WWE Extreme Rules 2015 Review

WWE's follow up to WrestleMania featured a Steel Cage match, a Last Man Standing match, a Russian Chain match, a Kiss Me Arse match, a Russian Chain match and Bo Dallas, but was it any good?

Steel Cage Match for the WWE World Heavyweight Championship

Seth Rollins (C) 
vs. 
Randy Orton

Before the main event could get underway, there was a number of backstage segments, focused on building the story of the bout. Kicking off with Triple H talking to the "Gatekeeper" for the match, Kane, and Seth Rollins in his flimsy office. A rather long winded segment that didn't provide any new information, rightly receiving "Boring" chants from the Chicago crowd. The build up continued with another backstage segment between Kane and Randy Orton with Orton relaying the history between the two, in an equally dull conversation. Neither of these segments were particularly needed and nothing new was put out there for the match.

The match focused on Rollins' repeated attempts to escape over the top, Orton not being allowed to hit the RKO and Kane being the gatekeeper. Rollins attempts were always foiled by Orton but this lacked the big spot that was required especially when both were fighting on top of the cage. Orton would attempt to use the other big move in his arsenal, the Punt, but of course because that move is legitimately banned Rollins moved out of the way. Orton did however hit the RKO on Kane latter on, which was fine, apparently, as was Rollins hitting Orton with a cutter variation. Kane proved to want to hurt everyone, but still put Rollins on top for the pin, making his entire involvement in the match as irrelevant as the rest of his last three years in WWE. 

When the two were allowed to wrestle, they put together some nice sequences that used the cage well, Orton catching Rollins dive off the ropes into his signature Scoop powerslam stands out, but these were too few and far between. A lack of convincing finishes, mainly down to the shocking amount of over-booking, hurt this match more than anything else, with only Orton's pedigree and Kane's chokeslam spot really standing out as potential match enders. As main events go this was tepid affair that perhaps wouldn't have looked out of place on an episode of Monday Night Raw, but lacked any real drama to justify it's spot closing a PPV.

By this match, it's clear that the pairs feud clearly isn't over yet. We know that they can put together good match, with their WrestleMania bout standing testament to this, so a rematch with less focus on Kane's involvement and more on the animosity between the two wrestlers would be more than welcomed by this reviewer. WWE seemed reluctant to put it's faith in either Orton or Rollins to carry a PPV main event and therefore decided to through all the gimmicks they could possibly think of at the match, which was in the end it's downfall.

Last Man Standing Match

Roman Reigns
vs.
Big Show

This bout received a little build-up before bell time with Renee Young interviewing Roman Reigns. I believe Reigns took inspiration from Chumbawamba's 1997 hit Tubthumping, when he reminding us that he might get knocked down, but he would indeed get up again. I think I would've actually preferred to see Reigns sing the entirety of this banging tune, (with Renee on backing vocals) as seeing the big man belting it out at the top of his lungs would have been a lot more entertaining than this tired promo. I think I am now most angry that this song only ever got to Number Two in the UK charts.

All joking aside this match proved to be the surprise of the night. Mainly focused around the big spots, these built up nicely, with each spot feeling like a natural progression from the next, as the referee's count got closer and closer to ten. The hints at upcoming spots were placing nicely throughout the match as the environment developed throughout, but this never felt contrived as can often be the case, and allowed the match to flow much better than if the pair simply went from one spot set up to the next. Big Show choke slamming Reigns off the apron through a pair of tables was visually impressive, whilst Reigns' samoan drop through another table made The Juggernaut look pretty damn badass himself.

Storytelling wise the last man standing gimmick offered pretty much all that needed to be there, with the gimmick offering itself as a skeleton around which the match could be fleshed out. However, Reigns attempting to knock Show down with his signature Superman Punches but being unable to was a nice addition, although it would have been more effective if we hadn't seen Big Show get chucked around like a ragdoll by Brock Lesnar a few months prior. Show's booking has been inconsistent at best throughout the last two or three years and I found it difficult to suspend my disbelief at points during the match. 

The objective here had to be continuing the attempt to get Roman Reigns' over as a babyface, that the fans can get behind. Whilst there will always be a section of fans (see: John Cena) that will forever be getting on Reigns' back, it seems that Reigns has turned the corner in most fans eyes, actually being helped by not winning the World Heavyweight Championship at WrestleMania. He looked impressive in a bout against a now limited Big Show and even with the Last Man Standing gimmick offering itself as a crutch of soughts, seemed more than comfortable in another main event-esque match.

Russian Chain Match for the United States ChampionshipJohn Cena (C) vs. Rusev with Lana

Those stupid fucking lights. I suppose the argument for them is that it creates a good visual, but I struggle to get my head around what purpose they actually have. The concept of momentum is entirely subjective, and without it being fully explained pre-match either by the commentary team or even on the Kick-Off show, it for frustrating viewing for the finish of the match, where Rusev was "touching" the corner, whilst Cena was ramming him into it. I can't be the only who considers that if your getting shoved into a turnbuckle then you haven't got any momentum and if you do that means your opponent doesn't have any either. The finish was so weak, with Cena hitting an AA on Rusev to touch the final ringpost, that it moved what had been an enjoyable feud into dangerous territory. 

The action wasn't anything special here and the gimmick wasn't used to it's full potential. Whilst it should have been a brutal conclussion to the feud, it looked like both men simply wanted to touch the turnbuckles as quickly as possible and leave, rather than two guys who wanted to beat the shit into each other and prove that their country was indeed the best. The chain looked flimsy when used a weapon, and the two looked creatively baron when using it for spots, with Rusev using it as a pully system on the outside about all the two could string together. Whilst there were a handful of good reversal sequences, they seemed plucked from their previous outings and had little to do with the match itself.

