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This was by far the best PPV of the last five wrestling PPV's. I don't really know if that first sentence does it justice considering only the TNA PPV put any fight up against it. In all honestly, this possibly was the best PPV of the year. It certainly outdid Survivor Series and Summerslam. It was inches better than Wrestlemania. The Royal Rumble had a great shot but I still think tonight's show was of the scale...onto the matches!
Kane V MVP - Inferno Match At first I didn't like the idea of this being the first match on the card but after seeing the entire PPV it made a lot more sense. Kane's destruction of Mr. Porter was rather quick and uneventful and so putting a match that was billed for two weeks as "One third of the main event" actually was the right move on WWE's part. MVP did what he needed to do in the match, Kane was great as usual. I liked the booking of the fire on the back instead of an arm or leg - it looked more real tonight. 3/5 stars
Kendrick/London V Regal Taylor V Hardy's V MNM - Ladder Match for the tag titles This by far stole the show tonight and did it on two levels. One, the in-ring work by all involved was off the hook. Two, the surprise of it all was what WWE creative has been missing as of late. No one I was with tonight saw this coming. There was a strong belief among all of us that possibly MNM were supposed to win the titles and that was why the ending they used didn't look quite right. Unfortunately Joey Mercury was injured and seeing as how he just came back, it is sad but it was obviously an accident. I liked the booking here as it made Regal and Taylor even more Heelistic yet funny and put over Kendrick and London in a big way (although again, I don't necessarily believe it was supposed to play out that way). It also didn't hurt MNM or The Hardy's in any way as tag teams or singles wrestlers and it could possibly make Joey Mercury if he plays it right when he returns to action. 5/5
The Miz V Boogey man I can only say one thing; THANK GOD BOOGEY MAN WON. Half a star/5
Benoit V Chavo This match had some great spots in it. I really don't think anyone knew who would win, and that was a trait that seemed to go throughout the night. Benoit's 8 German Suplexes was just amazing and he is an absolute monster. Chavo is still very underrated and is a fantastic heel. He is a fantastic heel that doesn't need Vicki, she only takes away from him. Managers are there to help those who can't help themselves. Managers like Heenan, Elizabeth, Classie Freddie Blassie, Slick, or even Sunny always knew how to help their teams or superstars, Vicki does not. All in all this was one of the best mat wrestling matches on the card. 3.5/5
Gregory helms V Jimmy Wang Yang The crowd shouted boring. Okay, I heard it. Shut up JBL! He was absolutely right in saying how the two shouldn't have been booed for their work but he didn't have to ram the idea down our throats for an entire match. Helms is simply one of the best performers WWE has and the creative team really needs to push him even more. His next run I personally think should be at the US title, and then the world title. Yang is growing, and could be a star if he and WWE makes the right decisions with his character. Great match, wrong slot. 4/5
Undertaker V. Ken Kennedy. I honestly think Ken Kennedy is the next Rock. He is a great wrestler...has the complete package. Undertaker looked better in this match than he has all year except when he wrestled Angle for the title. Both Kennedy and Kurt Angle have that quality of being relatively young yet able to get the best out of an old veteran or a weak performer. The Inside the hearse stuff was well shot and well done. The spot off the top of the Armageddon sign was cool but not shot well. The crowd seemed so into this one! 3/5
The Diva spot Well, I will say I had no idea who was under the Santa suit and man was I not glad to see who it was. The Diva's were all very beautiful and hot. When Teddy came and said they were doing the Diva thing it sounded like it was going to be an actual match, I was sorry it wasn't and I think it would have been better if it was. At least Miz wasn't directing the traffic. 2/5 (for pure titillation reasons)
Booker T/Finlay V Batista/John Cena This match had a lot of botched spots it seems. It had some nice work here and there but overall could have been a lot better. I also think that the heels should have won here. Actually I thought of a lot of angles that would have been a great end. How about an attack by Umaga that gets fans to want to see the next PPV or how about a new heel nails Batista so we have a new rivalry? How about King Booker turns Face? Anything but a clean ending or a good guy ends the show...Actually the one thing I really think they need to do is have a Finlay opponent bring his own midget to face the Bastard - like Dink the clown or something, that's brilliant! 2/5
Joel C Croyle
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JBL was able to sum up Armageddon in one simple and accurate phrase, and it was true. Armageddon was one hell of a Pay Per View. With the exception of Boogeyman vs. Miz, every match was high caliber.
