The Crossface: No Mercy Preview

[Guest TSMAdmin]

No Mercy appears to be a throwaway PPV but that didin't stop the Smart Marks from giving you their fearless predictions and thoughts on the show. Before we get started, let's meet the players...

 

Brandon Truitt: Brandon is a regular here on the Crossface and happens to own a heaping helping of shoot interviews. Check out his recap of the Kevin Sullivan shoot interview.

 

Byron Vester: Don't forget to Catch Byron now on Sunday nights as he drops in with the news. When the wrestling world really pisses him off, he'll drop in with his Anger Management column. If you want to know what happened last week in the world of wrestling, THIS is your destination.

 

Damian “The Dames” Gonzalez: Dames keeps busy with the NWA:TNA recaps and whatever else he feels like chipping in with. Check out his latest piece of art as he recaps NWA:TNA Week 16.

 

Dr. Tom: Tom brings the content every week, providing the reader with his Smackdown recaps, The Mid-Week News, movie reviews and much more! Read up on Tom's feelings of this week's Smackdown.

 

Patrick Spoon: Now, that the fall season has arrived, Spoon will be your one and only Tough Enough 3 recapper. He'll also chime in with his love of Kylie Minogue and other pop culture phenomenons. Don't forget to read his recap ofTough Enough Week One.

 

William Helmick: If you're interested in writing for the Smart Marks, drop William a line. For now, he'll be moderating the discussion.

 

Kane vs. HHH

 

William: Let’s start with the two big main events!

Brandon: Ugh... do we have to? I'd rather forget them both. I'm certain the 2000 people in Little Rock will be asleep by the time those two matches are done.

William: On RAW, the Kane-HHH match-up has revolved around a horrible storyline. Does Kane win the big fake belt or does HHH retain

Dr. Tom: HHH retains. He'll be losing for most of the match, and then distracts Kane with something stupid about Katie Vick and sneak away with the pin.

Brandon: Kane will win the Big Fake Belt because HHH knows the clusterfuck this PPV is becoming. Very few tickets sold, almost no fan interest, etc... When the shit hits the fan, he'll want to pass the buck onto Kane because Kane won.

Patrick: I want to see Kane win, since it's the lesser of two evils, but Triple H will retain, since if they're serious about this murder business, they don't want the champion to be someone who's currently embroiled in such garbage. Since Triple H is not the one actually targeted in this, he doesn't get the blame for it failing nor will he lose due to distraction. Of course, Triple H also had the IC title absorption idea.

Dames: HHH will win, without a doubt because the absolution of the IC title was his idea in the first place. The only reason why Jericho lost the IC title to Kane was so that there would be a face challenger for the PPV. WWE had NO intentions of having the IC champ win. Kane is put over strong all of this time just because it'll look better when HHH goes over him.

Dr. Tom: I guess Kane's supposed to be the face in this one, but how you're supposed to build up sympathy and support for someone who is a murderer, rapist, or necrophiliac is beyond me.

Byron: Triple H will win because like Dames said, there was no intention of having the IC champ win this match anyway.

Patrick: Kane is barely the face in this feud anyway, as Triple H is SUPER TWEENER MAN who can't look good nor bad.

William: Well, Brandon, you are the sole believer that Kane will win on Sunday.

Brandon: I know HHH likes to get jobs back, Will, but I think that he prefers to cover his ass when things are about to get ugly.

Dr. Tom: About to get ugly, Brandon? Raw has been ugly for a couple months now.

Brandon: Uglier, Tom... have you HEARD the amount of tickets sold yet? 3800 by last count. That's in an 18,000-seat arena and they haven't had below 10,000 at a WWF PPV since about 1997 or so.

Patrick: I would support Brandon's idea, but that'd be oblivious to the whole Intercontinental absorption idea being Triple H's.

Dr. Tom: I'd heard 5000. But Patrick, the bout is winner takes all, so the winner gets the Big Gold Belt. Kane could still win, and the IC title would still be no more.

William: Well, Kane and HHH have had decent matches in the past. Is this match going to suck or will it entertain you?

