So, following the head crushing success of the Lord of the Rings trilogy and coming off the back of part 1 of the hobbit film, I mean, two-part film, I mean... trilogy, here we are with the Desolation of Smaug and... why are you looking at me like that?
Alright, so I haven't posted a blog in almost 9 months, I never got around to declaring the winners of the BWAP awards, and I'm sure all those who were nominated have just been wetting themselves desperate to know who took home the platinum galaxies orbiting my head in real time that I have decided the BWAP awards trophies look like, I've just been really... really lazy, and kind of busy, but if I'm being mostly honest, it's mostly lazy. But fret no longer internet, the prodigal son has come home, so let's do something nice and familiar before we dive, head first into the vat of awesomeness that is the future projects that I have in store right here on Ph.D.
So, The Desolation of Smaug. I enjoyed the Lord of the Rings films immensely, I think they rank among some of the highest achievements in the history of cinema, certainly in terms of raw scale and size, in addition to being very well put together, immaculately cast, visually stunning and boasting perhaps the greatest music in the history of film. They also made quite hilarious amounts of money, so I suppose it was really only a matter of time before New Line cast there all seeing eye (see what I did there [and indeed, there?]?) on Tolkiens other, though not quite as famous opus, The Hobbit. After part 1 avoided any real trip ups last year, despite not being all that memorable (as evidence by the fact that I can't remember much about it), part 2, The Desolation of Benedict Cumberbatch, was released today. So, was it any good? Yes. Yes it was. Thanks for joining me here on Ph.D and I will see you guys next time...
Alright, alright, a little more information might be necessary. The Hobbit: The Unblocking of Clog is most definitely worth a watch, it's well acted throughout, it's well paced, it's exciting... but it missteps in the most curious of places. Strangely enough, TH:TDoS suffers from... poor visuals. Now, to qualify that statement a little, I don't really mean poor of course. What I mean is relatively poor, it's not in the same league as Man of Steel for example in terms of pure visuals, and even the Lord of the Rings films, now more than 10 years old, have it beaten visually (in addition to all the other ways). The Orcs look strangely computerized, and there's a strange sense that it's missing a certain... Hollywood sheen. Now, to be totally fair, this may very well have been the fault of the 3D that was my only viewing option, so really the jury is still out on the visuals until I see it on DVD, but tonight at least, it was quite jarring, and it took a solid hour to really get used to it. Not that length was something The Hobbit: The Resurrection of the Blog was short on, it runs a formidable 2 hours 41 minutes, but it's to the film's credit that it never feels that long, it's well paced throughout, there was never a scene during which I felt bored, even if newcomers Tauriel and Bard are a little underdeveloped to really carry the few scenes that they're asked to.
The biggest exception to my gripe regarding the films visuals is without a doubt, the appearance of Smaug, voiced by sexiest man alive, Benedict Cumberbatch. Smaug is an incredible cinematic achievement, and more than deserves the near 5 hour build-up preceding his appearance. Cumberbatch is an inspired casting choice, blessed with a voice that can go from soothing and soft to the pants-crappingly evil growl possessed by Smaug. The final few scenes before Smaug appears are breathtakingly tense, and the dragon utterly dominates the last 30-40 minutes of the film, which can only be a good thing.
It's not without fault, but The Hobbit: Ground and Pound on the Lonely Mountain Fountain is an improvement over it's predecessor, and sets things up nicely for the third installment, The Hobbit: What Are We Going to do After the Dragon is Dead?
Overall: 74/100
13 December, 2013
17 March, 2013
The 2nd Annual BWAP Awards: The Nominees
Welcome ladies and gentlemen, boys and girls, welcome to the nominee announcement for the 2nd ever annual BWAP awards, the awards show dedicated to honouring the actual best films of the year, rather than whatever film best panders to the academy's tastes (looking at you, King's Speech and Artist). A few announcements first however...
1. To my deep regret, this year there will be no "Best Actress" category. I apologise profusely for this, but the fact is that I just didn't see that many films this year featuring women in a leading role. I know I'm gonna have feminists knocking my door down, but it is what it is, again, I apologise.
