Skyefire's WWE DVD review featuring NOPE matches

[Skyefire]

One of my favorite wrestlers ever, the Rated R Superstar, Edge. This DVD follows the first 10 years of his WWE career and matches are introduced by Edge himself, in character. No one else did that. Not Austin, not The Rock, not Ultimate Warrior.

"Ladies and gentlemen, I would introduce myself but what would be like DeNiro introducing himself before The Deer Hunter, Brando before The Godfather, Costner before Waterworld...okay, maybe not THAT one."

Edge vs Owen Hart, In Your House: Break Down
At Summerslam, Edge made his first PPV appearance at Summerslam as the mystery partner for Sable against Edge and Jacqueline. One month later here he is in a singles match against Owen Hart. Edge makes his way through the crowd in Hamilton, Ontario. He's going up against another Canadian from the most famous Canadian wrestling family. Owen comes down wearing a Toronto Argonauts CFL jersey. Seems unlike a heel to be wearing a home team jersey. Nevertheless, the fans chant "nugget" at him. Edge is impressive against the much more experienced Owen. After a couple of minutes of some great technical wrestling by both men, Owen ends up out on the floor. Edge delivers a baseball slide from the ring to the outside knocking Owen down. He then gets up on the ring apron and gets a running start and charges at Owen, but Owen slams Edge to the floor. Owen goes to work on the back of Edge. A short while later, Owen whips Edge into the corner but Edge quickly climbs to the second turnbuckle and comes back with a flying press. Owen goes for the Sharpshooter but Edge stops him by pushing him away with his legs. Suddenly a mysterious man (Christian) enters from the crowd and stands at ringside. Edge is surprised to see him and seems to say "What are you doing here?" Owen comes up from behind Edge and rolls him up for the pin. While not the most exciting match, it was a very good showing for the youngster Edge.

Next up are two of the iconic ladder matches. The tag team ladder match between Edge & Christian and The Hardyz at No Mercy, and the Triangle Ladder Match from WrestleMania 2000. I won't be mentioning every high spot from these matches as that would take too long and would involve a lot of pausing the DVD to type.

Tag Team Ladder Match, Edge & Christian vs The New Brood (Matt & Jeff Hardy), No Mercy '99
Over the course of the next year, Edge would join Gangrel and Christian to form The Brood. They would then collectively join the Ministry of Darkness. Now it's October and Gangrel has now recruited The Hardy Boyz as The New Brood. A Best-of-Five tag team series between the two teams would take place with the winning team getting $100,000 and Terri Runnels' managerial services. The fifth match ended in a draw forcing this sudden death ladder match. Jerry Lawler is quick to emphasize the winning team getting Terri's "Services" and also mentions that the Best-of-Five series, is dubbed the Terri Invitational Tournament, or TIT for short. Some of the highlights of this match, Christian delivers a reverse DDT on Matt off the ladder. Edge powerbombs Matt off the ladder then starts to climb the ladder himself when Jeff comes off the corner with a dropkick to knock Edge off. Jeff delivers a Swanton to Edge who's laying on the ladder. Jeff does a leapfrog from the top turnbuckle over the ladder onto Christian. Edge is climbing the ladder when Matt throws the ladder at him knocking him off. Two ladders are set up in the middle of the ring as Edge climbs one, Matt climbs the other next to him and delivers a neckbreaker from halfway up. Moments later, Christian hip-tosses Jeff off the ladder. E&C set up the ladders in a slingshot position and are going to suplex Jeff off the top turnbuckle onto one of the ladders, when Matt breaks it up. Matt tosses Edge out of the ring and then begins going to work on Christian as the two men stand above the end of one ladder. Jeff then leaps off the top turnbuckle to the far end of the ladder sending it up into the faces of Matt and Christian. (The same move that would destroy Joey Mercury's face, and his career, years later.) The crowd is in awe. All four men are climbing the ladders and both ladders separately get knocked down sending all four men into the ropes. The two ladders get set back up. Edge and Matt on one, Jeff and Christian on the other. Matt gets shoved off by Edge. He bounces off the ropes and knocks over the other ladder. Jeff gets on the ladder with Edge, knocks him off and grabs the bag of cash to win the match. The Hardyz exit with the money right away and the crowd begins applauding Edge & Christian, as well as the Hardyz, for their efforts. At one point during this match JR states "These four men may never be the same after this." While he's referring to the physical toll it will take on their bodies, he's not wrong about what this match would do for their careers. My one complaint about this match is Jerry Lawler's commentary. Lawler keeps talking about Terri's "services", implying sexual, and talks about during Sunday Night Heat when he was interviewing Terri in the ring and she climbed the ladder and he looked up at her. At one point, he says that Terri's services were "winking" at him.

Tag Team Championship, Triangle Ladder Match: Dudley Boyz (c) vs Edge & Christian vs Hardy Boyz, WrestleMania 2000
Of the four iconic ladder matches this one tends to get the least amount of recognition. This DVD was released while WWE still couldn't use the WWF scratch logo, which is a big problem with this event because it's used as the W in WrestleMania in the logo for this event. Early on in the match a few fans are chanting for tables. The ladders are used as weapons early on in the match. Jeff lays Bubba on a ladder and goes for a Swanton but Bubba moves out of the way and Jeff lands on the ladder. Bubba then places the ladder on top of Jeff and delivers a splash onto the ladder on Jeff. Just a few minutes in and all six men are down. Bubba then channels his inner Terry Funk by placing the ladder on his neck and swinging it to take out all of his opponents. Jeff climbs the ladder and Edge leaps from the top turnbuckle hitting him with a spear. Bubba delivers a modified 3D to Christian from two-thirds of the way up the ladder. A short while later, Edge & Christian double suplex D-Von from the ladder. With all six men on three ladders in the center of the ring, Christian and Jeff's ladder gets knocked over sending both men all the way down to the floor of the arena, Bubba gets knocked off, he goes into the ropes and knocks down all the ladders. The Dudleyz each grab a ladder and slam them into Christian before hitting the 3D on Edge. D-VON! GET THE TABLES! (They hadn't actually started saying that yet, they just high fived each other and went for the tables). They set up a table bridging two ladders in the center of the ring. More tables are set up. D-Von places Jeff Hardy on a table in the ring and goes for a splash but Jeff moves out of the way. Outside the ring, Bubba stands on top of the Spanish announcers' table and powerbombs Matt through another table at ringside. Outside the ring, Jeff does his running up the guardrail leaping out towards a standing Bubba, but Bubba hits him with a ladder. Bubba then grabs a taller ladder and sets it up in the aisle with a table at it's base. He drags Jeff toward the ladder and starts to set him up on the table but Christian hits Bubba with the ring bell. Jeff then places Bubba on the table and removes his own shirt. (I've come to realize that Jeff taking off his shirt, while pleasing to many of the ladies in the crowd, it's also akin to Kurt Angle removing the straps of his tights. It means business is about to pick up). Jeff climbs the ladder all the way to the vert top and hits a Swanton Bomb onto Bubba. There's a smattering of "Holy Shit" chants in the crowd. In the ring, Matt and Christian climb the ladders onto the table. Edge follows Matt up and knocks him off, through a table, allowing himself and his partner to grab the belts and win the match. Edge & Christian are Tag Team Champions for the first time in their careers.

What an awesome couple of matches. There are so many more amazing spots in these matches that I just couldn't cover, so if you've never seen these, do it.

We jump forward yet another year. Edge & Christian, Hardyz, and Dudleyz would have two more iconic TLC matches. They then had a third TLC match involving Chris Benoit & Chris Jericho as a fourth team. In the summer of 2001, Edge won the King of the Ring tournament and began to break out as a singles star. The superstars of WCW and ECW invaded the WWF and Edge took the fight to them on behalf of the WWF. Now he's going up against I-C Champion Lance Storm.

I-C Championship, Lance Storm (c) vs Edge, Summerslam '01
"I've said that there's no reason for offbeat shenanigans in this business, and if I can extended the courtesy of no interruptions, I'll explain. Splendid. The reason is..." It's at that point Edge's music hits and out comes the King of the Ring. Starts off as a typical technical wrestling match. Nothing spectacular in the early goings. A couple of times Christian is shown in the locker room of Team WWF cheering on his "brother". The crowd is pretty well into this match backing Edge. Late in the match, Storm goes to the top rope and leaps off toward Edge, but Edge grabs him and turns it into a slam. The pace picks up after this. Later Storm applies the single-leg Boston Crab on Edge. Edge makes his way to the ropes. Edge then reverses it into a single leg crab of his own. Storm grabs the referee by the leg and knocks him down (wow, Jimmy Korderas is weak). Christian then comes down to the ring (he must have been right behind the curtain and ran out the instant Korderas wen down). Christian goes to spear Storm, but misses and hits Edge. Storm goes for a pin, but Edge kicks out. Edge soon reverses Storm and hits what would become known as the Edgecution on Storm and picks up the win to secure his second I-C Title reign and pick up a win for the WWF. This was a good technical match. Got exciting at the end. This was the second time Edge was I-C Champion (if you're not familiar with his first reign, his win is a bonus match on this DVD that's coming up later).

So over the next few months the partnership of Edge & Christian collapsed and Christian soon turned on Edge. Christian would defeat Edge to win the I-C title at Unforgiven in September. In October on Raw, Christian approached his "brother" backstage to tell him that their mother was in an accident and had been rushed to the hospital. It was all a setup as Christian and his new pals in The Alliance attacked Edge (Now, years later WWE would acknowledge that Edge and Christian were not actually brothers, which really brings that storyline into question). Christian would beat Edge in a Ladder Match at No Mercy to win back the I-C title. He would lose the title to test a few weeks later, then win the WCW United States Championship beating Kurt Angle, the same man he beat to win the King of the Ring. This would set up a title vs title match against Test at Survivor Series which Edge would win. That match is on this DVD, but I'm going to skip a review. I'm also skipping over a match between Edge and Mr. Perfect from Sunday Night heat in early 2002.

Hair vs Hair Match, Edge vs Kurt Angle, Judgment Day 2002
This match starts off at a fast and furious pace. This match is a rematch from Backlash when Angle won. Early in the match, Angle delivers a belly-to-belly overhead throw sending Edge from the ring to the floor. Back in the ring, Angle gets a sleeper on Edge. Edge refuses to give up or pass out. Angle takes advantage by grabbing Edge's hair to pull him down. Edge soon comes back with a belly-to-bell overhead throw in the ring. Despite the fact that this is a Smackdown brand match, Jim Ross and Jerry Lawler are on commentary as they are for the entire PPV. Edge goes to the top rope. Angle does a running climb of the ropes in an attempt to take Edge down, but Edge shoves him off. Edge then delivers a missile dropkick from the top rope onto Angle. Soon thereafter, Edge goes back to the top rope and once again Angle runs up to the second rope and this time is successful in pulling him down. Edge later goes for a spear on Angle, but Kurt moves out of the way and Edge hits the referee. Angle grabs a chair and goes after Edge but Edge hits him with a spear. Edge covers Angle but the referee is still down. Edge hits a second spear on Angle and goes for a pin. This time the referee comes to and slowly counts the pin but Angle kicks out at two. Angle comes back with a spear of his own followed by the Angle slam and a pin but Edge kicks out at two. Angle applies the ankle lock to Edge. Edge struggles but soon turns himself over, kicks Angle off to the ropes and rolls him up for the three. Edge is your winner. But, Angle is a sore loser and attacks Edge after the match. Edge fights back with the Edgecution. This was a great match. Edge really showed that he can hold his own with the top stars. Afterwards, Angle tries to get away from Edge. Edge chases him back to the back of the arena where is jumped by Angle. The fight resembles a Hardcore title match. Angle drags Edge out onto the stage to the barber's chair that is set up. Edge fights back and gets a sleeper on Angle and Angle passes out. Edge places Angle in the barber's chair and shaves his head bald. Anytime there's a hair shaving you see them use electric hair clippers, but those don't work all that well on sweaty heads. Edge goes so far as to use shaving cream and a straight razor. Edge then wakes Angle up and hands him a mirror. Kurt is not happy. Edge grabs a microphone and says that now when they play Angle's music that instead of chanting "you suck" the fans are going to chant "you're bald". Angle's music then plays and the crowd chants "You're bald."

On his own DVD, Angle states that he and Vince pranked Edge into thinking that he was going to get his head shaved. It was shortly before the start of the show that they finally revealed to Edge than Kurt was getting his head shaved. Angle also mentions that he was naturally losing his hair at the time (and you can kinda see that here) and thus was willing to shave his head. It's almost weird to see Kurt with hair. It's almost like losing his hair reinvented him and took him to a new level. Kurt does say that soon after this was when the era of goofy Kurt ended and serious Kurt began.

Steel Cage Match, Edge vs Kurt Angle, Smackdown May 30, 2002
Edge and Angle are set to do battle in the rubber match of their rivalry, this time inside of a steel cage. Angle comes to the ring wearing amateur wrestling headgear holding a toupee on his head (he claims it's not a toupee and that he grew his hair back). This takes place in Calgary, Alberta, and the Hart Family, including Stu, are seen at ringside. This comes less than two weeks after the death of Davey Boy Smith. The two men start off with some technical wrestling. Angle is outside the ropes as Edge goes for a spear, but Angle moves out of the way and Edge hits the cage. They go back to wrestling and Angle hits the three consecutive German suplexes. Angle rams Edge head first into the cage and Edge is now busted open. Edge soon fights back and slingshots Angle into the cage. Angle's hair is barely hanging on at this point. Angle whips Edge off the ropes, Edge goes for a flying body press but Angle moves out of the way and Edge hits the referee. Angle begins to climb the cage, but a bloody Edge meets him there and delivers a belly-to-back superplex. Edge begins to climb, but Angle meets him and delivers a low blow. Angle then delivers an Angle slam from the top rope. Angle them climbs the cage and escapes. But, there's no referee. Angle thinks he's won, but Hulk Hogan comes down and attacks Kurt. Hogan slams Angle into the cage then picks him up and throws him back in the ring. After the commercial break Angle gets the ankle lock on Edge but Edge shoves him off into the cage. Edge then applies an ankle lock of his own, but Angle gets out of it. Angle begins to climb the cage. Edge is not far behind him, though. Edge rams Angle's head into the top of the cage. Angle drops down but falls crotch-first onto the open door. Edge decides to bring Angle back into the ring. Edge perches himself on the top rope and leaps off delivering a spear to Angle. Edge gets the pinfall and the win.

WWE World Tag Team Championships, Billy & Chuck (c) vs Edge & Hulk Hogan, Smackdown, July 4, 2002
Edge comes out first, Hulk second. For the first time in nearly 10 years "Real American" plays over the speakers of the arena. Hogan had been using his NWO theme music even after turning babyface but brought out "Real American" for the Fourth of July. He comes to the ring carrying an American flag and wearing a red, white, and blue boa. The champions are accompanied to the ring by their stylist, Rico. Edge and Hogan are working together well early on in this match. Billy and Chuck use their double teaming to take advantage. Edge gets tossed to the outside where Rico attempts to get involved but ends up superkicking Billy. Edge tries to make his way back into the ring but Billy rams him head first into the steel stairs. Edge manages to make the tag into Hulk. Billy and Chuck do a really good job of selling Hogan's offense. Hogan goes for the leg drop on Billy but Chuck hits him with a superkick. Hulk comes back with a double clothesline. Edge gets the tag an goes to work on both of the champions. Rico gets involved and Hulk makes him pay for it. Soon a brawl breaks out among all four men in the ring. Edge hits the Hogan leg drop followed by Hulk with the leg drop and Edge picks up the pin. Edge and Hulk Hogan win the tag team titles. This wasn't a spectacularly great match but the crowd was really into it.

Edge vs Eddie Guerrero, Unforgiven '02
Several minutes in as the "Eddie sucks" chants begin, Guerrero has the advantage on Edge. Edge comes back with a right hand. Edge dives towards Eddie in the corner but Eddie moves out of the way and Edge runs into the turnbuckle. Edge would come back with a face plant to Eddie. Guerrero leaps off the top rope but Edge counters into a sit down powerbomb. Edge would go for a spear but Eddie moved out of the way but Edge stopped himself before hitting the corner. Edge hits the Edgecution and goes for a pin but only gets two. Edge goes to the top and goes for a missile dropkick but Eddie moves out of the way. Eddie fully exposes the steel turnbuckle that he loosened earlier and attempts to throw Edge into it but Edge reverses it and Eddie goes back first into the exposed steel. Guerrero is planted on the top rope. Edge sets up for a superplex but Guerrero rams Edge's head into the turnbuckle. Eddie then delivers a sunset flip powerbomb from the ropes, goes for a pin, pulls the tights of Edge, and gets the win. This was a good match, though these two would have better matches in their rivalry.

The Edge vs Eddie Guerrero rivalry would continue into the fall but in tag team wars. Edge would team with Rey Mysterio, Eddie with his nephew Chavo, and the third team in the feud Kurt Angle and Chris Benoit with the three teams being the first three to hold the Smackdown Tag Team Championships. In early 2003, Edge would find himself aligned with Benoit and Brock Lesnar in a feud with Kurt Angle, Charlie Haas, and Shelton Benjamin. This was supposed to lead to a six man tag team match at No Way Out, but a neck injury would force Edge out of the match and on the shelf for a year. Upon his return he get involved in a feud with I-C Champion Randy Orton.

I-C Championship, Randy Orton (c) vs Edge, Vengeance '04
This match starts off with a slow pace. Good wrestling, a lot of scientific moves, plenty of (rest) holds. About 10 minutes or so into the match, Orton is on the outside as Edge delivers a baseball slide to knock Orton down sending him head first into the corner of the broadcast table. Edge delivers a missile drop kick off the top rope in the ring and receives a mixed reaction from the fans for it. More slow periods. Orton puts a headlock on Edge that lasts about three minutes. Fans start chanting "Let's go Orton". Orton replies by shouting "I don't need your help." About 20 minutes in, Orton takes a leap off the top rope and gets met with a dropkick in the process. A fan in the arena has a sign that says "Birthplace of the Gooker". It is the same arena that hosted the 1990 Survivor Series when the Gobbledy Gooker was hatched. Orton whips Edge into the ropes and goes for a dropkick, but Edge holds onto the ropes. Nevertheless, you can hear Orton clap his hands together as if he was expecting to make contact with Edge. Edge delivers an Edgecution to Orton and goes for a pin, but only gets two. Orton drops Edge on an exposed turnbuckle and goes for a pin but only gets two. Orton goes for an RKO but Edge grabs him and turns it into a backslide. Edge only gets two. Edge whips Orton into the exposed turnbuckle then hits him with a spear and gets the win. This match was slow at times. Went on rather long at over 26 minutes. This would have worked in the 70's or 80's especially in the NWA. The crowd was surprisingly well into it. I think it was a matter of some fans turning on Edge and cheering for Orton so the Edge fans responded by cheering louder.

Around this time, the fans were starting to get tired of Edge and his gimmick and started booing him. He would be forced to vacate the I-C title due to an injury in September. He wouldn't be out long, though. He would be back in October for Taboo Tuesday and was one of the choices to challenge for the World Heavyweight Championship against Triple H. Shawn Michaels would win the fans vote and Edge would hold that against him. Now, in early 2005 the two go to war in a Street Fight.

Street Fight, Edge vs Shawn Michaels, Raw 2/28/05
"Come dressed as you are" street fight rules. Both men are wearing jeans and Shawn quickly removes his belt and whips Edge with it. The brawl quickly goes to ringside. Shawn goes under the ring and pulls out a metal trash can which he hits Edge with. Shawn then pulls out a ladder, but Edge smacks Shawn over the head with the trash can hid with quite a bit of force. Back in the ring, Edge drops Shawn head first onto an open chair and Shawn is busted open. After a commercial, Shawn is wearing the proverbial crimson mask as he brings the ladder into the ring. Shawn sets the ladder horizontally across the second ropes in the corner. He goes to whip Edge into the ladder, but Edge stops himself and then delivers a drop toe hold sending Shawn face first into the ladder. Edge sets the ladder up properly. He climbs the ladder and leaps off delivering a splash to HBK. He goes for a pin but only gets two. Shawn soon catapults Edge into the ladder. Shawn then smacks Edge over the head with a chair. Shane takes control of the match as he gets his second wind. He hits Edge with a Kendo stick to the head before going to the top rope and delivering an elbow to a fallen Edge. Shawn goes for Sweet Chin Music, but Edge ducks and delivers a low blow using the side of a chair. Edge brings a second chair into the ring. He sets up for a one man con-chair-to, but Shawn delivers a low blow. Shawn picks up a chair and goes to hit Edge with it but Edge delivers a spear. Edge soon sets up for another spear tapping his foot on the ground beforehand the way Shawn does, but this time is met with Sweet Chin Music out of nowhere and Shawn Michaels gets the three count. This was a brutal match. Shawn bled a lot. His entire face, probably most of his head was covered in blood. Despite the loss this helped elevate Edge to new heights.

Gold Rush Tournament Finals, Edge vs Kane, Raw 5/16/05
Kane comes accompanied by his wife, Lita who's walking with one crutch. Edge already has the Money in the Bank contract, he's looking for another title shot. The winner of this match faces Batista the next week for the World Heavyweight Championship. After the excitement of the last match this one was kind of slow. In the middle of the match, Edge shoves Kane into the referee and then delivers a low blow. Edge delivers a chop block to Kane taking the big man down. Edge continues to work on the leg of Kane. Kane fights back delivering a running clothesline to Edge. Edge attempts a spear but is met by a hand around his throat from Kane. Edge grabs the referee allowing him to deliver a low blow followed by a DDT. Edge sets up for another spear. Kane picks him up from the side and delivers a sidewalk slam. Edge shoves Kane into the referee and hits the spear. Kane sits up and Edge grabs his briefcase. Edge goes to hit Kane with the briefcase but Kane hits him with a boot. The briefcase falls and Lita picks it up. As Kane goes to the top rope, Lita slides the briefcase into Edge. Kane comes off the top rope and Edge hits him with the briefcase. Lita brings the referee back around and the referee counts three. Edge and Lita engage in a passionate kiss on the stage as Kane watches. Is anyone really surprised that Lita turned on Kane. She never wanted to be with him in the first place. She was forced to marry him after Kane beat Matt Hardy in a match. It wasn't until after she lost their baby thanks to Snitsky (though it wasn't his fault) that she was suddenly in love with Kane. Has Kane ever had a romance/relationship storyline that didn't totally suck?

So of course, the Lita-Edge relationship stemmed from a real life affair the two had had. The affair was exposed by Lita's then real-life boyfriend Matt Hardy. This would translate into an on-screen rivalry between Edge and Matt Hardy.

Street Fight, Edge vs Matt Hardy, Raw 8/29/05
This is a rematch from Summerslam, where Edge beat Matt Hardy so badly the referee had to stop the match. Edge and Lita comes out first. An angry Matt Hardy comes out next and goes right for Edge. Hardy begins pounding on Edge. The fight goes into the crowd. Soon, Hardy pulls out a ladder from under the ring. After a commercial, we see that Matt delivered a superplex from the top rope during the commercial break. Matt whips Edge into the ladder which is vertically leaning against the turnbuckle. He then fully opens the ladder and begins to climb. Matt then delivers a leg drop from the ladder onto Edge. Hardy gets a chair from under the ring and is going to hit Edge with it but Edge comes back with a Kendo Stick to the midsection. Edge goes for a con-chair-to but Hardy takes him down with a leg sweep. A short while later, Edge drags Hardy to the corner and places his head between the ring and the steel steps and then kicks the steps, but Hardy just manages to get his head out of the way. Edge then goes for a DDT on the bottom half of the steel steps but Hardy fights back and delivers a DDT of his own. Hardy grabs another chair, but before he can use it, Lita hits him in the back with the Money in the Bank briefcase. Hardy goes after Lita, but Edge attacks him from behind. Back in the ring, Matt lays Edge on the ladder and goes to the top rope for a moonsault but Edge moves out of the way and Hardy lands on the ladder. The two men soon brawl their way up the ramp to the stage. Matt soon goes after Lita and sets up to powerbomb her off of the stage, but Edge comes to Lita's rescue. Edge picks Matt up and is about to slam him off of the stage but Matt slips out. The two men exchange blows. Hardy grabs Edge and delivers a side slam off the stage sending both men into the electrical area. Sparks fly. The referee calls for the power to be shut off as doctors and paramedics attend to both men. The match is officially over. This was the second street fight in three matches. While the Shawn Michaels match was the two men beathing the hell out of each other, this one was more big moves and high risk offense. The feud would conclude with a ladder match on Raw in October with Edge's Money in the Bank contract and Matt Hardy's job on Raw on the line. The match would end with Matt tied in the ropes and Lita holding him in the ropes as Edge climbed the ladder and retrieved the briefcase.

