Greetings and salutations, boys and girls, and welcome to the first Rajah main page installment of the most prestigious countdown list of the year, the Rajah Forums Countdown of WWE's Best Matches of 2014!
Now, many of you have never visited the forums that are connected to this wonderful haven of news and features before, and so you might be unfamiliar with this countdown. The idea is that at the end of the year, dozens of Rajah forum members submitted lists of the WWE matches that they thought were the best. After an exhaustive process of averaging and general mathiness, a top 25 list was composed and over the course of the next few weeks, it will be revealed one match at a time.
If you agree or disagree with the matches on this list, or just wish to give your thoughts on them in a rad place full of skateboarding dinosaurs and charming secret agents, then hop on down to the Rajah Forums, make yourself an account and join the party.
Now let's get on with the next installment of the countdown...
Intercontinental Championship
Luke Harper(c) vs. Dolph Ziggler
TLCS: Table, Ladders, Chairs and Stairs 12/14
Hindsight is a wonderful thing. If they reversed the running order on this PPV, it would probably be remembered a lot more favourably than it is. Instead, it will be remembered for not much more than a thrilling opening ladder match between two fantastic performers. Ziggler was in the middle of a red hot run after an epic performance at Survivor Series and Harper’s reputation of a truly excellent big man had been growing throughout 2014.
On paper, you’d predict these two would have a good ladder match. Harper throws people around like it’s nothing and Ziggler bumps like a maniac. But sometimes when it seems like such a good fit, the result doesn’t quite live up to expectations. Not this time though, as these men put on a ladder match unlike anything we’ve seen in years. That’s because it’s hard to do anything original in a ladder match these days. The Attitude Era and the years of the TLC PPV ensures that. But these two put on a ladder match that will go down as one of the modern greats of the genre.
In all honesty, there’s not a huge amount of psychology or selling in this match. It’s a spotfest. But it’s a spotfest with two men who are really over and able to put on a show. And there is one key piece of psychology here that really is important – both men really sell the significance of getting to that Intercontinental title belt. Ziggler restored some of the lost prestige in the latter half of 2014 and the crowd are desperate for him to get it back.
Such is the madness of some of the spots in this match, it’s hard to do it justice in a written review – you really need to watch it. Both men go for ladders right off the bat, so it’s fast paced from the off. Harper slams Ziggler on the outside, throws him into the timekeeper’s area and just throws a ladder at his face a few times. Then he does this.
Bah gawd King. I really thought his arm was mangled. Apparently not. Then he did this.
Scenes.
The greatest thing about this match is there’s nothing slick or smooth about the bumps. It’s not like when you see someone hold onto the ladder as they’re pushed off and end up hung up on the ropes or something, because that’s not how you fall off a ladder, right? When Ziggler falls off it’s just…naaasty.
Ziggler gets busted open when Harper Slingshots him and a ladder under the bottom rope at the same time and the rare sight of blood really adds to the drama of the match. When Ziggler finally Superkicks Harper off the ladder and grabs the belt the crowd explode, and so they should – that was a helluva ride.
Signed,
Andy
Highest Rank: #3(Rancid_Planet)
14 lists total
