WWE Main Event Review - March 22, 2016

By Graham "GSM" Matthews

Zack Ryder def. Stardust

I've been complaining for weeks that Ryder and Stardust have been having matches against each other and trading victories for seemingly no reason, but now that they're both involved in the Intercontinental Championship Ladder match at WrestleMania 32, I guess their battles haven't been so pointless after all. This match had more meaning behind it as a result, even though the in-ring action wasn't any different than usual. If nothing else, it's nice to see Ryder more motivated en route to his first major 'Mania match, and he deserves it. Plus, Emma is his real-life girlfriend, so he must be living life right now.


Naomi def. Paige

These two had a hell of a match a few weeks back, and while I was hoping for something similar here, I was fine with what we got instead because it was intended to be more of an angle than a match with Lana on commentary. I guess this is what we were supposed to get on Raw since none of the women were featured on Monday night. As someone who was in the building for this match, I can tell you that a majority of the crowd didn't react to Emma returning, even though I lost my mind. I'm beyond happy to see Emma resurface on the main roster. Granted, it's for a match no one cares about, but it's a start.

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Ryback def. Sin Cara

This wasn't much different than what we saw from them on Raw last week. The crowd oddly liked Sin Cara which surprised me, but I suppose he gave them (us/Boston) a reason to like him with his well-executed, high-risk maneuvers. Meanwhile, the reaction to Ryback continues to confuse me. He is still generating Goldberg chants, yet most of the crowd wants to cheer for him, so it's a strange dynamic. Anyway, this was a dominant win for him before he contends for the United States Championship at WrestleMania.


Big Show and Kane def. The Social Outcasts

When was the last time Big Show and Kane were on Main Event? I couldn't tell you, but it was cool to see them. This was a logical match to do following what happened on Raw, but it was weird for Big Show to team with Kane without hesitation despite how he turned on him on Monday. The crowd enjoyed the tag match and it built nicely to the Andre the Giant Memorial Battle Royal that apparently only six people are participating in.

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Overall Show

In all honesty, this might have been the best edition of Main Event in a long, long time if not ever. Yes, me being in attendance for the show before the SmackDown taping definitely makes me biased, but compare this show to every other episode from the last few months: each of the four matches served a purpose, which is rare for Main Event nowadays. Plus, they all tied into WrestleMania 32, so watch this show, if only for Emma's surprise return.