A real missed opportunity in this one saw Rusev begin to work Cena's ribs, picked up on well by Michael Cole on commentary, including the aforementioned pully spot which saw Rusev laying into Cena's mid-section with some nice kicks. This seemed like it would become the story of the match, but was seemingly dropped in the later stages, with Cena neglecting to sell the ribs and nothing really coming of this earlier good work. The psychological attempt could have added the story telling element that the match craved, with Cena unable to hit signature moves like the AA and having to put in a superhuman effort to pull Rusev around to make it to the turnbuckles. Alas, it was not to be.

Following the bout there was to be even more antics, as Rusev and Lana argued in what I imagine was Russian, before Lana went to talked to The Authority. It was later revealed in a backstage interview with Byron Saxton that Lana had negotiated for an "I Quit" match between the two for May's Payback PPV. This continued WWE's run of announcing a match for the next PPV on PPV's that are included as part of free months on the WWE Network. Personally, I think this feud was feeling tired after WrestleMania so another four weeks or so, could really drag. A third loss in a row to Cena, especially having to say "I Quit" could really harm Rusev going forward.

Kiss Me Arse Match

Sheamus
vs.
Dolph Ziggler

A decent enough match, that saw Sheamus dominating for the majority of the match, allowing The Celtic Warrior to really show off his new antagonistic persona. Whilst Sheamus was busy working the crowd, Ziggler worked well fighting from underneath, selling Sheamus' offence well and able to garner crowd support with quick bursts of offence. The biggest problem this match had was that it was just too short for the story that was being told. The finishing sequence felt more like a transitional sequence building towards something bigger, and when Ziggler got the pinfall it didn't feel like the satisfying finish that the build up had layed the foundation for. A more decisive finish would have made Sheamus' post match reaction even more deplorable.

That reaction, seeing Sheamus first trying to avoid kissing Ziggler's arse and then hitting a low blow and a Brogue Kick to get Zig's to kiss his pale Irish behind, finally made sense of the gimmick that had been randomly plonked on top of the match. Sheamus looked like a nob for not following through with the stipulation he came up with and recieved a decent amount of heat for his dickish reaction. However, again because Ziggler's win came across as a fluke, him then getting battered even more post-match didn't do much for The Show Off, hopefully with Daniel Bryan (who Sheamus would surely have been feuding with heading into the next PPV) currently out injured, we'll get to see some more of this feud and Ziggler get, at least, a modicum of revenge.

Chicago Street Fight

Luke Harper
vs.
Dean Ambrose

Quite literally a match of two halves and from bell-to-bell one of the longest singles matches in WWE history! This one really comes down to one spot, which saw Harper attempting to drive away from the arena, only for Ambrose to dive through the window of the car as Harper drove them both away. It was a make or break spot, that you were either going to love or hate and personally I hated it. I think the idea on paper sounded quite good, but it was poorly executed and didn't really suit the characters in the match. I found it hard to believe that the two had continued fighting and driving around for fourty minutes in between the two sections of their match and this wasn't helped by neither man looking remotely tired or selling anything upon their return. Perhaps some pre-recorded footage of their antics around Chicago would have improved the situation.

The final portion of the match followed pretty much the same pattern as the first, with a couple more spots to finish things off. Whilst the spots were good, and the finish was strong with Ambrose hurling Harper off the top onto a pile of chairs before hitting Dirty Deeds for the win, it felt like there was no real consequence to anything that was going on. Alongside the gimmick of them disapearing for a drive around Chicago mid-match, this bout was let down by nothing looking quite as good as the spots that were used in the build up. We'd seen Ambrose head through a ladder at WrestleMania and then the announce table on Smackdown, and yet neither of those weapons came to play in this match. Not the show stealing performance many had expected.

Tag Team Match for the Tag Team Championship

Cesaro & Tyson Kidd (C) with Natalya
vs.
Big E & Kofi Kingston with Xavier Woods

For the length of the match, I thought the four guys in this match did incredibly well to create an exciting tag match with a number of athletic sequences and worked in a handful of nice false finishes, including Cesaro making the late save for Kidd after Kingston and Big E hit their Midnight Hour finish and Big E saving Kingston when it seemed like Kidd's Sharpshooter was about to get the win. The finish was built well getting all participants involved before Kingston was able to get a school boy roll up on Kidd with a handful of tights to pick up the cheap victory and win his fourth tag title in WWE. The newly heel New Day have a lot of potential and their reaction post-match and in a backstage interview with Renee Young showed promise for this title run going forward. 

Singles Match for the Divas Championship Match

Naomi
vs.
Nikki Bella (C) with Brie Bella

Apart from the out of the blue babyface turn by the Bella Twins and a couple of slip ups early on, I was actually rather impressed by this Diva's Championship match. Given a decent amount of time, Nikki and Naomi put together some decent sequences, with Naomi slipping out a Rack Attack to hit a Full Nelson Bomb being a particular highlight for me. Naomi seemed to trying a little too hard in her new heel role, but I get the feeling she'll settle into it over the next few months, and hey, she's got shoes that change colour! The finish let this one down, as it just didn't make any sense to have the newly babyface Bellas cheat to win, with Nikki's distraction allowing Brie to clatter Naomi with a kick on the outside. A few troubles throughout, but still a promising effort from the two female performers in the ring.

Bo Dallas & Ryback Segment

FILLER CITY, BITCH! Bo Dallas came out and cut a creative, but cheap promo on the city of Chicago, for reasons. Before Ryback came and battered him with a Meat Hook and Shellshock. The only real reason for this seemed to be to make up a bit of time, although giving Ziggler and Sheamus an extra five minutes would have been a much better option.

