DaveyBoy's Wrestling Menu - No Mercy Predictions, WM17 Review & The Perfect PPV Mix
Submitted by DaveyBoy on Wednesday, September 29, 2004 at 6:19 AM EST






THE WRESTLING MENU #103

Welcome one and all to the 103rd edition of The Wrestling Menu, the column that is sure to satisfy your taste buds when it comes to discussing all things wrestling.

I'm back after a week's rest... and boy, did I need it. In all honesty, I think I would have struggled to post a column last Wednesday. So many things to do, so little time. But enough of my whingeing on what everyone has to deal with. It will be a longish column today, so let's get straight into it.....


APPETIZERS

No Mercy Predictions

I've got to be honest here; My strike rate with my ppv predictions has been pretty woeful lately. A 2 out of 6 strike rate at Unforgiven last month was the icing on the cake. I've sort of worked out that I tend to predict what I think should happen, as opposed to what I think will actually happen. And it's hard to get out of that habit, to be honest. I will try though.

RENE DUPREE & KENZO SUZUKI vs ROB VAN DAM & REY MYSTERIO for the WWE Tag-Team Championship: I don't have too much problem with the WWE teaming Dupree & Suzuki. While it's an understatement to say that I am not a fan of Suzuki, I'd rather him in a team than in singles competition. Meanwhile, Dupree was just hanging around, so the team makes sense. However, the title win was definitely rushed (because of the London/Kidman angle) & this may hurt them in the short-medium term. The team of Rey & RVD will pretty much always put on an entertaining show, so it's another good idea. They don't have to be a full-time team, but just the occasional teaming could make a future title reign very believable. However, the champs should retain here, as I think they need to be established as a credible tag-team. Winner: Rene Dupree & Kenzo Suzuki

EDDIE GUERRERO vs LUTHER REIGNS: To be honest, I am actually looking forward to this match. I've held back on this opinion for want of a real test, but I feel that Luther Reigns is a genuine positive addition to the SmackDown roster... not just in a storyline sense, but also wrestling-wise. He's not as young as most WWE newcomers, but I think that experience does show inside the squared circle, as he seems to be more than just your prototypical big man. Hopefully, Eddie brings his A-Game to this ppv & we get to see just how good Luther really is. I think there can definitely be an effective mix here. As for the result, I feel that Eddie has to be kept in the main event mix with a win. Winner: Eddie Guerrero

BILLY KIDMAN vs PAUL LONDON: In the SmackDown version of "let's rush an angle", a perfectly good tag-team have been broken up way too early, basically for the reason of having this match on this ppv. Just foolish, and you would think the WWE would have learnt from the Randy Orton scenario. Oh well, let's just hope they give the match some importance... Somehow, I'm not betting on it. Many people are critical of Kidman, but personally, I don't have too much of a problem with him. As for London, he is definitely full of potential & there is no doubt that these 2 can put on a great match here. Kidman has to go somewhere with his character & I think it may be the cheating ultra-heel. I can see London winning by DQ to further the feud, but I hate predicting DQ results. So I'm guessing the referee will be looking the other way. Winner: Billy Kidman

KURT ANGLE vs THE BIG SHOW: Welllllllllllllll, The Big Show is back & I suppose that putting him in the ring with Angle first up is probably a logical move. I can't say I'm expecting a great deal out of this match (quality-wise), but these 2 are good & professional enough to make it at least half interesting. TBS' return confused me a little, because the WWE hid whether he would be face or heel for all of a week. I think he has now definitely fallen on the face side of the fence though. The result will be interesting. The WWE have a habit of preferring their returning wrestlers to win first up, so logic points to a TBS win. However, Kurt is rumored to be main eventing soon, so that throws in a fascinating counter-point. I actually think Kurt should win, but I'm going with logic... Winner: The Big Show

BOOKER T vs JOHN CENA for the United States Title: The first 3 matches of this 'best of 5' series were most definitely disappointing. Match 1 at SummerSlam was pretty bad. Match 2 on SmackDown was a nothing match, while match 3 took place in Sydney, Australia, so less than 15,000 people got to see it. Despite the predictability factor, I liked match 4 & am hoping that it was a shortened version of what should be a very good deciding bout here. Despite both men's limitations, I have absolutely no doubt that they could put on a terrific 15-20 minute match. Booker needs the result more than Cena does, as he needs to be kept on the verge of the main event scene for future flexibility. Plus, Cena is on his way down under to film a movie. Winner: Booker T