Dames: Well, it has never been any good to begin with. Case in point, last years Chain Match for the IC title at Judgment Day. Now that this is the HHH who is past his prime, its bound to suck. I never like to underestimate...but I think it'll be anywhere from *3/4 to **1/2

Brandon: This is going to suck the baloney pony... I'd say it'll be * max.

Byron: It will probably be decent, but with this shitty storyline overwhelming the match, it'll NEVER entertain me. **1/2, but if the overbooking gets REALLY bad, it'll be no more than *1/2.

Patrick: I honestly think I'll be bored stupid by it until the overbooking kicks in, and then the boredom will turn to annoyance. Hopefully they'll put this one on in the middle of the show like at Unforgiven. **1/2 at the absolute most.

Dr. Tom: It'll be watchable, but that's about it. HHH will never be back to his pre-injury form, and Kane's not good enough to compensate. **, tops. I swear, if "Katie Vick" appears during the match, my armies march at dawn.

Patrick: But what if Katie Fick shows up? Fick v. Vick at Survivor Series, you heard it here first.

Dr. Tom: "Kane-uh, she's not really dead-uh! It was me all along-uh!"

 

Brock Lesnar vs. Undertaker

 

William: OK, well on Smackdown, we don't have a raping, murdering necrophiliac. We have a womanizing, cheating red devil. Does Taker put Brock over in Hell in the Cell?

Byron: Taker will lose, but as far as putting over Brock, I seriously doubt it because Taker had a chance to make Brock look good last month and look at the abortion we got for a main event then

Patrick: Yes, absolutely. Brock was the loser on TV this week, and according to WWE logic, he goes over on Sunday. Undertaker will be dragged down kicking and screaming and "selling" his broken hand, but he will job. Neither will take a large bump, but expect a LOT of run-ins or outside shenanigans to help Brock win.

Dr. Tom: Yes, Taker puts Brock over. I think he's due for elbow surgery, so the "broken hand" and the loss in the Hell in a Cell match will give him a storyline excuse to miss the time.

Brandon: I think he will. The only thing nagging at me is that the announced main event of Rebellion is Undertaker vs. Lesnar and Paul Heyman. If I were more suspicious, I'd say that Taker wins at No Mercy then gets "crippled" at the UK PPV because fewer people will see it.

Dames: If Taker doesn't put Brock over in the Cell, then the writing is on the wall for Brock's title reign. As for the match itself, Matt hardy will probably take the big bump, if that.

Dr. Tom: Yeah, Dames, they'll need someone who can actually sell to take the Big Bump. I just hope it doesn't look as contrived as Rikishi's from 2 years ago.

William: Well, I am confident that this match will not be on the level of the HBK-Taker HIAC match. Will it be closer to Bossman-Taker from Wrestlemania 15?

Brandon: The highest possible rating for the match is ***1/2 because of the kinds of Cell matches we've seen before. However, I'm thinking this will be Taker-Bossman at Wrestlemania 15 bad. Which would be about a dud or *.

Byron: Brandon, Taker/Bossman was a LOT worse than * or DUD. This one barely reaches *3/4.

Dames: If you think about it, the 'Taker/Mankind HIAC that everyone raves about wasn't even **. I'd like to think that Brock is a lot better than Bossman!

Brandon: I think that Taker will sandbag Brock, Dames. That'll mean a worse match than Brock's capable of, but still better than the Bossman one.

Dr. Tom: I thought it was about *, Dames. Notable only for Foley's insane bumping. This one won’t be notable at all… *1/2.

Patrick: I say it'll be closer to Bossman/Undertaker. Not as abhorrently bad, but still bad. Maybe, now that I think about it, ** at the most.

William: Well, speaking of Hell in A Cell, do you think it is necessary for such a throw away PPV?

Dr. Tom: I think it's a good move to blow off this feud. And when Brock wins in Taker's special match, it will mean that much more.

Dames: Not at all. This match never should have happened to begin with had Taker just put him over last month. We've already had a HIAC this year and its becoming overkill. A No DQ match would have sufficed.

