WWE Money In The Bank 2011

Image Source: Sports Keeda

Written By: Mark Armstrong

Genre: Wrestling
Produced By: WWE
Format: Pay-Per-View
Date: July 17 2011
Location: Allstate Arena, Rosemont, Illinois, USA
Attendance: 14,815

For this week's retro event review, the focus turns to a more recent classic: Money In The Bank 2011. On this night, there were two great MITB Ladder matches, a very good World Title bout and a tremendous main event which had a brilliant build-up, a red-hot crowd and positioned CM Punk as a permanent main eventer.

The card kicked off with the SmackDown Money In The Bank match which involved Wade Barrett, Heath Slater, Justin Gabriel, Daniel Bryan, Sheamus, Kane, Sin Cara and Cody Rhodes. There was no real favourite but plenty of viable contenders and, with a good blend of talent and styles, there were plenty of big moments, the most notable being a Sheamus powerbomb through a horizontal ladder to Cara, who left the match afterwards (this was the cover story for a suspension), and a very risky 450 Splash by Gabriel off a horizontal ladder. In the end, Daniel Bryan emerged as something of an unexpected winner, which went down a treat with the hardcore Chicago fans. The show had kicked off with a bang.

Kelly Kelly vs. Brie Bella wasn't very notable to be honest, with Kelly winning in the usual Divas time allocation (i.e. not much time) to retain her Divas Title. Big Show vs. Mark Henry was a slow but watchable affair; Henry won by a clean pinfall after two World's Strongest Slams and, in the aftermath, he crushed Show's ankle to seemingly put him on the shelf too. Meanwhile, Vince McMahon and John Laurinaitis were having no luck in getting CM Punk to sign a new WWE contract prior to the main event; more on that later.

The card went into high gear again with the Raw MITB match, which involved Alberto Del Rio, The Miz, Rey Mysterio, Alex Riley, R-Truth, Evan Bourne, Jack Swagger and Kofi Kingston. This was very exciting, albeit a shade lower than the SmackDown bout, although it did feature the stunt of the night: a death-defying Air Bourne off a ringside ladder onto the participants. Miz appeared to be the third injury casualty of the night after a nasty fall but he valiantly returned to big cheers (why did a heel do this?). Actually, another awkward fall prevented Del Rio (who was definitely the favourite in this one) from winning after he unmasked Mysterio; an unexpected ladder collision saw ADR drop hazardously. Still, he rebounded by climbing right back up and securing the Raw briefcase to a positive reaction. Del Rio would successfully cash in just a month later at SummerSlam, whereas his blue brand counterpart Bryan, after hinting that he would wait until WrestleMania XXVIII to cash in, would end up doing it at TLC in December.

The penultimate match saw the continuation of a classic in-ring rivalry between Randy Orton and Christian. The action was as good as ever between these two here, although the bout was built not around the wrestling action, but on the stipulation that if Orton was disqualified, he would lose the World Heavyweight Championship. That he did, for that very reason, as Christian spat at Orton and the Viper, in retaliation, pummelled Christian to the point that the referee was waylaid and had to punish the champ. Christian was the new titleholder, although his celebration didn't last long: Orton continued destroying Captain Charisma, and the beating culminated in two RKO's by an animated Orton on the announcer's table. Incidentally, the crowd initially booed Orton here, but were on his side by the end for acting like an enraged lunatic rather than a goody two-shoes. Either way, another great entry in the best rivalry of 2011.

Then came the main event between CM Punk and John Cena for the WWE Championship. What a back-story this had: Punk's contract was expiring, for real, and Punk planned to leave WWE, for real. In the meantime, Punk earned a WWE Title shot at MITB, which was not only in his hometown of Chicago, but would be held the day that his contract expired. Even at this point, though, it was only a slightly intriguing boost to the top-liner.

But then on June 27, Punk cut his infamous "Pipe Bomb" promo which cut through most people that he referenced, and positioned him as a rebel who craved the idea of leaving WWE in a mess by walking out with the title. Storyline developments saw Vince suspend Punk, only to reinstate him at Cena's request, leading Vince to put John's job at stake too. The pre-MITB Raw saw a very engaging, realistic "contract negotiation" between Punk and McMahon, which Cena would eventually end by decking CM with a punch, and the segment closed with Punk tearing up the revised contract. That Punk was genuinely leaving and that the build-up intertwined with reality so much created a great deal of anticipation for this match, and the promised atmosphere only elevated it even more. But people wondered: would Punk really win and potentially leave WWE as the Champ?

Punk was greeted with an almighty roar and booming chants of "CM Punk!" by his hometown crowd. Cena received thunderous boos, although he did have some fans in attendance (including a Cena impersonator humorously sat on the front row). The Chicago crowd is often cited as one of the best, and this all-time great match atmosphere was a perfect reason why.

The match started slowly with lock-ups and chain wrestling, but it soon accelerated. There were plenty of big moves: a tope by Punk, a brutal knee to the jaw (which did connect) by the challenger and even a top rope hurricanrana from Punk. Cena retaliated with a very close call via the STF, and not one or even two Attitude Adjustments could polish Punk off. Meanwhile, the commentators reminded viewers of the gravity of the stipulation, and how damaging it could potentially be if Punk won and left with the title. All before a white-hot crowd and with over 30 minutes in duration, this was becoming an exceptional main event.

Following an admittedly weak GTS by CM to John, McMahon and Laurinaitis came out with the intention of screwing Punk Montreal-style if the opportunity provided itself. When Cena locked Punk back in the STF, Vince ordered "Big Johnny" to do just that, only for Cena to release the hold and thump Laurinaitis in the face, giving him a black eye in the process, as he told Vince that the match wouldn't end like that. Unfortunately for him, he re-entered the ring to receive another GTS by Punk, who pinned Cena to win the WWE Title to a huge ovation! Post-match, Vince ordered Del Rio to cash in MITB on CM, but Punk repelled the attempt with a kick and left through the crowd with the title in hand, sarcastically blowing a kiss to a stunned Vince as he seemingly left WWE as the Champ.

