|
CMV1 note – This is an evaluation of the top wrestling company’s performance level on a week-to-week basis to determine whether or not the WWE has earned our money for monthly PPV events, so that we may properly evaluate our options and make the most well-informed decision. As someone that has seen every WWE PPV ever produced, be it live in the arena, live on PPV, on tape, or on DVD, and also as someone who has reviewed PPVs and TV programming for years, I will put my experience to the test to help us all decide if spending the outrageous $44.95 price tag is worth it for each PPV. Show evaluations will be done in mini-review format, focusing on storylines likely to make it to PPV. At the end, I’ll lay down my closing thoughts. October 25-29 The Raw after Bragging Rights was all about setting up the rematch between Orton and Barrett for the WWE title. The loopholes that allowed Cena to get to Wade and prevent him from winning the title are effectively closed after Barrett chose Cena to be the special guest referee and laid down the extra stipulations that if Wade doesn’t win the title at Survivor Series, then Cena will be fired, but that if Wade does win the title than Cena will be relieved of his Nexus duties. I liked the focus of all the segments that dealt with the above scenario. It continues to be (by far) the most exciting storyline on WWE TV right now. Wade is really coming into his own as the clearly defined leader of the Nexus, directing them like his personal puppets. Cena continues to act out his part well, exhibiting the frustration necessary for this story to work. I did not like that the GM, just moments after making a match, allowed Barrett the authority to make a title match that ultimately saw Gabriel and Slater become tag champs (after beating the new champs, Cena and Otunga). Overall, though, the Barrett push continued nicely as the fans are really growing to dislike him and give him the kind of heat needed of a main-event heel. Very little else on Raw screamed significant, to this point, for the Survivor Series build. It does appear that John Morrison could be starting a feud with Sheamus and that Miz and R-Truth may have just restarted their feud for Survivor Series team purposes. Daniel Bryan had a great match with Dolph Ziggler again, as well. If they do decide to unify their belts, I’d love to see it. However, CM Punk seems to have planted the seeds for a feud with Bryan. Later in the week on the blue side of the ring, the focus was similarly about setting up the World title match. Rey Mysterio, Alberto Del Rio, and Edge all wanted a shot and competed in a triple threat match to determine the new #1 contender. Edge ultimately got the victory to set up a championship match against Kane at the Survivor Series. Kane vs. Edge is nothing we haven’t seen before, but it’s not something we’ve ever seen contested over a world title. I’m not sure it’s the kind of main-event that screams big 4 PPV, but I’m also not sure there’s a better option given the slim pickings over there right now. One thing I do like is that Kane is still the World champ. He’s done a fantastic job as a character during this heel and world title run. This will give him a chance to show his range. I had Big Show pegged as Kane’s next opponent, but I think Edge is a better choice at this point. Edge can be tested as a main-event face. It will be interesting to see what kind of crowd reaction they get in their title match on PPV. Not much else seemed to be heading toward anything major on SD, but Survivor Series elimination match lines may have been drawn. November 1-5 One of the big questions heading into week 2 of the hype machine was how Randy Orton was going to fit in to the Cena-Nexus story. Whether or not the WWE champ would take a backseat in all of this was quickly addressed by the Viper to open Raw. With a lengthy history to build off, Orton took issue with what many presume will be Cena’s decision to gain his freedom at the current WWE champ’s expense. Cena continued to act his part out well, suggesting he did not know what he would do. It’s an interesting dynamic. The crowd does not yet seem to know how to react to Cena and Orton in the same ring together. That could interesting down the road if they go with the rumored match at Mania. Anyhow, Barrett is turning into a star before our eyes with his work as of late. I’ll give the much maligned creative team credit…Cena is looking vulnerable and this is something that is five years or more in the making. They could keep that going for five more months and it wouldn’t get old. Cena being forced to be the guest ref in the main-event tag match for Raw was intriguing, as it showed his flaws in that role. I’ve always found it kind of silly that a wrestler could step in to the referee role like he’s been doing it all his life. It devalues the ref. Cena failing to see a tag made by Barrett helps get across that Cena is very much out of his element as a referee. It adds yet another dynamic to a title match at SS already full of them. After being pinned in the Raw main-event, David Otunga took the Nexus over to Smackdown for an invasion and got pinned in the Smackdown main-event (a five-on-five tag match). This was an interesting way of going about hyping Survivor Series. Nexus came to SD to be a side story and lose a 10-man tag. I’m not sure what it was intended to accomplish, but I’m not sure it accomplished much of anything. The Edge vs. Kane title match hype was limited to Kane grabbing Edge by the throat, only for Edge to escape and spear the champion. Thus, Edge looks strong 16 days out from the PPV. Weak build-up, though. Kane might have set up a future feud with Big Show by giving him a chokeslam, but that’s not Survivor Series related. There’s a lot of random stuff going on in the mid-card for both brands that could turn into a traditional elimination match or two, but who knows at this point? Right now it appears uncoordinated and poorly thought out. It