#1
First, the positives.
I am excited for Money In the Bank 2012! This may have to do with the fond memories i have for this Pay-Per-View. That, and WWE always end up hitting the ball out of the park at this event and its a no brainer as to why. You have a massive video archive of previous MITB bank Ladder matches that are highlighted leading up to the PPV. These video packages WWE produce have the ability to make people think that ANYTHING can and will happen at this event. Such elements truly attache an unpredictable/unmissable aura to this PPV. Think about it. This time last year, we were gearing up for 2 MITB Ladder matches AND Cena v Punk for the WWE Title. So much was on the line and the wrestling world was buzzing. I'll leave my thoughts on the 2011 version of this PPV for another post as i intend to write a editorial on what made last year's event so great sometime before MITB 2012. Something for you people to look forward to!
If we look at what WWE is offering this time around, it isn't as big as last year. Not even close. BUT enough potentially interesting matches were announced on Monday night to make me think this event could possibly be WWE's second biggest PPV of the year.
Having John Cena compete for the Money in the Bank contract is smart. I have no problem with WWE's biggest star putting himself through hell for an opportunity to once again be the WWE Champion. It automatically puts emphasis on the importance of the contract if your biggest star is wanting to win it. Having former-WWE Champions compete for the RAW briefcase is different (Kane, Jericho, Big Show, Cena etc) but i do hope that they add more former champions that are more suited to this type of match such as Mysterio (who i know is off his suspension). Even though i did not CARE for the segment where this information was passed on (Cena's Star Wars analogy was completely written for 9-year olds , so its no wonder i didnt like it), I still look forward to this match developing over the new 2 weeks.
Punk vs Bryan 2 for the WWE Title is something that automatically makes me want to purchase this PPV. WWE should know that putting such a match on PPV is something that will hook hardcore fans such as myself every time. If i had my way (which, at this time...i don't) i would have at least 1 pure wrestling match like this on every PPV so to ensure every type of wrestling fan leaves WWE shows happy. Announcing this match works wonders for Money in The Bank PPV in many ways. Firstly, because CM Punk has been WWE Champion since Novemeber of last year, it is natural for fans to begin to wonder when will he actually loose the title. Because it is unusual for champions to hold onto their titles for this long, every PPV becomes a potentially big event where Punk could loose the prestigious championship. This, in turn adds another unmissable element to PPVs going forward. This is the power of having champions stay champions for lengthy periods of time. Secondly, Punk vs Bryan will be an AMAZING match. I watched their Over The Limit match last month and was blown away. If they are going to top this previous effort with an even more memorable encounter, we are in store for a truly special match. Finally, both guys possess a chemistry that is unique. You cant find it anywhere else in WWE. This has to do with what Punk and Bryan bring to the table: a Pure Wrestling/Big Fight Atmosphere. WWE can put all the soap-opera elements they like into this rivalry that involves AJ. But when the bell rings and Punk/Bryan wrestle, traditional story elements emerge: Punk wants to beat Bryan to remain the WWE Champion, Bryan desparately wants to beat Punk to become WWE champion. In lesser words, "who is the better man?" Matches like this one not only make me look forward to Money in the Bank, but also make me proud to call myself a pro-wrestling fan.
#2
Sometimes, keeping things simple is better. Sometimes keeping things
traditional is not a bad thing. But its Monday Night RAW and its time to
throw in finishes to matches that seem completely ridiculous, but are
'new/original/fresh' to the audience.
This week's
RAW had many examples of this. For example, the "Contract on a Pole"
match between Ziggler and Del Rio for a World Heavyweight Championship Match this week on
Smackdown. The positives? These guys made the most of this shitty
gimmick match and it was probably one of the hardest-worked "Pole
Matches" i have ever seen. The Negitives? THE FINISH! So Ziggler has the
contract detached from the Pole which means he wins right? WRONG! he
drops it and Cole is telling me he must have "control of the contract to
win". While he is saying this, i am watching Ziggler finally get two
hands on the contract in the ring but the match don't end. Now i'm puzzled as to what "control" means in this scenario. I am so confused that I began to think
that someone must of botched the finish of this match. Because these two
are such good workers, i stopped making sense of the situation and got
back into this scramble to get the contract. Then, all of a sudden,
Sheamus comes out and announces the two of them don't need to fight
anymore, he "talked to Vickie" and he will fight both men for the title
on Smackdown.........HUH?! Firstly, why would Vickie agree to screw
Ziggler by having the odds stacked against him in his title match?
Secondly, someone tell me why the hell would Sheamus stack the odds
against HIMSELF by agreeing to wrestle both men? Talk about a dumb
babyface! Like i said before, i think having a clear cut winner would of
been a HELL of a better finish than the clusterfuck we eventually got.
