StraightEdge 3:16 #2 – Was Money in the Bank 2011 the Best PG Era PPV?

OH MY GOD!!!! CM PUNK HAS WON THE WWE TITLE!!! AND LEFT CHICAGO AND THE WWE WITH IT!!!

Whoa, sorry wrestling fans, I am writing this article, no lie, 2 minutes after WWE Money in the Bank 2011 went off the air. Lets start this off right. Author’s Note: This article was started at 10:55pm est July 17, 2011.

Hello wrestling fans, I, Michael Malnicof, the author of the awesome StraightEdge 3:16 column am back. I apologize to you fans and to Joe and Eddie T for my long 3 month absence. I was busy with school and work but I am now back full time.

Now wrestling fans, we were just present to WWE Money in the Back, the 2011 edition. Many shocking things, but this is NOT a Review or Results column and I am NOT a Results journalist. This is an WWE opinion column, just as I was hired for. So if you want full results of WWE Money in the Bank 2011, go find a results column (preferably one on TBLWrestling.com). I am here to discuss the fact that I believe that WWE Money in the Bank 2011 was in fact the Best WWE PPV of the “PG Era”. Authors Note: This Means from July 2008-Now, not the old PG Era of the 1990s. 

Now, I understand that many of you out there in Internet Land might be thinking that this is me overreacting to a event that occurred near minutes ago . Well, that would be your opinion which you are entitled to have. Well, as the magnificently intelligent journalist that I am, my job here is to give you my reasoning behind my statement that WWE Money in the Bank 2011 was the Best PPV of the PG Era.

I shall go with the old, but still great cliche of this being a great PPV from top to bottom. This is proven by the fact that we had the 2nd best match of the night, the Smack Down! money in the bank ladder match, as the opening match! Yes, you read that right, the opening match of the Best PPV of the PG Era. Now, last year at Money in the Bank 2010, the Smack Down! match was the Match of the PPV and as you might remember was won by the Big Red Machine, Kane. This year it was Daniel Bryan Danielson coming out of no where to become Mr Money in the Bank. Just goes to show what a year makes! Back in July 2010, DBD was in the indies after being fired from WWE after Tiegate. Fast forward to tonight, July 17th, 2011, he is next in line to hold the World Heavyweight Championship.

Then after a pair of above-average (No BS) filler matches, we were gifted to the 2nd Money in the Bank Ladder Match, this time the Raw version. While not being as good as the Smack Down! match was, it was only 1% behind. The Raw match was won by the Destiny Man himself, Alberto Del Rio, but you already knew that (sorry, I couldn’t help myself). Both MITB matches had Amazing high spots and Perfect pure wrestling skills. After which we got the World Heavyweight Championship match. Now though it was the 3rd straight match between Christian and the champion, Randy Orton, it still managed to go above my expectations. We were given a true wrestling match that had in my opinion, one hell of an ending with Orton low blowing Christian and losing the title by DQ. Now Some might say but Michael, we have seen this before. While that is true, I say it still worked with Perfection not seen since the late Curt Hennig himself (Otherwise known as Mr Perfect to non wrestling fanatics). Also, I thoroughly enjoyed the transformation to a crazier Randy Orton then we have ever seen after the match.

Finally, for the 1st time in a very long time, WWE saved the Best for last. Going to this PPV, CM Punk vs John Cena vs Mr McMahon was the hottest feud in professional wrestling and had seemed to have lighted a small fire back in the popularity of wrestling itself. The question of would CM Punk take the WWE title out of WWE and would poster boy John Cena really be fired. Well, let me go on record as saying that this Masterpiece of a match has lighted an Inferno under professional wrestling in terms of popularity that it once was. This Main Event even had me, one of the Biggest John Cena Fans in the world rooting for CM Punk. Well, that fact has more to do with me like CM Punk, living a Straight Edge Lifestyle. Any who, this 35+ minute 5 Star, Match of the PPV and a Candidate for Match of the Year has shook the wrestling world to its core. This Match had my emotions going crazy, especially when it seemed that Cena would win with the damn STF again. Winning with the AA is fine John, but not the STF, your NOT Bret Hart! Easily in my humble opinion this is the Best Match since Shawn Michaels vs The Undertaker at Wrestlemania 25 and it has once again brought true interest back to WWE. Tomorrow’s Monday Night Raw will gain the highest rating that Raw has had in years.

Now this is only what has happened as of now! My fellow wrestling fanatics, imagine what happens next, starting with tonight’s Raw. Will Cena be truly fired? Will CM Punk resign with WWE or show up at Ring of Honor? What does this mean for SummerSlam? What about Daniel Bryan Danielson and Alberto Del Rio, the Money in the Bank Winners? What does this mean for the future of WWE and Professional Wrestling as a whole? Does this signal the end of the PG Era?? What color trunks will CM Punk be sporting on Monday Night Raw? Okay so maybe that last one is a silly afterthought, but still perhaps important to somebody. Fine, I’ll admit that I do kinda care what trunks My Straight Edge Leader shall wear. However, most importantly wrestling fans, This is only just the beginning, just the tip of the iceberg, just the first chapter, just the…, fine enough cliches. Also, finally CM Punk has won a Big Time Match, getting that monkey off his back.

Bottom Line, WWE Money in the Bank 2011 was an AMAZING PPV and in this journalist’s opinion, the Best PPV in the PG Era!

Thank you for reading my article and the 2nd installment in the StraightEdge 3:16 column. As always, any comments and feedback are greatly appreciated. Author’s Note: This article was finished at 12:38am est July 18, 2011.