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
Extreme Rules - April 2015
Chicago, Illinois
CHAMPIONSHIP RUNDOWN: Going into tonight's show, Seth Rollins holds the WWE Championship, the Intercontinental is Daniel Bryan, the United States Champion is John Cena, the Divas Championship is held by Nikki Bella, and the WWE Tag Team Titles are in the possession of Antonio Cesaro and Tyson Kidd.
COMMENTATORS: Michael Cole, Jerry Lawler, and JBL
After a pretty good Barrett/Neville match during the kickoff the show, the pay-per-view proper began with Luke Harper vs. Dean Ambrose in a Chicago Street Fight. This marks the third time within the past 6 months where Harper has been utilized in a hardcore, spot-heavy opener, which is not a bad position for him – if done correctly, this placement can keep him on the fringe of the big shows until the company can properly heat him up and give him a real run in the upper midcard. Unfortunately, unlike his violent, action-packed match with Ziggler at December's Tables, Ladders, Chairs, and Stairs event or the solid multi-man IC Title Ladder Match at WrestleMania, this match was not a show-stealer. While Ambrose and Harper worked hard, kept the crowd engaged, and sold the big spots well, it didn’t build much suspense enough to have me at the edge of my seat. Before a winner could be decided, Ambrose and Harper ended up in a black SUV, speeding out into the Chicago streets, a cliffhanger that would no doubt be resolved by the end of the night...but when? And how? I’ll save my score till the finish.
Next up, Sheamus vs. Dolph Ziggler in a Kiss My Arse match. I liked how physical Ziggler was from the get-go, coming at Sheamus with haymakers and forearms galore. Sheamus' offensive was equally impressive, particularly a suplex-toss maneuver that really exemplified Sheamus' callous, bully character. I had no problem with the flash pin finish, but wish it had just happened 3-5 minutes later. This was one on its way to being a certain Match of the Night to me, but instead, it came off as a really good house show or TV match with the added bonus of predictable-but-well-executed post-match shenanigans. The heat from the crowd during the post-match was massive. (3/5)
The Tag Team Championships were on the line in the next contest, with the defending champions, Cesaro and Tyson Kidd, putting the straps up against The New Day's Kofi Kingston and Big E Langston. Like the match before this one, I enjoyed pretty much everything about this - except that it seemed to end before it really peaked, making it a good TV match, but not a great PPV match. I don't mind the result, either - The New Day are over as heels and while Cesaro and Kidd are great workers, their problem has always been their lack of character (and, because of this, the audience isn't 100% for or against them). I'm looking forward to these two teams meeting again for the in-ring action, but from a character perspective, this feud has very little meat on its bones. (3/5)
...And Ambrose and Harper are back. Just like that, the WWE misses out on what could've been a memorable match. I'm not going to call Piper vs. Goldust at WrestleMania XII a classic or anything, and I know the live crowd would've felt somewhat ripped off, but I was kind of disappointed that the WWE didn't opt to get a bit more creative (even if it would be ridiculous) and have Ambrose and Harper actually brawl in the streets a bit, or, at the very least, have them come out of the car looking like they'd been to hell and back. Instead, their "bruise cruise" through the streets of Chi-town was left completely to the audience's imagination and, personally, I don't watch wrestling to invent my own stories - I watch because someone does that job for me. Anyway, when Harper and Ambrose got into the ring, they filled 'er up with chairs. The spots that came after were not nearly as wild as I was hoping (or that this stipulation really needed to make it meaningful). Harper connected with a powerbomb onto a steel chair, but Ambrose kicked out, a pretty good example of how even though these guys were doing big spots, they came off as inconsequential. The actual finish wasn't bad, but was it any more devastating than Harper's powerbomb? Both the first part and the second part of this match were clear cases of how you can throw absolutely everything at the wall (canes, chairs, car chases) and still not have anything really stick. (2/5)
John Cena vs. Rusev in a Russian Chain Match for the United States Championship was next. This was the weakest of the Cena/Rusev series, but I didn't hate it. The stipulation seemed to limit these two more than it inspired them as the match lacked the drama of their WrestleMania bout and the suspense of their first outing at FastLane. Tied to each other but seemingly restricted from using the chain to perform any actual hardcore spots (I'm thinking whippings, chokings, "hangman" spots, bright red welts, crimson masks), Rusev and Cena worked hard, but never got the match into the proverbial "second gear." It will be interesting to see where this feud goes. While others have criticized the finish (Why did the lights not cancel each other out? Why did they seem to remain illuminated longer than at any other point in the match?), I thought it was clever and established that, at any point, even at the tail end, it was anyone's game...which is why Rusev could've got the win here and Cena would've survived. (3/5)
