Opinion: Match & Show Ratings for August 22 to August 28

Welcome to TPWW’s Emperor Smeat’s Match and Show Ratings for the week of August 22nd to August 28th.

Match and show star ratings (out of 5):

WWE

NXT TakeOver 36 (August 22)
* Pre-Show: Trey Baxter vs. Trey Baxter – 2.0 (Squash)
* Million Dollar Championship – Cameron Grimes vs. LA Knight (c) – 3.5
* NXT Women’s Championship – Dakota Kai vs. Raquel Gonzalez (c) – 3.0
* NXT UK Championship – Ilja Dragunov vs. WALTER (c) – 5.0
* 2-out-of-3 Falls match – Kyle O’Reilly vs. Adam Cole – 3.5
* NXT Championship – Samoa Joe vs. Karrion Kross (c) – 3.0
Overall – 4.0
Best – NXT UK Championship match.
Worst – The anti-climatic finish to Kyle O’Reilly vs. Adam Cole 2-out-of-3 Falls match.
Show Notes – Grimes’s sparkling “Million Dollar Man” inspired entrance gear looked nice. DiBiase’s ringside shenanigans to Knight was funny. Million Dollar title opener was a very entertaining match despite being botch laden. Gonzalez’s Super Chignona Bomb finisher to Kai was awesome. NXT Women’s title match was quite good despite being sloppy at times. Kay Lee Ray’s post-match surprise appearance was cool. Dragunov’s catch & dump counter of WALTER’s Lou Thesz Press was cool. WALTER’s feat of strength & murder chop combo to Dragunov sending him flying to the outside was cool. Dragunov’s arm bar counter to WALTER’s lariat was silky smooth. WALTER’s vicious looking clothesline to Dragunov was awesome. Yikes at the bruised welts on Ilja’s chest. Dragunov’s chop massacre to WALTER was sweet. NXT UK title match was a magnificent slugfest war and a very strong MotY contender. Ouch at O’Reilly’s back after his rough slide into the ring post. Cole & O’Reilly’s chain wrapped punches spot looked terrible. Ouch at O’Reilly’s back after crashing hard through two prone chairs. The trash can on the apron blocking the cage during it descent down was a bit funny. O’Reilly vs. Cole was a very good action filled match despite the anti-climatic finishes to the first and third falls. The crowd mocking Kross with “We Want Scarlett” chants was funny. Joe busting out his old Muscle Buster finisher to Kross was cool. NXT title match was a pretty good back-and-forth action bout. NXT TakeOver 36 was a mostly great show overall.

WWE RAW (August 23)
* Bobby Lashley vs. Damian Priest – 1.5
* Bobby Lashley & Sheamus vs. Damian Priest & Drew McIntyre – 3.0
* Karrion Kross vs. Ricochet – 1.5 (Squash)
* The Miz vs. Xaiver Woods – 2.5
* Jinder Mahal vs. Mansoor – 2.0
* Nikki A.S.H. & Rhea Ripley vs. Shayna Baszler & Nia Jax – 2.5
* Riddle vs. AJ Styles – 3.0
Overall – 1.5
Best – RK-Bro Raw Tag title celebration segment and the Riddle vs. AJ Styles match.
Worst – Moist TV segment with Logan Paul and the Charlotte Flair & Alexa Bliss promo segment.
Show Notes – Opening Lashley & MVP promo mocking Goldberg and Priest’s response & brawl was all right. Lashley vs. Priest was a waste of time, especially the lame DQ ending by Sheamus, but the post-match brawl with McIntyre was nice. Lashley & Sheamus vs. Priest & McIntyre was an entertaining hard hitting match, especially the latter half. Doudrop backstage interview about Eva Marie & ambush attack by Marie was decent. Kross’ new bootleg Mad Max villain entrance mask & attire looks goofy. Moist TV segment with Logan Paul was a big mess in terms of quality but the crowd constantly booing the hell out of Paul was hilarious. Miz vs. Woods was solid despite the flat ending & Morrison’s drip stick shenanigans. Miz’s post-match attack on Morrison was okay. 24/7 title ice cream truck segment with R-Truth & Tozawa was more miss than hit in terms of comedy. Charlotte Flair’s blabbering promo about her title win & Alexa Bliss brief response stunk & have zero interest in seeing a title feud between the two. Elias’ new “Elias is Dead” vignettes were all right. Women’s tag was a solid back-and-forth style match, especially the latter half. RK-Bro RAW Tag title celebration segment with Styles & Omos was splendid and WWE blowing all of SummerSlam’s unused pyro during it & Riddle’s scooter gift to Orton was funny. Ouch at Riddle after Styles botched Burning Hammer to him. Riddle vs. Styles was a quite good back-and-forth action filled match. This week’s show was mostly boring overall.

