John: Welcome to the preview of WWE’s first October PPV offering, No Mercy. I’ll be joined by my good friend Adam Payne It’s a show with only seven matches on it at this point, which means most of the big matches are going to get a lot of time because there just isn’t that much going on this PPV. Like usual there’s no defense of the IC or US titles or either tag titles. Why even have the belts if they don’t get showcased on PPV? I don’t get that. Anyway, my parts are going to be brief this time so I’m relying on Adam to carry the load since I’ve had a hellacious week. Enjoy.
Rey Mysterio vs. Kane
If Rey loses, he has to take off the mask
Adam: Let me first state that I am a sucker for anything involving the removal of the mask. The only problem is that I doubt this will be on the level of the infamous mask vs. title match that took place over 10 years ago!! That makes me feel very old. I will say that I was disappointed last month when Rey Mysterio returned and he was not dark and sadistic as I would have hoped. I just wanted to see something that showed that Kane had broken Rey Mysterio down as he had suggested. Does it bother anyone else though that Rey only loses something if he doesn’t win? What about Kane? Does he have to put his mask back on if he loses? I want to see Rey be de-masked but I doubt that will happen. Kane will end up dominating most of this match until Evan Bourne comes down and makes the save for Rey allowing Mysterio to pick up the victory. Lame.
Winner: Rey Mysterio
John: Lame. Not only has this feud been awful from pretty much the beginning, but now they’re putting Rey’s mask on the line as if that’s going to entice people into caring about this match. If people wanted to know what Rey looked like without a mask they probably have googled it already because he wrestled like that for several years in WCW. Anyway, I highly doubt that Mysterio’s losing his mask in WWE ever, so that’s reason enough for him to win.
Winner: Rey Mysterio
Women’s Championship Match: Candice Michelle vs. Beth Phoenix
Adam: Though I really enjoy the antics between Santino and Beth Phoenix, I have to say that I am less than thrilled about this matchup. Perhaps it’s too fast and too soon for Michelle to be back on top? Granted, she was in the title scene before her injury last year, but it would have been more enjoyable to see her work hard and earn her title shot rather than giving it to her immediately upon her return. I think it’s pretty obvious that Candice is going to win this match too which leaves a sour taste in my mouth. She will win because Santino and his unibrow will attempt to help the Glamazon but instead will cost her the championship. My guess is the next night on Raw we will see the end of the Honk-O-Meter as well with Santino dropping his belt too and thus ending the relationship of Glamarella. So sad.
Winner: Candice Michelle
John: I don’t agree with Adam saying it’s obvious that Candice is going to win. I think it’s obvious that Beth’s going to win. They stuck Candice here because, like usual, they have a lack of real babyface title contenders and they need somebody to lose to Beth on PPV, so that’s Candice this time. Beth will probably keep the belt into the new year and drop it to Kelly Kelly (worst name in wrestling, BTW) once she’s on the receiving end of the Playboy push.
Winner: Beth Phoenix
Big Show vs. Undertaker
Adam: This might be one of the more unpredictable matches on the card. I wouldn’t be surprised to see Big Show pick up the victory and slay the Undertaker (but then the question remains, where does Taker go from here?) I think the better choice would be Big Show to take on Jeff Hardy at Survivor Series. WWE will not waste a HHH/Taker match at Survivor Series, that will probably be saved for Wrestlemania if possible. I think Big Show will get the assist from some others, perhaps a returning Edge will help take down the Deadman? It really could go either way, but a Big Show in the title hunt is far more refreshing than Undertaker making his monthly one time appearances. Big Show is more than deserving of this considering the punishment he has taken within the last 8 months alone. Anyone could do what Taker is doing if they only wrestled once or twice a month, but Big Show has been working hard and I would rather see him win this match, and I think logically he is a better choice. The problem is, WWE doesn’t enjoy making logical decisions which is why Undertaker will probably win this one. The match will be decent with the big guys going at it, but don’t expect any sort of classic coming from this one.
Winner: Undertaker
John: I didn’t care much for this when it happened nine years ago and I care even less now. I really do like both guys as performers, but I hate when they’re against eachother because it rarely if ever leads to anything good. Having Edge come back to help Big Show win would make some sense although picking against the Undertaker is never a wise decision. It’s always hard to know if he’s due for another vacation. I’m going to put him down for the win here and predict his vacation happening at Survivor Series in order to bring him back “fresh” for the Rumble because, well, that’s what usually happens.
Winner: Undertaker
Batista vs. JBL
Adam: The problem with having Number One Contender’s matches on PPV is that the rest of the show becomes predictable. With that being said, Batista is going to walk out the winner of this match. I can’t imagine WWE de-railing all the momentum Jericho is on with a feud against JBL. Granted, they do have history against one another, but who plays the face in that matchup? Jericho? No way. It’s going to be Batista winning this match as I see no reason for JBL to enter the main event any time soon. He is great in the role he has on Raw as the upper midcard guy and I think that’s the way it should stay. Batista will take the win and the title shot against Y2J and nothing else will need to be said. This match will be very short and won’t be pretty at all.
Winner: Batista
John: There are plenty of reasons to like Batista here. The most important one is that there’s very little chance that JBL is going to be put in another title feud considering how boring the other ones have been. I’m tired of Batista getting repeated title shots too, but at this point who else do they really have? He’ll win in predictable fashion.
