The Great American Bash 2004
June 27, 2004
Norfolk, VA
Reviewed on March 13, 2014
Background: Smackdown in 2004 is a strange time. Ever since the Brand Extension, Smackdown had some of the best wrestling in the world and was a critically acclaimed show. Suddenly though, Brock Lesnar was gone, Chris Benoit and Edge were on RAW and Kurt Angle and Big Show were injured. There were definitely guys who could step up and main event with WWE Champion Eddie Guerrero…but the one WWE went with was totally unexpected and the decision was panned at the time. (And still kinda is, even if I did become a big fan of JBL, his reign was not good business wise). The misuse of Rob Van Dam and Booker T just made no sense here…as did the idea to not keep Edge on Smackdown.
You’ve gotta feel bad for Guerrero. This was the classic set up to fails scenario. Smackdown was not going to succeed with him on top with the lack of star power on the brand no matter how good he was, and evidence in his book you can see that the pressure to succeed as champion was really tough on him.
Another point to note is that we do see the continued emergence of John Cena here as well.
We’ll talk about The Undertaker when we get there.
The Card
Torrie Wilson is our host I guess?
Opening video does make this card seem a lot better than it is.
WWE US Championship: Four-way Elimination
John Cena© vs. Booker T vs. Rob Van Dam vs. Rene Dupree
One of these is not like the other.
I think this is an outright strange choice for a match considering the lack of star power on the roster…and how other matches on this card would suffer.
Also, Booker T and RVD needed to be used better than half of a US title match.
This was also still Thuganomics John Cena.
Man RVD gets no crowd reaction. How do you ruin Rob Van Dam? For the record, RVD getting injured later in the year was a blessing for him, as it allowed him to have a hot comeback with ECW.
Booker and RVD were feuding here, kinda. It led to the worst finish in Smackdown history, as Booker was DQed for punching RVD when he was in the ropes.
Rene Dupree does have big heat on him being French here.
Dupree has a headlock on RVD while Booker T is just hanging outside. Cena is standing around too. While it actually makes sense for Booker and Cena…it doesn’t make a good match.
Now Cena vs. RVD with Booker and Dupree standing outside. Who decided it was a good idea to structure the match this way?
THE FRENCH TICKLER. The only thing Rene Dupree did that was memorable.
Cena rolls up RVD for the pin to eliminate him. Wow, Dupree lasted longer than RVD.
Booker pins Dupree after Cena FUs him. Cena vs. Booker left, and since they would go this direction, it makes sense.
John Cena retains when he pinned Booker in 15:52. Booker misses a Scissors Kick and Cena gets the FU for the pin. There’s nothing really wrong with this match, but it is a shame to see RVD flat out wasted here.
Kurt Angle admonishes Charlie Haas. He’s disappointed in him as he was his protégé but now he has a better one in Luther Reigns. He sets up this impromptu match.
Sable promo about how she looks better than Torrie Wilson. Depends on your preference I guess. I’d take Torrie.
Charlie Haas vs. Luther Reigns
People just don’t care about Luther Reigns. That wouldn’t ever change either. Unfortunately, people didn’t care about Charlie Haas post World’s Greatest Tag Team either…but that’s actually a bit of a shame. Anyway fans boo the early offense of Reigns.
Haas clearly misses a dropkick but Reigns sells it by stumbling back anyway.
Nice suplex from Charlie Haas there.
Luther Reigns pins Charlie Haas in 7:11. Reigns hits the Roll of the Dice (CrossRhodes, whatever) for the win. Absolutely nothing wrong with this match either, in fact I thought Haas looked good as a babyface in peril. Too bad he never got the chance Shelton Benjamin got post draft (remember, Benjamin went over HHH right away). Fans really couldn’t give a crap about either guy though. Still, not really a bad match as really it was just boring.
JBL promo! I did think it was weird that JBL went all New York City but then brought back the Texas Bullrope Match.
WWE Cruiserweight Championship
Rey Mysterio © vs. Chavo Guerrero
Three problems with the idea of this match before it begins.
#1. Chavo just got finished jobbing the title to Jacqueline in a program I’ll never understand. Sure screwed the prestige of the title though.
#2. Rey Mysterio and Chavo have probably wrestled tons of times at this point. On PPV they only had one match so far (in WWE at least) at No Way Out 2004. This wasn’t a hot feud, but really moreso they had nothing planned for either so just keep cruiserweight titling it away!