Brandon: I think it is overkill for this PPV. Hell in A Cell is supposed to be the blowoff for big feuds like Michaels-Taker or Foley-HHH. This wasn't exactly a hot feud at any time.

Byron: The Cell gimmick is supposed to be "special", yet they've thrown it away on two matches that didn't deserve it.

Patrick: This gimmick is very close to being almost killed. Maybe if they had gone another month, but not after what has only been a month in old TV format (pre-roster split) time. The last time they really sold how it was necessary to have a HIAC match, it was Armageddon 2000, when it seemed like all six contenders detested each other and that was the absolute ONLY WAY to settle it.

Dames: Seeing how the last HIAC didn't have a BIG BUMP, expectations aren't as high for this one.

Brandon: The last one had a nice bump Dames... too bad it was by the ref and he's STILL out as a result.

 

Booker T & Goldust vs. Chris Jericho & Christian

 

William: Well, moving on, does Bookdust finally win the tag belts or do the Canadians retain?

Byron: If I were booking this match, I'd have the Canadians retain here and then job at Survivor Series to put a little more heat on the feud

Dr. Tom: The Canadians just got the belt, which makes that a long reign in modern WWE. Still, I don't think there's any reason to take the belts off them at this point. Hopefully, Booker will go somewhere in the singles division.

Patrick: Chris-tian Jericho wins. They need to build the Raw titles as important, now that Smackdown has their own, and Booker and Goldust don't need the belts to be over. However, the fans and myself would be irked, to say the least to see Booker denied AGAIN.

Dames: I think BookerDust is due for a win but Jericho and Christian really don't have anything else to do, so by that reasoning alone... they'll retain.

Brandon: BookerDust will win because otherwise Booker will be challenging HHH for the title at Survivor Series... and we know that won't happen.

Byron: Brandon, how's that supposed to happen when Booker's been feuding with Jericho on RAW lately?

Brandon: Booker's the only credible face left since Kane became a necrophiliac murder and RVD's had his heat destroyed by Cripple H.

Patrick: Oh yes, I almost forgot, they need Booker to challenge Triple H since RVD's potential program was abandoned.

Byron: Call it eternal optimism, but I think that they will do HHH/RVD next month, but I kind of doubt it since the Flair/RVD match was thrown in at the last second.

William: Well, Spoon brings up a good point. How long can WWE ignore Bookermania?

Dr. Tom: Until someone else is more popular. Booker's a WCW boy, and we can't be havin' none o' dem WCW fellers goin' over our WWE "superstars."

Byron: I think we may be getting to the point where they can't afford to ignore The Book any longer

Brandon: They'll ignore it until they're forced to accept it. If Bubba goes out for a long time, Kane's proven a bomb as a draw, and RVD is jobbed out to Flair, he's all they have left.

Byron: The guy was all over RAW and got damn near the biggest pops on the show

Patrick: As I see it, they can ignore it for just a little while longer and it will die down. Sure the pops have been big for Book, but these outings with Big Show have dissipated those somewhat. The fans will catch on that he will never get his due, and move on to someone else.

Dames: They can ignore it all they like. Right now, his pops aren't at Austin or Rock levels and as far as they are concerned, until someone gets over like THAT... they are pawns for HHH.

Dr. Tom: At some point, they'll have to throw him a bone because there's no one else left to carry the torch for the faces. But it WILL be because he's the last credible resort.

William: That's unfortunate. Now, realistically, this is one of two matches I am looking forward to. Does anyone else have high hopes for this match?

Dr. Tom: It'll be decent. None of the four men are bad in the ring, so I think we can have a *** match here, maybe ***1/2 if they're all on their games.

Brandon: ***1/2 max because it won't get enough time. The realistic rating will probably be a **1/2

Patrick: I think if they give it time and don't place it badly, it will hit ***1/2 or so. Jericho looks motivated these days, Booker is always solid, and Goldust and Christian can bring the workrate if they need to.

Dames: It's not something I'm overly looking forward to. A one on one match between Jericho and Booker would have been better. There's only one real match I'm looking forward to.

