Dolph Ziggler Has Revived His Career
The RAW Tag Team Champions have been on a huge roll.
San Antonio was the place to be for a better than expected Hell in a Cell pay-per-view. There was drama, surprises and even bloodshed. With a near sellout crowd, the WWE came to impress and continue its buzz from SummerSlam. But did Vinnie Mac and Co. succeed in that goal? Let’s get down to it. Here is the Good, the Bad and the Meh from Hell In A Cell 2018.
Let’s get to the Bad. Because it’s just so bad:
Roman Reigns (c) vs. Braun Strowman inside Hell In A Cell. So the match itself was definitely the weaker HIAC of the night. Even though these two have a long history against each other, this match did not feel like it was the blockbuster feud-ender that the buildup would have led you to believe. It was just a run-of-the-mill, no-holds-barred match, and it would have been the worst match of the main show if it weren’t for all of the surprises and run ins. Seth Rollins, Dean Ambrose, Dolph Ziggler and Drew McIntyre fought all around and on top of the cell. There was a big table bump that was cool. Finally, Brock Lesnar made his surprise return which was incredible and the crowd went nuts. Then came the finish…a no contest inside of Hell in a Cell?! Stop it. That’s just pure, unadulterated B.S. It was somehow made worse by the fact that Lesnar didn’t even do that much to Braun and Roman. Just a few hits with a broken table, some suplexes and an F5 each? What a disappointment! This is the second month in a row we have a WWE pay-per-view rushed off the air to hide the anger of the crowd. And believe me, there was anger. You can still find it on YouTube.
Still no 205 Live representation on the main card. In keeping with my promise, I’ll be criticizing the WWE every month that they don’t put 205 Live on the main card of their PPVs. Give 205 Live a chance!
The Meh was just that. Here’s what I found underwhelming:
Miz and Maryse vs. Daniel Bryan and Brie Bella. San Antonio was a live wire for this match, which certainly helps. The Daniel Bryan and Miz conflict is clearly as fresh and popular as ever. The match itself was a little underwhelming, with some good high spots and some nice drama mixed in. It definitely felt like an act 2 of the main rivalry and not in a bad way. Unfortunately, everyone’s going to remember the match for Brie and Maryse and their Botch-a-Mania-worthy finish, which is why I have to call it Meh.
AJ Styles (c) vs. Samoa Joe. So this may come as a surprise to some, because I’ve obviously loved this feud. If you’ve followed me on Twitter, you’d know I think Samoa Joe is doing some of his best work so far in his WWE career. The man knows how to be a great villain. The intensity level was definitely up from their SummerSlam match – AJ showed his aggressive side and both men took incredible risks. So the match itself was still great, but once again, it comes down to the ending for me. The match ended with the ref making a bad call. Samoa Joe had legitimately tapped out AJ Styles. Except…except without a logical restart to the match or any intervening by Paige. It seems like WWE management just wanted an out and this was the best one it could think of. In a vacuum, this was a good idea, but this is the second match between the two to end in controversy. That’s a shame.
Ronda Rousey (c) vs. Alexa Bliss. Alright, this one was a tough call to make because I think both of these women are stars. Alexa is a great heel and has been one of the best for a few years now. Ronda has exceeded expectations in WWE so far. But I just couldn’t get behind this match. For the first time in a long time, a WWE match felt phony. Alexa is not a believable threat against Ronda. She just simply isn’t. They tried really hard to make it work, but it did not. I’m sorry. Maybe I felt that way because I knew there was no way Ronda would lose this soon into her reign. I’m not sure.
Here’s a hot take for you: the red Hell in a Cell didn’t bother me. I don’t know why people get worked up over things like this. This is a nonissue, which is why it gets a meh from me.
The best of the best. Here are all the Good things:
Charlotte Flair (c) vs. Becky Lynch. This was a classic. Charlotte and Becky tore down the house down. Becky’s new killer instinct was in full force. The crowd was big into this one in spite of the confusing booking. There was great scientific wrestling throughout. Becky and Charlotte just fought hard. The crowd was still clearly behind Becky, although Charlotte had pockets of fans, too. Charlotte is so strong – it catches you off guard at times. The finishing sequence was amazing. Go watch it if you haven’t seen it. The crowd came unglued when Becky, the perennial underdog, finally became Women’s Champion again. It looks as though Becky’s bad attitude is here to stay, which may be the only negative thing to say about an otherwise stellar match.
Randy Orton vs. Jeff Hardy. This is what I missed from a Hell in a Cell match over the years. First, there were no championships involved. There was nothing at stake except a personal issue where two men want to destroy each other. Orton and Hardy had a real issue where Orton wanted to eradicate the beloved daredevil. As a result, Jeff Hardy wanted to destroy the man who threatened to retire him. Simple, yet effective. And inside of the Devil’s playground, these two used everything that wasn’t tied down. It was violent, aggressive and bloody. I believed the drama and enjoyed everything I saw. Jeff Hardy laid it all out there for us and paid for it. Orton may have succeeded in destroying Hardy, if only by accident. It was a good story and one of the better HIAC matches in recent memory.
Dolph Ziggler and Drew McIntyre (c) vs. Dean Ambrose and Seth Rollins. When do we start admitting that Dolph Ziggler has had the greatest career revival we’ve ever seen? This alliance with Drew McIntyre has lit a fire under both men, and their in-ring work has been phenomenal. But they weren’t alone in this match: Seth Rollins (arguably the best wrestler in WWE today) and Dean Ambrose came to show their tag team expertise as well. It was a barn burner from the very beginning. Dolph and Drew had real heat throughout working on Rollins for a good long while. Ambrose was on fire when he got the hot tag – a one-man army at one point. McIntyre was true to his Celtic Colossus nickname, stopping The Shield members at every opportunity. Rollins hit all of his best moves in the name of becoming a Tag Team Champion again. But in the final moments, it was a well-placed Claymore by the Sinister Scotsman that got the W for him and Ziggy. This was the best match of the night.
Overall:
WWE capitalized on the good momentum it had from SummerSlam. However, WWE needs to start considering the effect it has on the casual fans out there every time they book screwy finishes in their championship main events that protect their babyfaces. It definitely isn’t best for business long term. If I can ask the question “is Vince Russo back behind the scenes again,” that’s not good! But I enjoyed the show overall so B+.
Let me know what you think. Follow me on Twitter at @CTGibbon. I’ll be live-tweeting WWE Super Show-Down in a few weeks.
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