Miscellaneous 

The WWE Network was heavily pushed throughout the show, with a number of new shows being promoted for the next week, seemingly because the free month of April is about to come to an end. Tough Enough is back soon, as a couple of audition videos were shown, some good and some bad, although it was painfully obvious that this audition process isn't as open as WWE would have the public believe. The Kick-Off panel got their obligatory segment with Byron Saxton, Booker T and Corey Graves chatting about the Chicago Street Fight and Tag Team title match, as well as highlights from Bad News Barrett and Neville's pre show match. The Marine 4: Moving Target is WWE's latest direct-to-DVD offering, this time featuring The Miz and Summer Rae, which is nice. A promo for Payback on 17th May aired, mainly focused on Roman Reigns. MTN Dew is a beverage that can be drunk, it was good to be reminded of this. Live is Jericho returns to the WWE Network following this week's Smackdown with Jericho being joined by Stephanie McMahon. There is a hero in all of us, apparently, which surely removes the point of being an actual hero.

Finally....

Not a good PPV by any stretch of the imagination, but there was enough that kept me entertained throughout the three hours. Big Show and Roman Reigns put on the pick of the three main event level matches, with Rollins vs. Orton and Rusev vs. Cena both being harmed by a lack of creativity and questionable booking. The mid card was hit and miss with both Sheamus vs. Ziggler and Harper vs. Ambrose having their moments, but Sheamus and Ziggler could've done with a bit more and the Chicago Street Fight being harmed by a gimmick that didn't deliver on what it promised. The tag team and Diva's Championship matches made the most of their undercard placings, with the tag team match in particular shining through as a standout match on the show. Not a great follow up to a strong WrestleMania card, WWE will need to dust itself down and try again come May 17th's Payback.

WWE TLC: Tables, Ladders, Chairs... and Stairs 2014 DVD Review

WWE TLC: Tables, Ladders, Chairs... and Stairs 2014 is out on DVD and Blu-Ray on 23rd March, available from www.wwedvd.co.uk. Broadcast live on Pay-per-View (and the WWE Network) from the Quicken Loans Arena in Cleveland, Ohio, USA on 14th December 2014, the show features Bray Wyatt taking on Dean Ambrose in a Tables, Ladders and Chairs match, John Cena battling Seth Rollins in a Tables match, Luke Harper defending the Intercontinental Championship against Dolph Ziggler in a Ladder match and five other matches. The special features include one other match, and two post-match interviews. The main feature goes 2 hours, 46 minutes, with 17 minutes of special features taking the disc to just over 3 hours long. 

Main Feature

The show kicks off with the customary video package, mentioning a point that will be burned into your brain by the end of the show, this is WWE's version of the Demolition Derby. With some pyro and ballyhoo, and the introduction of the Spanish commentary team it's time for our first match. A spirited effort from Dolph Ziggler and Luke Harper, in what is a very watchable ladder match for the Intercontinental Championship. Some good spots are bolstered by a strong underdog from hometown story and a crowd that is completely wrapped up in the action. 

The Usos challenging The Miz and Damien Mizdow for the Tag Titles is a poor effort, helped only by how over Mizdow is in Cleveland. In an interview with Byron Saxton, Seth Rollins is on top form pulling out a strong heel promo, dedicating his match later on to Triple H and Stephanie McMahon. Big Show and Erick Rowan chuck big bits of metal at each other in the first ever Stairs match. 

Seth Rollins continues to repay the faith put in him by WWE with a strong performance opposite John Cena in a Tables match. The bout tell a sound story, with J&J Security providing shenanigans a plenty throughout the match, although the finish is a bit of a let down. Renee Young, Booker T and Alex Riley of the Kick-Off panel, provide some interesting insight into some of the previous matches, whilst also looking ahead to John Cena's clash with Brock Lesnar at the Royal Rumble. Byron Saxton's house of fun continues as he interviews The Bella Twins, in which Nikki talks about her breasts for a bit.

Nikki's Diva's Championship defense against AJ Lee has some good work put in, but it's never fully capitalised on, and the crowd couldn't give a shit anyway. Tom Phillips gets a run out to interview the returning Roman Reigns, who produces a truly awful promo. A chair match between Ryback and Kane is probably better than you'd imagine it to be, but the crowd is again utterly, utterly indifferent. A United States title confrontation between Rusev (accompanied by Lana) and Jack Swagger fails to reach the heights of their contest from SummerSlam earlier in the year. 

A TLC match between Bray Wyatt and Dean Ambrose closes the show, and doesn't feel like we quite see the best out of either man. Whilst their is a number of big spots, they are quite repetitive and don't quite stand out as better than the Ladder match that opened the show. The finish is weak also, with a silly deus ex machina that does very little for anyone. By no means a bad match and still watchable, but not as good as it could of, or should of been. 

Special Features

A tag bout featuring Big E & Kofi Kingston (accompanied by Xavier Woods) against Goldust and Stardust is passable fair from the Kick Off show, despite no one being over with the crowd. Byron Saxton interviews Dolph Ziggler after his match, with Ziggler a lot more reserved than we are used to. Surprisingly Nikki Bella's effort is actually much better, getting over what needed to be said well.

Finally...

The three big matches on the show are all good matches, with Cena and Rollins' effort probably being the better of the three, even if Wyatt and Ambrose fails to deliver on everything it promised to be. The undercard suffers from the crowds utter indifference towards anyone but Damien Mizdow, but no performer really looks to stand out and grab their attention either. Some questionable booking in places and a handful of dodgy finish mean this is a poor PPV overall, although the Best PPV Matches of 2014 DVD stopping at just October, means that this is currently your only way to own Ziggler vs. Harper, Cena vs. Rollins and Wyatt vs. Ambrose. 

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WWE Fastlane 2015 Review

I berated this PPV in the Preview, giving it the name "The B PPV to end all B PPV's" but would Fastlane be as half-assed as I was expecting it to be? Let's have a look! 

