My Take On 01.17.09: My Top 10 WWE PPV Matches of 2008

Posted by Larry Csonka on 01.17.2009

ROH and TNA had their turn, and now WWE takes center stage as I break down their best PPV efforts of 2008!



Welcome!
I have said it before and I will say it again, 2008 was a very good year for PPV, much better than 2007. So with the year in PPV complete, it is time to look back at some of the great matches from the year that was in PPV. Today I continue this look back with the top WWE PPV matches of the year. WWE had some VERY good PPV matches this year, so many that they have more "Honorable Mentions" than ROH and TNA. This list was harder to break down, and some of the "Honorable Mentions" could have made the big list, but that's the glory of opinion. Some matches will have the same rating, but will be separated by the importance of the match and or how it helped the performer or performers as far as their careers go. Remember, this is the Top 10 WWE PPV Matches of 2008.


Honorable Mentions
A) (WWE CYBER SUNDAY) WWE TITLE MATCH: HHH © vs. Jeff Hardy ***¾

B) (WWE NO WAY OUT) SMACKDOWN ELIMINATION CHAMBER ***¾

C) (WWE WRESTLEMANIA 24) WWE TITLE MATCH: Randy Orton © vs. John Cena vs. HHH ***¾

D) (WWE BACKLASH) WORLD TITLE MATCH: The Undertaker © vs. Edge ***¾

E) (WWE WRESTLEMANIA 24) MONEY IN THE BANK LADDER MATCH: Chris Jericho vs. MVP vs. John Morrison vs. Carlito vs. CM Punk vs. Mr. Kennedy vs. Shelton Benjamin ***¾

F) (WWE JUDGMENT DAY) HBK vs. Chris Jericho ***¾

G) (WWE SUMMERSLAM) John Cena vs. Batista ***¾

H) (WWE ROYAL RUMBLE) The Royal Rumble Match ****

I) (WWE NIGHT OF CHAMPIONS) WWE TITLE MATCH: HHH © vs. John Cena ****

J) (WWE ONE NIGHT STAND) TLC: The Undertaker vs. Edge ****


The Top 10

10) (WWE GREAT AMERICAN BASH) Chris Jericho vs. Shawn Michaels ****

Well you have to start somewhere, and this is the beginning of our top 10. I LOVED this match. Why? Because in the "WWE Universe" this was COMPLETELY different from anything else they normally do. I know that ROH fans will charge in here and say that they have been doing stoppages for years and that TNA fans will say they have done it as well and that is all fine and good, but in the world of the WWE they just do NOT do this type of thing. Sure, back in the day, in the 70's, they did this kind of thing as a protective finish, but these days it is just not done. I really enjoyed the work they did, and I think that after this match it is safe to say that HBK is an MMA fan because he keeps working more and more of it into his matches. Plus the finish was a pure MMA finish. In the roundtable I said, "These guys are doing some really good work together, and I thought that HBK has delivered some money promos as of late. I feel that the match will be BIG TIME psychology, centered around the eye that has been a big focal point of the angle. Watching HBK sell the attacks and the emotion of the promos, this could be some great stuff. Jericho needs the high profile win here to cement the turn and the fact that he is a douche bag, and I think he gets it here." Hey every once and a while I get shit right! This was a methodical match, and eventually it did come down to the eye. Lance Cade would come out to stop the superkick, HBK fought as best he could, did the moonsualt to the floor (they didn't catch him, sure he appreciated that) and then as they went back in, Jericho got an elbow that busted open HBK, by the eye, and then it got intense. Jericho would pummel him, Cade got a kick to the face, HBK would eventually get the crossface and that gave us a great visual as he was THE definition of the old crimson mask. Jericho would escape and beta on him and the ref kept getting involved, but HBK BEGGED him not to stop. They did this a few times, and then Jericho essentially got side control and worked ground and pound, NOT POUND AND GROUND on HBK until the ref DOVE in MMA style to stop the match. It was different, it was intense, it was emotional and I loved it. I think that we can all agree that wrestling fans are conditioned to certain things, and one of them is the blood soaked baby face. They have the match, we see him beaten and we are conditioned to see this Superman comeback, overcoming the odds for the valiant victory. That didn't happen here, and I thought it was great. They played the eye, Jericho DID get the big win and he DID cement himself as a complete douche bag. This ruled.

