Wrestling’s 4R’s 11.23.07: The Sexy Beast is Back, Kaz Takes Angle to the Limit, Brand Extension Be Damned and More!
Posted by Larry Csonka on 11.23.2007
Turkey Coma’s are a bitch.
How the 4R's of wRestling Work!
Here is a quick explanation of the 4R's. I will take the 4 main shows (5 if I go RetRo) of the week: TNA Impact, WWE Raw, ECW on Sci-Fi and WWE Smackdown. If we have a PPV, that show will get a special PPV edition of the R's all to its own. I then group my feelings on the shows in various categories: The Right, the wRong and the Ridiculous. The Right is stuff that worked very well: a great promo, a great match and so on. PuRgatoRy is a section between the right and wrong. It shows equal traits from both sides that cannot be ignored and need discussed. It is not a bad place per say, as things can get remedied or go the wrong way the very next week. The wRong is what it sounds like: bad matches, bad or boring promos and so on. The Ridiculous is stuff that had no right on TV: Stupid angles, Diva searches and so on. And there is always a possibility of a 5th R, which is as bad as they come. This column is supposed to be analytical, and at the right time very critical of the shows, it was the whole reason it was created. This is not a "mark" column, nor a "smark" column, I cannot speak for Geoff, but my goal is to analyze the show from many different fronts, reward the good and call out the bad. There are also occasions where I will bring out a 4th, 5th or even a 6th R to the column, so beware of those~! I will not apologize for my opinions, they are as they are, whether very positive or negative.
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KONG~! - I am still in love with how they are booking Kong right now. She is indestructible and took out the woman that Gail had some trouble with, with ease. And then we finally had some confrontation with the dragon and the slayer. When you think about it, that is what wrestling is. Right, wrong, white hat, black hat and dragons and dragon slayers. They had a really fun brawl, which was intense and believable due to how they have booked both ladies, and I just love the feud and if they can continue to do it right, it WILL put the TNA Women's division on the map.
Angle vs. Kaz - these guys had a really good and fun match, and I am all for the Kaz push. Some thought I underrated the bout, but with the commercial I thought I rated it fairly. The match was good, built well, Angle looked dominant as champion, but Kaz was very resilient and again, they have done some great work to make him a star. Angle was, again, very unselfish as he took the Flux Capacitor and when he won, it was a desperation win, not a clean you ate my finish, back to the job squad win. They have done so much good With Kaz and it is great to see. This was another good Impact main event, I just wish it would filter onto the rest of the show. They are having good wrestling, but most aren't getting the time they need.
puRgatory:
Booker and Sharmell sign their contracts, and get a visit from an old friend - Impact started with Cornette telling commentary that they were not allowed to say the names of Booker and Sharmell because they hadn't signed their contracts as of yet, that had to be an inside joke. The whole thing was that they wanted to have a special ceremony, with them signing their contracts. I liked this because it was something special, something TNA can at times fail at. So while I liked that, and the fact that Booker looked genuinely excited, I did not like where they went with this. They have seemingly decided that his first feud would be with Christian Cage. Now, there are pros and cons here. The pro is that they have worked a lot together in WWE, are comfortable with each other and should put on a good match. The con is that they have worked a lot together in WWE, and it comes off as a WWE rehash. The other problem is, why does Christian care about Booker, when he should be concerned with the fact that he lost his boys to Angle. They failed to follow up there, and that isn't a good thing.
Taking the X-Title Hostage - While I have not been the biggest fan of this angle, I think this week that it was handled much better than in the past. First of all Team 3D had a list of demands for the X-Division guy they had kidnapped:
-No more letter X ever.
-No more that was awesome chants.
-The X-Division wrestlers can't go on the internet to put themselves over under fake names.
-They want 12 cases of ding-dongs.
-And 5 cases of Yoo-hoo, not the new flavor, the old oh so chocolately one.
Finally, the X-Division guys have to hand over their rats and their rats mother's.
So they hit the ring with their hostage, Machismo and The MCMG's came out to confront them, they distracted them and the rest of the goof troop ran out, which I hate that they make it so lop sided, it makes no sense. They saved the kidnap victim, who was Johnny Devine, and he then TURNED on the goof troop and beat them down. 3D was right, there was a traitor in the midst and it was him. Devine Dudley it is. I like this turn and the angle is taking a turn for the better I feel. Devine as the next challenger for Machismo with a new found motivation could be a lot of fun.