Alright so it was just the once announcement, so let's not waste anymore time, let's get right down to it, here are the nominations for the 2013 BWAP awards:
Best Supporting Actress
1. To my deep regret, this year there will be no "Best Actress" category. I apologise profusely for this, but the fact is that I just didn't see that many films this year featuring women in a leading role. I know I'm gonna have feminists knocking my door down, but it is what it is, again, I apologise.
Alright so it was just the once announcement, so let's not waste anymore time, let's get right down to it, here are the nominations for the 2013 BWAP awards:
Best Supporting Actress
- Emily Blunt - Sara Rollins in Looper
- Anne Hathaway - Selina Kyle in The Dark Knight Rises
- Maggie Smith - Muriel Donnolly in The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel
Best Supporting Actor
- Michael Caine - Alfred in The Dark Knight Rises
- Tommy Lee Jones - Thaddeus Stevens in Lincoln
- Mark Ruffalo - The Avengers
- Alex Russel - Chronicle
- Tom Wilkinson - The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel
Best Visuals
- The Avengers
- Looper
- Dredd
Best Audio
- The Dark Knight Rises
- Looper
- Skyfall
Best Screenplay (Adapted or Original)
- Drew Goddard and Joss Whedon - The Cabin in the Woods
- Rian Johnson - Looper
- Tony Kushner - Lincoln
- Max Landis - Chronicle
- Joss Whedon - The Avengers
Best Ensemble
- The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel
- The Cabin in the Woods
- The Dark Knight Rises
- Lincoln
- Looper
Best Actor
- Daniel Day-Lewis - Abraham Lincoln in Lincoln
- Dane DeHaan - Andrew Detmer in Chronicle
- Robert Downey Jr - Tony Stark/Iron Man in The Avengers
- Joseph Gordon-Levitt - Joe Simmons
- Karl Urban - Judge Dredd in Dredd
Best Director
- Drew Goddard - The Cabin in the Woods
- Rian Johnson - Looper
- Christopher Nolan - The Dark Knight Rises
- Josh Trank - Chronicle
- Joss Whedon - The Avengers
And now, last but not least, the big one, here are the nominees for 2012's...
Best Film
- The Avengers
- Chronicle
- The Dark Knight Rises
- Lincoln
- Looper
And there we have it, the nominees. The 2013 BWAP awards will be announced on March 31st. See you then.
28 February, 2013
85th Academy Awards: My Reaction
Alright, alright, so I didn't get around to doing predictions this year, so freakin' sue me.
So, another Academy awards ceremony has come and gone, and honestly, I thought this was a huge improvement over the last two. Considering the last two Best Picture winners have been a black-and-white silent film, and a formulaic pot-boiler about a bloke with a stutter who just happened to be the king, we knew going in that the winner this year would be a huge improvement, and while Argo seems like less of an accomplishment than it's rival going in to the show, Lincoln, it is worth noting that I haven't seen Argo yet, and it certainly looks a hell of a lot better than the previous two winners.
Which is why it absolutely baffles and astounds me that Ben Affleck was on the receiving end of quite possibly the worst snub in the history of awards, yes, worse than Christopher Nolan not even being nominated for Inception. How, tell me, how can a film that was apparantly the best film of the year not have it's director even nominated for Best Director. It's almost like a book winning "Best Book" at the... "Book Awards" and the author somehow not being nominated for best author. It's utterly ridiculous.
I could also have done without Michelle Obama presenting the award for Best Picture (yes that did actually happen, for those who haven't heard, although the fact that I just typed that out does still seem a little surreal). It's the most prolific awards handed out for the medium of film, I want to see someone somehow connected to the world of film handing them out.
And I would be remiss if I didn't mention Anne Hathaway. Now don't get me wrong, I like Anne Hathaway, I wanted her to win, I felt like she should have won, and I was very happy for her when she did, but that girl just cannot give an awards speech. I thought the BAFTAs were bad, but this was worse. It just didn't seem real, at all. Don't get me wrong, I have no doubt that she was incredibly overwhelmed by the emotion and that it was certainly the crowning moment of her acting career, and she truly did feel humble and overcome, but it just didn't come accross that way at all. Sorry Anne.