JOHN BRADSHAW LAYFIELD vs THE UNDERTAKER in a Last Ride Match for the WWE Championship: Most will recall that I thought that their match at SummerSlam was actually better than what most people thought (especially the Toronto crowd). But do these 2 have enough in them to at least equal that bout? I think that they may struggle, and this is why the gimmicky stipulation has been added. Let's hope that they try & add something new to the match, because I think they may need it. I believe the WWE may unfortunately concentrate more on the result though, and that's a title change. JBL has a had a decent run as champ now, and The Undertaker as a transitional champion for a couple of months is also worth a try. Winner: The Undertaker

Ok, so that's 6 matches set down for the card. I'm presuming there will be 2 more added. One or both of them will include The Dudley Boyz in either singles, tag-team or 6 man action. Maybe Spike vs a face cruiserweight such as Nunzio, Funaki or Shannon Moore... OR a team match involving either Rico & Charlie Haas vs Bubba & D-Von... OR a 6 man match with another face such as Hardcore Holly or Nunzio added. Either way, I'm predicting a win for The Dudleyz/Spike. Furthermore, it looks as if a feud is brewing between Miss Jackie & Dawn Marie, so some sort of match could come from that. I'm predicting a Miss Jackie win if this takes place. Let's just hope that her wrestling skills have improved, since last time we saw her in the ring!!!

All in all, the card actually looks quite good. Presuming everything goes as well as can be expected, this could be a decent pay-per-view we have here. I expect all matches to earn a pass rating. On top of that, who knows!?!?!? If anything, the overall PPV Rating is going to depend heavily on the quality of the main event.


MAIN

WrestleMania 17 Review

Ok, I've decided to stretch out my 1990's Review series into the new millennium. But fear not, I will only be choosing the very best pay-per-view events from the years 2000, 2001, 2002 & 2003. I hope you enjoy them all.

Please note that this is a continuation of my monthly series on the 1990's. Over the past few months, I have reviewed SummerSlam '90, WrestleWar '91, 1992: The Year In Review, 1993: The Year In Review, 1994: The Year In Review, SummerSlam '95, King Of The Ring '96, Survivor Series '97, Halloween Havoc '98, No Mercy '99 & Royal Rumble 2000. Once more, I will include my monthly 'PPV Rating' system, so that we can make some sort of comparison on the quality of ppv cards between now & 3 years ago.

'The Astrodome'. Houston, Texas. April-1, 2001. Attendance: 67,925

Commentators: Jim Ross & Paul Heyman

CHRIS JERICHO defeated WILLIAM REGAL to Retain the InterContinental Title: Good choice as an opener as Y2J's music alone was enough to get the crowd off to a hot start. These guys actually had a decent feud going at the time, as Jericho was the over face & Regal was the heel commissioner. Unfortunately, this was nowhere near up to the standard of some of the past classic InterContinental Title WrestleMania matches. However, it was still pretty good, as the 2 mixed it up better than I thought they would. The pace was kept up & there were a few neat reversals & counters. Kept fairly short at 7 minutes in duration, but I think that was a good thing in this case. Although, the ending was a little too anti-climactic for my liking. Match Rating...7

THE APA (BRADSHAW & FAAROOQ) & TAZZ defeated RIGHT TO CENSOR (THE GOODFATHER, VAL VENIS & BULL BUCHANAN): Decent filler 6 man match, although it was nothing special. Kept very short at 5 minutes, which meant the pace was fast & furious. It also masked each wrestlers' weaknesses, which was definitely a good thing. Bradshaw's speech before the bout was also very good. Match Rating...6

KANE defeated THE BIG SHOW & RAVEN to Win the Hardcore Title: One of the most memorable hardcore matches during the title's existence. Definitely nothing special & certainly in the softer WWE style of a hardcore match (as opposed to the more brutal ECW style). Fairly entertaining though, with a few decent spots backstage, involving moves through walls, doors & windows. A couple of golf buggies were thrown in for good measure!!! Ten minutes was about the correct length & fittingly, only one of those minutes occurred in the ring. Match Rating...7

EDDIE GUERRERO defeated TEST to Win the European Title: Nothing at all sensational in this 9 minute bout. Started off ok with the (face) Test even showing some genuine potential. But as soon as Eddie started to attempt the psychological route & wear down his opponent, the match very much stalled & even looked sloppy at times. Firstly, Test accidentally got his foot caught in the top rope & the referee couldn't get him loose without Eddie's help!!! In the meantime, Eddie clumsily fell off the apron. Latino Heat wins with the help of Saturn & Malenko. Match Rating...6

