We start off with the new opening video and go right into the No Mercy montage. It starts off with Guerrero faking for Batista and then moves on to the casket match. Considering how good WWE's opening packages usually are, this one was really sub-par. It wasn't truly bad (I don't think I've ever seen a bad PPV opening package), but compared to the normal level of quality I've come to expect, it didn't even come close. Wow, I hope this isn't a sign of things to come. Anyway, that ends and we get Cole and Tazz pumping up the crowd as we head into the first bout.
Six Man Tag Team Match
Legion Of Doom & Christy Hemme Vs. MNM
Definitely a great way to open up the card as multi-man tags always, always, always get the crowd pumped. I loved how Animal had his shoulder taped up to sell the injury from Friday. I always love seeing bandages because it's easier for a common fan to feel the working of a body part that you know is already damaged. Match was pretty average bordering on good, but definitely way better than I expected. With the popularity of Christy and good heat Melina is getting, I thought they would put these two in for more of the match, which would have blatantly stunk up the match, but they didn't. They kept the chicks until the end which was perfect because by then, the crowd was so riled up that it made sense as opposed to having the chicks work through the quiet points and transitions of the match. Ugh, that would have been god awful to watch. I loved LOD cutting the ring in half in the beginning of the match. That is basic tag team psychology right there; and in all honesty, you don't see many face teams doing it in WWE nowadays. It's more or less a heel thing to do when they are working a "face-in-peril" spot. I was really torn on the use of the Snapshot by MNM so early in the match. For one thing, it really sold the arm psychology as they placed the blunt of the move onto the shoulder as opposed to the neck like normal. On the other hand though, Animal kicking out of it really killed all credibility the move had going. It just seems like MNM should have used it right before the hot tag or just not at all; because in the end, Animal recovering from it was just detrimental to MNM's future run. With that said though, Mercury was great in control of Animal. I do feel like Nitro has come miles since Tough Enough III, but Mercury is the pure star of the team and definitely the guy you want in there to transition the match well. Finish came when Nitro and Heidenreich fought to the outside and Melina tagged herself in from Mercury. She did the whole "female heel trying to take down male face" spot and Animal tagged in Christy. My heart instantly sank, but to its credit, it wasn't as bad as a lot of other recent diva matches we have seen like the whole Ashley/Torrie/Candice mess on Raw. Christy got the upper hand and then she and Animal hit the Doomsday Device on Melina to get the win. I can't believe Christy did the Doomsday Device. I really can't believe it. I don't think smarks will ever live that one down.
Winners: Legion Of Doom & Christy Hemme
Star Wrestler: Joey Mercury
First of all, as good of a way it was to pump up the crowd, having LOD win was completely dumb seeing as how they are continuing this feud most likely. It's killing all heat MNM has and not really making a future match seem anything but a LOD squash. MNM needed this win to continue the feud until one final blow-off match, and the way this feud is going, I'm not really looking forward to that blow-off. Back on topic though, Joey Mercury was on fire tonight as he's been in recent weeks. He's able to dictate the pace of the match really well during the peril spots and I really enjoy watching him bump like crazy for LOD, consequently getting them over even more. MNM is a great team and one I feel has the total package. Now all they need is some better opponents or better booked matches. What the hell can you do in a six man when the main idea is to just get LOD over as opposed to telling a story?
They then show Batista backstage warming up for his match tonight (which should be his best match ever). Eddie Guerrero then strolls in and looks a bit sad or disturbed. Could this be a sign the old Eddie is back? He says he only has one thing to say: good luck. This segment was just pointless as it didn't really sell the friend storyline much. It made Eddie seem bitter as opposed to loving. Batista came off looking the same, but the whole Eddie point of the storyline was a little jaded after this. If anything, this segment killed a bit of the momentum the two had going with their feud.
Josh Matthews is then backstage with LOD and Christy and apparently there is a new WWE.com thing where you can listen to the winners in an interview. That's all fine and dandy, but how does that help me who's actually watching the event?