But it's not all gloom and doom. Seth McFarlane did an ok to pretty good job, in my opinion, his jokes worked on a broad scale and he's naturally charismatic, although I do wonder if he has the kind of star power that an event like this needs, plus he only was one fairly mediocre film to his name. But I enjoyed his performance, I thought he hosted well, although I really think they should get someone more versed in out-and-out stand-up comedy to host next year.
I felt that most of the awards went to the right films, at least out of the films that were nominated. It was a shame that The Dark Knight Rises went home empty handed though, it was more than good enough to merit an Oscar, with Best Cinematography being it's best shot although that went to the big winner of the night, Life of Pi, which claimed four awards, including a second Best Director prize for Ang Lee. I think Lee deserved it more than Spielberg, despite Lincoln being a tremendous film, Lincoln is memorable for a different reason...
Daniel Day-Lewis is as good an actor as there has ever been. You may disagree with his methods, although why people do so continues to baffle me because the results are unparalleled, but Day-Lewis deservedly made history as the first person to ever win Best Actor three times, and he did so with one of the finest performances one is ever likely to see. Day-Lewis is utterly spellbinding as the eponymous Lincoln, in what was easily the best performance of the last year and possibly the best performance of the last decade. Day-Lewis also gave probably the nights best acceptance speech (Take notes Miss Hathaway) It was a sweet, funny, charming and very humble speech when it would have been incredibly easy to have a little more bravado, given that he had just made history, and was probably the high point of the evening...
Or at least it would have been, had it not been for Adele's breathtaking performance of what is in my opinion the best Bond theme there has ever been, "Skyfall". Ironically, given the evening was supposed to be dedicated to films, it was probably the part of the show that I was most looking forward to, and I wasn't disappointed. I've heard it said that the backing orchestra was too loud and it drowned Adele out a little bit, but I personally didn't think so. Maybe the vocals could have been a little higher in the mix, but a singer as talented as Adele could make a pub band sound like a world class musical force.
On the whole, it was an enjoyable show, it flowed nicely, the awards were given to the right nominees for the most part. Although I think Lincoln should have won Best Picture, it didn't put too much of a damper on things, and it makes me a little more optimistic going into 2013, hopefully the Academy can continue the trend.
_________________________________________________________________________________
But, awards season is not over yet, because the most prestigious awards of the year have yet to be announced, yes, that's right, it's time for the 2nd Annual BWAP awards, hosted by me, right here on Ph.D.
Here is the schedule:
The catagories and nominees for them shall be announced on the 15th of March, with the awards themselves being held on the 31st of March. Keep an eye peeled. Until then, good night, and good day.
Or at least it would have been, had it not been for Adele's breathtaking performance of what is in my opinion the best Bond theme there has ever been, "Skyfall". Ironically, given the evening was supposed to be dedicated to films, it was probably the part of the show that I was most looking forward to, and I wasn't disappointed. I've heard it said that the backing orchestra was too loud and it drowned Adele out a little bit, but I personally didn't think so. Maybe the vocals could have been a little higher in the mix, but a singer as talented as Adele could make a pub band sound like a world class musical force.
On the whole, it was an enjoyable show, it flowed nicely, the awards were given to the right nominees for the most part. Although I think Lincoln should have won Best Picture, it didn't put too much of a damper on things, and it makes me a little more optimistic going into 2013, hopefully the Academy can continue the trend.
_________________________________________________________________________________
But, awards season is not over yet, because the most prestigious awards of the year have yet to be announced, yes, that's right, it's time for the 2nd Annual BWAP awards, hosted by me, right here on Ph.D.
Here is the schedule:
The catagories and nominees for them shall be announced on the 15th of March, with the awards themselves being held on the 31st of March. Keep an eye peeled. Until then, good night, and good day.
31 January, 2013
Creating a WWEXI Football Team
A few months ago a happened across a blog on the Bleacher Report, discussing a WWE baseball team, and what superstar would play in what position. Not being from the USA, I haven't the slightest idea about baseball, but it did give me a thought. It took a while, but it did. I thought "What about a WWE football team? That would be the perfect subject of discussion for an online blog, which is lucky because I happen to run one" So, let's take a look, and create the first ever WWE Football team.
The formation of our team will be 4-3-3, and we'll begin with the goalkeeper.
