Hall’s WWE Extreme Rules 2014 Review

Extreme Rules 2014
Date: May 4, 2014
Location: Izod Center, East Rutherford, New Jersey
Attendance: 15,907
Commentators: Jerry Lawler, Michael Cole, John Bradshaw Layfield

It’s the follow up show from Wrestlemania XXX and that means we have Daniel Bryan’s first title defense (at least on a major show) after his big triumph last month. Other than that though, the big draw is Evolution vs. the Shield, which should be a heck of a fight. In this case though, the most memorable thing might be from before the show though so let’s get to it.

Kickoff Show: El Torito vs. Hornswoggle

And we start with the big deal as it’s WEELC! This is a ladder match between two wrestlers who stand about 4.5 feet tall so there is a miniature version of everything, including the commentary team. This leads to an argument between commentary, including “Micro Cole”, “Jerry the Mini King Lawler” and “Wee BL”. There is also a mini referee and a mini ring announcer as they are leaning ALL the way into this. Of course Los Matadores and 3MB are here too, because this is the kind of match that needs a lot of extra people involved.

They slug it out to start with Torito headscissoring him out to the floor. The big dive takes him down but Hornswoggle is right back in…and he can’t dive over the ropes as commentary tries to figure out who “Maggle” is. Torito whips out a mini chair, which he uses to get to the top for a slingshot Bronco Buster. Jinder Mahal tries to come in but Torito trips him, only for Hornswoggle to grab Torito’s tail.

A chase leads to Mahal getting hit low and now it’s time for a two foot stepladder. That’s not enough for Hornswoggle, who gets the four foot version instead. Torito is knocked off the ladder but Hornswoggle is scared to dive. That lets Torito get up, then lay back down so Hornswoggle can dive, and then move out of the way. A small package gives Torito two but he gets powerbombed as we take a break.

We come back with the seconds brawling on the floor and one of the Matadores is sent through a mini table. Hornswoggle gives Torito a rolling splash and puts him on the mini announcers’ table. An elbow off the apron puts Torito through the table, with Hornswoggle doing the shaky sell on the floor for a great bonus. The fans accurately declare this awesome as commentary bickers among themselves.

Back in and Hornswoggle’s chair shot hits Slater by mistake, sending him through a table at ringside. McIntyre loads Torito up on a six foot ladder but Torito fights out, leaving Torito to crossbody Mahal and Los Matadores through tables and ladders at ringside in a heck of a crash. Hornswoggle puts Torito on a table at ringside before McIntyre misses a flip dive to crash through it instead. Torito uses the mini chair to knock Hornswoggle back, followed by a springboard seated senton through a miniature table for the pin at 11:02.

Rating: A. This was the definition of a match that worked because they had fun. It was all about throwing entertaining ideas out there and letting the people have a blast. There was a grand total of no reason to go anywhere near this hard and it wouldn’t have worked with any other setup. I had a blast watching this the first time and it more than holds up, as they had an incredibly entertaining, and again, FUN, match.

And now, the show proper.

The opening video look at Wrestlemania and what has happened since, including Evolution and Kane fighting with Daniel Bryan and the Shield, setting up this show’s two main events.

Cesaro vs. Rob Van Dam vs. Jack Swagger

Elimination rules, Paul Heyman is here with Cesaro and Zeb Colter is here with Swagger. Van Dam was in a tournament to crown a new #1 contender to the Intercontinental Title but Cesaro interfered and cost him the match due to Van Dam eliminating him from the tournament. Swagger and Cesaro have issues so they brawled, setting up this one. Heyman, Cesaro’s representative, says this is the one night of the year where WWE gets it right, because…..Brock Lesnar broke the Streak! Anyway, here is Cesaro and we’re ready to go.

They slug it out to start until Cesaro unloads on Swagger against the ropes. A kind of suplex gets Swagger out of trouble but Van Dam kicks him down. The monkey flip sends Cesaro onto Swagger but Cesaro catches Van Dam out of the air. Swagger boots Cesaro down though as the fans are rather behind Van Dam (not the biggest surprise). A sunset bomb plants Cesaro on the floor but Van Dam can’t follow up as Swagger drops him with a running clothesline.