WWE Championship, John Cena (c) vs Edge, New Year's Revolution '06
We start with the closing moments of the Elimination Chamber Match as Carlito and Chris Masters are double teaming Cena. Cena is busted open after a DDT on the steel. Cena had lost a first blood match the previous week on Raw and came into this match with stiches. Carlito turns on Masters and pins him. Cena then immediately rolls Carlito up and pins him. Cena is you winner and still WWE Champion as Mr. McMahon's music hits. He says that this night is not over. He congratulates Cena on retaining the WWE title then introduces Edge who is cashing in his Money in the Bank contact. Cena is bloody, he had just fought the entire Elimination Chamber Match and is struggling to stand. Edge goes right after Cena as soon as the bell rings. He quickly goes for a pin but only gets two. Edge then hits a spear on Cena but only gets two. Edge is in disbelief. He then sets up for another spear and hits Cena with it and gets the three count after less than two minutes to become WWE Champion for the first time in his career.

Edge would hold the belt for only three weeks until losing it back to Cena at Royal Rumble with Mick Foley as the guest referee. Edge blamed Mick for the loss and the two engaged in a feud. That would lead to a Hardcore Match at WrestleMania.

Hardcore Match, Edge vs Mick Foley, WrestleMania 22
Joey Styles is doing guest commentary for this match. I don't remember the exact story but Styles had replaced Jim Ross as lead commentator on Raw. Ross was brought back for WrestleMania, but Styles was brought in for this Hardcore Match, since Styles has the experience with hardcore matches from his days in ECW, so Joey is losing his "WrestleMania virginity." Edge has a baseball bat with him as he comes to the ring and takes swings at Mick with it. After a minute or so of wrestling, Edge asks Lita to get the weapons from underneath the ring and he hits Mick with a cookie sheet and a street sign. Edge hits Mick with a spear but it affected Edge as much as it did Mick. Mick removes his larger, bulky flannel shirt to reveal that he has a sting of barbed wire wrapped around his midsection. Edge is bleeding from the shoulder. Mick takes the barbed wire, whips Edge with it and then rubs it into the shoulder wound. Mick pulls out his barbed wire baseball bat. He's about to hit Edge with it when Lita jumps up on his back. With Lita on his back, Mick delivers a Cactus Clothesline to Edge sending all three to the outside. Edge comes back soon by hip tossing Mick into the steel steps. Edge pulls out a table and sets it up on the outside of the ring. Edge is unable to use the table right away. Edge brings out lighter fluid and douses Mick in it. Mick comes back with a piledriver. Lita distracts Mick allowing Edge to take control. Edge goes for the barbed wire bat and hits Mick in the midsection with it then a shot to the head. Edge then grinds the barbed wire into Mick's face. He follows that up with a bulldog onto the bat. Edge brings out a sack of thumbtacks and spreads them out in the ring. Edge goes for a bulldog onto the thumbtacks, but Mick reverses it and delivers a side suplex sending Edge onto the thumbtacks. Edge is in obvious pain as the tacks are sticking to his body. Mick brings out Mr. Socko and wraps barbed wire around hit before sticking it in Edge's mouth. Lita jumps in the ring and gets a mouth full of barbed wire herself. After she rolls to the outside you can see a little bit of blood around her mouth. Mick has the barbed wire bat and hits Edge in the midsection then the back. He then hits Edge in the face knocking him down. Mick grabs the lighter fluid and sprays it on the table. Lita then hits a low blow on Mick using the barbed wire bat. She then puts more lighter fluid on the table and sets it on fire. Edge spears Mick from the ring through the flaming table. HOLY SHIT! Edge covers Mick on the outside and picks up the win. That was awesome! As Edge and Lita walk away she still has blood around her mouth. He's busted open and still has thumbtacks sticking out of his body. What a brutal match.

Edge, Mick Foley, Lita vs Tommy Dreamer, Terry Funk, Beulah, One Night Stand '06
Three months later, Mick Foley had now aligned himself with Edge and he's scheduled to team with him against his best frenemy, Terry Funk and Tommy Dreamer. Mick comes out first and cuts a heel promo. The fans are chanting "You sold out" and Mick says he did sell out...he sold out Madison Square Garden. He then goes on to say that he used to have respect for ECW back when it was run by a true creative visionary...Stephanie McMahon-Helmsley. "Long live The Alliance." He then introduces Edge as co-holder of the Hardcore Championship and Edge comes out with the Hardcore belt. Edge then cuts a heel promo on the ECW fans saying they're going to go home and text their imaginary girlfriends and then look at pictures of his actual girlfriend. Lita then cuts a promo on Funk and Dreamer. Funk and Dreamer then come out accompanied by Beulah. Beulah then takes the microphone says that since Lita likes three-somes they should make it official, three-on-three. So, now we have a six person tag team match. Fans are chanting "Fuck her up, Beulah, fuck her up." Dreamer and Edge start the match. After about a minute, Edge tags in Mick. Mick wants Funk and he gets his wish. After taking a couple of slaps to the face, Mick backs off, says he doesn't want this and tags in Edge. The fight goes to the outside. Foley and Funk on one side of the ring, Dreamer and Edge on the other. Dreamer brings out some weapons. He hits Edge with a street sign. Funk begins hitting both Foley and Edge with a metal trash can. Foley and Funk take their fight up the ramp and into the laps of fans. Edge has a ladder in the ring. He goes to spear Dreamer into the ladder which is leaning against the top turnbuckle. Dreamer turns it into a hip toss sending Edge into the ladder. Funk places the ladder around his neck and starts swinging it around knocking down Edge and Foley. He sets the ladder up in the ring and climbs it for some unknown reason. Edge then tilts the ladder sending Funk backwards to the ring canvas. Dreamer picks Edge up and Lita comes in and delivers a low blow to Dreamer which is the first action either of the women have had in this match. Edge and Mick go under the ring and bring out a large board covered in barbed wire. They pick the board up and drop it onto Dreamer. Terry Funk knocks Mick down with the barbed wire landing on him. The fans are chanting "we want fire". Funk and Dreamer set the barbed wire board up in the corner and whip Mick into it, but Mick stops short. Dreamer and Funk take jabs at Foley before slamming him backwards into the barbed wire. Shortly thereafter, Lita goes under the ring and pulls out a string of barbed wire which Mick wraps around his fist. Mick then drops a fist onto Funk. Foley then rakes the barbed wire in Funk's face. Funk is bleeding and is complaining about his eye being damages. Doctors take a look at Funk and take him back to the back. Fans are chanting "We want Sandman". Foley brings out his barbed wire baseball bat at hits Dreamer with it. Mick then brings out Mr. Socko as the fans boo. He places the Mandible Claw on Beulah, then on Dreamer. Edge then grabs Beulah and begins making sexual gestures with her. Terry Funk returns. He has his eye bandaged and is carrying a barbed wire 2x4. He begins hitting Edge and Foley with the board. Funk then lights the board on fire and hits Mick with it. One of the shots knocks Foley off of the ring apron and through the large barbed wire board that Dreamer has set up at ringside. Edge then knocks Funk off of the ring apron and into the same barbed wire. Dreamer takes the string of barbed wire and places it around the throat of Edge. Lita comes to Edge's rescue and Beulah comes in and goes after Lita. Cat fight in the ring. Dreamer pulls Lita off of Beulah and hits a Dreamer Driver on her. Edge comes up from behind Dreamer and takes him down with the string of barbed wire. Edge then spears Beulah, picks her legs up and pins her while thrusting on her at each count. Wow. That was intense. Funk and Foley are still entwined in barbed wire. I think I need a cigarette now. This match had a perfect ending. Edge was a budding main eventer so to lose to Tommy Dreamer and Terry Funk would have hurt considerably. Edge also had nothing to prove by pinning Dreamer. The fact that he pinned Beulah after spearing her really makes him look like an asshole.

WWE Championship, Rob Van Dam (c) vs Edge vs John Cena, Raw 7/3/06
So, after that we move on to a WWE Championship triple threat match. A few weeks earlier at ECW One Night Stand, Edge screwed Cena out of the WWE title against Rob Van Dam setting up this match. Cena and Van Dam briefly start teaming up on Edge but soon each man wants to get their shots on Edge and they get in each others way. After a commercial Edge is on the outside as Cena and Van Dam fight. Edge soon comes back in and powerbombs RVD off the second rope and covers him with his own feet on the ropes, but the referee sees the feet and stops the count. The fight goes to the outside and Cena tosses Edge into the steel steps. Van Dam then leaps over the top rope out onto Cena. Back in the ring, Cena picks Edge up for a vertical suplex, but RVD comes off the top rope knocking both men down. Soon Cena starts hitting some moves on Edge and then hits the Five Knuckle Shuffle. He goes for the F-U, Edge is able to grab onto the top rope, but Cena then tosses him over the top rope to the outside. Lita comes in the ring with a chair but Cene picks her up and hits an F-U on her. Van Dam, who had been down on the outside, comes back in and hits the Van Daminator on Cena. He goes for the Five Star Frog Splash, but Cena moves out of the way. Cena hits the F-U on Van Dam but Edge comes in with the WWE title belt, strikes Cena with it, and pins Van Dam to win the match and become WWE Champion for the second time. Edge briefly goes to help Lita but then decides to celebrate some more instead. The next night on ECW, Van Dam would lose the ECW title to The Big Show. Behind the scenes Van Dam was forced to drop the titles after being caught by police with marijuana in his car. He would be suspended for 30 days starting after his loss of the ECW title.

WWE Championship: Edge (c) vs John Cena, Summerslam '06
John Cena won't go away. He steps up in his own hometown to challenge Edge for the WWE title at Summerslam. After Cena comes to the ring, the golden couple comes out. WWE Champion Edge and Women's Champion Lita. If Edge gets disqualified in this match, he loses the title. A lot of this match revolves around that, especially the commentary. Cena dominates early but Edge is able to turn things around and send Cena to the outside. The referee begins his 10-count and Edge is encouraging the referee. After some more back and forth wrestling in the ring, Edge sends Cena for a ride to the outside. Time for another count. Of course, Cena makes it back in the ring. Later in the match, Edge delivers a clothesline from the top rope. Edge applies a Camel Clutch to Cena. Cena makes it to his feet with Edge on his back and breaks the hold. With both men down, Lita tosses a chair into Edge but that only distracts Edge as he does not want to use the chair for risk of being disqualified. Cena takes advantage with a series of moves on the champion. Cena delivers the Five Knuckle Shuffle and goes for the F-U but Edge slides out of it and hits a DDT. Lita soon gets up on the ring apron distracting Cena. Edge goes for a spear on Cena, but Cena moves out of the way. Edge runs into Lita (not quite a full spear) and knocks her off of the ring apron. Cena comes up from behind Edge, picks him up and delivers a side suplex. Cena soon applies the STFU on Edge. Lita is up on the apron ready to hit Cena with the WWE title belt, but Edge tells her no. Edge makes it to the ropes. The referee pulls Cena off of Edge, meanwhile Lita slips a pair of brass knuckles onto Edge's hand. Cena picks Edge up for an F-U. Lita gets in the ring and leaps onto Edge's back. Cena picks them both up. He delivers the F-U to Lita. Edge slips out of the move, and while the referee is tending to Lita, Edge hits Cena in the back of the head with the brass knuckles. Edge covers Cena and retains the title. Most of this match was pretty average for a PPV main event, but the ending was good. The whole "Edge can lose the title by DQ" added a mostly positive element to the match, especially with Lita there. The ending was good with Edge still managing to cheat his way to victory and beating Cena in what is close to Cena's hometown. Cena would go on to beat Edge for the title at Unforgiven in Edge's hometown of Toronto, in a TLC Match, Cena's first TLC match and Edge's first TLC loss.

Later in 2006, Edge would align himself with Randy Orton and form Rated RKO. They would feud with D-X for several months. By early 2007, Edge would be looking to get back the Money in the Bank Ladder Match at WrestleMania. To do so, he would have to beat the man he won the WWE title from, Rob Van Dam.

Money in the Bank Ladder Match, Edge vs Rob Van Dam, Raw 2/19/07
Van Dam starts with a wrist lock on Edge. RVD displays his unique brand of offense in the early going of this match before taking Edge down into a hammer lock. Edge escapes with a poke to the eye. Van Dam takes Edge to the outside and drapes him across the guardrail. Van Dam goes to the ring apron and delivers a spinning leg drop to Edge on the outside. He tosses Edge into the ring, then as RVD himself is attempting to get back in the ring Edge grabs his head and delivers a swinging neckbreaker. Edge goes to whip Van Dam into the corner, but Van Dam reverses it sending Edge into the corner. Van Dam shows off his flexibility by delivering a spinning kick to the side of Edge's head. Edge looks glossy-eyed. In one his DVD interviews before the match, Edge mentions that this kick cracked his jaw and knocked him "half unconscious". After a couple more moves, Van Dam whips Edge off the ropes and hits him with another kick to the jaw. RVD then goes for Rolling Thunder, but Edge counters it into a slam. Edge places RVD on the top turnbuckle. He looks to be going for a superplex but Van Dam shoves him off and Edge crotches the top rope. Van Dam then delivers another kick to Edge sending him to the outside. Van Dam then leaps over the top rope out to the outside onto Edge. Van Dam tosses Edge into the ring and then goes to the top rope. RVD leaps off of the top rope but Edge meets him with a dropkick in mid air. Edge goes for a spear, but Van Dam gets out of the way. Van Dam then delivers yet another kick the side of Edge's head before hitting a split legged moonsault. RVD is unable to get the pin on Edge. Van Dam is feeling froggy, but Randy Orton comes out. Van Dam leaps off the top rope with a kick to Orton on the ring apron. Edge hits the spear on RVD and picks up the win. Edge is going to WrestleMania after an exciting fast-paced match.

Edge would fail to win the Money in the Bank contract at WrestleMania. He would get a title match against champion John Cena in a Fatal Four Way Match that also involved Orton and Shawn Michaels. Before that, Edge would have to go one-on-one with his now former partner on the April 23 Raw. That match, however had to be postponed until the following week because John Cena and Shawn Michaels would battle for a full hour and there would not be enough time for Edge and Orton. That Michaels vs Cena match was released on the Shawn Michaels: Heartbreak and Triumph DVD. Both the Michaels vs Cena match and this match would later be released on the Best of 2000s DVD. The Fatal Four Way Match was released on the Shawn Michaels: My Journey DVD. So, several good matches involving these men in a week's period.

Edge vs Randy Orton, Raw 4/30/07
The two men go face-to-face and soon start exchanging blows. Orton gets Edge down and begins stomping on his legs. After a commercial, Edge rams Orton shoulder first into the ring post. Edge then spears Orton from the ring apron down onto the announcers' table. Edge then drags Orton back into the ring and goes for a pin but Orton kicks out. The fans are cheering for Orton in this match. Now, Edge is going to work on Orton. Edge takes Orton down with a reverse heel kick. Edge goes to the top rope but Orton meets him there. Edge would shove Orton off and leap off of the top rope but Orton would deliver a drop kick in mid-air. The two men are exchange blows once again. Orton would take Edge down with a backbreaker. These two show that they know each other very well as former partners. The two both go off the ropes and go for a cross body but they smack into each other. Edge is up first and removes the turnbuckle pad. The referee scalds him for that. Orton takes Edge down with a clothesline. Orton sets Edge up in the corner and begins pounding on him. Edge slips out of the hold and sends Orton down head first to the turnbuckle. This isn't the turnbuckle that is exposed but Orton's head hits beyond the pad to the metal bolt and a he begins to bleed. Edge goes for a pin with his feet on the ropes, but the referee stops him. Orton then rolls Edge up for a pin with HIS feet on the ropes and the referee notices that as well. Orton sets up for an RKO but Edge turns it into an Impaler DDT. Edge allows a bloody Edge to get up as he goes for the spear, but Orton leapfrogs him and Edge runs into the corner. As he comes out of the corner, Orton goes for an RKO once again and Edge shoves him off. Orton nearly runs into the exposed turnbuckle but stops short. When he turns around he's met with a spear. Edge gets the three count and beats his former tag team partner. That was a great match. You'd think these two had been teaming for years the way they knew what each other was going to do. I'm not sure if WWE planned on Orton being the fan favorite but he was playing that role for a good part of the match.

Mr. Kennedy would win the Money in the Bank contract at WrestleMania. A couple of months later on Raw, Edge would challenge Mr. Kennedy for the contract and win. Behind the scenes, Mr. Kennedy was injured and WWE was afraid he would be out of a lengthy period of time so they wanted to get the contract off of him.

World Heavyweight Championship, Undertaker (c) vs Edge, Smackdown 5/11/07
We start as Undertaker and Batista are doing battle in a steel cage match for the title. Both men escape the cage and their feet touch down simultaneously. The two referees want to see a replay on Michael Cole's monitor. This match is a draw. The crowd boos. But they cheer when it's announced that The Undertaker is still champion. Undertaker is attacked by Mark Henry after the match. Henry rams an already bloodied Undertaker head-first into the steel steps and then spine first into the ring post. Henry places Undertaker in the ring and hits two running splashes. Cue Edge's music. Edge is cashing in Money in the Bank. Edge goes right for a pin, but Undertaker kicks out. Undertaker slowly gets to his feet and is met with a spear. Edge is the new World Heavyweight Champion.

World Heavyweight Championship, Edge (c) vs Batista, Vengeance '07
This is Batista's last chance at the championship. Legendary 8-time NWA World Heavyweight Champion, Harley Race is in the front row and endorses Batista. Batista starts off by backing Edge in the corner and ramming his shoulder into Edge's midsection. Batista takes Edge down and begins working on his arm and shoulder. As Batista attempts to get back in the ring, Edge rams him shoulder-first into the ring post. Batista's next attempt at getting back in the ring is met with a baseball slide. Batista manages to make it back in the ring. Batista soon charges at Edge but Edge moves out of the way and Batista goes shoulder-first into the ring post. Edge begins to work on the arm and shoulder of The Animal. Edge hits an Impaler DDT on Batista and goes for a pin but only gets two. Frustrated, Edge goes outside and grabs the World title belt. The referee takes the belt away from him. He gets back in the ring and Batista rolls him up for a pin, but because the referee is on the outside, it takes a couple seconds longer for him to get in and make the count, and Edge kicks out. Edge sets up for the spear but he's met with a spear from Batista. Batista sets up for the Batista Bomb and Edge hits a low blow. Edge is disqualified. Batista wins but Edge is still the champion. Edge is walking toward the back when Teddy Long's music hits. Long orders Edge to get back in the ring and the match is going to restart. This time if Edge gets DQ'ed he loses the title. Edge hits the spear on Batista and Batista kicks out at two. Edge goes to the outside and grabs a chair but quickly drops it knowing he would lose the belt if he's disqualified. Back in the ring Batista goes for a Batista Bomb but Edge manages to slip out of the move and out of the ring. Batista follows him to the outside. Edge goes for a spear and Batista delivers a big kick. Batista then hits the Batista Bomb on Edge on the outside. Batista tosses an unconscious Edge back in the ring, but Batista isn't able to make it back in before the referee's 10 count. Edge is your winner and still champion. After the match Batista hits a Batista Bomb on Edge in the ring. This was a good match. It felt like the 2004 Edge vs Orton match but in a decent time. I actually like the finish. Edge didn't cheat in the end, and this was Batista's last chance at the title. Afterwards, Batista shows the emotion of his loss.

World Heavyweight Championship, Edge (c) vs Rey Mysterio, Royal Rumble '08
Just a few weeks later Edge world have to vacate the title due to injury but he would return later in the year and win the belt back at Armageddon. Edge was now in a relationship with the new Smackdown GM Vickie Guerrero who comes to the ring in a wheelchair reluctantly pushed by Teddy Long. Edge's new buddies, Curt Hawkins and Zack Ryder come out as well. They helped Edge win the title. Rey walks to the ring a bit slower than usual. Edge not only has the size advantage over Mysterio he also has help at ringside. Mysterio uses his smaller size to slip around Edge and escape to the outside. Hawkins and Ryder make their way to Mysterio but the referee catches them and ejects them from ringside. Rey delivers a seated senton off the top rope onto Edge in the ring. Edge soon retakes control and works over Mysterio's previously injured knee attempting to ground the Luchador. Rey is having trouble standing under his own power. Edge attempts to remove the knee brace of Mysterio's but Rey fights back. Edge whips Mysterio into the corner and charges at him but Mysterio gets his feet up. Rey goes to the top rope and delivers a double stomp (think Finn Balor's finisher) on Edge. Edge escapes to the outside and Mysterio slides under the bottom rope and hits Edge with a swinging DDT. Back in the ring, Edge goes for a spear but Rey trips him sending him into the ropes. Mysterio then hits the 619 on Edge. Rey goes to the rope and hits a splash on Edge. The referee begins to count, but Vickie Guerrero gets up and pulls him out of the ring. Rey manages to get Edge back in the 619 position and goes to hit it but Vickie puts herself in front of Edge and takes the hit. Rey goes for the West Coast Pop on Edge but is met in midair with a spear who pins Mysterio to win the match.

Edge refers to the spear he hit on Rey as one of his favorite of his career. Next we move on to who Edge refers to as the Batman to his Joker, the Superman to his Lex Luthor, the Spider Man to his Green Goblin, The Undertaker. Undertaker beat Edge for the World Heavyweight title at WrestleMania, then after Smackdown GM Vickie Guerrero banned Undertaker's Hells Gates submission hold, and Undertaker used it to beat Edge in a rematch, Vickie stripped Undertaker of the title and set up a TLC Match for the vacant title at One Night Stand.

World Heavyweight Championship, Title vs Career TLC Match, Edge vs The Undertaker, One Night Stand '08
The Undertaker gets Edge into the corner and starts punching him. Undertaker hits "Old School" early on in the match. Taker goes to bring a ladder in the ring, but Edge delivers a baseball slide to the ladder sending Undertaker into the guardrail. The fight continues on the outside. Undertaker sets up a quartet of tables (two on top of two) on the outside of the ring. On commentary alongside Michael Cole is a former rival of both men and the man who (kayfabe) invented the TLC Match, Mick Foley. Edge sets up a ladder in the ring and starts to climb but Undertaker pulls him down. Undertaker starts to climb but Edge meets him on the ladder. Undertaker shoves Edge off and Edge comes stumbling back to knock Undertaker off the ladder. Edge sets a ladder up horizontally across the top rope in the corner, but it's used against him in the form of Snake Eyes by Undertaker. The two men end up outsider the ring and Edge bridges the ring and guardrail with the ladder. Undertaker sets up for the Last Ride but Edge hits a low blow. Edge then smacks the Deadman across the head with a chair. Edge lays Undertaker on a table at ringside. Edge climbs on the announcer's table and hits a splash onto Undertaker. Edge sets up a ladder in the ring but Undertaker is stirring and slowly gets back in the ring to knock Edge off but Edge hits a spear on Undertaker. Edge then places Undertaker's leg in the ladder and strikes the ladder with a chair injuring Undertaker's knee. Edge now sets up a larger ladder in the ring. Before climbing it he gives Undertaker some (unprotected) chair shots to the head. Edge decides to deliver some more punishment before climbing the ladder but the Phenom comes back with a low blow. Undertaker chokeslams Edge from the ring apron onto the ladder that is bridging the ring. Undertaker has a clear ride to the top. At least he would if it wasn't for Hawkins and Ryder. The former Major Brothers set up two tables the ring placing Undertaker on top of one and the other ladder on top of Undertaker. The Deadman gets up and sends both men separately through tables at ringside. Edge comes back and spears his opponent off of the ring apron to the outside. Edge sets the double stack tables back up in the ring then starts to climb the ladder. Undertaker gets back up and climbs up after Edge then delivers a Last Ride through the two tables. Undertaker struggles to climb the ladder with an injured knee and is attacked by Chavo Guerrero and Bam Neely (I bet that's a name you don't remember). The two try for a Con-chair-to but Undertaker ducks and the two strike each others chairs. Undertaker delivers the punishment with the chair then. Undertaker starts to climb the ladder. Edge gets up as The Undertaker is close to the top and pushes the ladder over sending The Undertaker through the four tables at ringside. There's no one left to stop Edge from claiming the gold and ending Undertaker's career. Those two delivered big time in this amazing match.

