-- 1/31 WWE Royal Rumble PPV Reax

Aaron of Keizer, Ore. (7.0): Best: Christian-Jackson, Edge. Worst: Sheamus-Orton. Not great, but not bad by any means. Christian-Jackson far exceeded my expectations and shows that it's time for Christian to move on to one of the big shows. He's too good of a talent to be wasted on ECW. If he can make Zeke look good, he can make anyone look good. I really like the chemistry with Miz-MVP, but the match was just there. Their program was saved by their interaction later in the Rumble. Sheamus-Orton was just awful. If there was ever a forgotten champion, it's Sheamus. The match was slow and boring with a weak finish. Like a previous Reax writer said, if that's the way they choose to break up Legacy, then that's a huge disappointment. Taker-Mysterio was okay based on the movement created by Mysterio, but we all knew there was no way Mysterio was winning the match, so I found myself not caring too much about it. The Rumble started great with Punk's dominance and subsequent promos. He's second only to Jericho on the mic right now. I thought it was disappointing to see him tossed so quickly by Triple H after his early dominance. Those two could have a great, fresh program that I would love to see if WWE chooses to go that route. The Rumble was somewhat plodding and uneventful after Punk's elimination, with a formula of the mid-carders getting some offense and hitting a finisher or two before getting tossed by one of the big boys. It definitely didn't enhance any mid-card talent, that's for sure. I was on the brink of disappointment with the PPV until Edge's surprise return. I thought that HBK was a lock. His elimination and Edge's eventual win were two nice surprises and saved the Rumble. I can't wait to see where WWE goes with the potential storylines in the coming weeks. I hope they don't disappoint.

Jon Gargis of Cartersville, Ga. (7.0) Best Moment: Surprise Rumble winner. Worst Moment: Missing the first 45 minutes of the PPV due to the host restaurant or the satellite provider. Luckily, I got to see the Rumble, and the quality of it made up for the lack of quality in the other matches I saw. Sheamus vs. Orton was pretty good, and I can't believe the pop Orton got from the Atlanta crowd. Not sure if the pro-Orton crowd was a result of anti-Sheamus sentiment or if Orton is becoming a Rock-like heel. McCool's mic work telegraphed how the Divas Title match was going to go. I wonder if it was planned that way or if it was shortened due to time constraints. After seeing Undertaker-Mysterio (and Rey's loss was to be expected), I'm not sure if even Shawn Michaels can get another epic match out of Taker. But if Taker-Michaels II happens, I'm glad it's not happening due to the Rumble, as the two men have history enough to set up a match without wasting the Rumble winner stipulation. I think most fans (myself included) expected Edge's appearance, but his win was a pleasant surprise. His title shot shakes up the expected WrestleMania line-up, and that's a good thing in my book. C.M. Punk is shaping up to be a great heel, but I half-expect him to don Biblical robes next time I see him. Beth Phoenix's Rumble appearance was out of the blue - I wonder if anything will come out of this? Was it a dig at Chyna laying the foundation for a special appearance from the Ninth Wonder? Well, despite a weak undercard (at least from what I saw), WWE is firing on nearly all cylinders on the road to WrestleMania.

Mike Metzger of Long Island, N.Y., Insurance Agent (6.0): Best: Rumble. Worst: Christian-Jackson. I watch ECW each week, but I had no interest whatsoever in the opening match. The U.S. Title match was going for the "bonus match" feel, but I thought it cheapened this feud by just throwing together the match. The WWE Title match proved that Orton is the best in the business right now. Sheamus wasn't too bad, himself. I liked the slow build and the working of body parts. It was heading to four-star territory until that finish. I know their reasoning for the non-finish, but for $45 couldn't they have at least resolved the Legacy split? Maybe this would be tolerated on a hot show, but it had really been lackluster up to this point. I know people are going to criticize the Women's Title match for being so short, but there was actually more of a payoff in that 30 seconds than there was in the two previous matches put together. I never really liked Rey Mysterio until I realized he was one of the most underrated workers last year and he delivered against Taker. What was that red stuff on Taker's face? No stoppage for blood? Vince must really be afraid of Taker! And it brought the crowd back just in time for the Rumble. As for the Rumble match, really solid with a beginning, middle, and end. Definitely better than the clustermess experiment last year. No real surprises other than Edge, which was fine. What wasn't fine was giving him the win. I have no real interest in seeing him main event WrestleMania, but hopefully it means a Jericho title reign in the not so distant future.

We welcome your 0-10 score and comments on this show for a "WWE PPV Reax" feature in the Torch Feedback section of PWTorch.com. Just to add a twist to this feature, include not just your hometown, but also your occupation (mechanic, lawyer, stay-at-home-dad, college student, etc.) so readers get a flavor for what everyone does as "day jobs." To contribute your thoughts on the PPV, click here.

We suggest these recent related articles...

WWE PPV REAX #1: "I wanted the biggest event of the summer to end with an exclamation point; it ended with a semicolon and a question"

WWE PPV REAX #1: Battleground finish generates mixed reactions...

WWE PPV REAX #2: In-Person Battleground Report on overall show, reactions, more