• United States Championship match: Dolph Ziggler(c) vs. Zack Ryder

This was a really solid way to start the show. Ziggler has been very impressive lately and this was another good performance from him. Ziggler sweeps the leg twice at the start before they lock up. Ryder hits an arm drag before Ziggler hits a shoulder block and they run the ropes. Ryder catapults Ziggler into the corner, clotheslines him to the floor, and hits a big tope flip dive over the ropes. Ziggler catches Ryder with a DDT on the ring apron and hits a neckbreaker back inside the ring followed by several consecutive elbow drops. Ziggler hits a clothesline and applies a chin lock. He breaks to do some sit ups, but then goes right back to the hold. Ziggler puts Ryder on the top rope, but Ryder kicks him away and hits a big missile dropkick for 2. Ryder hits a forearm, clothesline, and a Facejam followed by a corner clothesline and a running face wash for 2. Vickie is then ejected from ringside after she puts Ziggler’s foot on the ropes. Ryder and Ziggler both score near falls with roll-ups. Ziggler snaps Ryder’s head over the ropes, Ryder does a roll-up for 2, and Ziggler hits a Famouser for 2. Ziggler hits a dropkick and heads up top, but Ryder meets him up there and hits a top rope hurricanrana for 2. Ziggler launches Ryder into the corner and rolls him up for 2, but Ryder boots a charging Ziggler in the corner and hits the Rough Ryder for the win. Really nice pop for Ryder’s win. Overall this was a good, competitive opening match with some nice near falls and a hot crowd. Match Time: 10:25     Star Rating: ***1/4

• WWE Tag Team Championship match: Air Boom(c) vs. Primo and Epico

In an unadvertised match, Evan Bourne made his return from his suspension. This was an average filler match. Bourne starts with Epico, and both guys go for roll-ups early on. Bourne does a sunset flip, misses a hurricanrana, and hits a head scissors before tagging in Kofi Kingston. Kofi hits a dropkick for 2 followed by a double dropkick on both heels. Primo tries a monkey flip, but Kofi lands on his feet and hits one of his own. Bourne hits a head scissors and tries a springboard, but the heels catch him and toss him to the floor. The heels then stomp Bourne repeatedly before Primo applies a front chancery. Primo drives Bourne into the corner before tagging in Epico, who hits a dropkick followed by a backbreaker, 2 back suplexes, and a German suplex. Epico applies a Gory special, but Bourne is able to escape with a sunset flip. Bourne hits the double knees before both guys get tags. Kofi hits some clotheslines and a dropkick followed by the Boom Drop, but Primo gets a boot up in the corner. Kofi springs out of the corner with a cross body, Bourne takes out Epico with a plancha to the floor, and Kofi hits the Trouble in Paradise to Primo for the win. Total TV quality match here, but it was fairly solid. Air Boom is a fun tag team but they have no competition. Match Time: 7:32     Star Rating: **1/2

• Tables match: Randy Orton vs. Wade Barrett

This was another good match. Orton and Barrett haven’t had many good matches in the past, but they had a decent brawl here and told a story. They trade punches and kicks at the start before Orton hits his signature backbreaker and gets a table from the floor. Barrett kicks the table into Orton’s face and hits some shots on the floor, but Orton kicks a table into Barrett’s gut and then launches it into his face. Orton sets up the table on the floor and brawls up the ramp with Barrett. Barrett knocks over some tables and teases a pumphandle slam, but Orton escapes and they head back toward the ring. Barrett slams Orton’s head on the ring post and sets up another table on the floor. Barrett slams Orton’s head on the table and lays Orton across it, but Orton gets up. Barrett drives Orton into the apron and rolls him into the ring, where he hits a second rope elbow drop. Barrett chokes Orton against the ropes and hits some knees to the face followed by a running big boot, but Orton avoids the table by landing on the apron. Barrett sets a table up in the corner, but Orton escapes a slam and hits some clotheslines followed by a snap powerslam. They do a good counter sequence near the apron before Orton hits the spike DDT. Orton avoids being sent into the table again, but Barrett hits a black hole slam and drops the table on Orton. Barrett sets the table up again and lays Orton across it before heading up top. Barrett leaps, but Orton catches him with a sudden mid air RKO through the table for the win. Good stuff with some nice psychology built around the tables and a great finish. Barrett got a pinfall victory at Survivor Series, so him losing a match without standard rules here doesn’t hurt him. No complaints here. Match Time: 10:17     Star Rating: ***

• Divas Championship match: Beth Phoenix(c) vs. Kelly Kelly

This was another unadvertised filler match. Kelly slaps Beth at the start, sends her to the floor, and hits a bulldog off the apron. Back in the ring, Kelly hits a head scissors into the corner, but Beth drops her on the ropes and beats on Kelly with punches. Beth pulls Kelly’s hair and stands on her back before applying a camel clutch. Kelly escapes and hits a bulldog before slamming Beth’s face in the mat repeatedly. Kelly leaps off the top, but Beth catches her and slams her down for 2. Beth misses a top rope leg drop and both girls counter each other’s finishers. Both attempt roll-ups before Beth hits a reverse powerbomb for the win. Standard short, crappy Divas match, move along nothing to see here. Match Time: 5:14     Star Rating: *1/2

Booker T then comes out for his match against Cody Rhodes, but Cody jumps him during his entrance. Cody also attacked Booker earlier backstage. Referees and other officials break it up and send both guys to the back, so no match here. I didn’t really see the point in putting this match off.

• Sledgehammer Ladder match: Kevin Nash vs. Triple H

Yes, it is the year 2011. These guys couldn’t even have good matches eight years ago, and this was very sluggish. The rules were that you had to climb a ladder to get the sledgehammer hanging above the ring, and then you could use it as a weapon and the match ends via pinfall. Both guys go back and forth with punches early on, and Nash looks very rough. Nash hits some knee lifts, but Triple H sends him to the floor and slams his head on the announce table. Triple H unloads with punches and clotheslines Nash into the crowd. Nash hits a back elbow and drops Triple H face first on the barricade, but Triple H sends him into the ring post. They then get a couple ladders and go back into the ring. Triple H hits Nash’s knee repeatedly with a ladder, puts his knee inside the ladder, and applies a modified figure four with the ladder. Triple H leans one of the ladders against the corner and drops the second one on Nash. Nash whips Triple H into the ladder in the corner, and then lays the ladder across the second rope. Nash body slams Triple H onto the other ladder in the ring and catapults him face first into the ladder in the ropes.

Nash takes apart the announce table on the outside and teases a Jackknife powerbomb, but Triple H backdrops him over the table (he had trouble getting him up and it looked like the table was supposed to break, but it didn’t). Triple H climbs a ladder in the ring, but Nash pulls him off and clotheslines him. Nash whips Triple H into a ladder and hits a chokeslam before getting a table from under the ring. Triple H drives Nash into the ladder in the corner and hits Nash’s knee with another ladder. Both guys climb a ladder and fight at the top, with Triple H hitting Nash with the end of the sledgehammer twice, causing Nash to fall off the ladder through the table. Triple H unhooks the sledgehammer and climbs down, hitting Nash’s knee with it repeatedly. Triple H then goes for the Pedigree but Nash botches it by bumping too early. Triple H then hits a second one but it also comes off sloppy. Nash then begs off with the Wolfpac sign, but Triple H hits him in the face with the sledgehammer for the win. Match reads much better than it was executed. Both of these guys, especially Nash, are just too old and slow now. It just dragged on forever and ever and a lot of the stuff they did looked very clunky. This probably sounded really good on paper, but in reality it was just way too long and the fans weren’t into it. Absolutely nobody cares about Kevin Nash anymore. Match Time: 18:13     Star Rating: *3/4

• Jack Swagger vs. Sheamus

This match was also unadvertised, having been added on in a backstage segment earlier in the show. Sheamus hits some clotheslines and a shoulder block at the start before blocking an abdominal stretch and hitting the clubbing blows to the chest in the ropes. Swagger is sent to the floor, where he drives Sheamus back first into the ring post and barricade. Swagger hits a Vader Bomb back into the ring for 1 before hitting some forearms to the back. Sheamus comes back with a clothesline and some double sledges before they go to the outside. Sheamus drives Swagger into the ring post, tosses him into the barricade, and hits a shoulder block off the top in the ring for 2. Sheamus misses the Brogue Kick and Swagger dives at his leg. Swagger hits a Vader Bomb elbow drop to the leg and goes for the ankle lock, but Sheamus is able to escape. Swagger dives at the leg again, but Sheamus avoids him and hits the Brogue Kick for the win. This was a very average, Smackdown quality filler match that didn’t get much reaction from the crowd. Match Time: 5:57     Star Rating: **

• Chairs match for the World Heavyweight Championship: Mark Henry(c) vs. The Big Show

This was a bit interesting. Show bails to the floor at the start and starts throwing chairs into the ring. Henry decides he’s seen enough and tries to leave with the title, but Show goes to the outside and hits him with a chair repeatedly before laying into Henry with punches. Henry hits a head butt and a chair shot before slamming Show’s hand on the steel steps. Both guys go for a chair shot at the same time back in the ring before Henry hits Show repeatedly with a chair. Henry puts a chair around Show’s hand and stomps on it before hitting him in the ribs with a chair. Show hits the WMD punch with the injured hand and covers for the win out of nowhere. After the match Henry attacks Show with a chair and hits him with a DDT on 2 chairs. This was too short to be much of anything, and a really lackluster end to Henry’s world title reign. Just 5 minutes of chair shots and nothing else, which is not good for a PPV world title match. Match Time: 5:30     Star Rating: *

BUT WAIT!!!! Daniel Bryan’s music hits and Bryan comes down to the ring with his Money in the Bank briefcase! Bryan says he is cashing in, leading to…

• World Heavyweight Championship match: The Big Show(c) vs. Daniel Bryan

Bryan rolls over Big Show and covers for the instant victory. Bryan then had a great, lengthy celebration afterwards, high fiving the fans and standing on top of the announce table. While this certainly isn’t the direction many people thought WWE would go with Bryan’s Money in the Bank briefcase, this was a really great feel good moment for a guy who deserves this championship more than anyone. Bryan has busted his ass wrestling all over the world for the last decade and finally won the big one in the WWE. Hopefully all goes well with his world title reign and I just couldn’t be happier for the guy. Match Time: 0:08     Star Rating: N/A

• Intercontinental Championship match: Cody Rhodes(c) vs. Booker T

So it turns out we are getting this match after all. Booker, totally not selling his injuries from before, immediately lays into Cody with punches, a back elbow, and back to back scoop slams followed by a sidekick. Booker tosses Cody to the floor where he hits some chops, but Cody comes back with some punches and tosses Booker into the barricade. Cody flips Booker by his arm in the ring and applies a submission, but Booker fights out. Booker hits a chop, but Cody kicks his leg and covers for 2. Cody applies a full nelson, but Booker gets out and they trade shots. Booker hits some clotheslines, a sidewalk slam, and a spinebuster but misses the scissors kick. Cody hits the beautiful disaster kick for 2, and then hits a second one for the victory. Short, but decent match here. Booker did fine and had a solid performance, plus Cody got a nice clean victory over an established legend. That’s pretty much all you can ask for with this type of match. Match Time: 7:15     Star Rating: **1/2

• Triple Threat Tables, Ladders, and Chairs match for the WWE Championship: CM Punk(c) vs. Alberto Del Rio vs. The Miz

Though far from the best TLC match, this was a really fun main event to close the show. The heels gang up on Punk at the start, and Punk hits a couple dropkicks, but Miz and Del Rio go back to stomping him and drop him face first on the top rope. Miz and Del Rio go to the outside and Del Rio gets a ladder, but Punk hits him with a suicide dive through the ropes. Punk gets a chair, but Miz stomps him and hits him with the chair before setting it up on its legs. Punk hits the high knee in the corner, but Miz blocks the bulldog and hits a back suplex to Punk on the chair. Del Rio blocks the Skull-Crushing Finale from Miz and backdrops Miz on a leaning ladder on the floor. Del Rio avoids a baseball slide from Punk, but Punk kicks a ladder into Del Rio’s face and tosses him into the barricade. Punk and Del Rio both try to suplex each other through a table before Punk hits a neckbreaker on the floor. Punk avoids a chair shot from Miz, hits him with the chair, and props him up on the barricade, where he hits a high knee strike off a chair to Miz into the crowd. Punk climbs a ladder in the ring, but Ricardo Rodriguez interferes and handcuffs Punk’s wrist to the ladder. Del Rio then attacks Punk before climbing the ladder, but Punk breaks free and tips it over before hitting a flapjack to Del Rio onto the ladder.

Miz hits Punk with another ladder and starts climbing it, but Punk pulls him down and goes for the Go to Sleep. Miz blocks it and they go up top, only for Del Rio to hit Punk with an enzuigiri, causing him to fall off the top through a table on the floor. Del Rio and Miz brawl up the entrance ramp, with Del Rio throwing a ladder at Miz and applying the cross armbreaker with the ladder around Miz’s arm. Del Rio then hits Punk with chair shots and applies the cross armbreaker with a chair around Punk’s arm. Del Rio climbs a ladder in the ring, but Punk and Miz tip it over, causing Del Rio to be crotched on the top rope. Punk and Miz then trade shots and knock each other down. Ricardo then climbs once again, but Punk and Miz tip the ladder over, causing Ricardo to fall off and through a table outside the ring. Punk and Miz both counter each other’s finishers before Miz handcuffs Punk to the corner. Miz taunts Punk, but Punk hits a sudden roundhouse kick. Del Rio and Miz then both climb ladders as Punk struggles to free himself. Punk is eventually able to take apart the second rope and free himself from the corner, and then ascends the two ladders. All 3 guys fight at the top, with Punk knocking Del Rio off of a ladder and then fighting with Miz on the mat. Punk hits Miz with the GTS, climbs the ladder, and grabs the title to win the match. This didn’t have nearly as many crazy spots as past TLC matches, but it was paced very well and had some innovative offense with the chairs. By the standards of this match, it wasn’t great, but it was very good and the best match on the show. Nice to see Punk get the win and hopefully his title reign lasts long enough to restore some credibility to the belt. Match Time: 18:26     Star Rating: ***1/2

Overall PPV Rating: 7/10

• WWE Tag Team Championship match: Air Boom(c) vs. The Miz and R-Truth

This was a good choice as the opener, and was for the most part pretty well worked. Kofi Kingston starts the match with Miz, and they lock up before breaking in the corner. Kofi gets a 2 count off a big right hand, and then holds Miz for Evan Bourne to hit a diving double stomp off the top. Kofi scores a near fall on Miz before hip tossing Truth. Kofi and Bourne hit a double dropkick to Miz and head up top to hit stereo dives onto the heels on the outside. Truth takes advantage after Miz cheap shots Bourne, hitting some punches and choking Bourne against the ropes. Miz tags in and scores a near fall before applying a chin lock. Bourne gets up but Miz sidesteps a dropkick attempt and hits a double shoulder block with Truth. Miz hits some punches, but Bourne fights back with some kicks and counters the Skull-Crushing Finale by tossing Miz to the floor. Kofi gets a hot tag and hits a series of shots followed by the Boom Drop, but Truth hits a cheap shot as Kofi readies for the Trouble in Paradise. Kofi hits the SOS to Miz for a near fall, and Truth snaps Kofi’s neck over the ropes, allowing Miz to hit his modified DDT for 2. After seemingly not tagging in, Bourne hits the diving knees off the top but misses the shooting star press. Miz hits a DDT and Kofi breaks up the pin. Miz tags in Truth, but the ref doesn’t see the tag and is busy holding back Truth while Miz goes for a pin after hitting the SCF. Miz yells at the ref about it and eventually shoves him down, causing a DQ. The finish made sense with the “conspiracy” storyline with Miz and Truth, but it’s just not a good idea to book DQs in PPV openers. The match was going along nicely but the finish takes it down a peg. Match Time: 9:56     Star Rating: **3/4

• Intercontinental Championship match: Cody Rhodes(c) vs. Ted DiBiase

This was decent, but nothing more, pretty much a Smackdown quality match. Ted applies a chinlock early and hits a boot to the face before going after Cody’s mask. Cody then takes advantage and hangs up Ted in the ropes where he kicks him in the gut. Cody slaps him in the face, and Ted tackles Cody and punches away at him. Cody backflips out of a suplex attempt and hits the beautiful disaster kick for 2. Cody hits a front suplex and applies a camel clutch, which he transitions into an arm submission. Ted fights out, but Cody comes back with punches and stomps him against the ropes. Ted avoids a charging Cody in the corner and hits a backbreaker, but misses a dropkick. Cody hits a boot to the head and applies an abdominal stretch before sliding down and sneaking in a shot to the head. Ted fires back and hits an atomic drop followed by a flying knee and a sitout spinebuster for 2. Cody goes for the beautiful disaster again, but Ted dropkicks him in mid-air. Ted sets Cody up on the top rope, but Cody rakes the eyes. Ted tosses Cody to the mat and then rips the mask off. Ted celebrates and goes to hit Cody with the mask, but Cody rolls up Ted and hooks the tights for the win. Crowd wasn’t into this and the finish made Ted look completely stupid. Just an alright match, nothing special about it. Match Time: 9:49     Star Rating: **1/2

Christian then comes out for a promo. He dissed Buffalo and talked about how he deserved one more shot at the world title. He got the crowd to chant “one more match” until Sheamus came out. Sheamus dissed Christian but offered to help him get another shot at the title as long as Christian’s first title defense is against him. Christian accepts and Sheamus starts up the “one more match” chants again before hitting Christian with the Brogue Kick. Total filler segment designed to kill time.

