A night of bonuses and new champs.

I had a feeling it was wishful thinking to believe that WWE would deliver another slam-errific event, the same caliber as both Money in the Bank 2011 and Summerslam 2011. It appears they're just incapable of pulling off one gem after another on a consistent basis, even to end off the year. When looking at this gimmick event, I actually did have somewhat high hopes coming in. But oh well, TLC 2011 has two matches I would say to be must see on an overall watchable card. The Main Event lived up to the hype in my eyes, and the two title changes taking place were a plus, especially one that had the crowd going nuts.


1- US Championship

Dolph Ziggler (C) vs. Zack Ryder

This was something that had been brewing for months. Ryder had scored various pinfall victories on Ziggler coming in, and it just felt like this would be his night. The crowd was completely behind Ryder; he no doubt had them in his hand. I'll admit he does have talent, however, I don't exactly see all the appeal with this guy, but whatever he has it's definitely working. This was a decent back and forth that saw Ziggler take advantage with a DDT on the apron. He worked his arrogant heel well by doing sit ups in the ring when things were going his way. Eventually, the momentum would shift and Ryder would hit a series of cool moves, such as a missile drop kick and a top rope Franksteiner. Ziggler deserves so much credit for the way he sells a fantastic beating. He can make a 4 year old child look like The Incredible Hulk. The predictable interference would come into play, but by then, the match was well into second gear with some good nearfalls. And later, it would happen, and the crowd would go crazy with "WOO", "WOO, "WOO", as Ryder captured his first singles title. Great way to get the crowd hyped. 3.5/5

2- WWE Tag Team Championship

Air Boom (Kofi Kingston & Evan Bourne) (C) vs. Primo and Epico

I am as sick and tired of Air Boom as I am tag team wrestling. Tag team wrestling in WWE just isn't the way it used to be. Yeah, I'm aware I'm not saying anything fans don't already know but still.  Air Boom just don't have that cohesion for a tag team that satisfies me. They aren't half as fun to watch as the Hart Dynasty or the Usos, and they just bore the hell out of me. This was your average quick paced match, that saw the heels take advantage of the weaker guy in the form of Bourne, and work him over until the hot tag. The action was decent but this could have easily fit on free TV. Some bonus match this was. 3/5

3- Tables Match

Randy Orton vs. Wade Barrett

I enjoyed the feud between these two, but I found this match type questionable. I'm not a fan of Table matches because I think they are far too predictable, there isn't enough room for innovation, plus I think it limits what the wrestlers can do, case in point; there were a series of teasers that you knew weren't going to happen, such as Barrett setting up for the "Wastelands" finisher through a table only for Orton to counter it. They felt like they were just going through the motions to me. There were some decent moments of action with the wrestlers hitting their high spots, such as the sidewalk slam for Barrett, and Orton's quick power slam counter, but I just wasn't feeling it. However, I will point out that WWE see something in Barrett though. In his short time with the company, he has already feuded with two of the biggest names, Orton being one and John Cena being the other, plus he came out of this match still looking strong. And that's a good thing for a rising star like him. 3.25/5

4- Divas Championship

Beth Phoenix (C) vs. Kelly Kelly

I thought the storyline coming in with Beth being PO'ed about not winning the Divas Slammy Award, and Kelly taking it instead was a good way to kick off another feud with them. Unfortunately, this match is somewhere in the bottom of their match ups. There are some nice mix ups with good counters, such as Kelly pulling off a hurricarana on Beth, and even a bulldog on another occasion. But Kelly still looks pretty slow in the ring and her offense is hard to buy into, like a majority of the divas, so no wonder that belt lives around Beth's waist. Outside of that sick looking Electric Chair Slam to end the match, there's nothing really noteworthy here. 2.75/5

5- Sledge Hammer Ladder Match

Triple H vs. Kevin Nash

Now here goes one of the matches I came into this event heavily looking forward too. Now taking the place of a title belt, the sledge hammer is suspended above the ring, and whoever gets to it first can use it as a weapon. At this stage in their careers, Triple H and Nash pulled off a great match that I think is actually better than their series of bouts from 2003. They kicked off things with a mean brawl that even went outside the ring. Weapons would come into play and they punished each other with the ladders; Triple H used the ladder to slap a painful looking Figure Four on Nash, after punishing the hell out of his legs with vicious ladder offense, and Nash returned the favor by dropping Triple H on a ladder with his sidewalk back breaker. The hammer would eventually play into the ending, and along with this being remembered as a very physical match, it will also be remembered as the death of the Clique. Very good match with a fantastic finish. 4/5

6- Sheamus vs. Jack Swagger

Here goes another very physical encounter by two of the most physical men in the company. Sheamus on one occasion had Swagger on the outside of the ropes, appearing as if he wanted to beat holes into his chest, by pounding him with one strong blow after another. It was a funny beating too. They exchanged some good offense with Swagger putting the bad mouth on him, and eventually going technical by targeting Sheamus leg setting up for the ankelock submission. For a bonus match that took place after a back stage skit, it's actually one of the better ones on the card. 3.5/5


7- Chairs Match for World Heavyweight Championship

Big Show vs. Mark Henry (C)

I'm not a fan of Chairs matches at all, in fact, I think it's a dumb stipulation even for this ppv. However, when looking at how the feud between these two kicked off last July, with Henry crushing and breaking Big Show's ankle with a chair and inducting him into the Hall of Pain. I don't think any other match type would have been fitting. Plus, this feud needed a gimmick anyway, but damn, it couldn't save this match from being so boring though. There were quite a bit of chair shots to the back and legs, but that's all it really was and the out of nowhere quick ending made it suck even more. This match was a huge disappointment and a shitty way to end Henry's title run. The only thing that makes it watchable is the aftermath. 2.75/5

8- Intercontinental Championship

Cody Rhodes (C) vs. Booker T
 
This title defense was suppose to have taken place much earlier in the show. It was postponed after Cody jumped Booker T backstage, and later jumping him again on the way to the ring during his entrance. Therefore, due to these two beatings, the story was whether Book T was going to be in any shape to compete. I seriously thought this was going to be a squash, yet it turned into an interesting back & forth, where Cody really had to work for this by going to several strikes, and even grounding Booker T with a Full Nelson. The match was put together well keeping Booker T looking strong, and at the same time building Cody as an aggressive champion who will do anything to keep the title. 3.25/5

9-TLC (Tables, Ladders, & Chairs) Match for the WWE Championship

CM Punk (C) vs. Miz vs. Alberto Del Rio

WWE have been overkill with these Ladder Matches the last 7 years, and it's starting to show with the lack of innovation at times, but still, a majority of these matches are no less entertaining. This bout kicked off with Miz and Del Rio continuing their alliance to hilariously pound CM Punk leaving him draped on the ropes. The good thing is, it didn't take long for these two to self destruct and begin brutalizing each other with chairs and ladders. Del Rio continues to look good in this environment, by sending Punk crashing through a table, and even locking him into the Arm Bar submission with the assistance of a chair. The legal interference played an interesting role here against Punk keeping the suspense pretty high, and it felt like one of the heels could have easily taken this. There was some very good action and mean table crashes. My only issue is the PG rating in all this. I want to see guys taking nasty chairshots to the head like in the old days. 4.25/5


TLC 2011 didn't end 2011 in the bang I was really hoping for. The card is no doubt watchable since there's nothing I can consider truly awful but it's a mixed bag for sure. The TLC and Sledgehammer matches are worth giving this a rental at least.

Pros:
-Main Event, Sledgehammer match

Cons:
-An otherwise semi-decent card