GK: Kofi Kingston
This was one of the harder positions to pick, but I ended up going with Kofi. Kofi may not have the presence or size of some keepers, but he's one of the most agile guys on the roster, and his natural athleticism and leaping ability will make him hard to find a way past. His height may leave him susceptible to crosses though, which means he'll need two big center backs in front of him...
CBs: John Cena (Captain) and Antonio Cesaro
Captain wow himself, John Cena picks himself at center-back, he's got the build, he's got the presence, he's not as bad with the ball at his feet as he's sometimes made out to be and as we are unceasingly reminded, he will never give up and he'll rise above hate and all the other things. His experience is also invaluable, particularly alongside the somewhat more green Antonio Cesaro. Cesaro has size on his side as well, but he bolsters it with plenty of technical skill and composure on the ball.
RB/LB: Sin Cara and Rey Mysterio
Pace is the name of the game at full back with Rey Mysterio and Sin Cara. Mysterio may be slowing down as he gets older, but he has bags of experiance, and he can still get up and down the touchline, reliably supporting wherever he is needed. Sin Cara is almost the exact opposite. His electric pace will punish any side, and his stamina is unrelenting, but he has been prone to costly mistakes in the past.
CDM: Wade Barrett (Vice-Captain)
If you're playing in midfield against the WWEXI, watch out, because chances are, you'll be given a pretty rough time by the team's anchor, Wade Barrett. Barrett's physical strength coupled with a mean streak a mile long means that he is one of the most intimidating guys you'll ever come up against, bullying opponents off the ball all over the field, and acting as an excellent shield in front of the back four. Barrett's presence also allows the two men ahead of him to roam free and terrorise the opposition like only they can...
CAMs: CM Punk and Daniel Bryan
Look out. That's all you can really say when faced with CM Punk and Daniel Bryan. The two men are sublimely talented, and have bags of experience. The two men are by far the most technically gifted players in the team, very agile and very hard to stop, in addition to being more than competent when being asked to defend. They are the fulcrum of the WWEXI's attack, and will supply the forward line with ammunition, time and time again, in addition to chipping in with plenty of goals themselves.
RW: Dolph Ziggler
Ziggler was born to play on the wing. In addition to having the cocky attitude of a certain #7 before him (coughronaldocough) Ziggler has more than enough skills to back it up. His technical ability is second to very few, and his athleticism and work rate means that he has the pace and stamina to boss his side of the field. He'll score, he'll supply, he'll do it all.
LW: Alberto Del Rio
While Del Rio may lack the raw pace and agility of Ziggler, he makes up for it with class and experience. Incredibly sound with the ball at his feet, he has the composure and experience to punish any team's defence.
CF: Randy Orton
The Viper, Randy Orton has the experience and skill to turn any game on it's head in the blink of an eye. He's not quick, he's sudden, slithering seemingly out of nowhere to make his mark. Take your eye off the Apex predator for one second if you dare... because one second is all he'll need.
Well that's my team, there's the bones of a champions league winning side there, in my opinion. What do you think?
The formation of our team will be 4-3-3, and we'll begin with the goalkeeper.
GK: Kofi Kingston
This was one of the harder positions to pick, but I ended up going with Kofi. Kofi may not have the presence or size of some keepers, but he's one of the most agile guys on the roster, and his natural athleticism and leaping ability will make him hard to find a way past. His height may leave him susceptible to crosses though, which means he'll need two big center backs in front of him...
CBs: John Cena (Captain) and Antonio Cesaro
Captain wow himself, John Cena picks himself at center-back, he's got the build, he's got the presence, he's not as bad with the ball at his feet as he's sometimes made out to be and as we are unceasingly reminded, he will never give up and he'll rise above hate and all the other things. His experience is also invaluable, particularly alongside the somewhat more green Antonio Cesaro. Cesaro has size on his side as well, but he bolsters it with plenty of technical skill and composure on the ball.
RB/LB: Sin Cara and Rey Mysterio
Pace is the name of the game at full back with Rey Mysterio and Sin Cara. Mysterio may be slowing down as he gets older, but he has bags of experiance, and he can still get up and down the touchline, reliably supporting wherever he is needed. Sin Cara is almost the exact opposite. His electric pace will punish any side, and his stamina is unrelenting, but he has been prone to costly mistakes in the past.
