The Shimmy 10.22.07: October Road
Posted by Andy Clark on 10.22.2007
October has been a busy month for PPVs. I know I'm a few weeks late, but here's my take on what's happened thus far. Enjoy!
So this probably isn't the most topical of columns this week, but October has been the months of many PPVs. While I haven't had the opportunity to see ROH's Driven show I have seen WWE's No Mercy and TNA's Bound for Glory, and I have the intention of purchasing Cyber Sunday as well despite what appears to be a rather weak card. I have been remiss in recent weeks of sharing my thoughts on the PPVs I have seen, so that's what we're going to do this week. If you don't really care for my opinions on shows a few weeks after they happened I understand. For the rest of you, feel free to stick around.
PPV in Review: No Mercy
You've got to believe that Vinnie Mac was pleasantly surprised with the anticipation for Chris Jericho. I know most of the IWC probably thinks that Vince enjoyed crushing everyone once he had their money, but I legitimately think Vince was please with the fact that the fans are looking forward to the return of Y2J. The set up of the title match was well enough I suppose. Going into the show I didn't want either Triple H or Randy Orton winning the title just because it would be too predictable (I was psyched for a short Jeff Hardy run myself, but I knew that was doomed when Hardy still had the IC Title). I liked that they actually gave Orton the title first instead of making it a match for the vacant belt because it made the evening seem even more important. Orton and Triple H's first match of the evening was surprisingly good. I thought that Orton had been Macho Manned at first, but the story would improve as the night went on.
The bonus Six Man Tag was a fun little addition but it was very sloppy. Everyone seemed a little off of their mark in this match which actually had me a tad scared (and I rarely fear for a wrestler's safety during a match). Still, it was a really fun match and one of my favorites of the night despite some sloppiness.
I don't understand the logic of the ECW Title Match. I was actually looking forward to Punk-BDV and we got screwed. The minute and a half of action that we saw was pretty entertaining and I would have liked to have seen more. WWE booked themselves into a corner here and we were the ones that got screwed because of it. Why not have had Tommy Dreamer or Elijah Burke win the Elimination Chase to No Mercy and then have Big Daddy V destroy Punk AND the challenger afterward? It just made no sense to book a PPV match with a last second switch and then end up pretty much not having a match. Very disappointing.
The Pizza Eating Contest between Matt Hardy and MVP was the worst PPV segment I have seen since Eugene put a booger on Matt Striker. I starting to get tired of this "feud" and they need to have a match for the United States Title already. Does WWE realize the pure and utter stupidity of advertising the Hardy & MVP vs. Undertaker & Kane match for free TV and giving us a freaking Pizza Eating Contest on the PPV? Didn't WWE think that an actually wrestling match that included four of the top superstars on SmackDown (and one of the top superstars in the entire company) would work better on a $40 show than a Pizza Eating Contest? And then they end the thing with Matt Hardy puking on MVP? And then they show a SLO-MO REPLAY of the puking? What the blue hell? Seriously, who in the world thought this was a good idea in any way, shape, or form?
Triple H-Umaga was pretty boring actually, but I figured as much once Triple H won the title. It's a shame they went with a no-finish in the ECW Title Match because THIS was the match to have it in. Triple H pinning Umaga clean in their first encounter kind of killed any reason to see a rematch, but hopefully we'll at least get a good match out of it.
I quite liked Rey-Finlay. I didn't mind this non-finish as much as most, although I still wonder why they just couldn't have had Finlay fake out everybody and THEN pin Rey. The referee never rang the bell, so even though it would have been a pretty big logic gap it would have worked in theory. I was surprised that the crowd bit on the fake injury, but he got some great heat once they figured out he was lying. Rey and Finlay have a real good chemistry together and I look forward to another match between them at Cyber Sunday. Here's hoping we get that rumored Batista-Taker-Finlay-Rey Fatal Four-Way at some point because I think that match would rock.
There's not much to say about the Women's Title Match. They both tried really hard, but they just weren't clicking. Candice has improved tremendously and Beth Phoenix seems to be pretty good but they just don't have very good chemistry. Hopefully Beth Phoenix and Mickie James can hook up soon for the title.
