The SmarK Rant for WWE Royal Rumble 2010
- Live from Atlanta, GA.
- Your hosts are Michael Cole, Jerry Lawler and Matt Striker.
ECW World title: Christian v. Ezekiel Jackson
Apparently Jackson won a battle royale to earn a title shot. How original. Really, isn't it time to put a bullet in this belt and be done with it? Jackson overpowers Christian to start, but he gets dumped and Christian hits him with a springboard dive. Back in, Jackson pounds away as Striker notes that the match screeches to a halt when he's on offense. I think he was trying to be positive about it, but I dunno. Christian escapes from a press slam and chokes away on the ropes, but goes up and gets yanked down rudely. William Regal tries to get involved and gets sent back to the dressing room, thus robbing us of much of the potential entertainment value here. Zeke throws Christian into the stairs, and back in for two. And we go to the neck vice, which Jackson turns into a chokeslam for two. Delayed suplex gets two. Jackson pounds on the back and blocks a sunset flip with a tree slam for two. And we're back to the chinlock, but Christian fights out, only to get slugged down for two. Jackson's Klingon howl of outrage at every two count is a bit annoying. To the top, as Christian fights off a superplex attempt and hits a flying elbow instead. Jackson no-sells it, but misses a blind charge and walks into a missile dropkick. That gets two for Christian. Killswitch is blocked, so Christian goes up again, only to miss a flying splash. Jackson hits a lariat for two off that. Christian escapes a uranage, but Jackson gets a backbreaker for two. Jackson misses another charge and Christian gets the tornado DDT for two. Jackson with another lariat for two. Jackson escapes the Killswitch and runs Christian into the corner with an Oklahoma Stampede, but Killswitch finishes him for good at 12:00. Jackson is fucking awful, so they'll probably bump him to RAW and make him World champion by September. Watchable big v. little match thanks to Christian, albeit about 4 minutes too long. **1/2
Meanwhile, Cryme Tyme bargains with Teddy Long for an extra spot in the Rumble, because only one of them is entered for some reason. They try to talk Great Khali into giving up his spot, but he apparently says "No dice, homeslice." The Miz thinks the whole thing is pretty stupid (I'm with Miz) so Teddy punishes him by forcing him to defend against MVP.
Meanwhile, Cody Rhodes just wants Randy Orton to know that he's got his back. Haven't they broken up YET?
US title: The Miz v. MVP
MVP wins a slugfest and puts Miz down with a clothesline for two. Floatover suplex gets two. Backdrop out of the corner and a backdrop suplex gets two, as Striker relates a story about how Miz REFUSED TO SHAKE HANDS with Ricky Steamboat and Terry Funk. Oh shit, that's like first degree murder in wrestling terms. If he ever forgets to wear a suit at the airport he might as well pack his bags and go to TNA. Miz dumps MVP off the apron and into the table, and back in he works on the back and gets a corner clothesline. Double axehandle off the top gets two. Miz hits the chinlock as Striker notes that, to him as a child, Wrestlemania meant not having to wear a jacket outside anymore. Obviously he didn't come from the Canadian Prairies. MVP comes back with a faceplant and facecrusher, which sets up the Ballin Elbow. I'm impressed he got that over. Yakuza kick gets two. Miz fights back with a necksnap on the top rope, but MVP gets a Pounce for two. Whatever happened to Monty Brown, anyway? Running kick misses, but MVP manages a rollup for two. Backslide gets two. Jackknife rollup gets two. Miz bails to escape and gets tossed right back in, but he catches MVP with a small package on the way in at 7:30 to retain. Sneaky! The crowd respected that so much that when MVP lays him out afterwards, the crowd BOOS THE SHIT OUT OF HIM. I agree with the crowd, Miz won that one fair and square and MVP is a sore loser. Basic RAW match. **1/4
Meanwhile, Big Show and Jericho have an awkward moment backstage.
RAW World title: Sheamus v. Randy Orton
Orton gets a monster babyface pop for his entrance, because he's the star and Sheamus is not. To fix that you'd put Sheamus over and make him the star, but I sense that’s not how they'll play it. Orton wins a lockup and puts Sheamus down with a dropkick, but slithers away. He's obviously been studying his Jake Roberts tapes again. They slug it out on the ropes and Sheamus puts him down, so Orton bails to regroup. Orton's arm is apparently hurt, so Sheamus goes to work on it. Orton responds with a chop block and starts on the knee to take over. Sheamus goes back to the arm as the crowd totally dies with no one playing babyface. If they have the balls to try Sheamus v. HHH at Wrestlemania as rumored, it's gonna be DEATH. Epic death. And now Orton works the knee again as this thing has screeched to a halt like a teenaged boy getting cut off at second base. They slug it out with Orton getting the babyface reaction, but Sheamus gets a backbreaker for two. Sheamus tries the unnamed Razor's Edge, but Orton escapes and dumps Sheamus, for another out-of-proportion babyface pop. He drags Sheamus back in with the DDT for two. Orton sets up for the punt, but Sheamus rolls out to escape, then sends Orton into the post. This allows Cody Rhodes to run in and lay out Sheamus for the DQ at 12:25. Orton gets the RKO in the meantime, so he's probably upset at Rhodes. Hopefully he'll do something about it sometime this year. This was a total bore, with Orton showing none of his usual charisma and Sheamus showing nothing, period. *1/2 And FINALLY, Orton turns on Legacy and beats them both down after months of teases. And then Sheamus puts Orton out with a big boot. So is this Orton's face turn, I'm assuming?
Women's title: Michelle McCool v. Mickie James
Michelle cuts a lengthy promo about how Mickie forfeits, before she even gets a chance to make her entrance, and the announcers act all surprised when James shows up after all. James hits the DDT right away and wins the title at 0:20. DUD So there we go, the heels get what they deserve, including their own cake thrown on them. I think that will dissipate the heat over the "Piggy James" crap.
