I got 10…no. 15…no. 20…close. I got 25 Thoughts on No Mercy for you all tonight, along with the No Mercy Report Card, so sit back, read PK’s excellent real-time coverage of No Mercy, then come back to this column as I go through the highlights of the show.
1. The opening video was one of the best ones I’ve seen in all time. If there was one thing that both WWE and TNA excel at is the opening moments leading to the start of each Pay-Per-View.
2. Jerry Lawler subbing for Matt Striker? Tazz couldn’t do it?. Thought edited after finding out the real reason Striker wasn’t at the Pay-Per-View.
3. Last month, ECW put on a great championship match. This month was almost a train wreck.
4. Triple H v. Jeff Hardy – The Debate. Not quite Palin/Biden…but close enough.
5. Santino: The Ultimate Distraction. No matter what he does, he’s a big distraction and he almost goofed up the whole thing for Beth.
6. At least Candice didn’t botch any moves tonight and looked better than on RAW.
7. Kane should be a politician. He can run on the ticket that the other politicians are two-faced and hiding behind a mask of self-righteousness.
8. Rey Mysterio is officially suicidal. An armdrag into a half-DDT? Unbelievable.
9. MVP should be used to be going downhill.
10. Randy Orton v. MVP would be a true battle of the egos.
11. The fans think Cody was boring. HA! Being cocky didn’t help matters, though.
12. MVP just proved #9 by falling for CM Punk and Kofi Kingston and getting his ass handed to him by Simply Priceless.
13. We needed $7 billion of the $700 billion just to bail out JBL and his wife, who is every investor’s worst nightmare.
14. Title shot #203 is upcoming for Batista. Did it have to be a squash though?
15. JBL tries to be honest? HA! Maybe he should run for President? On second thought, he kisses Bush’s ass so that is a bad idea. He has officially gone crazy, however.
16. They dragged out Sgt. Slaughter for THIS?
17. That segment involving Cryme Tyme and the bim…err divas would had been funnier with Mickie James engaging in — on second thought, screw that thought. I’m reminded of John Cena handing Mickie her thong back to her a while ago.
18. At least Undertaker lasted longer than Kimbo Slice.
19. Shake hand, turn your back, and pay the price. Yup, Triple H is truly the Cerebral Assassin.
20. Whoa, I didn’t see that finish to Hardy/Trips coming. It continues to play on the “so-close” scheme of Jeff Hardy. Who’s to say that Hardy gets one more chance at Cyber Sunday?
21. They keep coming. This time it’s Arn Anderson congratulating Triple H on his hard fought win. Two thoughts for the price of one as the staredown between Trips and Koslov was interesting.
22. There will be blood, sayeth the Apostle Shawn Michaels.
23. Both Michaels and Jericho survived that table bump. Sadly, the table didn’t.
24. Not to be outdone, Jericho went from “could had broken his leg” to “really hurt his leg really bad after that 20+ feet spill from the top of the ladder all the way out on the ramp.
25. What…A…Finish! I honestly thought that title would have ripped off at one of the seams with both men pulling on it. Perfect ending to the main event.
The No Mercy Report Card
Matt Hardy d. Mark Henry: C+
Beth Phoenix d. Candice Michelle: C-
Rey Mysterio d. Kane via DQ: C+
Batista d. JBL: D-
Big Show d. Undertaker: B-
Triple H d. Jeff Hardy: A-
Chris Jericho d. Shawn Michaels: A+
The Final Grade for No Mercy 2008: C+
The undercard was okay – not the greatest, but passable since the three main events (yes, I’m counting Show/Taker as one of them) were right on the money. Show/Taker was surprisingly good and the showcase event in Jericho/Michaels…dare we say MOTY? I recommend the viewing for just the last three and maybe Matt Hardy/Mark Henry. It’s your call if you those three or four are worth $40.