The next week in WWE was rather eventful: Vince announced a tournament to crown a new Champ and his intentions to fire Cena, only for a returning Triple H to unveil himself as COO and announce that Vince was "relieved of his duties" (which would later be quietly forgotten). Meanwhile, Punk crashed Comic Con with the title in his possession, and on Raw the following Monday, Rey Mysterio became the new Champ, but would later lose it to Cena, only for Punk to then return with the crown. I'll look at this situation when reviewing SummerSlam 2011, the following PPV, in the near future.

As for MITB 2011, though, that match was an unforgettable end to an incredible night of action. The two Ladder matches were both great, the World Title bout was gripping and the main event was outstanding for several reasons, and though some won't admit it, this was not a one-man show by Punk as Cena also delivered a strong performance. The wider storyline surrounding the main event and rabid crowd elevated the show as a whole into all-time great category. In hindsight, it didn't have the historical impact that some hoped as the groundbreaking Punk storyline quickly and disappointingly fizzled out, but as a one-off show in the context of the time period it was held in, Money In The Bank 2011 will always be remembered as one of the best WWE Pay-Per-View events of this decade.

Overall Rating: 9.5/10 - Classic

WWF WrestleMania X-Seven

Image Source: WrestleNewz

Written By: Mark Armstrong

Genre: Wrestling
Produced By: WWF
Format: Pay-Per-View
Date: April 1 2001
Location: Reliant Astrodome, Houston, Texas, USA
Attendance: 67,925

With WrestleMania 31 just days away, the focus for this week's retro event review is on the greatest WrestleMania of them all, and arguably the greatest show in WWWF/WWF/WWE history: WrestleMania X-Seven.

It is lauded as such because it saw the top stars of the entire Attitude Era converging on the grandest stage of them all, in the most legendary contests of their careers in some cases, all in front of a huge stadium crowd. Add to that the historical significance of this being the first PPV since the buy-out of WCW, and WrestleMania X-Seven stands out as a truly unforgettable night of action.

That being said, it took its sweet time to get going. The opening bout between Chris Jericho and William Regal for the Intercontinental Championship was a nice little match, but it ended a bit abruptly following a Jericho Lionsault; with a few more minutes, this match could have been a lot more memorable. As it stands, the most memorable aspect of this contest was the set-up which saw Y2J deliver a "pee-pee" flavoured-cup of tea for the then-Commissioner. Regal's best moment of this card came later when he chased Kamala out of his office; the Ugandan Giant was dancing on his desk (yes, really), and the Commissioner's response was priceless: "You want me to rub the bloody moon on his belly? Are you mad, man? Bugger off, you heathen!"

Bout two was even less notable; a short six-man between the team of Tazz and The APA and Right To Censor (remember them?). Besides Tazz losing his ring awareness on more than one occasion, this wasn't that bad a match, just not very memorable. Bradshaw won with an ultra-stiff Clothesline From Hell and soaked up the cheers of the Houston fans in his home state afterwards. RTC would dissolve a few weeks later, although few shed tears over that break-up.

The third match was Raven vs. Kane vs. Big Show for the Hardcore Title. This was the era of hardcore matches which dissolved into downright silliness, and this bout was a perfect example. A lengthy chase around the inside and backstage area of the Reliant Astrodome saw such daft visuals as Kane tossing Raven through a glass window, Big Show taking an age to lock Kane in a cage which the Big Red Machine easily escaped from, Kane and Big Show chasing Raven (the defending titleholder) in golf carts only for Kane to accidentally run over Raven's ankle, Big Show looking utterly knackered from all the running, and a bizarre legdrop off the stage by Kane which allowed him to pin Show and win the match (although the latter move didn't really connect). It was all great fun and, for what it's worth, was the highlight of the card thus far.

Next up was Eddie Guerrero vs. Test for the European Title. A forgettable bout with an even less memorable storyline, this was another example of a clash which suffered from a lack of time and a general lack of interest; on another night, this could have been a great match. As it was, I remember it solely for Guerrero somehow falling out the ring after Test got his foot caught in the ropes, and Eddie winning the gold after a distraction from Perry Saturn and Dean Malenko. Who could have foreseen that Latino Heat would enter WrestleMania as WWF/WWE Champion just three years later?

Match five pitted Kurt Angle against Chris Benoit. This was a really good technical wrestling match at a time when matches based on the mechanics of wrestling weren't that popular. This crowd did appreciate the effort that went into the match, which Angle won by pinfall with a handful of tights. Their feud would continue, although the re-ignition of their rivalry in late 2002/early 2003 would provide truly classic wrestling action, by which point the audience was totally in approval.

The sixth clash was Chyna's shot at revenge against Women's Champion and RTC member Ivory for an injury suffered months beforehand. This at least had a story behind it, and Chyna was still quite popular with WWF fans, but the Women's division definitely wasn't a priority at this point (the women were to an extent, but the wrestling aspect wasn't), and the RTC gimmick never resulted in much excitement. As stated, the Ninth Wonder Of The World dispatched of the titleholder quickly - too quickly - and won very easily. Chyna would reign as champ for two months, showing a bit of indifference it has to be said, before leaving the WWF that summer.

Now, up until this point you might be wondering "why is WM X-Seven regarded so highly given the action so far?" Well, here's where things begin to change. The first six matches weren't that memorable, and whilst one was very good and another was rather fun, the first half of the seventeenth Mania would not make any classic lists. What does elevate the show is the Street Fight between Vince and Shane McMahon. This was incredibly entertaining, a great story match surrounded by some big stunts and drama like only the McMahons can provide. A flying Shane elbow which Vince avoided that put the prodigal son through an announcer's table; a betrayal by Trish Stratus on Vince leading to a catfight with Stephanie McMahon-Helmsley; an apparently comatose Linda McMahon coming out of her chair (to a massive pop) to get revenge on Vince; special guest referee Mick Foley getting some shots in; and Shane hitting the Van Terminator on Vince for the first time to win - this was a real treat and a perfect example of how a great match isn't always because of the wrestling involved. That some WCW wrestlers were in attendance to see their on-screen boss take down the WWF chief made it feel even bigger.

