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Arcademan:
WWE Tribute to the Troops: 12-19-09

Results courtesy of PWTorch.com (direct link). All highlights reposted here.

1 -- REY MYSTERIO & MARK HENRY vs. C.M. PUNK & CARLITO

Rey and Henry took turns dominating the match, with Henry getting in most of the offense. Rey then took a hot tag when Punk and Carlito tried to isolate Henry for a bit. It didn't work out, though, and Rey did his comeback routine before hitting the West Coast Pop on Carlito for the pin and the win. Rey jumped in Henry's arms after the victory to celebrate.

WINNERS: Mysterio & Henry in 5:00. Fine warm-up match to set the tone for the babyfaces conquering evil to inspire the troops and the viewers watching on NBC. (*)

Video package: They aired a photo album-style video with snapshots of the wrestlers interacting with the troops in a variety of different settings.

In-ring: Eve was in the ring and she introduced Santa Clause for a special presentation. Out came R-Truth rapping in a giant Santa suit. Truth proceeded to cut a promo about Santa putting on a few pounds because of the cookies and sweets. He then asked for something sweet and out came Layla, Alicia, Kelly Kelly, and the Bella Twins dressed in Santa's Helper outfits. They tossed out presents and handed out kisses to the troops.

Obama video: 20 minutes into the show, President Obama's brief message aired that WWE posted on their site this weekend. No mention of WWE. Just a basic message aimed at the troops.

Video package: They aired a lengthy video on the wrestlers interacting with the troops during their stay in Iraq earlier this month to film the show. Good video rightfully focusing on the troops that took up about three or four minutes.

Video package: They aired a few shots of the Army in action. This led to a message from General Petreaus, who aimed the message specifically at WWE for showcasing the troops on the trip. This was a longer message than Obama's and WWE included various action shots of the soldiers in action. Some troops were given air time to send messages back home.

In-ring: U.S. champion The Miz came to the ring for a singles match against former tag partner, John Morrison. Morrison was shown with the IC Title, which he lost to Drew McIntyre at the TLC PPV. Cole added on commentary that it was taped as a champion vs. champion match, but "many of the viewers know" that Drew McIntyre is the new champ.

2 -- U.S. champion THE MIZ vs. JOHN MORRISON -- non-title match

Miz knocked down Morrison early on, then Morrison came back with a dropkick into a standing Shooting Star Press for a two count. Morrison went up top, but Miz shoved Morrison off the top rope to the outside. Miz in control back in the ring and he let the troops know about it. Morrison tried to make a comeback, but Miz rolled him up near the ropes and put his feet on the ropes to secure a pin for the win with additional leverage. Cole let the mainstream audience know that's not allowed in WWE.

WINNER: The Miz in 4:00. Basic singles match with the heel getting the upper-hand this time around. Fine. (*)

Video package: They rolled footage of John Cena's promo addressing the troops. Various shots of Cena through the years wrestling on behalf of the military. Good video showcasing Cena's dedication to the cause for six years. Up next: WWE Title on the line (not really) with Cena vs. Chris Jericho.

In-ring: Chris Jericho came to the ring for the main event title match. No promo. John Cena then came out with possession of the WWE Title belt. Cole said in the voice-over commentary that Cena lost the title to the "up-and-coming" Sheamus at TLC on Sunday. Eve handled the formal ring intros for Jericho (boos) and Cena (all cheers in front of a favorable audience).

3 -- JOHN CENA vs. CHRIS JERICHO -- WWE Title match without the title

The bell sounded and Cena wanted a clean lock-up to start, but Jericho kicked him in the knees to begin working over Cena. They rolled credits at the bottom of the screen for Dave Finlay as talent producer and John Laurinaitis as VP of Talent. Michael Cole was credited for WWE.com. The wrestlers weren't credited since they're not protected by any form of a union despite being actors in a scripted entertainment TV series. But that's a discussion for another time. Jericho was in control going to break.

Jericho was in control out of the break. Cena then made his standard comeback and blocked a Jericho comeback to hit the Attitude Adjustment center ring. Cena made the cover for the win with good overcoming evil two out of three times on the show.