The inferno match was a good way to start the event and is unique in it’s stipulation. I was surprised to see MVP stay ablaze for that duration of a time. It shows the guy is a team player, and Kane was consistently good throughout the match, as usual.
The Ladder Match was a five star match, at the expense of Joey Mercury's face. The amount of blood was borderline disturbing, and he will look like Frankenstein for a few weeks. London and Kendrick took a lot of sick bumps. To say the match was brutal would be an understatement.
I could be wrong, but it looked like the Miz was carrying Boogeyman through the match. That’s a scary thought.
Chavo and Benoit had a classic match. It was very old school. Lots of hard hitting slams, suplexes, and stiff chops.
The Cruiserweight match was another DVD quality match. Perhaps even more stiff than Chavo and Benoit. Yang and Helms are athletes. It seemed as though JBL was a little aggravated by the “boring†chants. I had no idea he was that pissed off!
The Last Ride match was another addition of an Undertaker match for the ages. Kennedy did okay as well. Kind of hokey, but still fun to watch.
Somehow you had to figure it was BDJ as Santa. Personally, I thought Layla should have won the Bikini contest. The main event was a typical Batista match. He gets the hot tag, hits the Batista Bomb, and that's the match. Not as spectacular as the previous matches, but decent for what it was worth. At least the main event didn't end early like the ECW rip off from two weeks ago. Armageddon was redemption for the WWE. Sean, Baltimore.
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RE: Armageddon PPV
Kane vs MVP – Surprised to see this go up first but I guess it makes things easier to get it out of the way early. They did the best they could but this is a case where the gimmick is detrimental to what the workers can do. It didn’t help when Kane went to light the turnbuckle pad and the flames went out. Not a great match but kudos to MVP for taking the burn here.
Paul London & Brian Kendrick vs William Regal & Dave Taylor vs MNM vs The Hardys – I guess the idea of separate brands is out the window with all of this switching and swapping. Wouldn’t it have been more prudent to announce the ladder match before hand in order to garner some more buys? Moaning aside…holy crap what a match! Too say everyone took they lumps is an understatement - especially Joey Mercury. Ugh! That Sliced Bread #2 on Regal looked pretty nasty too. London & Kendrick got a tremendous rub winning this match and I hope that the teased split for them is forgotten. Awesome match and a late entry for MOTY!
Miz vs Boogeyman – Just who the hell is chanting “hoo-rah†to that total spazz the Miz? And was the silence that greeted the Boogeyman deafening or what? I wish these two were burned in the inferno match…
Chris Benoit vs Chavo Guerrero – Now for some wrestling. Vickie Guerrero should never be near allowed a mic ever again. Better match than Survivor Series with some solid work from both guys. I am surprised that Chavo didn’t go over but the tease of his win from the roll up was a nice touch. I think Chavo tapped a bit too quickly but I’m sure another rematch is forthcoming.
Gregory Helms vs Jimmy Wang Yang – Arguably the quickest paced match helms has worked in a long time. I’m not a JBL fan but I am with him on his rant about the fans chanting boring during this match. Both guys put in a fine effort and that chant was unwarranted. I assume that Helms will lose the title at the Rumble to spoil his one year reign.
Undertaker vs Mr. Kennedy – Pretty much the same match these two have had before with a tad more brutality and a silly stipulation thrown in. Fr the most part it was a dull brawl until Taker’s big bump off the stage set. That was impressive for a big man but unfortunately he killed it by no selling it just minutes later. And we’re supposed to believe that a zombie Taker can drive a car? Well, Kennedy that’s your big push done….