Smackdown World title: Undertaker v. Rey Mysterio
They've got some time to play with here. You know, looking at the number of kids at ringside wearing Mysterio masks and the coin that Rey now brings in from merchandise makes it all the more astonishing that someone in WCW thought it would be a tremendous idea to unmask the luchadores. You can sell Rey Mysterio masks until the Earth falls into the Sun. It's like a license to print money. Rey slugs away in the corner, but gets tossed to the floor WITH AUTHORITY. Now there's one time where the cliché is apt. Rey fights up to the apron and gets soup-boned back to the floor again. Clearly we're going full monty Sting v. Vader formula here. Rey dodges the guillotine legdrop and Undertaker gets all cranky and pulls him back into place for another one. Back in, Rey reverses the chokeslam into a 619 attempt, but Taker catches him and nearly gets a tombstone. Awesome. Rey kicks out of it, barely, and boots Taker down, but tries a springboard crossbody and hits UT's boot. Taker beats on him outside, but misses a baseball slide and hits the post. Rey tries to follow with a senton, but Taker catches him with a Last Ride. Rey hops onto the apron to escape and hits Taker with a moonsault to the floor, however. Rey tries a baseball slide and misses, and UT just destroys him with a shot to the railing. Back in, that gets two. Back in, UT's REALLY pissed now, what with bleeding from the mouth and nose and all, so he beats Rey down in the corner and hits a sideslam for two. Hey, our first blood of 2010! Rey fights back and gets beaten down again for his troubles, but manages to put Taker down with an inverted DDT and Drops the Dime for two. Rey slugs away again and gets clotheslined, and Taker has had ENOUGH of this shit. Last Ride, but Rey escapes and dropkicks Taker into the 619. He's still standing, so Rey does it again and goes for the West Coast Pop to finish, but it's Last Ride and good night at 11:08. This? Was AWESOME. I'm a hardcore sucker for guys going out and beating the hell out of each other because they want the belt so much. And yeah, this was Sting v. Vader to the letter, with the plucky babyface throwing everything he has at the monster heel, but just not being good enough that night. LOVED IT. ****
Meanwhile, Kane lectures Shawn Michaels about being obsessed with Undertaker. Well, he'd know. HHH and Shawn settle their differences about who should win…but Shawn REALLY feels he's going to get that shot at Undertaker. They have to do HHH v. Shawn at the end now.
Royal Rumble:
Dolph Ziggler is #1 and Evan Bourne is #2. It's truly the most star-studded Rumble ever! Bourne snaps off a rana and a leg lariat, but Ziggler pounds away in the corner and nearly dropkicks Bourne out. Bourne comes back with another rana that almost puts Ziggler out, but he hangs on. Dolph with the Zig Zag and he still can't get Bourne out, and Evan gets the shooting star press as CM Punk is #3, looking more like Billy Jack Haynes every day. Well, in body hair, not in steroid use or paranoid batshit craziness, obviously. He tosses both guys at 2:29 and now it's PROMO TIME. "Excuse me, it's clobbering time". JTG is #4 as this clock is already all over the place. JTG pounds away in the corner and gets dumped like a MORON at 4:04. And he CUTS ANOTHER PROMO. Epic. Great Khali is #5 and Punk can save him, by making him Greater, apparently. Khali chops him down in response and gives him the head vice. Beth Phoenix is #6. Sure, why not. Khali rather politely puts her on the ring apron, but Beth kisses him and pulls him out at 7:08. As comedy spots go, that's pretty awesome. Beth goes after Punk as well and does pretty good, but she Goes To Sleep at 8:00 as Zack Ryder is #7. Punk barely even gets to cut a promo before laying out Ryder and tossing him at 8:43. HHH is #8 and I'm thinking his promo time is done.
HHH slugs Punk down and gets the facecrusher, but Punk comes back with the knee in the corner. HHH hits the spinebuster as we're already at Drew McIntyre at #9. Seriously, how hard is it to time 90 seconds? HHH lays out Drew and trades finisher attempts with Punk, then tosses him at 12:12. BOOO! I want more Punk! Drew pounds away on HHH in the corner and it's Ted Dibiase at #10. He'll likely get a long run. He powerslams HHH and the heels double-team HHH in the corner. John Morrison is #11 and he saves HHH, then attacks McIntyre. Dibiase lays him out before he can get Starship Pain, but really top rope moves are a bad idea anyway. But no, he fights Dibiase off and hits it anyway. Kane is #12 and he immediately cleans house, but doesn't eliminate anyone yet. Cody Rhodes is #13 and saves Dibiase from Kane, and Legacy goes to work on him. Striker wonders what will happen if one of the "young guns" wins the Rumble. Does he still believe in Santa Claus, too? Legacy tries to get Kane out and HHH saves. Why? MVP is #14, but Miz blasts him with the US title as a receipt for earlier in the night and puts him out of the match. Good bit of booking there. More dullness in the corners as the ring fills up, and Carlito is #15. Truly this is star-studded. He gets his 5 seconds of offense, including the backstabber on everyone, but gets laid out as Miz is #16. And now MVP comes into the match and puts both Miz and himself out at 22:36. Matt Hardy is #17, so expect him to run away if anything gets too dangerous. And indeed the gas station incident must have been on the mind of Vince, because Kane dumps him at 24:03 before his music can even finish, but HHH puts Kane out at 24:10 as well. HHH lays out the field, but Shawn Michaels is #18. Carlito is done at 25:19. Cody is out at 25:28. Dibiase at 25:30. Morrison at 25:59. Can anyone stop the path of Jesus? Drew is alone with DX, and you can guess how that goes. Drew is done at 26:30.
DX looks ready to throw down, but John Cena is #19. He takes on both DX members and neither one can see him. HHH saves Shawn from elimination and it's KICK WHAM PEDIGREE…but Shawn superkicks him out at 28:19! FUCK YEAH! Shelton Benjamin is #20 and he goes wild on Shawn and Cena, hitting the Paydirt on both of them, but Cena dumps him at 29:18. Yoshi Tatsu is #21. I don't know who he is. And yeah, Cena dumps him at 30:28, giving us Cena v. Shawn again. I dunno, I'm definitely cheering for Shawn to win his first one in 16 years, but the story is better if he loses and has to fight for it next month. Big Show is #22 and he wants to put Shawn out, but Shawn does the Benoit choke to stop him. Cena dumps Shawn, but he skins the cat and Show yanks him back in. They've got the crowd by the short hairs here with the Shawn teases, as everyone wants him to win and they know it. Mark Henry is #23 and he slugs it out with Big Show. Cena and Henry combine forces and Henry slams Show, and Chris Masters is #24. STAR STUDDED! He goes after Show and gets dumped at 34:53. Henry and Show lay on the ropes and Shawn tries to help, but he's got nothing. Truth is #25, and HE puts both of Show and Henry out at 35:41! Wow. He cleans house on Shawn and Cena and Jack Swagger is #26. Pump splashes for everyone and he clotheslines Shawn out…but Shawn hangs on again. Kofi Kingston is #27, and he might have an outside chance. Plus he's got the best spot. He puts Swagger out at 39:01. He pounds on Truth in the corner and nearly gets dumped as a result, but hangs on and takes Truth out at 39:46. Chris Jericho is #28 and he goes after Cena, but walks into the FU. Shawn goes up with the flying elbow (which is actually a place where "Vintage Michaels" would apply), but Kofi cuts off the superkick. Cena dumps Kofi at 41:26, but Jericho hits the Codebreaker on Cena. Edge returns at #29 with his beard back again, and he spears everyone to a giant face pop. Jericho is gone at 42:23. Striker says to call your friends, but really it's late to order the show now. And finally, Batista is #30.
