Editor’s Note: As always, no posting over this until tomorrrow!

First off, let me say this: can anyone believe Booker T actually made a PPV ad back in the day? I had completely forgotten!

Anyways, it’s time for another WWE PPV, Judgment Day. Here’s the card:

• Steel Cage Match for the WWE Championship: Randy Orton v. Triple H(c)
• WWE Tag Team Championship: Kane and CM Punk v. John Morrison and The Miz(c)
• World Heavyweight Championship: Edge v. The Undertaker(c)
• Triple Threat for the WWE Women’s Championship: Melina v. Beth Pheonix v. Mickie James(c)
• JBL v. John Cena
• Chris Jericho v. Shawn Michaels
• Mark Henry v. Big Show (not listed, but supposedly added)

And there you have it. Now let me tell you why this PPV might not be that bad. Yeah, I said it. It’s actually not that bad of a lineup, regardless of the crappy build that they’ve  had.

Mark Henry v. Show is obviously a filler match, so let’s just throw that out right off the bat. Jericho v. Michaels may be a short feud-advancing match, especially with Batista promising to show up, so I don’t have high hopes for it, either. That being said, you know these two guys will have a good match leading up to whatever kind of screwy ending there is. I’m sure it will set up a triple threat match for next month.

JBL v. John Cena…I really don’t know what to think about that one. It’s a wild card, but it could be interesting. At least it’s something different.

The women’s triple threat should be a pretty good women’s title match, especially when Melina and Beth Pheonix start turning on each other. The tag match could really go either way, as well, but with Morrison and CM Punk in it, there should be some interesting spots.

I’m hoping this Edge v. Undertaker match will be the match they should have had at Wrestlemania. I’d love to see an all-out brawl–we haven’t seen Edge have a really good, wild match in a while.  I could be way off base, but I think this match will deliever.

Finally, we get to the steel cage match. I think this match really could have been built better, playing more on Orton and Triple H’s history, which would have made the steel cage much more meaningful. Still, these guys will probably go to great links to make this a brutal, bloody steel cage match, which we really haven’t seen in a while in the WWE. I think the cage was a good choice for the main event, and hopefully it won’t be a let down.

So, I guess it boils down to this question: are you going to buy this show? I’ve considered it since I don’t think it’s that bad of a card wrestling-wise, but it will be on a whim if I do.

As always, discuss the PPV here.

Episode 89 of Pro Wrestling Blog v2.0’s Official Podcast is now online, featuring:

• A rundown of TNA and WWE News, including bits on Sean Waltman, RVD, Ariel and HBK…
• Lex’s Judgment Day REVIEW
• Listener feedback

To discuss this podcast, please visit the new podcast site at www.pwbpodcast.com.

That’s right, tonight is WWE Judgment Day, so I figured I’d put up this post for everyone to discuss the show. Don’t forget to check out Max’s awesome Judgment Day preview.

Here’s tonight’s card:

• WWE Championship: The Great Khali v. John Cena(c)
• World Heavyweight Championship: Batista v. Edge(c)
• United States Championship, Best 2 of 3 Falls: MVP v. Chris Benoit(c)
• ECW Championship: Bobby Lashley v. Umaga, Shane McMahon and Vince McMahon(c)
• Elijah Burke v. CM Punk
• Shawn Michaels v. Randy Orton *SUBJECT TO HBK’s CONDITION, ACCORDING TO PRE-SHOW GRAPHIC*
• Carlito v. Ric Flair
• JUST ADDED: World Tag Team Championships: Lance Cade and Trevor Murdoch v. The Hardys(c)

I’m wondering what match is actually going to go on last tonight. On one hand, Khali v. Cena will be TERRIBLE, but on the other hand, Edge v. Batista was only given a build of two days.

I thought Judgment was spelt Judgement. Oh well. Onwards to the Pay Per View Preview! Payperpreview! Payview! Show.