I'm probably biased about the Punjabi Prison Match because I came into it expected that it would be a bunch of fun. I love the Punjabi Prison stipulation and I'm happy they brought it back. Batista and Khali worked pretty well with one another. Khali looked like he may have hurt himself when he came off the top rope, but fortunately he came out OK. Batista's leap to the other side was a cool spot and I'm impressed he pulled it off. This Punjabi Prison Match was much better than the last, the only question is if we'll ever see its return.
The Last Man Standing Match between Triple H and Randy Orton was outstanding. The nightlong storyline came full circle and Orton looked great in a winning effort. I don't care that Triple H had been in two previous matches and had hurt ribs, Orton still looked like a beast. There were numerous Last Man Standing nearfalls and I even found myself cheering for Orton as the match went on. That RKO on the table was the perfect way to finish it, especially since it's what presumably took out John Cena. Definitely a MOTYC and a must see.
Andy Enjoyment Index: No Mercy
1) Last Man Standing Match
2) Triple H-Orton
3) Rey-Finlay
4) Punjabi Prison
5) Six Man Tag
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The Ultimate X Match was a really good match and I was afraid that they weren't going to live up to it for the rest of the night. For some of the matches I thought I may be right, but eventually they proved me wrong. One of the brightest stars coming out of this entire show was Hernandez. I certainly would hate to see LAX break up because they are one hell of a tag team, but I would be all for a Hernandez singles push at some point. I was a bit surprised to see LAX get the win because XXX hasn't really won much of anything since they reformed, but I like the potential of Styles & Tomko vs. LAX.
The Fight for Your Right Reverse Battle Royal was completely ridiculous. First of all they changed the rules of the thing after the show went on the air. They had been saying that the winner of the match would be the No. 1 Contender, but at the show they decided that this would only be a determining factor in a free TV tournament to crown a No. 1 Contender. It's bad enough when you have a No. 1 Contender Match on your biggest show of the year, but to have a set up match for a future tournament is even worse. And what the hell is the point of seeding? It's not like it really matters in wrestling. And then, when everybody is scrambling around on the floor trying to get into the match, the fattest man of the entire group is the first one to climb in. Shouldn't the least athletic guy be the one that takes the longest to get in? The match itself was better than the last match, but that's not really saying anything. Good to know that the Motor City Machine Guns are faces now. Can anybody stay a face or a heel in the tag division these days?
I'm torn on the TNA World Tag Team Title Match. The match was actually pretty good and the indy guy they brought in to be Consequences Creed looked good. But the bait-and-switch really annoyed me. If you're going to do the bait-and-switch (which you shouldn't anyhow) you at least need someone that the crowd will recognize. This guy was a complete nobody. Hell, Dave Meltzer didn't even know who he was at first. You don't do that on your biggest show of the year. I would have rather had Pacman stand there and do his thing instead of them screwing with one of their major advertised matches. At least the right team won. I did laugh when Earl Hebner started pocketing the money that Pacman used to make it rain, even if it is pretty tasteless.
The Daniels-Lethal match was pretty good, but I was disappointed. Daniels has been my favorite TNA wrestler for a long time but he really hasn't shown much fire since the end of his tag team with AJ Styles. Perhaps a journey into a good tag team feud alongside his fellow XXX partners might help him out. I'm glad Lethal got the win although I don't see his title reign making it past this next PPV.
The Tables Match was what it was. The brawled and it looked OK and the crowd was hot. We all knew that this wasn't going to be a pretty match and it wasn't, but at least it was a crowd pleaser. I hope they keep Rick Steiner around because I like having the Steiner Brothers around in the tag division.
The Women's, or should I say Knockouts', Gauntlet was pretty entertaining. Of all the new women I was impressed with ODB the most. ODB had a good look and the personality, I wonder why WWE let her go? Scratch that, I suppose I know why, but still. Kong looked impressive and I definitely see here being the one to dethrone Gail Kim as champion. I could have done without the wardrobe malfunction, but what are you gonna do? Gail looked legitimately emotional winning the title and I'm glad TNA gave her some time (by their standards at least) to celebrate on camera.
