Match 1: ACH vs. Mark Briscoe
First time watching this since
being there live a year ago. Good opening match here to set the tone for
the night. You get your regular fun stuff from the two guys and the
crowd was definitely with them throughout the whole ride. I should note
how bad ROH is with their volume on these DVDs. Is it really necessary
to turn down the in-ring volume so much for the commentary? Half the
time, the audio was fucked up, too! Regardless, Mark Briscoe rolls up
ACH for the win. I feel like Mark hasn't made much progress in spite of
Jay's success. His gimmick is old and definitely needs a change. How I
feel about ACH taking the loss is another story.
Winner: Mark Briscoe
Rating: **3/4
Match 2: Michael Elgin vs. Frankie Kazarian
It's
been awhile since I've seen both these guys so this should be fun. You
know you're going to get a good match whenever these two step in.
Michael Elgin definitely embraced his role as a heel here and it showed
in this match. Elgin hits an Elgin Bomb on Frankie Kazarian for the win.
Daniels rushes to Frankie's help after the match but suffers a chair
shot to the back and an Elgin Bomb for good measure. Really good
following match here, nothing too crazy, just good action from the first
bell and something the crowd really enjoyed. I don't know what to say
here, it's an expected great match from the two and it's cool to see
Elgin getting back in the title hunt.
Winner: Michael Elgin
Rating: ***1/4
Match 3: Andrew Everett vs. Moose vs. Caprice Coleman vs. Cedric Alexander vs. Tommaso Ciampa vs. Matt Sydal
Gotta
love the six-man mayhems! Perfect way to get the guys on the card and
have a fun match for the show with nothing taken too seriously. The
match starts off with two guys squaring off as the other competitors
stand on the apron. We all know how that goes. Things quickly turn into
mayhem and the pace turns up a notch as the crowd gets louder and louder
as the match winds down. Finally, Matt Sydal emerges as the victor to
the delight of the crowd. Fun stuff here to take a break from the
singles action, all men put in work and things fell into place nicely.
Winner: Matt Sydal
Rating: ***
Match 4: No Disqualification - BJ Whitmer vs. Jimmy Jacobs
We
all know the story here, even if I didn't know when I was watching this
live. This is Jimmy Jacobs' final match in Ring of Honor and it's
against his old rival in BJ Whitmer. They embrace each other before they
try to knock the living daylights out of each other. It's always fun to
watch a match like this. They brought out the chairs and a table and
just straight up had fun with everything. Even when the first table spot
didn't work, they still managed to work around it. Whitmer picks up the
win and after the match, Colby Corino attacks Jacobs from behind as
Lacey comes out of nowhere to make the save. The two then embrace each
other after the match. Cool moment from one of the company's most
enigmatic stars.
Winner: BJ Whitmer
Rating: **3/4
Match 5: Christopher Daniels vs. Roderick Strong
Feels
like yesterday that we were watching these two go at it for the ROH
World Championship. They worked a pretty similar match here on a lesser
scale. Solid action from the two, nothing crazy, just smart wrestling
from the very beginning. There weren't any crazy flips or crazy dives
but the crowd still enjoyed the action. Commentators took into
consideration that Christopher Daniels wasn't at his best after
suffering a beating from Michael Elgin earlier. Roderick Strong took
advantage of that and won with the Stronghold. The two shake hands after
as Strong picks up the big win and looks to get back into the title
hunt. Good match, very reminiscent of their match at Fate of an Angel
II. I felt like this one was just better and didn't suffer from dragging
on so much like that match did.
