DaveyBoy’s Wrestling Menu #250 – Cyber Sunday Review, Finishers + Patient HHH
Submitted by DaveyBoy on Wednesday, October 31, 2007 at 12:23 AM EST






THE WRESTLING MENU #250

Welcome one and all to the 250th edition of The Wrestling Menu, the column that is sure to satisfy your taste buds when it comes to discussing all things wrestling.

The big 2-5-0 hey! That’s a fairly big milestone. Sure, it’s only one & a half seasons for a MLB baseball player, but for a predominantly weekly columnist, I’d say it’s a big achievement. At the very least, it is half way to the big 5-0-0 & I know that is a huge milestone. Of course, there is a lot of water to pass under the bridge before I get anywhere near that mark! To use the well-worn cliché, I’m just taking it one week at a time folks. It will be a pretty standard column for you all today, but just having my usual 3 sections will hopefully suffice.

Just a quick note before I begin & that’s in reference to a recent retirement by a colleague here at LOP. The on again/off again column writing exploits of Boss Foxx are once more off & I’m almost beginning to believe that there may be no ‘on again” to come from this great writer. It’s fair to state that the events leading up to his retirement were rather eventful & if you want to read about them, his final main-page column is still up on the LOP front page. Boss Foxx also wrote a subsequent going away column in the LOP Forums which is an excellent read. Trust Boss to write what may be his best column after announcing his retirement! So from this Aussie to that Canadian (in denial); Best of luck in your future endeavors mate!

Anyway, I’ll talk a little more about retiring LOP columnists later (now that’s a nice false teaser if I’ve ever seen one). For now, it's on with the show.....


APPETIZERS

Kicking Out Of Finishers

This is a topic I have been meaning to talk about for a while, but kept ignoring for some reason. It was some time late last year that it entered my mind & I suppose I have been just waiting on something timely to occur to make me discuss it. So this is as good a time as any by my reckoning.

I can’t recall the exact time & pay-per-view where it happened, but I viewed a TNA ppv card late last year (or maybe earlier this year) & I couldn’t help but notice how many finishers got kicked out of during the show. It stood out like dogs balls quite frankly & while it was effective in some circumstances, it was so ineffective in others that I felt that my over-riding opinion at the end of the night was definitely a negative one. In fact, there was even a bit of (for want of a better word) anger mixed in with my bemusement.

When I watched & reviewed ‘Bound For Glory’ last week, I was glad to see that there was not mass sightings of kicking out of finishers. In fact, considering it was TNA’s biggest pay-per-view of the year, I had no issue with the amount we saw as even WWE seem to up that factor when it comes to WrestleMania. This is all fair enough too as when used well, having one wrestler kick out of an opponent’s finisher can make a very good match into a classic. If the live crowd is built up to frenzy & then they believe it to be the end of a bout & the impossible happens, then it is memorable for all involved. See the WrestleMania 6 main-event for what may be the perfect example.

However, I now add to this subject something that may play a pivotal part in the way I look at these occurrences from now on. And for some reason, it hasn’t specifically hit me previously & I am not totally certain as to why. My guess is that because what I am talking about may not have happened as obviously as it did last week at BFGlory. And I am talking about the ending to the Samoa Joe vs Christian match.

Towards the end of the bout, Samoa Joe kicked out of The Unprettier. As much as I think it is a great finisher, I had absolutely no problem that the face kicked out of it at 2.9. At that exact point in time, it did indeed make that bout just a little better. But it is what occurred afterwards that had me scratching my head. Joe pretty much got up immediately, hit a kick or two, hit a couple of finishers & then it was all over. No, no, no & no! That simply should not have happened, especially as quickly as it did.

If a wrestler is hit with a finisher & manages to kick out before a 3 count, he should not be anywhere near being on even terms for at least 1 minute. I know it may be the bookers fault more than the wrestlers, but I am not blaming anyone specifically full stop. And yes, it does depend on the finisher & its previous success of course. I have no problems with moves such as chokeslams & the like being kicked out of in big matches.

