True Story: we were at a house show the day before SummerSlam. And amid the riotous din of “Cena Sucks”, a small boy turned tearful eyes to the rest of our row and wailed plaintively: “No, he doesn’t!” I thought of that small boy as John Cena took to the ramp Sunday evening (that new blue shirt is much easier on the eyes than some previous choices). And I thought of him again later as I reflected back on a performance from the Face who Runs the Place that was…good. Cena did good. He didn’t suck.
Truly, John Cena was solid on Sunday. He didn’t grandstand, he didn’t oversell to the point of sarcasm, and he put himself to work collaborating with Seth Rollins and Brock Lesnar to create a dynamo of a match that really kept me guessing. John Cena’s never going to not be a monolith in the company — there’s no backpedaling from that. So when John Cena finds an opportunity to look bruised, bewildered, and unnerved by an opponent, it’s a refreshing and compelling change. There were shades of the Wyatt battles, another controversial program that showed some of Cena’s best storytelling.
Brock Lesnar, likewise, is fascinating and terrifying to watch. All you see is impending disaster, but you can’t look away — he’s the human equivalent of hurricane doppler. And despite some criticisms of him as a disengaged part-timer, he never resorts to the jokey swagger a man of his stature could easily fall back on. He swallowed finisher after finisher in true immortal fashion, but every time he did hit the floor he sold the heck out of it. His stretcher job was rather convincing, as they go, and he’ll provide an excellent blockade at Wrestlemania 31, whether it’s for Roman Reigns or a surprise interloper.
And Seth Rollins. What else can be said? He doesn’t have a dependable PPV performance repertoire under his belt yet, so there’s always an unknown when he gets in the ring for a committed match. It was great to see Rollins back to a really athletic style after months of squirrelly evasion and DQs. I caught my breath every time he went airborne — he flies like a man 50lbs lighter, and that Phoenix Splash on Cena was a work of art.
This was pro work on the part of all three men. Three highly different characters, with vastly distinct sizes and styles, came together to offer one of the best ensemble performances we’ve seen in some time.
Mission: The Sunny Side of the Ring is here to put a ray of sunshine on the positives of WWE/Pro Wrestling/Sports Entertainment, and provide a safe space for people to talk about what they enjoy. Feedback is welcome, but this is an anti-smark, no-aggro zone. Peace! (Photos courtesy WWE/wwe.com 2014)
As a quite big Roman Reigns fan, the Rumble match was swings and roundabouts for me.
First off all; the god-damned crowd. Shut the hell up. As soon as D-Bry was thrown out (stupid move), fans turned on the match in a bigger way than they did last year. And that’s saying something. In the last 10-15 minutes of the match, chanting stuff like “We Want Refunds” and “This is Bullshit”.
Now, I’m all for fan participation. It’s one of my favourite things about wrestling. But this, and the stuff I’ve heard about fucking riots. Just…WHAT! So what if Reigns wasn’t ready. Plenty of things like this have happened in the past. Orton becoming champ in ‘04 is a prime example.
Secondly, the ending itself. Big Show and Kane, two people who can be incredibly dull if they are put in the right position, slowly lugged themselves around the ring and eliminated TWO of the four fan favourites in the match. And not to mention the way that Reigns eliminated the two of them. Slow as hell. Show and Kane could have helped by making the process quicker. (Also, gotta love the premature ringing of the bell).
And then Rock arrived (yay) and didn’t talk (Nay).
Then Rusev appeared in a quite hype moment and was eliminated super quick. Santino Marella got longer than that back in 2011 where a similar thing happened.
On a less serious note, Curtis Axel just disappeared, was not eliminated, and was never spoken of for the rest of the match.
A single comment about who makes better sweet tea, made in the kitchen as their husbands watched football, led these to southern belles to sneak out back screen door, and settle things in the old fashioned way.
And though they fight for honor and pride, neither willing to back down from the other, they must hurry, as to not miss their husbands’ calls for more beer.
Take her wind – steal it away in a single flash of glove. So that she bends – so that she leans against you, desperate for breath and break. And then as she asks in hitched-whisper for you to stop, strike again, and again, until she screams, or until your punches take her to a sudden sleep.
I’ve seen hear a lot of people saying damn where are all the surprise entries and why is it all nxt, honestly I’m proud of wwe for not going with the old school method and really showcasing the future of the company, I went in not really caring about Lacey Evans, but she impressed me and I can’t wait to see more
You guys whinge at everything man. If it’s too predictable you whinge, if it’s too unpredictable (i.e, the fan favourite doesn’t win) you whinge.
Look, it’s meant to be a sports entertainment event. Who cares if Batista came back after 4 years and won the event? It should be random and unpredictable because that’s how sports generally are. On any given night Dos Santos could be Velasquez and vice-versa.
Seriously, you guys think someone who ‘deserves’ it more should win? That’s what makes modern day WWE overly predictable. That’s not how sports work. If I thought like that I’d say Muhammad Ali deserves the title more than Tyson in a fantasy bout because he’s more charismatic. But that’s not how it works, and Ali wouldn’t necessarily beat Tyson.
Big project that took an interesting turn. Here’s a very nice and useful infographic with some stats of 30 years of #RoyalRumble Hope you like it and if you like it and share it, don’t forget to credit! Now, let’s get ready to RUMBLE! #wwefanart
