Hell In A Cell - Live As It Happens

[tigerpride]

I enjoyed this show and Snowclown can be a jerk but he's right, here. This was a fun fucking show.

No, he's 100 percent wrong.

 

They booked another screwjob ending in Ambrose v. Rollins and once again continued to neuter the HIAC gimmick. Bad show

[artDDP]

I enjoyed a lot of this show.

 

I didn't like how the main event ended with a whimper. Guys trade clean wins every week on TV but need crazy angles and all sorts of interference to win on PPV?

 

Couldn't they have saved Wyatt attacking Ambrose for tomorrow night?

[Steenalized]

I'm a big fan of most of this show. I liked the main event, contrived main event spots and all, until the very end. Third year in a row where someone gets inside the Cell, mystic wrestlers in 2014, and no actual blow off to Rollins-Ambrose. I'd give the show overall about a D given how terrible that ending was.

[shoe]

I remember at one of the previous shows I mentioned that they crapped over the lumberjack stip. I was told that I was missing the point. A lumberjack match couldn't contain Ambrose/Rollins. I understood where people were coming from, but thought they could have worked the match differently. They were building to HIAC. Well we got HIAC and we still got the screw job. I hate to see guys busting their asses off to be killed by bad booking.

[shoe]

I'm a big fan of most of this show. I liked the main event, contrived main event spots and all, until the very end. Third year in a row where someone gets inside the Cell, mystic wrestlers in 2014, and no actual blow off to Rollins-Ambrose. I'd give the show overall about a D given how terrible that ending was.

I could have lived with the Lawler/Rich and Idol finish. Mystery finishes I don't get.

[Steenalized]

Cages mean nothing to the WWE, someone is going to get in there and get involved somehow. Island death match is the only sacred gimmick.

 

 

I'm a big fan of most of this show. I liked the main event, contrived main event spots and all, until the very end. Third year in a row where someone gets inside the Cell, mystic wrestlers in 2014, and no actual blow off to Rollins-Ambrose. I'd give the show overall about a D given how terrible that ending was.

I could have lived with the Lawler/Rich and Idol finish. Mystery finishes I don't get.

 

That would have been better, though I still think after the actual pinfall would be best since Bray isn't working with the Authority, or at least I presume not. I also found the smoke and hologram to be cringe-worthy.

[southofheavy]

The main booked itself. If only they'd get out of their own way...

 

Dean getting on top of the cage at the beginning was cool. Noble and Mercury had no business being out there. The dual stretcher spot went waaaaaay too long, and we've seen worse bumps not elicit that type of response from medical professionals. Let 'em work their way into the cell and punch the shit out of each other. Trying to convey hatred through gigantic bumps and moves isn't as effective, though they at least used the damn cell to hurt each other. Dean should've gone over, THEN do the Wyatt stuff if you're not gonna let him have the moment. Don't have him materialize outta the ether in the cell, either.

 

Mystic wrestlers in 2014 isn't something I'm opposed to. But Wyatt's a cult leader, not an invincible zombie or a vampire or a voodoo priest.

[sek69]

To me it seemed like the show was a fine example of the main event framing opinions of the whole show. This would happen in WCW all the time, there's be a show full of great matches but the end would be some nWo clusterfuck and everyone would say the show was garbage when it was really only the main event.

 

HIAC was a pretty good show, even the main event was good IMO, but the Wyatt angle was kind of corny and also confirmed all the reports that Dean is slotted to be a upper mid card guy no matter how popular he gets. That in turn gets people to dump on the entire show as a result. I wasn't as disappointed as some since I was kind of expecting Seth to go over (not to say I was expecting Bray Won Kenobi to appear).

[Strummer]

I wonder if they are going to go with "he can't win the big one" route with Ambrose like with Bryan last year and with guys like Jericho, Eddy and Benoit in the past. People who get pushed like that never seem to get the real star treatment but if they are going in that direction history shows Ambrose should have a rather safe, drop up and down the card spot for awhile. If they are going the "crazy babyface who doesn't care if he wins or loses" then I have more doubt about his spot

 

 

 

HIAC was a pretty good show, even the main event was good IMO, but the Wyatt angle was kind of corny and also confirmed all the reports that Dean is slotted to be a upper mid card guy no matter how popular he gets. That in turn gets people to dump on the entire show as a result. I wasn't as disappointed as some since I was kind of expecting Seth to go over (not to say I was expecting Bray Won Kenobi to appear

 

 

summed up perfectly. Frustrating as hell and can skewer your enjoyment of shows as a whole

[jackwebb]

 

HIAC was a pretty good show, even the main event was good IMO, but the Wyatt angle was kind of corny and also confirmed all the reports that Dean is slotted to be a upper mid card guy no matter how popular he gets.