Final Four: Batista, Edge, Shawn and Cena.
They all trade finishers and everyone is out. Edge and Shawn fight on the apron…and Batista knocks Shawn off at 46:03. The crowd is crushed by that one. So is Shawn, because he superkicks Charles Robinson! Great bump from the ref. So back to the match, as Cena dodges Batista to put him out at 48:48, leaving us Edge v. Cena. Cena dodges the spear, but Edge tosses Cena at 49:24 to win the Royal Rumble! I figured him for returning, but not winning the thing. And this may have been the best Rumble I've ever seen, with several great storylines going, no logjam periods, a great pace, and a big surprise entrant and winner. *****
The Pulse:
The Rumble is a hard match to screw up, and in fact this time they got it exactly right. Big thumbs up!
Definitely agree with the Rumble rating. Best since 1992, in my opinion.
Good recap
Why does every single person on the internet need to use EPIC, EPIC WIN or EPIC FAIL constantly? Et tu, Scott.
WWE actually went with someone not predictable? YES on EDGE.
I was loving that Rumble match live, but thought maybe I was outta my mind… glad to see its getting so much love already. Almost good to know your not alone in liking things I guess. I too loved Taker-Rey great power vs speed match and Rey was bumping his ass off. LOVED IT. Great show
Really enjoyed the show as well. Say what you will about the storylines and staleness, but WWE knows how to deliver on PPV. All matches apart from Orton/Sheamus were good or very good (I also enjoyed Taker/Rey, plus Mickie James’ payoff was good) and the Rumble was great. Punk shined for the first third, Shawn carried the rest until he was knocked out and the early elimination of HHH was very welcome.
Edge’s return was a surprise albeit not quite the 2008 Cena surprise (probably because after that, I’ve come to expect early returns). I assumed he would eliminate himself and Jericho at the same time. As always, I would have prefered a surprise mid-card win (Dibiase, Kofi or Miz) but if the winner has to be a main eventer then I’m definitely glad it was Edge. Road to Wrestlemania should be interesting and it’ll be good to see if Edge can sustain a babyface run.
Two smaller points. I assume it was 90 seconds for each entrant but for the first half it felt like people were coming out every minute. Second, Matt Striker really exposed how awful Lawler is on commentary at the moment. Best example was Lawler saying at the start of the WWE title match, “one thing about these guys is that although they’re both caucasian, Sheamus is a lot lighter”. Striker’s reaponse, “really King? That’s your insight?”.
The Rumble had a fantastic story to it but felt patchy to me I’d give it ****.
Is it me or did HHH do his quad in again?.. when they eliminated Drew Mcintyre he grabbed his knee in pain and looked really off until his elimination.
I sense HHH/HBK was meant to go to the end but this could just be all round great booking from the WWE?
Also Edge looked in pretty bad shape… seriously he has lost all the definition he had left and just looked like a skinny tramp out there. That was another reason I was a little let down by the Rumble was the commentary… the lack of emotion throughout and the ‘telegraphed shock’ at Edge returning was just so weak… that’s where I miss JR he would of sold it like Messiah had returned.
Speaking of being in bad shape, HHH is starting to look so damn ‘puffy”. He needs to drop about 20 pounds.
It looked to me that HHH-HBK banged heads when Cena one on top of the other right before doing the 5-knuckle-shuffle. I thought one of their heads may have been split open or a possible concussion.
Full monty on the Rumble match, eh? I thought the middle dragged too much, but then again you’re a big fan of star power in Rumbles, so no wonder you loved it.
How exactly could a Rumble possibly be booked to not have any slow moments? This one told lots of stories and had a surprise ending too boot. ***** all the way!
It was depressing watching the glass ceiling kill so many guys, but I guess the reality is that the Rumble is just another way to book a #1 contender for WM and MitB is the “elevation” match, kind of like KotR used to be.
How much do I love Matt Striker on commentary? “At what point do you stop throwing punches at Carlito after you’ve seen him hit the Backstabber on three guys in a row?”
And did anyone else cringe when Cena suplexed HHH right onto Shawn’s head?
Yes but then Striker had a dud of a line during the Mysterio/Taker match.
“Mysterio’s size is actually an advantage in this match.”
Even Michael Cole was like “you fucking moron”
I cringed when I heard Striker refer to Cody as “the seed of the Dream” but that’s just my dirty mind.
Did Striker make any mention of Cody using the power of the Triforce?
Sadly, no.
I hated Bragging Rights, but that was by far my favorite call of the night during the Raw vs. Smackdown 7 on 7 match.
Not the planned ending. Clearly Shawn was supposed to hold on to the ropes when Batista came charging towards him. WWE then had to quickly go to an alt plan hence why the Rumble match stalled for a few mins after Shawn fell out. And you can clearly tell by the look of Batistas face that wasn’t the planned finish.
And really Scott??? Five stars???? I know Edge is Canadian and all but come on.
I disagree I absolutely think that was the plan as Batista vs HBK has been advertised for EChamber next month. The whole drama of Shawn eliminated was the best thing about the Rumble and clearly ‘booked’ by the WWE as they played it off beautifully the moment he was eliminated until he left up the ramp.
Umm, no.
You’re a fuckwit.
Signed, Bob the Poodle
I should know better than to ask but exactly who are you calling a fuckwit, Charlie? The way this set of replies is set out, it’s hard to tell.
We’re calling “haha” a fuckwit.
Yes, Haha is a fuckwit.
Accidental elimination. The only accidental elimination Haha has ever experienced is when his mom aborted his twin brother Cecil instead of him.
hey charlie, dont you have to go to bed for your 3rd grade class tomorrow? Cursing someone over the internet. How lame. Your boring me.
His what is boring you? Really, if you’re going to criticize someone for being immature, at least be ready to back it up with some maturity (or at least proper spelling) of your own.
Love how this guy gets to be a dick and everybody else gets banned for it.
AMEN.
I really liked the way they did Shawn’s elimination. Most wrestlers are knocked out by clothesline or thrown out unceremoniously. In this case, he couldn’t hold on and it was really cool when he reached for the ropes as he fell but couldn’t grab it – quite a realistic elimination I think.
