Dark Pegasus Video Review: Batista: I Walk Alone (Disc Two)

Posted by J.D. Dunn on 10.13.2009

From Leviathan to champion.

Batista: I Walk Alone (Disc Two)

by J.D. Dunn
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OVW Heavyweight Title: The Machine (w/Queen Victoria) vs. Leviathan (w/Synn — 11/28/01).
Odd that Basham was considered a big prospect at this point, yet he couldn't even keep a position in TNA. TNA! Leviathan completely dominates and rips Machine's mask off. Holy crap! It's Doug Basham! Leviathan misses a spear and posts himself, a transition spot Batista relies far too much on. Basham works the shoulder but accidentally throws dust in the face of the referee. Leviathan hits a chokeslam, but the new ref is late in getting there. The Revolution runs down but gets chased away by The Disciples of Synn. That allows Basham to hit a brass-knuckles shot on Leviathan. Leviathan recovers and goes for the Demonbomb, but Victoria sneaks in amidst the chaos and goes low. The ref is late again, and it only gets two. Leviathan hits the spear for the win and his first title at 7:53. If anything, this match shows the amazing talents of Jim Cornette to get anything over with commentary. The match was fun in a formulaic sort of way. The kind of match where you can call the spots 30 seconds in advance. **1/2

Kane vs. Batista (w/Ric Flair — 12/15/02).
This is Batista's PPV wrestling debut. His body shape is just bizarre at this point. He didn't have a lot of ring presence at this point, looking more like the average big lug. Kane clotheslines him over, but Flair calms him down. Back in, Batista spears Kane for two and hits a suplex for two more. Flair tries to light up Kane on the outside, but Kane no-sells. Back in, Batista botches a powerbomb and nearly drops Kane on his head. Maybe he was going for a Gansobomb. Probably not, since Kane stands up and yells, "What the fuck are you doing?" The fans quickly grow impatient with Batista. Kane hits a flying clothesline, but Flair is pointing at the ring, so the ref has to stop and admonish him instead of counting. Batista gives Kane a spinebuster, but it only gets two. Kane drags Flair in, allowing Batista to sneak up, boot Kane in the gut, and hit the Demonbomb for real at 6:38. I suppose one could call this a match. You could also call "Al Wilson" a great actor too. This was a bit entertaining in a sick "Manos, Hands of Fate" sort of way. 1/4*

Batista (w/Ric Flair) vs. Shawn Michaels (12/14/03).
This probably seems more interesting now that Batista has turned into a good all-around performer rather than a "jacked-up nimrod" (Shawn's words). In fact, this is only Batista's third PPV appearance despite the fact he made his PPV wrestling debut a year earlier at this event. Shawn jabs a lot early, but that just pisses Batista off. Shawn uses his speed to avoid him and ducks to the floor where he lays out an interfering Ric Flair. Batista catches up with Shawn, and the match bogs down with his plodding offense. He does a lot of the same stuff he does today only not as crisply and not with as much purpose. It's the difference between saying, "Okay, I'll do this which will lead to that which will set up that…" and saying, "I need to do *something* here, so I'll do this." Shawn comes back with a moonsault block for two. Batista waits for him to kip up and nails him with a clothesline. More clubbery. Shawn hits a flying forearm and kips up, but Batista grabs him for the double chokelift. Shawn fights out and hits the Picture-Perfect Elbow. Shawn calls for Sweet Chin Music, but Batista catches him and delivers the spinebuster. Batista calls for the Demonbomb, but Shawn slips out of it and hits the superkick for the win at 12:21. Both guys' shoulders were down, but the ref ignored it. The match was okay for the time and might be worth checking out just to compare how Batista has matured. Of course, these three would figure heavily in one of the best angles of 2008. **1/2