Jericho vs Cena is another example. Even though this match did nothing for me, the thought of seeing Jericho potentially beat Cena clean on the night of his return somewhat excited me. But no. I forgot that WWE are petrified of beating Cena clean on national TV. Case in point: Big Show just walks down to the ring and just calmly drops a massive leg on the back of Cena's neck for the blatent DQ. WHY!? I get the fact that they wanted to put over Show for the final segment of the show. But why did he have to get involved in the finish of this match!? Even worse, Jericho didn't seem to care that Show cost him a victory. He just shrugged his shoulders and walked off. If Jericho dosn't care he lost, why should any of us? Again, this is another situation where having a clean winner would of done wonders for these wrestlers going forward. One pro-wrestler would have "momentum going into the PPV". The other would be "looking for retribution next week". Two elements that make the shows going forward interesting. Instead, we get Cena looking week and Jericho not caring he lost. Just sillly, silly stuff.
#3
It's time to get rid of the US Championship.
I have seen many US Title matches in my time. Many of them were tremendous bouts that put over the importance of being the US Champion. Dusty Rhodes vs Magnum TA is one. Beniot vs Booker T's best of 7 series in WCW and WWE is another. Eddy Geurerro vs Ric Flair another.
Jack Swagger vs Santino Marella is NOT in the league (or the same atmosphere) as the aforementioned matches.
This has nothing to do with the wrestlers themselves. Both are good in the ring and can carry matches according to their gimmick (i.e Swagger = Grappling/mat work, Santino = Comedy wrestling). However, its the booking of matches like this on Monday that do nothing for promoting the future importance of being US Champion. Can someone tell me why Jack Swagger got a US Championship match? He hasn't won a singles match since Wrestlemania 28. Vickie isn't with him anymore, so i doubt she would of made the match. So why did he get a chance to hold a title that was held by such men as Ric Flair, Bret Hart and other greats? I am still lost on that one.
Santino being the Champion also doesn't do anything for the title. Granted, i like Santino as a clown. He can be funny. But if he is going to be US Champion, he should only be champion for as JR would say "a cup of coffee". I thought the way he won the title during the build up to the Johnny/Teddy WM match was fine and was kind of fun. However, he stayed champion and barely put over the fact that he was the US Champion in future promos. Wouldn't that be the first thing you would do? It sounds like i'm knocking Marella but i'm not. I'm just saying that the US title is a WRESTLING CHAMPIONSHIP. It shouldn't be held by a comedy act. It needs to be held by someone who will bring prestige to the title.Ziggler was a great US champion. Why? Because he defended the title frequently and constantly produced hard-fought championship matches against great wrestlers like Morrison and Kingston. Matches such as these put the title over during a time it wasn't a WWE priority. Also, telling the crowd that Santino hasn't defended the title since late April shouldn't be a drawing card to make people suddenly care about this championship.
WWE, either do something with this championship, or get rid of it in a respectable manner.
Match Results:
Match No. 1 (3-Way Elimination Match):
Daniel Bryan
def
Kane and CM Punk via Pinfall
(Eliminations: CM Punk def Kane, Bryan def CM Punk)
Rating: ** 1/2
Comments:
A really great opener to RAW. You can tell these guys have been working with each other many times because there was no wasted motion in this one. Each performer was great in their role, and the overall body of work here was some of WWE's best. Bryan and Punk especially had me going mid-match which made me look forward to their WWE Title match even more. It seems as though Kane has been blown off from this feud by looking at his segment with AJ this week. However i will say that i stand corrected: Kane, at least in the ring, was very entertaining and impressive in this rivalry. Lets hope he can keep up the good work rate with his next program. Time will definately tell on that one.
A few nitpicks however. If this match is an elimination match, why have both eliminations happen straight after each other? It felt as though if i blinked after Punk pinned Kane, i would of missed Bryan hitting his kick out of nowhere and pinning Punk! If you are going to have this type of match, at least have the gimmick MEAN SOMETHING. Also, while it was great that i got a glimpse of No Way Out's main event on live television, this is something that WWE should avoid doing all the time. In fact, WWE put both World Title "rematches" on both Smackdown (Ziggler v Sheamus) and RAW (The 3 way). Doing stuff like this just devalues the drawing power of PPVs. If i can see these matches on live television for free, why would i folk out 40 bucks to see the same match on PPV?
Otherwise a well-worked match to kick off RAW for this week!
Match No. 2:
The Big Show
def
Brodus Clay (w/ "The Funkettes")
Rating: 1/2 *
Comments:
I have a love/hate relationship with this match. As a match that enforced Big Show as a wrecking machine, i loved it. Show destroyed this fool and left him laying. I especially loved the post-match angle as Show delivered the Knock Out Punch off camera to Clay as he was being carried out.