As Edge and Vickie Guerrero were about to get married it was revealed that Edge had cheated on her with their wedding planner. Out of spite, she re-instates The Undertaker and places Edge in a match with him at Summerslam. This time it would be a Hell in a Cell Match.

Hell in a Cell Match, Edge vs Undertaker, Summerslam '08
We go from a match that The Undertaker had never been in to one that Edge had never been in. As Undertaker makes his way to the ring you can tell that Edge is in awe, both of his opponent and the cell. Undertaker enters the cell and slams the door shut behind him. When the lights come on Edge looks to be ready for the match. It's a back and forth fight at the start of the match. The fight quicky goes to the outside as Undertaker slams Edge into the cell. Undertaker soon drapes Edge across the ring apron and drops a leg on him. Vickie Guerrero and La Familia are shown in her office watching the match on TV. Taker brings the bottom of the ring steps into the ring and drops Edge face first onto the steps in the corner. Edge then comes back and throws Undertaker into the steps. Edge then goes under the ring and brings out a table which he sets up at ringside. Edge then sets up another table on top of the first one at ringside. Edge then strikes Undertaker across the back with a chair before setting up yet another table, this time in the ring. He then goes out and pulls out a ladder. So now we basically have a TLC in a Cell Match. Edge places Undertaker on the table in the ring, climbs the ladder while bringing a chair with him then drops his body with the chair onto Undertaker. This was the same move he used to take out Mick Foley a few weeks earlier on Smackdown. Edge then attempts Con-Chair-To on Undertaker but the Deadman fights back. Edge is on the ring apron as Undertaker hits him with a big boot sending him into the cell. Undertaker then strikes Edge with the other set of steel steps. Edge fights back, then gets a running start and leaps off of the bottom of the steps delivering a spear to The Undertaker who's against the wall of the cell breaking the cell panel. The fight goes to ringside as Undertaker is bleeding from the forearm. Edge uses a TV monitor (they were still using the old monitors) and strikes Undertaker across the head. Undertaker is soon standing on top of one announcers table as Edge delivers a spear across the three tables sending Undertaker through one of them. The two men manage to stumble back into the ring. Edge then grabs a TV camera from under the ring and strikes Undertaker with it, much like when he cost Undertaker the world title in the last HIAC match at the previous Survivor Series. He then goes for a spear but is caught and hit with a chokeslam. Taker goes for a pin but only gets two. Undertaker sets up for the Last Ride but Edge hits a low blow (it's amazing Undertaker was still able to have kids). Edge then hits the Impaler and goes for a pin but Undertaker gets his shoulder up. Undertaker fights back and goes to send Edge on a Last Ride through the table on the outside but Edge slips out and hits a spear. Edge then goes for Undertaker's Old School but Undertaker brings him down crotch first on the turnbuckle. Taker then chokeslams Edge from the top turnbuckle through the double stacked tables at ringside. Taker drags Edge into the ring and hits a spear on him. Undertaker then uses the TV camera and gives Edge a shot to the head. Undertaker isn't done yet as he delivers a Con-chair-to to the Rated R Superstar. As if that wasn't enough, Undertaker delivers a Tombstone and it's all over, Undertaker wins. But the Deadman still isn't done with his opponent. He starts to head back to the locker room when he sees Edge stirring on the video screen. Undertaker returns to the ring and sets up a ladder. He then picks Edge up and places him on the ladder. Undertaker then gets another ladder and sets it up next to Edge's. Undertaker then chokeslams Edge through the ring and straight to hell. Undertaker then poses in the ring as the fire erupts from the hole in the ring. What a sight. And what an awesome way to end Summerslam and end this DVD.

And now two bonus matches from disc two.

NOPE Match
Adam Copeland vs Christian, Raw Dark Match 11/10/97
Matt Striker and Edge are in the WWE studio to introduce the match. Edge mentions that he was already under WWE contract at this point, while Christian was still trying to get a job. The two lock up and then exchange wrist locks. Christian takes Edge down with a hip toss. Edge comes back and applies an armbar. Edge tries to fire the crowd in Cornwall, Ontario up. Edge goes to whip Christian into the corner but Christian reverses him. Christian drapes Edge across the second rope then goes to the top turnbuckle and delivers a leg drop on him. Christian then goes back to the top turnbuckle and goes for a leg drop on Edge in the middle of the ring but Edge moves out of the way. Edge whips Christian off the ropes and hits a sit-down spinebuster. Edge goes to the top turnbuckle but Christian knocks the ropes causing the to drop onto the turnbuckle. Christian goes for a superplex but Edge knocks him off and hits a flying crossbody off the top turnbuckle. Edge picks Christian up and hits a running sit down powerbomb on Christian and picks up the wind.

NOPE Match
I-C Championship, Jeff Jarrett (c) vs Edge, WWF House Show 7/24/99
Another introduction from Edge and Matt Striker. This takes place in Edge's hometown of Toronto. Edge & Christian had wrestled the Acolytes earlier in the night and soon thereafter Edge was asked to fill in for Ken Shamrock and wrestle Jeff Jarrett later in the show. Jarrett comes to the ring accompanied by Debra and gets on the mic and says that none of the fans deserve to see the puppies, only him because he's the greatest I-C Champion of all time. It's then announced that Ken Shamrock had transportation problems and was unable to make it. Jarrett demands the referee raise his hand in victory. That's when Edge's music hits. As soon as Edge hits the ring, Jarrett begins stomping on him. Jarrett wants to use the belt to hit Edge but the referee takes it away from him. After Edge takes control of Jarrett, Jeff gets frustrated and starts to walk away. The referee counts and Jarrett comes back and pulls Edge to the outside. Jarrett whips Edge into the steel steps and goes to hit him with a chair, but the referee takes the chair from him. Jarrett takes Edge back into the ring and gets a sleeper on him. Edge turns it into a headlock and Jarrett turns it into a suplex. Jarrett whips Edge off the ropes and goes for a leapfrog but Edge turns it into a sit down powerbomb. Debra gets up on the ring apron distracting the referee and Edge. Jarrett sneaks up from behind Edge but Edge sees it coming gets away and hits a spear on Jarrett and pins him. Edge is handed the I-C title. There was some confusion among the officials as to whether Edge was indeed the champion or if it was a non-title match. The belt is returned to Jarrett. Official Jack Lanza then comes to ringside and informs Edge, the referee, and Howard Finkel that the it is indeed at a title match and Edge is new champion. Edge is in shock himself. This is another match of Edge holding his own against a more experienced opponent. Edge would go on to drop the title back to Jarrett the next night at Fully Loaded. That would allow Jarrett to break Razor Ramon's record for most I-C title reigns with five. He would add a sixth title reign a couple of months later and hold the record until 2004 when Chris Jericho would break it.

Edge is one of my favorite wrestlers and this is one of my favorite DVDs. Certainly a fine collection of matches. Each disc as a pair of awesome matches back to back. Disc one has the two ladder matches, disc two the two hardcore matches, and disc three the two matches with The Undertaker. If I were to change some things I would remove one of the 2001 I-C title matches since those both kinda ran together and also the Mr. Perfect match. I would add one of his 2001 matches against Christian. This DVD was released a year and a half after the Ladder Match DVD which included the Edge vs Christian Ladder Match from No Mercy and I suppose between that and all the other ladder matches on this DVD that match was left off of this. I also suppose those two reasons are why his TLC Match with John Cena was left off. Ideally I would like to see one of the late 2002 Smackdown Tag title matches but the two good ones both include Chris Benoit.

Next up, we go from a classic bloodbath between two Hall of Famers to a couple of matches involving Mr. McMahon to a Triple H vs Shawn Michaels classic to the likes of Umaga, John Cena, Randy Orton, and Cody Rhodes.

 

[Skyefire]

Falls Count Anywhere: The Greatest Street Fights and Other Out of Control Matches

Who better to host this DVD than the Hardcore Legend Mick Foley.

Alley Fight, Pat Patterson vs Sgt. Slaughter, Madison Square Garden 5/4/81
There will be no referee in the ring during the match. One fall to a finish. Howard Finkel explains the rules to the crowd. He then introduces both wrestlers before either one comes to the ring. Patterson comes to the ring wearing an "I Love NY" shirt and a Yankees ballcap. Slaughter is accompanied to the ring by his manager, The Grand Wizard. Patterson attacks Slaughter as soon as he enters the ring and rams him head first into the turnbuckle. Slaughter falls onto the announcer's table which is right up against the ring. Patterson takes his belt off and whips Slaughter with it. He then proceeds to choke the Sarge with the belt. Slaughter soon grabs the belt, whips Patterson off the ropes and clotheslines him with the belt. Slaughter the removes Patterson's shirt and chokes him with it. Patterson then uses momentum to toss Slaughter over the top rope and out to the floor. Back in the ring, Patterson drops a knee from the second turnbuckle onto the head of Slaughter. Patterson begins biting his opponent. Patterson takes Slaughter down and then catapults him into the corner as Slaughter hits his head on the turnbuckle. Sarge is now bleeding profusely. Patterson goes to work. Slaughter comes back with a low blow. Slaughter now has a pair of brass knuckles and he strikes Patterson with them. Patters is able to come back and ram Slaughter into the turnbuckle once again. Patterson then removes his cowboy boot and huts Slaughter with it. He then goes back and forth between cowboy boot and corner. One such corner shot sends Slaughter out onto a cameraman. Patterson is beating Slaughter with his boot and the Grand Wizard throws in the towel for Slaughter. Pat Patterson wins a brutal, bloody match. This type of blood and brutality was rare in the early 80's outside of maybe a cage match. This match is to hardcore matches as Shawn Michaels vs Razor Ramon is to ladder matches. You could argue that better matches have happened since then but it was a first of its kind and set the bar for matches to come.

Atlanta Street Fight, Jimmy Valiant & Miss Atlanta Lively vs The Midnight Express (Bobby Eaton & Dennis Condrey), Starrcade '85
Miss Atlanta Lively is Ron Garvin in drag. Valiant is in his "Boogie Woogie Man" gimmick. Since this is a "come dressed as you are" street fight, naturally the Midnight Express are wearing Tuxedos. I started to review this match but I couldn't keep up, it is such a mess. Valiant and both Midnight Express all bleed in this match. The ending comes when Eaton comes off the top rope about to splash Valiant but Lively catches him in mid-air with a punch. She then pins Eaton to get the win. After the match the babyfaces get Jim Cornette in the ring and strip him down to his boxers.

WCW World Tag Team Championships/Street Fight: Doom (c) vs Barry Windham & Arn Anderson, Starrcade '90
Anderson and Windham represent the Four Horsemen. I'm not sure who else is in the group at this point other than Flair. Doom, the pairing of Ron Simmons and Butch Reed come to the ring accompanied by their manager, Teddy Long. Reed and Windham start the fight on the elevated ramp. Soon the two pairs switch places. Simmons uses his belt on Anderson on the ramp. Reed an Windham go to the outside to fight and Reed slams Windham's head into the ring post causing him to bleed. Reed then uses the buckle of his weight belt and digs into the open wound of Windham. Arn Anderson now has the with belt and begins choking Reed with it. Windham whips Simmons with the weight belt. Anderson strikes Reed over the head with a chair. Windham uses the belt buckle to bust open Simmons. Anderson is also bleeding. Simmons goes to the top but Windham hits him with a low blow. Windham then hits a superplex on Simmons. He goes for a pin but only gets two. A bloody Butch Reed his a shoulder tackle from the top rope onto Windham. Windham gets Reed in a small package while Reed drapes his hand over Anderson and the referee counts both pins. The match is a draw. The fight continues up the ramp. Despite the finish this match was a bit better and a bit more organized than the previous one.

Falls Count Anywhere Match, Sting vs Cactus Jack, Beach Blast '92
Cactus waits on the elevated ramp for Sting to arrive. The begin the fight on the ramp. Cactus attempts to hiptoss Sting into the crowd but Sting blocks it. Sting backdrops Cactus on the ramp. Sting attempts a Stinger Splash on the outside as Cactus is leaning against the ropes, but Cactus moves and Sting hits the turnbuckle and falls to the floor. Cactus hits the elbow off the ring apron onto Sting and covers him on the floor but Sting kicks out. Cactus then hits a neckbreaker on the concrete floor. Cactus goes back to the apron and does a sunset flip on Sting, but Cactus has hit the concrete floor himself. There are no mats at ringside for this match. Sting fights back and suplexes Cactus on the floor. They make their way into the ring. Jim Ross is on commentary for this match. His broadcast partner was Jesse Ventura but his commentary was removed from the DVD. After a minute or so in the ring, Cactus delivers a Cactus Clothesline on Sting sending him to the outside. Cactus picks up a chair and strikes the WCW Champion on the back. Sting comes back and delivers a belly-to-back suplex on the floor. Sting again goes for the Stinger Splash and once again misses at strikes the guardrail this time. Cactus goes to the second rope for an elbow drop but Sting moves out of the way and Cactus hits the concrete floor. Sting grabs a chair and repeatedly hits Cactus with it. With Cactus on the ramp, Sting climbs to the top rope and delivers a flying clothesline to Cactus and picks up the pin. This was a good match. Certainly not as extreme as people come to expect from Cactus Jack, and not as good as the Cactus vs Vader match, but for 1992 WCW is this was certainly different. The really made good use of their surroundings barely spending any time in the ring.

Falls Count Anywhere Match, Randy Savage vs Crush, WrestleMania X
So the rules for this match are that you must pin your opponent, and pinfalls can occur anywhere, then your opponent must make it back to the ring withing 60 seconds or the match is over. Savage attacks Crush on the walkway. Crush soon picks Savage up and drops him across the guardrail. Crush gets the pin on Savage and now Savage has 60 seconds to get back in the ring. Savage is nearly back in at 30 seconds when Mr. Fuji hits him with the Japanese flag. Savage manages to make it back in at 58 seconds. Crush hangs Savage upside down in the corner. Mr. Fuji hands Crush some salt but Savage hits Crush hand and the salt goes back in Crush's face. Savage hits a flying elbow drop on Crush, tosses him on the outside and pins him. Fuji pours a pitcher of ice water on Crush and Crush makes it back in the ring at 59 seconds. Savage rams Crush into the ring steps then sends him out into the crowd. They make their way back to the backstage area. Savage rams Crush's head into a door and then pins him. Savage then ties Crush's feet up and attempts to hang him from his feet all while the clock is ticking. Crush is unable to break free of the ropes and make it back to the ring. Savage is your winner. This was certainly not a bad match, but it was not great. The match comes in at just under 10 minutes for which three of those minutes there was no action going on as the wrestlers attempted to get back in the ring.

Chicago Street Fight, Road Warriors vs Sting & Booker T, Uncensored '96
Naturally, the Road Warriors attack Sting and Booker before they get to the ring, but then they go straight to the ring. WCW has a split screen to show all of the action. Some of the highlights of this nearly 30-minute match: Animal crotches Sting on the ring post. Sting later returns the favor. Sting grabs a chair and separately strikes both Road Warriors with it. But Animal soon returns the favor to Sting and Booker. Sting hits a piledriver on Hawk but it has no effect. Sting goes for a Stinger Splash on Hawk but misses. Tony Schiavone makes note that mist of the match, at least through the first 15 minutes or so has been mostly focused in the ring. Booker T delivers a DDT on Hawk on the outside and goes for a pin, but it takes a few seconds for the referee to get to the outside of the ring and Hawk kicks out after two. Booker delivers a great spin kick to Hawk in the ring. Sting strikes Animal with a chair and soon Hawk takes the chair from him and strikes both The Stinger and Booker. Sting walks back to the entrance to look for more weapons. He comes back with...a broom. Two brooms actually. He strikes Animal with the brooms before going in the ring and striking Hawk. Animal then grabs the brooms and uses it on his opponents. Booker T then walks away from the ring seemingly as if he's leaving the match. Animal finds him. Booker goes to the back and Animal finds him and attacks him. They come across Lex Luger who is priming his hair in front of a mirror. Animal accidently hits Luger and Luger attacks Animal. Stevie Ray and Jimmy Hart join in the fight. They tape Animal to a pole. Back at ringside Sting once again misses a Stinger Splash on Hawk this time against the guardrail, but Booker T comes to Sting's rescue. Booker misses the Harlem Hangover and Stevie Ray comes down and strikes Hawk in the back with a chair. Booker then pins Hawk for the win. This match went on a bit too long, but it's not bad. There was a lot of mostly random fighting and the finish was kind of odd but it is still enjoyable.

Chicago Street Fight, Ahmed Johnson & Legion of Doom vs Nation of Domination (Faarooq, Crush, Savio Vega), WrestleMania 13
One year later the Road Warriors are in yet another Chicago Street Fight. This time it's 3-on-3. LOD and Ahmed make their way to the ring. Hawk is carrying a literal kitchen sink. Hawk and Animal are wearing black and silver shoulder pads, while Ahmed is wearing a traditional red and black LOD pad. After quickly disposing of the Nation, babyface trio take out their frustrations on PG-13. Ahmed leaps over the guardrail attacking Crush. Animal nails Faarooq and Crush with a trash can. A 2x4 board is used in this match, as is a fire extinguisher, and a street sign. Ahmed slams Faarooq through the French announcers' table. Multiple trash cans are dented. The ring mat is stained red with the blood of Steve Austin from the previous match. D-Lo Brown gets involved and gets attacked by Ahmed. Savio pulls out Marlena's director's chair from underneath the ring and uses it on Ahmed. Savio uses a nightstick on Hawk. LOD hit the Doomsday Device on Crush. Ahmed and Crush then clothesline Crush with the 2x4 and Animal pins him. The fight isn't' over, though, as the Nation strikes back. Ahmed hits the Pearl River Plunge on D-Lo. Hawk then hits a double Doomsday Device on the two members of PG-13. This was definitely more fun than the previous match. Less than 10 minutes, not counting post-match antics. Good use of foreign objects.

Street Fight, Bret Hart vs Steve Austin, Raw 4/21/97
Austin is already in the ring awaiting Bret's arrival. Austin eagerly waits for Hart to enter the ring. Bret is reluctant to enter the ring. Owen and Davey Boy attack Austin from behind. It's a 3-on-1 assault on the Texas Rattlesnake. Shawn Michaels comes through the crowd and clears house of the Hart Foundation with a chair. It's down the Bret and Austin. Bret hits a pilederiver on Austin. Bret then grabs a chair and places it around the ankle of Austin. He then climbs the ropes and goes to slam his foot on the chair but Austin moves out of the way. Austin then uses the chair to his advantage attacking the knee of the Hitman. Austin then applies the Sharpshooter on Hart. Three referees are trying to get Austin to break the hold. hart has nearly passed out from the pain. More officials including Pat Patterson force Austin off of Bret. After a commercial The Hart Foundation are in the ring. Bret is injured. Back in the back, Gorilla Monsoon is confronting Austin and Austin says he doesn't care about the rules. Monsoon kicks Austin out of the arena. Bret is put on a stretcher and taken to a waiting ambulance. After another commercial, Bret is being loaded into the ambulance. The ambulance is ready to leave when Austin gets in and attacks Bret. The Hart Foundation fight him off as officials try to keep him away. Finally the ambulance is able to leave with Bret. This was more of a brawl segment than a match.

Falls Count Anywhere Match, Cactus Jack vs Hunter Hearst-Helmsley, Raw 9/22/97
For the first time ever Raw is War is live from Madison Square Garden. On the same night that Stone Cold hit the Stunner on Mr. McMahon for the first time, this match is supposed to be Hunter vs Dude Love. Dude's music hits and he appears on the Titantron. He says Falls Count Anywhere is not his type of thing and introduces Mankind. Mankind says as much as he'd love to fight Hunter, he knows someone else who would enjoy it even more, it's Cactus Jack. Cactus Jack has arrived in WWF. Hunter runs up the ramp to greet him and Cactus hits him over the head with a metal trashcan. Cactus rips off the floor mats and hits a swinging neck breaker on the floor. Hunter runs from Cactus and Cactus is taken out by Chyna. Hunter and Cactus fight into the crowd. Hunter slams Cactus on the floor goes for a pin and only gets two. Hunter thinks he's won. Cactus comes back with a fire extinguisher. Cactus has Hunter on the floor at ringside and goes up to the second rope. Cactus goes for an elbow drop on Hunter but Hunter moves out of the way and Cactus lands on the trash can. After a commercial, the two men are on the ring apron as Hunter goes to ram Cactus into the ring post, but Cactus kicks him down low. They go to the outside of the ring where Chyna gets involved. Chyna hits Cactus with a chair with little affect. Cactus is trying to tell Chyna to leave when Hunter comes up from behind and shoves Cactus sending him, and Chyna into the ring steps. Hunter delivers a side suplex on the steel ramp. Hunter sets up a table on the stage. He sets Cactus up for a Pedigree on the table but Cactus fights back with a piledriver through the table and pins Hunter for the win. The culmination of a feud that really helped elevate Triple H to new heights and proved he can handle hardcode matches. This was one of Hunter's first hardcore matches, but it certainly wouldn't be his last as we will find soon.

ECW Death Match, Taz vs Bam Bam Bigelow, Heatwave '98
I'm not sure what the "ECW Death Match" is supposed to be. The ring announcer states that the match is Falls Count Anywhere which is a surprise to Joey Styles. So was this "Death Match" supposed to just be a No Hold Barred Match just like any ECW match? Taz's FTW Championship is not on the line in this match. Shane Douglas is doing commentary alongside Joey Styles. Bam Bam hits a powerbomb on Taz early on but it has no affect on Taz. Taz soon hits a Samoan Drop on Bigelow. These guys may not be high flyers but the action between them is fast paced early on. The fight goes to the elevated walkway and soon into the crowd. Bigelow slams Taz head first into the chairs. They fight into the hockey boards and Bigelow then throws Taz into the seats. The fight goes toward the entry way where Taz takes Bigelow down with a spinebuster. They fight back towards the fans. Taz gets an armbar on Bigelow. The fight goes back to ringside where Bam Bam hits Taz across the back with a chair. Bigelow hits Taz with a powerbomb in the ring. He then tosses a table into the ring. He sets the table up vertically in the corner and then tosses Taz through the table. Taz is busted open. Taz soon comes back and hits a T-bone Tazzplex through the remnants of the table. The fight goes back to the ramp. Bam Bam sets Taz up for a suplex, but Taz turns it into a DDT through the ramp. An awesome sight as they bust through the ramp to the concrete floor. Bigelow is the first to get up. He's stumbling towards the ring as Taz gets up and applies the Tazmission. Bigelow taps out. Taz is your winner. Shane Douglas claims Bigelow was reaching for the ropes and not tapping out. It's hard to tell but it seems as though Bigelow was busted open, likely during the fall, and as soon as the match was over you can see Paul Heyman at the entrance directing medical crews to him as they apply a towel to his head. This was a really good match. The action was all over the arena. There's a lot of this match I Wasn't able to cover in my review as it was fast paced, plus when the action got to the crowd it was harder to see since it wasn't lit well in those areas. It wasn't strictly hardcore, though. There was a lot of good wrestling. And they used the objects around then not necessarily as offensive weapons but as ways to make their wrestling moves hurt worse. I will say this, I hope security guards got a really nice payday out of this as they deserved it. Rowdy ECW fans, no doubt some alcohol involved the guard hard a hard time keeping the fans back when the wrestlers fought in the crowd.

