Worth Your Wealth? 06.08.08: Slammiversary

Hello again, 411 readers! “The One-Man Ratings Booster” here with another edition of “Worth Your Wealth?”! The idea is that you spend your hard-earned dollars on wrestling on a monthly basis, and I want you to know whether or not you’re getting your moneys worth. So read on and see if you’re investing wisely of if your cash is going to waste…

TNA Slammiversary – Worth Your Wealth?

First, as always, we start off with our super-scientific formula for calculating the projected worth of each part of the show. Keep in mind I round things to the nearest nickel, so as not to piss myself off. Oh, and for the purposes of this column, I don’t have HD and neither do you.
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P = 2(A)x + 1.5(B)x + 1(C)x + 0.1(P)

Ten-percent of the PPV price accounts for non-wrestling related activities, such as in-ring promos, backstage segments, video packages, etc. Aside from that, A B and C represent the different classes of matches on the card:

Class C: Filler matches with little to no solid build behind them.
Class B: Secondary, but still significant matches that were well-promoted prior to the show.
Class A: The main event, as well as other high-profile, heavily promoted matches on the card.
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The Breakdown (as I see it):
**The wedding of Jay Lethal and SoCal Val will be considered as a match price because it was explicitly advertised and promoted as a part of the card.**
Class C: Awesome Kong’s $25,000 Challenge, Roxxi/Gail Kim/ODB vs. The Beautiful People/Moose, and the wedding of Jay Lethal and SoCal Val.
Class B: LAX vs Team 3D, Petey Williams vs Kaz.
Class A: King of the Mountain and AJ Styles vs. Kurt Angle.

The Calculation (as the universe sees it):

30 = 2(2)x + 1.5(2)x + 1(3)x + 0.1(30)
30 = 4x + 3x + 3x + 3
27 = 10x
x = 2.70

The Result (as you will see it):

Class A: $2.70
Class B: $4.05
Class C: $5.40
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And now, THE GOODNESS!

Bonus Materials – Price Tag: $3.00
This show featured some great video productions accentuated by short promos from each of our King of the Mountain competitors. They spread them out throughout the night to really build anticipation for the main event match. Joe’s promo, in particular, was excellent and really put over the type of fighting champion he wants to be.
In addition, we also saw the return of Abyss tonight, as he demolished Scott Steiner and his freaks following the X-Division match. While I’m not sure I liked the return angle, it DID remind everyone that he is a force to be reckoned with as he immediately dropped the X-Division champion AND a recent world title contender.
I was all set to give full price this month until that nonsense with Kong, Eric, and Elvis. A month’s worth of buildup for that? L A M E !
Overall Value: $2.75 – For excellent main-event build, especially Joe’s promo…but Elvis sucked.

X-Division Championship: “Maple Leaf Muscle” Petey Williams (c) def. Kaz via Pinfall (Canadian Destroyer) – Price Tag: $4.05
WWE should take a lesson from TNA as far as picking matches to open the show. This match was an EXCELLENT choice and damn if it didn’t deliver big time. These guys went out and worked a solid 15 minute match with a TON of near-falls and plenty of excitement. After the X-Division offerings we’ve seen on the last few PPVs featuring tons of guys, it was really nice to get back to a straight up one-on-one match that still got people excited for the show and set the bar tremendously high. Excellent outing for the X-Division!
Overall Value: $4.50 because it was an awesome opener.

Gail Kim, ODB, and Roxxi def. The Beautiful People (Angelina Love and Velvet Sky) and Moose via Pinfall on Moose (Powerslam) – Price Tag: $2.70
I’ve come to really look forward to the Knockouts division matches since I’ve started watching TNA, though I had my doubts about this match because The Beautiful People aren’t exactly the best that the division has to offer. That said, this match wasn’t horrible…but something just wasn’t clicking for me. I didn’t like the new girl taking the pin in her first match. She looks like she’s got some good stuff, so why saddle her with a name like Moose AND job her on her debut? What kind of way is that to build a newcomer? I can only guess that she’ll go on to feud with ODB and pick up a win there.
At any rate, this match was just there for me. It’s not that it was bad, it’s just that I’ve come to expect more from the Knockouts, especially on PPV.
Overall Value: $1.70 due to a general blah feeling and poor execution with regards to the finish.

World Tag Team Championship: LAX def. Team-3D via Pinfall (Roll-up) – Price Tag: $4.05
This match was weird, at least the second half of it. At first, I was enjoying the match, up through when 3D got pissed and took the fight outside the ring. This was all good and sold the fact that they’do anything for the titles. But then we have all this random shit go down, between Devine running in, Hector getting involved, Salinas eating crotch, and then…the match continued for another 2 minutes. What’s the point of the long chain of interference if it doesn’t even matter in the long run?
I will say that I DID enjoy the finish, with Team-3D suffering the upset because they were so intent on hitting the 3D. All in all, I would have rather seen a regular match between these two teams without all the interference that ended up not mattering anyway.
Overall Value: $3.75 because this could have been better. It was headed for full price before all the pointless bullshit knocked it down a few notches.

$25,000 Dollar Challenge: Awesome Kong def. Serena Deeb via Pinfall (Implant Buster) and then def. Josie via Pinfall (Awesome Bomb) – Price Tag: $2.70
While these little squashes were fun and I understand the logic, I gotta say I thought this was a waste in terms of the money I spent on this show. It’s one thing to have her squash randoms on free TV, but would it have killed them to give us a little something more on pay-per-view? I get that Kong is a beast and that’s the point of the angle, but that doesn’t mean I should see on PPV exactly what I’ve seen on Impact. Impact is supposed to be what makes me want to order the show, Slammiversary is supposed to be the payoff.
Overall Value: $1.35 due to being the same free-TV stuff we’ve already seen.