KURT ANGLE defeated CHRIS BENOIT: Let's be honest; These 2 couldn't possibly put on a bad match. This was no exception, although it wasn't quite up to their best efforts against each other (Royal Rumble '03 & Raw steel cage match from June '01). The first 4 minutes of this 14 minute bout included some great amateur-style chain-wrestling, which was full of counters & reversals. They then switched to some brief brawling action, before really getting stuck into the fine art of professional wrestling. Suplexes galore, plus the usual assortment of submission moves, slams, moonsaults & swan diving. All the while, the action was crisp, intense & entertaining. Angle wins with a surprise rollup. Match Rating...8

CHYNA defeated IVORY to Win the Women's Title: In the storylines at the time, Chyna was coming off a bad neck injury. It didn't really seem to effect her all that much though, as this was nothing more than a 3 minute squash match. Had some atmosphere, but too short & one-sided to mean much at all. Match Rating...4

SHANE McMAHON defeated VINCE McMAHON in a Streetfight: One of the most well told stories ever in a WWE match!!! In amongst Shane buying WCW & Linda having a nervous breakdown, father & son had a genuinely good streetfight on the biggest stage of them all. Obviously not the crispest wrestling-wise, the entertainment value here was an 11 out of 10. Even the subplot of Stephanie McMahon vs Trish Stratus & Linda McMahon was well written & performed. To top it all off, there were 2 huge spots performed by Shane (an elbow drop through the spanish announce table & the WWE debut of the Van Terminator) in this 14 minute match., which almost made us ignore special guest referee, Mick Foley. Match Rating...9

EDGE & CHRISTIAN defeated THE HARDY BOYZ & THE DUDLEY BOYZ in a Tables, Ladders & Chairs Match to Win the WWE Tag-Team Championships: Occasionally criticized match (I presume for being over-booked & spotty), I have TLC2 in my top 20 matches of all time. Just look at the crowd during this extravaganza; Most of them are standing!!! In my opinion, it's 16 minutes of pure entertainment. Extremely brave, the 6 performers (& 3 interferers) did all that they could to improve on their previous 10 out of 10 efforts at WrestleMania 16 & SummerSlam 2000. Not everything went to script, but it was almost impossible for it to do so. Obviously, there were huge spots galore, while I feel that Spike, Lita & Rhyno actually added to the action. The 9 wrestlers in action definitely gave it their all. Match Rating...10

THE GIMMICK BATTLE ROYAL Won by The Iron Shiek: 'Mean' Gene Okerlund & Bobby 'The Brain' Heenan commentated this over-the-top-rope battle royal. The actual match only lasted a little over 3 minutes, but that was all that it really should have, as it's fair to say that these guys were well past their best at this stage in time. The introductions almost took 10 minutes & they were entertaining enough. The winner was The Iron Shiek, who almost couldn't walk!!! A hard one to rate, but the entertainment, nostalgia & fun factor was high. Furthermore, it seemed to fit into the event as a whole. Match Rating...7

THE UNDERTAKER defeated TRIPLE H: A match which many didn't expect much of, proved to be very good. Right from Motorhead playing 'The Game' live at the arena, the action was practically non-stop. The angle at the time was that Triple H was gloating that he had been through everyone in the WWE. Of course, he hadn't defeated 'Taker, who took exception. Many mind games, run-in's & stunts later, we had a solid & intense feud on our hands. But the 2 took it further on the night, as they fought a good mix of a brutal, hardcore & brawling big man match. Almost half the match took place outside of the ring (predominantly at a sound & lighting stage) & of course, the obligatory sledgehammer was used. 'Taker unbelievably kicked out of a clever sledgehammer shot & kept his unbeaten WrestleMania streak going after 20 minutes of very good action. Match Rating...8

'STONE COLD' STEVE AUSTIN defeated THE ROCK in a No Disqualification Match to Win the WWE Championship: Arguably, this is not the best wrestling match that these 2 had against each other, but it's possibly the best complete package. Almost prototypical of WrestleMania main events, this bout had the 2 most charismatic guys in the company at the time (& arguably of all time) going at full pace for almost the entire 28 minutes of this match. Seriously, there was hardly a wasted second for the whole duration. It was also a good mix of all types of professional wrestling styles. Stone Cold won the title with the help of Vince McMahon in a controversial, but entertaining, ending. If anything, Vince interfered & showed his hand a little too early (at the 22 minute mark). When Rocky kicked out of a stunner & a wicked chair shot, Austin well & truly turned heel with the help of the same chair. Overall, thoroughly entertaining. Match Rating...9

PPV RATING (81/110) = 74

Looking at my usual 'PPV Review' ratings key, I have basically given 'WrestleMania 17' a 'B+' grade & said that it was a 'very good' event. While that it was one of my highest PPV ratings ever, I actually feel that it under-rates the event, if anything. I will explain in greater detail in the 'Dessert' section of my column today. But before that, just consider a couple of breakdowns to do with the PPV rating:

PPV Rating of Last 5 Matches: (43/50) = 86

PPV Rating of Best 5 Matches: (44/50) = 88

They are quite amazing ratings breakdowns, and even more so when you consider that the 6 matches included in the 2 breakdowns took up most of the time during the event.


