WWE NXT 08/23/12: CM Punk & Seth Rollins vs. Antonio Cesaro & Kassius Ohno
It's cool seeing Punk tag with Rollins, and it's equally or maybe even more so cool to see KOW tagging in a WWE ring, and both of those elements have always been the selling points of this match. I remember people being so hyped about it (myself included) in 2012 when it happened, and then being disappointed when it was revealed to be a dark match that wouldn't see the light of day. It's really cool that now it's available for viewing, and while it's not the über classic match that I thought it could be back in 2012, it's still a good little match. Punk & Rollins get a nice little shine to start things off, then there's a very good Rollins FIP segment w/ the Kings, especially Ohno, doing some good work over him, and then the thing is capped off by a good CM Punk hot tag & a solid finishing stretch. Very basic, yet good, tag stuff. ***
WWE Night of Champions 2012: CM Punk vs. John Cena
By the end, this comes off as a total heavyweight main event clash w/ a lot of bombs + nearfalls & both guys having to dig down deep to their arsenals since their usual signature moves weren't doing the deal. It's pretty great, and I also like how we got to that point; from the get go, they go with the narrative of Punk being one step ahead of Cena at every turn. They tell that story wonderfully throughout, as it's usually only when Cena resorts to his raw power that he gets any kind of a flurry going, but it's mostly Punk having a counter to everything he did & being that one step ahead. Then, as implied, the match eventually becomes more even w/ lots of bombs and solid nearfalls. I really liked the fact that both of the guys had to start coming up with different big moves (Punk with the Moonsault, Cena with that top rope German..) since the GTS, AA etc weren't getting them the win. Now the match is maybe not as great as I remembered, but it's still great. Tells a great story from start to finish, and as usual with Cena & Punk, the action is very compelling. As far as their PPV matches go, I'd put this ahead of the SummerSlam '11 one. ****1/4
WWE RAW 01/07/13: CM Punk vs. Ryback
This was solid fun. Punk took some big bumps and the whole dynamic of him being the weasel heel against the terminator like act that was Ryback, was pretty fun. Nothing overly memorable, but a good TV-match for sure. ***
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