appears that we could have an IC title match on the PPV, though, as MVP became the #1 contender to the reigning champion, Dolph Ziggler. November 8-12 It is apparently the modus operandi for the creative team to build the entire Survivor Series PPV, from the Raw side, around one match. To their credit, the storyline for the Orton vs. Barrett match with Cena as the guest referee has been handled extremely well. This week, Barrett got the pin and the win in a five-on-five tag match. Cena counted Orton's shoulders to the mat, adding another small layer of intrigue to the story. There’s zero problem with the build of that match, but I take issue with them taking the Summerslam theory to building this PPV, which was to build it almost entirely around one match and hope people buy it. That didn’t work for Summerslam, so they are walking a fine line in trying it again. Betting the farm on people being so interested to see what Cena does as the referee is overly optimistic, if you ask me. Adding a traditional Survivor Series match featuring all the secondary feuding stars would be a good idea, as would potentially placing a Daniel Bryan US title defense in the mid-card. Edge vs. Kane on SD is likely not going to sway many on the fence purchasers, so they’ve got to do more and they are running out of time. Unfortunately, the blue team didn’t really do anything to add spice to the Survivor Series card, either. Edge and Kane did a good job in the hype for their match, but I seriously question whether people will care enough to factor that match into their decision making for ordering the PPV, no matter what they do. They say actions speak louder than words, but I think in this case words would go a long way toward defining the issue between Kane and Edge. Why not some talk of their history from 2005? Or their failed attempt at a title match from 2007? When Edge kidnaps Paul Bearer and ties him up, you’re thinking this feud is personal, but nothing has been said to make us think it’s gotten to that point, yet. Also, it appears the MVP vs. Ziggler match won’t happen on PPV since Ziggler beat him this week on SD. Where’s the beef of this PPV card? Heading into the final week of hype and we’ve only got three announced matches, only two of which anyone will care about and only one of which people will likely pay to see? R-I-S-K-Y… November 15-19 Raw went old school on November 15th and, as cheesy as it sounds…old school was cool. It’s not very often that 3-hour Raws are any good, especially when they are used as the final push for a major PPV, but this was a rare exception. The remainder of the Survivor Series card finally took shape, as Sheamus vs. John Morrison was booked for the card and we finally got some verbal explanation for Jo Mo coming to Santino’s aid (albeit in a weak, dry, dispassionate fashion). Also, Daniel Bryan likely found his challenger to the US title in Ted Dibiase (albeit in weak, paint by the numbers fashion) and Santino/Kozlov became #1 contenders to the tag titles (albeit by beating another team that never wins and few care about). Oh, and there will be a traditional elimination tag match featuring 10 SD superstars. Let’s be honest, though…this is a ONE MATCH card, in terms of hype and potential buyrate, so the big question is: did the final bit of hype garner enough interest to order Survivor Series? I will cautiously say that the Piper’s Pit segment featuring all three parties involved in the WWE Championship match on Sunday knocked a home run deep out of the ballpark. That’s how you sell a PPV main-event, and in this case a PPV. The single most interesting John Cena storyline ever will turn another page and start a new chapter on Sunday and I think you’d be lying if you said you knew how it was going to play out. I can venture a guess, but I cannot with any confidence come up with anything definitive. There’s a lot of possibilities, so cheers to the WWE creative team for laying out a simple concept and to Cena, Barrett, and Orton for playing their parts so well. Over on the blue brand, there’s really nothing going on that should sway many of the core audience. Edge vs. Kane is just oddly booked. The predominant story this week was again Bearer being kidnapped by Edge, which continued to be stupid. There are some interesting feuds in the mid-card, but are you going to order a PPV based on MVP feuding Alberto Del Rio? That’s a TV feud and nothing more. That elimination tag match should be good for viewing, but it could’ve used more than a week’s hype. The most intriguing match from SD is the IC title match between Kaval and Dolph Ziggler. Who’d have ever thought we’d see Kaval and Daniel Bryan wrestling singles matches on the same Big 4 PPV card? Certainly not I. SD has added little if anything of interest to this PPV… Weighing Your Options for Survivor Series There have been four weeks of hype for this show and, when evaluating whether or not to watch this event, I think you have to strongly take into consideration that – much like at Summerslam – the WWE is selling you one match. Survivor Series may wind up having 8 matches on its card, but the WWE have only sold you a single, solitary contest involving the biggest star in the WWE, his greatest rival, and his upstart nemesis from the Nexus. If you don’t like the Cena-Barrett storyline, then you have no business watching this event. Save your money. If you do like that storyline, as I do, then you ought to be considering either making the purchase or going to the bar. I will watch this show, in part because it’s Survivor Series and my gut tells me that it will feature several good matches. Yet, the predominant reason that I will watch is because the much maligned creative team has written a really interesting plot and I – for a nice change of pace – want to see how it plays out. Doctor’s Orders: Watch Survivor Series, but don’t pay full price for it ------------------------------------------------ The Road to Wrestlemania is Coming
|