Singles Match for the WWE United States ChampionshipJohn Cena vs. Rusev (C) with Lana

Getting slightly more of a focus on the show than the Bryan-Reigns bout, this in many ways felt like a more significant bout. Reminiscent of Cena's match with Brock Lesnar at SummerSlam 2014, this saw Cena getting dominated for large portions of the match by the psedo-Russian. But this wasn't Cena facing an established draw in WWE, this was Cena going up against an unproven entity, someone who has managed to garner a lot of heat alongside his manager Lana, but is yet to show that he can be a reliable main event draw for WWE going forward. This was WWE taking a risk. Now, even if Cena wins a rematch later down the line, Rusev' stock has risen considerably already from this one match.

Besides the result, this was a good bout, completely watchable from start to finish, telling a solid story. The two connected nicely early on, with a brawling style that sold their heated rivalry, before moving onto Rusev attempting to finish the match as quickly as possible, attempting pinfalls at every opportunity. The pair worked well together in ring, with some well timed reversal sequences, including Cena turning a Swinging Side Slam in a Crossface submission, that actually looked like Cena was applying some pressure to the hold! Rusev also being able to hit a number of big impact moves on Cena's back and neck played nicely into the Accolade finish, had Cena bothered to sell the back or the neck things would have been even better.

On that note, Rusev's selling and performance overall in the match was strong. A moment that stood out for me was just after breaking out of Cena's crossface, Rusev hit an Alabama Slam and quickly grabbed the neck. It's little touches like these that have lead to me really warming to Rusev as a performer over the last six months or so and it's little touches like these that will keep me interesting during matches. Being able to perform this style, which is often lacking from WWE's larger competitor's is what will make Rusev stand out from his contempories and should lead to Rusev becoming a big player over the next few years. 

Going forward, the finish would suggest this isn't the last we'll see of the Rusev-Cena feud with a WrestleMania match seeming likely. It's almost inevitable that we'll see Cena get his revenge on Rusev because that's how wrestling storylines have worked since the dawn of time. Depending on how that's handled and who WWE has lined up for Rusev's next opponent, the loss shouldn't harm Rusev one bit, especially if his individual performances continue to be as strong as this one. I'd also expect a rematch between the two to be a much richer bout, as it felt like the two were holding back just a little on what they could do here. A good match, nothing more, nothing less.

Singles Match for the Number One Contendership to the WWE World Heavyweight ChampionshipDaniel Bryan vs. Roman Reigns

Whilst I felt that Rusev vs. Cena was the more significant of the two marquee matches, this was the match of the night. Power and Strength vs. Speed and Technicality. It's an age old formula, that's been tested time and time again and almost always pays off. It's an easy story that anyone can follow. Both men were able to tweak their style slightly, in order to play to the face vs. face dynamic that could have caused the match to fall apart. Bryan brought a more vicious side to his game, focusing on Reigns' previously injured stomach with some vicious kicks at one point, whilst Reigns added some vulnerability to his power, in an attempt to garner some crowd support against the clear fan favourite Bryan.

The back and forth nature of the bout set both men as more or less equals, with neither able to take the upper hand for any real period of time. This not only leant itself nicely to the face vs. face dynamic by allowing each man to roam closer to being the heel at points in the match, but also set up some well-worked near falls. Reigns' getting two from a Superman punch and Bryan's near falls after reversing a Spear into a Small Package and hitting his signature Running Knee were the stand outs in terms of near falls. However, both men delivering punches and kicks whilst on the mat was the highlight of the bout for me.

Where this match stops at being "just" a good match, instead of a very good or great match, is on the little intricacies in the story telling that weren't quite present. Elements of the story being raised and then dropped, such a Bryan working the leg early on before never going back to the injury and Reigns' not selling it either, hurt the flow of the match ever so slightly. Personally, I would have liked to have seen Reigns' selling his stomach a little bit more, especially after managing to powering out of Bryan's Triangle Choke. A little indication that it was the stomach that caused him not to be able to get to his feet (even if this had been from the commentary team) would have made all the difference to this moment.

Did this match change anyone's opinions of Reigns? Hmmm...maybe. But I'd suspect his most ardent "haters" (Fuck, I hate that term) will pass of the match as Bryan "carrying" Reigns, which was always going to be the case. Whilst Bryan's performance was unselfish, Reigns put a shift in himself, and whilst he's still not a completely polished performer, I'm glad to see WWE, at least, attempting to build new stars. Reigns now has to prepare for the biggest match and moment of his career, against a potentially hostile crowd, I'm looking forward to seeing what he can do when the lights are on bright.

Six Man Tag Team Match
Seth Rollins, The Big Show & Kane with J&J Security
vs.
Ryback, Erick Rowan & Dolph Ziggler

Yes, he's back. After almost four months off television, Randy Orton made his WWE return after the conclusion of the six man tag team match. Making a run in after The Authority's Seth Rollins, Kane, The Big Show and J&J Security had battered Ryback, Erick Rowan and Dolph Ziggler, delivering RKO's to Kane, Jamie Noble and Joey Mercury before Big Show was able to save Rollins from Orton's Rope Hung DDT, with Rollins legging it all the way out of the arena. A cool moment and a timely return for Orton at a time when WWE is lacking star power. A feud with Rollins heading into WrestleMania should provide some entertaining encounters, as well as elevating Rollins further setting him up nicely to cash in his Money in the Bank briefcase. 

The match was a decent trios encounter, whilst never threatening to become a must-watch bout. The Authority's team spent most of the match working over Rowan's leg after Rowan missed a Spin Kick on Big Show and connected with the ring post. Unfortunately, this story element wasn't used to it's full potential, as whilst The Authority did a good job working quick tags, Big Show randomly letting go of Rowan with a modified cloverleaf locked in for reasons known only to Show and Rowan using a Spin Kick on Rollins' in order to make the hot tag really letting down the good work that was put in elsewhere. 