NXT (August 24)
* Ridge Holland vs. Timothy Thatcher – 3.0
* Kacy Catanzaro & Kayden Carter vs. Gigi Dolin & Jacy Jayne – 2.5
* Valentina Feroz vs. Kay Lee Ray – 2.0 (Squash)
* 2021 NXT Breakout Tournament Finals – Carmelo Hayes vs. Odyssey Jones – 3.0
* Boa vs. Xyon Quinn – 1.5
* 6-Man Tag Team match – Hit Row (Isaiah “Swerve” Scott, Ashante Thee Adonis, & Top Dolla) vs. Legado del Fantasma (Santos Escobar, Joaquin Wilde, & Raul Mendoza) – 3.5
Overall – 3.0
Best – Hit Row vs. Legado del Fantasma match.
Worst – The dumb head-scratching booking for the Boa vs. Xyon Quinn match.
Show Notes – Opening Ted DiBiase & Cameron Grimes Million Dollar title celebration segment was all right. Holland’s stiff lariat to Thatcher bending him in half was cool. Holland vs. Thatcher was a pretty good hard hitting match despite dragging a bit long. Post-match brawl with Pete Dunne, Ciampa, Lorcan, & Danny Burch’s surprise return was all right. Hayes backstage sitdown interview about his match tonight & time in NXT was decent. Indi Hartwell & Dexter Lumis backstage interview about their upcoming marriage was okay. Kacy & Kayden’s new team name of “TikTok Tag Team” stinks. Kay Lee Ray pre-match vignette was fine. Jones backstage sitdown interview segment about his match tonight & career was splendid. Samoa Joe promo segment about his title win at TakeOver and Dunne, LA Knight, & Kyle O’Reilly responses & brawl with Holland & Ciampa was superb. DiBiase trolling Grimes with the switcheroo of the Million Dollar title for a cheap replica version was funny. Hayes vs. Jones was a quite good back-and-forth action filled match despite the anti-climatic roll-up finish. Regal, Gargano, & Knight bickering office segment was a bit funny. Top Dolla’s power slam to all three Legado guys at the same time was cool. Yikes at Scott’s neck after his rough landing to the apron from Escobar’s foot swipe on the apron. Elektra Lopez’s surprise attack on B-Fab was interesting. Hit Row vs. Legado was a very entertaining action packed match despite the shenanigans ending. This week’s show was mostly enjoyable overall.

Friday Night SmackDown (August 27)
* SmackDown Women’s Championship #1 Contender’s Fatal Four-Way Elimination match – Bianca Belair vs. Zelina Vega vs. Carmella vs. Liv Morgan – 2.5
* Chad Gable vs. Cesaro – 2.0
* King Nakamura & Rick Boogs vs. Dirty Dawgs (Dolph Ziggler & Robert Roode) – 2.5
* Dominik Mysterio vs. Sami Zayn – 3.0
Overall – 2.5
Best – Happy Corbin and Big E in-ring promo segemnt.
Worst – NXT’s new logo reveal looking like a goofy AEW knockoff and the lame DQ finish to the Chad Gable vs. Cesaro match.
Show Notes – Opening Becky Lynch, Belair, Vega, Carmella, & Morgan promo segment was decent at best but not really feeling this new heel turn for Becky. NXT’s new theme song sounds okay based on the teaser video but the new splashy paint-filled logo & effects looks like a goofy AEW rip-off. Women’s Fatal 4-Way was mostly solid, more so the latter half though. Paul Heyman backstage interview about Lesnar’s return was fine but Reigns locking his door to Heyman was interesting. Gable vs. Cesaro was going on well until the lame DQ finish by Otis. Happy Corbin parking lot interview about his recent change in luck & riches was splendid. Corbin’s new casino style entrance theme sound okay. Corbin & Big E’s promo segment about Corbin’s newfound riches & wanting to buy the MitB case was both funny and wonderful. Edge & Rollins backstage promo about their match at SummerSlam & Universal title plans was all right despite Rollins’ goofy looking puffy scarf. Boogs playing air guitar using Ziggler’s body was a bit funny. Nakamura & Boogs vs. Dirty Dawgs was solid back-and-forth action match despite dragging a bit long & Apollo Crews dull split-screen promo part. Mysterios backstage promos in recent weeks have been dull and this show was no exception. Ouch at Dominik’s rough landing from Zayn’s Exploder Suplex. Domink vs. Zayn was pretty good. Reigns Family Celebration segment with Finn Balor & mass brawl with Street Profits was all right. This week’s show was average overall.

