411 PPV Roundtable Preview – WWE Extreme Rules 2013

Introduction

This Sunday, it’s WWE Extreme Rules, where every match has a stipulation, except a couple that don’t as of press time! Traditionally, it’s one of WWE’s best shows of the year, as befits its spot right after WrestleMania. And this year, the name of the game is The Shield, who have been dominant since their debut at Survivor Series, and at this show, have the opportunity to walk out with all three members wearing gold, as Dean Ambrose takes on US Champion Kofi Kingston, and Reigns and Rollins will face Hell No in a Tornado Tag Match for the Tag Team Titles.

Plus, Brock Lesnar celebrates his one-year anniversary of his return to WWE by looking to finish off Triple H once and for all inside a Steel Cage Match. And with Dolph Ziggler suffering an unlucky concussion, Alberto Del Rio and Jack Swagger will compete in an “I Quit” Match where the winner will become #1 Contender to the World Heavyweight title. Meanwhile, in the main event, John Cena makes his first title defense of his new reign as he faces a companion turned enemy in the form of Ryback, in a Last Man Standing match.

With so many potential directions for this PPV to go, here’s the 411 Staff to bring you their thoughts on the upcoming show!

The Staff

Stephen Randle, The Wrestling News Experience

James Wright, The Heel Report

Michael Benjamin, Smackdown and Main Event recapper

Nick Sellers, Canvas Critiques Reviews

Jack Bramma, Ring Crew Reviews

Michael Weyer, Shining A Spotlight

The Miz vs Cody Rhodes
YouTube Pre-Show Match

Stephen Randle: Well, it didn’t take long for the Pre-Show to become meaningless, did it? They couldn’t have at least replaced Rhodes with the IC Champion Wade Barrett? Anyway, Miz is totally winning.

Winner: The Miz

James Wright: This one kind of came out of nowhere but as a pre-show match it isn’t all that bad, my one complaint would be that Rhodes should be working a program on the actual PPV card, but with creative giving him nothing there is little he could have done that would have actually been of any interest. Since there are no actual stakes here I’m guessing the returning face wins.

Winner: The Miz

Michael Benjamin: This should be a fun little back and forth match to get the crowd going. Just like Wrestlemania, I expect Miz to win this Pre-Show match. In an instance where neither man has anything going on, you always put the face over.

Winner: The Miz

Nick Sellers: It seems a pity that both of these chaps are on a pre-show when I think they’re more than capable of doing something of note on the card proper. Miz to get the duke here and warm the crowd up.

Winner: The Miz

Jack Bramma: Whereas Cody has jobbed several times lately in singles and tag competition against the likes of Sweet T, Miz has just come back from filming another movie.

Winner: The Miz

Michael Weyer: Ah, Miz, was headlining shows not long ago, now on the pre-show. A shame, these two can do a good match together and should get the card going, I guess I’ll give it to Miz but think it deserves more attention than this.

Winner: The Miz

Chris Jericho vs Fandango

Stephen Randle: Hey, maybe they’ll let Fandango get some actual offense this time. At any rate, Fandango’s the guy getting pushed, Jericho’s just around to put people over before leaving again. Guess what that means.

Winner: Fandango

James Wright: I’m surprised after their first match at Wrestlemania that there is no gimmick or stipulation for this rematch. However since a lot of this feud has been gimmicky anyway it kind of seems like a better way to do things in having Jericho get super-serious leading into the match and have things just be a straight up contest, one which is hopefully more compelling than their first outing. While that match was a disappointment to me I have to hope that this will be the Sheamus-Daniel Bryan of 2013 and that this time it will be a great contest, most likely seeing the ‘rising star’ of Fandango coming out on top once again, after all Jericho has nothing to prove, stands nothing to gain from winning, and has always been willing to put guys over multiple times.

Winner: Fandango

Michael Benjamin: I’m going with another Fandango victory here. With no gimmicks attached, he can break some rules for a cheap win.

Winner: Fandango

Nick Sellers: While the “Fandangoing” craze has worn off a touch, the character itself still has plenty of steam. The Raw segment was a delightful piece of heatseeking and it served its purpose, even if it ran a tad too long. I’m going for a Jericho win, which gives Fandango even more ammunition to whinge and moan on the microphone. I dare say after that we’ll get a rubber match between them where the heel will ultimately prosper. But Jericho needs his win back, and here’s as good a place as any to get it.