Rollins and Ryback probably had the most entertaining section of the match, putting together a decent sequence of moves, capped off by Ryback catching Rollins' as he attempted a Diving Neckbreaker in an impressive show of strength before turning the move into Shellshocked. Whilst Ryback was making the most of his PPV time, Big Show looked slow and sluggish, seemingly out of place for a number of big spots, including the finish in which it seemed to take an age for Show to hit Ziggler with the KO Punch, meaning Kane had to look a bit of a nob holding Ziggler in place for the move. 

I'm sure whether having The Authority go over here was the best decision, as it did end up making the three babyfaces look a bit shit. They'd already lost the match and then got the shit kicked out of them, only for one man to be able to clear the ring of the Authority. I'm all for keeping Rollins strong, but it wasn't Rollins who got the pin and he wasn't even involved in the finish of the match. A pinfall could have done much more for Ziggler, Ryback or Rowan, whilst enhancing the beatdown at the end of the match. It's not like Big Show or Kane particularly needed to be protected for any real reason, and pre-match attack from Rollins would have only helped his stock to rise amongst WWE's heel pack.

Triple H and Sting come Face to Face

 Pretty much a paint-by-numbers segment to set up a match for WrestleMania, we've seen these kind of things a number of times over the last few years. Luckily then, it was kept relatively short (hence finding itself this far down the review) and included a number of nice little touch that managed to keep my attention despite knowing exactly how the segment would play out. Touches like Triple H coming out in a leather jacket and jeans, as opposed to his suit, and looking like a legit bad ass in the process, having Sting remain silent throughout and the comparison between Sting's baseball bat and Triple H's sledgehammer.

Despite ending up on the receiving end of a Scorpion Death Drop, it was Triple H who stole this segment for me. His promo delivery was spot on, and with some nice references to the Monday Night War such as "My legacy is putting your legacy out of business". If things continue to move in such a fashion this feud should have heated up nicely come WrestleMania. I'm still not sure how much I want to see this match, but there is no question that it will appeal to those fans who may not have watched wrestling for a while and draw them in to watch WrestleMania.

Singles Match
Goldust vs. Stardust

There was a surprising amount of focus on the show for Goldust vs. Stardust, with both pre and post match backstage segments. The match was unremarkable, lacking the aggression that Goldust had promised in his promo earlier in the night. However, there was the nice story element of Goldust trying to hit his big moves (such as Golden Globes and the Director's Cut) early on in the match to try and get things finished quickly, unfortunately no one on the commentary team picked up on this, so the majority of the audience will probably not have noticed what was going on. The finish (and subsequent post-match promo) sets things up nicely for a WrestleMania rematch between the two, where they will almost certainly have to up their game.


 with Stardust's being particularly impressive. Delivered with a passion that has been missing from Stardust's performance for sometime, targeted as his father and following an attack on Goldust, Stardust claimed that his father killed "Cody" by sending his brother to tag with him, finishing with the line "I am not living in your shadow, you're living in mine". I was hooked for start to finish for this segment, as Stardust nailed the promo hitting the right highs and lows at the right time. If Stardust can bring this aggression into the feud heading into WrestleMania, and is matched by his brother, we could have a rather intriguing programme and hopefully a WrestleMania match that is stronger than this bout.

Tag Team Match for the WWE Tag Team Championship
Tyson Kidd & Cesaro with Natalya vs. The Usos (C) with Naomi

Cesaro and Tyson Kidd picked up their first Tag Team Championship as a duo (Kidd's second reign with the title having won the belt as part of The Hart Dynasty back in 2010) in a solid tag team bout with The Usos. The focus of the match saw Cesaro and Kidd focus on Jimmy Uso's leg, with a series of impressive maneuvers, including a beautiful one legged Cesaro Swing. The leg also played nicely into the finish with Kidd able to hit his Swinging Fisherman Suplex following a kick to the injured leg. Whilst the action was mostly strong, there were a few times where things weren't quite as slick as they should have been, whilst Jimmy failing to sell the leg for any prolonged period of time (especially after the match) did hurt the story that was being told some what.

Singles Match for the WWE Intercontinental Championship
Bad News Barrett (C) vs. Dean Ambrose

This bout showed that these two have some real potential as opponents, however it failed to fully cash-in on that potential. Barrett and Ambrose connected nicely with a handful of impressive reversal sequences, involving each man's signature moves, showing some decent chemistry in the ring. Unfortunately there wasn't much holding together these sequences and the finish was rotten. As a concept I have no real problem with Disqualification finishes on PPV, as long as they feel important and drive the story forward, having Ambrose DQ'd for refusing to stop stomping on Barrett in the corner was a cop out, why not have him lose it and hit Barrett with the title belt? This match needed, at least, five more minutes and much more creative finish than what was provided.

Singles Match for the WWE Diva's Championship

Nikki Bella with Brie Bella 

vs. 

Paige

This match was better than I had expected in the preview, but still my personal highlights came from people other than the performers in the ring. Lilian Garcia seemingly not having a clue what was going on as she announced Nikki as "Women's Champion" after fumbling her words for thirty seconds and Jerry Lawler saying the word "belt" both managed to get a pop out of me. In all fairness so did Nikki hitting a relatively competent powerbomb, but unfortunately this match lacked any real depth from the performers (Paige not selling her back following getting rammed into the apron and barricade really hurt the match). Nikki winning with a roll up, whilst apparently holding the tights, slotted in well to what was a basic match.