Winner: Roderick Strong
Rating: ***1/2
Match 6: ROH World Tag Team Championships - reDRagon (c) vs. The Kingdom
I
always say this and I will say it again, Michael Bennett does not get
the recognition he deserves. Such a great heel and he played his role
perfectly here once again. I love both teams, the contrast in styles
gelled nicely here. The Kingdom almost wrestle like they work for the
WWE while reDRagon wrestle as if they were MMA fighters. Both are unique
in their own ways and it made for a fun match. I love how Bennett &
Matt Taven toy with the crowd and their opponents, you just want to
hate these guys. On the other hand, I love how Bobby Fish & Kyle
O'Reilly are so explosive and look like legit badasses. The finish, on
the other hand, is a completely different story. Some dude in a mask ran
in and looked to take out reDRagon. He tried to kick Fish in the face
but landed it on Bennett instead. ReDRagon was able to capitalize on the
situation and score the win. That finish looked so stupid. Regardless,
the match was fun and a welcomed change of pace headed into the main
events.
Winners: reDRagon
Rating: ***1/2
Match 7: ROH World Television Championship - Jay Lethal (c) vs. Jushin Liger
This
is my first time watching Jushin Liger wrestle since 2010. It was a
treat then and it's still a treat now. It's hard to believe he was 51
years old for this match, he more than held his own against the younger
Jay Lethal. Great match here despite Adam Cole's annoying commentary.
Liger was able to pull out his classic moves and Lethal was able to do
his thing. Lethal gets to work with all the legends. What a treat for
him. End saw Lethal pull out his belt and try to smack Liger in the face
with it before Liger ducked. But for whatever reason, Liger picks up
the belt to pose and by way of distraction, gets drilled in the face
with a Superkick. Lethal is able to hit a Lethal Injection to pick up
the big win. Liger then exits to a well-deserved standing ovation.
Winner: Jay Lethal
Rating: ***3/4
Match 8: ROH World Championship - Jay Briscoe (c) vs. Samoa Joe
Two
ROH originals main eventing one of the company's marquee events, gotta
love it! Jay Briscoe has become the face of the company and his second
reign as champ was great. His match here against Samoa Joe proved that
point. Stiff would be the best word to describe this match. It did start
off a bit slower than expected but once the pace picked up, the crowd
got more into the action and the match took off. Both guys were landing
their big blows and finally, Briscoe was able to hit a Jay Driller to
score the win over Joe that had become so elusive to him. Solid main
event that felt just a bit underwhelming. The win for Briscoe over Joe
was a good one, his stardom continues to rise. Nothing is better than
seeing Jay get the recognition he has earned. When you want to talk ROH
legends like Bryan Danielson, Nigel McGuinness, CM Punk or Samoa Joe,
Jay Briscoe needs to be in that discussion.
Winner: Jay Briscoe
Rating: ***1/2
Overall Show Thoughts and Rating:
Was
it the best Supercard of Honor ever? Absolutely not. Was it an event
worthy of the title? Absolutely. The matches didn't really blow me away,
but they were all consistent and they all made sense. With that being
said, this was still a great show that answered a lot of questions and
still made room for new ones. Check this show out!
Rating: 8/10
Wednesday, March 30, 2016
Sunday, March 20, 2016
Batista - The Animal Unleashed DVD (Disc 2) Review
Match 1: SmackDown 2006 - World Heavyweight Championship - Batista (c) vs. King Booker vs. Finlay
Batista gets to defend his World Heavyweight Championship against two former buddies in King Booker and Finlay. I miss these days from SmackDown, Batista gets a lot of crap but he really rose to the occasion every night for SmackDown. He made a great leader for the blue brand. While the predictability of this match was through the roof, they still put on a great match here. Finlay did his usual shenanigans with his shillelagh in hand and putting it to use behind the referee's back. Batista was able to turn the tides and hit a Batista Bomb on Finlay to secure the win. Good triple threat match here that allowed Batista to finally put these two away before moving on to WrestleMania season.
Winner: Batista
Rating: ***1/4
Match 2: SmackDown 2007 - Batista vs. Kane vs. Finlay vs. Mark Henry
Such a weird choice of a match to be placed on this DVD. Regardless, Edge is with JBL & Michael Cole to call this match and scout one of his future opponents. Winner gets to face Edge at One Night Stand for the strap. Decent match here that like the last match, really suffered from the predictability. And also like the last match, Batista was suffering from an injured hamstring which he nicely sold throughout the contest. But like the last match, he hit a Batista Bomb on Finlay before handing out Spears to everyone else for the win. He stares down a nervous Edge after the match. A good match but like I said, really strange to see this placed on the DVD.
