By Greg Parks, Torch specialist

Once again, we were bamboozled by T.C. Hooligan's. We called Friday to make sure they were showing the PPV, but when we called to make reservations on Sunday, they said they weren't. That left only my roommate Kurt and I to watch it in our apartment since everybody else is low on funds.

First off, the set looked really cool, but dangerous, with all the weapons being used tonight hanging from the rafters.

(1) Christian vs. Shelton Benjamin: A good idea for the opener. When they used the crane cam to zoom to the ring, it looked like there were eight empty seats in a row in the front row opposite the hard camera. I thought maybe TNA was invading or something. I got a good laugh out of Matt Striker explaining that the Texas Athletic Commission required the match stoppage to deal with Christian's blood, thereby absolving WWE of the anger of fans who want blood (and they were vocal in the crowd). This PPV was interesting, because WWE had to walk a fine line between presenting the hardcore action they promised, but not crossing the line and doing anything dangerous; it came across as so in this match, where it seemed like they teased more dangerous moves than they paid off. I noticed that Christian had to stand way too long to wait for Shelton's ladder-assisted clothesline. Still, a solid opener and then some. (***1/4)

(2) Drew McIntyre vs. John Morrison: Kurt picked McIntyre here, thinking Morrison would be vaulted into the main event picture. I warned him not to hold his breath, though he did make the point that Smackdown is lacking top faces. I really could have used a Striker-strator for him to point out the injury and the striations on Morrison's body he was talking about. The DDT on McIntyre was brutal, folding him like an accordion. I'm hopeful they're not sticking with Scot-Drop as the name of Mac's finisher. Awful name. (**3/4)

(3) Mickie James vs. Michelle McCool: They smartly gave these women enough time to ply their trade for the evening. Too bad we don't see that privilege afforded to them often enough. Things seemed to break down on the outside when Layla attempted to interfere - not sure what it was supposed to be. Since we couldn't get our usual Hooligan's grub, we had to settle for food here (since we're ordering in for the TNA PPV next week and didn't want to spend the money two Sundays in a row). My dinner of choice was fried chicken during this match. (*3/4)

(4) Sheamus vs. John Cena: My computer screen randomly goes to a white screen every once in a while, then goes back to normal after a few minutes. Ironically, the only time it happened today was during a Sheamus match. For some reason, when Cena was carrying the table up the ramp, I had visions of Jesus carrying the cross. Don't ask me why; I'm sure it says more about me than about how WWE books Cena. All I could say was "wow" for the finish. I thought for sure Cena would win, thus allowing Sheamus to save face because he wouldn't have been pinned. Instead, Cena got to save face because Sheamus didn't put him throw the table authoritatively. Sheamus did not seem out of place here. (***)

(5) Undertaker vs. Batista: Crowd seemed a bit out of it to start, which I'd blame on the surprise of Sheamus winning the previous match. I loved how Michael Cole said count-outs and DQ's are in play, yet Batista and Taker spent a good two minutes outside the ring near the beginning of the match. I don't know why I thought of it at this point, but Striker should wear a bow-tie when he announces. It just seems right. (**1/2)

(6) Kofi Kingston vs. Randy Orton: I almost forgot about this one, after this had been the hottest feud on Raw for a while. Orton's dropkick to Kofi as Kingston was jumping off the top rope was sweet. It didn't seem that Kingston blocking Orton's kick came across well live. Still, I liked this match. (***)

(7) DX vs. JeriShow: When all four men were brawling on stage, I suggested that Jericho should look out, as Triple H has been known to hide a sledgehammer in that proximity. I'm amazed that Shawn Michaels still can sell the way he does and make people look so good. The only complaint I had was that DX was up way too quickly after getting put through tables at ringside. The last 10-15 minutes of this match was real good, especially the finishing sequence, and I didn't have a problem with the slow pace to the start of the match. I thought Wade underrated this one. (****)

Another thumbs-up show from WWE. You're not going to see any duds with the guys they have working the shows these days. Thumbs in the middle, depending on booking decisions, is probably the worst they can do at this point. And Kurt and I tied in the prediction contest. I had Orton and he had DX, which is the only match we differed on. With next month being the Royal Rumble with our annual Rumble jackpot, it should be a lot more interesting as we get together to watch the PPV.

PWTorch VIP members have first-look access to all of Torch Smackdown specialist Greg Parks's latest blogs in the newly upgraded VIP Forum. His blogs are published first in the PWTorch VIP Forum, and Parks interacts with other VIP members and Torch staff and contributors in the blog comments area afterward. Some of Parks's blog entries will be exclusive to the VIP Forum.

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