WWE No Way Out 2004

Back in summer I realized that my wrestling DVD collection has been growing considerably over the past couple of years (more like exploding out of control), and I still have a whole pile of PPVs and such that I bought for cheap years ago and have never watched. I’m determined to finally open up these PPVs and work my way through them. A bunch of these DVDs I bought about four years ago, so it’s been quite a while!

I decided to start with the year 2004 because I remember the wrestling being pretty damn good in the WWE at that time. The first event I cracked open was No Way Out 2004, a Smackdown PPV (remember that concept?) from Feb. leading up to Wrestlemania 20. Even for these secondary events, the WWE does a great job of giving you a lot of extras and even the bonus Heat match from before the card.

This card turned out to be really good! Smackdown was a great show in the later months of 2003, heading into 2004, with a strong emphasis on wrestling and competitive matches. The WWE was on a real upswing during this time period and were working hard on pushing new stars and having exciting storylines. They pushed great workers like Eddie and Chavo Guerrero, Brock Lesnar, Kurt Angle, etc. All of whom dominated this card. This card really gave me a sense of how good the WWE used to be, as every wrestler had an image, a place, and a purpose. The matches on this PPV all meant something and had an interesting backstory. I never gave the WWE enough credit at the time. It’s only during these shitty past two years that I’ve really noticed what a great product they were producing even just a few years ago.

In the opening match Rikishi and Scotty 2 Hotty beat the Bashams and Shaniqua. Shaniqua was scary looking! What a monster! It’s unfortunate that the WWE cut the rug out from under a lot of the younger stars from the mid 2000s, like the Bashams, who worked hard and put on an entertaining match. I guess backstage politics and bad creative decisions worked against a lot of these guys who could have become bigger stars had they stuck around for a few years. Fun, fast-paced tag match with some good action.

I loved the Jamie Noble vs Nidia blindfold match. Even though it was goofy, Noble was a hilarious over the top villain and his antics made for hilarious comedy. I forgot how huge Nidia’s boobs were and enjoyed watching her bounce around the ring. A fun filled comedy match, which Noble won, something that wouldn’t happen anymore.

There were a couple mid-card matches that were good, but nothing special. The World’s Greatest Tag Team beat the APA, and Hardcore Holly beat Rhyno. Still, both of these matches had a backstory, and the guys worked hard.

The big angle on this show was Goldberg showing up to confront Brock Lesnar. This storyline was pretty rushed, but I guess that was due to both guys leaving. The angle played out great on the PPV, and the fans went apeshit for Goldberg. I laughed so hard at Brock Lesnar calling Goldberg a “bitch”!

Chavo Guerrero was on fire during this time period, and it was hilarious that he had Chavo Sr. with him at ringside. He beat Rey Mysterio for the cruiserweight title in a great battle. I forgot just how good the wrestling used to be on Smackdown.

John Cena was just coming into his own as a thug rappin’ babyface and was a lot more enjoyable in this role. His triple threat match against Kurt Angle and the Big Show was pretty boring, but at least Angle won.

The main event between Lesnar and Eddie was amazing. It was a hard-fought 30min battle that seesawed. The workrate was awesome, and the crowd was going nuts for Eddie! Even though Goldberg interfered, Eddie’s victory meant so much, a real surprise at the time. It was an excellent main event, to finish off an all around great card.

Up next – Judgment Day 2004.