Curt Hennig – A “GOAT” show, as Perfect as possible
Watch It All – A consistently good show worth watching in its entirety
Watch It…With Remote in Hand – 3 or more above-average ratings
High Risk Maneuver – Mostly filler, inessential, but 1-2 good matches
DUDleyville – Zero redeeming qualities, chore to watch
Hell in A Cell - October 2014
Dallas, Texas
CHAMPIONSHIP BACKGROUNDS: Heading into tonight’s show, the WWE World Heavyweight Championship is held by Brock Lesnar, though, he would not be defending the title. The WWE Tag Team Champions are Goldust and Stardust, the United States Champion is Sheamus, and Dolph Ziggler holds the Intercontinental Championship. AJ is the Divas Champion, having defeated Paige at last month’s Night of Champions show.
COMMENTATORS - JBL, Michael Cole, and Jerry Lawler
Kicking things off was tonight's 2-out-of-3 Falls Intercontinental Championship Match between defending champ Dolph Ziggler and Antonio Cesaro. Lots of mat wrestling and reversals to start things off before both men started delivering more impactful offense. Cesaro busted out the crowd-pleasing airplane spin, but it ended up costing him the first pin. From there, Cesaro sold an injured arm, but was still able to pull off a number of highly impressive power spots, including a double-underhook powerbomb. Minutes later, Ziggler and Cesaro engaged in an almost ridiculous sequence in which Ziggler locked in an arm bar from behind, Cesaro nearly reversed it into a standing suplex, Ziggler countered it into another arm bar, which Cesaro then powered out of by climbing to the second rope and hitting a superplex. Overly complicated? Lacking realism? Maybe...but still darn sweet. Overall, my biggest gripe was the lack of clear "through line" in this matc The shocking "sweep" victory ired many fans more than myself, but the issue remains - do wins and losses mean anything in the WWE? For the IC Champ to have such a piss-poor record on television but then win this match so handily makes little sense. (3.5/5)
After a backstage segment with the Authority (sans Seth Rollins), it was time for Nikki Bella vs. Brie Bella, with the loser being forced to serve as the victor's personal slave for the next 30 days. The worst part about this match was the stipulation and the unfortunate fact that this was not, in fact, the end of the rivalry. The best part of the match? Just about everything else. In a weird irony, it was Nikki Bella (girlfriend of the guy who "can't wrestle," John Cena) who looked far more impressive than Brie Bella (wife of wrestling purist posterboy Daniel Bryan). This was easily the best match of either girls' career. I raved about Nikki's performance at last month's show, but this was even better. I’m guessing these two put a good amount of time into planning the spots and transitions, which can sometimes lead to an “overly choreographed” match. On the other hand, even the beloved Randy Savage was known for rehearsing entire matches, including his classics against the Ultimate Warrior at WrestleMania VII and Ric Flair (WrestleMania VIII). This match worked because there was undeniable intensity, physicality, and chemistry between the talents. To make another comparison, this one reminded me of what the Jeff Hardy/Matt Hardy feud of years ago did not achieve. Unlike the Hardys’ often overbooked debacles, the Bellas went with the "KISS" philosophy and kept it simple (and short). There was little overacting. There were no soap opera hijinks. I didn’t see any extended rest holds or ridiculous attempts at mat wrestling and submissions, which are not in either girls’ comfort zone. The finish was believable, effective, and well-executed. One could argue that this match is a clear example of how a Divas match, one not based on the Divas Championship and not necessarily featuring the two best pure athletes/wrestlers in the division, can still be remarkable. As for any fans that used this bout as a "bathroom break" or dubbed it the "worst match of the night" hours before bell time, your ignorance cost you. This match was as good, if not better, than the matches before and after it. (3.5/5)
The Cosmic Twins - Goldust & Stardust - defended their WWE Tag Team Championships against former champions, The Usos, next. Very back and forth match, but the audience was pretty subdued for the majority of it, only getting exciting for a few signature spots here and there. By the end, there was a short, barely audible "This is Awesome" chant. My lowest rated bout of the evening, this one was also somewhat doomed from the start. When you consider just how little character development the Usos have been given and how many times we've seen these two teams do battle without having any real conflict, there was no reason to be excited about this match. Cole noted that their feud was based on the Cosmic Twins becoming "too aggressive" in their pursuit of the Tag Titles, to which JBL responded by asking "What's so bad about being aggressive?" JBL is right. (2.5/5)
The night's first Hell in the Cell Match was next, pitting Randy Orton against John Cena for the right to challenge Brock Lesnar for his WWE Championship. Orton had control for the first stretch, delivering a barrage of clotheslines, whips into the corner, and a chairshot to the back of the former WWE Champ. There was a doozy of a sequence halfway in as Cena attempted a Five Knuckle Shuffle but ended up walking into Orton's patented spinning bodyslam. The use of a table later was a nice pick-me-up, leading to a terrific spot with an all-but-forgotten steel chair in the corner of the ring. The final third of the match picked up even more once Orton connected with an RKO, but from there, the set-ups and delivery of "bombs" were telegraphed quite a bit (not a huge knock on the match, but it didn't make things very original). I enjoyed seeing Orton find a way to maneuver and kick out of Cena's best offense, especially his brilliant counter of the Attitude Adjustment into an RKO, but the finisher trading sequence has just become too commonplace to mean as much as it used to. The actual conclusion was certainly devastating but it was also a bit awkward as it involved an almost absurd level of Orton positioning himself. I wouldn't consider this one of their best outings, but when you've had close to a dozen PPV matches and easily another two or three dozen on television this decade, you're really just competing against your younger selves. This probably would have been a career match for 75% of the roster, but for these two, it was only slightly above average. As for whether the right man won or lost, I was disappointed as Orton vs Lesnar at Survivor Series in St. Louis seems like a license to print money to me. (3.5/5)