9) (WWE ARMAGEDDON) WWE TITLE MATCH: EDGE © HHH vs. Jeff Hardy ****

Moving onto #9, we have HHH vs. Edge vs. Hardy. This was another match I had very high hopes for and in the end I felt that it delivered. All three guys worked very hard, Edge is showed no ring rust at all stemming from his trip to hell, HHH was in prime form as well and it clicked. They played the formula to where Jeff was on the defense the majority of the time, including where he got taken out with a cool spear spot through one of the announce tables. Sort of the same formula they worked with HHH, HBK and Benoit when they had their three-way battles. They did some quick bullshit with Mat and Kozlov getting involved, but that was quick and painless as they got back to action. The finish, and I mean this in a good was, was right out of old school TNA. Back in the early days of TNA when Ki, Lynn and AJ feuded, they had a very good three way and they did a very similar finish to the one the WWE did here. It is a cool finish, but can't be over done. It worked here as Jeff finally got to take advantage and not get burnt due to that. Previously he had been burnt when he went to the well one time too many, but it finally paid off for the daredevil. After years of wondering if he would ever win the title, Jeff Hardy finally did it. He becomes a Grand Slam champion, and while some will argue that it was too late or that it shouldn't have happened at all (for various reasons), WWE pulled the trigger. It also came off as a huge moment. Edge and HHH disappeared and Hardy got the big celebration in the ring and then posed on top of the set to close out the show. Armageddon is a PPV that is seen as a throw away, but I feel another reason for the title victory was to make the show seem important. The one thing they did was cause people to talk and that is a good thing coming from a very good match.

8) (WWE NO MERCY) WWE TITLE MATCH: HHH © vs. Jeff Hardy ****

While #9 is the big title win, I feel that #8 was the more important match because it was further proof of Jeff's ability to work the "main event," something many questioned. I dug this match, mainly due to the fact that HHH played a great subtle heel here, not too much or over the top, but just enough to get the right heat on him when he had control. Also, it was not too much to make them hate him, because that isn't the goal as of now, they wanted them both faces still, so we don't want hate; we just need the proper heat. Also, as you would expect, when HHH is on he is on and he did that here by using a great mix of Ric Flair and Harley Race. This was his best singles performance in a while, since Night of Champions to be sure. I feel that this was fantastic match that doesn't hurt Hardy in the loss, and at the time I felt that it was something that they can play off of as Hardy continued his journey. You can lose, but it is HOW you lose that matters. Jeff lost because of a delay in pinning and because HHH is "The cerebral assassin." He was "this close" one more time, but looked awesome. Again, this was fantastic stuff, on par with their last major one on one PPV match, which I also liked a lot. Jeff has matured and with the right person, HHH right now, he is working smart and quality main event matches. These guys have a great chemistry, and that produced the goods in the ring.

7) (WWE CYBER SUNDAY) LAST MAN STANDING: The Undertaker vs. The Big Show ****

In what may be a surprise to some, we come to #7 on the list. The Undertaker and The Big Show got a LOT of shit heading into the match, and I will freely admit that I didn't think that they would have a great match, but I figured with the right stipulation, they could have a good match. Last Man Standing, I Quit, or Knockout Match were the options for this match, and the "WWE UNIVERSE" selected Last Man Standing. In my opinion the match is both a curse as well as an opportunity. Sometimes with the Last Man Standing match we get too concerned with the drama of the count, and it gets tedious and boring. With no near falls in a match of this kind, sometimes the crowd dies with all of the counts unless the match is booked properly. This match was good shit, I mean I was INTO this match and digging it big time. Two heavyweights just out there kicking ass and they did so very well for 20-minutes. They played the stipulation almost perfectly, everything meant something (no PLUNDAH for the sake of having it) and they just have a good chemistry. We got the table spot, we got the use of the chair, Show used the KTFO punch and Taker busted out the GOGOPLATA once again, which led to the finish. After a good match at No Mercy, I felt that both guys picked up their game here and delivered the best match on the card, just edging out HHH vs. Hardy. It is amazing that Taker is having such good matches at this age, and with a variety of opponents (Batista, Edge, Show). I have MUCH respect for Taker, but I also wonder how long the man can keep it up, even with him working his "Undertaker Schedule."