We enter Judgment Day at a bit of a down spot for the WWE. Not only are Mr. Kennedy and the Undertaker injured, but Shawn Michaels is apparently injured now! Although he’ll still work at Judgment Day. And then we have the actual Judgment Day card - it’s looking great at some points (Benoit/MVP) while also ranging from bad (Edge/Batista) to really bad (Lashley vs the McMahons and Umaga) to so bad it could be good (Khali/Cena). I’m not going to go into details about how the WWE is going downhill or something, because it’s not all their fault, but things definitely could be better.

But let’s move on to the preview now. 7 matches, and I’ll run them down from bottom of the list on WWE to the top. Actually, wait. Two things, first:

1) Why is Kane the main focus on the WWE.com Judgment Day site? I’m guessing him and the Boogeyman are going to be added at the last minute taking on That 50’s Team or something.

2) There’s a little section, again on the Judgment Day mini-site, mentioning the history of Judgment Day - and it mentions “Rey Mysterio’s underdog World Championship defense against JBL.” Don’t get me (or anyone else on this blog, surely) about how that title reign sucked.

But now let’s actually begin it, after three times of trying to do so.

Actually, no. This isn’t joking, I actually just thought of something. Are they going to add a women’s title match to this card? Melina vs Candice, maybe? We’ll see. NOW let us finally begin.

Carlito vs Ric Flair

Not much to say about this one. Flair will win, because at the end of this feud Carlito will go over, as Flair has done throughout his career (put younger talent over). That’s what he does. I’m sure this won’t be a particularly good match, but I’m at least confident on the result.

Here is your winner, WOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

(Editors Note: I only realised this said I was picking Carlito just now. I picked Flair.)

Shawn Michaels vs Randy Orton

HBK vs RKO. Abbreviation vs abbreviation. This match is taking place for the simple fact that both of these guys need to be on the pay per view. No feud, no backstory, just wrestling. Or rest holds, in Orton’s case. The supposed injury to Michaels puts a bit of a spanner in the works of my original prediction (Michaels over). They might let Randy win just because Shawn’s gonna be out for a little bit. But, I don’t think they will.

Here is your winner, Shawn “Praise Jesus” Michaels

Elijah Burke vs CM Punk

Ah, now this’ll be a good match. If the WWE actually gives these guys the time they deserve - say, 20 minutes - they could put on a 4-star match. Oh, wait, no star ratings. OK then, they could put on a damn good match. But, they’ll probably end up with a 10 minute slot. Which makes this a lot like the Benoit/MVP match at WrestleMania 23. I hope this is that good. Right, now to picking a winner. Hmm… I think Punk’ll go over in this feud, which I don’t think will end at this PPV, so…

Here is your winner, the Elijah Experience

Chris Benoit (c) vs Montel Vontavious Porter
United States Championship
2 out of 3 falls match

Now THIS is gonna be great. By default, any match with Chris Benoit is great. Then you add MVP, who’s improving every day. Then you make it 2 out of 3 falls?!? Holy shit, I’m excited for this. I’m going to downlo- I mean, acquire this PPV just because of this match. And maybe the comedy of live Khali. But I look for this to be great. It was set up well on Smackdown when Benoit beat MVP without using one of his finishers (he used a roll-up), showing how this match won’t require Crossfaces and Playmakers to get the job done. Benoit retained at WM, and I think MVP is ready for a belt, so…

Here is your winner, as Bill Parcells would say, the guy who is supposed to be like “The Player”

Bobby Lashley vs Mr. McMahon (c), Shane McMahon and Umaga
ECW Championship

Is it just me, or has Vincent become more black than Lindsay over the past few weeks? Honestly, when we had the Coach, Lindsay and Vincent in the ring on Raw this past week, Vincent was the blackest person there. He really is quite an entertaining character, even if I’m a bit sick of him. But to the match, and I think it’s pretty obvious who is going to win. Lindsay will pin Vincent, as long as he hasn’t been doing drugs or trashed a hotel room that we haven’t heard about. As far as I know, Vincent still loves Lindsay, so he’ll regain the title. And then probably face Snitsky. Oh, I can’t wait for that.

