Payback 2013

Payback 2013 Re-Review


It's been a wee while since I've posted anything, mainly because I've been really ill for the past week and I'm still feeling like shit today. However, the show must go on so here is last June's PPV: Payback.



I think this should be called the little pay per view that could since it had very little build-up and at the time I was only really interested in the Punk/Jericho match. It looked as if it was going to flop, but somehow it managed to overcome its obstacles and became one of the best shows of 2013. If it wasn't for Summerslam this could have probably been the show of the year.


But it has been a while since I've watched it, so is it still as good as I remember? Let's find out.




Curtis Axel vs The Miz vs Wade Barrett
The IC Title is on the line. Half the crowd seemed to be booing the Miz as he came out, and yet he's still a face today. Fandango was originally meant to be in this match but he was injured so Axel took his place. I was happy with Axel winning at the time since it was Father's Day which made it very appropriate, but he ended up being a very forgettable champion. He did look impressive here, using the moves his dad used to use. This match was a ton of fun and featured some great nearfalls and false finishes towards the finish. A great way to open the show. ***1/2



AJ Lee vs Kaitlyn
The Divas Title is on the line. The start of an almost year long Title reign for AJ. It's been a year now and I'm still waiting on another divas match to better this one. The storyline was pretty dumb with Kaitlyn thinking she had a secret admirer and it ended up being AJ just making fun of her. However, they managed to work through that and gave us a match that almost no one expected: a technically good divas match. The best divas match of 2013 and the best since Unforgiven 2006, as AJ was awesome in her crazy role. ***



We get a vignette for the arrival of the Wyatt Family. I don't think anyone expected them to be as successful as they became. Rowan and Harper speak during it which is really weird to see since they usually barely talk at all.



Kane vs Dean Ambrose
The US Title is on the line. The first of two matches featuring members of the Shield tonight. This was just after the Shield's first defeat on Smackdown so they had lost a bit of momentum. I thought I might have liked this better the second time but it was still a pretty dull match. Kane tried to keep up with the younger Ambrose, but the pace still felt very slow. Ambrose going for old school was a cool moment though. Not a very good match here. *1/2




Dolph Ziggler vs Alberto Del Rio
The World Heavyweight Title is on the line. It's a shame that Del Rio couldn't really keep his heel heat after this night because he became the most hated man in the WWE after this match. I think we were all expecting a good technical match at the time, but we got so much more than that. We received the best double turn since Wrestlemania 13 and some epic storytelling. Ziggler came out looking like a guy who wouldn't go down without a fight and Del Rio looked like a beast who would do anything possible to win the Title, even if it meant injuring a man. This was something different and it was awesome. The work to Ziggler's head was sick and made him very sympathetic. A fantastic match. ****1/4



CM Punk vs Chris Jericho
Punk is making his return here and it's his first match since losing to the Undertaker at Wrestlemania. I'm surprised this wasn't the main event, and in hindsight it probably should have been. This show is in Chicago and Punk got the typical huge reaction from his hometown crowd. It sucks that this might be their last match together, but at least they went out on a high note. A fantastic match that might have been their best yet which is saying a hell of a lot. Counter after counter, nearfall after nearfall this was just incredible and easily the match of the night and one of the best matches of the entire year. I'm gonna increase the rating this time. Amazing stuff. ****3/4



Randy Orton & Daniel Bryan vs The Shield
The Tag Team Titles are on the line. Good luck following that classic guys. This would normally be a horrible spot for any wrestler to be in, but the fans were still quite rowdy and didn't seem burned out at all. It's probably because of Bryan and he did get the loudest cheers from the audience. This was a fun tag match that sowed the seeds of the Bryan/Orton feud that would go on for most of 2013. Bryan was awesome here as he usually is, and the Shield help up their end too. Short but sweet. ***1/4



John Cena vs Ryback : 3 Stages of Hell
The WWE Championship is on the line. The first stage is a lumberjack match, the second is a tables match, and the final stage is an ambulance match. Their match at Extreme Rules was a great one, but I don't think anyone was really excited for a rematch, especially when it was first announced as just an ambulance match. Thankfully they changed it to a match that sounded a bit more interesting. Ryback looked impressive after the first fall as he pinned Cena clean in the middle of the ring. Cena wins the second fall with an AA through a table. Cena wins the third fall with an AA through the ambulance. Overall this was fun and a lot better than expected. A good way to end the show. ***1/2



9/10. Holy balls this was an awesome show. The Punk/Jericho and Del Rio/Ziggler matches alone are enough for a recommendation, but this also had a great opener, a great main event, a good divas match, and a fun tag team match. Only the US Title match brings it down, but aside from that you want all of this. A highly recommended show.