WWF Unforgiven (September 2001)

From Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania; Your Hosts are Jim Ross and Paul Heyman

Opening WWF Tag Team Title Fatal Four-Way Match: The Dudley Boyz v The Hardy Boyz v Big Show and Spike Dudley v Lance Storm and The Hurricane: Man, if there was ever a team who could use a snappy name, but I guess they were busy using all their creativity on botching the Invasion to come up with one. Brawl to start, until the dust settles on Matt Hardy and Hurricane exchanging goofy posing routines. Jeff Hardy comes in to exchange some flippy-floppy stuff with Hurricane, and schoolboys him for two. The fun stops when Spike and Storm tag in, and Lance bodyslams him, then tags back to Hurricane. The flow is really wonky so far, as they just keep trading off with little/no direction. Spike falls into a heat segment until Storm and Hurricane miscommunicate, and Show gets the tag to trigger a big brawl. Cool dog pile spot as Spike dives off of Show's shoulders onto the others on the outside, and Show finishes Storm with a Chokeslam at 6:52. Matt comes in to go with Spike next, and after trading a few nearfalls, little Dudley goes home off the Twist of Fate at 7:57. The Dudley's cut the ring in half on Jeff, but Hardy manages to catch D-Von with a dive, and gets to brother Matt. Crack house of fire leads to a four-way brawl, and Matt takes out both champions with a flying moonsault on the floor. Inside, D-Von take a 2^nd rope legdrop for two, but ends up running into the Death Drop - Jeff breaking up the cover with a Swanton. He can't follow-up, however, and Bubba Bombs Matt for D-Von to pin at 14:22. I'm not really a fan of these four-way matches, and this one lacked flow, but was well paced. ¾*

Raven v Saturn: Jesus, how many promotions felt the need to book this match? Saturn comes in hot and destroys him, so Raven bails, but gets dragged back. Terri distracts Saturn to allow Raven a baseball slide, and he adds a drop-toehold into the steps for good measure before heading back in. Inside, Raven bulldogs him for two, and counters a flurry of rights with a cobra clutch. Saturn tries to escape but gets dumped, and Raven won't let him back in - viciously knocking him off the apron each time he tries. Saturn finally manages to snap his neck across the top and sunset flip back in, but Raven drops down to cradle for two. Lariat, but Saturn ducks into a superkick, and adds a head-and-arm suplex. Overhead suplex follows, and a springboard clothesline is worth two. Schoolboy for two, but Raven knocks him off the top as he goes for a rana, then hits a 2^nd rope clothesline for two. Sunset flip gets two, but Saturn wrestles up into a slingshot, and shits into a fisherman’s suplex for the pin at 5:07. Nothing we haven't seen before, but the effort was there, and it was a fine little TV-level match. **

WWF Intercontinental Title Match: Edge v Christian: Okay, start making Rockers comparisons... now. Christian slides in and goes right after him, but Edge wins a scuffle on the mat, and hits a quick flapjack for two. DDT, but Christian hits the deck and rolls out of the ring to establish how well they know each other. Noted. Edge is right on his tail, and chases him over to the entrance set for a slingshot into it. Was that really necessary? Why kill the flow for a spot that was so instantly forgettable anyway? Back in, Edge unloads turnbuckle smashes until Christian is a pile of Canadian jelly, but Edge gets too cocky, and posted. Outside, Christian tosses him into the rail, then the steps for good measure. Inside, Christian hits an inverted DDT over the knee for two, and he grabs a handful of the champ’s hair to slam him around a couple of times. Powerslam is worth two, and he props the champ up in the corner for some chop, but walks into a Russian legsweep that leaves both guys down. Edge crawls to the top rope for a flying splash, but expects Christian to see it coming (which he does) and shifts gears to land on his feet, then grabs the surprised challenger in a bridging German suplex for two. Nice sequence there. Spear, but Christian sees it coming, and sidesteps, then hits a dropkick for two - busting Edge open hardway. Slugfest goes Edge's way, but both guys try a bodypress at the same time, and end up in a heap. Christian manages to get him into the corner for a ten-punch, but Edge shoves him off, and hits a pair of clotheslines, then a backdrop. He returns the favor with some hairpull slams of his own, and they do a reversal sequence with both guys countering the others signature moves that ends in Edge hitting the Edge-o-Matic for two. Good sequence in theory, but it came off awkward in execution - much like this entire match. Another sequence that sounds better on paper than in reality follows, as Christian tosses Edge out over the top, so Edge dives underneath the ring, crosses to the other side, and surprises his challenger with a flying bodypress for two. Christian with a spear for two, and he grabs a pair of chairs, then tries for a solo performance of the conchairto, but is backfires. Edge decides to perform his own solo, but the referee pulls the chair away from him, and Christian snaps of a low blow for the title at 11:53. Well, that was... disappointing. Not bad, exactly, just not what everyone was expecting - with severe flow and pacing issues. It seemed like they were trying too hard at points, and while that's obviously better than not putting in effort, it made the match often feel forced. ** ¼

