By Tony Donofrio, Torch specialist

-- 12/13 WWE TLC PPV HITS & MISSES

PPV Hits

Christian vs. Shelton Benjamin (ECW Title): This was a really good way of kicking off the TLC PPV. The hype was that these two were going to steal the show and as far as match quality goes, they pretty much did just that. I wasn't happy with the stoppage for the blood (see below), but other than that, this was the perfect match to kick off the show. There were a few really good spots and these two put on the type of match that you'd expect from two athletic guys like Shelton and Christian. It was also nice to see WWE give them nearly 20 minutes for this match. But the thing that I said out loud after this match was over was "if this match doesn't prove to Vince that Christian belongs on one of the two main shows, then I don't know what will." Here's hoping that Christian is near the end of his "punishment" for his four-year run in TNA.

John Morrison vs. Drew McIntyre (Intercontinental Title): These two had the unenviable task of following up a heck of an opener and did a pretty good job, all things considered. It's tough to see two younger guys go at it and one of them has to put the other over, but I think the right decision was made. Morrison has already done a nice job of getting himself over and I think it could be time for him to start seeking bigger and better things. McIntyre has also done quite well for himself over the past month and it was nice to see him be elevated for his work in the short time that he's been up on the main roster. I expect these two to feud for another month or so until right before the Royal Rumble. Then, hopefully we will see more of a main event push for Morrison coming out of this feud.

Michelle McCool vs. Mickie James (Women's Title): Yes, I am giving this match a hit. I thought that this was a solid match. McCool has come a long way in the ring. That doesn't mean that I thought this was the female equivalent of Bret Hart vs. Chris Benoit, but it was decent. I was a little surprised and let down by the finish from both the result and in-ring aspect of things, but it was nice to see these two get close to ten minutes. I'm still waiting for this division to explode with the potential match-ups between Mickie, Beth Phoenix, and Natalya. Here's hoping that's right around the corner.

John Cena vs. Sheamus (WWE Title): Wow. That is how you could describe everyone's sentiments immediately following this match and it wasn't because it was a five-star classic. That's not to say it was a bad match either because it wasn't. Obviously the shock is that WWE decided to pull the trigger so quickly on Sheamus as WWE champion. I think this can be a good thing IF they decide to give Sheamus at least four-to-six weeks as champion. I know that's not exactly a long title run, but if he loses the title in the first two weeks of his reign, it could really hurt Sheamus a lot more than they've helped push him the past six weeks. I'd also like to send out a plea to WWE, so here it goes: please do not let Cena win the title back less than 24 hours after losing it at TLC as they did with Kane and Steve Austin in 1998 after the King of the Ring PPV. We have all seen the Tribute to the Troops commercial. We all know that near the end of it, Cena is shown holding up the WWE Title. Who cares? Explain that this was recorded before the PPV. That should definitely not be a reason to hot-shot the WWE Title back to Cena before that show airs. As for the match itself, as I said before, it was okay at best, but not bad. The styles of these two don't really mesh well and the tables may have hurt them more than helped them. But, needless to say, it was a shocker and that in itself, makes this a major hit.

Big Show and Chris Jericho vs. DX (Unified Tag Titles): This was a strong way to end the show and showcase how far the tag titles have come since this past summer. If you had told me in July that WWE would main event a PPV with the tag titles at stake, I would have definitely laughed and ridiculed you up and down. However, Jericho and the Big Show have helped elevated the titles and made them mean something again. I know there's not much competition but they've treated the titles with a respect that hasn't been seen in quite some time. Now I'm curious to see how DX will keep up that respect for the titles, but it's also something that worries me. However, as much as I was against DX winning the titles, there seemed to be something "right" about seeing Shawn Michaels and Triple H actually getting to hold those titles together for the first time. The match itself progressed well and the last 10 minutes were very good. The final few spots with Jericho on Big Show's shoulders and HBK climbing the half-ladder were entertaining and provided a fun ending to the match. The big loss in this though will be for Raw losing Chris Jericho. I sense that JeriShow may win the titles back in a re-match, though, helping to set up a potential JeriShow vs. Edge & Christian match in a few months, maybe even WrestleMania. But I guess only time will tell.

PPV Misses

Undertaker vs. Batista (World Heavyweight Title): Here's a match that never really got off the ground. It was slow-paced from start to finish and I absolutely hated the re-start. Sure, the rules weren't clearly defined at the start of the match, but the fact that chairs were allowed to be used in the match also would lead one to believe that there really wasn't any type of DQ for this match either. I'm assuming that Batista will get a re-match based on his post-match berating of Teddy Long. Also, based on my comments earlier, I wouldn't mind seeing a John Morrison vs. Batista match for the World Heavyweight Title at WrestleMania 26. It's still possible that they could head in that direction. However, we may have to sit through another slow Batista-Undertaker match to get there.

