From The Shelf- Randy Orton: Evolution of a Predator (Discs One and Two)

Randy Orton: Evolution of a Predator

Disc One

I’m not a big fan of writing down a detailed account of the documentaries so I’ll give my quick thoughts. The documentary follows Randy Orton through a one month period between Elimination Chamber 2011 to Wrestlemania XXVII while coving his life and career. This wasn’t one the better documentaries WWE has put out, but I certainly wouldn’t call is bad. They mostly covered Orton’s time in Evolution and him leading Legacy, but they didn’t discuss some of his bigger matches and feuds. They never really touched on his matches with Mick Foley or John Cena which I found to be disappointing. The best portions of the documentary covered Randy Orton’s bad attitude and demons over the course of his career, as you can see years of maturity and his family life has made him both a person and better performer for the better. Overall, the documentary is worth a quick watch but it will not wow you like most WWE documentaries have.

Disc Two

Randy Orton vs. Slick Robbie D from OVW Christmas Chaos 2001
Jim Cornette is on commentary here. Robbie D knocks Orton down with a shoulderblock to start and he stomps the back of Orton. Orton comes back with a hiptoss followed by a dropkick. Arm drag by Orton and he grabs an arm bar. Robbie D escapes and Orton catches him with a slingshot wheelbarrow suplex for 2. Rights by Orton and he sends Robbie D to the corner but he springboard out into a sunset flip for 2. Superkick by Robbie D gets 2. Slam by Robbie D and he hits a legdrop for 2. Dropkick by Robbie D knocks Orton to the floor and he follows up with a suicide plancha to the floor!!!!!! Back in, Robbie D takes his time climbing to the top rope, allowing Orton to crotch him and follow up. Superplex off the top by Orton and he hits some rights. Backdrop by Orton and he hits a clothesline. T-Bone suplex by Orton gets 2. Full Nelson Slam by Orton gets 3.
Winner- Randy Orton **1/4 ( Nothing fancy from Randy here but you could see the potential. I was more impressed by Slick Robbie D; he reminded me a lot of independent wrestler Uhaa Nation with his look and style. Too bad nothing came of him because he looked quite good. )

Hardcore Holly vs. Randy Orton from Smackdown 4-25-02
This is Orton’s debut. Orton outwrestles Holly to start and catches him with a bulldog for 2. Clothesline by Holly and he hammers away on Orton on the mat. Holly hangs Orton on the ropes and kicks him square in the gut. Holly hammers the back and then throws some forearms to the chest of Orton. Stun gun by Orton and he hits a dropkick for 2. Rights by Orton and he gets reversed to the corner. Holly charges but eats elbow and Orton head up. Holly stops him and follows up but Orton shoves him off the top. Crossbody off the top by Orton but Holly rolls through for 2!!! Drop toe hold by Orton and he gets an inside cradle for 3!!!
Winner- Randy Orton *1/2 ( Fine debut for Randy. You could tell during the match Holly was being stiff but Randy took it and came out looking good. )

Randy Orton w/Ric Flair vs. Shawn Michaels from Unforgiven 2003
Shawn takes Orton down with a hiptoss and outwrestles him in the early going. Headlock by Orton but Michaels escapes and tries to dump Orton to the floor but he skins the cat. Dropkick by Orton and he follows up with a clothesline for 2. Orton stomps away and hits a slam. Orton goes up and leaps but Shawn catches him with a reverse atomic drop on the way down. Shawn clotheslines Orton to the floor and he follows up with a baseball slide. Shawn goes up and hits a crossbody off the top to the floor!!! Shawn tries to suplex Orton back in but Orton escapes. Shawn catches him with a German suplex for 2 and he gets a sunset flip for 2. Whip to the corner and Shawn charges but eats boot. Rights by Orton but Shawn fights back with forearms and chops. Shawn charges in the corner but Orton moves and Shawn hits the ring post shoulder first. Shawn falls to the floor and Flair sends Shawn shoulder first into the ring post. Flair goes low on Shawn and Orton battery rams Shawn shoulder first into the ring post. Orton snaps Shawn’s shoulder off the ropes back in and he goes to work on the injured shoulder. Hammerlock by Orton but Shawn starts to fight out so Orton catches him with the Divorce Court for 2. Short arm scissors by Orton but Shawn rolls through and hammers away to break. Small package by Shawn gets 2 and Orton misses a dropkick. Shawn hammers away again and Shawn hits a flying forearm. Reverse atomic drop by Shawn and he cleans house. Backdrop by Shawn and he knocks Flair off the apron. Shawn dumps Orton to the floor and he follows out where he hammers away some more. Shawn sends Orton into the barricade and back in, he heads up where he gets a double axe handle for 2. Shawn is reversed to the corner where he does the corner flip and both men are down. Orton goes up and leaps but eats Shawn’s boot on the way down. Shawn goes for Sweet Chin Music but Orton blocks and connects with the RKO for 2!!! Orton goes up for the crossbody but Shawn moves out of the way. Shawn nails Flair as he was going after him and he goes up, connecting with the flying elbow drop for 2!!! Sweet Chin Music by Shawn gets 3!!! BUT WAIT!!!! Flair puts Orton’s foot on the ropes and the ref sees it, so the match continues!!!! Shawn hits Sweet Chin Music as Flair charges in and he goes for a back suplex but Orton nails Shawn with a foreign object for 3!!!
Winner- Randy Orton ***1/2 ( They were having a great old school style match until the crappy finish. This was the first performance that Randy had the chance to showcase his potential and he did a great job. Shawn was Shawn, so this was good stuff. )