That’s one of the biggest things I enjoyed about this rumble. You had eliminations by guys that you wouldn’t expect and that adds a bit more realism to this type of match. Although, it still drives me crazy when a guy has another guy almost out and random wrestler saves him. That never makes sense; but sadly will never go away.
yeahhhhh…..if it’s a botch, the cameras don’t stay on Michaels for three minutes……
5 stars on the Rumble Scott? Wow. I actually thought the undercard carried this show, didn’t like the Rumble match at all. Glad Edge won, but I think they got rid of too many guys WAY too quick. I’ll have to watch it again but this was the first Rumble I actually didn’t like on the first viewing.
Just got back from Phillips Arena and yes, that rumble match rocked tits. The thing I loved most about it (besides Edge and Punk) was that they got rid of so many guys so quickly. It was like a good version of Crash TV.
The biggest complaint you hear about most rumbles is that there are too many guys in the ring at a given time. And you know guys like Chris Masters and Zack Ryder have zero chance anyway, so why bother filling up the ring with so much dead weight?
Honestly, I was hoping Shawn and Hunter would eliminate everyone for the moment and be able to have their own mini-match in between casually tossing out 5 or midcarders.
*5-or-so midcarders
Great Rumble! Punk was phenomenal and even though Edge won, who can be considered above the glass ceiling, we like Edge!
Great show overall tonight, I thought. My buddy & I were discussing this afternoon about Edge’s beard coming back & how awesome it would be, and, well, was.
I don’t know that I’d go ***** for the Rumble. It was one of the best ones I’ve seen, but better than ‘92 or ‘04? I don’t think so.
Good rumble. Not 5 stars, but really good, fast paced rumble. Not sure about Edge winning it though. The guy is clearly not in any kind of shape to be involved in a long-term program leading up to Mania. Seems like the E just wanted a shock winner to swerve us all for the sake of it.
Edge has time to get in better shape. They’ll likely put him in a promo-heavy feud with Jericho for the next 6 weeks before he goes for the title.
Speaking of out of shape, I think HHH hurt his quad again. Carreer ending? Can we be so lucky?
After he eliminated McIntyre? Yeah I spotted that.
I don’t like HHH either, but wishing a career ending injury on the guy?
hey, with anyone else I’d agree that it’s tasteless, but with HHH? He’s a smart guy backstage, he could shore up the Stephanie-run creative team, bring back Wargames and instead of us watching his endless act, he can channel that energy into getting other guys over and launching the next generation of WWE dominance. I have no problem with this.
Wouldn’t it be kinder to just wish for his retirement soon then instead of rooting for him to get severaly injured?
That’s certainly the nicer way to look at it. But barring injury, I see this guy’s career unfolding like Verne Gagne’s.
Sadly, I suspect you’re right about that.
Thanks, just gave me the image of a bald fat Triple H! Albeit that would be a funny as all hell. But yeah, I agree Triple H will never go away barring an injury, and be the new generation’s Verne.
Ok, that was harsh. But his act is so stale, that I would like to see him off TV. For good.
Man, I must say publicly, even though I enjoy beer (a lot); I really want to be part of the straight edge society. I’m shaving my head tomorrow.
Seriously, how fucking awesome is CM Punk right now? Just like Scott, I was pissed when he went out. I was hoping he’d make it to the final 4. He needs to be in a main event program again, stat.
Highlight of the night? For me, Shawn superkicking HHH out of the ring. I marked out for that bigtime.
What’s with UT the last 4-5 years? The guy can have a match with pretty much anyone. For those that argue that blood is stupid in wrestling, watching ‘Taker bleed profusely from his nose just added a whole nother immersive layer to that match. Totally awesome.
Thumbs up on this rumble show.
I meant UT can have a /*good*/ match…
I think Taker wants to go out with a legacy of fantastic match after fantastic match. He certainly seems to be bring the goods on PPV’s and especially WrestleMania.
Imagine his retirement 3-disc set with the later half of his career? It’s gonna have some greats in there.
Especially if they do 3 DVDs just from his return in 2004 as The Dead Man again since his first set already covered 1990-2004.
I had a feeling Edge was coming back to win tonight. Everything else just seemed too obvious. I just wasn’t sure he was ready. Thank God he was. Now Jericho should win the Elimination Chamber for Smackdown next week and then you have Jericho v Edge for the World Title at Wrestlemania. Awesome main event.
I felt the Rumble match was a little too fast, but otherwise I was pleasantly surprised by this year’s offering. Rey v UT in particular was better than I thought it would be.
I’d love Jericho to win the title and face Edge at Wrestlemania but I think they’ll blow off Jericho/Edge at No Way Out (or Elimination Chamber if that’s what it’s called). Maybe Edge will put his title shot on the line.
I still see Edge facing Christian for the ECW ‘World’ Title at Wrestlemania. C’mon tell me you can’t picture Vince pulling that one. I think at the end of Wrestlemania we’re going to see D-X with all the gold, Shawn/SD & HHH/RAW, leading to a match for both titles and the tag belts at maybe Summerslam? Then Triple H can call himself the Lord of the Ring?
Great show although I’m trying to figure out where they are going to go w/ Mania…the best I can think is this…still got the Elimination Chamber PPV before Mania. Edge’s beef is with Jericho….so Michaels will somehow cost Taker the title likely to Jericho….Taker will be pissed at Michaels so he’ll give him the match at Mania maybe in somekind of gimmick match… …HHH vs. Sheamus(maybe a triple threat w/ Cena) and Jericho vs. Edge for the titles. Throw in somekind of Bret vs. Vince match and you’ve got yourself a pretty awesome Mania
“HHH vs. Sheamus(maybe a triple threat w/ Cena) ”
Oh no, for the love of all that is human, nooooo!!!!
If they keep Michaels/UT to Smackdown it would make it easier on me, I don’t even have to bother with Raw.
“Taker will be pissed at Michaels so he’ll give him the match at Mania maybe in somekind of gimmick match”
Maybe a Hell in the Cell- I know it has it’s own PPV and all now, but it would be a nice way to bring the whole thing with UT and HBK full circle. Plus with those two, Vince would have enough faith and respect to let them go full bore with the violence.
Just a thought
I read somewhere that they can’t do HiaC or cage matches at Mania anymore because of the logistics of lowering the cell/cage from the roof of the mega-stadiums that the show’s always in now.
I suppose they could go back to the old blue Hogan cage and set it up between matches.
