10 Quietly Brilliant WWE PPVs

1. WWE Hell In A Cell 2015

CM Punk Jeff Hardy
WWE.com

The Hell In A Cell Pay Per View, introduced in 2009, is often held up as an indictment of the latter day creative process.

Instead of allowing feuds to play out organically, reaching a logical peak, the stipulation - once the ultimate and literal blood feud battleground - is often imposed before the requisite intensity justifies it. The event doesn't just ruin rivalries with a contrived bent - the fact that the Pay Per View exists alone often means the Cell cannot be used elsewhere, less the lustre of it is ruined through overexposure (try and work that logic out).

The aesthetic of the event itself has been compromised in recent years by the middle pink rope, put in place in support of Breast Cancer Awareness month - it is a conspicuous reminder, a potent visual metaphor, that the PG mandate has diluted what was once a bloody stipulation.

Lost among this universal and much-warranted criticism is that some of the events have been damn good (try and work that logic out). The 2015 edition remains the best; a night on which even Roman Reigns lived up to his imagined billing as a top babyface, his uplifting war with Bray Wyatt was bettered by the Brock Lesnar and the Undertaker main event - a match which so flattered the Undertaker in defeat that Lesnar had to destroy everything in his path, causing almost unprecedented destruction, just to put him away.

Contributor
Contributor

Michael Sidgwick is an editor, writer and podcaster for WhatCulture Wrestling. With over seven years of experience in wrestling analysis, Michael was published in the influential institution that was Power Slam magazine, and specialises in providing insights into All Elite Wrestling - so much so that he wrote a book about the subject. You can order Becoming All Elite: The Rise Of AEW on Amazon. Possessing a deep knowledge also of WWE, WCW, ECW and New Japan Pro Wrestling, Michael’s work has been publicly praised by former AEW World Champions Kenny Omega and MJF, and current Undisputed WWE Champion Cody Rhodes. When he isn’t putting your finger on why things are the way they are in the endlessly fascinating world of professional wrestling, Michael wraps his own around a hand grinder to explore the world of specialty coffee. Follow Michael on X (formerly known as Twitter) @MSidgwick for more!