Armageddon Live Notes

1am - So another WWE PPV is about to start which I am feeling rather apathetic towards. I always look forward to PPVs, because I’d rather be watching wrestling than not watching wrestling, frankly, but I don’t really know what to expect.

Last month I didn’t expect much and was pleasantly surprised. Last Monday I didn’t expect much and was very pleasantly surprised. I’m not expecting much tonight. I hope the system continues to work.

1.03am
The opening video seems to put Orton and Jericho in the main spotlight, so that may well be the main event. I’d be very impressed if this was a great match, because Jericho has been out for so long.

1.04am
Its US title action first, as MVP faces Rey Mysterio. MVP appears sans bubble dome, and Rey appears with a mask on, covering his erm......mask. The extra mask also seems to be some sort of Halloween costume. This is Christmas, Rey. Not Halloween. I wonder if he went trick or treating in a Santa outfit.

1.18am
Match ends with a bit of a bullshit finish, but slightly understandable. Basically, Mysterio nails MVP on the outside, and just as Porter is about to re-enter the ring, he opts not to, takes the 10 count, and loses via count-out.

This match was ok, but it was one of those Rey Mysterio matches that I struggled to enjoy. You know, I’ve kept quiet really, but I’m not much of Mysterio fan. Some of his spots are fantastic, and his energy and athleticism cannot be questioned. But, he is not a great wrestler, he is a small guy who is very athletic and needs his opponent to help him by selling majorly. I think it looked very obvious that MVP was assisting Rey with almost every move.

That said, the match was watchable, and the finish was presumably written like that in order to either have an MVP v Mysterio in the future which is in a cage or something, or its because they had nothing for these two guys, and just threw them together, although they didn’t want MVP to drop the belt, and couldn’t have Rey lose cleanly, apparently

01.21am
Interview with Jeff Hardy, and he says that he has been in all kinds of matches. He lists some, and they are quite a range. “Everything from ladder matches, to TLC matches, to Money in the Bank matches.”

Aren’t they the exact same match but with different names?


01.24am
Its the moment that no-one has looked forward to, as Big Daddy V and Mark Henry will attempt to make a sloth look like the Roadrunner. But unless ACME sell a product which makes excruciating matches watchable, then this is going to be tough.


01.36am
I won’t lie to you – that was not pretty. However, CM Punk continues to look impressive, and surely it is only a matter of time before he gets called up to Raw or Smackdown, and gets programmes with some top guys.

The other positive, I suppose, was the ending, which saw Big Daddy V catch Punk, who was on a roll at the time, in mid air, and hit a Samoan drop. It was extremely creative, and will be used, I suspect, to put over Big V and suggest he is the number one contender. No other reason to have the champion pinned.

The rest of the match was excrement.

01.42am

After an Edge and Vickie backstage segment which achieved nothing unless Edge ultimately turns on her after she helps him win a title, we have Kennedy and Michaels in the ring. This should be a good’un, but the build up has seemed a little forced to me.

01.58am

I am a happy bunny again. HBK v Kennedy was absolutely superb. That is one of the best PPV matches I have seen all year. It may not get the credit it deserves because it was not chock full of big spots, but the psychology used throughout, with Kennedy doing an awesome job of selling his hand injury, and Michaels favouring his back.

Whoever booked the intricacies of the match deserves hearty congratulations. The story of the match was told brilliantly, and it achieved that holy grail of matches. False finishes where you bought the ending, entertaining action, and a clean finish which did not hurt the loser.

2.06am

Triple H v Jeff Hardy. The third chance tonight for upward mobility, and so far it is 0-2. Although, I will let the HBK/KK match off because it was so good. Jeff Hardy to win this match would absolutely make his career. It really would. Would a defeat really hurt The Game that much?

2.23am

Good Lord, he actually did it. Hardy got the win, albeit in a match which I never thought flowed. JR wrongly called a lateral press as a cross body, so even he wasn’t up to speed! Jeff missed an early rail spot, and I think things like this are why he won’t be more than just a one off contender at Royal Rumble.

However, fair play to the WWE for giving us an upset, for giving Hardy a chance, and for Triple H to defy his all conquering image in order to put something over.

2.35am

PPV filler next, as Finlay beats The Great Khali in a slow one. Basically the referee was confiscating a shillelagh when Hornswaggle interfered, low blowed Khali, handed Finlay a second shillelagh. He bashes Khali with it, wins and no-one cares.

I hope they are going to go somewhere with the Hornswaggle thing, because he is all over TV and it is not really that entertaining. I can only think by giving him TV time and Finlay a PPV win, that they are building to something. We’ll see.

2.44am

Lillian has just finished the intros, and we are ready for the first of the two World title matches. Seems I was wrong about the main event. Jericho is definitely not getting a huge reaction.

3.00am

Hmm. Well, to contradict my last statement, during the match the atmosphere certainly improved. By 10 minutes in the crowd were very pro Jericho, and there were some significant near-falls and big moves. However, that really was a bullshit finish. It IS possible to put people, and indeed keep people, over without having to resort to interference DQs.

I also have a problem with consistencies with the realities of the system, which is supposed to be based on realism. Firstly, Jericho would not warrant a title shot having been out for two years, he would need to earn it. But since he had one, as he actually won the match, surely he should get another shot. Actually, come to think about it, by that logic, didn’t Ric Flair pin the WWE champion? That would make him number one contender wouldn’t it?

Oh, I give up trying to find logic. Putting that aside, I assume that what we’ll now see is JBL and Jericho in a war of words, leading to JBL costing Jericho the Royal Rumble, and then a build up to a match at Mania, since we are told JBL wants to return to the ring.

3.16am

Beth v Mickie has just ended, and it was standard fare really. Beth wins, it was never really in doubt. Video for the triple threat now airing. Not sure about this one. I don’t really dig triple threats, they always seem to drag a bit, and they lose some realism, because one guy seems to take a powder after a clothesline they would normally bounce up from, but instead lie on the floor for two minutes.
However, there have been some crackers (HBK v HHH v Benoit springs to mind) so I’ll give it a chance.

3.42am

You know what, I liked it. It was far from a classic, but Edge takes the title AND manages to further his character. I like the ‘ultimate opportunist” idea and gives him a gimmick of being smart enough to outdo bigger rivals like Batista and Taker.
Folks, I am exhausted, it’s been a long day for me. Not a bad PPV, but without being a classic. Lookin forward to Rumble, and I’ll be building to that very soon. Keep checking back, I’ve got a few surprises in store before the first PPV of