Intercontinental Championship- Rob Van Dam © vs. Randy Orton w/Ric Flair
Mick Foley is the guest ref. RVD sweeps the leg of Orton to start and he bails to the floor. Back in, both men struggle to gain the advantage and we reach a standstill. Knee to the midsection by Orton but RVD comes back with a spinkick. RVD is reversed to the corner and Orton charges but RVD catches him with a dropkick to the midsection. RVD goes up and hits a crossbody off the top for 2. Spinkick by RVD knocks Orton off the apron and he hits a summersault plancha to the floor!!! Back in, RVD hits a slingshot legdrop for 2. Orton charges in the corner again but misses and RVD goes up but Orton shoves him to the floor where RVD lands face first against the barricade. Orton follows out and hits a dropkick on the floor. Back in, Orton gets 2. Orton stomps away and hits a fistdrop to the back of the head for 2. Orton chokes RVD in the ropes and Foley physically pulls Orton off of RVD. Foley goes to the floor and confronts Flair before he tries to get a cheap shot on RVD. Orton sends RVD hard into the corner and RVD catches him with a crossbody for 2. Lariat by Orton and he slams RVD’s head off the turnbuckles a few times for 2. Chinlock by Orton but RVD fights out. Orton catches him with another lariat for 2. Snapmare and Orton hits a basement dropkick for 2. Orton goes back to the chinlock but RVD fights out again and gets a roll-up for 2. Slam by RVD and he hits the split legged moonsault for 2. Gutwrench neckbreaker by Orton gets 2. Back to the chinlock goes Orton and Foley checks RVD’s arm but it only goes down twice. RVD fights out and both men slug it out. RVD blocks a kick and catches Orton with a spinning heel kick. RVD hammers away in the corner and hits 10 punches in the corner. Monkey flip out of the corner by RVD and he hits some shoulders to the gut in the corner. Springboard superkick by RVD and he hits a clothesline. Northern lights suplex by RVD gets 2 and Orton bails to the floor. RVD follows and he gordbusters Orton onto the barricade. RVD hits the spinning legdrop off the apron onto the back of Orton. Back in, Orton catches RVD with the hanging DDT for 2. Orton misses a kneedrop and RVD uses his legs to catch Orton with a roll-up for 2. Spinkick by RVD and he hits a basement dropkick. Rolling Thunder by RVD and he baseball slides Flair. Orton catches RVD with a crucifix for 2 and RVD catches him with a spinning heel kick. RVD goes up and Flair goes to nail him but Foley knocks Flair off the apron!!! Orton dropkicks RVD, crotching him on the top rope and he falls to the mat. RKO by Orton gets 3!!!
Winner and NEW Intercontinental Champion- Randy Orton ***1/4 ( The pace they went at was a little too slow for my taste but for the most part this was a solid match. It was a weird clash of styles but nothing looked too awkward and the last few minutes were quite good. )