Winner: Batista
Rating: **1/2
Match 3: SmackDown 2007 - Batista vs. Edge
You guessed it, another SmackDown match! This match was following their bout at Night of Champions where Batista failed to dethrone Edge. These two had really good chemistry for whatever reason and it definitely showed here. Edge is a master artist and Batista can hang with the very best of them. However, I've probably seen these two wrestle each other about a million times so nothing here is different or will stand out so much. Batista gets the clean win over the brand's top dog with a Batista Bomb. A strong television non-title match with a questionable finish. I get that they want Batista to look good and stay in contention, but a completely clean win over Edge made him look like a weaker champion. We all have different opinions but I just had to question why he scored the clean win here.
Winner: Batista
Rating: ***
Match 4: SmackDown 2007 - Last Man Standing - Batista vs. Kane
This is in late 2007 where Edge aligned himself with Vickie Guerrero and inserted himself into the World Heavyweight Championship picture. On this particular episode, Guerrero booked Edge against Funaki while Batista had to face Kane in a Last Man Standing match. Like I said in the previous bout, Batista can definitely hang with the best and when he works with a veteran like Kane, the psychology and storytelling go hand in hand. This is just something Batista never really gets the credit for. Last Man Standing matches do tend do drag but I feel like the did an efficient job of pacing the counts and making them look believable. Ending saw Batista hit a Spinebuster on Kane atop the announcers table before Edge appeared out of nowhere and hit a Spear on Batista. Batista was able to recover and get up before the ten count to win the match but the message was sent from Edge.
Winner: Batista
Rating: ***
Match 5: One Night Stand 2008 - Stretcher - Batista vs. Shawn Michaels
This match is another perfect example of how good a storyteller Batista really is. This was in the midst of Ric Flair's retirement and shaped into a Stretcher match after Shawn Michaels faked a knee injury at Backlash. While this match is between Batista and Shawn Michaels, seeds are still planted here for a long feud between Chris Jericho and Michaels. I really enjoyed this match and really enjoyed seeing Batista look like a man with no remorse, it felt like I was watching his Evolution days again. The match looked pretty even until Batista turned it up a notch, Batista was ready to win the match until Jericho came out for a second time and made the save. He started encouraging Michaels to get up and win. However, Batista brought out the bottom half of the steel steps and delivered a Spinebuster to Michaels on it. After, Batista placed Michaels on the stretcher before rolling him over the line for the win. Great match and great use of the stretcher throughout the match. Jericho added another layer to the match and Batista was brilliant in looking at Jericho in amusement. Great stuff all around.
Winner: Batista
Rating: ***3/4
Match 6: Great American Bash 2008 - World Heavyweight Championship - CM Punk (c) vs. Batista
CM Punk was booked like an absolute champ in 2008 as the champion for the red brand. Things didn't look too good for him as he had an animal in his way, Batista. If you haven't figured it out by now, Batista is almost booked as generously as John Cena. The commentators would not stop reminding us how Punk was the underdog of the match. The two worked a really good match around that story, Batista was fantastic in looking stronger while Punk was just as good in looking fast and cunning. Batista was understandably in control throughout the entire match but Punk wouldn't let up, putting his best efforts forward and made himself look like a legitimate contender. Credit to Batista for that, too. Batista hit a Spinebuster outside and once he rolled Punk back in the ring, Kane appeared out of nowhere and attacked both men which led to a disqualification. Punk raises his belt in front of Batista after Kane left and then handed out a Batista Bomb to Punk. I'm not sure what just happened. Is Batista a heel? Was Kane's interference absolute necessary? And why exactly did Punk raise the belt after a disqualification victory?
