Featuring:
Randy Orton
Shawn Michaels
CM Punk
The Miz
Batista
Undertaker
Stone Cold Steve Austin
Rey Mysterio
Finlay
MVP
Kane
Triple H
Umaga
Mr. Kennedy
Jeff Hardy
DVD Release Date: December 4, 2007
Rating: Not Rated
Running Time: 180 Minutes
The Event
On October 28, 2007 at the Verizon Center in Washington D.C., the WWE put on their annual fan-interactive PPV Cyber Sunday. Originally known as Taboo Tuesday, the PPV showcased matches that the fans got to decide on by voting for their favorite superstars, stipulations, and at times the results. For a period of about three weeks, fans could go online and vote on newly announced choices in hopes of their preferences winning out and providing the matches they most wished to see.
The biggest match of the night was WWE Champion Randy Orton going up against Jeff Hardy, Mr. Kennedy, or now arch-rival Shawn Michaels. It was almost obvious who would end up challenging Orton because the fans were hoping to see Michaels get revenge on him for putting him out of action some time ago. The fans had spoken out and showed the power of their votes as it was Michaels winning and stepping up to fight for the title. Mr. Kennedy and Jeff Hardy wouldn’t get the night off though as they were then ordered to step into the ring and face each other.
Another big match would pit World Heavyweight Champion Batista up against the Undertaker. The fans stepped in here and got to vote on who would be the special guest referee for the match between Stone Cold Steve Austin, Mick Foley, or John Bradshaw Layfield. It came down to Foley and Austin considering they are long-time fan favorites but the beer-swilling Texan got the nod and showed his justice.
Seven matches total littered the Cyber Sunday card which ends up being unlike any other PPV all year. Sure there are some feuds going on and wrestlers hoping to settle a grudge or two, but this isn’t always their chance to step up. They may want a piece of the action or hope to get revenge, but the fans have the final say-so in what happens on this night so they’re in charge. It has lead the way to some rather interesting match-ups in recent years and this year was no exception.
~ Stretcher Match: Rey Mysterio Vs. Finlay – The fans got to vote on the stipulation for this match between a stretcher match, no disqualification, and a shillelagh on a pole. Finlay certainly would have the upper hand in strength here but it is equaled by the quickness and agility of Mysterio. Finlay is one of my favorite wrestlers of all time and I could honestly care less about Mysterio, but they put on a really good match that all fans can appreciate.
~ Divas Halloween Costume Contest: Maria, Victoria, & Kenny – Maria shows off her costume as a pussycat. Victoria is dressed as a sumo wrestler along with Kenny Dykstra as Mr. Fuji. Damn!
~ ECW Championship Match: CM Punk (c) Vs. The Miz – CM Punk was set to put his title on the line against John Morrison, Big Daddy V, or The Miz. It is quite shocking that the fans voted for the Miz but I will say that as much as I originally hated him, the Miz is getting better in the ring. Still people are not fond of Big Daddy V and they’ve seen Morrison/Punk a sickening number of times now. The match isn’t that bad and the two put on a good show together even for the small amount of time they got.
~ Divas Halloween Costume Contest: Mickie James & Torrie Wilson – Mickie is an Indian warrior princess and looks extremely hot. Torrie is dressed shamelessly as a Washington Redskins’ football player. These just seem so awkward.
~ Mr. Kennedy Vs. Jeff Hardy – The losers from the WWE Championship match voting had to face off and since Michaels was chosen by the fans, Kennedy and Hardy stepped into the ring to face one another. It wasn’t even close in the voting, jeez! That sucks because I want Kennedy to get the title soon. While these two have a really great chemistry in the ring and were going hot, the match seemed to be cut way too short. Good for what it was though.
~ Divas Halloween Costume Contest: Michelle McCool & Melina – Michelle is Eve from the Garden of Eden and Melina is a Vegas show girl although she would have been better suited as Mr. Ed. Just sayin’!
