Customer Rating:  
Summary: UNSANCTIONED or SCRAMBLED? A really good card
Comment: After the poorly bad card at last year's Unforgiven, WWE wanted to try something different and new this year. We have seen Hell in a Cell, Elimination Chamber, Money in the Bank, Royal Rumble, TLC, Steel Cage, Last Man Standing, First Blood, Parking Lot Brawl,and much more. We've seen nearly every single match type this year already leading into the Unforgiven event. So this time around we saw the Championship Scramble match. To those who don't know the rules, here they are...
- 20 Minute Time Limit Match
- 2 Men start and every 5 minutes at random a new superstar enters the match
- Whoever scores a pin fall or submission during the 20 minute time limit becomes the current World Champion
- At the end of the 20 minutes, whoever is the current World Champion becomes the offcial World Champion
1. Ecw World Championship Scramble Match
Matt Hardy vs. Finlay vs. Miz vs. Mark Henry vs. Chavo Guerrero
This was an excellent way to start things off. And as others stated this was the best scramble match out of the 3. Hardy and Guerrero had very good showings. Even the Miz impressed me in this match. He would also bleed towards the end of the match. All four guys did a good job selling the big power moves by Henry. The falls came at perfect times. Great match. Truly a crowning moment for Matt Hardy. 4.5/5
2. World Tag Team Championship
Cryme Tyme vs. Cody Rhodes and Ted Dibiase
This was a very good tag team match. Cryme Tyme looked pretty good in this one and of course so did the tag champs of Dibiase and Rhodes. A very good wrestling tag bout. After the match, Manu makes his debut. A pretty good tag team match up. 3.5/5
3. Non-Sanctioned Match
Shawn Michaels vs. Chris Jericho
This was defiantely the most personal and emotional match of the night. HBK came for revenge and thats what he got. HBK just whelled on Jericho each moment he got. Cade would interfere. But soon gets his after being put through the announce table along with Jericho. The ref stopped the match once Shawn wouldn't stop beating on Jericho with his belt. Brutal match, especially for Jericho. 4.5/5
4. WWE Championship Scramble Match
Triple H vs. Brian Kendrick vs. Jeff Hardy vs. Shelton Benjamin vs. MVP
This was another very good scramble match. Shelton and Hardy kept this match interesting in my view. So did Kendrick as well. Once HHH made his enterance, he really picked things up. It went a little bit slow at some points. But this defiantely lived up to my expectations. Another great match up. 4.25/5
This is the point in the card where Eve interviews CM Punk on his match and then gets taken out by Randy Orton along with Dibiase, Rhodes, and Manu. A good segment to check out.
5. Divas Championship
Michelle McCool vs. Maryse
I thought when the Divas title was released, it was a joke but these two showed me something in this match. This was actually one of the bests women's matches of the year. I really enjoyed watching this match. Maryse used a few good submissions on Michelle. A pretty good women's title match. 3/5
At this point in the show is where the Big Show comes out and taunts the crowd about not being in a Championship Scramble match. Soon Vickie Guerrero comes out. Then out of no where a casket pops up and the Undertaker reveals himself. As thinking Big Show is on Taker's side, he pops Taker with one of his big right fist blows. Taker and Big Show brawled for a good while until Vickie would slap Taker and spit in his face. A nice little brawl between these two monsters and worth a watch.
6. World Heavyweight Championship Scramble Match
Chris Jericho vs. Batista vs. Kane vs. Rey Mysterio vs. JBL
This scramble match really disappointed me. It wasn't bad but it just didn't live up to the hype as the first two did. Not a whole bunch of falls surrendered in this match either. Kane and Batista had a very good showing. Of course the shocker in this match is Jericho being the replacement man after Punk got taken out. A good scramble match but in my eyes could have been better. A lot better. 4/5
Unforgiven is one I recommend taking a look at. Every match on the card is very good.
Customer Rating:
Summary: Surpassed my expectations for the most part. 4.25 stars.
Comment: Wow, is really all I can say about this event. I had very high hopes with this ppv for a number of reasons. I believed the three scramble matches were going to be good. Because earlier in the year WWE successfully pulled off two elimination chamber matches on the same ppv. Plus the names going into these matches almost promised a very good show. Also, the most emotional feud in years and one of the best. Delivered one brutal match in the form of Michaels vs. Jericho. Overall, the matches delivered but some could have been alot better.