Byron: It'll be okay as long as the Resthold Bug doesn't creep up during Christian's time in the ring. I say about **3/4

 

Kurt Angle & Chris Benoit vs. Edge & Rey Mysterio

 

William: Well, let's talk about the match Dames is looking forward to... Benoit and Angle vs. Edge and Mysterio. Who becomes the very first Smackdown tag champs?

Brandon: Benoit and Angle win because they need to tease a split longer. If they lose now, they have a match at Survivor Series rather than a series starting at the Rumble and ending at Wrestlemania if Angle doesn't challenge Lesnar. Besides that, Edge will probably get the nod against Brock next month, so he can't have the tag titles.

Byron: I say Benoit/Angle are victorious, although Los Guerreros SHOULD have been the other team here.

Dr. Tom: That's a tough call, since all four could be viable in singles matches on the show. I'm going with Benoit and Angle, both for the instant credibility they bring, as well as a money feud with Los Guerreros.

Patrick: I disagree. Edge and Mysterio win because they have nothing else really going for them at the moment until Edge is ready to be fed to Brock. Despite how interesting a slow breakup would have been, they'll rush the Benoit/Angle program so they can have a match at Survivor Series, and thus free up one more challenger for Brock on his way to Wrestlemania or the Royal Rumble.

Dames: Well, the way I saw it, Smackdown held the real finals, because Rey and Edge aren't winning shit. They don't gel as a team and they have too much riding on their respective face pushes.

William: Does anyone else think that an Edge & Mysterio vs. The Guerreros would have been a better final, allowing Angle and Benoit to put on another excellent match?

Brandon: It would have been an equally good match, but then they wouldn't build as much heat for Angle-Benoit.

Patrick: I'm not quite sure about that, because you'd have three guys in there who would be used to the same style and one dude who could only do the WWE-style material.

Byron: Yes. Angle and Benoit can build heat for the break-up better by themselves while Los Guerreros shine in the tag division

Dr. Tom: As much as I'd like to see another Angle-Benoit match, I like them in the tag finals better. If they're still going to feud, it should build slowly and start when they're forced to cooperate as tag champs.

Byron: Eh, I'm not a big fan of the "Wacky Tag Champs that hate each other" angle because it's pretty much written in stone what's going to happen.

William: Honestly, this is the only match on the card I think can hit ****. What do you guys think?

Brandon: You're right, Helmet... I think it'll possibly hit ****1/2 if given the time that Smackdown main events have been getting.

Patrick: Oh, definitely. Unless RVD and Flair defy all preconceptions, the Smackdown Tag Title Final will be the only potential **** match, and they'd better give it the time to do so.

Dames: It's the only match where each worker is capable of being in **** matches... therefore, it will be.

Dr. Tom: It will be the only **** match. I'll say ****1/4 or ****1/2.

Byron: I'll go with ****. If there's no funny business in the match, then it'll be ****1/2

 

Ric Flair vs. RVD

 

William: Ric Flair vs. RVD. Does RVD go over the legend past his prime?

Dames: If he can't beat someone that Rico beat in three minutes...someone is TRULY out to get RVD. Flair no longer presents a threat in most fans eyes.

Patrick: He has to, there's no two ways about it. Should RVD lose to an old man? I hate to say it, but he is who lost to Rico with a rollup or whatever it was, then he has been officially buried.

Brandon: Ugh... He should but Flair has a knack for beating the guys he should lose to, and losing to guys he should beat. Flair will win in some extremely convoluted manner.

Byron: Yes. As much as it pains me to say this, it's time for Flair to stop wrestling, period. This year has just been horrendous for him.

Dr. Tom: As usual, there's no reason for Flair to win. I think RVD wins because of messed-up HHH interference.

Patrick: It was bad enough it was pretty much just thrown on the card as an afterthought after forgetting the original reason and initial post-Unforgiven feud.

Dames: the match was a Raw main event... tops. RVD didn't even sweat it... all he said was "cool".