#3. Rey Mysterio is a perfect example of someone where if put in a better spot, could have helped this show a lot. Really couldn’t run an Eddie vs. Rey for the title program?
The standard fast paced chain wrestling and springboard counters start the match. Revolutionary in the US in 1996 surely, but not in 2004.
Chavo dropkicks Rey off the top rope, very Jericho like.
Story of the match is for Chavo to work the knee.
This match is all mat based, which is okay I guess. I think the problem is this is Chavo’s best style…but he’s nowhere near as good as Benoit, Eddie or Jericho, who were all in the promotion at the time.
Weird double facebuster off the top rope.
I actually like the Gory Guerrero Bomb. It’s a cool move.
West Coast Pop into a half-crab was nice.
Rey Mysterio retains when he pins Chavo in 19:40. Chavo goes for another Gory Bomb, but gets caught in that awesome sunset flip for the three. This is a good match where Rey really sold the knee well. The issue is, most people watch Rey Mysterio for high flying stuff, and the story of the match had little high flying due to the knee. But it was still good.
Kenzo Suzuki vs. Billy Gunn
Attitude vs. new school! Kenzo’s never been pinned or been made to submit yet.
2003 was the last gasp to try to make Billy Gunn a top guy, but he floundered. By this point, the Mr. Ass run was on its last legs.
Kenzo was always just really awkward in the ring. That’s the best way I can describe him. His selling is strange too, very one second he’s selling the next he’s not (as evidenced by a Billy Gunn boot to the face).
Three of the eight minutes of this match was spent in a resthold. Pretty bad. Fans hate it.
The way Suzuki telegraphs moves actually reminds me of The Great Khali. Take from that what you’d like.
Shining Wizard gets two. First exciting thing in the match.
Kenzo Suzuki pinned Billy Gunn in 8:06. Kenzo botches a reverse DDT into his knee…and that gets three? Isn’t that one of Christian’s secondary moves? Why not just use the Shining Wizard? Anyway, match was boring and bad. Nothing happened and the finish was botched. No surprise Kenzo only lasted a year.
Paul Heyman and Paul Bearer in the back. Heyman is mad that everyone thinks he’s bluffing about putting Bearer in the Concrete Crypt. Bearer’s facial expressions own here.
Sable vs. Torrie Wilson
Battle of Playboy covers here.
Cole says the Great American Bash is used to matches like Dean Malenko vs. Arn Anderson. Just had to point that out eh Cole?
Nice neck snap from Sable! I didn’t expect that.
They follow with botching a rollup. But whatever.
Match has slowed to a crawl with the self-chinlock.
Horrible floatover suplex. Sable landed with her feet somehow, and Torrie didn’t complete the floatover.
They both knock heads and are down!
Sable pins Torrie Wilson in 6:06. Horrible botched finish here. Torrie gets up from the bumped heads spot, but Sable doesn’t. They go with the “Torrie wants to pin Sable but the ref says back up I need to make sure Sable is okay” finish (which never makes any sense. She’s not supposed to be okay, which is why Torrie should go for the pin!). Then a surprise roll-up from Sable…but somehow she goes too far so Torrie’s shoulder is WAY off the canvas, but the ref counts three anyway. Horrible. Awful match. It was so bad they had to talk about the finish on commentary.
Best interview ever with Rene Dupree. It’s because of what Dawn Marie is not wearing. Nunzio gets involved and is a bit funny here too. The FBI own Dupree.
Hardcore Holly vs. Mordecai
New school vs. Attitude era part two!
The story for this match was funny. Hardcore Holly and Moredcai were just found brawling last Thursday, and here we are. For the record, the past three matches were all made three nights ago, and Haas vs. Reigns was made this night.
Here is someone who just doesn’t look like he knows what he’s doing in the ring. Just sloppy all around.
Long headlock here.
I think a neckbreaker was supposed to happen, but somehow Mordecai and Holly bang heads. I think it was off Mordecai jumping way too high on a stun gun.
Mordecai pins Hardcore Holly in 6:31. Alabama Slam reversed into the Crucifix Bomb for the win. Match was boring, one spot was botched. I guess not as bad as the previous two matches, but not good either. It was bad enough that despite being undefeated and getting a win on PPV, we never saw Mordecai again as he was sent to OVW. He wasn’t good as Kevin Thorn. I actually liked the gimmick…but it didn’t work.