Winner: Batista
ECW Championship Match: Matt Hardy vs. Mark Henry
Adam: Alright, how much longer do I have to deal with Mark Henry on my television? Well I guess he isn’t on much if you don’t watch ECW, but I never thought I would see Henry in any kind of main event picture let alone hold the championship. I think Matt will make this match passable, but that’s like putting sprinkles on a dog turd. Matt Hardy’s run is really just beginning, so there is no reason for him to drop the title here.
Winner: Matt Hardy
John: I really could care less about this title or this match even though I think Matt Hardy’s somebody that should be in the real main event scene, not the fake ECW one. This title is not important. Hardy wins because at least people care about him as opposed to Mark Henry, who has always just been kind of there. That guy doesn’t need the worthless title again.
Winner: Matt Hardy
WWE Championship Match: Triple H vs. Jeff Hardy
Adam: This match will definitely be a show stealer as both men are consummate performers. I think this is truly Jeff Hardy’s night. WWE has been waiting to hit the trigger so to speak on a Jeff Hardy title run and I think this will probably be the show to do it. The only problem is the X-Factor involved, Vladmir Kozlov. With that being said, the match will look as if Hardy has it won, but out of nowhere will come Kozlov and destroy both men in the ring ending the match in a no contest. That kind of decision is a bullshit call and should NOT happen on PPV. This will lead to a Taboo Tuesday poll I’m sure with the voters choosing HHH’s opponent. It will probably be Jeff Hardy, Kozlov or Undertaker. I think the result of the match will be worthless as it will take away from everything accomplished in the ring that evening.
Winner: No Contest:
John: I liked their match last year at Armageddon a lot even though WWE refuses to acknowledge that Jeff beat HHH there. Much like that much, they’ll be given time here to have a good story. A lot of people, like Adam, are expecting Kozlov to interfere in some way and I tend to agree. I think that they’ll do something where HHH benefits from his help even though he doesn’t want it and ends up scoring the victory as a result of that. I’d prefer it if they had a straight up, clean match for 20-25 minutes and then maybe you can have Kozlov come down after the match to set up the next title feud. Either way I think HHH leaves this match still the champion because my feeling is he’ll have the belt until WrestleMania when he drops it to Undertaker so that HHH would have a nearly one year reign to break JBL’s record.
Winner: Triple H
World Heavyweight Championship Ladder Match: Chris Jericho vs. Shawn Michaels
Adam: Now this is the kind of match that I thought would be saved for Survivor Series. This match alone will probably be worth the entire PPV. What I enjoy about it is the story that has been brewing over the course of the entire year. I think the subplot with Lance Cade in the mix is really starting to take shape and I wouldn’t mind seeing an HBK/Cade feud after Jericho finishes off HBK. Although the outcome is predictable with Y2J coming out on top, it will definitely be a fun ride with two of the best workers in the company working perhaps one last time. Jericho will find a way somehow to pull this one out and it will probably be a MOTYC. Though their unsanctioned match last month was pretty well-done, I considered it a bit of a letdown with the awkward finish and the involvement of Lance Cade. I think both men will bring everything to the table and lay it all on the line on this one. This would be the reason to purchase this PPV.
Winner: Chris Jericho
John: This is already the best feud of the WWE year, there’s no question about it. I have absolutely no problem with this feud continuing for the World title because we know they’re going to deliver the goods. It’s not even a question of if. We know. My only concern is that I don’t know if it’s wise for a 43-year-old Shawn Michaels to take these crazy bumps off a ladder considering all the injuries he’s working with. Of course we all know HBK well enough to know he’s basically nuts when it comes to working in the ring, so I’m sure he’ll be able to get through the match. I’m not so sure about his long term health. As for Jericho, I was pleasantly surprised when he won the World Title and I’ve enjoyed his reign thus far. There’s no reason for it to end here. Considering that Michaels won the last match it makes perfect sense for Jericho to win this one. I’m expecting it to go 20-25 minutes with a lot of memorable moments because when it comes to these two they always deliver those. The bigger the setting, the better they are. And if they want to have this feud continue through every PPV while ending it at WrestleMania? Fine by me. This is the kind of feud that makes me love wrestling.
Winner: Chris Jericho
In Closing…
Adam: Overall, this PPV is much better on paper than the Scramble Match laden Unforgiven card last month. I would have enjoyed seeing more tag team championships or midcard IC/US Title defenses at the PPV to round it out a bit, but other than that I can’t really complain. The obvious high point will be the ladder match, while the lowpoint of the evening will either be Batista vs. JBL or the predictable interference of Kozlov.
John: This is a pretty good show because the two major title matches are ones that will probably take up an hour on the show, which means 1/3 of it is pretty much guaranteed to be good. I’d rather see people like CM Punk, MVP, Shelton Benjamin, R. Truth and some others instead of the same tired acts that we’re getting. Oh well, can’t be perfect right? See the show for the Jericho/HBK and HHH/Hardy matches. Other than that there’s not too much to get excited about, at least from my point of view.
Lastly, if you read and replied to my 20 Ideas for WWE to Consider column I appreciate it and I will get back to you. I’ve been overwhelmed with emails in regards to it, so it’s taking a bit more time than I would have thought. My next column will feature some emails from that as well as some reaction to No Mercy and probably some extensive thoughts on the terrific Michaels/Jericho feud.
Enjoy the show, people.
Email Adam at [email protected]
Email John at [email protected]