By the way, the then-retired Foley was originally slated to wrestle Vince, but there were disagreements which led to it not happening (different reports state different reasons why it didn't go down), which led the Hardcore Legend to at least suspect that Vince's chairshots on Foley in this match were unnecessarily hard. Hmmm ...

Still, whilst the Street Fight was loads of fun, it would be topped - and the card would edge a lot closer to greatness - by TLC II. Edge and Christian, the Hardy Boyz and the Dudley Boyz rekindled their classic tag team rivalry for one more supercard showdown, the second ever Tables, Ladders and Chairs match. And what a stunt show it was: whilst some spots were familiar, they were all taken to new heights here. Brutal chairshots; violent table falls; hair-raising drops off ladders; interference from Lita and WWF newcomers Rhyno and Spike Dudley - it was all one lengthy portion of absolute carnage. E&C won the Tag Titles from the Dudleyz, becoming champs for the seventh and final time, but the match is mainly remembered for the insane moment where the Manbeast tipped a ladder that had Matt Hardy and Bubba Ray Dudley standing on it, causing them to drop through four stacked ringside tables, and most of all, the massive Spear from Edge onto Jeff Hardy, who was hanging by the titles around 15 feet in the air. This is one of the most replayed WrestleMania moments of the 21st century, and rightfully so.

There was minor disappointment that the Hardyz didn't win, but nobody could be let down by the match itself. Although they joined Jericho and Benoit for one more - tamer - TLC bout the following month on SmackDown!, this was the last big chapter of the greatest tag team rivalry in company history. And what a way to go out: this was a stunt show classic, and the greatest or second greatest match of this kind ever (depending on whether you rank this above or below the first TLC match from SummerSlam 2000).

This bout perfectly showcased the 2001 WWF product - but match nine was a hark back to yesteryear. A Gimmick Battle Royal brought together a fleet of classic - or not-so-classic - characters from the old days in what was presented as a deliberately absurd homage to the era when many of these people were key WWF players. The cast consisted of The Bushwhackers, Repo Man, Duke Droese, The Iron Sheik, Earthquake, Jim Cornette, Tugboat, Michael P.S. Hayes, One Man Gang, The Gobbledy Gooker, The Goon, Doink, Kamala, Kim Chee, Hillbilly Jim, Brother Love, Nicholai Volkoff and Sgt Slaughter. On commentary were the legendary Mean Gene Okerlund and Bobby Heenan, which gave the match a real old-school feel. Both were rather funny, especially Heenan (as usual) who came up with the line of the night: "By the time The Iron Sheik gets to the ring, it'll be WrestleMania 38." He also made a comment about Slaughter, the former drill instructor, "firing blanks".

The battle royal itself didn't last that long; Repo Man was out within seconds, and some eliminations were too amateurish to believe (which may have been the intention). Tugboat eliminated Earthquake somewhat surprisingly, and Kamala's dispatching of Doink was heavily booed (the clown was clearly the crowd favourite here). Sheik won only to have a very amateur exchange afterwards with Slaughter, who ended up locking his old Iranian rival in the Cobra Clutch. There was a rumour that Sheik won mainly because he simply couldn't have withstood the bump to the floor via the top rope.

I personally loved that match - well, maybe not loved, but highly enjoyed it - but it was time to get back to the Attitude Era, and the semi-final was a true epic. Triple H vs. The Undertaker, for the first time ever on PPV. For some reason, to this day people say that they had never met before this match at all which is false, and some still say that HHH never ever beat Taker (which discounts the importance of their main event at InsurreXtion 2002; actually, maybe the answer is in there somewhere).

Regardless, the brawl they had here was superb, as it began in the ring, ventured into the crowd (where a Taker chokeslam over a camera railing to HHH was spoiled only by a replay which showed The Game clearly landing on a crash mat), and ended up back in the ring, where dramatic moments saw Taker bring back his Tombstone, HHH prevent a Last Ride with a timely sledgehammer shot, and Taker reverse a corner beat-down into a Last Ride (the first time he had done this, by the way) to beat Triple H in his home state at WrestleMania (something acknowledged here because he was in his biker phase, not his Dead Man incarnation). Jim Ross on commentary noted that the win allowed Taker to go 9-0 at WM; the Streak was alive but was not properly acknowledged other than comments like this, and wouldn't be until 2005. For this reason, many were surprised that HHH lost; in hindsight, the victory actually launched the Streak because, if it was low priority but still important enough for Taker to get an unlikely win over the Cerebral Assassin, there must have been more to it. And, of course, Undertaker and HHH would meet again at future WrestleManias, with the Streak very much at stake.

It was now time for the main event, an eagerly-anticipated WWF Title match between home state contender Stone Cold Steve Austin and reigning titleholder The Rock. By now, Rock had become a WWF mega-star, but Stone Cold wanted his crown back after a year on the shelf. Both were babyfaces, but their feud escalated in the run-up to WM, encapsulated by the topnotch promo video for the match set to the Limp Bizkit song My Way, the theme of WM X7 (this was the best match promo package ever, in my opinion, and another great example of how an event's theme song can elevate the show as a whole). Beforehand, most expected an Austin victory, but how would he win? It's safe to say nobody expected what would go down.

Rock and Austin had met at WM XV in a superb match, but Stone Cold's injury cast doubt over whether this one would deliver. As it turned out, they delivered and then some and then a whole lot more; this was the greatest WWF Championship match of all-time in my opinion. It was a super-intense, highly-charged brawl which saw a ton of big moves, a huge amount of drama and blood, and a brilliantly-told story of Stone Cold's desperation to become WWF Champion again. So much so that when Vince McMahon came down midway through, it was to set up the unthinkable. As McMahon got involved by denying Rock victory on more than one occasion, at first it seemed that Austin was forsaking his legendary feud with Vince so he could beat Rock. But over the next few minutes, the truth became clear: Austin and Vince were together! Indeed, they teamed up on Rock to deliver chairshots, but the defending champion would not stay down. As this happened, and the fans were realising what was happening, Austin was beginning to receive boos, and the previously-booed Rock was gathering more cheers. A brutal 16-chairshot beat-down by Austin won the match, which did receive a big cheer (he was in his home state after all), but the post-match handshake confirmed Austin's defection to the dark side, and a subsequent whack to Rock with the title and middle fingers to the crowd proved it beyond doubt. Jim Ross was beside himself with rage on commentary, with Paul Heyman brilliantly needling him throughout for supporting Austin, and now mocking JR because of Stone Cold's heel turn.

