User blog:Steven Star/Top 15 Hell in a Cell Matches

Well, Hell in a Cell is coming in October 25th, one being Brock Lesnar and Undertaker go out it again and another being Regins and Wyatt ending their feuds. This demonic cell has a long history with WWE and it’s time to look at my 15 favorite. Remember that this is just my opinion, nothing personal here, thou I may bitter with a few. So, here’s my list of the 15 best Hell in a Cell matches I personal like.

15. Dean Ambrose vs. Seth Rollins (Hell in a Cell 2014)
Yes. The Craziest and Most Recent Hell in a Cell match is this low. Don’t get me wrong, this match is one of the great in this PPV. The match started on top of the cage, featured a fall from the side of the cage, tables, chairs, cinderblocks. The only thing missing was the bingo hall backdrop. :D Both did a good job in this match and Dean Ambrose is shown to be the next Mick Foley. It’s no wonder why WWE almost did Mick Foley vs. Dean Ambrose at Summerslam 2012. This match shown that it’s deserve the main evert more than that boarding Cena/Orton match…almost…

This Hell in a Cell had a lot of promise, but the writers ruined what could have been one of the better main events in the past few years. Not only did the match end with a run in, but having it be Bray Wyatt made no logical sense, with no buildup of any heat between Wyatt and his target, Ambrose, who was about to finish off Rollins when the lights dimmed, the sound system blared the sound of someone gibbering, perhaps in Latin, perhaps just in gibberish, and Wyatt appeared. It’s obvious that what was intended was the setup to a big feud between Wyatt and Ambrose, but it’s ended up failing since Dean Ambrose not only lose a bunch of time with Seth Rollins, but now with Bray Wyatt at Survivor Series and TLC. Speaking of which, how it’s fair that Dean Ambrose beat John Cena to gain the chance to face Seth Rollins, and yet, the Ambrose and Rollins match have nothing on the line and the Cena and Orton match is for the #1 Contender for Brock Lesnar’s Championship. Mixed Message! :D

14. Batistia vs. Undertaker (World Heavyweight Champioship Survivor Series 2007)
Taker and Batista had a fantastic series of matches in 2007. Batista stepped up his game that year and elevated his position in wrestling history through his title matches with the Deadman, even if he spend half of 2007 funding with The Great Khail. Their Hell in a Cell was the final one-on-one PPV encounter of their saga. The match itself is amazing and have a lot of great bump especially from The Undertaker. But I guess why it’s low on the list is, again with #15, rather than definitively end their storyline, the match was used to begin with the return of Edge attacking Undertaker and costing him the World Heavyweight Championship (and at Armageddon, he won the title against Undertaker and Batistia with the help of his "Edge-head", Curtis Hawkin and Zack Ryder). Disappointing as that may have been given the desire to see Batista and Taker take each other to the limit one more time, the match was still quite good.

13. Triple H vs. Mick Foley (WWE Championship at No Way Out)
Foley vs. Trips was a great match. Had this match maintained the stipulation that Foley’s career ended, then this would be a totally different match. The finish, once the last gasps of life in a legendary career, now seems anti-climactic. Watched today, the bout appears structured only to get in Foley’s crazy bumps and lacks the story of the Royal Rumble Street Fight from a few weeks prior. Don’t be me wrong, while this is one Foley’s best Hell in a Cell, especially with what he gain to the table, the fact that the ending and how Mick Foley would later be apart of the Fatal-Four-Way match for the WM2000s, along with The Rock and Big Show, felt like…pointless. :l Still the best, but still with their Royal Rumble one.

12. John Cena vs. Randy Orton (WWE Championship Hell in a Cell 2009)
Universe Era, also known as The PG Era, is ushered in a new era for the Cell. It became its own PPV, but the style also changed dramatically, with no more blood meant the loss of an important intangible in putting over the finality of a rivalry once reserved for matches. The star since that change has been Randy Orton, who has excelled despite the handcuffs. He had a very good match with John Cena at the inaugural Hell in a Cell PPV, showing off some of the best character work that he had ever done. Much of the credit goes to Orton of his psychology and selling. John Cena more than held up his end of the bargain, though. He has proven to be one of modern wrestling history’s top big match performers and his Hell in a Cell with Orton was an adequate example. If only WWE didn’t milk Orton and Cena at 2013 and 2014. Let hope they’re no Cena and Orton in 2016.