Simon Dean Vs. Bobby Lashley
God, I felt like such an idiot watching this match because of the expectations I had. My love for Bobby Lashley all comes from his match with Simpson two/three weeks ago on SmackDown! Simpson was working the leg and Lashley sold it incredibly well, even twitching his knee to emulate the pain while doing a suplex. That's psychology right there and a great thing to have in a big guy. It also shows what kind of a worker he is because it was booked as a normal squash, but Lashley went out of his way to add a bit more. Anyway, my love for Lashley has seemingly evaporated after this stinker. This match was just a typical squash and thus, it strains to even be called average. Someone backstage compensated for the lack of a quality match as Dean came out before hand with twenty cheeseburgers. He said Houston, TX was ranked the fattest city in America, which is pathetic in itself, and he has exhibit A: the plate of double cheeseburgers. He says he likes them and it's all right to eat one; but when you eat twenty in one sitting, that's when you became fat and pathetic. Now, I have seen some fat people miracles before like stuffing 3 large pizza slices in a mouth and still having room to chew, but in all honesty, I have never seen nor heard of anyone ever eating twenty double cheeseburgers in one single sitting. That must be a guy with a Superman style stomach right there. He then says that if Lashley beats him, he will eat every last cheeseburger. Again, it looks like WWE is compensating for the lack of a match. The match itself had good points like Lashley's counter of the headlock and especially Dean throwing a burger at the ref to distract him so he can whack Lashley with the tray. Had the match gone on longer and been a bit less one-sided (like Lashley actually selling some things from Dean), it would have been miles better. Alas, it did not. Finish came when Lashley lifted Dean straight up from the ground by the legs into the Dominator position. It botched; horribly I might add, but he got him up and hit it to win the match.
Winner: Bobby Lashley
Star Wrestler: Simon Dean
God, this put me in a bad mood. Dean, however, was trying to make it passable and had he not been in it, I wonder how worse it would have been. Dean's facial, selling, heel tricks, and promo before hand were more than enough for Dean to earn this nod over someone who didn't sell, didn't show any interest, and even botched a couple moves.
Steve Romero is with JBL & Jillian Hall and says Raw stars might invade tonight. JBL says you can't invade when you're invited. He then specifically points out HBK and his crew of B-Show stars can come toe off with the wrestling god. Raw is the B-Show? What the hell is JBL smoking? Even more, what was the point of mentioning Raw and building up Raw being invited to No Mercy if Raw doesn't even freaking show? God, that was just idiotic booking right there and worse than a lot of things TNA has done in the past. It was great that they single out Shawn Michaels since he is rumored to be the captain of Team Raw at Survivor Series, but again, having no Raw stars on No Mercy or any mention on Raw the next night totally kills the angle. Anyway, JBL puts down Rey who then shows up and starts cutting a promo on JBL in Spanish. I barely speak English well, so naturally, I only understood the funny sounding words, but only for comedic effect. JBL then yells that this is America and he needs to speak in English. God, he would have been such a better heel had he said American instead of English. Rey says he will and says he got a present for JBL. It's one of those foam toy masks of Rey because after Rey beats JBL, JBL will need it to hide from the embarrassment. JBL won't take it; so naturally, who does he give it too? Jillian, fulfilling her only purpose in the whole segment. Despite the predictable ending, it was still a good segment.