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AEW

AEW Dark Elevation (August 23)
* Anthony Bowens vs. Dante Martin – 3.0
* Varsity Blonds vs. Warren Johnson & Zack Mason – 2.5
* Trios match – Hardy Family Office (The Blade & TH2) vs. Wheeler Yuta, Chuck Taylor, & Orange Cassidy – 3.0
* Tay Conti vs. Promise Braxton – 2.0 (Squash)
* Trios match – Dark Order (Evil Uno, Alan “5” Angels, & Colt Cabana) vs. Death Triangle (PAC, Rey Fenix, & Penta El Zero M) – 3.0
Overall – 3.0
Best – Dark Orrder vs. Death Triangle match.
Worst – Tay Conti vs. Promise Braxton match.
Show Notes – Martin got some really great height with his drop kick to Bowens. Bowens vs. Martin opener was a pretty good back-and-forth action match. Big Swole & Julia Hart backstage promo about Diamante was fine. Varsity Blonds vs. Johnson & Mason was a solid bout. Diamante backstage interview segment about Swole & Hart was decent. Taylor mocking Angelico’s dance routine was a bit funny. Cassidy’s double hurricanrana to TH2 was nice. Ouch at Yuta’s neck after Blade’s rough spinning Tombstone to him. HFO vs. Yuta, Taylor, &Cassidy was a quite good action filled match. Kingston, Schiavone, & Wight’s banter on commentary during the Conti vs. Braxton match was funny. Conti vs. Braxton was a decent at best extended squash match. Angels’ hurricanrana to Fenix via Cabana assist was cool. Death Triangle’s chops & kick fest spot to Angels’ was sweet. Dark Order vs. Death Triangle was an entertaining action filled match. This weeks show was enjoyable overall.

AEW Dark (August 24)
* Thunder Rosa vs. Heather Reckless – 2.0 (Squash)
* Varsity Blonds vs. Ren Jones & Brayden Lee – 2.0
* Capt. Shawn Dean vs. Powerhouse Hobbs – 2.0 (Squash)
* Alan “5” Angels vs. Dante Martin – 3.0
* The Factory (Aaron Solo & Nick Comoroto) vs. Lucha Bros – 3.0
* John Silver & 10 vs. Kal Herro & Isaiah Moore – 2.0 (Squash)
* Hardy Family Office (Matt Hardy & TH2) vs. Wheeler Yuta, Chuck Taylor, & Orange Cassidy – 3.0
Overall – 2.5
Best – Alan “5” Angels vs. Dante Martin match.
Worst – Varsity Blonds vs. Ren Jones & Brayden Lee match.
Show Notes – Rosa vs. Reckless was a decent opening squash style match. Varsity Blonds vs. Jones & Lee was a decent at best short match. Dean vs. Hobbs was an okay quick squash style bout. Post-match Hobbs & Hook attack on Dean & Ricky Starks promo was also okay. Britt Baker & Jamie Hayter interview segment mocking CM Punk’s debut & Red Velvet and brawl with Velvet & Kris Statlander was all right. Angels’ brutal looking spiked DDT to Martin was cool & same for Martin’s springboard moonsault to Angels in the ring afterwards. Martin’s Straight Jacket DVD to Angels was sweet, Angels vs. Martin was an entertaining fast paced back-and-forth action match. The Factory vs. Lucha Bros was a pretty good action filled match. Best Friends double brainbuster to TH2 was cool. Hardy Family Office vs. Yuta, Taylor, & Cassidy was a quite good back-and-forth action filled match. This week’s show was mostly average overall but also enjoyable.