I don't know the timing of saying that seems odd considering it is talking about him in the main event match. Seems like they know what they have with him to me. He seems like a clear focal point to the shows now.

[Strummer]

Ambrose/Bray will no doubt get tons of focus on WWE TV but I doubt it gets any main event segments on RAW. Maybe Smackdown but that really doesn't mean much

[Timbo Slice]

Thought it was an up-and-down show at best.

 

Opener was too spotty for me and I wasn't the biggest fan of Ziggler being able to kick out of so much. Meanwhile, Ziggler hits the Zig Zag and Cesaro's still laying there selling it for a couple minutes afterwards.

 

Bellas match was fine, but it wasn't really a great match either. It might have been great for them, but there was a lot of disjointed stuff in the match. Did like some of the offense, but they don't know how to transition well from one spot to the next. It doesn't look natural.

 

Tag titles match, too. Cody looked lost at points and Dustin had to take over down the stretch to make it watchable. For all the crap people give the Young Bucks and indy guys about superkicks, the Usos going superkick crazy makes me laugh sometimes.

 

WAY too much overkill for Cena/Orton. Understand they wanted to build it as an epic, but if it's so epic, why put it after the first hour on the show? Fans are smart to know it's not as big as you're making it out to be. Match had some neat stuff to it, but after weeks of seeing Orton kill folks with the RKO, Cena kicking out of two good counters seemed silly. End seemed unnecessary.

 

Rusev/Show was great. Rusev has turned into one of the best all-around guys the company has right now. Show knew exactly how to make him look good and Rusev took advantage of his times to shine. If they have him and Ryback go at it, I'm gonna be stoked, too.

 

AJ/Paige I fast-fowarded through. Not enough interest there. NXT girls are putting on more entertaining matches in a lot of ways. Need to get Del Ray to work on the road, too, it seems.

 

Main event was pretty blah in a lot of ways. Understood why the crowd was into it, but in the end, it meant nothing. Ambrose getting over organically pisses off the WWE brass who don't see money signs with him, but he'll be worth something to them soon enough. Fuck that ending. Not even remotely good. I just finished watching 1990 WCW and I don't need to see the cheap parlor tricks like it's the fucking Black Scorpion. Also makes a lunatic like Ambrose look that much dumber, which is hilarious considering he's supposed to be fearless and he sells a fucking hologram more than the offense from Rollins.

 

I'm not shitting completely on the PPV but WWE feeling its way through its month-to-month shit while trying to find definitive endpoints makes it tough to sit through. They're overthinking so much when simple things like what Rusev is doing works that much better, and an actual feud like Rollins and Ambrose gets blown off like that when a feud that's not nearly as hot in Cena and Orton gets the 25-minute epic treatment with a definitive finish because you gotta feed Cena to Lesnar one more time and the fans don't care nearly as much because it's the 121st time they've squared off on TV. The disconnect grows, and it's going well beyond what Vince and Dunn think compared to what Trips thinks. I'd even think blowing up all the storylines and having an NXT invasion could be in the cards considering how stale things have gotten.

[El-P]

A hologram ? Bray Wyatt really is reprising the role of funky cartoon Undertaker from the mid-90's. They need to bring back the freaky kid too.

 

A fuck finish in a HITC ? So WCW 99 indeed.

 

Rusev vs Big Show ? The only thing that looks appealing to me reading the comments, as Rusev (and LANA, be real), was the only act I really enjoyed when I stopped bothering months ago. I may look at this one quickly, and the hologram, just for the hell of it.

[pol]

I thought this was a great show (with the caveat that I didn't watch Cena/Orton or the second women's match). Yeah they should've just given Ambrose his win and then done the Wyatt stuff, but I thought the match itself was great. I understand that people aren't into the Attitude Era trainwreck spotfest stuff but if there was ever a place for it, it was here. As much as I'd like them to, they just aren't going to do a Memphis style blowoff match so this is what you get. I love the goofy supernatural Wyatt stuff (loved the finish to the cage match with Cena too) so that was fine with me. This show has me more excited for the WWE product than I've been since Mania, though I'm sure it'll be back to business as usual in short order.

 

That said, anyone attributing bad faith reasons to someone not enjoying the show can fuck right off. I've never understood why people have a hard time believing people just thought what they thought without any ulterior motives.