The scramble matches really aren't new to those who don't know. WWE introduced this match as a Battle Royal in Wrestlemania of 2000 for the then active Hardcore Championship. The 3 matches overall were good, with two being standouts. The rules are as follows:
-20 minute time limit on match
-2 Superstars start in the ring and every 5 minutes a new superstar enters
-If a superstar scores a pinfall or submission. He becomes the current champion
-Whoever is the champion at the end of 20 minutes becomes the official champion
ECW Championship Scramble Match
Mark Henry(C) vs. Matt Hardy vs. Finlay vs. The Miz vs. Chavo Guerrero
I don't care what anybody says. This to me was the best of the scramble matches. Everything here clicked and it told the best story. Matt Hardy and Miz kicked off and went pretty well together. Chavo entered and delivered some pretty good high flying offense. Mark Henry looked great here. He did a great job looking unstoppable and dominant. The build up towards the end was very believeable. And the outcome left an open ending that could easily begin a new storyline. Overall, it was fast paced, non stop action, there was weapon use, and the scramble rules were used pretty well. 4.5/5
World Tag Team Championship Match
Cody Rhodes & Ted Dibiase(C) vs. Cryme Tyme
Another match that suprised me but wasn't too special. The thing I found the most interesting was the two teams seemed cohesive. There were some good double teams. And there was enough time given to make the match seem important. The aftermath also added to the match. And I have to point out Cryme Tyme do have alot of charisma and they're starting to grow on me. Whatever it is they have, it certainly gets the crowd amped. 3.5/5
Unsanctioned Match
Shawn Michaels vs. Chris Jericho
Now, I don't believe this is the best overall feud of the year. Taker and Edge still has that down concerning match quality. But as far as storyline goes. These two are pretty much beyond them. All the build up leading up to this match, one can only assume these two want to seriously injure each other. And this match made that clear. It truly felt like a grudge match because they actually had a fight, more than they wrestled. Even at times, there was very strong refusal to break submissions and mounted beatings. They brawled and bought weapons into play. Their facial expressions told the story. The drama was on point. A good match that lived up to the hype. Match of the night for me. 4.5/5
WWE Championship Scramble Match
Triple H(C) vs. Jeff Hardy vs. MVP vs. Shelton Benjamin vs. The Brian Kendrick
Coming into this match. I actually asked, why was Kendrick added? But man, I'm glad he was. Even though he didn't start the match. He actually seemed more worthy to be champion. The fans were incredibly behind Hardy and that's to be expected. He delivered a good perfomance and Shelton was athletic as always. I also liked how the scramble rules were used here because they built alot of edge of the seat suspense. I wasn't happy with the outcome but the match still delivered. 4/5
Now this doesn't exactly count as a spoiler at all. For the simple fact, the DVD case clearly shows Chris Jericho in the main event. And not Punk. Reason being around here, he takes a beating from Rhodes, Dibiase and Manu. Plus Randy Orton delivers one of his classic head punts. Taking Punk out of the main event. So a new superstar had to be picked and no matter what. There would be a new champion.
Divas Championship Match
Michelle McCool(C) vs. Maryse
For a women's match in the wwe. This was pretty much above average and I can see this again. These two delivered a solid wrestling match. Maryse goes to work on McCool's legs after a slight mistake. They used some good counters and submissions. I really like the way WWE has been pushing their women's division as of late. 3.25/5
World Heavyweight Championship Scramble Match
Batista vs. Kane vs. Rey Mysterio vs. JBL vs. Chris Jericho
This was the least of the scrambles for me. Simply because I felt the scramble rules were poorly used compared to the first two. And there really wasn't that good of a story told here either. One thing I will point out is this. Lately, I've been very happy with Batista's new offense. He has definitely become alot more interesting as of late. The match overall was pretty good with JBL getting creative with one of his regular moves. And the ending made alot of sense to me and I did like it. 3.75/5
This was a very good ppv that delivered in many areas. I will also add something in regards to the first two scramble matches. The superstars who took serious finishers, did a great job selling them and made the matches alot more believable. This DVD is worth picking up.
