GREAT RUMBLE....Tazz was on "The wig has been eliminated" and him singing with the Cat was classic, I wouldn't mind an RVD/Goldberg trade for Benoit/UT, RVD interrupting Cena was classic and Cena handled it perfectly...the "throw out TBS" was great, I loved how Benoit got him out, it looked like a martial arts move and made Benoit look like the smart technical wrestler he is :)...Kane sold the scared thing perfectly and him blaming Spike for it was cool...I marked like a 10 year old for Hogan when I saw Orton's face go white and Foley come down doing the "bang bang" thing....Jericho/Christian saga continues, fine with me :)...did anyone else laugh their asses off when they heard JR call Morgan a " big hoss", dear lord do I hate Matt Morgan
The only negative things (besides Morgan) I can say would be I wish Eddie/Chavo and Rey/Jaime could have had more time to develop and now I am laughing even harder over the fact that HHH is coming out with a workout book (I just hope they put a picture from this Rumble on the cover of the book), I wonder if HHH will blame his supply of YJ Stinger?
Originally posted by VanillaSky1) Randy Orton's selling of Benoit's headbutt. Orton sold that like he just got hit in the head with a sledgehammer. It was almost Hennig-esque in it's over the top-ness.
(Funny how this has become my measuring stick, but I figure if my wife notices or comments on something, it's pretty good.)
I missed the headbutt, but my wife sure didn't. So, props to Orton for that. He held his own in the Rumble, and looks like he'll do well fighting with Mick/Cactus (I noticed the "bang bang!" as well).
The four of us watching the PPV marked out for the Undertaker "bong". Too bad there wasn't a followup. Yet.
The early matches were too short. We likes some action with our psychology. I was waiting for Eddie to be pushed over the edge during the match, not so much with the post-match beat-down. However, dragging his nephew by his eyes was pretty damn wicked.
HHH-Michaels: Catapult into the corner = really, really contrived & bad-looking.
In general, I was disappointed to not see more noteworthy events such as at least one title change (other than the women's match, which did rule - my wife really winced at the Widow's Peak, but that *was* on Heat).
The Rumble however was really well-done. I knew they would do well with it, so I had no problem ordering the PPV. I'm looking forward to seeing the stats that come out from this one - who got the most elimintations, etc. Nunzio was hilarious, I was immpressed Matt Hardy stayed in as long as he did, and we were disappointed the Hurricane did his usual in-n-out. I want to actually see someone eliminated by a long tussle over the top rope. Any time you see one or more guys trying to lift someone up-n-over, you just know that the target of the actions will *not* be the one eliminated.
I will not complain about the future, though I am very interested now to see where things lead and if the booking rumors will pan out or not. Instead, I will merely celebrate the victorious asskicking dished out by one Chris Benoit. Amazing, and impressive.
(edit - the women's match was non-title?!? BAH!)
(edited by whatever on 26.1.04 1143) The last WOTD of 2003! FINALLY!
This is one gimmick match I could not do without. Pat Patterson is a frickin' genius.
Everything in the Rumble match was great. From the tease of Taker coming back, to Big Show actually outsmarting Kurt Angle, to Randy Orton making a name for himself, to Benoit realizing his dream. Win or not, he will be headlining WM XX, and I will be there to see it.
My favorite part of the Rumble was watching everyone lay into Big Show with their moves after knocking him down. Jericho hitting the Asai moonsault, Cena with the elbow, Benoit with the flying headbutt... hilarious.
I was fine with the undercard being short, except maybe for Chavo/Eddie. The only two things I disliked were that crap ending in the HHH/HBK match and the Bischoff/Heyman/Austin nonsense. My guess would be that the feud between Bisch and Heyman would lead to Benoit and Goldberg swtiching shows somehow. Would be cool if we could see a (OLD BIT ALERT!!) Raw/Smackdown War Games match at WM.
Originally posted by Texas KellyHHH hasn't beat Benoit yet? I guess No Mercy 2000 got erased from the annals of history then.
Didn't HHH barely overcome Benoit in his first match in the WWE? (That one where the Radicals had to beat D-X to get their contracts and Eddie broke his arm?) You know HHH has his report of who still needs to job to him that hasn't yet.
EDIT: To appease Blanket Jackson. (Jeez, a job is a job)
Originally posted by Reverend J Shaft Didn't HHH squash Benoit in his first match in the WWE? (That one where the Radicals had to beat D-X to get their contracts and Eddie broke his arm?) You know HHH has his report of who still needs to job to him that hasn't yet.
