10 Quietly Brilliant WWE PPVs

9. WWE One Night Stand 2008

CM Punk Jeff Hardy
WWE.com

Much like the gimmick Pay Per Views that would pollute the landscape two years later, the One Night Stand events not held in the Hammerstein Ballroom were derided for overkill. And while it's true that something like John Cena and JBL's First Blood Match would have been more effective, had it not been sandwiched between a 5-Way Singapore Cane match and an I Quit match, it was still entertaining enough.

Those matches were entertaining in their own right, too. Shawn Michaels' Stretcher battle with Batista was a shade below his usual standard - but that standard was so high that it hardly mattered.

The semi-final was sent home, abruptly, by Randy Orton's injury - but his "F*ck! I just broke my collarbone!" line at least provided some unintentional comedy.

The best wrestling events start well (but not too well, lest they set an unachievable precedent) and improve from there, rising to a crescendo at the finish. That finish, Undertaker and Edge's TLC war, hit a critical bum note - the tables erected by the side of the ring were stacked so obviously that it nearly took the air out of the eventual match-ending spot - but the delivery just about made up for the telegraph.

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!