Well, some people have been waiting for this, so here it is, my review of WWE's last pay per view: Cyber Sunday. For me, it was more special than the others. Why you ask, well, I was there, live. I love going to wrestling events live, it makes it more fun to watch. The atmosphere is awesome, at any type of wrestling event. In my opinion, that electric atmosphere is more prominent at wrestling events than any other kind of sporting event out there. I've been to baseball, football, basketball, and even soccer events, and the atmosphere doesn't even come close to a wrestling event of any kind. Anyway, I'm rambling on, so lets get on with the review, shall we?:
BTW, I wore my JBL shirt, which pisses a lot of 'marks' off lol...
I went with my brother, who's a huge fan as well. Finding parking was really crappy, as it always is in downtown Washington D.C.. I think it took about 10-15 minutes before actually finding a spot. Once we did, we raced to the Verizon Center, and got inside pretty quickly. I was actually surprised that we did. All the lines were filled up, food/drink, merchendise, etc... A reminder to everyone, I would eat before you go to a wrestling event, that way, you don't have to worry about standing in those long lines just to get a damn hot dog lol.. Also, in most places I've been to, the prices are really expensive. So, once we got into the building, we headed for our seats. Our seats were awesome, they were almost on the floor, straight across from the titan tron. We sat down, and waited for the show to start. Unlike most WWE events I've been to, there wasn't many Ric Flair 'Woooo' chants. Anyway, about 5 mins after we got to our seats, the ring announcer Justin Roberts (IMO, not that good), announced that we were going to see a bonus match. I got excited, because usually bonus matches are good. However, that was not the case:
Bonus Match
Duece and Domino vs. Jesse and Festus
In my opinion, this match had the potential to be a decent tag team brawl type match. However, it was not like that at all. This match only last like a minute and a half, almost 2 minutes. I'm sorry, but that's extremely too short for a tag match. Jesse tagged out, and Festus came in. Once that happened, he crushed both Duece and Domino, and then he tagged out. Once that happened, they did their double team move, where he throws Jesse onto the opponent. Then, that was it, the match was over. Not a good match at all, and if it did do something, then I guess it got the crowd ready for the show:
Match Rating: 1/2*
The pay per view started, and we were underway. The ring crew were bringing out a stretcher, and a shellagh (can't spell it) on a pole, so that gave away that Mysterio and Finlay were up first. The fans voted for a Stretcher match (which I liked), and so here we go, the 'first' match of the night:
Rey Mysterio vs. Finlay (Stretcher Match)
This was a pretty good opening match. Even though some people have said otherwise, I personally thought both men have equal offense, throughout the match. I guess maybe Finlay dominated a bit more, but that's what most wrestlers do when they face Mysterio, seeing as how he's really small. There were a few nice spots, especially Mysterio's senton onto Finlay, who was on the stretcher. A funny part in the match was when a camera cord got caught on one of the stretcher wheels. When that happened, and the stretcher jerked, people laughed. As a matter of fact, that bit is on Botchmania 30, which is a popular thing for wrestling fans on youtube. Check it out if you have a chance. Anyway, Mysterio won, with a sudden ending, which I actually liked, because it was out of nowhere:
Match Rating: **3/4
Then, the round of WWE Divas in their Halloween Costumes started. I'm just going to review this now, so I would have to keep repeating when they came on. Victoria's was funny, Mickies was good, Jillian's was extremely funny, and Melina's was good. The rest weren't good at all, and Kelly's and Torrie's were the worst of them all. Then, the ECW title match was next, and the Miz was voted as Punk's opponent. Yeah, I'm not making it up. I was like 'WTF?':
CM Punk vs. The Miz (ECW World Title)
This was a better match than I thought it would be, honestly. Miz isn't that great at all, but with Punk in there, it made Miz look a little better, and to be quite honest, Miz has improved since starting in WWE, but of course, that's just my opinion. Anyway, there were a few botches in this match, which was really noticeable, but I won't harp on this too much, because they just happen, even with the grestest wrestlers. I heard someone say that they saw Miz actually talking during the match, which is what most wrestlers do to communicate, but most hide it very well. If that's the case (I didn't see it, because I was there lol..), then he really needs to work on that. CM Punk beats Miz with his GTS finisher:
Match Rating: **
After that match, they showed that HBK was voted to be Orton's opponent later that night for the WWE title. Which, apparently meant that Kennedy and Hardy were going to fight. Yay, another bonus match lol..., even though I had a feeling beforehand that something like that would happen.