WCW World Tag Team Title Match: The Brothers of Destruction v KroniK: The dream match 1995 forgot to give us! Brawl to start, until the dust settles on Undertaker and Brian Adams. 'Taker with a quick elbowdrop for two, and then a drop-toehold allows him to drop another two for two. His move set all used up, 'Taker passes to Kane for a cross corner clothesline, and a bodyslam. Not to be shown up, Kane adds an elbowdrop of his own for two, but Adams gets bored and tags Bryan Clarke. He manages to pounds Kane in the corner, but that doesn't last long, and Undertaker comes back in to short-shoulderblock him a few times, then hits the ropewalk forearm. 'Taker slaps on a cross-armbreaker, but Adams breaks it up, and the challengers cut the ring in half on him. Clarke ends up taking a DDT to allow the tag back to Kane, and it's four-way brawl time - Undertaker finishing Clarke with a chokeslam at 10:21. KroniK were never great workers, but the team definitely had potential in the dying days of WCW when well booked, and I'd have thought the WWF would have used them better than bringing them in and immediately jobbing them right back out. And why? I mean, they don't even fall into the (stupid, petty) 'they're WCW guys' line of thinking, like DDP or Buff Bagwell. If anything, they're WWF guys coming back home, and deserved better. ¼*

WWF Hardcore Title Match: Rob Van Dam v Chris Jericho: Chris works a headlock to start, triggering a long reversal sequence that ends in a stalemate when both guys try a dropkick at the same time. Where was that sequence in the Intercontinental Title match? Jericho manages to get him on the mat in a side-headlock, but Rob counters into a headscissors, and they another sequence ends in Van Dam backsliding him for two. Another reversal sequence ends in a stalemate after they trade cradles, though that sequence was so sloppy and amateurish that it completely negated any good intentions behind it. Even JR is stuttering. Slugfest goes Jericho's way to setup some mounted punches, and a criss cross allows him an enzuigiri for two. Cross corner charge misses, however, and Rob plants a springboard sidekick on him, then lightning kicks him into a cradle for two. Jericho manages a flapjack, but a springboard dropkick misses, and Chris goes flying out of the ring - RVD following with a plancha for two on the outside. Oh, right. I'd almost forgotten that this was a Hardcore match. And I mean that in a good way. Van Dam tries the legdrop across the rail, but Jericho gets out of the way, then finds a ladder to clobber the champ with. Well, you can never have too many ladders, I always say. Inside, Chris cracks him with some chops, and casually tosses him shoulder first into the post just to be a dick. He brings the ladder in to snap suplex RVD on for two. Again, but this time the champ reverses. He misses a dropkick follow-up, however, and Chris goes for the Walls, but Rob manages to block, and hit the rolling splash for two. Corkscrew legdrop sets up the splitlegged moonsault, but Jericho lifts his knees to block, and bulldogs the champion. Springboard moonsault, but Rob dodges, and spinkicks his challenger - only to miss the Five Star Frogsplash. Great pacing, timing, and flow through there sequences. Rob manages to get a chair to bodyslam Chris onto, but takes too long climbing the ladder to follow-up, and Jericho throws a chair in his face, then follows him up to hook a ladder-assisted Walls. Insane! Rob refuses to quit, so Jericho punishes him by shoving him off the ladder TO THE DAMN FLOOR, then follows out with a suicide dive - which hits rail. Ouch. Rob tries capitalizing with a tope, but Jericho smacks him out of the air with a chair to block for two. Looked weak compared to the famous spot with Benoit, but given all we know now, that's definitely for the better. Chris pounds the shoulder he injured on the post earlier as they head back in, but walks into a neat spinheel variation for two. Chris regroups with a fujiwara armbar, but Van Dam's in the ropes. Chris won't let off (hey, Hardcore rules are Hardcore rules), so Rob pulls him to the floor while still in the hold. Jericho responds by brutally whipping him into the steps (shoulder first, of course), then goes for the kill with a chair, but Stephanie McMahon runs down to distract him, and RVD kicks the chair into his face, then Five Star Frogsplashes him to retain at 16:33. Other than a bit of sloppiness early on, and some needless interference in the finish, this was a really FUN, well worked spotfest, with both guys working hard and bumping like crazy. This was like everything Edge and Christian were going for earlier coming to fruition for two different guys. ****