In fact, that occurred during the recent Cyber Sunday main-event & I had no issue with it. Then when The Undertaker kicked out of the Batista Bomb, I viewed with great interest. To my pleasure, a frustrated Batista simply hit him with another Batista Bomb & got the win from it. That was good booking as it helped both the excitement & interest factor while also providing a hint of reality. So kudos to WWE on that & I must generalize that they use kicking out of finishers a lot better than TNA at present.


MAIN

’Cyber Sunday’ Review

For those that cannot recall my previous PPV review columns, this is the key that explains what the final PPV Rating means:

<50: Ask for a refund for not only your money, but also your time. [F] (Armageddon '04)
50-54: Mediocre & disappointing. [D] (EG: No Way Out '07)
55-59: Average. [C] (EG: Vengeance ‘07)
60-64: Worth A Watch. [C+] (EG: No Mercy ‘07)
65-69: Good event that was worth the money. [B] (EG: WrestleMania 23)
70-74: Very good. [B+] (EG: Great American Bash '07)
75-79: Make sure you add this ppv to your video or dvd collection. [A] (EG: Backlash '07)
80+: Make sure that the video or DVD is locked in a safe & cannot be erased. Memorable. [A+]

REY MYSTERIO defeated FINLAY in a Stretcher Match: F.I.G.J.A.M… I predicted the opener & the voted in stipulation here as the Stretcher match just sneaks in by a 4% margin. Finlay controls the opening minutes, even trying to optimistically win the bout immediately. Rey finds a spurt of offense following a head-scissors takedown & even connects with a sliding low-blow! The 2 then go for the shillelagh, which was conveniently left on the pole, and it is eventually the shorter Rey that gets the weapon following a top-rope sunset-flip powerbomb. Finlay crotches Rey though & relieves him of his shillelagh, which the Irishman uses to target the knee. The 2 then battle on or near the stretcher where Rey hits a nice modified 619 & an over the top-rope senton to appear to get the win. But a cable tangled in the stretcher prolongs it a little, until a faceplant on the stretcher gets the job done for the face at the 10 minute mark. Pretty much on par with their ‘No Mercy’ bout, this definitely had its moments & was an effective opener due to its pacing. It didn’t get the extra time required to improve significantly on last months match & it probably lacked a little more imaginative booking with the gimmick. Although, if that cable spot was planned, it was a nice touch. Match Rating: 7.5

CM PUNK defeated THE MIZ to Retain the ECW Title: Well, well, well… The Miz gets up in yet another close vote & I can only presume that CM Punk fans thought he would be the easiest opponent for their idol. The crowd seems agitated early on as the 2 trade headlocks. Even back & forth action then follows with not a great deal standing out in all honesty. A “You Cant Wrestle” chant then precedes a botched springboard move as Miz gains some control & does a decent job in adding some intensity to proceedings. The champ heads Miz off at the top-rope though & puts together his usual finishing flurry to eventually hit the GTS for the pinfall at the 9 minute mark. This bout suffered from too much dead time & an unfortunate lack of crowd involvement. Not awful by any means, but WWE need to realize that standard booking isn’t sufficient for ECW Title matches on pay-per-view. They need to stand out somehow! At the very least, Miz should have worked the crowd to get more heel heat here. Match Rating: 6

MR.KENNEDY defeated JEFF HARDY in a Non-Title Match: As I stated at the end of my column last week, I had a feeling this match-up would be added to the card as these 2 are practically feuding. Both men follow the script of the previous bout by also taking part in technical, predominantly headlock-based, wrestling in the first 3 minutes. The crowd awake when Jeff flies to the outside though, despite Kennedy fighting back soon after with a charging boot to the head. KK then takes control for minutes on end, gaining 2 counts with a DDT & lariat. Hardy cuts off a top-rope move with a hurracanrana though & goes through his usual crowd-involving offense, including a whisper in the wind. But he misses his corner dropkick variation & lands hard on the mat, resulting in Kennedy getting the win at the 9 minute mark. Another match that had its moments but didn't really come together as a whole. Too short & close to half of it was dead time for mine. The ending may be a good way to continue the feud, but I'm unsure that ending a ppv bout with a non-move as such is ever a good decision at the time. These 2 are capable of much better. Match Rating: 6