• Fatal Four Way match for the United States Championship: Dolph Ziggler(c) vs. John Morrison vs. Alex Riley vs. Jack Swagger

This was a lot of fun, and also easily the best-booked match of the evening. Riley squares off with Ziggler and Morrison with Swagger to start. Riley hits a neckbreaker but Swagger hits him with a shoulder block and some punches. Riley hits an STO but Ziggler sends him off the apron into the steel steps. Morrison rolls up Swagger for a near fall, and then hits a dropkick to Ziggler into a cover on Swagger. Swagger hip tosses Morrison to the floor and hits Ziggler with a clothesline and a big boot. Riley hits Swagger with a TKO but Vickie puts Swagger’s foot on the ropes during the pin attempt. Morrison hits the Flash Kick to Ziggler, but Ziggler comes back with a Famouser for 2. Morrison hits an uppercut and both guys head up top. Ziggler blocks a superplex attempt and hangs up Morrison in the tree of woe. Riley then goes up top in the corner, but Morrison springs up and hits a German superplex to Riley off the top. Swagger then leaps up top and hits a super belly to belly suplex to Ziggler. Morrison hits some clotheslines and a dropkick followed by a tornado DDT to Swagger. Morrison hits a Flux Capacitor to Riley for 2, but Riley blocks a Starship Pain attempt. Ziggler then catches Riley in the sleeper just as Swagger puts Morrison in the Ankle Lock. The faces escape the holds and Riley hits a lifting DDT to Swagger. Swagger puts Riley in the Ankle Lock and ducks a Flash Kick from Morrison before giving him the gutwrench powerbomb. Ziggler then shoves Swagger aside and covers Morrison for the win. Energetic and fast-paced match that told a nice story with Swagger and Ziggler. Had some great spots as well. Match Time: 8:20     Star Rating: ***1/4

• World Heavyweight Championship match: Randy Orton(c) vs. Mark Henry

Considering Henry’s usual work rate and limitations, this was better than usual from him. They lock up at the start but Henry quickly tosses Orton into the corner. Orton fires away with punches and kicks at the knee before hitting a boot to the head and stomping Henry. Orton sends a charging Henry to the floor, where Henry rips the cover off the Spanish announce table. Henry lifts up Orton back in the ring, but Orton escapes and tries for the RKO, only for Henry to toss him off and big boot him. Henry charges into Orton in the corner and tries for the World’s Strongest Slam, but Orton escapes and applies a sleeper. Henry backs Orton into the corner to force a break and hits a huge right hand that sends Orton off the top to the floor. Henry drives Orton into the apron on the outside before hitting a head butt back in the ring and stretching Orton’s back across the ring post. Henry stands on Orton’s back against the ropes, and then hits a scoop slam and a running splash for 2. Henry hits a shoulder thrust and an elbow drop for 2 followed by a kick to the chest and a knee lift, but misses a splash after Orton hits some kicks and punches. Orton hits some mounted punches and more shots in the corner, and then hits a dropkick after some clothesline attempts fail. Henry hits a head butt, a clothesline, and the WSS for 2. Orton blocks a Vader Bomb attempt and hits a low DDT followed by a spike DDT, but Henry grabs the ropes to break the pin attempt. Henry kicks at Orton and Orton tries for the RKO, but Henry shoves him off and hits the WSS for the win. After the match Henry sold the win big in a post match interview with Josh Matthews. Match had solid storytelling to carry it through the slow pacing. Henry as champion is going to be tough to stomach after the high quality world title matches between Christian and Orton, but it was built up well and Henry’s matches aren’t quite as bad as they used to be. This was decent but not really PPV quality. Match Time: 13:10     Star Rating: **3/4

• Divas Championship match: Kelly Kelly(c) vs. Beth Phoenix

Although their SummerSlam match was fairly decent, this rematch was just used as a buffer before the double main event. Early on Kelly hits a hurricanrana off the top and applies a headscissor submission in the ropes, but Beth takes the advantage afterwards and catapults Kelly into the bottom rope. Eve attacks Natalya on the outside but Beth takes out Eve. Kelly gets a small package and a schoolboy for a pair of near falls. Kelly hits a kick, but Beth flips her and slams her down before setting her up top for a superplex. Didn’t look pretty and Kelly almost hurt her legs. Beth lifts Kelly up for a powerbomb but Kelly counters with a roll-up for the win. Bad decision here as Beth absolutely should have won, plus they did nearly the exact same finish as the match last month. Very typical Divas match, which is a little disappointing considering Beth’s skill. Match Time: 6:30     Star Rating: *1/2

• WWE Championship match: Alberto Del Rio(c) vs. John Cena

This was probably the best match on the show, though it wasn’t great or anything. Cena applies a headlock early on, but Del Rio escapes and bails to the apron. Cena fires back with some shots and a bulldog before the ref ejects Ricardo Rodriguez from ringside. Cena misses a charge into the corner and Del Rio kicks Cena before shoving him into the Spanish announce table on the outside. Del Rio hits a diving right hand off the top and applies a chin lock. Cena fights out and hits a gutwrench suplex for a near fall and a snap suplex. Del Rio hits his falling knee armbreaker and a big boot for a near fall. Del Rio stomps Cena’s arm and applies a chin lock, but Cena fights up and hits a belly to belly slam before both guys clothesline each other. Del Rio hits a lariat but misses a leaping body guillotine, and Cena hits a suplex followed by the shoulder blocks, side slam and the Five Knuckle Shuffle. Del Rio escapes the Attitude Adjustment and hits a back stabber, but Cena avoids the cross arm-breaker and hits a dropkick. Cena heads up top, but Del Rio hits an enzuigiri and Cena falls back into the ring. Del Rio hits a tilt a whirl backbreaker followed by some kicks in the corner before hanging up Cena in the tree of woe. Del Rio misses a headfirst dive and Cena hits the diving Famouser off the top for 2. Del Rio hits a German suplex and a diving senton off the top for 2 counts before applying the cross arm-breaker. Cena breaks the hold by lifting up Del Rio and slamming him down to the mat. Cena hits the AA and Ricardo runs back down to the ring. Cena uses the distraction to apply the STF, and Del Rio struggles for a while before finally tapping out. Terrible, terrible decision to take the belt off of Del Rio. Cena says flat out on Raw that Del Rio was not on his level, and then he makes him submit at the PPV. This is why the WWE has such a hard time making new stars and why it’s hard for guys to get over in front of this audience. The match itself was good but tainted by the bad booking. Nice sequences but nothing near the quality of the Punk/Cena matches. Match Time: 17:32     Star Rating: ***1/4

• No Disqualification match: CM Punk vs. Triple H

The stipulation was that if Triple H lost, he had to resign as COO of the WWE. This was extremely disappointing, mainly due to the horrendous booking in the latter half of the match. Punk attacks Triple H on the outside during his entrance and tosses him into the timekeeper’s area. Triple H comes back with some shots and whips Punk into the barricade before tossing him over the announce table and laying into him with punches. Both guys stand on the announce table and tease their finishers before Punk bails to the ring. Punk hits some punches and counters the Pedigree, but misses the high knee in the corner and falls to the floor. Triple H slams Punk’s leg into the ring post and drives him into the barricade, but Punk hits some shots, whips Triple H into the barricade, and hits a high knee against the steps. Triple H sends Punk over the barricade and hits a diving right hand off the barricade before they brawl through the crowd. They eventually make their way to the stage, where Triple H catapults Punk into one of the video screens, only for Punk to backdrop Triple H over the video screen into the area where guys walk out for their entrances. Punk hits a diving lariat off the screen and throws some duffle bags on Triple H. Punk slams Triple H into the video screen before they move back down the ramp, with Punk hitting some kicks.

Punk puts Triple H in the ring, gets a chair, and hits a huge chair shot to the back for 2. Triple H hits a spinebuster and throws Punk headfirst into the chair in the corner. Triple H clips Punk’s leg on the floor and slams his leg into the post repeatedly before hitting his leg with a chair. Triple H teases a Figure 4 but Punk kicks him into the steps. Triple H grabs a monitor but Punk hits a roundhouse kick and puts Triple H on the Spanish announce table. Punk heads up top and hits a diving elbow drop through the announce table. Both guys get back in the ring, but The Miz and R-Truth suddenly run out to attack both men. Miz hits the Skull-Crushing Finale on Triple H and Truth hits the Shut Up on Punk. They put Punk on top of Triple H for the pin, but Triple H kicks out. Miz argues with the referee, and the ref eventually punches Miz, only for Miz and Truth to beat down the referee. John Laurinaitis then comes out as Punk and Triple H attack Truth and Miz before Triple H hits Punk with the Pedigree and goes for the pin. A second referee comes down, but goes to check on the first referee rather than counting the pin. Punk hits the Go to Sleep and the second ref gets in the ring to count but Truth pulls out Punk during the pin attempt, despite the fact that Truth and Miz LAID PUNK ON TOP OF TRIPLE H FOR THE PIN 3 MINUTES AGO. Punk hits Truth with the GTS on the floor and tries a springboard, but Triple H kicks him in the gut and hits a Pedigree for a near fall.

Kevin Nash then comes down to the ring through the crowd, and punches out both guys. Nash attacks Triple H in the corner and tries for the Jackknife powerbomb, but Punk attacks Nash. Nash fires back with punches and hits Punk with the Jackknife, Nash goes after Triple H on the floor, but Triple H hits Nash with a sledgehammer. Triple H then hits a third Pedigree on Punk in the ring for the win. This was a huge clusterf**k. It seemed like this match was booked by Vince Russo. Way too much overbooking and interference. Yes you could justify the individual components of the overbooking, but there were simply just way too many things going on at once here. Miz and Truth ended up looking like complete idiots and jobbers after this, and Punk looked bad for taking the pin AND getting beat up by Kevin Nash. I wouldn’t be surprised to hear that Triple H called this one, because the only people who didn’t look completely terrible after this were him and his buddy Nash. The match itself was going along fine before the crazy final minutes. Felt like a TNA main event. Just a total catastrophe that did no one any favors at all, and really ruined a show that wasn’t totally awful prior to this match. Match Time: 24:09     Star Rating: **

Overall PPV Rating: 5.5/10

• 3 Way match for the TNA X Division Championship: Brian Kendrick(c) vs. Alex Shelley vs. Austin Aries

So after all that work of building up the X Division, the X Division Championship is right back in the curtain jerker slot to pop the crowd. Great. This was pretty solid and easily one of the better matches of the night. Shelley and Kendrick lock up at the start while Aries watches from the floor. Shelley has Kendrick in a submission after some grappling and Aries goes to break it up, but eats a chop for his troubles. Kendrick holds Shelley’s waist and gets backed up into the corner, and Shelley kicks Aries before rolling up Kendrick. Aries takes an atomic drop from Shelley and a dropkick from Kendrick. Kendrick applies a hammerlock before Shelley tries a suplex, but Aries breaks it up and rakes Shelley’s back. Kendrick and Shelley trade shots, but Aries hits a big shoulder block and an elbow drop to Kendrick. Aries sends Kendrick to the floor but Shelley takes out his leg. Aries drops Shelley, sends him onto Kendrick on the floor, and does a suicide dive out of the ring onto both of them. Aries snaps Shelley’s leg over the ropes and does a slingshot dive for a near fall. Kendrick dropkicks Aries but Shelley catches him in a crossface. Kendrick escapes, only for Shelley to hit a dragon screw to Kendrick’s leg in the ropes. Shelley kicks Aries on the apron and hits a frog splash off the top to Kendrick before applying an inverted figure four. Aries breaks it up, hits a bulldog, and puts Shelley in the Last Chancery. Kendrick breaks that up, but Aries hits him with a shinbreaker/back suplex combo. Kendrick kicks a charging Aries and hits a dropkick, but Aries counters the sliced bread. Aries winds up on Shelley’s shoulders but Kendrick slips off the top. Aries hits the shinbreaker/back suplex combo on Shelley followed by the IED and a brainbuster. Kendrick breaks up the cover and hits Aries with a sliced bread onto Shelley, then covers Shelley for the win. Good opener, though it fell into the “revolving door singles match” trap like many other 3 ways. Aries played a good heel and will probably be the next X Division Champion. Match Time: 13:11     Star Rating: ***

• TNA Knockouts Tag Team Championship match: Tara and Miss Tessmacher(c) vs. Sarita and Rosita

Surprisingly, this was the better of the two women’s matches. Tara and Rosita lock up at the start before Sarita gets a tag, but Tara gives her a back body drop. Tessmacher hits some shots and an arm drag followed by a clothesline to Rosita. Rosita hits a hurricanrana to Tara but Tara puts up a boot when she charges. Tara is sent to the floor and Rosita gets a near fall. Tessmacher hits a back suplex and a dropkick, but Rosita responds with a dropkick herself. The heels attack Tessmacher in the corner and Sarita hits a scoop slam followed by an assisted splash from Rosita. Tessmacher reverses a powerslam attempt into a small package and Tara gets a hot tag. Tara hits some clotheslines and the faces whip the heels into each other. Tessmacher is yanked off the apron and Sarita gets a near fall after a kick from Rosita. Tara clotheslines both heels and Sarita counters the Widow’s Peak with a roll up, but Tara hits a military press slam. Rosita hits a double knee strike but Tara hits the Widow’s Peak for the win. Better than the typical Knockouts fare by a bit, but still average at best. Might have went a little bit too long. Match Time: 7:15     Star Rating: **

• Bound for Glory Series match: D’Angelo Dinero vs. Devon

Pope gets on the mic after the bell rings, saying that he respects Devon and that Devon’s family is most important to him. Pope lays down but Devon tells him to get up and the match starts. They run the ropes and Devon gets a near fall, with Pope trying to hug him during the cover. Devon slaps him and they lock up. Both guys get brief control of the arm before they run the ropes again, this time with Pope hitting a cross body and twisting the arm. Pope hits a diving forearm to the back of the head and they run the ropes a third time. Devon hits a hip toss and an arm drag followed by an arm bar. Devon hits a slam and a diving head butt before sending Pope to the floor. Devon misses a clothesline and hits the post, and Pope talks with Devon’s kids in the front row. Devon then slams Pope’s head against the guardrail and gets a near fall in the ring. Devon hits a slam and whips Pope into the corner, but Pope hits a kick, clothesline, an atomic drop, a shoulder block, some elbow strikes, the Coronation, and a cross body off the top. Devon hits a shoulder block but misses in the corner, and Pope hits the 4Up and sets up for the DDE. Pope hesitates though, and Devon spears him for 2. Devon goes for a chokeslam but Pope rolls him up for the win. The storyline is really stupid and the match was very basic, not much to it. Very much a TV match. Match Time: 9:36     Star Rating: **

• TNA Women’s Knockout Championship match: Mickie James(c) vs. Winter

This sucked. These girls had no chemistry whatsoever and it was dragged out a bit too long as well. Winter goes for a roll up early, but Mickie hits a dragon screw and catches Winter in a leg submission. Winter gets the ropes and kicks Mickie, but Mickie hits a back elbow and slides in from the apron with a roll up. Angelina Love distracts Mickie, allowing Winter to take the advantage. Mickie counters a slam and hits consecutive dropkicks to Winter’s knee and face, then chases Winter when she bails to the floor. Mickie takes out Angelina, but Winter sends her into the post and over the guardrail. Angelina kicks Mickie on the floor and Winter rolls her into the ring. Winter applies a double chickenwing submission, hits a shoulder block, and chokes Mickie on the mat. Winter hits a backbreaker and stretches Mickie’s back across her knee, but Mickie gets out by kicking Winter in the face. Winter attacks in the corner, but Mickie hits a headscissors, some clotheslines, a flapjack, and a Thesz press off the top. The ref checks on Winter, allowing Angelina to hit Mickie with a reverse DDT. Winter covers for a near fall. Mickie counters a slam with a roll up and Winter hits some shots in the corner, but Mickie hits a tornado DDT out of the corner. Angelina tries to interfere again but Mickie gives her a neckbreaker. While the ref is busy keeping Angelina out of the ring, Winter spits something in Mickie’s eye’s and covers her for the win. After the match Mickie sold it like she couldn’t see. Typical crappy TNA booking with tons of interference and a screwy finish to give Mickie an “out” for losing. Horrible match, very slow with a lot of mistimed spots. Match Time: 8:54     Star Rating: 3/4*

• Bound for Glory Series match: Crimson vs. Rob Van Dam

Earlier in the night, Jerry Lynn told RVD he would be in his corner to “watch his back” in his match. As if we all can’t see where this is headed. RVD kicks at the legs at the start, but Crimson hits a clothesline, a suplex, and a scoop slam for 2. During this match Crimson thought it was necessary to go for a cover after EVERY SINGLE OFFENSIVE MANEUVER HE HIT. RVD hits a roundhouse kick in the corner, a springboard single leg dropkick, and Rolling Thunder. Crimson hits some knee strikes, a neckbreaker, and a T-Bone suplex. They end up on the outside where RVD hits a single leg dropkick off the apron. Crimson pulls him back out from the ring and clotheslines him on the floor before getting a near fall in the ring. Crimson hits an elbow to the head but RVD drops him and hits a split legged moonsault for 2. Crimson hits a falcon arrow for 2 and goes for his finisher but RVD hits another single leg kick. RVD hits a spin kick and the Five Star Frog Splash for a near fall. RVD hits some punches and a kick but Crimson spears him for 2. RVD escapes a slam and misses a kick, and Crimson hits the Red Sky. Jerry Lynn then breaks up the cover, and Crimson wins by disqualification. Predictable, crappy finish to end a typical RVD match. Crimson is still in the learning process and the crowd doesn’t buy into this guy one bit. And once again, the terrible booking strikes. Not good. Match Time: 8:43    Star Rating: *1/2

• Immortal (Abyss, Gunner, and Scott Steiner) vs. Fortune (AJ Styles, Christopher Daniels, and Kazarian)

This was a little bit better than expected, and probably the best match of the night. Kaz catches Gunner in a seated headscissors at the start before applying a front facelock. Kaz flips out of a back suplex attempt and hits a dropkick before Steiner gets a tag. Steiner and Kaz lock up, with Steiner taunting Kaz before Kaz gets a crucifix cover for 2. AJ tags in and kicks Steiner before taking some shots in the corner. AJ hits some chops and a double team with Daniels. Abyss tags in, but Daniels hits some strikes and does a botched springboard dive. AJ comes in with a springboard clothesline and Kaz hits a springboard missile dropkick. Abyss plants Daniels and Steiner whips him into the guardrail. Gunner covers Daniels in the ring for 2. Gunner applies a rear chin lock, and Daniels hits some elbows, but Gunner hits a back suplex and tags in Steiner. Steiner hits some chops and a belly to belly slam for 2 before Abyss comes in with punches. Abyss misses in the corner and Daniels escapes a chokeslam. Kaz gets a tag and hits a hurricanrana off the top, a dropkick, a springboard back elbow, a springboard twisting leg drop, and a tornado DDT followed by a dive onto Abyss on the floor. Everyone then starts brawling on the floor, and Kaz gets dropped face first on the apron after he rolls Abyss in.

Steiner and Gunner set up a table on the floor as Abyss chokes Kaz in the ring. Steiner hits a chop, clothesline, and an elbow drop, then distracts the ref so Gunner can choke Kaz against the ropes. Gunner hits a suplex and a back elbow, and Abyss comes in with punches before Kaz hits a slingshot DDT from the apron. AJ tags in and hits a flying forearm off Abyss’s back followed by a back suplex to Gunner and a springboard cross body to Abyss. AJ counters a chokeslam attempt with a victory roll and hits a Pele kick. Gunner kicks Kaz, only for Daniels to hit an STO and the Best Moonsault Ever. AJ kicks Steiner and ends up crotched up top, and Gunner has him on his shoulders on the apron. Daniels makes the save, but Gunner tackles Daniels off the apron through the table, delivering the sole hardcore spot on a PPV entitled “Hardcore Justice”. AJ goes for a springboard moonsault to Abyss, but Abyss may not have caught him properly so it came off like a springboard Pele. Nonetheless, AJ covers him for the win. They teased an Abyss face turn later on. Had a couple rough moments, and Abyss and Steiner dragged down the action at times, but Gunner looked pretty good and there were enough athletic high spots from Fortune to hold it together. Crowd was really into it and this may have been the match of the night. Match Time: 14:44     Star Rating: ***

• Bully Ray vs. Mr. Anderson

This was awful.  Not sure what the hell they were thinking with two heels and the match was pretty boring. Ray tries to sneak up on Anderson during his intro but Anderson sees it coming and they brawl around ringside before the bell. Anderosn drives Ray into the apron and Ray begs off in the ring, only for Anderson to hit some punches and whip him into the corner. Ray kicks a charging Anderson, hits a clothesline followed by a punch, and taunts Anderson. Ray hits a side slam and taunts him again. Anderson fights back with punches but Ray hits a back elbow and wrenches the face. Anderson claws at Ray’s face, but Ray hits a chop, a corner clothesline, and a suplex. Anderson hits some punches and escapes the Bubba Bomb, then hits a DDT. They trade punches and Anderson hits a clothesline, a back elbow, and a neckbreaker. Ray counters the Mic Check twice, but Anderson hits a spinning kick and a clothesline for 2. Ray hits a chokeslam for 2 and a corner splash but misses a second rope senton. Anderson hits a senton off the top for 2 and Ray rolls him up for a near fall. Ray hits a mid air cutter and grabs his chain, but Anderson hits a botched Finlay roll. Ray goes to leave and Anderson tosses him back inside. Anderson grabs the chain and while the ref is taking it away from him, Ray low blows Anderson and rolls him up for the win. Yet another screwy finish to end a very bland match. This was just punches and clotheslines with the usual shtick from both guys. Ray going over makes no sense if they’re trying to build up Anderson as a rebel breaking away from Immortal. Ray played his character well, that’s all you can really say. Match Time: 10:05     Star Rating: *1/2

• TNA World Tag Team Championship match: Beer Money(c) vs. Mexican America

The show continued to plod along with this tag title match, surprisingly high up in the card. Anarquia attacks Robert Roode at the start, but Roode hits a shoulder block and some strikes to Hernandez. Storm hits a knee strike and a neckbreaker before hip tossing Anarquia. Beer Money hit a double elbow strike and Roode hits a knee drop to Anarquia before applying a fujiwara arm bar. Roode hits an atomic drop and Storm hits an eye poke followed by a clothesline for 2. Roode pulls the leg and Storm kicks Anarquia in the head from the outside. Storm clotheslines Hernandez on the floor before being launched onto Anarquia on the floor. Roode slams Anarquia’s face in the corner but Hernandez clotheslines him from the apron. Hernandez chokes Roode against the ropes and hits a shoulder block followed by a choke toss. Storm breaks up the pin, but Roode takes a corner splash from Hernandez and a double underhook suplex from Anarquia. Hernandez applies a Sammartino backbreaker stretch, but Roode escapes and hits a spinebuster. Storm and Anarquia are in, with Storm hitting a clothesline, back body drop, DDT, and a modified TKO. Beer Money hit a double suplex to Hernandez and Storm hits a mistimed Frankensteiner off the top to Anarquia. Roode hits a frog splash, but Hernandez hits a slingshot shoulder block to Storm for 2. Storm hits a lungblower to Hernandez and superkicks a diving Anarquia for the win. This was just there for Beer Money to hit their signature offense and get crowd pops, Mexican America were just tackling dummies. In that sense it worked, but it did feel very much like a stretched out TV match. Match Time: 10:40     Star Rating: **1/4

• TNA World Heavyweight Championship match: Sting(c) vs. Kurt Angle

God bless Kurt Angle, but even he can’t get a great match out of Sting at his age. The match was actually going along good before the ending. They lock up at the start, with both guys twisting the arm before Angle applies a headlock on the mat. Angle hits a shoulder bock but Sting hits a hip toss and an arm drag followed by an arm bar. Sting then hits a shoulder block and Angle hits a hip toss and an arm drag with an arm bar. Sting whips Angle into the corner and kicks out his leg twice. Angle hits an elbow, but Sting launches him to the floor. Sting slams Angle’s head onto the guardrail and the steel steps, but Angle hits a fall away slam back in the ring. Angle applies a chin lock but Sting fights out, only for Angle to hit a kitchen sink and go back to the chin lock. Angle whips Sting into the corners but Sting hits a clothesline and both are down. Sting hits some punches and a DDT, but Angle hits a belly to belly suplex. Sting scores a near fall before Angle hits the 3 German suplexes for a 2 count. Angle misses a moonsault and Sting hits an Angle Slam followed by the Scorpion Deathlock. Angle gets the ropes and Sting hits a Stinger Splash to the back, but he misses a second one and Angle hits the Angle Slam for 2. Angle goes shoulder first into the post in the corner and Sting applies the Ankle Lock. Angle escapes and applies the Scorpion Deathlock, but Sting gets the ropes. Angle hits some knees to the back and hits a pair of Germans, but Sting counters the third one and goes for a powerslam, only for Angle to counter with the Ankle Lock. Sting counters with a victory roll for 2, and Angle accidentally takes out the ref. Hulk Hogan then comes out with a chair and Angle takes it away from him, only for Angle to hit Sting with the chair and hit the Angle Slam for the win. ANOTHER screwy finish and a swerve that many people saw coming. This booking is just nauseating. Before the finish the match was good but nothing more. Sting can only do so much at his age but this was better than his other title matches this year. Still not good enough for a PPV main event though. Match Time: 15:24     Star Rating: **3/4

Overall PPV Rating: 5/10

My name is Jared Silberkleit and I am from Orange, CT. I am a huge pro wrestling fan and follow all kinds of promotions such as WWE, TNA, ROH, PWG, CHIKARA, Dragon Gate USA, and anything else I might come across. I am a huge supporter of independent wrestling and I feel that it provides a true alternative to the mainstream promotions and also showcases a lot of innovation and hard work. Aside from wrestling I am also a really big fan of football, baseball, hockey, and MMA. I have also written for www.sportsgrumblings.com for over two years.