Back in and Swagger gives Van Dam a wheelbarrow suplex for two and the running Vader Bomb connects for the same. The Swing to Swagger is broken up with Van Dam’s spinwheel kick so Swagger Patriot (ankle) locks Van Dam. That’s broken up with a springboard spinning uppercut (that always looks awesome) and Cesaro follows it up with the apron superplex (see the “that always looks awesome” statement above). Van Dam is right there with the Five Star to Swagger for the elimination at 6:23.

Some rolling gutwrench suplexes give Cesaro two as Heyman is getting more and more enthusiastic. They head outside with Cesaro being sent into the barricade but Van Dam strikes away. Back in and the split legged moonsault gives Van Dam two but Cesaro kicks a trashcan into him (because weapons are now allowed). A rollup gives Van Dam two more and he kicks Cesaro down, only for the Five Star to hit trashcan. The Neutralizer onto the trashcan gives Cesaro the pin at 12:34.

Rating: B-. Not a bad match to open the show, but the elimination rules felt a bit tacked on. I did like that they had something a bit different though, with Cesaro’s push seemingly ready to continue. The potential was there, but dang it just did not ever really come together. You could see a lot of the writing on the wall with Swagger as well, and it wasn’t going to get much better.

The injured Daniel Bryan is getting his shoulder worked on when Stephanie McMahon (they don’t get along) comes in. She can’t control Kane (Bryan’s challenger) and promises a bunch of violence. That has her worried for Bryan and his family, so Bryan could just forfeit the title instead. Bryan tells her to get out of his face. He then talks about how he’s going to keep the title, which doesn’t make a ton of sense when he just told her to leave. Stephanie thinks he’ll be walking out as Kane’s b****.

You should BO-LIEVE. Oh geez that was….a thing that did in fact happen.

Alexander Rusev vs. Xavier Woods/R-Truth

Lana handles the introductions for Rusev, who is brand new and in his first pay per view match. Before Rusev comes out though, Lana praises her idol and the hero of Russia: Vladimir Putin. Rusev kicks Woods off the apron to start and sends R-Truth into the barricade. Woods is sent into the ring structure and then suplexed on the floor. With Truth inside, we get the opening bell so Rusev stomps him into the corner as Lana approves.

Truth flips over him out of the corner and manages a dropkick, followed by a running corner splash. The middle rope dropkick puts Rusev down for half a second, setting up an ax kick for two. Back up and Little Jimmy is easily blocked and Rusev scores with the spinwheel kick. A spinning Boss Man Slam sets up the Accolade to make Truth give up at 2:54. Was Woods hurt here? He was never actually in the ring during the match.

Post match, Rusev smashes Woods as Lana approves.

Evolution brags about their success and how they’re ready to destroy the Shield for good. Is there a way to destroy someone for bad? Anyway, they do a Shield fist pose.

Intercontinental Title: Big E. vs. Bad News Barrett

Barrett is challenging after winning a tournament and promises some BAD NEWS for the champ. Big E. runs him over with a shoulder to start and they go to the floor. That doesn’t last long but Barrett is able to get in a kick to the chest on the way back in. An elbow off the apron hits Big E. on the floor, followed by a spinning suplex back inside. The chinlock goes on but Big E. powers up and hits a belly to belly.

Another belly to belly sends Barrett into the corner and the spear through the ropes knocks him to the floor. Barrett is back up with a swinging Boss Man Slam for two, followed by Wasteland for the same. Big E.’s Rock Bottom out of the corner gets two more but he has to duck the Bull Hammer. That doesn’t matter as a flying Bull Hammer gives Barrett the title back at 7:51.

Rating: C+. This wasn’t a bad match, but it also didn’t quite feel like it belonged on a pay per view. It’s a match that was good enough for Raw and not much more, though I do like Barrett getting the title back. He was a good, reliable choice for the title and it worked again here, as he wins the title clean. Big E. needed something new, and it was coming in just a few months.

We recap Evolution vs. the Shield, which is described as “kings vs. soldiers” in a great line. HHH recruited the Shield to help the Authority but then turned on them, leaving HHH to need someone to fight them back. That meant reuniting Evolution (thankfully minus Ric Flair) and it’s time for a fight.

Evolution vs. Shield

It’s a big brawl to start as I don’t think the bell actually rang, despite the referee calling for it several times. Shield clears the ring to start and now the bell rings, with Rollins hitting a suicide dive to HHH. Back in and Batista gets in a cheap shot to take over on Rollins, who is driven into the corner. Orton comes in to stomp away and hands it back to HHH to hit Rollins in the face. Batista kicks him in the head and Orton does a bit of the circle stomp, setting up a chinlock (yes, from Orton).