6) (WWE NO WAY OUT) RAW ELIMINATION CHAMBER ****¼

Unlike the Smackdown Chamber on this very same card (which ended up being much better than anyone thought), most expected this one to deliver. #6 on the big WWE list is the Raw Elimination Chamber. Five of the six guys were locks for good performances, with JBL as the wildcard. Things started out perfectly I thought with Jericho and HBK starting out the match. Oh yes, this was good shit simply because these guys deliver. They kicked the chamber off with good wrestling, counters, the fun roll up reversal and counter sequence and it was good shit. I loved that at one point Jericho got sick of it and decided to kill HBK with a clothesline. They would do a collision spot, which brought out #3, Umaga. Fuck yes son, the Samoan Bulldozer ran wild, got a badass double Samoan Drop spot and it was greatness. HBK got busted open during all of this and then added to it for a pretty serious job of bleeding, I respect that. JBL was in next followed by HHH. To me this was the slow part of the match, but then JBL was the first guy out, and I was totally fine with that. Anyway, as he was leaving he decided to get some chairs and would proceed to hit HBK and Jericho. He would eventually hit Umaga as well before bailing. RUN FOR YOU LIFE SON! Jeff got the number 6 spot, came in, ran wild and looked great. They did the super monster elimination on Umaga, which saw him take the super kick, code breaker, pedigree and top of the pod swanton. While I feel they have done a lot wrong with Umaga at times, this elimination was great and protected the monster, something they haven't been doing all the time. Quickly after that Jericho ate the super kick and he was out of there. To me this worked well as far as order goes and the overall booking because Jericho looked good in there, and I actually expected him gone sooner so that was a surprise. Jeff looked to eliminate HBK after a twist of fate, but HHH tosses Jeff to the steel flooring and pedigreed HBK and pinned him. This played into the pre-match promo they had backstage agreeing that they both were going to do what they had to do to win and it plays perfectly into the booking I thought. I felt that if HHH was going to win it would be over Hardy, and that is what happened. Hardy again was made to look good taking it to HHH and even kicked out of the pedigree, something HBK didn't do just minutes earlier. It took tossing Hardy on a chair and then a pedigree onto the chair for HHH to win and ended a damn fine match. Hardy returned the job, which is how the business works. Plus, when you really look at the HHH vs. Hardy interactions and matches, they were all good and I feel that they really helped Jeff.

5) (WWE NO MERCY) WORLD TITLE LADDER MATCH: Chris Jericho © vs. HBK ****¼

If there has been one feud I have thoroughly enjoyed it has been the Chris Jericho vs. HBK feud, and that is obvious from the list as this is their second singles match on here. They have had great promos and have delivered in the ring, and now they were taking the next step into a ladder match. Jericho, who has had much success in the match and HBK, the man that revolutionized the match on the big time stage and if their past history together wasn't enough, it was for the world title. Obviously they had the proper ingredients, they are both "good cooks," and to me that equals success When it was all said and done, I though this was an awesome match, carried by two guys that have been doing some excellent work with just about anything they get involved with. They worked hard, and considering that HBK was still recovering from the torn triceps and is pretty much falling apart, he is simply amazing. They kept the crowd, the repeat spots were kept to a minimum and it worked. The suplex spot on the floor and CRAZY/STUPID bump Jericho took to the floor were very memorable, but I do have to say that the Cade-a-ferance took a bit away for me, even though I knew it was coming. In a way it had to happen, but part of me was hoping it wouldn't happen. This was just more goodness from these two, and while some will feel it is too low on the list, part of me felt that it just lacked a "little" something to kick it up a notch, perhaps thyme.

