WWE Super Show-Down Review 10/06/2018

Hello Misfits! It’s the Wrestling Classic here with my review for Super Show-Down. I was 8-1-1 with my predictions for this show. I made one wrong prediction and another match ended in DQ. This is WWE’s first big event in Australia as they sell out the MCG in front of 70, 000 fans. The card is stacked with fun matches but similar to the Greatest Royal Rumble earlier this year, has the potential to come off as a glorified house show. However, it has the potential to be super entertaining and I don’t doubt it at all. Raw has had a lot of chaos going on weekly and their matches consist of tag matches to settle the score. The blue brand has been filled with personal and intense feuds, that come to a head tonight as well. Of course there is the last time ever match between Triple H and The Undertaker with Shawn Michaels and Kane at ringside. How will this break down? Will it lead to the rumoured Crown Jewel tag match that would be bringing Shawn Michaels out of retirement? Lets find out.

Image via WWE.com

This show is coming to us from the Melbourne Cricket Ground in Melbourne, Australia.

– The show opened up with great hype video for the event

– Michael Cole, Corey Graves and Renee Young are the commentators for all the matches tonight.

WWE Tag Team Championship
The New Day (C) def. The Bar
in 09:38 by pin fall
This was the right match to open the show as the New Day always get the crowd going and their chemistry with The Bar is great. Kofi Kingston and Xavier Woods were the two representing The New Day for this match. This was a good action packed back and forth battle. These two teams kicked it in high gear and never slowed it down. The New Day was able to retain after Xavier Woods hit the backstabber followed by a double knee stomp by Kofi Kingston. I was rooting for the Bar but I wasn’t expecting any huge title changes on this show and I’m sure they’ll be meeting again with a rematch down the road.

Smackdown Women’s Championship
Charlotte Flair def. Becky Lynch (C)
in 10:50 by disqualification
This has been one of my favourite feuds on Smackdown Live these past few weeks. I also know how well Charlotte and Becky Lynch work together. This was when I realized they were cutting times on entrances because the walk down was long and Becky’s music hit before Charlotte even got to the ring. Becky continued to show her more aggressive and violent side. Charlotte and Becky continue to show how well they know each other by countering each others moves and being one step ahead of the other. The fans were still strongly behind Becky Lynch even though she worked this match more like a heel. The finish was a very live event heel finish to allow the champion to keep the title while still losing. Becky started hitting Charlotte with the championship belt while she locked in the figure eight. This was a smart way to allow them to work with each other at this event but still set up a future match at Evolution.

Bobby Lashley & John Cena def. Elias & Kevin Owens
in 10:05 by pin fall
Elias played a little thunderstruck on his guitar in their pre-match promo which was really cool. Owens complained that this show should have been in Canada. Lashley interrupted Owens and Elias as they tried to tear down Australia. I honestly love and am surprised by the chemistry between Owens and Elias. John Cena came out with new gear and new hair. The hair makes him look like JBL but I’m sure its for his movie he’s filming in Japan with Jackie Chan. Lashley worked all the heat during this match and took all the bumps for his team. Cena got his tag and hit his signature moves for the win. I would have just said his five moves of doom but he added sixth one which I can’t describe but it was basically an over exaggerated punch. I can’t even hate on it cause I reacted to it in laughter and since it got a reaction out of me, I would be a hypocrite to mock it. This was your typical live event match but it was fun. It got Owens, Elias and Lashley on the card and allowed the Aussie crowd to see Cena. Cena cut a promo after the match calling the WWE is home and that’ll he’ll always remember his roots.

The IIconics def. Naomi & Asuka
in 05:45 by pin-fall
This was Peyton Royce and Billie Kay’s big homecoming match. The fans were strongly behind them. This match wasn’t long and decent at best. This was great because it allowed Royce and Kay to wrestle in their own home country in front of their friends and family for the first time. I wasn’t expecting this to be a show stealer but it was good for what it was. I was glad that Royce and Kay won and not at the expense of Asuka. It was happy moment for the heels.