Samoe Joe vs. Christian was a great match. I really don't know why the Atlanta crowd was so hot for the match before it even got underway but their cheers were certainly merited. The match felt real special and these two men continued their string of great matches with one another. Matt Morgan's involvement was kept to a minimum which was a good thing. This was a great addition to the card and I'm glad Joe and Christian were given the opportunity to go out there and have a great match without any BS thrown in.
The Monster's Ball Match was OK but it didn't come close to measuring up to previous years. It was a fun little garbage match but they kind of already gave it away on Impact so it didn't seem quite as special. I'm glad they kept the tradition alive but this won't be ranking up there with the great Bound for Glory matches.
And now for the main event. First of all, let me say thank you to Kevin Nash for making this whole thing more entertaining. Angle and Sting were doing fine on their own, but Nash's involvement was just great. Nash played the role of a washed up wrestler trying to hold onto his spot beautifully. When Nash interfered in the match it wasn't the same old "Angle and Nash worked Sting" kind of deal, it was Nash doing what he had to do to keep himself near the top. The look of desperation on Nash's face at ringside told the story perfectly. He wasn't moving that great, so the prospect of Nash actually wrestling doesn't entice me too much, but from a character standpoint he is one of the best ones TNA has. To their own credit Angle and Sting went out there and had a really good match, probably the best of all the Bound for Glory main events. Sting's win was a nice surprise and a good way to send the fans home happy.
Andy Enjoyment Index: Bound for Glory
1) Joe-Christian
2) Ultimate X
3) Angle-Sting
4) Lethal-Daniels
5) Knockouts Gauntlet
6) Monster's Ball
7) Team 3D-Steiners
------------------------8) TNA World Tag Team Title Match------------------------------
9) Fight For Your Right
Andy! Andy! At Last You Have Some Feedback!
Chris Jacobs has a few thoughts:
I agree that the Bossman vs. Taker at Mania was terrible all but for one thing. Edge dropping in from the ceiling and giving Undertaker a noose and hanging the bossman. That was creepy and cool.
I didn't realize there were so many HITC's, I missed a lot of those.
I agree, that was about the only notable thing about the Taker-Boss Man match. I believe WWE is coming out with a Hell in a Cell DVD sometime soon so you should be able to see all the ones you missed.
Brandon Ray has some interesting points:
Hey man. Just got done reading your "Worthy of Hell?" column, and I gotta say I really enjoyed it. I agree with just about everything you said. And might I add I am very happy to know I'm not the only person in this world that was completely fine with the double DQ that happened in the main event at Unforgiven between Undertaker and Brock, adding more fire to the feud that was going on between Brock and Taker. Though it ended in double DQ, it was obvious that it was just necessary, not to mention it was a damn good match considering it was the first time the two had faced each other in the ring. You kinda forgot to mention that not only did Taker's hand being broken make the feud personal, but also before that, Brock messed with Taker's wife on an episode of Smackdown while she was still pregnant, and putting his hand on her stomach and saying "Life's a bitch", really adding to the build for the feud, since the two men beat the hell out of each other on the next episode of Smackdown because of what happened with Taker's wife.