I hated the fact that WWE has spent the better half of 6 months building up Clay as "undefeated". So, instead of having his first loss mean something, WWE had Clay destroyed by Show every week leading up to this match and then had Show destroy him in 3 minutes on live TV. No PPV match. No competitive build. Nothing. It was obvious that WWE lost faith in the big man, but cmon! At least get something out of this undefeated streak! Having Clay come off as a fat joke who has no chance of beating top tier guys enforces that fact that WWE fans shouldn't waste time investing in up and coming superstars that develop winning streaks. There is no reason for WWE to be this short-sighted.
Technically, this match did nothing for me. It was way too short for Clay's first loss and what was there was slow and boring. I appreciated Show working on a body part, but by the time this match was announced on RAW, it was obvious who was going to win which made me care less about the outcome.
Match No. 3 (United States Championship):
Santino Marella (C)
def
Jack Swagger via pinfall to retain his championship
Rating: *
Comments:
Ive already gone into depth about why this match irritated me. In the ring, Swagger looked like a complete looser, running away from Santino's stupid Cobra. Isn't Swagger a 2-time All American Wrestler from Oklahoma University? Couldn't he just avoid Santino's hand and take down Santino with a double leg with ease? So stupid. It's a shame because, if done right, I think Swagger could be WWE's version of Kurt Angle: a no nonsense wrestler who gets in the ring and out wrestles his competition. But no, he is currently a geek who somehow still gets championship matches and STILL looses. Shame. Damn Shame.
Match No. 4:
"Psycho" Sid
def
Heath Slater via pinfall
Rating: 3/4 *
Comments:
"Psycho" Sid is back....and he looks as old as hell! Compared to Vader returning a few weeks back, this return did nothing for me. I was never a fan of Sid's matches (Watch Sid's Wrestlemania 13 match with The Undertaker to see why) so this return felt a bit undercooked for me.
Match wise, Slater did everything he could to make Sid look good in 90 seconds. Slater, as ive said many times, is a capable wrestler. Just don't expect anything from him except a firing after all is said and done.
Match No. 5:
Dolph Ziggler
&
Alberto Del Rio (w/ Ricardo Rodregues)
wrestled to a no-contest
Rating: **
Comments:
Like i said in previous comments, this match was probably as good as "Pole Matches" will get. I am amazed both guys put forward the match they did considering the lame finish that would follow. I loved the counter wrestling at the start of this match (involving Del Rio's Tilt-a-Whirl backbreaker and Ziggler's dropkick) and both guys were able to convey great and believable competitiveness as they struggled for the World Title Contract. They even maintained this energy and intensity when the contract fell to the outside which was appreciated. Ricardo's cameo was funny and well executed as well. Shame that this match ended up meaning nothing, as Sheamus made Friday's match a 3 way. Should be a good match on Smackdown, just a crappy way of getting there.
Match No. 6:
AJ won the Diva "Summer Beach Battle Royal"
Rating: DUD
Comments:
Considering AJ is involved in the WWE Title picture, the right woman won here. WWE is definately convinced they have something with AJ and can't disagree. While others have hated the campiness of her storyline with Punk, Kane and Bryan, i have always said she has been great in her role. The "crazy/cute chick" persona fits her like a glove. To think this time last year she was a nobody on NXT. Now, i cant get her theme music out of my head at work! So good work AJ!
The reason i haven't written about anything in the match is because....there was pretty much nothing to write about. It was quick, still painful, but the right girl won.
Match No. 7:
John Cena
def
Chris Jericho via DQ (interference by Big Show)
Rating: *3/4
Comments:
I was overly disapointed with this match. Sure, the finish sucked. But the finish brought down an already average match between these two main-eventers. Even in his promo with Cena during RAW, Chris Jericho seemed un-interested with what he was involved with on this show. His promo was somewhat monotone and lacked energy. This match was the same. It just felt as though these two were going through the motions of a match they have done many times before. I have seen a TON of better Jericho/Cena matches than this. To this day, my favorite match involving these two is Cena's first PPV match at Vengence 2002. Cena showed great skill for a rookie and Jericho was just AMAZING as the over-the-top arogant heel. Great times.
Maybe it has to do with Jericho being more focused on his music career. Maybe it has to do with the fact that its been a while since Jericho has been in the ring. Regardless, this was a disappointing Jericho outing that capped off a pretty average episode of RAW. The opener was good, Del Rio and Ziggler was great for what it was and the matches announced for Money in the Bank got me excited. However, pointless championship matches and illogical finishes made this episode of RAW another forgettable one.