Evolution (Batista, Randy Orton, and Ric Flair) vs. Rock N’ Sock Connection (The Rock and Mick Foley) from Wrestlemania XX
This is Foley’s first match in four years. Brawl to start and the Rock N’ Sock Connection clear the ring. Flair and Rock officially start. Rights by Rock and he sends Flair to the corner. Backdrop by Rock and Flair bails. Rock follows and Flair pokes him in the eye. Flair charges but Rock backdrops him on the floor with Foley following up with an elbow drop off the apron!!!! Back in, Orton tags in and Foley wants the tag. Foley tags in and Orton bails to the floor. Foley follows and hits some rights. He slams Orton’s face off the announce table and he clotheslines Orton on the floor. Back in, Foley hits an elbow drop for 2. Foley puts Orton in the tree of woe and hits an elbow drop. Tag to Rock and he nails Orton in the groin!!! Clothesline by Rock and Flair nails him from behind. Rock nails him and Batista but Orton dumps Rock to the floor to stop the momentum. Batista drops Rock on the barricade and back in, Batista tags in. Knees to the gut in the corner by Batista but Rock comes back with rights. Back elbow by Batista gets 2. Tag to Flair and he chops away in the corner. Rock comes back with a clothesline and Flair goes up. Rock tosses him off the top and Batista tags in. Shoulders to the gut in the corner by Batista but Rock comes back with a clothesline. Tag to Foley and he hammers away on Batista. Kneelift by Foley and he goes for the double arm DDT but Batista rams him to the corner to block. Foley hammers away in the corner and he charges but Batista catches him with a lariat. Batista dumps Foley to the floor and Foley catches Orton with the Mandible Claw. Flair nails him from behind and Orton sends Foley knees first into the steps. Back in, Orton covers for 2. Orton stomps away in the corner and Flair tags in. Flair knocks Foley down with a chop and Orton tags in. He pulls the hair of Foley and he grabs a sitting chinlock. Foley starts to fight out so Orton takes him down by the hair. Tag to Batista and he hits some short arm clotheslines. Batista hammers away on the mat but Foley catches him with the Mandible Claw!!! Orton breaks and Flair tags in. They slug it out and Flair rakes the eyes. Tag to Batista and Foley catches him with a swinging neckbreaker. Batista and Foley clothesline each other and Flair tags in. Foley knocks Flair down and tags Rock who hammers away on Flair. Flying clothesline by Rock and he catches Orton with a DDT. He dumps Orton to the floor but Batista catches him with a spinebuster. Flair mocks the Rock and goes for the People’s Elbow but Rock nips up and hits some rights. He mocks Flair and knocks him down. DDT to Batista and he hits the spinebuster to Flair. People’s Elbow to Flair gets 2!!! Flair pokes the eye and Orton tags in. Rock blocks the RKO and hits the Rock Bottom for 2 as Flair pulls him to the floor. Rock clotheslines Flair on the floor and back in, he eats a clothesline from Batista. Batista Bomb to Rock and Orton covers for 2!!! Tag to Foley and he cleans house. Double Arm DDT to Orton and here’s MR. SOCKO!!! Orton catches him with the RKO for 3!!!
Winners- Evolution ***3/4 ( There was some great nostalgia moments in this match. The Rock and Flair interactions were awesome and both Batista and Orton got to look like stars. Not the greatest match wrestling wise but this is one of the more fun matches WWE has ever put on. )