I wouldn't call that match a SQUASH, per se...it was a 50/50 booking and yes, Benoit jobbed clean, but to call it a squash would be misrepresentation.
HHH/HBK was a great title match with an ending that elevated both guys
Are you shitting me? A slow, plodding brawl that got even slower once HBK went through the table. 20 minutes of HBK and 10 minutes of HHH lying around = "great"? That match was awful. And the ending? "A match 7 years in the making" ends in a draw? A draw??? Elevated both guys? Since when do HHH and HBK need elevating? Match was awful. Big "bullshit" chant post-match, and rightfully so.
Crowd was dead for a reason - everything (sans Rumble) was way too short, and the 1 match that got time was just bad.
Random stuff (I was there): --Helms looked legit hurt, even limping when he got to the backstage area --Victoria got a good face pop when she won --Austin came out post-Rumble to congatulate Benoit, and drink beers w/ him. Put over Benoit big time, and even gave him a hug.
Note to self: never watch a PPV at Hooters again ... some stupid redneck kept trying to mimic every wrestler that came out ... when HBK went for the sweet chin music, this jackass kept stomping his cowboy boot on the floor ... if that wasn't sad, what's worse was the kid with him that looked up to him.
Benoit got a nice loud pop, at least from my part of the audience.
s'io credesse che mia risposta fosse a persona che mai tornasse al mondo, questa fiamma staria senza piu scosse. ma percoche giammai di questo fondo non torno vivo alcun, s'i'odo il vero, senza tema d'infamia ti rispondo.
Originally posted by whateverIn general, I was disappointed to not see more noteworthy events such as at least one title change (other than the women's match, which did rule - my wife really winced at the Widow's Peak, but that *was* on Heat).
I believe the women's match on Heat was non-title...
I only bring this up because it hasn't been discussed. I'm guessing that there WAS a purpose to Eric Bischoff's tirade, and Paul Heyman's presence.(although no purpose other than cheap pops for the stunners) And that somehow that will lead into the trades of Benoit and Goldberg.
And as far as HHH's physique is concerned. Maybe he is trying to load up on his diet and put on some muscle, only to burn it off in a maitenance phase. Now granted, he really doesn't need any more muscle, but ya never know. When you are that into bodybuilding, it is hard to just let your diet go to shit. And secondly, let's see all of you go out there in tights and run around... just saying
I hope they don't break up Jericho and Christian, as has been built up with the whole Trish thing and Jericho eliminating Christian. But didn't Christian eliminate Jericho from the IC Battle Royal, and then Jericho said he was "proud" of him on the highlight reel?
I enjoy seeing them together, and their "friendship" should be able to survive a face turn by Jericho
(edited by ShotGunShep on 26.1.04 0852) "Huard, gonna go back to throw the ball. Sets up, looks, throws towards the corner of the endzone...it is INTERCEPTED INTERCEPTED, THE DUCKS HAVE THE BALL! Down to the 35, the 40. Kenny Wheaton's gonna score! Kenny Wheaton is gonna score! 20, the 10, Touchdown! Kenny Wheaton on the interception, the most incredible finish to the football game!" www.eatmyassbeavernation.com
Originally posted by TorchslasherI don't care if we all get a Wienerboard press release from the WWE stating that HHH will defeat Benoit at WM XX. Until it happens, please shut up and let things play out. You Benoit marks can't give up for one night and just be happy that Chris was given this huge win? And even if this is where it is headed, I'd much rather have HHH/Benoit and Lesnar/Goldberg matches at WM XX rather than the other way around.
If HHH wins, Benoit's big push heading into WrestleMania is all for nothing. So, it's really hard to get involved in the hype for that match without being cynical. Given what HHH has "accomplished" and what Benoit has "accomplished," we are conditioned to think that Benoit is going to end up just like Booker T did last year. Chris Jericho, while showing himself to be the most talented guy on RAW in the last year, still hasn't recovered. RVD still hasn't recovered.
Yes, it is very feasbile for Benoit to go over HHH at WrestleMania and it's, in my opinion, how things should turn out, but anyone who has been paying even a little bit of attention to WWE over the last four years has seen how things have turned out for everyone else. What makes Benoit any different from Chris Jericho, RVD, or Booker T? He has the WrestleMania 20 title shot in MSG.
