Tonight was WWE Backlash - not known to be a big ticket event as wrestling pay-per-views go. But tonight several men put their heart into their work and exceeded low expectations with pride. WWE Backlash had two built-in bathroom break matches and unfortunately one of them was for the World Heavyweight Championship. But the WWE Title match in particular made up for it. As usual I took notes, pointing out such important points you may have missed as Michael Cole's apparent narcolepsy problem, Edge's unfortunate ring entrance and an I-kid-you-not campaign for Judgment Day.


WWE Backlash

5:02 I almost couldn't bring myself to do it. I almost couldn't stomach putting down the forty dollars. But at the last second I impulsively hit the Buy button - pretty much deliberately clenching my teeth and doing it before I could change my mind - which is probably how about half of all WWE Backlash purchases are made. What can I say? If I could save up my allowance as a kid for four weeks in a row to buy every WWF pay-per-view then I can certainly buy these things when I have a cool grown up job and health insurance.

ECW Title Match
Jack Swagger vs. Christian

5:04 We're kicking it off with the ECW Title match. I'm still not sure about either one of these guys. I'm trying to have faith that Jack Swagger is going to get less green but he's bored me in the past, and Christian always struck me as Edge's less talented sidekick.

5:09 You can tell Swagger went out there tonight trying to change people's minds about him. His pacing is off and he doesn't have any ring psychology but he's mixing together a lot of creative moods that I wouldn't even know what to call - just picking Christian up at different awkward angles and doing suplex and powerbomb variations. I can't blame Swagger for wrestling a little selfishly out there. This is practically a career threatening match for him.

5:14 Christian is playing hurt - not a body part, just in general. But instead of seeming like he's overcoming the odds he just looks blown up out there. Swagger is working at twice the speed he is and hasn't backed down an inch since the match began. It makes me wonder whether Swagger is - in reality - wrestling selfishly out there and making himself look good at Christian's expense.

5:17 The ending is actually kind of cute. Swagger takes the turnbuckle pad off. The referee stops him and turns his back to put the pad back on. Little do they both know Christian is taking a turnbuckle pad off in the other corner. Swagger charges Christian but Christian moves and Swagger collides with the exposed steel, effectively falling for his own trap. Christian hits his finisher to win the ECW Title.

Time: Around 13 minutes
Winner: Christian
Verdict: *** - The match was better than I expected and Christian contributed almost nothing from an offensive perspective. He bumped adequately but it was Jack Swagger's match. Swagger does look like a rookie, but like a rookie with potential. Until the draft special he was one of my least favorite wrestlers. He's growing on me. At this point that's all he could have hoped for.

5:20 Christian is being congratulated by Finley, Evan Bourne and Tommy Dreamer when he spots Edge. Oh boy. This is so cool!  I didn't know there was going to be anything this cool on the pay-per-view. Christian confronts Edge and asks him, "What happened to you, man? You used to be fun." His words sting everyone in the audience but Edge, who seems too consumed with rage and aggression to hear him. Edge tells him John Cena is what happened to him. Christian asks, "That's it? One guy?" Edge says after tonight he's going to have Cena out of his hair forever and then he'll be fun again.

5:22 Chris Jericho and Ricky Steamboat are up next. Steamboat has some interesting new trunks - lime green with airbrushed pictures of dragons on them. The crowd is really loving Steamboat. There are big signs for him and chants of, "You've still got it!" The crowd reaction throughout this match is better than you would guess with non-stop "Y2J!"/"SUCKS!" chants too.

5:27 Steamboat impressively skins the cat only to get clotheslined right back over the top. Jericho berates Steamboat, who seems too proud to show his age at all. Steamboat is showing more agility, showmanship and technical precision than half the young guys in the locker room. He's no Shawn Michaels but clearly one he's shook the ring rust off he can warrant a roster spot for more reasons than just sentimentality.

5:28 Jerry Lawler has the surprisingly eloquent line, "Blowing out somebody else's candles doesn't make yours burn any brighter."

5:31 Steamboat hit's a nice belly-to-back suplex off the second turnbuckle. He slaps Jericho around with martial arts chops and hit's a running power slam. Very fun to watch. Jericho goes for the lionsault and Steamboat catches him mid-spring on his shoulders only to get flipped around and caught in the Walls of Jericho in one fluid motion. Incredible. Of course you assume it's over but Steamboat escapes and soon he's hitting a high cross body off the top rope.

5:35 Steamboat almost has the crowd believing he's going to win. They go insane when Jericho kicks out. Jericho hit's the Code Breaker and insanely enough Steamboat gets his foot on the ropes. Steamboat catches him in a small package and the crowd goes wild again for the two and a half count. This is obviously taken from the brilliance of the Shawn Michaels-Undertaker match but just stealing on that level is great.

5:36 Sadly, eventually the inevitable happens. Steamboat slips on the banana peel so to speak and gets caught in the Walls of Jericho in the dead center of the ring. There's no escape. Jericho is your winner.

Time: 14 minutes
Winner: Chris Jericho
Verdict: ***½ - It's rare you see a legend put on a three and a half or four star match. I don't think I'm being overly sentimental in saying this could the exception. I would be surprised if he went back on the road at this point. This was probably his sendoff. But I can't say I won't be a little disappointed if he isn't wrestling on RAW tomorrow. He left me wanting more.

5:37 After the match Steamboat thanks the crowd and they scream, "Thank you, Steamboat!" Very classy.

5:38 In the dressing room Beth asks Santino why he doesn't just tell "a very confused seven foot tall giant" that he dressed up as Santina to win Miss Wrestlemania. Santino insists his sister is a real woman and she'll defend the crown anytime. He actually starts to cry and Beth formally dumps him. She leaves him looking agonized.

5:40 Somebody seriously needs to have a talk with Josh Matthews. He's gotten the name of the stadium where Wrestlemania took place wrong two shows in a row. I get the feeling he's not a wrestling fan.

Read the next page to find out about the Hardy Boyz "I Quit" match and Beth Phoenix getting smacked.





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