CDM: Wade Barrett (Vice-Captain)
If you're playing in midfield against the WWEXI, watch out, because chances are, you'll be given a pretty rough time by the team's anchor, Wade Barrett. Barrett's physical strength coupled with a mean streak a mile long means that he is one of the most intimidating guys you'll ever come up against, bullying opponents off the ball all over the field, and acting as an excellent shield in front of the back four. Barrett's presence also allows the two men ahead of him to roam free and terrorise the opposition like only they can...
CAMs: CM Punk and Daniel Bryan
Look out. That's all you can really say when faced with CM Punk and Daniel Bryan. The two men are sublimely talented, and have bags of experience. The two men are by far the most technically gifted players in the team, very agile and very hard to stop, in addition to being more than competent when being asked to defend. They are the fulcrum of the WWEXI's attack, and will supply the forward line with ammunition, time and time again, in addition to chipping in with plenty of goals themselves.
RW: Dolph Ziggler
Ziggler was born to play on the wing. In addition to having the cocky attitude of a certain #7 before him (coughronaldocough) Ziggler has more than enough skills to back it up. His technical ability is second to very few, and his athleticism and work rate means that he has the pace and stamina to boss his side of the field. He'll score, he'll supply, he'll do it all.
LW: Alberto Del Rio
While Del Rio may lack the raw pace and agility of Ziggler, he makes up for it with class and experience. Incredibly sound with the ball at his feet, he has the composure and experience to punish any team's defence.
CF: Randy Orton
The Viper, Randy Orton has the experience and skill to turn any game on it's head in the blink of an eye. He's not quick, he's sudden, slithering seemingly out of nowhere to make his mark. Take your eye off the Apex predator for one second if you dare... because one second is all he'll need.
Well that's my team, there's the bones of a champions league winning side there, in my opinion. What do you think?
26 January, 2013
A Royal Occasion...
The road to Wrestlemania has begun, and as ever, our first stop is arguably the second-most popular pay-per-view on the WWE calender, the Royal Rumble. Let's take a look at the card for tomorrow's event, and make a few predictions...
Royal Rumble Pre-Show
US Championship: Antonio Cesaro (Ch) vs The Miz
I have mixed feelings on this match being on the pre-show. On the one hand, they will given a little longer and will probably be able to get more things done in the time allotted than if they were on the main card. On the other hand, this has been building over the last few weeks, and it's unusual to have a well built to match not even making the main card. Still, look for it to be a good match, Cesaro is one of the best workers in the company right now, but Miz can hold his own. I don't think Cesaro's time as US Champion is going to end just yet, particularly not on the pre-show, and besides, this feud has enough in it to take us to Elimination chamber next month at least.
My Predictions
Winner: Antonio Cesaro
Ending: Cesaro pins Miz after hitting The Neutralizer
Time: 15 minutes
Royal Rumble Main Card
WWE Tag Team Championship: Kane and Daniel Bryan (Ch) vs Damien Sandow and Cody Rhodes
I've loved Kane and Daniel Bryan, but I think their time as champions will come to an end at the Rumble, at the hands of Team Rhodes Scholars, Rhodes and Sandow. Kane and Bryan's story arc has gone as far as I think it can, and, no offense to tag team fans, but they're too good individually to stay in the tag team division for much longer, they belong back in singles competition. Rhodes and Sandow are great as a team for now, and they'll make good tag team champions. I think both are destined for greater things, Rhodes for certain, but they're good in their current roles and should hold the titles through Wrestlemania and into the Summer.
My Predictions
Winner: Cody Rhodes and Damien Sandow
Ending: Rhodes hits Daniel Bryan with CrossRhodes for the pin.