Jay Lethal and SoCal Val failed to wed via Sonjay Dutt heel turn – Price Tag: $2.70
This is a weird situation for the column, since it’s not really a match, but it’s not really “bonus material” either. They’ve been promoting it all month like they’d promote a PPV match, so I decided to give it a PPV match value. That said, I really hated this whole thing.
I think we ALL knew this angle was leading to the Sonjay Dutt heel turn, which is fine. We got what we were expecting, on that front. My problem with this was the execution of it. They trotted out all of these legends to serve as groomsmen, and that was cool cuz it made it seem kinda special. But then we get to the heel turn and Dutt totally gets his ass handed to him by everybody involved in the ceremony.
He breaks something over Lethal’s back, lands a few punches, and then totally gets his ass kicked by all the over-the-hill legends. It just seemed to be the opposite of what they should have done. Sonjay could have knocked out every one of these guys in a violent rage and it would have amount to so much more heat for his turn. Instead, he came out of this looking like a bitch. And what’s worse, it does nothing for Lethal either as he was the only face in the whole scenario who got his ass kicked, too.
Overall Value: $0.50 due to extreme badness.

AJ Styles def. Kurt Angle via Pinfall (Styles Clash) – Price Tag: $5.40
Everyone remember back when WWE released Kurt Angle? Cuz he insisted on working when he was hurt and it made him a liability? This is why. Kurt was hurting throughout this whole match and you could tell (or he was just selling his ass off, I could be wrong). That said, these guys had a damn fine match, but I’m left wondering what it could have been like had Kurt been healthy. People tend to forget how amazing Styles is because TNA has made him look like a goof forever, but tonight he probably reminded a lot of people why he’s called phenomenal.
My only problem here was the finish, which I felt really hurt things. After 22 minutes of good, solid action, Styles picks up the win thanks to momentary distraction from Karen Angle. It made AJ look like he needed the help to win, even though he was keeping up with Kurt throughout the match. I understand the point of doing it this way because of the angle, but that doesn’t mean it didn’t hurt my overall enjoyment of the match.
Overall Value: $5.25 because it was a highly entertaining match cheapened by a questionable finish.

King of the Mountain TNA Heavyweight Championship: – Samoa Joe (c) def. Christian Cage, Booker T, Robert Roode, and Rhino – Price Tag: $5.40
This was my first King of the Mountain match and I have to say I liked the gimmick. There were some good spots, good suspense, and overall I really enjoyed it. That said, I have one minor complaint.
Anytime there’s a “special enforcer” in a match, you know that’s leading to something or other. In this case, it was Booker T being denied the win by Kevin Nash after he nailed Nash (and everybody else) with the TNA title. This all was fine, as it’s pretty obvious where it’s leading. My problem with the whole thing was that it happened a good few minutes before the end of the match even came. Here we had this controversial angle with Booker and we just kinda breeze past it, continue on for a few more moments, and then Joe wins by pinning Roode and climbing the ladder in a matter of seconds.
I would have rather seen Booker get screwed and Joe win as a result of THAT, but maybe that’s just me. At any rate, it was a fun match and I liked it a lot. Though I have to say I’m curious how it would have turned out with some more exciting performers involved (mainly somebody who isn’t Rhino).
Overall Value: $5.40 because the match was good, satisfying, and finished the night off well..
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The Final Tally:

Overall Price Tag: $30.00

Match of the Night: X-Division Championship: Petey Williams (c) vs. Kaz – 111% Value ($4.50 worth, $4.05 price tag.)

Trash of the Night: The Wedding of Jay Lethal and SoCal Val – 19% Value ($0.50 value, $2.70 price tag.)

Overall Value: $25.20

Resulting PPV Rating: B (84% Worth)

Closing Comments:
Slammiversary was a show with a couple good matches which were dragged down by mostly disappointing displays. Most of the matches on the show gave the impression that they were on their way to being great, but generally fell short before they could get there. The opening X-Division bout was well worth the price, as was the main-event (and Angle/Styles, to a lesser degree). Overall, I’d probably skip the show due to all the stuff in the middle that fell flat. Catch the first and final matches when somebody else buys it on DVD.
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Year in Review:
1. WWE Backlash – A- (90% Worth – $36.25 / $40.00)
Match of the Night: World Heavyweight Championship: The Undertaker vs. Edge – 101% Value ($7.00 Worth, $6.90 price tag).

2. WWE Judgment Day – B+ (89% Worth – $35.65 / $40.00)
Match of the Night: Chris Jericho vs. Shawn Michaels – 114% Value ($5.95 worth, $5.20 price tag.)

3 (tie). WWE One Night Stand– B (86% Worth – $34.35 / $40.00)
Match of the Night: World Heavyweight Championship TLC Match: The Undertaker vs. Edge – 112% Value ($7.75 worth, $6.90 price tag.)

3 (tie). WWE Wrestlemania 24 – B (86% Worth – $47.25 / $55.00)
Match of the Night: Career-Threatening Match: Shawn Michaels vs. “The Nature Boy” Ric Flair- 116% Value ($8.00 worth, $6.90 price tag).

5. TNA Slammiversary – B (84% Worth – $25.20 / $30.00)
Match of the Night: X-Division Championship: Petey Williams vs. Kaz – 111% Value ($4.50 worth, $4.05 price tag).

6. TNA Lockdown – B (83% Worth – $24.95 / $30.00)
Match of the Night: TNA World Heavyweight Championship: Kurt Angle vs. Samoa Joe – 116% Value ($5.00 worth, $4.30 price tag).

7. TNA Sacrifice – C (74% Worth – $22.15 / $30.00)
Match of the Night: X-Division TerrorDome – 100% Value ($3.25 worth, $3.25 price tag).
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And with that folks, we’ll see you next time!