Dolph Ziggler def. John Morrison to retain the US Championship – Ryder attacks!
What a fantastic match, showcasing incredible offense from both guys! I think a lot of people would have been frustrated with the Garden’s crowd, who pretty much crapped all over their work from start to finish, but praise to both men for keeping their cool and putting on one hell of an opening contest. I especially feel for Morrison, who as a face has to go out there and get boo’d simply because he isn’t Zack Ryder.
The post match attack from Ryder was simple, but seemed to appease the crowd. I was hoping for an impromptu title match, but I guess I’m glad they saved time for the main event segments later on. Ryder is incredibly over, and as the saying goes: if you can make it in New York, you can make it anywhere! Getting one of the biggest reactions in Madison Square Garden is an excellent accolade to have under your belt…
Grade: A
Beth Phoenix def. Eve to retain the WWE Divas Championship
If you’re going to slap a gimmick like “Lumberjill” onto a match, at least utilize it. I think there was one, maybe two throw-ins throughout the entire thing, which pretty much only showcased Alicia Fox’s terrible fashion sense. Eve’s music still sounds like more of a generic, PPV theme rather than a legitimate entrance theme, but at this point I’m just picking on things for the sake of taring apart the Divas. The actual in-ring action was short and uninspired, save for two specific spots. Eve’s standing triangle choke and Beth’s top-rope Glam Slam were two of the best things the Divas division has come up with in recent months. Beth picks up the win, retains her title, and continues to be a dominant champion. Natalya on the other hand…
Grade: C
Between matches the Rock cut a promo hyping his history in Madison Square Garden and the main event later on. We’ve had promos from the Rock since his return earlier this year, but it’s been too long since the WWE Universe has seen a classic Rock promo, all oiled up and ring-ready. Yet another great way they kept things interesting and pumped up the already rowdy NYC crowd. Second favorite moment of the night…
Team Barrett vs. Team Orton – Traditional 5v5 Survivor Series match
The highlight of this match may have been that Cody Rhodes actually wore knee pads to the ring! I feel for the competitors in this one, from having to bounce back because of Christian’s injury, and then having to improv parts of the match due to Sin Cara’s injury. But my issues with this match extend far beyond the unexpected complications… There was no reason that Dolph Ziggler needed to get jobbed out of the match by Orton right off the bat. Yes, he wrestled earlier in the night, but he did that last month as well and it would have been nice to have him around for the end. As much as I love Cody Rhodes, and the MSG crowd apparently agrees, having him pin the over-hyped Mason Ryan made very little sense to me. And speaking of no sense, why in the world would they have Sheamus get DQ’d because of Jack Swagger? Just another case of the WWE making faces look like morons because of lazy booking…
I’m glad Barrett and Cody Rhodes got the win, but this whole thing came across as the Orton show throughout. How many times did Orton get in the ring, destroy everything, and tag out so somebody on his team could lose? Kofi was out of place without Bourne, and Hunico (whose name my Spell Check continues to auto-correct to “Unicorn”) was useless once Sin Cara took himself out. Bad logic and injuries resulting in on-the-fly booking ruined this match for me. A huge pop for Rhodes as well as some decent action from time to time was the only thing that saved this from being a total failure in my eyes.
Grade: C