William: It appears this match will be a total clash of styles. Will these two make it work or will it be a clusterfuck?

Dames: Considering Flair lately has reduced his offense to chops and the figure four, all he has to do is sell. **

Patrick: I want it to be good, I really do. Every good RVD match brings him closer to a fan revolution screaming for a REAL push. Unfortunately, it'll be pretty bad. **1/2 tops.

Brandon: Flair still knows his psychology, so I'll bet that we get as watchable a match as RVD-Regal was at Wrestlemania... meaning **1/2 tops.

Byron: It will be a clusterfuck. Flair is DONE and has been for a while now. **1/2 seems way too high to me. More like *3/4

Dr. Tom: It'll be a clusterfuck with a few watchable segments. Rob's spotty selling meets Flair's I-really-need-to-retire offense. I'm not looking for much out of this one. *1/2 is likely, ** tops.

 

Trish Stratus vs. Victoria & Dawn Marie vs. Torrie

 

William: Well, this month, WWE decided to grace us with TWO women matches on one show. Does anyone really give a shit who wins either match?

Dames: Well, I am interested in the women's title match. The Dawn Marie-Torrie match... hell no.

Byron: People care about the Women's Title? I'm shocked

Dames: I give a shit because I'd like to see what Victoria can do when she has more than 3 minutes in the ring.

Brandon: I don't particularly care about either match. Victoria hasn't been built up enough for me to care about and I don't particularly want to see Dawn and Torrie get it on in a midcard Smackdown match.

Patrick: I am a mark for the women's wrestling, so I actually care about both. Each REAL match they do, it makes them seem more legitimate and moves us farther away from the stupid T&A-fests.

Byron: I doubt they'll get more than 3 minutes, Dames. Maybe 4 if they're lucky

Dr. Tom: I'm curious about the Trish-Victoria match, which could be decent if given 5-7 minutes. Torrie and Dawn are just T&A, so I don't care about that one.

Patrick: I'm actually very glad they're trying to put a real plot to each one, even if both are kind of weak. Makes it look like it belongs on TV more.

William: Well, since Trish and Victoria are receiving the love, who wins?

Dr. Tom: Trish wins so she can be the champ when Jazz gets back. Hotshotting it onto Victoria, then back to Trish, wouldn't accomplish much.

Patrick: I say Victoria wins with her and Trish keeping at it until Jazz returns. After that, they'll go for a Jazz and Victoria against Trish storyline most likely.

Byron: Ugh... I'll go with Victoria since Trish needs another heel to feud with. The WWE really should have let Molly hold onto the belt until they had built up Victoria enough to win it from Trish.

Dames: I say Victoria wins. There aren't enough heel challengers in the women's division and with Trish as over as she is, for whatever reason, the chase is what the people want.

Brandon: I'd say Trish wins because she's the only face while there are currently two heels.

 

Final Thoughts

 

William: Well, that is the entire No Mercy card. No cruiser match, no Guerreros and only one possible **** match. Is this PPV worth purchasing?

Patrick: Damn, that IS the entire card, isn't it? Wow.

Byron: If I weren’t watching it for free, I'd waste my money on porn instead.

Brandon: Hell no, I'm not buying it. Sopranos: Season 4 Episode 6 for me...

Dr. Tom: I won't be able to watch it live, but I certainly wouldn't pay for it if I were able to watch it.

Patrick: I'll see it, as I try to see every PPV, but I'm very worried about how good that decision will be after viewing it.

Dames: I wouldn't purchase it, simply because I wouldn't want to pay 35 beans to get ONE **** match, when we've been getting it for free once a week this month. Plus, I don't want to see the HHH lovefest continue and if dwindling buyrates do something to change it, so be it.

Dr. Tom: I'll see it on tape (which I should be able to watch Monday), but this doesn't look like one to shell out $35 for.

William: Personally, I recommend watching this show for free or not at all. Either way, you can be sure the Smart Marks will be back Sunday night for the post-PPV reactions. Also, don't forget to check out Dames' Diatribe of the show. As for now, the Crossface is now over!