The John Report: WWE Extreme Rules 2013 Review
This was written live when it took place in 2013. I haven’t edited anything in, so these are thoughts from back then.
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Here are some notes from the pre-show that began at 7:30pm ET.
There was a panel with Renee Young, Wade Barrett, Titus O’Neil & WWE Hall of Famer Mick Foley talking about the matches on the card. They started this at WrestleMania 29, so it looks like it will be a regular feature going forward. I don’t mind it. Barrett was in his t-shirt while the other two guys were in suits. Barrett also had his fists taped. He’s ready to fight apparently.
There was a video package on John Cena/Ryback. The panel talked about it.
The panel talked about other matches as well. I’m not going to summarize their comments. I think this is a better way to preview a PPV because it reminds me of a sports broadcast. Obviously WWE isn’t the same as a NFL game, but it can certainly be presented that way.
The video package about the Triple H/Brock Lesnar match aired.
Pre-Show Match: The Miz vs. Cody Rhodes
It started 11 minutes before the top of the hour, so you know they’re only getting about five minutes. Tony Dawson and Josh Mathews calling this match. Flapjack by Miz early on. Clothesline by Miz, but Rhodes came back with a stun gun that got a two count. Rhodes applied a body scissors. Miz got a rollup, but Rhodes came back with a clothesline for two. Miz made his comeback with the backbreaker, but Rhodes countered the neckbreaker. Miz countered Cross Rhodes. Rhodes missed a leap off the middle rope, so Miz applied the Figure Four Leg Lock and won the match after five minutes.
Winner: The Miz
Analysis: * It was a basic match to warm up the crowd before the main card. Miz getting the win was the obvious outcome because it put a smile on people’s faces as WWE likes to say.
They had a list of the top Extreme Rules moments ever throughout the pre-show. The fans voted on it. The #1 spot was from last year when Lesnar did that insane leap towards Cena and he went crashing to the floor.
The panel gave some final thoughts on the pay-per-view. We saw the entrances of Michael Cole, JBL & Jerry Lawler – the commentating team. That was the end of the pre-show. Like I said I think this is a better way to do a pre-show than what they did in the past.
WWE Extreme Rules
St. Louis, Missouri
May 19, 2013 (Twitter @johnreport)
The opening video package focused in on the main feuds heading into Extreme Rules.
The announcers for the show are Michael Cole, Jerry Lawler & John Bradshaw Layfield. The boys at the Spanish Announce Table are there.
Chris Jericho vs. Fandango (w/Summer Rae)
Jericho was aggressive early on with a dropkick and Fandango bailed to the floor to create some space. Back in the ring, Jericho with a baseball slide dropkick. More shots of Summer Rae from behind, please. Jericho hit a double axehandle off the top rope to the floor. Jericho ran into a boot of Fandango, so the dance machine took control of the action. Kick to the face by Fandango got a two count. It was creative because he was on the floor while Jericho’s head was draped across the middle rope. Jericho countered a headlock with a backdrop suplex. Top rope fist by Jericho followed by the running bulldog. The Walls of Jericho attempt didn’t work. Jericho hit a cross body block drop, but Fandango rolled through for a two count. High kick by Fandango got two. JBL was ripping on Cole for taking ballroom dancing lessons – that’s always fun. Fandango went for the top rope leg drop, but Jericho moved. Lionsault by Jericho got two. Great nearfall there even though Jericho rarely wins with that move. Jericho was able to successfully apply the Walls of Jericho. Nice “ASK HIM” sign in the crowd! Fandango got to the ropes. Kick to the head by Fandango knocked Jericho down again. Fandango jumped off the top rope and Jericho caught him with the Codebreaker to win after 9 minutes.
Winner: Chris Jericho
Analysis: **1/2 It was a fun match. Good nearfalls. The crowd was into it. They told a nice story in the time they were given and Jericho got the win as I predicted he would. What move was Fandango going for at the finish of the match? Not sure. Maybe a top rope splash. Doesn’t matter. Jericho hitting the Codebreaker out of nowhere was a great way to end it. We need to see Fandango in more TV matches so we can get used to his moves. I think the feud is going to continue with Fandango winning their third match whenever it takes place.
Backstage, Sheamus was interviewed by Josh Mathews. He said Mark Henry would find out what happens when the Celtic Warrior goes extreme. Basic babyface promo.
Replay of last week’s Raw when Ryback hit John Cena in the leg with a steel chair.