WWE United States Championship
Fatal Four-Way
Chris Benoit (c) Vs. Orlando Jordan Vs. Booker T Vs. Christian
For some reason, Sharmell comes out first and to her own music. Jeez, no one cares about you! She then introduces her own husband from Houston, TX. The crowd pops pretty sad for Booker T considering he is in his hometown. Is that a sign that even the fans know that Booker isn't trying anymore? Benoit gets the biggest pop coming out of all the four, which should be a natural assumption, but again, it's Booker's hometown! Anyway, the match was all right. For a four way and the talent of three of the workers and the recent strides Jordan has made, you would have expected so much more. The match really just seemed like a spot-fest, with no real meaning behind anything they did; kind of like WWE's answer to TNA's recent exposure. Naturally, all the fans then popped for it since it was just flashy move after flashy move. What I really love is how a lot of TNA haters liked the match when this is the exact same kind of match TNA produces weekly. Could it be a sign of just conforming to your friend's belief? Who knows! The match was basically one on one while the two others recovered. That kind of style really only works in Triple Threats, not Fatal Four-Ways; however, if they wanted to go that road, they should have kept it Benoit-Booker for a longer period of time because when those two went at it, you could see the chemistry and even the crowd was getting more into it. By the mid-point of the match, it just started to get insanely repetitive and I was severely bored out of my mind. Even though Booker-Benoit had the best points of the match, the real story was Christian-Benoit which was actually kind of smart considering the story that Christian had a win over Benoit in the past few weeks. Towards the end, it was just these two going at it and trying to put the other one away while Booker and Jordan kept running in to break up the attempts. Finally, Benoit locked in the Sharpshooter on Christian and he tapped out.
Winner: Chris Benoit
Star Wrestler: Chris Benoit
Benoit was on his usual workrate level in this match and had he not been in this match, the match would have turned into a total spot-fest. I loved how Benoit was able to master the psychology of the Four Way by going after a weak link (Christian). Even more, it was golden that whenever he was interrupted by Booker or Jordan, he would take care of them and then go right back to what he was doing on Christian. It showed intelligence, attention to detail, and overall gave the mediocre match a good finish. Benoit was a living legend as normal.
Sharmell then shrieks at Booker T saying Benoit is not his friend because he made him lose. Sharmell's screaming voice is way more piercing than Stephanie McMahon's ever was. If you were watching WWE in 2001 when Stephanie was on every week for the Invasion, you know just what I speak of. I do like that Sharmell is turning Booker heel though because it's making for a pretty good gradual turn.
They then show a commercial for WWE Fanatic which is the greatest stars of the 80s. I didn't even know WWE was still doing that whole PPV series. I haven't seen it advertised since Royal Rumble, I think.
The cameras then reveal Simon Dean backstage scarfing down the burgers. Yes! I was getting worried that they were going to save this for SmackDown! or just not do it at all, but they are doing it. Yes! Lashley is standing above the Dean Machine and making him eat them all. Dean tries to cut a deal because he says he is going to get fat, but Lashley stands stern. Definitely a hilarious segment, but Lashley could have done a bit more. Dean proved why he is a solid addition to WWE.
Ken Kennedy Vs. Hardcore Holly
Kennedy does the usual intro gimmick and he adds a few tidbits about this being his PPV debut. Pretty much what you would expect from him at this point. This was actually a pretty good match, but just had some problems in the end. Holly was great in the opening as he used his power well, which I wanted him too. Kennedy didn't really use his power that much here, but as soon as he got the chance, he used basic heel tactics to get the advantage. He suckered Holly in with some cowardice and hit a gut shot. He then sent Holly to the outside and wraps up the arm/shoulder around the steel post. It wasn't that good of a choice to focus on considering his move-set and finisher, but he did use it well and was able to modify his move-set. As much as I wanted to see power vs. power, I think this was a more effective way of getting Kennedy over as a heel and he really did control the match well. Surprisingly enough, Holly sold for a rookie in the WWE too! Holly was great in the beginning, but towards the end, the psychology started to fall apart because of Holly. It was weird though. At times, he would sell the arm work majestically like falling on it after being clotheslined, but other times, he would use his arm to lift Kennedy right up and then act like his arm never hurt. It didn't make any sense whatsoever. In the end, Kennedy hit his top rope Inverted Samoan Drop and the way he hit it, it looked like he hit the arm to sell the work some more which was good. Kennedy then naturally picked up the win and he had his first PPV win under his hat.