Mr. Kennedy vs. Jeff Hardy
I can't really rate this match to be honest, and here's why:
Whenever my brother and I go to WWE pay per views, we have to buy the event shirts. So, we decided to go during a match that we didn't care for, and to be honest, it was the Kennedy/Hardy match. Don't get me wrong, Kennedy is one of my favorites, and even though I don't care for Hardy, there are much worse than him, and he can occasionally put on great matches. The reason I'm saying that I didn't care for it, is because I've seen it enough times already. I believe they've already faced each other on Raw, twice. Anyway, back to the story:
We went out to get our shirts, and maybe a soda. Then, all of a sudden, we see a small group of people. Usually, that means something is going on. Apparently, Ron Simmons was walking around out there, and shaking people's hands, and having pictures taken. I always love meeting wrestlers, no matter who it is. My brother and I were shocked, to say the least, because he's Ron Simmons, a famous wrestler, just walking around the arena. So anyway, long story short, we both got to meet Ron, and shake his hand (by the way, he's really huge in person). I had my brother take a picture of me with him. He loved my JBL shirt, or at least, I think he did, and I asked him if JBL and him were still friends. He said, 'Oh yeah, me and him are best friends.' Of course, there were more things I wanted to ask, but he was busy, and usually when I meet wrestlers, I get tongue-tied. Honestly, that pisses me off, because I would like to talk to some of these wrestlers, normally. Once he left, we got our shirts, and a coke. My brother then said, "aren't you glad we went to get them during that match?" I went, "Hell yeah, that was awesome." While I was buying my shirt, Kennedy's music played, so I assumed he won, which he did. Don't worry, I saw a bit of the match on the DVD I recorded at home. Unfortunately, the DVD clock at my home was an hour behind, so I missed almost an hour of the PPV, including half of the Kennedy/Hardy match. So, I'm basing my rating on what others have said, and from the bit that I saw:
Match Rating: **3/4
After that match, Mick Foley was supposed to have a promo, but it was interrupted by JBL, who once again, proved he was funny. He said his video was going to be 'fair and balanced', which was funny because it was a spoof off of the Fox News Channel's slogan, which isn't true, but that's another story, for another blog. Then, that clip that was basically a campaign video for JBL that was shown on Smackdown was shown again. It was really funny to, even though I've already seen it. Then, after that Mick Foley did a pretty decent rebuttal to JBL.
After that, MVP's match was coming up next. Earlier in the night, it was shown that Matt Hardy can't compete tonight, because of an injury he suffered on Smackdown. I remember him being busted open on Smackdown, but I never thought it was that bad. When they showed him that night, talking with MVP, he looked like he was completely messed up. I don't know if was just make up by the WWE make-up artists, but if it was, they did a great job making Matt looked like he was really screwed up. Then, he said MVP was going to defend the US title against either Kane, Mark Henry, or Great Khali. MVP, of course, was pissed, and left. So, now we found out that Kane was voted to face MVP. However, I'm wondering if people were actually voting on WWE.com, while watching the PPV. This might have been rigged, because it was really last minute, but I guess we'll never know:
Kane vs. MVP (United States title)
Honestly, this match could've been a lot better. However, there were moments when momentum was being built, but then it was stopped dead cold in it's tracks. It had a count out finish, which wasn't good for this match. Kane won by count out, due to MVP not wanting to use full strength to get back into the ring. I agree with most people, this was the worst match of the night, on the pay per view, because in my opinion, the bonus match was a lot worse than this one:
Match Rating: *3/4
Randy Orton vs. Shawn Michaels (WWE Championship)
I was surprised that this was before the HHH match, of course, I'm sure some other aren't lol... Anyway, this match was really good, despite the crappy ending, even though my section loved the ending, and my brother marked out for Orton (just to be funny). HBK was working on Orton's arm most of the match, which really isn't like HBK, especially at this point in his career. There was also a couple of good spots in the match, like Orton's back suplex to HBK on the black guard rail outside the ring. HBK won the match, due to Orton blantantly low blowing HBK. Once again, this was a very good match, and the ending shouldn't take that away from it:
Match Rating: ***1/2
After the match, Orton tried to kick HBK in the head, but HBK jumped up, and Superkicked him. I saw Shawn perk his head up a bit, and look towards Orton, waiting for the spot. I thought that was kind of funny.