WINNER: Cena in 8:00. Fine, standard singles match. Just some basic wrestling on the show tonight while rightfully focusing on the troops. (*)

Video package: They closed the show with another video package focusing on the troops with some clips sprinkled in of the wrestlers interacting with the troops. The video ended with shots of the troops saluting the U.S. flag and a rapid-fire look at how the "arena" was set up on the base for the show. The closing shots were of Rey Mysterio body-surfing the troops, John Cena standing amongst the troops, and a shot of the U.S. flag.

Arcademan:
TNA Final Resolution PPV Results: 12-20-09

Results courtesy of PWTorch.com (direct link to Caldwell's ongoing report).

1 -- TNA tag champions BRITISH INVASION (DOUG WILLIAMS & BRUTUS MAGNUS) vs. MOTOR CITY MACHINEGUNS (ALEX SHELLEY & CHRIS SABIN) -- TNA tag title match
WINNERS: British Invasion at 11:50. Very good opening tag match. The highspots were in the context of the wrestlers trying to find any way to win a title match and the close nearfalls weren't over-done, but sold the Brits as being a tough tag team to defeat. (***1/2)

2 -- Knockouts champion ODB vs. TARA -- Knockouts Title match
WINNER: Tara at 5:40 to capture the Knockouts Title. Good, but brief title match. We'll see how Tara fares as champ. Another match with Awesome Kong seems inevitable. (*1/2)

3 -- FEAST OR FIRED match
WINNERS: Nash #1, Bashir #2, Samoa Joe #3, Rob Terry #4. Match time: 9:18. A bunch of spots, but some good "thrills" with the teases of who would grab the cases. Just fine. (*1/2)

4 -- TEAM 3D (BROTHER RAY & BROTHER DEVON) & JESSE NEAL & RHINO vs. HERNANDEZ & MATT MORGAN & SUICIDE & POPE D'ANGELO DINERO -- Elimination match
WINNER: Matt Morgan at 16:35. Fine match. This was above my personal expectations with a nicely laid-out multiple-man match. Morgan being re-established as a top star in TNA was a good move after TNA pushed him down the card. As for the three separate instances of chair shots to the head, I just don't get it. It's just sad, uneducated defiance. Not surprising from TNA and in a match featuring Team 3D. (**1/2)

5 -- SCOTT STEINER vs. BOBBY LASHLEY -- Last Man Standing match
WINNER: Lashley at 9:12. Another above-expectations match. They used the stipulation well, Steiner looked good in the ring despite an apparent leg injury, and Lashley actually looked half-way decent in the ring. Read: not as awkward. (**1/2)

6 -- RAVEN & DR. STEVIE vs. ABYSS & MICK FOLEY -- Foley's Funhouse Rules match
WINNERS: Abyss & Foley at 9:27. Not my flavor of match. At some point, you wonder why one of them doesn't just try to kill the other one instead of just inflicting mild injury. Every month, it seems like this feud will conclude, but every month, TNA books a new storyline for Richards to continue this feud with Abyss. (n/a)

7 -- KURT ANGLE vs. DESMOND WOLFE -- Three Degrees of Pain match
WINNER: Angle at 26:17, winning the second and third falls. Another excellent wrestling showcase, especially the second fall with the submission hold exchanges. Of course, it's always tough to watch Angle in the ring because his body is pretty much in shambles, but TNA continues to roll him out there and he continues to deliver very good wrestling matches. Wolfe didn't lose too much since he only "lost" because he couldn't get out of a cage faster than Angle. Since it appears Angle will be moving into the TNA title picture, let's hope Wolfe isn't lost in the shuffle in the follow-up. (****1/4)

8 -- TNA World Hvt. champion A.J. STYLES vs. DANIELS -- TNA World Title match
WINNER: Styles at 21:05. An excellent showcase singles match featuring two of TNA's top wrestlers. Daniels stepped up his game on the big stage and Styles continues to deliver in big-time matches. Styles is simply one of the best showmen in the ring with the combination of charisma, high-impact moves, lightning-fast counters, and good in-ring psychology. The match told a good, complete story focusing on the "personal feud" aspect of the match's storyline. TNA presented a very good one-two punch to end the show, just like last month. No run-ins, no over-booking, no silliness to distract from four of their best workers doing their thing in the ring. A very satisfying conclusion to a very satisfying PPV. (****1/2)

Arcademan:
WWE RAW Results: 12-21-09

Results courtesy of PWTorch.com (direct link to Caldwell's complete results). Condensed here to in-ring results only.