WCW World Title Handicap Match: The Rock v Booker T and Shane McMahon: Rock starts with Booker and goes right to work, but takes a cheapshot while pounding on McMahon, and Shane drops a series of elbowdrops like he was trained by Undertaker, or something. Booker tags in with a sidewalk slam for two, and Shane's back with a savate kick and a series of punches - only to walk into Rock's shitty overhead suplex. Booker cuts off the comeback, but Shane gets too cocky and ends up in the Sharpshooter, so Booker saves again. This match is like a metaphor for the South in the early 1800s, or something. Out on the floor, Shane manages a clothesline from off the rail, and inside, Booker gets two off of it. Out again, Booker grabs a chair, but Rock ducks it - only to have his comeback cutoff by Shane again. Booker capitalizes with a slingshot into the post, and inside, a snapmare sets up a kneedrop. He takes too long showboating, however, and Rock schoolboys him for two before getting put back down with a clothesline. Back out to the floor (fuck, pick a side and stick to it!), Booker places Rock on the Spanish announce table for Shane to drive through, but Rock just kinda decides he doesn't feel like it, and moves before Shane even leaps. Was there a miscommunication there, or did they actually book that stupid sequence? Back in (they went out to the floor to do THAT?!?) Rock drops him like a Samoan, so Shane grabs the WCW Title belt - only to hit Booker by mistake. He makes up for it by hitting Rock anyway, which just negates the entire sequence. Booker gets a two count out of the deal before tagging, and this time Rock actually waits for Shane to leap before rolling out of the way of his flying elbowdrop. Nice one, too. Tag right back to Booker immediately segues into a three-way brawl, and Shane tries his very own Peoples Elbow, but gets punished with a Rock Bottom. Spinebuster for Booker sets up the real thing, but now Test runs in to cut him off, and he lays him out with a big boot. That draws Bradshaw down to chase him off (why are fucking Bradshaw and Test involved in anything this high up the card?), and that leaves all the participants down. Shane manages to cover, but a WWF referee pulls him out - protesting WCW referee Nick Patrick’s officiating. The referees brawl as Booker tries to End Rock, but gets reversed into the Bottom - another WWF referee running in to count the fall at 15:24. Ugh. Badly booked and awkward, with way too much screwiness to boot. But, hey, at least they were smart enough not to try closing the show with this again. *