I know I'm playing the "if" game, but it's true. This is Benoit's one night to make it or break it. It doesn't matter if he wins in Edmonton or Los Angeles or Dallas, Texas. If he doesn't win in MSG at WrestleMania, he will be where he is at for the rest of his career. If he wins, then he has a real, legitimate shot at being a top tier talent.
Benoit just had arguably the single biggest honour bestowed upon him that can be given to anyone in the WWE. Winning the Rumble from #1 is bigger than winning the main event at WM in many respects for gods sakes. Someone wins the ME at WM every year, but winning the Rumble from being first in?
Thats something that now HAS to be addressed at every Rumble from here to eternity. Something not Rock nor Austin nor Hogan nor Taker has done. And something that HHH certainly hasn't done.
It's an honor, it's an accomplishment, but it's still not going to make the difference like winning the title at WrestleMania would. WrestleMania is THE event. The Rumble is a supporting event to WrestleMania.
The fact that Steve Austin, Hulk Hogan, HHH and the Undertaker have all won the title at WrestleMania outweighs winning the Royal Rumble. The Royal Rumble is still the match that sets up the match. Hell, it only sets up one half of the match that matters.
I'm all in favor of the HHH/Benoit match and I think it will be great if they do it right, but the bottom line is that they have to do it right or it's not going to have any impact. Benoit has to win and they have to see it through, otherwise everything will stay the same.
Wrestling is pre-determined. If Benoit comes up short every time he gets a shot at the title, then that means he's a supporting character like he already is. Wrestling is pre-determined for a reason, so that the right people are selected to win when it's most appropriate. If WrestleMania 20 isn't the time when it's most appropriate for Benoit to win the title, then when is it?
EDIT: I didn't see it last night, but I'll give WWE props for the Rumble. They couldn't have booked the match any better than they did, and the right people went over last night. Except HHH should have beaten HBK to put an end to that feud. Otherwise, not a bad show at all.
I can understand it's hard not to be cynical with the WWE these days, I have an extremely hard time sitting through a two hour show anymore, and the politics may indeed be their doom. But when you reach such a degree of cynicism, the question must be raised, why watch?
Looking back to last years scenario, if I, was handed the book sometime after Booker T won that Battle Royal which earned him the Maina shot, there is really no way in hell I would have given him the win. Now, I know it was on the drawing board, until Hunter changed his mind, but there are a few things one must consider.
Booker had spent most of 2002 as a comedy character, teaming with Golddust, he wasn't in a serious program for months, he didn't even wrestle at No Way Out card prior to the Rumble. The build was shit, remember it started out as a racial story, and then basically fell from there. Now you can argue that in the previous year Booker's character was misused, yeah they shot themselves in the foot, for the fact that besides Booker they never really had a legit contender. So, yes, Booker was the best choice considering the circumstances. But, no, Booker would not have been a made a good champ at that point in time. As I am of the school that you can't build a star or even a good main event program in the course a month.
Benoit, yes I am a mark for the guy. For the last 10-12 years he has been one of the best, few will ever reach that level for such a long period of time. Yet, the guy is missing a personality, and that is crucial for success in the WWE. I don't care if you have the skills of Angle multiplied by the skills of Jericho multiplied by the skills of Flair, divided by the skills of Nathan Jones; you can't change a 20 year old philosophy of your business based on the merits of one man.
Yet, they seemed to have found the perfect fit for him, "The guy who never could win the big one” Brilliant on their part! Now how well they utilize that persona in the coming months is of course speculation as they seem to be on the right track, but that underdog babyface character, with a history of over 5 years, has money written all over it. I'm talking of Bret Hart/Steve Austin WM 13 proportions here. No, he won't be a Steve Austin as far as star power, but a star of Bret Hart's league is not out of the question.
Now that's all well and good, but the question still left unanswered is will he win at Wrestlemania. I will be ecstatic if he does, I as a somewhat knowledgeable wrestling fan will be extremely disappointed if he don't. But, after looking over the opinions on this board I don't know if that disappointment will be for same reasons, as most of you will be disappointed. Is it based solely on the fact that you hate Triple H? Or is it truly the fact of what is right or wrong for business? Cause I think If it were Chris Benoit vs Kurt Angle, a guy who has been on top for a few years now, the comments would be, "This has classic written all over it" not "Benoit is going lose, his career is over." When in fact, a loss to Angle at this point would be just as damaging as a loss to Hunter. And, the match with Hunter will be damned good, win, lose or draw.