1. Smackdown Money in the Bank Ladder match: Sin Cara vs. Wade Barrett vs. Justin Gabriel vs. Sheamus vs. Cody Rhodes vs. Heath Slater vs. Daniel Bryan vs. Kane

As expected, the opener was one of the ladder matches. Much like last year’s Smackdown Money in the Bank match, this was given a lot of time and turned out great. Everyone brawls at the start until Barrett, Kane, and Sheamus are left in the ring. Kane double clotheslines the two heels and sends them outside, but Bryan kicks a ladder into Kane’s face. Slater and Gabriel team up to hit Sin Cara with a ladder, but Gabriel kicks Slater and climbs a ladder himself. Bryan missile dropkicks Gabriel off the ladder and Rhodes climbs up. Sheamus tries to powerbomb Rhodes but Rhodes escapes and hits Slater with his rebound kick. Kane clotheslines Sheamus to the floor, sends Barrett into a ladder in the corner, throws a ladder onto Barrett and Sheamus on the outside, and gives Slater a sidewalk slam. Cara hits Kane with an enzuigiri before Bryan hits a suicide dive to the floor, followed by separate dives from Slater and Gabriel as well as a high cross body from Cara off the top to Sheamus on the floor. Cara follows with a missile dropkick to Slater, an enzuigiri to Gabriel, and a Spanish Fly off the top turnbuckle to Bryan. Barrett hits Cara with a ladder and bridges the ladder from the apron to the Spanish announce table. Barrett goes for a clothesline but misses and hits the ring post. Sheamus hits Cara with the Brogue kick and then powerbombs him off the apron through the bridged ladder. Cara was tended to by officials and had to leave the match. Sheamus hits everyone with a ladder before Kane punches him and sends him to the floor before tossing the ladder on top of him.

Bryan and Rhodes align to attack Kane but quickly go at each other with punches. Kane hits both of them with a ladder and goes to climb it, but is attacked by Slater, Gabriel, and Barrett. Rhodes and Bryan separately try to climb but are attacked by the former Corre members. The trio then have a standoff before Slater and Gabriel attack Barrett and both try to climb the ladder. Rhodes shoves the ladder over and hits the Cross Rhodes on Slater and Barrett. Sheamus knocks Rhodes off a ladder and gives him the Irish curse backbreaker before starting to climb. Bryan tries to pull him off by his leg and then climbs over him, but Sheamus steps off the ladder with Bryan in an electric chair position, which allows Kane to come off the top rope with a crazy doomsday device clothesline. Sheamus bridges another ladder from the middle turnbuckle to a lower rung of a standing ladder. Kane chokeslams Rhodes and Gabriel before climbing the ladder, but Bryan goes to stop him. Bryan dives off the ladder onto Kane and is caught, but Bryan turns it around into a DDT. Bryan then fights with Slater atop the ladder and Slater gives him a neckbreaker off the ladder. Slater climbs again but is pulled off by Barrett, who then stomps him in the corner and crotches him on the top rope. Barrett and Sheamus then use a ladder to fling Slater off the top rope onto Kane on the floor.

Sheamus hits Barrett with a Brogue kick before he clotheslines Gabriel and drops him face first on a horizontal ladder in the corner. Sheamus climbs a ladder but ends up trading shots with Kane at the top. Kane eventually chokeslams Sheamus off the ladder onto the bridged ladder set up earlier by Sheamus. Rhodes catches Kane with the rebound kick and Barrett hits Kane with the Wasteland. Gabriel then hits a 450 splash to Kane off a horizontal ladder that was resting on the top rope. Scary spot. Barrett then gives Gabriel a Wasteland over the top rope to the floor and hits Slater with a pumphandle slam. He goes to climb, but Rhodes pulls him down and clotheslines him to the floor. Rhodes and Bryan fight at the top of a ladder as Barrett climbs up the other side, but Bryan is able to knock Rhodes to the mat and prevent Barrett from getting the case. Barrett teases a Wasteland off of the ladder, but Bryan fights out with the ELBOWS OF DEATH which he was known for on the independent scene. Bryan is able to fight off Barrett and send him to the mat, and then he unhooks the case for the win. Very surprising finish that got a huge reaction from the Chicago crowd, as not only was Bryan very over, but no one really expected him to win going in. Absolutely the right call with that finish. The match itself was awesome and had a lot of really nice spots while keeping a consistent theme of everybody constantly going for the win. Everyone really got to shine and this was a tremendous opener. Fun stuff all around. Match Time: 24:33     Match Rating: 8/10

2. Divas Championship match: Kelly Kelly© vs. Brie Bella

This was just here to cool down the crowd after the hot opener. Brie taunts Kelly at the start, but Kelly slaps her, hits a Thesz press with some punches, and a head scissors. Kelly takes out both Bella twins on the floor, but Brie tosses her out when she comes into the ring. Brie hits some punches, hangs up Kelly on the ropes, and presses her knees to her back. Brie then tosses Kelly to the mat and applies a weird head wrench submission with Kelly’s arm behind her head. Kelly fights out with a jawbreaker, slams Brie’s face in the mat, and then hits a clothesline followed by a neckbreaker for 2. Brie attempts a backslide but Kelly hits a bulldog before getting the win shortly after with the K2. Typical Diva fare with some botched spots and a lot of screaming. At least it was short. Match Time: 4:49     Match Rating: 2/10

3. Mark Henry vs. The Big Show

While this was certainly no classic, it was definitely more enjoyable than it had any right to be. Henry opens with punches, but Show fires back and hits a diving shoulder block before they move to the outside. Show clotheslines Henry on the floor and sends him over the steps, but Henry dropkicks the steps into Show’s knee. Back in the ring, Henry hits a kick to the face and slams Show’s knee on the mat before applying a single leg Boston crab. Show gets the ropes and kicks Henry off, but Henry hits a clothesline in the corner. Show hits a kick and a diving shoulder block off the top turnbuckle, but Henry escapes the chokeslam and hits the World’s Strongest Slam for 2. Henry then hits a second WSS and then connects with 2 back to back running splashes for the win. After the match Henry wraps a chair around Show’s leg and hits a Vader Bomb onto it, leading to Show being tended to by trainers and carted off. Injury angle was well done and the match was fine. They kept things short and moved at a pretty solid pace for 2 big guys. They also continued to build up Henry strongly. Match Time: 5:59     Match Rating: 4/10

4. Raw Money in the Bank Ladder match: Alberto Del Rio vs. Kofi Kingston vs. Jack Swagger vs. Evan Bourne vs. R-Truth vs. Alex Riley vs. The Miz vs. Rey Mysterio

While not quite as good as its Smackdown predecessor, this was still an extremely good, action-packed match, though it could have used a little more time. All 8 men have ladders in their hands at the opening bell, and they immediately begin the attack on Del Rio, who is sent to the floor and ends up buried under a pile of ladders thrown at him by the other participants. Rey is tossed onto the pile of ladders as well while R-Truth and Miz square off in the ring only for Swagger to hit both men with a ladder. Kofi and Bourne fight on a small ladder before they use it to hit Swagger and R-Truth. Rey hits Swagger with a head scissors to the floor and Del Rio crotches R-Truth on a ladder before kicking him in the face. Riley climbs a small ladder, but steps off and dives onto Swagger and Miz on the floor. R-Truth does a dive over the ropes as well and Rey and Kofi follow with simultaneous dives off the top turnbuckle to the floor. Bourne then climbs a ladder near the entrance ramp and does a crazy shooting star press to everyone on the floor. Bourne climbs a ladder in the ring and fights with Miz at the top, only for Del Rio to shove the ladder over. Miz took a bad fall, landing horribly on his leg, and was helped to the back by trainers (this looked pretty legit). Rey and Del Rio fight and Del Rio goes to climb, but R-Truth pulls him off the ladder. R-Truth and Del Rio then climb on opposite sides, but Rey and Bourne climb over them, knock them off, and hit simultaneous hurricanranas off the ladder to the heels. Kofi climbs, but Swagger pulls him off with the ankle lock.

Riley climbs up and fights with Swagger, but R-Truth pushes the ladder over. R-Truth puts a ladder in the corner horizontally, and then kicks it into Rey’s gut when Rey winds up in the corner. Kofi then hits a Boom Drop off the horizontal ladder to R-Truth and hits Riley with a kick. Rey dives onto Kofi and R-Truth stands on the end of a ladder near the apron to send the other end into Swagger’s face (think like a seesaw). However, while R-Truth is leaning through the ropes, Rey catches him with a 619. Riley and Rey fight at the top of a ladder while Bourne sets up a ladder himself, and soon all seven men end up fighting atop various ladders in a huge brawl. Del Rio gets sent into a ladder in the corner and Bourne is sent all the way to the floor when his ladder is pushed over. Eventually only Swagger and Kofi are left fighting at the top, but the ladder tips over and both crash to the mat. Miz then returns, limping down the entrance ramp, and goes to climb a ladder. After he gets about halfway up, Rey gives him a sunset flip powerbomb off the ladder. Rey climbs and tries fend off Del Rio by kicking him and hitting him in the face with the briefcase. Del Rio then unmasks Rey and shoves him onto another ladder. However, Rey uses both hands to cover his face, so his ladder falls over because he wasn’t holding on to it. His ladder also crashes into Del Rio’s and they both fall over, but Del Rio sets his ladder back up and climbs up to get the case for the win. Very frenetic, chaotic match that was definitely the more dangerous of the two MITB matches. Like the first one, everyone continuously was going for the win, which created a lot of suspense. It could have used just a few more minutes but this was extremely enjoyable and featured tons of craziness. Match Time: 15:58     Match Rating: 7.5/10

5. World Heavyweight Championship match: Randy Orton© vs. Christian

The stipulations here were that if Orton got disqualified, or if the referee “makes a bad call”, then Christian will automatically win the title. While not quite up to par with some of their previous matches, this was another strong PPV encounter from these two. Christian slides a chair in the ring at the start to tempt Orton, but Orton tosses it out. Christian shoves him, but Orton unloads on him with punches, attacks him in the corner, and follows with a back body drop and knee drop. Christian slaps Orton, but Orton hits a kick and avoids a Christian dive to the floor. Orton tosses Christian into the steps, but misses a kick and gets his neck snapped over the top rope by Christian. Christian hits a diving twisting uppercut off the top and hits a back elbow. Christian stands on Orton’s back on the ropes before he slides outside and hits him in the face. Christian wrenches Orton’s head, but Orton gets up, avoids a charging Christian in the corner, and rolls him up for 2. Christian hits a spinebuster for 2 and goes for the Killswitch, Orton tries to counter with a back suplex, and Christian backflips out of it only for Orton to clothesline him to the floor. Christian misses a dive and counters the RKO, but Orton counters a dive form Christian with a jackknife cover. Orton hits a Thesz press with some punches, but Christian counters the spike DDT and heads up top, only for Orton to dropkick him in midair. Christian shoves Orton off the top and hits a diving head butt for 2 before both guys counter each other’s finishers. Orton hits some clotheslines, but Christian counters the RKO and hits the Killswitch for a near fall. Orton avoids a spear from Christian and hits a gutwrench neckbreaker for 2, then hits a snap powerslam followed by a spike DDT. Orton readies for the RKO, but Christian crawls to the corner and spits in his face. Orton then unloads on Christian with punches and low blows him right in front of the ref for the DQ, so Christian wins the title. After the match Orton beats the crap out of Christian and RKOs him on the Spanish announce table. The table didn’t break so Orton turned around during his retreat to give him another one, and again the table didn’t break. The match had awesome storytelling with Christian continuously antagonizing Orton before he finally sent him over the edge with the ultimate disrespect, spitting in his face. Although a bit short for a world title match, there was also a lot of very good back and forth action and false finishes. It will be interesting to see how this angle will continue and this PPV was very successful in reviving interest in Smackdown. Match Time: 12:20     Match Rating: 7/10

6. WWE Championship match: John Cena© vs. CM Punk

This was it, after some epic buildup and a ridiculous amount of speculation and anticipation, it was time for the main event. The crowd was more than ready for this thing as they had been chanting Punk’s name all night, long before this match was due to take place. As expected, they were almost universally in favor of Punk and booed the hell out of Cena. It was a One Night Stand 2006-esque atmosphere. Simply put, this was a masterpiece. The opening bell rang at about 10:12 EST, so you knew these guys were getting enough time for an adequate blowoff. They start off with a lot of chain wrestling after a lock up, with Punk applying a headlock and Cena applying a chin lock after a snapmare. Cena catches Punk in a fujiwara armbar and twists Punk’s arm, then hits a shoulder block and they lock up again. Cena hits another shoulder block but Punk comes back with a hip toss, a headlock, and a shoulder block of his own before both guys tease their finishers. Punk kicks Cena in the corner, but Cena hits a one handed bulldog and applies a reverse headlock. Punk hits some punches, but Cena hits a clothesline and applies a side headlock. Punk escapes the hold with a back suplex and gets a near fall after whipping Cena into the corner. Cena hits some punches and a fisherman’s suplex for 2, but Punk counters the Attitude Adjustment and hits a DDT for 2. Punk works over Cena with a head scissors and Cena gets up, only for Punk to toss him outside. Punk picks Cena up, hangs his head over the apron, and hits a diving knee drop off the top rope to the back of Cena’s head. Cena avoids a charging Punk in the corner and pulls his leg, but Punk kicks him off and catches him in a chin lock.

Cena gets up and hits some punches, but Punk kicks him in the corner and hits a cross body that doesn’t look pretty as Cena didn’t quite catch him right. While standing on the apron, Cena suplexes Punk over the ropes all the way to the floor. Cena scores a near fall back in the ring with a snap fisherman’s suplex and tries a slam that Punk escapes, but Cena picks Punk up and powerslams him for 2. Cena hits some more punches, and Punk comes back with some of his own, only for Cena to catch him in an abdominal stretch. Punk breaks the hold by clawing Cena’s face and hits a hip toss before both guys clothesline each other. Cena hits his shoulder blocks, but Punk backflips out of the side slam attempt and rolls Cena up for 2. Punk misses the running knee in the corner and Cena hits the side slam, but Punk kicks Cena in the head when he goes for the Five Knuckle Shuffle. Punk does a suicide dive through the ropes onto Cena on the floor, but misses a springboard clothesline back in the ring and eats the Five Knuckle Shuffle. Cena goes for the AA, but Punk lands on his feet and hits a few short kicks for a near fall. Punk goes for the Go to Sleep, but Cena counters and hits a gutwrench suplex for 2. Punk counters the AA again, hangs up Cena in the ropes, hits 2 back to back running knee strikes, and a bulldog. Punk then hits a springboard clothesline for 2 and hits 3 kicks to the chest, but he misses on the 4th attempt and Cena catches him in the STF. Punk is able to get to the ropes and scores a near fall off a roundhouse kick. Punk goes for a cross body off the top, Cena rolls through and goes for the AA, Punk counters and goes for the GTS, but Cena counters and locks in the STF again.

Punk struggles, but is able to counter out of the hold and transition into the Anaconda Vise. Cena is eventually able to get up and give Punk the AA, but Punk kicks out! Cena heads up top and goes for the diving Famouser, but Punk powerbombs him in midair for 2. Punk goes for the GTS again but Cena gets the ropes and snaps Punk’s neck over them. Cena goes back up top and hits the diving Famouser for 2. Cena waits for Punk to get up and hits a second AA, but PUNK KICKS OUT AGAIN. Cena then sets Punk up on the top turnbuckle and teases a top rope AA, but Punk escapes it with the DANIEL BRYAN ELBOWS OF DEATH and hits a top rope Frankensteiner. Punk hits the running knee in the corner and goes for the GTS, but catches Cena in the ribs and Cena falls to the floor. As Punk goes to roll Cena back inside, Vince McMahon and John Laurinaitis come out on the ramp. Cena catches Punk in the STF back in the ring, and Vince calls for the bell to be rung as he comes down the ramp with Laurinaitis, trying to replicate the Montreal Screwjob. Cena sees what’s happening and immediately breaks the hold, leaves the ring, and decks Laurinaitis before telling Vince that he won’t let it end that way. Just as Cena comes back inside, Punk hits the GTS for the win! Vince then grabs a headset from the announce table and orders for Alberto Del Rio to come down to cash in his briefcase. Punk jaws with Vince as Del Rio comes to the ring, but Punk immediately levels him with a roundhouse kick to the head before Del Rio can cash in. Punk then taunts Vince as he escapes through the crowd with the championship. The PPV closes with Punk making his way through the concourse with the title intact. This was an extraordinary match, the best that John Cena has ever had and an easy match of the year candidate. The storytelling and the drama were at primarily uncharted territories for WWE. The way that they had this red hot crowd hanging on every move was simply magical. This is a match that you can show to everyone you know to explain why you love professional wrestling. The execution of everything involved in the match and post-match was astounding. I can’t wait to see how they follow this up and this match is a MUST SEE. Match Time: 33:44     Match Rating: 10/10

Overall PPV Rating: 9.25/10

My name is Jared Silberkleit. I am from Orange, CT and am a huge fan of pro wrestling. I mostly follow WWE and TNA but I also watch the smaller promotions such as ROH and DGUSA. I have been a lifelong WWE fan and have become a TNA fan over the past few years. Aside from wrestling, I also really love baseball and football and follow many other sports such as hockey and MMA. I have written for www.sportsgrumblings.com for three years.

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1.    Last Man Standing match: Randy Orton vs. CM Punk

Interesting, but strong choice to open the show. Both guys circle each other at the start before Orton starts on offense with some punches, a clothesline, and a kick to the chest before he sends Punk to the outside. Orton hits an uppercut on the outside before they head back into the ring, where Punk is able to hit some punches and a knee drop, only for Orton to retake the advantage with a kick, snapmare, and a knee drop of his own. They return to the outside, where Punk hits Orton with a kendo stick before tossing Orton back into the ring and grabbing a second one. Punk stays on offense and hits a back suplex, but Orton is eventually able to make a comeback, hitting Punk with a kendo stick and a clothesline. Orton tries for a spike DDT, but Punk is able to counter it and catapult Orton into an exposed turnbuckle, which Punk uncovered before the match began. The ref counts but Orton gets up as Punk sets up a chair in the corner. Punk hits a high knee in the corner, but Orton is able to avoid a bulldog into the chair. Orton counters the Go to Sleep, Punk counters the RKO, and Orton counters the GTS again before throwing Punk face first into the chair, sending Punk to the floor. Punk gets up at 6, but Orton rams him back first into the apron and powerslams him on the floor.