WCW United States Title Match: Tajiri v Rhyno: These guys must have felt good knowing the bookers basically thought of them as a Divas match at this point. Ouch! Tajiri manages to knock him to the floor for a baseball slide and a springboard moonsault right away, but gets beat up on the floor (beat up, beat down... really no good direction to go, is there?), and inside, Rhyno spears him into the corner, then slams him for two. Tajiri manages to snap off a victory cradle for two, but quickly gets belly-to-belly suplexed, and trapped in a chinlock. Tajiri escapes and hits a rana then a spinheel kick for two, followed by a handspring elbow for two. He charges into a spinebuster for two, so Torrie Wilson hops onto the apron to bitch. Rhyno chases, but Tajiri cuts off the Gore with a roundhouse kick for two, and slaps on the Tarantula. More kicks, but Rhyno counters with an exploder suplex, and the Gore wins the title at 4:50. Nothing, but looking at Torrie Wilson does a body good. ¾*

Main Event: WWF Title Match: Steve Austin v Kurt Angle: So, we're less than two weeks removed from 9/11. And we’re in Angle’s hometown, to boot. Anyone wanna guess how this ends? Heck, there's even signs in the crowd like 'Bin Laden fears Angle!' for gosh sakes. Brawl in the aisle to start, and inside, Kurt stomps the crap out of him. Kurt with a Thesz press, and he goes ballistic with chops, then upgrades to closed fists. Geez dude, it's not like AUSTIN's the one who flew a plane into a building. Superplex gets two, but Kurt hurts his neck in the process, and Steve manages to hook a sleeper. Angle manages to stun his way free, and he clotheslines Austin over the top. Steve decides to grab his belt and go home, but Angle is hot on his heels, and tosses Austin off the stage - in a weak, awkward looking bump. Either do it or don't. Kurt makes up for it by following him down for a hellacious ass kicking via knife edge chops, then literally carries him back to the ring to finish things. Austin tries to run again, so Kurt punishes him with a shot into the post, then adds a few more as payback for SummerSlam - busting Austin open in the process. He decides to take it a step further by pulling up the floor mats, but Steve manages to charge him from behind to cutoff whatever he's plotting. Austin tries a piledriver on the exposed concrete, but Kurt backdrops him to counter, then tries a piledriver of his own - and gets promptly backdropped. Steve ends up forward suplexing him across the Spanish announce table, then adds another one, but that sucker won't break. Ouch. Third try is unfortunately not the charm, and they finally wisely decide to abandon it and head in, where Austin controls a slugfest. Kneelift sets up a pointed elbowdrop, and Steve goes after the neck Kurt tweaked earlier on. 2^nd rope axehandle is worth two, and a snapmare leaves Angle in chinlockland. Hey, I told him to stop and ask for directions back at the forward suplex, don't blame me. Kurt escapes, but Austin reverses a cradle, then fires off a shot at the neck to take the pep out of his step. Angle responds in kind, then grabs the three-alarm rolling German suplexes to punctuate it. Unfortunately, it hurts his neck as well, and by the time he's able to climb to the top rope to follow-up, Steve is able to crotch him. Side superplex, but Kurt counters into a bodyblock for two. DDT, but Steve has the presence of mind to roll to the floor before the challenger can cover. With Kurt still on dream street, Austin milks the count, but then ruins the strategy by rolling back in. Dude! Kurt's ready for him with a Stunner, but it only gets two. Olympic Slam, but Austin reverses for two. Piledriver gets two, and finally Stone Cold goes for the Stunner - only for Angle to grab the leg, and counter right into the AnkleLock for the title at 23:54. Afterwards, the locker room empties out, and the ring fills with all the faces and Kurt’s own family hoisting him up onto their shoulders. For America! Not nearly as good as the SummerSlam match, but still a good, intense brawl worthy of main event status. *** ½

BUExperience: Well, there was no shortage of title matches, that’s for sure. A pretty good show on the strength of the two best matches alone, and supported by some decent stuff peppered into the undercard, as well as having the benefit of nothing outright sucking.

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