WWE HIAC Hits

Undertaker vs. C.M. Punk: I'm not a fan of the title change because WWE is destroying the value of their title belts by changing them so frequently. That said, this was a quality match that saved the HIAC gimmick for the other two matches. Punk received plenty of offense and looked strong despite losing the match. That said, I hated seeing a World Title defended in the opening match. I understand the need to keep the HIAC matches apart, but having this match on first made the belt look cheap.

John Morrisson vs. Dolph Ziggler: They didn't do these two any favors by having them follow up the first match. It's not that they weren't up to the challenge in the ring. Rather, it's because they simply aren't as over as Taker and Punk. The live crowd seemed to enjoy the match, but they weren't popping big for either wrestler. No complaints about the actual match, though. This was a strong showing for two rising stars.

Big Show and Chris Jericho vs. Batista and Rey Mysterio: This was the most entertaining match of the night. It totally exceeded my expectations. I expected the Jericho vs. Mysterio time to be strong, but the big man vs. little man spots with Big Show and Mysterio were fun. The big spear from Batista on Big Show and Jericho at ringside was great. They laid out the match nicely and this was the most pleasant surprise of the night.

Randy Orton vs. John Cena: It's hard to give a hit to a match that the fans are so burned out on, but both wrestlers worked hard and delivered a solid title match. The finish was a nice surprise, yet I must question the logic of changing the WWE Title twice in a matter of three weeks. Orton would be so much more over if he was in the midst of a long title reign.

WWE HIAC Misses

DX vs. Cody Rhodes and Ted DiBiase: This wasn't a bad match. However, it didn't live up to the expectations I had once it became apparent that it was going to headline the show. The match was slow paced and the live crowd was flat. It told a story with the heels locking Shawn inside the cage and Hunter eventually breaking in to look like the super hero, but the story was painfully obvious and we didn't need to see the heels work over HBK for so long. This match desperately needed blood. Is it foolish to expect a PG company to deliver blood on a pay-per-view? Maybe, but it's not like the scene with Orton beating the hell out of a handcuffed Cena last month fit the PG billing.

Kofi Kingston vs. The Miz vs. Jack Swagger: Good work from all three guys and it was refreshing to see them work spots with three men rather than take the easy way out by having one wrestler sell an injury at ringside. However, we've seen some variation of wrestlers hitting their finishers in rapid fire fashion only to have Kofi be last in line with his finisher the last few times this title has been defended on pay-per-view. Minus points for how much momentum Miz and Swagger have lost over the last few months.

Drew McIntyre vs. R-Truth: No one cared about this match. How awkward was it to see both World Title matches on the show before this match took place? Again, I understand the idea of keeping the HIAC matches apart, but I'm not a fan of the order they selected. This show would have been significantly better if they had scrapped the women's match and inserted an ECW Title match with Christian and his opponent of the month.

Mickie James vs. Alicia Fox: This match had Raw written all over it. Granted, I'm all for fresh matchups, but the live crowd didn't take Alicia seriously. They should have built her up as a legitimate threat for a couple months and then held this match. I hope Alicia's head isn't hurting too much today after taking that DDT so awkwardly. That looked nasty.

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