AEW Dynamite (August 25)
* Orange Cassidy vs. Matt Hardy – 3.0
* AEW World Tag Team Championship Eliminator Tournament Semi-Final match – Lucha Bros vs. The Varsity Blonds – 3.0
* Jamie Hayter vs. Red Velvet – 3.0
* Darby Allin, Eddie Kingston, & Jon Moxley vs. The Wingmen (D Drake, Cezar Bononi, & Ryan Nemeth) – 3.0
* Gunn Club (Billy, Colten, & Austin Gunn) vs. The Factory (Aaron Solo, Nick Comoroto, & QT Marshall) – 2.5
* Malakai Black vs. Brock Anderson – 2.5 (Squash)
Overall – 3.5
Best – CM Punk and Dan Lambert’s promo segments.
Worst – Matt Hardy’s busted & bloody nose and the Jamie Hayter vs. Red Velvet match being sloppy at times.
Show Notes – Cassidy kicks & Hardy “Delete” back-and-forth antics was funny. Yikes at Hardy’s nose oozing blood after Cassidy’s crossbody splash to his face. Cassidy vs. Hardy opener was mostly good despite dragging at times. Black’s threatening promo about Anderson was all right. Jericho putting his career on the line against MJF at All Out is interesting. Fenix’s rolling Cutter to Pillman Jr. was cool. Lucha Bros package piledriver finisher to Pillman Jr. looked brutal. Lucha Bros vs. Varsity Blonds was a quite good action filled match. Velvet’s dives to Hayter on the outside looked rough. Velvet completely whiffing her standing moonsault to Hayter was funny. Hayter’s murder lariat to Velvet was sweet. Hayter vs. Velvet was somewhat good despite being sloppy at times. Dark Order fracturing over Hangman Page is heart breaking. CM Punk interview about Allin, their match at All Out, & the Daniel Bryan tease was great. Miro’s “Redeemer” promo about Kingston was superb. Allin, Kingston, & Moxley vs. Wingmen was an entertaining action filled match. Tay Conti & Bunny backstage segment & brawl was okay. FTR promo vignette was wonderful. Omega & Pals and Christian Cage promo segment about their feud was funny. Moxley backstage promo about NJPW & Satoshi Kojima was splendid. Dan Lambert’s backstage promo ranting about AEW fans was wonderful. Ouch at Anderson getting busted open. Black destroying the Andersons was sweet. This week’s show was mostly very enjoyable overall.

AEW Rampage (August 27)
* AEW World Tag Team Championship Eliminator Tournament Finals – Lucha Bros vs. Jurassic Express – 4.0
* Tay Conti vs. The Bunny – 2.5
* Kenny Omega & Brandon Cutler vs. Christian Cage & Frankie Kazarian – 3.0
Overall – 3.5
Best – AEW World Tag Team Championship Eliminator Tournament Finals match.
Worst – The flat ending to the Tay Conti vs. The Bunny match.
Show Notes – Jungle Boy & Fenix’s suicide dives on opposite sides of the ring to the outside was cool. Fenix’s Eddie Guerrero tribute and getting some great height with his Frog Splash to Luchasaurus was sweet. Ouch at Fenix’s neck after Jungle Boy’s Poison Rana to him. Fenix’s Frankensteiner to Jungle Boy onto Penta & Luchasaurus to the outside was awesome. Holy crap at Penta’s Destroyer to Jungle Boy on the apron via Fenix assist. Lucha Bros vs. Jurassic Express was a fantastic fast paced action packed match. Post-match brawl with Young Bucks was okay. Punk vs. Allin match hype video package was superb. Miro’s promo disparaging Fuego Del Sol and ripping off his mask & brawl with Eddie Kingston was all right. Conti’s Pump Kick fest of The Bunny was nice. Conti vs. The Bunny was mostly solid despite the flat ending shenanigans. Penelope Ford joining the Hardy Family Office is interesting. Brian Cage vs. Powerhouse Hobbs match hype video was all right. Omega, Callis, Cage, & Kazarian pre-match backstage interview was fine. Cutler’s comedic antics and selling during the main event tag match was funny. Omega & Cutler vs. Cage & Kazarian was an entertaining match that had some good comedic moments. This week’s show was very enjoyable overall.