Next up is the Al Snow vs Hardcore Holly match from St. Valentine's Day Massacre which I reviewed recently on the Hardcore DVD, so go check out that review.

Strap Match, Triple H vs The Rock, Fully Loaded '99
One year earlier at Fully Loaded, The Rock and Triple H fought in a Best 2 of 3 Falls Match for the I-C title which ended in a 30-minute draw. Now they're fighting for the right to challenge for the WWF Championship at Summerslam. The Rock doesn't even get the strap on before the begin to fight. This is not a typical strap match where you touch the turnbuckles, this is pinfall or submission just while they're attached to a leather strap. The fight goes to the outside as Triple H drops The Rock on the Spanish announcers table. Rock reversed Triple H into the steel steps. The fight then goes into the crowd. Overall the fans are doing a better job of staying out of the wrestlers' way than the ECW fans did. Rock tosses Triple H into the guardrail and the two are now near the entrance. The Rock gives a brief pose as the crowd cheers. Triple H throws Rock into one of the steel supports for the entrance. Helmsley is now whipping Rock with the strap. Triple H goes for a suplex on the floor, but Rock reverses it into a suplex of his own. Rock goes for a pin and gets a close two. The two men are soon exchanging blows in the ring. Chyna makes her way to ringside. Rock hits the Rock Bottom on Triple H and goes for the pin, but Chyna has the referee distracted. Triple H goes to the turnbuckle and begins choking The Rock with the strap. Rock comes back and tosses Triple H off the top turnbuckle. The fight soon goes to the outside once again. Triple H grabs a steel chair and goes to hit Rock with it but Rock whips Helmsley in the gut with the strap. Rock continues to whip Triple H with the leather. Back in the ring, Rock hits Triple H with DDT and goes for a pin but only gets two. Chyna gets up on the ring apron as Billy Gunn comes down and knocks the Rock out. Triple H goes for a pin but Rock kicks out. Helmsley goes for the Pedigree but Rock hits a low blow. It's People's Elbow time. Rock goes for a pin but Billy Gunn pulls him out of the ring. Gunn the finds himself on the receiving end of a Rock Bottom. Triple H takes advantage with a low blow of his own followed by The Pedigree for the win. These two frequently put on good matches with one another and this is certainly no exception. Helmsley would go on to face Stone Cold and Mankind in a triple threat match for the WWF title in the main event of Summerslam, while Rock would go on the face Mr. Ass.

"Love Her or Leave Her" Greenwich Street Fight, Test vs Shane McMahon, Summerslam '99
From Summerslam 1899. Wait, no, this is 1999? But they're fighting over Stephanie McMahon's right to date Test. Shane comes out alone, without the Mean Street Posse. But the injured Posse make their way out anyway and Shane appears to be shocked as he said he was going to go at it alone. Joey Abs is wearing a walking cast, Rodney has his arm in a sling, and Pete Gas has a neck brace all thanks to Test. The Posse all have front row seats, or rather a couch. in the crowd. As you might expect the fight goes out to ringside and then into the crowd. Shane leaps off the guardrail onto Test but Test catches him and slams him on the floor. Test then tosses Shane onto the Posse. The Posse then fight Test. They hand Shane a metal mailbox, because they have one of those laying around, and Shane hits Test with it. In the ring, Shane would attempt a corkscrew moonsault from the top turnbuckle but Test moved out of the way. Test hit a powerbomb on Shane and went for the pin, but Rodney distracted the referee. Test accidently kicks the referee then knocks Shane to the outside. The Posse get involved again and they place Test on the Spanish announcers' table. Shane goes to the top rope and delivers an elbow onto Test on the table. The Posse toss both carcasses in the ring. Shane goes for a pin but Test kicks out. The crowd actually popped pretty good for that. Pete Gas accidently hits Shane with a sign and Test goes for a pin but Joey Abs pulls him out. Out come Pat Patterson and Gerald Brisco who attack the Posse. Test hits his pumphandle slam on Shane. He then goes to the top turnbuckle and delivers an elbow on Shane and gets the pin. Stephanie comes running down to ringside and hugs Test. Outside of Shane's two big moves and Test's elbow from the top there's nothing really special about this match. It's pretty basic especially considering one month before WWE did the Triple H vs Rock strap match. That would lead up to the wedding where Stephanie would marry Triple H and that would lead to a match between Vince and Triple H and any hopes of Test being a main eventer died.

Street Fight, Vince McMahon vs Shane McMahon, Raw 10/29/01
A rematch from WrestleMania, this time Vince is the fan favorite owner of the WWF and Shane is the hated owner of WCW. Shane goes right out after Vince. Vince begins pounding Shane on the ramp. Vince grabs a camera cable and begins choking Shane with it. The fight goes into the ring but not before Vince starts tossing trash cans into it. Shane grabs the lid of the trashcan and beats Vince with it. Shane sets the trash can on Vince and climbs to the top turnbuckle. Shane goes for a shooting star press but Vince moves out of the way and Shane lands on the metal trashcan. Vince grabs a kendo stick and beats Shane with it. Vince knocks Shane to the outside. Shane fights back with the trashcan lid. Shane goes to the top turnbuckle and delivers a big elbow drop to his father. Shane drags Vince into the ring and goes for a pin but only gets two. Shane sets Vince up for the Coast-to-Coast. Vince gets up and tosses the trashcan into Shane in mid-air. Booker T and Test come to the ring and attack Vince. Undertaker and Kane come out to their boss's rescue. Undertaker hits the Last Ride on Booker but William Regal comes out and hits a low blow on The Undertaker. Out comes The Rock who attacks Regal with the Rock Bottom. So, who's next? Stone Cold of course. Stunner on The Rock. Kurt Angle comes out followed by Chris Jericho. Angle turns and strikes Jericho with the chair. Angle has joined the Alliance. Austin hits the Stunner on Vince then places Shane on top of Vince. The referee manages to find room on between all of the bodies in the ring to count the pin. Shane defeats his dad once again.

Street Fight, Ric Flair vs Vince McMahon, Royal Rumble '02
Ric Flair is back in the WWF and back in Atlanta. Vince comes out second and is all jacked up for this battle of the WWF co-owners. This match actually starts off in the ring with the bell. Vince knocks Flair down and then poses. Vince then applies a headlock to Flair. Flair comes back with his signature chops. Flair does all of his usual moves, his upside down dive into the corner and his faceplant in the ring. The brawl goes to the outside and that's when this match starts to get good. Vince strikes Flair over the head with a trashcan and Flair is now busted open. Vince tosses Flair into the ring post and then into the stairs. They're now fighting right in front of Reid and Flair's other daughter (I don't know her name). Vince tosses a bloody Flair back into the ring. Vince then wraps Flair's legs around the ring post and rams them into the post one at a time. Vince then applies a Figure Four on Flair in the ring. Flair starts to fight back and soon turns Vince over and breaks the hold. Vince then pulls out a lead pipe from under the timekeeper's table. Before he can use it, Flair hits a low blow on him. Flair delivers a series of chops to Vince on the outside of the ring. Flair then grabs a TV monitor and hits Vince with it. Vince is now busted open. Flair brings Vince over to Flair's family allowing them to take pictures. Flair then grabs the lead pipe and hits Vince over the head with it. Figure Four is applied and Vince gives up. Flair proves he's still got it in the ring, at least when it comes to bloody street fights.

Unsanctioned Match, Shawn Michaels vs Triple H, Summerslam '02
Shawn Michaels had been seemingly forced to retire four years earlier due to a back injury but was not back in the ring and facing his former best friend, Triple H. Michaels goes right after Triple H as soon as The Game enters the ring. Michaels knocks Triple H to the outside then leaps over the top rope out onto him. Michaels soon breaks out the trashcans. Michaels smashes Triple H over the head with the can. Triple H comes back with a backbreaker to Michaels. Helmsley then whips Michaels into the turnbuckle back first. Triple H continues to target the injured back of Michaels. Triple H soon uses a steel chair on the back of his former best friend. Triple H then delivers a DDT onto the chair. Michaels is the first to bleed in this match. Triple H then removes the belt from Michaels pants and digs the belt buckle into Michaels' head. Triple H brings out his sledgehammer. Michaels fights back but Triple H whips him into the turnbuckle. Michaels climbs to the top rope with some sort of intentions to deliver a move from there but Triple H shoves referee Earl Hebner into the ropes knocking Michaels down. Triple H then strikes Michaels on the back with a chair. He then sets the chair upright in the center of the ring and drops Michaels back first onto it. He then places the chair flat on the mat and drops Michaels on it once again. Triple H goes for a pin but Michaels kicks out. The Game is not pleased. He sets up for a Pedigree onto the chair but Michaels comes back with a low blow. Triple H grabs the chair and comes at Michaels but Shawn delivers Sweet Chin Music to the chair sending it into Triple H's face busting him open. After Michaels knocks Triple H down again he does his signature kip-up from the mat as the crowd erupts. Michaels hits Triple H with a chair to the head. Outside the ring, Michaels hits Triple H with a bulldog to the bottom stairs. HBK brings out a ladder. He uses it first as a blunt object. He then leans it up against the ring post and catapults Triple H into it. As Michaels goes to bring the ladder into the ring, Triple H delivers a dropkick to the ladder into Michaels. Michaels is able to regain control and pulls out a table from under the ring. Michaels sets Triple H om the table outside of the ring then leaps off of the top turnbuckle out onto The Game. Michaels brings his opponent into the ring and sets up the ladder. He climbs the ladder and drops and elbow into the cold, black heart of Triple H. Shawn is pumped up now. Only one thing let to do and that's Sweet Chin Music, but Triple H blocks it and turns it into a Pedigree attempt, but Michaels jackknifes Triple H into a pinfall for the win. Michaels celebrates, but Triple H isn't done. He strikes Michaels in the back with the sledgehammer. Then winds up and strikes him once again in the back. An awesome match. That was an awesome match. The action, the brutality, the storytelling, all top notch. Michaels would sell the injury resulting from the sledgehammer attack over the next few months before making a grand return at Survivor Series in the first ever Elimination Chamber Match.

World Heavyweight Championship Street Fight, Triple H (c) vs Kevin Nash, Insurrextion '03
Shawn Michaels comes out first. He's going to be in Nash's corner. Nash comes out second. Then Triple H comes out along with Ric Flair. Thought, not only does Flair not get a big entrance the way Michaels does, he's hardly even seen. He waits a moment before coming out, there's no spotlight on him and the cameras stay on Helmsley. He is mentioned but otherwise, you'd hardly know he's there until the music stops and the lights come back on. Flair is the reason why Shawn Michaels is out there as Michaels is there to offset any advantage Triple H may have with Flair out there. Michaels and Flair get into an altercation early on as Flair attempts to interfere. Michaels rams Flair's head into the ring post and Flair is busted open. Flair manages to break away and get into the ring and attack Nash but Nash knocks him down. Flair and Michaels battle up the ramp. Nash and Triple H soon follow them. Flair delivers a low blow to Michaels. The Flair vs Michaels fight is more interesting than the Triple H vs Nash fight. Triple H goes for a Pedigree on the steel ramp, but Nash reverses it into a backdrop. Nash then strikes Triple H in the back with a chair. They fight over by JR and King, whose announcers' table is out near the entrance. They make their way back to the ring. Triple H goes after Nash's recently injured knee. Triple H grabs the steel steps and goes to hit Nash with them, but Nash trips him sending The Game face first into the steps. Triple H is now bleeding. Nash goes to whip Triple H into the turnbuckle but Triple H reverses it sending Nash into the referee and the corner. Ric Flair is back and he's got a chair. But he gets a boot to the face for his efforts. Triple H hits Nash on the head with a chair. After another referee comes to count the pin and Nash kicks out, Triple H strikes the referee. The Game and The Nature Boy double team big Nash until Shawn Michaels comes back and delivers Sweet Chin Music to Flair. He then prevents Triple H from using the sledgehammer. He goes for Sweet Chin Music on Triple H but Triple H blocks it and hits a Pedigree. Nash then hits a jackknife on Triple H but the referee is still down as he covers Triple H. A third referee comes down and begins to count but Flair pulls him out and knocks him down. Nash then goes after Flair. Nash goes for a Jackknife on Flair but Triple H hits Nash with the sledgehammer and overs him as the first referee makes the count. I don't usually give a rating to these matches but I'm going to give ***1/2 stars to Shawn Michaels vs Ric Flair match. Only two stars for Triple H and Kevin Nash, they were dull without Michaels and Flair.

Women's Championship/Falls Count Anywhere Match, Melina (c) vs Mickie James, Raw 3/5/07
As Melina goes for her signature pre-match pose, James knocks her off the ropes with a sliding dropkick. Melina then runs away from James and then attacks her with a trashcan. They fight through the makeup area. Then James whips Melina into a door. The fight goes into the Women's locker room. Maria gets involved in the fight. Victoria then attacks James. Torrie Wilson uses hairspray in the face of Victoria. As the two original women in the match battle it out, Candice Michelle comes out wearing only a towel yelling at them to get out. Melina grabs Michelle's towel and uses it on James. The camera man gets knocked down and the crowd boos that. After a commercial the fight comes back to the arena as they grab each other by the hair and roll down the ramp. James tosses Melina by the hair in the ring. James then delivers a fisherman's suplex (hey, an actual wrestling move) and goes for a pin but only gets two. James places Melina on the top turnbuckle and goes for a hurnacanranna but Melina holds on and James goes down to the mat. Melina rolls James up and pins her. After the match, Melina has a staredown with guest ring announcer Ashley Massaro, who she would face at WrestleMania. This was another typical 2000s Divas match. Not a lot of wrestling action, just two women grabbing each other and rolling around for the attention of the male viewers.

Street Fight, Triple H vs Umaga, Cyber Sunday '07
Fans get to choose the stipulation between Street Fight, First Blood, or Steel Cage. Street Fight wins with 57% of the vote. Triple H meets Umaga in the entrance and the fight is on. Triple H goes for a Pedigree but Umaga blocks the move. They go back behind the stage set but soon barrel their way back onto the stage. The fight goes into the crowd. This is just a pure brawl. Umaga charges at Triple H who is leaning against the guard rail but Triple H moves out of the way and Umaga goes flying over him. They make their way into the ring where Umaga charges at Triple H who is in the corner but Triple H moves and Umaga strikes his head on the turnbuckle. Triple H grabs a trashcan and goes after Umaga but Umaga blocks him and hits a Samoan Drop. Umaga then throws his weigh around fighting The Game. Umaga hits a splash on Triple H. He then drops his leg on him. Umaga gets a bearhug on Triple H and begins shaking him. He follows that up with a belly-to-belly suplex. Umaga then grabs a chair. He goes to strike Triple H with it but The Game counters with a low blow followed by a DDT on the chair. Triple H sets up for the Pedigree but Umaga picks him up and slams him into the corner. The fight goes out to the announcers' tables. Umaga clears the hoods from each table. He goes to hit Triple H with a chair but Triple H fights back and sends Umaga over the Smackdown announcers' table. Then over to the Raw announcers' table. Finally the ECW table. Umaga lays Triple H on the third table and gets a running start across all three tables and delivers a big splash to Triple H. Umaga then places Triple H in the ring and climbs to the top rope for a splash but Triple H moves out of the way and Umaga falls flat on his face. Triple H goes under the ring and pulls out his sledgehammer. He goes to hit Umaga with it but Umaga stops him. The Samoan Savage then goes for his dreaded thumb to the throat but Triple H ducks and strikes him with a sledgehammer. One Pedigree later and it's all over. This one was better than the Triple H vs Nash match, but not really great.

Street Fight, John Cena vs Umaga, Raw
As Umaga comes out we can see Mr. McMahon on stage after one of his "Win Mr. McMahon's Money" drawings. Cena is already in the ring and jumps Umaga as he enters. But Umaga quickly gains the advantage. Umaga knocks Cena off the ring apron and into the guardrail. After a commercial break, the two men are fighting on the steel ramp as Umaga delivers a Samoan drop on Cena on the ramp. Umaga drags Cena back towards the ring. Cena fights back and the two men make their way into the ring. Cena tries for a cross body off the top rope but Umaga catches him and delivers a sidewalk slam. Umaga goes to the outside and begins to tear apart the announcers' table. He also grabs a chair and brings it into the ring, but Cena intercepts it and rams it into the midsection of the Samoan Bulldozer. Cena picks Umaga up for an AA but he can't hold the big man up and he collapses to the mat. Cena rolls to the outside and Umaga follows tossing him into the steps before placing him back in the ring. Umaga goes for a pin, but Cena manages to kick out. Umaga tosses the steel steps into the ring with ease. Umaga charges at Cena with the steps but Cena picks him up and delivers the AA and pins him. I found this match to be more enjoyable than the Triple H vs Umaga match. It was a bit short and could have benefited from Umaga kicking out of the AA but it still worked. Umaga was one of those wrestlers that I didn't appreciate when he was an active competitor.

Submissions Count Anywhere Match, Triple H & Shawn Michaels vs Cody Rhodes & Ted DiBiase, Breaking Point
"Are you ready? Then for the thousands in attendance, for the millions watching at home, and for Montreal because I know there was an incident that happened quite a few years ago that apparently just sticks with some people who can't let go, I just want to say for me, personally...it was all his fault." After Legacy make their way to the ring the fight is on. Naturally, things spew to the outside of the ring quickly. Shawn and Cody fight into the crowd. The other two soon join them. The fight proceeds up the steps of the arena. Shawn applies a front face lock on DiBiase who's laying across a railing. Triple H and Rhodes fight back towards the concession stand. The two members of D-X apply simultaneous Figure 4 leg locks to the two members of Legacy, but the youngsters are able to escape. The fight continues back toward the main part of the arena and down the stairs. Soon, all four men are back at ringside. Triple H pulls Cody through a chair and applies a Boston Crab while Michaels applies a crossface at the same time. DiBiase comes to Rhodes' rescue. Michaels and Rhodes soon battle back to the tech area and then up into the stands. Rhodes shoves Michaels off of the stands and over the side railing down to the floor below. Triple H goes to check on Michaels then proceeds to take the battle to Legacy all by himself. Triple H sets up for a Pedigree to Rhodes on the stage, but DiBiase breaks it up. DiBiase sets up for a Pedigree of his own, but Triple H hits him with a back body drop. Triple H and the two members of Legacy battle to the backstage area. DiBiase applies the Million Dollar Dream to Triple H but he is able to get out of it. The Game then slams Rhodes into the catering table. Meanwhile, Shawn is stirring again. Rhodes strikes Triple H in the back with a chair. Legacy intercept Michaels as he attempts to come to the aid of his partner. They double team the Heartbreak Kid as they reenter the ring. Michaels fights back and disposes of DiBiase but Rhodes takes him down and applies and ankle lock. Michaels breaks free. Michaels hits Sweet Chin Music out of nowhere on Rhodes. Everyone is down. Michaels is able to apply a Figure 4 to Rhodes. DiBiase comes to Cody's aid. Legacy sets up for a spike piledriver on Michaels but Michaels gets out of it. He sets up for Sweet Chin Music on DiBiase but Rhodes pulls him down. Rhodes applies a Figure 4 around the ring post. DiBiase comes and applies a Million Dollar Dream at the same time. Triple H stumbles his way towards the ring but before he can make it, Shawn taps out. Legacy are you winners. This was a very good match. D-X really helped elevate Legacy and there was some good storytelling.

Street Fight, Batista vs Rey Mysterio, Smackdown 12/11/09
Batista had turned on Mysterio a few months earlier and this was the payoff match. Batista takes control early on as he whips Rey across the ring into the turnbuckle. The match starts off with mostly a slow, methodical pace of wrestling moves. Batista rolls to the outside and Rey delivers a sliding dropkick to The Animal. After the commercial, whips Mysterio with a TV cable. Batista picks Mysterio up and drops him on the announcers' table before tossing him back in the ring. Mysterio attempts a comeback but Batista takes him down with a vicious clothesline. Batista brings a steel chair into the ring. Batista sets up for a Batista Bomb on the chair, but Rey reverses it and delivers a drop toe hold sending Batista face first into the chair. Rey then kicks Batista into the ropes, hits the 619 followed by the West Coast Pop and goes for the win but Batista kicks out. Mysterio then uses the chair on Batista but Batista comes back with a spear. Batista then hits Mysterio on the head with a chair and pins him. Batista wins the rivalry and goes on to Armageddon to challenge The Undertaker for the World Heavyweight Championship. This was a tale of two matches. When Batista was in control it was a slow, plodding match. He would hit a power move then walks around a bit, not exactly posing but still basically stating that he's in control. When Rey was in control the match was fast paced and fun.

Street Fight, Randy Orton vs Cody Rhodes, Smackdown 11/4/11
This was when Cody was still wearing the plastic mask on his face and is accompanied to the ring by his "bag men". The bag men hand out paper grocery bags to people in the crowd to cover up their faces. This was the peak of Cody's first WWE run. Orton takes Rhodes down early with a side headlock. On commentary for this match is the A+ team of heel Michael Cole, Josh Matthews, and Booker T. They kinda put JR and King to shame, am I right? The fight goes to the outside where Rhodes tosses Orton shoulder-first into the steel steps. Rhodes is aggressive on Orton as he slams him on the floor and drops bare knees on him. Orton fights back and tosses Rhodes out into the crowd. They fight through the crowd. They go back to ringside where Rhodes tosses one of his bagmen at Orton who delivers an RKO. After a commercial, the fight goes up the ramp to the stage. Up on the stage, Rhodes sets up for a suplex off the stage (the stage is only about 3 feet off the ground), but Orton reverses it with a suplex of his own. They go back to the ring where Orton delivers a super-superplex from the top tope. I'm not sure how it happened but Orton is bleeding from the top of his head. The fight goes back to the outside where Rhodes removes his mask as uses it as a weapon. We return from another commercial break to find Rhodes tossing Orton over the announcers' table. The fight returns to the ring and Rhodes delivers a front suplex on Orton. Rhodes goes for a pin but only gets two. Rhodes applies a Figure 4 on Orton. Rhodes removes his mash and strikes Orton in the face with it. Orton gets ahold of the mask and uses it for his own benefit. Orton is on a roll. He goes for an RKO, but Rhodes slips away and springboards off the ropes with a knee to Orton. Cody goes for Cross-Rhodes but Orton slips out of it and backdrops Rhodes. Rhodes pulls Orton to the outside of the ring. For his efforts, Rhodes gets dropped on the guardrail. Orton then delivers the DDT from the guardrail on Rhodes. The Viper tosses his opponent back in the ring and hits an RKO for the win. After celebrating his win, Orton finds one of the paper bags on the floor and places it over Cody's head. This was a fun match. Like I mentioned it was the peak of Cody's first run with WWE. This match clocks in at over 20 minutes (including two commercial breaks not on the DVD) and it was only the first match on the show that week. Now, I joked about the commentary team, though Michael Cole wasn't at his worst here and Booker T was better than he is nowadays on NXT.

Overall I enjoyed this DVD. I like these wild, out of control brawls. I especially enjoyed the classic Pat Patterson vs Sgt. Slaughter Alley Fight. It was something you didn't see back then. It definitely could have done without Macho Man vs Crush and possibly replace it with Shawn Michaels vs Diesel from 1996.

