7 Match Star Ratings For WWE Hell In A Cell 2021

Drew McIntyre worked as hard as creative do not on a drab night of soul-destroying bare minimums.

Cesaro Seth Rollins
WWE

Jesus Christ, this build.

Charlotte Flair Vs. Rhea Ripley isn't dripping with goo, so it won't run away with Worst Feud of the Year honours, but it f*cking should. Remember babyfaces? People...you're meant to like?

There are no babyfaces here. This is a feud between an unlikeable heel d*ckhead who says ner-ner-ner-ner-ner when her fellow unlikeable heel d*ckhead does something stupid, which is every week, like fail to determine when the referee is nearing the 10 count. Charlotte Flair in WWE canon is the third most decorated and therefore the third best wrestler they've ever had, and she does not understand the rules. This company is beyond f*cked, and since both characters are just awful, how is a youngster meant to get into this?

Drew McIntyre and Bobby Lashley is match that only warranted the titular stip because it's the third go around on pay-per-view. There's no real hatred. Drew got screwed in WWE's passé way WWE way after Lashley twice beat him clean in the middle on a Sunday. It's pointless trope sh*te for the sake of it. Bless them. They just don't know any different.

Bayley laughs at Bianca Belair in a way that makes you want to die. That's it. That's the storyline.

Alexa Bliss makes sure to say "little" about five times in every promo, because they know their audience. This is a rather disturbing step forward, but a step forward nonetheless.

Dire build. Sh*te.

What was the show like...?

7. KICKOFF: Natalya Vs. Mandy Rose

Cesaro Seth Rollins
WWE.com

In the Hell In A Cell Kickoff match, of the two women's tag teams left, a representative of the champions won. Good.

Good storytelling that wasn't as damaging as it was unwanted as it was unnecessary.

With good reason, very few reasonable critics have anything good to say about the storytelling in a WWE PPV Kickoff match, but the well enough worked mat exchange positioned Mandy Rose as an equal to Natalya. She matched Natalya's hold escape with a not inconsiderable degree of athleticism. In the storyline, she was ridiculed as a talentless bimbo because 97% of the creative writing staff are men. In the match, she wrestled halfway effectively!

The bar is low.

The bar is a f*cking curb.

The wrestling really wasn't bad at all in a match premised on a mat exchange proving ground, but, again, you are pointed towards the curve. In the RAW women's division, botches are considered impressive enough to make WWE's official Twitter page if one of them does a backflip.

Of course this was going to look like a Nobuhiko Takada match by comparison.

Star Rating: ★★½

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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 surefire Undisputed WWE Universal 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!