United States Championship: Kofi Kingston vs. Dean Ambrose
Rollins & Reigns walked out with Ambrose, but then they went back up. It’s truly a one on one matchup. Kingston went for Trouble in Paradise early, but Ambrose held onto the ropes. Ambrose slowed him down with a boot to the face followed by a clothesline. Running dropkick by Ambrose. Ambrose applied a Crossface Chickenwing in the middle of the ring, but Kingston fought out of it. Kingston made his comeback with a dropkick followed by the clothesline and Boom Drop. Ambrose avoided it, but then Kingston hit the SOS for a two count. Great nearfall. They fought off the top rope where Ambrose hit a butterfly suplex off the top for two. That was sweet. Don’t see that very often. Kingston came back with a cross body block for two. Kingston hit Trouble in Paradise, but Ambrose was on the apron when it happened. Kingston rolled Ambrose back into the ring. By the time he got back in Ambrose was able to grab the bottom rope. JBL said it was a mistake and that Kingston should have took the countout win. Kingston missed Trouble in Paradise by hitting the ropes. Ambrose capitalized with his face first headlock into a DDT for the win after seven minutes. I believe it’s called the Headlock Driver.
Winner: Dean Ambrose – New US Champion
Analysis: ** It was a well booked matchup that was competitive the whole way. Lots of good nearfalls for both guys. I liked the way the finish was set up with Kingston failing to win after the Trouble in Paradise while JBL criticized him for not taking the countout win. Then Ambrose came back to get the victory. It was really well done. I was very impressed with Ambrose. He’s a very talented performer that is going to be a top guy in WWE sooner rather than later. Kingston’s US Title reign only lasted a couple of months. I think he was given the title as way to get it onto Ambrose and they didn’t want him feuding with Cesaro since they were both heels. I had predicted the Ambrose win. I’m glad it happened.
Commercial for the WWE App.
We saw video of the Sheamus/Henry story leading to the Strap Match.
Strap Match: Mark Henry vs. Sheamus
To win the match you have to touch all four turnbuckles in succession. Lawler and JBL just said they can’t see how Sheamus can win. That usually means Sheamus is winning. Each man had the strap attached to their left arm, so their dominant right hands were free. The announcers did a good job of explaining the rules. Henry tried to tie the legs of Sheamus with the strap, but that only allowed him to touch two turnbuckles. Henry gave Sheamus a clothesline over the top rope. Sheamus was able to touch three turnbuckles, but then Henry stopped him before he could get to four. Henry used the strap to whip Sheamus in the back. Henry put Sheamus on his shoulder and they each touched three corners, but that’s where that attempt ended. Clothesline by Sheamus. Sheamus whipped Henry with the strap repeatedly, which led to Sheamus touching three corners although his momentum was stopped when Henry hit a spinebuster. Henry was driven into the ring post. After Sheamus touched three corners, Henry stood in his way. Henry went for the World’s Strongest Slam, but Sheamus got out of that and hit a Brogue Kick. Sheamus touched the fourth corner to win after 7 minutes.
Winner: Sheamus
Analysis: *1/2 It was okay. Strap matches aren’t that exciting, but the fans were into it. I thought the last touch by Sheamus took a while after his third one, but that’s just a minor gripe. It was booked in a smart way. I picked Henry to win. I was wrong. Like I said when the announcers say what they said early on that usually gives the finish away. I think it made sense for either guy to win because they’re both in that upper midcard level and I could see a scenario where Sheamus is challenging Ziggler for the World Title in the near future.
Backstage, AJ Lee was on the phone apparently talking to Dolph Ziggler. Kaitlyn was there. Kaitlyn thinks that AJ is afraid of her. AJ wondered about the secret admirer. Kaitlyn called Ziggler the “Coppertone Baby.” She also said that AJ was no longer the biggest headache in Dolph’s life since he had a concussion. Kaitlyn called her crazy and that ended up in a brawl after some Looney Tunes reference. Kaitlyn said “that’s all folks” and AJ called her a pig. The Bellas enjoyed the fight as refs broke it up.
Analysis: No official announcement for when they do the Kaitlyn vs. AJ Lee Divas Title match, but it’s coming soon.
There was a clip of when Jack Swagger knocked out Dolph Ziggler with a concussion to explain why Ziggler was out.
Before the next match, Zeb Colter complained about the government. The crowd was chanting “WHAT” during all of it. I’m not summarizing it. Then Zeb said the local baseball team shouldn’t be the St. Louis Cardinals – they should be the Carribean Cardinals. The crowd didn’t like that. He related it to Alberto Del Rio. If you cheer for Del Rio you have quit on America.