Winner: Y2J

Jack Bramma: Oddly enough, this feud has had seemingly no progression since the WM build other than just more beatdowns between the two. Fandango was magically vaunted into the main stream for a few weeks after Mania, but during that time, he was kept away from Jericho and the feud stalled. Logic would dictate that Jericho has to go over because he didn’t win last month, but who knows.

Winner: Chris Jericho

Michael Weyer: Okay, I admit it, Fandango is winning me over. The way he throws himself into this ridiculous character is great and should get a bit more momentum going here. Surprised no stip to this rematch but expect a more intense Jericho to go at it hard. However, I can see Fandango getting the win once more as a frantic Jericho is a fun Jericho and gives Fandango a good push as crowds are warming to him.

Winner: FAN—Daaaango

Randy Orton vs The Big Show
Extreme Rules Match

Stephen Randle: A typical Randy Orton situation, where the feud is meaningless but we need to have Randy Orton on the PPV. One of two guys who will probably face Ziggler next, and Show generally loses in these situations.

Winner: Randy Orton

James Wright: While I have no real interest in which of either of these men actually win the match, or the rivalry in general, I am actually looking forward to this as being a great show of brutality. Whoever wins as long as the two have some interesting spots then I am happy. I kind of want to say Big Show for the win but with the potential Orton-Ziggler feud in the back of my mind I have to give it to the Viper as he builds to this potential rivalry.

Winner: Randy Orton

Michael Benjamin: All things considered, this has been a pretty boring feud. There’s not much substance to it despite it’s relatively long build. I’m going to guess Orton goes over here. It makes sense for Orton needing the plunder of an Extreme Rules match to beat the dominant Big Show. I’m hoping for more of a main event style Extreme Rules match as opposed to an Attitude Era style brawl. If that makes sense.

Winner: Randy Orton

Nick Sellers: Pointless with a capital P. This does nothing for either performer and Randy just seems to suck the life out of any match and/or program he’s in at present. They have nothing of note for either performer to do at present, so they’ve stuck them together to keep them busy while they think up something else. The result? A total bore-fest.

Winner: Randy Orton.
Loser: All of us.

Jack Bramma: Another stuck in neutral feud with Orton pairing off against combinations of Rhodes Scholars and Cesaro and Show squashing Tons of Funk. YOU COST US AGAINST THE SHIELD AT WRESTLEMANIA, SO I’M GOING TO KICK BRODUS CLAY’S ASS… or something. Every one involved in that tag match on the face side – Show, Orton, and Sheamus – is just careening through empty segments with no barely any semblance of storyline or motivation. Hasn’t Orton been wanting to turn heel for the better part of two years? Him losing rather than winning would help him along that path, but when in doubt, go with a main event face.

Winner: Randy Orton

Michael Weyer: Show actually does pretty well in matches like this and Orton is capable of great brawls too. So we should get a pretty good battle with some blood and some nasty blows all around. The feud has been pretty so-so thus I don’t see any major developments but think I’ll give the win to Orton to try and put this thing to bed.

Winner: Randy Orton

Sheamus vs Mark Henry
Strap Match

Stephen Randle: Henry should win because he’s awesome, but I think Sheamus should be the next challenger for the WHT, so he’ll get the rub by beating the big man.

Winner: Sheamus

James Wright: Just like the Big Show-Orton match, there isn’t really anything at stake here, it’s more about two established stars beating the hell out of each other for our enjoyment and I can dig it. This year’s Extreme Rules card is pretty varied and this match should be entertaining if nothing else, once again I am going to go for the babyface triumphant.

Winner: Sheamus

Michael Benjamin: I have to go with Sheamus here. He had the everliving shit whipped out of him by Henry last Monday and I’d imagine he should get his comeuppance.

Winner: Sheamus

Nick Sellers: Up until recently, I held this in the same regard as Orton/Show in that it seemed thrown together as they had nothing else pending. But the strap concept actually creates some intrigue, and their recent interactions have actually been quite intense. Having something like the US title as an added incentive would only serve to help this. This could be a decent little brawl after all.