Chris Harris and Gail Kim vs. Robert Roode and Ms. Brooks - We had some mixed tag action this week, which again got some mixed reactions from yours truly. Usually TNA does a god job when they book mixed tags, and this one wasn't bad. The main angle here is to continue the losing/complainer streak that Chris Harris is on, which I do not think is the right way too book him, but then again, they don't ask me these things. Roode sat down Brooks, and wrestled the rest of the match himself, cheated and WON. Poor Chris Harris. But the main angle was Miss Brooks finally standing up to Robert Roode, telling him to fuck off and then attacking Rain. So while the Harris part wasn't good, the Roode/Brooks part was.
LAX (Homicide y Hernandez) vs. Lance Hoyt and Jimmy Rave - I liked this little match. It was good, clean, fast paced and got the crowd involved very well. The problem I have, and this is like the Highlanders push, is that Rave and Hoyt have been total job boys since they formed their team. And then all of the sudden, they get a win over LAX, who is on a completely different level. I know we are looking to build teams and do a revamp of LAX, but Hoyt and Rave had no build and really no right winning the match, booking wise. They could have at least won, A MATCH before beating LAX. I don't ask for much people.
The Outsiders are back, and now playing the role of workhorse/Sean Waltman is Samoa Joe - Well the Outsiders are back in TNA, and they are set to battle the Angle Alliance. Angle wise it makes sense since Nash was screwed by Angle, and has only one real partner, so that is fine. Also with the match AJ and Joe make their way into the main event of the show, and that is a good thing. But I have to question TNA. Hall did nothing for them in year one, Hall and Nash together did nothing for them their first tome together so in year six, why does the promotion think that they will do anything for them now ? All they will do is drag down the other four guys, while Joe plays the Waltman workhorse role to try and make it a passable match. Blah. They may get a little interest, and it does make sense angle wise, but it is far from a good plan.
The Wrong:
Pacing and timing - Let's have a refresher for reference: I still feel that they need to offer up as close to as much wrestling time as there are commercials. There are 18-20 minutes of commercials per episode of Impact. So hence forth as I have said, I feel that there should be around 15-18-minutes of wrestling action per week, minimum on Impact. I think that is an important thing. They need to show enough wrestling to make people want to buy a PPV. No one buys a show based off of 2-minute matches, run ins and no finishes. And I would suggest I am right, look at TNA's buyrates.
So that being said I think that 35-40-minutes a week of wrestling should be the goal with the 2-hour show. Week 1 had 39-minutes, week two 2 had 29-minutes, and week 3 had 27-minutes. We saw some improvement in week 4 as we jumped up to 33-minutes, and that was good. This week we hit an all time low for the two-hour era, 25-minutes! You know that you have issues when you only have 4:29 of wrestling in the FIRST HOUR! THANK GOD FOR THE SECOND HOUR! ALL THE PROBLEMS ARE SOLVED! WE ARE WRESTLING! Unacceptable. BUT LAST WEEK, when you include the "Takedown Challenge," which technically was a match, we got near 39 MINUTES this week! That was excellent, and I was excited because the show looked like they knew what they wanted, and were going to get there. But then this week we fell back into the trap and only delivered 24:40 of wrestling action. That's officially an all time low. Seriously, you will never be an alternative if you keep being a poor knockoff. The sad part is that you've proven that you can do it, but you can't be consistent.
The Ridiculous:
Abyss vs. Black Reign w/Rat vs. Rellik - Aside from the fact that this is the same old shit that we are always forced to see from Abyss and his feud of the week, there was a much bigger issue. I could live with the same old shit if it was done well, but this wasn't. First of all it was a three way match, or at least it was announced as that. Tenay said that it was a handicap match. And then a minute later said it was LIKE a handicap match, due to Reign and Rellik were aligned. And then of course sine they have been together for four days they had to have tension between them, because in TNA nobody can get along. But the worst part of this all is that Rellik, making his IN RING DEBUT LOSES…TAKES THE FALL, EATS THE PIN and DOES THE JOB~! FIRST MATCH! THIS IS TNA! I would ask if a monkey is booking the promotion, but we all know Dutch in on the team.
SmackDown!: By: "The Whole Geoffin Show" Geoff Eubanks
SmackDown 11.09.07
Okay, first of all, CHRIS JERICHO IS BACK! ALL HAIL THE AYATOLLAH OF ROCK AND ROLL-AH!