Here is your winner, and NEW ECW Champion, Bobby Lindsay

Edge (c) vs Batista
World Heavyweight Championship

First of all, I’ve got to talk about the Judgment Day site preview of this match. “As first reported by WWE Mobile Alerts,” they write. OMG! Mobile alerts! Readers, if you are subscribed to this service, please tell me so I can come to your house and slap you across the face. Secondly, this: “Speculation within the SmackDown locker room holds that Long was purely incensed by the calculative, vulture-like manner in which Edge won the gold in Pittsburgh.” Insert laughter here. Speculation within the locker room? Vulture-like manner? You’re killing me, WWE. Alright, the match. Batista shouldn’t even be getting a title shot - he lost to ‘Taker three times. One would think he’s used up his rematch clause. And it would be a complete insult to Money in the Bank if Edge loses the title so quickly. So…

Here is your winner, ON THIS DAY, I SEE CLEARLY

John Cena (c) vs the Great Khali
WWE Championship

I’m honestly not sure how I feel about this match. Do I cheer Cena? Do I cheer Khali? Wait, I know what I’m cheering for. I’m cheering for botches. I’m cheering for screw-ups. I’m cheering for Khali to injure Cena. I’m cheering for everything to go completely wrong. I’m actually looking forward to this match, for the simple fact that it’s going to be so bad. When John Cena’s caryring a match which has no stipulations (Cena/Umaga at the Rumble was pretty good), you know you’ve got a problem. I don’t know if Cena’s going to win, but I just can’t see Khali with the belt. I mean, who’d win it back off him? Cena? That’d be pointless. So…

Here is your winner, WRRRRAAAPPPAAADDDOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

Episode 88 of Pro Wrestling Blog v2.0’s Official Podcast is now online, featuring:

• Updates on WWE’s recent roster changes, including a bad injury for Gregory Helms
• Lex’s Judgment Day preview
• Listener feedback

Sure, the brand extension isn’t dead, but with WWE’s second official tri-brand PPV coming up (obviously, not counting Wrestlemania 23), things are looking pretty good.

It looks to be a given that we’ll be seeing all three major titles defended at every PPV now. At least until ECW is contracted. Outside of the three title matches, though, it looks like we’re going to get some variety, and I think that’s why this new PPV plan is going to turn out to be a winner.

Back in the dark days of single-brand PPVs (ahem, two months ago…), we pretty much knew what we were going to get on every show, and much of that involved boring undercard feuds that no one cared about. Fast-forward to Judgment Day, and I’m more interested in the bottom of the card than I am the top! Benoit and MVP battling in a best two of three falls match? Hell yeah! Carlito and Ric Flair feuding? Oddly, I’m interested. Elijah Burke and CM Punk getting a chance to impress fans on PPV? Another winner. Even HBK v. Orton, which was thrown together at the last moment, is a match that I’m interested in seeing.

Another positive thing about the new PPV format is that each TV show doesn’t have the pressure of trying to build up an entire PPV every other month. A lot of the angles we’ll see now on Raw and Smackdown won’t result in a PPV match, which is fine by me. Hopefully the writers will actually put more thought into developing a complete TV show instead of trying to cobble together a single-brand PPV without enough talent. A great example of this is the Hardyz/Cade and Murdoch feud that has developed out of Backlash. That’s been a very entertaining angle in my opinion, and will have more time to play out over the next month before Vengeance.

Now if they could just fix the main events…we’d be set.

It was a couple of weeks back when we all heard the original reports claiming that The Undertaker had injured himself and was in need of some kind of operation which would obviously require him to drop the world heavyweight championship he had only just won for the first time.