Winner: Sheamus

Jack Bramma: Henry has been Festivusing his way through feats of strength for weeks now while Sheamus keeps interrupting them to lose to Mark at his own game before cheaply attacking him afterwards. I get that Sheamus is getting retribution for Henry’s attacks but he still comes off like the heel in practically every segment he’s in for months now, whether it’s stealing Alberto Del Rio’s car and dumping burritos in it or pulling a Jim Garrison on Wade Barrett’s movie career emphasizing that he is to the back and to the left in a few frames of Colin Farrell in Dean Man Down. Finally, on the go-home RAW, they seemed to hit the right formula with Henry talking trash and wanting an unfair fight and Sheamus rising to the challenge but being a step ahead to make it a FAIR fight, not an unfair fight slanted toward the face. I still hope that Henry goes over to stay at the top of the card, possibly for the Cena-Henry match they teased after WM.

Winner: Mark Henry

Michael Weyer: Ah, the good old strap match, haven’t had one of those in a while. I see this as better than some expect, both guys wailing on each other and Henry using his strength well but Sheamus will get the win here, hopefully moving onto something better.

Winner: Sheamus

Kofi Kingston © vs Dean Ambrose
WWE United States Championship

Stephen Randle: This match only makes sense if the title change is happening, because otherwise you built up the Shield as a unit and Ambrose as a singles wrestler only to lose to…Kofi Kingston. Yeah, that should never happen.

Winner: Dean Ambrose

James Wright: I am seriously torn on this one, because Kofi has been on a relative roll as the new US champ, but the Shield have been building such momentum that Ambrose losing here could be potentially harmful to the group that has been up to now built perfectly. I think many people see this as a no-brainer but I don’t think so as the whole point of the Shield is that they are unstoppable as a unit, not as singles competitors, so Ambrose could realistically lose to prove this point. However in the end going off of Ambrose’s recent singles match stint they seem to be building him to be the first break-away star so I’ll bite and say that the title goes to him on Sunday.

Winner: Dean Ambrose (New Champion)

Michael Benjamin: Kofi Kingston has come across as nothing but a transitional champion and The Shield are the hottest thing going in the company right now. I’ve gotta give the nod to Ambrose here.

Winner: Dean Ambrose

Nick Sellers: The time has come to decorate the soldiers of justice with some gold. Kofi will lose no face here by, say, a Shield distraction leading to an Ambrose victory, and it gives them the opportunity of a return match on a future Raw. I hope the rumors of a Kofi heel turn down the line are true, because I think he needs something of a fresh start in order to help propel him to that next level. As for Ambrose, this could be the first of a fair few career honors for him if he keeps up his hard-work.

Winner: Dean Ambrose

Jack Bramma: This comes down to whether you see Ambrose challenging as a piece of a larger story or just the monkey typewriter stuff we have elsewhere on the card. Smart money says the Shield “lost” and ended their undefeated streak this week, so like Ryback back in the fall, they could move on and in this case, moving on meant winning belts for everyone in the stable. If Ambrose is going to be US champ and if the Shield is going to be tag champs, they’re going to have to lose some title matches by DQ or countout, so might as well dump the undefeated streak before you put the belts on them to not handcuff yourself into all of them having to have clean pins for months. Of course, you could always have kept them undefeated as a 6 man team and still had them get some cheap victories or loses in singles competition or regular tag competition, but that’s a little too nuanced for the WWE right now. I’ll just add that if this doesn’t end with everyone in the Shield having a belt, then ending the undefeated streak on RAW was even dumber than I first thought.

Winner: Dean Ambrose

Michael Weyer: Kofi’s title reign hasn’t exactly been great, clearly a transitional champ. So it’s time to transit as Ambrose has been on the rise for a while so his cheating his way to victory seems most likely here to give the belt a bit of excitement.

Winner and NEW US Champion: Dean Ambrose

Hell No © vs Roman Reigns and Seth Rollins
Tornado Tag Match
WWE Tag Team Championship

Stephen Randle: Pretty much the exact match that we should be getting in this situation, and I expect it will be good. My only worry about everyone’s belief that Shield is getting belts is that they’ve been so dominant that the WWE in me thinks that they might delay the title change for vague and silly reasons. Hell No has had a good run, it’s time to end it, and Shield should entirely have the belts.

Winner: The Shield

James Wright: I think most everybody wants to see the Shield with the tag belts under ‘Freebird Rules’ but if Ambrose is winning the US title then that probably isn’t going to happen. That being said I do still think it is time for Team Hell No to surrender the gold as their story as a developing tag team has run its course and since they were already feuding when they became a team I wouldn’t mind if they simply drifted apart gradually after failing to keep and reclaim the belts against the Hounds of Justice, plus it gives both teams something to do until new opponents can be developed. The only thing that’s missing from this picture is a member to challenge for the WWE or world title, but that can come in time, better to keep the team’s momentum up now with the tag belts than to have them lose and wait for that member to appear.

