NC State got rocked for WWE’s third annual Over the Limit ppv event! This won’t be a very long reaction, but I’ll add more of my final thoughts in my new weekly rundown on Saturday. Let’s get to it:
Kane defeated Zach Ryder on the preshow.
^Ryder gets buried, and Kane has no storyline just three weeks after his rivalry with Randy Orton ends. His match with Punk was really good on Smackdown; I wouldn’t mind seeing more of those two. I guess overall this was a better “free for all” match than Austin/Yokozuna.
The show opened with a battle royal where the winner would be able to challenge either the United States or Intercontinental Champion(whichever they chose). Christian made his return in this match and won the battle royal by last eliminating the Miz when both men were fighting on the ring apron. He pointed at Santino(who was sitting ringside with IC Champ, Cody Rhodes) after the match to apparently indicate his choice for a match later on.
^It’s about time we see Christian return and I’m glad to see he gets a title shot right away. This battle royal was actually full of talent that I would like to see more of on WWE’s main shows(Tyson Kidd, Reks and Hawkins, McGillicutty ect). I’m just glad we got to see a little bit of them on the card.
Kofi and R-Truth defeated Jack Swagger and Dolph Ziggler to retain the Tag Team Championship belts. Kofi hit the trouble in paradise kick on Dolph for the three count.
^This was tag team wrestling at its best. Kofi and Truth have had a solid run as champs so far and it seems like the right move to have them hold onto the titles for the time being. Ziggler and Swagger both showed their talent in this match, but I’m curious how long they’ll remain a tag team for when both men are former World Champions and one is capable of working great match with the best talent in the company.
Layla defeated Beth Phoenix to retain her Divas Title.
^These two worked a decent match that wasn’t loaded with any ridiculous high spots or botched moves. They actually worked a really decent ground game together and had an intense middle of the ring style matchup. I was happy to see Layla win the match; I enjoy it when WWE decides not to play “hot potato” with their championships. Beth will get the title back eventually, but right now it’s time for Layla to show the world what she can do as champion.
Sheamus defeated Chris Jericho, Randy Orton, and Alberto Del Rio to retain his World Title. Sheamus finished the match with white noise on Jericho for the three count.
^While it was typical of WWE to focus on two men at a time for most of the match with two men on the ground, I still enjoyed this fatal four way. ADR looked very aggressive when he was on offense and Orton looked like he was on the verge of winning several times. Jericho did his thing and held the match together well with his ring knowledge. Sheamus ultimately conquered all to retain the gold and I feel also that he proved his worth as World Champion for the second consecutive ppv event. I hope to see more of Sheamus and Orton in a rivalry in the coming weeks.
Brodus Clay defeated the Miz in a short match.
^Well, it wasn’t a squash match. Brodus wins again. Miz is off to film the Marine 3 shortly. I have to believe that things are going to come full circle for Miz and that he’ll be in the main event scene again in the future(stolen from Lightning but I happen to agree). It’s awful to watch him continue losing left and right. Brodus still bores me, but it is what it is in regards to his character.
Christian chose to challenge Cody Rhodes instead of Santino Marella and defeated Rhodes to become the new Intercontinental Champion.
^This match here reminded me of a match from the glory days of the IC Title(AKA the 90s for the most part). Christian has been a great IC Champ in the past and I can just imagine that his run is only going to be temporary before he moves back into the World Title picture. I’m very happy with Christian turning face; it seems the roster was lacking in big name face characters as of late. I don’t think the loss hurts Cody at all where it was such a good match, and I could see one of two things happening now with Rhodes. He could feud with Christian and try to get his title back, or he could move on to the main event scene and try to become the number one contender.
CM Punk defeated Daniel Bryan to retain the WWE Championship. Punk countered a yes lock and rolled Bryan onto his back for three count. Punk tapped out to the submission AFTER the three count was complete.
^I haven’t read many other opinions, but this was a five star match for me without question. The most exciting part about this match is knowing that it’s just the tip of the iceberg for these two and if WWE is smart, then this rivalry will go throughout the entire summer. Yes! Yes! Yes! This was an absolutely incredible match, and I was very surprised that AJ didn’t get involved after she cut wished Punk goodluck before the match. No complaints though.
Ryback squashed Camacho. I don’t have a whole lot to say, just like Ryback. Obsession is a gift.
John Laurinaitis defeated John Cena with help from non-WWE Superstar, the Big Show.
^No shock. WWE stuck to their guns and went with the plan that they had all along. The whole segment with Cena humiliating and destroying Laurinaitis was funny. Unfortunately, it should not have been booked as the main event of the night. Had Punk and Bryan gone on last and this second to last, I wouldn’t be complaining about this so much. It was like giving the fans an awesome show and then giving the crowd a dark match main event that nobody should have to see. Despite that, Laurinaitis is a good professional in my eyes for being so willing to put himself out there in this match. He knew the fans wanted to see him get his ass kicked, and that right there is probably the only time his “people power” gimmick has been even close to legit. Cena and Big Show will probably have a rivalry now; it’s been done but it’s been awhile. I don’t think it will be too awful.
Overall, this was a great ppv event. The show was pretty much a dud the last two years but definitely made a comeback as a solid event this time around. The main event stopped the show from being as good as Extreme Rules in terms of overall entertainment, but in a pure wrestling sense this was actually the best show of the year(okay, maybe tied with Mania in my opinion and not necessarily better). Punk and Bryan was a five star WRESTLING match. Taker and HHH was a five star story full of emotion. Rhodes and Christian was a better match than Rhodes/Show. The fatal four way was better than Kane/Orton(again in my opinion), and DBry/Sheamus. The tag team match and Divas match were quality wrestling matches as well. The two squashes were Vince’s ego fillers. Again, it was just a really good wrestling show. The fans got their money’s worth in that sense. Outside of that main event(which was entertaining to a degree but very predictable), the show was awesome. I’ll be back with my Raw column sometime on Tuesday. Thanks for reading!
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