Orton takes apart the announce table, but Punk hits him with a roundhouse kick. Orton gets up, slams Punk face first on the announce table, and hits a nasty Angle Slam on the barricade. Punk is up at 6 and gets into the ring, where he counters the RKO and hits the GTS. Punk slides a chair into the ring and hits Orton with a Russian leg sweep on it. Orton is up at 8 and Punk sets up the chair on its legs, but Orton hits an RKO. Punk is up at 9 and bails to the floor, but Orton clotheslines him into the crowd. Orton tries for a spike DDT off the barricade, but Punk counters and rams Orton back first into the ring post. Orton gets up at 9, but Punk wraps a chair around Orton’s throat and rams him throat first into the post. Orton gets up at 9 and Punk hits a ton of punches. Both guys end up on the announce table, where Orton hits a sudden RKO. Punk gets up off the table at 8 but stumbles to the floor. Orton tries for the punt but Punk catches him and drops him face first on the steel steps. Orton gets up at 9 and goes into the ring. Punk heads to the top rope with a kendo stick in hand, but Orton pummels Punk with the other kendo stick and hits an uppercut. Both guys are up top and Orton hits a super RKO into the ring. Orton gets up at 9 but Punk doesn’t, and Orton gets the win. Very good match with some really nice spots. What kept it from being even better were the excessive amounts of counts whenever anyone would hit a move, which tends to happen a lot in WWE last man standing matches. Still, a huge improvement on their Wrestlemania match. Match Time: 20:10     Star Rating: ***1/2

In a quick backstage segment, Teddy Long informs Sheamus that he will defend his United States Championship in a Tables match against Kofi Kingston. I wish they announced this ahead of time.

2.    Tables match for the United States Championship: Sheamus(c) vs. Kofi Kingston

For a last minute add-on, this was pretty good. Kofi hits some punches and kicks in the corner at the start, and Sheamus responds with kicks of his own, only for Kofi to take him down and hit some more punches. Kofi goes to the floor to get a table from under the ring, but Sheamus throws him into the barricade. Sheamus gets another table but Kofi knocks him down. Kofi sets up a table on the floor and puts Sheamus on it, but Sheamus rolls off and tosses Kofi into the barricade. Sheamus teases a High Cross through a table on the floor, but Kofi escapes, only for Sheamus to hit some punches and put him back in the ring. Sheamus ends up on the apron and Kofi hits some strikes, but Sheamus hits a slingshot elbow strike over the ropes into the ring. Sheamus gets another table from under the ring and yanks Kofi’s arm over the top rope. He hits Kofi in the gut with a table from the outside, then drops the table on top of him in the ring. Sheamus stands on the table (and Kofi), then steps on Kofi’s face. Sheamus sets up the table in the corner and slams Kofi’s face on it, but Kofi is able to hit a sunset flip and a double stomp. Kofi ends up crotched (sort of) on the table, but is able to escape the High Cross. Kofi ends up on the apron and eats a bicycle kick, but the impact causes him to overshoot a table on the floor. Sheamus sets up a table in the ring and teases a powerslam off the top, but Kofi hits some punches, only for Sheamus to knock him down. Sheamus teases a suplex over the ropes through a table on the floor and Kofi hits the Trouble in Paradise, but Sheamus takes a bump on the apron and misses the table. Sheamus gets to his feat and winds up on the table, and Kofi jumps off the top rope onto Sheamus, putting him through the table for the win. It was expected that Sheamus would lose his title since they can’t have both the US and Intercontinental titles on Smackdown. Good match here with a nice story of Kofi’s constant escapes from potentially devastating moves from Sheamus. Match Time: 9:12     Star Rating: ***

3.    Country Whipping match: Jack Swagger and Michael Cole vs. Jim Ross and Jerry Lawler

While this wasn’t dragged out as much as their Wrestlemania match, it was still atrocious. Cole cut a promo putting himself over before the match and was wrapped in bubble wrap, to protect against the whips. It was basically a no DQ match, with tags, where straps were provided as weapons. Lawler whips Swagger with the strap at the start before Cole comes in. Lawler tears the bubble wrap off Cole, but Swagger enters and whips Lawler several times. Cole whips Lawler himself and tags out to Swagger, who beats on Lawler but misses a Vader Bomb. Lawler comes back with punches and Cole begs him off, but Swagger hits a chop block and applies the ankle lock. Ross whips Swagger from the apron, allowing Lawler to hit a DDT and tag in Ross. It got ugly as Ross was visibly stiff, nervous, and sloppy. Cole was tagged in, and Ross tosses him into the ring, sends him into the corner, and hits a very weak shoulder block. Ross whips him with a strap and applies the ankle lock, but lets go in order to hit Swagger with a low blow, who was trying to interfere. Cole got a roll-up immediately after for the win. Why can’t they just let the faces win to end this incredibly ridiculous storyline? The match was all whipping and no wrestling, and the wrong guys won. There’s not much more you can say. Match Time: 7:05     Star Rating: *

4.    Falls Count Anywhere match: Cody Rhodes vs. Rey Mysterio

The show got back on track with another Wrestlemania rematch which was better than the first encounter. Cody hits some punches at the start, but Rey slides underneath him and hits a head scissors that sends Cody to the floor. Rey then slides under the ropes with another head scissors, but Cody scores a near fall on the floor. Cody punches Rey as they go up the ramp, but Rey slams Cody’s head into the titan tron. Cody ends up on the floor beside the stage, and Rey hits a seated senton off the stage to Cody on the floor. They then brawl into the crowd. Cody crotches Rey on the barricade but Rey sends Cody into a wall. They fight up the stairs in the crowd with both guys throwing punches. Cody applies a Boston Crab with Rey’s body trapped in the railing, and hits a head butt. They fight into the arena concourse, where Rey throws a crate on Cody for a near fall. Cody hits some punches and a nice rebound kick springing off a wall for a near fall. Rey hits a knee to the head and knocks down Cody as they head back into the crowd and down the stairs. Mysterio hits a kick but Rhodes is able to hip toss him over the barricade into the ringside area. Mysterio hits some punches and tries for the flip up bulldog, but Rhodes counters and slams him face first on the steel steps. Mysterio is able to recover and hit a top rope flying head butt to a standing Rhodes in the ring for 2. Mysterio misses a top rope guillotine leg drop, and Rhodes is able to hit some kicks to the groin and an Alabama slam. Rhodes sets Mysterio up in the corner, but Mysterio hits some punches and blows mist in Rhodes’ face (channeling the Great Muta?). Mysterio hits the 619 and a springboard splash to get the win. This was a fun match with some innovative spots and solid effort from both men. Mysterio getting the win was fine as he got revenge after Rhodes beat him at Mania. Match Time: 11:43     Star Rating: ***1/4

5.    No Count Out, No Disqualification match (Loser Leaves WWE): Layla vs. Michelle McCool

This turned out a bit better than most WWE women’s matches. McCool takes control early and sends Layla to the outside. Layla sends McCool into the announce table, but McCool knocks her down, kicks her, and gets a near fall in the ring. Layla ducks a big kick and hits 2 of her own. McCool begs off, but Layla hits some punches. McCool hits a belly to belly slam and they go outside again.  McCool misses a kick and is hung up on the barricade. Both girls end up standing on the barricade and crash to the floor. Both girls go back in the ring, where Layla hits a flip over stunner out of the corner for 2. McCool gets a near fall, but Layla escapes the Faith Breaker and hits her neckbreaker. McCool gets her foot on the ropes and soon after is able to counter a sloppy roll-up attempt into the Faith Breaker. McCool goes for the cover but Layla suddenly rolls her up for the win. McCool cries in the ring afterwards. All of a sudden, Kharma (aka Awesome Kong from TNA or Amazing Kong on the independent circuit) makes her WWE debut and gives McCool the Implant Buster in the ring, which was awesome. As for the match, they tried, but Layla is such a terrible worker that it wasn’t much more than average. But average is more than you can say for most women’s matches in this company. Match Time: 5:07     Star Rating: **

6.    Ladder match for the vacant World Heavyweight Championship: Alberto Del Rio vs. Christian

Unsurprisingly, this was the best match on the whole show. They do some back and forth early on, with Christian reversing an irish whip and knocking Del Rio down, only for Del Rio to come back with a kick and a scoop slam. Christian hits some punches and chokes Del Rio against the ropes, and then hits a back body drop and a diving uppercut off the second rope. Christian goes to get a ladder but Del Rio goes to the floor to stop him. Del Rio stomps Christian, kicks him in the head, and rolls him underneath the ring with his foot. Del Rio picks up a ladder, but Christian appears on the other side of the ring and does a baseball slide dropkick that sends the ladder into Del Rio’s face. Christian gets a big ladder and climbs in the ring, but Del Rio sends him to the mat before climbing himself. Christian pushes the ladder over, but Del Rio is on his feet and hits an enzuigiri. Del Rio stomps Christian and chokes him with his boot, only for Christian to dump Del Rio over the ropes to the floor. Christian is holding a ladder in the ring, but Del Rio takes his legs out from under him and Christian lands face first on the ladder. Del Rio takes a ladder and bridges it from the apron to the announce table. Christian tries to catapult Del Rio into the ladder bridge, but Del Rio blocks and hits some kicks. Christian puts Del Rio on the ladder bridge and goes to the top rope. Del Rio pushes Christian off, but Christian is able to land on a standing ladder on the floor and spring off with a cross body to Del Rio to the floor.

Christian ascends a ladder in the ring, but Del Rio knocks him down and sets up a ladder against the corner. Christian counters the cross-arm breaker and Del Rio counters the killswitch, but Christian is able to flapjack Del Rio onto the ladder. Del Rio ends up on the floor and Christian tosses a ladder on top of him. Christian climbs a really tall ladder in the ring, but Del Rio comes back in and throws a very small step ladder at him. In a really cool spot, Del Rio stands on the step ladder, holds Christian, and gives him a jumping double knee armbreaker off both ladders. Del Rio applies the cross-arm breaker for a bit before he sends Christian into a ladder in the corner. Del Rio charges but Christian avoids him and sets up the SUPER ladder. Del Rio tries to powerbomb Christian off the ladder, but Christian counters with a head scissors and Del Rio is on the apron beside the ladder bridge. Del Rio teases a suplex on the ladder bridge, but Christian backdrops him onto another ladder laying flat in the ring. Christian goes to the top rope and holds onto a ladder, but Del Rio hits an enzuigiri, causing Christian to fall to the mat and land on the ladder. Del Rio climbs a ladder and Christian knocks it over, only for Del Rio to send Christian out to the floor. Ricardo Rodriguez hands Del Rio a chair, but Christian sends Del Rio into the ring post.

Christian gets in the ring, waits for Del Rio, and hits a big spear. Christian climbs a ladder, but Del Rio pulls his legs through the rungs and he’s stuck (channeling the finish of the Edge vs. Jeff Hardy ladder match from Extreme Rules 2009) as Del Rio climbs on the other side. Christian gets free and pushes the ladder over. Del Rio kicks the step ladder in Christian’s face and sets him up on the ladder bridge. Del Rio goes up top for an elbow drop, but Christian moves and Del Rio crashes into the ladder bridge. Christian sets up a ladder in the ring and gets to the top, but Brodus Clay comes down to interfere and pushes the ladder over. Christian is left dangling in mid air, but ends up on the mat and pushes Clay into a ladder in the corner. Christian hits him with the step ladder and Clay ends up on the outside. Del Rio kicks a ladder in Christian’s face and applies the cross-arm breaker with Christian’s arm through a ladder. Del Rio sets up the SUPER ladder and climbs slow, but Edge appears in a Jeep by the stage and honks the horn. Del Rio is distracted and Christian pushes the ladder over, causing Del Rio to fall out of the ring onto Rodriguez and Clay on the floor. Christian sets the ladder back up, climbs, and grabs the title as Edge comes into the ring to celebrate with him. Amazing moment with Christian winning the title and the crowd went INSANE. This has been a long time coming and I couldn’t be happier about Christian winning a world title in WWE. He’s easily one of their most skilled performers and he’s very over with the fans. Aside from the memorable moment, the match itself was great. The psychology was awesome with Christian climbing to win during the whole match. This got a ton of time, Del Rio did a great job working the arm, and they mixed in some very good spots. Excellent stuff. Match Time: 21:14     Star Rating: ****

7.    Lumberjack match for the WWE Tag Team Championship: Kane and The Big Show(c) vs. The Corre (Ezekiel Jackson and Wade Barrett)

This match was not announced in advance, and was just a buffer between the two major title matches. Show hits a punch and a couple chops to Barrett before tagging in Kane, who hits a low dropkick, a corner clothesline, and a sidewalk slam. Barrett is able to send Kane to the floor, where the lumberjacks ambush him. Show beats up a bunch of the lumberjacks as Jackson works over Kane with some clotheslines, stomps, and punches in the corner. Barrett stomps Kane and gets a near fall, but Kane hits a few strikes on Jackson before both men are down after a double clothesline. They tag their partners and Show is all over Barrett, hitting a corner back splash before he’s sent to the floor via Jackson pulling the rope down. The lumberjacks beat up Show and Jackson hits him with a scoop slam in the ring, but Barrett tags himself in. He can’t do the Wasteland and Show hits a chokeslam for the win. Pretty much a Raw match, but fine for what it was. Match Time: 4:19     Star Rating: *1/2

8.    Triple Threat Steel Cage match for the WWE Championship: The Miz(c) vs. John Cena vs. John Morrison

This really surprised me and ended up being nearly as good as the ladder match. Miz has the advantage early, hitting some clotheslines and tossing both Cena and Morrison into the cage. He tries to toss Cena into the cage again, but Cena blocks it and hits some punches and a fisherman’s suplex. Miz and Morrison end up on the top rope and Morrison tries to climb out, but Miz pulls him back in. Miz and Cena then fight on the top rope and Miz hits some punches, but Cena hits a big bulldog off the top rope into the ring. Cena hits his shoulder blocks, side suplex, and the Five Knuckle Shuffle on Morrison, but falls victim to a Skull-Crushing Finale from Miz. Morrison tries to climb out again, but Miz pulls him in and they slug it out on top of the cage. Morrison and Cena are on the top rope and double superplex Miz (who was hanging by his feet from the top of the cage) into the ring. Morrison again tries to escape but Cena pulls him back in, only for Morrison to send Cena to the mat. Morrison tries for the flash kick, but Cena ducks and Morrison just hits Miz instead. Morrison hits a Flux Capacitor to Cena for a near fall and climbs again, but Miz stops him and powerbombs him into the side of the cage before hitting a knee strike to the head. Cena catches Miz in the STF and Miz calls for the door to be opened as he crawls to it. Both Cena and Miz almost crawl out and are pulled in by their feet, and Cena hits a gutwrench suplex to Miz back in the ring. Morrison and Cena trade punches on top of the cage as Miz tries to escape out the door, but Morrison swings the the door into Miz’s face with his foot. Morrison ends up crotched on the top of the open door, and Miz pulls him by his leg back into the ring.

Morrison kicks off Miz, but Cena gets a near fall on Morrison. Miz hits a DDT for a near fall and follows it up with a clothesline and some kicks to Cena’s head. Miz presses Cena’s face against the cage with his leg, but has to stop as Morrison tries to escape over the top. Morrison dangles over the edge and Miz pulls him in, then Morrison does the same to Miz. Morrison sends Miz to the mat and kicks away Cena, then hits a crazy corkscrew splash off the side of the cage onto both men in the ring. Morrison tries to crawl out the door, but R-Truth runs down and hits a knee to the side of Morrison’s head. Truth enters the cage, kicks Morrison several times, hits an axe kick to Cena, and hits a Paydirt to Morrison. Truth then climbs over the top of the cage to leave, showing he could have won the match if he was in it. Miz ascends the cage, but Cena pulls him back in and they have a slugfest on top of the cage. Cena tries to escape but Miz pulls his foot and both guys end up on the top rope. Miz tries for the SCF, but Cena hits a jumping Attitude Adjustment into the ring and covers Miz for the win. Cena winning was anticlimactic but Miz’s title reign was really lackluster and they needed to take the belt off him. It’s a huge mistake by WWE if they don’t give Morrison the title this year because he’s crazy over and always puts on an outstanding performance in his matches. This was a great cage match with a lot of drama, and everyone was working at a breakneck pace right from the get go, which was stunning seeing as the match was going 20 minutes. Awesome stuff all around with a lot of great spots, and Morrison and Truth were put over strong. Great match to end a great show. Match Time: 20:00     Star Rating: ****

Overall PPV Rating: 8/10

My name is Jared Silberkleit. I am from Orange, CT and am a huge fan of pro wrestling. I mostly follow WWE and TNA but I also watch the smaller promotions such as ROH and DGUSA. I have been a lifelong WWE fan and have become a TNA fan over the past few years. Aside from wrestling, I also really love baseball and football and follow many other sports such as hockey and MMA. I have written for www.sportsgrumblings.com for three years.

1.    Triple Threat Ladder match for the Intercontinental Championship: Dolph Ziggler(c) vs. Kofi Kingston vs. Jack Swagger

The show kicked off with the first of the two scheduled ladder matches. Despite the fact that there was a lot of talent involved and the gimmick appeared to suit the styles of all 3 guys, the match ended up greatly underachieving. Everyone brawls at the start, with Ziggler getting tossed outside and Swagger landing some punches on Kofi. Swagger and Kofi tumble to the outside, which allows Ziggler to set up and ascend a ladder in the ring before it gets pushed over and he crashes into the ropes. Kofi dropkicks Swagger and slams the ladder onto him, but Ziggler rejoins the action by taking down Kofi and wedging a smaller ladder in the corner. Swagger sets up a ladder but Kofi jumps through the ladder with a double knee strike. Kingston dives off the ladder onto Swagger and places the smaller ladder on top of Swagger, but Ziggler hits a Famouser to Kingston onto the ladder. Vickie Guerrero then slowly climbs the ladder but Kingston is there threatening to tip the ladder over. Swagger hits Kingston with another ladder as Ziggler saves Vickie. Swagger attacks Ziggler with a ladder but Kingston uses it send Swagger to the outside before Ziggler clotheslines Kingston over the ropes. Kingston comes back into the ring but Swagger puts him in the Ankle Lock. Kofi tries to climb the ladder while stuck in the Ankle Lock but Ziggler climbs over both men. Kofi kicks Swagger off and fights with Ziggler at the top of the ladder. Ziggler is able to apply the sleeper, but Kofi fights out and knocks him to the mat. Swagger then climbs up the ladder and has a tug-of-war with Kofi over the title, but the title falls to the mat. Ziggler crawls over and picks up the title for the win. So in the opener of a show where WWE is trying to get over the idea that competitors have to take huge risks and overcome dangerous situations such as climbing ladders, the guy wins by just grabbing the belt off the mat? Way to set the tone. The match was alright and had some cool spots but the ending hurts it, and it was too short for a ladder match. Match Time: 8:58     Star Rating: **1/4

2.    Tables match: LayCool vs. Beth Phoenix and Natalya

This match was a bit surprising in that it wasn’t completely awful, but it ended up dragging on longer than it needed to be, which made it just a little step up from most WWE women’s matches. Beth slams Michelle McCool at the start and then slams Layla on top of her before grabbing a pink gimmicked table from the outside with Natalya. Natalya sets it up in the corner as Beth shoulders LayCool in the corner, but LayCool is able to fight out. The heels are quickly sent to the outside, but end up getting the upper hand as things break down into a brawl. LayCool land some kicks back in the ring before whipping Beth into Natalya in the corner. McCool tries to hit a super Faith Breaker on Natalya through a table, but Beth breaks it up. Beth tries to press slam McCool but McCool rakes the eyes before Layla goes to work on Beth. Beth tries to counter a suplex and almost hits a double slam with Natalya but McCool breaks it up. Natalya applies a cool-looking double Sharpshooter on both of LayCool, but the heels come back after Natalya breaks. McCool sets up Natalya on the top rope and centers the pink table before trying for a double superplex with Layla. Natalya hangs on and knocks Layla and McCool into the table, which doesn’t break. Natalya then splashes both members of LayCool through the table for the win. The botched finish ended up actually helping the match, but it was just a bit long for a WWE women’s match, especially one with LayCool, who get annoying fast. Still, a passable match and nothing too bad. Match Time: 9:26     Star Rating: **

After a really strange backstage skit with Kane, Santino Marella and Vladimir Kozlov come out to the ring. Santino cuts a brief, dumb promo to lead into an impromptu tag title defense against the Nexus. Oh this should be fun…..

