11. Unforgiven
The poster should indicate what the main attraction was for this show, but the return of The Undertaker is not enough to save this PPV from its mediocre card. The Phenom returns in a very underwhelming main event match that ranges on squash match territory. The WWE Championship match between John Cena and Randy Orton was the definition of a personal feud, with Orton attacking Cena's father, but the storytelling and results of the match are very disappointing and brief, made even more disappointing that this was the match to signify Cena's year-long reign with the belt.The World Heavyweight Championship match isn't much to talk about either, a triple threat match between The Great Khali, Rey Mysterio, and Batista. It's not exciting, but not overly offensive either. The show is harmless, but not worth the efforts considering much stronger shows throughout the year.
Skip It
12. No Mercy
After suffering a torn pectoral muscle, John Cena's year-long reign came to an end, leaving the world wondering who would be the next WWE Champion. The most important story on this night was the fate of the championship and the men who fought for it. After the belt was awarded to Randy Orton (Cena's scheduled opponent for the show), it would be defended a total of three times that evening. There was also a lot of buzz about the Punjabi Prison match between Batista and The Great Khali for the World Heavyweight Championship. Nowadays, it's a gimmick match that is completely laughable, but it's worth watching for the ridiculousness and shouldn't need to be taken seriously (picture a modern-day Kennel from Hell, except this gimmick got 2 matches out of it).As expected, the Chicago crowd adds a boost of energy throughout the night, making this show feel like every moment is a part of history. While that may not be the case for every match in hindsight, it can definitely ring true for the story surrounding the WWE Championship, being the culmination of months of establishing Orton as a top heel, and using Triple H's return to add credibility and set the stage for bigger things down the road. RAW would have to rely on these factors, as well as a few surprises, to carry the show for the next few months while Cena would be out of action for the remainder of the year.
Recommended
13. Cyber Sunday
I love the gimmick of this show: that the fans have ultimate power in deciding what matches take place. They can determine the number one contender for a championship, the type of match they have, special referees for the match, etc. The show itself is a lot of fun, but there's something lacking in quality. The PPV serves as a filler show between No Mercy and Survivor Series, with its only outstanding feature being the fan participation gimmick.I also wonder about the credibility of the voting process. Does the WWE really have a full match and outcome ready to go if the fans vote Mr. Kennedy or Jeff Hardy to face Randy Orton for the WWE Championship instead of Shawn Michaels? Or what would have happened if the fans voted JBL or Mick Foley to referee the World Heavyweight Championship match instead of Stone Cold Steve Austin? The voting results are VERY predictable, but maybe that has something to do with the demographic of the voters. Who knows what kind of PPV we would have gotten if the internet marks actually wanted to participate in the vote.
Skip It
14. Survivor Series
The two world title main events offer great storytelling, starting with Randy Orton and Shawn Michaels for the WWE Championship. In a match where Michaels could not use Sweet Chin Music and Orton could not get himself disqualified, the two must rely on different wrestling styles to win the match, with Michaels implementing a more submission-based style and Orton (theoretically) trying to win the match clean. The World Heavyweight Championship was put on the line in a Hell in a Cell match between Batista and the Undertaker, in a bloody and physical match that would (theoretically) bring their intense rivalry to an end. The two main events add credibility to the show's name, along with the traditional elimination match, as the night feels like a night of survival.
Recommended
15. Armageddon
With the exception of ONE thing, this end is nothing but pure end of the year filler. That ONE thing is Chris Jericho, who after months of leaving cryptic
messages airing on WWE programming, made his return to save us from
Randy Orton and take the WWE Championship from him. Many of the feuds going into it are short term and only used for this show, leaving little to no impact on wrestling history, including a triple threat main event for the World Heavyweight Championship between Batista, Edge, and the Undertaker, a match that at the time could have been an all-star match between SmackDown's three biggest superstars.One of the better stories told at Armageddon is in the match between Jeff Hardy and Triple H to determine the number one contender for the WWE Championship at the Royal Rumble. There's a great promo that Jeff makes before the match, and the match itself is a great method of developing a potential new face in the main event scene. Apart from that, this PPV is a pretty disappointing way to close out an otherwise impressive momentum of quality PPVs.
Skip It
Final Thoughts: I know not everyone will agree with me, but I will always consider 2007 to be a solid year of wrestling PPVs. While the year does end with a handful of underwhelming shows, each is filled with one or two quality matches featuring top talent. Is it the greatest year in wrestling history? No, absolutely not. But 2007 is the first year of wrestling I ever followed, so it holds a special nostalgic spot in my fandom, and also kept me interested enough to continue watching wrestling and pursue other years and eras of sports entertainment, creating the wrestling historian that is here today.
All rights and images are copyrighted and owned by World Wrestling Entertainment
No comments:
Post a Comment