Second, I wanna send best wishes for a speedy recovery to Matt Hardy, whose appendix burst on him backstage at the SD! Tapings this week! At LEAST he can be written out selling the tremendous beat down afforded him by MVP, as discussed below. Get well, Matt! We need you!
The Right:
The Animal enters The Devil's Playground - We had a two-pronged build to this Sunday's SURVIVOR SERIES Hell In The Cell match for the World Title between Batista and The Undertaker, just we did last week, simply with the roles reversed. In the first hour, Taker came to the ring to put himself over with respect to his impressive history and nearly unblemished record in The Cell. With the exception of Brock Lesnar, Taker is unbeaten in The Cell, so he didn't really have to work too hard to make his case. A great promo which, combined with his having made Khali tap last week, built well to the PPV. What Taker didn't say himself was fortified by the intermittent clips of his involvement in past Cell matches.
Closing the show we had Batista taking on old nemesis Mark Henry in a No DQ match, just as we did last week with Taker and Khali. Why this match tonight was so much superior was that Batista actually worked the No DQ stipulation to absolutely destroy The World's Strongest Man, both to win the match as well as drive home the point post-bout with a ringside beat-down that should have Henry shelved for a couple of weeks to appropriately sell. This also works because Big Dave's nickname, The Animal, is looking to be exactly what he's become since Taker has returned and gone on a quest to regain the WT, a cornered animal. As I've mentioned in the past, although the trio of matches involving these two earlier in the year were all quite stellar, the build was one-dimensional and flat. Kudos to McMahonagement for having created an intriguing build to the second half of the series without actually pitting the men against one another before the PPV and without having to turn one of them even slightly. AWESOME.
Breaking up is hard to do - We FINALLY had the big blow-up between Matt Hardy & MVP tonight! I'm pleased that I was, for the most part, correct in the manner in which they split up, although I find it interesting that it was Matt who was the cause of losing the WWETTTs, not just once, but twice, as well as to the incredibly unlikely team of WWECW's John Morrison & The Miz. I have to agree with Larry in that it would have been nice to have had the former champs drop the belts to, say, an actual SD! Team, as opposed to another "dysfunctional-functional" team such as Miz & Morrison, however, in having the two challengers to CM Punk's WWECW Title pull off not just upset, but their first defense against the former champions in back-to-back matches, it not only hypes the WWECW Title match at SURVIVOR SERIES, it also displays that these guys are willing to set aside their differences when gold is on the line…perhaps they'd be willing to team up on Sunday, take out Punk and do battle against one another for the belt…? if so, what would then be the dynamic with respect to the WWETTTs…? It will be interesting, too, to see what happens with the tag belts being around the waists of a team not officially on the SD! Roster.
However, back to the main story at hand, that being, the dissolution of MVP and Matt. Matt was a guest on MVP's VIP Lounge and finally dropped the bomb we all knew was coming, that Matt doesn't buy any of MVP's smokescreen bullshit, that they're pals, bosom buddies, homies and that the only reason why MVP has been so devoted to maintaining their tenure as WWETTCs is so he could keep Matt too busy to challenge for MVP's UST, Matt's real goal. Back to the proverbial wall, MVP informs Matt that they just so happen to have still another Tag defense tonight against the aforementioned Miz & Morrison (who, by the way, are both freaking awesome).
Once the match got underway, MVP was his same old brilliantly cowardly self, tweaking his knee slightly, forcing Matt to carry the load, even when his knee was purposefully injured at the hands of Miz & Morrison, who were pretty masterful in cutting off the ring, preventing Matt from making the tag, as well as DAMN good at focusing on the injured knee. We've seen in the past that Matt can be the second-coming of Ricky Morton when he wants to be, and we've also seen him prove that a one-legged (or one-armed, for that matter) man can, in fact, win a butt-kicking contest, but that's been in a one-on-one situation, Miz & Morrison kept a fresh man in at all times and just worked that knee into a pretzel. I must admit, though, my jaw was swinging in the breeze when Miz got the clean three!
Seeing his UST flash before his eyes, the ever-resourceful MVP called after the new champions, immediately invoking their rematch clause, thus signaling Miz & Morrison's first defense. To his credit, MVP did start the match, although that was only a false display of good sportsmanship to Matt, for, as soon as he tweaked his knee again, he was tagging out, forcing the much greater injured Matt to continue. Miz & Morrison were too tenacious for the injured Hardy, as he tapped, a signifier for Mr. Never Say Die that he truly was in agony.