Next up, a collection of matches that spans 34 years. Includes both a Survivor Series Elimination Match, a Royal Rumble Match, an Elimination Chamber, a Hell in a Cell Match, and a Money in the Bank Ladder Match all in their entireties.

 

[Sky]

That WM10 Falls Count Anywhere is such a bizarre match, and really quite lame with a load of downtime. It's clear they had no idea what they were doing with matches like that. Just like in 1997 they had no idea what they were doing with triple threats

 

[Skyefire]

I've decided to put a hold on the reviews for a while. I'll probably pick it up again sometime in the new year. In the meantime, I have some other DVD-related things to post including my own ideas for WWE DVDs. This first one is called Hometown Heroes. It's wrestlers competing in their hometown.

The Roar of the Hometown Crowd
There's northing like the roar of the crowd especially in your own hometown.

Chicago Street Fight
Legion of Doom & Ahmed Johnson vs Nation of Domination
WrestleMania 13, Rosemont, IL

Mick Foley vs Jonathan Coachman
Smackdown 11/2/07, Uniondale, NY

Randy Orton vs Sheamus
Battleground '15, St. Louis, MO

Winning the Big One
Winning in your hometown is one thing. But winning a major championship is extra special.

NWA World Heavyweight Championship
Vader (c) vs Ric Flair
Starrcade '93

WWF Championship
Psycho Sid (c) vs Shawn Michaels
Royal Rumble '97, San Antonio, TX

WWF Tag Team Championships
Acolytes (c) vs Hardy Boyz
Raw 7/5/99

WWE Championship
John Cena (c) vs CM Punk
Money in the Bank '11, Chicago, IL

When the Hometown Hero Falls
Winning in your hometown is special, but sometimes the hometown hero loses.

Jerry Lawler vs Randy Orton
Raw 8/7/06, Memphis, TN

WWE Championship
Edge (c) vs John Cena
Summerslam '08, Boston, MA

World Heavyweight Championship
Damien Priest (c) vs Drew McIntyre
Clash at the Castle '24, Glasgow, Scotland

Homeland if not Hometown
For some superstars, coming back to their home country draws big emotions even if it's not their hometown.

I-C Championship
Bret Hart (c) vs British Bulldog
Summerslam '92, London, UK

Sheamus vs Finn Balor
House Show 11/4/15, Dublin, Ireland

WWE Women's World Championship
Rhea Ripley (c) vs Nia Jax
Elimination Chamber '24, Perth, Australia

A Matter of Hometown and National Pride
Sometimes competing in your hometown is a matter of national pride.

Hart Foundation vs Steve Austin, Goldust, Ken Shamrock, Legion of Doom
Canadian Stampede, Calgary, AB

WWF Championship
Steve Austin (c) vs Kurt Angle
Unforgiven '01, Pittsburgh, PA

Hometown Duels
Some cities have more than one hometown hero. And sometimes they face each other.

Edge vs Christian
Raw 5/17/10, Toronto, ON

The Miz vs Dolph Ziggler
Raw 1/27/14, Cleveland, OH

Starting and Ending
Some superstars make their debut in their hometown. While others bring their careers to an end in there.

United States Championship
John Cena (c) vs Sami Zayn
Raw 5/4/15, Montreal, PQ

WWE Women's Championship
Lita (c) vs Trish Stratus
Unforgiven '06, Toronto, ON

A Matter of Hometown and Family
Hometowns can sometimes be about family.
Smackdown Women's Championship
Natalya (c) vs Charlotte Flair
Smackdown 11/14/17, Charlotte, NC
Rey & Dominik Mysterio vs Damien Priest & Finn Balor
Raw 7/4/22, San Diego, CA

 

[Skyefire]

I'm working on a new review, but in the meantime, here's another DVD of my creation. I call this one USA vs The World. A collection of matches and rivalries where wrestlers put national pride on the line.

USA vs Iran

Boot Camp Match
Sgt. Slaughter vs Iron Sheik
Landover, MD 6/9/84

WWF Championship
Hulk Hogan (c) vs Iron Sheik
Madison Square Garden 12/28/84

USA vs Soviet Union

WWF Tag Team Championships
Iron Sheik & Nikolai Volkoff (c) vs Barry Windham & Mike Rotundo
Championship Wrestling 7/13/85

NWA World Tag Team Championships/Steel Cage Match
Ivan & Nikita Koloff (c) vs Rock & Roll Express
Starrcade '85

USA vs Iraq

WWF Championship
Sgt. Slaughter (c) vs Hulk Hogan
WrestleMania VII

Hacksaw Jim Duggan vs Col. Mustafa
Prime Time Wrestling 9/30/91

USA vs Japan

Legion of Doom vs Orient Express
The Main Event 2/1/91

WWF Championship
Yokozuna (c) vs Lex Luger
Summerslam '93

Team USA vs Foreign Fanatics

Survivor Series Elimination Match
Lex Luger, Undertaker, Steiner Brothers vs Yokozuna, Crush, Ludvig Borga, Jacques
Survivor Series '93

Women Go To War

WWF Women's Championship
Alundra Blayze (c) vs Bull Nakano
Summerslam '94

USA vs Canada

Steve Austin, Ken Shamrock, Goldust, Legion of Doom vs Bret Hart, Owen Hart, British Bulldog, Jim Neidhart, Brian Pillman
In Your House: Canadian Stampede

Booker T, Bubba Ray Dudley, Kane, Goldust vs Un-Americans (Christian, Lance Storm, Test, William Regal)
Unforgiven '02

USA vs France

The Rockers vs Fabulous Rougeaus
Madison Square Garden 7/25/88

WWE World Tag Championships/Handicap Table Elimination Match
Rob Conway & La Resistance (c) vs Dudley Boyz
Unforgiven '03

USA Goes Back To War

The Undertaker vs Muhammad Hassan
Great American Bash '05

Real Americans

I Quit Match
Jack Swagger vs Alberto Del Rio
Extreme Rules '13

USA vs The Russian Rusev

United States Championship/"I Quit" Match
John Cena (c) vs Rusev
Extreme Rules '15

League of Nations

Sheamus, Rusev, Alberto Del Rio vs The New Day
WrestleMania 32

 

[Skyefire]

It's been a while but I have a new review to present to you...

Then, Now, Forever: The Evolution of the Women's Division.

This DVD profiles some of the top women in WWE history as the women's wrestling evolves into what it has become today.

Wendi Richter

NOPE Match
WWF Women's Championship, Fabulous Moolah (c) vs Wendi Richter, Brawl To End It All 7/23/84
The first ever live WWF TV special and it's for the Women's Championship. Moolah is accompanied by Captain Lou Albano, Richter is accompanied by Cyndi Lauper along with David Wolf. Lauper and Albano had had a feud going with Albano claiming to have discovered Richter. They set up a match, with Albano already managing Moolah, Lauper chose Wendi Richter to represent her. Moolah starts the match with an arm drag, Richter returns with the same. Moolah soon tosses Richter out onto the announcers table, which is right up against the ring. As Richter attempts to get back in the ring, Moolah brings her in by the hair. Soon Moolah drapes Richter across the second rope choking her. Moolah then has Richter down and chokes her with her foot. Richter soon ties Moolah upside down in the ropes and begins kicking her. Albano attempts to free Moolah from the ropes. Richter continues pounding on Moolah in the ropes. Moolah is soon freed and Richter gets her in a Full Nelson. Richter brings Moolah towards the ropes where Lauper is waiting. Lauper, with a towel wrapped around her hair, gives Moolah a shot. Richter takes Moolah down with a dropkick followed by a pin attempt but only gets two. Richter then gets a rear chinlock on Moolah with her knee in Moolah's back. Moolah is able to break free. Moolah tosses Richter off the ropes and delivers a Monkey Flip to take her down. Moolah goes for a pin, but pulls Richter up. Moolah now has a Full Nelson on Richter and brings her to the ropes where Captain Lou is waiting. Albano goes to strike Richter but Richter moves and Albano misses completely. Moolah then begins pounding Richter's head into the turnbuckle pad then delivers a belly-to-back suplex for a pin attempt. Richter gets her shoulder up but Moolah's shoulders are down and the referee counts Moolah down. After the bell there seems to be some confusion until Howard Finkel announces Richter as the winner. Richter and Lauper celebrate. This was a decent match. Pretty on-par for a WWF match in the mid-80's. The finish was a bit odd. I think it was supposed to make fans think Moolah had won, until the announcement. Still a historic moment, the big live TV special and ending Moolah's (supposed) 28 year reign as Women's Champion.

Sherri Martel

Survivor Series Elimination Match
Fabulous Moolah, Rockin Robin, Velvet McIntyre, Jumping Bomb Angels vs Sensational Sherri, Donna Christanello, Dawn Marie, Glamour Girls
Survivor Series '87
First a little background on the competitors. I know everyone here is pretty familiar with Moolah and Sherri, but what about the rest of them? The Glamour Girls are Leilani Kai and Judy Martin. Kai is the woman who ended Wendi Richter's first reign as Women's Champion and then lost the belt back to Richter at WrestleMania I. Judy Martin had traveled the territories in the early 80's before settling in the WWF. The Glamour Girls were announced as being Women's Tag Team Champions upon their tag team debut in the fall of 1986. They would lose the belts to the Jumping Bomb Angels at the 1988 Royal Rumble and regain them in Japan in mid-88 but never team together again and the belts would be abandoned. The Jumping Bomb Angels consisted of Itsuki Yamazaki and Noriyo Tateno and they primarily wrestled for All Japan Women's Wrestling. Every WWF match they wrestled was against The Glamour Girls except for a January 1988 house show when they faced Sensational Sherri and Rockin' Robin. Robin is the real-life sister of Jake "The Snake" Roberts. She would win the WWF Women's Championship from Sensational Sherri in the fall of 1988 and be the last woman to hold the title prior to it being abandoned. Velvet McIntyre, along with Princess Victoria, would be the first-ever WWF Women's Tag Team Champions as they were announced as being champions in 1984. The belts would be abandoned at the end of 84. McIntyre would face Moolah at WrestleMania 2 for the Women's Championship. McIntyre would depart the WWF in 1988. Dawn Marie, obviously not ECW's Dawn Marie, has only a handful of known matches on her record and only three coming in the WWF, with the rest coming in unknown promotions. Donna Chistanello's career stretches back to the mid-60's with only two known matches after this.

Now, on to the match itself. Sherri starts the match off against McIntyre. Sherri dominates McIntyre early on but McIntyre comes back with a cross-body before tagging in Moolah. Moolah works over Sherri until Christanello is tagged in by Martel. A lot of frequent tags by both teams early on in this match. McIntyre is wrestling this match barefoot. McIntyre brings Christanello down with a flying head scissors for a pin. Sherri comes in with a dropkick on Rockin Robin. Sherri then tags in Dawn Marie who is met with a clothesline from Robin who then picks up the pinfall. It's now 5-on-3. Kai goes to battle with one of the Jumping Bomb Angels and they two put on a good show. Kai tags in Judy Martin who also gets worked over. The Other Bomb Angel comes and goes to work on Martin who tags in Sherri. A nice double-underhook suplex by the Bomb Angel. Sherri soon hits a suplex on Rockin Robin and pins her. McIntyre delivers a slingshot on Leilani Kai. Moolah then goes to work on Kai. One of the Glamour Girls drags Moolah in by the hair by Moolah fights back. The two Bomb Angels double clothesline Moolah and are able to get the three eliminating the Fabulous One. It's now 3-on-3. The Bomb Angels work on the leg and knee of Judy Martin. McIntyre then applies a Boston Crab. She soon turns it into a surfboard maneuver. McIntyre then drags Sherri into the ring but pays for it. Martel delivers a double arm suplex before making the tag to Kai. Kai delivers a double underhook suplex on one of the Bomb Angels and goes for a pin but the Bomb Angel bridges out of the pin. McIntyre back in. She delivers a Cesaro-esqe swing on Martel. Martel soon has McIntyre on her shoulders but McIntyre turns it into a rollup, grabs the legs and pins the Women's Champion. One of the Bomb Angels manages to deliver a double underhook suplex to the larger Judy Martin. McIntyre back in. She attempts to do the same move she beat Martel with, but Martin drops her on the top rope slings her back and pins her. It's down to the Glamour Girls and The Jumping Bomb Angels. One of the Bomb Angels slingshots one of the Glamour girls onto her partner. One of the Angels then comes off the top rope with a flying body press and pins Leilani Kai. One Bomb Angel then slams Martin while the other one drops a knee from the top rope. Jimmy Hart gets up on the ring apron gets a dropkick for it. Another Bomb Angel climbs to the top rope and delivers a clothesline to Martin and picks up the pin. Your winners are the Jumping Bomb Angels. This match was very fast paced especially early on with the frequent tags. Even though Moolah and Martel were the starts it was still great that the match came down to The Jumping Bomb Angels and the Glamour Girls as they tore things up throughout the whole match. I've seen this match a few times but I was still surprised that Velvet McIntyre pinned Sherri. It was a bit difficult to keep track of which Jumping Bomb Angel was which, mostly their names, and also with the Glamour Girls as well. What didn't help was the absence of Jesse Ventura's commentary. This match would be Moolah's last WWF match until her return in 1999.

Alundra Blayze

WWF Women's Championship, Bull Nakano (c) vs Alundra Blayze, Raw 4/3/95
Next we jump ahead to the 90's. After the Women's Championship was abandoned for several years it was brought back with Alundra Blayze as champion. In 1994 she lost the title to Bull Nakano. Now, in 1995, the night after WrestleMania, Blayze gets her rematch with Nakano. Nakano jumps Blayze. She goes to the top but Blayze takes her down with a flying head scissors. Nakano begins rag dolling Blayze. Nakano goes to the second rope and delivers a bulldog to Blayze. Blayze comes back with a series of clotheslines and a spin kick. Nakano whips Blayze off the ropes, Blayze goes over Nakano and attempts a sunset flip, but Nakano sits down on her. Vince McMahon on commentary compares that to Yokozuna (Nakano is announced at 200 pounds, which is less than nearly every male wrestler at the time). Nakano gets a unique submission hold on Blayze that's a combination bow and arrow and Boston Crab. Jim Cornette on commentary says "I dare even Jim Ross to come up with a name for that." Nakano hits a piledriver on Blayze. Blayze soon fights back but not for long. Nakano goes all the way to the top rope and hits a leg drop on her challenger. Blayze soon hits a German Suplex and goes for a pin but only gets two. Blayze goes to the top rope but Nakano knocks her off to the outside. Nakano then goes for a dive out onto Blayze but misses. Blayze hits a German Suplex on the floor. Nakano comes back and tosses Blayze into the steel steps. Back in the ring, Nakano goes for a moonsault off the second rope, but misses. Blayze hits another German Suplex and gets the pin this time. Blayze is the new champion. This was a great match. Nakano especially put on quite a show and Blayze kept up with her. A gem of a match for 1995 regardless of women or men. The celebration is short lived as she's attacked by a debuting Bertha Faye. Faye looked like a monster here with face paint. She didn't look like the goofy Bertha we came to expect from her.

Ivory

WWF Women's Championship, Ivory (c) vs Chyna, WrestleMania X-Seven
Next we get a spotlight on Ivory, and what's her spotlight match? The one where she gets squashed by Chyna in under three minutes. Ivory is a member of the Right To Censor and comes out with the absolute worst entrance music ever. Right to Censor is banned from ringside for this. This comes after Ivory had injured Chyna's neck a few months earlier. Ivory gets the jump on Chyna with the title belt. I timed it and Ivory gets 40 seconds of offense at the start of this match before Chyna catches an attempted kick in the corner by Ivory. Chyna hits a powerbomb on Ivory, after holding her up for a few seconds ala The Undertaker, and goes for a pin but pulls Ivory up. Chyna then picks Ivory up and slams her down to the mat and pins her. The match goes 2 minutes and 41 seconds. This is basically a Chyna match. Chyna isn't profiled on her own on this DVD.

I'm going to skip over Victoria's match with Trish Stratus from November of 2002. Next we get a Lita match.

Steel Cage Match, Lita vs Victoria, Raw 11/24/03
This was a Raw Roulette Match. Women's Champion Molly Holly spins the wheel which lands on Steel Cage. The first ever Women's Steel Cage Match. It's seen as punishment for Lita. Lita attacks Victoria as soon as she enters the cage. Victoria slingshots Lita into the cage. Lita prevents Victoria from escaping and goes to work on her. Lita climbs the cage attempting to escape but Victoria catches her and pulls her back by slamming her from the top rope to the mat. Victoria spears Lita into the cage. Victoria attempts to escape but Lita powerbombs her to the ring floor. Lita then climbs and hits a moonsault from the top rope to a standing Victoria. Lita attempts to escape when Matt Hardy comes out and slams the door on her head. Victoria escapes and wins the match. Hardy goes to attack Lita, but Christian comes out to her rescue. This match was good and had some good spots, but it goes less than five minutes. It could have used a little more time.

Molly Holly

Women's Championship vs Hair, Victoria (c) vs Molly Holly, WrestleMania XX
Molly is putting her hair on the line against Women's Champion Victoria. The two women tie up to start the match. Molly soon gets a rear chin lock on Victoria and turns it into a neck vice. Jerry Lawler keeps talking about the fact that Molly wears "granny panties". Victoria fights back. It's a slow paced match and the crowd is not reacting to it. Molly seems to be setting up for Victoria's finisher, the Widow's Peak, but Victoria slips out of it, gets Molly in a back slide and pins her. Yet, another match that goes less than five minutes. Of course, Molly attempts to run away after the match. Victoria goes after her and soon Molly attacks her and places her in the barber's chair. Victoria fights back and gets Molly into the chair, which has arm straps, and straps her in to get her hair cut. Victoria fully shaves Molly's hair off. I just realized this is the second haircut match I've reviewed, the other being Edge vs Kurt Angle.

Trish Stratus

WWE Women's Championship, Trish Stratus (c) vs Lita, Raw 12/6/04
The women main event Raw for the first time ever as Trish Stratus defends against Lita. Trish is wearing a face mask after getting her nose broken by Lita at Survivor Series. The two women lock up and soon both fall between the ropes to the outside. After some work in the ring, Stratus ends up on the outside. Lita leaps between the second and top ropes out onto Stratus but takes a hard fall on her head bending her neck backwards. She gets up, gets back in the ring, and tries to pull Stratus in, but Trish has removed her face mask and hits Lita with it. Straus goes to the comer, sits on the top rope and pulls Lita up by the neck. Lita them comes back with a snap mare on Stratus taking her down from the ropes. Stratus then gets a Full Nelson on Lita. The two women climbs the ropes and Lita delivers a superplex off the top rope on Stratus. Stratus comes back with a Chick Kick. Stratus then climbs to the second rope and begins punching Lita, but Lita turns it into a powerbomb. Lita counters the Stratusfaction and hits a Twist of Fate. Lita climbs to the top rope and hits a moonsault for the win to become the new champion. This was a great match. These two put on some great wrestling, really showing that deserve the main event of Raw. Lita had previously had a neck injury in 2002 which put her out of action for over a year and that bump she took off of the dive looked bad. Follow that up with the superplex, it's amazing that she didn't get hurt. Unfortunately, Lita would get injured in their next match at New Year's Revolution where she injured her knee and would be out of action for another year. She is a gutsy, tough woman.

Mickie James

WWE Women's Championship, Trish Stratus (c) vs Mickie James, WrestleMania 22
Mickie James comes into this match as the unhinged Trish Stratus superfan. JR on Mickie James: "She makes a vindictive ex-wife, I know something about that, look like Oprah." The two women go at each other to start the match. Stratus takes James down with a Lou Thesz press and begins punching her. James goes to kick Stratus but is caught. Stratus takes her down making James do the splits. The fight goes to the outside where Stratus accidently kicks the ring post. The challenger goes to work on her opponent's leg. A good percentage of the crowd is cheering for Mickie James in this match. James applies a one legged Boston Crab on Stratus. Stratus comes back with a spinebuster. She charges at James in the corner but James gets her feet up. James goes to the top rope looking for some sort of move, but Stratus does a handstand and uses her legs to grab James around the head. Before Stratus can do anything, James drops off the top rope ramming Stratus's knee into the top rope. James goes for the pin but only gets two. James goes to pick Stratus up, but Stratus grabs her into a small package for a pin attempt. James attempts a head scissors but Stratus reverses with a sit down powerbomb. Stratus uses her Matrix move to avoid James. Stratus sets up for Stratusfaction but James grabs her crotch. Afterwards James licks her hand. That has been edited out of every DVD and WWE Network showing of this match and just the crowd is shown. Stratus takes James down with a knockout punch. James comes back with a knee to the face followed by a Chick Kick and picks up the pinfall and the victory. Mickie James is the new Women's Champion. While not as good as Trish Stratus vs Lita, this was still very good and probably the best women's match at WrestleMania up to that point, and the best there would be until Flair, Lynch, and Banks at WrestleMania 32.

Skipping an okay AJ Lee match against Kaitlyn. Moving on to Paige.

NXT Women's Championship, Paige (c) vs Emma, NXT Arrival
The very first ever live special on WWE Network. Emma comes out with her bubbly gimmick. I don't know why WWE thought that would work on the main roster. Her heel turn came too little too late, but I digress. Paige comes out next sporting her WWE T-shirt. The two women start off aggressively. Paige attempts the Paige Turner early but Emma turns it into a backslide pinfall attempt. Paige gets a side headlock on Emma. Emma goes to work on Paige's back pressing her foot into it. Emma goes dirty by grabbing Paige byu the hair to take her down. Paige fights back and has Emma on the second rope setting her up for a superplex. Emma gets out of it by delivering a powerbomb to Paige. Paige soon hits her Paige Turner finisher but it fails to keep Emma down. Paige applies a combination surfboard-Sharpshooter which gets Emma to give up. This match while not as exciting as many other matches, not super flashy, has some good fundamentals.

That brings an end to the first disc of this three-disc DVD. That spanned nearly 30 years. The two remaining discs will span five years. That alone shows you how much women's wrestling has evolved that there's more "best of" content in a span of five years than in the previous 30.

Natalya

NXT Women's Championship, Charlotte Flair vs Natalya, NXT Takeover
The second ever NXT live special, a match to crown the second ever NXT Women's Championship. The title was vacated after Paige joined the main roster and won the Diva's Championship. Flair is accompanied to the ring by Ric, while Natalya is accompanied by Bret. "Little Naitch" Charles Robinson is the referee for this match. As you might expect, the two women start off with some back-and-forth technical wrestling as well as various wear-down and submission holds. Things get a little chippy when Flair slaps Natalya. Natalya comes back with a slap of her own. Natalya jumps on Flair's back with a sleeper, but Flair turns it into a backpack stunner. Flair applies a Figure Four around Natalya's head. These two put on submission holds even I've never seen before. Flair is whipped to the corner where she does her father's signature upside down to the ring apron. She's then knocked off the apron to the outside. Natalya goes out to the ring apron and Flair brings her down with a leg whip sending her to the floor. Flair gets Natalya back in the ring and goes for a pin, but only gets two. Ric complains to the referee. Flair goes to the top rope for a moonsault but Natalya moves out of the way. Natalya applies the Sharpshooter. Flair is struggling to get to the ropes but Natalya pulls her away. Flair counters with a rollup and turns it into a Figure Four. The two women roll on the mat as Natalya attempts to escape the hold. The two women exchange slaps. Natalya rolls to the bottom rope but Charlotte doesn't break the hold but instead drags Natalya halfway outside applying more pressure on the hold. After the hold is broken, Flair kicks Natalya into the stairs. Back in the ring, Flair applies the Sharpshooter on Natalya. Natalya rolls out of the hold. Flair hits her finisher, a sitting neck snap, called "Hail to the Queen" to pick up the pinfall. After the match the two women hug and Ric and Bret shake hands. This match was top notch. These two women showed great technical wrestling ability as well as storytelling. I consider this match to be underrated when it comes to the women's revolution as a whole.