Opinion is divided on whether Austin should have turned heel or not, and the impact this had on business. Stone Cold himself wishes he had called an audible and Stunnered Vince and remained a face. Others, including Jim Ross, say the heel turn was a mistake. No doubt, business dropped after WM X7; but this was a combination of factors. Yes, those who had supported Stone Cold for years probably felt uncomfortable with him as a villain, but consider that around the same time, the Monday Night Wars had ended (which reduced interest in wrestling as a whole, albeit accidentally); The Rock took the first real steps into what would become an extremely lucrative movie career; Triple H would be injured just a month-and-a-half later; and storylines were generally just not generating the same excitement as those from 1998-2000.

Plus, ratings had been sliding for months, not rapidly but they had been dropping since the move to TNN in September 2000. So, it is understandable that Austin going heel would be seen as a reason for the decline in business, but it was by no means the only reason. Also, the Attitude Era had peaked in terms of story-telling and, on this very show, in terms of action. It would be a long time before the WWF/WWE truly moved on from this great period, and even though it did and has done ever since, ratings have never again reached the sky-high levels of this once-in-a-lifetime chapter of history. Besides, Austin was great as a heel. At first, maybe not as everybody (including him) was adjusting to the change, but as he added elements of comedy in the summer, and became the brutal yet incredibly entertaining head of the Alliance, he became a real highlight of programming, and his heel run became a very memorable part of his career.

To me, the only way that Austin could have truly flourished as a heel would have been to have had a PPV rematch with Rock - that Steel Cage bout from the post-Mania Raw, perhaps - which then could have sidelined Rock for his movie role, with HHH then turning face to oppose Austin over the next few months before the WCW/ECW Invasion began and/or Rock returned to fight Austin again at SummerSlam, and so on. Had business remained steady following Mania, chances are that the invasion could have been held off until 2002 (which was the original plan) and could have featured the authentic names, and generally been a bigger boost for business. Under the circumstances, various factors meant the right move (Austin going bad) at the wrong time, and the knock-on effect on business led to rushed or incorrect decisions. Perhaps this is why John Cena hasn't turned heel: as much as people want to see it happen, and feel that he could replicate the impact made by Hollywood Hulk Hogan in WCW, the situation with Austin's heel turn may serve as a strong piece of evidence on why it shouldn't happen in the minds of the WWE brass. And they may be right. Granted, Cena is far staler now than Austin was in 2001, and a heel Cena would be far fresher than a heel Austin was back then, but that's another story.

For the purpose of this review, though, whether you agreed with the heel turn or not, it's undeniable that it was a truly shocking conclusion - a real WrestleMania moment - to one of the best PPV main events ever, and the match itself was a phenomenal end to an incredible night of action. The greatness of the second half more than compensated for the lower quality first half, and the top matches here were all-time classics. Even the second string of top matches were superb. And on this large stage in front of the largest WWF attendance in the US since WrestleMania III, all while featuring the cast and creativity of the Attitude Era at its absolute best, it's easy to see why WrestleMania X-Seven stands as the greatest in the event's history. I would love to see WM 31 top it, but I don't see it happening; and in fairness, even brilliant shows like WM XIX and WM XXIV were still missing something to truly overtake Mania 17. If you watch only one show to get yourself in the mood for WrestleMania 31, make it WrestleMania X-Seven, the grandest WrestleMania of them all.

Overall Rating: 10/10 - Perfect

ECW December To Dismember 2006

Image Source: Wrestling View

Written By: Mark Armstrong

Genre: Wrestling
Produced By: WWE
Format: Pay-Per-View
Date: December 3 2006
Location: James Brown Arena, Augusta, Georgia, USA
Attendance: 4,800

ECW December To Dismember 2006 was a classic show, one that will always be fondly remembered for ... okay, I'm lying.

Normally, I review a vintage show with historic redeeming features. This week, though, I turn it the other way, and look at an event that was memorable for all the wrong reasons.

December To Dismember 2006. This show effectively killed ECW, and was a big reason why the subsequent single-brand PPVs would be the last. It also saw the WWE departure of a notable figure, and the least interesting installment of WWE's most dangerous match. That, in itself, would describe DTD 2006, but I will elaborate.

In 2005, ECW One Night Stand was held. The one-off ECW reunion show was so good, it returned in 2006. By then, though, it marked the rebirth of ECW, as a third WWE brand. From June to November 2006, though, the "new" ECW more resembled WWE than the old ECW, as besides the old ECW names being featured, very little could be described as "extreme", with more being classed as "watered-down".

Nevertheless, the new ECW chugged along to the point that it had its own PPV, December To Dismember 2006. It would be main evented by an Extreme Elimination Chamber match, and would also feature a dream tag team match between MNM and The Hardyz. But nothing else was relaly revealed beforehand. A PPV obviously wouldn't have two matches, so DTD 2006 would need four more bouts. Unfortunately, these four matches would play a key role in DTD being (not) fondly remembered.

Balls Mahoney beat Matt Striker. Elijah Burke and Sylvester Terkay beat The FBI. Daivari w/ The Great Khali beat Tommy Dreamer. And Kevin Thorn and Ariel beat Mike Knox and Kelly Kelly. They're the results: now let's see why they failed.