Post-match finally came the turn for which we all have been waiting months, and it was a doozy. If there were ever any considerations that MVP would be turned face through this program via mutual respect, those ended tonight, although, in the ensuing months, we could see another extended campaign as Matt will no doubt be finally allowed to focus on The UST, and we know MVP will be up to his devious best, doing anything to keep his nemesis from taking his gold. Of course, with Matt out for 8-10 weeks, recovering from his ruptured appendix, this gives MVP the chance to be built as The USC, and to brag about how he carried the team, how it was Matt who cost the team the belts, etc. and throw a forest onto the heat he's got after turning in such vicious fashion on Matt. This has been brilliant and it's about to get better.
Building to SURVIVOR SERIES - I'm going to combine analysis on two of tonight's matches because they were basically the same kind of match, occurring for the same purpose, that being to build to the tri-branded, ten-man traditional SURVIVOR SERIES elimination tag match. In one corner, we had our resident high-flyers, Jeff Hardy and Rey Mysterio, versus technical ground technicians, Finlay and Kennedy, respectively. Both were fun, if somewhat innocuous, matches into which fans could invest emotion for the endearing faces against the mean old heels and, as we know Triple H versus Umaga will work, whet our appetites for the under carders. Although Rey/Kennedy wasn't as fun or dramatic as Jeff/Finlay, both contests served their purposes and we had some nice wrestling all with the intention of selling the upcoming PPV on the go-home. Well done!
Girl Fight tonight - In similar fashion, we had a duel-branded ladies tag match, too, seeing Raw's Beth Phoenix and SD!'s Victoria take on the team of Raw's Mickie James and SD!'s Torrie Wilson. Now, in seeing these teams, it was absolutely plainly obvious who should have gone out with her shoulders to the mat, and I'm happy to say, that's exactly what happened. Torrie got the hot tag from a beleaguered Mickie and was promptly put in her place by The Glamazon, the way it should have been. I like how McMahonagement appears to be sacrificing the Divas who really can't wrestle to Phoenix to help build her up, and are saving the women who actually can wrestle for actual matches later on. Again, build to the PPV, sound booking and lovely ladies who, for the most part, actually can make a match in the ring. Well done.
puRgatory:
NADDA~!
The wRong:
NADDA~!
The Ridiculous:
David & Goliath yet again - Khali versus Horny Bastard McMahon has no basis occurring ever. Who's booking this crap, Russo? The only good I can see coming of this is Horny being reunited with Finlay who turns face defending his little buddy against Khali, because I'd actually like to see Khali versus a motivated Finlay. Fingers are crossed.
Happy Thanksgiving, friends!
Remember people, show Geoff some love by emailing him here: yostankmama@hotmail.com
RAW!:
Raw 11.19.07
The Right:
Opening Talky Bit/HBK vs. Kennedy - The show started off with HBK headed to the ring. He wanted Orton to come to the ring so that he could shake his hand. Orton appeared on the tron and was actually smart and refused to come to the ring, he beat HBK, HHH, ran out Cena and was the man, and he knew HBK was up to no good. HBK admitted that after asking for a title shot he would have kicked him in the head again. Orton said NO TITLE SHOT FOR YOU and was done. Kennedy then came out and told HBK he had his shot, and that he wanted his spot. He then entertained me by saying that HBK is famous for losing the big matches…and his smile. Tremendous. They had a brawl, which was to be a match but never started, and in the end Kennedy ate a superkick to the chair he was holding and HBK stood tall. Some complained that he BERRIED Kennedy, but I think this was needed to get some heat back to HBK after his CLEAN loss to Orton. Kennedy then cut a good promo later, putting HBK on notice. I liked this a lot, as we get Orton away from HBK to be feuding with Jericho and HBK into the feud with Kennedy. I liked the booking here. The only small bothering thing was Regal came out, said to ring the bell for a match, but when we came back from commercial, they never started the match. What the hell was the purpose of Regal coming out to say that if they never intended on having the match? LAME. But overall good shit.
Jeff Hardy vs. Umaga - Jeff Hardy had another meeting this week, and while I was not that excited at first, they went out there and ended up delivering the goods. It was very slow in spots and the repeated neck vice was very tedious, BUT they were able to start a great build and towards the end they had a damn fine match. This was just good shit and while they have had a good number of matches, as long as they work like this they can continue to have matches. The end did slightly upset me because Snitsky sucks a big old donkey dick, and took it down a notch, but I love the HHH/Hardy interaction as he said he respects Hardy and that speaks volumes. They will have the tag match next week and HHH and Hardy should win, pinning donkey dick, and continuing HHH looking strong and Hardy gaining even more big time momentum. I am all for that.