Time: 15 minutes
World Heavyweight Championship: Alberto Del Rio (Ch) vs Big Show in a Last Man Standing match
I've enjoyed Del Rio as a face a lot more than I thought I would, but then again, he's a guy I have always wanted to like. He's very good in the ring, but was held back by a heel character more staler than a month old sandwich. He's over with the crowd, and I don't see his title run, which is only 2 weeks old, ending here. Big Show has been good over the last few months, his feud with Sheamus was one of the best of 2012. With the stipulation, this match should be brutal and violent, and a potential show-stealer
My Predictions
Winner: Alberto Del Rio
Ending: Del Rio hits Big Show with his car for the 10 count
Time: 20 minutes
Royal Rumble Match
Probably the most popular match type in the history of WWE, the Royal Rumble is here once more, and needless to say, I'm excited. The line-up is pretty solid. Confirmed so far, we have the likes of John Cena, Randy Orton, Sheamus, Dolph Ziggler, Kane, Daniel Bryan, Wade Barret, Antonio Cesaro, The Miz, and of course, Ryback. In addition we can also expect some returning superstars (Christian, Mark Henry are my bets) some old faces making surprise returns (John Morrison seems the safe bet here) and a few legends stepping back into the ring to show the young whipper-snappers how it's done (My money's on Roddy Piper and Billy Gunn). In terms of winners, Cena and Ryback are the two the most people have their money on, with a possible dark horse in Dolph Ziggler, although his odds just got alot longer with the announcement that he will start at either #1 or #2. I hope I'm wrong, but I'm gonna take the perennial safe-bet here, and go with WWE's resident superhero...
My Predictions
Winner: John Cena
Ending: Cena wins by last eliminating Dolph Ziggler
Time: 70 minutes
The winner of the Rumble match will go on to face either the World Heavyweight Champion or the WWE Champion at Wrestlemania. I've already said that I think Alberto Del Rio will retain his world title. But the more pressing question is who will be the WWE Champion come Wrestlemania? That will be decided in the biggest WWE Title match in over a decade...
WWE Championship: CM Punk (Ch) vs. The Rock
CM Punk, as of the 26th of January, has held the WWE Championship for 433 days, the sixth longest reign in history, and is without a doubt one of the most talented overall performers in the history of WWE. He's excellent in the ring and arguably the best talker to ever pick up a mic. The Rock is arguably the most famous wrestler of all time. He's a 7-time WWE Champion, he's main-evented multiple Wrestlemanias, he's won the Royal Rumble, and he's beaten Steve Austen, Hulk Hogan and John Cena on the grandest stage of 'em all. He's done everything there is to do. The build-up between the two has been perfectly executed. The first confrontation on Raw three weeks ago between the two was one of the highest points the show has reached in years, one of the highest points it's ever reached. And now, we are a little under 24 hours away, at time of writing, from the biggest WWE Title match since Stone Cold vs The Rock at Wrestlemania 17, 12 years ago.
In terms of quality, the build-up has easily trumped the build to Rock vs Cena at Wrestlemania 28, and the match should do the same, simply because Punk is a much better worker than Cena. It will be back and forth with Punk probably having the advantage for most of the match. The Rock looked pretty tired halfway through the match with Cena, so hopefully he will have a better idea of his limitations this time round. In spite of that you're probably looking at 30 minutes of what should be a 4-star match, 3.5 minimum. If the crowd is hot enough, it could be an all-time classic. I hope Punk wins, but as with the Rumble match, I'm gonna play the odds. I don't think it's a certainty, but it's more likely than not...
My Predictions:
Winner: The Rock
Ending: Rock pins Punk after a Rock Bottom
Time: 30 minutes
Royal Rumble Pre-Show
US Championship: Antonio Cesaro (Ch) vs The Miz
I have mixed feelings on this match being on the pre-show. On the one hand, they will given a little longer and will probably be able to get more things done in the time allotted than if they were on the main card. On the other hand, this has been building over the last few weeks, and it's unusual to have a well built to match not even making the main card. Still, look for it to be a good match, Cesaro is one of the best workers in the company right now, but Miz can hold his own. I don't think Cesaro's time as US Champion is going to end just yet, particularly not on the pre-show, and besides, this feud has enough in it to take us to Elimination chamber next month at least.
My Predictions
Winner: Antonio Cesaro
Ending: Cesaro pins Miz after hitting The Neutralizer
Time: 15 minutes
Royal Rumble Main Card
WWE Tag Team Championship: Kane and Daniel Bryan (Ch) vs Damien Sandow and Cody Rhodes
I've loved Kane and Daniel Bryan, but I think their time as champions will come to an end at the Rumble, at the hands of Team Rhodes Scholars, Rhodes and Sandow. Kane and Bryan's story arc has gone as far as I think it can, and, no offense to tag team fans, but they're too good individually to stay in the tag team division for much longer, they belong back in singles competition. Rhodes and Sandow are great as a team for now, and they'll make good tag team champions. I think both are destined for greater things, Rhodes for certain, but they're good in their current roles and should hold the titles through Wrestlemania and into the Summer.
