Before I start, I yet again have some things to address. I will keep this short though; I promise!
First off, I would like to inform all you about the 2005 Triad Top 50 Columnists contest or interactive session (whichever you would like to call it) again. Basically, we are rating the best columnists of 2005. How hard is that? You like a columnist, you vote them high; you don't like a columnist, you vote them low. We need some more participation, people, and to be honest, I would really like it if we got them from readers. You are the ones we columnists (yes, I am one though this is a review...my head hurts too) write for, so really, why not voice your opinion and show who you truly think the best columnist of the year is? Linda Robin, The Butcher, David Long, Mike Steele, Jonathan Brown, et cetera. They are all being voted on so get off your hump and do something constructive. If you want to vote or just find more information about the session/contest, simply click here.
Second and finally, I'd like to just say that this is the 50th edition of "Squared Circle Reviews." I've been reviewing since 2003 (wrestling that is), but I really only picked up this year. I honestly hope to reach 100 in way less time than it took me to hit 50 so we will see how that turns out. I don't really want to go into this long spiel about how I got into reviewing, what it means to me, and all that crap that is normally saved for this occasion. What do I want to do? I want to review Survivor Series and do what you came here to read. Hopefully you will enjoy it, but knowing how much my hope means these days, let's just hope you don't vomit at my words. Here goes nothing:
The "Power Is Back" video plays and I find myself wondering about this PPV and how it is really WWE's chance to prove that new mantra they have adopted. Then again, with the passing of Eddie Guerrero and the loss of television for a week (not complaining, just stating), I really question the quality of tonight's PPV. Anyway, after that video, we get treated to another video talking about survival while showing clips of the Raw/SmackDown! feud over the past month or whatever. From there, they talk about survival in the Cena/Angle and Triple H/Flair feud as well and also make mention of Undertaker's return, which should have been in a damn match. Anyway, the video ends, the fireworks go off, the announcers do their normal hype, and the 19th annual Survivor Series is underway.
WWE United States Championship
Best Of Seven Series: Match One
Booker T Vs. Chris Benoit
This series is one of those things that I am virtually split on. On one hand, it's nice for WWE to finally do something more with Chris Benoit and Booker T besides giving them pointless reigns and filler matches. On the other hand, WWE should have taken this opportunity to push Benoit to the top and maybe give him a title reign in tribute to his best friend. I don't even think I need to remind you of the cliche nature of the series: we saw one last year with Cena and Booker T as well as the two current wrestlers doing it back in WCW. Then again, wrestling is probably 75% cliche, so is it really something to nitpick? This was just a lackluster match with very few good things in it and definitely not on par with the past two these two have had in recent memory. I have a bad feeling that that's what I'm going to be saying about each and every match in this series: "not on par with the past matches." Even more, I don't think anyone has realized that by the end of the series, these two will have wrestled nine times since November. With Booker T's predictability and the way WWE books things, I suspect by the end of the series, I will be dying of boredom.
Back onto the match, it started well with some nice stand-offs followed by a good mat wrestling spot which I didn't really expect to see from Booker T. Say what you want about Booker T, but he's no Bret Hart in terms of technical wrestling. From there, the match just got worse and really just kind of dragged. Benoit was super-over, but even the crowd was losing interest in him and the match by half-way. I think it was really the fact they were doing so many holds, but not really focusing on the body parts. Also, they were just generally working a very slow style which should not be done in PPV opening matches. As the match progressed, I felt a little more disgusted with the three sloppy German Suplexes that Benoit gave Booker and cringed at the last one which is the first time I think I've cringed at a Benoit German since 2001. From there, it got predictable, it got stale, and it finished. Thank God. There were some things I liked though like the opening as well as the tease of the double shoulders pinning attempts. It was good to keep people on their toes with Friday's match in mind, but I really don't think people cared enough to pay attention. In the end, Benoit missed the Diving Headbutt which Booker T capitalized on. He covered Benoit with his legs on the rope and Sharmell holding on for the win. With that, the first match of the series was over leaving a lot of fans with bad tastes in their mouths and bad feeling about the direction these two are going in.