None had extreme carnage in the manner of bouts at One Night Stand. Mahoney's win wasn't memorable, although at least an ECW original won. This didn't happen in the next two bouts, although the first tag match pitted no wrestlers whom fans were interested in (at the time, in Elijah's case). And Dreamer losing to Daivari was like DDP or Sting losing to someone like Armando Estrada on a WCW PPV. Had Khali faced and beaten Dreamer, the result would have been more tolerable. And the mixed tag match was so bad, it provoked chants of "I want my money back" and "TNA".

The dream tag match was genuinely good, but it should have been third or fourth, to raise the mood. As an opener, it was very good, but it meant four consecutive dull bouts. The Hardyz were victorious in a bout which featured a lot of great tag team high-flying spots, and this would be more memorable except for what was to follow that meant the card almost being deliberately ignored by WWE in the years to come.

As for the main event . . . well, it seemed okay on paper. And it wasn't that bad a match in practice. But everything about it seemed like a slap in the face to ECW fans.

The participants were ECW Champ Big Show, Test, Bobby Lashley, CM Punk, Sabu and Rob Van Dam. Just as a back-story: Show was the bad guy Champ, and Test was his accomplice. Lashley had just jumped from SmackDown! to ECW. Punk was undefeated. Sabu was an ECW Legend, and in an Extreme Elimination Chamber, he could provide many brutal stunts. And RVD had been robbed out of the Title in July, and only now was getting his rematch. Except, the focus had changed. When it was made, RVD seemed like Show's top challenger. By December 3, 2006, the focus had shifted to Lashley. That was problem number one.

Problem number two was that Sabu was found "injured" midway through the show, so he never competed, and was replaced by  . . . Hardcore Holly. In fairness, Holly's style suited ECW, but to replace a popular ECW name with an unpopular WWE name was an insult. Especially since Sabu wasn't really injured, and would return just two days later on ECW. What a waste. Problem number three: the four wrestlers in the Chamber pods had weapons, but they were barely used. Had the whole structure been filled with objects, including a ladder, a couple of tables and a barbed wire board, it could have been as extreme as an original ECW match. Not the case here.

The next problem (yes, there were a few): Punk was the first eliminated, by RVD. Punk's five-month winning streak wasn't expected to continue beyond this night - but to have him go out first was incredibly short-sighted, and it would be months before Punk regained the momentum he had coming into this event. In more than one interview, Paul Heyman revealed that his original plan was for Punk, then a newcomer to WWE/ECW, to quickly eliminate defending champ Show by submission, thus making him a superstar. Given their size difference and his inexperience in WWE, I can understand why this didn't transpire, although it would have been a lot better than what did happen.

Problem number five: RVD was eliminated by Test, before Show had even entered the match. Despite being the top storyline on ECW for months, RVD never did face Big Show again, or get another shot at the ECW Title. Problem number six: on an ECW show, for the ECW Title, in the main event, the last three were . . . all WWE names. Lashley beat Test, and then pinned Show to win the Title.

So angry were fans that many left, demanded refunds or turned their backs on the new Champ. As a match, it wasn't that bad - there were several dangerous and/or eye-catching stunts - but when you consider the back-story, it's understandable why many were infuriated. One of them was Paul Heyman, who left WWE after this event. Apparently, the show originally had a different layout, from matches to results. This was allegedly changed, and once it was over, Heyman walked.

More bad news: it only attracted 90,000 PPV orders - the lowest since The Wrestling Classic in 1985. That every PPV in WWE history bar the first, held in the infancy of PPV, attracted more orders than this summed up how fans felt about the "new" ECW. The two One Night Stands never had this problem.

All this meant that, from Backlash 2007 onwards, every PPV featured wrestlers from all brands. No more ECW PPVs, and from June 2007 onwards, ECW lagged far behind Raw and SmackDown, to the point that its main prize was no longer considered a World Title. In 2010, the brand finished without much notice, and within weeks, its very existence was practically forgotten.

In retrospect, this show should have been main evented by Show vs. RVD, or at least Show vs. Lashley (or even Show vs. Lashley vs. RVD). Punk and Sabu (and RVD, if it was Show-Lashley) could have paired off with Test, Holly or even Heyman in separate single matches. Sandman could have refereed the mixed tag, to make it mildly interesting. And at least one or two bouts could have had extreme or hardcore stipulations. That way, the show would have had eight or nine matches, some providing ECW-style action, and structured properly, the dull bouts wouldn't have stood out like a sore thumb. The Chamber could have been saved for a bigger stage. The single-brand event may have attracted more orders, and thus the concept could have continued. And Lashley becoming Champ may have been met with cheers rather than jeers. Unfortunately, the actual December To Dismember did not succeed.

There have been much worse shows, events where the top matches were either awful, nonsensical or a combination of the two with a terrible undercard to "support" them. December To Dismember did have a thrilling opener and the main event was watchable if you had it on mute and didn't consider the back-story. But you can't help but acknowledge the fact that this was an ECW show that had RVD, CM Punk, The Hardyz, Lashley, Big Show, MNM, Tommy Dreamer and although they never wrestled, Sabu and Sandman. Plus, an Elimination Chamber - and with weapons. That it bombed with all that for the aforementioned reasons means that, intentionally or not, December To Dismember goes down as one of the worst WWE Pay-Per-Views of all-time. Hopefully, those depths will not be sunk to again (although the fact that Royal Rumble 2015 would have done so had it not been for the awesome 3-way WWE Title match is not an encouraging sign!).

Overall Rating: 3.5/10 - Poor

WWF Royal Rumble 1992

Image Source: Hoffco-inc.com

Written By: Mark Armstrong

Genre: Wrestling
Produced By: WWF
Format: Pay-Per-View
Date: January 19 1992
Location: Knickerbocker Arena, Albany, New York, USA
Attendance: 17,000

For this week's retro show review, the spotlight shines on the 1992 Royal Rumble, an event largely remembered for one match - but what a bout it was.