Jericho Returns - Chris Jericho returned this week after a long hype and build, and it was great. Not perfect as I will mention but great. Jericho is back, cut a fun promo, and lit the crowd on fire. This was the most fun I had watching a segment in a LONG time, and it makes me happy and excited for what is to come. He is fresh, looks great and brings a new life to the show and promotion as a whole and couldn't have come at a better time, with Cena out. This is awesome. The problem I have with this, and it is a personal philosophy I hold in what I was taught, is that they totally RUINED the reveal. I HATED that they showed Jericho laying out the runner backstage. It didn't hurt it that much and was still great, but the one thing that you never do is ruin the reveal, and they did that. The impact would have been much greater on stage at first, it's a small gripe of mine but I think is an important one to bring up. But overall I loved it and am HYPED for his return run.
puRgatory:
Santino vs. Lawler - Now I have to say that Lawler working with Santino can be a very good thing for Santino's learning process. Santino was hilarious when he stole the crown and mocked Lawler by stealing Cheech's pussy gimmick from Dusk Till Dawn, which I approved of. Now that being said, the match, again was not good and Lawler won with the SLOWEST BACKSLIDE EVER! If they take this to Armageddon, I hope that they can work a complete match. They should have these guys working the house shows if they are trying to help Santino.
BOBCORE vs. Cody - After what seemed to be a fallout over their loss at Survivor Series, BOBCORE decided that TOUGH LOVE was in order for young Cody Rhodes. They had a TV match, not bad, not great and finally, on his fourth try Cody got the "big" win over the veteran that had owned him, in what should have theoretically been a huge moment. But the sad part is that no one cares. No one popped for the win, they didn't care when the match was over and no one is getting over because of this. It is a classic story, unfortunately no one is feeling that emotional connection to either man, which completely kills it. And that's a shame because Holly can be useful and Cody has talent. I also still think that Cody Rhodes has been brought up to early. Finally, while I liked Orton running wild, it did them no favors that he laid them out, because that tells people that these guys don't matter, at all, and that is a shame as well.
The Wrong:
Hornswoggle vs. Carlito - First of all I have no problem with Carlito being BERRIED here. He has asked for his release, he is lazy and unmotivated so as far as I am concerned, so he needs to go and do more jobs so I am fine with this. What I don't need are more midget matches on the show, more of Vince having fun with his little angle and more bastardizing of the brand extension. Finlay is now involved, which does make sense, but why does it have to be on Raw? SD basically has three hours with ECW now being theirs for the most part, and Hornswoggle and Finlay are a part of Smackdown, so this should be happening there. Unfortunately they just break their own rules and do what they want and the sheep sit there and act like it is great. What a load of shit.
WHAT BRAND EXTENSION? - When it comes to the Brand Extension, people seem to think I hate the concept. Quite the contrary, I think it was a very good concept. Unfortunately it is also an exercise of using the wrong execution of the right idea. Monday again showed us this. First of all they are going to use Finlay on Raw a lot due to Hornswoggle being there with Vince. I discussed this a bit already, but there is another infraction we need to discuss. The return of Ric Flair. I am glad Flair is returning, and appears to be getting a last run. I also know that next week they are in Charlotte, his home, classic Flair country. So sure that makes sense. But the problem is that Ric Flair is a Smackdown performer. He should be coming back on Smackdown. But again, they have decided to ignore their own rules they have made and are just arbitrarily moving him to another show. That is why I get upset and why it is a wrong.
The Ridiculous:
The whole ladies match crap - How bad was this ladies match bullshit on Monday? First of all we had the pre-match stuff with Jillian and John Secada. He looked like he didn't want to be involved at all with this segment, and was only there to be mentioned because of his involvement with Lillian's album. From there we went to a match, which was just not that good. And then, Jillian decided that she, for no real reason, do a 450 splash on Raw. Now she USED to do it well, but she hasn't done it for a while and now has large tits. She did this move, Maria pulled Melina in the way and Jillian pulled a Kurt Angle and landed with a knee to the head. OUCH. I do appreciate the chicks that know how to wrestle trying to wrestle, but please don't hurt each other.
