[2003-12-29-WWE-Raw] HHH vs Shawn Michaels

[Superstar Sleeze]

World Heavyweight Champion Triple H vs Shawn Michaels - RAW 12/29/03

 

Terrific match! I have a lot I want to say about this, but it is getting pretty late. Probably the greatest American 80s match not to happen in the 80s. HHH does one of the best Flair impersonations ever and I mean that with respect and admiration. He was a consummate heel champion in this match. Michaels was an awesome, awesome fired up underdog hometown babyface. Both of them were constantly fighting back at each other. HHH was was getting outwrestled early in a great shine, but Shawn earned it. Awesome transition to the heat. HHH worked a great heat segment. Great transition to Shawn's figure-4. Not the best strike exchanges ever in terms of execution, but I liked the frequency of them and I liked the sense of the effort and struggle. Loved the lighthearted moments with Shawn abusing HHH's testicles. That's what made the 80s so great is having dramatic struggles but incorporating bits of fun to keep you entertained in a totally comprehensive way. Loved the drama with the ref bumps and Bischoff coming in. All this 80s goodness culminates in a Dusty Finish in the babyface's hometown. HUGE BABYFACE POP FOR MICHAELS! That's just cruel. They aren't coming back to San Antonio the next week so they have to blow it off right them and there. Loved this! I really want to analyze this in full because both guys gave awesome performances. ****1/2, easy.

[artDDP]

Agreed. I thought this was a fun little match and Hunter really kept up with Shawn instead of being his plodding self and needing Shawn to supply all the action.

[Microstatistics]

So Shawn-Triple H matches are either great where both have well defined roles (this, SS02) or self indulgent bores. Anyways this is probably their best match and a great 80s style match with a ton of heat. 

[SirEdger]

For the most part, Triple H probably had one of his worst years ever in 2003 for various reasons; underwhelming feuds & opponents, questionable booking decisions (remember vs Booker T at WM XIX?) and injuries but this match pretty much made it all up for that crappy year. Amazing match with a hot crowd. Couldn't have asked for anything better.

[Superstar Sleeze]

World Heavyweight Champion Triple H vs Shawn Michaels - RAW 12/29/03

I promised a more fleshed out review of this classic and away we go, three years after the fact.  I watched this match live in a hotel room in South Carolina and I will never forget that. Even at 14, I knew I saw something special. 

First 15 minutes: This is the best 80s NWA Touring Match to not take place in the 80s. It is Triple H doing his best Ric Flair impersonation (and I mean that with respect & admiration) against the literal hometown hero in Shawn Michaels (this takes place in San Antonio). Shawn Michaels outwrestles Triple H early. I am a mark for people holding onto their headlocks through a shove off. Shows struggle and grit. Nice job, Shawn. Triple H takes some big bumps for Shawn. HHH was very keen on throwing Shawn to the outside to reset and gain some space. However, on the first attempt this led to a skinning of the cat headscissors that brought Trips to the floor. Shawn hams it up with a Flair strut and the crowd is going wild. Flair gets pissed. Shawn decks him. Then it is an Asai reverse crossbody. It is cookin' San Antonio. Some other great spots in this red-hot shine are Triple H blocking a hiptoss so Shawn switches arms to the armdrag. That should be cribbed. It is shows resilience and the ability to think on your feet. Another spot that should be cribbed is Triple H is straddling the ropes and Shawn casually kicks the middle ropes into his balls. Triple H is pissed and Shawn wins another slugfest. This may not be Flair vs Garvin, but I like the frequency of the slugfests because it gives it a feel of struggle and it gives Shawn a bunch of mini-battles to win. Shawn takes a massive back drop over the top rope to floor to begin the heat segment as we go to commercial. Damn good heat segment. Lots of focus on the back, plenty of hope spots that make you believe Shawn is still in it and strong cutoffs. I like Shawn trying to punch his way out trouble because that had been working, but Triple H nails a backbreaker. Shawn is so tenacious. Triple H hurls him outside the ring and whips him hard into the steel steps. Both guys are playing their roles perfectly. Long abdominal stretch with Flair pulling on Triple H. They do that great Tommy Young spot where he breaks their clasp with a kick and Shawn hiptosses out. Triple H hits his massive high knee to cut off, but lands awkwardly. Great selling here from Triple H. It is just enough to clue you in that something is up, but not too much that it hurts the flow of the match. Shawn nails a kneecrusher and goes for the figure-4. It is really feels like 1986, baby! Flair rakes the eyes. Really great shine to open just chock full of fun spots. The heat segment was rock solid, but they added the wrinkle here with Triple H, the heel is the one with the injury. How will the back half of the match go?  

