Another post-Wrestlemania PPV, another knockout. Cena vs. Ryback at Payback, as was expected, consisted of yet more brutality culminating in another ludicrous ending: an ambulance roof ‘collapse’ that saw Ryback miss out on this week’s Raw entirely in order to ‘sell’ his loss. The highlight of the show, though, was undoubtedly Punk vs. Jericho in …
As suspected, Extreme Rules was greatly superior to Wrestlemania in terms of match quality, length and storytelling. How do they keep getting this show so right, and the Grandest Stage of Them All so wrong? It’s not worth dwelling over; let’s instead focus on the pay-per-view itself, namely the fact that they’ve incorporated a ridiculous …
The close of this week’s Raw was an apt send-off into the oxymoronic PG-13 Extreme Rules, giving us something we don’t see every week, if ever: Triple H and Brock Lesnar engaging in fisticuffs. It almost didn’t happen; Lesnar was set to strut out of the arena until Hunter, inside of a steel cage, referred …
“I’m going to get in this ring and do my best,” cried Cena, pleading for the approval of yet another disgustingly ungrateful crowd. It didn’t work, though more effective in gaining their favour was his subsequent takedown of Ryback who – let’s be honest – is opening himself up to mockery the minute he steps …
The Extreme Rules card is shaping up to be a killer. In recent years, the first PPV of the WWE’s business year often turns out superior to the Wrestlemania that preceded it, partly because less features are being crammed into the runtime and expectations are comparatively low. So far, we have Brock Lesnar vs. Triple …
I guess it’s finally time to admit defeat. Fandango – or to a greater extent, Fandangoing – is sweeping the nation. It may not have yet reached the level of say, a Harlem Shake or Gangnam Style, but it’s most definitely out there. It’s crossed the border from the niche wrestling market into the mainstream, …
Another year, another subpar Wrestlemania. The production, talent and sheer manpower that goes into producing a show of this magnitude is greatly admired and appreciated by all watching, and is rarely to fault for the eventual disappointment of the finished product. The competitors can’t take the entirety of the blame for a merely passable match, …
John Cena made it ten minutes into his promo before being hushed with “boring” chants, the crowd united against him despite his description of Washington DC as a house divided into “Cenacrats” and “Rockpublicans”. The Great One stopped by later in the evening and predictably scored a better reaction from the fans, but his segment …
“You’ve got 20 days left to pick a side,” said Cena to the Pittsburgh crowd, as part of his obligatory stand-and-point-at-the-Wrestlemania-sign promo. It’s a fair ask, especially if you’re placing money on the match; I’d encourage you all to bet life savings on John Cena defeating The Rock for the WWE Championship. Aside from gambling …
Monday Night Raw this week featured a few rare sights in modern WWE television: a brawl involving blood, a 27-minute main event match, and trailers for WWE Studios films that people actually will want to see. Donald Trump was announced for the Hall of Fame, the Undertaker was nowhere to be found, and the rest …