Winner: CM Punk
Rating: ***
Match 7: Cyber Sunday 2008 - World Heavyweight Championship - Chris Jericho (c) vs. Batista
I reviewed this match over five years ago and gave it a ***3/4. Let's see how that stands here in March of 2016. For the second year in a row, Batista is involved in the main event at Cyber Sunday for the World Heavyweight Championship with Stone Cold Steve Austin being the special guest referee. Chris Jericho tried to walk away from the match in the beginning until Austin made sure there wouldn't be any running away as a count out victory would lead to a title change. This was such a mess. I mean that in a good way and a bad way. Having JBL, Randy Orton and Shawn Michaels all jump on the boat was stupid fun to watch, especially with the crowd eating it up. The Stunner to Orton was a thing of beauty. Austin tried to hit one on Jericho who pushed Austin away but fell trap to a Batista Bomb. Batista scored the victory and shared a cold one with the legend afterwards. Like I said, a cluster of a match but it was definitely enjoyable to watch.
Winner: Batista
Rating: ***1/2
Overall Thoughts and Rating:
While some of the matches that were chosen for this disc were pretty odd, I still enjoyed them for the most part. We often underestimate just how good Batista actually is or was as a wrestler. He can tell a great story and make his opponents look good in the process, win or lose. If anything, this disc really shines that statement in the limelight. Would I have preferred to see other matches on here? Sure, but this was still a nice compilation. Disc 3 review coming up!
Rating: 7.25/10
Batista gets to defend his World Heavyweight Championship against two former buddies in King Booker and Finlay. I miss these days from SmackDown, Batista gets a lot of crap but he really rose to the occasion every night for SmackDown. He made a great leader for the blue brand. While the predictability of this match was through the roof, they still put on a great match here. Finlay did his usual shenanigans with his shillelagh in hand and putting it to use behind the referee's back. Batista was able to turn the tides and hit a Batista Bomb on Finlay to secure the win. Good triple threat match here that allowed Batista to finally put these two away before moving on to WrestleMania season.
Winner: Batista
Rating: ***1/4
Match 2: SmackDown 2007 - Batista vs. Kane vs. Finlay vs. Mark Henry
Such a weird choice of a match to be placed on this DVD. Regardless, Edge is with JBL & Michael Cole to call this match and scout one of his future opponents. Winner gets to face Edge at One Night Stand for the strap. Decent match here that like the last match, really suffered from the predictability. And also like the last match, Batista was suffering from an injured hamstring which he nicely sold throughout the contest. But like the last match, he hit a Batista Bomb on Finlay before handing out Spears to everyone else for the win. He stares down a nervous Edge after the match. A good match but like I said, really strange to see this placed on the DVD.
Winner: Batista
Rating: **1/2
Match 3: SmackDown 2007 - Batista vs. Edge
You guessed it, another SmackDown match! This match was following their bout at Night of Champions where Batista failed to dethrone Edge. These two had really good chemistry for whatever reason and it definitely showed here. Edge is a master artist and Batista can hang with the very best of them. However, I've probably seen these two wrestle each other about a million times so nothing here is different or will stand out so much. Batista gets the clean win over the brand's top dog with a Batista Bomb. A strong television non-title match with a questionable finish. I get that they want Batista to look good and stay in contention, but a completely clean win over Edge made him look like a weaker champion. We all have different opinions but I just had to question why he scored the clean win here.
Winner: Batista
Rating: ***
Match 4: SmackDown 2007 - Last Man Standing - Batista vs. Kane
This is in late 2007 where Edge aligned himself with Vickie Guerrero and inserted himself into the World Heavyweight Championship picture. On this particular episode, Guerrero booked Edge against Funaki while Batista had to face Kane in a Last Man Standing match. Like I said in the previous bout, Batista can definitely hang with the best and when he works with a veteran like Kane, the psychology and storytelling go hand in hand. This is just something Batista never really gets the credit for. Last Man Standing matches do tend do drag but I feel like the did an efficient job of pacing the counts and making them look believable. Ending saw Batista hit a Spinebuster on Kane atop the announcers table before Edge appeared out of nowhere and hit a Spear on Batista. Batista was able to recover and get up before the ten count to win the match but the message was sent from Edge.
