The following is Jason Powell's review of the November December 13, 2009 WWE TLC pay-per-view. Check back tonight for Jason Powell and Chris Shore's live coverage reviews of WWE TLC. Dot Net Members can look forward to the exclusive audio review after the show. Join us on the ad-free version of the website by signing up now via the Dot Net Members' Signup Page.

Aired live on pay-per-view
San Antonio, Tex. at AT&T Center

The show opened with a video that previewed the various matches... Pyro went off on the stage, which featured hanging tables, ladders, and chairs. Michael Cole introduced the show and noted that it was the first TLC pay-per-view. The broadcast team is Cole, Jerry Lawler, and Matt Striker...

Powell's POV: I'd like to think Cole won't say "Vintage TLC" since it's the first show, but that didn't stop him at Bragging Rights. By the way, the dark match result is on the main page.

1. Christian defeated Shelton Benjamin in a ladder match to retain the ECW Title in 18:05. Striker said Shelton is the best pure athlete in WWE. Lawler said Cole "struck the nail right on the thumb" and tried to make a case for Christian. Shelton missed a kick early and Christian went for his finisher, but Shelton dodged it. They went to ringside where there were several ladders.

As Shelton was trying to drag a big ladder toward the ring, Christian entered the ring, went up top, and dove onto Shelton on the floor. Christian brought a ladder inside the ring and made the fist near grab at 3:30. A short time later, Christian picked up a ladder only to have Shelton take his legs out from under him. Christian fell backward and the ladder smacked him hard on the face and opened a cut.

The crowd booed as the medical staff tended to Christian and tried to close the wound. A loud "We want blood" chant started. Striker said the Texas athletic commission requires immediate treatment for a bleeding athlete. Nice cover line by Striker, but I don't recall them stopping any UFC fights in Dallas recently at the first sign of blood.

They did some fun teeter totter spots with the ladder with Shelton on top and then landing on his feet on the top rope. Fun spots with great balance and athleticism from Shelton. At 13:30, both wrestlers were fighting on the ladder when Shelton power slammed Christian off the ladder onto the mat. Cool spot.

At 14:30, Shelton was hanging from the hook because Christian pulled the ladder away. Christian set up a ladder and got him off the hook and ended up trading places with him. Shelton pulled Christian down and threw him onto a ladder that was set up in the corner of the ring.

Shelton ended up lying on a ladder that had been positioned with one end over the ring apron and another end on the announcers' table. Christian went to the top rope and frogsplashed Shelton, which broke the ladder. Christian headed back in the ring, climbed the ladder, and pulled the title down to win the match. Trainers tended to Shelton at ringside after the match while Christian headed backstage with the belt...

Powell's POV: A good match. They were given plenty of time and they took some chances, but they didn't go so crazy that they'll overshadow everything else on the show. Christian was really beat up in this match. There was the big spot with the ladder opening the cut on his head and then a couple other spots where ladders appeared to catch him. He looked rough afterward.

2. Drew McIntyre defeated John Morrison to win the Intercontinental Title in 10:20. It sounded like Lawler forgot Morrison's name during the pre-match banter, as he referred to him as "this young man." McIntyre controlled the bulk of the first five minutes of the match. Morrison came back with a wild tornado DDT.

They fought to the floor and Morrison hit a Chuck kick. Back inside the ring, Morrison went for Starship Pain and didn't really connect. McIntyre got his feet on the ropes to break up the pin. A short time later, McIntyre reached up and raked Morrison's eyes while the referee was distracted by trying to clear the title belt from the ring. McIntyre followed up with a Scot Drop (double-arm underhook DDT) and got the 1-2-3...

Powell's POV: A decent match. McIntyre didn't have much heat, but the live crowd was into the action. They were in a tough spot to follow the ladder match.

A video hyped the Slammy Awards... Backstage, Vince McMahon was shown congratulating Drew McIntyre. Josh Matthews entered the scene and asked for a few words with Vince, who told him to speak to the new IC Champion. McIntyre said he wasn't surprised he won the belt so quickly. Sheamus entered the picture and said McIntyre wouldn't be the only newcomer to leave with gold...

3. Michelle McCool (w/Layla) defeated Mickie James to retain the WWE Women's Championship in 7:35. Layla wore a "Piggie James" t-shirt. Mickie wore jeans, boots, and a leather vest for a Texas look. McCool dominated early and the live crowd was silent until McCool heeled it up around 4:00.

Mickie made her comeback at ringside at 6:00. They went back inside the ring and James got a near fall that the live crowd didn't buy into. She yelled "come on" and the live crowd cheered, but then went right back to being silent. At 7;10, Mickie went to the top rope. Layla tried to knock her off, but Mickie kicked her off the ring apron. Mickie got a nice near fall that the live crowd popped for, but she ate a kick from McCool, who got the clean pin...