Winner: Booker T
Star Wrestler: Chris Benoit
Benoit wasn't that great in this match, but I really am going to place the brunt of the blame onto Booker T. When the match was getting bad and losing steam, Booker was in control. Yes, he was just controlling Benoit with basic holds, but he was the one in control. All Benoit could really do was sell and gyrate his hips like he was in pain but ready to pounce (and not in that way, you pervect [if you get the joke right there, e-mail me and I'll give you a prize]). What more could you really ask from Benoit in that situation? Had Booker T handled Benoit better during the middle of the match, the finish might have gotten more meaning and he wouldn't have lost the support from the crowd that was so heavily Benoit. If you can't get the crowd booing at you against Chris Benoit, there is obviously something wrong. For that reason alone, Benoit will get this nod.
After a drawn-out Benoit-Booker stare-off and recap, we see Bischoff practicing his karate backstage before Vince McMahon strolls in. Vince says he just wished Teddy some good luck and he is wishing him some good luck too. Vince then asks Eric how he feels to which Eric replies by saying he feels great. Eric then starts to act like a desperate crack addict who hit the mother lode as he describes how he will be victorious on all three counts tonight: screwing over Cena, beating Long, and beating SmackDown! He then says that Vince knows better than anyone that Survivor Series is the place to make history because of Bret Hart. He then says it was so 90s, but he will bring them up to date as he will screw Cena out of the title tonight. Bischoff then starts chanting, "You screwed Cena," which I'm sure he must mutter in his sleep, and John Cena pops up. At this point, the segment has already gone on long enough, but why not tack on another five minutes and let me steal away to the bathroom?
Cena then makes a joke about Bischoff screwing guys and saying that's cool for Bischoff, and naturally, Bischoff leaves in a huff. Cena and McMahon then share a very rare ghetto moment which is surprising because Vince McMahon is probably as ghetto as I am Asian. He ends it by uttering one of the dumbest words a white person can say these days. You know which word it is; I don't need to repeat it. All I have to say is that the strut that accompanied the word should quell all racist questions because that just confirms it was a joke. Was it a bad joke? Hell, yes; it's Vince McMahon! But it's still a joke and get over it. If you're offended by it, maybe you should write a letter to record companies telling their artists to cut it out too. It's a two-way street; not one. After that comment and nice little birthday strut, McMahon passes Booker T who looks like someone told him he's never touching main event gold again as he simply asks someone to tell him that McMahon didn't say that. Reasonable request? Of course, but in reality, it's not going to happen, Book. With that, the segment ends with only 2 hours to spare. Wow; McMahon must be in a good mood tonight!
WWE Women's Championship
Trish Stratus (c) Vs. Melina
It's official, people. Trish Stratus sucks. Now, I know what you're thinking, "Trish is one of the few women in WWE who can work a good match." If you had said that this time last year, I would have agreed. Since she came back though? Hell, no. Trish Stratus solidified her place last year as one of the best female American workers ever (I'm not even about to touch Joshi), but since she came back this year, she has been off. Her matches with Victoria have all been the same as well as her exchanges with the psycho worker in tag matches and battle royals. She's doing the same spots over and over and what she doesn't do repeatedly, she botches. A friend of mine called this one of the most botched matches of the year, and I'd have to be inclined to agree. It's not really that they botched every move too, more that the way they connected or hit was horribly awkward. For instance, the first move of the match was Stratus flying onto MNM on the outside, but from my point of view, it didn't even look like Melina was hit and Mercury looked embarrassingly unprotected. Sadly, that pattern continued. I had such high expectations going into this match considering how good the Christy-Melina match was on Friday, and to be honest, Melina played her part well. I didn't really appreciate the screaming she gave us (neither did my eardrums), but her workrate spoke for itself and really, what can you do to make a woman look better when most of her spots call her to dispel reality for five seconds as she bends down in the most scripted fashion? Considering some of the stinkers we have gotten this year from the Women's division, this wasn't that bad, but for the quality of each involved (or quality Trish used to be), it was horrible and a definitive let-down by my standards. I truly have a bad taste in mouth after this match and I can't wait for Melina to come over to Raw, injure Trish, take the title, and feud with Victoria and Mickie and have some decent matches. To finish off this let-down, Trish Stratus hit a bull-dog off the top rope that barely connected for the win.