No Holds Barred Match for the Intercontinental Championship- Randy Orton © vs. Cactus Jack from Backlash 2004
Cactus tries to nail Orton with the barbed wire bat but Orton shields himself with a trash can. Cactus stalks Orton around ringside with the bat but Orton drop toe holds him into the steps. They try to drive the barbed wire into each other’s face and Cactus nails him to break. Orton nails Cactus a few times with a trash can and he charges but eats boot from Cactus. Cactus nails Orton with the trash can and they head back in. Cactus stomps away and then chokes away at Orton. Kneelift by Cactus and he hits a legdrop for 2. Cactus chokes Orton with his boot and he hits a baseball slide knocks Orton to the floor. Cactus follows out and hits a swinging neckbreaker on the floor. Orton crawls up the entrance ramp but Cactus follows and Orton catches him with a back suplex on the ramp for 2. Backslide by Orton gets 2 and he slams Cactus’ head off the ramp for 2. Orton slams Cactus’ face off the steps and they head back in. Orton goes to drive the barbed wire into Cactus’ face but Cactus blocks and goes low on Orton. Clothesline by Cactus and he pulls out MR. SOCKO!!! Cactus tries to choose between Mr. Sock and the barbed wire bat and he choose the bat. Cactus clotheslines Orton with the barbed wire bat!!!!! Orton is busted open and Cactus elbow drops the bat into the face of Orton!!! Cactus hammers away in the corner and hits the corner kneestrike. Cactus drives the barbed wire in the face of Orton and he LEGDROPS THE BARBED WIRE BAT INTO THE GROIN OF ORTON!!!!! Cactus pulls out a CAN OF GASOLINE AND A LIGHTER. He dumps the gas onto the barbed wire bat and looks to light it on FIRE but Eric Bischoff comes out. Bischoff tells Cactus if he lights the barbed wire on fire he will end the show right now cause he will have the fire marshal shut the building down. Cactus decides to follow Bischoff’s orders and he nails Orton with a cookie sheet instead. Cactus now pulls out a BARBED WIRE BOARD and brings it into the ring. Rights by Cactus but Orton throws powder in his face and he SLAMS CACTUS ONTO THE BARBED WIRE BOARD!!!!! Orton covers for 2. Orton hammers the back of Foley and he stomps away in the corner. Orton sets up the board in the corner and he sends Cactus into it. He dropkick Cactus against the board and then dumps the board onto Cactus’ bloody arm. Orton then opens a box with a bag inside of it. Orton them dumps THUMBTACKS ONTO THE MAT!!!! Orton hammers away and goes for the RKO but CATCUS BLOCKS AND DUMPS ORTON ONTO THE TACKS!!!! HOLY CRAP!!!! There are TONS of thumbtacks stuck into Orton’s body right now!!!! Roll-up by Cactus gets 2. Orton bails to the floor but Cactus follows and they fight up the entrance ramp. Orton heads backstage but Cactus drags him out and HE TOSSES ORTON OFF THE STAGE THOUGH A PLATFORM!!!!!! Medics check on Orton but Cactus FOLLOWS WITH AN ELBOW DROP OFF THE STAGE ONTO ORTON THROUGH THE PLATFORM!!!!! Cactus covers for 2!!! Back in, Cactus hits the Double Arm DDT for 2!!! Orton bails to the floor and Cactus goes to grab him but Orton nails him in the face with the barbed wire bat. Cactus is busted open and Orton nails Foley in the gut and back with the bat. Orton goes for a headshot but Cactus catches him with the Mandible Claw!!!! Orton breaks with an uppercut and he goes low on Cactus. Cactus goes right back to the Mandible Claw but Orton breaks with the RKO!!! Orton covers for 2!!! RKO ON THE BARBED WIRE BAT gets 3!!!!
Winner and Still Intercontinental Champion- Randy Orton ****3/4 ( This match MADE Randy Orton. He took some brutal, sickening punishment here as the thumbtack spot is one the sickest things I’ve ever seen. The opening minutes looked like a typical Foley brawl but then they kicked up the violence and it became a spectacle the likes of which are rarely seen in the WWE anymore. Go seek this match out. )

Intercontinental Title Match- Randy Orton © vs. Edge from Vengeance 2004
I was live at this show. Crowd starts a “Let’s Go Orton” chant to start as both men feel each other out in the early going. Knee to the gut by Orton but Edge fires back and catches Orton in a side headlock. Orton is able to escape so Edge hits some shoulderblocks forcing Orton to roll to the floor. Edge follows out and rolls Orton right back into the ring. Orton dumps Edge back out to the floor and he suplexes Edge back in for 2. Uppercut by Orton and he chokes Edge in the ropes. Orton stomps away and hits some clubbing forearms to the chest of Edge. Snapmare and Orton grabs a neckcrank. Edge fights out and connects with a flying forearm. Clotheslines by Edge and he clotheslines Orton to the floor. Orton grabs his championship belt but walks right into a baseball slide from Edge. Clothesline off the apron by Edge and back in, Edge goes up. Missile dropkick by Edge gets 2. Edge goes for the Spear but Orton catches Edge with a knee to the face to block. Orton backbreaker gets 2 and Edge rolls to the floor to catch his breath. Orton follows and he works over Edge on the apron. Back in, Orton chokes Edge in the ropes and he rakes the eyes of Edge. Legdrop to the back of the neck by Orton gets 2. Whip to the corner and Orton charges but eats boot. Forearms by Edge but Orton hits a knee to the gut to stop the momentum. Kneedrop by Orton and he chokes Edge with his knee. Dropkick by Orton gets 2 and he goes to the chinlock. Edge tries to fight out so Orton takes Edge down by the hair. Legdrop by Orton gets 2 and he clubs away at the chest again. Chinlock by Orton and he holds it for a little while. Edge’s arm goes down twice but it doesn’t go down the third time. Edge fights out and connects with a crossbody for 2. O’Connor roll by Edge gets 2 and he eats a lariat from Orton. Orton goes to the second rope and leaps but eats a dropkick on the way down. Edge blocks a hiptoss attempt and hits a swinging neckbreaker. Both men get up at the count of eight and they begin to slug it out. Side Russian leg sweep by Edge gets 2. Orton misses a dropkick and Edge catapults Orton into the corner. Edge-O-Matic gets 2. Edge goes up but Orton stops and follows up. Orton tries the superplex but Edge blocks and they botch a crotch spot. Edge goes for a crossbody off the top but Orton rolls through for 2. Orton pokes the eye of Edge and he unties the top turnbuckle. Small package by Edge gets 2 as the ref was distracted by the turnbuckle pad. Edge argues with the ref allowing Orton to roll Edge up for 2. Dropkick by Orton gets 2. Edgecution by Edge gets 2!!! Punches in the corner by Edge but Orton hits snake eyes to block. Roll-up by Orton with his feet on the ropes gets 2!!! Edge blocks the RKO and goes for the Spear but Orton LEAPFROGS over him sending Edge face first into the turnbuckles!!! Edge counters the RKO into a backslide for 2!!! Edge sends Orton into the exposed turnbuckle and Edge hits the Spear for 3!!!
Winner and NEW Intercontinental Champion- Edge ***3/4 ( The first few minutes were so slow. It took a while to finally get going but once it did it became one of the more exciting, heart racing matches WWE put on in 2004. This had the potential to be a classic if the first half of the match were as fast-paced and exciting as the second half was. )