The Divas Championship match was next, with Nikki Bella defending her title against Naomi. While this match wasn't anything great, there were enough little things that went right to help me overlook the things that went wrong. For example, Naomi's new ring music and color-changing shoes are awesome and a nice way to draw a line between the face Naomi and heel Naomi. Nikki locked in a good armbar at one point and there weren’t any noticeable botches that stuck out to me. Unfortunately, like in the tag match, one would not be mistaken to call this a heel/heel or heel/tweener match – the Bellas, Nikki in particular, have done nothing to become fan favorites. It certainly didn’t clarify anything to have Nikki cheat to win. (2/5)
The Last Man Standing match between Roman Reigns and Big Show was next. Highly physical and laid out with a good, patient build leading up to a string of table spots and spears, this match was better than many fans predicted (myself included). Reigns' willingness to sacrifice his body (as he did when he took a huge chokeslam from Big Show through two tables) helped him win over a somewhat indifferent crowd and, by the end of this match, he had the Chicago fans cheering him. Big Show also stepped up his efforts, taking more than a few big bumps to make the gimmick of this match work. Unfortunately, this one petered out in its final minute as, after both guys had delivered just about every variation of their finisher possible, the only conclusion that the bookers had left seemed to be the same one they used in an Alberto Del Rio/Big Show Last Man Standing match from SmackDown in 2013. Repeating a finish like that wouldn't be a big deal, but the whole concept of the announce table being used to crush somebody was also reminiscent of a more recent Brock Lesnar segment. A better finish would've really helped this match’s score, but instead, this one fell into that "better-than-average-but-not-that-much-better-than-average" zone. (3.5/5)
Bo Dallas arrived for a meaningless segment. Ryback came in and destroyed him, but this was more of a piss break than the Divas match. I'll be nice and give this a half-point for not taking up too much time. Still, considering that these minutes could've help make Ziggler/Sheamus a truly special match, it is disappointing that this was even on the card. Bo Dallas’ mic work is something I either don’t “get” or just don’t enjoy. (0.5/5)
Which brought us to our main event - Seth Rollins defending his WWE Championship against Randy Orton in a steel cage match (with Kane as the Gatekeeper). I'm a fan of Rollins and I'm willing to give Orton credit when its due, but this was one of those matches that Orton's critics point to as proof that, as good as he can be, when "Bore-ton" shows up, there is almost nothing less exciting than watching the Viper go through his repertoire and offer little variation on it. Aside from the Naomi/Nikki match, this was the quietest match on the card and for good reason. While Orton and Rollins have been feuding for months now, this match didn't come off as very intense at all, and, unlike Reigns/Big Show, where Reigns won over the crowd by playing the underdog, it was hard to get behind Orton because he dominated long stretches of the match. Things picked up when Orton busted out a pedigree and prepped for a punt, but without the RKO or Rollins' Curb Stomp, there was something noticeably missing in the trajectory of the match. Kane's involvement in the final minutes added some excitement, but only because it signaled that an actual finish was approaching, not because anyone really wants to see him in the World Title picture. The "controversy" of Rollins hitting an RKO on Orton is supposed to add more fuel to this fire, but like the audience in Chicago during Sunday's main event, I was left just feeling burnt out. (2.5/5)
With an average match/segment rating of 2.44-out-of-5, Extreme Rules 2015 wasn’t a huge disappointment or an underachiever because, on paper, this show looked a bit thin anyway. At its best, it never went above just good. The match of the night honors could reasonably go to Ziggler/Sheamus, Reigns/Big Show, or even Cena/Rusev, but none are worth revisiting and certainly shouldn't be making anyone's Year End lists in December. Unfortunately, the final match on the show left a pretty poor taste in my mouth as it lacked the pizzazz of their WrestleMania match and spotlighted how Orton, who has had a pretty good 2015 overall, can just as easily have matches that drag where they should sprint. Here's hoping Payback is a return to the consistently solid shows they had last spring.
FINAL RATING - High Risk Maneuver
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