World Tag Team Titles, Table Match: Batista & Ric Flair vs. The Dudley Boyz (1/25/04).
The Dudleyz have settled nicely into the "Razor Ramon" slot of Rumble PPVs in that they have been a part of every Rumble since their WWE debut, but have never actually taken part in the Rumble match. Jonathon Coachman joins the commentary crew, hoping to see Evolution mete out some justice to the Dudleyz. Batista insults the Philadelphia Eagles to get some heel heat. The Dudleyz attack. Batista misses a swing and posts his own shoulder. Bubba gets a table and slides it across the ring, hitting Batista. The Dudleyz set up the table and grab Flair. They're about to suplex him through it, but Batista tosses the table aside. So hard, in fact, that it bounces off the ropes and hits Flair in the face. The table gets set up in the corner. Flair chops Bubba against it. Bubba comes back with the Bionic Elbow. Appropriate. Batista puts a foot in D-Von's throat to choke him down. D-Von hits Flair with a flying clothesline as the match begins to get sloppy. Batista hits Bubba with a charge. I'm pretty sure Bubba was supposed to move out of the way because they do it again with Batista charging into the post. Flair goes up, but Bubba catches him and slams him off. Coach intervenes before the Dudleyz can 3-D Flair through the table. He provides enough of a distraction for Batista to sneak in and spinebuster D-Von through a table at 4:22. Sloppy, silly finish and way too fast. *

Chris Jericho vs. Batista (07/11/04).
Batista cost Jericho the Intercontinental Title and knocked him out with a clothesline, so Jericho's on the warpath. Batista overpowers Jericho and mauls him in the corner. Jericho tricks him into charging and sends him to the floor. That sets up the springboard dropkick, but that pisses Batista off. Back in, Jericho slips out of a Full Nelson and goes after Batista's quad muscle. Batista catches Jericho with a sideslam. That leads to a lot of uninteresting Batista offense. At least he focuses on the back. Jericho hits the flying forearm, but Batista baits him into charging and spinebusters him for two. Jericho reverses the Demonbomb to a sunset flip for two. The Lionsault finds Batista's knees and messes up Jericho's knee. He hits an enzuigiri anyway and gets two. Batista hulks up and hits the Demonbomb at 12:13. Jericho's foot was on the ropes, but the ref didn't catch it. Batista had a good power game, and he showed flashes here. Once he started finding ways to set up his power game and make it more interesting, he took a huge step up. **1/2

Royal Rumble (01/30/05)
Kane is #27. He chokeslams everything in sight as the EMTs take London out on a stretcher. Jindrak goes over. Coach sneaks in a shot and runs away. Batista is #28, getting the Austin pop. There goes Snitsky. Demonbomb to Kane. Jericho flies at Batista, but Dave catches him and throws him over. Christian is #29, which makes Flair #30. Christian goes after Cena to continue their battle rap. Rey hits Kane with the 619. Cena picks Kane up and FU's him over. Cena and Rey seem to make a pact. Ric Flair is #30. Benoit has now survived from the beginning through #30 in two consecutive Rumbles. That's a pretty big achievement. Batista spinebusters Coach and lets Flair eliminate him. Flair whips Christian into another Batista spinebuster. Batista presses Christian onto Tomko. Benoit corners Flair with a series of chops. Batista makes the save with a spinebuster. Flair and Batista team up to throw Benoit out after nearly 50 minutes. Flair double-crosses Batista but tries to convince him it was an accident. Edge and Rey team up to double dropkick Flair. Edge picks Flair up and eliminates him.

That leaves Batista, Edge, Cena and Rey as your final four. Edge spears Batista. He tries the same on Rey, but Rey leapfrogs him. Edge tosses Rey to the apron. Rey survives, but Edge spears him to the floor, eliminating him. Cena grabs Edge and tosses him moments later. That leaves Batista and Cena face-to-face. Cena picks Batista up in the FU, but can't quite get him over. Batista counters to the Demonbomb, but Cena holds on. They both spill over the top, landing at the same time. Ah nuts. The Raw refs think Batista won while the SD refs think Cena won. Vince McMahon stumbles out like a doofus and restarts the match after several false announcements. Batista blocks the FU and spinebusters Cena once more. There goes Cena. Batista is your winner!! One cluttered spot and a goofy finish held this back from last year's gold standard. The highs were higher, but the lows were lower. [****1/2]

