WWE HELL IN A CELL
Oct. 27, 2013 – Miami, FL
WWE TAG TEAM CHAMPIONSHIP MATCH
RhodeDust (c) vs. The Usos vs. The Shield | ***3/4
Results: Cody Rhodes via pinfall, with the Cross Rhodes on Seth Rollins.
For the first half of the match, I was worried The Usos would be a huge afterthought in what was largely just a rematch between the champs and the former champs. They got in their spots though; that self-assisted Samoan Drop is a thing of beauty. Everyone got their spots in, including a huge superplex to the floor, taking out everyone. The Usos do need to be pushed, but right now The Rhode are a hot commodity, and there's no reason to take the belts off them. The right team won. A very exciting opener.
FANDANGO & SUMMER RAE vs. GREAT KHALI & NATALYA | *1/4
Results: Summer Rae rolls up Natalya for the pinfall in her debut match.
I'll give them one star for Summer Rae getting the win in her debut match. I'll give them another quarter-star for Kaitlyn trying to put it over in the panel like it actually mattered. Here's an idea: if you're going to copy ideas from NXT, do it with people equally as talented.
UNITED STATES CHAMPIONSHIP MATCH
DEAN AMBROSE (c) vs. BIG E LANGSTON | **
Results: Big E Langston wins the match via count-out; Ambrose retains. After the match, Langston hits the Big Ending on the champ.
I'm not going to give them too much heat for this one, because A) they didn't have a whole lot of time to plan for this, and B) to my knowledge, Langston has zero experience working Ambrose. The crowd didn't care, because they had nothing to care about. Langston's babyface push has been good, but it's only lasted about a week and some change, and he needed the rub from the Heyman/Ryback/Axel/Punk feud to keep getting him over. Langston wins via count-out, so he's got the win over a champion, and he finishes the job after the match to look strong. I wanted Langston to win the IC title tonight, and I wasn't really pleased with this match at all, but like I said, it's hard to really give them hell for it.
HELL IN A CELL MATCHCM PUNK vs. RYBACK & PAUL HEYMAN | ***
Results: Punk puts Ryback through a table with a top rope elbow drop, followed by the GTS for the 1-2-3. Afterwards, Punk scales the Cell and attacks Paul Heyman with a kendo stick.
Not a bad match, that the crowd slowly eased into. Of course, the story here was Punk getting his hands on Heyman. I think when Heyman first came out on the lift, a lot of people thought something bigger was going to happen. Unfortunately, for better or for worse, we're not in that era anymore. Punk and Ryback got their shots in on each other. It wasn't nearly as brutal as some of the other Hell in a Cell matches Heyman has been involved in, like Brock Lesnar beating the Undertaker. Again, we're in a different era. It's painfully obvious in matches like this.
