Here’s our final thoughts on SmackDown Live’s WWE Elimination Chamber 2017!
Mojo Rawley vs. Curt Hawkins
Reactions: Hey, you know what? This was better than average. Which comes as a shock cause decent matches and the name Mojo Rawley usually don’t go together. But those few extra minutes of action and some pretty exciting near falls got us more invested than we usually do in a Kickoff Match. Hawkins played the role of the cowardly heel quite well here and got in his moves when the time was right. Mojo turned into the hype machine he’s always been and dished out some big moves during his comeback sequence as well. Both men worked hard and put on a performance that exceeded our really, really low expectations. This was quite alright.
Rating: 2 & a Half out of 5 Stars
Becky Lynch vs. Mickie James
Reactions: Lynch is always full of fire, so we knew she’d give us something worthwhile to watch during her grudge match with Miss Mickie James. We’ve been following James’ new in-ring exploits ever since her return to the ring against Asuka. with these two female favorites of ours going head to head, we were given a pretty fun matchup. James tapped into her most devilish self and even did some of the limb targeting work seen from her newfound foe. Lynch fought admirably as expected and put on a fiery performance. Near the closing moments of this match, both women turned up the speed a notch and did some clever back and forth work as Lynch tried to block James’ arm work. The quick rollup pin was a nice surprise that deviated from your usual Dis-Arm-Her submission finish, which was cool to see. Lynch picked up the win in a pretty serviceable bout against an always ready and willing women’s wrestler veteran.
Rating: 2 & a Half out of 5 Stars
American Alpha (Chad Gable and Jason Jordan) (c) vs. The Usos (Jimmy and Jey Uso) vs. The Ascension (Konnor and Viktor) vs. The Vaudevillains (Aiden English and Simon Gotch) vs. Breezango (Fandango and Tyler Breeze) vs. Heath Slater and Rhyno (Tag Team Turmoil Match for the WWE SmackDown Tag Team
Championship)
Reactions: We’ve always got a kick of these Gauntlet-like Tag Team Turmoil matches. This was a pretty fun encounter between SD Live’s roster of teams. Slater and Rhyno looked real good during their bouts against Breezango (who were more over than usual) and The Vaudevillains. The Usos made quick work of them and put on a fun war in the middle of the match once the champs came out. American Alpha went Suplex City crazy while The Usos went Superkick Crazy. AA snuck away with the win, but The Usos’ post-match assault played into the story of the champs possibly losing their titles here. We were pretty sure that was going to result in a shocking win via The Ascension. But AA made sure to shake off the damage they were dealt by the salty Usos and knock off the final team included in this bout. This was fun and didn’t even overstay its welcome, which is what we feared might happen here.
Rating: 3 out of 5 Stars
Nikki Bella vs. Natalya
Reactions: While the leadup to this big grudge match indeed hot, the crowd didn’t seem to be too interested in it. Natalya and Nikki did a whole lot to keep things somewhat interesting, but the live viewing audience (us included) weren’t too into it. That isn’t to say that the match was terrible by any means; it just didn’t have a lot of heat to it. The back and forth submissions and Superplex moment brought some life to this contest, but it still wasn’t enough to bring it to a level or good or even great. It was just passable, we guess. Hopefully their rematch gets more relaxed rules and ends up even better than this disappointing meeting.
Rating: 2 out of 5 Stars
Apollo Crews and Kalisto vs. Dolph Ziggler (2-on-1 Handicap Match)
Reactions: We’ve always had a special place in our dark hearts for Heel Ziggler. He shined here even before the bel rang since he committed to attacking Kalisto during his entrance. Crews didn’t take too kindly to this act, which helped start this match off on an especially brutal note. But Ziggler’s slippery self got one over on his babyface rival during several moments. Crews looked good out there, but Ziggler’s switch to the dark side was what really made us care about this ongoing match. Kalisto’s crazy comeback from all the way to the ramp to the ring was a big standout moment, which led right into Crews landing his Spinout Powerbomb to take down Ziggler. This was decent at best, but we enjoyed Ziggler’s post match attack even more than the actual bout. His use of a steel chair is unmatched.