KANE defeated MVP by Countout in a Match for the United States Title: Due to Matt Hardy's facial injury from last weeks SmackDown, fans were given all of about 45 minutes to choose Kane, Mark Henry or The Great Khali to challenge MVP for his U.S Title! Kane predictably wins the opportunity with two-thirds of the votes going his way. Following some initial stalling, the champ tries to take the action to the big red machine, but a big boot shifts the momentum quickly. MVP counters a top-rope move though & begins to attack the previously injured ribs of Kane. It's a decent mixture of arm strikes, kicks & submission holds, but it's not exactly enthralling. In return, Kane then works over MVP's mid-section, so we practically see the same thing over again as the crowd remain silent even when the face is in control! Kane then works the ribs of the heel champ around the ringpost where MVP drops & takes the countout loss after only 6 minutes. Even at that short duration, this seemed labored. I know it was basically an impromptu bout, but this was terribly booked & simply unimpressive in almost every way. Match Rating: 3.5

SHAWN MICHAELS defeated RANDY ORTON by Disqualification in a Match for the WWE Championship: HBK enters the bout following 59% of the vote going his way. Thankfully, we get lots of action from the get go here with many decent strikes & Michaels flying to the outside in what was an even opening 3 or 4 minutes. HBK decides to target Orton's left arm which is initially effective, despite possibly going on for a minute too long. The momentum shifts at ringside though when Orton back suplexes Michaels on the guard-rail. Back in the ring, the champ doesn't target the back for some reason, but heads (as he usually does) to headlock city. It doesn't last too long though as both men get 2 counts in amongst some back & forth action.

HBK misses a top-rope elbow-drop, but then counters an RKO attempt with a backslide for a 2 count to have the crowd on their feet. The electricity then continues as HBK hits the elbow-drop, but subsequently has his sweet chin music attempt countered by a blatant low-blow for the disqualification result at the 16 minute mark. That was obviously a rather disappointing finish to what was an above-average bout, although a post-match sweet chin music won over most of the live crowd. There was a more than sufficient mix of everything involved here & even most of the restholds were ok. A nice beginning & then a good finishing sequence helped, but I really don't feel that having 2 non-clean finishes in a row was a great idea. Match Rating: 7.5

TRIPLE H defeated UMAGA in a Streetfight: The voting shock of the night comes here with the streetfight option coming out on top with 57%. This is greeted by boos from the live crowd who I presume wanted the cage to be lowered. Triple H attacks Umaga on the entrance-ramp prior to the bell, as H soon spears the Samoan Bulldozer through part of the set. The 2 tease brawling through the crowd, but it's thankfully a detour to the ring as H grabs a trash-can & scores to the head for a 2 count. Umaga then targets the ribs of his opponent with all sorts of strikes that is initially filled with impact, but probably slows down a little too much when a bearhug is applied. Umaga then gets a 2 count with his trademark charging butt-splash to the corner, but the frustrations of a non-finish then & there leads to the heel going for a steel chair. But Triple H counters with 2 low-blows & then a DDT on a chair for a nearfall.