Back half: They built to an awesome crescendo in this. Like I said earlier I do like the frequency of the slugfests. It is action that means something rather being in a hold or just doing another highspot. They are mini-battles that advance the plot and show Shawn's pugnacious attitude. I really liked the testicular abuse that Triple H underwent. It is the perfect bit of 80s camp and lightheartedness that keeps the match entertaining. Today's pro wrestling is missing the gaga as Steve Austin would call it. Shawn accidentally falling and headbutting Triple H in the balls or the repeated inverted atomic drops were great. I love HHH Brody'ing Shawn on those. He did not take a bump instead he fed for the Flying Burrito to get the maximal effect out of that spot. Kudos to Triple H on a wise decision. Flying Elbow Drop! Tuning up the band and here is more gaga! We get a ref bump and the Championship belt shot...1-2-NO! Ref bump again! HHH exposes the turnbuckle but per Pro Wrestling #57 he who sets up the spot must take the spot means that HHH eats the unforgiving steel and is bleeding. Eric Bischoff, who I am 99% sure is a heel, comes out and counts 1-2-NO for the Hometown Kid! Shawn blocks the inverted atomic drop out of the corner, landing on his feet and decks The Game for 1-2-NO! Bischoff actually has a really good cadence and form. He is light years better than Hebner. HHH hits his facebuster for his nearfall. The finish see Michaels do the Flair Flip on the exposed turnbuckle, sell the back, BANG SWEET CHIN MUSIC! He falls into the cover and his shoulders are down to. 1-2-3! DRAW!

Great Dusty Finish as San Antonio explodes as they think Shawn Michaels had won and Michaels sells the moment really well. Normally I hate Dusty Finishes, but this match was so 80s it just needed that Dusty Finish to make it feel extra nostalgic. , Michaels was the plucky Hometown hero firing away punches and going for broke. Triple H bumped and sold his ass off for Michaels. They really built to the finish well and there was a ton of gaga to hold you attention. Just the perfect 1980s NWA Touring match ****1/2

[MikeCampbell]

This was praised to the moon when it happened. I never understood why at the time, and watching it all these years later, I honestly still don't. I suppose that, compared with some of the absolute shit that HHH had to deal with during this year as far as the matches with Scott Steiner and Kevin Nash, this looks great in comparison. But, even without the screwjob finish, this didn't do much for me. They get nearly half an hour to work, but they spend a huge chunk of that time trading punches and chops instead of actually wrestling. They both take big bumps to the floor that don't mean a thing. HHH working Shawn's back, and Shawn working the knee, ultimately just wind up being filler. Granted, it's some fun filler. The crowd goes apeshit when HHH is cranking that abdominal stretch, with Flair helping from the floor, and Shawn's figure four is a great revenge spot for that. But, Shawn kips up and HHH stops selling the knee, and they just go about their business. The finishing run is the usual overbooked finish with ref bumps, near falls from props and cheating, and when it seems like Shawn has overcome it all and won the title, no, he actually didn't.

 

It's not a terrible match or anything, there is some fun stuff to see. But, for me, this doesn't rate much more than 'watchable.'

[ohtani's jacket]

I appreciated the fact that they gave us a huge title fight on the final RAW of the year. As far as the wrestling went, Michaels' offence looked terrible in the early going and the match was much better when Triple H was in control no matter what people think of his poor man's Harley Race schtick. Triple H's haircut was weird. It reminded me of when I finally cut my hair in the late 90s and tried to keep some of the length. Michael's thinning hairline was also pretty off-putting. I spent a chunk of the match being weirded out by their hair. Eventually,  I was suckered into the WWE melodrama that they do so well, especially when JR and the King were still around. It was a great crowd, which always helps. But, in typical WWE fashion, they couldn't pull the plug on Michaels winning the title in his hometown and had to get all cutesy with the finish. I couldn't give two shits about Bischoff at this point, and even Austin returning wasn't anything special. The real drama was in the finishing stretch and they shat all over it with the booking. Michaels' facial expressions were hilariously bad. I respect his comeback in general, but he's such a shitty actor. For a free TV match, this was a nice end of year gift, but I could have done without the Dusty finish.