyable but also a very lazy effort by WWE for Hell in a Cell’s go-home show.

---

AEW

AEW Dark (October 20)
* Shawn Spears vs. Christopher Daniels – 2.5
* KilLynn King vs. Brandi Rhodes – 2.0
* David Ali vs. Ricky Starks – 2.0 (Squash)
* Fuego Del Sol vs. Scorpio Sky – 2.5
* Aaron Solow vs. Luchasaurus – 1.5
* Griff Garrison & Brian Pillman Jr. vs. The Butcher & The Blade – 2.0
* Penta El Zero M vs. QT Marshall – 2.5
* KTB vs. Jungle Boy – 3.0
* Kenzie Paige & Skyler Moore vs. Ivelisse & Diamante – 2.0
* Bishp King vs. Colt Cabana – 1.5
* Adam Priest vs. Alan “5” Angels – 2.0 (Squash)
* Jack Evans vs. Frankie Kazarian – 2.5
* Baron Black, Louie Valle, & D3 vs. Dark Order (Alex Reynolds, John Silver, & 10) – 2.0 (Squash)
* Vinny Pacifico vs. Wardlow – 1.0 (Squash)
* Shawn Dean vs. Matt Sydal – 2.5
* Rey Fenix vs. Sonny Kiss – 3.0
Overall – 2.5
Best – Rey Fenix vs. Sonny Kiss match.
Worst – The over two hour run-time for the show.
Show Notes – Opening Spears vs. Daniels match was decent. John Silver’s “Johnny Hungee” sign was the best part of the King vs. Rhodes match. Allie leaving Marshall for Eddie Kingston’s crew was interesting. KTB vs. Jungle Boy was pretty good. Frankie Kazarian pre-match promo segment was good. Eddie Kingston promo segment was decent. Fenix vs. Kiss was pretty good. This week’s episode was okay but not a fan of AEW’s recent trend of their Dark shows getting way too lengthy for the type of show its been.

AEW Dynamite (October 21)
* AEW World Championship Eliminator tournament First Round match – Wardlow vs. Jungle Boy – 3.0
* AEW World Championship Eliminator tournament First Round match – Sonny Kiss vs. Kenny Omega – 1.5 (Squash)
* AEW World Championship Eliminator tournament First Round match – Rey Fenix vs. Penta El Zero M – 4.0
* AEW World Championship Eliminator tournament First Round match – Colt Cabana vs. Hangman Adam Page – 3.0
* KiLynn King vs. Britt Baker – 2.0 (Squash)
* #1 Contender for AEW World Tag Team Championship Four-way match – The Butcher & The Blade vs. Private Party vs. Dark Order (Alex Reynolds & John Silver) vs. Young Bucks – 3.5
Overall – 4.0
Best – Chris Jericho & MJF Le Dinner Debonair segment.
Worst – Some of the scary looking spots by Fenix during his match.
Show Notes – Opening Wardlow vs. Jungle Boy match was pretty good. Eddie Kingston promo recap and Jon Moxley promo video segments were amazing. Omega’s over-the-top entrance stuff was hilarious. Orange Cassidy and Cody interview segments were decent. Kingston promo segment was fantastic. Fenix vs. Penta was fantastic despite some scary looking spots. Silver was the best part of the Dark Order interview segment. Cabana vs. Page was pretty good. Taz and Ricky Starks promo segment was okay. Everything about the Jericho & MJF dinner segment was gold, especially the random musical part. Four-way tag match was very good and FTR vs. Young Bucks finally happening after all these years of teasing is great. This week’s episode was one of Dynamite’s best shows this year.