Analysis: That was a lot of rambling. It’s okay America, I haven’t quit on you. Please don’t hurt us in Canada. Thank you.
“I Quit” Match: Jack Swagger (w/Zeb Colter) vs. Alberto Del Rio (Ricardo Rodriguez)
Winner gets a World Title shot on Dolph Ziggler in the future. Del Rio hit a dive between the middle and top rope. He grabbed a kendo stick, Swagger moved and dropped him with a belly to belly suplex outside the ring. Ref Mike Chioda asked Del Rio if he wanted to quit. Already? No. Del Rio whipped Swagger into the steel steps. There’s a lot of yelling of “ask him” during this match, so it must be sponsored by Chris Jericho. Swagger used the kendo stick to get the advantage back. Clothesline by Swagger. Swagger tied up Del Rio in the ropes and hit him hard in the chest with stiff kendo stick shots. Del Rio applied an arm bar while using the top rope to his advantage. Swagger broke free. Swagger grabbed a steel chair. It took him about 30 seconds to get one, so that allowed Del Rio to hit a jumping enziguiri. Hard kick to the face by Del Rio. Swagger didn’t want to quit. There were a lot more instances of guys saying no to quitting, but I’m not going to include every one. Del Rio hit Swagger in the back with the kendo stick ten times and then hit the Backstabbber. Swagger came back with a powerslam and then a Swagger Bomb. Gutwrench Powerbomb by Swagger. Del Rio wouldn’t quit. Del Rio applied the Cross Armbreaker. Swagger countered into the Patriot Lock. Swagger dropped down to the mat with the hold. Rodriguez was going to throw in the white towel, but Del Rio told him not to do it. Colter walked over and threw the towel in. The ref gave the win to Swagger thinking that Rodriguez threw it in.
Another referee ran down to the ring to say that Colter was the one that threw the towel in. Mike Chioda asked to see a replay. This was not something we usually see in WWE, but it’s similar to what you might see in the NFL or NBA. JBL complained that they shouldn’t be using replay and Cole said it was because it was an important match. Chioda asked Del Rio if he could continue. The match started again.
Swagger went after the ankle again. Del Rio quickly applied the Cross Armbreaker. Swagger tried to fight it, but then he uttered those two words: “I QUIT.” The match went 13 minutes.
Winner: Alberto Del Rio
Analysis: **1/2 It was on par with their WrestleMania match. They had a match on Smackdown a few weeks after WrestleMania that was better than both of these matches. Del Rio did an awesome job of selling the ankle injury during the match and after it was over. Ref Mike Chioda was asking them if they wanted to quit after nearly every move. It was too much. Chioda got more time on the microphone than 50% of the midcarders on the roster. I picked Del Rio to win, so after four matches I was 3-1 in predictions.
Ryback talked to Josh Mathews backstage. Ryback said he won’t let Cena get up. He should have been WWE Champion six months ago, but others played by different rules. This time Ryback Rules. Short promo. Went about twenty seconds.
Tag Team Championships (Tornado Rules): Kane & Daniel Bryan vs. Roman Reigns & Seth Rollins
Tornado rules means that all four men in the ring at same time. JBL said May 19 wasn’t Kane’s favorite day. Loved that! There was a lot of action early on as Reigns hit a clothesline on Bryan for a two count. Double suplex on Kane. The champs came back as Kane choked both guys and drove them over the top to the floor. Bryan hit his dive outside the ring to knock down both members of The Shield. Back in the ring, the champs worked well together to deliver some of their signature spots including a Kane clothesline followed by Bryan hitting a top rope headbutt. Reigns broke up the pinfall attempt. Bryan went for the No Lock on Reigns while Kane blocked Rollins from interfering. Rollins choked Kane on the top rope and then he hit Bryan in the back to break the hold. Kane hit a Chokeslam on Rollins and then Reigns hit a Spear on Kane. Great action in this match. Reigns shoved Kane into Bryan to knock him down. Kane went for a Chokeslam on Reigns, but Rollins hit Kane in the head with a flying knee. Spear by Reigns on Kane for two as Bryan saved. Awesome nearfall. Bryan hit a series of kicks as the crowd went wild for him. Reigns gave Bryan a slingshot into Rollins, who hit a hard kick to the face. Reigns put Bryan on his shoulders and Rollins came off the top with the flying knee. Reigns covered for the win after 8 minutes.