Winner: Batista
Rating: ***
Match 5: One Night Stand 2008 - Stretcher - Batista vs. Shawn Michaels
This match is another perfect example of how good a storyteller Batista really is. This was in the midst of Ric Flair's retirement and shaped into a Stretcher match after Shawn Michaels faked a knee injury at Backlash. While this match is between Batista and Shawn Michaels, seeds are still planted here for a long feud between Chris Jericho and Michaels. I really enjoyed this match and really enjoyed seeing Batista look like a man with no remorse, it felt like I was watching his Evolution days again. The match looked pretty even until Batista turned it up a notch, Batista was ready to win the match until Jericho came out for a second time and made the save. He started encouraging Michaels to get up and win. However, Batista brought out the bottom half of the steel steps and delivered a Spinebuster to Michaels on it. After, Batista placed Michaels on the stretcher before rolling him over the line for the win. Great match and great use of the stretcher throughout the match. Jericho added another layer to the match and Batista was brilliant in looking at Jericho in amusement. Great stuff all around.
Winner: Batista
Rating: ***3/4
Match 6: Great American Bash 2008 - World Heavyweight Championship - CM Punk (c) vs. Batista
CM Punk was booked like an absolute champ in 2008 as the champion for the red brand. Things didn't look too good for him as he had an animal in his way, Batista. If you haven't figured it out by now, Batista is almost booked as generously as John Cena. The commentators would not stop reminding us how Punk was the underdog of the match. The two worked a really good match around that story, Batista was fantastic in looking stronger while Punk was just as good in looking fast and cunning. Batista was understandably in control throughout the entire match but Punk wouldn't let up, putting his best efforts forward and made himself look like a legitimate contender. Credit to Batista for that, too. Batista hit a Spinebuster outside and once he rolled Punk back in the ring, Kane appeared out of nowhere and attacked both men which led to a disqualification. Punk raises his belt in front of Batista after Kane left and then handed out a Batista Bomb to Punk. I'm not sure what just happened. Is Batista a heel? Was Kane's interference absolute necessary? And why exactly did Punk raise the belt after a disqualification victory?
Winner: CM Punk
Rating: ***
Match 7: Cyber Sunday 2008 - World Heavyweight Championship - Chris Jericho (c) vs. Batista
I reviewed this match over five years ago and gave it a ***3/4. Let's see how that stands here in March of 2016. For the second year in a row, Batista is involved in the main event at Cyber Sunday for the World Heavyweight Championship with Stone Cold Steve Austin being the special guest referee. Chris Jericho tried to walk away from the match in the beginning until Austin made sure there wouldn't be any running away as a count out victory would lead to a title change. This was such a mess. I mean that in a good way and a bad way. Having JBL, Randy Orton and Shawn Michaels all jump on the boat was stupid fun to watch, especially with the crowd eating it up. The Stunner to Orton was a thing of beauty. Austin tried to hit one on Jericho who pushed Austin away but fell trap to a Batista Bomb. Batista scored the victory and shared a cold one with the legend afterwards. Like I said, a cluster of a match but it was definitely enjoyable to watch.
Winner: Batista
Rating: ***1/2
Overall Thoughts and Rating:
While some of the matches that were chosen for this disc were pretty odd, I still enjoyed them for the most part. We often underestimate just how good Batista actually is or was as a wrestler. He can tell a great story and make his opponents look good in the process, win or lose. If anything, this disc really shines that statement in the limelight. Would I have preferred to see other matches on here? Sure, but this was still a nice compilation. Disc 3 review coming up!
Rating: 7.25/10
Thursday, March 10, 2016
WWE No Way Out 2007 Review
Match 1: MNM & MVP vs. The Hardys & Chris Benoit
Talk about a flashback. This is the opening contest of the night, just count how many of these guys are still around in 2016. This was just a fun opening contest to set the pace for the rest of the night. Fun action from all the guys involved and they really centered things around Chris Benoit being a badass. Saving him for the hot tags and JBL building him up on commentary was the perfect combination for this type of match. Everybody looked good here and the finish was really cool with Benoit rolling up Joey Mercury with his Crossface to score the win for his team. Nice way to open up the night!