Of course, the feature bout was the Royal Rumble match, but what made this one special is that, for the only time in history, the winner of the Rumble would become WWF Champion (the title had been declared vacant in December 1991). As this was the early days of the Rumble, and the match had a star-studded field, there were plenty of potential winners, and the vast majority of entrants were Hall Of Famers or similarly memorable stars. And if all that wasn't enticing enough beforehand, the performances of two people - one of whom wasn't even a participant - elevated the match, and the event, to all-time great status. The card began with a promo video that featured a classic Vince McMahon voiceover: "It's time to RUMMBBLLE! It's time for a ROYYYALLL RUMMMMMBBLLLE!"

The opener pitted The New Foundation combo of Jim Neidhart and Owen Hart against The Orient Express. This was a short yet enjoyable tag team match which marked the first PPV appearance for Owen, minus the mask of the Blue Blazer. The New Foundation won, although Neidhart would leave the WWF shortly afterwards. The team reunited in 1994, by which time Owen had become one of the WWF's top villains.

Match two saw The Mountie defend the Intercontinental Title against Rowdy Roddy Piper. Mountie had won the crown from a (storyline) ill Bret Hart days prior on a house show, and so Piper replaced Bret in this PPV bout. Again, this didn't last long but it did deliver enough excitement as Hot Rod repelled the interference of Jimmy Hart to defeat Mountie by submission with a sleeper hold to win the IC Title, his first championship in the WWF. But with Piper entered into the Rumble, there was a chance that the Rowdy One could leave the show with two titles (a nice way to add weight to his odds of winning the main event).

Next was a tag team match between The Bushwhackers and The Beverly Brothers. Considering the era and who was involved, this is a very standard tag team match which ends on a DQ in favour of Luke and Butch, who celebrated afterwards with their manager Jameson (who incidentally was one of the oddest personalities ever on WWF television, in my opinion).

The pre-Rumble match was The Legion Of Doom putting their WWF Tag Team Titles on the line against The Natural Disasters. Hard to believe that this was the only time that the LOD ever defended the WWF Tag Titles on PPV. And this big-man match had the third different finish for a tag bout on the card as the LOD were counted out, so Earthquake and Typhoon won the match, but not the titles. Hawk and Animal reminded everyone of their superiority by standing tall in the post-match fracas.

Before the main event, we got a series of interviews from entrants stating their various intentions to win the Rumble. I used to love these promos, which perfectly showed the varied cast of characters in the WWF at the time; sadly, the use of these speeches would decrease in frequency going forward. (Incidentally, the 1990 Rumble was the best one for these promos; some of them are truly hilarious in hindsight.) By the way, one interview with a recently-turned Shawn Michaels (we see footage of the Barber Shop break-up of The Rockers as an explanation for why Marty Jannetty was unable to enter) is interrupted by The Barbarian walking past; I don't know why I find this funny but, to this day, I still do.

And so, to paraphrase Howard Finkel, "it is now time for the Royal Rumble!" Jack Tunney, then the on-screen WWF President, brought the vacant championship to ringside beforehand; despite technically being a good guy, he was largely booed by fans, proving that even in the days before the wrestling business became more "open", not every babyface got the desired reaction.

Entrants one and two were The British Bulldog and Ted DiBiase. The Million Dollar Man lasted 45 minutes as #1 in 1990 but, here, he was swiftly eliminated by a Bulldog clothesline. Number three was next, and it was ... Ric Flair! The Rumble match properly began here with one of the favourites entering early, and so did the greatest heel commentator performance of all-time by Bobby Heenan, who fumes at Flair's early drawing. As Gorilla Monsoon points out, "no man who has ever drawn numbers 1-5 has been there at the end" (this was one of the early Rumbles, remember), so Heenan's frustration was understandable.

Still, Flair held up well against Bulldog and the next entrants, including Jerry Sags (strange that only Brian Knobbs entered in 1991 and only his Nasty Boys partner Sags entered here), Haku and Shawn Michaels, whose exchanges with Flair are intriguing in hindsight given their unforgettable match 16 years later at WrestleMania XXIV. More names come in: El Matador, The Barbarian, Texas Tornado and Repo Man. Greg Valentine and Nicholai Volkoff felt like nostalgia acts at this point (okay, so maybe not everyone who was entered could have potentially won this thing).

Meanwhile, Flair was having a rough time of it. Bulldog had him jumping up and down in an uncomfortable manner on the top rope, Shawn had Ric on the ropes (quite literally), and when Big Boss Man entered at #13, he too had the Nature Boy reeling. But Flair hung on in there, and after Boss Man eliminated Hercules before accidentally putting himself out, Ric was the only man in the ring. Midway through, he still looked like having a chance ... then his longtime WWF nemesis Roddy Piper entered at #15, looking for his second title of the night.

Fans popped huge as they realised Flair's tough night was about to get worse, and an airplane spin was warmly received. Ric' reaction to Piper coming in was superb; his face perfectly conveyed the emotion of a desperate man who knew that he was in trouble. Meanwhile, in the announcer's booth, Bobby Heenan was just something else. Renowned for funny one-liners and dramatically defending the heels, he was on absolute top form here as he begged for his associate Flair to survive. His calls were so dramatic that one may think this really was a genuine every-man-for-himself clash. Here are some of Heenan's best lines from the match:

As Piper attacked Flair: "This is not fair to Flair! This is not fair to Flair!"

As Piper prevented a troublesome situation for Flair: "Oh thank you Roddy. It's not a skirt, it's a kilt!"

As Piper later attacked Flair again: "Oh, it's not a kilt, it's a skirt!"

Talking to an assistant off-camera between dramatic moments: "I need something to drink. Hey, you, stupid, get me something to drink!"

There were more, believe me.

Despite Piper's arrival, Flair still survived, even with more threats coming in such as Jake Roberts, Hacksaw Jim Duggan, IRS and Jimmy Snuka. The Undertaker entered at #20 (Taker and Hulk Hogan were granted numbers between 20 and 30 given their involvement in the situation that saw the title held up), followed by Randy Savage who eliminated his sworn enemy Jake and then threw himself out to attack Roberts. The Macho Man was allowed back in the match; in later years, this would be classed as an elimination (and nowadays, even someone not involved can eliminate a participant).

