SPOTLIGHTED PODCAST ALERT (YOUR ARTICLE BEGINS A FEW INCHES DOWN)...
WWE MAIN EVENT TV REPORT
JUNE 26, 2019
HULU STREAMING TV
REPORT BY MIKE F. MEYERS, PWTORCH CONTRIBUTOR
Announcers: Renee Young, Byron Saxton
REASONS TO WATCH…
- Witness the christening of Main Event Muscle Men.
- Can Dana Brooke rebound from her skull rebounding off a ringpost?
(1) DANA BROOKE vs. SARAH LOGAN
Brooke came down the ramp flexing, smiling, and high fiving. Renee declared, “Like a phoenix from the ashes,” referring to the head injury Brooke sustained against the ring post last week. Renee also told us that Logan said if she could injure Brooke again, she would, only slower.
Logan took command early on, knocking Brooke to the mat, stretching her briefly, and covering for a two-count. Logan tossed Brooke through the ropes out to ringside and promptly rolled her back into the ring, only to baseball slide at Brooke on the canvas, knocking her to the floor a second time. And again, Logan rolled her immediately back into the ring and applied an arm bar.
Brooke got to her feet, but Logan overpowered her efforts and slammed her back onto the mat without relinquishing the hold. Brooke managed a jawbreaker to bust free, but Logan immediately kneed Brooke in the shoulder, and covered her with a forearm across the face for a two-count.
Both wrestlers got to their feet and Brooke executed a head scissors takedown after doing a slow motion handspring off the ropes. After a failed schoolboy pin attempt by Brooke, Logan stomped Brooke square in the back, then delivered a right cross before howling at the lights. Logan scooped up Brooke and landed a tilt-a-whirl gutbuster.
Logan missed a running double knee lift in the corner, and bounced off the turnbuckles onto her back. Both wrestlers were slow to get up. Brooke gathered some mediocre momentum and took Logan down twice with clotheslines, but Logan interrupted the sequence with a forearm and head butt. Logan maneuvered Brooke out to the ring apron and positioned her near the corner – setting up a replay of last week’s mishap. Logan charged along the apron toward Brooke, but, predictably, Brooked dodged by hopping off the apron, then hooked Logan’s ankle, causing her to faceplant onto the canvas. Brooke scaled the corner to the top rope and landed a nice-looking swanton bomb, then covered Logan for the three-count.
WINNER: Dana Brooke by pinfall.
(Meyers’s Analysis: Eh, the match wasn‘t special. Clunkiness throughout. The only thing of interest is that they actually called back to last week‘s match, both on commentary and in the ring. (Brooke repeatedly pointed above her own eye, showing resilience against her injury.) The wrestlers had a moment of awkward confusion when they both got to their feet and didn’t know who was doing what. The crowd wasn’t hot for an obvious revenge angle – I’m curious if they bothered to show footage of last week’s match in the arena.)
-Main Event recap session:
- Recap of Rollins vs. Corbin from Stomping Grounds
- Replay of Rollins / Lynch in-ring promos from Raw, including Corbin / Evans interruption
- Replay of Reigns vs. Shane McMahon / McIntyre from Raw, including Undertaker run-in
- Replay of Styles vs. Ricochet from Raw
- Replay of Elias vs. Miz from Smackdown
- Replay of Ziggler vs. Kofi from Smackdown
(2) LUCHA HOUSE PARTY vs. ROBERT ROODE & EC3 & CESARO
Renee confirmed rumblings on Twitter than the Roode, EC3, and Cesaro have dubbed themselves “The Main Event Muscle Men.”
EC3 started against Dorado, and the crowd had a mild “EC3” chant going as the bell rang. LHP took charge immediately, triple teaming EC3 with quick tags in their own corner. They knocked Roode and Cesaro off the apron, then faked out the trio outside with the threat of a diving attack. Instead, LHP posed in unison for the crowd as we cut to commercial.
After the break, general chaos was ensuing. Big moves were delivered in rapid fire succession while Cesaro and Metalik remained the legal men. Metalik launched into a flying body splash but Cesaro intercepted with a European uppercut, knocking Metalik to the mat. Cesaro covered for a three-count.
WINNERS: Robert Roode, EC3, and Cesaro by pinfall.
(Meyers’s Analysis: This was short and pointless even by Main Event standards. Wait, did I say pointless? It established what will become the greatest faction of the 21st century: The Main Event Muscle Men! What’s nice about that name is that if these wrestlers ever get back onto the main roster, the term “main event” has multiple meanings and doesn’t necessarily have to be tied to this program. What are the odds of the phrase “Main Event Muscle Men” ever being uttered on Raw or Smackdown?)
SHOW SCORE (0-10): 6.1
FINAL THOUGHTS: If the company cared at all about Dana Brooke, they could’ve created an actual storyline around last week’s match against Sarah Logan. Naturally, they did not. I’d recommend tuning in to see the first appearance of MEMM, but that would be akin to buying issue #1 of Silver Sable and the Wild Pack: Nobody gives a shit. Hopefully they find strength in one another and win over some crowds.)
Hey!! Silver Sable and the Wild Pack was hot for about 7 issues….