Winners: The Hardys & Chris Benoit
Rating: ***1/4
Match 2: Cruiserweight Championship - Cruiserweight Open - Gregory Helms (c) vs. Scotty 2 Hotty vs. Daivari vs. Jimmy Wang Yang vs. Funaki vs. Shannon Moore vs. Chavo Guerrero vs. Jamie Noble
Gregory Helms has been the champion for over a year here and JBL is quick to let us know just how good Helms is. I love how good JBL is putting over these guys. Rules for this match are simple, two men in the ring at a time and after a pin or submission, a new guy enters the fray. JBL noted how Helms could have started the match before the show started and would still be the favorite. Action was nothing special. Fans kind of got taken out of the momentum from the previous match here but once Jimmy Wang Yang knocked off Helms, things did get a little more interesting. Wang Yank looked to have the win until Chavo Guerrero came out as a surprise entrant before hitting a Frog Splash to score the win.
Winner: Chavo Guerrero
Rating: *3/4
Match 3: Finlay & Little Bastard vs. The Boogeyman & Little Boogeyman
I can't believe what we're actually seeing here and nor can JBL on commentary. Finlay was the first guy to knock The Boogeyman out of the win column and stands here with Little Bastard to take on The Boogeyman and the little version of him. Can you believe this? They go through the bag of tricks before Finlay decks Little Boogeyman with his shillelagh. That part was actually not bad to see considering how badly I hate The Boogeyman and anything related to him. Other than that, this was a disaster from the top.
Winners: Finlay & Little Bastard
Rating: 1/4*
Match 4: Kane vs. King Booker
After King Booker was eliminated by Kane at the Royal Rumble, he looks to score some revenge here at No Way Out. I feel like we've been watching these guys for ages. Probably because we have. You get what you would expect from these two. Nothing really flashy, just really smart wrestling. Kane is truly the best at working these types of matches. He is able to not exert an insane amount of energy, he is just able to work a match with perfect pacing. It perfectly explains why he's had such incredible longevity upon his career. Queen Sharmell tried to become a factor here but Kane was still able to capture the win with a Chokeslam. Funny how a very basic match with fantastic psychology can turn into a great one. Two veterans out there doing their thing.
Winner: Kane
Rating: ***
Match 5: WWE Tag Team Championships - Paul London & Brian Kendrick (c) vs. Deuce 'N Domino
Paul London & Brian Kendrick have been dominating the tag team scene for over a year as the champs. However, Deuce 'N Domino seemingly have their number down. I personally enjoy watching both these tag teams, I think they definitely got overlooked back in 2007. Credit to Deuce 'N Domino, different gimmick and they made the absolute most out of it despite the fans not really giving them the credit for it. They played their roles nicely here as bullies and were in control of the match before London & Kendrick sneak out the win to retain the gold. Decent tag match that definitely could have used a little more time to really get things going. Deuce 'N Domino would go on to win the belts a couple months later on an edition of SmackDown!
Winners: Paul London & Brian Kendrick
Rating: **1/2
Match 6: ECW Championship - Bobby Lashley (c) vs. Mr. Kennedy
It's no secret, I've always been a Bobby Lashley fan. And before you ask, that includes him during his ECW Championship run. But what also is no secret was how green this dude was back in the start of 2007. It felt like he wasn't ready to make the next step, almost as if he was holding himself back in the ring. His match here against Mr. Kennedy proved that for me. Nothing really stood out to me, it felt like watching Lashley go through the motions with Kennedy in a very beginner-like style. I didn't feel the hate, I didn't feel the emotion, and I didn't feel like a title was on the line. The finish didn't help matters as Kennedy nails Lashley with a steel chair as the referee is distracted after taking a shot to the face. I should also note how the referee sold the shot horribly. He wasn't able to hear or see Kennedy drill Lashley with the chair right in front of him. However, he was able to see Lashley do it and disqualify him for it. Referee bumps are the absolute worst when it's done this badly. Fuck old school, if it looks this stupid, then don't do it. Lashley is disqualified and retains his title. Afterwards, Lashley takes his anger out upon Kennedy with a series of chair shots.