3.    WWE Tag Team Championship match: Santino Marella and Vladimir Kozlov(c) vs. Justin Gabriel and Heath Slater

Husky Harris and Michael McGillicuty are in the corner of their Nexus stable mates. Gabriel quickly catches Santino in an arm hold but Santino hits a toss into a side headlock. Santino blocks a hip toss and hits a weak leg sweep followed by a forearm. Slater gets a tag but gets caught in a side headlock. Slater comes back with some kicks and punches, but freaks out when Santino teases the cobra. Kozlov gets the tag and hits some strikes followed by a fall away slam. Harris hits a cheap shot and Gabriel is able to tag in, applying a front chancery. Kozlov fights out but Gabriel is able to tag in Slater to work over Kozlov with a front face lock. Kozlov hits a headbutt and both men make tags. Santino comes in and takes down Gabriel before teasing the cobra, but McGillicuty takes out Santino from behind, causing a disqualification. Nexus then hit the ring after the match to lay the beat down, culminating in Wade Barrett coming down to hit Santino and Kozlov with some chair shots. Basically the same crap match from Survivor Series except with a worse finish. This is the reason the ladder match was so short? Complete waste of time. Match Time: 6:29     Star Rating: *1/4

4.    #1 Contender’s Ladder match: Sheamus vs. John Morrison

After a very underwhelming first hour, the PPV began its quick recovery with the second ladder match, where the winner would be #1 contender to the WWE Championship. This was one of the best WWE matches since probably July at the Money in the Bank PPV. Sheamus takes Morrison into the corner at the start before taking him down with a side headlock. Morrison fights out but takes a shoulder block. Morrison then charges Sheamus, sending both to the outside. Sheamus slams Morrison into the barricade and sets up a ladder across the ring apron to the announce table. Sheamus tries to launch Morrison into the ladder, but Morrison ducks and hits a big kick. Sheamus hits some strikes but Morrison spears him into the barricade. Sheamus hits a kick and throws Morrison into the crowd before grabbing a ladder, but Morrison jumps over the barricade with a diving forearm. Morrison sets up a ladder in the ring, but Sheamus tries to wedge Morrison in the corner with the ladder, only for Morrison to use the ladder for a leapfrog corkscrew cross body. Morrison climbs the ladder but gets his leg caught in the rungs when Sheamus breaks it up. Morrison is hung upside down as Sheamus tips the ladder over on top of him. Sheamus kicks at Morrison’s knee and slams a ladder on top of it. Sheamus sets up the ladder but sees Morrison crawling and goes to work on him, slamming his knee down on top of the ladder, which is now flat on the ground. Sheamus ties up Morrison’s injured leg in the ladder and uses the ladder to slam Morrison’s knee down repeatedly. Sheamus goes to climb again but Morrison grabs his ankle, only for Sheamus to put him back down and grab another ladder from the outside. Sheamus fends off Morrison and sets up the second ladder in between the bottom and middle ropes in the corner, and then hits a scoop slam, sending Morrison’s leg into the ladder. Sheamus climbs a ladder but Morrison throws another one at his back. Sheamus uses Morrison’s leg to hit an over-the-head slam, but Morrison comes back with a drop toehold, sending Sheamus face first into a ladder he was holding. Morrison hits some punches and a kick to the side of the head, but Sheamus hits the Irish Curse backbreaker.

Both guys roll out to grab ladders and have a standoff in the ring, with Sheamus dropping his ladder and Morrison throwing his at Sheamus’s face. Morrison sets up a ladder in the corner and slams Sheamus face first on it before crotching him and sending him to the outside, all while still selling the leg. Morrison tries to hop up the ladder due to the injured knee, but Sheamus hits him in the knee and sends him out. Sheamus climbs up but the contract is swaying. Morrison gets back up there and knocks down Sheamus before Sheamus pulls him off himself, but Morrison hits a headscissors that sends both guys to the outside. Morrison hops up the ladder again but Sheamus tips it over, sending Morrison into the ropes. Sheamus backdrops Morrison to the outside and starts to climb the ladder, but Morrison is on the apron and fights with Sheamus. Morrison teases a suplex out of the ring through the ladder bridged from the apron to the announce table, but Sheamus fights out and both guys end up on the side of the ladder. Morrison pushes Sheamus off, with Sheamus falling through the bridged ladder and Morrison landing on his injured leg on the floor. Morrison is up and gets in the ring to again hop up the ladder, but Sheamus gets in and tries to tip it back. Morrison is able to put one foot on the top rope and reverse the ladder’s momentum to hit a swinging kick before climbing to the top and pulling down the contract for the win. This was a great ladder match that made a star out of Morrison. He sold the leg like a pro the whole time and hit some really awesome spots. Finally it looks like he is going to get his well deserved main event push. Definitely go out of your way to check this one out. Match Time: 19:07     Star Rating: ****

After a brief backstage promo from The Miz, we cut to a shot of Husky Harris and Wade Barrett walking into the Nexus locker room, where the rest of Nexus minus David Otunga is laid out with some chairs scattered across the floor. Interesting.

5.    Tables match for the WWE Championship: The Miz(c) vs. Randy Orton

Although I had low expectations going in, this match was actually surprisingly good up until the finish. Orton is all over Miz with uppercuts and kicks before slamming down Miz and hitting a knee strike. Orton stomps at Miz’s face and chest and whips him into the corners, but Alex Riley pulls Miz out of the way when Orton charges him in the corner. Miz capitalizes with some kicks, but Orton comes back with a clothesline before sending Miz to the outside. Orton slams Miz’s head into the barricade and takes a table out from under the ring. Orton hits a suplex on the outside but Riley has put the table back. Orton grabs it again but Miz baseball slides it into Orton’s face. Miz sets the table up on the outside and tries for a suplex but Orton hits an uppercut before going for a powerslam off the steps. Miz yanks Orton’s feet out from under him, sending him face first into the steps. Miz picks up the top steps and hits Orton in the face with them before grabbing a table from under the ring. He sets Orton on top of it but one of the legs collapses. Miz teases a top rope dive but Orton rolls off the table. Miz takes it to Orton on the floor until he gets another table, which he slides into the ring. Miz slams Orton’s head onto the steps and slides him into the ring, where he hits his signature corner clothesline. Miz sets up the table and tries to whip Orton into it, but Orton counters with a modified Angle Slam. Orton slams the table onto Miz before setting it up in the middle of the ring and going for a superplex, but Riley takes the table out of the ring. Orton hits a ton of punches, a kick, a clothesline and a snap powerslam, sending Miz to the apron where Orton hits the spike DDT. Orton gets a table from the outside and clotheslines Riley. Orton sets up the table as Miz tries to attack him from behind, but Orton hits his signature backbreaker before going for a powerbomb. Riley tries to break it up and ends up distracting Orton, only for Orton to send Miz into the referee. Orton hits the RKO on Riley and powerbombs him through the table, but Miz hits the Skull-Crushing Finale. Miz then drags Orton onto the broken table and wakes up the ref, who then calls for the bell. As Miz celebrates, the ref sees the replay and orders a restart. Orton beats on Miz on the outside, sending him into the barricade and the ring post before throwing him in the ring. As Orton climbs up the apron, Miz throws Riley into Orton, sending Orton off the apron through a table on the floor. The overbooked finish just felt like a cheap way to overprotect Orton, who really didn’t need to be protected in a match like this where you can have a finish out of nowhere without making either guy look bad. The match was going along good but the finish hurts it as Miz continues to be booked horribly as WWE Champion. Match Time: 13:41 (total bell-to-bell time)     Star Rating: **3/4

6.    Fatal 4 Way Tables, Ladders, and Chairs match for the World Heavyweight Championship: Kane(c) vs. Rey Mysterio vs. Alberto Del Rio vs. Edge

This match really should have been the main event, but that’s just about the only gripe you can have here. This was a really awesome TLC match and a huge improvement from the toned-down DX/JeriShow match from last year. Kane takes Edge to the outside as Del Rio beats on Rey in the ring. Rey hits a headscissors that sends Del Rio into the corner, which he follows up with a low dropkick. Rey gets a ladder from the outside and quickly ascends it in the ring, but Del Rio tips it over, causing Rey to fall to the outside on top of Kane and Edge. Rey returns to the ring with another ladder but Del Rio puts him down. Del Rio sets up a ladder in the corner but takes a drop toehold into it. Del Rio has Rey in an electric chair position, but Rey jumps off into the ladder in the corner, where he hits a ladder assisted seated senton onto Del Rio. Kane takes out Mysterio by throwing him into the ladder and takes out Edge with the ladder, and then throws the ladder onto Mysterio and Del Rio on the outside. Edge blocks a chokeslam attempt and hits the Impaler DDT before using the ladder to send Kane to the outside. Edge starts to set up a SUPER LADDER in the ring but stops to baseball slide Kane. Edge sets up a table on the floor but Kane hits him in the face. Kane slams Edge’s head onto the announce table before throwing him into the timekeeper’s area, and then takes out Mysterio and Del Rio. Kane gets a table but accidentally rips off one of the legs, so he sets it up with the other leg down and the other side leaning against the announce table. Kane tries to double chokeslam Del Rio and Rey, but Edge breaks it up and they all gang up on Kane. After they beat on Kane, the faces turn on Del Rio and take it to him. Edge and Rey set up a table and put Kane on it, and Edge follows with a huge splash off the ladder in the ring to Kane through the table on the outside. Rey then goes into the ring and sets up the ladder but Del Rio sends him into the corner and hits an enzuigiri. Del Rio’s ring announcer hands him a chair but Del Rio takes a drop toehold into it. Rey goes for the 619 and Del Rio ducks, and Rey spins around right into a spear from Edge. Edge spears Del Rio and climbs the ladder, but Kane tips it over, causing Edge to be crotched on the top rope. Del Rio and Rey send Kane to the outside, but Kane slams them both into the barricade.

Everyone fights up the ramp, with Kane waffling people with a chair until Edge puts a stop to it at the top of the stage. Mysterio climbs on top of one of the tables hanging from the stage as a prop and dives off onto Kane, who was standing on the floor to the side of the stage. Edge and Del Rio sprint to climb the ladder in the ring, but Mysterio breaks it up and sets up both for the 619. He connects on Del Rio but not on Edge, who holds up a chair to block it. Edge and Del Rio climb up the ladder but Mysterio knocks off Del Rio before climbing up. Mysterio and Edge fight at the top but both and up crashing face first to the mat. Del Rio’s ring announcer then climbs the ladder, which would have been funny if Vickie didn’t do it earlier. He’s stopped by Kane, who takes him off the ladder with a chokeslam. Kane hits a chokeslam to Del Rio and then chokeslams Edge off the apron through a table on the floor. Rey is able to hit the 619 to Kane, hit him with a chair, and send him to the outside, but when he tries to ascend the ladder Del Rio yanks him down and catches him in the cross-arm breaker. Del Rio looks up but decides to put Rey back in the hold. Del Rio breaks and slowly climbs the ladder, but Rey tips it over, sending Del Rio out of the ring through a table on the floor. Rey goes to climb the ladder but Kane grabs his leg. Rey jumps from the ladder to the corner and tries for a moonsault, but Kane catches him and hits a Tombstone piledriver. Kane tries to climb the ladder but Edge hits him with a chair several times. Kane goes to the apron, but Edge hits a spear, sending him through the table that was set up against the announce table earlier. Edge then climbs to the top of the ladder and takes down the title to win the match. Very long, awesome TLC match with a lot of really cool spots, and Del Rio didn’t feel out of place in his first PPV world title match. This was probably the match of the night, and thank God that Kane’s horrible world title reign is over. Match Time: 22:43     Star Rating: ****

Then we got…a segment. Cody Rhodes comes out in a suit to offer his “grooming tips” while claiming that everyone in Houston has IJS, Irritable Jowel Syndrome. Cody praises his own jaw line while taking shots at the fans until Big Show comes out dressed as Santa Claus. They have a horrible bicker back and forth that includes blatant product placement for Big Show’s awful movie Knucklehead and dumb jokes about underwear. Big Show eventually hits a spinebuster to Cody before ripping off his clothes. I don’t really get what was funny about this seeing as Cody was wearing exactly what he wrestles in on each and every night. You know, I heard that the Daniel Bryan/Ted Dibase dark match was pretty good, and THIS is why it didn’t make the main card?

After that terrible segment, we see Wade Barrett and Husky Harris walking backstage, when suddenly John Cena hits Harris in the face with a chair and tells Barrett that he’ll see him in the ring.

7.    Chairs match: Wade Barrett vs. John Cena

Although I disagreed with this match being the main event, it did make sense given that this is the apparent blowoff to the Cena/Nexus angle and they hyped it up heavily throughout the evening. CM Punk comes out to do commentary before Cena and Barrett make their entrances. Cena backs Barrett into the corner where the ref forces a break, only for Cena to catch Barrett in a side headlock. Barrett fights out but Cena hits a shoulder block. Barrett tries to get a chair from the outside but Cena stops him, only for Barrett to get his hands on a chair. Barrett misses with chair shots and Cena grabs one of his own, with both guys having a standoff in the ring. Both guys swing and connect with each other’s chair, so they drop them, leading to Cena beating on Barrett in the corner. Cena whips him across the ring and hits a bulldog onto a set-up chair. Barrett uses the ref as a shield and lands some cheap shots and a pumphandle slam for a near fall. Barrett hits some punches and sends Cena into the steps on the outside. Cena crawls up the ramp, but Barrett sets up the lower part of the steps vertically at the end of the ramp before hitting Cena in the back with a chair. Barrett tries for a powerbomb on the stage but Cena counters with a back body drop. Cena grabs an office chair from backstage, puts Barrett in it, and then pushes it down the ramp, sending Barrett into the previous set up steps in a somewhat goofy spot. Cena grabs Barrett, but Barrett hits him with a chair, places Cena’s neck through it, and then pushes him neck first into the ring post.

Barrett tosses Cena into the ring and follows with a chair. Barrett brings the chair down on Cena’s chest before putting it across Cena’s throat and sitting on it. Cena powers out and hits some right hands followed by a shoulder block, but when he tries for a second shoulder block Barrett throws a chair in his face. Barrett hits some right hands and ties up Cena’s arms in the ropes. Barrett then hits a defenseless Cena in the gut and back with a chair. Cena is able to kick Barrett, free himself from the ropes, and hit a belly to back suplex followed by the Five Knuckle Shuffle. Cena goes for the Attitude Adjustment but Barrett counters with a spinning side slam. Barrett wedges a chair in the corner and both men avoid being sent into it by the other. Barrett fights off and STF attempt and sends Cena into the chair in the corner. Barrett tries for a diving chair assisted elbow drop but crashes and burns. Cena gets up, hits Barrett in the back with the chair, and hits a diving chair assisted Famouser off the top. Cena then gets some more chairs and sets up six of them next to each other in a 2 X 3 pattern, with the seats up against each other. Cena then scoops up Barrett and hits an Attitude Adjustment onto all of the chairs for the win. After the match, Cena clobbers Barrett with a chair as he crawls up the entrance ramp, and Barrett ends up laid out on the floor to the side of the stage. Cena then places a wooden push cart on top of Barrett and pulls down a row of the prop chairs used to make up the set. The chairs all fall onto Barrett in a spot that looked cool but was set up such that it was obvious Barrett was never in any real danger. Overall a good main event that had some pacing issues but enough big spots to hold it together. This was a fine blowoff to the seemingly endless Cena/Nexus storyline. Match Time: 19:09     Star Rating: ***1/4

Overall PPV Rating: 7/10

My name is Jared Silberkleit. I am from Orange, CT and am a huge fan of pro wrestling. I mostly follow WWE and TNA but I also watch the smaller promotions such as ROH and DGUSA. I have been a lifelong WWE fan and have become a TNA fan over the past few years. Aside from wrestling, I also really love baseball and football and follow many other sports such as hockey and MMA. I have written for www.sportsgrumblings.com for over two years.

1.    Dolph Ziggler vs. Daniel Bryan

The PPV began with this non-title challenge match, pitting the United States Champion Daniel Bryan against Intercontinental Champion Dolph Ziggler. Both guys did an outstanding job here and put on by far the best match on the card. They do some chain wrestling early on, with Ziggler catching Bryan with a headlock takeover only to be caught in a leg grapevine. Ziggler fights out and rolls to the outside, then catches Bryan with a leg sweep back in the ring for a near fall. Ziggler rolls to the outside to escape another submission attempt, but Bryan hits him with a diving knee off the apron to the floor. Bryan hits a dropkick back in the ring but Ziggler once again rolls to the outside for a cheap shot then takes the advantage back inside the ring. Ziggler lands a ton of kicks and punches, and then chokes Bryan against the middle rope. Bryan fights out of a submission hold but Ziggler transitions into a rear chin lock. Ziggler tries for a neckbreaker but Bryan counters and gets a couple near falls before Ziggler catches him with an inverted exploder suplex. Ziggler puts on a rear chin lock which Bryan eventually fights out of, only for Ziggler to score with a flipping neckbreaker. Ziggler hits a snapmare and an elbow drop, then applies a submission with a body scissors. Bryan fights out and hits a big boot but misses a kick in the corner. Ziggler does a fireman’s carry throw and applies another submission with a body scissors, which he transitions into a chin lock, but Bryan breaks it with a big jawbreaker.

Bryan makes a comeback with stiff kicks to Ziggler’s chest and leg, and a kick to the face. Bryan back flips out of the corner to avoid a charging Ziggler, then hits a clothesline and a running knee. Bryan eats a kick but responds with one of his own before hitting a springboard dropkick. Ziggler tries for a roll up and then hits a kick to the head. He tries for the Zig Zag but Bryan holds onto the before hitting a buzzsaw kick for a near fall. They fight up top where Bryan crotches Ziggler and goes for a super back suplex, but Ziggler counters in mid air and gets a two count out of it. Ziggler goes for the sleeper but Bryan counters out of it, and the two double clothesline each other. They battle on their knees before Ziggler hits a headbutt followed by a kick to the chest from Bryan. An exciting sequence ensues with both men trading roll up attempts before Ziggler connects with a rocker dropper. Ziggler applies the sleeper hold but Bryan makes it to the ropes. Ziggler argues with the referee and picks up Bryan to yell at him, but Bryan quickly takes Ziggler down into the LeBell Lock, eventually forcing a submission for the victory. This was a very good Indy-style match between these two and a hell of a way to kick off the show. Easily the match of the night and the best match of Ziggler’s career as Bryan continues to impress. Match Time: 16:16     Star Rating: ***3/4

After this, Cody Rhodes and Drew McIntyre cut a brief promo, running down their accomplishments and bragging about how everyone in the back is afraid of them. Michael Cole then receives an e-mail from the “anonymous General Manager” who states that the pair will defend their WWE Tag Team Championship right now against David Otunga and John Cena of Nexus. Having Cena wrestle an impromptu, unadvertised match was just GENIUS on the WWE’s part of course.