Rollins fights up and finally manages to kick them away, allowing the tag off to Ambrose to clean house. The Figure Four has Orton in trouble as everything breaks down. Reigns’ spear hits the steps by mistake and it’s Ambrose getting beaten down in the corner. The chinlock goes on again, followed by the big dropkick for two. HHH’s right hands set up Batista’s rear naked choke before HHH gets to beat on him some more.

Ambrose fights up and gets over to Reigns though and things FINALLY pick up a bit. The Superman Punch and TripleBomb get two on Batista with Orton and HHH making a save. The Pedigree lays Reigns out to give Batista two as HHH and Ambrose fight over the announcers’ table. Orton comes back in with an RKO to give Batista two more with Rollins making the save this time.

The fight heads into the crowd with Ambrose running the barricade to dive onto HHH. Rollins and HHH brawl into the crowd and Ambrose is sent down some steps. That leaves Rollins to hit a big dive off a balcony to drop HHH and Orton. Back in the ring, Reigns shrugs off a spinebuster and Superman Punches Batista, meaning it’s the spear for the pin at 19:50.

Rating: B. The Shield turned about a month before this and they needed a big win to make them into full time main event good guys. While this took some time to really get going, they had the big dive from Rollins and the clean win over Batista so they got the important points. The match worked, though the rematch would be even better.

Adam Rose and the Exotic Express are coming. Oh boy were they.

We recap John Cena vs. Bray Wyatt. The idea is Wyatt believes Cena is a fraud but can’t get Cena to let him out. Cena beat him at Wrestlemania but of course it’s not over, with Wyatt seemingly trying to break up the Cena fan base. This included having a bunch of kids in black robes speaking in a weird voice, which was quite the freaky moment as Wyatt apparently took over Cena’s biggest fans. Tonight, they’re in a cage.

John Cena vs. Bray Wyatt

Inside a cage with pinfall, submission or escape to win and the rest of the Wyatts are at ringside. Wyatt slugs away to start and knocks Cena into the corner, with the fans chanting for Wyatt rather enthusiastically. Some more knockdowns have Wyatt further in control and Rowan gets in a cheap shot from the floor.

Cena cuts off an escape attempt though and Wyatt gets catapulted face first into the cage. Wyatt hits a splash into the cage and does the weird dancing with an unconscious Cena spot. The release Rock Bottom gives Wyatt two but Cena is back up with a dropkick. That earns him another knockdown and Wyatt spider walks towards the cage, with Cena making a save.

The running body block gives Wyatt two but Cena initiates his finishing sequence. Wyatt’s attempt at an escape is cut of with a powerbomb but Harper cuts off the escape attempt. A hanging jawbreaker gives Wyatt two but he misses the backsplash. Cena goes up, with the Wyatts being right there to cut him off. A super faceplant gives Cena two and he goes to escape but has to deal with Harper.

This is done by pulling Harper inside and taking him out before going for the door, which is kicked into Wyatt’s head. Rowan is waiting on him with a chair though and Cena climbs back in, where Wyatt throws him down and gets two off a backsplash. Sister Abigail is countered into an STF but Rowan is right there to help break it up. Harper gets up and has to be sent into the cage, allowing Wyatt to get in a shot of his own.

Wyatt tries to climb out, with Cena being right there to catch him. The super AA gets a delayed two, with Harper making the save. That’s not enough so Rowan tries to com in, with Cena catching him on top and using the beard to ram Rowan’s face into the cage. The top rope Fameasser puts Harper down so Cena can crawl towards the door….and the lights go out. One of the creepy kids pops up to sing He’s Got The Whole World In His Hands, allowing Wyatt to hit Sister Abigail and walk out at 21:13.

Rating: B-. Wyatt did win, though it took quite a bit to put Cena down. That was the problem with the feud, as Wyatt didn’t exactly look strong throughout. Yeah he won, but look at what it took to FINALLY get him there. It doesn’t help that the reason behind their feud doesn’t make a ton of sense, but that kid was creepy enough to make up for some of it.

The Kickoff Show panel recaps the show while we raise the cage.

We look at WeeLC and you can tell commentary had a great time with the whole thing.