1 -- GAIL KIM & KELLY KELLY & MELINA vs. MARYSE & JILLIAN HALL & ALICIA FOX

The divas were dressed in not-PG TV Santa's Little Helpers outfits. The action broke down after two minutes of basic stuff, then Gail Kim drop-kicked Kelly on top of Maryse for the pin and the win.

WINNERS: Team Kelly at 2:15. Just some moves. Cole laughed and giggled. Lawler made his remarks. Just what you would expect for a "warped Christmas special" edition of Raw. (n/a)

2 -- RANDY ORTON & CODY RHODES & TED DIBIASE vs. EVAN BOURNE & MARK HENRY & KOFI KINGSTON

Legacy took control early on and they quickly went to a commercial break.

Back from break, Bourne took a hot tag and cleaned house on Legacy. Bourne then hit a top rope Shooting Star Press on Rhodes and he had a pin, but DiBiase broke up the pin. The action broke down and Legacy took advantage in the confusion. Legacy began tagging in and out working over Bourne, but Kofi took a hot tag and cleaned house on Orton. Kofi flew off the second rope with a dropkick to the knees before connecting with the Boom Drop center ring. Kofi made a cover, but Rhodes broke it up. Henry then smashed Rhodes out of the ring. In the meanwhile, DiBiase tagged in and ate the Trouble in Paradise. Kofi then made the cover for the win as the announcers put over Kofi. Meanwhile, Orton sold disbelief on the outside.

WINNERS: Team Kofi at 10:23. Pretty good two-segment match. They went back to focusing on Kofi to set up another round of Orton vs. Kofi down the road. Evan Bourne also had a moment to shine coming out of the commercial. Fine match to re-establish Kofi. (*3/4)

3 -- JACK SWAGGER vs. JOHN CENA

Swagger started in control with amateur holds, then Cena took control going to an early break.

Back from break, Swagger was in control after taking a shortcut to gain control during the break. Cena tried to fight back, but Swagger cut him off repeatedly. Swagger then locked in a double underhook submission hold bending Cena's shoulders back. Cena tried to power to his feet in a squat-position at they hit the top of the hour.

Cena broke the Masterlock to make his comeback with a belly-to-belly suplex at the top of the hour. Good picture of a heated wrestling match for viewers flipping channels at the end of 9:00 p.m. EST programming. Swagger then cut off Cena again and delivered a running Vader Bomb out of the corner for a close two count. If anything, Swagger has at least been positioned as equal to Cena tonight. Swagger, upset, waited for Cena to get up, then he wanted his gutwrench powerbomb, but Cena blocked and back dropped Swagger. Cena then made his full-fledged comeback and set up the "You Can't See Me" routine.

Cena tried the Attitude Adjustment, but Swagger countered into a running powerslam after running Cena into the top turnbuckle. Nice sequence. The crowd sensed they needed to rally Cena with a chant, then Swagger took Cena up top. Cena blocked a superplex and knocked Swagger off the top rope before airballing a guillotine leg drop. Swagger then tried his running Vader Bomb again, but Cena moved and locked in the STF center ring. Swagger stayed motionless in the hold, then tapped out after seven seconds.

WINNER: Cena via submission at 12:30. Solid TV match. One of those matches where it could have gone another five minutes and not worn out its welcome, as it felt like Cena and Swagger were building to another memorable Raw TV singles match after the April match-up. Swagger looked good with plenty of offense and counters to Cena's usual routine sequences. Nice to see WWE putting Swagger in a position to look good in this match-up. Now, the key is the follow-up. (**1/2)

4 -- CHRIS MASTERS (w/Eve) vs. CARLITO

The bell sounded and Masters teased the Masterlock, but Carlito grabbed the ropes to block. Masters teased the Masterlock again, but Carlito kicked him away. Masters tried again, but Carlito blocked. Masters then caught Carlito off the ropes and locked in the Masterlock on his fourth try. Crowd still not into it, then Carlito faded out to give Masters the win. Post-match: Masters tried to pump up the crowd after his win. Eve then walked into the ring and congratulated him. She then pulled out mistletoe from her boot and planted a kiss on Masters. He responded by flexing his pecs uncontrollably. Get it? Instead of an erection, Masters's pecs become uncontrollable.