The Miz (with Damien Mizdow) appeared next, challenging Sheamus for his United States Championship. Mizdow got a ton of the attention from the commentators, which is deserved, but I do think, lost in the mix of this match was that it may have been one of Miz's best showings in months. He has surprisingly good chemistry with Sheamus, himself one of the best in-ring utility players on the roster. Unfortunately, Sheamus is going to need a more serious feud with a more serious rival to really show he is capable of another run in the main event, even if the post-match shenanigans were clever and humorous. As Jim Ross said in his podcast, this was the “Let Me Up” match, filler-by-design, set to cool the crowd after Orton/Cena and, in that position, it worked. (3/5)
Rusev vs. Big Show began with the requisite Lana heel promo and plenty of USA chants. After a brief flurry of offense from Show, Rusev enacted a strong strategy, taking the fight to the ground by attacking Big Show's left knee. From there, Rusev delivered a suplex that showed he may not look the part of a John Cena-esque strongman, but he has some impressive strength in that stocky frame. To his credit, Big Show sold the leg properly, which shouldn't be too hard considering his age and the amount of mileage he's put on those wheels. Show also locked in a rare submission that I thought looked great before Rusev, after a series of thrust kicks, took control back. The crowd was deafening once Rusev locked in his camel clutch, but was obviously deflated by the finish. Personally, I liked how definitive the victory was, as Rusev, the young lion, was able to use an effective, believable strategy to defeat a larger, but undeniably aging, veteran. The camera angle certainly didn't make it clear that Show had tapped (and that the ref hadn't just "called it"), but even more shocking was the non-turn of Mark Henry, who many predicted would betray Big Show by the end of the match. Rusev might be a top 10 performer on the current roster. (3.5/5)
For the first time since leaving NXT, Paige lived up to the reputation bestowed upon her by her longtime supporters on the interwebs, showcasing a viciousness and storytelling ability previously unseen in tonight’s match with Divas Champion, AJ Lee. While Lee and Paige put on some passable matches over the past few months, each one had glaring imperfections - mistimed maneuvers, general awkwardness, an over-reliance of technicality, too little urgency to capture or retain the Divas Championship, etc. AJ, to her credit, smartly showed some restraint with the "psycho" elements of her character which made it easier for me to get behind her as the babyface and not as the somewhat unlikeable brat that she often portrays. The final minutes gave us, arguably, the hardest bump of the entire night and a clean submission victory that should wrap up this feud once and for all. (3.5/5)
Main event time - Dean Ambrose vs. Seth Rollins in a cell. The Lunatic Fringe wasted no time climbing the cage, which led to him being followed up by not only his opponent but also the Authority's stooges, Joey Mercury and Jamie Noble. The fans were electric, easily the most excited they'd been all night, chanting "This is Awesome!" as Ambrose brawled with his enemies on top of the structure. This led to the match's first major step (or misstep depending on your feeling). In a bump not unlike one taken by Shawn Michaels in the first Hell in the Cell (but safer by half), Rollins was knocked off the cage through a table. Ambrose then fell through another table, which one could buy as caused by either a loss of balance or Ambrose just being a terrible worker. Either way, this led to several minutes of "serious tone" announcing, the arrival of EMTs, and an unfortunate halt to a match that had not even officially begun. After a few minutes of selling, Ambrose rose up, struck again, and the match began in earnest. From here we saw back-and-forth, weapons-fueled chaos, which is what I would've preferred the match began with. Even interference from Kane didn't ruin the festivities, as there were plenty of hard-hitting chair shots and table bumps. Unfortunately, the lack of "color" was noticeable (as countless critics had predicted), but one can't really fault these two for the limits placed on them. Within the parameters of today's WWE climate, Rollins and Ambrose delivered, though, the longer the bout went on, the more meaningless the opening table spot seemed. With Rollins prone to a curb-stomping, we got the unexpected return of Bray Wyatt. Personally, I'm glad to see Wyatt back - but I do wonder if the WWE didn't make a mistake by having him run-in before Ambrose scored the victory. I also wouldn't have minded seeing Luke Harper be the one to appear, especially considering just how much of a future Harper has as a solo act. Wyatt certainly needed to be brought back in a major way...but it is Harper who would've been "made" as a singles performer by costing Ambrose his revenge. All in all, not a Match of the Year Candidate in my book, but arguably the best and most spirited contest of the night. (4/5)
With a very high average match rating of 3.37-out-of-5, this show exceeded my expectations. A vast improvement over the poorly sequenced Night of Champions, this one didn't "wow" me from beginning me to end, but also never dipped below good. Parts of it were actually great. What kept it from Curt Hennig Level, regardless of what my score indicates (and how that score would compare to that of, say, SuperBrawl II or WrestleMania XVII), is that, as good as it was, I'm not sure any single match was really a standout, Match of the Year-caliber contest. Consistently above-average is nothing to scoff at, but I craved just one match that would truly push this show up a tier.
FINAL RATING - Watch It All
No comments:
Post a Comment