Firstly, thanks for getting the Rumble rant up so quickly. It was here when I got home at 11:30, I was amazed. A couple notes on the Rumble:
- Striker is far and away the king of WWE announcers – within one match, he made references to Badstreet USA, Dominique Wilkins and Men on a Mission. He also took a somewhat differerent path, in that instead of mentioning the celebrities on hand, he mentioned Atlanta-area celebrities like Chipper Jones who were “aware that the Rumble was happening”
- Did anyone else catch this – when Sheamus went for his Razors Edge deal, I swear that Cole nearly said “Vintage Sheamus” before catching himself right after “vinta-”
- Edge was an awesome surprise and is my Canadian Superhero, but I had the match at about ***3/4. I’m also incredibly drunk at the moment, so that could factor in, but I didn’t think it was anywhere near the 92 Rumble in terms of quality, nor was the surprise anywhere near the 2008 Cena Surprise (hell, this – http://i721.photobucket.com/albums/ww217/AJ-47-GFX/RoyalRumble2010.png – came up for months when you bookmarked the RR2010 DVD on Netflix).
Thanks again for the early rant though.
Did you watch smackdown this week? Stryker’s HHH blow-job was just horrible. You’d have though Hunter was bigger than Jesus Christ.
Maybe he is.
I really like Edge, and I was ready for him to turn face for awhile. But I’m not as excited about this as you’d expect. The last thing he really needs is another title reign, you know? Returning to take out Jericho would have been enough. I’d still rather HBK/Taker for the belt, HHH can do his little title match with Sheamus, and Batista/Cena can do whatever it is they do, with Edge/Jericho as a grudge match to kick off Edge’s face run in the spring/summer.
Yeah I agree, it was a great Rumble, but wouldn’t have given it the full monty. There were parts that dragged.
Plus I agree about HBK, this was the first wrestling match in years I felt emotionally invested in, and actually WANTED HBK to win and felt like a mark all over again, and when he lost my heart just sank and stopped caring after that. Doesn’t really make want to watch NWO either to see if HBK can get his title shot.
Don’t know if I’d go ***** on the rumble but I’ll have to watch it sober to decide for sure.
The undercard was pretty meh but I will say that our whole party at the house was into it the whole time for the whole show which hasn’t happened in a very long time. So on the “do people who never watch wrestling like it” scale, this show is a huge thumbs up.
Man, I’ll be “legally obtaining” this PPV soon as it comes up on PWTorrents. Especially after Scott’s high praise of it.
That said, I wonder if anyone would be opposed to the idea of Edge/Orton for this year’s WrestleMania?
you read reviews of the Rumble before watching it? You are insane, sir.
And a reunion of Rated RKO would be the best thing ever
I’m down; but they seem to be making Orton face (he’s def getting that kind of reaction) and no way they don’t do Jericho-Edge. I’ll be pretty excited with almost any combination for the WWE and WH titles as long as it’s not Sheamus-HHH. If they want to have that match, go for it; just not for the titles.
good point; whaddaya think about Jericho maybe claiming a belt at No Way Out?
(it’s traditionally my third-favorite PPV of the year, and I refuse to call it by the other, newer name)
Well, i’m a huge Jericho mark, so yeah. I feel his type of character (chickenshit heel) works better with a belt. His smug face when he was walking around with the Unifited Tag Belts was priceless. I really think though to spice up the UT-HbK match, they might want the belt involved. Would it shock you if Shawn won the WH at elimination chamber and it was streak v. belt at WM?
Mannnn that would be awesome. I was thinking Streak/Belt vs. Career was likely for WM going into tonight, but I almost forgot entirely that the title could be on the line in the Chamber match.
Before the 96 Rumble – I was in like 5th grade at the time – I made a bet with some other kid in the class that HBK would win. He got all of the other 29 guys, I got HBK, and I won without even considering the possibility of a loss. It was that clear.
Honestly. I think the addition of the Elimination Chamber PPV is probably a good thing. For the next ten years or so, none of us will have any earthly clue about who’s going to win the Rumble going into it. The new paradigm is nice this time.
I can’t even remember the last time I watched a PPV live. I honestly just don’t care enough about wrestling anymore to bother. It’s so hit and miss on whether it’s worth watching live that I’d rather hear if there are any good matches, first.
Plus, 411mania spoiled the Edge surprise by putting it right at the top of the front page.
I’m not even going to try to predict Wrestlemania now. A couple of months ago, everyone said Undertaker/Cena was a foregone conclusion. Now it’s Undertaker/HBK although some are saying HBK and HHH will wrestle (which puts paid to HHH/Sheamus). Not many people saw Edge winning the Rumble so where does he fit in?
Good job to WWE for making all of this interesting and unpredictable.
Good show, and an EXQUISITELY paced Rumble. Never felt too full, a lot of neat elimination spots to keep things moving, and a good surprise to round out the night. I think this is the first time they’ve instantly gone to the final four after entrant number 30, which is actually a bit TOO fast-paced.
Of course, some moron wrote in to Meltzer to complain that the ring didn’t get too filled up.
Prediction – they won’t make Edge choose until after NWO just like Taker in 2007. Jericho wins the Smackdown chamber, Edge chooses him, there’s your main event… just like I predicted back around, oh, SummerSlam. Not that that’s a bad thing.
Kinda surprised people aren’t giving Orton/Sheamus more love. Heel vs. heel is a tough match to do, but damn was that crowd HOT throughout that match. I for one enjoyed it.
Come to think of it, was this the first show they had heel vs. heel and face vs. face (Taker/Rey) title matches on the same show?
I agree with you. It was a decent match. Maybe **1/2 or so. I liked that they kept trading off working on each others body part. Ok, that sounded gay; but you get the point. Sheamus would work on Orton’s arm/shoulder for awhile, then Orton would reverse it and attack Sheamus leg. That match really needed someone to go over clean. That hurt it a lot.
Orton’s selling was excellent. I don’t mind as much that this match didn’t have a finish because it fit with the storyline. But Sheamus REALLY needs some convincing wins soon, he’s been the very definition of lame duck champion so far. I would be shocked if he makes it to Mania with the title.
I liked where that match was going too, it was the first time we really saw Sheamus work. That run-in timing was BRUTAL though. Who interferes after a ringpost shot with the ref clearly watching? What they should have done is let that interference pass (everyone exhales that such a stupid ending won’t happen) but then DiBiase does his run-in and the whole thing is scrubbed. This was lazy execution.
***** for the Rumble?
NO.