11. CM Punk vs. John Cena vs. Alberto Del Rio (WWE Championship at Hell in a Cell 2011)
Alberto Del Rio was one of the best mechanics WWE has had in the last decade. He was the star of the 2011 Hell in a Cell main-event and really stepped up his game in the cell environment and dominated for long stretches. His credibility needed the boost back then and it got it thanks to his performance, even if I think he wasn’t won the Royal Rumble. CM Punk also made his case for MVP of the match, too, for bumping like he did and making it feel like more than just a regular match surrounded by a roofed fence. But that also is the major downside with Punk. You think after losing to Triple H, he finally win, but no. Speaking of the ending, it’s was thrilling. You always think Cena is going to overcome the odds and retain his WWE Championship. But no, after getting rid of Ricardo Rodriguez, Dei Rio locked Cena outside the cell and win by pinning Punk after hitting him with a pipe. And let not forget about the aftermath, where the fired Miz and R-Truth attack the three superstars and other inside the ring and how Triple H and the locker room trying to stop Mix and Truth, even bringing the polices in there.

10. Undertaker vs. Randy Orton (Armageddon 2005)
Classic matches could be reserved for a match between Randy Orton and Undertaker in 2005. They had a nice series of matches that year, particularly the bouts at WrestleMania 21 and Summerslam, both being amazing matches, as well as Undertaker facing Randy and his father in No Mercy in a Casket Match. But the Hell in a Cell at Armageddon gave them a chance in the blow off match to their lengthy rivalry. The match itself featured several swings in momentum over the course of 30-minutes, mostly thank to the Undertaker himself. And because of this match, Orton finally get his career back on track after his disastrous face turn in the fall of 2004. (Thank Triple H. -3-)

9. Undertaker vs. Edge (Summerslam 2008)
Edge vs. Taker was the perfect blend between the Hell in a Cell matches born of the Attitude Era’s body-punishing style, the Brand Split Era’s faster pace-counter-near fall-heavy style, and the PG Era’s emphasis on deeply layered storytelling. It showed how to go outside of the Cell without falling off the top and concentrated on circling back to the key points of their lengthy storyline. Nothing much to say here. Guess Undertaker finally destroyed Edge after this long feud. Then again, Edge was screwed himself after cheated on Vickie Guerrero.

8. Triple H vs. Chris Jericho (Judgement Day 2002)
When Hell in a Cell first came into existence, it was almost Undertaker’s yard, with the match who are coming soon on the list. But by 2002, Triple H had firmly laid claim to it being his gimmick. To wrap up his feud with Chris Jericho, Trips dusted off the Cell for the first time after 2000, the longest period ever between Cell matches. Triple H and Jericho did their best to add a wrinkle to the match that had not been used before, spending the climactic portion of their match at the top of the Cell without anyone falling off. This match is so brutal, it’s ended with Triple H pedigree Jericho on top of the cell and pinning him. The carnage, unfortunately, extended to the referees, Tim White, suffered a career-ending injury. I would mention his roles in Armageddon 2005, but…It’s too sad. :(

7. Shawn Michaels vs. Triple H (Bad Blood 2004)
The Heartbreak Kid vs. The Game inside Hell in a Cell in the longest match in the storied gimmick’s 17 years. (As it’s OVER 40 MINUTE) Upon first viewing, the marathon was praised by some for its attention to rivalry-specific detail, its storytelling, and psychology, with HBK playing up his past back problems was particularly noteworthy with cause he to back out of action at 1998, while many a comment was made about its rather slow pace. However, as time wore on, second and third viewings did not hold up to the standard of the first, many would come to say, but it became more difficult to sit through, as glaring weaknesses such as the fact that the crowd was completely dead for much of it began to stick out like a sore thumb. This is just too slow and almost negated the psychology and the selling simply because it was not entertaining enough to hold your attention when re-watching it. Not even the table spot is worth it.

6. Batisia vs. Triple H (Vengeance 2005 with the World Heavyweight Championship)
The true ended to Triple H “reigns of terror”. Over the suffering of those superstars like RVD, Kane, Scott Steiner, Booker T, Goldberg and especially Randy Orton. Batista not only won Triple H’s World Title at WM21 and retain it at Backlash. But this is the final battle. As time passes, the story of a match has to be the part that you best remember or it otherwise becomes dated. Batista showed us his full potential, providing one of his best outings. Vengeance ’05 was the benchmark for brand-only PPVs during the Raw vs. SD era. Unfortunately, the strong number for 2005 ranked just 7th out of 8 amongst Hell in a Cell matches in the latter third of this discussion. At least Smackdown got Batista after this during the draft.