The Berzerker, Virgil and Colonel Mustafa made up the numbers; Rick Martel's great 1991 showing was referenced when he arrived. The odds-on favourite Hulk Hogan was next, and the late draw combined with wins at the previous two Rumbles made him a certainty to win ... right?

Hogan eliminated Undertaker (I loved how Taker landed on his feet from being thrown out), indicating again that he was the best bet to win. Skinner, Sgt Slaughter, Sid Justice and the Warlord completed the field (what a letdown at the time that Warlord was the last entrant of this star-laden field with the WWF Title at stake). The action continues until only Flair, Hogan, Savage and Sid remained, and with Hulk down, the Macho Man was disposed of by the other two superstars.

With Sid a good guy at the time, it seemed he and Hogan would team up to finally dump Ric, and Hulk began trying to get him out. It was a huge shock, then, when Justice eliminated Hogan. It was every man for himself, so Sid's actions were justifiable, but the sneaky nature left Hulk upset. To be fair, I thought Hogan was a poor sport as he tried to pull Sid out. A shove by Flair and some help by Hulk got Justice eliminated, meaning that Ric Flair, who entered at #3 and had been the face of the NWA/WCW, had won the Royal Rumble match and was the new WWF Champion! Bobby Heenan's reaction?

"Yes! Yes! Yes! Yes! Yes! Yes! Yes! Yes! Yes! Oh my God, yes!"

Post-match, Hogan and Sid argued furiously. But not Flair, who cut a simple yet legendary backstage interview: backed up by Heenan and Mr. Perfect, his Executive Assistant at the time, Flair said: "With a tear in my eye, this is the greatest moment of my life!" Mind you, the highlight of this was interviewer Mean Gene Okerlund's hilariously unprofessional demand of "Put that cigarette out!" to someone off-camera. Good advice, but during a live interview after a historic match? Really, Mean Gene?

So, what a Royal Rumble that was! In fairness, the star power and the title being on the line masked many in-ring shortcomings common of the era, but the drama of Flair's situation and Heenan's commentary took this great Rumble match to legendary heights. In fact, without The Brain, this match would have suffered a lot. As it is, the 1992 Rumble was unforgettable, a classic for the stipulation.

Elsewhere, the matches never really rose above satisfactory, but then more than now the Royal Rumble show was all about the Royal Rumble match, and this one was exceptional. It's odd that the WWF/WWE has never had the World Title at stake in a Rumble since then, but perhaps that helps to keep this one special: it was a one-off Royal Rumble match of historic proportions, and it was incredible, helping to make the 1992 Royal Rumble event an unforgettable night in WWF/WWE history. To quote Flair at the end of his show-closing promo:

"I love it. I love it! I LOVE IT!"

Overall Rating: 8.5/10 - Excellent

WWF SummerSlam 1998

Image Source: Lords Of Pain

Written By: Mark Armstrong

Genre: Wrestling
Produced By: WWF
Format: Pay-Per-View
Date: August 30 1998
Location: Madison Square Garden, New York, New York, USA
Attendance: 21,588

In the first of a series, I will look back at previous WWF/WWE Pay-Per-View events, beginning with one of the most memorable shows of the Attitude Era, SummerSlam 1998.

The build-up to this event was phenomenal. The feud between Stone Cold Steve Austin and The Undertaker slowly gathered pace over the summer, and even in the weeks leading up to the card, physical contact between the two was limited. Meanwhile, it had just been recessed that The Undertaker and Kane were together; how would this affect Austin's chances of retaining his crown? Add to that the ongoing Austin-McMahon rivalry and the fact that this was the apex of The Monday Night Wars which meant all kinds of crazy booking situations (e.g. a Kane-Mankind Hell In A Cell match on Raw the previous Monday), plus Austin's surging popularity, and this event felt massive; it could have been a WrestleMania given the hype and the action it promised.

The sub-title for the show was Highway To Hell, and in line with this, the theme song for the event was Highway To Hell by AC/DC. This normally doesn't matter but for this particular card, it had a big impact in helping to hype the event; the promo videos were adrenaline-pumping like few that the WWF has ever produced. Click here to see one which is far more exciting than any that you'll see for WrestleMania 31.

The first match was Val Venis challenging D-Lo Brown for the European Title. Val was a fresh newcomer with a porn star gimmick which, in 1998, was beloved by fans; D-Lo, meanwhile, was starting to show off his own skills, although he got heat for wearing a chest protector. On this night, that would be a factor for Val would take it off D'Lo and wear it himself, but the referee's attempts to get it off him and further disputes eventually led to Val shoving the referee and being disqualified, which would be followed by an angry Venis hitting the official with a Money Shot. A decent opener but a disappointing DQ ending then.

Match two was a handicap affair between Kai En Tai (who had recently been involved in a too-ridiculous-to-explain feud with Val) and The Oddities. The freaks entered with their music performed live by Insane Clown Posse. The Oddities were astonishingly over considering their place on the card and, whilst they had not long formed, this short mismatch victory would prove to be their WWF highlight. For their opponents, this began a downward spiral, although Taka Michinoku and Funaki would hang around for a few more years; in fact, Funaki somehow lasted until 2010. Indeed!

Next up was X-Pac vs. Jeff Jarrett, which was a good match, the best on the show thus far. The former 123 Kid was starting to gain popularity based on his in-ring skills (since his return he had mainly been cheered for his association with DX) whilst Jarrett was slowly morphing from the country singer character to the arrogant redneck with a tendency for smashing opponents with guitars. This was a big step in Jarrett's metamorphosis as, following Pac's win, he cut off Jeff's long hair as per the stipulation. I honestly don't remember how their feud escalated to the point that a Hair vs. Hair match was required, but it was good to see the annoying Jarrett get shaved by X-Pac and some friends, including Howard Finkel who had been shaved bald by Jarrett on Sunday Night Heat (incidentally, this was the first PPV to be preceded by the recently-launched Heat after years of the Free For All).