Divas Title: Paige vs. Tamina Snuka

Snuka is challenging after winning a battle royal. Paige debuted on the main roster the night after Wrestlemania and won the title in an impromptu title match. A quick rollup gives Paige two and she fires off some knees in the apron. Snuka is right there to superkick her back down though and then throws a jacket at Paige on the floor. Back in and the slow beating ensues but Paige powerbombs her off the top for two. A swinging Rock Bottom gives Snuka two but Paige blocks a superkick. The Scorpion Crosslock retains the title at 6:14.

Rating: C-. Yeah there wasn’t much that could be done here, as Snuka winning a battle royal was only so much of a reason for the match to be taking place. Paige was trying to get the fans into it but they were also stuck in a bad spot after the cage match. Things would get better for Paige as she developed a bit, though it took some time.

The Wyatts are happy with their win and the kid puts on a Wyatt mask.

We recap Daniel Bryan vs. Kane for the World Title. Bryan won the title at Wrestlemania by overcoming the Authority, so the Authority wanted some revenge. Stephanie McMahon has sent Kane after Bryan, including tormenting Bryan’s new wife Brie Bella. Somehow this wound up being more about Stephanie vs. Bryan and Bella than anything else, which is why this wasn’t exactly a hot main event.

WWE World Title: Daniel Bryan vs. Kane

Bryan is defending in an Extreme Rules match and charges to go after Kane in the aisle. The brawl is on but Kane gets the better of it and grabs an early kendo stick. Kane gets sent into the post but takes too long to put the chair in the corner. Bryan’s kendo stick shot doesn’t do much good as Kane chairs him down as commentary goes silent for a long stretch. A side slam puts Bryan through the chair for two but he drop toeholds Kane face first into the chair in the corner.

The missile dropkick sends Kane outside and the Flying Goat connects. They fight over to the announcers’ table with Bryan using the less than solid table covering as a weapon. That lets Kane knock him back down but a Tombstone on the steps is broken up. The kendo stick shots don’t do much to Kane either as he sends Bryan hard into the set. They go to the back, where Kane throws a monitor at him, giving us some sparks when it hits the wall.

Bryan gets in a shot with a shove and avoids a fire extinguisher toss, which goes flying through the windshield of a car instead. A tire iron to the head knocks Kane cold, but Bryan realizes he screwed up as the fall has to be in the ring. Instead Bryan puts him on a nearby forklift, gets in some more tire iron shots, and drives Kane back into the arena. Kane gets dropped back into the ring and a flying headbutt off the forklift connects.

That’s shrugged off as Kane pops back up and hits a chokeslam for two, meaning it’s time to be frustrated. A Tombstone onto the chair is countered into a tornado DDT and the YES Lock goes on. Kane uses a kendo stick to escape and they go outside, with Kane sending him over the announcers’ table. That lets Kane load up a table…which he lights on fire. Kane takes too long though and gets knocked into the fire, allowing Bryan to hit a running knee to retain at 22:26.

Rating: B. There was a good match in here somewhere but it went on a bit too long. Bryan did get a nice come from behind win here in something that felt built for Kane and it was made a lot better by having this be anything goes. Trim off a few minutes and it’s better, but there was a pretty firm limit to what you were getting out of Kane in this spot at this time. The biggest problem here is it didn’t feel like the most important match on the show and that hurt it a lot.

Post match Bryan celebrates and Kane pops up to stare at him to end the show.

 

Results
El Torito b. Hornswoggle – Springboard seated senton through a table
Cesaro b. Rob van Dam and Jack Swagger – Neutralizer onto a trashcan to Van Dam
Alexander Rusev b. Xavier Woods/R-Truth – Accolade to R-Truth
Bad News Barrett b. Big E. – Bull Hammer
Shield b. Evolution – Spear to Batista
Bray Wyatt b. John Cena – Wyatt escaped the cage
Paige b. Tamina Snuka – Scorpion Crosslock
Daniel Bryan b. Kane – Running knee

 

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7.5

The final score: review Good

The 411

This was a weird one as the main issue was that nothing felt really big. The show was basically Wrestlemania: The Fallout Show and that’s exactly what it felt like. It was a bunch of stuff that came out of Wrestlemania, but none of the matches came off like they mattered very much. That being said, most of the matches were good enough and WeeLC is an absolute blast (even if it wasn’t on the regular show). All things considered, you might just want to stick with a Wrestlemania rewatch.