Rating: 2 out of 5 Stars
Alexa Bliss (c) vs. Naomi (WWE SmackDown Women’s Championship)
Reactions: The combination of a heated back & forth match and a shocking result all combined to make this match better than we envisioned. Bliss’ strong heel character work matched up well with Naomi’s colorful comeback offense. Bliss and Naomi started off hot and never slowed down from that point forward. We can’t lie, though. The action got a bit sloppy near the end, which docks a few points off this matchup. But we can’t knock both ladies too much since they kept the crowd alive even after they just viewed an awesome Orton/Harper match. Naomi looked great out there and she shocked us when she laid in a match finishing Split-Legged Moonsault. We’re sad to see Bliss’ title reign come to close, but at the same time we’re overjoyed to see Naomi finally win a title. We’ve very much looking forward to the SD Live Women’s Championship situation at ‘Mania 33 now.
Rating: 3 out of 5 Stars
Randy Orton vs. Luke Harper
Reactions: Luke Harper has always stood next to Cesaro as one of WWE’s more underrated Superstars. He exudes a strange charisma about him and he tends to perform at a surprisingly high level against high profile opponents. Harper put on a satisfyingly good match against an always game Orton here. What made this one stand out to so much was its gradual buildup into some truly exciting closing moments. Both men used the announce table on the outside to lay in more damage on each other, which was a nice attention to detail (Orton did it first and Harper decided to return the favor later on). After that big Superplex spot, this match kicked into its most standout moments. Harper landed two vicious Superkicks, Orton almost knocked Harper out with an Apron DDT, Harper shot through the middle rope at Orton with a tope suicida and both men got locked into a striking exchange. We hopped out of our seat when Orton blocked Harper’s Discus Clothesline and countered it with a match winning RKO. This heated contest further proved just how good Harper is and we hope he gets better opportunities further down the line. Orton looked as fluid as he’s always been and we can’t wait to see him look just as smooth at ‘Mania 33.
Rating: 3 & a Half out of 5 Stars
John Cena (c) vs. AJ Styles vs. Bray Wyatt vs. Baron Corbin vs. The Miz vs. Dean Ambrose (Elimination Chamber Match for the WWE Championship)
Reactions: First things first – the new look of the Chamber looks pretty as hell! So there’s that. Anyways, its been a while since we were treated to an Elimination Chamber match, so we were very much looking forward to this SD Live contest within the demonic structure. When it was clear that AJ and Cena were going to start this bout off, we knew we were in for something special. As expected, both men kicked this Chamber off on a very high note. They hit all the familiar but always entertaining notes that have been featured in all their other bouts. Ambrose entered in next and started off all the crazy moves that incorporate the Chamber. That wicked Elbow Drop off the top of the pod onto Cena was pretty cool. Cena took another scary bump when AJ punched him right off his foothold after climbing the chain link fence. Corbin’s heated entrance and spirited offense on every man also added some extra energy to this match. Him and Ambrose’s altercation told a nice mini-story that will hopefully lead to a future ‘Mania 33 IC Title match. The Miz played up his slimy heel role to a T and had the crowd reacting to his constant mocking of Daniel Bryan. But what stood out the most was AJ’s exciting offense and Bray’s combination of mind games and big moves. Bray’s massive title win at the end of this incredible main event did enough to make this SD Live event even more memorable. All six Superstars pulled off an awesome Elimination Chamber match here.
Rating: 4 out of 5 Stars
Match of the Night
The Elimination Chamber Match!
Final Verdict
Are we really going to proclaim that the 2017 Elimination Chamber was better than the Royal Rumble? Yeah! The 1st round of matches ranged from average to decent, but the PPV picked up once the Tag Team Turmoil Championship Match got underway. While the Natalya/Nikki Bella grudge meeting and its letdown of a finish soured things, the PPV quality got back to a good place once Orton locked up with Harper. The shockingly good SD Women’s Championship match stood out thanks to a spirited effort from both women and the crowning of Naomi as the new title holder. As for the main event, SD Live’s finest Superstars excelled and ended this show on a supremely high note. The Blue Brand knocked it out of the park once again with a show full of solid to great matches. Bray left the Chamber as champion, which made us even more pleased with this event as a whole.
Final Score: 3 & a Half out of 5 Stars
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