Watch it again after a bit, and all the dead space once HHH is in against all the midcarders will really drag it down. The HBK stuff along the way was good, but it really didn’t get good until the (mid) 20’s. You know this was a bad Rumble when 3/4 of it goes by and NOTHING’S HAPPENED. Once HHH came in, aside from the few HBK teases along the way, nothing of note happened until the end portion.
It started off fun with the Punk stuff, had its moments with HHH, HBK (all along the way), and Cena, and picked up again when Jericho came in. I marked HARD for Edge returning, and popped like crazy that he won, but I still looked back and thought, “Too bad he had to win a pretty crappy Rumble.”
It’s amazing how people’s opinions can differ. I was all pegged for Scott to give the match itself a really low rating.
So any news on HHH? Did he really tear his quad?
…
what?
I hear he was limping when he got eliminated.
what?
The slowest, dullest, laziest string of matches I’ve ever seen on one pay per view. Seriously guys, I’m glad you all enjoyed it, but all that Rumble amounted to was a bunch of guys lying around, waiting for their turn to charge at Broken Down and/or Over-Exposed Veteran X and get hit with his transition move. If you thought that was five stars, I just don’t know what you were watching.
The issue isn’t too many or too few guys in the ring. What they haven’t been able to manage the last few years is to DO ANYTHING with more than two guys at a time.
As for the undercard–woof. Christian/Zeke set the tone and, unfortunately, the pace.
Yeah I noticed this too. It seems like they don’t expect fans to be able to maintain any more than two guys at a time anymore. Part of what used to be really fun about the Rumbles was that you’d have several different little mini-matches /angles going on. When too many people are in the ring, it become too hard to follow, but the way they did this Rumble made things seem very static.
For what it’s worth, here’s my Mania predictions coming off the Rumble:
Taker-HBK II – Smackdown Title, Career vs. Streak
HHH- Sheamus – RAW Title
Edge vs. Christian – ECW Title, TLC Match
Vince vs. Bret
Cena/Orton vs. Legacy
Batista vs. Rey – Hell In A Cell
Miz vs. MVP – US Title
Punk/Gallows vs. Phoenix/Khali (Why not?)
Jericho vs. Big Show
and so on….
“Striker notes that the match screeches to a halt when he’s on offense. I think he was trying to be positive about it, but I dunno.”
Has any announcer ever said that about Randy Orton’s matches? And if not, WHY NOT?
“Jackson is fucking awful, so they’ll probably bump him to RAW and make him World champion by September.”
Not unless he’s Triple H’s workout buddy they won’t.
“Striker relates a story about how Miz REFUSED TO SHAKE HANDS with Ricky Steamboat and Terry Funk. Oh shit, that’s like first degree murder in wrestling terms. If he ever forgets to wear a suit at the airport he might as well pack his bags and go to TNA.”
I thought that was if you didn’t shake Hunter’s hand?
“MVP gets a Pounce for two. Whatever happened to Monty Brown, anyway?”
I don’t know, but MVP is no Monty Brown.
“Orton works the knee again as this thing has screeched to a halt like a teenaged boy getting cut off at second base.”
Line of the recap, and it’s nice to see that my favorite wrestling recapper is as fucking bored with Sheamus as I am.
I say that we start a new trend, and have Epic Fail replaced with “Sheamus”. Okay, maybe it won’t catch on; but it has better chance of catching on then Sheamus and his abortion of a title reign.
“Striker wonders what will happen if one of the “young guns” wins the Rumble. Does he still believe in Santa Claus, too?”
I take it back, THAT was the line of the recap.
I don’t know if I would say this rumble topped 92′ or 04′ but it’s right up there with them.
Loved the Rumble. Just loved it. Five stars is a bold rating but I’m cool with it.
C.M. Punk is a special character. He just gets better and he’s going to be one of the guys in the WWE, it might take longer than we want but he’s going to get there. Actually I liked the Punk-HHH segment so much (especially when Punk dared HHH to get in the ring and said “This is my house”) that I’d love to see something in the future with these guys to play off of that old “legit heat”.
You know a character has worked when a packed bar screams “NO!!” the minute HBK was eliminated. I must say I was fucking pissed too. Made it all that much better.
Right now I see Edge vs. Jericho after Jericho wins the Smackdown Elimination Chamber. Maybe Undertaker gets eliminated due to some shenanigans by HBK. They could play that out a number of ways. No way in hell Sheamus keeps the title past the Elimination Chamber. None.
I almost want to turn ’straight edge’ just so I can join Punk and his pals.
There is something about Punk that makes him a perfect foil for HHH, I actually think it is the arrogant tone they both talk in.
It makes sense in just the most basic form — Punk’s straight edge against HHH’s DX debauchery. But more than that it would be interesting to see the dynamic.
People really like Punk, even though he’s a heel, they enjoy him and eventually I think some would turn on HHH during a program. And it’s not so much because people dislike HHH, outside of the internet he’s still pretty damn popular.
I just feel like Punk does a great job of selling the audience on his legitimacy. There’s a passion behind his promos that partly comes from a belief in what he’s saying but a lot of it is a desire to entertain.
Punk and HHH had a good interaction and subsequent match the last Smackdown. HHH actually admitted that he didn’t smoke, drink or do drugs either….but at least he bathed. It was funny but I don’t think they can go with the anti-straight edge stuff after that. Hardy was such a good foil.
And since people are using ‘92 and ‘04 as benchmarks, I’ll throw in that ‘05 needs to be used as a benchmark on the same level.
The Rumble match itself was very good but not the greatest. But I truly believe that 2 things kept it from being the best rumble ever.
1) Had Punk stayed in there till the final 5 or 6, we would had a different perspective on the match. He had the crowd in his hand during those promos and while they started out by booing him, he had them chanting his name 5 minutes later. I think the match lost pace when he got knocked out and all that was left was to see what happens with HBK.
2) Orton should have been in the Rumble. That match with Sheamus was dull and pointless. If Orton would have been in the Rumble, we could have been anticipating the possibility of a back2back champion for the first time since Austin and he’s always pretty good in these kinda matches.
A final four of Orton, HBK, Edge and Punk (Or Cena if they wanted him in there instead of Punk) would have been more memorable and a definite ***** match
I’m with you. By my count, I took off 1/2* just because Punk got ousted earlier than I had wanted him to. Obviously this is not “scientific” by any means, but he is BY FAR the best heel in the company right now. It would’ve been great to see him advance deep. I can see where you’re coming from with Orton; but it’s the old adage that a championship match just takes too much out of you to compete in a rumble.