5. Brock Lesnar vs. Undertaker (WWE Championship at No Mercy 2002)
Wanted a good exception on how Smackdown was better than Raw in the Brand Spit. In No Mercy 2002, Raw’s main evert was Triple H and Kane with both the World Heavyweight and IC title…which mostly forces on...this…thing and how Hunter buried both Kane and his title. But Smackdown counties the amazing feuds Lesnar and Undertaker for the WWE Championship. Taker vs. Brock was a brutal battle, but the violence was not about what one man was willing to do to their own body, a novelty that arguably wears off with repeated viewings. Rather, it was about one man beating the other to a pulp. Both wore the proverbial crimson mask like no other pair in Cell history, so it holds the distinction as the “bloodiest” Cell match. While not the best match of Smackdown in this PPV, that would be Benoit and Angle and Mysterio and Edge for the new WWE Tag Team Championship, it’s best the reason why Smackdown was better than Raw. Let hope their rematch at this Hell in a Cell match

4. Undertaker vs. Triple H (Wrestlemania 28)
The fact that the men enclosed within the Cell were its two most successful combatants. Undertaker and Triple H made the gimmick their own, and added a sense of history to it. HBK offered the premier example of how to be the special guest referee, as well. WrestleMania added quite a bit to it, too, going beyond just quantifiable economics. The crowd in Miami was going nuts for the entire match. Taker vs. Trips was a thrill ride that flawlessly pressed all of the right emotional buttons. It featured plenty of false finishes, had arguably the most dramatic climax, and featured two of the best performances by two of the greatest of all-time. They even added a little bit of blood in an era where you almost never see anyone get juiced. It was an unbelievable spectacle for reasons that should stand the test of time. This is why this match was named “The End of a Era”.

3. Six-Man Hell in a Cell (Kurt Angle vs. Stone Cold Steve Austin vs. The Rock vs. Triple H vs. Undertaker vs. Rikishi for the WWE Champion at Armageddon 2000)
Commissioner Mick Foley was a fucking nutwork. Over the madness with The Rock and Rikishi, Triple H and Stone Cold, and Undertaker and Kurt Angle, he decide at Armageddon, all six men will face each other in the cell. With a plenty of time to play out and tell a thorough tale, this is also pure performance. It featured huge names, including five of the greatest 20 WrestleMania Era stars. There were some intangibles unique to all its peers (Rikishi’s fall, Austin raking Triple H’s face around the entire Cell structure, the sheer amount of blood spilt, the huge fight around the ring). Trust me, you shall watch it. I even did you a highlight if you don’t have the WWE Network:

2. Undertaker vs. Shawn Michaels (In Your House: Badd Blood)
The first ever Hell in a Cell ever. The historic distinction of being the very first of its kind, and the incredible quality that had critics piling on the elusive 5-star accolades. HBK vs. Taker maintains its spot when watched back-to-back-to-back with the other top candidates. HBK was marvellous, but Taker did better in the bouts with Lesnar and Triple H. It still shines in the thoroughness of the story told. Of all the candidates from the early days of the gimmick, the original gives by far the best overall performance. What ultimate sell it is the debut of Undertaker’s younger brother, the demon Kane. The debut of Kane, after being Isaac Yankem DDS and Fake Diesel. Kane not only rip the cell door open, but also Tombstone his brother, Undertaker. What made Kane run-in better than Edge and Bray Wyatt is not only is this Kane debut, but this wasn’t the final battle with Michaels and Undertaker in this feud, building this feud up so built. (Even if the final feuds ended up breaking Michaels’s back.). Still, one of the best…well, second. :3

1. Undertaker vs. Madkind (King of the Ring 1998)
This match is a good example of why we need to draw the line in the sand between “greatest” and “best.” We are historically comparing greatness, which requires a certain firmness of stance. Minutes into the match, the most awe-inspiring visual in wrestling history takes place when Foley gets thrown off the Cell. From then on, Foley is only half there. It is amazing to watch him gut his way through the match, particularly after the inadvertent fall through the top of the Cell just a few short minutes later (how did he finish that match, for crying out loud?). So, let us be reasonable and call a spade a spade. This match simply was two unbelievable stunts and a fall on some thumb tacks. Not quite the incredible candidate for best match of all-time as it once was, but still a story that you could watch a few times a year without getting bored.

So that’s my list, I’m be rested now. Probably do more of these Top 10. Just don’t expect their any negative ones, I’m not gonna rape my keyboard just for HATS!

Honorable Mention:
 * Daniel Bryan vs. Randy Orton (Vacant WWE Championship at Hell in a Cell 2012)
 * D-Generation-X (Triple H and Shawn Michaels) vs. The McMahons (Vince and Shane McMahon) and Big Show (Unforgiven 2006)
 * Mark Henry vs. Randy Orton (World Heavyweight Championship at Hell in a Cell 2011)
 * Randy Orton vs. Sheamous (WWE Championship at Hell in a Cell 2010)
 * D-Generation X (Triple H and Shawn Michaels) vs Legacy (Cody Rhodes and Ted DiBiase) (Hell in a Cell 2009)
 * Undertaker vs Kane (World Heavyweight Championship at Hell in a Cell 2010)