Winner: Roman Reigns & Seth Rollins (New Champions)

Michael Benjamin: Team Hell No have had a GREAT reign with the tag titles. It’s the only remarkable Tag Team Championship reign in recent memory. With that said, they’ve done everything they can with the belts and as I said above, The Shield is on the rise. They’re going to keep the momentum going through Extreme Rules.

Winner: Seth Rollins and Roman Reigns

Nick Sellers: Team Hell No have been a joy to behold, a regular highlight on Raw over the past year. I still think they have some mileage as a team even without the gold. The popularity and effectiveness of the babyface tandem will only serve to put another big feather in the Shield’s cap. Each member holding gold does as much good for them as it does for the straps themselves. This has the potential to be a very good tag bout, for my money.

Winner: Reigns & Rollins

Jack Bramma: This is just more of the same from the US title match. The Shield have been beating up everyone in sight leaving only the Prime Time Players alone and luckily, Hell No has been around to kick their ass. It’s fairly disappointing that WWE can’t even manage a STORYLINE to take the tag belts off one of their hottest acts and longest reigning champs to put it onto another of their hottest acts, but that’s the state we’re in.

Winner: Roman Reigns and Seth Rollins

Michael Weyer: I love Kane and Bryan together as much as everyone but do think it’s time they finall drop the belts. It seems best here, a good stip and these teams should make it damn fun. Reigns and Rollins should be a good team but the real fun will be Kane and Bryan dealing with losing the belts and good to finally see some new champs.

Winners and NEW Tag Team Champions: Reigns and Rollins

Alberto Del Rio vs Jack Swagger
“I Quit” Match
Winner Becomes #1 Contender To World Title

Stephen Randle: Dolph wasn’t losing the title in the ladder match, but I did really want to see that match. This is in serious danger of being heatless, dull, and also will probably (and hopefully) mark the end of Jack Swagger’s main event push. You concuss a champ, your time is over.

Winner: Alberto Del Rio

James Wright: It seems like the WWE have managed to somehow have their cake and eat it too as they wanted Ziggler for world champion, but also to have a match showcasing the Patriot Lock vs. the Cross Armbreaker, and now they have both. Honestly after all the crap Swagger has pulled since his return I would be damn surprised if he came out with the win on Sunday, what’s more unless the WWE are actually planning to turn Ziggler face it is very unlikely that they would book Swagger vs. Ziggler for the world title in a one-on-one affair, so I’m going with Del Rio for this one.

Winner: Alberto Del Rio

Michael Benjamin: Alberto Del Rio’s going over here. They’re not going to want Swagger vs. Ziggler at the next PPV. Creative seems to love Alberto in the title picture and assume we do too. “The fans turned him face” right?

Winner: Alberto Del Rio

Nick Sellers: I was happy to see this concluded at WrestleMania, or so I thought. I think the re-booking here was both sensible and logical. It doesn’t get me much more interested, but Del Rio excelled in the Last Man Standing matches with Big Show earlier in the year, so in a similar environment he should be able to drag Swagger to something competent before moving on to Dolph, where I think a 1vs1 ladder match would give you much more bang for your buck.

Winner: Bertie of the river

Jack Bramma: Faces don’t often lose I Quit matches and when they do, their losses aren’t legitimate. Any suggestion of a Swagger-Ziggler program is quite the headscratcher as Swagger, since getting busted, has won nothing of note and just screams third wheel and WWE generally hates heel-heel matches. This whole thing appears headed toward Big E breaking out on his own against Ziggler and hopefully that gets enough time to develop and be interesting, but instead, I see that being the Fed’s likely next move. Unless Swagger targets Del Rio’s Achilles heel and gets his hands on Ricardo and threatens to break his ankle… again if Del Rio doesn’t quit, ADR will go over.

Winner: Alberto Del Rio

Michael Weyer: The battle should be good, these guys know how to work together and does make sense rebooking them after Mania. Pretty clear Del Rio is going to win, they want to push him back toward the title but expect Swagger to give it a good fight before finally telling “I Quit” out to give the win to Del Rio as faces rarely lose an “I Quit” match.