Bray Wyatt Promo

It was finally revealed to everyone missing half a brain who Bray Wyatt had been talking about for the last month or so on WWE programming. Of course, it was The Undertaker. Wyatt's entrance with Druids carrying a coffin to the ring to Undertaker's music, only for Wyatt to be revealed inside looked really quite good, even if anyone who's watched WWE over the last ten years knew exactly what was going to happen. It was Wyatt's promo however that truly stole this short segment, challenging Undertaker to a match at WrestleMania, with more mysticism and mythology than the Ancient Greeks. "It's time for him to go home".

Miscellaneous

 WWE aired Seth Rollins' social media altercations with Jon Stewart, the most interesting part being Stewart calling Rollins' a "toady" which I believe to be a reference to popular Australian Soap Opera Neighbours. I imagine this was done to bring in Toadfish Rebecci to reprise his role as The Lawman. The promo video for WrestleMania ran three times during the show, reminding us that the show was only 35 days away, which was nice of them. A recap of Paul Heyman's interview with The Miz from the Kick-Off show was also shown, with Heyman reminding us that the winner of the Reigns-Bryan match would be facing Brock Lesnar at WrestleMania. Eva Marie and Cameron were at The Oscars apparently, good for them, a win-win situation considering I didn't have to watch them wrestle either. WWE Immortals also continued to be heavily promoted with another promo airing during the show. Flintstones & WWE: Stone Aged Smackdown also received a promo, in what looks like a truly awful straight-to-DVD film.

Finally...

Where this PPV falls apart and become less than the sum of it's parts, is the sheer repetition of the matches. Three matches involved someone working the leg, three matches included someone getting rammed into the apron and then the barricade. Two talking segments is too much for a PPV, in my opinion. To add to this the crowd was dead throughout the whole show, one of the worst WWE crowd's I've ever seen (Apart from the guy with the "Barnet 1 Grimsby 3" sign). Whilst many of the matches straddled somewhere between average, decent and good, when put together in this order, in front of this specific crowd, it just didn't quite work overall.

WWE Survivor Series 2014 DVD Review

 WWE Survivor Series 2014 is out on DVD and Blu-Ray now, available from www.wwedvd.co.uk. Broadcast live on Pay-per-View (and the WWE Network) from the Scottrade Centre in St. Louis, Missouri, USA on 23rd November 2014, the show features John Cena, Ryback, Erick Rowan, Big Show & Dolph Ziggler battling Seth Rollins, Rusev, Luke Harper, Mark Henry and Kane in a traditional Survivor Series elimination match, Bray Wyatt taking on Dean Ambrose, Goldust & Stardust defending the Tag Team Championship against  Los Matadores, The Miz & Damien Mizdow and The Usos and three other matches. The special features include one other match, the return of Bad News Barrett and two interviews. 

The Pay-Per-View

The show begins with a vignette detailing that this is a one match show, the main event featuring Team Cena vs. Team Authority is all that get's a look in. Things continue as Jerry Lawler, Michael Cole and John Bradshaw Layfield welcome us to the show, reminding us of the importance of the main event. A completely superfluous in-ring segment featuring Mr. McMahon telling Triple H and Stephanie McMahon that if their team loses tonight, John Cena is the only man who can bring them back follows, and the shows theme of filler is introduced early on.

The first bout see's Los Matadores, Miz & Mizdow and The Usos challenging Gold & Stardust for the Tag Team Championship in an average, slightly sloppy bout. The finish raises the quality of the bout, with an exciting series of moves that get's everyone in the match involved well. Backstage, Adam Rose and The Bunny challenge Slater Gator to a match later on, because reasons. A four on four Survivor Series Elimination match pitting Alicia Fox, Emma, Naomi and Natalya (accompanied by Tyson Kidd) against Layla, Summer Rae, Cameron and Paige features some questionable booking and clumsy wrestling, although at least it does attempt to tell some sort of story.

Highlights from the Kick-Off show are shown next, including Fandango taking on Justin Gabriel and the return of Bad News Barrett. The Kick-Off panel also get involved, as Renee Young asks Booker T, Alex Riley and Paul Heyman about the upcoming main event, because there's no other matches on the show. Dean Ambrose and Bray Wyatt put together a good solid bout, but there's clearly more than an eye on next month's TLC pay-per-view. It's let down slightly by teasing a big spot and not delivering it, but still an entertaining watch.

Backstage, Triple H gives Team Authority an impressive pep-talk, whilst Stephanie continues to steal the show with her performance. Adam Rose and The Bunny takes on Slater Gator in a match that happened. Roman Reigns returns to our screens in an awkward interview with the commentary team. John Cena decides his team also needs a pep talk, although he can't quite deliver the intensity of Triple H's promo and most of his team don't seem that arsed anyway. AJ Lee defends the Diva's Championship against Nikki Bella (accompanied by Brie Bella) in a super short match, as Sheamus and Daniel Bryan's WrestleMania 28 match is referenced for the umpteenth time. 

The main event of Team Authority's Seth Rollins, Rusev, Luke Harper, Mark Henry and Kane (accompanied by J&J Security, Lana, Stephanie McMahon and Triple H) taking on Team Cena's John Cena, Ryback, Erick Rowan, Big Show and Dolph Ziggler in a story-driven, character-based epic. Ziggler is the stand out of the bout, looking like a star throughout, with fantastic selling and some great sequences opposite Rollins and Harper. Throw into the mix the surprise WWE debut of a wrestling legend (spoiled on the box art) and you've got a masterclass in sports entertainment. One of the strongers matches from the latter half of 2014, this match makes the rest of the show just about bearable.

Special Features

Fandango (accompanied by Rosa Mendes) takes on Justin Gabriel on the Kick Off show match, that is essentially a squash that's good while it lasts. Bad News Barrett's return is used to push the main event even further, and brings plenty of Bad News in an entertaining promo. Byron Saxton interviews Dean Ambrose, with Ambrose continuing to nail his character, whilst furthering his feud with Bray Wyatt nicely. Saxton also speaks to Nikki and Brie Bella, in which nothing is actually revealed about Nikki's match earlier in the night, a rather pointless inclusion.