Extras
Eve Torres interviews Vickie Guerrero & the Big Show
Chris Jericho addresses the crowd from Mondy Night RAW on 9-8-08
Customer Rating:
Summary: UNFORGIVEN Is Unforgettable
Comment: I'll make this simple: I think UNFORGIVEN 2008 is the WWE's best PPV presentation so far this year. Every match delivered, and pointing out its imperfections would just be stupid nitpicks. I'm not gonna call this a flawless PPV, but the rest was so great that I just don't care about what's wrong with it.
I don't give out 5-star ratings often, so brace yourselves:
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1) Championship Scramble - ECW Championship
Matt Hardy v. The Miz v. Chavo Guerrero
v. Mark Henry (champion) v. Finlay
---Easily the biggest surprise to me, as this was my favorite match of the PPV. This whole Scramble was just non-stop excitement. Matt & Miz started off, and delivered a back-and-forth skirmish for the entire five minutes they had. Chavo's entrance only added more to the mix. Instead of being a one-on-one affair where a wrestler took an extended break, all three men engaged in a genuine Triple Threat Match. In other words, all of them kept going at it. Mark Henry actually entered 4th, and changed the dynamic of the whole match. Things mostly proceeded as a 3-on-1 attempt to keep the giant down; to Henry's credit, he never bored me for a single second. His offense was somewhat repetitve, but Miz & Chavo & Hardy still came up with creative ways to stay in the fight. And having Finlay close the opener did nothing but help, because he's as tough and unorthodox as they come. To summarize, all five contenders -- even Mark Henry -- gave what I would call a Match-of-the-Year candidate. The whole match was an action-packed, fast-paced frenzy. A truly exciting way to kick things off, and we're just getting started!
"8.5 / 10"
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2) World Tag Team Championships
Cryme Tyme v. Cody Rhodes & Ted Dibiase (champions)
---I haven't read many positive reviews of this match, and I can't understand why. All four men kept coming up with so many unique double-team maneuvers & counters, I don't have time to list them all. Cryme Tyme aren't my favorite pair of wrestlers, but the crowd loves them, and tonight I really enjoyed their unusual style. Given enough time, they'll be a team to look out for. But I'm already looking out for the impressive team of Rhodes & Dibiase. Even when compared to Randy Orton, these two champions have wrestling in their blood, and it showed in this PPV contest. The match did slow down a bit about halfway through, but it was slow in a good way. Manu's post-match introduction was a bit confusing, but otherwise, this was 13 minutes I'd gladly revisit. Jerry Lawler at one point was so quiet that he later asked, "You ever just sit back and just 'watch' a match?" If that's not a compliment, I don't know what is.
"8.5 / 10"
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3) Unsanctioned Match
Chris Jericho v. Shawn Michaels
---You better sit back, because I'm gonna try to summarize 40 minutes of video package, entrances, action, & post-match drama. First off, the history video was sharp and well put together. That might not seem like a big deal, but it's crucial to why this match was as good as it was. To be honest, I got a little worried once the Street Fight began. My fondest memories of Jericho/HBK matches are the technical displays, but when they engage in violent encounters like this, it can be a little jarring if you're not ready for it. But with patience, you'll realize that this rivalry is a jack-of-all-trades. For this encounter, don't expect pinfall reversals and clever submission holds; this was a ground 'n pound fistfight, with some toys thrown in. I really appreciated how little Jericho & Michaels actually used the weapons for most of the match. Rather than being a spotfest, the action was very even-handed and sensible (if you can call a Street Fight that). Perhaps needless to say, this match was violent, grueling, and shocking. The real shock factor, however, was the drama. UNFORGIVEN is the perfect PPV name to hold this grudge match, because it holds many meanings to this particular feud. On a very rare occasion, the WWE got us inside the heads of its characters. Pro wrestling is told through the body, but HBK & Y2J know how to use their facial expressions. Seeing Michaels' sadness & desperation to control the vengeful beast inside of him was breathtaking. A lot of us hardcore fans & critics like to use the word "psychology" in our reviews; trust me, this redefines how important it is. If you think I'm being corny, then you haven't watched this match. One of the most powerful experiences I've ever had watching a pro wrestling match.