Winner: Trish Stratus
Star Wrestler: Melina
As I said, Trish isn't what she was in 2004 or earlier this year. The Trish earlier this year could carry Christy, who at the time was hardly trained, to a better match than this. Now, Trish needs to be carried. Maybe Trish needs to spend more time in OVW, maybe she didn't get a chance to work off the ring-rust, maybe she's developing what I call "Triple H circa 2002 disease;" whatever it is, Trish is horrible right now and I've been giving her the benefit of the doubt for about two months now. Not anymore; she is not the female worker I went out of my way to watch in 2004 and I hope she gets back to that level soon. Meanwhile, if Melina starts having some more matches and works with some good workers, I feel she could get to that level and surpass it. I've already heard good things about Melina's stint in OVW and her work recently has only confirmed. Please, WWE. Trade Trish and Melina and give Melina the strap. When Trish is through with the H disease, you can bring her back, but until then, give us fans some good matches.
A commercial is then shown for the Jake Roberts DVD being shown on WWE Fanatic. That DVD conflicts so much with everything else Roberts has said in the past that I really have trouble believing him. The guy may be one of the best talkers of the 80s and one of the best ring generals of all time, but at this point, the guy is a joke and makes me feel depressed when I see him. I don't want to see that; no one does.
The Raw announce team then hype up the arena and show some local sports player. Like I pay attention to sports, ha! They then show Triple H staring intensely away from the camera and taping up his wrists. The video package for the Last Man Standing match is then shown, basically going over their cage match at Taboo Tuesday which may just be one of the best cage matches ever. I honestly can not think of many that top it and only a few that match it.
Last Man Standing
Triple H Vs. Ric Flair
This was just another let-down. The first part of the match was a complete drag brought only up by the look of butchered pig Ric Flair had. Then again, when does Ric Flair not bleed and not look like that? The beginning was completely predictable with the table spot, screwdriver, et cetera. There was really nothing much to talk about; I felt like the match had been done before until I deduced that Triple H was basically working the match like every other stipulation match he has had in the past. I saw shades of his HIAC match with Nash, his unsanctioned match with Michaels, his HIAC match with Batista, et cetera. To a new fan, this would have been gold; to a guy who has seen a lot like me, it seemed predictable, trite, and sluggish. By my count, this would be the third let down of the night. Now, by mid-match when Ric Flair took over, the match started to pick up and I enjoyed the continued crotch chops, grabs, and shots. It was true desperation and a great story-telling method by one of the best ever. Sadly, they didn't capitalize on the moment of good workrate. Flair started to work over Triple H's legs, which was also a great spot, but came about ten minutes too late in the match. Had one of them begun working the other's legs earlier on, by this point in the match, you could have had so much emotion, so much pain, and a great story playing out on live pay-per-view. As it was, it just looked out of place. The finish was also good, but at first started to piss me off. It seemed anti-climatic until I saw Flair flip off Triple H. That image of the surly veteran looking down on the guy trying to take his spot was the highlight of the match and reminded me of a Tenryu-KENTA match I saw from Pro Wrestling NOAH earlier this year. Surly old men rock; that's something you can take to the bank. When Triple H busted out the sledgehammer, the ending picked up a lot, but still not enough to save the match from being a total let-down based on their previous match and the fact that it's Ric Flair. I've heard a lot of people praising the match and I really have to ask why. Nothing they did was original by a long shot, nothing they did had the crowd's support during the rest areas, nothing they did prepared for Flair's comeback, and I can really go on and on. The only real thing they did well was set-up for the surly finger shot at the end, which I will admit was golden. Other than that, I am not enjoying this PPV at all so far.