I agree with that, which is why I think Orton shouldn’t have even fought for the title in this PPV. They would have been better off just throwing in Orton and Sheamus in the Rumble or have Sheamus defend it against Cena or something
Well, the champ is not going to be in the rumble but I see what you are saying with Orton.
That said, his match was to finally advance this Legacy breakup angle that has been slightly hinted at for a long time. Orton needs something to do at Mania, but I sure hope they aren’t banking on DiBiase and Rhodes being the faces in that match. Those guys will be booed out of the building.
Wow, our 3rd ***** rumble! I better check this one out at some point. I’m pretty much with Scott on the other 2 (1992 & 2004)
When this gets “Way too long reviewed” I would expect the breakdown to be something like this.
Christian/Ahmed Johnson 2.0: ***
Miz/MVP: **ish
Sheamus/Orton: **1/2ish
Mickie/McCool: No Rating
Mysterio/Taker: ***3/4ish
Royal Rumble: ****ish
Should probably just post that. It’d be your best article ever.
ok we get it. you don’t like Charlie. Maybe you can take your little pissing match somewhere else.
I would but he doesn’t allow negative comments on his ‘reviews’.
Sure there are negative comments. If you are going to post under “Charlie should die” or whatever creative name you mustered up, the mods of the site will not let it post.
Believe me, I’ve never posted he should die or whatever. I actually give reasonable criticisms. However, they still won’t get posted. Because Charlie can’t handle it. Even when negative remarks do get through, his response is always something about their mothers or being gay. Quite profesional.
I have no mod power at Pulse. Whatever gets posted gets posted unless Widro or Matt find it offensive.
Quite frankly I don’t get why people claim to continue to hate me yet read my stuff, making my reviews sometimes more read then Scott’s (then again, I don’t also post my stuff onto a blog).
But hey, whatever. As long as it’s getting read, right?
I had a very well-written well thought-out response to something that you did a while ago. Didn’t contain childish name-calling or stuff about anyone’s mother. Shockingly, it didn’t make it to the comments section. I’m sure that’s just a coincidence though.
Sorry to take so long to reply.
If it contained any major cuss word (Fuck, Shit, Cunt) then it sometimes gets autokilled. I don’t know why. It does it for my replies too.
I really don’t have any mod power over the posts. You can e-mail them and ask.
I would say more like *** stars.
This was like a Royal Rumble for people with a short attention span. Way too fast eliminations, and a hyperactive timer. There is certainly a clear line drawn between the stars and the wannabees with all the filler entrants, whom were of course eliminated in short order. Some of the stars (Jericho and such) got treated like jobbers too, while John Cena laid around for the whole match practically, except to pop-up and hit his big moves before passing back out on the mat. Shawn Michaels was pretty much in the same boat — just laying around, waiting for the next spot or angle.
The CM Punk stuff was the highlight and the HHH elimination was good too.
The Shawn stuff was kind of anticlimactic — because everyone knows there is another PPV in less than 4 weeks where he can get another shot at it. Kinda takes all the edge off the match.
Everything just seemed very ho-hum and transparent to me, nothing too much to get excited about. That’s my 2 cents ne-ways.
It was quicker. The quickest since 1995 at my count. But I didn’t mind that so much.
For one thing it was nice to see unpredictability come back into the match. Who would have expected R-Truth to get the honor of knocking out Big Show?
Who would have expected HHH to not last past 20th? Natural progression had you assume DX would be in the final four together.
I don’t think Edge returning was a huge surprise per say. Not like Cena was a couple years ago, but Edge winning shocked the heck out of me. Shawn not winning pissed me off. It was a really fun match. One that I thoroughly enjoyed from the Punk segment until the end.
I’m guessing the Wrestlemania card will look something like the following then;
Edge v Jericho for the Smackdown title
Sheamus v HHH for the Raw title
Undertaker v HBK
Cena (w/ Bret Hart in his corner) v Batista (w/ Vince McMahon)
Randy Orton v Legacy
CM Punk v Rey Mysterio
Christian v Yoshi Tatsu (for the ECW title)
Money in the Bank (Morrison v Miz v MVP v Kofi v Big Show v Kane v Drew McIntyre v Jack Swagger
Some kind of womens match
So if they do this:
UT vs. Jericho for the title @ NWO, HBK screws UT out of the belt.
UT/HBK II and Edge/Jericho for the title @ WMXXVI
Then that’s enough for me to order the show and love it. The story of HBK trying to ask for a rematch, then win a title shot, then out of desperation screw with UT until he costs him the belt and UT wants revenge is a great way to set up the match (and give it more reason for happening which the first one didn’t need).
Looks like competition is what Vince needs afterall. Even though TNA is wretched now, Hogan & Co. pissing Vince off & making him want to crush them is giving us a great run of WWE thusfar.
While not as newsworthy as other things that happened on the show, I’m really enjoying the Miz/MVP feud. I agree with Scott that their match was a good (perhaps very good) Raw match but their interaction during the Rumble was great and the feud is clearly just starting. Both are showing good intensity, Miz is one of the best promo guys at the moment and MVP is starting to step up. There hasn’t been a mid-card feud as good as this for a while.
Saw the show in a pretty packed bar and there were a lot of weird reactions- like really big pops for R Truth and the Big Show. But it was kind of nice to watch with a less smarky jaded crowd. The crowd was really in to the whole MVP/Miz thing and Orton turning on Legacy (and the Beth Phoenix thing). Two things that everyone seems to agree on-
1) The Punk segment was awesome. There were people at the bar just enthralled with him. I said to my friends that if they kept having him cut promos like that who ever eliminated him would be made. Then when HHHs music hit it was just a letdown- not because I am a HHH hater, just because you knew that segment was over.
2) Say what you want about DX, but those two guys are just OVER. The only person who could have possibly gotten a positive response for eliminating HHH was HBK.
3) The HBK stuff was great and really had everyone hanging… It is scary just how well he can move a crowd and work emotion. He is just a once in a lifetime talent.
4) Funny how Edge was just about the most hated guy in the company when he got hurt but his return and win got a massive face ovation. Absence really does make the heart grow fonder.
Just a few other random thoughts- I have seen some predictions for WM, but really have no idea where they are going, and that makes watching fun.
Matt Striker is so much better than the rest of the other announces it is a joke- he is smart, he is funny, he makes sense and he really seems to respect the concept of wrestling. He is not some talking head being force fed lines by hack writers and that makes him all the better. At one point he tried explain why HHH saved Kane from being eliminated by Legacy saying that HHH has been fighting them for months and was probably just attacking on instinct. Is it the best explanation ever? No… but at least he was trying and coming really close to pulling the idea off. When Ross is healthy, the two of them could be a really good team with a blend of emotion and intelligence/experience and humor.