World Heavyweight Title: Triple H (w/Ric Flair) vs. Batista (04/03/05).
It's like one whole beard split up and each part declared war on the other. Motorhead plays Triple H down as with WMX-7. Big staredown to start. A stiff tie-up goes nowhere. They go again, and Batista pushes him backward. Triple H tries a shoulderblock but runs into the brick shithouse that is Batista. A second attempt puts Batista on his ass. Triple H goes for the Pedigree, but Batista shoves him away and press slams him. Batista gives him a high backdrop. Triple H ducks a clothesline and delivers a high knee to send Batista to the floor. Flair provides enough distraction on the outside for Triple H to ram Batista into the ringsteps. Hunter catches Batista with an elbow as he's trying to get back in the ring. He chokes Batista for a couple of four counts, then Flair chokes him with his jacket. Hunter goes to work on Batista's back. He drives some knees to the small of the back and then delivers a backbreaker. Flair chokes Batista once again as Hunter distracts the ref. Batista fights back, but Hunter snaps his neck on the top rope. Hunter cuts off a comeback with a spinebuster and…the match cuts out? We come back to Hunter getting several two counts. Triple H goes for a Pedigree, but Batista backdrops out of it. Hunter gets a facebuster, but Batista kicks out powerfully. Hunter goes up top and comes off with a forearm, but Batista levels him with a clothesline. Batista catches him with a sideslam for two. He charges into a big boot. Hunter tries to whip him to the opposite corner, but Batista reverses and sends him over the top rope to the floor. To the outside, Hunter whips Batista into the steel steps. He tries to Pedigree Batista on the steps, but Batista slingshots him into the ringpost. Hunter staggers around the ring in a daze. Batista catches up with him and slams his face into the ringsteps a few times. Back in, Batista starts pounding on the cut. A corner clothesline drops Triple H to his knees. Batista delivers the knockout clothesline. POWERSLAM! Only two. To the outside now. Flair distracts Batista while Hunter tries to hit him with a chair. The ref blocks that, though, and appears to hurt himself. Flair runs in with the title but runs right into a spinebuster. Hunter blasts Batista with the title behind the ref's back. ONE, TWO, THR-NO! Hunter charges but it's right into a spinebuster. Batista goes for the Demon Bomb, but Hunter counters to a low blow. Nice facial expression by Batista there. Hunter goes for the Pedigree, but Batista is just too strong. He simply powers out and drops him with a modified Emerald Frosion. BATISTA BOMB! ONE, TWO, THREE! Batista wins the World Title at 21:27. Batista was ON during this period, and it's interesting to note that he fought through minor (comparatively) paralysis to finish this match. What Batista lacks in in-ring prowess, he makes up for by excelling in persona. ***

World Title, Hell in the Cell: Batista vs. Triple H (w/Ric Flair — 06/26/05).
Batista gets a mighty, mighty pop. They take it to the floor early, but Triple H is too smart for that. He tries a shoulderblock but just bounces off. Batista clotheslines him to the floor and whips HHH to the cell wall. Hunter reverses a whip, sending Batista into the ringsteps. Batista tries to get back in the ring, but Hunter knocks him off into the chain link. JR tries to personify the cell, which he's been doing all night. Hunter pulls a chain from under the ring and whips Batista in the ribs with it. HHH hangs Batista by the chain. The champion snaps Hunter's throat against the ropes to get out of it. Now it's payback time as Batista starts whipping him with the chain. He rams Hunter's back into the corner of the cell and the ringpost. Back in, HHH catches him with a spinebuster. Instead of covering, he goes outside and picks up a barbed-wire chair. He SLAMS it into Batista's back twice, drawing tiny rivulets of blood. Batista explodes with a clothesline and hits Triple H in the face with the barbed-wire chair. He rakes it across HHH's face as Ross oversells it. He javelins Hunter into the cell, prompting Hunter to Flair flop to the floor. Back in, Batista charges, but Hunter sidesteps and sends him to the post. Hunter goes for a Pedigree on the barbed-wire, but Batista backdrops out of it. They slug it out, and Hunter runs right into a powerslam on the chair. It only gets two. Batista wraps the chain around his hand, but Hunter DDTs him to the chair. Now both guys are busted open. HHH grabs the sledgehammer from under the ring. The slug it out back in the ring. Batista goes for the Demonbomb, but Hunter backdrops out of it in a mirror image of what happened earlier. Hunter hits him in the face with the sledge, but it only gets two. He tries again, but Batista kicks him in the nuts. Batista picks up the sledgehammer and charges, but HHH was able to wrap the chain around his fist and clock Batista in the face with it. He goes up, intending to drop a chained fist, but Batista raises the sledgehammer up into his face. Batista whips Hunter over the top and launches the ringsteps into his face. Back inside again, Batista sets up the ringsteps in the corner and rams Hunter's face into them. He goes for the Demonbomb, but Hunter goes low and hits the PEDIGREE! ONE, TWO, THRE-NO! Hunter sets up the steps and tries to Pedigree him on the steps. Batista counters to a spinebuster on the steps. He sets up for the Demonbomb. Hunter grabs the sledgehammer on the way up, but he doesn't have time to use it. Batista drops him with the Demonbomb and retains at 26:53. I could have done without the Jim Ross hyperbole --The Devil's Duplex dines on the blood of gladiators! You'd think he'd never seen one before. As for the match itself, it's their best so far. The first 15 minutes were cookie-cutter Triple H, but they kicked it up a notch down the stretch. ***3/4