Powell's POV: The live crowd liked Mickie, but they were flat unless she was on offense. McCool has come a long way in the ring, but there's she still has anti-charisma.

A video spotlighted Sheamus...

4. Sheamus defeated John Cena in a tables match to win the WWE Championship in 16:25. Cena was on the offensive early. He pulled a chair out from underneath the ring and set it up on the floor. Cena went to the top rope while Sheamus was leaning on the table, but Sheamus moved, so Cena got down and chased after him. They fought in the ring and then Sheamus punched Cena, who was hanging on to the top rope while teetering backward while taking punches from Sheamus.

They headed back to ringside and fought around the table and took turns teasing moves around it. They fought to the stage. Cena put Sheamus down on the entrance ramp and then headed back to ringside to get the table. He struggled to pick up the table as if it were Big Show, but eventually picked it up and carried it toward Sheamus, only to swing and miss with it.

Cena and Sheamus headed back to the ring, where Sheamus caught Cena with a big kick. He headed to ringside and grabbed a chair, which he set up in the corner of the ring. Sheamus picked up Cena to drive him through the table, but Cena got loose and hit a flurry of offense including the Five Knuckle Shuffle. Sheamus recovered enough to throw the table over the top rope so that Cena couldn't put him through it.

Cena went to ringside and grabbed a table and set it up in the middle of the ring. Cena set Sheamus on the ropes and then attempted to perform the Attitude Adjustment through it, but Sheamus fought him off. They continued to fight on the ropes. Cena looked wobbly as he set up for a superplex.

Sheamus shoved Cena off the ropes, causing him to crash through the table, which gave Sheamus the win. The announcers noted that Sheamus arrived on Raw on Oct. 26 and is already the WWE Champion. After the match, Cena sat up slowly and looked dejected. He grabbed a piece of the table and put it in his pocket. Be ready to hear all about that table piece on Raw...

Powell's POV: A big surprise and the crowd was pretty quiet. The match was entertaining and the table gimmick served it's purpose in terms of letting Cena lose without being pinned. However, I am looking forward to seeing a rematch without the table stipulation because it seemed to limit them more than help them. They lost the crowd a couple times because Cena struggled with tables. Most importantly, though, there's a new WWE Champion. It's cool to see WWE take a chance on a young wrestler even if they probably won't give him a long title run.

At ringside, the announcers discussed the title change. Cole and Lawler acted stunned, while Striker made mocking faces. They shifted focus to previewing the Undertaker vs. Batista and set up a video for the match...

Powell's POV: During the ring introductions, Striker said Batista never liked to take pictures or sign autographs and this is the real Batista shining through. My initial reaction was that Striker's comment was awkward because Batista will eventually turn babyface again, but my buddy Pooch reminded me that the babyface in this match killed his parents in a fire and no one seems to mind, so I guess it's all good.

5. Undertaker defeated Batista in a chairs match to retain the World Hvt. Championship in 14:45. Punch, punch, kick, kick. Throw in a bunch of swings and misses with chairs and that sums up the first five minutes of the match. Batista superplexed Taker at 5:30 and didn't get much of a reaction from the live crowd. Batista placed a chair on the mat and went for his finisher, but Taker backdropped him onto the chair. No pop.

Taker went Old School and followed up with Snake Eyes, which got a minor reaction out of the crowd. He ran toward Batista, who speared him. Batista slammed Taker on a chair and then did his Goldberg meets Mr. Ed foot stomp. He went over to Taker, who caught him in the Devil's Gate. Batista eventually reached the rope.

The live crowd came to life when Taker chokeslammed Batista for a good near fall at 12:00. Taker did the throat slash motion and then went for the Tombstone. Batista fought out of it and shoved Taker toward the referee in the corner. Taker stopped short of hitting referee Charles Robinson. Batista knelt down and low-blowed Taker from behind. Batista followed up with a chair shot to the head and got the pin at 12:45.

After the match, Teddy Long came out and said, "No, no, no." He said the usage of chairs was legal, but not a blatant foul with the low blow. He ordered that the match restart. Batista headed back to the ring and Taker hit him with a chair and then Tombstoned him for the pin. After Taker left, Batista was on the ground at ringside and said, "I don't need any of you"...

Powell's POV: A really weak finish. Granted, the live crowd popped, but Teddy's claim that low-blows aren't legal came out of nowhere. They never really defined the rules of the match coming in, so I guess it flies, but I didn't care for the restart because it doesn't jibe with all the heel tactics the general managers let go on a regular basis. By the way, it looked like Taker got his hand up on the chair shot to the head. At least they didn't go overboard with that. Overall, a flat match without much crowd reaction until the restart.