Winner: Mr. Kennedy
Rating: *3/4
Match 7: John Cena & Shawn Michaels vs. Batista & The Undertaker
This is brilliant booking at its absolute best. A perfect way to build the two championship bouts for WrestleMania 23. The animosity between the two teams is through the roof and once again, JBL is incredible on commentary here. He truly was a shining point for SmackDown in 2007, he made this main event feel even more epic than what it already was. The top four guys in the business going at it here at the Staples Center. The two teams worked accordingly throughout the match, but they still made you understand that the tension was still there. When you got decades of combined experience, this comes relatively easy for them. Business really picked up at the end when Batista & The Undertaker looked to finish off the match with the win. Batista hit a Spinebuster on Shawn Michaels while Undertaker hit a Chokeslam on John Cena right after! Batista throws the plan out the window and hits a Spinebuster on Undertaker! Awesome! This allows Cena & Michaels to score the win. Batista then looks over the body of The Undertaker to close the show. Great main event and an even better way to build for WrestleMania 23. You knew someone was going to turn on someone, you just didn't know who and when. But when the trigger was pulled, it all made sense and it all took you off guard.
Winners: John Cena & Shawn Michaels
Rating: ***3/4
Overall Show Thoughts and Rating:
Despite a cool main event and a nice opener, this is the reason why they made PPVs include both brands. The slim roster allowed the show to come off as a bigger edition of SmackDown. Just a really weak show leading into the biggest show of the year, even with a great main event. And even then, the main event would later be featured on an edition of Monday Night Raw. Funny stuff.
Rating: 5.5/10
Talk about a flashback. This is the opening contest of the night, just count how many of these guys are still around in 2016. This was just a fun opening contest to set the pace for the rest of the night. Fun action from all the guys involved and they really centered things around Chris Benoit being a badass. Saving him for the hot tags and JBL building him up on commentary was the perfect combination for this type of match. Everybody looked good here and the finish was really cool with Benoit rolling up Joey Mercury with his Crossface to score the win for his team. Nice way to open up the night!
Winners: The Hardys & Chris Benoit
Rating: ***1/4
Match 2: Cruiserweight Championship - Cruiserweight Open - Gregory Helms (c) vs. Scotty 2 Hotty vs. Daivari vs. Jimmy Wang Yang vs. Funaki vs. Shannon Moore vs. Chavo Guerrero vs. Jamie Noble
Gregory Helms has been the champion for over a year here and JBL is quick to let us know just how good Helms is. I love how good JBL is putting over these guys. Rules for this match are simple, two men in the ring at a time and after a pin or submission, a new guy enters the fray. JBL noted how Helms could have started the match before the show started and would still be the favorite. Action was nothing special. Fans kind of got taken out of the momentum from the previous match here but once Jimmy Wang Yang knocked off Helms, things did get a little more interesting. Wang Yank looked to have the win until Chavo Guerrero came out as a surprise entrant before hitting a Frog Splash to score the win.
Winner: Chavo Guerrero
Rating: *3/4
Match 3: Finlay & Little Bastard vs. The Boogeyman & Little Boogeyman
I can't believe what we're actually seeing here and nor can JBL on commentary. Finlay was the first guy to knock The Boogeyman out of the win column and stands here with Little Bastard to take on The Boogeyman and the little version of him. Can you believe this? They go through the bag of tricks before Finlay decks Little Boogeyman with his shillelagh. That part was actually not bad to see considering how badly I hate The Boogeyman and anything related to him. Other than that, this was a disaster from the top.