Casket Match- Randy Orton and Bob Orton Jr. vs. Undertaker from No Mercy 2005
Taker cleans house to start and he works over both Ortons in the corner. Bob goes low to Taker, allowing Orton to connect with a kneedrop. Uppercuts by Randy and they work over Taker in the corner. Taker fights back and he tries to dump Randy into the casket but he goes to the floor to block. Taker throws Bob into the casket but he is quick to escape. Taker goes to the floor and Randy reverses him into the steel steps. Randy stomps away and they head back into the ring. The Ortons roll Taker into the casket and try to close the lid but Taker fights out. Back in, Taker works over the left shoulder of Randy and heads up for OLD SCHOOL~!!!! Flatliner by Taker and he works over the left shoulder of Bob. Taker goes up again but Randy crotches him and hits some uppercuts. The Ortons go up and they hit a double superplex to Taker. The Ortons look for another double suplex but Taker blocks and he hits a double DDT to the Ortons. Taker dumps Bob into the casket and he snake eyes Randy into a big boot. Taker goes for the Tombstone but Randy escapes so Taker hits a clothesline. Randy escapes a slam attempt and catches Taker with the Orton backbreaker. Randy dumps Taker to the floor and he leaps off the apron but Taker catches him and rams Randy back first into the post. Big boot to Bob and Taker grabs a chair. He nails Randy in the back, knocking him into the casket. Bob charges with a fire extinguisher but Taker blocks and he locks in the Triangle Choke. Taker drops Bob into the casket and he goes to close the lid but Randy blocks. Rights by Randy but Taker fights back with rights of his own. Taker shuts the lid on Bob and he heads into the ring with Randy. Powerslam by Randy and he goes to put Taker in the casket but realizes his dad is in it. The distraction allows Taker to go low on Randy. Taker is reversed to the corner and Orton charges but eats boot. Randy comes back with a dropkick and he clubs away on Taker in the corner. Randy poses in the corner allowing Taker to catch him. He goes for the Last Ride but Randy escapes. Taker kicks Randy in the gut and this time he connects with the Last Ride!!! Taker goes for the Tombstone but Bob sprays Taker in the face with a fire extinguisher!!! RKO by Randy and Bob starts rolling him toward the casket. Taker grabs Bob but Randy nails him in the head with the fire extinguisher, knocking him into the casket. Randy goes to shut the lid but Taker grabs him and drags him into the casket. The lid closes as Bob wonders what’s happening in the casket. They appear again and Taker goes for the chokeslam but Bob pulls the hair to block. Randy nails Taker in the head with the chair and they close the lid!!!
Winners- Randy Orton and Bob Orton Jr. **3/4 ( They had to work around the limitations of Cowboy Bob but when he wasn’t involved the match was pretty solid. This was probably the worst match in the Orton/Undertaker feud but it certainly wasn’t bad. )

After the match, Randy and Bob lock the casket and roll it onto the entrance ramp. Bob grabs an axe and Randy starts beating the casket with the axe. Bob now brings out GASOLINE and they pour it onto the casket. The Ortons LIGHT THE CASKET ON FIRE!!!!!! For the second time, Taker burns alive inside of a casket.

The 411: To Be Continued.
Final Score:  7.0   [ Good ]