*SPOILERS*
The Royal Rumble has always been be a personal favourite of mine when it comes to WWE PPVs. Not so much for the card but the Rumble match itself. It is just an incredibly ingenious and suspenseful idea that results in some of the most entertaining moments of the year. While we do get some dud/predictable Rumbles, every once in a while we get an excellent one that remains the single memory of the event itself. The 1992 Rumble is still the best one; due to Flair, the work rate and the commentary work by Heenan and Monsoon. This Rumble gives that one a run for it's money though.
The card for the Rumble PPV has traditionally been pretty weak, mostly due to the immense time the Rumble itself takes. This one was no exception with matches being duds, disappointments or booked with the "let's wrap this up as fast as we can to make more time for the Rumble" line of thinking.
Dudley Boyz vs. Batista/Ric Flair was a 1/2* match, with little build-up and a poor finish.
The Cruiserweight match with Jamie Noble/Rey Mysterio was something you can see for free on SmackDown, it was a ** match at best.
Eddie Guerrero vs. Chavo Guerrero was the best non-Rumble match on the card, with the two providing a better-than-expected work rate with a *** performance.
Brock Lesnar vs. Hardcore Holly for the WWE Championship had zero expectations from me, I mean this is a Championship match and they couldn't get someone better to face Brock for the title. The match lived up to those low expectations and gave a *1/2 performance.
Shawn Michaels vs. Triple H was rushed, these two can work so damn well together recently with SummerSlam 2002 and the 12/29/2003 episode of RAW coming quickly to mind. The match was again shortened to make room for the Rumble, so we got a **1/2 performance from this match.
The 2004 Rumble is one of the best Rumble matches I have ever seen with countless mark-out moments and a fantastic ending by the booking crew. Hearing Undertaker's 'Gong' during the match was an instant mark-out moment for me while seeing Benoit win it all is what I paid to see. This match gets a ***** from me, in terms of it being a Rumble.
So, what does the Royal Rumble 2004 get overall? I think a 7.0/10 is in order as the card was weak but the Rumble was classic and since that has always been the focal point of the show, I think that tips the scales in favour of the show.
The Royal Rumble has always been be a personal favourite of mine when it comes to WWE PPVs. Not so much for the card but the Rumble match itself. It is just an incredibly ingenious and suspenseful idea that results in some of the most entertaining moments of the year. While we do get some dud/predictable Rumbles, every once in a while we get an excellent one that remains the single memory of the event itself. The 1992 Rumble is still the best one; due to Flair, the work rate and the commentary work by Heenan and Monsoon. This Rumble gives that one a run for it's money though.
The card for the Rumble PPV has traditionally been pretty weak, mostly due to the immense time the Rumble itself takes. This one was no exception with matches being duds, disappointments or booked with the "let's wrap this up as fast as we can to make more time for the Rumble" line of thinking.
Dudley Boyz vs. Batista/Ric Flair was a 1/2* match, with little build-up and a poor finish.
The Cruiserweight match with Jamie Noble/Rey Mysterio was something you can see for free on SmackDown, it was a ** match at best.
Eddie Guerrero vs. Chavo Guerrero was the best non-Rumble match on the card, with the two providing a better-than-expected work rate with a *** performance.
Brock Lesnar vs. Hardcore Holly for the WWE Championship had zero expectations from me, I mean this is a Championship match and they couldn't get someone better to face Brock for the title. The match lived up to those low expectations and gave a *1/2 performance.
Shawn Michaels vs. Triple H was rushed, these two can work so damn well together recently with SummerSlam 2002 and the 12/29/2003 episode of RAW coming quickly to mind. The match was again shortened to make room for the Rumble, so we got a **1/2 performance from this match.
The 2004 Rumble is one of the best Rumble matches I have ever seen with countless mark-out moments and a fantastic ending by the booking crew. Hearing Undertaker's 'Gong' during the match was an instant mark-out moment for me while seeing Benoit win it all is what I paid to see. This match gets a ***** from me, in terms of it being a Rumble.
So, what does the Royal Rumble 2004 get overall? I think a 7.0/10 is in order as the card was weak but the Rumble was classic and since that has always been the focal point of the show, I think that tips the scales in favour of the show.