From a starring role at many a WrestleMania to a PPV of its very own, Money In The Bank has been one of the most successful (both commercially and artistically) match gimmicks the WWE has ever presented. With two stacked, in different ways, MITB matches on the show there was every chance that 2013’s editions would keep that run going.
The two MITB matches bookended the show as we kicked off with the seven man World Heavyweight Title MITB match. Although this undoubtedly had less star power than the ladder match to come in many ways that heightened the anticipation and tension. After all MITB matches were created to develop stars and the only man who seemed to have no chance of winning it was Jack Swagger given his pervious failures at the top level. Although admittedly it would have taken a leap of faith to imagine Fandango walking away with the briefcase. The match itself is full of the usual jaw-dropping stunts that would prove to any doubters that whilst wrestling might be “fixed” it’s certainly not “fake”. The early going was dominated by the Real Americans team of Swagger and Antonio Cesaro working together, including a nice spot where Cesaro clambered onto Swagger’s shoulders to try and reach the case without the help of a ladder. Cody Rhodes was inches away from the briefcase before The Shield interfered but Ambrose was similarly denied when the Uso’s ran in. We did get a “double cross” ending though as Damien Sandow blindsided Rhodes and grabbed the case for himself. A great opening to the pay-per-view that kept you guessing until the end.
The in-ring action in the WWE World Title MITB match that closed the match was perhaps the slightest notch down from the opener in terms of quality but the drama and excitement was just as high. Of course all six men (the WWE didn’t bother to replace Kane, injured by the Wyatt Family on Raw, in the match) had previously been World Champions of some description in WWE and such was the build up that it was really only Christian and Rob Van Dam who seemed very unlikely winners. The former because whilst his profile remains relatively high it’s clear WWE don’t see him as THE man and the latter because it was unfathomable to think that a returning star on a short-term contract would have any long-term booking plans put around him. Credible cases could be made for the other four which made for an intriguing and exciting match.
Rob Van Dam’s return went down very well (as you might expect) and his Five Star Frog Splash onto Christian from the top of a ladder was one of the match highlights. Sheamus took some scary bumps (which contributed to him being put out of action) and there was lots of high-octane action to digest. There was some impressive DIY ladder building as well on display. Like the earlier MITB match there was interference, this time just as Daniel Bryan looked like winning. Curtis Axel attacked him, but was in turn attacked by CM Punk. This brought out Paul Heyman who didn’t seem best pleased with Axel but then as Punk climbed the ladder he was attacked by Heyman, allowing Randy Orton to RKO Rob Van Dam and grab the briefcase for himself. The interference seemed less logical in this match than it did in the opener, but it achieved what it set out to do, namely sever the Punk/Heyman ties for good. And the match was another excellent one.
As well as the two MITB matches we also had two other “main events” in terms of the two World Title matches. Whilst few would have had any desire to see John Cena take on Mark Henry, the match was set up by a brilliant promo from Henry where he seemed set to retire before the swerve came and he attacked Cena. On the night it was a perfect respectable encounter with a surprisingly clean ending which at least ensured the feud didn’t outstay it’s welcome. The World Heavyweight Title match continued the Alberto Del Rio/Dolph Ziggler feud and the Philadelphia crowd certainly bought into Ziggler as a superstar babyface, with the loudest reactions to him since his own MITB cash-in. The match itself is certainly a better spectacle that their Payback match the month before and rattles along at a fast pace. Unfortunately it was “creative” finish time, as AJ cost Ziggler the match by DQ when she hit him with the Diva’s title belt, apparently out of concern for his health in the match. A lame finish to what was otherwise a very good match.
The rest of the card was a mixed bag. The Intercontinental Title match between Curtis Axel and The Miz did nothing for me, as I think Axel is over-rated and Miz makes for a very annoying babyface. This was shown when Miz’s actions caused Heyman to be ejected from ringside, causing fans to chant “we want Heyman”. The action was average at best. The Diva’s match between AJ and Kaitlyn was better, although that suffered from being a notch below what they had served up at Payback. Still, by WWE Diva’s standards it was a great match which featured logical wrestling spots executed well. The final mid-card match was a Chris Jericho / Ryback encounter which never really seemed to get going and did little for either man. Still it was Ryback’s first win on PPV in a year, so that has to count for something.
With the MITB matches delivering all the thrills and spills we have come to expect this was another exciting night of WWE action. The two world title matches, whilst not matching those standards, were entertaining too and served as good side dishes to the main courses. The undercard was mixed, with two of the three matches being quite dull for my money , but nothing was offensive, other than a ridiculous segment with Brad Maddox and Vickie Guerrero which was presumably intended to allow fans to catch their breath after the opening match but which would have been terrible enough if it was shown for free on Raw, never mind as part of a PPV.
The only extra on the DVD is the MITB “Kickoff” Match pitting The Shield’s Roman Reigns and Seth Rollins against The Uso’s which is an entertaining affair and was good enough that it perhaps deserved a spot on the PPV portion of the show in it’s own right. The Blu-Ray add over an hour of footage from the Raw’s and Smackdown’s leading up to the show itself and as ever are probably worth the extra few pounds over the DVD if you have the technology.
All in all a very good show with two more memorable additions to the MITB history.
– By Matthew Roberts
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