WWE Championship
AJ Styles (C) def. Samoa Joe
in 23:45 by submission
This was another great match between these two. It felt personal and they played off the story we’ve been seeing over these past few weeks very well. These two have great in-ring psychology and some awesome call backs to their previous matches. They even got a bit hardcore with chair and table spots. Styles mouth got busted open which added to the violent nature between the two. The match kicked off with AJ just going after Joe for revenge but once Joe got control he held it pretty steadily until it seemed as if his knee went out. They played that story really well, even allowing us to hear Joe say that his knee popped. This added another chapter to the story being told in this match as we saw AJ viciously attack the knee but Joe continuing to find a way to counter Styles offence into the Coquina Clutch. They teased the HIAC finish with Styles getting a cradle of Coquina Clutch but instead he counters it into a calf crusher on the bad leg to force Joe to tap out. I really enjoyed this match and it felt PPV quality. It sucks that we most likely won’t see Joe get another shot for the next few months. However, AJ Styles remains champion continuing this historic reign and his next opponent is definitely a dream match.

Ronda Rousey & The Bella Twins def. The Riott Squad
in 10:05 by submission
The Aussie fans were excited to see Raw Women’s Champion Ronda Rousey and so was I. Every PPV event, Rousey looks better and better and this was no different. There was some confusion between Ronda and Nikki about who should start and the Bella Twins seemed to have been tagging each other in rather than tagging a hyped on Rousey. These seemed like things to start planting more seeds for the potential Rousey vs. Nikki match. The Riott Squad worked as a cohesive unit and just come off stronger as a team than The Bella Twins and Rousey. I loved all the moment with Liv Morgan and Brie Bella since all the controversial talk about Brie injuring Morgan. Brie pulling Morgan’s blue tongue was also something new that we’ve never seen before but was funny. The match ended when Rousey finally got tagged in and just murdered everyone until the number game got against her. The Bella’s evened the odds but Liv Morgan and Sarah Logan again got the two on one advantage on Rousey. It didn’t matter though because Rousey took care of both of them, by locking on a double arm-bar making both girls tap out. There was no tension or heat between Nikki and Ronda after the match but it sent the crowd home happy.

Cruiserweight Championship
Buddy Murphy def. Cedric Alexander (C)
in 10:35 by pin fall
This had to be the best match of the night. It was a marathon of non-stop action. This was Buddy Murphy’s hometown as he was actually born and raised in Melbourne. There were so many near falls and moments during this match in which it looked like it was over but wasn’t the case. This was also the first time we’ve really seen Cedric Alexander get frustrated and really feel conflicted with not having the crowd behind him. This is one of the coolest comeback stories for Murphy. He was pretty much irrelevant and left for dead on NXT after splitting from his team team partner Blake. He appeared on 205 Live and totally reinvented himself to reach this point where he wins the Cruiserweight Championship in his own hometown. This was a great effort between two guys who knew they didn’t have a lot of time but found a way to give us an entertaining and memorable cruiserweight match. If people weren’t watching 205 Live this might get them into it because it was a great match.

The Shield def. Braun Strowman, Dolph Ziggler & Drew McIntyre
in 19:40 by pin fall
This was exactly what you would expect it to be. It chaotic, action-packed and layered with stories. I enjoyed this a lot. This wasn’t a classic Shield with the advantage most of the time style of match but Braun, Ziggler and McIntyre looked great as well. Quite frankly, it looked as if they Shield was fighting from the bottom and just did enough to get the victory. The two teams brawled before the bell rang outside of the ring which almost led to a triple power bomb on Braun Strowman. Seth Rollins worked the heat for A LOT of the match. Strowman, Ziggler and McIntyre kept Rollins in grasp for a good chuck of this match. We would see Rollins fight back mostly after being taunted by Ziggler but it would be some time before he made the tag. Braun was usually the one to stop Rollins when he got momentum but took a risk doing a splash off the top rope which allowed Rollins to tag Ambrose. This is when everything picked up again in chaotic fashion. Reigns hit a superman punch on Ambrose by accident and they began teasing Ambrose turning on them again. When Rollins and Reigns were outnumbered they had Ambrose jump on the apron the same way their three opponents did to surround them. For a brief moment it made you wonder if Dean was going to join them to beat down his Shield brothers, but instead he jumped in with his focus on Strowman. Later in the match we saw Reigns and Rollins save Ambrose at two different occasions which eventually lead to their victory. This was a fun match and everyone worked their asses off. The middle part did seem kind of long but it didn’t take anything away from the match.