H then has his pedigree countered as Umaga hits a huge spinning side-slam & heads for the announce tables. The 2 messily brawl around there for a while before Umaga runs the desks & splashes his opponent through the ECW announce table in what was an impressive spot. Back in the ring, Umaga misses a top-rope splash as H heads to the sledgehammer, scores to the head & then pedigrees his way to victory at the 18 minute mark. Very good match that was sufficiently hard-hitting & pretty much had non-stop action throughout its perfect duration. Not too dissimilar to the Cena vs Umaga ppv bout from earlier this year, both men came out of this looking strong & showing that they are probably best suited to this match-type full stop. To that end, well done voters! Whether this bout ages well is arguable as I wouldn't say the match had that intangible 'classic' feel, while there also wasn't anything we haven't seen before included. But that may be a little too picky on my behalf as I would have to state that this was the match of the night. Match Rating: 8.5

BATISTA defeated THE UNDERTAKER to Retain the World HeavyWeight Title with 'Stone Cold' Steve Austin as Special Guest Referee: JBL & Foley have a little brawl in the ring pre-match as Stone Cold (receiving 79% of the vote) comes down to stun both men, although not before JBL gets in some token offense. This was all a good idea to give Stone Cold his crowd-popping moments before the main-event actually began! The entrances somehow do a good job of building up the big match feel of the bout, while Batista missing a spear from the get go was also a nice touch. The 2 only go back & forth for a short time before 'Taker controls proceedings with rather nothing offense. In fact, through the first 7 or 8 minutes of back & forth action, the action is rather standard to be honest.

Batista counters an old-school attempt nicely into a bearhug & then a spinebuster, but in attempting to make the pin, the hometown champ gets locked into a triangle choke. 'Taker then hits a chokeslam for a 2 count, before Batista gets the same result with a spear following a tombstone counter. Batista then mounts 'Taker in the corner, which is always a prelude to the Last Ride Powerbomb, but that only gets a 2 count as well... As does a subsequent Batista spinebuster & Batista Bomb! A crazed Batista then hits a 2nd Batista Bomb for the pinfall at the 17 minute mark. A match of basically 2 halves, the first was too directionless (if not awful) following a rather promising initial beginning. The 2nd half was then practically entirely an extended finishing sequence! It was probably a bit much to be honest, but it was so darn entertaining that it was difficult to dislike. A very good match that was really difficult to rate, this could have been a classic if the little things were done better & the structure wasn't so cut & dry! Match Rating: 8

PPV RATING (47/70) = 67

Looking at the key, I have basically given the 2007 version of ‘Cyber Sunday’ a 'B' grade & said that it was a ‘good event that was worth the money’. Hmmm, I suppose I can take the show being rated that high, although my PPV ratings system does admittedly favor those events with fewer matches on the card. But the bottom line is that more than half of the bouts held on the ppv were pretty darn good, so I think it’s fair to say that fans who ordered this event got their moneys worth. I can imagine a mixed reception to this show, especially since there were a couple of non-clean results & a couple of disappointing bouts. But like the good ol’ days of WWE, I think their main-events came through with them on the night. Definitely not a great event, but I’d probably say this is in the top half of WWE ppvs so far this year.


DESSERT – Patient HHH

I mentioned at the top of my column today that a fellow columnist here at LOP in Boss Foxx retired from column-writing. It may have been missed by a few, but we had another veteran retire from Lords Of Pain a couple of weeks back. Well, sort of. Well, not at all actually, but for the sake of the subject, I'm running with it. And no, I'm not talking about that silly Englishmen PT2 who went & got all emotional on us a few weeks back & confused a few people into sending misplaced plaudits his way. Actually, I hear that PT2 got a little emotional 2 weekends back as well when his beloved Aston Villa took the early lead against Manchester United. Too bad about the 4 goals that came afterwards!

Anyway, I'm getting way off track, the LOP retiree was Wevv Mang. Now, hang on a tick, before you start emailing him & telling Wevv that he was the greatest wrestling columnist ever to have lived, or the greatest person to ever have lived in Chicago since Rex Grossman, it was only a part of him that retired.... Albeit a rather large part some would say! That portion of him that (apparently) retired was his negative comments on Triple H!