2.    WWE Tag Team Championship match: Cody Rhodes and Drew McIntyre(c) vs. David Otunga and John Cena

Otunga starts the match with Rhodes and lands a kick to the gut, but quickly gets taken down and Rhodes tags out to McIntyre. The champions tag in and out to beat down Otunga before hitting a double suplex. Otunga is eventually able to tag out to Cena, who is able to send Rhodes into the corner and hit a suplex. Cena hits a delayed vertical suplex and argues with Otunga, which allows the champions to regain the advantage by working over Cena in the corner, hitting some right hands. McIntyre plants Cena with an STO before tagging out to Rhodes, who applies a single arm camel clutch. Cena fights out of it and makes a comeback, hitting a couple flying shoulder blocks and trying for a back suplex, but Rhodes back flips out of it and tags in McIntyre. Cena hits McIntyre with the back suplex and hits the Five Knuckle Shuffle. McIntyre tries for his finisher after a Rhodes distraction, but Cena dumps him over the ropes, which allows Rhodes to make a blind tag. Rhodes tries for Cross Rhodes but Cena reverses into the STF, forcing Rhodes to tap out. Cena and Otunga are the new tag team champions after a very bland, short, TV quality match. Not too much to hate but there just wasn’t much there. Match Time: 6:28     Star Rating: **

3.    Ted DiBiase vs. Goldust

This match was just announced the day of the PPV on WWE.com, so I wasn’t expecting that much from it. This was actually a decent little match, as Goldust actually is in pretty good shape for his age and can move very well. DiBiase beats on Goldust in the corner at the start, but Goldust comes back with some slaps, a butt bump, and sends DiBiase to the outside. Goldust sends DiBiase into the barricade but when he climbs to the top rope, DiBiase hits a big kick sending Goldust to the mat. DiBiase hits a back elbow and a dropkick for a near fall before applying a rear chin lock. DiBiase hits a couple knee drops and a neckbreaker for another near fall, then kicks Goldust in the head and applies another rear chin lock. Goldust fights out with a back suplex before making a comeback, hitting a clothesline, inverted atomic drop, and a bulldog. Goldust goes for a dive but crashes to the floor. Goldust hot shots DiBiase on the ropes and again goes up top, but DiBiase catches him with a mid-air dropkick. Goldust hits a quick powerslam and counters Dream Street, but DiBiase hits a sitout spinebuster. Goldust hits a diving shoulder block but Maryse beats up Aksana on the outside before throwing her into the ring. Goldust is distracted and DiBiase hits a DDT for the win. After the match DiBiase tries to take back the Million Dollar Championship but Goldust surprises him with the Final Cut. This was fine for what it was and both men did a good job. Match Time: 7:28     Star Rating: **1/2

4.    WWE Unified Divas Championship match: Layla(c) vs. Natalya

I really wish that Michelle McCool was in this match instead of Layla, but I guess they figured Layla hadn’t been the one to defend the title in months so they slotted her in here. They do some mat wrestling early on before Natalya hits a big suplex. Layla dropkicks Natalya to the floor but Natalya drags her out by her feet. Natalya slams McCool into the barricade but McCool slams her onto the floor behind the ref’s back. Layla applies a submission in the ring and puts on a body scissors, and Natalya is eventually able to fight back with a clothesline and a body slam. Natalya hits some more clotheslines and eats a big boot, but comes right back with a dropkick. Natalya goes for the Sharpshooter but Layla rolls out and tries to leave with McCool with the belts. Natalya goes after both of them and puts Layla back in the ring. McCool hits a kick from the outside while the ref is distracted and Layla gets the pin. Typical crappy women’s match and the second match with a non-clean finish. Just bad and the crowd didn’t care. Match Time: 4:49     Star Rating: *

5.    Buried Alive match for the World Heavyweight Championship: Kane(c) vs. The Undertaker

Another PPV, another disappointing Kane/Undertaker gimmick match. This match was almost a direct copy of their lackluster No Holds Barred match from Night of Champions, except this time there was a gravesite next to the stage. Taker ambushes Kane during his entrance and the brawl begins. They fight down the entrance way until Taker sends Kane into the steel steps, slamming Kane into the bottom half before putting him into the ring. Taker lands some splashes before Kane bails from the ring to run into the crowd. Taker chases him through the stands until he catches him at a staircase. Taker lays into Kane with some punches and headbutts before they brawl further into the stands. They trade blows until Kane slams Taker head first into a production table. They eventually make their way back to ringside, where Taker throws tons of chairs into the ring. Taker hits his signature leg drop before dismantling the announce table and throwing the cover onto Kane in the ring. They then return to the crowd to brawl up another staircase but return to the ring, where Kane takes advantage of the chairs by hitting Taker in the stomach with one and landing some more shots across the back. Kane hits a final chair shot before connecting with back to back chokeslams.

Kane picks up Taker to carry him to the gravesite but Taker gets to his feet and they trade punches up the entrance way. Taker beats on Kane with some punches, causing Kane to fall backwards before he crawls up the mound of dirt toward the grave. Kane hits a big boot and tries to drag Taker into the grave, but Taker suddenly locks in the Hell’s Gate. Kane taps before eventually feigning and falling over on his side. Taker rolls Kane into the grave but sees Paul Bearer hiding behind the headstone. Taker grabs Bearer and rubs his face in the dirt before teasing a chokeslam, but suddenly Nexus (minus John Cena) charge at Taker, with Taker at first fending them all off. They eventually get the upper hand and beat him down, allowing Kane to hit him with the urn and put him in the grave. Nexus then grab shovels and start burying Taker before Kane tells them to leave. Kane does his signature motion, causing a backhoe scoop to dump tons of dirt over the grave as Kane’s music plays, giving him the win. After the match they did a cheesy segment with lightning hitting the grave and Taker’s symbol appearing in a blue light on the headstone. This was a very lackluster, plodding brawl between these two which led to an unnecessary finish. I keep wishing that this feud will just end already because the matches haven’t been good at all and just drag on forever. Not the worst Buried Alive match ever but this was certainly nothing to charge people $44.95 to see. Match Time: 16:57     Star Rating: **

6.    Smackdown vs. Raw Bragging Rights Elimination match: Team Raw (The Miz, CM Punk, John Morrison, Ezekiel Jackson, Santino Marella, R-Truth, and Sheamus) vs. Team Smackdown (Big Show, Rey Mysterio, Jack Swagger, Tyler Reks, Kofi Kingston, Alberto Del Rio, and Edge)

Although last year’s Bragging Rights match was just a standard 7 man tag, they changed it up this year to make it elimination style, which is a stupid idea because Survivor Series is the next PPV and is supposed to be based around the multi-man elimination tag matches. This match wasn’t really that good but it was still mildly enjoyable and better than any other match besides the opener at this point. Reks starts the match with Morrison, sending him into the corner and hitting a back elbow. Morrison comes back with some punches but eats a shoulder block. Morrison dropkicks Reks into the corner and tags in Santino, who hits a headbutt before teasing the cobra. Reks hits him with a back elbow and then a modified Burning Hammer to eliminate Santino. Jackson then enters to square off with Reks, who quickly tags to Big Show. Show hits a kick to the ribs and a chop to the chest, before tagging out to Mysterio. Rey hits some quick offense and tags in Kingston, but Jackson hits both with a double shoulder block. Sheamus gets a tag and works over Kofi with a submission, but Kofi fights out and hits a kick and a cross body for a near fall. Kofi hits a lariat and a turning Boom Drop, then ducks a clothesline to hit the SOS for a near fall. Kofi  jumps on Sheamus in the corner for the mounted punches but ends up crotched. Sheamus hits the High Cross out of the corner and Kofi is eliminated. Sheamus quickly takes down Mysterio and tags out to Punk, who hits a powerslam before tagging back out to Sheamus.

Mysterio starts to come back but Del Rio blind tags himself in and the two argue as Sheamus tags back to Punk. Punk sends Del Rio into Mysterio before fighting with him on the outside. Del Rio sends Punk back inside but throws Mysterio arm first into the barricade. Mysterio heads to the back selling an injury as Del Rio hits a German suplex to Punk. Del Rio tags out to Swagger who comes in with a big suplex to Punk. Swagger works Punk’s arms but Punk is able to fight out and tag in Morrison. Morrison beats on Swagger in the corner before hitting the Flash Kick, but Swagger retakes the advantage, hitting a belly to belly slam. Swagger goes for the Vader Bomb and Morrison gets the legs up, but Swagger catches the ankle and tries for the Ankle Lock. Morrison fights out and hits a kick to head, then hits a slingshot Starship Pain from the apron to eliminate Swagger. Reks then enters to beat down Morrison, applying a couple submissions before Morrison is able to tag out to Sheamus. Reks hits a kick and a clothesline before knocking Morrison off the apron, but he’s distracted and Sheamus instantly hits the bicycle kick to eliminate Reks. Big Show is out next and sends Sheamus to the outside, but Sheamus shoves Hornswoggle. Big Show then beats down Sheamus around ringside and up the entrance way but this ends up resulting in a double count out and both guys are eliminated. Edge and R-Truth enter next, with Edge hitting some clotheslines before R-Truth comes back with some of his own. R-Truth goes for the Axe Kick but Edge avoids it and hits a spear to eliminate him. Morrison is out next and is able to put down Edge, but misses Starship Pain. Edge quickly hits a spear and Morrison is eliminated.

Punk enters and tries to hit the Go to Sleep on Edge but Edge counters and hits an Impaler DDT. Del Rio tags in but Punk catches him with a backslide for yet another elimination. As Del Rio heads to the back, he’s attacked by the returning Mysterio, who rejoins the match. Edge struggles for the hot tag even though he just re-entered the match 30 seconds ago. Edge hits an enzuigiri but Punk tags out to Miz, who pounds away at Edge. Jackson hits a kick to the face and gets a tag, slamming Edge down to the mat and hitting an elbow drop. Miz applies a rear chin lock and Edge fights out, only for Miz to hit a backbreaker/neckbreaker combo. Punk gets a tag and hits a series of kicks, but Edge sends him into the corner and hits an electric chair drop. Rey gets a tag and hits a big kick to the head and a springboard cross body, but Punk rolls through for a near fall. They trade near falls for a bit until Rey hits the 619 and a slingshot splash to eliminate Punk. Jackson is in and hits a bunch of punches and stomps before launching Mysterio across the ring with a shoulder block. Jackson avoids the 619 once, but Rey hits a big DDT and sends him into the ropes again. Rey hits the 619 and completely botches the splash, but still scores the pin in a weird cover where Jackson almost kicked out when he wasn’t supposed to. Sloppy sequence there. Miz is in and almost gets hit with the 619 but Alex Riley distracts Mysterio. Mysterio hits the 619 on both Miz and Riley (who was shielding Miz), but Miz blocks the splash. Miz tries for the Skull-Crushing Finale but Rey rolls through and tags in Edge, who instantly spears Miz for the victory. Very long, poorly paced tag match that had some questionable booking. It had some fun moments and sequences but Jackson’s botched elimination was really bad and the match as a whole didn’t flow very well. It built off of flash eliminations with no substance to any of them. Still, this was the second best match of the night, which speaks volumes about this PPV. Match Time: 27:45     Star Rating: **3/4

7.    WWE Championship match: Randy Orton(c) vs. Wade Barrett

The main event was Orton defending the WWE title against Wade Barrett, who had John Cena in his corner. Barrett tells Cena, who was at ringside, that if he didn’t win the match then he would fire him. This wasn’t a horrible match but it most certainly wasn’t good nor was it main event quality. Orton beats on Barrett in the corner at the start and hits a big boot and an uppercut. Barrett kicks Orton and throws him to the outside, where he stares down Cena. Barrett catches Orton with a kick to the gut back in the ring and a headbutt, but Orton comes back with a clothesline. Barrett hits a big boot and stomps at Orton, then chokes him against the middle rope. Barrett argues with Cena outside the ring, allowing Orton to attack him from behind and throw him into the steps. Orton wears down Barrett with a rear chin lock back in the ring and Barrett starts to fight out, but Orton puts him back down with a back suplex. They fight on the outside, with Barrett sending Orton into the steps and getting a near fall back in the ring. Barrett beats on Orton with punches, hits a diving elbow drop, and stomps away at him. Orton fights out of a rear chin lock but Barrett puts him down with a pumphandle slam. They go to the outside yet again, with Barrett slamming Orton head first onto the barricade and the apron. Barrett applies another rear chin lock but Orton fights out and counters a pumphandle slam before hitting a dropkick. Orton goes for the spike DDT but Barrett fights out and hits a clothesline. The ref gets knocked down and Barrett orders Cena onto the apron, but Orton sends Barrett into Cena, knocking Cena into the barricade. Nexus come down to beat down Orton but Cena clears the ring, explaining to Barrett that he could get disqualified. Barrett tries for the Wasteland but Orton counters and hits some clotheslines and a powerslam. Orton hits the spike DDT but Cena enters and gives Barrett the Attitude Adjustment, causing a DQ. Orton gave both Cena and Barrett the RKO after the match. The idea here was Barrett won so he couldn’t fire Cena, but he won by DQ and didn’t win the title. Story was fine here but the match was lacking. It was plodding along and then ended in a DQ, so this was a very lackluster main event and not worth paying for. Bad ending to a really bad show. Match Time: 14:34     Star Rating: **1/4

Overall PPV Rating: 5/10

My name is Jared Silberkleit. I am from Orange, CT and am a huge fan of pro wrestling. I mostly follow WWE and TNA but I also watch the smaller promotions such as ROH and DGUSA. I have been a lifelong WWE fan and have become a TNA fan over the past few years. Aside from wrestling, I also really love baseball and football and follow many other sports such as hockey and MMA. I have written for www.sportsgrumblings.com for over two years.

1.    Intercontinental Championship match: Dolph Ziggler(c) vs. Kofi Kingston

The stipulation was that Ziggler would lose the title if he got counted out or disqualified. This was a good way to start the PPV off and was much better than their match from SummerSlam. Match starts with some chain wrestling, with both guys doing headlock takeovers. Kofi goes for the Trouble in Paradise early but Ziggler kicks him a few times and tries to send him to the outside, only for Kofi to catch himself on the ropes and clothesline Ziggler to the floor. Kaitlyn (Vickie Guerrero’s rookie from NXT season 3) checks on Ziggler but Vickie sends her to the back. Ziggler comes back into the ring but Kingston hits him with some strikes and a dropkick. Ziggler hangs Kingston up on the top turnbuckle, hits a neckbreaker and a dropkick, and then puts on a long rear chin lock. Kofi eventually fights out but Ziggler hits a big boot for a near fall. Ziggler hits an elbow drop and then puts on a sleeper with a body scissors. Kofi fights out but Ziggler puts him down and hits a front flip neck snap to a seated Kofi. Kingston hits some strikes but Ziggler hits a rocker dropper. Ziggler puts on another rear chin lock and hits some elbows to the back of Kingston’s neck. Kingston fights out of the hold again and they two men trade punches. Kofi beats on Ziggler in the corner until the ref pulls him away, but Kofi hits a big kick and a diving cross body from the top rope for a near fall. Kofi hits some more strikes and a Thesz press before connecting with the Boom Drop. Kingston tries for the Trouble in Paradise but Ziggler avoids it and tries for a sleeper, only for Kingston to counter and get a near fall. Kofi sends Ziggler to the outside and slams him on the floor before rolling him back into the ring for another near fall. Ziggler counters a suplex attempt and puts on the sleeper, and Kofi dives into the ropes for a break after struggling for some time. Vickie is about to slap Kofi but Ziggler tells her not to interfere and they argue. Kingston tries for the Trouble in Paradise but misses and ends up in the ropes. Ziggler hits the Zig Zag for the win and retains his title. Good opener, nothing great but a fun match. Too bad no one really wanted to see this match on the PPV after they fought so many times on Smackdown. Match Time: 12:47     Star Rating: ***

2.    CM Punk vs. Big Show

Punk cuts an amazing heel promo before this match, ripping into the inhabitants of his hometown of Chicago. By the way, why is a match not for a title taking place on a PPV where the gimmick is EVERY MATCH IS A CHAMPIONSHIP MATCH? Punk opens the match with some quick kicks but Show puts him down with a head butt and a clubbing blow across the back. Show chokes Punk with his boot before chopping him against the ropes, sending him out of the ring. Punk hits a big boot to Show on the apron and lands some more kicks, sending Show to the floor before Punk hits a crazy diving senton onto Show. Show barely beats the count coming back into the ring but eats more kicks from Punk. Punk survives another clubbing blow and hits a flying forearm off the second rope. Punk continues to kick and punch away at Show but can’t keep him down. Punk goes for a springboard flying forearm but Show hits a massive mid air spear. Show hits the Knockout Punch and gets the victory. This match infuriated me. Why does WWE INSIST on having Punk job all the time? It baffles me that this company thinks it is a better idea to put over an aging 7 foot tall lumbering oaf than a guy in the prime of his career who has everything you could want in a wrestler. This was a complete burial and a waste of time. Match Time: 4:46     Star Rating: *3/4

3.    United States Championship match: The Miz(c) vs. Daniel Bryan

The match that had been anticipated ever since Daniel Bryan (aka Bryan Danielson of ROH fame) made his debut on the premiere of season 1 of NXT finally arrived at Night of Champions. This was a great match that really put Bryan over strong. Miz kicks Bryan in the gut and puts on a side headlock before putting him down with a shoulder block. Bryan tries for a hip toss, has it countered, and then tries for the LeBell Lock, but Miz avoids it and bails to the outside. Miz comes back into the ring only to take an arm drag and a big kick. Bryan tries to work the arm but Miz puts on a hammerlock, rams Bryan into the corner, and then puts him down for a near fall. Miz works over Bryan’s shoulder with a bow and arrow, but Bryan fights out and gets a near fall with a backslide. Miz goes back to the shoulder and sends Bryan into the ropes, then distracts the ref so that Alex Riley can wrench Bryan’s arm from the outside. Miz continues to work the arm until Bryan back flips out of a hammerlock, but Miz hits a huge shoulderbreaker. Miz keeps working the shoulder, but Bryan fights out of an armbar and sends Miz to the outside. Bryan then hits a big suicide dive through the ropes, crashing back first into the side of the announce table. Back in the ring, Bryan hits a missile dropkick for a near fall and a stiff kick to the head.

Bryan goes for a leg hold but Miz fights out, only for Bryan to hit a high knee attack. Bryan is still selling the arm beautifully, by the way. They both trade blows before Bryan beats on him in the corner, culminating with an IED. Danielson hits a big kick to the head and takes him up to the top rope, but Miz crotches him on the top rope and then hits a NIGEL MCGUINNESS LARIAT to Bryan, taking him off the ropes to the mat. Miz works the arm again but Bryan gets to the ropes to break a hold. Miz tries for the Skull Crushing Finale but Bryan counters with a roll-up for a near fall. He goes for the LeBell Lock but Riley gets up on the apron to argue with Bryan. Miz accidentally runs into Riley and Bryan gets another near fall with a roll-up. Bryan goes after Riley on the outside, sending him into the ring post, but Miz catches him with a small package when he returns to the ring for another close near fall. Miz beats on Bryan until the ref pulls him back, only for Bryan to lock in the LeBell Lock. Miz struggles for quite some time before finally tapping out and Daniel Bryan is the NEW United States Champion! As a big ROH fan this was a proud moment for me and I couldn’t be happier for Bryan. This was an excellent match, the storytelling by Miz was great and Bryan made it that much better with his incredible selling. The near falls were done extremely well and this was by far the best match The Miz has ever had. A star-making victory for Bryan. Match Time: 12:33     Star Rating: ****

4.    Lumberjill match to Unify the Women’s and Divas Championship: Women’s Champion Michelle McCool vs. Divas Champion Melina

After that great US title match, we got the bathroom break of the evening. This was actually not that bad for a WWE women’s match but the Lumberjills were awful. These two start off brawling outside the ring before coming into the ring, only to wind up outside quickly. They both return to the ring, after Michelle slaps Eve in the face. Melina hits a headscissors into a kick to the face, before both girls hit kicks at the same time. Michelle sends Melina off the top to the outside but the Lumberjills don’t touch her. Michelle catches Melina with a flipping neckbreaker as Melina comes back into the ring. McCool kicks at Melina and grinds her forearm against the face, then scissors her head while grabbing the ropes for leverage. McCool goes for the Faith Breaker but Melina fights out and hits a facebuster. Melina hits some strikes but McCool hits a belly to belly suplex. Natalya distracts the ref while Melina tries for a roll-up, then Michelle rolls to the outside only to be attacked by the lumberjills. Melina hits a double knee strike and avoids a kick, but Michelle pulls her down to the mat. Both girls fall to the floor but the lumberjills just stand there until Melina goes back into the ring, then they beat up Michelle. The ref is distracted breaking up the brawl as Layla goes into the ring to attack Melina. Michelle comes back in and big boots Melina for the win and becomes Unified Women’s Champion. Psychology was completely ass backwards here with all the lumberjills beating up the heel Michelle, and then she WINS. Some people are going to hate this thing with a passion but the wrestling was alright for a Diva match. Match Time: 6:32     Star Rating: **