Winners: Roman Reigns & Seth Rollins – New Tag Team Champions
Analysis: *** That’s what I expected to happen. I think most people did. It was well booked and The Shield looked dominant from start to finish. It’s a shame they didn’t get more time because they could have had a classic matchup if they did. The nearfalls were excellent. I’m a huge fan of that flying knee attack that Rollins does. It looks great and he’s able to hit it on anybody obviously. I’m glad that The Shield was given a lot of gold. They certainly deserve it.
There was a clip of the pre-show when The Miz beat Cody Rhodes.
They headed back to the desk with Renee Young, Wade Barrett, Titus O’Neil and Mick Foley. With all due respect to them I’d rather see that tag match be given more time instead of getting analysis of matches we’ve seen.
Extreme Rules Match: Randy Orton vs. Big Show
That stipulation means they can use weapons. Orton grabbed a kendo stick, but Show ended up breaking it over his knee to end that. Orton grabbed another kendo stick to attack Show’s legs, so Show broke that one too. Show put Orton on shoulder, which led to Orton shoving Show into the ring post. Orton grabbed a ladder from under the ring, so Show kicked the ladder into Orton’s face. In the ring, Show whipped Orton into the steel post. Show worked on the shoulder. Working on a body part in a match where they can use weapons? That’s not usual. Orton hit a dropkick to the knee and then a dropkick to the face knocked Show down. Orton’s always had a perfect dropkick. Show slammed Orton to the mat for a two count. It was almost as if it was a Chokeslam, but it wasn’t exactly that. Orton brought in a ladder along with two chairs. He set it up so the ladder was stretched across the two seated chairs. Sidewalk slam by Show got a two count. Show put Orton on the ladder and he slowly climbed the middle rope for a splash attempt. Of course Orton moved, so Show gave an elbow drop to the ladder. Big spot that the crowd reacted loudly to. Orton hit the DDT off the ropes with Show’s feet on the top rope. The hometown crowd was going crazy for Orton. RKO connected. Show kicked out of it. Wow. That was a surprising nearfall there. I thought that was it. Outside the ring, Orton hit Show in the back with a steel chair. Back in the ring, chair shot to the ribs by Orton. He went for another chair shot, but Show hit a Spear to knock Orton down. Both guys were down. Orton came back with a kick to the face and then a RKO on the steel chair. He was too hurt to cover as Show rolled around. Orton set up for The Punt. He ran across the ring and he connected on it. The crowd loved it. Orton covered for the win after 13 minutes.
Winner: Randy Orton
Analysis: ***1/2 That was an excellent brawl. Orton has had a lot of good matches with that stipulation in his career and this was no different. They did an awesome job of utilizing weapons to tell the story and the crowd was hot for everything that Orton did. I was shocked when Show kicked out of the RKO, but it made sense. It told the story that Orton had to use something else to win the match and that’s why he went to The Punt for the win. The crowd reacted to it like a big deal because it’s been a long time since we’ve seen it. I’m not sure where Orton goes from here, but that was a clean and decisive win for him, which is a good thing for his future. I thought he’d win clean and he did. My only incorrect prediction was Mark Henry so far.
The video package aired for John Cena vs. Ryback, so that means Triple H vs. Brock Lesnar is going on last.
WWE Championship (Last Man Standing Match): John Cena vs. Ryback
No pinfalls, no submission, no countouts and no disqualifications. You win the match by incapacitating your opponent for a count of ten. Ryback barely got a reaction for his entrance. Good reaction for Cena. “Goldberg” chants for Ryback, which isn’t the kind of heat WWE wants. Bulldog by Cena, but Ryback came back with a clothesline. Powerslam by Ryback. Gorilla Press Slam by Ryback led to another count by ref Charles Robinson, but of course Cena got back up. Powerbomb by Ryback. Cena was up at 8 and then he avoided a Ryback charge, which sent Ryback to the floor. Back in the ring, Ryback regained control with another slam. Cena had brought in a table, so Ryback stacked it in the corner. Ryback caught Cena and delivered a Fallaway Slam through the table in the corner. It was the bottom of the table. Crowd popped big for it as Cena got back at the count of eight. Ryback charge missed as he hit the steel post. Cena hit his spinning suplex. Five Knuckle Shuffle by Cena, but then Ryback countered the Attitude Adjustment with a Spear-like move. Cena got back up at eight again. Cena came back with a Powerbomb. Ryback got up at eight as the match hit the ten minute mark.