When it comes to your verdicts, there is only one match I disagree with, and you'll look at me surprised but I have a good reason for it, and that's the Mankind/Undertaker HIAC match. Now I do not regret it happening whatsoever. Like you said, it made Mick into a legend, and that match is just unforgettable. I would not change that the match was a HIAC for nothing, because honestly, I would be insane to want to. However, you said your main qualifications for being in the cell was A.) it'd be a major blowoff feud, or.. B.) it must be a violent fued that fits with the HIAC mentality. Well yes, these guys had feuded for a long time. However, they feuded from somewhere beginning in the middle of 1996, and stopped around April 1997. After that, Mick kinda went on to feud with DX and Stone Cold, while Taker went on to feud with Bret, HBK, and Kane. Sometime before King of The Ring, there was a match between Taker and Kane to see who would face Stone Cold for the title at KOTR, and Mankind interfered and helped Kane win, setting up the match with Mankind. So my main problem with it, is it became a Hell In A Cell match between the two, but there was really no build for it like they did with Brock and Taker. Brock broke his hand and messed with his wife and all this stuff, so it almost had to be a Hell In A Cell match. The match with Mankind though, all Mankind did was cost Taker a shot at the title and it became Hell In A Cell. And not including their long feud from the past that was kinda done with, this feud between them only lasted about 3 weeks. It seemed like they just threw in the Hell In A Cell match simply because they could. I mean yes I understand they had fought in the past for a long time, and had been in just about every match, but it just doesn't make sense to say "Let's put them in a HIAC match because they've been in every other match and I'm sure the fans USE to remember when they're feud was really personal." That's just how it felt to me. Kind of thrown together. They're "big long feud" was over a year ago at that point, it was well and over, they had moved on. Even more interesting, was the Hell In A Cell matches, usually end feuds, but if anything, that Hell In a Cell match helped start the feud between Taker and Mankind back up again, because after King of the Ring, Austin was feuding with Kane and the same with Mankind and Taker. Matter of fact, if I remember correctly, I think at the next event Fully Loaded, Kane and Mankind defended their tag titles against Taker and Austin. See what I mean? It's like it was obvious they were going to get Taker and Mankind to start feuding again, but they threw in the HIAC really to help make the feud become personal and more intense faster, really making the HIAC unnecessary in the fact that it is usually the blow off match. That's how I feel though. I am still happy however that the match happened because it is a classic that will be talked about for years to come. Just think there could have been better build for the match, like either kicking off the feud a month earlier or holding the match off until at least Fully Loaded, and not to mention the match should have been used to end the feud and not used to simply jumpstart the feud between the two again. Thanks for the great column!
You actually have a valid point there. I was conflicted over whether or not to give it a yes or no verdict because of all the reasons you said. I went with a yes just because Taker and Foley's past history would indicate that they needed some sort of new gimmick to participate in, so Hell in a Cell fit. It's a slippery slope but I definitely see your point.
Tim thinks I missed one:
Hey just wanted to say that the Hell in a Cell column was a good one, but you forgot (or left out deliberately) one match. Remeber the "Kennel From Hell" match between Al Snow and Big Boss Man at Unforgiven '99? This was based on Boss Man feeding Snow's dog (I think the name was Pepper) to him? And there were "vicious" dogs in cage with them? Mind you I understand you not reviewing it because as my memory serves the match was crap. Just figured I let you know.
Trust me, I didn't forget. While the cell was technically used in the match, it wasn't really a Hell in a Cell Match, hence why I left it off the list. The match did indeed suck, and I still hate that feud. Poor Pepper!
Ladies and gentleman, after almost two years on the job I have received my first profanity laced hate mail from one Lincoln Krassow. Enjoy:
First of all...Fuck you! Some bitch who thinks he's a name on the IWC, but you don't realize that you are nothing. And to my main gripe, your absolutely ridiculous 'Hell in a Cell- do they deserve it' column- are you fucking kidding me? How easy is it to come in and judge feuds and programs severak years after the fact- do you think we are retards? Of course we can figure out which programs didn't neccesarly deserve HIAC- but you still feel the need to dumb us down...well, fuck you, you stupid bitch! I'm smart enough, let's come up with some ORIGINAL ideas for columns instead of re-hashing old crap that has been already discussed you fucking asshole!
Thank you, Lincoln, for all your kind words. I wonder, why exactly did you read the article if you apparently didn't think it would be worth your while? I believe the topic of the column was well presented in both of the teasers, so did you misread? Or are you a masochist that reads things that you think are insulting and unoriginal? You may be curious to know that most fans seem to like nostalgic pieces, so I'm just doing my part. I've never claimed to have been a "name" due to having a column, but I will say that my career has been rewarded knowing that there are readers like you out there that take the precious time from their lives to write me their opinions. If you find my columns to be unoriginal please feel free to send me some suggestions about what you'd like to see here. I would hate for this sort of egregious act to be perpetrated on you again. Thanks for writing!
Oh, and fuck you too. Have a nice day!
The Shimmy Likes It Raw!
What's on tap for tonight's show?
Randy Orton & Mr. Kennedy vs. Shawn Michaels & Jeff Hardy; If you didn't see that coming the second they announced the voting options you are an idiot.