Winner: Ken Kennedy
Star Wrestler: Ken Kennedy
From the start, it looked like Holly was going to get this nod, but his selling fell completely to shit in the last few minutes of the match. Kennedy was able to modify his move-set to include the arm and only stopped working the arm after Holly stopped selling it and by that point, Kennedy was just hitting last-resort moves so it made some sense. It was a good match; not as good as it started or as I expected, but still good and I believe it to be because of Mr. Kennedy.
After the match, Holly starts to sell the arm, though the announcers are saying ribs. Which is it? I know the top rope move focuses on the ribs somewhat, but the way Holly landed and sold it afterwards, it looks like the arm to me. Even more, it made no sense to have Holly try and act all tough like he didn't need help, but then demanding help. Sylvan then came out to make the segment worse and attacked Holly and hit his suplex/DDT variation to injure Holly's ribs more. Ribs or arm. Pick one, WWE; please pick one. God, what a drawn out and completely pointless segment this was; it really only took heat away from Kennedy's PPV debut in the end.
They are backstage again with Dean and Lashley. Lashley says there are a lot of burgers, but they are all Dean's. This is great! Dean then continues to eat, but then pulls out a huge hair out of the burger. Nasty! Dean sells it like death of course in this hilarious segment.
Booker and Sharmell are then arguing about Booker's loss, but Kennedy interrupts to brag about his PPV win. Kennedy does his announcing stint talking about his win and then calls Booker T a loser in Kennedy's drawn out way of speaking. Booker tries to go after Kennedy who runs away, but Sharmell stops him and says the problem is Booker, not Benoit or Kennedy. This was another good segment which is really helping to sell Booker's gradual turn. I can't wait for the Benoit-Booker feud you know is coming up.
John Bradshaw Layfield Vs. Rey Mysterio
For some odd reason, Cole & Tazz started to plug Taboo Tuesday while Rey Mysterio made his entrance. Since when does SmackDown! plug Raw PPVs and when has Raw ever plugged a SmackDown! PPV? Anyway, this match was good, but had some holes you can't overlook in JBL's offense. He started off by grounding him intelligently with a headlock and each time Rey tried to whip JBL out of it, JBL held on. That made a ton of sense. JBL is a full foot taller than Rey and outweighs him by at least 150 pounds. JBL's psychology from here just jumped all around the chart. JBL caught it big by tripping up Rey on the steel steps causing Rey to fall straight on his head. JBL starts to work on Rey with some punches, but then moves to Rey's back. Why? Pick one. It would make so much more sense to hit a lot of moves on the head after Rey takes a huge dive on the steps. It would be like me wailing on your head with a chair and then going, "Hmm, maybe I should attack your leg now!" To his credit though, JBL finally did hit it big with the back, but most of JBL's high power offense focuses on the head/neck like the powerbomb and the clothesline from Hell, so why not stick to that? Rey's psychology was great here as he made JBL a sitting duck by making JBL chase him in the early part of the match and then targeting JBL's legs to knock out the height. The match was still really good, but a lot of things just weren't believable or made no sense such as Rey "brawling" with JBL, JBL forgetting about the head, and JBL no-selling the legs in the beginning. Back from ranting though, the finish was great. JBL went for the clothesline, but Rey ducked out and hit a dropkick to JBL sending him into 619 position. Rey nailed it and then went for the West Coast Pop. JBL ducked out of it and bounced off the ropes to nail Rey with a vicious Clothesline From Hell and he picked up the win. As much as Rey needed this win, JBL did too. JBL is already losing heat fast being in the mid-card, but a loss to Rey would have been the nail in the coffin. I don't know. It seemed like whoever lost this match just had no more heat or momentum, so of course, WWE went for the bigger guy to get the win. Still a good to great match though.