Winner: Triple H
Star Wrestler: Ric Flair
Without the surly veteran, crotch grabs, and leg work, this match would have made me fallen asleep. Now who did all three of those things? Ric Flair? Oh, is that why he got the star wrestler nod? Hmm, I wonder. Triple H really was just bland in this match and wasn't performing at nearly the workrate he was at Taboo Tuesday. This match was such a total let-down and I blame it mostly on Triple H and the fact that he thought it would be a good idea to bring up all his old stipulation match trademarks right down to even bringing a "Home Improvement" feel to what should have been a serious match. I know I'm nitpicking, I know I'm bitching; I just can't stand how badly this match went when it should have been an easy contender for match of the year. God, what a buzz kill if you can call getting let down for the first hour a buzz.
They then show a commercial for the Bret Hart DVD which would probably be the only thing that could pick me up right about now. Too bad I don't have it. Too bad I don't have the money to get it. Too bad I know I won't get it for Christmas. Man, this PPV is making me depressed. God damn you, WWE.
We then go backstage to Team SD with Orton basically talking about how he should be champ, how Batista is a weak link, et cetera. JBL played such a kiss-ass in this segment, it made me sick. JBL is the guy who has kiss assess like Jordan around him, not the other way around! While Rey tries to speak up against Orton, Orton continues on his spiel until Batista strolls in and JBL sings a different tune. Batista says that there can only be one leader out there and as World Champ, it should be him. Rey Mysterio agrees, but JBL has a tantrum saying it should be him until Batista confronts him. JBL then falls in line as well as Lashley, who hasn't done anything the whole segment except stand there which could be a hard job for all I know. Orton finally reluctantly agrees and the segment ends. What the hell was the purpose of it? Dissension is not really something I want to go with especially considering the kiss-ass role JBL was playing only to then throw a tantrum that he should be the leader. The segment just made no sense to me and wasted some more time.
For some reason, Edge's music hit next and the injured star made his way out with Lita along with, of course, the briefcase! He gets in the ring with a mike and says that you're going to have wait for the WWE title to be defended because he has some big news. He is going to debut his new show soon: the Cutting Edge. No fluff, no palm trees, nothing but a live mike, and Edge! Goody! He says it scares people because he tells the truth, he's going to ask the questions no one else will; he is going to cut straight to the bone. Well, while you're down there, can you ask why Kurt Angle is paired with Daivari? I'm still kind of wondering that one myself. Edge then says something to Lita to which the crowd chants, "Slut." He says they're jealous because she's his (yeah, that must be it), but she reminded him that we have a guest in the house: that sports star from earlier, Dmitri Young! Edge then plays the normal "insult the home town" gimmick to get some heat, but I find it great that Edge brings steroids up to insult them. Isn't Edge the one whose ex-wife blew the whistle on that? Isn't Edge the one who has gained like 50% muscle mass since 1999? I'm really not judging because it is Edge's choice and he is probably using a legal alternative, but it's really not something he should be bringing up in a war of words. Edge then goes on to insult baseball, to which I have to agree. As my good friend Cole Cash said, "People play baseball; no one plays wrestling." Edge goes on to turn the tables on Detroit to insult the town itself and find it the root of its problems in baseball, basketball, and football. Go right ahead, Edge. I'm with you.
After his little tirade, Lita makes note, in a horrible fashion mind you, that the baseball player has something to say. The Cutting Edge is an equal opportunity show so he asks "Mark Henry" what he's got to say. Lita than goes out with the mike to him and Dmitri says they have something in common: he hits balls, Edge has no balls. That's not really anything in common, but I'll let it go seeing as you enjoy a pastime, not a sport. Lita freaks out saying she can vouch for Edge's bullpen, but Dmitri takes the stick back and goes on to talk about the championships the Lions, Pistons, and Red Wings have all earned. He then asks where Edge's world title is. As Joey Styles put it, touche. Edge then grabs Lita and says they are leaving like Ford and GM and they head out with the crowd booing them and Dmitri Young waving them good-bye. This was a pretty good segment, but it really didn't end on a good note. Kind of made Edge look weak. If Edge walks away from Dmitri Young, why would he even get in the ring? Regardless of all this, I can't wait for the Cutting Edge to debut because it's a great way to get over Edge while he's injured, which is exactly what Edge needs.
