One of this writer's favorite matches of the Attitude Era was the main event of Armageddon 1999, featuring Vince McMahon fighting for the pride of his family against Triple H, who had shockingly married an unconscious Stephanie McMahon on a memorable episode of Raw. A McMahon win would annul the marriage while a Triple H victory would guarantee him a shot at the WWE Championship. The emotion was raw, the drama high and the presence of Stephanie at ringside ensured some sort of screwy, yet incredibly memorable moment. Unfortunately, the match has aged horribly. The story, which captivated this writer and millions of others, is still grade-A stuff but the action encapsulating it is so slow, so plodding that it is incredibly difficult to watch today. The contest is 30 minutes long, much too lengthy for one featuring an untrained brawler like McMahon. Even the fighting to the outside, then back in and the use of the plunder around the set could not help energize it whatsoever. By the time Stephanie slides into the ring and "inadvertently" distracts her father long enough for Triple H to blast him with a sledgehammer and pick up the win, then embrace the Billion Dollar Princess in a moment absolutely essential to the next decade of WWE programming, fans were happy to put the contest behind them and move on to the McMahon-Helmsley Era story that would be responsible for some of the best television in company history.
Erik Beaston is a freelance pro wrestling writer who likes long walks in the park, dandelions and has not quite figured out that this introduction is not for Match.com. He resides in Parts Unknown, where he hosts weekly cookouts with Kane, The Ultimate Warrior, Papa Shango and The Boogeyman. Be jealous.