WINNER: Masters via submission at 1:45. Just a bizarre deal. At least it's memorable. Masters is a one-move wonder as a babyface. WWE certainly hopes the Eve association will get fans into Masters's character, but it needs time. (n/a)

5 -- WWE champion SHEAMUS vs. MVP -- non-title match

The bell sounded and Sheamus instantly attacked MVP to take control of the match. Sheamus measured MVP for a corner attack, but MVP moved and Sheamus ate the turnbuckle shoulder-first. MVP then kicked Sheamus across the shoulder and dropped him with a jawbreaker. MVP set up the Ballin' elbow drop, but Sheamus popped to his feet and delivered his big bicycle kick to the face. Sheamus then set up MVP and connected with the running Celtic Cross for the pin and the win.

WINNER: Sheamus at 2:25. They needed to make Sheamus look strong to keep establishing him as a credible act considering the quick rise to WWE Titleholder. Tough spot for MVP, who was here to enhance Sheamus and not get himself over. (*)

6 -- U.S. champion THE MIZ vs. SANTINO CLAUSE MARELLA -- non-title match

The bell sounded and Miz attacked Santino Clause to beat him down. Lawler said this could scare children. This whole show could scare kids. Miz pounded Santino into the corner before hitting a neckbreaker. Miz then wanted a running clothesline, but Santino ducked before doing the splits to hit an armdrag. Santino then climbed to the second rope and missed with his sailor's salute diving splash. Miz followed up with the Skullcrushing Finale on Santino Clause for the win. Post-match: Miz grabbed Santino's sack and smashed the toys inside. He then punted the sack across the ring, stealing Orton's gimmick.

WINNER: The Miz at 2:13. Just a squash to get heat on Miz for beating up Clause and ruining the kids's Christmas week. Santino was at least half-way entertaining because he's Santino. (n/a)

Arcademan:
Ring of Honor TV Results: 12-21-09

Results courtesy of PWTorch.com (direct link to DeRosenroll's complete report). Condensed here to in-ring results only.

1 - CHRIS HERO (w/Shane Hagadorn and Sara Del Rey) vs. KYLE O'REILLY
 
Dave Prazak mentioned that O'Reilly has wrestled on some recent ROH live events and that wrestling Hero was a great opportunity in his HDNet debut. O'Reilly used superior quickness to show well in the early going with a arm drag, a drop kick and some other strikes. Hero rolled outside for a breather at 1:00, but O'Reilly chased him outside. Hero ran around the ring and rolled back inside. As O'Reilly followed him back in, Hagadorn and Del Rey grabbed his ankles, forcing him to pause on the apron to shake them off. This gave Hero an opening to land a running kick, sending O'Reilly crashing back to the outside. Hero now took control of the match and worked over O'Reilly with his trademark strikes, while playing the overconfident heel. O'Reilly ducked a running forearm strike at 3:30 and came back at Hero was a series of strikes of his own. O'Reilly hit a swinging DDT for a near fall at 4:30. O'Reilly signaled that he was going to attempt a finisher by making the garrote gesture over his neck, but before he could land another move Hero came back with a rolling elbow out of nowhere, followed by the Death Blow spinning elbow and the pin.

WINNER: Hero in 5:00. Average match designed to make O'Reilly look like more than just another jobber. O'Reilly got a decent amount of offense, but didn't sell as much for Hero as he could have. I did not like that, when O'Reilly made his comeback after Hero's sustained beating, he popped up and went on the offense as though Hero had not done a thing to him.