The video package for the WWE Championship match is then shown. It goes over the Angle-Cena feud and the addition of Daivari to the mix. I really have no problem with Angle having his own personal ref; if anything, I think it's a great idea. The problem is that Kurt Angle has an American hero style gimmick; how does that fit in with Daivari? Daivari then makes his way out followed by Kurt Angle. Yes, the chants were still bleeped out which may just be the most annoying thing in pro wrestling today; even more annoying than Monty Brown.
WWE Championship
John Cena (c) Vs. Kurt Angle
Special Guest Referee: Daivari
This was really not as bad as I thought it would be, but I would still give it about an average rating. The beginning was really good I thought because Angle went right for the leg. Why was that good? In most matches, Angle shows incredible stupidity going for the ankle after hitting the back repeatedly the whole match. I love Angle, as anyone can attest, but I know when someone f***s up, and when Angle hits the Angle Slam and then grabs the ankle, that's a f*** up. It's got no meaning, no psychology, and overall, is completely retarded after working over the back/neck. Now, in some matches, Angle uses the ankle as a last ditch effort after he can't put the opponent away with any other move. Is that a problem? No. It's a last resort move and a good one at that. But grabbing the ankle right after you hit the Angle Slam isn't. Anyway, Cena was also somewhat good in the beginning of the match but he quickly fell apart. This is Cena I'm talking about so I really don't see the need to explain my opinion on that matter.
The real problem with the match was that it just went on too long. Had they cut seven minutes out of the match, it would have been so much better and there wouldn't have been so many dragging points and holes in the transitions. That's probably why I liked the beginning so much. I liked the story the match told with Daivari and then Cena taking him out, but towards the end (another reason why it went too long), they were putting too much emphasis on that story instead of the story inside the ring, and that is never a good thing. Two side-notes: WWE needs to do something about the Cena boos and Cena haters need to shut the hell up about them. Yes, there are Cena boos, or rather Angle chants this match. It's a duh that they are evident and distinct. The problem is that Cena haters are making it out like Cena is getting booed no matter what, whilst Cena is still getting pops for winning, pops for coming out, pops for his trademark, et cetera. It is in the transitions of the match that Cena gets booed or his opponent gets cheered. Why? Because that is when Cena's weaknesses are really exposed and only an idiot can overlook them. Now, WWE needs to do something about it because if Cena isn't over, then there is really no reason to have him as champ anymore. So basically: WWE, do something about it; Cena haters, stop blowing it out of proportion. Anyway, like I said, the match went on too long, but I stand by my point that if the match had seven minutes taken away from it (which is kind of hard considering it's a six match show), the match would have improved greatly. To cap it off, Angle took out the third ref of the match and went to revive Daivari. While Daivari recuperated in the ring, a SmackDown! ref came out and Angle went out to tell him to go back. Cena then gave Daivari a DDT to take him out and Angle then hopped in and was met with an FU. The SmackDown! ref, seeing no other conscious ref, then counted the three and Cena walks away with the belt once more.
Winner: John Cena
Star Wrestler: Kurt Angle
John Cena is a horrible wrestler. He was better than he has been in recent memory in this match and I saw him bust out some different wrestling moves and some more facial expressions, so I can't beat him up over that, but he still sucks. The guy is a ghetto Hulk Hogan. He used to be able to work (2003) just like Hogan (pre-1984), but has now gotten into the horrible face genre of doing the same old moves and relying on your mike skills to carry you. Now, when it's 1985, that works because the crowd will believe in it. 2005? Not so much, hence the apprehension towards Cena. Angle was good in this match for once as he actually put some thought into the ankle working, considering that's what the focus of the match was on. In the future, I'd like to see Angle incorporate more mat work into the match to focus on the ankle. I know he can and I know it would help any match that much more. Without it though, Angle still stands out of the star, but really, most people do when going against John Cena.