After that amazing match by two gifted performers, I'm going to skip Brie Bella vs Stephanie McMahon from Summerslam 2014. The Bellas both are overrated in my opinion and this match goes more than 10 minutes and the segment as a whole goes more than 15 minutes. Meanwhile on the same card, Paige vs AJ Lee for the Championship goes less than five minutes. Moving on as we enter the era of the Four Horsewomen.

Bayley

NXT Women's Championship/30-Minute Iron Woman Match, Bayley (c) vs Sasha Banks, NXT Takeover: Respect
Respect is an appropriate name for this show as it's about respect for the Women's Division. The main event of a live NXT special and the first ever Iron Woman Match. This was the rematch from their show-stealer at Summerslam. As Banks makes her entrance, Lita, Becky Lynch, Charlotte Flair, and Stephanie McMahon are shown in the front row. Bayley has to give a hug to her superfan, Izzy, as well as her own dad, on her way to the ring. Bayley looks a bit nervous at the start of this match. They start off slow, pacing themselves. Banks gets some rollups as she attempts to gain a quick early pinfall. Bayley soon does the same. A half a dozen or so pinfall attempts within the span of a minute. A Spanish Fly-style arm drag from Bayley sees Banks land awkwardly on her head and neck. Bayley soon offers Banks a hand to get up and the two seem to be about the hug, but Banks attacks the champion. The two go to the outside where Bayley delivers a pair of sliding under-the-rope dropkicks to Banks. Back in the ring, Banks backs the referee into a corner as he can't see when she pokes Bayley in the eye. She follows that up with a rollup and the first decision of the match. Banks has a 1-0 lead. Banks gets Bayley on the second rope and she goes for the double knees but Bayley drops Banks on the top turnbuckle. Bayley hits the Bayley-to-Belly for a pinfall. Match tied 1-1. Bayley goes for another sliding dropkick on the outside, but Banks prevents it by slamming Bayley into the steel steps. Banks once again tosses Bayley into the steps. And again for a third time. This is right in front of Bayley's family. Banks mouths-off to Izzy who is now crying. Banks brings Bayley back into the ring to break the referee's 10-count and then back to the outside where she tosses the champion into the LED board. Banks gets back in the ring and Bayley is counted out. On her way back to the ring, Banks steals Izzy's headband and after the 10-count she tosses it back to her who is now in the arms of her dad crying. Banks leads 2-1. With both women back in the ring, Banks goes for a pin, but Bayley kicks out. The fans chant for Bayley as Banks gloats. Banks applies a Walls of Jericho on Bayley while also stomping on her head. As Bayley attempts to get to the ropes Banks breaks the hold. Banks goes for the Walls again, but Bayley takes her down and grabs her legs for a pinfall. Match tied 2-2. Banks goes for the double knees in the corner but Bayley moves out of the way. Bayley delivers a back elbow from the second rope and goes for a pin but only gets two. Bayley ties Banks in the Tree of Woe before delivering a springboard elbow...

Down to the final 10 minutes. Soon Bayley is tied to the Tree of Woe herself and Banks delivers a running double knee stomp. Banks goes for a spear on Bayley but the champion moves out of the way and Banks run shoulder first into the ring post. Bayley rams Banks' hand into the steep steps repeatedly. Bayley rearranges the steps. Bayley runs up the steps and leaps out onto Banks with a clothesline. Banks then tosses Bayley into the steps. Banks goes for a plancha from the ring to the outside but Bayley catches her and hits a Bayley-to-Belly on the floor. Back in the ring, Bayley delivers a Bayley-to-Belly from the second rope and goes for a pin, but Banks has her foot on the ropes. Bayley sets Banks on the second rope and goes hits a Bayley-canranna but Banks lands on her feet. Bayley turns around and is it with a Bayley-to-Belly by Banks. Sasha then applies the Banks Statement submission hold as we enter the final two minutes. Bayley sneaks out of the hold but Banks reapplies it with one minute to go. Bayley reaches out for the ropes but Banks stomps on the hand. Bayley manages to escape the hold. Bayley applies a submission of her own torquing on the back and shoulders of Banks. Banks gives up with five seconds to go and Bayley gets the deciding fall as the clock runs out. Bayley is your winner of the first ever Iron Woman Match. This was another all time classic. Great wrestling action. Banks played the villain to a T. Triple H, William Regal, NXT Champion Finn Balor, and the entire locker room come out to congratulate both women on an amazing performance. Triple H gets in the ring to honor Bayley. I will soon be reviewing the match that set the stage for this match.

Charlotte Flair

WWE Women's Championship, Charlotte Flair (c) vs Becky Lynch vs Sasha Banks, WrestleMania 32
The Women's Revolution has reached the main roster and they are ready to put on a show at one of the most polarizing WrestleMania's ever. Lita is in the ring with the new Women's Championship belt, replacing the old Diva's Championship. Lynch comes out first. Sasha Banks is then played to the ring by Snoop Dogg. Flair comes out last accompanied by her father. A lor of quick pin attempts in the early moments of this match. A couple of minutes into the match, Lynch goes to the second rope for some sort of move, but Flair stops her with a modified Rude Awakening from the ropes. Banks rams Flair back first into the corner then goes for her double knee stomp but Lynch tosses her to the outside. Lynch gets the dis-arm-her on Flair. Banks comes in to break the hold. Lynch disposes of Banks and Flair then gets Lynch in a Figure 4. She's unable to complete the Figure 8 as Banks comes off the top rope with a frogsplash on both of her opponent's legs. Lynch hits a pumphandle Rock Bottom on Flair and goes for a pin, but Banks breaks it up. With Flair on the outside Banks does a dive between the ropes out onto her. Ric gets up in Banks' face but Lynch dives between the ropes out onto Ric who had been shoved in the way by Banks. Charlotte then goes to the top rope and hits a moonsault to the outside onto both of her opponents. Flair gets both Banks and Lynch in the ring and hits a double Natural Selection. She goes for pinfalls but is unable to get the pin on either woman. Flair picks Banks up in a Powerbomb position, but Lynch comes off the top rope and takes them both out. Lynch gets the dis-arm-her on Flair, but Banks breaks it up and applies the Banks statement on Lynch. Flair then gets the Figure 4 on Banks. Banks reverses the hold. Flair rolls back through and gets the Figure 8 until Lynch pulls Banks out of the hold. Flair hits a spear on Banks but Lynch rams her into the corner. Soon all three women are in the corner fighting. Lynch suplexes Flair off the top rope while Banks is tied in the Tree of Woe. Banks gets the Banks Statement on Lynch, but Flair disposes of her to the outside. Flair gets the Figure 8 on Lynch. Banks attempts to get back in the ring, but is held back by Ric and Lynch has to tap out. Charlotte retains the championship. This match was to the women's division what Savage vs Steamboat was to the men in the 80's. A standout show-stealing match that raised the bar for future competition.

Becky Lynch

Smackdown Women's Championship, Becky Lynch vs Nikki Bella vs Natalya vs Naomi vs Carmella vs Alexa Bliss, Backlash '16
After the brand split, Smackdown now gets it's own Women's Championship. This match is elimination rules. This match is a lot of action early on. This appears to be everyone in the ring at one time, no tagging in and out, though it's mostly two women fighting, and then one comes in from being down on the outside to take one out and then the fight continues. Bella goes for a superplex on Carmella when Natalya comes in and Powerbombs Bella while Bella Superplexes Carmella. Bliss hits a Destroyer on Lynch and goes for a pin but only gets two. With five women on the outside, Naomi hits a springboard out the outside on her opponents. Soon thereafter, Natalya is attempting to powerbomb Bliss, but Bliss is holding onto the top rope. Naomi comes in and hits a blockbuster on Bliss and just about 10 minutes into the match we have our first elimination as Naomi pins Bliss. Shortly after that Natalya gets the Sharpshooter on Naomi and Naomi taps. Bella then gets a backbreaker from a fireman's carry position on Natalya and pins her. Immediately after that Carmella jackknifes Bella for a pin. It's down to Carmella and Lynch. Carmella beats down the Irish Lass Kicker. Lynch gets the Becksploder trifecta on Carmella. Carmella comes back with a kick to take Lynch down. Lynch gets the dis-arm-her on Carmella and Carmella taps out. Becky Lynch is the winner. This match basically started as a pseudo-Money in the Bank Match without the ladders. Each woman getting her spots in. There never seemed to be more than two or three in the ring at one time. Then we got to four decisions in just over two minutes before the final two had two minutes to themselves.

Sasha Banks

WWE Women's Championship/Hell in a Cell Match, Sasha Banks (c) vs Charlotte Flair, Hell in a Cell '16
Flair is carried to the ring on a throne. Banks arrives on top of a Cadillac SUV. The two women are introduced in the ring, then the cell lowers. You can tell these two women are both genuinely nervous as the cage lowers. Before the cell can come all the way down, Flair jumps Banks and takes her to the outside. Flair goes to throw Banks into the crowd but Banks reverses it. The two women fight among the fans. Back at ringside, the two women begin to climb the cage. The fight on the side of the cell until Flair slips down. She then grabs Banks and Powerbombs her through the Spanish announcers' table. Banks seems to be being helped away from the ringside are but she wants to fight. Referees call for help for Banks who is unable to stand. Crews place Banks on a stretcher as Flair insists on having her hand raised and the title handed to her. Just as Flair is about to be announced as winner, Banks gets up and gets in the ring. This match is now officially underway. Banks goes after Flair and now Flair wants out of the cell. Flair monkey-flips Banks into the cell. After a couple of minutes of fighting in the ring, Flair dumps Banks over the top rope with Bank's back hitting the ring apron before falling to the floor. Flair goes out after Banks but Banks fights back. Sasha gets in the ring and dives through the ropes sending Flair into the cell wall. Banks sets a chair up in the ring. She delivers a drop toe hold to Flair sending her face first into the chair. Flair comes back picking Banks up and slamming her back first into the chair. Flair continues to work on the injured back of the champion. Flair tosses Banks into the wall of the cell and Banks catches herself. Banks then leaps off the cell onto Flair leading with her knees. Banks hits the triple vertical suplexes in the ring as the fans chant "Eddie". She then hits a frog splash on the Queen and goes for a pin but only gets two. Banks sets Flair up for the double knees in the corner but first places a chair on the ropes below her before hitting the double knees sending Flair through the chair. Flair drags Banks to the outside by driving her face-first onto the steps. Flair goes underneath the ring and brings out a table. She sets the table up at ringside. The two women are fighting on the top turnbuckle and Banks kicks Flair sending her through the table. Banks gets her in the ring and goes for a pin but Flair kicks out. Banks brings out another table and goes to place in the ring but Flair shoves the table into Banks' throat. Flair sets the table up in the ring. Flair gets Banks in the Figure 8 but Banks grabs the chair and strikes Flair with it. Flair takes control and places Banks on the table. She goes to the top rope for a moonsault but Banks stops her. Banks moves the table out of the way and sets it partially up in the far corner. Banks attempts to go for a powerbomb but is unable to carry Flair across the ring. Flair tosses Banks onto the table twice before hitting the Natural Selection to win the match. This was a good match marred by some botched table spots. On the first table spot on the outside of the ring Flair slips off the top rope before being kicked into the table. The legs of the table break but not the table itself. Unsure if the plan was for the table to break or for Flair to lay on the table for Banks to do a move. The second table spot was really nothing just Flair ragdolling Banks onto the table without the force necessary to break the table. That leads to a somewhat anti-climactic finish. You take away those and you have a very good match. It's a bit long clocking in officially at over 20 minutes but with the pre-match fight it runs closer to 30.

That wraps up disc two. Now, on disc three, we get to some historic matches and profiles mostly of the winners of the matches. Starting with Carmella and the Money in the Bank Ladder Match.

Money in the Bank Ladder Match, Carmella vs Charlotte Flair vs Natalya vs Becky Lynch vs Tamina, Smackdown 6/27/17
WWE royally fucked up the first Women's Money in the Bank Ladder Match by having James Ellsworth retrieve the briefcase for Carmella. Two days later on Smackdown, they had a rematch. Carmella was still using her Staten Island Princess gimmick. The five women start brawling from the get go. Carmella is the first to climb the ladder, but all four other women stop her. Tamina hits a Superfly splash on Lynch. After a commercial, Flair tosses Natalya to the outside, Lynch hits her with a Beck-sploder. Flair and Tamina are fighting over the ladder with the ladder being completely vertical. Lynch starts to climb the ladder that Flair and Tamina are holding. Flair and Tamina seem dumbfounded as to what to do as they hold on to the ladder watching Lynch before the slowly let the ladder down against the ropes. Flair and Natalya are soon on too of the ladder slugging it out as Carmella pushes the ladder over knocking both women down. Lynch tosses Carmella out of the ring and Tamina delivers a spear to Lynch. After another commercial break, Natalya is climbing the ladder as Flair goes after her. Lynch joins the two on the other side of the ladder. Tamina then climbs behind Lynch. Soon the ladder topples over sending all four women to the mat. Carmella is now alone in the ring with the ladder. She has her hands on the briefcase has the other four women get in the ring and collectively pick the ladder up moving it across the ring with Carmella still on it. Carmella dives off of the ladder onto Lynch and Natalya. Later in the match, Flair and Natalya brawl their way into the crowd. James Ellsworth comes in from the crowd and begins to climb the ladder. Becky Lynch gets in the ring, takes out Carmella and pushes the ladder over sending Ellsworth tumbling to the floor. Lynch starts to climb but Carmella jabs her knee with a steel chair. Carmella is alone as she climbs the ladder and retrieves the briefcase to win. This match wasn't the best Money in the Bank ever, but it did have its good spots. Now perhaps WWE put this match on here instead of the PPV match because of what happened in the first, or perhaps it's because the PPV match was on the Best PPV Matches of 2017 DVD.

Spotlight on Mae Young

Mae Young Classic Finals, Kairi Sane vs Shayna Baszler, Mae Young Classic 2017
Sane defeated Tessa Blanchard, Bianca Belair, Dakota Kai, and Toni Storm to make it to the finals. Baszler defeated Zeda, Mia Yim, Candice LeRae, and Mercedes Martinez. Lilian Garcia introduces the two competitors in the ring. Jim Ross and Lita are on commentary. Baszler takes Sane down and begins pounding on her. Sane manages to slip away of Baszler. Baszler takes Sane down with a spinning kick to the side of the head. Baszler methodically works over Sane's joints with holds and kicks. Sane breaks free and goes for a spear but it has no affect. San uses some chops and strikes on Baszler. Shayna comes back with a running high knee. Sane comes in with a spear which takes Baszler down this time. Kairi hits a sliding dropkick to the ribs of Baszler before applying a body scissors. Kairi goes for the In-Sane elbow but Baszler catches her and applies a rear naked choke. The two women are soon battling on top of the turnbuckle as Sane delivers her double stomp to Baszler and goes for a pin, but Baszler kicks out at two. Sane then hits in In-Sane elbow and pins Baszler to win the Mae Young Classic. This was a decent match. Nothing too special but they put on a good performance.

After a montage of clips of interviews with the Women's Royal Rumble participants we get to the Rumble Match

2018 Women's Royal Rumble Match
For some reason Maria Menunous is the ring announcer for this match. Sasha Banks is number one, Becky Lynch is two. They start off the match. Charlotte Flair and Alexa Bliss are the champions and are sitting at ringside for this match. Sarah Logan is number three. Logan lifts Banks up and hits her with a headbutt. Mandy Rose is next. Lita comes out at number five bringing the crowd to its feet. She goes at it with Banks and Lynch. Mandy Rose soon becomes the first woman ever eliminated from the Women's Royal Rumble when Lita knocks her out. Kairi Sane is number six. She hits the In-Sane Elbow on Sasha Banks followed by one to Lynch. Tamina is out next. After taking out some of the women, Tamina is met with a Twist of Fate from Lita. Lita then hits the Twist of Fate on Lynch and Banks before hitting a moonsault on both of them. Lita then tosses Tamina over and out before she is eliminated by Lynch. Dana Brooke is next. Brooke manages to eliminate Kairi Sane by pushing her off the top turnbuckle. Number nine is Torrie Wilson. She eliminates Dana Brooke from the match. Time to put your hair up and square up as Sonya Deville enters. Deville eliminates Torrie Wilson. Liv Morgan is the next woman in the match and immediately comes to the aid of her Riott Squad teammate, Sara Logan. Number 12 is Molly Holly. Holly eliminates Sara Logan from the match before hitting the Molly-Go-Round on Sasha Banks. She is stopped then by Sonya Deville. Lucky number 13 is next and it's Lana. Fans are chanting "Rusev Day" as Lana gets double teamed by The Riott Squad. Michelle McCool is up next. McCool eliminates Deville, Morgan, Molly Holly, and Lana from the match all before the next competitor comes out. Ruby Riott is number 15. It's Riott, McCool, Lynch, and Banks in the match...

EXCUSE ME! It's Vickie Guerrero at number 16. She isn't' even dressed to wrestle. She screams at the four women in the match. Who turn on her and eliminate her. That was pointless. Ms. Money in the Bank Carmella is number 17. Vickie Guerrero takes Carmella's briefcase and strikes her with it. Next up is Natalya drops her gear onto Carmella. Carmella drags Natalya off the ring apron before entering the ring for the first time. Kelly Kelly is the 19th entrant but is nearly eliminated right away by Natalya. After Kelly does a spinning head scissors on Michelle McCool, Natalya tosses McCool out of the ring. Number 20 is next and it's Naomi. Becky Lynch is, somewhat surprisingly, eliminated by Roby Riott after 30 plus minutes. Jacqueline is number 21 followed by Nia Jax at 22. Jax tosses out Jacqueline and Kelly Kelly. Ruby Riott tries to challenge Jax and gets dropped on the top turnbuckle and eliminated. Naomi gives Jax a run for her money before being tossed out but being saved by some of the women on the outside. NXT Women's Champion Ember Moon is in at 23 and goes right after Jax. Moon has one shoulder and arm wrapped up after her match the night before against Shayna Baszler. Naomi walks the guardrail before taking Maria Menunous' chair and crawls her way back into the ring where she's caught by Jax and tossed out. Beth Phoenix provides some competition for Jax. Phoenix picks Jax up on her shoulders but is unable to carry her to the ropes. Natalya gets in the ring and she and Phoenix knock Jax through the ropes to the outside and they hug until Natalya turns on Phoenix and eliminates her. Asuka is entrant 25. Asuka takes it to Banks, Natalya, and Carmella. Ember Moon then comes back in the ring and goes after Asuka. Moon hits a one-armed Eclipse to Asuka. She charges at Asuka and Asuka pulls down the ropes and Moon is eliminated. Number 26 is Mickie James. Nikki Bella makes her appearance at 27. Nikki eliminates Carmella from the match. Brie Bella is next. She gets the crowd going in "Yes" chants. The Bellas stand tall after taking out the competition. The double suplex Natalya. Number 29 is Bayley. Soon it's time for the final entrant, and it's Trish Stratus. She joins Asuka, Bayley, Natalya, Sasha Banks, Mickie James, The Bella Twins, and Nia Jax in the match...

Trish hits a double-Stratusfaction on the Bellas then sends Bayley for a ride off the top into the ring. She's then confronted with her old rival, Mickie James. James goes to the top turnbuckle but is met with a Chick Kick and is eliminated. Nia Jax is back in the ring and cleans house. Soon all the women gang up to eliminate Jax from the match. Sasha Banks then tosses Bayley out of the match. Natalya gets the Sharpshooter on Stratus. Status manages to come back and eliminate Natalya. Banks then gets up in Stratus' face and Trish goes for a Stratusfaction but Banks throws her out. It's down to the final four as Banks is met by Asuka. Soon Banks and the Bellas team up on Asuka. Banks goes for her double knees on Asuka, but the Bellas eliminate her after 54 minutes in the match. Asuka gives the twins some kicks. Nikki soon turns on Brie eliminating her. Asuka then goes to the top rope and hits a missile dropkick. Nikki soon dumps Asuka out onto the apron. She then charges at her and is met with a kick. Asuka uses her legs to pull Nikki down to the ring apron. Asuka then kicks Nikki off the apron to win the match. Asuka is the winner of the first Women's Royal Rumble Match. This was a fun match to watch and to see some of the legends return. I do feel like some of the legends were a bit unnecessary, mainly Kelly Kelly and Vickie Guerrero. I wonder if one of them may have been a last minute replacement for the injured Paige. I also don't like the Bellas being in the match at then end with Asuka. I feel like it should have been someone like Sasha Banks. This DVD skips the post-match antics of Asuka confronting the two champions and then Ronda Rousey coming out, of course that could be because of time.

Spotlight on Alexa Bliss

WWE Women's Championship/Elimination Chamber Match, Alexa Bliss (c) vs Sasha Banks vs Bayley vs Mandy Rose vs Mickie James vs Sonya Deville, Elimination Chamber '18
Bayley and Sonya Deville start the match. Bayley takes Deville down early with a running bulldog. Deville comes back with a shot to the mid-section of Bayley. Deville slingshots Bayley into the chamber but Bayley catches herself on the wall. Bayley has control of Deville as Mandy Rose enters. Bayley goes right after Rose. Bayley whips both women into the corner. Deville comes back with a double leg takedown of Bayley. The two members of Absolution double team Bayley. Deville and Rose tie Bayley up in the walls of the chamber and attack her. The fourth entrant is next and it's Sasha Banks. The Boss goes right after the two members of Absolution. Banks hits a sliding double knees on Deville and goes for a pin but only gets two. Bayley recovers and joins Banks in fighting Rose and Deville. Banks hits a back stabber on Rose followed by the Banks Statement and Rose taps out. Mandy Rose, the first woman eliminated from the first Women's Royal Rumble Match becomes the first woman eliminated from the Women's Elimination Chamber Match. It's time for Mickie James to enter. James hits a neckbreaker on Bayley. Deville catches James and rams her into the chamber. James takes Banks down with a kick then starts to climb the side of the Chamber. Bayley joins her and the two women climb until James knocks Bayley off. James goes to the top of a pod and leaps off onto Deville and pins her. Mickie James is then hit with a backstabber by Banks followed by a Bayley-to-Belly and is pinned by Bayley. Bayley and Banks await Alexa Bliss' time. Bliss does not want in the match as she quickly climbs the chamber and catwalks along the beam. Banks and Bayley follow her. Bliss gets to the top of a pod. Banks then turns on Bayley knocking her off of the pod. Banks stalks Bliss until Bayley takes Banks out. Banks and Bayley begin fighting. Banks is tied to the tree of woe as Bliss Superplexes Bayley off the top turnbuckle. Banks gets up and hits a frog splash on Bayley but is unable to get the pin. Banks sets herself up on the turnbuckle but Bayley hits a Bayley-to-Belly from the turnbuckle on Banks. Bliss then rolls Bayley up and pins her for the elimination. Bliss goes for Twisted Bliss on Banks but Banks gets her knees up. Banks attacks Bliss against the chamber wall but gets her own leg caught in the cell allowing Bliss to take control. Bliss goes back to the top of the pod. She hits the Twisted Bliss from the top of the pod and goes for a pin but they are outside of the ring. Banks slips out and gets the Banks Statement on Bliss. Bliss escapes but Banks is still in control. Bliss comes back and hit modified DDT from the top rope and pins Banks to retain her title. Of the historic women's firsts, HIAC, MITB, Rumble, and this, this match is my favorite. This was much better booked than the Rumble with Absolution having a 2-on-1 advantage over Bayley then Banks coming in to even the odds. Bliss thinking she's got it good by being the last woman to enter but ends up against Bayley and Banks who seemingly having a 2-on-1 advantage until Banks turns on Bayley.

