WWE TLC 2015 Review

WWE TLC 2015
December 13, 2015
Boston, Massachusetts

The final PPV event of 2015 sees Roman Reigns try to regain the WWE World Heavyweight Championship against Sheamus in a TLC Match. Is Reigns up to the challenge or will Sheamus escape Boston with another big PPV victory?

Match 1: WWE Tag Team Championship - Ladder Match - The New Day (c) vs. The Lucha Dragons vs. The Usos
What a way to open up the night with a wild Ladder Match with three of the hottest tag teams in the company. The New Day working as heels was an amazing act, would love for them to go back to heels one day. Big E and Kofi Kingston represent The New Day for the match with Xavier Woods being on commentary and getting his hand prints on the match later on. This was certainly one of the more overlooked matches of the year with all teams giving it their all throughout the match with some innovative spots that had the crowd rocking to start the show. Highlight of the match was Kalisto delivering a Selena del Sol off the top of a ladder and driving one of The Usos through another ladder set up in the ring. Crazy spot. Unfortunately for him and Sin Cara, Woods would involve himself in the match by tossing his trombone to Kalisto which allowed Kingston to toss Kalisto off the ladder and grab the belts to win the match. Wow, what a match. Super overlooked match that everyone needs to check out!
Winners: The New Day
Rating: ****1/2

Match 2: Rusev vs. Ryback
What an odd match to follow up with. Nothing screams 2015 like Rusev vs. Ryback on a PPV. Pretty standard match here with Lana watching closely in the background as she cheers on her man. Crowd was pretty taken out of the fun for the match here and could not care less for what was happening. With Lana pretending that Ryback ran her over outside the ring, Rusev would later take advantage and lock in his Accolade submission to secure the win. Take it or leave it. At this point, Ryback's run in the WWE has come to a screeching halt.
Winner: Rusev
Rating: *1/4

Match 3: WWE United States Championship - Chairs Match - Alberto Del Rio (c) vs. Jack Swagger
With Alberto Del Rio turning on his manager in Zeb Culter, Jack Swagger looks to fight in his defense against Del Rio for the United States Championship... in a Chairs Match. Always thought that this was one of the WWE's oddest stipulations but in this case, the two here made the match work. Del Rio was great in making those chair shots look nasty and meaningful throughout the match and coming off as a nasty heel that he is. Great ending to the match here with Del Rio stomping Swagger through his chest from the top rope on to a pool of steel chairs to seal the deal. Del Rio did a great job of selling the ankle injury after the match when Swagger locked in a Patriot Lock with a chair earlier on. Good middle of the card match here.
Winner: Alberto Del Rio
Rating: **1/2

Match 4: Elimination Tables Match - The Wyatt Family vs. The Dudley Boyz, Rhyno & Tommy Dreamer
Here it is, the match you have all been waiting for as The Wyatt Family goes against some ECW Originals in a Tables Match. Keep in mind that the year here is still 2015. Wild. This match was exactly what you would expect, all eight guys beating the crap out of each other as the fans wondered what exactly they paid for. Lots of messy spots here with Braun Strowman eventually saving the day for The Wyatt Family by slamming Bubba Ray Dudley through a table before Bubba could drive Bray Wyatt through a table. If you like mindless table spots, this is for you. If not, pass on this. The real saving grace here was giving The Wyatt Family a win on PPV.
Winners: The Wyatt Family
Rating: *1/2

Match 5: WWE Intercontinental Championship - Kevin Owens (c) vs. Dean Ambrose
Any time you put these two against each other in a ring, sign my ass up. With the roster being so limited at the time due to injuries, this is basically the second main event match of the night and it's for Kevin Owens' Intercontinental Championship. As you would expect, fun match here with both guys beating the living daylights out of each other as the crowd ate up every minute of it. Even after hitting a Dirty Deeds DDT onto Owens, Ambrose was still unable to secure the win. However, it all set up for a sweet finish that saw Ambrose counter a Pop Up Powerbomb attempt from Owens into a pin to score the big win. Afterwards, Ambrose celebrates the win with the crowd as the new Intercontinental Champion. Great Match.
Winner: Dean Ambrose
Rating: ***1/2

Match 6: WWE Divas Championship - Charlotte Flair (c) vs. Paige
It's interesting to look back at how much Charlotte Flair has evolved these past years and has really come onto her own. It felt like she was rushed to the main event scene here in 2015 and was essentially just a carbon copy of her dad. Her taunts, actions and moves all felt so forced and as if her persona was strictly just to be Ric Flair's daughter. That case was on full display here in her match against Paige. The action itself was decent but nowhere near as good as what she has become now in 2019. A little bit of a sluggish finish here with Ric helping Charlotte get her leg under a rope for a pin before Charlotte was able to drive Paige into an exposed turnbuckle... right in front of the referee. Charlotte scores the win and retains the belt in another successful PPV match.
Winner: Charlotte Flair
Rating: **1/2

Match 7: WWE World Heavyweight Championship - TLC Match - Sheamus (c) vs. Roman Reigns
The fans are already booing the match before it even begins, pro wrestling fans are the absolute worst. This match tends to be one of the more forgotten TLC matches and it's a shame because these two delivered when they really needed to. This was just a good ol' fashioned spot fest above all, table spots galore and it was just downright fun to watch it all go down. I think we all tend to be so damn technical in the way we match pro wrestling that we forget what it's supposed to at its core: fun. Tons of drama throughout the match with some really innovative spots that eventually kept the crowd from booing. One of the coolest spots saw Roman Reigns hit a Superman Punch on Sheamus off the ladder and through a table set up nearby. However, Alberto Del Rio and Rusev hit the ring to prevent Reigns from grabbing the belt. Eventually, Sheamus would hit Reigns with a Brogue Kick and grab the belt for the win. Fantastic main event, Reigns would go on to defeat Sheamus for the belt the next night on Monday Night Raw for those keeping score. After the match here, Reigns took out the three guys from League of Nations before Triple H came out to try and stop the mess. However, Reigns ended up beating the living daylights out of The Game for his troubles. Great way to send the fans home happy along with setting up the main event for WrestleMania.
Winner: Sheamus
Rating: ****1/4

Overall Show Thoughts and Rating:
Even with a couple weak matches on the card, the show still had a nice fluidity to it and the main matches really delivered. The opening contest and the main event match were both fantastic efforts and a nice way to close out the year with a banging PPV leading into the final weeks of 2015. The seeds for WrestleMania have officially been planted.
Rating: 7.75/10