[Zero]

Just caught this. Bellas match, Cena/Orton & Rusev/Show I enjoyed. The rest was whatever. I saw some people talking about how awesome Ambrose/Rollins was before the finish, I just didn't feel it. Felt like a prop comedy act.

[funkdoc]

lol @ evilclown's entry-level trolling and the people who fall for it

 

to get serious for a moment, i think part of the divide here is that so many on this forum absolutely fucking despise the attitude era & everything it represents, especially compared to virtually the entire rest of the wrestling fandom. so the match layout for the main event was about the worst possible thing for this particular bunch...shouldn't be surprised at the reaction here.

 

i also find this place to be rather...curmudgeonly when it comes to the goofier elements of pro wrestling. like pol & probably evilclown, i *love* stuff like bray wyatt's screwy finishes. i dig the stardust character (though not his work in the ring), which has gotten a lot of hate here from day 1. this place is just so strongly attached to 80s NWA and/or 90s AJPW aesthetic, whereas i think pro wrestling is INHERENTLY corny and doesn't embrace that side of itself enough if anything. a match ending via hologram is the sort of thing that makes me say "yep, that's so pro wrestling", just like a face in peril or an ether-soaked rag or ted dibiase's dracula cape.

 

i love this forum, but i actually think there are some interesting points in this thread where i couldn't agree less with the core membership

[El-P]

Watched the few part I could be interested in. Yeah, those Bella girls did some decent stuff aout there, especially during the ending stretch. Nice knee, nice missile dropkick. Some awful acting on N's part too.

 

The tag match was pretty disjointed, but some good stuff from Dustin. How old is he by now ? Damn, this guy is good. They need to bring Terri back just once for the nostalgia kick though. I still associate Goldust with the entire act.

 

And speaking about male/female act, glad to see Rusev is still my favourite part of the show. I'm not sure how I feel about hearing "please show some respect and rise for the playing of the Russian national anthem" in 2014. Part of me finds it kinda sad that the best part of the only game in US pro-wrestling today is basically the best Nikolai Volkoff ever. Part of me finds it cool. The fact Rusev got better in the ring and delivers an actual good power match here helps. So does Lana, who's not only one of the hottest valet ever, but her maneurisms totally crack me up. She's great. Considering the diplomatic relations between US and Russia won't get better anytime soon, they might as well push this act to the moon. Of course John Cena will get the last word and that will be a bummer, but Rusev as the best Taz ever (yeah, also) works for me. And Lana's as.. act, is really awesome. Yeah, that too.

 

That main event was garbage. Straight out of late 98/99 WWF. Yipeee, they jumped out of high places in the first third of the match. Hey, an ECW chant. The only thing missing element there was Kane. I guess Bray Wyatt will do now, since he's the recipient of all shittiest-corniest-goofball "creepy" angles now. Yeah, he's definitely the new Kane character. And people thought Taker's ghost at Rumble 94 was dumb.

 

So yeah. Rusev and Lana and stuff like Goldust being so good might be enough for me to fast forward through the load of crap and select just a few little things here and there.

[pol]

Does Ambrose even really need a pin over Rollins after subjecting him to an ass kicking for most of the match? I have a hard time believing that Ambrose's stock with the average fan was hurt by getting screwed there after dominating the match and looking cool as hell doing it. The idea that he needs to get the win to come out of his match looking stronger than he went in just seems like a weirdly mathematical way to look at booking. He exacted his revenge, had Rollins begging off and now the heat is transferred to Bray.

[Matt D]

lol @ evilclown's entry-level trolling and the people who fall for it

 

 

I don't think it's falling for it. It's just not being used to it because most people here are pretty earnest and anyone who acts like that gets banned pretty quickly, no matter who he was friends with in 1998 or if he has 500,000 people reading his stuff.

[evilclown]

 

lol @ evilclown's entry-level trolling and the people who fall for it

 

 

I don't think it's falling for it. It's just not being used to it because most people here are pretty earnest and anyone who acts like that gets banned pretty quickly, no matter who he was friends with in 1998 or if he has 500,000 people reading his stuff.

 

 

If you can't enjoy something like this it's because you are intent not to.

 

That's not "trolling." I'm deadly serious. You should be reevaluating everything about how you approach wrestling and whether this is right for you as a fan and a person.

 

Because that was good. It was well performed, to the point even the wrestlers who traditionally struggle seemed to find their path.