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NJPW, Impact, & Other Wrestling

Impact Wrestling (August 26)
* Chris Sabin vs. Sami Callihan – 3.0
* Chris Bey vs. David Finlay – 3.0
* 3-on-1 Handicap match – Taylor Wilde vs. The Influence (Tenille Dashwood, Madison Rayne, & Kaleb with a K) – 2.5
* Good Brothers (Doc Gallows & Karl Anderson) vs. Rich Swann & Willie Mack – 3.0
Overall – 3.0
Best – Chris Bey vs. David Finlay match.
Worst – The mic audio issues during Tommy Dreamer’s portion of the Christian Cage, Dreamer, & Ace Austin in-ring promo segment and the annoying “what” chants from the crowd during it.
Show Notes – Callihan’s powerbomb to Sabin onto the ring post was cool. Sabin vs. Callihan opener was a pretty good back-and-forth style match. Post-match Moose ambush & brawl with Eddie Edwards was fine. Wilde backstage interview about her upcoming handicap match was okay. Mickie James & Deonna Purrazzo promo segment about NWA Empowerrr & Purrazzo vs. Melina match & brawl with Melina was all right. Brian Myers & Sam Beale wrestling gear lesson segment was funny. Bey’s cravat & suplex combo to Finlay was cool. Finlay’s Uranage backbreaker to Bey looked brutal. Bey vs. Finlay was a quite good action filled match. Josh Alexander backstage interview about his title win at Emergence & open challenge was all right. Christian Cage, Tommy Dreamer, & Ace Austin promo segment about Cage vs. Austin feud & Cage’s return to Impact as champ was splendid despite the audio quality issues mid-way & annoying “what” chants from a few guys in the crowd. Violent By Design promo segment blaming Rhyno for their current woes is interesting. Kaleb looks extra goofy with the sparkly tights gear. Dashwood’s knee to Wilde’s head looked vicious. Handicap match was mostly solid. Kimber Lee, & Su Yung spooky backstage attack to Brandi Lauren was decent. Matt Cardona & Chelsea Green backstage promo about Rohit Raju & Shera was okay. Anderson’s spinebuster to Swann was nice. Good Bros vs. Swann & Mack was an entertaining back-and-forth action match. This week’s show was enjoyable overall.

NJPW Strong “Summer Struggle USA” (August 27)
* Barrett Brown, Misterioso, & Bateman vs. The DKC, Adrian Quest, & Wheeler Yuta – 3.0
* Alexander James vs. Karl Fredericks – 3.0
* Team Filthy (Royce Isaacs, Jorel Nelson, JR Kratos, & “Filthy” Tom Lawlor) vs. Violence Unlimited (Chris Dickinson & Brody King), Lio Rush, & Juice Robinson – 3.5
Overall – 3.0
Best – Team Filthy vs. Violence Unlimited, Lio Rush, & Juice Robinson match.
Worst – N/A
Show Notes – 6-Man tag opener was an entertaining back-and-forth action match. James vs. Fredericks was a quite good hard hitting competitive bout. JR Kratos’ catch & Fallaway Slam counter to Rush onto King in the corner was cool. Rush, Robinson, & King cannonball fest to Nelson was nice. Team Filthy vs. Violence Unlimited, Rush, & Robinson was a very good action filled bout. Robinson post-match promo about Hikuleo & backstage brawl between the two was all right. This week’s show was enjoyable overall.

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Weekly Awards:

• Best match of the week – NXT UK Championship – Ilja Dragunov vs. WALTER (c) (NXT TakeOver 36)
• Best match of the week runner-up – AEW World Tag Team Championship Eliminator Tournament Finals – Lucha Bros vs. Jurassic Express (AEW Rampage)
• Worst match of the week – Boa vs. Xyon Quinn (WWE NXT)
• Worst match of the week runner-up – Bobby Lashley vs. Damian Priest (WWE RAW)
• Best show of the week – NXT TakeOver 36
• Worst show of the week – WWE RAW