4)(WWE SUMMERSLAM) HELL IN A CELL: Edge vs. The Undertaker ****½

#4 was a match that was single handedly carried by Edge heading into Summerslam. With Taker's return coming, and the fact that he wasn't appearing on TV, Edge made the Hell in a Cell match THE reason to buy this PPV because he was awesome. And if this was the reason you bought the Summerslam PPV, I cannot see you being disappointed. Edge came to the ring with the insane/euphoric look on his face, like he was pleased to enter the devil's playground. Edge controlled early on and was destroying the Undertaker, even pulling out all of his weapons of choice (T,L,C) and some old favorites like the camera. Two spots that ruled were Edge spearing Taker through the cage, as well as a SICK spear through the ECW announce table, after running off of the other two tables. Taker eventually was able to come back, including a chokeslam to Edge, who was on the top rope and flew through two stacked tables, in an ode to their TLC match. Taker then decided that he would get payback on Edge for everything he did to him. He delivered a spear, a camera shot, a CONCHAIRTO and then finally finished him off with the tombstone. Afterwards Edge was sent to hell as Taker chokeslammed him off of a ladder, which busted a hole in the ring. It then caught fire, and Taker had him some Canadian BBQ. Sure a bit hokey, but it worked. Edge was an awesome crazed heel here, using the entire bag of tricks to try and defeat the Undertaker. In return Taker used many of the things that Edge has used to screw him over the last 10-months or so to get the final revenge, we got to see Edge pay for his sins and receive his comeuppance. In the end we got an awesome match that deserved the main event spot and lived up to the hype they put into it. Now I know the big knock on this match is the lack of blood, and to a point I can agree. While blood COULD have helped the match, I still feel that the match was awesome, and with Taker getting his revenge by using all of the tricks Edge had used, THAT made the match.

3)(WWE UNFORGIVEN) UNSANCTIONED MATCH: Shawn Michaels vs. Chris Jericho ****½

HBK should win some sort of Emmy, because the man gets across so much emotion just through the look on his face. An amazing performance once again from HBK as they played off of the angle leading in very well and continued the trend of making the match feel completely different from anything else on the card. The stoppage fell flat, partly because the audience isn't educated on it and partly because they announced that "The only way to win is by pin or submission." The stoppage can be seen like an MMA fight, in where the fighter cannot submit himself, so the referee does it for his own safety. That worked well in the GAB math, and made sense here to play off of it. Unfortunately, the "WWE Universe" isn't completely educated on these things, which is the risk when you run these sorts of finishes. But overall this was great stuff that will be remembered for a good while. As for the no blood stuff, I will again say that I completely understand those that were unhappy that they didn't bleed. I too expected blood here, but again they brutalized each other and were showing the signs with REAL injures, not blade jobs. Jericho's elbow was shredded; he was bleeding from his nose and had a TON of bruising on his back. So real injuries and bruising with real blood, plus the great storytelling were enough for me. Again if it wasn't for you, I completely understand. Part of me wished they would have kept it one on one, my same wish as in the ladder match, but the run in by Cade makes sense. Unfortunately he got treated like an incompetent goof, sucks to be him. But the rage in the eyes of Shawn was amazing, a man full of rage not only out for personal revenge but out for revenge for what Jericho did to his wife. I loved the way that Shawn constantly looked torn towards the end, falling down and weeping at one point. Finally the way that commentary played the, "will God ever forgive Shawn Michaels, but more importantly can Shawn Michaels forgive Shawn Michaels" was excellent. I want these men to feud forever.

2) (WWE WRESTLEMANIA 24) WORLD TITLE MATCH: Edge © vs. The Undertaker ****½

The main event WrestleMania 24 was for the World Title. I have to say that I was glad to see that Smackdown got to close the show, because I think that Taker and Edge deserved it. Besides the fact that they had to follow an emotional roller coaster like Flair vs. HBK, the big problem is that everyone expected Taker to win here, especially since it was going on last. That means that they had a lot of hard work ahead of themselves to make people think that Edge had a chance to win the match. I felt that they did that and more. They smartly started slow since they were going long and built well from there. Taker did the crazy Undertaker Dive, which was awesome, but at every turn Edge was cutting him off whenever he would try anything. They played off of other times that Edge screwed Taker, like with the Camera shot as the match went on, and Edge kept stopping all of the classic Taker spots, the crowd got hotter and people actually believed that Edge had a shot at winning. They did the ref bump spot, which was going to annoy me but the way they did it again made you think that Taker would lose. He got the tombstone, got the cover, Charles Robinson dashed to the ring (WHICH RULED) and counted the near fall and you could hear the crowd being deflated as they thought Taker had the win. Taker would dispose of the Rated Rmy but ate a spear for 2, which was also a great near fall Edge was pissed, speared him again and out of that is where the finish came. And for those of you trying to think you know what you are talking about, Taker was not using a triangle choke, he used a GOGOPLATA, the move he has been working to get over for like 5-months. Taker got the GOGOPLATA, Edge tapped, Taker went 16-0 and won the title in a great main event. This was a great WrestleMania main event, and easily one of the year's best matches.