5.    No Holds Barred match for the World Heavyweight Championship: Kane(c) vs. Undertaker

It was strange seeing these two having a gimmick in the first match of their feud. I wasn’t too excited for this match because I haven’t enjoyed most of their past matches but this ended up okay. Undertaker sprints up the ramp to attack Kane during his entrance, which was alright since it’s No Holds Barred. They fight at the stage, with Taker throwing Kane off the stage into a pillar on the floor near the side of the stage. Kane hits a kick and pounds on Taker near the ramp but Taker comes back with a big punch. Taker punches Kane on the ramp but Kane rakes the eyes and hits a big boot. Taker sends Kane into the barricade and hits some head butts before burying his knee into Kane’s midsection. Taker tries to whip Kane into the steps but Kane reverses and Taker hits them shoulder first. Kane tosses Taker into the announce table, then takes off the cover and throws it at Taker. They then repeat the steps reversal spot, this time with Kane taking the bump. Taker rolls Kane into the ring and hangs his head over the apron, then kicks him in the head and hits the guillotine leg drop. Kane gets up and rolls to the outside, but Taker clotheslines him over the barricade into the timekeeper’s area. Taker then hits a dive over the barricade into the timekepper’s area. Kane gets a steel chair and hits Taker in the gut with it before the two fight into the crowd. They go back and forth with EVEN MORE PUNCHES before Kane clotheslines Taker over the barricade back to ringside. Kane then dives off the barricade with a diving clothesline. Kane continues this endless beatdown with more punches and kicks. Kane with a ton of strikes before Taker starts to come back and then trade blows, with Taker hitting a jumping clothesline. Taker hits snake eyes, a big boot, a leg drop, and a chokeslam. He tries for the Tombstone but Kane reverses into one of his own for the win. Wrestling wise, this was incredibly boring in parts. Storyline wise, this was very good.  Problem is, the crowd did not care at all about this match or the angle so this match didn’t get over well. Live this was probably really bad, but on PPV this was alright. Not sure how this will lead to a Hell in a Cell match in 2 weeks. Match Time: 18:32     Star Rating: **3/4

6.    Tag Team Turmoil match for the WWE Tag Team Championship: The Hart Dynasty(c) vs. The Usos vs. Santino Marella and Vladimir Kozlov vs. Mark Henry and Evan Bourne vs. Cody Rhodes and Drew McIntyre

So for a PPV hyped as featuring all championship matches, a non title match was pre-announced but not a tag team title match. This was announced literally 1 minute before it happened. It’s basically a 5 team gauntlet. Hart Dynasty start with the Usos. One of the Usos pounds away at Tyson Kidd but Kidd comes back with a roll-up and a kick to the gut. Smith gets a tag and comes in with a shoulder block and a clothesline. Uso lands a kick but Smith hits a big suplex. Kidd gets a tag and hits a crazy springboard dive before rolling the legal Uso (these guys are IMPOSSIBLE to tell apart) into the ring. He tries for the sharpshooter but eats a kick to the head and the Harts are eliminated. So the Harts job in 2 minutes and drop their titles in an unannounced match. Wonderful. Next team out is Santino and Kozlov. Santino gets a near fall and teases the Cobra but takes a flapjack and is quickly eliminated. Next out is Henry and Bourne. Bourne hits some kicks and a hurricanrana but is hit with a back elbow. Henry gets a tag and hits some clotheslines and a head butt. Henry tosses out one Uso and hits the other one with a World’s Strongest Slam. Bourne hits the Shooting Star Press to eliminate the Usos. Final team is Rhodes and McIntyre. McIntyre stomps on Bourne before tagging in Rhodes, who hits a suplex before tagging back out to McIntyre. Drew works Bourne’s shoulder and tags to Rhodes, who hits a knee drop. McIntyre brings Bourne down across his knee before applying a rear chin lock. McIntyre sends Bourne to the outside with a shoulder block. Drew puts on yet another rear chin lock but Bourne starts to fight out eventually. Drew tries for a suplex but Bourne counters and hits a knee to the face. Both guys make tags, with Henry steamrolling Rhodes and hit a gorilla press slam. Bourne tries to dive off Henry’s shoulders but McIntyre breaks it up. Bourne kicks Drew in the head but Rhodes hits Cross Rhodes for the win. A thrown together tag team wins the belts in a thrown together match that no one cared about. This match was boring and no better than Raw quality, plus it made the Harts look like complete jobbers. Match Time: 11:47     Star Rating: *1/2

7.    Six Pack Elimination Challenge for the WWE Championship: Sheamus(c) vs. John Cena vs. Chris Jericho vs. Edge vs. Wade Barrett vs. Randy Orton

This was a pretty good main event, and it saved the show from being a pretty weak overall PPV. Match breaks down into a wild brawl right at the bell. Jericho and Orton trade punches before Cena gets involved, hitting a bulldog to Jericho. Orton then suddenly strikes with an RKO to quickly eliminate Jericho. Not surprising considering Jericho is reportedly on his way out of WWE, but they sold it pretty well with the other 5 guys in shock and staring down Jericho as he walked up the ramp. Everyone then swarms Barrett, beating on him until Sheamus and Edge clothesline him to the outside. Cena and Orton are left alone for a second before Barrett comes back in, only to eat a double shoulder block from Sheamus and Edge. Another Cena/Orton standoff, with Orton trying for the RKO and Cena trying for the STF, but to no avail. Orton tries for the spike DDT and Cena tries for the Attitude Adjustment but both guys counter. Orton and Edge try to double suplex Cena but are pulled to the outside by Barrett. Sheamus tosses Orton into the barricade before beating on Cena in the ring. Sheamus tries to pull Cena off the top rope for the High Cross but Cena fights out. Sheamus goes for a super belly to back suplex but Cena fights him off. Cena tries for the diving Famouser but Edge pulls him down. Edge and Sheamus then hit a double superplex to Cena. Edge tries for a cover but Sheamus accidentally breaks it up. Sheamus and Edge send Barrett into a barricade on the outside before going to work on Orton. They pound away on Orton for a bit, with Sheamus getting a couple near falls.

Orton eventually makes a comeback but Sheamus hits him with a big clothesline. Barrett gets knocked off the apron with a shoulder block and is sent into the announce table. Edge and Sheamus stare each other down, with Edge trying for a spear but Sheamus hitting the uranage backbreaker. Sheamus tries for the bicycle kick but Edge ducks and hits a spear. Cena tries to hit the AA to Orton but Orton fights out and gets speared by Edge. Cena hits the AA to Edge to eliminate him. Cena and Barrett go at it, with both men countering each other’s finishers. Cena hits his series of moves with the crowd booing every second of it. He hits the Five Knuckle Shuffle and tries for the AA but Sheamus breaks it up. Cena puts the STF on Sheamus but Sheamus makes it to the ropes after a struggle. Nexus swarm the ringside area, distracting Cena and allowing Barrett to eliminate him after the Wasteland. Barrett stares down Orton as Nexus come up the apron. Cena whacks 2 of them with a chair and Orton hits the other 2 with RKOs. Orton hits Barrett with his signature backbreaker and eliminates him with an RKO. Sheamus hits the bicycle kick on Orton but Orton kicks out of the cover. Sheamus tries for the High Cross but Orton fights out and hits the RKO for the sudden victory. The crowd went nuts and the announcers played it up like this HUGE MOMENT but it really didn’t feel all that special. It would have been better booking wise to have Orton go over at the Hell in a Cell PPV because him winning here really messes up the build for that show on the Raw side. This main event lagged in the middle and wasn’t the greatest but it had enough fun elements to it to be at least a satisfying match. It was a good title match to end an okay to decent show. Match Time: 20:50     Star Rating: ***1/4

Overall PPV Rating: 6.75/10

My name is Jared Silberkleit. I am from Orange, CT and am a huge fan of pro wrestling. I mostly follow WWE and TNA but I also watch the smaller promotions such as ROH and DGUSA. I have been a lifelong WWE fan and have become a TNA fan over the past few years. Aside from wrestling, I also really love baseball and football and follow many other sports such as hockey and MMA. I have written for www.sportsgrumblings for two years.

1.    Smackdown Money in the Bank Ladder match: Kofi Kingston vs. Dolph Ziggler vs. Christian vs. Cody Rhodes vs. Matt Hardy vs. Drew McIntyre vs. Kane vs. Big Show

The show kicked off with a bang as the opener was Smackdown’s Money in the Bank Ladder match. This match was a bit better than expected and was a lot of fun to watch. Everyone gangs up on Kane and Big Show at the start but the big guys fend them off and have a stare down with a ladder in the ring. Show takes down Kane with a shoulder block and tries to climb the ladder, but one of the rungs breaks when he steps on it. Show fends off Christian, Ziggler, Kofi, Drew, and Hardy before tossing the ladder onto Kane outside the ring. Everyone goes after Show on the outside, sending him into the steps. A brawl ensues and McIntyre props a ladder up against the side of the ring, then catapults Christian into it. Drew slides the ladder into the ring, sets it up, and climbs, but Hardy throws another ladder against his back. Christian and Hardy prevent each other from getting the briefcase and fight to the outside. Christian and Ziggler fight atop a ladder with Ziggler getting hip tossed off the ladder and Hardy pushing it over, sending Christian to the mat. Christian hits the Killswitch to Rhodes before hitting a double DDT with Hardy to Kane. They sandwich Kane in some ladders before Christian sends Hardy into a ladder leaning against the bottom rope. Christian scales a ladder but Cody pushes it over and Christian flies out of the ring onto Big Show. In the ring, Kane eats a Trouble in Paradise from Kofi and a Twist of Fate from Hardy. Kofi climbs a ladder but Rhodes takes him down with a back suplex off the ladder. Hardy and Kofi climb but Drew pushes it over, sending both men into the ropes. Dolph stops McIntyre from reaching the briefcase, but McIntyre throws him out of the ring. Kane puls out McIntyre and tears apart the two announce tables. Kofi dropkicks a ladder into Kane’s face before beating up McIntyre on the outside. He lays him across the Spanish announce table, sets up a ladder, and hits a huge Boom Drop off the ladder through the table.

Ziggler tries for the briefcase but Show shoves over the ladder and chokeslams him. Hardy and Christian try to take down Show with a ladder, but Show puts them down and splashes the ladder that is now lying on top of the two. Show then introduces an enormous ladder (both in height and width) to the match and struggles to get it in the ring. Rhodes hits Show with a ladder and tries for the case but Ziggler takes him down. Show tries to climb the huge ladder as Kofi springboards onto the other side. Show tries to put him down but Kofi hits a huge DDT. Cody hits a Cross Rhodes to Kofi onto a ladder before Ziggler hits him with a Zig Zag as he started to climb. Show tries to climb but Kane pushes the ladder over, sending Show out of the ring. Chaos with a ton of people going up the ladder at once, and Kane starts chokeslamming people as Cody gets close. Kane tries to climb but Ziggler jumps on him with a sleeper. Everyone starts to throw ladders on top of Show, burying him under the pile. Kane tosses Dolph out, chokeslams Kofi onto the pile of ladders, and then chases Cody up the ramp. Kane sends Cody head first into the back of an armored car set up beside the ramp/stage area. Hardy and Christian double powerbomb Kane off a ladder before climbing it. They fight at the top for a bit but eventually both of them fall off into the ropes. Drew tries for the win but Kane chokeslams him off the ladder and unhooks the case for the win. The amount of time this match got was stunning, clocking in at nearly a half hour. A very good opener that was a bit too long at times but still a really strong match. Wasn’t thrilled with Kane winning but at least it made sense. Match Time: 26:25     Match Rating: 7.5/10

2.    Divas Championship: Alicia Fox(c) vs. Eve

This was a pretty by the books, humdrum Divas match. Fox and Eve lock up with Fox getting a takedown and keeping hold of the collar and elbow. Eve gets control with a side headlock and goes for some covers before hitting a dropkick. Eve tries for a tornado DDT but Alicia sends her to the mat. They fight on the outside with Eve getting slammed into the apron. Alicia goes for a quick cover in the ring but gets two. Fox is all over Eve, hitting a backbreaker and keeping Eve over her knee. Fox works the back with a submission but Eve hits a monkey flip. Eve hits a cross body and some dropkicks before connecting with a standing moonsault. Eve goes for a flipping senton off the top turnbuckle but Alicia gets the knees up and hits the Axe Kick for the win. Bland Divas match but they were put in a tough spot going on right after that opener. Match Time: 5:54     Match Rating: 3/10

3.    Unified Tag Team Championship: The Hart Dynasty(c) vs. The Usos

This was a solid tag match but it definitely could have used more time and ended up coming off like a Raw match. Smith hits a powerslam to Jay right away before Kidd hits Jay with an aided hurricanrana. Jimmy gets a tag and pounds away at Smith before hitting a double team move with his partner. Jimmy is still all over Smith but Smith hits a back body drop and tags in Kidd. Kidd hits a dropkick and a ton of kicks in the corner. The Usos get a near fall after a double team following a blind tag. Jimmy tries for a top rope splash but Kidd avoids it and tags in Smith. Smith hits a shoulder block to Jay and Tamina distracts him, but Natalya scoop slams her on the outside. Kidd does a suicide dive onto Jimmy and Smith makes Jay tap out to the sharpshooter for the win. Decent tag match that suffered from a dead crowd and lack of time. Match Time: 5:54     Match Rating: 5/10

4.    World Heavyweight Championship: Rey Mysterio(c) vs. Jack Swagger

This was a very good world title match that had really strong wrestling and brought back memories of Rey’s match with Kurt Angle back at SummerSlam 2002. Swagger and Rey lock up, with Swagger slamming Rey into the corner before Rey tries to come back with some kicks. Swagger gets a hold of Rey’s left ankle and tries for the Ankle Lock but Rey counters and teases the 619. Swagger hangs up Rey in the tree of woe and charges at him, but Rey sits up and Swagger goes into the post. Mysterio dives onto Swagger on the outside but once they get back in the ring Swagger hits a huge super belly to belly suplex. Swagger stomps at the Ankle before taking Rey to the outside and slamming him into the announce table. Swagger wrenches at the leg back in the ring, with Rey eventually retaliating with some kicks. Swagger hits a botched powerslam and attempts a Vader Bomb, but Rey avoids it and scores with a kick. Mysterio sends Swagger into the corner and hits a split legged moonsault once Swagger goes down. Swagger comes back with a wheelbarrow suplex and hits the gutwrench powerbomb, but Rey gets his foot on the bottom rope. Mysterio hits a big hurricanrana and goes up top. Swagger follows and tries for a super powerslam, but Mysterio counters with a crazy tornado DDT off the top for a near fall. Rey hits the 619 but Swagger blocks the seated senton and puts on the Ankle Lock. Rey makes it to the ropes but Swagger hits 2 Vader Bombs. Swagger goes for the Ankle Lock again but Rey loosens his boot (in a nod to Eddie Guerrero vs. Kurt Angle from Wrestlemania 20) and the shoe comes off. He then rolls up Swagger to retain the title. Very good world title match, only issue was the lack of proper time for this sort of match. Match Time: 10:44     Match Rating: 7/10

After the bell, Swagger attacked Rey, but Kane made the save, chasing Swagger to the back. Kane’s music then hit, and he returned with a referee and his newly won briefcase. This led to…..

5.    World Heavyweight Championship: Rey Mysterio(c) vs. Kane

So Kane cashes in his briefcase the night of, and here we go. Kane goes after the ankle and slams it into the canvas, then hits a chokeslam and a tombstone to win the world title. I guess this means we will get Kane vs. Undertaker for the title at SummerSlam. I’m not thrilled about Kane but at least this sort of made sense. Match Time: 0:54     Match Rating: N/A

6.    Women’s Championship: Layla(c) vs. Kelly Kelly

And here we go with our second women’s match of the night. The first was tolerable, this was not. They lock up before Kelly hits a Thesz press and slams Layla into the corner a bunch of times. Layla fights off a handspring splash but Kelly kicks her to the outside. Layla kicks away at Kelly’s leg before hitting a baseball slide that sends Kelly to the outside. Kelly knocks Michelle McCool off the barricade and hits a double shoulder block on her with Tiffany. Kelly hits the K2 to Layla but Layla gets her foot on the ropes. Kelly tries for a roll up but Layla sits down with one of her own for the one. This was a piece of crap and a waste of time. Match Time: 3:59     Match Rating: 2/10

7.    Raw Money in the Bank Ladder match: Randy Orton vs. The Miz vs. Mark Henry vs. Ted DiBiase vs. John Morrison vs. Chris Jericho vs. Evan Bourne vs. Edge

This was a great ladder match and managed to outdo the opener. This was better paced and had better spots throughout. Edge slides a ladder into the ring as he comes down to the ring, but most people go after Henry once the bell rings. Henry eats a corner clothesline from Miz and a dropkick from Bourne. Edge tries to climb the ladder but Orton yanks him down and pulls him to the outside where he goes to work on him. Morrison hits a kick to DiBiase but DiBiase clotheslines him, resulting in Morrison landing on a ladder. DiBiase hits Orton with a ladder but Bourne dropkicks it into his chest. Miz and Jericho go at it in the ring before Henry throws a ladder into them. Henry then hits a stunning leaping body guillotine to Miz, who was hung up in the ropes. Bourne tries to climb a ladder but stops to dropkick Jericho. He resumes climbing but drops down to hit a hurricanrana to Edge, sending him to the outside. Orton comes in and hits the spike DDT to Bourne, hanging Bourne’s feet on the rungs. Miz and DiBiase then go to work on Morrison, but Morrison sends both men into a ladder in the corner, hitting a flapjack to Miz and a drop toehold to DiBiase. Morrison, Edge, Jericho, and Orton fight separately atop two ladders but Henry shoves both of them over, only to be met with the diving knees from Bourne. In a comedy spot, Maryse climbs a ladder in the ring after checking on DiBiase. Morrison pulls her down and tells her to leave as Ted tries to sneak up the ladder. Morrison and DiBiase fight and spill to the outside, with Miz slamming Morrison into the barricade and catapulting Morrison into a ladder propped up against the ring post.

Morrison lands on his feet and uses another ladder to swing over to the ladder Edge is on in the middle of the ring. Morrison gets trapped horizontally inside the ladder, with Miz and Edge sliding another ladder through the rungs and slamming it onto Morrison. Edge turns on Miz and pushes the ladder over, sending Morrison into the corner. DiBiase goes for the case but stops to attempt a dive on Henry. Henry catches him and puts him down with a World’s Strongest Slam. On the outside, Henry gets hit with a Codebreaker from Jericho and a spear from Edge. A strange structure of ladders (one ladder leaning against an opened upside down ladder against a normal ladder) is then ascended by Miz, Morrison, Jericho, and Orton. DiBiase pulls down Miz, who falls face first into another propped up ladder. DiBiase falls on that flat ladder, which Edge and Orton then slide out of the ring with DiBiase on it. Orton hits Edge with an RKO but just as he hits the mat, Bourne hits him with a Shooting Star press. Bourne and Jericho fight atop the ladder, with Jericho hitting Bourne in the face with the briefcase and sending him to the mat. Jericho and Edge then trade punches at the top, and Edge gets the upper hand, knocking Jericho down. On Jericho’s way down, Orton strikes with a crazy mid air RKO. Orton then climbs the ladder and sends Edge into the upside down ladder. Miz pushes over the ladder Orton is on, rights it, then climbs up to unhook the case and win the match. They really put over Miz here and made it seem like a huge moment. He was very emotional and cut a nice promo after winning. Another lengthy Money in the Bank match that delivered and was flat out awesome (no pun intended!). Match Time: 20:34     Match Rating: 8/10

8.    Steel Cage match for the WWE Championship: Sheamus(c) vs. John Cena

This was a pretty average, solid main event from these two but was completely overshadowed by the other world title match and the ladder matches which preceded it. The cage was seemingly there to prevent this from happening but that only helps when the cage is actually used throughout the match. Sheamus tries to send Cena into the cage in the opening minute but Cena blocks and they lock up. Sheamus takes down Cena and goes to work in the corner. Cena comes back with a clothesline but Sheamus sends him face first into the cage. Cena comes back with some punches but Sheamus hits a huge running knee to the head. Cena ends up against the cage and Sheamus grinds his face against the wall. Sheamus with a knee drop but Cena hits a suplex out of nowhere. They trade punches before Cena hits a flying shoulder block, but flies into the cage when he attempts a second one. Sheamus hits a reverse DDT backbreaker and tries for an escape but Cena stops him. They fight on the top rope and slide over into the corner, where Sheamus hits a superplex. Cena tries for the Attitude Adjustment but Sheamus counters and hits a DDT. He hits some clubbing blows for near falls before locking in a sleeper. Sheamus puts on a body scissors to complement the sleeper, but Cena is able to get to his feet and starts to climb the turnbuckles with Sheamus on his back, but Sheamus drops down and crotches Cena in the corner. Sheamus tries to climb out but Cena pulls him down just as Sheamus starts to go over the top.