I mention this as ever since what will forever be known as 'The London & Kendrick Pedigreeing' I too have become a bit of an H basher. That incident still riles me up as one of the most unnecessary burials we will ever see on WWE programming. I will get over it one day soon, but until then I may just very well take that ball that Wevv Grossman handed to me & run with it like I was Walter Payton. Although, as a Bills supporter, I'd rather be OJ Simpson. Hang on a tick, what did I just say?

So anyway, I had a couple of readers email me over the past 3 weeks enquiring as to my thoughts on the happenings at & after No Mercy as they pertained to Triple H. The first thing I would state immediately is that it was all a bit strange. On the one night, Triple H not only wrestled 3 times (winning 2 of those bouts), but also won & lost the WWE Championship as well. And then, following a beat-down by Randy Orton & Umaga, as well as the return of Shawn Michaels, it seems that Triple H is out of WWE Championship contendership just like that.

Some would suggest that's amazing... Some would suggest that Triple H's 2 hours of glory at No Mercy has made him happy & he will now gladly take a backseat & settle into the midcard... Some would like Wevv & I to eat our words. To those "some", I would say wake up & smell the coffee. There is one thing that is even more important to Triple H than winning the WWE Championship! And that is wrestling for that same title (whether as champion or challenger) at WrestleMania!

Think about it people, the timing isn't right for H to be involved with the WWE Championship right now because if he was, it would possibly be time for him to move on come March of 2008. Sure, Randy Orton may very well hold the title until that time anyway, but I think it's more of a wait & see when it comes to an Orton title reign. If the reign bombs (which it probably won't as they have called in the pinch carrier in HBK) he could quite possibly lose the title as soon as the end of the year. So there is some testing go on there me thinks.

So what's my point? My point is that the only reason why Triple H is not currently in the title picture is so he can be in it come the new year, and most importantly at WrestleMania. Before some jump on my back, I'm not necessarily saying that he shouldn't be either, as his very good performances at No Mercy & Cyber Sunday would have only strengthened the decision makers' confidence in H.

I'm just telling you what I believe will occur. And on that, it's about time I started dreaming up my forecasted WrestleMania card as I do every year around November! Hmmm, how does a Triple H vs Paul London Ladder Match main-event sound? Hehe, there is as much chance of that happening as there is of London turning out to be the father of little Aurora Rose!


Yet another milestone flies by, but how long will the next one take to reach? If someone knows that, stop wasting your time focusing your super powers on my column & start working out how you can make yourself a millionaire pronto! As per usual, if you want to discuss something that I wrote about today, please don’t hesitate to drop me a line. My e-mail address is DaveyBoy123@bigpond.com, but if you are an LOP Forums member, it would be much appreciated if you could leave feedback on my thread at http://www.lopforums.com/showthread.php?t=217&page=8.

And while you are on the LOP Forums, why don't you check out my weekly contributions to the Album Review thread. So far, I have reviewed multiple albums by groups such as My Chemical Romance, Muse, Rise Against, Razorlight, The Killers, Kasabian, The All-American Rejects, Kaiser Chiefs, AFI, Panic At The Disco, Fall Out Boy, Jet, Hinder, LostProphets, Trust Company, Orson, Daughtry, Bayside, Funeral For A Friend, The Klaxons, Taking Back Sunday, The Fratellis, Wolfmother, Story Of The Year & Franz Ferdinand. All these reviews can be viewed by simply clicking on the following link & scrolling down: http://www.lopforums.com/showthread.php?t=99&page=3.

This section of the column where I tell you all what I am planning to write about next week is almost obsolete nowadays as I am winging it on most occasions. I may be here next Wednesday, I may not. If I am, I will talk wrestling. If not, I will be here the next week. Whichever week it is, whatever wrestling topic I speak on, my column will be posted at the same Wednesday time on the same LOP channel. Until then, this is DaveyBoy signing off & asking you to remember that dinner is best served in 3 courses.


DaveyBoy’s Wrestling Menu. 2002-2007

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