2 - NECRO BUTCHER vs. JOEY RYAN (w/Prince Nana and Ernesto Osiris)

Dave Prazak said that Ernie Osiris was now known as Ernesto. Necro came to the ring carrying a traffic cone. The announcers discussed whether getting his with a traffic cone would do any damage. Referee Todd Sinclair made Necro put away the traffic cone. As Necro argued with the referee, Ryan tried for a sneak attack but Necro saw it coming and beat Ryan to the punch. This gave Necro the advantage of the bell sounded, and he beat Ryan all around the ring in the early going. At 0:30, Ryan caught Necro with a thumb to the eye to switch the advantage. Ryan worked over Necro heel style for a short while, until Necro caught Ryan's foot on a kick attempt, kicked Ryan in the gut and threw him to the outside at 1:30. Necro followed Ryan outside and got big pops from the crowd by repeatedly throwing Ryan over the guardrail into the front row. Necro threw Ryan back into the ring at 3:30 but, as Necro tried to climb in after him, Osiris hit Necro with a running double axehandle while the referee's back was turned looking at Ryan. Necro turned to go after Ryan, giving Ryan an opportunity to go back to Necro's eyes and regain the advantage. Ryan then got another sustained spell of heel offence, using tactics like choking Necro and distracting the referee so Prince Nana could get a cheap shot.

At 8:00, Ryan went to the top rope, but Necro had enough gas in the tank to grab the tope rope, causing Ryan to slip and crotch himself on the turnbuckle. Necro then brought Ryan down to the mat with a hurricanrana. Osiris jumped on the apron to create a distraction while Nana tossed Ryan a bag of white powder, which Ryan tossed in Necro's eyes. However, the referee turned away from Osiris in time to see Ryan throw the powder and immediately disqualified Ryan.

WINNER: Necro Butcher by disqualification in 8:30. Just an okay match, but the crowd seemed into Necro and the match served a purpose in building heat for the Embassy.

3 - COLT CABANA vs. CLAUDIO CASTAGNOLI (w/Prince Nana and Ernesto Osiris) - Pick 6 Contenders Series Match
 
Cabana caught Castagnoli unaware with a school boy at the opening bell to almost break the record for fastest pin of all time. Castagnoli recovered, and the two began a series of back-and-forth exchanges of chain wrestling and mat wrestling. Interestingly, Cabana wrestled a more European style than Castagnoli in these exchanges. Cabana had most of the advantage through these exchanges, giving him an opportunity to showcase his unique style. The story they told was of Cabana consistently getting the better of Castagnoli in these scientific exchanges and Castagnoli getting progressively more frustrated until finally, at 4:30, Castagnoli slapped Cabana in the face and bailed out of the ring. Cabana followed, chased Castagnoli around the ring, Castagnoli rolled back into the ring and, as Cabana tried to follow, Nana grabbed Cabana's ankle. This allowed Castagnoli to hit Cabana with a European uppercut to switch the momentum. This is exactly the same way Shane Hagadorn helped Chris Hero turn the momentum in the opening match, and the third straight match where the heel used an outside distraction to gain the advantage.

Castagnoli worked Cabana over heel style for a while, deploying a lot of elbow drops, chin locks and strikes. The kids in the crowd chanted for a Cabana comeback, the adults not so much. Cabana mounted a comeback at 8:00 by catching Castagnoli's foot on a running boot attempt and striking back at Castagnoli. Cabana had a short flurry of offence, but Castagnoli cut off the comeback by catching Cabana in a cross body attempt and countering it into a spinning backbreaker. Castagnoli tried for his Ricola bomb finisher, but Cabana slipped out of his grasp, landed a couple of quick strikes and then caught Castagnoli with a leverage pin for the win.

WINNER: Cabana in 9:30 to capture a spot in the Pick 6. Pretty good match, but lacking the drama and intensity of a typical ROH TV main event. It was entertaining for what it was though. Cabana is a unique and special talent in the wrestling industry and seems to have good chemistry with Castagnoli.

Arcademan:
ECW on SyFy Results: 12-22-09

Results courtesy of PWTorch.com (direct link to Caldwell's complete report). Condensed here to in-ring results only.

