You don’t need to be claustrophobic or be enclosed in a very small space in order to get the feeling of being trapped and secured against your will. Sometimes even the largest of places can make you feel tightened in and afraid that you’ll never be released and live freely again safe from harm. Surrounded by tons of steel and wire mesh keeping you stuck inside a demonic structure are only a few of the things that should instill fear into your mind and cause your heart to beat faster. Never forget what is stuck inside of the cage with you and relentlessly coming after you in order to make your life…a living hell.
October 4, 2009 saw the superstars from all three brands of the WWE converge together upon the Prudential Center in Newark, New Jersey for their brand new Hell in a Cell Pay-Per-View. One of the most frightening structures in all of professional wrestling now saw a PPV devoted to it and it was sure to bring about even more great moments just like those we’ve seen in the past. Can anyone forget when the Big Boss Man was hanged from the top of the cell by Undertaker’s Ministry? How about when Undertaker threw Mick Foley off the top of the cell and sent him crashing through the announce table below? Having multiple matches in one night featuring the cell can only spell disaster for some superstars but plenty of entertainment for the fans.
The undercard had some great matches that didn’t take place in the confines of the cell, but that didn’t make them any less entertaining. John Morrison and Dolph Ziggler are two of my favorite young stars and it’s great to see them have enough time to battle it out and really showcase their talents. JeriShow continues to show their dominance in the tag ranks by defending their titles successfully again and getting past anyone who may stand in their way. At times they look almost completely and totally unbeatable which is fine by me because I love the team. Sadly the three-way dance for the U.S. Title wasn’t nearly as fun as I was hoping it would be, but not sure why. It just appeared as if Kofi, Miz, and Swagger could never get anything rolling which is odd for those three.
Our main focus on the evening though was the ominous cell hanging high in the rafters and ready to descend for three matches. First there was CM Punk and Undertaker (who feels right at home in the cell) battling for the World Heavyweight Title in a match could and should have been better then it was. For some reason it was put in the curtain jerk position of first match and that is exactly what it came across as. Despite my disgust at seeing Orton and Cena wrestle each other yet again; I can’t deny that they put on a very good and entertaining match. Nice seeing Orton win the title back too because I just can’t stand to see it around Cena’s waist. Keep waiting for it to start spinning again. {Shudder!} Our show-stealing match award though goes to the DX/Legacy main event that keeps these four in the spotlight and rightfully so. What an awesome way to end the night as there was not a dull moment to be had throughout.
Hell in a Cell really showed me something by producing a damn fine PPV in just its first go-round. It was good that WWE didn’t overdo it by making every match inside the cell and saving the three biggest battles for it instead. It’s hard to imagine this PPV ever really failing because that cell always makes the crowd go nuts. Just need to make sure that the right people are put inside of it and let them just leave everything in the ring and put it all out to dry.
~ Hell in a Cell Match for the World Heavyweight Championship: CM Punk (c) Vs. Undertaker
~ Intercontinental Championship Match: John Morrison (c) Vs. Dolph Ziggler
~ WWE Divas Championship Match: Mickie James (c) Vs. Alicia Fox
~ Unified Tag Team Championship Match: Chris Jericho & Big Show (c) Vs. Batista & Rey Mysterio
~ Hell in a Cell Match for the WWE Championship: John Cena (c) Vs. Randy Orton
~ R-Truth Vs. Drew McIntyre
~ Triple Threat Match for the United States Championship: Kofi Kingston (c) Vs. The Miz Vs. Jack Swagger
~ Hell in a Cell Match: D-Generation X Vs. Legacy
The event is shown in 1.33:1 Full Screen format and it looks great. Don’t try to find anything wrong with the video quality here because you’ll be searching for nothing.
The event is heard in Dolby Digital 5.1 Surround Sound and it also comes through nicely taking full advantage of every speaker in the room.
DX Vs. Legacy: Post Match Home Video Exclusive – Cody Rhodes gets stretchered out of the ring and DX taunts Legacy. Yep, that’s it. (3:16)
Trailers – Batista: I Walk Alone and The Marine II
Well it’s about time WWE! I’ve been waiting months for you to officially sink out of your slump and you’ve done it by giving me a PPV focused on my favorite gimmick match and actually having almost every match be top quality. Cena/Orton was much better then expected even though I’m still done with them. The tag title match and the tag main event absolutely stole the show though and must be seen to be believed. Legacy is cementing themselves as top notch players in the WWE already and I couldn’t be happier about it. Make sure to pick up a copy of this DVD immediately because it is well worth it for the event and not worrying about the severe lack of special features as always. My only hope is that this PPV continues to persevere each year and that WWE never gets a wild hair long enough to try out “Kennel in a Cell” again.
WWE Home Video presents Hell in a Cell 2009. Featuring: Undertaker, John Cena, Randy Orton, CM Punk, John Morrison, Dolph Ziggler, Batista, Big Show, Chris Jericho, and many more. Running time: 180 minutes. Rating: PG. Released on DVD: November 3, 2009. Available at Amazon.com
