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Speaking of HBK and WrestleMania, I really hope this angle with JBL isn't stretched out to a match there. I'm not as down on JBL as a lot of people, but it would be a total waste to have him wrestle HBK at WM in my opinion. Like so many people mention, HBK and Taker would be nice, Austin is a possibility, or perhaps another match with Triple H. I know their last feud went forever, but I think enough time has passed, and the DX reunion has been going on long enough that another heel turn by Hunter on Shawn would be fresh to a lot of people. HHH is probably already pencilled in as HBK's retirement opponent though.

I remember in early 2000 being excited when it seems they were building up Meng for a match with Tank Abbott, where Meng would come out and have to be held back by security during Tank's matches. Knowing both guys' reputations as major tough guys, I was looking forward to a good stiff brawl. In typical WCW fashion though, I don't think they even ended up doing the match.

Since the discussion has moved to include the most boring series of all time, I think Matt Hardy vs. Gregory Helms on Smackdown in 2006 should get a mention. It was perfectly fine, even good, the first couple times. By the time we got to their tenth consecutive match with little or no variation in formula, I never want to see that match again.

I like this idea. Shelton bores me to tears lately because he hasn't had a proper feud for months, gets no character development (those shitty little pre-match promos about gold don't count) and you know they have no interest in moving him any higher up the card then he is. He could just disappear tomorrow and nobody would really notice. Feud them against Carlito & Primo and produce some fun skits where MVP tries to turn Shelton into a player like himself.

The Kane vs. Big Daddy V series in late 2007 deserves a mention. Vince loves his big man battles but these two should just never be in the ring against one another. Kane had a really horrible year opponent-wise in 2007, working and generally putting over Khali, Henry and V.

The Torch has been running a Torch Talk interview with the one and only Lanny Poffo. Wade Keller finally asked the Randy Savage question, and Lanny said that he definitely thinks that its something personal between Savage and Vince, and that he has heard the Stephanie rumors, but he doesn't have the balls to ask Savage whether they are true or not. He doesn't expect Savage to ever be in the HOF.

Pretty much the stock standard stuff from 1 - 5, but there's a few of my personal favourites from 6 - 10. 1. The Rock vs. Stone Cold Steve Austin – WrestleMania 17 2. The Rock vs. Chris Jericho - No Mercy 2001 3. Triple H vs. Cactus Jack - Royal Rumble 2000 4. Triple H vs. Chris Benoit vs. Shawn Michaels - WrestleMania 20 5. Kurt Angle vs. The Undertaker – No Way Out 2006 6. Shawn Michaels & Rob Van Dam & Booker T & Dudley Boyz vs. Chris Jericho & Randy Orton & Batista & Scott Steiner & Mark Henry - Survivor Series 2003 7. Edge & Christian vs. Hardy Boyz vs. Dudley Boyz - Summerslam 2000 8. Triple H vs. Shawn Michaels – RAW (December 2003) 9. Shawn Michaels vs. Chris Jericho - Unforgiven 2008 10. Batista vs. The Undertaker – WrestleMania 23

I like to think he's singing along to Mark Henry's awesome entrance theme.

Edge & Christian vs. The Hardys has to happen again.

I would have liked a Saturday Night's Main Event anthology, rather than a Best Of. Oh well.

I think you're the one not understanding. We all know how the match came about. The problem is they didn't do nearly enough to build fan anticipation for such a big match, so it wasn't as nearly as enjoyable as it could have been had they build toward it over time for a more important occasion. Man, nobody will give a fuck about this match a month from now. It was a big match between 2 faces, to get over 2 heels going in to the PPV Sunday, it isn't that serious. Unless you're a WWE stockholder, I don't know why you would give a fuck, about having a good 20 minute match with two of the biggest stars in wrestling for free. I’m not sure how I can better articulate my point to you, so I’ll just say this – if you enjoyed UT/HHH just being thrown out there and having a match, then that’s great. I liked the match in itself too, but I’m also disappointed because they hadn’t faced off for so long, and they could have build it as an epic encounter to get really excited about. Now I’ve seen them in the ring the anticipation is gone, and to me at least it won’t feel as special whenever they get round to booking it again.

I think you're the one not understanding. We all know how the match came about. The problem is they didn't do nearly enough to build fan anticipation for such a big match, so it wasn't as nearly as enjoyable as it could have been had they build toward it over time for a more important occasion.