ECW on Sci-Fi!:
ECW 11.20.07:
The Right:
NADDA~! -
puRgatory:
Kane vs. Big Daddy and The Teacher - I will say that they have followed this feud well. Kane and V have an issue, they have been fighting, Striker talked shit last week and got killed and now he manages to get a handicap match for he and his monster vs. Kane. The match was fine for what it was, short though, and Striker ate the pin, as he should. BUT…but they once again have decided to go to the handicap match as a booking crutch. And on top of that they once again had the baby face overcome the odds. I seriously don't think anyone in this fucking company has a CLUE how to book a handicap match. The final straw is that for over a YEAR WWE has used and abused the handicap match because it is lazy booking, and I am to the point where I want to throw up when I see a handicap match announced.
Shelton? - Elijah Burke came out this week and introduced us to the newest member of the ECW Roster, that being Shelton Benjamin. I don't care what people say, that they made a big deal about it, they just keep reinventing the damn rules which totally takes away from what could make the brand extension work. He came out with some pyro, which was nice, faced off with Hollywood Dreamer, soundly defeated him with a wacky new finisher and we have a new member of the ECW roster. So yeah, what brand extension? Seriously, they aren't even trying anymore. I am not calling for the end of it, I think it CAN be a good plan, but they constantly exercise the wrong execution of the right idea. Now, I could see Shelton and Elijah doing well together, especially if they tag and go for the SD tag titles, but I hate that the brand extension continues to be abused and that ECW is losing all identity. ECW is slowly becoming WWECW-Night-Raw.
Deuce and Domino vs. Jesse and Festus - All right, this week we had tag team action of ECW as Deuce and Domingo took on Jesse and Festus. They had a short match, because we just HAD to fit five matches on the show, so while it was good, well fine for the time given, it really needed a few more minutes, two or so to have a more complete, and likely better bout. The right team won in Jesse and Festus, as they are the right team to challenge for the titles. I know this as done on ECW because Miz and Morrison are the tag champs, so I understand that. But again, this is the problem with the ECW/SD merger deal. A lot of weeks this looks like the third hour of Smackdown and not ECW. With that in mind and Shelton being brought over, it seems like ECW is just a bridge show for the other shows, minus Punk and whomever he is working.
The Wrong:
Punk vs. Kenny - The opening match for ECW this week was CM Punk vs. Kenny Dykstra from Smackdown. Nothing says your champion is important like putting him in opening matches. That is so shitty, but they do it and he comes off ad not important and the title comes off as not important. They had a fine match, but the major problem here is that Punk, the CHAMPION had way too much of a problem beating a guy that has lost to Chuck Palumbo 43 times in the last 4-months. That's a problem to me. This is nothing against Punk, I think that the booking isn't working for him as champion, which is a shame. But since he isn't the head writer's boy, that's what happens. It's really a shame.
Kevin…NOT the Vampire? - Well, the alternate dimension really changes a guy doesn't it? Kevin NOT the Vampire returned to ECW this week and, well, he's not a vampire anymore. He has a new haircut, the goth look is gone, new tights, which are cool and just different. I like the look and think he needed a change because without Ariel, the gimmick was dead. But my problem is that they bring him back with no promos, no fanfare, and most importantly NO explanation of WHY he changed his look. They just threw it out there and went along like nothing had changed. That's shitty booking. Why should anyone care about him, the new look or anything? They won't, and that's a shame. Apparently they are too concerned with bringing in guys from Raw and the fact that ECW is another hour for SD lately.
The Ridiculous:
The Five Match Formula - Good lord do I hate the five match formula. They just threw matches out there, using the horrendous 5-match formula that loathe. If you just throw matches out there with no rhyme or reason, and give them no time people won't care and then no one gets over, and that is never good. While technically there was nothing wrong with the match, constantly running matches for the sake of having matches gets no one anywhere, it's just stuff, white noise, and that isn't good. If you have been a follower of the R's you will know that this has been a rant of mine for Impact and ECW in the past. The 5-match formula for a one-hour show doesn't work. Nothing gets the appropriate time and everything on the show feels rushed as hell. I hate when the one-hour shows try this, it never works and doesn't add to my enjoyment of the show. FOR SHAME ECW…FOR SHAME!