"8.5 / 10"
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4) Championship Scramble - WWE Championship
Jeff Hardy v. Shelton Benjamin (United States champion) v.
The Brian Kendrick v. MVP v. Triple H (WWE champion)
---The SMACKDOWN crew had three tough matches to follow, but to my delight, they held their own. Jeff & Shelton's first five minutes were a back-and-forth affair, which should please any wrestling fan. The real treat of this Scramble, however, was the impressive performance by Brian Kendrick. It's a shame he took an unbelievable amount of punishment towards the end of the 20 minutes, because he looked more like championship material than anybody else in this match. Where SMACKDOWN's main event lost a bit of steam, I think, is when MVP & HHH entered the contest. Unfortunately, MVP didn't get to show much of his talent. And HHH's five minutes quickly shifted the focus to just Jeff & him. I love "The Game's" title reign, but on this night, he practically stole everyone's thunder when he showed up. However, SMACKDOWN still did an impressive job earning the PPV airtime. Ten great minutes, Five solid minutes, and Five decent minutes......very good combo, if you ask me.
"7.5 / 10"
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***At this point, UNFORGIVEN 2008 might turn off some people. World Heavyweight champion CM Punk was being interviewed backstage, only to be confronted by Randy Orton, and ambushed by "Priceless" (the Rhodes/Dibiase/Manu faction). I think if I paid $40 on PPV, I'd be very disappointed. But on DVD, this segment worked pretty well, mainly because it was quick & effective.***
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5) Divas Championship
Maryse v. Michelle McCool (champion)
---Guess what? I actually liked this match, too. Granted, it was only 6 minutes, got some stupid "BORING" heckles, and was probably just a way to cool the down the audience. However, this particular match made me respect these two women. From bell to bell, Maryse & Michelle used a lot of interesting takedowns, counters, & holds to compete for SMACKDOWN's Women's title. I don't care for Maryse much, but she gave an overall crisp performance. And I think McCool has been a Diva to keep an eye on for a couple months now, and I hope I'm right about her being the next Trish Stratus. In any case, this isn't the main reason to buy the DVD, but I still liked it overall.
"6.5 / 10"
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***After the Divas Championship Match, RAW GM Mike Adamle assured the audience that while CM Punk might not be in the main event, the Championship Scramble would still continue with five competitors.***
***Next, Big Show entered the ring, and got plenty of laughs & smiles after he made a case for being Punk's replacement, and ripped on Vickie Guerrero's GM performance. Then, Vickie came out and spoke some very harsh words to Show for interrupting the PPV.
Then, Undertaker -- in a nice throwback to his old Dead Man threats from the mid-90s -- basically said he was coming for Vickie at this very moment. After Taker entered the ring, Big Show suddenly started clobbering him all over ringside, eventually knocking him out.
So what did I think of this segment? It was a great idea, but went on so long that Big Show's twist became predictable. If the scenario had been trimmed by about 5 minutes, it would've been great. As such, it worked overall, but not as well as it could've.***
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6) Championship Scramble - World Heavyweight Championship
Batista v. JBL v. Kane v.
Rey Mysterio v. Chris Jericho
---Before I get to Jericho's surprising victory, there some kudos to give the other four competitors. For starters, JBL & Batista began the Scramble with a slugfest that made me forgive their terrible matches from 2005. When Kane entered third, most of the main event was a one-on-one fight, but it was still entertaining. Once Mysterio made his way to the ring, all four men started using more creative offense. Mysterio used Batista for some high-risk assistance, and JBL came up with an impressive spot where he Fallaway Slammed Mysterio onto an opponent. And lastly, Jericho's presence in the main event was a strange bit of comedy. He literally did nothing but take a spear, and get the winning pinfall. I believe that most fans will regard RAW's Championship Scramble as the worst; while it's my least favorite too, it's still a good main event. It's more of a slower-paced slugfest with Mysterio thrown in to shake things up, and with Jericho added for shock value. Reading that description doesn't do a good job of telling you how well the ingredients mix. RAW's presentation was a different kind of story, but was just as worthy of a PPV as the others.