Randy Orton vs. Kofi Kingston: This match completely got lost in the shuffle. I'm not just saying that, I honestly (and admittedly not proud to say) forgot that this match was even on the card until it was time for it. That's sad because the feud has been a very good one. I think the lack of this being a gimmick match at the TLC PPV and/or not having a title involved with it was the reason. Unfortunately, the match itself didn't help make it any more memorable. Kofi's big win and push stemming from Survivor Series has seemed to cool off significantly. At first glance, his loss to Orton a few weeks back due to Legacy's involvement didn't seem to hurt too much. But, since that time, he hasn't done much to regain that steam. The fast count win this past week on Raw was not helpful and losing clean on the PPV also did Kofi no favors. From the look on Orton's face after the match, though, I did get the impression that this might not be the end for these two as far as this storyline goes.

TIMEOUT, he's bleeding!!!: The stoppage in the opening match between Christian and Shelton was something that made me shake my head. Like I said, it was still a really good match but the stoppage for drawing blood needs to be stopped. The live crowd was not happy with this development and I'm sure those who ordered the PPV at home weren't either. Unfortunately, when live violence (scripted or not) happens, sometimes blood will be shed, even if it's by accident. I understand that WWE is now PG, but this was ridiculous! The commentators tried to cover for this by saying something along the lines that the Texas Athletic Commission mandates that there be some sort of stoppage when blood is shed. Luckily, it didn't hurt the quality of the match, but it could have. The worst part of it was watching Shelton stand there and look on as they glued Christian's cut back together. Here's hoping that WWE will review this policy and use common sense; that being that blood sometimes happens when two guys are fighting!

Hey fellas, get the facts straight: The broadcast team tonight made two glaring statements that weren't even close to being factually correct! The first one was Matt Striker saying that it had been 20 plus years since the Intercontinental Title had changed hands in Texas. Hmm, how about it's been less than a year! I guess Rey Mysterio's IC Title win over JBL never happened at WrestleMania 25 in Houston. Secondly, and probably an even bigger misstating of the facts, was the comment that Sheamus is the first non-U.S. born champion since Yokozuna held the title in 1993. Well, if that is the case, I'd like to know when the United States annexed Canada as it's 51st state! Do the names Bret Hart and Edge ring a bell? I don't want to sound too critical because I do like this particular three-man booth for PPVs (although I wouldn't mind Todd Grisham over Michael Cole), but you'd think that since this stuff, you know, does happen to be predetermined, that the WWE would prepare these guys with the facts!

Final Grade

I give WWE's TLC PPV a B- on the old grading scale. Not a bad show, but certainly not very good. Book-ending the show with the ladder matches was a wise way to go, as they were pretty much the same match minus the obvious elements and they were easily the two best matches on the card as far as in-ring quality goes. I applaud the continuing of the "new star movement' while shaking my head at a missed opportunity at the same time. I love to see Sheamus and McIntyre being elevated but was not happy with the clean loss for Kingston as I think they might've pulled the rug out from underneath him. We now have six weeks between WWE PPVs and that COULD be a very good thing if WWE uses the time wisely. Obviously, January 4 is a big date as TNA will attempt to re-spark the Monday Night Wars. If WWE is smart, they won't concern themselves with TNA and focus more on making their product better (as I think they have been trying lately with creating new stars) for their own good and not trying to do things to hurt TNA. The next so many weeks are big also to see where WWE really stands on Sheamus, McIntyre, Kingston, and Morrison (and even The MIz for that matter, even though he wasn't featured tonight but has been getting more heat every week on Raw). A six-week build until the Royal Rumble (and the start to the Road to WrestleMania) could be a blessing in disguise if they use it that way.

I'll also be curious to see how much DX really shows up on Smackdown now that they have that privilege. The tag titles have been elevated, now it will be interesting to see if DX will keep it that way or just use the belts as more of a prop than anything. We may see a World Title change on Smackdown before the Royal Rumble as well. Back to the TLC PPV, it wasn't as violent as some would have hoped or expected. We have been spoiled over the past decade with TLC type of matches featuring The Hardys, Dudleys, and Edge & Christian. This is, however, a PG era for WWE and it also coincided with a lot of concussion discoveries lately including the test results of Andrew "Test" Martin coming out and showing that he had significant brain damage potentially from his years in wrestling. So, all things considered, this may be as violent as WWE will get for quite some time and we may see them go on the safe side of things for that time period, much like we did tonight.

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