Yesterday was Judgment Day for WWE as they held their May pay-per-view from the Allstate Arena in Chicago, Illinois. Four titles were on the line, however, none changed hands. On paper the show had a very solid card; did it live up to expectations? Below are my thoughts on a segment by segment basis.
The show opened with CM Punk facing Umaga. I liked WWE utilizing Punk to get the crowd going with him being the hometown hero. They reverted back to WWE booking 101 as Punk did a job in his hometown to Umaga. WWE wants to build Umaga back up but I can't help but think Punk looked weak as the Money in the Bank winner doing a job. The match itself wasn't bad and was a fine opener. Umaga and Punk work two completely different styles but workers like Punk are able to adjust and put on an entertaining bout.
Christian's ECW Championship defense against Jack Swagger was a good match. It wasn't given a ton of time but both were able to effectively manage their spots to put on an enjoyable bout. The crowd died off when Swagger utilized his mat wrestling skills as I was told from in the arena you could hear a pin drop. I don't have a problem with amateur wrestlers such as Swagger utilizing the mat attack but some fans would rather more high spots. Christian retained by grabbing the tights of Swagger which makes me think WWE is keeping the door open to begin a Christian heel turn.
John Morrison vs. Shelton Benjamin was another impressive bout. Morrison and Benjamin are very good in-ring workers with similar styles. As good of a worker as Shelton is I felt Morrison outshined him in this match. Morrison utilized a lot of high-risk spots, even hitting a 450 splash out of the ring on Shelton. The go-home sequence was perhaps the most impressive part of the bout as Morrison fought off an interfering Charlie Haas, hit a flying dropkick on Shelton, and ended the match with Starship Pain and a three count. Morrison's stock should skyrocket.
The Miz came out next for an in-ring promo. A lot of fans, including me, are not crazy about talking on pay-per-views. However, I was not against giving The Miz some mic time at Judgment Day. Not only is The Miz getting over with his push on Raw but his mic work has been so good he deserved the pay-per-view payout. Miz didn't disappoint as he gave what I thought was one of his best promos to date, keeping heat while going after John Cena who is not near as popular with the Chicago crowd. Santino Marella came out and basically had a babyface turn with mic work equally as good. Chavo Guerrero got involved after Miz went to the back, hitting a Frog Splash on Santino after he had been laid out.
The match of the night for me was Rey Mysterio's Intercontinental Championship defense against Chris Jericho. This pay-per-view was loaded with impressive in-ring work but Mysterio and Jericho worked on another level last night. There was a great go-home sequence where Mysterio connected a drop toe hold followed by a 619 and a springboard splash on Jericho to get the pin. WWE wants to build Mysterio back up as a main event worker on SmackDown so putting him over Jericho (who is already established as such) was the right move from creative.
Randy Orton continued to impress me in his WWE Championship defense against Batista last night. There was nothing spectacular spot-wise and Orton ended up getting himself disqualified and the match thrown out when he smacked the referee. Legacy came out and beat up on Batista only for Ric Flair to come out and make the save. I'm usually against dirty finishes but this had to be done and worked very well. Not only did it serve as a perfect opportunity to bring Flair back but it kept a tremendous amount of heat on Orton and Legacy. With Batista not getting beat clean, it left the door open to give this program more build.
Big Show dominated John Cena throughout their bout. WWE creative has to careful with how they book Big Show because he must look dominant to remain credibility for his size. There was nothing special about this bout but it wasn't a bad effort by either worker. John Cena haters are probably fuming at the finish which saw Cena "overcome the odds" once again and give Show the Attitude Adjustment to pick up the win. I'm not a huge Cena fan but understand he is WWE's top guy and it was impressive watching him get Show on his shoulders.
Jeff Hardy and Edge had a spectacular World Heavyweight Championship match. Jeff Hardy looked like a main event guy last night. He started the match by working the arm of Edge, a great way to begin to build for his high-risk spots later in the match. My favorite spot of this bout came on the outside when Hardy was up on the crowd control barrier by the announce table and ended up getting caught with a Spear by Edge. Edge ended up hitting the Edgecution superplex off the top rope in the ring to get the three count and retain the championship. Great job by both creating spots that were innovative and different.
I felt like I have raved about Judgment Day throughout this review but it was a very good pay-per-view. The booking made sense and the ring work was great. I wouldn't mind sitting down and watching this one again because of the in-ring work. No titles changed hands but with the rate they've been changing the titles, I don't consider that a bad thing. Ric Flair's return was a surprise and the filler in-ring promo with The Miz and Santino Marella was well done. I recommend you check out Judgment Day 2009 as it showcased what fans of good in-ring work want to see.
Richard can be contacted at richard [at] grayinternet.com
Richard Gray is a professional wrestling journalist and frequent contributor to Rajah.com. He has been covering the world of professional wrestling since 1999 and has had the opportunity to cover ground breaking stories such as the demise of ECW, the WCW buyout, the Benoit tragedy, Bobby Lashley leaving WWE, and more. For more on Richard check out his web site, Wrestling News World.
- "Richard Reacts" Archive By WrestlingNewsWorld.com's Richard Gray