"7.0 / 10"
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OVERALL
---With the exception of a short Divas Match and a less-than-perfect betrayal segment, UNFORGIVEN 2008 was an outstanding PPV. All three Championship Scrambles will hold up as time passes. The rules & stipulations are clearly explained by the commentators -- who did a great job of keeping things fresh, by the way -- and the quality of the matches is very solid. The Jericho/HBK Match is going to entertain many fans, and for many different reasons. And even if you don't like the twist where Punk was replaced by Jericho, please remember that the first two hours are so good you'll forgive it (forgive the pun...twice).
2008 has been a great year for the WWE, and UNFORGIVEN is undoubtedly the most fun I've had so far. Buy It!
Customer Rating:
Summary: How Do You Want Your Title Matches...Regular Or Scrambled?
Comment: Please excuse my bad joke in the title but after the disaster reception that was Unforgiven last year, WWE tried to based this PPV revolving around a concept. Royal Rumble has the battle royal, WrestleMania has "Money In The Bank", One Night Stand is gimmick matches, Cyber Sunday is fan interaction, Survivor Series is the tag team elimination match, and earlier this year at No Way Out was the Elimination Chamber....this Unforgiven is about the Scramble Match. Now the match itself is a mix of the Royal Rumble & the "hardcore battle royals" they used to do when the Hardcore Championship was active over 5 years ago. The official time limit is 20 minutes with two wrestlers starting & after every 5 mins., a new superstar would enter the ring. Throughout the entire time period, whoever scores a pinfall/submission over anyone else becomes the temporary champion and whoever is the "champion" at the end of that time wins the match & becomes the OFFICIAL champion.
Scramble Match: ECW Champion Mark Henry vs. Matt Hardy vs. Finlay vs. The Miz vs. Chavo Guerrero - This match set the tone for the remaining scramble matches as everyone had their certain moments like Miz getting some high flyin' in, Chavo at one point executing one of the best frog splashes I've seen from him, and Mark Henry showcasing his dominating power. Everyone, except Miz, won the championship at one point but in the end, Matt Hardy hung on to the time limit to walk out the new ECW Champion.
World Tag Team Champions Ted Dibiase & Cody Rhodes vs. Cryme Tyme - This was really just an average match between both teams that wasn't boring but then again, nothing noteworthy or exciting happened either during the match...but look out afterwards for the debut of another generational superstar in Manu, son of Wild Samoan Afa.
Unsanctioned Match: Shawn Michaels vs. Chris Jericho - Unlike most "grudge" matches I've seen, this one actually played out the fact that both men hated each other instead of two guys wrestling like they would a normal match. The match started out as a brawl with HBK using his boot in the opening moments & HBK heavily put over that he was out to hurt Jericho various times like stopping in the middle of "Sweet Chin Music" just to hurt him more. Lance Cade eventually made an appearence & helped work over HBK's injured elbow before HBK recoved and beat Jericho with his belt & fist until the match was stopped because Y2J couldn't continue. This match wasn't as "high impact" as the unsanctioned match between HBK & HHH 6 years ago but it was still intense to watch & was better than their last match at the "Bash" but didn't top the Judgment Day match. Various spots to look out for will be HBK's creative way of escaping the Walls Of Jericho, HBK's elbow on both Cade & Jericho through the announce table, and the aftermatch involving the referee.
Scramble Match: WWE Champion Triple H vs. Jeff Hardy vs. M.V.P. vs. The Brian Kendrick vs. Shelton Benjamin - The match started off with Jeff Hardy & Shelton Benjamin having a suprizing grounded match since both men are known to be high risk takers, Kendrick follows with Jeff winning the belt from him before Kendrick won the title & held it longer than anyone else in the match, and M.V.P. dominated early when he arrived in the match as well. The match really picks up when Triple H enters as he regains the championship before Hardy gains it back with a bunch of high flyin' spots & mayhem all over the ring before Triple H regains the championship with one second left. This was the best scramble match of the event.
Right around here was the backstage interview with C.M. Punk that led to a confrontation with Randy Orton that resulted in a fight with Dibiase, Rhodes, Manu, Orton, Punk, and Kofi Kingston resulting in Punk being taken out of his World Title match.
Divas Champion Michelle McCool vs. Maryse - I'll give credit here as these women did try to make this match more interesting than the McCool/Natalia match at the "Bash" by working a faster pace & even taking the match on the outside for a bit. Maryse was the standout performer here as they kept working over McCool's knee with various submission holds throughout the match before McCool eventually got the win but this was a barely average match.