DESSERT

The Perfect PPV Mix

Those that have had the pleasure of reading my top 10 greatest ppv rankings from edition #100 (http://www.lordsofpain.net/news/2004_/articles/1094027345.php), may recall that I had King Of The Ring '96 as my #1 & WrestleMania 17 as my #3. I am very much in the minority with my #1 ranking & a lot of WWE fans believe WrestleMania 17 to actually be the greatest pay-per-view of all time. I really have no problem with that opinion at all, especially since I also rated WrestleMania 17 higher. It very much deserves to be in contention.

But what is it that makes it (& King Of The Ring '96) that much better than any other stellar ppv? In my opinion, it is because they both have what I like to call the perfect ppv mix. What I mean by that, is it is very difficult for the WWE to put together a card that has 8 great matches. At the very most, we shouldn't expect it any more than once a year. Pay-per-view events such as WrestleMania 14 & SummerSlam 2002 (which both don't have a bad match) are very much the exception, rather than the rule.

So, the WWE on any given ppv card have to be realistic & attempt to add certain things to complete the pay-per-view package. These may include sports-entertainment segments, interviews, promos, one-night angles, feud enders or beginners & gimmick matches. Without these on WWE programming, the matches (both present & future) will not have the effect that they should. Obviously, these types of things are better suited to the television shows. But when used cleverly on ppv, they can very much add to the quality of an event. The 'Redneck Triathlon' from last year is a perfect example of such a thing being used terribly, and not cleverly.

I feel that King Of The Ring '96 was the perfect example of this. Segments that added to the quality of the event were the Austin 3:16 speech, the Brian Pillman interview, the Jake Roberts injury angle, the Ahmed vs Goldust saga, the Mankind vs Undertaker saga & the HBK/Diana Smith angle. Not all of them would have been to everyone's taste, but in my opinion, they all added to the event as a whole.

The same could be said of WrestleMania 17. The gimmick battle royal was a terrific sideshow. It was entertaining, funny, and most importantly of all, fun. The TLC2 match was a fantastic gimmick match which delivered. Ditto for the Vince vs Shane streetfight. While this spectacular ppv didn't use interviews, promos & segments to their fullest, they concentrated heavily on the build up of storylines & feuds to finish off the event almost perfectly.

I would say that the final 7 matches on the card (remembering that the last ppv we saw had 7 bouts in total) had excellent build up. Put that together with some truly excellent production work by the WWE & even a non-fan of professional wrestling would have been involved in the matches. Yes, the Chyna vs Ivory match does prove that it has to get done in the ring as well, but most other matches took advantage of basically half of the hard work being done before the opening pyros even hit. And that, is making all the fans (both in live attendance & at home) care about, and be involved in, each match.

Just a final word on WrestleMania 17 specifically; The first hour or so is nothing special & probably holds the event down a little. However, we should remember that it was at this time when the WWE were experimenting with longer WrestleMania cards. At the end of the day, nothing is too bad in that first hour & it's actually a fairly good build to the numerous excellent matches that were to come later on in the night. In fact, after writing these review & comment sections, I am starting to reconsider which is the greatest pay-per-view of all time!!!


Ok, that is all for edition #103 of 'The Wrestling Menu'. Hopefully, everyone enjoyed reading it. Any feedback concerning WrestleMania 17 & my example of it as being almost the perfect pay-per-mix, would be appreciated. As is your opinion & predictions on the No Mercy card. As per usual, I will reply to all feedback. My e-mail address is DaveyBoy123@bigpond.com

So, what's on the agenda for next week's 'Wrestling Menu'...??? Well, there will obviously be my No Mercy Review. Here's hoping for an enjoyable & exciting pay-per-view. Apart from that, I will probably switch back to the Raw brand & take a look at a few things concerning the upcoming 'Taboo Tuesday' ppv (including what I believe would be the best main event pairing & result). That plus more, same Wednesday time & same LOP channel next week. Until then, this is DaveyBoy signing off & asking you to remember that dinner is best served in 3 courses.













*NEW GALLERY* Very RARE and Personal Backstage Photos of the WWE Divas!

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