Money in the Bank Review

How's it going Marks and Smarks alike?

So last night was WWE's Money in the Bank PPV, and personally I enjoyed the PPV a lot. As a fan absorbed in the action, it was full of twists and turns, with a few blips here and there. Let's take a look at how everything unfolded.

Pre-Show Matchup: The Hype Bros (Mojo Rawley and Zack Ryder) def. The Colons (Primo and Epico) (Predicted:Hype Bros)

The crowd was definitely into Mojo and Ryder right away, and having the Colons focus on Ryder's previously injured leg was a good story to tell. The competitors knew their job was to get the crowd rolling and, while not exactly a barnburner, they did the job well. Nothing spectacular, but a good start. Ryder looked pretty good, albeit a bit rusty, and Mojo was "hype." The Hype Bros probably need some more build before they try to take advantage of that overdue title opportunity, but otherwise a good start. Only problem? I thought the Colons were supposed to be revamped and not fed. Oh well!

Rating: 5 out of 10

Opening Contest: Carmella w/James Ellsworth becomes the First Ms. Money in the Bank def. Becky Lynch, Charlotte, Natalya, and Tamina (Prediction: TBD)

From what I've read on Twitter, seen on Instagram, and perused around the various dirt sheets and such, MANY many people were complaining about this finish. Unless you had the same complaints about Charlotte winning at WrestleMania 32 with the help of her dad, you have no reason to complain.

Personally, while I wasn't the happiest person with the decision, I think it made perfect sense storyline wise. Yeah, the "Welcoming Committee" didn't exactly exist in this match, but it's every human for themselves in a match like this. No one has time logically to actually trust someone when everyone is gunning for the same prize.

Tamina stood out in the early going and it's high time. She hit a sweet guillotine using a ladder in the beginning and truly came off as a force to be reckoned with. As the match went along, you had a weird spot with Becky and Natalya bickering while holding a ladder (nice touch), Carmella trapping Charlotte in the ladder and starting to climb (a bit early in the match for my taste but that's nitpicking), and (point blank no shame) Charlotte hit an outside version of Twisted Bliss that was perfect.

Now lets address that ending: James Ellsworth tips over the ladder to make Becky Lynch fall. That was great!
James Ellsworth Climbs the ladder himself and grabs the briefcase. That was great for a Marylander.
James Ellsworth drops the briefcase to Carmella. That.....is the talking point.

You can make the argument that there are no rules and that it was totally legal. You can also make the counter argument that it diminishes the match and the credibility of the women because it was a man that climbed the ladder and retrieved the briefcase.

Personally, it didn't diminish the match. The fact that the women actually got to do this match was awesome. The ending was the best way to give the heel heat in the match. Think about it: it's been difficult to attach some worthwhile heat on Tamina and Natalya, while Becky and Charlotte honestly don't need the element of surprise.

I had predicted on Sunday that it was going to be someone else climbing the briefcase. So I'm taking credit for that. I can't say I expected Ellsworth to actually pull the briefcase down.

Rating 7.5 out of 10

Match 2:The New Day(Kofi Kingston and Big E w/Xavier Woods) def. The Usos(Jimmy and Jey) via countout for the Smackdown Tag Team Championships (I had the Usos retaining via DQ)

This match was a standard middle PPV match. Good opening promo and very good old school separation by the Usos on Kingston. Big E is awesome for a hot tag, but man I get scared everytime he does that spear through the ropes. There are very few moves I regularly get nervous about and that spot still gets me everytime. The finish left more to be desired, which was what I wanted out of this match. It will be interesting to see how this continues between not only these two teams, but with the rest of the Tag Team Division starting to heat up as well.
For the record, Kingston's "Trust Fall" Dive is really growing on me. It's a different dive that we as fans aren't as exposed to. Half a rotation and he would have reminded me of Hector Garza's Tornillo Dive he used to do in WCW.

