WWE Capitol Punishment 2011 Review

United States Championship
Dolph Ziggler Vs Kofi Kingston

A disappointing outing from these two, a pair who worked so well together on SmackDown last year. Some nice sequences towards the end couldn't save this one from being quite boring to start off, and I disagree with Ziggler going back to a mid-card title after such a long and recent run with the Intercontinental Championship on SmackDown. A good choice for an athletic opener at least, but the first of many rematches tonight that are happening without any decent story or build-up, creating a sterile kind of atmosphere to this whole event.

Rating: 3 Stars

Alex Riley Vs The Miz

The second of Miz's NXT rookies gets to have a go at him on PPV and win clean. How exactly are we supposed to take The Miz seriously as a main-event threat? I never saw him as a legitimate WWE Champion, and his booking since loosing that title isn't helping his case. Riley is performing as well as I'd expected, he was my favourite rookie on NXT Season 2 after all, but his character gives me no reason to root for him and he's been booked weaker than Miz so this victory seems miraculous. The match was a decent enough brawl, but Miz is just not a good enough wrestler to carry anyone to anything more. Like last month, it seems dominating the match only to loose after all is becoming Miz's trademark, and he looks weaker now than he's done since loosing to Bret Hart last year.

Rating: 2 Stars

Alberto Del Rio Vs The Big Show

The match I was least looking forward to on the card, this one surprised me and I enjoyed it a lot. Before they could start we got some good continuity as Big Show was attacked by Mark Henry and put through the Spanish announce table with an impressive-as-hell World's Strongest Slam. Thankfully Henry leaves his involvement at that and made his way to the back as Del Rio urges the referee to count the Big Show out. Show makes it into the ring by 8 and we get an actual match, with Del Rio working the double-injured leg while Show tries to hit his arsenal of power moves and punches. Del Rio then manages to hit a Cross-LEG-Breaker on Show, which by all rights should have had the giant tapping at once, but somehow he just lies there and screams until he gets to the ropes, but is unable to stand so Del Rio wins anyway. Why he couldn't have just tapped is beyond me, but the right man came out looking strong while Big Show keeps up appearances as well.

Rating: 3 Stars

Intercontinental Championship
Ezekiel Jackson Vs Wade Barrett

Similar to their encounter at Over the Limit, only with less energy and a clean finish. I'm not sure Jackson is ready for the Intercontinental Championship yet, his character has barely developed since he won and retired the ECW Championship at the start of last year, which he was also not ready for. He doesn't have the look or the charisma to be a top star, and I can't imagine any feuds for him in the SmackDown mid-card I'm excited to see. Decent promo from Barrett to start, although I'm confused why he went with the 'Foreign Heel' slant when his opponent wasn't American either. He really is lost again without a group, hopefully he'll get a hot feud soon because he is a talent the WWE can't afford to waste.

Rating: 2 Stars

CM Punk Vs Rey Mysterio

Another SmackDown 2010 rematch here for Raw in 2011, though I can't complain about watching two of the best athletes in the WWE working together again. Their TV series has been disappointing considering their achievements last year, but thankfully they use the PPV stage to paint a bigger picture, and one of their best. While at first they seemed a bit slow, they soon got faster and crisper working a few innovative spots and fluid counters into the mix. Not much story to work with, as is the theme of this PPV, but Punk's fantastic character shines through in-ring. I love the expressive touches Punk uses in his work – biting the bottom rope in frustration after a close near fall, taunting the crowd after a ducked 619, yelling at his opponent while his grabs their face... Even in a match like this with nothing much on the line, Punk makes it matter. Match of the night.

Rating: 4 Stars

World Heavyweight Championship
Randy Orton Vs Christian

Not quite the standard of their Over the Limit classic, but this match had a very different story to tell and hopefully is not the end of this saga. When it started I was very against taking the title off Christian so fast, but I will admit he's better at chasing a prize while Orton is better at defending. Watching him try to beat Randy is thrilling television, almost at the level of Shawn Michaels Vs The Undertaker at WrestleMania in recent years. This time, Orton is a bit groggy due to his concussion, and the match isn't as fast or as crisp as these men have performed before. Christian's heel turn mixes up the dynamic and justifies another normal match up, but given the chemistry here I hope to see these two in a climactic match of some kind – perhaps an Iron Man contest?

Rating: 4 Stars

Evan Bourne Vs Jack Swagger

A great choice to fill-out the card, maybe if it had been announced or built up better the crowd wouldn't have been so apathetic. I'm a big fan of both men, who always make the most of what they've got whether it's 3 minutes or 30. Great mat work from Swagger early on, his power working well against such a light opponent. It's a shame these talents have to work under such crappy creative conditions on Raw – Swagger is back where he was over a year ago despite proving he could handle the work-rate at a world title level. Built-up right, he'd be a fantastic opponent for John Cena over the summer, but no, instead he's jobbing to Evan Bourne. Bourne himself could be the next Rey Mysterio, but again they just don't let him work or give him storylines to connect with the fans. He ought to have feuded with CM Punk when he returned, but instead he's just floating around. Why such talent is wasted on Raw while SmackDown lacks stars is a mystery.

Rating: 3.5 Stars

WWE Championship
John Cena Vs R-Truth

This match would have been a decent main-event of Raw, but on PPV is just doesn't cut it. As much as they've tried, R-Truth isn't good enough to work at the level they're placing him at. That's not to say I'm not impressed with Truth's work here, but he should be getting the same character change and push towards the United States Championship instead, where it wouldn't be so obvious he's going to loose. In fact if they need filler opponents for Cena to work with through the summer they'd be better off swapping Truth for Dolph Ziggler, a man who is technically a former world champion and has worked well with Cena before. Nothing very memorable here besides the finish, where Truth stole a kids drink and hat from ringside only to have the kid fight back and soak him, setting up the AA and the pin.

Rating: 3 Stars

WWE Capitol Punishment 2011 Final Score: 3 Stars

Another average PPV from the WWE, not as bad as people worried it would be, but nothing stand-out either. Probably the best so far of the season, but only because it omitted another awful match in the Cole/Lawler feud or a match involving the Bella Twins. The talent did their best with what they were given, but Raw especially is running on creative fumes. Poor or non-existent build-up for anything not involving John Cena or The Miz means this show is unlikely to be remembered by the end of the year. Next month we'll get the second Money in the Bank PPV, which I have high hopes for given last year's instalment was my PPV of the Season. Despite the current state of the WWE, the quality of the roster means it wouldn't take much work to book a fantastic SummerSlam for August. A few stars need to be polished beforehand but if Vince is smart he'll make good decisions in the next few weeks and put on the show we all want to see.