PPV Evaluation - WWE Elimination Chamber PPV 2/23
By Nathan Kyght, PWTorch PPV specialist

BEST MATCH – THE SHIELD VS. THE WYATT FAMILY

Heading into this year's Elimination Chamber show, this was clearly the match with the highest amount of curiosity: would these six new faces be able to pull off a main event-caliber match on a big stage? The answer, clearly, is that the future of the WWE is in some good hands at the moment. In front of a rabid Minnesota crowd that started a "This is awesome" chant before any of the competitors even locked up, these six men put on an early Match of the Year candidate.

Also, Roman Reigns continued his slow burn babyface turn with a dominant mid-match performance, and then got pinned by Bray Wyatt for the finish. Perfect. Reigns had some more issues with his teammates (where did Dean Ambrose go?), and Bray Wyatt pinned the guy who many think will be the next WWE headliner to keep him strong for his presumed WrestleMania match with John Cena. This was great stuff, and definitely worth seeking out.

WORST MATCH – A.J. LEE VS. CAMERON

I get that this match was put on the show to provide a buffer between the virtually impossible to follow six-man tag and Batista's match with Alberto Del Rio, but wow was this ever dreadful. Botched spots, no flow, and a crowd that was impatient for it to be over. Not a good showing.

BIGGEST SURPRISE – NEW AGE OUTLAWS RETAIN

Elimination Chamber was mostly a placeholder show, continuing toward the previously hinted at WrestleMania matches, but I was certain the Tag Titles would switch here. The New Age Outlaws's return has been fun, but I can't imagine it has legs in the long run. Still, perhaps this is a set up for the Usos to win at WrestleMania and have their 'moment,' so let's wait and see.

BIGGEST LETDOWN – BATISTA VS. RANDY ORTON?

After Batista's underwhelming match with Alberto Del Rio and Randy Orton retaining the WWE Title, the announcers seemed to go into overdrive talking about how Daniel Bryan had yet again been screwed out of victory, complete with close-ups of members of the audience in "shock." To me, this seemed to virtually guarantee that Bryan would be in the title match at Mania, but instead the direction stayed the course on Raw, with Bryan vs. Triple H seemingly a lock. Even more baffling was Batista's apparent heel turn on Smackdown. Perhaps the idea will be for Bryan to beat Hunter to gain entry into the main event, but if not, I can't imagine the crowd in New Orleans being into a heel Batista vs. heel Orton main event on the biggest show of the year. We will see.

BEST MOVE – SETH ROLLINS

In a match full of highlights, Luke Harper gave Seth Rollins a German suplex, and Rollins landed on his feet and then delivered a tope. A terrific spot in a match full of them.

BEST MATCH FINISH – SIX-MAN TAG

Bray Wyatt needs to continue to be featured as a main event star for the crowd to take him seriously against John Cena at WrestleMania, and his clean (ish) win over Roman Reigns was the best move.

OTHER THOUGHTS

- I thought Big E. and Jack Swagger had a very good match to open the show. WWE seemingly cannot decide whether to spotlight the Intercontinental Title, but setting up matches like this is definitely moving in the right direction. I think unifying the IC and U.S. titles would be another great step at this point, but for now they at least put a spotlight on the division.

- Titus O' Neil and Darren Young had an play match, but it died in front of the live crowd. The fans haven't really been given much of a reason to care about the feud, and they greeted it with indifference.

- The Bad News Barrett segments were pointless. The gimmick is horrendous (which is a shame, as Wade Barrett is very good on the mic and in-ring), and filling up show time on a pay-per-view with this just felt like killing time.

- The main event Chamber match was very, very good. I thought Cesaro came out looking very strong in particular, and the final showdown between Orton and Bryan was executed perfectly. I thought this was one of the better Chamber matches I've seen.

WHAT IT'LL BE REMEMBERED FOR

The six-man tag was superb, and I highly recommend checking it out. Aside from that? This was mostly just a show that advanced things a little, but generally kept a steady build toward WrestleMania matches that have been hinted at since the beginning of the year. Not a bad show by any means, and a few notches above the Rumble.

INITIAL 2014 PPV EVALUATION RANKINGS

1 - WWE ELIMINATION CHAMBER (2014-02-23)
2 - WWE ROYAL RUMBLE (2014-01-26)

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