Next up was Marc Mero and Jacqueline against Sable and a mystery partner, who turned out to be then-newcomer Edge. In contrast to nowadays, where few stars are truly over, when unveiled here Edge got a big pop despite only being around for a few weeks at that point, and he made the most of it with a strong showing and nice exchanges with Mero. He had a hand in the finish too, as Sable did a backwards roll for Edge to lift her and slam her onto Mero splash-style for the win. Sable got the attention at the time, but it was Edge who was the star of his first PPV bout, an early sign of how Edge would light up the WWF/WWE in the years to come.

Following this was a Lion's Den match between Ken Shamrock and Owen Hart (accompanied by Dan Severn), a UFC-style fight held in a circle-ish cage within the theatre section of MSG. This was a very physical and completely believable shoot-style fight, helped by the rabid New York fans in the side-section of the Garden. In the end, Shamrock secured a submission victory with the Ankle Lock as a frustrated Severn walked out before the finish. Strangely, I don't recall the much-teased Shamrock-Severn fight ever really happening, and despite this match acting as strong evidence of how popular the no-nonsense World's Most Dangerous Man was, he would turn heel just a few weeks later.

We were then supposed to get a Falls Count Anywhere bout between Kane and Mankind and The New Age Outlaws for the Tag Team Titles. But Kane was nowhere to be found, as his alliance with Undertaker seemed to now take priority over his championship combo with Mankind. So, the masked man (who had already inadvertently been attacked on Heat by Austin, who smashed up a hearse thinking Taker and/or Kane were in it, but it turned out that this was Mick Foley) had to go it alone against Road Dogg and Billy Gunn. He actually put up a good fight, and seemed to be in control when he hip-tossed Billy through a table. But the numbers won out, and a spike piledriver led to the Outlaws once again becoming "Tag Team Champions Of The Worrrrrrrrrrrrrrld!" Post-match, the new champs put Mankind in a dumpster which they had brought to ringside, not knowing that inside there was Kane, who drove a sledgehammer into the face of his partner. By the way, this was the first ever WWF appearance of the weapon which would later become synonymous with Triple H.

Speaking of HHH, he was up next against The Rock in a Ladder match for the Intercontinental Title. Rock had been champion since December of 1997, and in that time he had truly blossomed, from a villain who fans hated more for the feeling that he was being over-pushed due to his Samoan wrestling family lineage (sound familiar?) to a bad guy who was so cool and so funny that fans were really starting to warm to him and even occasionally cheer for him. As for Triple H, after years of indifference, he was finally gaining true popularity as leader of the new D-Generation X, and a win here would really spotlight him as one of the WWF's true rising stars.

This match was the culmination of a months-long rivalry, the centrepiece of the larger feud between DX and the Nation Of Domination. And in the building where Shawn Michaels and Razor Ramon had contested their famous Ladder match at WrestleMania X, HHH and Rock had a great bout of their own. There were many big moves (which were wrestling-based; in the pre-TLC days, these matches weren't about the stunts), such as a Rock slingshot into a Ladder, the conversion of a Rock climb into a Pedigree and a People's Elbow on HHH on a Ladder.

Mark Henry and Chyna were at ringside, and the latter would prove crucial, as a Chyna low blow denied Rock and allowed HHH to win the match. The pop that greeted Triple H's win was huge, and the subsequent DX celebration showed that this was the apex for the 1998-9 version of the group (I forgot to mention that in Hunter's entrance, the DX theme tune was performed live by The Chris Warren Band). Meanwhile, despite his lengthy title reign ending, Rock's performance and the positive crowd reaction were strong indicators that he would one day become one of the WWF's biggest names. But nobody knew how quickly that would happen, and certainly no-one could have predicted just how big a star that The Rock would become.

It was now time for the main event between Stone Cold Steve Austin and The Undertaker. Both had big entrances (Taker looked like the devil incarnate as he walked through the gates of Hell-style entrance way, and a Rattlesnake screen smashed as Austin arrived), and both were greeted very positively (Taker hadn't completed his heel turn yet). The match starred with fisticuffs and some good exchanges, one of which actually legitimately knocked Austin out for a few seconds. The fight then went through the crowd and eventually to ringside where Taker performed an insane top rope Legdrop onto Austin, who was on the Spanish announcer's table.

As the match continued, Kane walked to ringside to help Taker, but was told by the Phenom to return backstage, as he planned to win this one himself (adding to the mystery of their collusion). That would prove to be an error: after Stone Cold survived a Chokeslam, Austin intercepted an attempt at the move which would later become known as Old School, and follow it up with a match-winning Stone Cold Stunner. Afterwards, Undertaker handed the WWF Championship to Austin, essentially endorsing him as the main man in the World Wrestling Federation, although the subsequent stares by Taker and Kane at Stone Cold showed that the feud was far from over.

This was a very good main event, but I felt that something was missing. Perhaps an intrusion by Vince McMahon which could have led to one of the participants decking him, or some sort of ref bump which could have seen Taker try to win with a chairshot. I'm not sure what it was, but something was lacking which prevented it from being remembered in the same way as Austin's clashes with the likes of Dude Love and, later, The Rock, or Taker's recent matches with Kane and Mankind. Still, it was only a slight disappointment if anything, and the match officially crowned Austin as the undisputed king of the WWF.

SummerSlam 1998 marked the first peak for the WWF Attitude Era. Many of the most memorable names from the year (Austin, Taker, DX etc), from the top of the card to the bottom, were completely in their element here, and there were some of the most memorable matches of the period here as well. When you think of the characters from that time, and you think of them in their "vintage" forms, you're likely to think back to their appearances on this show.

Fortunately, this great era would improve even more in the future, as more new characters would be added (The Brood, The Hardyz, Chris Jericho etc), and some would be subject to revamps which would make them even more entertaining (Mankind, The Rock). And that's what the Attitude Era was so memorable: for the entertainment it provided. But this card showed that the matches could still provide a good helping of excitement too from a wrestling standpoint, and so whilst one or two matches could have shone a bit more, SummerSlam 1998 still stands out as one of the most fondly-remembered events of the Attitude Era.

Overall Rating: 8.5/10 - Excellent