Coming off of a breakout year (he was the breakout star of the year afterall) 2012 is poised to be the year of Dolph Ziggler. The best seller in the business has already rewarded those who chose him with an excellent interview and WWE championship match. Before January ends, Ziggler will have shown off his skills in 2 WWE championship matches. Who knows, he may even be the WWE Champion.
Gotta add to the chorus to say that these are great write-ups.
I especially liked the Christian/Orton one, because it seemed kinda stale when it was happening, but in retrospect it was a great feud that managed to tell a story staying within the limits of the characters that had been previously established. And as others of said, 6 great matches, none of them exactly the same.
Well done, amp. I knew you were the clear favorite. If your opinion on free TV booking improves, you may be unstoppable in the 2012 race. If it remains steady, however...
CM Punk vs John Cena, Money in the Bank, WWE Championship
Spoiler:
Go through the checklist that takes a normal match and makes it special:
[ ] Contains wrestlers you care about
[ ] Has a build up that makes the match feel as if it matters
[ ] Has a crowd that is into the match - which makes it feel as if it matters more
[ ] Is sold on commentary as if it matters
[ ] Is a well-wrestled matched
[ ] Has an ending that makes you feel that watching it was worthwhile
[x] Contains wrestlers you care about
On one side is Jeeeeeooooonnnnn Ceeeeeeenaaaaaa, the most frustrating wrestler in this era. Constant title reigns superCenaing his way through feuds where he rises above hate and buries his opponents in a manner Mr Haitches could be proud of. There have been countless superstars on the cusp of being bonafide main eventers who fell victim to the moves of doom crushing their push (Wade Barrett anyone?). There's nobody in the business today that is more frustrating to the IWC, and his mere presence in the angle always leaves doubt in our mind whether our hero can get the job done.
On the other is the Best in the World, CM Punk. Technical Ability? Has it. Ring Psychology? You know it. Mic skills? Yes sir. The guy that rose up from ROH to main eventing the most talked about PPV in ages. The constantly putting over other talent (he had only went over in 1 of his last 10 ppv matches) was the polar opposite of Cena heading into the match, and the perfect person for us to rally behind.
[x] Has a build up that makes the match feel as if it matters
Everything about this match felt like it mattered. It could be the dawning of a new era; An era devoid of a WWE Champion, an era devoid of a John Cena, an era of change. Cena was the New York Yankees of the WWE for near a decade. Always on top. Shoved down our throats. A legion of fans that make you want to punch kids. The double digit championship reigns always thrown in your face. Yet for the guy that had fought off the Nexus single handedly and would never give up, this match was a daunting task. The future of the company he lives and breathes was on the line, its title potentially leaving never to be seen again. This was bigger than him.
CM Punk was the underdog, the agent of change. Sick of the treatment he'd received for sacrificing his body day in and day out over the past few years. Sick of those with half his talent being given all the opportunities; the movie deals, the television appearances, hell even the slurpee cups at 7-11. Fueled by frustration he vowed to change the business as he left the only way he knew how - by taking the WWE Championship with him.
[x] Has a crowd that is into the match
It's not necessary to explain why a crowd can make a match better. I ask you guys all just one thing: Put on a pair of headphones, crank the volume, close your eyes, and just listen. Its impossible not to love it.
[x] Is sold on commentary as if it matters
The commentary of this match is an underrated aspect. Dropped are the blueboy over the top personas of Cole and Lawler. Gone is the fun loving and ridiculous Booker T. Instead you have three people taking things very seriously as if, you know, this match meant something huge. It wasn't about getting themselves over. It was about CM Punk trying to leave the company titleless. It was about not knowing what the future held if he did. It was people that love working in the WWE openly rooting for Cena because the alternative would shatter their world. The commentary was excellent by current standards, and Cole's in particular was perfect. His "oh my god" as the refs hand hits 3 is perfect (as is his "COME ON JOHN COME ON JOHN" when Punk is in the STFU) and really adds to the perception that this is important. The only question left is: why the hell can't you guys be like this all the time?
[x] Is a well-wrestled matched
I'm not one to arbitrarily assign fractions of stars to explain my opinion of the match. This was easily the best wrestled match I've ever seen Cena put on, and CM Punk was above and beyond. This match contains my favorite sequence (video 3, 1:00 through kickout) ever, and is all around my new favorite match. Why have me explain though? WATCH IT!
[x] Has an ending that makes you feel that watching it was worthwhile
Often we're given a potential path for an angle that is intriguing and get disappointed because they don't go that route. Sometimes it's because the hero squashes the villain, sometimes it's because they don't follow through with what we think is the plan, others it's just because the match itself is a letdown due to a cop out finish. At the end of this match, there was no disappointment. There was no "well that was cool but I wish they did X". There was no "meh". When the bell rung (and again when the PPV went off the air) you felt like you got your moneys worth. It didn't matter if you were a Punk fan excited about the prospect of what comes next or if you were a Cena fan nervous about the same. You were glad you watched it and couldn't wait until the next night to see what happened next.
That's really all we watch for isn't it? To be entertained and to feel like it was worth watching. To get caught up in a story and to care about not only what happened and why, but to the people it happened to as well. To make you sit back and say to yourself "that was awesome" after spending the previous 30 minutes on the edge of your seat saying to yourself "this is awesome". Yes the WWE and wrestling in general is a frustrating thing to watch, but for one night in July I forgot about all the flaws the WWE has and all the frustration it brings me. I got caught up in something that felt special. It WAS special. And for that I'm thankful.
I could give it my best guess!!! I could be wrong but judging by the activity on the forum this year, there'd only be about five people who would (could) do it.
It is kind of funny that in 2011 there really wasn't too much good besides Orton/Christian and Punk/Cena but that was getting interest up and then it went flat. Same for this year that everybody loved WM > EC and then Bryan has to go on a who knows how long hiatus.
Seems like it's better to try to do this on a Slammies timeline (right before Mania) rather than end of calendar year, because we do get at least something of a participation spike that time of year and this is probably around the low point of the wrestling year.
I could give it my best guess!!! I could be wrong but judging by the activity on the forum this year, there'd only be about five people who would (could) do it.
It is kind of funny that in 2011 there really wasn't too much good besides Orton/Christian and Punk/Cena but that was getting interest up and then it went flat. Same for this year that everybody loved WM > EC and then Bryan has to go on a who knows how long hiatus.
Quote:
Originally Posted by LKJ
Seems like it's better to try to do this on a Slammies timeline (right before Mania) rather than end of calendar year, because we do get at least something of a participation spike that time of year and this is probably around the low point of the wrestling year.
Both good points. My only concern with doing it on a WM schedule is that it'd probably have to be more like after ER because that's really when all the WM storylines are truly finished. The months after ER are usually pretty slow anyways so that might not be a bad thing though.
I wouldn't be doing this until after TLC anyways, so I'll reevaluate as TLC gets closer. Glad to see multiple people interested though. It was fun the first go round.
yeah, def want to make sure to include everything from Jan 2014 on no matter when I do it. Leaning to doing it after TLC, but will keep an eye out in case it doesn't seem like too too many people are around at the time (in which case I'll just do it after the rumble or something and do it rumble to rumble)
