Royal Rumble 2013

Alberto Del Rio vs The Big Show (Last Man Standing)

Another really, really good match between these two. At this point I think the Last Man Standing is probably the WWE's best gimmick match - most of them are really good to great, and I can only think of one off my head that was outright bad (HHH vs Michaels). This had more of Show continuing one of the best runs of his career, just playing the monster like a boss. Some crazy feats of strength (deadlifting Del Rio up to the platform) as well as some athletically impressive stuff for a 400lb 40 year old. How many guys that age and shape can take a rana that cleanly? Del Rio's offence was much sharper than usual, though I could still live without seeing a hundred superkicks a match. Of course, this wouldn't be a hardcore Del Rio match without atleast one totally nutty, wreckless bump, and boy did that Chokeslam off the stage through the table look nasty. I loved JBL selling the nearfall like fuck as well. "WE GOT US A FIGHT". Ricardo was brilliant as usual in his role, and I liked how the armwork paid off with a twist on the Cena vs Batista finish.

Team Hell No vs Rhodes Scholars

This was totally average, plain Jane, run of the mill, whatever. No different to a match these guys would have had on TV with no build. Bryan got to work FIP, but the heel's heat section was pretty dry. There was the awkwardly botch neckbreaker between Sandow and Kane. Not bad, but passable to say the least.

Royal Rumble

I'm hesitant to call this the best Rumble in recent years, as it's a pretty empty compliment, but this was strong at points. Ziggler was always going to be the marathon man, but Jericho as number two was a well done surprise that brought the sort of in-match fued that makes Rumbles worthwhile. There was some fun schtick early on, with the likes of Santino and the much improved Titus O'Neil, and a good mix of heavy hitters and mid-carders through the middle stage of the match. Lost my shit for Goldust as a surprise entrant, and again, him and Cody going at it added that extra flavour that makes Rumbles fun. Kofi's annual gymnastic spot was again probably the most entertaining thing he'll do this year, even if the timing of it totally killed Bo's entrance. Speaking of Bo, the stuff with Barrett was interesting, but he totally failed to leave any sort of impression. He did nothing memorable offencively, this was not a Maven moment.

I was hoping for Lesnar or Taker as a surprise entrant, but even without that the match felt like it lost some momentum towards the end. Cara and Khali as late entrants were poor choices. Also on the downside, no one wrestler really stood out as giving a great performance here. People played their roles, but no one really stole the show. Cena winning wasn't a bad decision, but it felt very underwhelming as he should have had more offence/struggle in before eliminating Ryback.

Bump of the match goes to Drew Mac's flipping exit to the floor.

CM Punk vs The Rock

Straight off the bat this had a 'Big Fight' feel and some of the most heat for a WWE match in a long, long time. Heyman was awesome with his little cheapshots and expressions early on, and I liked how this was much more focused that Rock vs Cena. Playing off the Sheild attack and Punk's leg injury allowed them to build the body of the match around bodypart work, even if it never lead to much other than a Sharpshooter nearfall. Punk's big dive off the top was cool, as were some of the counters they busted out. The table botch was horribly awkward, but the Rock Bottom on the floor actually looked much more painful, which saved it somewhat. All of over-booking with the lights out and Rock going through the table, and Vince re-starting it was what it was. Rock's heroic speach came off a little corny, but the crowd were red hot for it, so it was fine. My only problem with the finish was that Rock really needed some more offence or struggle in before just Spinebuster > People's Elbow for the finish. It felt too easy for him to come back from all that with so little. Overall it was a good match, just not the classic it looked on paper.

Good show all round. Predictable, safe booking, but logical at the same time. Show and Del Rio continie to rule it on the Smackdown side of things, and Rock vs Cena II should atleast be better than the first match.

John Cena vs Dolph Ziggler, RAW 1/15 (Steel Cage Match)

This wasn't awful, but it was a pretty bog standard WWE cage match, and that's not something to get excited about. It was also easily the weakest match these two have had together. Like most WWE cage matches, most of it was just a tired contest to see who could run away from their opponent the quickest. There were some small highlights, such as Dolph's outstanding counter to the STF into the Sleeper, and the spot with Cena carrying him on his back up to the second rope before falling backwards, but that was about it. Oh, and the HUGE DDT of course. As much as Ziggler looked great here (stiff offence, good timing), this was also everything everyone hates about Cena. Not just the tired-to-the-point-of-parody comeback sequences, but the absolutely atrocious finish. What a steaming pile that was. WWE seem to be going out of their way to make it clear that even though Dolph got one win over Cena and can be competitive with him, Cena can still beat him and his whole posse with one hand tied behind his back.

AJ is also just awful at this point, a complete waste who takes all of the wrestler's heat and makes herself the focus. Get the fuck out.

CM Punk vs Ryback, RAW 1/7/13 (TLC Match)

This was a fun match without ever really being anything outstanding. Ryback's unstoppable terminator gimmick is fun, and it's easy to see why he is so over when he lets the audience decide which inanimate object he suplexes his opponent onto (whilest hoisting them up in the air). I also liked him going nuts and smashing Punk with the announce table lid. Punk attacking Ryback's leg served as a smart way for him to have some sustained offence. Ryback didn't sell it much at all, but I guess it could be argued that's part of the gimmick. Punk missing the chair stomp and tweaking his knee was a great piece of selling and a smart transition. Ryback did look somewhat limited here, as apart from the table charge, he didn't even come close to taking a bump. Punk made up for that with some disgusting bumps on the ladder and the out-of-nowhere dumping from the bulldog counter. The interference finish was what it was, but I doubt anyone is complaining about it.

Also, Heyman is still as great as ever in a managerial role. His yells of excitement and despair are hysterical.

 The Big Show vs Alberto Del Rio, Smackdown 1/11/13 (Last Man Standing Match)

 This was pretty great and the best thing of 2013 so far. All of the big spots were really simple, but really clever (why wouldn't you press slam a guy through a table 2 minutes in if you could?). I wasn't sure of Del Rio as a face, but he won me over big and made the win feel really emotional. He isn't a particularly stiff worker, but his style of brawling is so scrappy and he is always willing to throw himself around and take a boatload of punishment. Big Show was great as the unstoppable monster as he always is, the guy just GETS IT. He will take 10 shots and only stagger, but can put his opponent down with one blow. That's how you present yourself as a monster. This was particularly great for the finish where Del Rio just rammed him repeatedly with the steel steps. Lots of big spots - the table press slam, the dropkick through the table, the barricade-collapsing charge, and a really clever nearfall with Del Rio breaking the count by landing on his feet as he rolled to the floor. Just like Show's title win from Sheamus, I was ready to complain that it was the wrong move, but the match won me over. Del Rio earned the title by proxy of surviving such a colossal ass-kicking, and I'm excited to see where both guys go from here.

So, over year later, I'm giving this thing a shot again. Due to the constraints of real life, I won't be writing nearly as much as I did last time around. I will probably keep this focused on WWE/US wrestling, with maybe the odd puro or lucha match here and there that I think is especially worth drawing attention to. Let's see how long this lasts.