Finally...

 

 

There's no doubt that WWE saw this as a one match show, with almost all the focus landing on the main event. Whilst that main event does deliver in spades, the rest of the show lacks any real attention and the performances are mostly flat. Dean Ambrose and Bray Wyatt give it their best shot, but the finish would have been more fitting if there was anything else going on elsewhere on the show. Certainly not a classic Survivor Series, but the fact that the Best PPV Matches of 2014 DVD release stopped at October, means this is currently your only way of physically getting your hands on a slice of sports entertainment gold.

WWE Royal Rumble 2015 Review

           So, erm, yeah, the Royal Rumble was a thing on Sunday night. Many opinions were shared, many emotions were emoted, many jobbers were eliminated. This review will atempt to mainly focus on what happened in the ring (and, of course, crowd interaction is a big part of that) and I'll attempt to steer clear of the mad-world Twitter and such other places, because that's only a section of the WWE's target audience (Although it was nice to see some people reacting postively to the tweets ATPW sent out regarding the show)

       Get a biscuit and get reading the review...now!

The 2015 Royal Rumble Match

The Miz vs. R-Truth vs. Bubba Ray Dudley vs. Luke Harper vs. Bray Wyatt vs. Curtis Axel vs. The Boogeyman vs. Sin Cara vs. Zack Ryder vs. Daniel Bryan vs. Fandango vs. Tyson Kidd vs. Stardust vs. Diamond Dallas Page vs. Rusev vs. Goldust vs. Kofi Kingston vs. Adam Rose vs. Roman Reigns vs. Big E vs. Damien Mizdow vs. Jack Swagger vs. Ryback vs. Kane vs. Dean Ambrose vs. Titus O'Neil vs. Bad News Barrett vs. Cesaro vs. Big Show vs. Dolph Ziggler

    Of this years Royal Rumble competitors, only seven have recieved broadcasted one on one World title matches over the last three years. Of those seven, only six occured on pay-per-view, and only three of those have main evented a pay-per-view with the title on the line. The point I'm getting at here is the *severe* lack of star power in this Rumble. The more stars you have in a match like this, the bigger the moment for the winner, surely? Now obviously come the day of the match, there wasn't much WWE could have done about this, but it does flag up the problem that many have been seeing for years, WWE has been over reliant on the old guard and returning or part-time performances, meaning this match was chock-full of mid carders, jobbers and those with no hope of winning at all. 

      The match was structured rather bizarelly as well with a number of moments that had me shaking my head. Building the crowd into a frenzy for Devon to save Bubba Ray Dudley from Luke Harper and Bray Wyatt only for Dudley to simply get thrown over the top rope, Wyatt's speech calling out the next entrant only for it to be Zack Ryder when Daniel Bryan was the bloke after Ryder, Kofi Kingston's rather disapointing way of avoiding elimination, Dolph Ziggler entering at Number 30, long periods where nothing of note happened at all! But, of course, the most notable of all was Daniel Bryan's early elimination. Now, I'm not entirely against Bryan going out of this stage (although it took a lot out of the crowd and made it obvious who was winning fairly early on) but it didn't really seem like a big deal when he was eliminated by Wyatt, neither did WWE attempt to win the crowd around by sending out a big name next, as Goldust, Kofi Kingston and Adam Rose were next, followed by Roman Reigns! Surely sending out Dean Ambrose, Dolph Ziggler or even Damien Mizdow at this point would have been a better option?

     The odd structure aside there were a few moments that stood out. Obviously the surprise returns of Bubba Ray Dudley and Diamond Dallas Page were cool, and I got a kick out of The Boogeyman coming out and getting battered by Bray Wyatt. Daniel Bryan's ten minutes in the Rumble were enjoyable, he clearly wanted to help those he was in the ring with, taking a number of signature moves, and seemed to pick out Tyson Kidd for a little bit of a showcase, with the two putting together an entertaining sequence. Bray Wyatt and Rusev both put a shift in, playing the roles they were given nicely, with Wyatt confrontations with Bryan and Rusev's with Big E and Ryback standing out in particular. Damien Mizdow and The Miz' segment was done well, although it probably wasn't the best idea that the two could've been given, especially seeing as Mizdow lasted only 18 seconds!

     Finally, let's get onto the winner...Roman Reigns. I know a lot of the "Internet" don't seem to like Reigns, and certainly the Philly crowd wasn't happy with the result, but I'm really not sure what  else could have been done. I'm not sure I'd want to see Daniel Bryan go against Brock Lesnar so soon after neck surgery, and having Lesnar drop the title to accomodate this would have been throwing away what was built when Lesnar defeated the Streak. WWE clearly recognised that Reigns was going to get a negative reaction and attempted to change this by sending out The Rock to help out his cousin when he was attacked by Big Show and Kane. It worked, perhaps for a second, when The Rock received a big pop, before the fans realised Reigns had still won. Is Reigns ready to main event WrestleMania? Only time will tell, but I do hope, that the crowd that day, at least, gives him a chance to prove himself on that stage, instead of simply taking away anyone else's chance to enjoy it.

World Heavyweight Championship Triple Threat Match

John Cena vs. Seth Rollins vs. Brock Lesnar (C)

        As triple threats in WWE go, this match is up there with the likes of Edge vs. Jeff Hardy vs. Triple H from Armageddon 2008, Kurt Angle vs. The Rock vs. The Undertaker from Vengeance 2002 and even Chris Benoit vs. Shawn Michaels vs. Triple H from WrestleMania XX, it was that damn good. A true spectacle to watch, that you wouldn't see anywhere other than WWE.