 

If you can look at WWE when it is hitting on all cylinders, when the announce team is less annoying than usual, the wrestlers are inspired and one match moves into another and suddenly two hours are gone—and not enjoy it—I legitimately worry that you are incapable of loving it.

 

If that's the case, you are wasting your time. Wasting it. We all learned here that life is fucking short. Don't be cynical and call any dissenting voice a troll. Anything but. I get why you'd want to do so. It's probably deeply disturbing that your identity is called into question.

 

Maybe, just maybe, you aren't a wrestling fan anymore. You're a wrestling observer. A critic. Wrestling has moved to a new place and you can't find it in yourself to make that trip. I'm not blaming you for that. But don't sit in the proverbial stands with your arms crossed across your chest, determined to pick apart any perceived flaws. That's just not healthy. And I can't imagine it is fun.

[Matt D]

Hey, I caught about half the show. I was putting my kid to sleep, making bread for the week, watching a Stan Hansen match. I caught what I wanted to. I mostly enjoyed what I caught. I avoided what I didn't. That's how I generally do it. I don't watch wrestling I don't think I'll like in real time very often. I got a kick out of the way they put together the main, even if it's not how I WANTED them to or how I thought they should. i have managed expectations when it comes to a cage match in 2014 WWE. So I appreciated it for the most part.

 

What I don't appreciate is the general tone you took at the beginning towards people who felt differently than you, people who had reached a general consensus through discussion, who had listed their thoughts and the reasons behind it. What you said just now was patronizing but at least you put on an air of care and concern. That was cute. In general, while I think people who sit through three hours of Raw, live, every week, when they know they're going to hate it, maybe should be finding something else to do with their time, I think I've got slightly more concern for people who are so deep into their own bullshit that they can't begin to make the effort to sympathize with others and see where they're coming from, even after they've listed their views. That doesn't do us any good here.

 

I know you feel like you've earned the right to be here and spew that stuff and be self-righteous about it, but it doesn't do anyone any good. When you have an interview with someone we like, we'll be glad to help you crowdsource questions; likewise when you have an article you want some help with or you want to show to us. Otherwise, try to show people some respect, huh? It doesn't cost you anything, except for maybe robbing you of the endorphin kick you get for feeling right and better than people on the internet.

[Slasher]

Considering the usual booking involving newer not quite main event level MITB winners, it is somewhat refreshing they have stuck firmly with keeping Seth Rollins relatively strong. Yes people wanted to see Dean Ambrose win but somehow I don't think that was their point with the whole feud. It was clearly meant to be Rollins' big showcase feud, showing he is in fact smarter or better than his ex-Shield mate. I am sure Dean will have his day someday down the road. This wasn't it. The hierarchy is clearly meant to be Reigns-Rollins-Ambrose and no wonder because Ambrose has the personality to serve as a mechanic of some sort with other characters whereas you have to kind of be more careful with Reigns and Rollins.

[Marty]

I caught the show and liked it just fine. Ziggler-Cesaro was pretty fun, was hoping for three falls, but that second fall was a blast. Bellas was better than I expected, especially when they got away from any Irish whip spots and worked snug. Like Nikki's Rack Attack. I've seen better tag matches involving the Rhodes brothers, but I've seen worse tags in general. Rhodes (espcially Dustin) are better as faces. Cena-Orton was fine, just didn't really need the cell. Mizdow was fun and I agree with Dylan about Sheamus' work. Really loving Rusev right now, Lana is a great second, and Big Show had his working boots on too. As much as Mark Henry needs a refresh that probably involves a turn, I'm happy they put over Rusev strong. AJ-Paige was what it was. Ambrose-Rollins felt like too much of a tribute to the first two PPV cell matches, but it got the crowd going anyways and Ambrose dominated before the Wyatt finish. Wyatt appearance was goofy and I would've rather see Ambrose go over, but I don't think the loss will hurt him either. Someone said earlier about new stars not getting pushed, but what we know going forward is Ambrose-Wyatt and eventually Orton-Rollins. The show, if anything, made me wonder what Cena will do next. I hope it isn't being the first to beat Rusev effectively. So what would it be? Judd Apatow movie hype leading to another feud with Miz? Henry heel turn for another Cena-Henry match? Telling Nikki to go easy on her sister the next 30 days? Is the Brock match going to happen at Survivor Series instead of Royal Rumble?