Cena hit a move where he jumped into Ryback’s move and pulled on his side as if it was a submission move. It looked awkward. Ryback slammed him down. Cena got up at six as Ryback hit the Meat Hook Clothesline. Cena got up at nine. Ryback charge missed as Cena applied the STF in the middle of the ring. Cena let go of the hold when it looked like Ryback was out. Of course Ryback got back up at the nine count, so Cena brought in another table. Ryback slammed Cena down again. Ryback wanted Shellshocked, but Cena countered that into the Attitude Adjustment through the table that was in the ring. Both guys were down. Cena was up at seven while Ryback got back up at nine. Cena went to the top rope where Ryback punched him and hit Shellshocked in the middle of the ring. Cena was up at nine much to the delight of the crowd. Ryback grabbed a steel chair, but Cena kicked him before he could use it. Cena tackled Ryback through the security wall by the timekeeper. They both got up and fought into the crowd. Ryback grabbed a piece of the hockey boards in the arena and hit Cena in the head with it. Cena was up at nine again. They were in the part of the arena near the ramp. They were at the side of it. Cena applied the sleeper hold to knock down Ryback for a count of eight. Cena put Ryback on a table, he went into the stands and jumped off with a splash. It was only a five foot drop, but it was a unique move anyway. Cena used a fire extinguisher on Ryback several times as they were on the ramp. Cena hit him with the fire extinguisher twice to the head. Ryback picked up Cena and he drove him through the lighting at the top of the ramp. We couldn’ see where they landed. Ref Charles Robinson ran backstage.
After showing some replays, medical technicians arrived on the scene to check on Ryback and Cena. Ryback was able to stand up as referees helped him off. Cena was put on a stretcher with a collar on his neck. The match went 20 minutes.
Winner: No Announced Finish (Draw?) – Cena retains WWE Championship
The camera remained on Cena, who was being loaded on a stretcher with a neck brace and his body strapped to the board. The announcers used SERIOUS VOICES~! to quietly talk about the situation.
Analysis: *** It was a good match with a memorable finish. Not a great match. That’s why this match didn’t go on last. This finish would have been a bad way to end the PPV. It reminded me of a Cena match against Edge when Cena lost after Big Show chokeslammed him into lighting equipment. I didn’t think Cena was going to lose the title and this finish was a way to keep the title on him while also keeping Ryback as the top contender. I thought the match was okay although the pacing was too slow at times. Every time they hit a move we had to sit back for a ref count. It was too repetitive. Just like with the I Quit match I don’t think you need to do the count after every move. Once in a while is okay, but not all the time. Their chemistry was fine although Ryback was really limited in what he could do. He was repeating moves or basically just slamming Cena down in different ways.
The next WWE pay-per-view is Payback on June 16 from Chicago.
The announcers talked about the Cena injury by telling us that they hope to have updates later in the show.
The steel cage lowered as we got the video package to set up the Triple H/Brock Lesnar match that is the main event.
It’s a new steel cage. Michael Cole said it was about a foot taller than the regular one. The support beams looked stronger and Cole mentioned that it was reinforced for these men.
Brock Lesnar entered the arena along with his manager Paul Heyman. Triple H didn’t do his entrance. He attacked Lesnar outside the ring. Punch to Heyman Then they entered the cage.
Steel Cage Match: Brock Lesnar (w/Paul Heyman) vs. Triple H
Triple H whipped Lesnar into the cage as the match began at 10:28pmET, which means they will get a lot of time to tell a story. Lesnar gave Triple H a back body drop into the steel cage. JBL mentioned UFC Hall of Famer Matt Hughes was in attendance to support Lesnar. Lesnar slammed Triple H’s head into the cage repeatedly. Hunter countered an attack so that Lesnar bounced off the cage and then Hunter hit a running knee to the face. German Suplex by Lesnar, who smiled after the move. Lesnar with a running powerslam into the steel cage. Lesnar hurt his left knee by hitting it against the cage, but he was able to come back with a powerslam. After the move, Lesnar complained to Heyman about his knee. Hunter fought out of a Kimura Lock by going after the knee and then Lesnar came back with a clothesline. Heyman wanted Lesnar to go out the door to win. Hunter clipped Lesnar in the back of the knee. Hunter tried to go out the door, but Heyman slammed the door into Hunter’s head. Lesnar hit the F5. Hunter kicked out eight minutes into the match. Heyman gave Lesnar a chair. Lesnar with the chair to the ribs and back of Hunter. He tried another F5, but his knee buckled. Hunter went after the knee again as Lesnar screamed like a wounded animal at the ten minute mark.