A promo is then shown for the Tuesday night SmackDown! special which promotes Big Show versus Rey Mysterio in a David versus Goliath match. That worked out well last time in 2003, right?
Teddy Long Vs. Eric Bischoff
My god, this just plain sucked. The crowd was dying during it as well and even when Boogeyman hopped out in the end, they still didn't care! This may be just one of the worst PPV matches of the year and it's a sad thing when the only good thing you can say about a match is the ghetto dance Teddy Long did. This was just utterly pathetic and I just want to forget it. In the end, the Boogeyman hit the Pump Handle Slam on Eric Bischoff and Teddy Long got the win.
Winner: Teddy Long
Star Wrestler: The Audience
You guys aren't wrestlers, but neither are Long and Bischoff. The way I see it: you guys sat through the match, you guys are the true stars.
Michael Cole and Tazz then hype up Armageddon next month and we see Team SmackDown! leave the locker room while the whole roster wishes them good luck and pumps them up. The exact same shot is then shown for Team Raw leaving and the roster wishing them good luck. The video build-up is then shown for the main event and hopefully this one will be good. So far, I am giving Survivor Series a very solid thumbs down, which is the first I have done to a PPV in a long time. Even if this is next match of the year contender, I still think the PPV will get a negative rating from me, but who knows? If it's a five star match, it might pick up, but that's about as likely as monkeys flying out of my ass and giving me a million dollars. A man can dream, can't he? Anyway, after every single wrestler makes his entrance, we go into the match. With ten wrestlers, that basically means about ten minutes worth of entrances. Jeez, great way to kill time, WWE.
Survivor Series Match
Team Raw (Shawn Michaels, Big Show, Kane, Chris Masters, & Carlito) Vs. Team SmackDown! (Batista, Randy Orton, John Bradshaw Layfield, Rey Mysterio, & Lashley)
Like most Survivor Series matches, this match was good. I really can not recall many (less than five) classic elimination matches like this that haven't been good. Regardless, the match was good, but could have been better and hasn't really matched the quality of elimination matches that WWE has given us since 2001. 2001 had a great and heavily anticipated one, 2003 had one of the best elimination matches I've ever seen as well as one that was good (nothing to write home about though), and last year had two which were definitely good to great in quality and good ways to close doors and open new ones in terms of storylines. This one, like I said, was good. It definitely broke the streak WWE has given us in terms of one great elimination match per year, but still nothing really much to complain about. Personally, the match would have been far better if the under-card hadn't bored me in ways I don't even wish to fathom. If you have a solid mid-card, the main event will benefit accordingly in any way possible. If you have a horrible one, anything and everything you do will be overshadowed by the total lack of quality in the match.
Onto the match, I really enjoyed the opening, and unlike other matches that have disappointed me in the middle tonight, the transition in the middle of the match was just as good. It was pretty much what you would expect. They told a story, they had some good spots, and got over all their stars. I think what I loved most about the match was the heel/face correlation between the teams and how each was infiltrated with each. It made for a pretty entertaining match and, to be honest, it was nice to see JBL and Orton almost work as faces against the Raw heels and vice versa. Overall, just a fun match. Best spot would have to be the elimination of Big Show which took 2 clotheslines from hell from JBL, one 619, one RKO, and one springboard senton before Big Show finally laid down for the three count. Definitely got over Big Show in a big way as well as contrasting the team work struggle on SD in the beginning to the team work cohesion towards the end. That had to be another good thing as the teamwork contrast on Team SD was a definite plus in the match and gave some more sense to the weird segment from earlier. In the end, it came down to Orton and Michaels for a pretty disappointing exchange (mostly predictable). JBL hopped in with a chair and tried to lay out Michaels but was met with the Sweet Chin Music for the second time in the match. Orton then capitalized on the moment and hit the RKO for the win to make this the third straight year that he is the sole survivor in the most promoted elimination match. Wonder if Survivor Series will become Orton's PPV like Wrestlemania is Taker's?
