-- 1/31 WWE Royal Rumble PPV Reax

Morgan Ruble of Ottumwa, Iowa (4.5): Best Match: Christian vs. Ezekiel Jackson. Worst Match: Rumble match. After the last few Royal Rumble matches coming off great I should have known it wouldn't last forever. I thought this year's Rumble bout was poorly paced, lazily booked, and just an excuse to feature the same six or seven guys that main event every week. Especially with the separate brands, it is a novelty to see ten or eleven WWE wrestlers in the ring at once mixing it up with no clear favorites. That is the point of the Rumble in my view. Not this year. It was all about Michaels, Cena, Triple H, and the other usual suspects. With the exception of R-Truth eliminating The Big Show, there weren't any lower-level talents given a chance to shine. I love C.M. Punk, but if I wanted to watch him cut a ten-minute promo, see goofy Khali, or watch comedy man vs. woman booking, I would watch Smackdown or Raw. That was essentially what the first third of The Rumble was. I don't think there were more than 10 guys in the ring at all this year. A disappointing Rumble match. Christian vs. Zeke was strong and having Striker on the team helped keep me entertained in this one. The MVP vs. Miz bout seemed last-minute and the ending was rushed. Mickie vs. McCool was fun comedy, but not much more. Good to see Mickie hanging around. Sheamus vs. Orton was a good effort by both, but the only memorable moments in the match will be the ones after the bell with Legacy imploding. That bit was well done. Undertaker vs. Mysterio seemed to drag. It wasn't the first time it's made me wonder how much longer Taker can keep this up. I popped for the blood, though, although I know it was an accident and Undertaker kept trying to wipe it away. Overall, this show wasn't worth $45. I can watch Cena, Hunter, and HBK battle it out any given week on Raw. Let the kids run the show at the Rumble, Vince. I don't care who wins, just make the matches more unpredictable. Edge will need to lose the gut between now and WrestleMania, but I was glad to have him back. His return, the Legacy feud, and Mickie were the bright spots for me, along with the return of C.M. Punk as a main event heel.

Terrie Neilson of Las Vegas, Nev. (7.0): Best: Royal Rumble match. Worst: Christian vs. Jackson. Christian and Taker retained. Check. I expected Batista to get involved in Taker's match, though, but he's done it enough times that it would have taken away the effect. Miz-MVP could have gone either way, but the match was decent enough. The story was more Legacy than Sheamus, which further took down Sheamus's push. The Sam's Town crowd had a field day with the Orton-Rhodes bro-mance promo. I saw a spoiler clip somewhere that said Shawn would win the Rumble. Fan Me wanted it, but Picky Me didn't for sequeltitis reasons. At this point, if Michaels-Taker II does happen, a flow chart is going to be needed on Shawn's side of the storyline. That's not necessarily a good thing this time around, though it does leave plenty of options for WrestleMania having nothing to do with Undertaker. For all the build toward the Mickie-Michelle match, the payoff was extremely disappointing. The post-match embarrassment was fine, but the match was an unmitigated squash that failed to tell any sort of story about Mickie's shaken state. Even with the nice surprises and Shawn snapping at his elimination, the Rumble was less than what it could be. Sam's Town saw Edge coming a mile away; I saw him coming more than a month ago. It was still nice to see him back, though. Beth getting the Chyna torch handed to her was pretty sweet, which suddenly explains why Chyna's inclusion was edited out of the "By The Numbers" package. Punk passing the time trying to preach to the crowd was fun, but everyone knew when Triple H came out, the party was over. Shawn's story almost met the Nowinski Effect when Cena nearly dropped Triple H on Shawn's head. The one-minute intervals took a lot away from the match, especially when the PPV ended 20 minutes before the top of the hour with zero follow-up. There may be something taped for the DVD, but on the whole, the Royal Rumble was just a Rumble.

Bill Sartori of Windsor Locks, Conn. (4.0): Overall, this Rumble lacked the pizzazz of previous Rumbles. I thought that the Punk "Salvation" bit is so overdone and nauseating to watch. Edge winning the Rumble was a bit of a surprise... and a stretch coming back from his seven-month layoff. Him getting #29 was a bit much. If WWE wanted a real surprise, then someone such as Evan Bourne would have won the match. ... Please, WWE, I don't want to see a long, stretched-out Triple H-Shawn Michaels program, or none at all. I thought the Christian-Jackson match was good, as was the Rey-Taker match, but neither was spectacular. Goodness, I enjoyed Michelle McLame & Layla getting theirs from Mickie James. Her "Piggie James" stunt waned weeks ago. Great use of a cake. ... Orton as a psychotic face? It might be interesting to see Orton vs. Legacy. Meanwhile, listening to Lawler going back and forth between heel and face announcer gave me whiplash.

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.

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