Spotlight on Ronda Rousey

Ronda Rousey & Kurt Angle vs Triple H & Stephanie McMahon, WrestleMania 34
We pick up with Triple H and Stephanie already in the ring. Kurt Angle comes out next. Ronda Rousey then makes her grand entrance. Stephanie jumps Rousey from behind taking her down by the hair, but then immediately retreats and it's Angle and Triple H starting it off. The McMahon-Helmsley team use some underhanded tactics to take control of Angle early on. Stephanie grabs Angle by the singlet to hold him against the ropes. Triple H goes to punch Angle but misses and almost hits his wife. Angle crawls to his corner to make a tag, but Stephanie pulls Rousey off the ring apron. Angle then tosses Helmsley out to the outside. Rousey gets back up and Angle makes the tag. Rouse pulls Stephanie in the ring by the hair. Rousey then beings punching Stephanie. She then tosses Stephanie across the ring. Rosey takes Stephanie down and applies the armbar, but Stephanie is able to partially block the hold. McMahon rakes the eyes of Rousey to get out of the hold completely. Stephanie soon takes control of the MMA superstar. Stephanie begins mocking Rousey but Rosey will have none of it as she picks Stephanie up and takes her down. She goes for a pin, but Helmsley pulls the referee out of the ring. He then pulls Rousey out of the ring by her foot. Angle comes back and goes after The Game. Angle puts Triple H on the announcers' table but Helmsley is able to knock Angle down. Ronda is back in the ring and is challenging Triple H. Rousey punches Helmsley repeatedly. She then takes him down then picks him but Stephanie comes to her husband's rescue. Rousey then chases after Stephanie tossing her into the barricade at ringside. Rousey then picks Stephanie up to ram her into the ring post but Stephanie gets out of it and sends Rousey into the pole. Back in the ring, Angle hits his triple German suplexes on Triple H. Angle then geos for the ankle lock but Helmsley fights it. Angle slingshots Helmsley into the corner followed by an Angle Slam and a pinfall attempt but only gets two. Angle once again tries for an ankle lock but Stephanie stops him. Angle then gets the ankle lock on Stephanie McMahon. Triple H attacks Angle and hits the Pedigree and goes for the pin but Rousey breaks it up. Triple H sets up for a Pedigree on Rousey. He instead goes for a powerbomb but Rousey takes him down with a head scissors. She gets the armbar on Triple H. The whole Superdome wants to see Triple H tap out, but Stephanie comes and gets a rear naked chokehold on Rousey. Rousey takes Stephanie down and partially gets the armbar on her while Angle gets the ankle lock on Triple H. Triple H pulls Angle down and throws her into Rousey. Both Angle and Rousey are thrown shoulder first into the ring posts. The McMahon-Helmsley team then set up for simultaneous Pedigrees on their opponents. Angle tosses Triple H over the top rope, while Rousey throws Stephanie over. Rousey goes for the armbar and gets it fully in on Stephanie forcing her to tap out. Ronda Rousey and Kurt Angle are your winners. These four put on a spectacle in this match. This was the match of the night. Rousey actually managed to make Stephanie look good for the bits of offense she would have. Rousey transitioned well from the UFC to WWE. Angle did a great job in only his second match back with WWE.

That concludes the Evolution of the Women's Division. This is overall a very good DVD. It was great to see how the women's division evolved over the years and to see the progress that has been made not only in the match quality, but the recognition and the spotlight. There are a few glaring omissions on this. I'll start with the two most obvious, Fabulous Moolah and Chyna. I think everyone is well aware of Moolah's story of how she treated some of the other women wrestlers essentially pimping them out to the male wrestlers. I think omitting her was a good call, though they did have her in the match against Wendi Richter, but how could they not put that match on here to represent Richter. I'm going to come right out and say it that Chyna has gotten screwed by the McMahons. She had a relationship with Triple H. That didn't end well. Triple H then went on the marry Stephanie McMahon and Stephanie does not want to put a spotlight on her husband's ex. That being said, let's face it, the match between Chyna and Ivory was far more of a showcase for Chyna than it was for Ivory. I think a better match to represent Ivory might be one of her matches against Lita or one of her matches against Jacqueline. That leads me to another omission, Jacqueline. I'm not sure why WWE left her off of this DVD. She was tough as nails and did a lot for the business. Hell, she carried Sable through several matches. Then there's Beth Phoenix. How can you have a women's Evolution without the Glamazon? There's probably enough omissions to start a whole second DVD. Leilani Kai, Jazz, Michelle McCool, Naomi, possibly even Melina, Layla, and Tamina.

Up next, we go from the days Buddy Rogers and Pat O'Conner, to the days of Ric Flair and Sting, to the days of Triple H and Shawn Michaels, to the days of Jeff Hardy and CM Punk.

 

[Skyefire]

I'm nearly finished with my next review, but instead waiting to reveal what DVD it is I'll go ahead and tell you that it's going to be The History of the World Heavyweight Championship. So, I'm going to give a bit of a history lesson on the true history of the championship. George Hackenschmidt had won World Greco-Roman Championship tournaments in Austria and France in 1901. He also won the European Greco-Roman Championship from Tom Cannon in 1902. Tom Jenkins had unified the American Greco-Roman Championship and the American Catch-As-Catch-Can Championships in 1901 to become the Mixed-Styles Champion. In 1905 Jenkins won the American Heavyweight Champion for the third time. In 1905 a match was set up to unify the various championships and crown a single World Heavyweight Champion. On May 4, 1905, Hackenschmidt and Jenkins met in New York in a catch-as-catch-can style match. "The Russian Lion" comes away as the undisputed champion.

Through the first part of the 20th Century the title would be held by the likes of Frank Gotch, Ed "Strangler" Lewis, and Stanislaus Zbyszko. After 1912 the title is no longer recognized outside of North America. In the late 1920's, different versions of the belt start to splinter away from the main title. Those versions include the National Boxing Association (which became National Wrestling Association), New York State Athletic Commission, Los Angeles Version, Texas Version, Maryland Version, and the Boston-based American Wrestling Association. In 1948, the National Wrestling Alliance is formed and Orville Brown, who holds several major championships in the Midwest is recognizes as their first World Champion. Between 1948 and 1952 Lou Thesz wins several versions of the World Championship and is recognized as the Undisputed World Champion (at least in North America). In 1957, Eduoard Carpentier defeats Thesz when Thesz is unable to continue due to a back injury. A month later Thesz defeats Carpentier by DQ in a rematch. The National Wrestling Alliance initially continues to recognize Carpentier as the champion but soon voids all recognition of him ever holding the belt. Carpentier continues to be recognized as World champion in Omaha and Boston and later by the Los Angeles-based World Wrestling Association. This would mark the end of the Undisputed World Heavyweight Championship.

In 1960, Pat O'Connor would defeat Dick Hutton for the NWA World Championship. Promoters in Minnesota give O'Connor 90 days to defend against Verne Gange. After O'Connor fails to do so, Gange is declared the champion of the new American Wrestling Association. Buddy Rogers would defeat O'Connor for the NWA title in 1961, and in '63, Lou Thesz would defeat Rogers for the belt. Thesz' win over Rogers comes in a one-fall match whereas title matches back then were typically the Best 2 of 3 Falls. Northeast promoters Vincent J. McMahon and Joseph "Toots" Mondt would refuse the recognize Thesz' one-fall title win and recognize Rogers as the first ever World Champion of the World Wide Wrestling Federation.

 

[Skyefire]

Time to relive the History of the World Heavyweight Championship. Disc one of this three disc set features a documentary as well as matches from the NWA World Heavyweight Championship. Disc two features matches from when the belt was WCW and disc three features the revived WWE World Heavyweight Championship.

NOPE Match
NWA World Heavyweight Championship, Pat O'Conner (c) vs Buddy Rogers, Chicago, June 30, 1961
As was a custom with title matches back in those days, this match was two out of three falls. The two men lock up in a collar-and-elbow to start the match. Rogers backs O'Conner against the ropes. O'Conner breaks the hold per the referee's request, but Rogers delivers a forearm to the mid-section. O'Conner comes back with a forearm to the head of Rogers. This match takes place at the old Comiskey Park and attendance is announced at over 50,000. O'Conner takes Rogers down with an hip toss and then applies a spinning arm bar. O'Conner continues to twist the arm. After a couple of minutes Rogers is able to break free but O'Conner soon takes Rogers down again and once again applies the arm bar. The two are tied up as Rogers grabs the hair of O'Conner before grabbing his tights to bring him down. O'Conner charges at Rogers but Rogers raises his knee taking O'Conner down and pinning him for the first fall. On to the second fall. Rogers takes control of the second fall as he has O'Conner down in a hammer lock. O'Conner comes back and gets Rogers down on his back and applies an ankle lock. Rogers refuses to give up. O'Conner soon delivers a couple of short arm punches to Rogers, whips him against the ropes and rolls him up in a jackknife rollup to win the second fall. The third and deciding fall is next. The two start with a criss-cross followed by Rogers strutting. The two men run against the ropes and meet each other head on in the center of the ring. O'Conner picks Rogers up and slams him as the crowd goes wild. A second slam by O'Conner and he goes for a pin but Rogers gets his foot on the ropes. O'Conner continues with some slams on Rogers and goes for another pin with again Rogers getting his foot on the ropes. O'Conner rams the back of Rogers head into the turnbuckle. O'Conner goes for a dropkick but misses. Rogers covers O'Conner and gets the pin. Buddy Rogers is the new champion. At least on TV this match goes about 20 minutes. It may have been longer but cut for TV. Promoter Fred Kohler presents Rogers with the belt in the ring. Rogers is interviewed and says "To a nicer guy it couldn't happen".

Rogers would lose the title to Lou Thesz in a one-fall match in 1963. Northeast promoters Vincent J. McMahon and Toots Mondt claimed they were not happy with the fact that the match was only one fall and would continue to recognize Rogers as their champion. Thus the World Wide Wrestling Federation Championship was born. This match was an exciting one for the early 1960's. A lot different that what fans expect to see nowadays.

Next we go to some matches from Florida. These are all 3-4 minute clips of world title matches. We have Dory Funk Jr. winning the title from Gene Kiniski, Terry Funk winning from Jack Brisco, and Dusty Rhodes from Harley Race.

NOPE Match
NWA World Heavyweight Championship, Ric Flair (c) vs Magnum TA, AWA SuperClash I
This was 1985 and Magnum was a rising star in the NWA. The AWA and NWA still had a bit of a relationship at this time. This also takes place at Comiskey Park in Chicago. The attendance for this event was listed at around 21,000. The two start off with some back-and-forth wrestling and Magnum gets a hammer lock on Flair. The first several minutes of this match are holds and counter-holds. They criss-cross and Magnum takes Flair down with a hip toss followed by a dropkick. Flair comes back with some chops to Magnum in the corner. Flair delivers a double underhook suplex on his challenger then applies an abdominal stretch. Flair grabs the tights of Magnum while the hold is applied. Eventually the referee catches him. Flair misses a knee drop on Magnum and Magnum applies a Figure Four to the Nature Boy. Flair is screaming in pain as Magnum continues to apply the pressure. Flair soon makes it to the ropes. Flair soon tosses his opponent to the outside of the ring. He follows him out and tosses Magnum into the ring post. Flair gets back in the ring to break the referee's count. Magnum soon gets back in the ring and Flair is still in control. Flair applies a hammer lock on Magnum while placing his foot on the ropes. Flair continues to bend to the rules to gain an advantage. Flair takes Magnum over in a backslide pin attempt but Magnum is barely able to get his shoulders up at each pin attempt. Soon Magnum is able to get a sleeperhold on Flair. Flair reaches for the ropes but is unable to get there. Flair goes down, Magnum goes for a pin, but Flair gets a foot on the ropes. Magnum slams Flair down and goes for a knee drop but Flair gets his knees up. Flair then applies a Figure Four to Magnum. Magnum is able to reverse the hold and soon the two men break. Flair sets up for another Figure Four but Magnum rolls him up in a small package for a pin attempt. Magnum whips Flair to the corner and Flair does his patented head over heels dive over the top to the outside. Flair attempts to toss Magnum into the ring post but Magnum reverses it sending Flair into the pole. They make their way back into the ring and Flair is now busted open. Magnum delivers several punches to Flair and Flair does his faceplant dive to the mat. Flair cowers away from Magnum. Magnum gets a backslide on Flair for a pin attempt but Flair gets out. Magnum takes Flair down with a belly-to-belly and again is unable to get the pin. Magnum gets Flair in a sunset flip pin attempt but Flair grabs Magnum's tights taking him over and while holding the tights is able to pick up the win. This match started off slow but then picked up which is pretty much par for the course with 1980's Ric Flair title matches. This was still months before the Magnum vs Tully Blanchard "I Quit" Match at Starrcade. This was kind of like what the Flair vs Sting match at Clash of the Champions, just with a smaller audience.

NWA World Heavyweight Championship, Ric Flair (c) vs Sting, Great American Bash '90
One of the stipulations of this match was that Ole Anders was to be handcuffed to El Gigante. The two would be seated in chairs on the elevated ramp. Also, at ringside are the "Dudes With Attitudes": Paul Orndorff, Junkyard Dog, and the Steiner Brothers to prevent any additional interference from the Horsemen. Months earlier Sting suffered a knee injury, this was his big return. Early on Sting takes Flair down with a hiptoss followed by a dropkick, The fight goes to the ramp and Sting clotheslines Flair back into the ring. Flair comes back with a thumb to the eye. Flair delivers a suplex to Sting but the move has no effect as Sting gets back up right away. Flair goes to work on Sting's previously injured knee. Flair is now in control of the challenger. Flair goes for a knee drop on Sting but Sting moves out of the way and gets a Figure Four on Flair. The Nature Boy gets to the ropes and the hold is broken. Flair drags sting out to the outside where he whips the challenger back-first into the guardrail but that has no effect on the Stinger. Back in the ring Flair delivers several chops to Sting. But the chops seem to fire Sting up. Sting whips Flair across the ropes and picks him up for a press slam. Sting suplexes Flair and Flair cowers away from Sting. Sting hits the Stinger splash and sets up the Scorpion Deathlock. The Horsemen, Barry Windham, Arn Anderson, and Sid Vicious come to the ring and fought off by the Dudes With Attitudes. Flair makes it to the ropes and Sting breaks the hold. Flair comes back and goes for a pin with his feet on the ropes but Scott Steiner knocks his feet off. Sting fights back. Sting charges at Flair but Flair gets his knee up. Flair sets up for the Figure Four but Sting turns it into a small package and pins Ric Flair to become the new NWA World Champion. While this match had a few similar elements to the Magnum TA match, this had a faster pace. The attempted interference added some excitement to the match. And the crowd was absolutely on fire during this, going wild when Sting won.

So, later in 1990, Ric Flair was out of the World title picture. Sting got into a feud with the mysterious Black Scorpion. After beating Scorpion in a Cage Match at Starrcade, Sting unmasked the Black Scorpion and revealed him to be Ric Flair. So, Flair, was not supposed to get a title match, snook his way into a title match, lost said title match, and what does he get in return? A title match! Why does he get another title match? Who knows! But he ends up winning the title from Sting in January of 1991. That leads us to the next match...

NWA World Heavyweight Championship, Ric Flair (c) vs Scott Steiner, Clash of Champions XIV
Get ready of a botched finish. Flair gets down on one knee and starts posing and Steiner does the same. Steiner takes Flair down with a shoulder block early on. Steiner then goes for Flair's leg. Steiner uses his strength on the Nature Boy. Flair tries to leave the ring, but Rick Steiner is waiting for him, so Flair gets back in the ring. Steiner dominates Flair in the first few minutes of this match. The two then start exchanging mat wrestling holds. It's a fairly slow pace up to this point. Every time Flair takes a hit he rolls into the ropes or out onto the elevated ramp. Flair fights back with a couple of inverted atomic drops. After a commercial break the pace has quickened. Steiner gets the Figure Four on Flair. Flair makes it to the ropes and Steiner breaks. Flair fights back, they whip each other off the ropes. Steiner is backed against the ropes as Flair comes at him. Flair leaps and crashes into Steiner and goes over the top rope and to the outside. A second later, Steiner, who was supposed to fall backwards over the top rope with Flair, leaps and takes a back dive to the outside. The two men fight on the outside briefly. Flair works on Scott's leg softening it up for the Figure Four. Flair gets the Figure Four in and grabs the ropes. Rick Steiner tries to stop him, and the referee admonishes the Dog Faced Gremlin. After the referee finally notices Flair's hands on the ropes he makes him break the hold. Flair re-applies it in the center of the ring. Steiner reverses the hold to get out of it. Steiner whips Flair off the ropes and gets him in a sleeperhold. Scott then hits Flair with the Steiner-line sending the Nature Boy over the top to the outside. Steiner hits a sit down powerbomb on Flair and Flair rolls to the outside. One minute of TV time remains. Scott hits another Steiner-line in the ring. Steiner whips Flair into the corner where Flair does one of his famous upside down tumbles to the ring apron, runs to the next corner and goes off the top rope but is met with a fist to the mid-section from Steiner. Okay, down to the final 15 seconds. Steiner whips Flair into the corner. 10-9-8... Ring announcer Gary Michael Capetta counts down the final seconds of the match. Between 3 and 2 Steiner hits a belly to belly suplex on Flair and goes for the pin. By time the referee gets into position to make the count Capetta has already counted down to 1. The referee counts the pin one, two...as the referee's hand is going down for the three, the bell rings. A good 5 seconds after Capetta announced "1". The TV time limit has expired. This was a good match. Started off slow but then picked up. This certainly wasn't the Flair vs Sting Clash of Champions match from a few years earlier that propelled Sting to stardom. It was unfortunate to have a botched finish such as it did.

WCW World Heavyweight Championship/Steel Cage Match, Barry Windham vs Lex Luger, Great American Bash '91
A few months later WCW would regret putting the title back on Flair as he would be fired from WCW amidst a dispute with Jim Herd. Fans are chanting "We want Flair" from the start. They even put the camera on fans in the front row chanting "We want Flair". Why they did that is beyond my comprehension. The two men cross the ropes with Luger taking Windham down with an arm drag. Windham comes back with a dropkick as Luger comes off the ropes. These two start off with some decent technical wrestling mixed with some power moves. Luger gets a standing sleeper on Windham. Windham gets out of it, whips Luger against the ropes and applies a sleeper of his own. Windham goes to the top rope and goes for an elbow drop but Luger moves out of the way. Luger comes back with a series of clotheslines. Luger then hits a powerslam and gets Windham up in the Torture Rack. Windham bounces his feet off the cage to get out of the hold. Luger places Windham on the top turnbuckle and goes for a superplex but Windham goes on to the cage and shoves Luger off. Windham then delivers a clothesline off the top rope onto Luger. Windham knocks Luger down again with a clothesline. Windham goes for a pin but only gets two. Windham goes back to the top rope and hits a single kick to Luger. Harley Race and Mr. Hughes make their way to ringside. Race then tells Luger hit a piledriver on Windham which he does and Luger pins Windham to win the title. Race and Hughes celebrate with Luger as apparently they have formed an alliance. This match is a slow pace for nearly 10 minutes, which is something you might except from a 30 minute match but this one goes less than 15. The cage doesn't come into play that much except for the wrestlers using it to brace themselves when they go to the top rope or when Windham uses the cage to get out of the Torture Rack. Other than that, it doesn't really come into play.

WCW World Heavyweight Championship, Vader (c) vs Ron Simmons, WCW Saturday Night 8/8/92
Vader throws the belt at the feet of Simmons at the start. This match was supposed to be Vader vs Sting until Jake "The Snake" Roberts attacked Sting and took him out. Simmons was name was chosen from a bag to replace Sting. They start off with a test of strength where Vader then delivers a right hand to Simmons. Simmons fights back with some blows of his own. Simmons picks Vader up and hits a side suplex followed by a flying shoulder tackle and Vader retreats to the outside with manager Harley Race. Back in the ring, Vader fights back and hits a running splash on Simmons and goes for a pin, but Simmons kicks out. Vader then hits a chokeslam on Simmons. Vader climbs to the second rope and hits a leaping splash. Vader goes for a pin, but Simmons kicks out. Vader goes for a suplex on Simmons but Simmons reverses into a suplex of his own. Late in the match, Vader takes back control and runs off the ropes for some sort of move, but Simmons hits him with a snap powerslam and pins the big man to become the new WCW Champion. A handful of babyfaces, mostly mid-carders get in the ring to celebrate with Simmons. With that win Simmons becomes to first African American to win a major World Championship. This was a match of power, very little finesse, but it was rather exciting. The crowd was into the match the whole time. And while it was great to see this historic moment unfold, the title change, and Simmons getting the title match felt random. Additionally, this came less than a month after Vader won the title from Sting for the first time. Vader should have had more time to dominate as World Champion and give Simmons a buildup going into this match. That would have made this feel more significant.

WCW World Heavyweight Championship/Career vs Career Steel Cage Match, Hulk Hogan (c) vs Ric Flair, Guest Referee: Mr. T, Halloween Havoc '94
Next we enter the Hulk Hogan era of WCW. Personally, I'm not a big fan of 1994-96 WCW. Here we have a rematch from Bash at the Beach, this time Hogan is the defending champion, the match is taking place inside a Steel Cage, Mt. T is the guest referee, and both men's careers are on the line. Flair comes out accompanied by Sensational Sherri. Hogan is accompanied by Jimmy Hart and "Brother Bruti". With both men in the ring, the cage lowers. The cage has its own pyro. Hogan starts off with a flurry of offense. Hogan gets Flair in the corner and starts pounding on him but Mr. T pulls Hogan off of Flair. Flair fights back with a snap mare takeover and a knee drop. Hogan soon regains control, picks Flair up and rams him head first into the cage. Hogan then uses his T-shirt to choke Flair but Mr. T pulls him off. With Hogan distracted, Flair goes to the top and drops off with a double ax handle. Soon, Hogan is back in control raking Flair's face across the cage. He follows that up with a side suplex. Hogan then pounds on Flair as Mr. T once again pulls him off. With Hogan once again distracted, Flair climbs the cage seemingly in an attempt to escape, even though he cannot win by escaping the cage, and Hogan stops him ramming his head into the top of the cage. Flair fights back going after Hogan's previously knee. Flair starts unwrapping the bandage around Hogan's knee. Flair places Hogan's knee on the bottom rope and drops his weight across the knee. The Nature Boy then gets his bread and butter, the Figure Four on Hogan. The champion then "Hulks up" and reverses the hold. Flair goes right back to work on the knee. Hogan goes charging at Flair, but accidently his Mr. T instead. Flair hits a suplex on Hogan and goes for a pin, but Hogan powers out throwing Flair on top of Mr. T. Flair then gets up and starts kicking the special referee. Sherri then climbs the cage but Jimmy Hart climbs up after her grabbing her skirt and pulling it off. Sherri fights Jimmy off and continues to climb. Sting, who has been sitting in the front row, then comes up and pulls Sherri down. Then, a mysterious figure, who resembles the Black Scorpion crawls out from under the ring with a lead pipe in hand and strikes Sting in the back. The mystery man attacks Hart as well. Sherri then climbs to the top of the cage and leaps off scratching her fingernails across the back of Hogan, That has little effect, though. The mystery man also climbs the cage. Flair delivers a chop block to the back of the knee of Hogan and then he and Sherri handcuff Mr. T to the ropes. Flair throws Hogan into the cage where the masked man is holding the pipe. Flair then suplexes Hogan. But Hogan gets right back up. Flair and Sherri toss Hogan off the ropes but Hogan clotheslines them both. Hogan then hits the big boot to Sherri. Flair starts chopping Hogan but Hogan shrugs it off and hits the big boot. Hogan then hits the big leg drop and Mr. T counts the pin. Hulk Hogan is the winner. This match was by no means a scientific classic, but it was fun and exciting. Sensational Sheri sure can take a bump. Not many managers, even the men, would not take all the bumps she's taken over the years.

