#TyboTalks… 2002: Full Year PPV Review (@Tybo_SLTD)

In case anyone has not seen I have reviewed every WWE PPV of 2002 over the last 12 months, they have dropped exclusively on SLTD Wrestling. THis was originally Tybo Talks… 15 Years Ago, but as I have continued this into 2003 they are now Tybo Talks… 2002.

Before I started this I firstly didn’t think I would make it through them all and secondly didn’t think I would enjoy doing it as much as I did. While doing these reviews I not only watched all the 2002 PPVs I also watched every Raw and Smackdown throughout the year, this was a tremendous undertaking.

To put it into perspective this is 104 hours of Raw, 104 hours of Smackdown and 36 hours of PPVs. I’m sure you can all work out that almost 250 hours of wrestling watched (244 hours to be exact).

Reviewing the Year
2002 is widely considered one of the worst in WWE history, this could be because everyone seemed to slow down after the Monday Night Wars. with no competition to speak of its easy to get complacent, and many fans and employees of WWE thought this was the case back in early 2002.

This coupled with the year being plagued with injury from some of the top stars including Edge and Kevin Nash returning for one night only (Insert your own ‘quad’ joke here) and the added hole left by Stone Cold Steve Austin when he took his ball and went home there was a lot of plans that never came to pass.

2002 was also the first year there was a WWE brand split, this was new to everyone and there were (as you would expect) teething problems. Personally, I thought once Stephanie McMahon and Eric Bischoff were named as the brand General Managers the storyline was one of the best of the year. Especially when they were constantly bidding for talent, those few months where any superstar could jump ship were great to watch.

There were also some amazing moments that make this year one of the best, I would be foolish to write anything about 2002 and not mention The Rock vs Hulk Hogan at Wrestlemania. This is, in my opinion, one of the best matches ever, not only in 2002. I would go so far to say if you do not feel anything watching this match, you are not a wrestling fan. It’s a classic and an argument could be made that this is the best match in Hogan’s career.

Overall
Overall 2002 was an enjoyable year of wrestling, there were low points but what year is perfect. Personally, I wouldn’t have retired the Intercontinental Championship and the less said about the ‘Katie Vick’ storyline the better. That being said the return of Hogan, the mega-push of Brock Lesnar, Big Show having maybe the best year of his career and the seemingly ultra-personal rivalry between Triple H and Shawn Michaels made for a great watch throughout the year.

The Tybometer
Introducing my very own way of ranking 2002, The Tybometer! Each PPV was ranked out of five potential Tybo’s.

Match of the Night
Throughout the year while reviewing each PPV I have mentioned the matches of the night, below are (in my opinion) the twelve best matches of 2002, and the Match of the Year.

Royal Rumble – Intercontinental Championship: Edge (C) vs William Regal
No Way Out – Undisputed Championship: Chris Jericho (C) vs Stone Cold Steve Austin
WrestlemaniaX8 – The Rock vs Hulk Hogan
Backlash – Edge vs Kurt Angle
Judgement Day – Hell in a Cell: Triple H vs Chris Jericho
King of the Ring – Undisputed Championship: Undertaker (C) vs Triple H
Vengeance – Undisputed Championship: Undertaker (C) vs The Rock vs Kurt Angle
SummerSlam – None Sanctioned: Triple H vs Shawn Michaels
Unforgiven – Kurt Angle vs Chris Benoit
No Mercy – WWE Championship Hell in a Cell: Undertaker vs Brock Lesnar
Survivor Series – First Ever Elimination Chamber Match
Armageddon – World Heavyweight Championship Three Stages of Hell – Shawn Michaels (C) vs Triple H