WWE TLC 2017
WWE TLC 2017 underwent a massive and highly unexpected transformation little more than 48 hours beforehand. Both Roman Reigns and Bray Wyatt suffered an illness which forced their removal from this TLC card, with Roman set to reform The Shield alongside Seth Rollins and Dean Ambrose against a team of five heels, whilst Wyatt was set to summon the spirit of Sister Abigail (seriously) against a pumpkin-themed Demon version of Finn Balor. Though the circumstances were unfortunate, the required changes proved that WWE really does care about its fans: AJ Styles was brought over from SmackDown for a dream match against Balor, but more notably, Kurt Angle was drafted in to replace Roman. Yes, Angle, who hasn’t wrestled for WWE since 2006 and has been limited to Raw General Manager duties following his Hall Of Fame induction, was abruptly announced as returning to the ring here (his comeback was no guarantee, though it was presumably being saved for WrestleMania 34) in a massive story that would have received more hype if WWE didn’t have only two days to promote it. So, the changes received great enthusiasm, but were they for the better on the night?
Kick-Off Show
Sasha Banks vs. Alicia Fox
On the Kick-Off Show, we had a Sasha-Alicia showdown. I want to say that this was a surprisingly exciting match that grabbed the fans’ attention, but in reality, it was just a filler bout, which I would blame on Fox as she is not exactly the most interesting choice of opponent for a wrestler like Sasha. At least The Boss got the win though, submitting Alicia with the Bank Statement.
Main Show
Asuka vs. Emma
More intriguing for the women’s scene was the main roster debut of Asuka, who had taken NXT by storm over the previous two years and remained undefeated throughout that time. Her old NXT rival Emma made her first PPV appearance in ages to oppose The Empress Of Tomorrow. This was an interesting bout, because everybody expected Asuka to win, which she did via the Asuka Lock, but everybody also expected her to absolutely dominate Emma in a Goldberg-esque manner. Instead, Emma held her own for much of the match, meaning that if you didn’t know anything about Asuka, you might wonder what all the fuss was about. As noted, Asuka did win, which is the main thing, but it will be worth keeping an eye out on how her matches are handled, because if this wasn’t a one-off, the Asuka illusion might not hold up as well on Raw as it did on NXT.
Cedric Alexander & Rich Swann vs. Jack Gallagher & The Brian Kendrick
205 Live provided us with our next match, a doubles match as babyface pals Alexander and Swann teamed up against the veteran Kendrick and his recently heel-turning sidekick, the Gentleman himself, Jack Gallagher. The four were given a fair amount of time here and showcased their skills, but the Minneapolis crowd weren’t particularly interested, which ultimately sums up the last year of the Cruiserweight division as a whole, sadly. They did pop a bit as we headed to the finishing sequence, though, and Cedric struck Brian with a Lumbar Check to score the pin. Still, it’s a shame that the audience seems to have so little interest in these guys; with a stronger crowd behind them, the sub-205 pounders could be one of the real highlights of WWE.
WWE Raw Women’s Championship Match
Alexa Bliss (C) vs. Mickie James
Next up, another veteran from the Ruthless Aggression era in Mickie James had the chance to defeat her former best friend Alexa Bliss to capture the Raw Women’s Title. At a time when Sasha, Bayley, the debuting Asuka and even her powerhouse pal Nia Jax all have a vested interest in the gold, Alexa needed to survive this, otherwise she would look greatly inferior to Raw’s other major female stars, despite James herself being well-accomplished and a probable future Hall Of Famer. And she did indeed retain, pinning Mickie with a DDT after a commendable effort by both. It was teased that this could be the end of the line for Mickie, though she proved here that she still has a lot left in the tank, so we’ll have to wait and see, I guess.
WWE Cruiserweight Championship Match
Kalisto (C) vs. Enzo Amore
The Cruiserweight division gave us our second match of the night here, as Enzo Amore looked to regain the purple prize he lost to Kalisto a couple of weeks ago. Unfortunately, yet unsurprisingly considering who the challenger was, this wasn’t a particularly enjoyable match, basically ticking off the box that said “title change” for TLC. Indeed, Amore managed to score an anticlimactic victory, cheating with a poke to the eye followed by a JawdunZO, and regained the gold (well, silver) in the process. Kalisto’s title reign was a bit pointless in hindsight, though Enzo continues to establish himself as the face of the 205 Live scene; whether that’s a good thing or a bad thing depends on your point of view.
AJ Styles vs. Finn Balor
Now we come to “card subject to change” and the dream match, as well-respected stars Styles and Balor came together for an unlikely showdown, and with Finn still donning the Demon get-up. The expectations were high, and they were matched as both AJ and Finn grafted to put on a highly entertaining contest. Considering the rushed turnaround that led to AJ being flown in at short notice from South America, and the presumed lack of preparation time to put together a worthy match, this was exceptional, and a credit to both men, but more so AJ, who offered a reminder of just how damn good he is following months of uninspired rivalries on SmackDown. Balor scored the slightly surprising pin with a Coup De Grace, and afterwards, both men shook hands and exchanged Too Sweet signs, which had smarks feeling we … well, happy, shall I say.
Jason Jordan vs. Elias
Throughout TLC 2017, Jordan had interrupted Elias’ attempts to perform a mini-concert, at one point hurling vegetables at The Drifter. The upshot was that this bout was abruptly made, and it ended just as abruptly too, with Jason rolling up Elias for the pin in a match that would have been far more at home on Raw than on PPV, though I appreciate that they needed to fill time based on the major absentees mentioned earlier.
Three-On-Five Handicap TLC Match
Kurt Angle, Seth Rollins & Dean Ambrose vs. The Miz, Kane, Braun Strowman & The Bar
And so we come to the main event of TLC 2017. Kurt Angle making his in-ring WWE return was unquestionably the major story, and doing so in an environment littered with weapons allowed for any weaknesses to be disguised, considering that this is not the Kurt Angle of 2005 or even the Kurt Angle of 2012. Angle was booked smartly, coming to life in short bursts which not only maintains his aura, but also saves him having a “proper” match for a future date (such as April 8 2018). As for the match itself, well, it was bizarre. From Angle wearing the Shield get-up to Strowman being turned on by his team and forcing The Monster Among Men into a garbage truck (yep), this was a crazy sports entertainment spectacle similar to what WCW would present back in the 1990s. However, it was undoubtedly engaging, and there were some noteworthy moments. After taking a running powerslam through a ringside table to put him out of the match for a stretch (bear in mind we were told that Angle couldn’t take any bumps at one point), Kurt returned in style by destroying the remaining heel members to a huge reaction. There was a worrying moment when Angle was nudged away in the ropes and he somehow landed on his head on the apron (which was the one no-no that I assumed would have been drummed into everybody, given his long-standing neck issues), but he was thankfully okay, and he was able to contribute to the finish, as he, Ambrose and Rollins hit Miz with the Shield triple powerbomb for the win. So, Kurt Angle was back in very unusual circumstances, The Shield sort of reformed (no doubt their reunion will extend for Roman Reigns’ return, assuming he isn’t sidelined for too long), Braun Strowman appears to have been turned babyface (which will please fans who have cheered him for months), and WWE was able to make the most of a bad situation with a memorable, if surreal, headline attraction.
Considering that the original PPV plans were thrown into disarray just two days in advance, WWE TLC 2017 ended up succeeding as a whole. The headline match was not a classic by any means but it was definitely entertaining, while AJ vs. Balor was vastly superior to anything Bray and Finn would have done. There were some low moments further down the card, but when you think about the predicament that WWE found itself in, TLC 2017 has to be deemed a positive show overall.