1 -- ZACK RYDER (w/Rosa Mendes) vs. TOMMY DREAMER

Dreamer started with a shoulder tackle, then an arm drag and another one. The announcers talked up Ryder's performance against Kane last week. Meanwhile, Dreamer clotheslined Ryder to the outside and Rosa ran interference, which allowed Ryder to fling Dreamer off the apron to the floor. Back in the ring, Ryder made a cover for a one count. Ryder then followed with a Rough Ryder leg lariat for a two count. The action moved up top and Dreamer executed a superplex. Both men took a breather, then came to their feet and Dreamer went on the offensive. Dreamer executed a powerslam, but Ryder kicked out. Ryder then caught Dreamer with a knee, but Dreamer caught him in mid-air and catapulted Ryder into the corner. Dreamer then hung Ryder upside down in the corner and measured Ryder for the trademark "E-C-W" running basement kick. He suddenly ripped off his ECW t-shirt and chucked it into the crowd. Dreamer then got caught in the ropes and Ryder nailed the Zack Attack for the pin and the win.

WINNER: Ryder in 5:00. Solid TV match for Dreamer if this was indeed his final WWE TV match. Dreamer surprisingly had plenty of offense and got in his signature spots in the match. The story WWE can play up, though, is Ryder having the bragging rights on "retiring" Dreamer. (*1/4)

2 -- VANCE ARCHER vs. GOLDUST -- ECW Homecoming qualifying match

Archer delivered intense offense early on as Mathews continued with the wordy sentences to describe Archer. Goldust made a comeback at 2:00 and hit his drop-down uppercut before tossing Arch across the ring for a two count. Archer then came back with his flip-over (step one) swinging reverse DDT (step two) for the pin and the win. It's an easy move to counter with proper "scouting" in a storyline context. They cut backstage to a shot of ECW champ Christian watching intently on a monitor.

WINNER: Archer in 3:00. Not much here. Quick match to give Archer a relatively strong win to advance to the Homecoming. (n/a)

3 -- YOSHI TATSU vs. JACK SWAGGER -- ECW Homecoming qualifying match

Swagger started with amateur holds to ground Yoshi on the mat. He followed with some clubbing forearms to the back, then fed his knee to Yoshi for a quick roll-up attempt for a two count. Yoshi followed with a kick attempt, but Swagger grabbed his leg and rammed him into the corner to inflict punishment. Swagger then applied a hammerlock to work over the elbow. Yoshi fought out, but Swagger knocked him back to the mat and went back to the mat with submission holds. Swagger then teased the gutwrench bomb, but Yoshi slipped out and teased his finisher, but Swagger bailed to the corner. Yoshi stood his ground in a fighting stance as Swagger recovered and caught his breath.

Back from break, Swagger was still in control as the crowd tried to rally up Yoshi with a "Yoshi" chant. Swagger silenced that with a belly-to-back side suplex for a two count before executing a belly-to-belly suplex. Steiner...er...Swagger did push-ups to taunt Yoshi before delivering a clubbing forearm to the back. Swagger then went back to work on the shoulder with another mat hold.

At the top of the hour, Yoshi broke free, but Swagger nailed him in the back and continued to inflict punishment with forearms. Yoshi tried to come back with kicks, but Swagger responded with a kick strike to the mid-section. Swager then missed with a clothesline and Yoshi suddenly had a burst of energy to deliver a bunch of dropkicks that rendered Swagger's back work meaningless. Yoshi then hit a wheelbarrow bulldog drop ala Rey Mysterio for a two count. Yoshi followed with his rolling kick strike attempt, but Swagger ducked. Yoshi then wanted a corner attack and he elbowed Swagger off the top before hitting a spin kick for a two count. Swagger came back with a running Vader Bomb in the corner, but Yoshi grabbed the bottom rope to block a three count. Swagger argued with the ref, then slowly approached Yoshi, who blasted him out of nowhere with the buzzsaw kick for the pin and the win. And everyone dance. Yoshi is going to Homecoming.

WINNER: Yoshi Tatsu in 14:00. Back-to-back nights where Swagger had plenty of offense in long-form matches, but ultimately lost. Going back to Superstars five days ago, that's three losses in five days in long-form matches. As for the match, it had a strong finish, but Yoshi no-selling all of Swagger's back and shoulder work early in the match was frustrating. It felt like a complete waste of seven minutes watching Swagger methodically work the body parts before Yoshi shook it off and he was completely fine. It's one of those frustrating things about long-form WWE matches - the "Batista babyface formula match" - where the early match work doesn't come into play at the end. (**)

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