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Falls
Count Anywhere
02-24-03
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I would
like Victoria to help elevate my belt.
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Welcome
to Falls Count Anywhere Supplemental. My name is Chris, and
Michael Goodson and I were in the same room for No Way Out.
Poor Michael Goodson.
No
Way Out Report
I was
entertained with what the WWE managed to deliver in the biggest
pay-per-view since SummerSlam. Good stuff all around, with
everything building towards the crown jewel: WrestleMania.
Jeff Hardy
(filling in for Test) lost to Jericho in a good match that
showed just how hot a Montreal crowd can be when given a Canadian
to cheer. The match was decent, with Hardy only blowing two
spots, and looking less sloppy than usual.
This would
have been a top RAW match on most weeks, and gave the crowd
a hot start. When Michaels came out to save Jeff, the crowd
was mixed boos and cheers, since Shawn is best known to them
for the Bret Hart incident, but he got mostly cheers by the
end of the run-in.
The RAW
tag title match wasn't much special, but still, the guys got
a chance and RVD and Kane look to be ready to split and feud.
Regal looked the best he has in months, and he usually looks
very good in the ring. The Kane chokeslam on RVD when the
mask was over his eyes is the type of thing I'd expect from
a Harold Lloyd picture, but somehow, it worked.
Title
Change: Hardy is the new Cruiserweight Champ, beating Billy
Kidman in a match that I think will be my favorite when I
rewatch the tape in a year or so. They told a strong story,
did some impressive moves, and never looked like they were
going to break their necks, a rarity in matches involving
Cruiserweights. The fact that this had a storyline going in
also made things better. I think Matt, given a long enough
run, will help elevate the belt.
They did
an Angle to explain why Edge won't be in the six-man. It just
sort of happened, but it explained why. I wish Edge a speedy
recovery.
Undertaker
vs. Big Show was better than I expected, but probably too
long, as Big Show got winded. They used a Triangle choke finish,
which will probably help get that move added to the list of
believable submissions. UT looked motivated, which helped
keep this from being unwatchable.
Brock
and Benoit beat Team Angle in a match that I think was made
better by leaving out Edge. Not that Edge wouldn't hold up
his end of the bargain, but the story of the faces having
to overcome long odds to win helped the match. The interaction
between Brock and Angle is a preview of what should be the
match of the year at Mania, and Team Angle looked better than
ever before.
HHH vs.
Steiner met my prediction and stunk up the arena, killed the
crowd, and generally made me unhappy. Hebner was the ref,
and the crowd booed him for his involvement in the Bret Hart
affair. HHH was the good guy in this one, as the crowd hated
Steiner, and I don't blame him. HHH needs to take a year off,
get married to Steph, let his injuries heal, get into the
shape he was in during the run in 2000 and come back ready
to perform.
He did
his best with Steiner, and he looked better than he has since
working with Michaels, but it is still a far cry from his
heyday. They also announced the HHH will defend the belt against
the winner of a RAW battle royal that takes place tomorrow
night. I'm interested.
Austin
vs. Bischoff was put in the sub-main event position and was
nothing special as a beating, but the crowd was nuts. I have
never heard a crowd that loud before, not even in the War
Games back in 87 or the famous Lawler angles.
Everything
Austin did got a huge reaction. No pop came close to his.
I liked watching Bisch get beaten down, and the constant lifting
that Austin did so he could beat on him some more was fun.
Stone Cold looked great, too. It's looking good for Austin
right now, especially if they get him in the ring with Goldberg,
who is apparently signing.
The main
event was Rock-Hogan II: The Quickening. If you read my preview
and what I thought would happen, it went down exactly like
that, with Vince helping Rock screw Hogan, though the way
they did it looked great, with the Rock and the ref both pretending
to be knocked out before performing another Montreal screw-job.
The crowd mercilessly booed Vince, and after the match he
entered the ring to taunt Hogan, which garnered even more
venom from the crowd.
When
Vince tore open his anti-Hogan shirt, you could tell that
Steiner likely gets his tips from Vinny-Mac, as he was the
most ripped 50+ year old I have ever seen. The guy is a monster.
All in
all, a good pay-per-view that provided no surprises, but delivered
at every turn. WrestleMania was made to look like the major
event it needs to be.
This could
have been a throw-away hype WrestleMania show. Instead, they
did a solid show that could stand alone but still managed
to pump up the March 30th event. Well-written and performed.
This seriously
starts the countdown to WrestleMania, not only in the WWE,
but also for us here at Fanboyplanet. I'll be doing WrestleMania
themed FlashBacks! starting this Friday, there is a contest
in the works, a series of special looks at Mania, along with
full coverage as the event draws closer.
It's the
most wonderful time of the year for wrestling fans.
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