Next we hear that Mr Kennedy is also injured and will need time away from the ring to recover. Losing these two superstars is blatantly a huge loss for Friday night Smackdown and it seemed the brand was in chaos. So after the chain of events in which Mr Kennedy loses his MITB briefcase to Edge on Raw, the Taker and Batista cage match for the title ends in a draw, Mark Henry brutally attacks Taker and finally Edge cashes in his MITB to defeat Taker and become world heavyweight champion we are left with a new champion and a new superstar on Smackdown.

Edge is now officially a Smackdown superstar after losing to HBK last night on Raw. In the space of 24 hours Edge had gone from a seemingly endless chase of John Cena for the WWE title on Raw to representing Smackdown as world heavyweight champion. Edge has truly benefited from the unfortunate injury situation that knocked out two of Smackdowns main-event wrestlers. Every cloud has a silver lining…

I hope that Edge will now add a whole new dimension to the roster on Smackdown. I can see some potential feuds of the year in place now. Having just the one superstar trade brands illustrated my point a while back that the WWE needs a draft lottery. Imagine the possibilities of feuds we’ve never seen before rather than the same ones repeating themselves. Anyway like I said I see some massive feuds ahead now that Edge wrestlers on Fridays.

First of all the feud I really want to see is Edge vs. Matt Hardy. We’ve seen in previous weeks on Smackdown that Matt is receiving somewhat of a singles push, which seems strange being that he is currently one half of the world tag team champions on Raw! We’ve seen Matt cleanly pin King Booker and Mr Kennedy (twice I think?). Then on wwe.com I come across a blog from Matt Hardy talking about Edge and the world title. Coincidence, I think not. Obviously this feud has fire behind it after Lita left Matt for Edge in real life. I think losing Lita would make any guy go crazy and Matt was no different. It even cost Matt his job for a while back in 2005. He returned in the same year and competed against Edge on several occasions including a classic steel cage match at Unforgiven. These two also have history from the Edge & Christian vs. Hardy Boyz feuds back around 2000-2001 including classic ladder matches at Wrestlemania 16 and 17. All the pieces are in place apart from the fact that Matt is currently a tag team champion. This will probably restrict him for as long as himself and Jeff hold the gold.

So before this I think we’d all like to see Edge vs. Mr Kennedy. Having Edge quite literally ‘steal’ the MITB briefcase from Kennedy strongly allows the possibility of him returning as a babyface. This is a role I would love to see Kennedy take on. Just like Matt, Kennedy is a solid wrestler. The key that Kennedy holds over Matt is that he’s magical on the mic. Kennedy has cut numerous promos obviously of a heels nature so it would be excellent to see the crowds behind one of his promos rather than against it. He should be able to get any live crowd fired up. I fully expect these two to lock horns immediately upon Kennedy’s return from injury. We should be seeing some fresh, quality matches in the upcoming months on Smackdown.

The feud I’m really pulling for is Matt vs. Edge. Imagine a ladder match for the world heavyweight title headlining a PPV. Just like feud of the year, it could be match of the year. Last year Matt put on a series of awesome matches against Gregory Helms resulting in one of my personal feuds of 2006. They don’t hold an array of high-impact moves but they just made every piece of a wrestling match fit like a puzzle. Edge and Matt can definitely do the same this year. Even if he doesn’t go on to win the belt I want to see Matt get that main-event push that JBL has been calling on for many many months now. I can see those two headlining multiple Pay-per-views.

I’m not entirely sure what to make of the card for Judgment Day. MVP vs. Benoit, Elijah Burke vs. CM Punk and HBK vs. Orton stand out for me. Khali being in the main-event is just plain embarrassing. If he does win on Sunday how could we ever watch Raw again? I predict a DQ finish because I can’t see Khali being pinned or Cena being pinned. It has potential to be the worst PPV main-event we’ve seen for a very long time.

Thanks for reading and I’ll catch you next time.
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