[SPOILERS
for this past weekend's Hell In A Cell pay-per-view, specifically the
two HIAC matches that bookended the event: New Day vs. Usos and Kevin
Owens vs. Shane O.Mac]
First of
all, the bad: Hell In A Cell should not be a comedy match. As good as
it got towards the end when the Usos unleashed the light bondage on
Xavier Woods, it started with comedy shtick. There was a gong. There
were rainbow-patterned kendo sticks. There were trombones of many
colours. It wasn't good. It was a bad fit of performers, really, the
New Day as faces just aren't people who should be in this sort of
match.
Kevin Owens
vs. Shane O'Mac, though: my goodness, that was HIAC done right.
The
highlight of the match, obviously, was the whole business of the two
men fighting on the top of the cage. Now, I know in my head that
after that disaster all those years ago when Undertaker managed to
throw Mick Foley through the cage roof and the very real damage that
did to Foley that they must stress test that cage to destruction
every time they intend to use it for standing on top of purposes. In
spire of that, every step those two men took, every time one of them
threw the other onto the chainlink, was a heart in my throat moment.
My housemate
Matt and I watched it on Monday night and at least once each we both
said “We'd know if one of them had died, right?”
It was a
hell of a match. I'm still a bit annoyed there wasn't a women's HIAC
match this year as I think Charlotte and Natalya could have put on a
fantastic one (and also because the DQ finish is my only real
criticism of the match they had here) and I was hoping that the trend
of every gimmick PPV having both a men's and women's version of the
titular match was going to continue.
Mostly I
want this to hold true for reasons of feminism and equality but a
tiny bit also because I want a second Women's Division Money In The
Bank on PPV that gets won by a woman!
[Incidentally,
as I write this there are reports Shane had to be rushed to hospital
after the match with broken ribs. Unfortunately, every report I've
read seems to be reading from a WWE press release that could be
set-up for a storyline rather than reality.
Either
way: get well soon, Shane, you mad, indestructible bastard.]
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