Winner: Alberto Del Rio

Triple H vs Brock Lesnar
Steel Cage Match

Stephen Randle: So, do we pick the smart choice or the one that’s going to happen? This match has no purpose, no consequences, and only got booked because they panicked about losing The Rock to injury and felt they needed to prop up a Ryback main event. Such a waste of Brock’s limited appearances, but we’ve been saying that for about a year now. Technically, this is the rubber match, but it just doesn’t feel like one. Brock should win, but will he? My Magic 8-Ball says, ask again later. I say, outlook not good.

Winner: Triple H

James Wright: Ah, yet another match with no real implications for the future but that will most likely be brutal and damn entertaining. Honestly I would be happy with most PPV cards being built like this as the two Shield matches have big implications for the future and the No. 1 contenders and WWE title match arguably have game-changing potential (although I don’t think that is how things will go down) so why not fill the rest of the card with these types of matches? The only problem is you need the stipulations to make them interesting as the same match at Wrestlemania had many falling asleep before it had even begun. If HHH wins this one then there is even less point to the return of Brock Lesnar, but I don’t see that being the case, instead I see Lesnar winning and going on to Summerslam to face someone, be it the Rock or some other established name, as it is clear now that the WWE aren’t willing to pit the Beast against any of their upcoming stars to get them over.

Winner: Brock Lesnar

Michael Benjamin: I can’t imagine Lesnar losing the rubber match to this feud. If he does lose, it will speak volumes about Triple H’s ego. Not only that, but Brock Lesnar would have the kayfabe and real life advantage in a cage match with his MMA background. If think for a second that they’re still going with Rock/Brock at WrestleMania 30, Brock needs to win every match on the way to that showdown in my opinion.

Winner: Brock Lesnar

Nick Sellers: I liked their WrestleMania encounter. The deflated crowd hurt things a bit, but down the stretch I thought they roped them back in and made something of it. I think the cage will hinder them a bit here rather than help them, as their previous matches allowed them to get around ringside and play with some toys. Although they’ll be able to use the cage as a weapon here, it might mean we don’t get as much in the way of variety, which will mean too many rest spots and not as much crowd engagement. Brock needs his win back before he goes off on another jolly before Summerslam rolls around.

Winner: Brock Lesnar

Jack Bramma: I’ve liked the build and the previous matches between the two more than most, but I’m seriously ready to tap out. The whole point of the cage is to allow some carnage but still Brock to get a cheap win, but why would Trips let it go then? It scares me because I KNOW Brock has to go over after he falls through the cage and hits the ground first and then Trips HAS to get the final win at HITC at…Hell in a Cell or Payback or Summerslam or pick a random PPV. The idea that Brock would lose again and go 1-3 in his first year back with WWE sounds insane, but that’s where we are. I’d mark out if Trips pulled some strings and broke out the old blue bars to stack the deck against Brock in a “wrestling” cage instead of the usual chain-link cage that UFC uses as well, but that’s not happening at all. I like both guys and want to get behind this but the albatross of this never-ending saga is just becoming too much. Triple H is not sympathetic or vulnerable in the slightest and despite getting his father’s hip broken, his office destroyed, and having his career on the line, never shows any doubt. It seems like a 1000 years ago since he tapped and teased retirement. I expect an old-fashioned 20 minute slugfest between the two that almost HAS to be entertaining just based on brutality, intensity, effort, and hopefully some blood.

Winner: Brock Lesnar

Michael Weyer: So the big question is HHH will in fact job the rubber match between them. My thinking? Yes, he will. His days in the spotlight are done, his time in the ring winding down, he knows they need to make Brock’s payday worth it so he’ll put over Brock here. The match should be a bit better than Mania with the cage adding a brutal edge and expect some good bleeding about with nasty shots. In the end, Brock manages to get the win but HHH will make it a trial, giving us all a great show.

Winner: Brock Lesnar

John Cena © vs Ryback
Last Man Standing Match
WWE Championship

Stephen Randle: I think it’s fairly obvious what’s going to happen, but let’s fill some space first. Ryback is pretty much dead in the water off this heel turn. They probably could have saved him as a face, but he’s about to get ground into the dirt by odds-defying Cena, and that’s pretty much a dead end for him afterwards. So, who faces Cena next?

Winner: John Cena

James Wright: If Cena’s ankle injury had been worse and if John wasn’t the freak that he is then I would say that Ryback has a great chance of picking up the title just to keep Cena healthy. As things stand I think the only way that Cena doesn’t retain is if the Shield interfere and give Ryback the title, which would make no sense according to everything that has happened over the past six months, but then again when has that stopped the WWE before? Long shots and speculations aside as much as I want to root against John Cena I have to give this one to the Champ, he even has a new t-shirt and everything!