Throughout the night, the official "PPV text messaging" poll was weather the Big Show should have been included in the WWE Title scramble match. After the results revealed that he should have, Big Show came out to voice his opinion before Vickie Guerrero appeared to confront Big Show...which set her up for the Undertaker appearing to "take Vickie's soul" while Big Show kept Vickie from running away. However, Big Show ended up knocking down Taker with a huge punch before continuning to beat him down & dominate for a few minutes before Vickie Guerrero slapped & spit in Taker's face. This was the type of "confrontation" I felt like we should have had at SummerSlam with Jericho/HBK & was a good "teaser" segment.
Scramble Match: Batista vs. Rey Mysterio vs. Kane vs. J.B.L. vs. Chris Jericho for the World Championship - Unfortunally, despite Jericho replacing Punk along with the suprize ending, this was the wrong scramble match to end on because everyone involved couldn't top the SmackDown one or match the ECW one. This was really just an average match with everyone getting their typical spots in throughout the match with the only noteworthy performance being Batista's as he stared with J.B.L. & once again showcasing effort into adding to his wrestling style by working on J.B.L.'s knee & even using the figure four. The ending however saw Batista pinning Kane to become the "temporary" champion before he turned his back to counter an attack from Mysterio while Jericho sneaked in a pin over Kane after Batista did all the work & win the title after the time expired. Eventhough some people would say it's stupid for Jericho to win the title right after losing a match because he was knocked out, if you actually watch how the ending happened...it all makes sense.
DVD extras include Jericho addressing the crowd the next night on RAW & a backstage interview with Vickie Guerrero & Big Show. Overall, this event resembled other PPV's like Royal Rumble, No Way Out, Night Of Champions, and SummerSlam in that there are a couple of standout matches while the rest of the card is just an average/watchable so in the end, I would get as a rental & judge for yourself.
Customer Rating:
Summary: PPV was scrambled
Comment: I knew from day one I heard about this new match called a scramble match. I also knew it could make or break this ppv and apparently one broke it, one was the best, and one was surprising.
ECW Championship Scramble Match
Mark Henry vs. Matt Hardy vs. Finlay vs. The Miz vs. Chavo Guerrero
This one was not so bad. It had some good high flying moves by the Miz. Mark showed off his power. Hardy kept the crowd into the match. Chavo also hit a very well done frog splash. You may get a little confused with all the pinfalls but you'll get it, I think?
Overall 7/10
World Tag Team Championship Match
Cryme Tyme vs. Ted Dibiase and Cody Rhodes
I could not really get into this match at all. Just some standard mat wrestling with the antics from Cryme Tyme. Overall 4/10
Unsactioned Match
Chris Jericho vs. Shawn Micheals
Well, this was nothing like the unsactioned match Micheals had with Triple H at Summerslam 2002 but still good. The crowd was quite at a lot of times. Shawn gets some revenge for going after Jerichos eyes which gets creative at times. Things I would say picked up was toward the end when things got a little hardcore. Overall 7.5/10
WWE Championship Scrambled Match
Triple H vs. MVP vs. Jeff Hardy vs. The Brian Kendrick vs. Shelton Benjamin
I knew some how that Smackdown would have the best Scramble match. This match had a lot of pinfalls. Kendrick for a while cleaned the house with his effective kicks. I was surprised to see Mvp not doing much. Jeff did some risk taking moves. There was also a good spot with the electric death drop. Things got better towards the end. Overall 8.5/10
Divas Championship Match
Maryse vs Michelle Mccool
No offense to them but I barley watched this match. But when I looked I seen an okay attempt but couldn't do it for me. Overall 3/10
World Heavyweight Scramble Match
???????? vs. Batista vs. Kane vs. JBL vs. Rey Mysterio
Punk gets hurt by ted, cody, randy, and some new guy early in the event so people don't know if he can or cant make it. Let me say this honestly, This match was so boring. You know why because of JBL, Kane, and of course Batista. Mysterio tried to make it good but I could not take it. Turns out punk couldn't make it and they Jericho to take his place after that beating he got by Micheals. Overall 3.5/10 (For Jericho winning)
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