After the match, the results for the HHH/Umaga match were displayed. A Street Fight got the most votes. Most fans in the arena, including my brother and I, were shocked. When I came into the arena, I saw the Steel Cage hanging above the ring. It was awesome, because I've never seen a Steel Cage match in person, and here was my chance to see one, and others as well who haven't. I will never understand why people wanted a Street Fight more than a Steel Cage, and if someone can explain why, then I would love to hear it:
Triple H vs. Umaga (Street Fight)
Like the last match, this was a very good match. There was lots of brawling, even through the crowd. They didn't stay in the crowd too long, which was good, because honestly, if you're going to do a crowd brawl, you don't want to make it too long, unless there's a point to it to making it long, or unless there's going to be a very good spot. Almost near the beginning of the match, there was a nice spot where HHH dove at Umaga, and both went through part of the Cyber Sunday titan tron. I thought that was cool, especially from my vantage point, because you couldn't see either of them. Throughout the match, there was lots of nice brawling, with both men having equal offense, in my opinion, and a great spot with Umaga splashing HHH through a table. HHH won with a sledgehammer to the face, and then a Pedigree, which made Umaga look strong.
Match Rating: ***3/4
Then, after that match, it was time to find out who was going to be the special guest referee for the Taker/Batista match (either Austin, JBL, or Foley). When Grisham was about to announce who it was going to be, JBL interrupted. Once again, JBL cut a great promo, and while he was doing his 'wrestling god' saying, Foley's music hit. To my surprised, Foley barely got a reaction at all. He came out, and started arguing with JBL, without a mic, so no one could hear it. The results were announced, and Stone Cold won by a landslide. JBL was pissed off, and attacked Foley viscously. My brother and I marked out, because we're both huge fans of JBL. Then, Stone Cold's music hit, and the place came apart. I was still excited to see Stone Cold, because he's one of my favorites, and this was the first time I ever saw him live, in person. He came out, and stunned Foley, to no one's surprise. Then, something shocking happened:
JBL gave Stone Cold the Clothesline From Hell!!!!
Why was I shocked? Simple, I knew JBL was setting it up, but I figured Stone Cold would duck, because now a days, he usually doesn't get hit with anything that much, and rightly so, as he's not 100%. When JBL hit it, most of my section came unglued. I started yelling, and chanting 'JBL!.' My brother did as well, and he usually doesn't make any noise at events, which shows you how excited he was. Then, JBL started to pummel Stone Cold. He gave him the finger, and stomped a mudhole in his ass, so to speak. In the end, JBL went for another CFH, but Stone Cold stunned him, and that was the end for JBL. Then, Jerry Lawler went over to Michael Cole, to take JBL's place for the night. Stone Cold's music hit, and he was getting a great reaction. Then all of a sudden, Undertaker's music hit:
I'm sorry, but if you've never seen Taker's entrance in person, then you don't know what you're missing. It's a great experience seeing it on TV, but it's nothing compared to seeing it in person. Taker came out, and got into the ring. Taker was face to face with Stone Cold, which to anyone who watched the Attitude Era, was a very exciting thing to see. Then, Batista's music hit, which I'm sure to some people, turned out to be a sort of a buzz killer. He got a really good reaction, but seeing as it's his hometown, I wasn't surprised:
Batista vs. Undertaker (World Heavyweight Championship)
I agree with the majority, Batista wrestles a lot better when he faces Undertaker. I guess it shows how great Undertaker actually is, but that's just my opinion. Honestly, this was a very good match, but I personally thought their Wrestlemania match was better. There wasn't many spots in the match, but Batista did a lot of pin covers in the match, which wasn't normal for him. Almost after every big move he did, he went for a cover. That basically told the story that he was really determined to beat Undertaker. Batista beat Undertaker, after two Batista bombs. I personally wanted Undertaker to win, but if he had to lose, then I'm glad it happened that way, and it did make sense. It made Undertaker look strong, and it didn't make Batista look like a wimp. Now their series is tied up, and they will eventually have a rubber match:
Match Rating: ***3/4
Overall PPV Grade: B -
Overall, I thought this PPV was really good. I was disappointed at the end, because Stone Cold didn't attack either Batista, or Taker, like he usually does. He basically handed Batista the belt, and left. That was really disappointing to my brother and I, but even so, this was a very good PPV. I also personally thought this was slightly better than TNA's Bound For Glory. I give that a C +. If anyone wants to know why, let me know, and I might do another blog about it. Anyway, I hope you enjoyed my review, and my first blog. Thanks for reading, and have a good one.
Dan