Winner: John Cena

Michael Benjamin: I almost want to flip a coin on this one. Will Ryback lose another major match with his new revamped character? Will John Cena lose the WWE Championship only a month after his redemption? I’m going with the easy pick.

Winner: John Cena

Nick Sellers: I love how they’ve gone with the Last Man Standing stip when Cena’s ankle is knackered. It’s a simple, dickish, yet effective trick that they’ve used to build some suspense. Personally, I’d pull the trigger on Ryback and see what he can do with the strap for a bit. The worst that can happen is that it gives Cena a chance to be the chaser again for a couple of months and it gives Ryback’s heel persona some much needed “oomph” for when he’s done with Cena. I can’t see Ryback taking home the gold though, and I dare say we’ll get a similar finish to that which we’ve seen them practising on the house show circuit in Europe. They worked tables matches where Cena AA’d his foe through one of them to win. I predict a similar finish here, only he won’t be able to answer the 10 count as a consequence.

Winner: John Cena

Jack Bramma: I’ve been a fan of Ryback’s heel turn and want it to blossom into something – a months-long title run through the summer that ends with Punk returning as a face to dethrone him at Summerslam? Lots of possibilities. Even the gimmick lends itself to a cheap win after the Shield interferes and takes out Cena. But with Shield seemingly penciled in for getting the belts, I wonder if the Fed has kneecapped the Shield out of the main event and out of main event run-ins and slotted them into the midcard for months defending the belts. I’d hope it elevates the belts, but it probably flattens out the Shield some. I’d like to see a Ryback win coming, but just can’t go with it against the franchise.

Winner: John Cena

Michael Weyer: This match is made for Cena, good brawls and should be able to give the match a new edge. Cena’s ankle may take some of the edge off it and also takes away chances of a title switch. Ryback’s new character is good but still not over enough for the title just yet. I think it’ll be close but Cena manages to win but expect a rematch down the road as this feud’s not over yet.

Winner and STILL WWE Champion: John Cena

Overall Thoughts

Stephen Randle: No chance I’m paying for this. I was apprehensive going into WrestleMania but broke down because of the hope of good matches and good booking. Fool me once, shame on me. Fool me twice…no PPV buy for you. And it actually kills me, because I love stip matches and Extreme Rules usually doesn’t disappoint. But they have nothing going into this, the main events are jokes, and even the prospect of a good Shield match or two just isn’t enough.

Buy/No Buy: No Buy

James Wright: This isn’t going to be a ground-breaking PPV and for the first time in a short while I am not predicting any real surprises that would justify buying this show. However what I will say is that the show promises to be a lot of fun and based off of how last year’s Extreme Rules performed I would say it will be worth the buy, just maybe with pool in with your friends rather than watching it all by your lonesome.

Buy/No Buy: Buy

Michael Benjamin: This show lost a lot of its luster when Ziggler got injured. The triple threat ladder match was the biggest selling point for me. I don’t understand why they couldn’t hang a contract up and still run the ladder match that Del Rio chose in singles fashion. Either way, the card is not that great but gimmicks make things more exciting, right? RIGHT?

Buy/No Buy: No Buy

Nick Sellers: Usually I get excited for Extreme Rules, but this year it just doesn’t give me the feeling of “Oh my, I just HAVE to see this show!” which is a pity. The two main events have potential to be good, and it could be a big night for The Shield, but otherwise I’m not fussed.

Buy/No Buy: No buy

Jack Bramma: I think the matches and the show as a whole will be good, but only if you don’t think about what happened last week or what will happened next week. I think if you skipped RAW and just watched the PPVs, the WWE’s storytelling is much more palatable through PPV matches and video packages. But as someone who watches consistently, the lack of show-to-show direction makes each individual show lose meaning and makes me lose interest in buying.

Buy/No Buy: No Buy

Michael Weyer: Obvioulsy, the show had to be altered a bit after Ziggler’s injury and his abscence will hurt things. But the rest looks rather fair, chances of several title switches and the HHH/Brock cage battle alone looks worth the buy. So I say go ahead and check it out to see what the post-Mania landscape of WWE looks as it shapes up for the rest of the year.

Buy/No Buy: Buy

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