Winners: Finlay & Little Bastard
Rating: 1/4*
Match 4: Kane vs. King Booker
After King Booker was eliminated by Kane at the Royal Rumble, he looks to score some revenge here at No Way Out. I feel like we've been watching these guys for ages. Probably because we have. You get what you would expect from these two. Nothing really flashy, just really smart wrestling. Kane is truly the best at working these types of matches. He is able to not exert an insane amount of energy, he is just able to work a match with perfect pacing. It perfectly explains why he's had such incredible longevity upon his career. Queen Sharmell tried to become a factor here but Kane was still able to capture the win with a Chokeslam. Funny how a very basic match with fantastic psychology can turn into a great one. Two veterans out there doing their thing.
Winner: Kane
Rating: ***
Match 5: WWE Tag Team Championships - Paul London & Brian Kendrick (c) vs. Deuce 'N Domino
Paul London & Brian Kendrick have been dominating the tag team scene for over a year as the champs. However, Deuce 'N Domino seemingly have their number down. I personally enjoy watching both these tag teams, I think they definitely got overlooked back in 2007. Credit to Deuce 'N Domino, different gimmick and they made the absolute most out of it despite the fans not really giving them the credit for it. They played their roles nicely here as bullies and were in control of the match before London & Kendrick sneak out the win to retain the gold. Decent tag match that definitely could have used a little more time to really get things going. Deuce 'N Domino would go on to win the belts a couple months later on an edition of SmackDown!
Winners: Paul London & Brian Kendrick
Rating: **1/2
Match 6: ECW Championship - Bobby Lashley (c) vs. Mr. Kennedy
It's no secret, I've always been a Bobby Lashley fan. And before you ask, that includes him during his ECW Championship run. But what also is no secret was how green this dude was back in the start of 2007. It felt like he wasn't ready to make the next step, almost as if he was holding himself back in the ring. His match here against Mr. Kennedy proved that for me. Nothing really stood out to me, it felt like watching Lashley go through the motions with Kennedy in a very beginner-like style. I didn't feel the hate, I didn't feel the emotion, and I didn't feel like a title was on the line. The finish didn't help matters as Kennedy nails Lashley with a steel chair as the referee is distracted after taking a shot to the face. I should also note how the referee sold the shot horribly. He wasn't able to hear or see Kennedy drill Lashley with the chair right in front of him. However, he was able to see Lashley do it and disqualify him for it. Referee bumps are the absolute worst when it's done this badly. Fuck old school, if it looks this stupid, then don't do it. Lashley is disqualified and retains his title. Afterwards, Lashley takes his anger out upon Kennedy with a series of chair shots.
Winner: Mr. Kennedy
Rating: *3/4
Match 7: John Cena & Shawn Michaels vs. Batista & The Undertaker
This is brilliant booking at its absolute best. A perfect way to build the two championship bouts for WrestleMania 23. The animosity between the two teams is through the roof and once again, JBL is incredible on commentary here. He truly was a shining point for SmackDown in 2007, he made this main event feel even more epic than what it already was. The top four guys in the business going at it here at the Staples Center. The two teams worked accordingly throughout the match, but they still made you understand that the tension was still there. When you got decades of combined experience, this comes relatively easy for them. Business really picked up at the end when Batista & The Undertaker looked to finish off the match with the win. Batista hit a Spinebuster on Shawn Michaels while Undertaker hit a Chokeslam on John Cena right after! Batista throws the plan out the window and hits a Spinebuster on Undertaker! Awesome! This allows Cena & Michaels to score the win. Batista then looks over the body of The Undertaker to close the show. Great main event and an even better way to build for WrestleMania 23. You knew someone was going to turn on someone, you just didn't know who and when. But when the trigger was pulled, it all made sense and it all took you off guard.
Winners: John Cena & Shawn Michaels
Rating: ***3/4
Overall Show Thoughts and Rating:
Despite a cool main event and a nice opener, this is the reason why they made PPVs include both brands. The slim roster allowed the show to come off as a bigger edition of SmackDown. Just a really weak show leading into the biggest show of the year, even with a great main event. And even then, the main event would later be featured on an edition of Monday Night Raw. Funny stuff.
Rating: 5.5/10
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