---

NJPW & OTHER

NJPW G1 Clmiax 2020 Finals (October 18)
* DOUKI, El Desperado, Zack Sabre Jr., & Taichi vs. Toru Yano, YOSHI-HASHI, Tomohiro Ishii, & Hirooki Goto – 3.0
* Hiromu Takahashi & Singo Takagi vs. Yoshinobu Kanemaru & Minoru Suzuki – 3.5
* Master Wato, Jeff Cobb, Juice Robinson, & Hiroshi Tanahashi vs. Gedo, Taiji Ishimori, KENTA, & Jay White – 3.5
* Great-O-Khan & Will Ospreay vs. SHO & Kazuchika Okada – 3.0
* Yujiro Takahashi & EVIL vs. BUSHI & Tetsuya Naito – 3.0
* G1 Climax 2020 Finals – SANADA vs. Kota Ibushi – 4.0
Overall – 3.5
Best – G1 Climax 2020 Finals match.
Worst – Great-O-Khan & Will Ospreay vs. SHO & Kazuchika Okada match.
Show Notes – Opening G1 Climax Finals hype video was fantastic. Suzuki-Gun vs. CHAOS 8-man tag match was pretty good. Takahashi & Tagaki vs. Kanemaru & Suzuki was very good. The post-match brawl between Takagi and Suzui was wonderful. Master Wato, Cobb, Robinson, & Tanahashi vs. Bullet Club was very good. Great-O-Khan & Ospreay vs. SHO & Okada was somewhat good despite the ending being a dud. Bullet Club vs. LIJ was pretty good. Masahiro Chono’s pre-G1 Finals match surprise appearance and speech was cool. Ibushi vs. SANADA was amazing and the final few minutes were crazy in terms of near falls and quality. G1 Climax 2020 Finals was a very enjoyable show overall.

NJPW Strong NEVER Night 2(October 23)
* Clark Connors vs. Fred Rosser – 2.5
* Karl Fredericks vs. ACH – 2.5
* Guerrillas of Destiny vs. Brody King & Flip Gordon – 3.0
* Rocky Romero vs. Jay White – 3.0
Overall – 2.5
Best – Rocky Romero vs. Jay White match.
Worst – The flat ending to the Connors vs. Rosser match.
Show Notes – Opening Connors vs. Rosser match was decent. Fredericks vs. ACH was also decent. Guerrillas of Destiny vs. King & Gordon was pretty good. Romero vs. White was pretty good despite dragging too long. White’s post-match promo was fine. This week’s episode was okay overall.

Impact Wrestling Bound For Glory 2020 (October 24)
* Impact X-Division Championship Six-Way Scramble match – TJP vs. Chris Bey vs. Trey Miguel vs. Jordynne Grace vs. Willie Mack vs. Rohit Raju (c) – 3.0
* 20-Person Call Your Shot Gauntlet match – 2.5
* EC3 vs. Moose – 3.0
* Eddie Edwards vs. Ken Shamrock – 3.0
* Impact World Tag Team Championship Four-way match – The North (Ethan Page & Josh Alexander) vs. Ace Austin & Madman Fulton vs. The Good Brothers (Doc Gallows & Karl Anderson) vs. The Motor City Machine Guns (Alex Shelley & Chris Sabin) (c) – 3.5
* Impact Knockouts Championship – Su Yung vs. Deonna Purrazzo (c) – 3.0
* Impact World Impact World Championship – Rich Swan vs. Eric Young (c) – 3.5
Overall – 3.0
Best – Impact World Tag Team Championship Four-way match.
Worst – Josh Matthews’ dull commentary work.
Show Notes – Show intro hype video package was okay. X-Division title match was pretty good despite it being a bit sluggish. John E. Bravo’s bachelor party segment was decent. Dreamer’s Road Warrior Animal face paint homage was nice. Call Your Shot gauntlet match was decent at best. The North interview segment was fantastic. Pre-match hype package and EC3 vs. Moose cinematic style match were pretty good, especially the ending. Edwards vs. Shamrock was pretty good. Impact Tag title match was very good. Impact Knockouts title match was pretty good although Kylie Rae being abruptly yanked from the card is a bit worrisome. Impact World title match was very good. Bound for Glory 2020 was an entertaining show overall.

---

Week awards:

• Best match of the week – G1 Climax 2020 Finals – SANADA vs. Kota Ibushi (NJPW G1 Climax 2020 Finals)
• Worst match of the week – RAW Women’s Championship – Lana vs. Asuka (c) (WWE RAW)
• Best show of the week – AEW Dynamite
• Worst show of the week – WWE RAW