The ball is in Vince's court now, I have no clue what's going to happen, but if they pull the trigger they got something good, which wasn't the case last year. Me, I'm going to try to rise above, and be optimistic at least till they give me reason not to. Lastly, quoting Jake Roberts said in an interview a few months back, noone in the business has ever won a title. The fact that Benoit will leave MSG with a bigger pop then he entered MSG should tell you who the real champ is, and make you feel just as good as if he had the strap.
Originally posted by NagI can understand it's hard not to be cynical with the WWE these days, I have an extremely hard time sitting through a two hour show anymore, and the politics may indeed be their doom. But when you reach such a degree of cynicism, the question must be raised, why watch?
Looking back to last years scenario, if I, was handed the book sometime after Booker T won that Battle Royal which earned him the Maina shot, there is really no way in hell I would have given him the win. Now, I know it was on the drawing board, until Hunter changed his mind, but there are a few things one must consider.
Booker had spent most of 2002 as a comedy character, teaming with Golddust, he wasn't in a serious program for months, he didn't even wrestle at No Way Out card prior to the Rumble. The build was shit, remember it started out as a racial story, and then basically fell from there. Now you can argue that in the previous year Booker's character was misused, yeah they shot themselves in the foot, for the fact that besides Booker they never really had a legit contender. So, yes, Booker was the best choice considering the circumstances. But, no, Booker would not have been a made a good champ at that point in time. As I am of the school that you can't build a star or even a good main event program in the course a month.
Benoit, yes I am a mark for the guy. For the last 10-12 years he has been one of the best, few will ever reach that level for such a long period of time. Yet, the guy is missing a personality, and that is crucial for success in the WWE. I don't care if you have the skills of Angle multiplied by the skills of Jericho multiplied by the skills of Flair, divided by the skills of Nathan Jones; you can't change a 20 year old philosophy of your business based on the merits of one man.
Yet, they seemed to have found the perfect fit for him, "The guy who never could win the big one” Brilliant on their part! Now how well they utilize that persona in the coming months is of course speculation as they seem to be on the right track, but that underdog babyface character, with a history of over 5 years, has money written all over it. I'm talking of Bret Hart/Steve Austin WM 13 proportions here. No, he won't be a Steve Austin as far as star power, but a star of Bret Hart's league is not out of the question.
Now that's all well and good, but the question still left unanswered is will he win at Wrestlemania. I will be ecstatic if he does, I as a somewhat knowledgeable wrestling fan will be extremely disappointed if he don't. But, after looking over the opinions on this board I don't know if that disappointment will be for same reasons, as most of you will be disappointed. Is it based solely on the fact that you hate Triple H? Or is it truly the fact of what is right or wrong for business? Cause I think If it were Chris Benoit vs Kurt Angle, a guy who has been on top for a few years now, the comments would be, "This has classic written all over it" not "Benoit is going lose, his career is over." When in fact, a loss to Angle at this point would be just as damaging as a loss to Hunter. And, the match with Hunter will be damned good, win, lose or draw.
The ball is in Vince's court now, I have no clue what's going to happen, but if they pull the trigger they got something good, which wasn't the case last year. Me, I'm going to try to rise above, and be optimistic at least till they give me reason not to. Lastly, quoting Jake Roberts said in an interview a few months back, noone in the business has ever won a title. The fact that Benoit will leave MSG with a bigger pop then he entered MSG should tell you who the real champ is, and make you feel just as good as if he had the strap.
Well if Benoit/Angle were to happen for some reason at Wrestlemania fans would accept that more b/c it would be a much better match than HHH/Benoit. I mean those 2 probably had the best match of the year in 2003, and saved a PPV from medicority and revived a completely dead crowd (a crowd that was dead after a HHH match mind you). Also we could believe more that Benoit could beat Angle since he's beaten him before, and Angle doesn't seem to be as egotistical or protective of his "spot" as HHH. I mean when has HHH ever cleanly put over Eddy G., Edge, Chris Benoit, Chris Jericho, Brock Lesnar, or even get squashed by The Big Show (Backlash 2000). The answer is, he hasn't. And despite all this, Angle is still currently one of the best and most over workers today. I think HHH needs to learn its ok to give other superstars rubs.
But once again I continue my repetition of giving my vote to Lesnar/Benoit at WM XX. I see no point in giving Goldberg that match if he's just going to be gone soon.