I can’t believe what I’m saying but Miz is a legit wrestling star. The only thing I hope is that he doesn’t get slid into a babyface role because his catchphrase is getting over. He is coming into his own as a heel and his character just works that way. That being said hopefully with MVP looking like a sore loser at the end of the match and the crowd giving him shit, it will make the ‘E realize he is a star but a star as a cocky heel and not smiling babyface.
With the pop that Orton gets (which is exactly what Scott says: because he’s a star) he really could have made Sheamus if The ‘E let him go over. But overall Sheamus is pretty terrible. He about as much charisma as Orton in ‘04 so maybe there is hope but not now. Kinda off topic from that but Sheamus got recognized somewhat for his short-lived battle with Shelton Benjamin, now I know he can’t talk worth shit but is it possible if they let him shave his head or dye it back to a normal color he would be a little more credible? He is criminally underused and I really think he his handicapped by his hair. I’m watching the Rumble with a few partial watchers and they all said you can’t take him seriously with that hair. You know Nash never got over without his long hair, just saying.
Undertaker/Rey was a great formula and Taker getting busted open (obviousily not planned) but made Rey seem that much more legit as a threat. Blood infrequently certianly works for drama in certain matches.
I liked the pace of the Rumble, but really would have liked to see Punk go a bit further, his heat is nuclear. They could really have a good card lined up for Wrestlemania. Just from last weeks Smackdown and the Rumble they have a ready made fued with The H’s vs. Punk. It could shoot to the moon if Punk got over (yes I know what I just wrote) but you could have this as a line up:
Undertaker vs. Michaels
Jericho vs. Edge
Cena vs. Batista
Punk vs. The H’s
Legacy in a Three Way Gang Bang
McMahon vs. Hart (However they go with that)
MITB – Benjamin, Christian, R-Truth, Swagger, Kingston, Bourne, Ziggler & Kane
MVP vs. Miz
Morrison vs. McIntyre
and that doesn’t even have Mysterio or Big Show in there and that’s a tight card
Do you mean you want Shelton to shave his head, Sheamus to shave his head, or both? And do you mean doing it of their own initiative off-screen or as part of Punk’s SES angle onscreen?
Best PPV in a good long while, probably since last year’s No Way Out. Thoughts…
1) Christian vs. Big Zeke: Not Christian’s best match in the past year, but still watchable and a solid opener. I do believe that they need to get the belt off of him though, because A) he’s destined for greater things, and B) there are a lot more interesting face challengers for the ECW belt at this point (i.e. Shelton, Yoshi) than heel ones. How they’ll get it off of him at this point is anyone’s guess.
2) MVP vs. Miz: Decent match, but I kinda hated the finish. It just seemed so abrupt, but I guess that’s to be expected of the Rumble undercard, I suppose. At least their interaction in the Rumble itself means that the feud will continue, because they’re capable of better.
3) Orton vs. Sheamus: I’m not gonna lie when I say I laughed my ASS off at the ending. It was a total copout, but while I’m not a Sheamus fan, I seriously wanted to laugh in the face of everyone in Atlanta that was cheering for Orton, because I’ve been sick to death of him lately. The Legacy dissention in the aftermath just added to the goods.
4) Mickie vs. Michelle: Any other payoff to this feud would’ve been unacceptable. ‘Nuff said.
5) Undertaker vs. Rey: I wasn’t expecting much from this match, except for Rey to not win (hopefully), but they impressed me. Taker’s been capable of awesome matches, of course, but Mysterio just looks like Hornswoggle compared to the giant zombie. They brought the awesome though, and it was probably the best big vs. small match I’ve seen since Joe vs. Styles.
6) The Rumble: Best Rumble since ‘04. Period. I don’t remember a time where there were more than 8 guys in the ring at one time, and if there were, it sure didn’t last long. It seemed like they learned their lesson from previous years, because ‘07-’09 just had too many spots of 12+ guys in the ring doing nothing until someone conveniently showed up to clear the ring. Punk was gold right up until his elimination, and the Beth/Khali spot is something I’ll never forget. The DX dissention was also perfect, not to mention it tossed my least favorite to win (HHH) fairly early. After he was gone, I didn’t care who won…
…But then, MAH BOY returned at #29 to take the whole thing and made me a wrestling fan again all in one fell swoop. I was so cynical that Cena would win when it came down to the last 3 that I almost packed up and went home, but when Edge dodged getting eliminated that one last time and tossed Cena, my faith was restored. Great Rumble, amazing match with lots of storytelling… and all in all, a quality show. Can’t wait for Wrestlemania.
Was actually a lot better then I expected it to be. So happy to see my two favorites, Edge and Mickie get big wins. But I don’t think Taker/Rey was the best match, it was ok, but I thought it was worse then Zeke/Christian. Everyone has their own opinion though.
Check out my Royal Rumble Recap, plus lots more stuff at
http://nala310.wordpress.com
Holy crap, ***** Rumble!
“Orton gets a monster babyface pop for his entrance, because he’s the star and Sheamus is not. To fix that you’d put Sheamus over and make him the star, but I sense that’s not how they’ll play it.”
Wasn’t that one of the reasons Scott said that killed WCW in the end?
Wait, were people *not* predicting Edge to come back and win? I just watched the Rumble, and god, that’s what I was fearing would happen all along. I’m getting a little sick of these “surprise” Edge victories, and not to mention they did this exact same Rumble finish 2 years ago. Couldn’t they have had someone win who’s actually been working and involved in angles on WWE TV, rather than just pulling the cheap “zomg it’s a shocking return, and he won” finish?
Otherwise it was a great Rumble match (maybe only ****1/2 because of the finish), and a pretty interesting show overall.
I agree with the praise that the Rumble match is getting, but 1992 and 2004 are better for me because of one major thing: Both of those matches had an *overall* story arc that this one lacked – there were a lot of great mini-storylines, but nothing like keeping track of Heenan’s livelihood as Flair fought for his life, or Benoit finally overcoming all odds to get the Wrestlemania main event that he’d earned.
The best of the stories this Rumble had was Shawn trying to earn his second chance at Taker, so what I would have done to turn that from a mini-story into an overall story is switch Shawn & HHH’s entry spots, still have Shawn eliminate HHH after what would have been only a few minutes, and have Shawn be eliminated last by Edge. That would have improved the Rumble greatly in my eyes.