[Superstar Sleeze]

I am actually a little surprised more people didn't like Sheamus/Miz, I thought it was the second best match on the show. Once they played ring-around-the-rosie with the midcarders I knew Sheamus/Miz would be the second best option after Sheamus/Cesaro. That is not any coincidence because Sheamus is clearly the best wrestler on the roster. This is the match where Miz can actually play to his strengths. He is going to be the underhanded heel that will eventually get his ass kicked. It is my favorite story. Sheamus establishes early that he is going to dominate, but gets caught up outside and BAM! Miz hits him on the transition. Then it plays out well. I wish WWE would actually let their heels cheat and have Miz do some eye rakes and fish hooks, just desperate shit to keep control. It would be just a good, solid match with this, but then Mizdow takes it way over the top with just being a totally awesome ham at ring side. I know someone said somethinf about liking the goofier elements of pro wrestling. This to me is exactly what they need! They knee more good comedy and more levity to break up the show. To the person, who said it was just a comedy match, it was a great one! Super serious pro wrestling all the time is boring.

 

On the flip side, I am shocked how much people liked Cena/Orton. Besides the two beautiful RKOs, this match was just finisher trading that killed the momentum dead. The fucking finish was Orton punching Cena in the head to daze him so he could climb onto Cena's shoulders and hit an FU. That has to rank as one of the worst finishes ever. Fuck that match.

 

Rusev/Show was amazing and match of the night. Rusev/Sheamus *drool*

I actually liked the Ambrose/Rollins match a lot before that stupid fucking finish. Ambrose is a lunatic and wants to deliver the maximum pain to Rollins. What is one option for maximum pain you can do, throw him off something really high. However, his pride got the best of him because he really couldn't handle three guys at once even if he was willing to take the chance just to throw him off. Plus, in a kayfabe sense, I bet Ambrose's response would be "it seemed like a good idea at the time". The double bump off the cage was great. Credit to them as performers and WWE for actually milking it! You had to make the fans believe that would be the fuck finish so that when Ambrose made his comeback it would be sweet. The crowd was lapping it up and we were at home. Inside the cell they had a great brawl with Ambrose kicking his ass and the use of Kane & fire extinguisher was excellent to have Rollins get a little offense in to put the match in doubt. You get the Ambrose comeback and I am telling you if you end with the cinder block curb stomp, this is at the very least in my Top 5 matches of the year from WWE.

 

Here is my major malfunction, I am not a purist when it comes to finishes. You want to do a swerve, clusterfuck or a run-in, I think that can be very powerful and useful booking tool. For instance, Kane debuting and interfering in the original Hell in a Cell is some of the best booking ever in my opinion. Ultimate, chickenshit, arrogant asshole heel tries everything to avoid his imminent demise at the hands of the Grim Reaper who is killing him, but then his presumed dead brother returns after it being built for over months since his former manager had wanted revenge for being burnt in April and previously had been feuding since August of the past year. That is the difference. Kane was a logical surprise. No one knew when he would appear but they knew he would. Michaels has even more heat on him for avoiding final damnation and you have a molten hot Taker/Kane feud.

 

Why the fuck did Bray Wyatt interfere? Rollins looks like an after thought. Even though, presumably the finish was to protect him, but it hurts him because he does not seem relevant. Ambrose is just being transitioned from a feud with some momentum to the fifth Wyatt feud that has just started because Wyatt randomly targeted someone. I fucking hate Bray Wyatt. He is the worst character ever. He never has any motivation other than "You all have been fooled to like this man. I am your true savior. Blackjack Mulligan and Uncle Barry spoiled Bo Dallas rotten and I was unloved as a child". Would it kill them to actually fucking layer their storylines? I refuse to believe they have actual soap opera writers writing this show. I have watched soap operas all my life with my mother and grandmother and you would never see such ham-fisted storytelling. Ambrose could have at least called Wyatt a wacko or maybe during an Ambrose/Rollins brawl they destroy his rocking chair and that was the rocking chair of his sister and that the last remaining vestige of his sister. Anything besides the oncoming Wyatt bullshit promo that shows absolutely no character development. The Ambrose comedy, cringe.

Sheamus, vs Rusev please start tonight, please start tonight, please start tonight!

 

[NintendoLogic]

Does Ambrose even really need a pin over Rollins after subjecting him to an ass kicking for most of the match? I have a hard time believing that Ambrose's stock with the average fan was hurt by getting screwed there after dominating the match and looking cool as hell doing it. The idea that he needs to get the win to come out of his match looking stronger than he went in just seems like a weirdly mathematical way to look at booking. He exacted his revenge, had Rollins begging off and now the heat is transferred to Bray.

 

Look at Ryback in 2012 for an example of how being repeatedly screwed over can kill a babyface's heat.