READER RANTS~!:
From John -
IWG (Internet Wrestling GAWD) As much as I loved the return promo of Y2J last night (anything less than his first one would've been a disappointment), I have to play the downer role in all of this. First and foremost, the fact that they've shot Jericho to the World Title scene already reeks of TNA-style booking, in which the ‘e' is showing that they are desperate. Had WWE actually took the time to build up people like Kennedy, Carlito, and others to the point of being world beaters, then they could've started Y2J's return with him feuding one of them. Instead any other feud after Orton is going to look pale by comparison. By the way, Orton has earned a lot of credibility in my eyes as a World Champion after the last two days.
As for this supposed Jeff Hardy push, a push for what? I don't see him being a realistic contender for the World Title, and for right now there are no true contenders for the IC belt, unless they plan on throwing Snitsky into the program. That'll really sell. Also, what happened to the Tag Team Champions?
This isn't about having guys like Cena and Lashley out of action, this is about a promotion that has done very little to build up stars outside of Cena/HHH that the fans can believe are credible threats. Had they done that in the beginning, there would be no rush to throw Y2J into the World Title scene already. They could've built him up in feuds against Kennedy and the like to at least give him some more time to ascend to the top of the ladder.
From Payton on Kaz vs. Angle -
Wow, I thought the match was better than 3 stars, but I LOVE what they did here. Unlike most main-eventers, Angle has proven multiple times that he LOVES elevating talent. This match reminded me a LOT of the match Angle had with Cena before anyone know who Cena was. Cena wouldn't be where he is today without that match and three years from now we'll be saying the same thing about Kaz.
BTW, Kaz needs a hook with the crowd. It's time for people to start chanting K..A..Z.. with the same cadence as RVD. And when they finally sign RVD, then Kaz can start the thumb point and boom, you have an instant feud that can only make Kaz look great.
I liked th ematch a lot, but rememberm, the commercial break kills a lot of heat and makes it hard to rate. But I really enjoyed it overall and thought my rating was fair.
From Dan on Survivor Series -
Hey man, I was at the greatest place on earth, BUFFALO WILD WINGS watching the ppv for the cost of $13 in wings with about 20 friends. I hope you have your can of berries out for the heels in the Survivor Series match, up 5-4 at the start and 5-2 after 12 minutes and they all do the J O B for H H H. I personally would've booked it to end up 3-1 with Triple H against Umaga. Kennedy and MVP, have him beat Umaga with a surprise pin and then have Umaga attack him on the way out leaving him open to get beat down and pinned by Kennedy. But then all fantasy bookers have Triple H job. My break downs are as follows:
1. Punk vs. Morrison vs. Miz : *** Very good, tons of sweet moves especially the rana into a powerbomb and Morrison's corkscrew split legged moonsault.
2. Ladies 10-woman tag : ** nothing offensive
3. Cade and Murdoch over Holly/Rhodes : ** nothing special, nice to see the champs get back after the BERRIAL from Monday
4. Classic Survivor Series Match : ** I can't give it any more because it did not do what these matches are supposed to do, elevate someone new, give someone a rub, or a crazy elimination...just more of the same with HHHH dominating and basically allowing Jeff to tag along while he crushed the momentum of Kennedy and MVP
5. Hornswoggle vs. Khali - DOES NOT BELONG ON $40 PPV!!!!!!!!!!!!
6. Orton over HBK : ***1/2 I did think it was a tad to soon (like Brian telling an FDR joke ok Family Guy) to use the Crossface, but otherwise it was great as the story became whose finishing move would HBK steal next, and Orton looked great with a sick RKO. MOTN!
7. Batista over Taker : *** good power match, sick blade job, predictable ending except...why would Edge go after Taker...Taker is the one with the bone to pick against Edge for stealing the World Title, and Batista was the one who injured Edge I remember.
Overall, a 6 out of 10, 2 for each good title match.
From Luke of Survivor Series -
I'm shocked, that was actually an enjoyable PPV!
The ECW title match was good, even if it could have used a few more minutes. ***
The Divas match was poor, but it wasn't offensive *
The Survivor Series match was okay, nothing special though. Never been fond of the lack of logic stopping pinfalls being broken up, or HHH being super-face. **1/4
Ignoring Khali-Hornswoggle as a match, it did well. I loved Finlay beating the snot out of Khali too!