World Heavyweight Title, No Holds Barred: Batista vs. John Bradshaw Layfield (08/21/05).
And we had such a good little run going. JBL meets Batista in the aisle, and they slug it out. JBL grabs a chair, but Batista spears him through the crowd barrier. Undaunted, JBL comes back with a short clothesline and starts whipping him with the timekeeper's belt! Batista takes the belt away from him and goes nuts with it. JBL blocks a charge and hits the CLOTHESLINE FROM HELL! It only gets two. JBL would be so at home in 1986. It's too bad his personality doesn't match his wrestling style. Don't look now, but this doesn't suck! JBL introduces the ringsteps to the match and tries a powerbomb on them, but Batista backdrops him over and gives him the Demonbomb. He doesn't want to cover him yet, though. Instead, he picks JBL up and gives him a powerbomb on the steps. That's enough for the win at 9:06. I question the legality of that pin, but then again, I'm not the head of officiating or anything. I like that they dropped any pretense of wrestling and just went the barfight they were more comfortable with. **1/4

World Heavyweight Title: Batista vs. Eddy Guerrero (No Mercy - 10/09/05).
This would be Eddy's last really big match. The storyline is that he is trying to redeem himself after a year of being a heel. The problem is that no one, including Batista, trusts him. Eddy uses his speed to take Batista down, but Batista pops up and powers him down in a test of strength. Eddy climbs the ropes and kicks his way out of trouble. Eddy bails and grabs a chair as Cole starts berating him for going back to his old ways. Eddy throws the chair down, but Batista grabs him by the throat and screams at him. Eddy snaps Dave's throat on the top rope and hits the frogsplash to his back. ONE, TWO, THRE-NO! Eddy grounds things with a chinlock, but Batista powers up and slams him into the buckle. Eddy fires off a dropkick, though. That sets up a half-crab, but Batista makes the ropes. Eddy unties the tag rope but thinks better of it and dropkicks Big Dave in the face. Even that cynical old curmudgeon Michael Cole is becoming a believer. Eddy goes with a rear naked choke, but Batista powers him up into a bearhug. Eddy claps his way out of it, but that just pisses Batista off. Batista charges, but Eddy dropkicks him in the knee and goes for a Texas Cloverleaf. Batista counters to a small package for two. Eddy slips over a Batista charge and falls into the ref. Oops. It looks like that's not what was supposed to happen, but it works. Eddy DDTs Batista and gets a sleazy grin on his face. Now, Cole is giving us the "I told you so" routine. Eddy thinks about using the chair a few times, but he decides that the cost to his soul is too much and tosses it down. Big Dave isn't giving points for eventually doing the right thing, though. Batista tosses him into the corner and drives the shoulder. That sets up a baaaack bodydrop and a spear. Eddy rolls through the Demonbomb, but Batista blocks his sunset flip and yanks him up by the neck. A spinebuster puts Eddy down, but it only gets two. Batista tries an elbowdrop, but Eddy gets his knees up. Triple Verticals! The crowd is split now. The frogsplash misses, and Eddy charges right into a spinebuster at 18:39. Great job by Eddy of guiding Batista through the match. I really liked the storyline (similar to Piper/Hart) of Eddy considering taking the easy way out. The ending is a little anti-climactic, but that doesn't take too much away from the previous 18 minutes. After the match, Eddy offers a handshake, and Big Dave accepts over Michael Cole's objections. ***1/2

The 411: More matches to come!

Final Score:  7.5   [ Good ]