"Just a humble bounty hunter, ma'am." -Spike Spiegel
The next 3-4 weeks will tell the story with Benoit, really. If the crowds take a true shining to him, they will put him over HHH. But if the crowds don't react and act like they don't care whether Benoit is the underdog or whether he wins at Mania or loses, then he probably shouldn't go over anyway.
As much as I hate fantasy booking, there's a way to make sure that happens so that they WOULD be behind him , and if not, he doesn't deserve the title quite honestly. Call Week One of this angle Feb. 2nd, and there's also the advantage of no RAW PPV between now and then.
Assuming the RAW move happens, you have Week One, where Benoit declares his intent and HHH shows ass. Week Two where (and this is where it gets fun as far as the backstage shot goes) Benoit beats HHH in a tag match. Week Three, Evolution punks Benoit but GOOD. I'm talking Dusty in the parking lot good. We'll say it's a bad knee for argument's sake only because HHH prefers to work the leg psychology in a match than anything else.
Week 4, week 5...no Benoit, and Trip is of course gloating over taking his challenger out and the announcers are speculating that the match will be cancelled as Bischoff gives an ultimatum to Benoit: show up for the RAW March 8 or forfeit your title shot.
So week 6 comes and for the first 90 minutes he hasn't shown up. Bishoff and HHH are in the center of the ring with a document in hand that states the deadline is passed and Benoit has forfeited his shot. When at the end of the segment someone ELSE's music hits (doesn't really matter who, but actually probably it should be someone LESS over so that what happens next gets a bigger pop...my first thought was Foley, but he'd probably outpop Benoit by too much). But while this person challenges and HHH laughs it off, what it's really doing is causing a distraction and here comes Benoit through the audience to punk HHH and rip the document in half.
And from there you STILL have about 20 days (or two RAWs) to build the match up. Although somewhere in there HHH would need to re-tweak Benoit's knee so that he can build sympathy heat. But ALSO this way if the fans haven't warmed to Benoit yet, he can be jobbed while still having an excuse for losing in the fans' eyes. But if they DO give him sympathy face heat, you have the underdog who's not REALLY an underdog but merely an underdog because he's hurt.
I agree with your assessment of Booker T, and I do think there wasn't much upside with a Booker T win at WrestleMania, aside from the celebration the night of. But, I also think that his loss to HHH at WM19 cemented his spot on the card. That was the highest point he will ever reach in his career. Maybe it's justified, maybe not, but it's where things are.
I think a loss for Benoit to Angle, Brock, or HHH would be damaging to his career. Quite simply, if Benoit can't get the job done when it counts, then it doesn't matter. He needs to win at WrestleMania and, if he loses, he'll only be a transitional champ if he ever wins the belt.
It would be especially damaging if Benoit lost to Angle again, no matter what the match quality was, because Benoit has been losing to Angle over and over again. It's the same thing and we're going in circles with that feud. I could care less if Benoit & Angle ever wrestle each other again. Been there, done that.
I think a win for Benoit over HHH has far more upside to it than for him to beat anyone else, because HHH has been so protected over the years. HHH is beatable, but you always expect him to come out on top. He has been established, over the last 4 years, as The Man. Benoit has been established, since his arrival also 4 years ago, as a Canadian guy who can do suplexes.
If Benoit walked out with the belt (ironically, the same belt he threw in the trash to pursue opportunity in the WWF), I think he will do what Bret Hart did by beating Yokozuna at WM10 and have the potential to be a real leader for the first time in his career. No one has beaten HHH in a title match at WrestleMania yet.
Whether or not he lives up to that potential is something that remains to be seen, but it's there if WWE choses to try it.
I know the belts aren't real, but they're telling a story with those belts. And the characters that hold those belts should be prominently featured as central to everything that is going on. If it doesn't matter who has a belt, why even bother with having big title matches headlining WrestleMania?
Triple H has faced (and beaten) Chris Benoit twice in one-on-one matches. Once during the "Radicalz Best of Three Series" on Smackdown after the Radicalz had lost the first two matches anyways. Benoit made HHH tap when the referee was KOed...and HHH cheated for the Pedigree and win. Then, at No Mercy 2000, as face HHH defended his wife's honor against heel Benoit after the awesome headbutt on Stephanie on RAW one week. Excellent match with a non-fat HHH and a motivated Benoit. Ending sequence was swell, with Pedigree reversed to Crossface reversed to Pedigree reversed to Crossface, blocked with a low blow, then a Pedigree for the HHH pin.
There's been numerous tag team matches and whatnot...but they don't count.