~ United States Championship Match: MVP (c) Vs. Kane – Matt Hardy was scheduled to wrestle this evening but due to a large gash in his head suffered on SmackDown, he would be unable to compete. The fans got to vote for MVP’s new opponent between Mark Henry, Kane, and Great Khali. MVP was due to face a monster no matter who won, but it was Kane in a landslide and MVP is not pleased. Another very short match that ends extremely crappy.
~ Divas Halloween Costume Contest: Layla & Kelly Kelly – Layla is a cop and Kelly Kelly is a “gangsta.” I says she looks like a pimp.
~ WWE Championship Match: Randy Orton (c) Vs. Shawn Michaels – Michaels and Orton have a lot of history even before Randy got the title. They’ve gone back a good amount of time and truly have bad blood for one another. They’ve proven before that they put on great matches together and this was no exception. One problem though is that it is yet another horrible ending to a match that was showing so much potential.
~ Divas Halloween Costume Contest: Brooke & Jillian – Brooke is a jungle girl and looks like she has problems speaking on camera. Jillian is “Britney bitch!” Best one by far right behind Mickie, but I’m biased.
~ Street Fight: Triple H Vs. Umaga – Umaga and Triple H have never liked one another so it was up to the fans to determine whether it would be a steel cage, street fight, or first blood match. This vote wasn’t close either which is odd considering the negative reaction the crowd gave the decision. There isn’t much technical wrestling here but that was to be expected. Umaga and Triple H went around the arena and used everything imaginable to take out their opponent. Keep an eye out for Umaga’s running dive through an announce table because it really is cool looking. A nice brawl here but I am kind of disappointed that it was a street fight with no blood.
~ Todd Grisham Reveals The Winner Of The Divas Halloween Costume Contest – Sorry to spoil it for you but Mickie James won the Halloween contest and rightfully so. HA!
~ World Heavyweight Championship Match With Special Guest Referee Stone Cold Steve Austin: Batista (c) Vs. Undertaker – Mick Foley, JBL, and Stone Cold were in the running to be the special ref and once again it wasn’t even remotely close. JBL shows his frustrations though as he starts beating down Foley. The crowd still pops incredibly loud for Austin even though he has barely shown his face in years.
Undertaker and Batista have battled each other numerous times this past year and it was getting quite annoying seeing them main event PPVs over and over again even though they didn’t get the one main event they should have and that’s WrestleMania. Another back and forth match here with the added extra of Austin being the ref makes it a really fun one to watch.
The Video
The event is shown in 1.33:1 Full Screen format and as usual, it looks really good. The colors are bright with the pyro transferring over to DVD flawlessly.
The Audio
The event is heard in Dolby Digital 5.1 Surround Sound and there was not a bit of static or lapsing over by the entrance music or pyro to the commentary from the announcers.
Special Features
Raw 10/29/07: Halloween Costume Diva Battle Royal – The divas got dressed in their costumes one more time and this time went into battle. They needed to get their opponents out of the ring and to the floor in order to win, but the costumes led to some rather interesting happenings.
JBL Reacts – After losing the voting to Austin, JBL came backstage and in a DVD exclusive interview with Todd Grisham, gave his feelings on the loss.
Trailers – John Cena: My Life and Shawn Michaels: Heartbreak & Triumph
The Inside Pulse
The WWE has put on some great PPVs in the past year, but this wasn’t one of them. It had a few really good matches but nothing classic or five star. There were just way too many crappy finishes and so many of them were incredibly short. The divas costume contest crap could have been condensed into one five minute segment yet they spread it throughout the entire show. I think only two matches went more then twenty minutes, no scratch that…more then ten minutes. The main event wasted at least fifteen minutes before it started and had close to ten minutes before the three hour mark after it ended. All that time could have gone to the Kennedy/Hardy match and even the MVP/Kane match. There was a lot of potential here and this PPV always has so much going for it if the choices are interesting enough, but that even failed this time around. The special features adding up to maybe nine minutes total don’t help the DVD’s cause for you to run out and buy it either. What could have been one of the best PPVs all year turned out to be one of the most disappointing. Another proven fact that what looks good on paper won’t always look good when performed.