Winner: Team SmackDown!
Sole Survivor: Randy Orton
Order Of Elimination: Lashley, Kane, Batista, Big Show, Carlito, Chris Masters, Rey Mysterio, John Bradshaw Layfield, & Shawn Michaels
Star Wrestler: Rey Mysterio
I know I said earlier this year to assume that anytime there is a Shawn Michaels match, he will be the star. Well, this match wasn't really a Shawn Michaels highlight reel match. Michaels wasn't bad in this match, but the fact that he was out for a good portion of the match and the other portion just saw his trademarks doesn't really scream star to me. Rey's work does. He was the only face-in-peril the whole match and made it work which you could tell by the increased amount of audience participation that happened during the match and stayed afterwards. Besides his selling, his offense, forgetting the half-dozen 619s, was great too and what I've come to expect from Rey Mysterio. Rey is a great worker; there's never been any doubt in my mind about it. In this match, his talent was shown perhaps in the best way though simply because of the level of opposition he faced, the quality he was able to get out of them, and the varying styles he worked. Rey Mysterio made this match. Rey Mysterio was the true star.
After the match, the SmackDown! roster all ran out and celebrated with their sole survivor. They lift him onto their shoulders and all looks peachy. Not for long, of course. The gong hit and the druid chanting began as Orton freaked out on top of the shoulders of his colleagues. Actually, the picture of Orton freaking out to get off the shoulders was classic. The druids came out and placed a casket vertically on the ramp way and lightning nailed the casket setting it on fire. From inside the casket, Taker busted his way out and stared down at Orton who looked like he may have just birthed some brown babies in his tights. Taker strolled down, came into the ring, and began to demolish the entire locker room like Regal, Burchill, Spanky, et cetera. Of course, Orton and his dad fled before Taker could get to him and as Survivor Series went off the air, Taker stood tall as Orton contemplated how much it will cost him to replace those stained tights.
In the end, this was an utter disappointment of what normally is one of the best PPVs of the year. Last year, Survivor Series rocked. In 2003, it was one of the only good ones. In 2002, it rocked with surprises and innovation. 2001 was a great culmination. Need I go on? 1999 really seems like the only year that Survivor Series was lackluster and even that was one of the better PPVs of the year. This year though, Survivor Series sucked; plain and simple. Two bad matches, three average matches, and one good match; that doesn't scream PPV of the year to me, sorry. I wish there were good, solid reasons why the PPV was bad, but it really only comes to down to one reason: Eddie Guerrero. Think about it: when Eddie died, WWE lost a step or two. They devoted a week of TV time to Eddie (as they should), but lost the crucial build-up to Survivor Series. They replaced Eddie with Orton and lost one of their bigger matches which was supposed to be the Buried Alive match with Orton and Taker. I could keep going on and on and on, but the fact remains that Eddie's death sent WWE for a spin and this PPV is the clear result. Can you really blame them though? In the end, Survivor Series sucked mainly because of the death of Eddie Guerrero and when I look back at this event in history, that's all I will be thinking about. I won't remember the bad matches, the horrible booking, or the abysmal crowd. I will remember the dark cloud that hung over the arena as WWE scrambled to put on one of the biggest events of the year mere days after the death of a beloved superstar. Do you think WWE could lose Kurt Angle two weeks before Wrestlemania and still have a good PPV? Me either. I don't know a promotion that could.
Well, that's going to wrap it up for this thoroughly depressing edition of "Squared Circle Reviews." This is probably one of the most negative reviews I've written and I apologize, but I got to be truthful and got to say what comes to mind. Why else would you read this? Anyway, I am still behind, but will catch up. Raw is next followed by the SmackDown! special and by the end of this weekend (by the end of the TNA PPV probably), I should be all caught up. That's about it for this time, so ‘till next time, this is "Squared Circle Reviews" signing off and hoping you enjoy what you watch.
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