Rating 6 out of 10

Match 3: Naomi def. Lana to retain the Smackdown Women's Championship
I will say, I didn't hate the match. Lana's excessive yelling reminded me of Kelly Kelly matches. Super hot blond won't shut up. Obnoxiously yelling unless it becomes part of the gimmick, doesn't help get substantial heat. That being said, for as rough as the match was, Lana impressed me. She hit some good suplexes that focused on the legs, which is exactly what you would do if you were facing an athlete like Naomi. She could use some more time developing other parts of her in-ring psychology but I thought Lana did well in her first singles opportunity.
Naomi was great as a ring general, and proved she was more than just flash and sizzle. Her in ring skills in my opinion are highly underrated. Her offense and character to me make sense. Minus the Rear View (get some lessons from Asuka or Toni storm on how to use a useful hip attack) I love her moveset.
Having Carmella come down to tease a cash-in was a great add on.

Rating 6.5 out of 10

On a separate note, at least in kayfabe, I would have cashed in if I were Carmella. With the amount of heat on her after how she won the briefcase, what better way to make it worse and create more chaos than by cashing in? Shane McMahon and Daniel Bryan wouldn't be able to do anything about the situation since MITB was cashed in. Carmella becomes a Champion that can't be stripped of the briefcase because the contract was utilized, Naomi would get a rematch, and the authority figures can't reprimand Ellsworth. Since she didn't cash in, they have to deal with the Wrath of McMahon and Bryan on Tuesday.

Non-Match: Mike Kanellis debuts and Maria Kanellis returns.
Mike Bennett finally makes his WWE debut. Maria returns after all these years (convenient since the Bellas aren't around). Interesting route that Bennett would take his wife's last name, which peturbed JBL (which I can ALWAYS get behind!). It's a lowkey progressive character attempt and I can't help but look forward to it!

In other news, Greg Gagne, Larry The Axe Hennig, Baron Von Raschke (YES!), Sgt. Slaughter, Cowboy Bob Orton, and Ric Flair were in the front row for the WWE Championship match between Randy Orton and Jinder Mahal. Baron and Orton got HUGE pops, and then Ric Flair got a pop serviceable for him.

Match 4: Jinder Mahal w/The Singh Brothers def. Randy Orton to retain the WWE Championship

Normally, I'm not a fan of 1)Champion coming out first or 2)The top Championship match not being the Main Event, but considering that Jinder Mahal is still developing as a big time main event player and the Main Event chose had so much more firepower, it made sense.
With that being said, the presentation of the match at the beginning was fantastic. From the video promo, to the introductions of the legends, to even milking the pause between Jinder and Randy's entrance was perfect. For a St. Louis hometown crowd....I think they used it up on Cowboy Bob because the only time Randy got a proper pop was when St. Louis name dropped. Guess Randy's fanbase is still suffering from ....DIVE.
The match itself, was fantastically told. We got to see Jinder perform some old school moves and get more offense in. I especially liked the Spinning Toe Hold utilized to go along with the Figure Four Leglock. Orton hitting his dad's finisher must have been really cool to do in front of Cowboy Bob on Father's Day. The finish made perfect sense too. Having the Singh Brothers antagonize the Legends and Cowboy Bob in particular to get Randy to go nuts was AMAZING. Admittedly, Randy could have been counted out but it was great for the Singh Bros to get destroyed only for Jinder to take advantage again. In the match, Randy prioritized his dad over the title, which is actually worth noting as a face thing to do.


Rating 8 out of 10

The Fashion Police/Breezango(Tyler Breeze and Fandango) def. The Ascension(Konnor and Viktor)
Someone had attacked Tyler Breeze on Smackdown and that led to Breezango to the ring to figure out who attacked him. I'm glad that the Ascension came out so there could be more tag action. It was purely to continue the momentum of the Fashion Police.

Rating 5.5 out of 10 (Hey man, it did the job but the Tag Title match was obviously better. 