      The bout was extremely well structure to get the best out of the three men in match. Brock Lesnar dominated early on, before suffering an onslaught of offence from both challengers, allowing Seth Rollins and John Cena to battle it out, before Lesnar made his own version of a Superman comeback to pick up the victory and retain the title following an F5 to Rollins. This continued to build Lesnar into an undestructable force, allowed Rollins out a career-making performance, whilst Cena held the match together, even chucking in a couple of new moves because he was feeling generous. 

    Everything in the match seemed to be building towards the finish, as the drama was heightened by a series of near falls, as well as making it look  like Lesnar may have to leave the match on a stretcher following a diving elbow from Rollins through the announce table. This moment was played incredibly well by Lesnar, whilst his manager Paul Heyman and Michael Cole on commentary both put shifts in to allow for the suspension of disbelief, which was needed to make Lesnar's comeback even more special a moment. 

      Whilst everyone involved did their bit well, the undoubted MVP of the match was Seth Rollins who didn't look a step out of place against the two bonafide stars in the shape of Lesnar and Cena. His performance throughout the bout was spot on, especially after the bout when his selling was very good indeed, having to be picked up by J&J Security, and getting a lot of screen time after the match, really got over that Rollins' had been through a war. I was a little disapointed not to see Rollins' attempt to cash in his Money in the Bank briefcase, although that doesn't take anything away from the match itself or Rollins' performance. Rollins will be more than ready to cash-in that briefcase following WrestleMania, which perhaps couldn't have been said when he initially won it.

Tag Team Championship Match

The Miz & Damien Mizdow vs. The Usos (C)

           This match was all about the crowd reactions. Everyone loved Damien Mizdow, hated The Miz and were almost completely indifferent towards The Usos. Luckily, Mizdow's stunt double act was kept to a minimum, with Mizdow crotching himself on the top rope the only notable spot, instead the match focused more the relationship between Miz' reluctance to tag in his stunt double, which played nicely off the crowd reaction.

        Beyond that however, this was a rather dull tag team encounter, which came nowhere near to being pay-per-view quality. A lack of structure and no real sense of drama or build, let everything feeling rather throughout. An Usos comeback could have had potential but Jey simply ran through the regular Usos combination of strikes, samoan drop and running arse attack. There was no real hunger of adventure or excitement that the pair had bought to their matches in 2014 and Jimmy and Jey looked fairly content to just run through the motions, with WrestleMania around the corner is that really something these boys can afford?

     It wasn't the Usos who looked lazy, as whilst The Miz did a good job playing with the crowd and used his character nicely, not being in the correct place for Jey's Tope Conhilo is extremely poor for someone who's been around as long as Miz has! When WWE decide not to show a replay of a dive over the top rope, you know you've fucked up and the Philly crowd made sure that everyone knew about it as well. Miz, you big ol' colostomy bag, you used to be WWE Champion, now you can't even catch one of Rikishi's kids?

     The closing stages did go some way to aiding some storyline progression for Miz and Mizdow with both men hitting Skull Crushing Finales and Miz unable to get the win on both occasions, whilst Mizdow continued to save his arse when The Usos seemed to have the win. The finish was also rather nice, with Jimmy hitting a Superkick from the apron, allowing Jey to smash Miz with a powerbomb, before Jimmy got the pin following a Superfly Splash. Still not enough to make me think this match should have been anywhere near a pay-per-view.

Tag Team Match

The Bella Twins vs. Paige & Natalya

        Out of the three tag matches on the show, this was actually the one I was looking forward to the most, mainly down to an interest in what these women could do when given a little bit more time than they would for this sort of match on Raw or Smackdown. Whilst there were a smattering of nice double team moves, and Paige and The Bella Twins, at least, tried to get the crowd involved in the match, the off kilter pacing and structure and two big mistakes really hurt this one for me. The finish, especially, that saw lengthy build towards hot tag from Natalya to Paige, only for Brie to pull Paige off the apron and Nikki hit a forearm shot to pick up the victory, felt rather strange and took a bit of the energy out of the crowd that was beginning to warm towards the bout.

       The two mistakes in the match that really harmed the match saw Paige and Natalya unaware of who was supposed to be legal in the match, followed up quickly by a nasty looking bodyslam reversal by Brie on Natalya. Not knowing who was legal showed a real lack of focus on the performance, I'm not sure who is to blame but neither of these performers should be making that mistake the length of time they've been wrestling for. As for the botch, slips and trips happen, but it definitely harmed the quality of the match and my interest in the bout fell from that point on.
       

Tag Team Match

The New Age Outlaws vs. The Ascension

      An unremarkable and basic tag team match, The Ascension picked up the victory in just over five minutes, following a decent closing sequence that saw Viktor dodge Billy Gunn's Fameasser, before Ascension were able to hit Fall of Man.The Philly crowd were pretty indifferent throughout, with a "You Still Got It" chant and Korma pop for the "hot" tag being pretty much their only contribution throughout the whole match. Not sure why Konnar felt the need to slap on a lengthy headlock when the crowd clearly didn't care and the match was only going five minutes!

    Credit to The New Age Outlaws for coming back again and putting over younger talent, however, at this point I'm not really sure if beating 45 and 51 year old blokes is actually that impressive, especially considering we haven't seen Outlaws on television since they got their arse handed to them by The Shield at WrestleMania XXX. I'm still not sold on Konnor and Viktor (especially under the tweaked gimmick), but it's clear WWE has plans for them heading into WrestleMania season.

Finally...

       Aside from the World Heavyweight Championship three way, everything else on this card was entirely misable. Whilst The Rumble had it's moments, it was poorly structured and didn't seem entirely thought through, and the plethora of tag team matches ranged from the bog average to duller than a bag of hammers. Certainly not a classic.