Divas/Santa time waster. Funniest bit was some kid in the crowd saying “that’s a fake†when Santa came out. You’d think that after VKM mocked this that the WWE would have consigned the fat naked oiled up guy to the rubbish bin…Plus it was obvious who they wanted to win despite Layla getting more cheers…
DAVE & John Cena vs King Booker & Finlay – A TV match at best due to its length which could have been avoided if they didn’t waste the time on the preceding skit. Not much to it with DAVE getting more sloppy by the week, blowing a few spots here. Totally undeserving of the World title and main event status.
Bottom Line: A card that no-one had any hope for once again delivered with some strong matches including a stunning ladder match that will no doubt bask in its infamy. Even though nothing new came out of this PPV, it closed a few chapters and was a tidy end to the year for the blue brand.
My Score – 5/10
Cheers
LEE RELPH, UK
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Living in the UK, preceding Armageddon was the showing of TNA Bound for Glory. That was fast paced action throughout (with the exception of the VKM skit and the World title match) and made me think about setting the video for the WWE pay per view instead. I’m glad I didn't
Though I pretty much slept through the inferno match, I kind of liked that they had MVP really catch on fire, instead of the lame endings to the last few of these matches.
My sleep was well and truly woken when Teddy Long announced the ladder match. When MNM came out though, did anyone except Cole and JBL think the fourth team was anyone but the Hardys? I liked the apprehension of Regal and Taylor and although a few of the spots were obviously set up, the action was fast enough to glaze over this. What is a fairly staple move in a ladder match turned into a night at the hospital for Joey Mercury, and I though Kendrick was going to join him near the end. It would have been so easy for any of the teams to take the belts, but Im glad the upper echelon in WWE have faith in London and Kendrick to front the tag scene… My sleep was well and truly woken when Teddy Long announced
Miz vs. Boogeyman was thankfully short and Miz had a better showing than in his last Armageddon appearance in the Tough Enough boxing match…I share Mike’s love for the way JBL buries Miz. JBL is improving and bad mouthing people he has issues with rather than just all baby faces or heels makes him a little unique.
Storyline aside, I was looking forward to Chavo v Benoit, and I wasn't disappointed. This was a classic wrestling match. Chavo’s baseball slide around the ringpost looked painful, but his mind was taken off it by the eight German suplexes, which given his weight were not so forced as they are sometimes. I liked that Benoit's face showed him trying to restrain himself rather than having a change of heart when he had Vicki’s legs, and I'm glad he didn't lose the title on a schoolboy. This match was a bit short, but given the “emotion†behind, it was believable.
My kudos to JBL again for addressing the “boring†chants, though I admittedly didn't notice them. The cruiserweight bout was another pure wrestling match on a card filled with gimmick bouts, and the fans should have welcomed it. Jimmy Wang Yang acrobatic skills are fantastic but are also effective offense moves, not just showy. I like that Helms win pretty much came out of nowhere, meaning he took the chance to pin his opponent when he had it rather than set up for his finisher.
The last ride match was your usual Undertaker brawl with a few new spots. Not that that's a bad thing. I liked the brutality of Undertaker throwing Kennedy from the announce table into the ring apron. I liked that they didn't repeat the “Through the roof of the limo†spot from the previous Last Ride match. As for the “impressive†Undertaker fall, WWE should have learnt from his Wrestlemania 17 match with HHH - don't use crash mats that crease. When they replay the spot it looks so bad.
Santa introducing the Diva contest…cue joke about him only getting to empty his sacks once a year. Id rather they extended the Benoit match but Im straight so Im not complaining either…cue joke about him only getting
I wish I could have found the remote during Bookers ring entrance. Sharmell's All Hails really grate on me. The main event was the epitome of how fan support beats wrestling skill every time. The crowd were hotter than they had been all night, and that's saying something. I don't think the ref even cares about the little guy anymore as he never seems to have a significant impact on the match. This bout was way too short to comment on…it was more like a bonus match after TV time ends I
Overall a damp squib of a finish to a great all round pay per view.
Ian Bowden, Cornwall England
