Well, Tom and Jim each went 6-2 in picks that had a finish
on Sunday night at Extreme Rules. Since
the John Cena vs. Ryback match ended in a No Contest (more on that in a bit),
we’re throwing that match out. (I mean,
who would pick a No Contest in a Last Man Standing match!). So, with a dead even Extreme Rules, Jim
maintains his lead with a 20-6 record, to Tom’s 17-9 record. Let’s get to our REACT!
Jim’s React
I have alot to say about one particular match, but I’ll
start at the beginning of the show and work my way there.
I wasn’t surprised Jericho won (hence my pick of him), and
I’m glad that it seems they had a better back and forth match than
Wrestlemania. I am still really high on
Fandango and hope that WWE stays behind him and doesn’t just kill off his push
like they have with so many before him (see: Cesaro, Antonio).
Ambrose winning the US Title setup what was to be The
Shield’s night. I thought he’d lose this
match by DQ with the other members attacking Kofi, and lead to an eventual title
change down the road, but they went with it here. It’s clear that Ambrose has a bright, bright
future in WWE, which is no surprise to those of us who watched him as Jon
Moxley on the indy scene. First step,
first gold, good job Ambrose!
Sheamus and Del Rio each won, makes sense as it keeps two
guys strong to challenge Dolph Ziggler when he is back from his
concussion. I hope they do something
with Henry soon though and keep him as the monster he deserves to be. The guy is money as a beast monster killing
everyone in his path!
Of course I love that The Shield won the tag titles. It was time to move them off of Bryan and
Kane, and while I haven’t seen Raw yet, I like that they had Bryan snap on
WWE.com about losing the titles. You
know, losing a title should make you mad, after all, they are supposed to be
important right? So, great job
there. Reigns and Rollins will make
great tag champs and the strong build for The Shield continues. For all WWE does wrong (and they do plenty),
they have gotten this right at almost every turn.
Interesting in this day of concussion awareness, and with
Dolph Ziggler just legit suffering one due to a kick to the head that they had
Orton use the punt kick again as a finish in the Extreme Rules match. Don’t get
me wrong, they can play it off that it took something that “extreme” to finish
off The Big Show (and I expect they will), and I like it. But, I don’t expect to see the punt kick back
anytime soon either...too risky if he hits it flush.
Ok, this brings us to the WWE Title Match. What in the blue hell was WWE thinking
here? You have a Last Man Standing
match. You have Ryback killing Cena for
most of the match (good, a monster heel should look strong, that’s what makes
them a monster!). Then you have the huge
bump to “end the match”...and it’s a No Contest? Ryback is back to his feet, and it’s a No
Contest? Are you kidding me? That’s a crappy ending if it’s on Raw, and
people actually paid to see this show and this match and that’s the ending you
go with? And then, just to top it off,
they put video up on WWE.com afterwards of Cena “refusing medical attention”
and walking off on his own power?!?! So,
Ryback kills him the whole match, lays him out with a hellacious bump, and he
walks away? Does anyone in WWE wonder
why people call him “Superman”? I mean,
the guy can’t be bothered to sell for anything, and WWE is A-OK with that it
seems (and likely writes it all that way, so I can’t even lay that all on
Cena). Ryback should have won the title,
as the money is in the chase of wanting to see the bad guy get his. Now, you just proved that the bad guy can’t
do a damn thing to Cena even after beating the holy hell out of him for the
whole match and knocking him out cold. I
know they’ve set up an Ambulance Match (stupid gimmick that I’ve never liked)
for Payback...but why do I think he can do anything to make Cena even need an
Ambulance? He didn’t after that
beating? Why should I pay to see
that? Oh yeah, I shouldn’t! Does WWE understand they are in the business
of trying to make money, not turn it away?
UGH. Just stupid stupid booking
on that one.
Lesnar winning the main event was absolutely the right call,
though I do wish they hadn’t had Paul Heyman be the reason for his win. Lesnar needs to win on his own even as a
heel, because that’s the character. He’s
that damn good and that tough. If anyone
hit the cheap shot to lead to the win, it should have been him, not Heyman, but
other than that, well done WWE, you got it right (for now at least).
Tom’s React
Unfortunately, I didn’t see the show as I planned to so I am
reacting to & giving my opinions based on what I have read only.
As you could tell from my Head 2 Head picks, I was favoring
strong heels going over (Fandango, Mark Henry) and it was what keeps the
distance between Jim and I in our competition.
The strong points coming out of this show for me are as
follows:
1. The continued build and growth of The Shield. WWE is doing it right there and they deserve
credit. I will be interested to see who
steps up as challengers for the tag titles because Team Hell No was such a
strong babyface team that there was no other babyface teams being built
up. Maybe it is a good excuse to turn
the Primetime Players or pair up two singles guys like Randy Orton &
Sheamus or Kofi Kingston & The Miz.
I, like Jim, love Dean Ambrose winning the U.S. Title. So deserved.
2. Brock Lesnar
winning his feud with Triple H. I still
don’t know where WWE is going or what they want to do with Lesnar, but with
this matter behind him he can move forward.
Maybe an extended feud with John Cena (if Cena loses the title to Ryback
in June) or maybe Randy Orton or Sheamus.
Whatever Lesnar does, it needs to be big. You don’t sign him and feature him for
limited dates unless it can make money.
3. Del Rio being
solidified as #1 Contender. As much as I
still hope WWE gives us a Ladder Match with Ziggler, Del Rio & Swagger, I
have my doubts because of the concussion lingering effects that might be
present or could be re-triggered if Dolph goes too hard, too fast. With Ziggler’s legit wrestling background as
an amateur (something I cannot recall WWE touting) they could really create
something cool between he and Del Rio in a ground-based match that would be
extremely safe and of course, play up that Del Rio’s armbar is as dangerous as
advertised. We shall see where it goes
next.
My weak points:
1. The Last Man
Standing outcome. Perhaps they should
have had the Ambulance Match on this show and saved the Last Man Standing match
for “Payback.” It’s not just the Super
Cena issue, it is bass ackwards booking and I cannot believe WWE doesn’t think
that it creates an issue with fans that pay for PPVs.
2. Mark Henry &
Fandango losing. More than just the
difference between Jim and I in the Head 2 Head contest, I think that WWE
really should be building up their heels a bit better. Sure, you do have The Shield, but Henry can
pull two semi-trucks on Smackdown, yet cannot use leverage in a Strap Match to
beat Sheamus? C’mon, man! Fandango is
the lesser of the two that I have issue with and I still see him winning the
feud with Jericho.
3. Does Jack have any
Swagger left? I know WWE used the “instant
replay” gimmick with Swagger’s loss here, but he’s now been bested by Del Rio
on the big stage in back to back months.
WWE has every right to pull back on his push after the DUI and marijuana
incident a few months back, but do they want to wipe the slate clean after the
time investment put into him & Zeb Coulter?
There you have it. Did
you see the show? What thoughts did you
have? Leave us a comment below and we’ll
respond and engage with you.
Check back later this week for a potential UFC preview ahead
of Velasquez vs. Bigfoot 2 and do not forget that next week Tuesday night, May
28th we have our next *LIVE* podcast and interview with one of the
big stars of Dragon Gate USA/EVOLVE ahead of the EVOLVE tripleshot on May 30,
June 1 and June 2. We will announce just
who will be joining us most likely on Memorial Day. Have a great holiday!
No comments:
Post a Comment