WNS Column: Wilds' War Cry: That is One Hell of a Cell

I want to take a step back to the recent Hell in a Cell event, something that I felt needed its own article to go over the PPV in detail, because I actually felt that it was probably the best show of the same name in the past few years. I know not everyone is going to agree with me here, but I want to explain some of my thoughts behind my opinions.

Okay, so I missed the pre-show, but after reading about it, I should be okay. The actual show had an amazing opening match with the IC champion Dolph Ziggler and Cesaro in a two out of three falls match. These two are really good, almost exceptional, and I have raved about them already, but this truly was one of the best matches on the card. Both men looked great and their styles meshed well. A lot of fans were confused though why the bout did not go to all three falls, which is a bit surprising, and a bit sad considering how good it was. I can only imagine that this was done to be different, since so many other matches with that stipulation do go the distance, or this was an attempt to build Dolph up leading into Survivor Series and push Cesaro down just a bit since he got his ass handed to him via microphone the next night on Raw.

Bella versus Bella was next, and although it was nothing special, I was surprised that it was actually the better divas match of the evening. Nikki has really improved over the past year or so, and Brie has always put a lot into her work, even the bad parts. I was pretty sure that Nikki was going to win, but wanted to see what would happen in the aftermath. Nikki was right though. I think the writers could have handled this feud way better and made it more interesting. There was more potential here, so I cannot blame the ladies for any lack of interest fans might have with this.

The tag team belts were up for contention next, seeing the Dust Brothers—as I shall now call them—doing battle with the Usos. This has been a long and very good battle. Fans have seen these teams wrestle a lot lately, and each member is very good. I knew they would tear the house down, and both teams delivered, but before the bell even rang it was clear that the champs would retain. This means that it is clearly time to find a new team to throw into this feud, or to start a new rivalry all together. The big problem is that there really are not any other face teams, and as of right now I have no desire to see Cody and Goldie turn face. A part of me was honestly hoping for a swerve on Raw; instead of Mark Henry turning, fake it and let them actually almost beat the Dust Brothers. I am okay with them holding the titles, but it is time to switch it up a bit. Side note: I miss the team of Harper and Rowan.

John Cena’s match came pretty early in the card, which was a good thing. I do not dislike Cena, but he does not need the rub or to try and steal the show. This match had a nice video package to show the build up—even though it did not seem like there was much thought put into it—but the crew should be a master at it with these two, since this was there one hundred and twenty-first match. That is not a number I made up either, someone posted the data on that, so I am going with it. These two know each other so well that it should be no surprise they put on a good solid match. There were some fun spots, like that Attitude Adjustment into the RKO, and decent weapon use, even if Michael Cole did call them the stairs of justice or something. The table finish was not bad for the match, but the ending was actually my low point of the evening. As much of a Cena fan as I am, almost no one wanted to see him win that match. I was craving an Orton victory all week, and have no clue why he did not win. Understanding that Vince wants to see Cena versus Lesnar again—even if no one else does—why could the program not pause to give Orton a chance? It would be a decent match, Orton is a good worker, and could easily make him more interesting. But alas—it just all felt so wasted.

The US title match with Sheamus and Miz was not bad or anything, but they used it for a comedy segment mostly, and the only note I made was about JBL saying that The Village People were better than the Beatles. That just seems wrong and weird somehow. Like most people I was fully expecting Henry to turn on Big Show during his match with Rusev, and not quite sure why they waited until Raw, but it probably had the same effect. Mostly though I was worried about Rusev looking weak after The Rock had slapped him around like a bitch; it was just poor booking. So everyone was wondering who Rusev will go against next, with a lot of people saying Sheamus—to claim the US title, which he would obviously rename to the Putin belt. My other idea though, before Henry’s turn, was to let him and Big Show have a classic survivor series match. Give Rusev Cesaro, William Regal, and Bo Dollas, putting them up against Big Show, Mark Henry, Jack Swagger, and Zack Ryder, all of the people he has beaten. This would allow Rusev a loss that would not hurt his record or de-push him much.

Paige and AJ were continuing their feud with the added element of Alicia Fox, and we saw what happened with that on Raw. This was not a horrible match, but I felt like it was rushed or cut short for some reason. Watching it again, the end comes out awkwardly. Both wrestlers were energetic and all over the place, but I know they can do better. Paige works a bit slower, but their styles go well together. I hope to see these two feud a little bit longer, but I am interested to see where this thing with Alicia goes.

After a cool promo, Dean Ambrose said the words, “We’re all going to die tonight,” which made me realize he is my hero. If it made me realize something else though, it would be that Ambrose deserves better entrance music. He and Rollins chose an awesome way to start their cage match, and I was glad to see that they are using the stooges well. This was an extremely entertaining bout with good weapon and cell use. No matter if anyone saw the double table spot coming, it rocked. I like the idea that these two are so destructive that a Hell in a Cell match might actually be worse for them to be in. I will admit, I was not too big on that ol’ Star Wars shit with the hologram, but I am a fan of Bray Wyatt.

I am not sure why people are complaining so much about the ending, but they are. Dean got his payback in my opinion, beating the holy crap out of Rollins. Was the three count that important? In a way it may have been better for an Authority member to cost Ambrose the match, but that is not what happened. I am actually okay with this. It is a good idea to separate the two, let this rivalry not get worn out, because these two are not done and we will see them fight again. This way they can both go off and feud with someone else for a while, then we will see an awesome re-ignition of the fire these two can bring. All in all a great show other than the dead ass crowd. 

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