Winner: John Bradshaw Layfield
Star Wrestler: Rey Mysterio
Once JBL picked a body part finally, he was good and the ending showed some good selling and offense by him; however, JBL still completely killed all the leg working Rey did by just getting up and running around and the fact that he completely ignored the head was something I can't overlook. Rey was great here though as he always is in "David-Goliath" matches. The only thing Rey did that bothered me was him trying to brawl with JBL. With the height difference and the lack of punch in his punches, it was just laughable at best. Rey working the leg was great though and proved why he is one of the top ten workers in WWE this year. His selling was on par too and I love it when Rey takes sick bumps like that step bump. It wasn't as good as the stretcher spot from 2003 or the brainbuster onto the steps earlier this year, but Rey's bumps are just off the wall all the time and always add a bit more to feuds and matches.
For some reason, they show a commercial for Raw on Monday thus proving that SmackDown!'s only job is to promote Raw and make it look better. They then show the build-up for the casket match and after the long entrance by Taker, we go into it.
Handicap Casket Match
Undertaker Vs. Bob & Randy Orton
Man, Taker's pop was huge, but he is from Houston, TX so why wouldn't it be? Anyway, what a great match this was! I am dead serious. This easily has to be the second best casket match in WWE history. In all honesty, that's not much of an accomplishment considering a lot of WWE casket matches were just crap like the ones with Yokozuna and Kama. However, this one was still great and was almost as good as Taker-HBK from Royal Rumble 1998. I hated the announcers putting over that this was the first ever handicap casket match. That just shows pure ignorance on WWE's part. Sure, no one remembers Mideon & Viscera beating Triple H in one on SmackDown! in 1999, but it's WWE's job to get the facts straight! There weren't many problems or spots I had with this match at all except for Bob Orton trying to pin Taker, but I don't think I've seen one casket match where a confusion spot like that hasn't happened. The match was really well booked and I loved how Taker would throw out Bob or put him in the casket and then focus on Randy. It was basically back and forth with Taker in control while Bob was recovering and the Ortons in control when Bob came back. About half-way through the match, Taker was getting dangerously close to winning as he used a chair to knock Orton into the casket. Bob wouldn't go in though, so as they fought on the apron, Taker locked in a Triangle Choke to wear him down. A lot (and I do mean a lot) of people criticized this spot because submissions and rest holds aren't really something you should have in specialty matches like casket and buried alive matches. I think it was great though. It's not like Taker did it for no reason nor did he do it ten feet away from the casket. Taker and Bob were literally fighting right over the casket and Taker couldn't get him in, so it makes perfect sense to me to choke out your opponent so he will fall in. Randy got out of it after Taker choked out Bob and the match went on. I really love what they did with Bob in this match because while he used to be a great worker, he barely has anything left in the tank now. Having him run in and out of the match was great and put a lot more focus on Randy-Taker like they should have. Finish came when Taker finally went to roll Randy into the casket, he opened it and Bob was there with a fire extinguisher he had grabbed earlier. He used it on Taker and Taker was blinded. Bob tries to roll Taker in, but can't until Randy bounces off the ropes to take himself and Taker into the casket. Bob closes it and thinks he won, but the refs say Randy needs to be out! Taker and Randy finally come out brawling and as Bob distracts Taker, Randy grabs a chair near the ring and wails Taker with it and locks him in thus winning the match. Phew. The ending was pure electric and you know everyone in the ring forgot about Bob having the fire extinguisher in the casket as well as that chair being right next to the casket. It was a great match and definitely a contender for match of the year.
Winners: Bob & Randy Orton
Star Wrestler: Undertaker
Jesus Christ, this was a great match. Taker proved that he is still one of the best ever in this match though with his strategy, offense, selling, and psychology. Perfect example would be him choking out Bob to get him into the casket. It may have lowered the pace of the match, but for the spot it was at, it was definitely strategically best. Taker is my favorite ever and matches like this prove why and show that he can still go at a moment's notice.