WCW World Heavyweight Championship, Sting vs Hollywood Hogan, SuperBrawl VII
We jump forward three and a half years to February 1998. The epic rematch from the clusterfuck of a finish that was the Starrcade match. Sting charges at Hogan who's already in the ring. Hogan whips Sting with his weight belt. Hogan drags Sting out to the outside and continues beating him down. Back in the ring, Hogan drops repeated elbows on Sting. Hogan gets up and poses to the crowd and Sting gets up and fights back. Sting takes Hogan down and removes his weight belt and begins striking Hogan with it. Hogan retreats up the aisle and Sting chases him wrapping the belt around Hollywood's throat. The fight goes into the crowd briefly. Sting rams Hogan's head into the guardrail and then goes for a Stinger splash, but Hogan moves out of the way and Sting strikes the guardrail. Hogan goes to whip Sting into the corner but Sting reverses it, hits a Stinger Splash on Hogan then gets a Scorpion Deathlock, but Hogan makes it to the ropes. Sting goes for another Stinger Splash, this time Hogan pulls referee Charles Robinson in and Sting hits Robinson. Hogan takes Sting down for a pin and referee Nick Patrick comes in to count the pin, but Sting kicks out. Hogan is mad at Nick Patrick. Hogan begins pounding Sting and Nick Patrick pulls Hogan off of him. Hogan continues to work on Sting and goes for multiple pinfall attempts but is unable to keep Sting down. Hogan gets increasingly frustrated with Nick Patrick. As Sting starts to take back control of the match, Hogan hits him with a low blow. Hogan beats on Sting but Sting seems unphased. Sting whips Hogan into the corner and hits the Stinger Splash twice. Sting hits the Scorpion Death Drop and Hogan kicks Nick Patrick below the belt. Scott Norton gets in the ring followed by Buff, Vincent, and Konnan. Randy Savage then gets in the ring and slips a can of spray paint to an unconscious Hogan. Sting covers Hogan and gets the three count. Sting is your winner. Sting spray paints "WCW" on Hogan's chest. JJ Dillon presents Sting with the title. This was an okay match. It was a lot of the heel dominating before the babyface makes a miraculous comeback. The finish was a bit odd, but nevertheless, Sting is the undisputed WCW Champion as he vanquishes Hogan.

WCW World Heavyweight Championship, Hollywood Hogan (c) vs Goldberg, Nitro 7/6/98
Five months later, and Hogan is champion again. This time it's the dominant rookie Bill Goldberg challenging him for the title in front of a huge crowd at the Georgia Dome in Atlanta. The fans are chanting "Goldberg" from the start. They lock up and Goldberg gets a side headlock on Hogan. Goldberg takes Hogan down with a shoulder tackle. They go for a test of strength and Goldberg gets Hogan down on his knees. Hogan removes his weight belt and begins whipping Goldberg with it, but Goldberg soon takes the belt from the champion and instead of using it, he tosses it aside. Hogan gets Goldberg down with a clothesline and begins choking him. Hogan puts the weight belt back on. Hogan brings Goldberg to the outside, rams him head-first into the guardrail and then strikes him in the back with a chair. Hogan hits the leg drop on Goldberg, as Curt Hennig comes down to the ring, but behind him are DDP and Karl Malone. Malone hits the Diamond Cutter on Hennig as Goldberg sets up for the finish. Goldberg hits a spear on Hogan followed by the Jackhammer to beat Hollywood Hogan and win the World Championship. The crowd goes wild. What an exciting moment to end an exciting match.

So, unpopular opinion, but I agree with the decision to have Goldberg win the title on Nitro instead of a PPV was the right decision, given the circumstances. The next PPV was Bash at the Beach and Hogan was booked in a tag match against DDP and Karl Malone. After that was Road Wild where he faced DDP and Jay Leno, so no doubt that was already a done deal behind the scenes. Then came War Games. So maybe the next available PPV for a title match was Halloween Havoc depending on if WCW already had plans in place for The Warrior at that point. On top of that, this Nitro was held at the Georgia Dome and they needed a big match to sell the show.

WCW World Heavyweight Championship, Jeff Jarrett (c) vs Booker T, Bash at the Beach 2000
The match that wasn't supposed to happen. The ever popular Vince Russo, in all of his genius mind decided to pull a work shoot on Hulk Hogan and have Jeff Jarrett lay down for Hogan. Russo then stripped Hogan of the belt and awarded it to Jarrett, while firing Hogan, and then set up this match saying that Booker T was one guy who had been held down by the system for too long. Got to love Vinnie Ru, right? Onto the match. Booker charges after Jarrett, but Jarrett backs away. The two start with some scientific wrestling. Jarrett gets Booker into a corner and rams his head into the turnbuckle pad. The fight soon goes into the crowd. Double J rams Booker's head into a door, then a chair. He then goes to whip his opponent into the concrete wall but Booker reverses it. Jarrett then drags Booker back to ringside and strikes him in the back with a steel chair. He then rams Booker into the announcers table. Jarrett then delivers a piledriver on Booker on the announcers table, which, unlike WWF announcer's tables at the time, is solid and does not give. Jarrett then gets the challenger in a sleeper in the ring. The referee checks Booker's hand which goes down twice but on the third try, Booker comes back up. Jarrett soon gets a Figure Four on Booker. Booker reverses the hold. Jarrett then sets Booker's leg on the bottom rope and drops his weight on it. He attempts a second drop but Booker moves out of the way. Booker hits the scissors kick followed by a Spinaroonie. He then hits the champion with a spinebuster and goes for a pin but only gets two. Booker goes for the Harlem Side Kick but Jarrett moves out of the way and Booker crotches himself on the top rope. Jarrett whips Booker into referee Billy Silverman. Jarrett goes to hit Booker with the title belt, but Booker ducks, Jarrett drops the belt, Booker picks it up and hits Jarrett with it. Booker goes for a pin, but Jarrett kicks out. Jarrett then hits a low blow on Booker. Jarrett brings a chair into the ring and sets it up in the corner. Jarrett goes to ram Booker's head into the chair, but Booker reverses it. Jarrett then hits the referee with a low blow followed by The Stroke. Jarrett grabs his guitar and climbs to the top rope. He goes to hit Booker with the guitar but Booker catches him and hits the Book End. Another referee gets in the ring and Booker pins Jarrett to win the title. This was a fun match to watch and a great moment as a very deserving Booker T wins the WCW Championship. It was a great win for Booker and for WCW though, a bit too little too late for the future of the company.

WCW World Heavyweight Championship, The Rock (c) vs Chris Jericho, No Mercy 2001
It's now 2001. WCW is no more and WWE owns all of WCW's titles. The Rock walks in as WCW World Champion and is fighting another WWF superstar for the title. After The Rock poses in the ring he and Jericho stare each other down. The fans are chanting "Rocky". WCW's Charles Robinson is the referee for this match. Jericho starts with a headlock on Rock. Rock then comes off the ropes and takes Jericho down with a shoulder block. They go back-and-forth again as Jericho takes Rock down with an arm drag. Jericho gets Rock down and begins punching him. Jericho soon delivers a springboard dropkick to knock Rock off of the ring apron to the outside of the ring. Jericho picks Rock up and drops him across the guardrail. In the ring, Jericho whips Rock off the ropes and hits him with a spinning heel kick. Jericho whips Rock off the ropes but Rock comes back with a leaping clothesline. Jericho the hotshots Rock off the top rope. Jericho goes to the top turnbuckle but Rock shakes the ropes causing Jericho to crotch himself. Rock then delivers a superplex on Jericho. Both men are down in the ring and the referee begins his 10-count but both men get up at 9. The two men get up and Jericho uses a swinging neckbreaker to take Rock down. Jericho then hits the Rock Bottom on the Rock followed by the Lionsault and goes for a pin, but Rock kicks out at two. Jericho then hits a bulldog on Rock. Y2J then goes for the People's Elbow on the People's Champion, but The Rock moves out of the way. Rock then gets a Sharpshooter on Jericho. Jericho slowly makes his way to the ropes and the Rock has to break the hold. The crowd is split at this point. Rock then tears apart the Spanish announcer's table. Rock pulls Jericho up onto the table and hits a Rock Bottom sending both men crashing through the table. Rock gets back into the ring to break the referee's 10-count. Rock then drags Jericho back into the ring. Rock seems poised and ready for the Rock Bottom but Jericho hits some elbows to stop him. Rock comes back with a spinebuster and is ready for the People's Elbow. As Rock is about to drop the elbow on Jericho, Y2J grabs him by the foot and takes him down. Kericho turns Rock over into the Walls of Jericho. Rock inches towards the ropes but Jericho pulls him away. Stephanie McMahon then comes down and tosses a chair into the ring. Jericho chases Stephanie off of the ring apron. Rock then hits the DDT ON Jericho. Rock then pulls Stephanie into the ring and hits the Rock Bottom on the Billion Dollar Princess. Jericho hits a Russian leg sweep (a la The Miz's Skull Crushing Finale) on Rock onto the chair and pins The Rock. Chris Jericho was won the WCW Championship. Rock then grabs the chair and seems ready to hit Jericho with it. The two stare at each other. Rock seems to question Jericho about the use of the chair and then hands the chair to him. Jericho celebrates his win. Jericho has finally won the a major championship. This match wraps up disc two, the WCW Championship years, and is the best match on the disc, and probably the best match on the set so far.

(WWE) World Heavyweight Championship: Triple H (c) vs Shawn Michaels, Taboo Tuesday '04
The first Taboo Tuesday event, the fans got to choose between Shawn Michaels, Chris Benoit, and Edge for who should challenge Triple H for the World Heavyweight Championship. Naturally, the fans chose HBK. Michaels comes limping to the ring with an injury to his left knee. Naturally, Triple H goes to work on the injured leg of Michaels early on. After a few minutes Triple H applies the Figure Four to Michaels. Triple H wants the referee to stop the match and award it to him. Triple H drags Michaels into the corner with the intention of ramming his leg against the ring post but Michaels pulls his leg in and Triple H is rammed into the ring post. Michaels takes control briefly only to have Triple H retake control. The Game appears to be setting up for another Figure Four, but Michaels kicks him off and sends him head first into the ring post. Michaels manages to get a low blow in on Triple H behind the referee's back and then gets a DDT. Shawn then goes up to the top rope and gets a flying elbow on the champion. Time to tune up the band. Batista makes his way down to the ring, and Michaels takes him out. The distraction gives Triple H and opening as he charges at Michaels, but Michaels hits the Sweet Chin Music. Edge is in the ring now and spears Michaels while the referee's attention is still with Batista. Triple H crawls to Michaels, places on arm across his chest and pins him to retain the title. This match is pretty boring. There are some high spots when Michaels mounts a comeback, but overall it's dull. Normally, I wait until the end of my review to discuss which matches should not be on the DVD and which matches should replace them, but I'm going to say right now that this match should not have been on this DVD. However, since this was released in 2010 (I think) WWE was not going to include the HHH-Michaels-Benoit match from WrestleMania. Nor would they show the Michaels vs Triple H Last Man Standing Match from Royal Rumble seeing as this was the PG-era and that match was very bloody.

(WWE) World Heavyweight Championship: Kurt Angle (c) vs The Undertaker, No Way Out '06
In early 2006 World Heavyweight Champion Batista got injured and was forced to give up the title. WWE set up a battle royal on Smackdown to determine the new champion. In a bold move, WWE moved Kurt Angle from Raw to Smackdown, turned him babyface, and had him win the title. After Angle beat Mark Henry to retain the title at Royal Rumble, The Undertaker appeared to issue a challenge to the Champion. That brings us to this match on the road to WrestleMania. These two do not start slow in this match. They are at it 100% from the get go. Just a few minutes into the match, Undertaker hits Old School on Angle. Undertaker then hits the Snake Eyes on Angle, goes for the running boot, but Angle turns it into a German Suplex. Angle soon rams Undertaker's leg into the ring post then applies the Figure Four around the post. Angle then continues to target Taker's knee. Then, in the ring, Angle drapes Undertaker's leg across the bottom rope and drops his weight onto the knee. He then does it a second time. He goes for a third, and Undertaker is supposed to use his foot to push Angle over the top rope, but his foot slips, and Angle, being the experienced professional doesn't oversell it by taking a dive over the top. Instead he gives Undertaker a few blows, then Undertaker grabs Angle and tosses him outside. That's Intelligence. Undertaker drapes Angle on the ring mat halfway out of the ring and goes for the leg drop on the ring apron, but Angle grabs Undertaker's lag and applies the ankle lock on the outside of the ring. Angle goes in the ring to break the count then returns to the outside and reapplies the ankle lock. Angle then drags the Deadman into the ring, going to work on the knee and ankle of Undertaker. Undertaker then gets the Triangle Choke on Angle and Angle gets his foot on the ropes. The champion slips out to the outside of the ring. The challenger soon follows. Undertaker rams Angle into Tony Chimel. Taker then begins to take apart the announcers' table. Angle then grabs Undertaker and hits an Angle slam sending Undertaker through the Spanish announcers' table. Angle gets back in the ring and the referee is counting Undertaker out. After the referee gets to nine, Angle tells him to stop the count. Angle goes to the outside after Undertaker, and Undertaker sends him into the steel steps. Undertaker gets Angle back into the ring. Undertaker then goes to the top turnbuckle, but Angle leaps up and quickly tosses Undertaker down to the mat with a suplex. Soon, Undertaker goes for a chokeslam but Angle counters into the anklelock. Undertaker then turns it into a Triangle Choke. Angle rolls through back to the ankle lock. Undertaker escapes and then chokeslams Angle. Undertaker goes for a pin, but Angle kicks out at two. Undertaker then sets up for the Last Ride, but Angle slips out and gets an ankle lock on. Undertaker powers out of the hold. Angle hits the Angle Slam and goes for a pin but only gets two. Time for the straps to go down, but also time for Undertaker to sit up. They exchange right hands. Undertaker whips Angle off the ropes and sets up for a Tombstone. Angle reverses it. Undertaker reverses that. Angle grabs the leg and gets the ankle lock. Angle then wraps his legs around Undertaker's leg while in the ankle lock. Undertaker kicks his way free. Angle hits an Angle Slam. Undertaker gets a triangle choke. Angle then jackknifes the triangle choke and pins Undertaker. Angle is your winner. Undertaker is not pleased with the decision. This match was two of the greatest of all time putting on a masterpiece. It goes nearly 30 minutes and not one of those minutes is dull.

(WWE) World Heavyweight Championship, Rey Mysterio (c) vs Randy Orton, Smackdown 4/7/06
Just days after WrestleMania 22, Rey Mysterio defends the World Heavyweight Championship for the first time and it's against one of his WrestleMania opponents. It's a pretty standard match early on, with Rey using his speed to his advantage, while Orton tries to ground the champion. Mysterio uses a tilt-a-whirl head scissors to take Orton down. He then hits him with a drop toe hold setting him up for the 619, but Orton moves out of the way. Orton goes to the outside and Mysterio does a West Coast Pop to the outside onto Orton. Soon Orton goes back to grounding Mysterio. Rey goes for an outside-in springboard, but Orton dropkicks him to the floor outside. After a commercial, Orton once again has Rey in a side headlock. Probably the third or fourth time in this match he's used that hold. Orton goes to the second turnbuckle and goes for an elbow drop on a fallen champion, but Rey gets his feet up. Orton lands on the second rope in perfect position for the 619, but Orton avoids it again. Rey manages to hit a West Coast Pop on Orton and goes for a pin, but only gets two. Rey goes for a springboard moonsault, Orton catches him, but Rey turns it into an inverted DDT. Rey climbs to the top rope again and leaps off but his caught with a dropkick to the mid-section by Orton. Randy goes for the pin, but Rey gets to the ropes. Orton hits Rey with a vicious clothesline and goes for another pin, but again only gets two. Orton whips Mysterio into the corner and charges at him, but Rey moves out of the way, and Randy goes shoulder first into the post. With Orton hanging there, Rey hits a 619 by swinging around the ring post. Orton stumbles across the ring to the far ropes where he is in position for another 619. After that, Rey hits the West Coast Pop and pins Orton to retain. This match was pretty average. Nothing bad, but nothing special. Orton did very few offensive moves in this match hitting mostly defense and headlocks.

(WWE) World Heavyweight Championship, Batista (c) vs Undertaker vs Edge, Armageddon '07
Everyone is already in the ring as we pick up this match. Undertaker and Batista start the match off as Edge tries to stay away. Batista knocks Undertaker to the outside where the Deadman gets a hold of Edge briefly. Undertaker drops a leg on Batista who's across the ring apron. When both Batista and Undertaker are down, Edge takes advantage pulling Batista into the ring and going for a pin attempt. Edge then sets up for a spear but Batista turns it into a slam and goes for a pin but Undertaker pulls Batista to the outside. Undertaker goes for his ring apron leg drop on Edge but Batista clotheslines the Deadman off the apron. Batista sets up for a Batista Bomb on Edge but Edge hits a low blow. Edge goes for a pin, but Undertaker pulls the referee out of the ring. Undertaker hits Old School on Edge then sets up for a Last Ride but Batista spears him. Batista goes to Undertaker, and Undertaker gets him in the Triangle Choke. We hear the bell ring, but it's actually Edge ringing the bell, Batista did not give up. Edge slips away before Undertaker can realize it. Edge hits a spear on Undertaker followed by one on Batista. Edge is unable to get the pin on either opponent. Edge grabs a couple of chairs. Batista and Undertaker fight back knocking Edge out of the ring. Undertaker suplerplexes Batista from the top rope and goes for a pin but only gets two. Undertaker then goes for Old School on Batista but Batista catches him and hits a spinebuster. Edge gets back in the ring and is met with a spear from Batista. Edge rolls out of the ring to the floor right next to...Edge. There are two Edges on the outside. Undertaker hits a chokeslam on Batista as yet another Edge attacks Undertaker only to be met with a chokeslam. Undertaker hits a Tombstone on Batista when Edge, the real Edge, hits Undertaker with a steel chair and then pins Batista for the win. Edge is the new World Heavyweight Champion. Edge celebrates as his two doubles, who will later be revealed as Curt Hawkins and Zack Ryder, crawl away from the ring. Edge steals the title in a pretty good triple threat match. A lot of chaos, a lot of big moves that were either disrupted or had pinfalls disrupted.

(WWE) World Heavyweight Championship, Chris Jericho (c) vs John Cena, Survivor Series '08
Cena's return from a neck injury and it's against the World Champion Chris Jericho in Cena's hometown of Boston. Jericho naturally targets Cena's injured neck early on. With Cena down on the ring apron, Jericho delivers a kick to Cena's head slamming it, and his neck, into the ring post. A short while later, while battling on the outside, Jericho rams Cena head and neck first into the steel steps. Soon, Jericho applies a Full Nelson on the hometown hero. Cena manages to mount a comeback and soon goes for the Five Knuckle Shuffle but Jericho takes him down and applies a modified Walls of Jericho placing his knee on the head and neck of Cena. Cena fights out of it, but quickly Jericho is able to apply the Walls of Jericho again this time the typical way to apply the hold. Cena manages to make it to the ropes to force a break. Cena comes back with an FU to Jericho (the move was still called the FU at this point). Cena soon gets his confidence back and starts to mount an offense, at least until Jericho hits the Code Breaker. Cena comes back with the STFU. Jericho pulls his way towards the ropes but Cena pulls him away. Before Cena can reapply the hold, Jericho fights out of it. Jericho attempts to roll up Cena for a pinfall, but Cena rolls out and picks Jericho up. Cena hits an FU and pins Jericho to win the Championship. This match is about storytelling. The telling of Cena's comeback, Jericho targeting Cena's neck, Cena mounting an incredible comeback and winning the match. And it does a good job of telling that story.

(WWE) World Heavyweight Championship/Ladder Match, Edge (c) vs Jeff Hardy, Extreme Rules '09
For the second year in a row, Edge is competing in a ladder match at Extreme Rules having defeated Undertaker one year earlier. If I'm correct, this was the only time these two would have a one-on-one ladder match. After a couple minutes of wrestling in the ring, Jeff Hardy goes to bring a ladder into the ring for the first time, but Edge delivers a baseball slide into the ladder into Hardy. Soon, Edge whips Hardy off the ropes and it appears as though Hardy is trying to leap onto the ladder but the ladder gives way and Hardy gets tangled up. Edge goes for a spear but Hardy moves out of the way and Edge runs into a ladder that is leaning in the corner. Edge gets Hardy sandwiched in the ladder and applies a Sharpshooter while leaning down on the ladder for extra leverage on Hardy's lower back. After Edge breaks the hold, Hardy rolls to the outside. Edge then goes to climb the ladder and Hardy leaps off of the top rope and drop kicks the ladder sending Edge crashing down to the mat. Hardy picks Edge up and delivers a front suplex onto an upside open ladder. Hardy then brings a taller ladder in the ring. Hardy hits the Twist of Fate on Edge and then climbs the ladder, which is not underneath the belt, and seems to be setting up for either a leg drop or Swanton, but Edge moves out of the way while Jeff is still on top of the ladder. Jeff then leaps for the belt and grabs ahold of it, but Edge pulls him down. Hardy is grabbing at his knee. On the outside of the ring, Edge sets up a ladder bridge between the ring and guardrail. But it's soon Edge who finds himself laying on the ladder as Hardy climbs another ladder. Edge gets up and starts climbing the ladder Hardy is on. The two men start fighting on top of the ladder and soon the ladder tips over and both men come falling onto the ladder bridge. Edge landed back first on the ladder while Hardy landing with his leg in the ladder whipping his upper body to the floor. The two men make it back into the ring and Hardy climbs a ladder underneath the belt. Edge then climbs the taller ladder in the corner and goes for a mid-air spear on Hardy, but Hardy turns it into a Twist-of-Fate. Both men start climbing the same ladder underneath the belt. Hardy gets knocked off and then grabs Edge by the feet and pulls him down between the rungs of the ladder trapping him. Hardy then climbs the ladder and grabs the belt to become the new World Heavyweight Champion. This wasn't as good as their tag team ladder matches but it was still a lot of fun to watch. The spot when the two come crashing down off the ladder into the second ladder was awesome as well as Hardy countering the spear with a Twist of Fate in mid-air. But, wait, it's not over just quite yet. Jim Ross is in the ring to interview the new champion, when CM Punk's music hits. Punk is cashing in his Money in the Bank contract.

(WWE) World Heavyweight Championship, Jeff Hardy (c) vs CM Punk, Extreme Rules '09
Punk immediately his the Go-To-Sleep and goes for a pin, but Hardy kicks out. Punk goes to pick Hardy up, and Hardy rolls him up for a pinfall attempt, but Punk kicks out. Punk gets up and delivers a spinning kick to the head of Hardy. He follows that up with a GTS and picks up the victory. CM Punk has become the new World Heavyweight Champion.

This concludes a look at the History of the World Heavyweight Championship. It was a trip through the decades and through the different eras of professional wrestling. As I previously mentioned the Triple H vs Shawn Michaels match was one that could have been skipped. It would have been much better to see either Triple H vs Michaels vs Benoit or Triple H vs Michaels in the Last Man Standing match or perhaps Triple H vs Batista either at WrestleMania or Hell in a Cell. But, since this was the PG era of WWE they weren't going to include a bloody match plus of course the whole Benoit issue. It also would have been good to see more 80's NWA matches, though I suspect the reason they didn't put more of them on here was because there were already two Ric Flair matches, and for the whole decade of the 80's there were few, if any, NWA World title matches that didn't include Flair as either champion or challenger. I think the Edge vs Undertaker vs Batista match could have been replaced with a one-on-one Batista vs Undertaker match. Those two had some great ones in 2007.

Next up, there are some wrestlers who are lager than life. Then there are those who are just plain large. And they don't get much larger than this guy.

 

[Sky]

The three-DVD Giant Gonzalez set, what we've all been waiting for