1) (WWE WRESTLEMANIA 24) CAREER THREATENING MATCH: Ric Flair vs. Shawn Michaels *****

And I save this for last, because this was the main event of the evening to me. LET THE BITCHING BEGIN! I have to admit, I know we were all hoping for a good match, but I myself had very high expectations. But the facts are that Shawn Michaels at WrestleMania doesn't disappoint, and I had this feeling that with Shawn out there, Flair's family in attendance and the go for broke feeling one last time, that the Nature Boy, RIC FUCKING FLAIR would walk that isle and do what he has done better than anyone for the last 35-years.

They started out with some grappling and Flair looked like he was game right away. Flair got to do the press off the top to HBK and then not only did he go up top, but he got to connect with a cross body. I marked out, I admit it. HBK would send Flair to the floor and then almost kill himself as he would miss the Asai Moonsault to the floor, and ate the Raw announce table. That had to suck. Flair would go to work, hitting the butterfly suplex and chopping the life from HBK. They later did a moonsault spot from the top rope to the floor, which only grazed Flair. Some people threw a shit fit right away, but I was still digging the match as HBK was bringing Mr. WrestleMania to Flair. HBK looked to have the match in hand as he made his signature comeback, but he would pause on the superkick and Flair scoped the legs and locked in the figure four, and the crowd popped! HBK would escape, only to get caught in it again, more crowd poppage! After turning the hold Flair would release it, he strutted and looked in control until he ate a superkick out of nowhere. HBK would then tune up the band, but Flair was down. He tried to pick him up, and then the dirtiest player in the game went into survival mode and low blowed HBK, classic Flair, or dare I say VINTAGE! Flair would use a roll up with the tights and an eye poke to try and win, but HBK kept fighting. They started exchanging chops again, and again out of nowhere HBK nailed another superkick on Flair. Shawn went to the corner to tune up the band, but the look on his face told you it as the last thing that he wanted to do. Flair would get to his knees and tell Shawn to do it, knowing that he had given his all and that this was the end. Shawn looked at Flair and said…


"I'm sorry…I love you."

HBK then threw the superkick, pinned Flair, immediately hugged him after the bell rang and Flair is crying as he lay there, knowing that it is over. People in the crowd were crying, Flair's family was crying; I venture a bet that a large number of the boys backstage were crying and hell, hell I shed a tear. As I said in my recap, I don't think they could have done the match better. One or two small missteps do not matter here; this is possibly the most emotional match I have ever seen and a fitting send off for Flair and that is why I gave it *****. A match isn't just about OMG MOVEZ, it is telling a story and I felt that they did that in this match. Some have this notion that a ***** match can only be one thing, but that is the farthest thing from the truth. I have given Dynamite Kid vs. Tiger Mask ***** for their innovation, I have given ***** for Joe vs. Kobashi, because it was the right two guys, the right crowd at the right place working the right match. These are very different matches, but they all accomplish what they set out to do.

I fully respect those that didn't like the match or think it was "average," but to me they told the right story, with the right two guys, took us on an emotional ride like no other and I loved it.

The era of Ric Flair is over, and for the first time in my life as a wrestling fan I have to accept the reality that he won't be wrestling anymore, and that is a very weird feeling. Thanks for everything Ric.

~PPV Stand Outs and PPV MVP~

Edge – 3 Matches in the Top 10

HHH – 3 Matches in the Top 10

Jeff Hardy – 3 Matches in the Top 10

The Undertaker – 3 Matches in the Top 10

Chris Jericho - 4 Matches in the Top 10

WWE PPV MVP for 2008: Shawn Michaels – 5 Matches in the Top 10! I don't think that anyone can deny that Shawn Michaels had a great year. I am constantly amazed that the man keeps performing at the level he does. In many ways I feel that HBK has lost a step in the ring, but what he may lack in that area, he more than makes up for with his promos and storytelling. He certainly deserves all of the accolades he received this year.

Stay tuned for overall My Top PPV MATCHES of the year!