My Predictions
Winner: Cody Rhodes and Damien Sandow
Ending: Rhodes hits Daniel Bryan with CrossRhodes for the pin.
Time: 15 minutes
World Heavyweight Championship: Alberto Del Rio (Ch) vs Big Show in a Last Man Standing match
I've enjoyed Del Rio as a face a lot more than I thought I would, but then again, he's a guy I have always wanted to like. He's very good in the ring, but was held back by a heel character more staler than a month old sandwich. He's over with the crowd, and I don't see his title run, which is only 2 weeks old, ending here. Big Show has been good over the last few months, his feud with Sheamus was one of the best of 2012. With the stipulation, this match should be brutal and violent, and a potential show-stealer
My Predictions
Winner: Alberto Del Rio
Ending: Del Rio hits Big Show with his car for the 10 count
Time: 20 minutes
Royal Rumble Match
Probably the most popular match type in the history of WWE, the Royal Rumble is here once more, and needless to say, I'm excited. The line-up is pretty solid. Confirmed so far, we have the likes of John Cena, Randy Orton, Sheamus, Dolph Ziggler, Kane, Daniel Bryan, Wade Barret, Antonio Cesaro, The Miz, and of course, Ryback. In addition we can also expect some returning superstars (Christian, Mark Henry are my bets) some old faces making surprise returns (John Morrison seems the safe bet here) and a few legends stepping back into the ring to show the young whipper-snappers how it's done (My money's on Roddy Piper and Billy Gunn). In terms of winners, Cena and Ryback are the two the most people have their money on, with a possible dark horse in Dolph Ziggler, although his odds just got alot longer with the announcement that he will start at either #1 or #2. I hope I'm wrong, but I'm gonna take the perennial safe-bet here, and go with WWE's resident superhero...
My Predictions
Winner: John Cena
Ending: Cena wins by last eliminating Dolph Ziggler
Time: 70 minutes
The winner of the Rumble match will go on to face either the World Heavyweight Champion or the WWE Champion at Wrestlemania. I've already said that I think Alberto Del Rio will retain his world title. But the more pressing question is who will be the WWE Champion come Wrestlemania? That will be decided in the biggest WWE Title match in over a decade...
WWE Championship: CM Punk (Ch) vs. The Rock
CM Punk, as of the 26th of January, has held the WWE Championship for 433 days, the sixth longest reign in history, and is without a doubt one of the most talented overall performers in the history of WWE. He's excellent in the ring and arguably the best talker to ever pick up a mic. The Rock is arguably the most famous wrestler of all time. He's a 7-time WWE Champion, he's main-evented multiple Wrestlemanias, he's won the Royal Rumble, and he's beaten Steve Austen, Hulk Hogan and John Cena on the grandest stage of 'em all. He's done everything there is to do. The build-up between the two has been perfectly executed. The first confrontation on Raw three weeks ago between the two was one of the highest points the show has reached in years, one of the highest points it's ever reached. And now, we are a little under 24 hours away, at time of writing, from the biggest WWE Title match since Stone Cold vs The Rock at Wrestlemania 17, 12 years ago.
In terms of quality, the build-up has easily trumped the build to Rock vs Cena at Wrestlemania 28, and the match should do the same, simply because Punk is a much better worker than Cena. It will be back and forth with Punk probably having the advantage for most of the match. The Rock looked pretty tired halfway through the match with Cena, so hopefully he will have a better idea of his limitations this time round. In spite of that you're probably looking at 30 minutes of what should be a 4-star match, 3.5 minimum. If the crowd is hot enough, it could be an all-time classic. I hope Punk wins, but as with the Rumble match, I'm gonna play the odds. I don't think it's a certainty, but it's more likely than not...
My Predictions:
Winner: The Rock
Ending: Rock pins Punk after a Rock Bottom
Time: 30 minutes
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