Hunter attacked with the chair to the back and the bad leg as well. Heyman was pleading for Hunter to stop, but Hunter decided to drive an elbow to the knee. Hunter’s attack was stopped because Lesnar applied the Kimura Lock again. Hunter drove him back to the corner to break free. Hunter applied the Figure Four Leg Lock. Lesnar turned it over so that Hunter was in pain. Lesnar tried to climb out of the cage, but Hunter stopped that by using the steel chair to the bad leg while Lesnar was on the top. Hunter slammed him into the cage. Hunter took out a silver colored (same as the cage) sledgehammer that was on top of the corner of the cage. That was clever. Lesnar was able to get his hands on it. Hunter prevented an attack. Triple H applied the Sharpshooter. Cue the Bret Hart “4 out of 10” jokes. Heyman ran into the cage to try to save Lesnar, but Hunter dropped him with a Pedigree. Hunter with a Pedigree to Lesnar, who kicked out at two. Hunter had the sledgehammer. Before he could use it, Heyman gave a low blow to Hunter. Lesnar hit Hunter in the face with the sledgehammer. Lesnar was limping around as the announcers went into SERIOUS VOICES~! because Triple H got hit in the face. With Hunter looking like he was out of it, Lesnar hit the F5 to win the match after 20 minutes.
Winner: Brock Lesnar
Analysis: ***1/4 It was smart to have Lesnar sell the injury for the majority of the match because he had to look vulnerable in some way. I thought he did an awesome job of selling the injury too. There were times when maybe it dragged on a bit, but it didn’t feel too long. I would have liked a cleaner finish, but it’s a Triple H match. He doesn’t lose clean that often even when he should. Lesnar won after a Heyman low blow, sledgehammer shot and an F5. If it wasn’t for Heyman Lesnar would have lost basically. That’s the story of the match, which is a bit of a shame. The right guy won in Lesnar, but they could have done it in a more dominating way. I’m not going to say I hated it. I didn’t. I just think they could have done it differently. I’m not sure what’s next for either guy. It depends on Lesnar’s contract. If he’s only working three PPV matches on this next year of his deal then they can say he’s out with a knee injury before bringing him back. I wish he never left, but that’s the nature of his contract. He’s a part timer. I doubt Hunter has many more matches this year. I’m glad the rivalry is over.
After the match, Triple H was getting looked at by doctors in the ring.
The announcers tossed it over to Renee Young, Wade Barrett, Titus O’Neil and Mick Foley. Tune into the post show for more. I’m not going to watch it. If you did then I hope you enjoyed it.
More replays of the finish. JBL said it was the genius of Heyman and that’s why Lesnar has him. Triple H was trying to open his mouth as he was selling the jaw injury from the sledgehammer shot. The announcers called it the most shocking Extreme Rules in history. No it wasn’t. But that’s what they always say. Hunter’s music played as doctors helped him to the back. That was the end of the show at 10:55pmET.
Five Stars of the Show
1. Randy Orton
2. Brock Lesnar
3. Big Show
4. John Cena
5. Triple H
Final Thoughts
I give it a 6.5 out of 10. There were a bunch of solid matches up and down the card, but nothing that was a match of the year contender or that newsworthy.
In terms of predictions, I went 7-1 with Mark Henry as my only loss and that Cena/Ryback match was a draw, so I’ll say I went 7-1-1. It’s a draw if there’s no winner, right? That’s what I’m going with.
I thought Randy Orton vs. Big Show was the best match. I didn’t necessarily think that going in, but they worked hard and told a good story. The tag title match could have been the best match if they went longer.
It was nice to see The Shield win some gold because they’re a trio on the rise and now that they have titles they can continue to build on what they’ve done so far.
The Cena/Ryback match is obviously going to lead to a rematch. I didn’t expect Cena to lose, so that finish was a clever way to keep the story going. Cena is the sympathetic babyface that is hurt while Ryback is the evil monster who caused a lot of pain for his rival.
As I wrote in the preview my expectations were that it would be an average. I think that’s what it was. There was nothing great about it, but nothing too bad either. I’m not disappointed by it because it was what I expected. If you came in with high expectations you might be angry about the show. I’m not. It was fine.
Thanks for reading.