Just watched Armageddon at a mate's house. Few thoughts:
Vladimir Kozlov def. Matt Hardy (pinfall)
Interesting matchup, quite enjoyable, and well booked. Having Kozlov in a mini-feud with a guy who's very over gets Kozlov lots of heat, and having it as a non-title match keeps him well above the level of the ECW title and firmly in the upper card.
CM Punk def. Rey Mysterio (pinfall)
Was always going to be a fantastic match, and didn't disappoint. They should do more of this sort of match on PPV - matches that aren't really there for angle advancement or for booking reasons, but just because they're almost guaranteed to be awesome. Punk vs Mysterio probably won't happen again for a while either, and I think they picked the perfect time to do it for the first time. Also picked the right winner - Punk vs Regal will be a top notch feud.
The JBL-HBK promo was great, HBK being JBL's bitch and choosing himself over the fans is a great way to turn him heel. Will lead to him being forced to challenge 'Taker at 'Mania and eventually turning on JBL, I'd bet. Can't wait.
Finlay def. Mark Henry in a Belfast Brawl (pinfall)
Fun little match. Would have liked to see some weapons other than trash cans and kendo sticks (are there many kendo sticks left lying around on the streets of Belfast these days?), but it was alright for a Henry match. Think Henry should have gone over though, I was looking forward to seeing him mercilessly obliterate Hornswoggle and get an insane amount of heat.
Batista def. Randy Orton (pinfall)
Good match, wrong winner. Although Batista has essentially been Orton's bitch for the last few weeks, so I guess he had to get one back. Wondering who this increasingly-more-awesome stable Orton's created are actually going to feud with over the next month or two. Should be interesting.
Michelle McCool, Maria, Mickie James and Kelly Kelly def. Natalya, Victoria, Maryse and Jillian Hall in a Santa's Little Helper Match (pinfall)
Usual Diva filler match, nothing of note. Except, of course, for Michelle McCool using THE STYLES CLASH as her finisher!
Not content with having robbed the Angel's Wings from Christopher Daniels (and being banned from using it after the other Divas complained it hurt too much), she's now plagiarised another TNA Original's trademark move. I'm fine with paying tribute to people you respect by using their moves, but when they a) currently work for a rival company, and b) clearly have not been asked for permission, it's a little bit stupid.
John Cena def: Chris Jericho to retain the World Heavyweight Championship (submission)
My only qualm with this match was that Jericho tapped out too quickly to the STFU. Other than that, it was great.
Jeff Hardy def. Edge and Triple H in a Triple Threat Match to win the WWE Championship (pinfall)
Well, what can I say? An absolutely top-drawer match between three world-class talents, and an epic, career-defining moment to end it. I didn't expect Jeff's big win to come until WrestleMania, but I was delighted to see it come early because it throws possibilities wide open. I'm very happy for Jeff to have proven all the doubters wrong, I've been a Hardys mark for nearly ten years now and he deserves his big moment. Fantastic ending to what I thought was a fantastic PPV.
for Edge but seeing Jeff go over like that was just awesome. Seriously awesome triple threat. Not as good as Benoit at the Garden but can be mentioned in the same breath IMO. Nice PPV, two truly memorable matches and one awesome promo by Michaels and JBL.
