Okay it’s my two-subject column today. I can’t wait to talk about No Mercy and last night’s Raw. This is one positive column. The kind of column I look forward to putting out. And from the email I have received I don’t seem to be the only one in a good mood about both shows. I’ll try to keep my thoughts on the shows as short as I can so I don’t end up with a five page column. So let me start with No Mercy, by the way I got 4 out of 7 right, not bad but damn not a perfect score.
I found the show to be worth the money. I’m very happy I order it. I really didn’t know what to expect before the show started. I was worried I paid for a Smackdown show. But I didn’t. There was definite pay per view feeling throughout the night and truthfully that surprised me. Let me also say that Tazz and Michael Cole were terrific. From beginning to end I couldn’t have been happier with the great job they did. As far as the matches go. There really wasn’t a bad one on the show. Every one involved worked their butts off. The opening match with Rey Mysterio vs. Tajiri was outstanding. What a way to get things going. These two guys did just what I expected put on one of the top matches of the night. And major PROPS to Chris Benoit for making his match with A-Train not only excellent but also extremely exciting. Albert was good but Benoit absolutely shined in this one. Seeing Benoit’s head hit that steel chair was a horrible site. They say he blocked it a little with his hand but it still looked very gruesome. This was Benoit’s match and as I said he made it damn good.
I’m glad to see Zach Gowen finally win a match, and again his match against Matt Hardy was another beaut. Having one leg did not take away from the fine job Zach did in the ring. Matt was just as good and honestly I hope these two are just starting up. The chemistry is there and I want to see more. APA vs. The Bashams was an added match for the show. The work-rate for this match was unbelievable. I’m not exactly thrilled when the APA have a match but they do kill themselves out there. And the Bashams again show me that they definitely have talent, and I think given the opponents to go against, Doug and Danny would come off even better. But this was another good match and so far No Mercy is getting a thumbs up from me. Now we have Vince vs. Stephanie. This was something I dreaded, but I can’t believe how well it came off. At first I felt uncomfortable just thinking about dad wrestling Stephanie. But it was booked so beautifully; I really liked the match. Even watching Linda go after Sable was kind of cool. I have to say Vince came off perfectly as the deranged heel. The facial expressions on him were priceless. Steph looked good out there, and the fans, wow were they were loud. At first they seemed extremely quiet when they were all being introduced. But once the match started, the fans just got so into this match. Everything came off brilliantly for this one.
John Cena looked like a real contender against Kurt Angle. This was my match of the night. Talk about chemistry oh these two definitely have it. I don’t think Cena ever looked better than he did Sunday night. And I was shocked to hear Cena chants as well as Angle chants. Does this mean Cena will have to turn face soon? I’m thinking very soon. Also I read that these two will have a rematch at the Survivor Series. So that’s going to be cool. Big Show won, Eddie lost and Eddie worked his ass off in this match. And that’s why it came off so well. I think it was a mistake to take the belt from Eddie so soon. But when you think of it he didn’t really defend it that much. It now looks like it’s Chavo vs. Eddie, and I’m not quite sure if the fans are ready for that. Okay as far as Brock Lesnar vs. The Undertaker. I thought this match was too long and it kind of bugged me that the BIKER CHAIN match was so hyped, yet the chain was used at the end of the match. Brock used it to hit Taker on the head and get the win. The match did get a lot better as it went on and I liked it but I really expected a lot more. I better cut this short and go to Raw, but again No Mercy gets thumbs up from me.
Raw too gets thumbs up from me. I thought the show was GREAT! I’m all excited that Eric Bischoff made this little wager with Steve Austin at the Survivor Series. Each guy has a team of five, and if Austin’s team wins, he no longer as to wait to be provoked. He has freedom now to do what he wants too. If Bischoff’s team wins Austin is through as GM. Eric already has Chris Jericho and Scott Steiner on his team. And Austin has Booker so far. I think this is going to be a fun match to watch. I can’t wait to see the complete line-up for each team. As sick as I am of the Dudley’s taking on La Resistance, I found their match last night exceptionally good. I thought Bubba dedicating his match to Road Warrior Hawk was wonderful and I would also like to add my condolences to Mark Hegstrand’s family. I also liked Randy Orton vs. Booker T. I could see these two carrying on a feud. At least it would be something new to watch. Chris Jericho and Scott Steiner vs. RVD and Lance Storm was one of the best matches of the night. It’s nice to see Steiner playing the heel role for a change. Storm looked so good out there, I really love the character and I hope that he continues with it for a while. Another outstanding match with the women. It was Lita and Trish taking on Victoria and Molly. And instead of Jericho coming to the rescue last night, it was Christian helping out Lita. Earlier Trish and Jericho were backstage and she thanked him for helping her. And the King of Bling Bling came off so caring. Hey I’m not buying Jericho or Christian’s kindness; I’m telling you things aren’t what they seem to be.
Maven and Ric Flair’s match was way too short, but still good. I’m very happy with Maven, I think he’s improves week after week. I want to talk about Ric Flair in a little bit, but let me finish off the matches with the main event with Shawn Michaels vs.Goldberg. This was supposed to happen an hour earlier, but Mark Henry wanted that bounty money so badly that he attacked Goldberg and rammed him into a door. But that didn’t work and Goldberg came out to face HBK in a really good main event until the bounty was collected and collected by BATISTA! It was supposed to be Kevin Nash but he’s in very bad shape with his neck. WWE has an interview with Kevin so check it out. So Batista is back, he beat the hell out of Goldberg and broke his ankle and collected the money.
Kane cut what I thought was a very good promo. He talked like a weirdo, he looked all battered up from the car wreck and just made it clear to Shane that he loves giving out pain and they will meet at the Survivor Series. A very good segment by Kane. Now let me go back. Ric Flair earlier in the show promised that someone during the show someone would collect the bounty, he guaranteed it. Randy Orton has the briefcase with the $100,000.00 in it. But in the locker room Garrison Cade and Mark Jindrak beat up Randy and take the money. Now as Jindrak and Cade are running out of the building they get knocked out by none other than Triple H. I have to say Hunter got some good pops showing up last night. He took the briefcase and here’s where I found Flair hysterical.
Hunter showed up in the locker room and questioned Orton about the lost brief case, and Flair immediately tells Hunter Orton lost it. Now you have to see this to get the whole picture but Flair was great. Then Flair continued to tell Hunter that he was gone for a little bit, in other words it was all Randy’s fault. This was a great segment and it just makes Flair so damn good to watch.
Everything worked last night, EVERYTHING. I can’t wait to see next weeks show and I also can’t wait to see Smackdown. Now that Stephanie is out, who will her replacement be? A few names have been put out there so I’m looking forward to watching it.
Email lvaccarp@hotmail.com