WWE Championship: Texas Bullrope Match
Eddie Guerrero© vs. JBL
Touching the four corners rules in effect.
The cowbell is a weird weapon.
A lot of choking with the rope early on.
Eddie dropkicks JBL into the corner and it’s JBL’s second corner. Establishing this actually makes sense for later.
Big chairshot busts JBL wide open. Good story as it’s revenge for what happened at Judgment Day 04.
Another chairshot to the head. Was this the first time Bradshaw ever bled? I don’t remember him doing so as a member of the APA.
Eddie’s corner lights stop working. Weird.
Eddie hits a frog splash! Eddie has dominated this match. JBL rolls out of the ring, which is a genius move here as Eddie can’t reach the corner now.
JBL uses the rope as a noose and sends Eddie from the corner onto the announce table (which didn’t break)! Nice spot though.
Powerbomb through the table by JBL!
JBL wins the WWE Title in 21:06. After some near JBL wins, Eddie beats the crap out of him with the cowbell. Eddie then goes to touch the corners, but JBL follows and touches the first three behind Eddie. (JBL’s first light doesn’t work. Nice job WWE). JBL then gets the advantage as he pulls Eddie and goes for the fourth corner. Eddie does a dive at the corner and gets it, splashing JBL in the corner in the process! Eddie retains….but no, Kurt Angle points out that JBL’s shoulder hit first and he wins the title. Dusty Finish aside, the match is pretty good. Probably the best of JBL’s career.
Concrete Crypt Match
The Undertaker vs. The Dudley Boyz
Your main event! You know this is a bad idea when I’m hating an Undertaker match.
Story here: Taker returned all dead…but there were no top heels on Smackdown for him to face (my theory on why we got JBL). He kinda buried Booker in May. So, Heyman became that top heel, and challenged the Dudleyz to make a difference or get tough or something. Dudleyz abducted Paul Bearer and Heyman used that to control the Undertaker in what would have been an awesome heel turn (and opponent for Guerrero). Nonetheless, here we are. If Taker doesn’t do the right thing (lose?) Bearer gets entombed in cement. What’s the point of the Dudleyz winning then? I don’t know. Why is this the main event? I don’t know. I love the Undertaker, but Eddie vs. JBL needed to be main eventing.
It’s not a feather in the Dudleyz cap if Taker lays down for them…since they really wouldn’t be beating him you know.
So far anytime Taker is owning the match, Heyman threatens to bury Bearer.
Heyman eventually has enough and does it, but Bubba Ray Dudley begs him to stop because he wants to finish off the Undertaker.
Now it’s all Dudleyz. But since the outcome is in little doubt, it’s pretty damn boring.
All the mic work is being down by Bubba. I never realized it, but I bet this was a chance to see if Bubba Ray Dudley could be a top guy. The answer is no by the way. (At least in 2004, Bully Ray is pretty cool in TNA).
Michael Cole actually calls the inverted double neckbreaker as the double team. Just lol.
The Undertaker defeats the Dudley Boyz when he pinned D-Von in 14:42. Tombstone for the win. Ok, so Taker shoots a lightning bolt at Heyman when Heyman tries to finish off Bearer (where was that shit earlier Undertaker?), then gets to Bearer. Instead of saving him though, he tells him it has to be this way and finishes the job. It’s like writers were so happy to get the old school Undertaker back, so they decided to write an angle for him, forgetting the fact that it’s 2004 and not 1994. Anyway, match is a disjointed mess and made no sense. I would have assumed this to be the main event of a WCW 2000 PPV. Why couldn’t we just run Eddie vs. Taker in the summer?
Anyway, this PPV has some good moments but kinda sucks when you put it all together. Only one really good match (JBL! And Eddie of course). One good match that was missing something (Rey-Chavo) Everything else ranges from decent (US title) to borderline ok (Reigns-Haas) to terrible and bad. Historically it became a running joke that the Great American Bash was the worst PPV of the year. The JBL title reign wasn’t exactly a draw, but it was surprisingly entertaining. This wasn’t a heel turn for Undertaker, just an explanation to get away from Bearer (and a dumb one), nevermind that it seemed to imply that Taker killed Bearer. This would be a C or C+ in normal circumstances, but for the crap it’s gotta be a bit lower. I do think it’s overall better than December to Dismember though…and actually it was a lot better than I remember it.
Final Grade: C-