The match being on free TV isn't so much the issue, the utter lack of buildup is. Half the fun of wrestling is the anticipation rather than the actual match, and there was a ton of potential for a big match like UT/HHH for WWE to build excitement. Instead, its a throwaway main event with no backstory and only a one week build. Fans ultimately lose out because the match is just thrown out there without the big, epic buildup to experience and enjoy.

They were obviously holding back, as they should, but still an entertaining main event mainly due to the spectacle of seeing HHH and Taker in the ring together. I wasn't particularly excited about the match considering its supposed to be this major deal, but I have to admit I marked a bit despite myself when they faced off, especially in that backstage skit. Its a real shame they gave this away in any form, because I think they could have done pretty good PPV business based on fan anticipation of this match. Its not going to feel nearly as special again anytime soon.

There's some decent matches in there, but no classics. I am a Kane mark though, so I will pick it up at some point. Sadly missing is his two really good TV matches against Albert and Kurt Angle in 2001, and the title vs. mask match with Triple H. The Benoit ban hurts here as well, cause Kane had his best ever match with him at Bad Blood 2004 in my opinion.

You often hear Hogan's legdrop finish being referred to online as the Atomic Legdrop. Did any wrestling company even refer to it as that, because I'm drawing a blank on where that name came from exactly...

Lawler also ribbed him on commentary for that gimmick when Kane got wrapped in tinsel or something in a backstage skit for a Christmas Night RAW a few years back, saying "He looks like some sort of... Christmas Creature!".

Its interesting to note that, outside of the women, this card is entirely comprised of long-term veteran wrestlers, and wouldn't look out of place if it had taken place 5-6 years ago. None of the new talent over the last few years are represented.

The two main events show enough promise to make this show a purchase for me. Despite the feud winding down in the last few weeks, I'm still very interested in what new innovations Shawn and Jericho come up with to fill out their match, hopefully mixed with some shoutouts to their famous spots from previous ladder matches. Undertaker and Big Show delivered a fun match back at No Way Out 2003, but with Taker's knee injuries and Show's ballooning weight I'm not expecting much this time around. Kane has become underrated in the ring I feel, after having to constantly work Henry, Viscera, Khali, Batista and other lugs for what seems like years now, so I'm looking forward to seeing what he can do with a smaller worker like Rey. JBL/Batista and the women should both be short, and, in the case of Beth/Candice, hopefully decisive. Too bad they couldn't fit Punk & Kofi vs. Priceless on the card.

I hope JBL and Batista deliver some hot back-and-forth promo segments building up their No Mercy match, because its hard to get excited about this feud knowing what the in-ring results are likely going to be. Bats no-selling JBL on the mic and taking him down a peg could be fun, he really impressed me last week with his performance holding court in the ring.

Your other points are perfectly valid, but I think this is a little petty. Its not like he’s taking the time off for leisure vacations to the Bahamas or whatever – it was to rehab legitimate injuries. As you mentioned he had a torn bicep last year, and it was reported he needed a couple of months off this year to heal more nagging injuries (and his in-ring participation is still being limited due to coming back too early). You can argue that he should tough it out like others may have to at times, but at his age and with the accumulated wear and tear on his body I think its best to heal up where necessary in order to prolong his career as much as he can. Secondly, from a business perspective, the Undertaker character draws best in short spurts of activity as a ‘special attraction’. The character needs constant resting to prevent overexposure, and the periodic absences have really assisted in his longevity as an effective character. As for my thoughts on the man, I agree his character has become somewhat stale with the same old bag of tricks to set up feuds (I groaned when Tazz recently used the oft-repeated line ‘I have NEVER seen the Undertaker dominated like that!’ in regards to Big Show’s latest attack). However, I still enjoy his work in the ring enough to still want him around against half-competent opponents. I thought his recent series with Edge was one of the better feuds, in the ring, of the last few years.

Just adding to the Hogan/Austin debate - the way I’ve seen is summarised best is that there are many people who know Hogan and don’t know Austin, but there are no people who know Austin and don’t know Hogan. I agree with this, and I think the mainstream majority still visualises Hogan as the face behind the initials “WWF” or “WWE”. Whether they have a positive or negative opinion of Hogan is a totally different matter.