Main Event: Baron Corbin def. AJ Styles, Shinsuke Nakamura, Dolph Ziggler, Sami Zayn, and Kevin Owens

Here's the short of it:
Corbin destroyed Nakamura during the entrance.
Corbin and Ziggler Double-Teamed AJ, then Corbin turned on Ziggler (HAHA)
Ziggler ran up a ladder to counter the Phenominal Forearm, then ran into Deep 6
Zayn flipped Owens off of the turbuckle onto a ladder (YAY!)
Ziggler the first one to climb (I GOT THAT RIGHT!)
Ziggler hit the Zig Zag on Corbin off of a ladder
Zayn with a Sunset Flip Powerbomb on Ziggler
Zayn with a Half/Half Suplex on Owens onto the Apron (Zayn tried to murder people on this night)
Styles with a Phenominal Forearm to knock Zayn off the ladder
Corbin chokeslammed Styles on a Ladder
Owens Lowblowed Zayn after Zayn hit the Helluva Kick on Corbin
Styles hit an Attitude Adjustment (don't deny it, it was, and it was a good one) on Owens onto a ladder
Ziggler takes the Ladder from under Styles.....and Styles falls while trying to unhook the briefcase
As Corbin starts to climb......NAKAMURA RETURNS AND CLEANS HOUSE(why did Corbin stop climbing?) In Order: Corbin, Ziggler, Zayn, then NAILS Owens with a Kinshasa on the outside....
Nakamura and Styles find themselves facing off...they throw the ladder and immediately start brawling! WRESTLE KINGDOM THROWBACK!
Both climb near the top....and Corbin tips the ladder over
CORBIN GOT THE BRIEFCASE.

This match, similar to Raw's Fatal Five Way, was the backbone and substance of the PPV.

Corbin was the star of the match, no doubts. From attacking Nakamura during his entrance to punching Ziggler, he truly came as the Lone Wolf. The way he was favored was similar to the early 2010s' expectations of Wade Barrett, only Corbin came through.

Ziggler had a few good moments but he played his role as the opportunist; going through the match as the experienced past winner he was. I espeically loved his Shelton Benjamin run up the ladder to counter AJ's Phenominal Forearm.

Owens in a weird way was the "Ziggler" of the match. Other than a lowblow, Owens was selling on EVERYTHING. He took a half and half suplex on the apron, an Attitude Adjustment onto a ladder, got flipped leg first onto a ladder, and got the Kinshasa near the end outside of the ring. The resilliency and amount of pain he took was ridiculous.

Zayn came off as a man possessed with the crazy things he was doing. A Sunset Flip Powerbomb could have ended Ziggler's night. He was the attempted murder of Kevin Owens the majority of the night with the toss off the rope and suplex on the Apron. He could have realistically won the match and the look on his face showed that he knew he could have won. The emotion that man can get from fans is unmatched as a face.

AJ Styles was a star from the moment he entered the arena. He had great variations of the forearm and also had to sell a wicked chokeslam onto the ladder he would eventually slam Owens into. However, aside from Corbin's victory, the biggest talking point was his faceoff with the 6th man of the match:

Shinsuke Nakamura. Attacked from the beginning, but resurrected to life as Corbin was about to win, he cleaned house and them some. How many ways can you knee a person and make it hurt? There are a plethora of ways. And of course, his faceoff with Styles, where they pushed the ladder away to brawl Wrestle Kingdom 10 style was the biggest pop of the night. The throwback to arguably one of the best matches of 2016 was a sight to behold and left fans salivating for their eventual match. I truly hope that it's for the WWE Championship at Wrestlemania 34. It would, at least, be a consolation from already knowing the most likely Universal Championship feud.

Rating 9 Out of 10

Overall: PPV was controversial. Some would rate it low because of the finishes and the historical significance of the Women's Money in the Bank. I'm not one of them. I think if you were to compare Extreme Rules versus this PPV, this won out without any question at all.

8 out of 10.

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