Number One Contender Match
Daniel Bryan def. The Miz
in 02:25 by pin fall
Well, that was fast and unexpected. These guys came in and were back and forth right off the bat. The Miz tried cutting a promo before the match but was cut off by Bryan making his entrance. There was one near fall when Miz hit Daniel Bryan’s running knee on Bryan. I really enjoyed the banter between Renee Young and Corey Graves during this match as Corey was team Miz whereas Renee was team Bryan. Bryan countered a Skull Crushing Finale into a small cradle for a surprise win. Bryan proved that he can out-wrestle Miz and got his revengeful victory after months of surprising losses to The Miz. I don’t know what this means for their story but I am sure that Daniel Bryan will be facing AJ Styles at Crown Jewel for the WWE Championship.

Triple H w/ Shawn Michaels def. Undertaker w/ Kane
in 27:35 by pin fall
This is it. This is the last time ever match between Triple H and The Undertaker. If Wrestlemania 28 was an end of an era these are the final words on the chapter. Rumours are swirling that Shawn Michaels might come out of retirement for a future tag match based off of this match and feud. Triple H faced The Undertaker for the first time in 1996 and The Game has not been able to beat The Phenom since 2002. Kane is in Undertaker’s corner and Shawn Michaels is in Triple H’s corner. This match was good but might have been longer than it should have. Prior to the bell ringing, Jojo announced that it was now a No Disqualification match. This new stipulation really helped this match go on longer and added to the story. Shawn Michaels seemed a lot more helpful during this match than Kane. Kane had a few moments which were important to the match in helping The Undertaker and taking one of the bigger bumps but Michaels was a lot more involved. There were a lot of times where it felt like two on one match. There were some near falls off of finishers. Both Taker and Hunter hitting some of their greatest hits. There was old school, hells gate, spine busters and even the appearance of Triple H’s favourite weapon of choice, the sledgehammer. These two even brawled around the arena for a bit. Although Taker looked blown up early in the match he carried his own to the finish. It took a sweet chin music and pedigree for them to put the Phenom down but in the end Triple H finally beat the Undertaker. The two showed respect for each other after the match and all four of them posed together to pyro and a standing ovation. Undertaker and Kane then attacked Triple H and Shawn Michaels after the match. Undertaker hit Triple H with a tombstone and choke-slammed Shawn Michaels outside through the commentators table.

Final Thoughts
This was a fun show and a lot better than The Greatest Royal Rumble. There was a lot of good matches during this show. It was good showcase of the WWE for the Australia crowd. They definitely sent the crowd home happy while still continuing to keep their current storylines and angles in tact. This took place in a stadium so it had that big show feel but I didn’t leave it feeling like I just watched a Wrestlemania, let a lone Summerslam, Royal Rumble or Survivor Series. Of course this might be the first of many and I really enjoyed it for a Saturday evening or Sunday morning viewing. There is something on here for all fans. Everyone should check out the Cruiserweight championship match. Current fans would love the Shield match and the Styles/Joe match. Old school fans will really love the main event. Check it out.
Final Rating – 7/10

What were your final thoughts on Super Show-Down? What final grade would you give the event? Where would you rate it on a scale of ten? Do you agree with my review? Leave your comments, opinions and thoughts below in the comments section.