After the match, the Ortons set fire to the casket just like Kane did to Taker in 1998; very predictable and trite. I would have much rather seen the Ortons do something like run the casket over with a truck or something to the point of destroying the casket. The crowd was into it though as they went dead silent. Afterwards, they opened the casket and naturally, Taker wasn't in there! I loved Orton whacking the casket with an axe before lighting it on fire. I really would have liked them to destroy the casket rather than set it on fire similar to the effect of Survivor Series 2000 or the New World Order running over Rock's ambulance.
A Wrestlemania commercial comes on next and the announcers follow it by selling the end of the casket match some more. If it is one thing WWE commentators do well, it is sell emotional finishes like that well. Remember JR selling the finish to the Edge-Hardy street fight?
WWE Cruiserweight Championship
Nunzio (c) Vs. Juventud
This match was all right, but like the four way, it was too much of a spot-fest for my taste. To me, it just seems like Juvi hasn't adjusted to the WWE style yet and I don't think he ever will. WWE has a slow paced style that has moments of fast paced, not the other way around. It seemed like there was confusion in this match too as which to do because Nunzio tried to work the back of Juvi, but Juvi just seemed to get out of that point of the match rather quickly. It could be that this match had it's time cut before they went on, and Juvi-Nunzio wanted to keep in all their spots. That would actually make sense because matches right before the main event normally always get time cut or added to compensate for the rest of the card going over or under their time. To Juvi's credit, the crowd was amazingly behind him; then again, when hasn't a crowd marked for high spots? Match was just lacking a lot of stuff, to be honest. For instance, we had Big Vito and the Mexicools on the outside and they never once fought. How much would that have added to the match especially while Nunzio tied Juvi up in a rest hold? The crowd was virtually dead for most of the match because of how hot they were for the match before it, so why not add a bit more to get the crowd riled up? Anyway, finish came when Juvi launched a huge offense topped with the Juvi Driver for the win.
Winner: Juventud
Star Wrestler: Nunzio
I may come off like I don't like Juvi, but you're wrong. I really enjoy Juvi in WCW and smaller promotions like IWA and WWC, but I just don't think Juvi fits well in WWE. With the pace of the matches and the style of stuff they do, it's just not something Juvi is best at. I could be wrong, but I don't think he will ever adapt to the WWE style. A lot of people out there are rolling their eyes, but every promotion has its own style and if you can't conform to that style even somewhat, that's your fault, not the promotion. It's just like Samoa Joe standing out in the X Division because he's not that style. Nunzio was good as always in this match though. He was trying to ground the effervescent Juvi to the mat and tried to incorporate some psychology. A lot of people are usually sluggish when they lose the belt as well, like when London lost to Nunzio, but Nunzio was just on top of his game here as always.
The Spanish commentator (I think Hugo) then interviewed the Mexicools in Spanish and just like the Rey promo earlier; I kept my ear open for the funny sounding words, but not much else.
We then see Dean backstage taking his last bite. He says he is a man of his word and he ate all twenty. Lashley then chuckles and says not quite as he has one more (probably that one Dean chucked at the ref). Dean begs him no, but Lashley doesn't budge. Dean then tries to take a bite, but runs out and puke as Lashley watches on. It was another good segment, but by this point, it was overkill. Come to think of it, there were way too many backstage segments tonight on No Mercy and a lot of them didn't need to happen. The Eddie-Batista one was utterly pointless as well as the Sylvan-Holly fight. The rest of the segments were still good, but having them just took focus away from the in-ring work which should be the focus of every PPV. For instance, Dean-Lashley had three backstage segments over the cheeseburgers. You could have easily thrown out the second one and merged it with the third one. The only that happened out of the norm in the second one was Dean pulling out a hair, and how hard would have been to have that triggering Dean's vomit spiel? The answer is not very for those of less intellectual prowess than me. God damn, sarcasm is ridiculously wasted on print.