Cena hits his shoulder blocks, the spin out powerbomb, and the Five Knuckle Shuffle, but when he tries for the AA, Sheamus grabs the cage and tries to escape. Cena stops him and they fight on the top rope, with Cena slamming Sheamus into the cage. Sheamus falls to the mat and Cena tries for a top rope Five Knuckle Shuffle, but Sheamus avoids it. Sheamus ties Cena up in the ropes and tries to escape, but Cena breaks free and they fight on the top rope yet again, culminating with Cena hitting a bulldog off the top turnbuckle. Sheamus counters the AA again and hits the uranage backbreaker. Sheamus hits the bicycle kick for a near fall, followed soon after by Cena hitting the AA for two. The Nexus then come down the ramp, with Tarver holding bolt cutters. A referee nabs the bolt cutters and runs to the back with them. Nexus then demand one of the refs hand over the key to the cage, but the ref throws it into the audience. Back in the ring, Sheamus shoves Cena into the ref, who goes down as the Nexus corner the outside referee. Cena makes Sheamus tap to the STF but there’s no ref to see it. Cena tries to escape but the Nexus start to climb the side of the cage. Justin Gabriel fights with Cena at the top but Cena shoves him off the top of the cage into the ring. As Cena is held up by all the Nexus, Sheamus attempts an escape on the other side. Heath Slater tries to stop Sheamus but Sheamus fends him off and gets to the floor first to retain the title. After the match Sheamus hightailed it, and Cena threw Darren Young into the side of the cage before tossing the ring steps into Michael Tarver’s face. Cena takes Tarver’s arm band with him as he walks up the ramp to end the show. Good main event but it wasn’t that special at all. Fine storyline progression with the Nexus and it will be interesting to see where they go from here. We could be headed for a blow off at SummerSlam but it’s unclear at this point. Match Time: 23:07     Match Rating: 6.5/10

Overall PPV Rating: 8/10

My name is Jared Silberkleit. I am from Orange, CT and am a huge fan of pro wrestling. I mostly follow WWE and TNA but I also watch the smaller promotions such as ROH and DGUSA. I have been a lifelong WWE fan and have become a TNA fan over the past few years. Aside from wrestling, I also really love baseball and football and follow many other sports such as hockey and MMA. I have written for www.sportsgrumblings for two years.

In-ring segment:

It seemed as if the show was going to start off with the Triple H vs. Sheamus Street Fight, but the two got into a brawl backstage with Sheamus getting the upper hand and laying Triple H out. This would be the start to an angle throughout the PPV where it was uncertain whether or not Triple H would be able to compete. After this, ShoMiz came out to cut a promo about how they were the best tag team ever. Teddy Long then came out and, after much dragged out bickering with The Miz, made an impromptu Gauntlet match pitting ShoMiz against up to four tag teams. The first team to beat ShoMiz would receive a tag title shot the next night on Raw. This segment was far too long and definitely could have been left off the PPV, but it was originally scheduled for last Monday’s Raw, when most of the Raw roster and crew were stuck in Europe.

1.    Tag Team Gauntlet match:

The first team to come out and face ShoMiz was John Morrison and R-Truth. Miz beats on Morrison for a bit before Morrison hits an arm drag, tags in R-Truth, and helps his partner hit a double hip toss to Miz. Big Show gets the tag and launches R-Truth across the ring before hitting a huge chop. Miz is then tagged in and hits a running kick to the face for a near fall before putting on a rear chin lock. R-Truth fights out of the hold and hits a heel kick, and both men tag in their partners. Morrison hits a dropkick before both men fight in the corner. Morrison puts on a triangle choke, holding onto Show while both men are against the ropes. The ref counts to five and Morrison and Truth have been DQ’d. Yes the first match on a PPV called Extreme Rules ended in a DQ. The next team out was MVP and Mark Henry. They try for a quick pin on the fallen Big Show, but Big Show kicks out and tags in Miz. Henry beats on Miz before MVP gets in there, hits a big knee, and the Ballin’ Elbow. Show big boots Henry but MVP sends him to the outside. MVP hits the Playmaker on Miz, but Big Show hits the Knockout punch to MVP from the outside and Miz gets the 3 count. The Hart Dynasty enters next and quickly hit the Hart Attack on Miz to win the title shot. This whole segment was supposed to be on TV and I can see why. Not a good way to start off the show. Match Time: 5:23 (Bell to bell action for all 3 matches combined)     Match Rating: 3/10 (For all 3 as a whole)

2.    CM Punk vs. Rey Mysterio

The stipulation was that if CM Punk lost, his head would be shaved bald. This was a very good match between these two and ended up being far more satisfying than their Mania encounter because of how much more time they were given at this PPV. Punk kicks Rey in the stomach before going to work on him in the corner with a ton of kicks. Punk hits a big forearm but Rey comes back with a dropkick and some more strikes before Punk sends him to the outside. Both men are at ringside where Rey hits a headscissors sending Punk into the ring apron. Back in the ring Rey tries for the 619 but Punk counters with a Go to Sleep attempt. Rey avoids the GTS but Punk slams him down to the mat for a near fall. Punk distracts the ref, allowing Serena to kick Rey in the gut. Punk brings Mysterio to the outside again where he continues to kick away at him before throwing him back into the ring and hitting a slingshot senton for a two count. Punk chokes Mysterio with his legs but Rey fights out. Rey rolls through a sunset flip attempt and kicks Punk in the head. Punk beats on Rey in the ropes before Luke Gallows gets a cheap shot. Punk hits a backbreaker before putting on the bow and arrow hold. Mysterio counters it into a pin attempt but Punk kicks out, kicks Rey, and hits several leg drops in a row followed up by an unsuccessful pin attempt. Punk then puts Rey in the Gory Special, which is countered by Rey with an arm drag. Punk tries for the hold again but Mysterio counters it with a pin attempt. Mysterio hits a hurricanrana sending Punk into the second turnbuckle before he kicks Punk off and goes up top, only for Punk to knock him off. After a Serena distraction, the ref ejects both her and Gallows from ringside. Punk is upset and Rey takes advantage by hitting a baseball slide and an Asai moonsault to the outside. Rey rolls Punk back in the ring and hits a springboard seated senton but Punk kicks out at two. Mysterio tries for a springboard cross body but Punk counters with a mid-air dropkick for another near fall. Punk hits a diving clothesline and some forearm strikes, but Rey counters a GTS attempt with a roll-up for a near fall. Punk hits a huge kick but Rey kicks out of the pin attempt. Punk charges Rey in the corner, misses, and Mysterio hits a hurricanrana and a 619. All of a sudden, someone in a hoody appears at ringside and slides a chair into the ring. While the ref is removing the chair, Rey goes to the outside where the hooded man, possibly Joey Mercury or Low Ki (aka Senshi from TNA or Kaval, his current name in WWE developmental), hits a reverse powerbomb to him. Punk rolls Mysterio back into the ring and finally hits the GTS for the win. Very happy that Punk won and a very, very good match between these two. WWE finally gave these guys the time they needed. Match Time: 15:59     Match Rating: 7.5/10

3.    Strap match: Shad Gaspard vs. JTG

This was a decent strap match between the former Cryme Tyme partners but far too short. They didn’tJTG hits a few punches to start things off, but Shad hits a big blow and touches 3 turnbuckles in succession. JTG prevents Shad from touching the fourth by whipping him with the strap. JTG continues to whip Shad with the belt before Shad sends him to the outside. JTG holds Shad back, hanging him up against the ropes from the outside before returning to the ring. JTG touches 3 turnbuckles but Shad prevents him from touching the fourth before going outside the ring. Shad uses the strap to pull JTG into the ring post and whips him with the strap several times. Back in the ring Shad chokes JTG with the strap before touching 3 turnbuckles in succession. What he doesn’t know is that JTG had touched all 3 as well. JTG suddenly hits the box-cutter and touches the 4^th turnbuckle to win the match. It was going along fine but it ended too early. Match Time: 4:42     Match Rating: 4/10

4.    Extreme Rules match for the World Heavyweight Championship: Jack Swagger(c) vs. Randy Orton

While this match was not quite as “extreme” as many people would have hoped for, it still had its spots and featured some very solid wrestling. Swagger proved himself as a more than capable main eventer within this match and worked well with Orton. They told a good story with Swagger wanting to keep the match in the ring and Orton being the one to use the weapons and be more in control when the action spilled to the outside. Swagger uses his mat wrestling early on with single-leg takedowns and rolling Orton around the ring for a bit with a waist lock. Orton gets up but Swagger sends him into the corner and buries his shoulder into Orton’s midsection. Swagger goes outside and grabs a chair but Orton kicks it away. Swagger rolls back in the ring and tries for a quick kick on Orton, but Orton sees it coming and retreats, causing Swagger to roll right back out  as well. Swagger hits a huge Northern Lights suplex on the outside before sending Orton into the barricade and the ring apron. Swagger tries for a pin in the ring but Orton kicks out, and Swagger pounds on Orton before putting his boot to Orton’s throat. Swagger hits a suplex and brings Orton right back up. Orton hits a few punches but Swagger hits a belly to belly suplex. Swagger stomps on Orton before hitting another suplex and a belly to belly slam. Swagger charges Orton in the corner but Orton comes back with some quick offense. Swagger regains the advantage, goes outside the ring, and grabs his title belt. Swagger tries to use the belt but Orton responds with a series of uppercuts. Swagger hits a couple slams to Orton but when he tries for a Vader Bomb Orton gets the belt and hits Swagger in the gut with it. Orton hits a few clotheslines and powerslam for a near fall before Swagger rolls onto the ring apron. Orton tries for the spike DDT but Swagger suplexes him out of the ring to the floor. Swagger goes to the outside and grabs a trash can, but Orton takes it away and hits Swagger in the face with it twice. Orton stomps on Swagger back in the ring but misses a knee drop, Swagger rolls to the outside and grabs a chair, but when he tries to reenter the ring Orton hits the spike DDT. Orton sets up the chair and tries to RKO Swagger on it, but Swagger counters and throws Orton back first onto the chair. Swagger then hits the gutwrench powerbomb for the win. Pretty good, enjoyable title match. Match Time: 14:02     Match Rating: 6.5/10

5.    Street Fight: Sheamus vs. Triple H

Triple H storms out of the locker room and it looks like we are going to get this match after all. This match definitely had pacing issues but it told a good story with Triple H selling the neck/arm and Sheamus was really put over well. Sheamus tries to hit Triple H with the pipe but Triple H ducks and lands a ton of punches before clotheslining Sheamus over the top rope to the outside. Triple H jumps Sheamus from behind, slams his head into the announce table, and slams him into the ring barricade multiple times. He puts Sheamus back in the ring and hits a spinebuster, but can’t do the Pedigree due to the injured left arm and Sheamus hits a back body drop. The action again moves to the outside where Sheamus alternates between slamming Triple H into the ring barricade and pounding away at him. Sheamus is all over Triple H with punches back in the ring and gets a near fall. Sheamus continues the assault with a couple knee drops and more strikes before putting on a submission targeting Triple H’s neck and arm. Sheamus transitions to a sleeper as Triple H fights out with a back suplex. Triple H bails to the outside and Sheamus follows, hitting a neckbreaker. The fight moves back into the ring where Sheamus goes shoulder first into the ring post and Triple H hits a DDT, hurting himself in the process. Sheamus hits a urange before going right back to pounding away at Triple H with punches. Sheamus hits a powerslam but Triple H kicks out of repeated pin attempts. Sheamus goes to the outside, grabs the steel pipe, and returns to the ring. Triple H knocks the pipe away and hits a big knee, but Sheamus catches a charging Triple H with the pipe for a near fall. Triple H backdrops Sheamus over the top rope and leaves the ring but Sheamus is able to get a kendo stick. Triple H sidesteps a charging Sheamus and sends him into the steps before wailing away at Sheamus with the kendo stick, causing Sheamus to retreat up the ramp. Triple H tries for the Pedigree but Sheamus backdrops him onto the ramp. Sheamus throws Triple H back into the ring and hits a bicycle kick. The ref checks on Triple H and Triple H shoves him away and does the suck it taunt, but Sheamus hits 2 more bicycle kicks consecutively to win the match. Triple H tried to walk out on his own but Sheamus appeared on the stage and delivered another kick, resulting in Triple H having to be carted out on a stretcher. This was a solid match between these two but I found their Mania match to be better paced and more entertaining. Match Time: 15:51     Match Rating: 6/10

6.    Extreme Makeover match for the Women’s Championship: Michelle McCool(c) vs. Beth Phoenix

This match was set up similar to the Jeff Jarrett/Chyna Good Housekeeping match from No Mercy 1999. This was a pretty entertaining match and certainly much better than what we usually see from the Divas, but as is the case with most women’s matches this was very, very short. The girls lock up before Beth breaks, hits a few uppercuts, tries for a roll-up, and hits a second rope clothesline. Michelle goes to the outside while Layla and Vickie distract Beth. Michelle capitalizes by spraying Beth in the eyes with hairspray. Michelle attacks Beth with an ironing board in the ring before putting on a body scissors. Michelle gets an iron but Beth gets a roll-up for two. Michelle regains the advantage and dropkicks the ironing board into Beth in the corner. Michelle takes out another ironing board but Beth hits a dropkick. Layla and Vickie hold back Beth on the outside, but Beth moves and Michelle accidentally sprays Layla and Vickie with some hairspray. Beth slams Michelle into a table before sending her back into the ring. Beth hits Michelle with a bucket and sets up the ironing boards side by side. Beth tries for a superplex but Michelle counters and sends Beth backfirst into the ironing boards. Michelle tries for the Faith Breaker but Beth hits the Glam Slam to win the title. Fun but brief women’s match. Match Time: 6:37     Match Rating: 5/10

7.    Steel Cage match: Edge vs. Chris Jericho

These guys once again delivered a great match on PPV, and this was also WWE’s best cage match in several years. Great storytelling and great usage of the cage throughout made for a very enjoyable match. Jericho hesitates to enter the cage in the beginning and grabs a steel chair, hitting the cage with it. Edge hits a baseball slide to Jericho, slams him into the ring barricade, throws him in the ring, and slams the door shut. The chair was dropped and left at the floor just beside the door. Jericho tries for a quick escape but Edge pulls him down and beats on him in the corner. Edge slingshots Jericho, but Jericho springs up on to the ropes and scales the cage again. Edge again stops Jericho in his tracks and slams him from the top turnbuckle. Edge sends Jericho face first into the cage before choking him against the ropes. Edge tries for a spear but Jericho moves and Edge goes right into the cage. Jericho hits a slingshot dropkick and sandwiches Edge against the cage wall. Jericho slingshots Edge into the bottom rope, hits a side suplex for a near fall, then puts on a chin lock. Edge fights out of the hold and backdrops Jericho into the cage. Edge hits a few clotheslines, a flapjack, and a facebuster but Jericho kicks out of the pin attempt. Jericho comes back with a kick and a one handed bulldog before trying for a Lionsault, but he lands on his feet and tries for another escape. Edge pulls Jericho down onto the top rope but Jericho grabs Edge’s legs and takes him down to the mat right into the Walls of Jericho. Edge can’t get a break when he makes it to the ropes, but does use them to crawl up and send Jericho into the cage. Edge tries for an impaler but Jericho counters and tries for the Walls. Edge fights out, big boots Jericho, and then gets set for the spear. Jericho tries to crawl out through the door and grabs the chair. Edge gets the chair and tosses it in the ring but Jericho slams the door in Edge’s face. Jericho walks out onto the steps, but then turns around and heads back into the ring, wanting to deal out more punishment. Jericho tries to hit Edge with the chair but Edge hits a spear for a close two count. Jericho climbs to the top of the cage but Edge drags him back inside. They fight on the top rope with Edge crotching himself and Jericho going over the top of the cage again. Edge reaches through the cage at the top, grabs Jericho by the arm, and pulls him back to the top of the cage. The two straddle the cage and trade punches before Jericho climbs down onto the top rope and slams Edge’s leg against the cage. Edge is on the ropes and knocks Jericho to the mat, but Jericho hits a crazy springboard Codebreaker and crawls over for a pin attempt. Edge kicks out and Jericho tells Edge to stay down, continuing to go after the injured leg. Edge comes back with some strikes before sending Jericho into multiple sides of the cage. Jericho tries to escape yet again but Edge pulls him down and slams him into the cage repeatedly. Edge watches as Jericho tries to crawl to the door but Edge kicks him in the ribs and starts assaulting Jericho’s ankle, slamming it into the cage door. Edge tortures Jericho by wrenching and twisting his ankle and stomping it multiple times. Edge lets Jericho get up and hits a big spear for the victory. There was great storytelling throughout this match and a fitting conclusion to this feud with Edge getting his revenge. I enjoyed this a bit more than their Wrestlemania match due to the cage and longer length. Match Time: 20:00     Match Rating: 8/10

8.    Last Man Standing match for the WWE Championship: John Cena(c) vs. Batista

Anyone disappointed in the lack of “extreme-ness” in the undercard matches will be quite satisfied with the PPV’s main event. This match was just pure carnage, an awesome spectacle from start to finish. Cena and Batista lock up, followed by Cena ducking a punch and hitting a shoulder block. Batista goes to the outside and grabs a chair, but once he gets in the ring Cena slams Batista’s head into the turnbuckle and hits a bulldog followed up by a fisherman’s suplex, resulting in Batista being down for a 4 count. Batista is up and hits a huge clothesline, leaving Cena down for 5. Batista hits a big boot for a 3 count and counters an Attitude Adjustment attempt by sending Cena into the ring post. Batista works over Cena’s leg for a bit, slamming it into the ring apron and driving a chair into it. He slams down on Cena’s leg before hitting another big clothesline. Cena gets up at 6 but Batista goes back to the knee and hits a suplex. Cena gets up at 7 before rolling to the outside, where Batista squeezes Cena’s head against the apron. Batista goes to the outside but Cena lands a punch and sends Batista into the steps. Both guys get back in the ring where Batista puts on a Figure Four. Cena tries to break it but eventually rolls onto his stomach to reverse the pressure. Batista breaks and both guys are down for a 6 count before getting up and clotheslining each other. Cena hits a shoulder block, spin out powerbomb, and the Five Knuckle Shuffle, but Batista rolls to the outside and blasts Cena with a wrench from under the ring. Batista tosses a chair into the ring and throws Cena in, but Cena hits an AA out of nowhere onto the chair. Batista gets up at 9 as Cena goes up top, but Batista sends the ref into the ropes, causing Cena to crotch himself. Batista hits a spear and Cena gets up at 8. Batista hits another spear but Cena is again up at 8. Batista goes outside and grabs a table, sliding it in the ring and setting it up in the corner. Cena tries to put on the STF, but Batista kicks him off, right through the table. Cena gets to the outside at 7 but Batista slams him into the ring post. Batista picks Cena up at 7 and whips him hard through the barricade into the timekeeper’s area. Cena is up at 9 as Batista tears apart the announce table and sets up the steps adjacent to the table. Batista climbs the steps and sets up Cena for the Batista Bomb, but Cena counters with an AA to Batista through the table. Batista shockingly gets up just before the 10 count. Cena grabs another table from under the ring and slides it in before bringing Batista back into the ring. Cena tries for an AA but Batista fights out and hits a spinebuster to Cena through the table. Both guys are down, with Batista getting up at 6 and Cena at 9. An enraged Batista then hits a Batista Bomb, but Cena again gets up at 9. Cena gets the steps and slides them into the ring before putting Batista in the STF. Batista taps out, and then passes out, leading Cena to break the hold. The ref counts but Batista makes it to his feet at 9. Cena then pulls Batista backwards, crotching him against the ring post, before pulling out duct tape from under the ring (you read that right). Cena tapes Batista’s legs together, keeping him stuck to the post and unable to get up. The ref counts the 10 and Cena wins. The ending was a little weird but the rest of the match was so incredible that I can forgive them for the cheesy finish. I also commend WWE for finally giving these guys 20-25 minutes to put on a truly great match and also for having a PPV run right down to the final minute for a change. Match Time: 24:35     Match Rating: 8.5/10

Overall PPV Rating: 8/10

My name is Jared Silberkleit. I am from Orange, CT and am a huge fan of pro wrestling. I mostly follow WWE and TNA but I also watch the smaller promotions such as ROH and DGUSA. I have been a lifelong WWE fan and have become a TNA fan over the past few years. Aside from wrestling, I also really love baseball and football and follow many other sports such as hockey and MMA. I have written for www.sportsgrumblings.com for over a year now.