It was not the equivalent of nor did it exceed WrestleMania.
First of all, Super Show-Down happened in Australia in the fall of 2018. Who made the call to remove the dash from the title this time around? WHO?
Very much did not enjoy the creepy off-site Super ShowDown Kickoff Show, though I did kind of love Rusev going for a local promo vibe, referencing what he’s done in JEDDAH in the past.
0. The Usos vs. The Revival
Just the most basic tag match but it’s so captivating seeing people jumping up and down for the most basic wrestling stuff. It’s not always the case a WWE match gets Korakuen Hall heat, and these two teams had some fun with it. Of course, because this show sucked, it slowly dissipated over the night, but for this match it was there. **3/4
Fireworks. So many sad, stupid, overpowering fireworks.
The Saudi commentator kicking the show off with, in English, “I thought Renee would butcher it [their names] but Corey did” was a low moment for WWE as a whole.
1. WWE Universal Title: Seth Rollins [c] vs. Baron Corbin
I was troubled by Corbin wearing button-up shirt in 100 degree weather. He worked over Rollins, whose ribs were taped. Yup. I think Seth did a tope anyways. Ref John Cone, who is low key one of the better performers in the company, snapping on Corbin to setup a rollup 3-count was a fine dumb finish to this slightly better-than-normal RAW TV match. **1/2
There was a lot of hoopla after the match with Brock Lesnar and the Money in the Bank and all that which resulted in nothing actually happening, and all I wrote for it was a single note:
Oh boy.
2. WWE Intercontinental Title: Demon Balor [c] vs. Andrade
Of course Demon Balor would have one of his greater entrances here, complete with cape and fake snow. He did a pretty crazy top rope DDT to setup the finish but otherwise this felt like a mailed in version of the fine match that these guys can have. Here’s to the 3 guys chanting NXT and This is Awesome. **3/4
3. Roman Reigns vs. Shane McMahon w/ Drew McIntyre
By God, this was actually Roman Reigns having a Roman Reigns match with SHANE MCMAHON. Like, Reigns actually sold a chinlock for him. I couldn’t believe it. And while Drew helped, he just LOST. To Shane McMahon. Sometimes I wonder, man. Sometimes I wonder. *
4. 3-on-1 Handicap Match: Lars Sullivan vs. Lucha House Party
Nothing more than you’d expect to be honest maybe even a bit less. Lucha House Party got some shots in, maybe even stiffed ol’ Lars who bled from the mouth, and then they bumped for him…. and then they actually ganged up on him and got DQ’d. Then he beat them up. DUD
5. Triple H vs. Randy Orton
There’s a tiny part of me that the build to this match was – “eh, this doesn’t really matter in the long run it’s just a match for our names. I got nothing new to say. Lol!”
These names were over in Saudi Arabia though. And they were going through the motions, but those motions exist because at some point these two were pretty good. It was probably a match that wouldn’t go over so well in a lot of markets back home, but but here it was occasionally over, though not as over as you think. Randy worked like he was in a B-town before intermission. And I know Triple H is Mr. Alpha Male, but he’s probably not a guy who should be going 25 minutes and taking backdrops on a table. I swear, this guy still has something to prove to the old man and it’s weird. Him keeping his leg on the second rope after the Orton DDT for the wide shot was a nice touch, otherwise whatever. RKO kickout Pedigree kickout blah blah blah. It’s good, but not that good. And I do appreciate that even Triple H realizes the bad optics of going over two of his protégés in a row. ***1/4
6. Braun Strowman vs. Bobby Lashley
Just a power guy match that ya used to be able to get away with for a regular PPV, but can now you can only get away with on this cheap-o SPECTACLE! **
6. WWE Title: Kofi Kingston [c] w/ Xavier Woods vs. Dolph Ziggler
It was like they were wrestling for the IC Title again, except not so exciting. Kofi took a nasty trust fall dive from the top, with Dolph maybe forgetting the trust part. These shows, man. Kofi clapping hands with all the kinds post-match was a good shot, but MAN. These shows. **1/4
7. 50-Man Battle Royal
Hey here’s an idea, it feels like it’s 100 degrees let’s pack 50 guys in the ring at the same time. Actually, apparently – 51.
If anything, this match really put into perspective how shitty WWE has done with their talent – there’s FIFTY-ONE GUYS here, only maybe three or four of which who don’t come off as complete losers. I think The Miz was the biggest star in the match, and he’s a star sure but damn, man.
I thought the Singh Brothers dancing as they were crowd surfed to elimination was funny. The AOP vs. Heavy Machinery vs. Viking Raiders showdown was a frustrating tease of something that could happen if anybody actually cared. Ali and Ricochet knocking Samoa Joe out was neat. I think the best bit of this whole match was Corey Graves finally just losing it, continuing his theme of guy getting delirious on these long sweaty Saudi shows. “Hey I’ve got called 41 hours of wrestling this week” – this is a man calling out for help while saying what sounds like the most awesome thing ever. The Ali/Mansoor/Ricohet vs. Joe/Cesaro/Elias showdown wasn’t the worst final 6., but outside of the one moment of all 51 folks going at it, it was a pretty trash match that went way too long for the little amount of anything that it actually had happen. Good for… Mansoor? Yikes. *1/2
8. The Undertaker vs. Goldberg
A bad, sad match. Bill, I get it – your son. But Mark? It’s not out of love for the business, right? Is it loyalty to Vince? Is it the payday? You’re still kind of going hard but nobody’s being put over. Mania isn’t even special because of you. You’re not just the guy that’s hanging on too long, you’re the guy that is doing it for these gross cash grabs. Dollars are dollars, I get it brother, but if you’re taking them maybe at least question the decision for you and ol Bill to be what the fans are sent home with? Maybe put yourself in a position to not have to quite “deliver”? Plus maybe you might not almost break your neck off a Jackhammer too.
The start of this was completely awesome – Goldberg throat slash, punch by Taker, spear by Goldberg, another spear for a near fall, Taker sit-up. And then Goldberg did an old man roll-through MMA thing where he appeared to hook his own damn leg at first, and then these old dudes just laid there in the heat for a bit as all the mystique disappeared, and then Goldberg went and busted his head open on a turnbuckle, which led to an already gassed guy feeling kind of not there, and it’s not like Taker can improvise anymore either. And they did a Tombstone where Goldberg landed awfully on his head after Taker seemed to be calling for some other spot, and then everybody just said fuck it and went home. DUD
An empty, lazy, soulless mess of a production after promises of easy, lazy grandeur – my God, it’s the wrestling show series the Trump Era deserves. Literally nothing worth actually watching here. An embarrassing wrestling show that made a lot of people a lot of money. 1/10
