Ric Flair vs. Carlito kicks off the show. Flair was 58 at this time and moved like it. These two went 15+ minutes, which was just too long. At the time, Carlito was viewed as a guy with potential to be a main event-level talent but also had the reputation of being a bit lazy - which was also kind of his gimmick. I can't really speak on Carlito's work ethic, but I'd argue that being paired with a 58-year old Flair (who would have his WWE retirement match a year later) didn't allow him to showcase his speed and agility anyway. Not the worst match of all time, but not one I enjoyed very much either. (1.5/5)
The ECW World Championship is on the line next as Vince McMahon, Shane McMahon, and Umaga take on Bobby Lashley in a handicap match. At this point in time, Vince was the ECW Champion somehow. This was a really short and fun "match" that basically saw Lashley manhandle and obliterate Shane and Umaga as Vince watched on in horror. Umaga was somewhat protected too, which might be hard to believe if you just looked at the result of Lashley defeating 3 guys in under 2 minutes. After the match, Lashley celebrated with the title but...Umaga attacked and Vince grabbed the title, stating that in order for the belt to change hands, Vince would've needed to be pinned (which he wasn't). Its hard to rate something like this, but for what it was, it was entertaining enough and, by keeping it nice and short, there is little to really criticize. (2.5/5)
The next match was also a continuation of a storyline that seemed to be over at WrestleMania - CM Punk vs. Elijah Burke. Their feud had something to do with Elijah Burke representing "The New Breed" and CM Punk, despite being a newcomer in the WWE, still aligning himself with the Old School ECW babyfaces. Anyway, like the opener, Punk and Burke get plenty of time, going close to 20 minutes. Unlike the opener, Punk and Burke try to work a quality, physical back-and-forth match (but don't quite have the chemistry to really pull it off). While I liked the believable nearfalls in its final minutes, I'm not sure they needed this amount of time and the audience isn't fully on-board for the match's duration. The crowd's meh attitude might have to do with Punk and Burke not being major stars, but they also don't have the kind of chemistry for two guys who worked with each other extensively (Punk once said that Burke was his least favorite opponent). Not a bad match, but a touch too long, and not the "hidden gem" that I was hoping for when I saw this bout listed on the card. (2.5/5)
After a backstage attack earlier in the show, Shawn Michaels was in no shape to perform, selling a concussion, against Randy Orton so this was barely a match (though the bell did ring and, for at least the first minute or so, it seemed like Michaels may have some sort of miraculous recovery and wrestle a full match). I believe the reasoning behind having this "non-match" was to give Michaels a storyline reason to disappear as he underwent knee surgery. After the ref ends the match, Orton hits Shawn with an RKO and then his wife, Rebecca, shows up, crying. Orton leaves and Michaels is carried out on a stretcher. I think Michaels sought revenge when he returned months later at Survivor Series 2007 (actually, a quick Wikipedia dive revealed that Michaels returned weeks earlier and actually fought Orton at Cyber Sunday too). Hard to rate something like this, but I'm not as big of a fan of Michaels' overselling as others so...(1/5)
The World Tag Team Championships were on the line next with The Hardys defending against Trevor Murdoch and Lance Cade. They get plenty of time, the match running 15 minutes or so, and there are some really good spots, but this didn't hold my attention from beginning to end. I think the issue is that, theoretically, Murdoch and Cade are the kind of tag team I should really like - an aggressive, more technically-proficient version of Southern Justice maybe - but there's something missing in the presentation and I never really "buy" these two as being a cohesive team. As usual with matches like this, the finishing stretch is electric and boosts this one from "average" into "good" territory. (3/5)
The World Heavyweight Champion, Edge, defended against Batista next. I wasn't expecting much out of this match, but it was worked nice and tight, and I liked both guys' urgency. I'm not a huge Edge fan, but I like how focused he is on Batista's knee and he bumps well when he needs to. At this point, Edge wasn't over-the-top with his facial expressions either which, depending on your taste, can either be a plus or a negative. There was a cool nearfall at the end after a big spear from the Animal, but he was unable to hit the Batista Bomb and Edge was able to eke out a victory via a roll-up. Not necessarily a decisive finish, but one that kept Edge's credibility intact as a worthy top heel for the Blue Brand. (3/5)
MVP challenged Chris Benoit for his United States Championship next in a 2-out-of-3 falls match. Benoit had been champion for over half a year at this point but his title reign was kind of a blur to me aside from this months-long rivalry with MVP. Benoit and MVP worked very well together because MVP could not only mat wrestle, but he was equally tough and not afraid to trade strikes with the Crippler. Watching Benoit matches is always a little weird, especially from this year, as Benoit would kill his son, wife, and himself just a month later. I was expecting this match to go a good 15-20 minutes as the World Heavyweight Championship match had been fairly short and the main event (Cena/Khali) was certainly not going to go too long, but MVP got two straight victories in just a little over 12 minutes. (3/5)
Main event time - John Cena defending the WWE Championship against The Great Khali. This match had a bit of a reputation at the time as being shockingly great and maybe even Khali's best match and though I wouldn't call this a "classic" or anything really close to it, Cena's performance here is top notch as he bumps and sells and makes Khali look tremendous. This is Cena doing Hulk Hogan essentially, the Superman character having to face someone even bigger and stronger than he is. It is a simple story but done effectively. The audience is fully into this, but the audience is also full of younger fans who idolized Cena. This is about as good a match as one could possibly have with Khali and, in that sense, it does get close to being a "should/must watch." (3.5/5)
With a Kwang Score of 2.50-out-of-5, Judgment Day 2007 starts off a bit slow with a not-so-great match between Flair and Carlito followed by an underwhelming McMahon/Lashley match, but picks up towards the end as the Hardys match, Batista/Edge, MVP/Benoit, and Cena/Khali are all above average matches (though none are what I'd consider "excellent" or "must watch").
FINAL RATING - Watch It...With Remote in Hand
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