HBK-Orton was a very good match. It told a good story, put both guys over, and wasn't like either of their routine matches, with HBK using some real wrestling, and Orton looking dangerous. I'd say this is the best non-gimmick world title match the WWE has had since Kurt Angle was there. ****1/4
Undertaker-Batista was a fun spotfest. Both guys pulled out big moves and they both looked tough bastards because of it. I've heard people saying that Edge ruined it, but the spots were done, the match was all but over, and the fact that they can't grasp the logic behind Edge's actions yet (That's what Smackdown is for, people!) is making them bitch about it. Good for what it was, and *** is about right.
Finally from Jaimz on Survivor Series -
Well let me first say that I love the pay per view reports. Survivor Series was a mixed bag of why is this on the pay per view? And wow this Pay Per View could be best of 2007. I thought opening the show with the ECW championship match again showed the lack of worth that ECW has in the WWE. CM Punk going over on the MIZ was a good idea because he still hasn't defeated Morrison in a big PPV match. I'd give this match a 7/10
2nd on the docket we had the ten diva tag team match which was easily highlighted by the Michelle McCool full on boob slip. Slow mo it right around the time Victoria is going to throw Michelle McCool to the ropes give or take 15 seconds and there it is in plain site. Of all my buddies I was the only one to point it out. She has a nice set on her I must say. Melina looked hammered coming out to the ring so it didn't surprise me she fell. Anyway Mickie goes over but still no legit contender comes out of this for Beth Phoenix's strap. 5/10
Tag title match that to be honest I had no idea was even added to the PPV, honestly I thought this was TRASH OF THE NIGHT and it had no business being on one of the big 4. Cody Rhodes loses to Murdoch's version of the Canadian destroyer no one cares and apparently neither does Hardcore Holly. Better luck next time kid. 1/10
Next up we got the Classic Survivor series match-up Triple H, Jeff Hardy, Rey Mysterio and Kane vs. Kennedy, Umaga, Big Daddy V, MVP and Finlay. Of course Team Game gives a hilarious promo pre-match which actually got me excited about the match. Anyway Big Daddy V has no business in this match unless he has more clothes on. I will give him credit though he has stepped it up in ring. Match pretty much goes the way you would expect except for one big difference Triple H lets someone else go over. Nice to see Trips give Jeff the rub and let him go over on Umaga with the swanton for the 1st time ever. Also nice to see our local fighting Irishmen last till near the end. I swear Finlay will always be that guy that lasts 40 minutes in a Royal Rumble but never wins it. Match rating 8/10
Hornswoggle vs. Khali again no business on a Pay Per View Finlay interferes close to Trash of the Night but Finlay's possible face turn saves the match for me personally. 1.5/10
Next up the highly anticipated Randy Orton Shawn Michaels Survivor series match, I would be lying if I did not think that Vince was going to come down and ring the bell on Shawn Michaels in this match. But thankfully we don't relive Montreal for a 3rd time in Survivor Series history. This match was definitely better then their Cyber Sunday showdown, Michaels is now not only the showstoppa but the Move stealer. The crippler crossface actually gets used on a WWE Pay Per View again wow. Then the ankle lock wow I hope Kurt Angle was watching. Anyway Michaels goes for superkick can't use it huge RKO and Orton retains. Michaels kicks Orton's head off again for the 6th week in a row big surprise. Thus in my opinion setting up a Ladder Match at Armageddon, they need a blow off to this feud where Michaels can use the Superkick to his advantage. Match rating 8/10
Hell in a Cell closes the show, nice to see Smackdown shine two months in a row. The whole night was is Edge going to return? Or isn't he? Well he would in a big and confusing way. But first the match itself wasn't the best I think these guys could have had if given the free roam style say 8 years a go. No one goes outside the cell anymore which is sad because this cell was absolutely massive. The height was close to what Unforgiven's was( was there live). But the width around the ring was huge this time around. Some sweet spots including the powerbomb where Batista heaved Taker through the table. The tombstone on the steps looked just sick. Edge comes out from under the ring of course at this point killing the Undertaker with the steel chair. This didn't really make sense to me other then I guess Edge will say that he knows he can beat Batista because he is ever the opportunist. Or maybe just to create heat heading towards the inevitable Undertaker Edge Wrestlemania showdown for the World title. Edge comes back in post match and kills Taker with the chair again. Loved the match wasn't too sure on the ending so Ill say 9/10 for the match 7 out of 10 for the match.
In closing Survivor Series was leaps and bounds better then most of the garbage this year, probably the best Pay Per View since Backlash in my opinion. Nice to see because 2006 Survivor Series was probably the worst of 2006. I would give Survivor Series 2007 an 8/10.