They then show the Batista-Guerrero build-up and we go right to the main event.
WWE World Heavyweight Championship
Batista (c) Vs. Eddie Guerrero
This was a great match and another match of the year contender. I would rank this one better than the casket match earlier and as much as I love Taker, I have to admit I'm glad this one was better. It's time the main event of the night starts being the best match of the night again. Eddie was on fire tonight with everything he did and it was literally like a better version of the Rey-JBL match from earlier with Eddie flying around the ring and using his agility to his advantage. Batista was great in this match too like controlling the beginning of the match with just simple headlocks that worked so well. All through the match, Eddie kept going for the chair and other cheating ways, but then he would look confused and then put it down and go about wrestling as a face. He even used this to get the advantage on Batista and start to work his back. Eddie in control of the match was golden too as he was able to work the back and other parts of the body and have it make sense. In regard to JBL doing it earlier, he kind of tried to work the head and back with his offense (ending with the clothesline), but he failed because his holds only focused on the back. Eddie was able to take every opening and incorporate into his back working on Batista. For instance, Eddie would hit a dropkick to the jaw to knock Batista, but then he would lock in a body scissors to work the body as well as a rear chin lock to work the body part he just hit. It was pure gold. As much as I love Eddie in 2005, I really don't think you have to explain why he's one of the best, if not the best, workers in the world right now. When he does stuff like that, arguments and debates just dissolve away. Even more, most wrestlers will ditch their psychology once their opponent stops selling it, but Eddie kept going after it with the Three Amigos and the pin attempts that would have torqued Batista's back more. God, this was a great match. The finish came when Batista ducked out of the Frog Splash and got the Spinebuster onto Eddie for the win. That didn't sit too well with me because it seemed a bit to anti-climatic to just have all that action and then one move take out Eddie. I think Batista should have definitely followed that up with the Batista Bomb, but then again, having him win with just a Spinebuster plays to Batista's power (his biggest asset) more. I was truly torn on the ending to the match, but whether it was bad or good, it doesn't do anything to change the fact that this match was spectacular.
Winner: Batista
Star Wrestler: Eddie Guerrero
Eddie Guerrero carried Batista to a match of the year contender and easily Batista's best match ever. His psychology was firing on all cylinders and he was able to incorporate that with the storyline of being a changed man. Eddie is gold right now and I understand why he didn't win the title tonight. If he doesn't win it at Survivor Series, WWE will be missing the boat on the best thing they have in their promotion today. Eddie definitely rules. No doubt about it in this reviewer's mind.
After the match, Eddie extends his hand to Batista and they shake leaving the storyline of being "friends" and Eddie being a changed man still out there, which is exactly what WWE should do. Lately, I'm enjoying WWE a bit more for the fact that they are putting a lot more faith into their storylines and giving them time to grow as opposed to the "two matches, then quit" philosophy they often use.
Overall, No Mercy was a good PPV to me. It really only had one bad match in the Lashley-Dean match, but to it's defense, it was just a squash. At the end of the night, the only thing that hurt the PPV was the influx of segment after segment which just dragged down the card and took attention away from the in-ring action. Well, another thing that hurt it was the absence of the Raw invasion that was hinted at in every facet from Homecoming to SmackDown! to JBL's promo, but by the end of the night, you really forget about it with the great two matches towards the end. Matches like Eddie-Batista and the casket match definitely solidified the night as worth my money though, and without those two matches, obviously this PPV would have been a lot worse as it would have had an average six-man, two good matches with some blatant holes, a bad squash, and two spot-fests. However, in the end, I enjoyed the PPV despite its problems and I felt like I got my money's worth. Isn't that all that matters? Well, that's going to be it for this edition, late one at that, of "Squared Circle Reviews," so this is Doug Nunnally signing off and hoping you enjoy what you watch.
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