A Royal Rumble video aired... The announcers set up a Randy Orton vs. Kofi Kingston video...

A shot aired of Kofi warming up backstage. Ted DiBiase and Cody Rhodes approached Kofi from behind and said they had a message. Kofi said he's not intimidated by his sidekicks. Cody said they are more than sidekicks. Um, sure. They bickered a bit and Kofi eventually walked off. Ted and Cody followed.

Kofi stormed into Orton's locker room and called him a coward. He said he doesn't deserve a title shot ever again. Orton stood there and took it. The three heels stood by as Kofi walked away...

6. Randy Orton pinned Kofi Kingston in 13:15. They traded offense during the opening minutes and then Orton took control at ringside. He brought Kofi back int he ring and delivered a series of kicks to Kingston's stomach. Orton picked up Kofi in suplex position and threw him onto the top rope.

Kofi came back with the SOS, but didn't get much of a reaction from the crowd when he got a near fall. Kofi had a nice flurry of offense, but Randy cut him off with a backbreaker. Kofi came right back a kick and the Boom Drop. He played to the crowd (which the announcers called him on) and then hit Trouble in Paradise for a near fall. Still not a great reaction from the live crowd.

Randy caught Kofi between the ropes at 11:45 and DDT'd him. Randy set up for the punt kick. Kofi blocked it with his arm and then sold an arm injury. Striker said Kofi may have suffered a stinger as Orton worked over the arm. Kofi went for Trouble in Paradise, but Randy ducked the move and hit the RKO for the clean win...

Powell's POV: A decent match and the finish was cool, but there was nothing particularly memorable about it. Slightly disappointing for someone who had high expectations like I did.

The "Please Don't Try This At Home" video aired... Backstage, Batista bitched to Teddy Long about being robbed of the World Hvt. Championship. He swung a chair next to Long and told him to make it right or the next time he swung a chair would be at Teddy's head. Teddy quivered in fear...

A Slammy Award ad aired... A shot aired of the Alamo. Matt Striker told us earlier that there's no bicycle in the basement of the Alamo. No one at my house has any idea what that meant, but a half-dozen readers informed me that it was a Pee Wee Herman reference...

7. Triple H and Shawn Michaels defeated Big Show and Chris Jericho in a TLC match to win the WWE Unified Tag Titles in 22:50. Punch, punch, kick, kick times two to start this match. HBK and Jericho paired off, while Hunter and Show headed away from the ringside area while brawling.

All four wrestlers ended up on the top of the stage. Jericho had a chair and was about to hit Hunter when Shawn ducked backstage and returned with a chair of his own. Shawn worked over the heels, but they quickly regained control of the fight and headed back to ringside. Show tried to slide Jericho a ladder through the ropes, but DX returned to ringside and broke that up.

A short time later, Shawn made the first real play for the belt, but Show headbutted Hunter and pulled Shawn down from the ladder. The heels took control of the match and maintained it for the next couple minutes. DX came back when Hunter DDT'd Big Show (which looked really weak because Show took it by doing a summersault). Show cut them off a short time later by spearing Hunter.

Show made a play for the belt, but Hunter hit him with a chair. It just pissed off Show, who made an angry face, climbed down, and punched the chair into Hunter's face. Show went for the belt again. Shawn recovered and Show threw him down. Hunter and Shawn teamed up to push over the ladder. Hunter hit the Pedigree on Show while Shawn shoved Show down.

Shawn made a play for the belt at 16:30, but Jericho recovered and knocked Shawn off the ladder, over the ropes, and into the arms of Show on the floor. Jericho went for the belt, but Hunter stopped him. Later, Show placed Hunter and Shawn inside the ladder and slammed it shut so that Jericho could slam chairs on top of it.

It was the same spot they did on Raw. This time, however, the ladder broke. Show pulled it away and a piece of it appeared to catch Shawn on his side. Shawn held his side in pain until Show punched him in the same area and knocked him to the floor.

Show put Jericho on his shoulders to make another play for the belt. Hunter and Shawn recovered and knocked Jericho off Show's shoulders. Jericho went over the top rope and onto a table (he intentionally slammed his head on it as part of the bump). Scary spot with one of Jericho's feet touching the top rope on the way down.

Hunter set up a piece of the broken ladder and held it in place while Shawn climbed it and pulled down the belts to win the match. Cole said it was the first time in history he could say that DX were the tag team champions. Hunter and Shawn celebrated with the belts. Cole said he had two words for us. "Good night," he said to close the show.

Powell's POV: A decent tag TLC match. We've seen some insane TLC matches in the past. These guys took some chances, but they didn't go too crazy. I don't blame them a bit, but it's hard for this match to really compete with some of those wild TLC matches from the past.

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